Monday, October 13, 2014

Just a little P-Day Boxing Match:)

Hello!!! I loved getting emails and pictures from you all! I love seeing little baby Luke! He is so so adorable! He's going to be the first baby I hold when I get home! And congrats to Nick and Jen! You two looked great! It's crazy all of the things that change when you are on a mission, but it's so great!
 
This week for me has been amazing as usual! The Lord is blessing us tremendously. There are a lot of things that go on each week, so I just don't even know half of the things to say anymore. But I will do my best to update you all on a missionary's life in Huntsville, Texas!
 
First, just got to share with you our great P-Day moment. So Brother Harris in our ward was a professional boxer, and he still trains people to this day. He is really, really good to say the least. So he has a boxing ring and a gym where he trains and today Hermana Loo and I got to go out and he taught us how to box! It was so much fun! We aren't fighting each other...yet...haha talk about an intense comp inventory! haha just kidding, we were just using punching bags. It is so much fun though! I'll send you some pictures.
 


      Working up a sweat!!! Just punching the punching bag, not each other!

Anyways, as for missionary work goes we have seen some amazing miracles this last week. We didn't go up to campus much this week because we are making a new family history display to take up there. We are going to have a Family History Fair and invite the students on campus to come to it. We have a map of the world that we are going to take up there for people to put a sticker on where they are from, and we also have a board with a tree trunk on it and leaves for people to write their name and where they come from to make a tree. We are super excited! Hopefully that all made sense. We have seen progress with some of our investigators this week too! We are teaching a YSA named Natasha, and it is going really well with her! We contacted her on campus awhile back and when she saw us she just said "No way, this isn't happening! I was meeting with missionaries a little bit before I came to school." Coincidence? I think not...so at first she was really unsure of what she believed. She was doing a lot of searching--comparing and contrasting different churches and their beliefs, not really knowing what her relationship was with God. We taught her the Restoration and talked a lot about how God is our Loving Heavenly Father a few weeks ago, and this last week when she came for another lesson she said "I've been praying, and I think I've decided that God is my Heavenly Father." Ah!!! So awesome! She is searching, and finding the answers to the questions she has! Anyone can do that! She also said "I think the Book of Mormon is true too. While I am reading it I think to myself 'This book is true, there is no way that is isn't' and then when I set it down I think 'Hmmm...maybe it's not' so then I pick it up again and think 'There is no way that this book is not true!'" We asked her, When you put the book down, who do you think is putting those thoughts into your mind? Her testimony is growing slowly but surely! She said that she feels really good about coming to the Institute building and learning from us, that it feels right. Now we've just got to get her to come to church and feel of the Spirit there!


       Creating our "family tree" for the bulletin board at Sam Houston
 
We also had a break through lesson with our 16 year old investigator, G. We had Specialized Training this week and talked a lot about being bold in inviting our investigators to be baptized in the first and second lessons. G has been taking the lessons for over a year now, but has had some family opposition when it comes to baptism. We decided to commit her to a date, and when we did she accepted! She was so excited, but nervous to tell her family. When she told them they said no because they want her to be more committed to going to church before she makes a decision like that. She hasn't come to church very much, and I think that they are worried that she will get baptized and then not go back. So they have legitimate concerns as parents, however they want her to be going to church for a year before she gets baptized. But G came to church on Sunday! It made me so happy to see her there! We are praying that as she puts forth this effort, that her family will see that she is changing and that they will let her be baptized a lot sooner. Something awesome that happened as well was that as she was getting ready to leave for church on Sunday her Grandpa asked "Where are you going?" She told him to church and then he asked which one. She said "de los mormones" and then get this...he proceeds to tell her that her great grandmother (who is still living) is a member and goes to that church in Mexico!! I don't think G even knew there was a church in Mexico, and now she can go with her great grandma when she is visiting there! I think that gave her a lot of confidence. Miracles are happening!
 
Lastly, I just want to share my testimony of fasting and prayer. Wow, is it powerful, and wow, does it work! Hermana Loo and I fasted on Sunday for help in knowing how to better divide the work in this area to help it be more successful, and also for the members of the ward and the branch. Heavenly Father blessed us tremendously on Sunday! So many people came! There were enough Spanish members for us to hold the Spanish Sunday school, and a lot of the members came and supported. We are going to start doing it every week rather than just if Spanish members come. We're hoping that as we make it a constant more people will have the desire to come. I was able to translate during sacrament meeting for una Hermana and then I taught the Spanish class on a whim too. The Lord was helping me out so much, and I knew that He was the one guiding the whole time. It takes me back to last week's letter, and how we truly are so much more successful when we just let Him help us! Then Gabby came, and more YSA members came too. I think there were more people at church on Sunday in both the ward and the branch than there has been my entire time serving here in Huntsville! The Lord is amazing, and He truly answers prayers! We just need to submit to His will and then everything falls into place. What an amazing week! My testimony of fasting and prayer has been so strengthened on my mission. I have had countless miracles come from fasting and prayer--and it is all because we desire to do the Lord's will. As we choose Him and His way, over us and our way we are blessed tremendously! So this week I want all of you to think about how you can put the Lord first in your lives, and make the necessary changes to do so. Choose the higher way. I'm going to end with the quote that Taylor actually sent me this week, because it goes perfectly with that point!
 
"Men and women who turn their lives over to God will discover that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. He will deepen their joys, expand their vision, quicken their minds, strengthen their muscles, lift their spirits, multiply their blessings, increase their opportunities, comfort their souls, raise up friends, and pour out peace. Whoever will lose his life in the service of God will find eternal life."
LOVE YOU ALL SOOOOO MUCH!!!!

Con muchisisisisimo amor,
Hermana Hoj


 

No comments:

Post a Comment