From Utah to Texas and Back

Monday, August 24, 2015

24 Agosto 2015

Hola! Como están??

Well, this week was transfer week. Can you believe that???? This last transfer just flew by so fast! Time flies when you're having fun doing the Lord's work, I guess. Jaja. But yeah. I stayed here in Lake Austin C, but I received a new companion! Hermana Cannon is my new companion! Hoorah! She is from American Fork. She is super great! We met when we were both down on the border--I was in Eagle Pass, and she was in Del Río. We never had the opportunity to work with each other there, but Hermana Cannon did give some wonderful trainings in Zone meetings. And then, when I got up here to Austin, she and Hermana Vorwaller were my Sister Training leaders, and I got to go on an exchange with Hermana Cannon. So, we've pretty much just followed each other around. Jaja. Fun stuff!

So this week has been really great. I have loved every minute of it!
We were out in Manor this last Tuesday, going through some potentials and formers, and we went by one, Eric. His dad let us in, and we started talking with him and his older daughter. Soon, the mom and other son came home, and joined us as we started talking about how they have seen the blessings from Heavenly Father in their lives. We soon started talking about how Heavenly Father shows us His love, and blesses us through His prophets. They love the bible, and the history that is there. They want to do the best they can to follow Jesus Christ. We have another appointment with them this coming Thursday.

So as part of my studies, I am reading through the Book of Mormon, in Spanish. It has been really wonderful to read it in a different language, and even to understand it a little better. This morning, I read in Mosiah 28 and 29. In chapter 28, it talks about how the sons of Mosiah wanted to go and teach the gospel to their brethren, the Lamanites. Of this we read, "Now they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not bear that any human soul should perish". Even the Lamanites, who hated them and wanted to kill them. They knew that they were also sons and daughters of God, and deserved a chance to change and learn the truth. "And thus did the Spirit of the Lord work upon them." The Spirit of the Lord can change us so drastically. Before, Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah were the "vilest of sinners", but through their effort and the way the Spirit worked upon them, they were able to change, and all became some of the greatest missionaries we read about in the Book of Mormon. Their example is amazing. This transfer, and for the rest of my mission, really, I want to focus on becoming more like Ammon, Amulek, and the other great amazing missionaries we read about. Those who were strong in the Lord, and worked for the rest of their lives to accomplish His work.

I love you all so much. I hope you are all healthy and doing well. :)

Hermana Dean

Aww. Cuties. I'm gonna keep you.

I wonder how long that drive was...

Monday, August 17, 2015

17 August 2015

Hola Todos!!

How are you all doing? This week has been pretty good.

We have been searching for a family to teach. We did have a lesson with the Raudales Family. That was really good. They still haven't come to church though. So, for our next lesson, we are going to have a church tour with them. They are so great. I know this gospel will bless their lives. They just need to act on it. :) They really are so great, and they have SOOOO many family members. I hope we can help them come closer to Christ.

SO. This week is transfer week! Gahh! Where has the time gone?? But. They are changing how they let us know about it. Instead of calling each of the missionary companionships the Sunday before transfers, they are now just sending out one email on Tuesday at 5 ish with all the information on who is staying and who is leaving. So. I won't know until then. (Since we have our ipads now, we can check our email any day during the week, but only can respond on Mondays.) So. Next Monday, I'll for sure let you know. :)

Ahh. So, on Tuesday, we got a call from Elder Presser, our Vehicle coordinator. He told us that our gas card had been compromised, and that we couldn't use it. He will be getting us our new card on Thursday(this coming one), and until then, we would have to use our Zone Leaders' card or another missionary's card. We had enough gas to get us through to Saturday, and we asked the Zone Leaders if we could use their gas card to go fill up, but they didn't have theirs either, because their car was in the shop. Oops. Bad on our part for not checking sooner. So we were trying to figure out another person. We were going to meet up with the Mt. Bonnell Sisters up in Pflugerville, but then, Hallelujah! The moving Elders called us and said they were at our apartment to pick up our old mattresses. So, we met up with them, and then they helped us fill our car up with gas. Hoorah!

We are also able to use Duolingo on our Ipads!! hooray! I love it. It helps a lot with vocabulary and retaining all the stuff I have learned. It has been really great. I am so very grateful for the tools Heavenly Father has given us to help the work move forward! I love you!

I love you all so much! I hope you are having a good last few weeks of summer. Gahh! Where has the time gone??

I love you!

Hermana Dean

That Texas Pride....

yup!

Monday, August 10, 2015

10 Agosto 2015

Hola todos!!

