Semana 19!!!

Hola Todos!!!

What a week it has been!!! (haha) It's been crazy getting to know a new area and a new comp and everything, but I'm doing just great! We found a TON of people last week that have a lot of promise to progress towards baptism so that's been fun. We found a MIRACLE on Wednesday. There's a part of our area that's really poor, and we were contacting there in the afternoon and we ran into three sisters named Nigeli, Yessica, and Michel. To make a long story short, Yessica and Nigeli are members already, and Michel is 9 years old and hasn't been baptized yet! We invited her to be baptized and she said YES! She's awesome! I love working with the kids, it's so much fun to teach the gospel SIMPLY! Anyways, come to find out all three of them told us that they don't think their mom will give permission for Michele to be baptized. We told them we would talk with their mom and see.

Anyways, so we were praying really hard for an opportunity to get to know their mom a little better cause she works a ton and is super busy. We decided to fast for it on Sunday. We passed by Sunday afternoon to teach Michel and her sisters, and their mom was there, but they were moving their house to another part of our area. We decided to ask if we could help. The mom said yes they needed help! (haha) So we helped them build their house yesterday...  In our skirts! (haha) It was like building a little fort! It was so fun, and the best part was that we won the confidence of Micheles parents! (haha) I'm not gonna lie, I was exhausted after but it was all worth it. Michele is going to get baptized on the 17th, si o si!! One thing I learned with Hna Cheney is that we really need to show the Lord that we are willing to do whatever it takes to help these people. When we really do that, that's when we start to see miracles happen. I'm sure a lot of Sisters would have just told Michele and her family that they would come back another day to teach, but we went the extra mile to help them out. I know from experience that the Lord is going to help us because we've shown that we are really willing to go the extra mile!

One thing I learned this week was that my Trainer was AMAZING! Wow! (haha) Being the Senior Comp's a little bit different...  The good thing is Hermana Cheney had me prepared. Sounds funny but it's the truth! (haha) She taught me how to do EVERYTHING! And it's been such a blessing this past week. Hermana McDougal's amazing, but her trainer didn't help her learn the little things like Hermana Cheney did with me. I've really seen how big of a blessing it is that I know how to fill out our paperwork, and how to do all of the little things that we need to do as missionaries.  

Anyways, that's about it for this week! It's been a good one as usual, we're working hard and having fun! I love you all. Hope you have an awesome week!  

Hermana Austin

Semana 18!!!

Woah what a week!! First of all we had Changes again this morning, and I am in a new area!!! The area's called Ita Enramanda, and it is in the CITY! It's a little weird, and I feel a little out of place coming from the house of the Familia Flor, but it's all good! My companion´s name is Hermana McDougal, and she´s from Arizona! She´s awesome, and she´s NEW to the mission. It's her first change after her training, and she´s still getting used to the Spanish. I´m actually Senior Comp, which is crazy 'cause I´m still really new! But I'm excited to get to work here! Hna McDougal has told me this area's a little dead, as far as baptisms go, but I´m optimistic! I know we are going to find people, and there are a ton of people in our Carpeta de Area (Folder with all of our paperwork that we have to fill out) that have been to church three times, which is a BLESSING! That means we just have to resolve their doubts and they can get baptized, sí o sí!! Anyways, I'm super excited to get started here. I know there are people that we need to find and help them in their lives. Heavenly Father sent me here for a reason, and I'm excited to find the people that I'm supposed to find here!  

Not gonna lie, it was hard saying goodbye to the Familia Flor yesterday. They were all pretty sad to see me leave, but I told them that I can go to the temple with them in October, and they were all stoked! I´m so excited for that day! Also, Hermano Flor blessed the Sacrament yesterday, and it was perfect! And the oldest son that´s been baptized, Ruben, passed it! Can´t think of a better way to end my time in Costa Bonita than that! It was such a cool experience to see their progress in the gospel. If there´s one thing I´ve learned here, it's that the gospel changes lives. I've seen so many amazing changes in that family, and I´m so grateful I got the opportunity to teach and help them. They are really special, and I miss them all already!

We also had the Actividad Del Fin Del Año this week which was a blast! The entire mission was together for the day and it was a party! We played Fútbol and volleyball and all kinds of games and just had fun for a day! I also got to see Hermana Cheney again which was AWESOME! She has two baptisms this Saturday and is happy as ever! One of the best parts of our area is that we get to have Intercambios with her again!!!! (haha) I´m so excited can´t even wait, she's literally one of my best friends.  

Christmas was awesome. We passed by for the Familia Flor Christmas Eve to give them their Christmas presents, (Thanks Mom!) and I have never seen happier kids to recieve something so small! Ricardito y Joni, the two youngest, they're 8 and 6 years old, were so excited to get those little cars. I've never seen them so happy. Not gonna lie, it was an eye opening experience. They have so little, but are happy, thanks to the gospel! I´m going to miss the Familia Flor a lot!  

Anyways that´s about it this week.  I know nothing about my new investigatores right now. I´ll have to tell you about them next week! Love you all. It was awesome to talk to you on Christmas! Have an awesome New Year! Have an awesome week!

