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Water Wars

My First Daughter - Tender Mercies January 25, 2016

THIS WEEK WAS SO GREAT! one of our investigators came to church with is less active fiancee and stayed ALL 3 HOURS and he loved it he really loved the time in priesthood and felt the spirit. we are so excited and know that he will be baptized. We also had a time to visit a less family we are visiting. The dad Rodrigo smoked and drank i a few weeks back shared my testimony of how i changed my life to become who i am now and he really felt the spirit because he has gone 1 week without smoking and he doesnt even have th desire to smoke! he has started a diet and exercise routine and said i feel so much better i feel like i have life in me and purpose i love not smoking! as a couple they have started to pray together in the night and can really feel a spiritual difference. i could literally feel a HUGE change in there house spiritually. they looked so much happier and i could feel there spirit. These moments are tender mercies from the lord. I dont have many baptisms as a missionary and i at times feel that i a doing nothing but when i experience these moments i know i am helping push the work forward because all souls have worth in the eyes of the lord.

Once upon a time a missionary was told throughout her whole mission that she was going to be a trainer but she never believed anyone then one week in her mission before transfers everyone said she was going to train but she continued to deny it. dun dun dun duuunnn its9:05 sunday night and she gets a call directly from her missino president. Hermana kogianes I HAVE AN ASSIGNMENT FOR YOU! YOU ARE GOING TO TRAIN! 

Wednesday in the morning i will be going to Osorno to find my first Daughter  Hermana Luna She is from Argentina. 

In the mission we have a joke here that when you train you recieve a daughter and you are the mother. I was so shocked after the call i didnt know what to do but i however felt that that i was going to train. Sunday morning when i woke up i asked heavenly father if i was going to train and if so let me feel that it ws really going to happen. When i ended the prayer i felt it in my stomach and my heart that the lord wanted me to train but i didnt want to believe it. During sacrament meeting my companion was giving her talk and shared a experience in her mission and when she talked of her companion that she trained i felt once again that i was going to train. Remember last week when i talked that the spirit will always help us when we sincerely ask him? I once aganin recieved 2 times revelation that i was going to train which leads me into my spiritual part of the week.

My companion a few days back asked me what it ment to have a contrite spirit and a broken heart. As i sat at my study desk pondering the question i thought back to the previous days and all that has passed here in our sector, i thought back to my other sectors and i also thought back to my life before the mission. I began to search the definition of Contrite spirit and Broken heart in the dictonary in the book of mormon...

Broken Heart or Contrite Heart....

To have a broken heart is to be humble, contrite, repentant, and meek—that is, receptive to the will of God.

When Heavenly Father and our savior ask us to come unto them with a broken heart and contrite spirit they want us to be broken or in other words ready to learn and to change into who they know we can be. This week was a week that i felt was preaparing me to be more submissive and receptive to the will of my heavenly father. I always try to do things on my own and i always feel that i can feel better on my own but it is not true. I was trying to hard to  find my own answers to things and waited to the last minute to ask my heavenly father but when finally did a wonderful week passed by like what i told you earlier. I know now more then ever that it is necessary for us to be receptive to the will of god and go to him with a broken heart. most of us the moments when we most go to our heavenly father is when we are broken down with grief, pain and anguish but it is not necesarry so why do we do it? 

It is because satan is so good at his lies. he puts a huge bander in our head with huge lights reminding us of all our past errors big or small telling us we can not go to our father that he will not accept us. i have felt this too many times to count but it just is not true. As members in these times we need to stay stronger to the truths me know and not alone lucifers lies to tear our faith from us. doubt the doubts before the faith or use the phrase my mom has taught me NOT TODAY SATAN NOT TODAY.  A sister leader said hermana kogianes you are a missionary that satan hates and when you wake up in the morning satans says NOOO not again shes awake. Try to be like this (: when you wake up make it so scary for satan. I know my savior lives and loves us. He searches for all his lost sheep but we are the sheep that keep running ahead or hiding but he knows where we are at all times and will not let us be lost but he also accepts our agency. i love you all so much  i pray for you always and i know you can all do hard things with faith in our Heavenly Father, SAVIOR AND REDEEMER everything is possible.  until next week (: 

January 18, 2016

What a truly wonderful week it has been here in Valdivia. We are now entering the last week with my companion. This next monday we will recieve a call and find out who my new companion will be and what time Hermana Parkinson needs to be in Osorno to have her last dinner with the missionarys leaving and then a flight home to Utah... The truth of it all is it makes me really sad. We have recently become really close. When i think of her leaving i really do want to cry! she is an older sister to me but she is an incredible missionary and will continue to be an incredible one after the mission i have learned so much from her.

