Never Expect Anything Less But Happiness and Miracles!

Holllllaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hope everything has been GREAT at home. The mission this week has been going great!! You will think I’m crazy. My comp thinks I am, but I’ve been starting this new psychological program for myself. I talk to myself in the mirrors, showers, in the street just to pump myself up. I’ve got my quotes posted. It’s actually really funny, but you really gotta do what you gotta do to pull through!!!!!!! Remember that cheer? haha. Now that I’m here on the mission I really do feel like everything in my life has just been a preparation to be able to do this whole mission thing!!!! The mission is CRAZZZYYY....surely an adventure of a lifetime. I really didn’t expect it or was fully prepared before. But I looooooove it and each day just trying to make it the best!!!!

I’ve really come to realize that it really is the Lords work. So I can’t lower my expectations, just increase the faith!!!!!!!!!! I got to admit for a while I felt so discouraged and just straight up tired physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. But seriously, like a Kahi Mohala crazy person just talk to myself everyday and before leaving the house I just do all I can to pump myself up and sing a lot of Selena (its the coolest thing because I understand what she’s saying and that makes me soooooooo happy) and Natasha Bedingfield, because you never ever know what is going to happen here. But it seems to be working. I feel a lot better, happier, and yeah!!!!! I loooove Guatemala!!!!!!

So this week...............We had a baptism!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hooray!!!!!! I was so happy and it was a miracle.....really..... didn’t think it was possible but she was an EVANGELICAL!!! babhahhahhahhhaaa!!!!!!! That seriously should count for 100 baptisms!!!!! They are impossible!!! But ok she is the daughter of Angelina, has a baby and pretty much was the devil to us when we were working with Angelina!!!! haha. It was horrible. She would just tell her mom crazy, craaaazzy things and did all she could in her power to convince her mom to not get baptized. When we’d go over to visit Angelina she would just be really rude and call us brujas.....which is like witches. hahahaha. But we just did all w could to just ignore her, and yesterday she was baptized!!! Wow..... God is AMAZING!!!!!! I seriously could not believe my eyes!!!!

What happened was one day we were over with Angelina and Karla was there laughing, mocking, just being obnoxious. With all my love, I just told her to come and sit down with us and talk with us. She looked at me like I was crazy so, I just asked her flat out, “Karla what’s your problem?” My comp just started laughing because I guess it came out pretty rude. I thought I said it in a nice way but who knows. I just asked her because I really was curious WHAT her problem with the church was because I really don’t understand. It was an honest question. She kinda was like wha? Wha? Wha?..and she started saying stupid things about how her pastor told them that our church practiced witchcraft and was the most false of any church on the earth. If evangelicals even talk to Mormons it is trouble. They will get yelled at and the evangelicals have to go SAVE them. It’s just ridiculous.

I just started laughing and told her that was the craziest thing I ever heard and told her she couldn’t say ANYTHING about the church until she read the Book of Mormon and came to church and I told her YOU KNOW the church is true and that the members are good people because you have seen the blessings your mother has received. I remember that day all my frustration just started coming out and I started going on my rants because I was just so angry with people saying bad things about the church, Joseph Smith and the members of our church. lñkjafkljfkkffjiejk. It honestly makes me so mad.

My comp just put her head down in the lesson and started laughing at me but I think it made her think because that week she came to church!! It was a shock of my life to see her at the chapel, but ever since then we’ve been visiting her and yesterday she was baptized. Her husband still doesn’t want anything to do with us but hopefully that will change. But it was a cool experience because in these short weeks daaaanannng we’ve seen her grow so much!!! Of course, her church came chasing after us and her. She got fired from her job because she said she wasn’t going to work on sunday!!! And the evangelicals came to talk to us and told us horrible things about Karla and that she was only joining the church because we were paying her and giving her money!!!!

It is RIDICULOUS!!!!!! It really does open your eyes to how real Satan is. It’s crazy!! But really what did it were three things!!! 1....Karla was really able to see the example of her mom.....and yesterday Angelina was beside herself with joy because even she said she NEVER THOUGT THIS DAY WOULD COME!!!! haha. I remember the first time we had her pray she just broke down in tears because she thanked the Lord for sending the gospel to her mom because it’s the first time she’s seen her mom happy!!!!!!!! And the blessings of tithing really are real. Before, this family never had all three meals, but things are getting better. The Lord literally has opened the windows of heaven and that is the coolest thing to be able to actually witness those promises fulfilled before your eyes. And 2......the members!!!!!!! I seriously looooove the members in our ward. They honestly are just so willing to give, give, give. Ladies in the ward went through their wardrobe and gave Karla a couple of skirts and a pair of shoes so she could have something to wear to church and when Karla saw that she started to cry and just said I don’t know what to say because no one has ever done that before!!! Just a couple of skirts and blouses and a pair of shoes made her the happiest person in the world!!!!!! It touches my heart every time the examples of these people who themselves don’t have much but are just willing to give!!!!!! It really is amazing and is what made all the difference!!!!!! And 3.....conference!! After conference she decided to be baptized because it finally made sense to her and she knew that Thomas S. Monson was a prophet!!!

Yesterday, we were just overjoyed when she finally got baptized. It really was a miracle of the Lord!!!!!!!!!! Yesterday, we started laughing when we were talking to here because I told her I seriously never thought this would ever happen....you were like the devil to us!!! She started laughing and then said yeah but then you did your brujuria....or bewitched me!!!! haha. That was really funny!!!! Really it just strengthened my testimony of the power of positive thinking!!!! The church is true!!!! We are children of God and He loves us and is always with us!!!! For this never lower your expectations on life or expect anything else but happiness and miracles, because that is the type of God Heavenly Father is!!!!!I seriously loooooove Heavenly Father. This mission is the hardest thing I have EVER, EVER had to do. Guatemala has kicked my butt sometimes but I am here and am happy to be here because it really is the work of the Lord!!!!!!!!!! It is sometimes hard, but always worth it!!!!!!! Thank you for all your prayers, love, and positive thoughts you send my way!!!!!!!!! I’m pretty sure I would be back at home if it weren’t for you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! loooooove you all with all my heart and I really do mean that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Prestos todos prestos.............the church is true!!!!!!

Love,
Hermana G.