Love, Hermana Austin

Semana 17!!!

HOLA TODOS!!! Feliz Navidad...  Almost.  (haha) Things are great here in Paraguay, as always! Our baptism did fall through this week, which is a bummer, but Luis just isn´t ready...  Easily the best part about this week was we had intercambios with the Hermana Lideres which means that Hermana Cheney and I were together for 24 hours!!! (Haha) It was easily one of the funnest days of the mission! She came back to our area and we worked together all day! (haha) I missed her a ton, it was like seeing an old friend!

We for sure are going to have a baptism! Aurelia, this dream contact that we had last week, is so ready to be baptized! She's awesome, and is reading the Book of Mormon a ton. We gave it to her last Thursday, and she´s already in ALMA!!!  

Anyways, Im good! Don´t have much time this week cause I get to talk to you on Thursday! But I´m doing well. Have an awesome week, and Merry Christmas!!!!

Hermana Austin

Semana 16!!!

Familia y Amigas,

Wow what a week! (haha) First of all, we had a baptism!!! Woohoo!!! Carolina got baptized this last Saturday! She was so happy, and so excited. Let me tell you though, getting her prepared for her interview with our District Leader was WORK! She can´t read or write and can barely count. (Sad I know.) Also, she speaks a lot more of the Native Language here which is Guarani. It's one of the hardest languages! (haha) She can hardly understand Spanish, and my accent made it really really hard. Let´s just say I was really grateful for Hermana Hidalgo this week! She can speak perfect Spanish, obviously, and also in her last area almost all of the people only spoke Guarani, so she knew how to teach REALLY SIMPLE so that Carolina could understand. Anyways, we had to have a lot of patience. (haha) We probably explained the definition of a prophet 50 times! BUT, everything went perfect for her interview, so its todo TRANQUILO!!! The real miracle happened yesterday. I told all of you that Carolina was looking for work, right? Last night we passed by their house to say hello, and she was leaving for WORK! She had found a job, and works every day but Sunday! It's such a blessing for her, and she was so happy! It's really cool, because before, she didn´t have time to take the lessons from us, she lost her job, and we got to teach her all of the lessons, and then RIGHT after her Baptism she found a job again. Can you see the Lord´s hand in that? (haha) It's literally amazing how Heavenly Father works.

We also are going to have a baptism this week, Sí o Sí! Luis drank again last Monday night, but he's been sober since! We called him this Saturday to see how he was doing (because Saturdays are his hard days) and he told us "No Hermanas I'm only drinking soda!" Never been so happy! He's changed so much, and I am so excited for him! He's progressing a lot, and I can feel that this Saturday's the day!  

We also saw another miracle this week!! Last Saturday we had a contact in the streets that was just your normal contact. She was really nice and everything, but it wasn't anything special. Anyways, we made an appointment for last Tuesday and told her we would pass by. Tuesday rolled around and we had this appointment in the afternoon after the Siesta (which is like the busiest time of day), and we couldn't really decide if we should visit this contact Aurelia or another investigator. We decided on Aurelia and WOW!!! She has all three of her church attendances, is a friend of one of the sisters in the ward, and wants to get baptized!!! (haha) GOLDEN INVESTIGATOR!!! She's awesome! She doesn't have any problems or doubts and is going to get baptized next Saturday!  

Anyways that's about it! It's been a great week! I really do love being a missionary! Hope all is well with all of you, love and miss you all! Have an awesome week!!

Hermana Amby Austin

Semana 15!!!

Familia y Amigas,

Wow, this week was insane! One thing that has really been weird these last few weeks is the weather! I have never been so HOT in my entire life! (haha) It's weird 'cause it's December and should be cold right? (haha) NOPE! We bake in the hot sun every day... It's great and its SO worth it! I love teaching the people, even if it's in thousand degree weather!

First of all, we're going to have a BAPTISM this week!!!! Luis stopped drinking and came to church on Sunday! He really started to progress a lot this past week, and on Saturday he said his first prayer! That's one thing that I absolutely love about the mission, when investigators say their first prayer. It's always super simple and sincere and you can really tell that they feel the Spirit. It's ALWAYS without fail a neat experience. Luis is awesome though. He works a lot so we always teach him at night, and the other night he called us at like 7 and was like "Hey I'm home. You guys can come teach me whenever you want!" (haha) We were so excited because he's never done that before, and it means he's finally started to show real interest! His family's super excited too! We were walking to church yesterday and Paula, the oldest daughter turned to me and said "Almost all of our family is going to church today. We are only missing Juan."  Never been so happy walking with them to church! It's such a rewarding feeling to help people like the Flor family find the gospel and change their lives!  

We also have been working with the cousin Carolina more, and we've really figured out that she has a hard life... She is taking care of her 80 something year old grandma and her 3 brothers who are drug addicts. She's 16 years old by the way. She pays all of the bills and recently lost her job. She's awesome and was the first person Hermana Cheney and Hermana Coles talked to when they found the Flor Family. She's started to show a lot more interest and we're just really trying to help her and support her more. She has all three of her church attendances, so she could really get baptized this Saturday if it's the will of Heavenly Father! She's awesome though! Such a strong person. Pray for her 'cause she needs all of the help she can get!