Well with investigators we have recently started from scratch! Nothing really happened monday with investigators or contacting.

Tuesday was such a crazy day. I have been going to the doctor lately because i have had headaches and sometimes stomach aches when i eat. They thought since i had diabetes in my family that it was that but after test they didnt find anything so after they thought it was a urine infection but it wasnt that either so i sat down with the doctor and we talked about my diet and what i ate here and at home. We then found out that i gained a little weight here in the mission (hehe) so i now have a little diet for a bit that will help with the stress and my headaches and this week i really have seen a huge difference. however we also met with Luis with a member and his wife. Veronica the wife of luis was not home so the lesson was a bit awkward but in the end he had a lot of questions and they were able to answer them all and he felt the spirit. Luis is so awesome he reads everything we give him and he loves to learn he is currently waiting for an answer to see if baptism is possible a second time since he was baptized in the catholic church. we are trying to work really close with him but his schedule and family make it a little difficult  

Wednesday was the coolest day for district meeting and we really got spiritually fed and talked about knowing if our investigators really have true desires to be members or no.

Thursday was weekly planning. After praying and talking for a good hour we decided to drop almost all our investigators because they didnt have a really desire to learn. It was really hard for us but we both felt it was necessary. We also sang in a funeral for a sister in the ward that lost her brother. we taught a less active family and are hoping to see them in church. 

Friday we participated in a water war with the young men and womans and also met with an investigator that read and MARKED the book of mormon YESSS wer were so happy.

saturday was a knocking doors all day and Sunday.

Okay my more spiritual part of this week was an experience i had with an investigator friday and what happened sudnay. So friday we met for a family night with a less active and his non member girlfriend. She made a dessert that we ate before starting the lesson. When she gave it to me i had a thought his is wine. but thought to myself no its not how could it they know we can t eat or drink it so we began eating it. my comp had a few bites but didnt like it. i found it weird and each bite felt weird like something was wrong but my comp said it has a strong taste. and the less active says its wine! i said WHAT and he said no really its wine then his girlfriend says no really its wine but i cooked the alcohol out. i said we cant eat this and then she was really sad and felt bad but we helped them to understand why but needless to say i woke up with A POUNDING headache. lesson learned for not following the spirit and sunday we were out knocking doors and i felt to knock one end of the street so we knocked and knocked but nobody answered but i still felt the need to knock so the last house we knocked and a girl answered and she now wants to learn more and meet with us today! As you can see this week i really learned to follow the spirit. The holy ghost really is here to help us and teach us all things but we have to be willing to listen. I have learned that at times just a little thought that at first seems weird can be a powerful prompting of the spirit trying to help us. i also had the oportunity of teaching relief socity this week and gosel principles. The 2 lessons really had a focus on the peace our savior has for us but it requirs us to come unto him and not the things of the world. when we have a problem or a trial where to our thoughts turn? to satan or to our savior that can give us peace... do we liten to the right spirit or the wrong. i want all of you to try and have moments this week to just sit and try and feel of the sprit and try everyday to note the spirit and blessings it brings. JOHN 14:27

 27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart betroubled, neither let it be afraid. 

P.S no pics because no cord again sorry! 

--

Con mucho Amor y Carino Hermana Kogianes 

January 11, 2016

First of all last night was so fun because we had exchanges but we did it a little different in the way that both hermana leaders stayed the night for a slumber party and after we planned for the next day we watched the other side of heaven. Today we went to the beach and prosletying starts soon so i dont have a whole lot of time to write today so i will just write a little.

This week has really been a spiritual strengthing week for me. I have really come to love and recognize the hand of god here in the mission and the saving power of the atonement for those that are not yet members but still are loving brothers and sisters.

As i sat outside on a step to our house this week waiting for my comp to finish getting ready i was petting the neighbors dog and looking up to the sky watching the huge clouds just float by and marveling at how our heavenly father created all it when out of no were a beautiful white butterfly came and landed on my lap and just sat there for a minute. i could feel the spirit so strong as i felt the love the savior had for me as a missionary but more importantly as a daughter or our loving heavenly father 

Whenever the adversary cannot persuade imperfect yet striving Saints such as you to abandon your belief in a personal and loving God, he employs a vicious campaign to put as much distance as possible between you and God. The adversary knows that faith in Christ—the kind of faith that produces a steady stream of tender mercies and even mighty miracles—goes hand in hand with a personal confidence that you are striving to choose the right. For that reason he will seek access to your heart to tell you lies—lies that Heavenly Father is disappointed in you, that the Atonement is beyond your reach, that there is no point in even trying, that everyone else is better than you, that you are unworthy, and a thousand variations of that same evil theme.

