Week 7

Hello everyone!!

This week was good. I was thinking about you all a lot this week with the wedding and everything, and the day of the wedding i felt nothing but happiness - I was so grateful for that. We had some really powerful lessons this week. We´ve both been feeling the spirit a lot in the lessons and ive been able to express myself and explain things better in the lessons so thats really awesome. We´re trying to work hard, and Hermana Montoya said that this week was a lot more successful than her past weeks so that is so awesome!! We both have the desire to work hard. Even though we get tired and are weak haha the Lord helps us out.

So Fernanda, who got baptized this week, has a grandpa who´s been at her house a lot and we have been teaching him! We gave him a pamphlet of the restoration, and the next day he had read the entire thing and was spewing off all the information about it - that never happens! People rarely read anything we give them haha.  He was asking sincere questions, not about whether it was true or not but like detailed questions about what happened and it was awesome. he already knows its true, and he has a baptismal date. The only problem is he doesnt live here all the time so we´ll have to see what happens.

Another girl we´re teaching is Alejandra. We were going to stop visiting her a while back because she wasnt progressing or doing anything about our lessons, and right when we were  going to have our last lesson with her she accepted the invitation to be baptized. she came to church on sunday and said she knows that this is right, but she lives with her boyfriend and he doesnt want to get married. She knows that she cant get baptized until she´s married so she can live the law of chastisty, but he doesn´t want to. However!! We taught him yesterday! Haha he is a little hesitant but Alejandra  really knows that this is true, and I think that he will come around one day.
These two experiences have taught me that not everything is going to go smoothly. There are some really big obstacles that are in our way, but everything will work out in time.

Church on sunday was great because the chapel was  completely full!! With investigators and less active members. It was awesome. Its been hard to work with the members because something happened a while back where the members got super offended and that is all they talk about. We went to visit a member last night (because we were trying to find someone to give us food hahaha) and she talked for like a half hour about the same thing - i  finally had to tell her that we dont want to hear or talk about these things, because it distracts us from  our purpose. Hopefully everyone can just move on and realize that Jesus Christ is the head of this church and if HE forgives everyone, so should we.

here´s some random things about life in Costa Rica:

Me and Montoya are both terrified about bugs. luckily our house is pretty nice and we dont get a lot of nasty bugs. But a few nights ago there was a huge flying cockroack in our house and we were like screaming and running away from it and had to get our neighbor to come and get it out. hahaha it was hilarious.
It is REALLY HOT here. Like really hot. It has been soo dry, but at this moment it just started pouring rain haha. and i dont have my umbrella...oh well pura vida.

I miss the US!! going grocery shopping today made me miss it especially...everything is so expensive....and there is nothing healthy to buy....but hey it all works out haha.

Good thing i practiced piano because i´m going to start playing in sacrament meeting! they only have a keyboard so we´ll see how it goes. they might not like it because they sing the hyms reallyy low...they are not musical here haha its painful. But they still love to sing their hyms!

Im just so grateful for this gospel and the happiness it brings! My testimony has grown immensely and i could not be more grateful for that.
I love you all lots and thank you for everything!! Have a great week!

Week 6

Well I´ve now been in Costa Rica for over two weeks! Crazy right. Yesterday we took a 6 hour bus ride to San Jose to drop off Hermana Christensen. She soo does not want to go home haha. And guess what we ate for lunch...SUBWAY. I was in heaven. Thank you Heavenly Father! :)

So on Saturday a little girl we´ve been teaching got baptized. Her name is Fernanda, and she is ten years old. She is adorable. Her mom says she is always reading her book of Mormon, and when we set her baptism date she clapped her hands for joy. She is an amazing example to all of us to be so excited and passionate about the gospel at such a young age!

I also had a really cool experience last week. We were walking home after a lesson and we passed a house that we pass everyday, but this time the door was open and the lights were on. I kept on looking back thinking we should go talk to them, but they looked like they were eating so I didnt want to bother them. But I kept feeling like we should go back. So I told them we should go talk to them, and we did, and it was awesome. They were super receptive and invited us back, and the mom and the two year old son went to church with us on Sunday. My companions said they were so happy that I followed the spirit because neither of them felt that impression. They said that new missionaries seem to have the spirit stronger with them, but I think it should be the opposite! I hope that the spirit grows stronger the longer that I am out. But the only way it can become stronger is if I follow the promptings I am given. If I dont follow them, I´ll stop getting promptings.

It has been so extremely hot here. Its supposed to be rainy season and it´s rained like twice since I´ve been here! It´s really weird. 

here´s to answer some of your questions mom: We teach probably about 3-5 times a day. Our area is a long ways from our house so we walk a lot, and are supposed to make 20 street contacts a day. We have around 10 investigators, but some arent progressing. In a typical day, we get up at 6:30, exercise, and then do various studies from 8 to 12. Then we have lunch at our neighbors and head out for the day. We dont go back home until 9 or 9:30. And no one feeds us so if we want food we have to buy it, which we dont have enough money for every day! buut its okay because obviously the lord will bless us and provide a way for us :)

Well i´m out of time but I love you all!!

Hermana geis