OH!! One more thing! You all need to go watch the video "He is the Gift" on christmas.mormon.org!! It's a video that ALL of the missionaries are using across the world to teach! It's awesome! It really helps us to remember the true meaning of Christmas! (haha) We have found so many new people because of the video!

  

Anyways, that's about it! (haha) Life's good here in Paraguay as usual! (haha) Hope you all have an awesome week!  

Love, Hermana Amby Austin

http://www.mormon.org/christmas

Semana 14!!!

Wow what a week! (haha) We had a baptism! Nicole got baptized this Saturday, and it was awesome! Her mom, Olga, came, and Giovanni was able to come as well! It was really amazing, and we´re seeing a lot of progress with Olga too! She didn't come to church this week because she was sick but we finally got her to pray with us this week, and she's reading in the Book of Mormon which is awesome! The only thing she needs to do before her baptism is get married... Honestly, we need a miracle. I don´t think her spouse wants to get married and we never get the chance to talk with him, but we are working on it and we still have some time! (haha) And, one thing I've learned, is that anything's possible when you rely on the Lord! I truly do believe Olga will be baptized before the end of this month!  

If there's one thing I've learned these past few months it's that the Lord has a plan! This week, we passed by the Familia Flor and taught a lesson with their son Luis (one of the two that isn't a member). He had an interesting experience this week, and had to go to the police station because he stole his friends motorbike. (haha) It was a little stressful for Hermano y Hermana Flor, but it kind of woke Luis up a little I think! We talked about baptism and repentance and he accepted a baptismal date! The problem with him is he has to stop drinking, he's 18 and likes to drink with his friends Saturday nights. But he told us he wants to stop and we are working with him a little bit! We´re planning to help him make some new friends in the church so that he can quit drinking and be baptized. Anyways, we passed by to bring him to church on Sunday and he was asleep and didn´t want to come which was really sad! (haha) But the family has a cousin named Carolina that told us she wanted to come! She came with us and I was talking to her and she told me she wants to get baptized! (haha) And then she said, "I have to come to church one more time, right? And then I can get baptized?" I was shocked and was like, "YEAH claro que si! (clearly!) We'll teach you the lessons, and you can get baptized the 13th of December!" It was so SICK! Anyways, moral of the story is, I was sad that Luis didn't come to church, but Carolina did and she wants to be baptized so we're gonna baptize her! Heavenly Father always has a plan! We're still working with Luis but we're not sure if he really has the desires or just feels pressure from his family. Pray for him PLEASE!!!!!  

The rest of the Flor family is awesome! They come to church every week and are reading in the Book of Mormon as a family! We only have to baptize the two older brothers to complete the family!!!!!! Anyways, that was this week! It was a good one... I love you all, have an awesome week!  

Love, Hermana Austin

Semana 13!!!

Wow what a crazy week! You all know I got a new companion on Wednesday, and she´s AWESOME! Her name´s Hermana Hidalgo, and she's from Salvador! She's great, and she's Latina! We only speak Spanish! (haha) It's been insane, a little hard to be honest, but it's all good. She's been super patient with me this week. I have been a little stressed, 'cause I'm the only one that knows our area, the members, and the investigators. We're learning really fast how to work together though, and she's a hard worker, so I can´t complain...  Thank heavens!  

We are going to have a baptism this Saturday!!!! (haha) Her name is Nicole, and she's awesome. She's the little sister of one of the converts of Hermana Cheney, his name's Giovanni, and we´re working with her and their mom right now. Their moms name is Olga, and she's awesome as well. She is going to get baptized the 12th of December! She just has to get married first...  We talked to her about it yesterday, and she told us that she's going to talk to her esposo and let us know. Pray for her please!! She's the most amazing lady, and she came to church yesterday and told us she had an awesome time. She just has to have the desire to get married!  

So, like I said, I was a little stressed this week 'cause we don´t have a whole lot of investigators that we can work with, and Hermana Hidalgo doesn't know our area. But Sunday rolled around, and in the mish, Sundays are always big days because we get to see which of our investigators are progressing. It's a little nerve wracking to be honest. Anyways, Sunday comes around and we went to pick up one of our investigators for church. Her name's Gloria, and shes awesome too. I'll write about her another day. Anyways, Gloria really wants to come to church so we took her to church with us and we're praying that Olga and Nicole would come too. We got to church and Olga and Nicole weren't there, and I was super bummed. We went to Relief Society and then Sunday School, and then after Sunday School we went outside of the church to call Olga. I called her and she told me that they were waiting for the bus and would be at church in like 15 minutes! I have never been so happy in my life! Olga and Nicole and their other sister Sabrina all came to church this Sunday, and it was awesome! I really learned that if we do all that we can to get our investigators to church, Heavenly Father provides a way!  

Anyways that's about it for this week! Love you all, and I'm doing well, adjusting to the new comp and all! Hope you all have an awesome week! Pray for Olga, por favor!

Hermana Amby Austin