As long as you allow these voices to chisel away at your soul, you can’t approach the throne of God with real confidence. Whatever you do, whatever you pray for, whatever hopes for a miracle you may have, there will always be just enough self-doubt chipping away at your faith—not only your faith in God but also your confidence in yourself. Living the gospel in this manner is no fun, nor is it very healthy. Above all, it is completely unnecessary! The decision to change is yours—and yours alone.

I loved this part of Elder jorgs talk Aproaching the throne of god with confidence. Satan tries to put so many things in our head that distracts us from the truth and from the spirit. the spirit is the only thing that helps us to feel the love of god and our savior jesus christ. I have tried to put a picture of my savior that i love where i wil always see it. i want to challenge you all to do the same and really work to focus on the things the savior wants for us! focus on the person you can become and not just the person you are right now and do the same for those around you. we are not perfect and we can always change for the better i love you so much 

December 28, 2015

FELIZ NAVIDAD FELIZ NAVIDAD PROSPERO ANO Y FELICIDAD (: I WANT TO WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS.

 

Well I hope you all had a great chirstmas and thought alot about your savior and the significance of his birth (:

Monday was a slow day and we knocked doors trying to find people and ended up visiting a recent convert family that is really struggling right now to come to church and struggling finacially. I shared a story with them of a rich man and a poor man that lived in the street. One day the Rich man was walking in the street and saw the poor man. He had 7 pieces of Gold. So he had mercy on the poor man and thought i have to much gold so the rich man gave the poor man 6 pieces of the most highly pricest gold in the world and then continued his path down the road well this poor man was not satisfied so he followed the rich man and stole the last piece of gold the 7th piece. was it right? how would you feel as the rich man? The same happens with us. When we use all 6 days during the week to work or do the things we want and do not keep the sabbath day holy we are robbing our heavenly father who gave us 6 days. He only asks us for 1 days to not buy things, share time with family and go to church. is it too much to ask for?

Tuesday was a really special day for us. We had been trying to visit investigadors all day and nothing was working out. As we were walking down the street my companion said we need to do contacts we havent done any. so i said YEAH lets do it. so she picked a street and asked what house i said a house here with the dinosaur looking plant that is soo good to eat her and she said i too want to knock the door because of the car so we knock and a lady answers and says COME IN. We both looked at each other and then said okkaaayy. because that IS NOT NORMAL here for people to just tell us to come in. Chileans always answer the door not even half open and ask us what we want. Well after 15 of talking we found out she is a less active member of about 10 years and wants to come back to church but she is orignally from Rancagua so she didnt know who the missionaries were, what time the church started or where it was but that she had been praying that maybe just maybe we would come by and knock here door. After my compy and i were stunned. We had not realized that the spirit was leading us to her house.. we had only had the feeling to do some more contacts.

Wednesday we stopped by a less active members house and they had huge bags of gifts for me and my companion. We just had our mouths open like wow we cant believe this. The best part was they came to church yesterday and we spent the day with their daughter Camilia that is 17 and really rebelious. She reminds me a lot of who i used to be and so my comp is convinced i can help her and get her to serve a mission so we will see how it goes and if she will listen to us she wants to spend more time with us.

Thursday and Friday we spent time visiting people. Here in chile the navidad is celebrated at 12 midnight because they believe thats realy when christ was born and should be celebrated they have a feast of whatever food you can think of thats mostly meat at like 10 or 11 then eat treats sweets and then at 12 open gifts visit and then sleep alllllll day the 25. When me and my companion woke up we usually hear cars outside of our house but this time we heard absolutely nothing. NO ONE was out side the hosue before 12 or 1 that day and everyone was not about to open the door to visit with us.

Saturday was a great day we had lunch with a member that is a return missionary and we spend an hour talking about the book of mormon and the things we can learn from it. he also gave us some really good scriptures to use with investigators. at 10:30 at night during our verifications with our district leader he says oh hermana kogianes you have a talk tomorrow aobut the atonement good night click. i was dying because we need to be in bed at 11 soooo

Sunday  I gave my talk and winged it the best i could and thankfully my words touched the hearts of some members struggling right now and they were really grateful.

