hola everyone! wow what a crazy week i have had. my companion and i had some excitement this week but i will explain about that in a minute. first, on tuesday my companion had a meeting all day because she is a sister leader for our zone and so i went on splits with some missionaries in independencia. it was a great experience because i was able to realize things that i wanted to improve about how my companion and i do things and also things that i like about how we do certain things. i realized that i am in a great area and i am so grateful for the members in my ward.
and then on wednesday my comanion woke up screaming and it ended up that her appendix bursted! it was crazy. i called the zone leaders and they came running to your house and we got a taxi and drove an hour to independencia to the sketchy hopsital there. we waited in the waiting room for like a half hour and then they took me and my companion back to the room but they wouldnt let the elders come. and my companion was in so much pain. so then we waited in the room for 4 or 5 hours with people coming in every once in awhile but not really doing anything. i had no idea what was going on haha. and then we were told that we needed to go to a different hospital because (i have no idea why) so we drove an hour to lima central to a really nice hospital and once we got there they said there wasnt any room for us and we had to go back to the first hospital!! can you believe how crazy the medical system is here in peru! so we went back to the first hospital and then the doctor came in and said that she needed to have surgery. she was really scared but the zone leader came in and said exactly what she needed to hear. he told here that if she trusts god then there is not reason to be scared. god will watch over her. so then they took her away and i waited for another 5 hours with the zone leaders (who both only speak spanish) in the waiting room. we had a great time though and i realized how grateful i am for the amazing leaders i have. elder garcia always knows exactly what to say to make the situation better and elder florian is constantly telling jokes that i dont understand because they are in spanish but just they way he tells it is hilarious. they difinitely made the day much better and i dont know what i would have done without them. and then president erickson and hermana erickson came and the zone leaders left and we waited another 2 hours or so for her to wake up. and then i slept in the hospital on this tiny couch with doctors coming in every hour haha. lots of excitement hahaha!! my companion was so brave and she is doing much better now. she cant really do much and just has to stay in our room for 2 weeks.
so on thursday i had my first day solo!! i was so scared because i hardly understand spanish and cant speak much and have no idea how to get anywhere but i had a member with me and it turned out to be a really great learning experience! we went to a bunch of references houses and no one was home but then we went to visit another lady and she was there and let us come in and teach a lesson! this was my first solo lesson and i taught about faith and how we can demonstrate our faith. when i couldnt understand what the investigator said the member would answer the question. i felt like it went really well and the spirit was definitely there! and then saturday i went out again with a different member who is actually less active. so it was a really great experience for me to talk to her about the blessings of the gospel. she told me that after 8 years of not taking the sacrament she took it for the first time last sunday! i was so excited for her. and she told me that she has friends who she feels need the gospel but she doesnt know how to approach them about it so we did a little practice and she said that she was going to visit these friends this week and invite them to church! how amazing is that. we didnt end up teaching any lesson that night but i felt like my purpose that night was to spend time with this member and help her feel the importance of the gospel in her life. it was a really amazing experience. and it testified to me that the lord places us in certain situations and he will help us along the way. while i was talking to the member and she was explaining her story of why she became less active and about how she participated in the sacrament for the first time last sunday i was able to understand every word she was saying! it was the gift of tongues for sure!
and we had conference this weekend! everyone watched it at the stake center but because my companion couldnt leave we were allowed to watch it at the house of our pensionista on the internet. it was all in spanish so i couldnt really understand the words but i could definitely feel the spirit. i realized that i dont have to understand the words of the prophet to know that he is called of god. i also realized that i always took for granted that we are able to listen to the voices of the prophet and apostles. because here in peru they people watch it in spanish and it is the voice of the translater. but it was really great and im excited for april conference when i can understand more spanish.
overall things here in peru are going great. my spanish is improving every week and although it is still a very very big challenge for me i am working at it every day and slowly it is getting better. we are finding new investigators and working with less active members and the people here are so open and ready to her the gospel. there are some amazing members who live here and i am so thankful for them! i know that i am here for a reason! i love you all and am so thankful for each one of you!
lots of love!
xoxo hermana murdock
No comments:
Post a Comment