This week was pretty great. We had a lot of super fun adventures. Right now, we are really trying to find more people to teach. We are praying and working to be able to find a family. I know with out a doubt that there are famlies here that Heavenly Father is preparing people for us to be able to teach.,.. we just have to find them..

So, we got new mattresses. Hallelujah! They are so nice. But it was really funny. The moving Elders didn't have a key to get into our apartment, so they just left them out front with a pass along card stuck to them that said "For the Sister Missionaries, Do not take" we laughed pretty hard about it, and then we played "The Missionary and the Pea" jaja. Good times.

We also helped Enedina paint her living room. It was so much fun!

Also, we had Zone Meeting this last Friday, and President talked about our nature. That as we are, we are lost, fallen, sinners. But through the atonement if Jesus Christ, we can overcome our natural man and become saints in Him. He also talked about how we know if we have been forgiven. Now, a lot of people think you are forgiven if you can feel the spirit in your life, which isn't necessarily true. Yes, when you are doing good things, you feel the spirit. But sinners feel the spirit. That doesn't mean they have been forgiven though. In D&C we read that if "a man repenteth of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I the Lord remember them no more." So once we have repented, we are forgiven. Ok well then how do we repent? The next verse tells us. "By this Ye shall know if a man has repenteth of his sins, he will confess them and forsake them". That is it. It isn't a big long process. I think as humans, we have a tendency to complicate things. "Oh it can't be that easy"... I have said that to myself many times. But it really is that easy. We are the ones who complicate things. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is easy. Changing our nature can be hard at times, but it isn't impossible.

I hope you are all having a fabulous week!

I'll talk to ya'll next week!

Hermana Dean

Monday, August 3, 2015

Get Thee Hence, Satan

Subject line--one of Hermana Garner's favorite sayings. She tells it to me all the time.... Like when I offer her a donut. Doesn't she know if one companion eats a donut, so does the other so they balance each other out? Jaja. Good times. We have a great companionship.

So this week! It was great, and it was also not so great. I'll start with the not so great. We had to drop Gloria this week. She just isn't progressing. She stopped reading in the Book of Mormon, and hasn't been to church since I have been here. She was supposed to get baptized in June, but then the missionaries found out she wasn't married, but is living with her "husband", as she calls him. She says he doesn't want to get married, and she doesn't want to leave him, because they have been together for 22 years. She just told us she would go to another church and tell them she wants to get baptized even though she isn't married. I just wanted to cry! She had completely lost her testimony of the Restoration. It is so sad! We will continue to pray for her, but we won't be going by as often as before...

Well, now to the good. We had an AMAZING district meeting this week. Elder Sandstrom is truly an inspired leader. He talked about change, how we change, and who changes us. A lot of the time, we try to change ourselves. But we soon figure out that does not work. We need to be changed by the Master.

How are we to change? Offering our whole souls unto the Lord.

26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved(Omni 1:26)

How will this change come? Step by step, line upon line, here a little, there a little. Taking away one bad thing at a time, and replacing it with something good before moving on to the next.

65 And as they begin to grow ye shall clear away the branches which bring forth bitter fruit, according to the strength of the good and the size thereof; and ye shall not clear away the bad thereof all at once, lest the roots thereof should be too strong for the graft, and the graft thereof shall perish, and I lose the trees of my vineyard.

66 For it grieveth me that I should lose the trees of my vineyard; wherefore ye shall clear away the bad according as the good shall grow, that the root and the top may be equal in strength, until the good shall overcome the bad, and the bad be hewn down and cast into the fire, that they cumber not the ground of my vineyard; and thus will I sweep away the bad out of my vineyard. (Jacob 5:65-66)

The promises:

25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. (Matt 16:25)

When we forget about what WE want, how WE are going to change, what WE are going to do, and just hand it ALL over to the Lord, then we will find the person He truly wants us to be.

At the end of his training, Elder Sandstrom shared one of my most favorite poems, "The Touch of the Master's Hand" As you read this, think and ponder on how you can more fully give everything you are and everything you have to Him-to Him who knows how to make us more like Him. If you would like to read the talk, this was quoted by President Boyd K. Packer in his talk "A Touch of the Master's Hand" from the May 2001 Ensign.

Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer

Thought it scarcely worth his while

To waste much time on the old violin,

But held it up with a smile:

"What am I bidden, good folks," he cried,

"Who'll start the bidding for me?"

"A dollar, a dollar"; then, "Two!" "Only two?