A spiritual message from this week is about prayers.  I honestly think on of the biggest things my mission has taught me is how to pray. Before the mission i said my prayers but it was out of routine with the same things and the fastest way possible. I can not lie and say my prayers are perfect and that i am always 100 percent focused in my prayers sometimes at night i am so exhausted that i fall asleep on my knees praying or in the morning but recently this week i have tried to really focus on having deeper prayers. Real conversations with my heavenly father. This week we have had THE WORST TIME WITH FLEAS i literally have bites on my face, neck, arms, feet and legs. i am dying and i am constantly iching i try not to but it doesnt work at times i cant sleep because i am itching. So i decided during one of my prayers to ask heavenly father to please just help me help me with my fleas so i prayed and nothing happened the fact of the matter is they got even worst and i found some new bites. the few nights after i decided to just solamently pray for everyone else but me so i prayed and prayed i also have struggled to feel the spirit to help and investigadors in this moment something marvelous happened. My legs began to tingle almost. My desire to scratch my legs went away and i have since decreased the scratching. I can truly testify that heavenly father answers prayers. Shirley the less active got an answer to here prayers when we knocked her door. I got my prayer answered when i focused less on myslef. I also had a problem skyíng my family on the 25th the internet would not work and the computer kept having problems so my comp and i decided to pray after i had a feeling to check the router but didnt do it. later when the internet still wouldnt work a brother of the church called and said to check the router so i did and we fixed it! the internet began to work. i was kicking myself in the butt because i should have followed the spirit and answer to my prayer. i know we recieve answers but we need to be willing to answer even if htey seem dumb or someting we dont want. heavenly father wants to help us and knows the bst path i know it is true i love you so much! 

P.S no photos again! im sorry the computers have been dumb

December 21, 2015

I want to wish all of you a very Merry Chistmas this week (: Enjoy the snow for me because all we have is intense heat and but right now ALOT of rain so just know that im still cold hahaha

Well i got transfered to A BEAUTIFUL part of the mission VALDIVIA. it really is so beautiful here i am adjusting slowly because it is a huge city! it has a ton of people and my sectors before were of fields for farming and really really small but i love it here i am able to talk to more people and have a lot more interesting conversations. My companion is from SPANISH FORK how small is the world again! she is a year older then me and we might have known eachother before because she played soccer for a few years! her name is Natalie Parkinson. Hermana parkinson. we get along SO WELL and really have a lot to do here! i was really worried about having another gringa for a companion because i have the history to just speak english but we only speak spanish so it is awesome! it really is a blessing to work with here and our many investigators here! i am still trying to get to know everyone here so give me some more time before i tell you who everyone is because we do not have anyone with a date for baptism but we are close (: they are so awesome and really progressing fast and i get along with all of them so well and i love them so much already! this will be a VERY FUN last transfer for my comp i am determined to help her finish so strong! It is so sad that i will be ¨killing¨ another companion in the mission but very happy i get the chance to help my compy finish with some great experiences (:

HMM this last week i have really taken a step back to focus a lot on the things that christ wants of me as well as what my family thinks of me as a missionary. For the past few months everyday i sit down on the floor and really ponder ALL that has passed in the day and write down a few miralces or blessings from the day. I have managed to fill a lot of pages and am really pleased that sometimes the blessing at the end of the day is ...... ¨i didnt get bit my a dog or a flea today so i think we are getting somewhere¨ hahahah no but really to sit and ponder the day and see the lords hand in his work is amazing. My comp had a great idea to make a sign and do a questionaire type of contacting that worked really well we went around showing people this sign asking them what the first thing in their mind when they think of chirstmas and a lot of answers where love, family, god and we then asked what they wanted from this christmas and when they gave an answer i would write it down on a card with the page for the new christmas video and then take a picture of them with it and they would walk off with a huge smile. I have thought a lot of christ this week and all that has gone on. A Few times in my mission i have recieved news from family, friends, members, companions or investigators that makes me feel like my whole world has gotten turned upside down. that my heart has fallen to my stomach and that i want to lie down and cry cry cry but this week has really helped me to see that my savior is here for me. That he too feels in his heart what i am feeling and that he wants to help me for this reason he was born, for this reason he suffered for me and took everything upon him. How many of us for christmas really think of him? other then when its christmas sacrament or our family nights? A lot of time we get caught up in the gifts, the plans of where we should go or not go who we should buy gifts for and who we havent. where is our savior?...... have you thought to look around in the ward at someone that may just need a little note for christmas or a little card? Here in chile i have recently started to make little notes. i sneak them in the bags of the members or just hand it to them and walk off and the next day they are so happy. i want to challenge you all to sit by the fire, look at a temple, a picture of christ or a picture of your family and think of all your miracles of the day, week, month, year. where was the savior? i can promise you in every thought you will see him or feel that he ws there for you when you thought no. also challenge you to write a note to someone or bake some cookies and without them knowing give it to them. do not look for the recognicion. just make them happy give them something they can not give themselfs at times (: i love my savior and i know he lives. i love everyone of you and i pray for you all sometimes i even fall asleep praying but i always wake up with a smile and a laugh and crawl into bed (: this christmas is so beautiful because we recieved a redentor a savior. i know all of these things are true in the name of jesus christ amen

