Week 50: La Rosa

Hi Everyone! I hope yall have had a good week!

So first, the crazy news: Sister Clements is back with us (well kind of). Sister Clements and Sister Hill have had some scary things happening to their apartament so we had to pick them up in the middle of the night last Wednesday & they've been staying with us since then and for the foreseeable future.  

Besides now living as a quad, we found out who our new mission leaders will be starting in July (the Galoteras from the Phillipines) AND we had 2 exchanges this week! On Thursday, Sister Harding came with me in our area and on Friday, I went with Sister Nylund to the Mile Square Park/Mid Single Adult Wards. We had some really good talks and saw lots of miracles:

In respect to the gathering of Israel, Elder Bednar has taught: "The Lord declared, “I am able to do mine own work” (2 Nephi 27:21), and “I will hasten my work in its time” (D&C 88:73). We are witnesses of His hastening of His work."

I have been a witness of the Lord's work this week. We had two really cool experiences! 

First of all, we met Edgar, the most prepared person I have ever met. Edgar is from Colombia and left his family just last month to come and earn money. I think the goal is for his family to eventually come here as well. Edgar filled out an ad requesting missionaries to come visit him! So when I was on exchanges with Sister Harding, we went in the POURING RAIN to visit him with Hermana Lino from the ward and turns out he lives in a house FULL of Colombianos, so we were able to teach him and another lady named Monica. It was the most well-received first lesson I have ever been a part of. The Spirit was so strong. And he is reading the Book of Mormon AND he came to church this Sunday!! Milagroooo!!

Secondly, Maria Aldrete has progressed SO MUCH this week. She has been taught for about three years, has the strongest testimony (she sleeps with her Book of Mormon and pamplets), and has even overcome an addiction! She just had ONE MORE THING to overcome related to the Law of Chastity in order to be baptized. She was praying to overcome this, but wasn't acting. 

But this week, we shared the video "Lovest thou me more than these" (John 21:15) and read the Family: A Proclamation to the World. The Spirit touched her and she came to her own conclusion that if she truly loves God, she needs to act and put Him before the things of the world. She decided that she was going to start living the Law of Chastity that very day! We are so proud of her. Keep praying for Maria that she can stay strong.  

In his talk, "The First Great Commandment," Elder Holland shares the story when Christ asked Peter if he loved him. Then Elder Holland goes on to tell us that he expects us to have a similar encounter with the Lord on Judgement Day. Elder Holland then says:

"And if at such a moment we can stammer out, 'Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee,' then He may remind us that the crowning characteristic of love is always loyalty. 'If ye love me, keep my commandments,' Jesus said. So we have neighbors to bless, children to protect, the poor to lift up, and the truth to defend. We have wrongs to make right, truths to share, and good to do. In short, we have a life of devoted discipleship to give in demonstrating our love of the Lord."

I've thought a lot about that. "The crowning Characteristic of love is loyalty." As His missionary, I have come to know my Savior. I have seen and felt His power. I know that He Loves me. And I love Him. So I will choose to be loyal to Him and to His commandments every day of my life. 

I invite each of you to consider how you can be more loyal to the Lord and put Him above the things of the world. 

I love yall! Have an amazing week!

Hermana Dudley

1.California Night Sky

2. Quad Life

3. Taking Sister Clements and Sister Hill back from the haunted apartment. Definitely didn't want to go back there again so we did some squishing. 

4.Planning with zls and dls

5.My mission family at zone conference. Hermana Votaw and I trained Hermana Garcia who is training Hermana Rivero

6.Hermana Votaw and I with our hija

7.Sister Harding on exchanges!

8. With Sister Nylund on exchanges! We went to Britt's baptismal interview (I the MSA area)

9. Futbol!