Two dollars, and who'll make it three?

Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice;

Going for three—" But no,

From the room, far back, a gray-haired man

Came forward and picked up the bow;

Then, wiping the dust from the old violin,

And tightening the loose strings,

He played a melody pure and sweet

As a caroling angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer,

With a voice that was quiet and low,

Said, "What am I bid for the old violin?"

And he held it up with the bow.

"A thousand dollars, and who'll make it two?

Two thousand! And who'll make it three?

Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice,

And going, and gone!" said he.

The people cheered, but some of them cried,

"We do not quite understand

What changed its worth." Swift came the reply:

"The touch of a master's hand."

And many a man with life out of tune,

And battered and scarred with sin,

Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd,

Much like the old violin.

A "mess of pottage," a glass of wine,

A game—and he travels on.

He's "going" once, and "going" twice,

He's "going" and almost "gone."

But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd

Never can quite understand

The worth of a soul and the change that's wrought

By the touch of the Master's hand.

I sure love all of you. I know if you allow it, the touch of the Master's hand will change your life forever.

I love you! Talk to you all soon.

Hermana Dean

P.S. .. I might melt. No biggie.

Monday, July 27, 2015

27 Julio 2015....and I still can't breathe

( I don't know if the other email I sent actually went through, so.... here we go, just in case.)

Hello everyone! So... My subject. Texas just hates me, that's just it. Allergies are fabulous!!! (Dripping with sarcasm)

This week really was so great! Saul got baptized! His dad came down from Midland for it. It was so great, the spirit was so strong. Christian also got baptized. He is the brother of our recent convert, Enedina. He was taught by the Elders. He is so awesome. He really wants to serve a mission.

We had a really awesome lesson with Thelma and her family. In the past, when missionaries have gone by, the whole family is hardly ever there. So, we decided that if they weren't all there when we went, we would give them a break for a bit. But, miracle!! Thelma, her husband, and their daughter were all there. It was such a wonderful lesson. The spirit was so strong, and you could tell they could feel it too. They said they would pray and read and go to church to find their answer. Wow. I just have such a strong testimony that the Lord truly leads the missionaries to the prepared, and sometimes vice versa.

We also had a lesson with Gloria. She is an investigator, who was going to get baptized in June, but some other things turned up that we are trying to work through with her. She hasn't come to church for a while... Which is sad. She told us finished reading the Book of Mormon, which is great, but also she said she is not going to read it anymore, because she wants to focus reading the bible, which she has never done yet. We had a lesson with her about the importance of reading and studying both. She says she isn't going to read it. Ay. I just hate Satan so much! He is really working against her, and it is so sad to see. Any suggestions from you for how we should proceed?

Something really interesting about the Hispanic culture, is that they are really superstitious. Hermana Diaz came up to us after sacrament meeting, and told us she has a gift. Sometimes, she dreams about things that haven't happened yet, but then shortly after, they do happen. She told us that the night before she had a dream about two missionaries getting hurt and kidnapped. While she was telling us, she started crying, and you could tell she really was scared about something happening. She told us to be careful and to follow the spirit. Then, later that night, Hermano Sanchez called us and asked us if we were okay. He said Hermana Torres had called him and told him about Hermana Diaz' dream. He told us to be careful also, and to follow the spirit. So, that made for an interesting day. Yes mom, I'm safe.

Oh also, I saw a firefly for the first time in my life! It was super cool.

But yeah.. This week was super great! I hope you are all having a wonderful summer! I haven't melted yet, so that's good. ;)

I love you all!

Hermana Dean

Weekly planning in a nutshell! It is really great, but sometimes it gets a little hard..Popcorn makes everything better!

Saul got baptized!

Step up toilet... Lake Austin initiation

Only at Sonic!

Fwd: 27 Julio 2015.....and I still can't breathe.

Hello everyone! So... My subject. Texas just hates me, that's just it. Allergies are fabulous!!! (Dripping with sarcasm)

Oh also, I saw a firefly for the first time in my life! It was super cool.

But yeah.. This week was super great! I hope you are all having a wonderful summer! I haven't melted yet, so that's good. ;)

I love you all!

Hermana Dean

Weekly planning in a nutshell. It really is great, but sometimes it gets a little hard. Popcorn makes everything better!

Saul got Baptized!

Step-up toilet. Lake Austin initiation....

Only at Sonic!

Monday, July 20, 2015

20 July 2015

Hello!!!! This week has been so great. Aw man. So great.