Much love Hermana Kogianes

ELDER TEIXEIRA - BYE BYE SPIDERS Closed the sector December 14, 2015

everyone ready for christmas?? 

ohhh how sad is the day today. This whole week i have had the impressions to 1 go through my luggage and organize it and get rid of things i dont want or will not be using and give them to my comp or members who need it 2 clean the house but deep clean it because its a desastor thanks to the missionaries in the past 3 get our area book all up to date every little thing and have everything in alphabetic order and in order with dates and numbers. I had no idea why i was doing what i was doing because my companion was the one that was leaving and preparing to go back home because she has completed her year and a half and i knew i would be staying here. well yesterday in the night i got really anxious that i need to have the house clean but clean and i knew it was not my OCD to clean ( like my mother and my second mother angela richins (; ) We have transfers wednesday and they called today! my companion goes home, they close my sector and give it to the elders that are in the other half of Rio Bueno and i leave for Valdivia that is 2 hours more north close to Concepcion. I could hardly believe it. We have only told our Mamita and she is really sad we have yet to tell the other members but i know they will have a cow.

This week we had A TON of success finding new investigators and we have a lot of them with dates for baptism or praying to know if baptism is important for them. it will be really hard to leave them because they have gotten really close to us and really want to learn more but i have a lot of faith and confidence in the elders here and know they will be baptised and i cant wait to hear about it. 

BUT the big news of the week was we had the oportunity to have a big conference with Elder Teixeira of the 70 who is in the Presidency of the area south america south. He is so wonderful and it was something else to be so close to a 70. His spirit was so strong and you could see the love he had for us and the way the light of our savior shone through him. He talked with us alot of focusing now in our missions and leaving everything else behind. That the savior wants us right now to be uttlerly focused in the work. He showed the Video ¨the will of god¨ and how heavenly father will cut us down over and over agian until we grow into what he needs. I really loved this video and really started to cry because it finally hit me that heavenly father wanted me to learn that he is the ¨garderner¨and i am the plant that he knows what he wants me to be and that i need to focus in the work here and i will learn ang grow. So this week i have put everything i have had in the sector and we now have 6 families we are teaching that will now be the elders. i have loved my time here in Rio Bueno and do not want to leave them. I have learned so much in this sector. I have learned to really count on my savior and come unto him. 

With that being said i have focused alot this week in Helaman chapter 12. the first and second verse really hit me right in the face and touched my heart. 

1 And thus we can behold how false, and also the unsteadiness of the hearts of the children of men; yea, we can see that the Lord in his great infinite goodness doth bless and prosper those who put their trust in him.

 2 Yea, and we may see at the very time when he dothprosper his people, yea, in the increase of their fields, their flocks and their herds, and in gold, and in silver, and in all manner of precious things of every kind and art; sparing their lives, and delivering them out of the hands of their enemies; softening the hearts of their enemies that they should not declare wars against them; yea, and in fine, doing all things for the welfare and happiness of his people; yea, then is the time that they do harden their hearts, and do forget the Lord their God, and do trampleunder their feet the Holy One—yea, and this because of their ease, and their exceedingly great prosperity

I realized that i was not having much success in my sector because i was not putting my trust in my father in heaven. i wanted to find people in my own way and do everything in my way and not really his. i was not listening to what the spirit was trying to tell me i was more frustrated with WHY DO I NOT HAVE INVESTIGADORS? WHY THIS AND WHY THAT. i was failing to realize that he wanted me to come unto him first and focus on him and the way he can change my heart that can change my investigators. i want you all to read this chapter and marvel at the world our savior and father in heaven has given us and let us remember that when things dont seem to be working the way we want or just seem dumb its because 1 we are not doing the will of our father or 2 its because he wnats us to have faith in him and come unto him knowing he has an end more glorious then our own mind can imagine.

i bought a hat for a baby of a inv and bought a cake for our mission leader for his birthday

I FOUND HERMANA BRAITHWAITE MY COMPY FROM THE CCM

My Beautiful Voice

I tried something a little different this week so you can all hear my voice (: let me know how you like it and listen to them in order so it all makes sense you can also get to know my companion a little more because she talked to you! i gave my testimony in espanol i love you all so much and want you to know how much this work means to me. i really do not want to leave the work its so amazing here. We have had a lot of problems with the ward but i think they will now help us alot more with the work and our new investigators we didnt find a lot of new people this week and might actually will have to drop the family oporto yarzo because when we went to visit them last i had a really bad feeling and the spirit told me to leave and we left. i am really praying right now for them and the guidance on what to do but we will see alot more miracles this week (: i love you and all hope you have a great thanksgiving and eat extra food for me because they do not celebrate thanksgiving here it doesnt exist (: 

