Feliz Navidad!!!

Hello everyone! 

This week has been crazy, like always. We went to san jose tuesday night, and went to the temple wednesday morning :) It was great of course. After the temple we went to a chapel to have a christmas lunch! And it was SO AMERICAN it was great. Turkey, mashed potatoes, salad, i was in heaven. After we ate Presidente wilkinson showed us some christmas music videos that were awesome and gave a devotional. And he told us something absolutely amazing:

He said that he had recieved news that morning from the First Presidency. And then he told us through tears, that we are going to have two missions in Costa Rica. Everyone just gasped, and cheered, and cried. Tears were literally streaming down my cheeks. Why? Because President has always said that thats been his goal for costa rica and all of the blessings the people here would get with double the missionaries in every area. It is amazing that this is happening. And i feel so honored to be able to even be here when that happens. Quentin L Cook said that if there would be any new mission in the world in this next year, it would be costa rica. The Lord is looking down on costa rica and blessing us so much. The mission is going to split in June! San Jose East and San Jose West - they told us the zones that will be in each one and the two missions will literally be so different!! He said that an apostle is going to assign each current missionary to one of the two missions - so its like getting another mission call! Haha ;) but really it is so amazing. 

We have been really working hard here in Nicoya. Ive been really tired haha but with more determination! Satan is working hard here as well, and he always puts things in peoples minds to confuse them and literally it has been hard. All we can do at times is stop and pray, asking the Lord to take the wheel and help us out. Because the Lord knows the people a lot better than we do, and knows exactly what they are thinking. 

So we have 5 baptisms this weekend. Letty and Mariam, Genesis who is Jakeline and Gustavo´s daughter who just turned 8, and Dayton and Yerlan. And let me tell you satan is working hard on every one of them. But I know without a doubt that God is more powerful, and that he can do anything if we have faith in him. Faith is literally the key to everything on the mission. And i was studying faith today and learned something new. We always say that we have faith that something will happen. But Faith is to believe in Jesus Christ, that he is our savior and redeemer. Hope is different. Hope is believing that that the things we hope for will come to pass. Its believing that Christ will fulfill his promises to us. So faith must always be centered in Jesus Christ - after we have faith in HIM, we can have hope that all things will work out in the end, because of him. 

It does not feel like christmas at all!! Haha its so weird. I cant believe tomorrow is christmas eve. Its weird because the people celebrate christmas on the 24th...some people understand that the 25th is actually christmas but other people when we ask what theyre going to do on the 25th theyre like, What about the 25th? Thats just a regular day. Haha its so weird. We are going with a couple of families on the 24th - both members that live far away. And then we are going to visit other investigators and what not.On the 25th we are going to make breakfast for ourselves (pancakes woohoo!) and then talk to the fam (woohoo!) and then i have no idea what! But it will be a great day :) 

There are trucks that always drive buy with speakers on them announcing the food they have to sell and we flagged one down and bought watermelons and pineapples the other day...we felt pretty cool. Local ticas! 

Tonight is the christmas activity with the branch - we´re having a dinner and i think thats all but it should be fun!

I have been feeling very grateful lately. Grateful to be here in Costa Rica, grateful to be a missionary. The time really does go by too fast.
I love you all, and i hope you all have a very very merry christmas.
Feliz Navidad from Costa Rica :)

LOVE, Hermana Geis 

At the temple!

Got to see Hermana Montoya at the Christmas Devotional

Fruit :)