Week 73: La Rosa

The new transfer started on Friday! 

I'm staying in La Rosa with Hermana Echeverria as an STL for my last transfer!! I'm really excited to stay! I truly love the members of the branch and I feel like lots of miracles are coming.

Hermana Romero went back to her last area (Bolsa Chica) to be companions with Hermana Edgley. Other than the necessary changes with missionaries leaving and coming in, things in our zones (HB and HBN) pretty much stayed the same,

In the process of transfers, we had a lot of meetings. We had end of transfer devotionals for HB and HBN, leadership training meetings, planning meetings, and MLC. On transfer day, we also got to take care of the new missionary who came in (Sister Stoker) while she waited to be assigned to a trainer. 

A small miracle with that is we just had this random idea to take her to Joes (an italian ice place by Disneyland that serves missionaries for free) and it was someplace that Sister Stoker always went to with her family when she was little, so it helped her feel at home in this new place.

A few other miracles

We found Lucas! He was taught 6 months ago when I was first in the area, but it just wasnt the right timing. He had been praying we would come back and we knocked his doo again last week! We had two lessons with him and Hermana Menendez and Lacey and were able to answer his questions about what happens after we die and why bad things happen to good people (these have been important questions for him because his son was killed a few years ago), He felt the Spirit and he said he wants to work towards baptism. Please pray for him!

We also got news from Heydi that things havent been great in Bakersfield so she might move back here...ill keep yall posted.

Paula, someone I taught last year in Raymond, finally got baptized and reeived the gift of the Holy Ghost! I am so happy for her. Sadly, I wasnt able to go because the baptism happened the same time as our sacrament meeting, but Ill include the pictures that the hermanas sent me! I am so happy she was able to receive the blessings of the atonement of Jesus Christ.

As missionaries, our purpose is to invite others to come unto Christ by having faith in Him, repenting, being baptized, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. 

This week Ive been studying about why what we do is so important. 

Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge wrote in a letter to a mission president:

"Missionaries think that they have the vision to baptize, because they want to baptize, but

they don't understand why. Ask them. Ask them if they want to baptize. They will all say

"yes". Then ask them why they want to baptize. You will get a host of answers but unless you have taught them these principles very well rarely will there be a missionary who will say, "I want to baptize because I want people to have the blessings of the Atonement in their lives; I want them to be forgiven of their sins and toreceive the gift of the Holy Ghost, because thatis the greatest gift a person can receive in this life." Until they understand that they don't understand what they are doing. Not really. "

I know that being baptized and receiving the Holy Ghost is the biggest blessing in my life. Because of that, I am able to progress, receiving guidance, have more power as I testify of Christ, become clean each week as I renew my covenants, and one day return to live with my Heavenly Father. 

If you have been baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, I invite you to think about how making these covenants has blessed your life. If you have not, I invite you to consider how it could bless your life.

I love you all and I hope you have an amazing week!

Hermana Dudley

1. Trio en la playa (or as close as we can get)

2. HB Devo

3. Sanchos con la Hermana Margarita

4. W/ Hna. Echeverria y Hna. Maldonado at transfers

5. HBN Devo

6. Saying goodbye to Sister Hill:( 

7. HB Zone Council

8. We planned flowers for the Clarkes!

9. Paula's baptism

10. MLC Training mtg Hnas Echeverria, Romero, Rivero: Elderes Bales y Pitts