 

A loud voice and house of spiders strikes again

WOW what an amazing week it has been i love my mission so very much you guys and it actually makes me sad when i think i would have to go home at the end... 

hmm i will start off first with the fact that the elders are now begging us to take some of there investigators that they stole from us the transfer before ha ha ha. it turns out that they now have too  many investigators and they are all woman which means they need a member that is a man to come to the visits with them and there is not enough that are willing to go with them so needless to say i gladly with a huge smile accepted to teach Anna Castro and her daughter Daniela. We had a rocky lesson with them because the elders let alot of time go between visiting with them so they dont really remember a lot or understand the reason to be baptised and when we asked them to be baptised they said we have been baptised in the catholic church and cant do it agian. i began to explain that baptism need a certain power of god and before i could finish my very shy compy comes out with a scripture in acts that says that baptism is for immersion and anyother baptism is not vaild and then told her that her baptism was not vaild and anna didnt say anything and daniela almost smiled i just sat there with my mouth open because i couldnt believe she did that she has NEVER done that its usually me i was in heaven after the lesson but my comp felt bad but i know it was what they needed and i can feel that they will be baptised.

We also made a contact this week with a man that is catholic that yelled at us saying  COCAINE, MARIJUANA AND ALCOHOL IS GOOD FOR YOU! YOU MORMONS HAVE IT ALL WRONG. I can truly say he was not all right in the head because he then said i hate members of my church that is better then you church and then told us some sad sob story then walked off into his house saing BYE BYE. i just walked off laughing.

The next day i found anothe old catholic man that i bible bashed with for a minute then just walked off all irritated because i proved his point wrong but he didnt want to listen but one day (:

A less active member here Hermana Nelly told me that if she dies while i am here she wants me to dress here for her cascet in her temple clothes. i almost started to cry because she is really close to my comp and i, a grandma to us and she has surgery tomorrow and is talking about dying. she does have a lot of health issues and her daughter married and ex misisonary of this mission and moved to utah some odd years ago. so we will see what happens tomorrow.

Sunday was an eventful day for me because i got in an arugment with our mission leader. he was teaching the gospel princples class about the resurrection and the millenium. he was saying that when we are resurrected we will have the body of a 33 year old like chirst and all the children or anyone younger will too have the same body of 33 year old like chirst i immediatly said no we will have the body as when we were most perfect here in the earth and the parents of babies or children lost before they could raise them have the promise to raise them. he got all mad and changed the lesson and during sarament tried to prove me wrong and when he re read the book realized he was wrong but just said AY and nothing else so i just went back to listening to the speakers.

This week was a quite a challenging week for me spiritually because a lot of members including our mamita and papita that feed us everyday got mad at me and argued with me this week about them helping us as missionaries i told them i was grateful for all they did for us washing our clothes and feeding us but that i only wanted them to come out with us for 30 min to a lesson they began to tell me i was not humble and not a good missionary and other awful things i tried to stand up for myself but they cut me off so i raised my voice and felt so bad after. things have since gotten a little better. alot of other members are still not happy with me but a lot are because we had the change of 2 coming out with us and they saw that in rain and with people horrible to us we still knock doors and try to contact people they were really humbiled by the experience and have been sharing that with other members (:

Spirutally part of this week has been my scripture study. i read in Alma 44:4. This chapter really does have a lot of spiritually things mixed in with the wars and blood shed. When i read verse 4 i really used it to our time when people try to start a ¨war¨ with us about our religion and values. Its not just non members but members as well as missionaries. I used it that if we truly have faith in christ and follow his commandments we have the promise that he will help us and perserve us and keep us protected from all the bad in this world. Because i am a straight forward person and have such high values for the members, inv, and less actives here i recieve a lot of critism. they make fun of my spanish, make fun of the fact i am from utah the factory of the righteous un humble missionaries and that i am a youngin that doesnt know here bible stories or know what live is. i hav realized that with religion age does not matter. we all ahve things that are difficult for us we all have our personal challenges and spiritually experiences that possiblly a person with 80 years has not gone through but we are here to testify of chirst and move along with faith in him. i for the first time in my mission this week fell to my knees after a lunch of listening to such awful things from members that i loved. i fell down to my knees in my bedroom and prayed. i cried and cired sobbed and sobbed i wanted to go home. i want to be done. i promised myself before my mission i would never feel that way and here it was the breaking point. i didnt want to continue with this mission but as i prayed i can truly testify that i felt the saviors love for me. i remembered the talk from elder holland when he said that we are to taste not even a token of what the savior drank but that it was necessary to ahve a little to testify of him. i felt my heart being healed. i felt that i was truly loved and that he was there with me after i read my p blessing and things that didnt really get my attention did and i then wnated nothing more than to stay hre for ever to testiy of my savior and help those around me. i love this quote and see it everday 