Okay. So I'll start off with some funny stuff and then end with the best :)

Hermana Garner and I have had some great times together so far. I just love it! For example......

This morning, we were getting our shopping list all ready to go, and I asked if she wanted to buy some real laundry detergent, because what we had in the laundry room was straight fabric softener. She looked at me really confused, and asked what I meant. I told her the bottle of "soap" on top of the dryer was straight fabric softener. She almost cried. She had been washing all her clothes for the past 6 weeks in straight fabric softener. I thought she knew. She told me her previous companion told her it was soap and fabric softener. Super funny. So. Now all of you should know. Don't wash your clothes in fabric softener. :)

hah.

So, big news, Saul is getting baptized this weekend!!!! Hooray!! I'm so excited for him. I don't remember if I have told you about Saul before. well, here we go. He is 13 years old, and is just so great. I am so very excited for him. I wasn't here when the missionaries first started teaching him, but just in the week and a half that I have known him, you can tell that he really wants this, and that he knows it will change his life for good. He is living with his Grandma for the summer, and then will go back to live with his dad. His Grandma is the cutest old lady of my life. She reminds me a lot of Gwom, my great grandma. Her testimony is so strong. She is so amazing, and is such a great help for Saul.

So, I went on exchanges this last week with Hermana Cannon. She is so cute. I learned so much from her. One of the questions she asked me really stuck with me. She asked me what "success" mean to me. I thought about it for a bit, gave an answer. But that question has really stuck with me. The more I think about it, the more I really have an idea of what success really is. Before my mission, if someone would have asked me what success as a missionary means, I probably would have said it has to do with the number of baptisms they get on their missions.

But now, I think my answer has changed. No, I know my answer has changed. My vision has been raised. Now, I would say success as a missionary is change. Change for the better, of course. If you are able to change your life, your mind, and your will to be in line with those of God, then I would definitely say you have had success on your mission.

Now, please don't misunderstand. I know how important and essential baptism is for our Salvation. I am so happy when people decide to change their lives so they can receive blessings from God, and so they can be baptized. I just wouldn't say a missionary is only successful if they have baptisms. Hopefully, there is no misunderstanding with this. I am so thankful for the opportunity I have to help people come unto Christ through the saving ordinance of baptism. I am so thankful for the opportunities I have had as a missionary that have helped me change for the better.

I love you all so much! I hope you are all doing well.

Until next week!

Hermana Dean

Monday, July 13, 2015

13 Julio 2015

Hello everyone! I so hope you are all doing well. I am doing great! This week has flown by. I cannot believe it! So this week we had transfers, and I am now in Austin, Texas, in the Lake Austin ward, which is a Spanish area. I absolutely love it! This week, we had a mini missionary. Her name is Jacky, and she is the cutest thing ever. I have absolutely loved having her with us. She gets to stay with us, and goes to all of our lessons, and is just a missionary. I love it. She goes home on Wednesday though, so that is sad. I hope she decides to go on a mission, because she will be, and is, an amazing missionary.

My new companion is Hermana Garner, from Morgan, UT. She is so great! I am excited to learn so much from her in this new area.

So far, we have two people with a baptism date. Saul and Antonio. They have a date for the 25th. I am so excited for them. Just in the couple of days I have been here, I have seen them progress and learn and just absolutely love learning about the gospel.

Also, during the transfer meeting, President talked to us about our prayers and how we should be praying. It has been amazing to put that into action and see how much better my prayers can be. President talked about how we sometimes have vain repetitions in our prayers that we may not notice, like "Dear Heavenly Fatherwethanktheeforthisday....." And I realized that I did that! So, I have since changed the manner in which I say my prayers to be more like a conversation, because that is what it is. Our prayers should be reverent, remembering that He is Heavenly Father, and we should have so much respect for Him, that should show in our prayers. So, I would encourage you to look at the language of your prayer, and change it if you need too. It really has made my prayers more meaningful to me, and I am sure to Heavenly Father too.

I hope you are all doing well! I love you all.

7/11 slurpee!!

A yellow/orange watermelon

Hermana Dean

Monday, July 6, 2015

6 Julio 2015

Hello Everyone!!

I so hope you are all doing well. I am doing great! Eagle Pass is really the best. But, sad news, I will be leaving Eagle Pass on Thursday. :( but that's okay. I am excited for what will come.

I love you all. I hope all is going well for you. :) Happy late 4th of July! It was a super weird day. We didn't see fireworks at all, because our outside window faces a hospital and a giant field.... but that is okay.

I love you all so much! Take care. Until next week!

Hermana Dean