¨Just think of it: You´re known and remembered by the most majestic, powerful and glorious being in the universe!! You are LOVED by the king of INFINITE SPACE AND EVER LASTING TIME!!¨ pres. dieter f uchtdorf

we are loved by the most perfect being and he is here for us i can truly testify. my dear loved ones in missions or at home dont give up  and dont allow satan to make you feel like you need ot go home or give up on standing up for whats right. the world is changing we cant have one foot in the world an one foot in the gospel we need to choose what side we want and i can say after this week i want the winning side that has the blessings more glorious then i can imagine because my savior is shaping me to more glorious ends then i can imagine in the name of jesus christ amen

my favorite member family here has a pet bird that loves me he climbs my skirt then my shirt to sit on my shoulder and he talks and then when i knod my head he knods his

this is pichangas!! for thanksgiving!!



the sign says we have food colder then the heart of your ex!

 

 

Madisyn's 1st Birthday away from home

November 16, 2015

Well i dont know where to even start with this last week.. the most ridiculous things happened and i am still amazed that i didnt lose my temper.

I guess i will start it all off witht he big BANG of the week yall ready? 

 

So once upon a time a man contacted us in the street. His name was Juan. Juan was really interested in the church and said he has assisted the church one time and really liked it and even asked us if we still had a bautsimal font. so we wrote down his name and his number and planned to visit him. Tuesday night at 8 we were supposed to visit him but we couldnt make it because we had exchanges this day and it put us behind schedule and the appointment with a less active was going longer than expected so i called him and asked if we could move the visit to the next day at the same time and he said yes of course because i just recently got home from my farm and it works out better or me. Well after a long day of contacting we got back to the house an i planned as my hermana leader was going through our area book reviewing everything. I finsihed planning and wanted to go straight to bed... well as we were going sawing logs the phone rang at 1 IN THE MORNING and as all of you know i could sleep through anything so naturally i thought it was a dream but the hermana leader wakes up to everything so she answered the phone and later told me the next morning that a crazy lady called cussing us out saying we were making moves on her husband but that he is angelic well the hermana leader tried to calm this lady down and tell her not to worry that we would call later that day click.. well she called back again 2 times so we had to turn the phone off well the next morning during our district meeting this same lady called 3 times and each time it was a diferent number and each time she cussed us out sayig wierd things but finally the district leader took the phone and said to stop calling and not worry we couldnt do anything to them or visit there house welll after that she called again but we didnt answer.

I honestly could not believe it along with the fact on friday we had a really awesome lesson with the family oparto yarzo (victor javier, renata, carla, and victoria) we talked about the restoration and they loved it asked questions and were really receptive but then all went to the toilet because they had a question so i said yeah what? are you a virgen? umm what? we want to know if you have to be virgens to go on missions. my comp was dying because she doenst talk about anything like that ever she doesnt like saying she needs to use the bathroom. so i just laughed and basically taught the law of chastiy. they were really happy and said its always good to have gringa missionaries because they are open about everything and will teach all the stuff. i was laughing so hard after because to this day my comp is freaked out.

So a thing to share with my friends and my littke brother because im sure you guys will find it funny my comp is learning english and asked for my help so when we were out contacting a lot of people rejected us so i asked my comp so say something in english so we could practice and she could cheer up. and she says YA´LL NEED JESUS! i busted out laughing because she has the best accent. she also has determined that i need to marry into her family because she has a brother that is 21 and she cant live without me she says.

Okay enough with that on to the spirit experiences this week

Miguel Angel had a rough experence with church yesterday and was bulled a little by the other kids in the primary so him and his mom left church early but everything is okay right now and i think he is still okay for baptism. during our lesson before he stopped and said i need to pray then knelt down and began to pray it was such an amazing experience.

This week i have spent a lot of time studying the examples of Ammon, Alma and Amulek in the mission. they were such powerful missionaries and full of the spirit. They always wanted to follow the lord even when others were suffering. in Chapter 14 they are watching the wrath of god upon the people by fire. The fire is comsuming all and amulek turns to alma when he sees the innocent woman and chilren crying and perishing. ¨how can we witness this? cant we reach out our hand to them and rescue them? and Alma says no this needs to happen but those that are innocent are in the pressence of our god and they are happy. I was so amazed at this because many times in the mission we have to leave non profressing inv or less actives and my heart mourns for them but in the end i know we can stil give them littel notes at there door and pray for them. 

The lords work. This week was a week full of trials and yesterday i recieved another answer i have been searching for. our brake president of the ward had lunch with us and shared a story that President Gordan B Hinckley was feeling sad and down that a lot of things were working the way he had wanted that he felt unworthy and inadequate for this work and that in that moment he heard very clearly the voice of our loving father in heaven saying Gordan Gordan this is my work not your work. This literally pierced my soul. When we as missionaries or members or leaders in the chruch take pity on ourselfs or feel down that something didnt turn out the way we wanted or that we are not doing enough we need ot remember its not our work ITS THE LORDS WORK and in his time and way he will have things happen. My compy and I really studied that this morning to foucs on the fact that we cant control the work and we arent ment to we are ment to simply live our lives in harmony with the commandments and teaching of our savior and he does the rest. i love you all remember to always be ready to share the gospel an when things dont go as you wish remember its not our work but the lords (:

November 9, 2015

WOW you guys I am starting to really not want mondays to come around... this week flew by and i am closer and closer to completing 6 months in the mission and it makes me really sad! I will turn 20 on the 19th and the day after complete 6 months in the mission so you can bet that i have been planning ways to hid when my time here is up so i dont have to go home ill probably just crawl into one of the many huge spider web houses.

So this week has been a week of a lot of spiritual thinking for me obviousy as a missionary i have a lot of spiritual thinking but this week was more so than ever. I spent a lot of my free time putting our Area book in order, reading Liahonas, studying scriptures and my patriatical blessing and ended in a fast on sunday. I have been searching for an answer to a long awaited question that i have had since i started my misison and the passon to find the answer grew when i  was transfered here in Rio Bueno. 

I was searching for a way to forget all that has happened in my past. I wanted to find a way to finally forgive myself, along with others. i have wanted to find a way to easily forgive others the way the lord forgives others. I have tried to ¨fake it until you make it¨ convincing myself that i have put it all in the past. All my attempts have yet to work until this week. As i pondered this week over the needs of our investigators a common factory kepy coming and that was the atonement and forgiveness. As i talked with my comp it became more and more clear that some of the same problems they were having were the inner battles i was struggling. I finally decided to random open my scriptures. the verses that i recieved were D&C 24:8 and Moroni 10:3-5

3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

 4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

 5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know thetruth of all things.

I at first was like ¨really.. the same scripture we use all the time with investigators it must be a mistake so i being stubborn closed my scriptures and did it again and once again i got this scripture but this time the words stood out bigger to me ¨SINCERE HEART¨¨MERCIFUL¨ i then decided to spend the whole week searching through the atonement and i found the best talks that all had the phrase use the mercy and grace of god and let it go, let it go. i continued to look and look thinking wow its not coming ill fast and so i fasted and yesterday i ended my fast and felt tremendously better but was still missing something so i spend the morning reading but it was until today when i recieved a email that confirmed what i had already known from earlier during the week.

 

                                                           LET IT GO

The letter i recieved had parts of a mormon message that i love about a man that loses his wife, unborn baby, son and daughter in a car accident and how when he had saw the other car he immediately didnt feel hate or anger towards the car only a confirmation that it wasnt his burden to bare and he needed to let it go. 

I can truly testify that i heart a still voice say to me personally ¨Madi let it go¨ as  i sat at my study desk my heart grew a million sizes and i knew that i had received all that i had needed that it wasnt my burden to carry because my savior had already done it. I KNOW MY SAVIOR LIVES. i know that i have seen his work here in chile with those i am teaching and i know that i can help them LET IT GO. i am so grateful for the power of the atonement and the ability to truly feel at peace. i want you all to know that when somehting happens it happens because it needs to happen. i know now more than ever that THINGS HAPPEN WHEN THEY NEED TO HAPPEN and that we need to have a more eternal perspective maybe something big happens in our lives or a small thing happens in our life that can effect our lifes or more importantly others. i have been thinking a little to much abut me and not enough about others i have a plan to only pray this week for others and i challenge you do do the same. the lord knows our needs and will bless us so i want others to recieve more blessings i love you all so much and i am grateful for every isngle email i recieve i read them all and save them all. i want you to know that you are missionaries with me and i need you to find those walking in darkness and help them. i cant wait to see what this week holds!! 

ALL MY LOVE XOXOX

CON TODO DE MI AMOR   Hermana Kogianes 

same earrings as a little girl in the ward that i love

WE FOUND A SHEEPS HEAD HAHA UMM also a pic from our clean house in hopes for permission to leave the sector to explore

fotos are of a dead sheep head being cooked because they eat it here, a rainbow from sunday, me and my comp eating popsicle because its been so hot here and the daughters of victor javier and renata! the daughters victoria and carla