Mission Log - December 26, 2017 - T11, W2 - Merry Christ-MAS

Feliz Navidad from New Mexico!!

It's pretty "chile" here!

What a joy and a treat is it to be able to spend this magical time of year in the full-time service of the very One we celebrate.

I am humbled and honored to have spent this whole year in His service.  One of my favorite parts about what we share is, of course, the Book of Mormon.  It's unique, refreshing - it's the unfiltered word of God, what do you think? :)  It teaches us about His true nature.  If you take another look at the Christmas story in the ancient Americas, a profound example of His love is found in 3 Nephi 1.

Remember Samuel the Lamanite prophesied that Christ would come (Helaman 14) and gave signs, including that there would be a day and a night and a day with no darkness at the time of His birth.  About 5 years later, the wicked Nephites determined that the believers would be put to death on a certain day if the sign did not come to pass.  We read in 3 Nephi 1:

9 Now it came to pass that there was a day set apart by the unbelievers, that all those who believed in those traditions should be put to death except the sign should come to pass, which had been given by Samuel the prophet.
10 Now it came to pass that when Nephi, the son of Nephi, saw this wickedness of his people, his heart was exceedingly sorrowful.
11 And it came to pass that he went out and bowed himself down upon the earth, and cried mightily to his God in behalf of his people, yea, those who were about to be destroyed because of their faith in the tradition of their fathers.
12 And it came to pass that he cried mightily unto the Lord all that day; and behold, the voice of the Lord came unto him, saying:
13 Lift up your head and be of good cheer; for behold, the time is at hand, and on this night shall the sign be given, and on the morrow come I into the world, to show unto the world that I will fulfill all that which I have caused to be spoken by the mouth of my holy prophets."
    - 3 Nephi 1:9-13, emphasis added

That response from Jesus, the night before He has to leave for His grand Mission, is incredible to me.  He was about to embark on the most important earthly journey anyone had ever undertaken!  His to-do list must have been a mile long, as well as farewells, last-minute instructions from Heavenly Father, and packing spiritually, yet He took the time out of His sacred schedule to respond to Nephi’s prayer, and assured him that the signs will come to pass and his family will be alright.

Heavenly Father does hear and answer our prayers. Maybe not in the exact moment or way we want, but He ALWAYS answers.

I love all of you so much!

Also, in Spanish, "mas" means "more"... so Merry CHRIST MAS!

Love, Love, from Heaven above,
Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - December 18, 2017 - T11, W1 - Temple Baptisms and Gratitude Conquers Pride

Dear loved ones,

What.  A.  WEEK!

This week, we had the opportunity to go to the Temple to do baptisms for the dead with one of the recent converts in the branch!  Norma Saenz-Rico, who recently celebrated her 89th birthday, asked​ that we accompany her because she can't actually do baptisms - she can't be immersed in water.  But she can do confirmations!  We were overjoyed to help her do the work for her ancestors.

There was a very sweet spirit in the temple.  The youth from Volcano Cliffs ward, the English ward we share the building with, happened to have a temple trip that very night!  We had the unique opportunity to see Fabian, the only young man in our branch, enter the temple for the first time! 

In addition to the above mentioned, we saw many miracles this week!  We finally got in contact with Walter Guerrero, a less-active man in our ward.  When he answered the door, I recognized him!  I knew his parents, the Guerreros, from 12th ward.  Almost a year ago, I had met Walter at a Christmas party at their house!  We talked to him, and not only is he planning on returning to activity, he's excited about his calling as a ward missionary and asked if he could come to lessons with us!

We saw the Perez family again and shared with them the Family: a Proclamation to the World.  We invited them to do family prayer every night and we're seeing a lot of progress with them!

Something I learned in a penetrating way this week was that Gratitude is the balm for stung pride.  As many may know, I'm prideful - I've been trying to work on having more humility, and it seems that whenever I get comfortable, another test comes along. :)  I have added minutes to my prayers of just thanking Heavenly Father for blessings - and although my pride has been hurt many times over the past week, instead of defending myself or talking back, I have "experimented on the word" if you will, and did the exact OPPOSITE of what I felt like doing.  For example, I apologize when I feel more like justifying - I've really been trying to stay positive when I felt like being bitter.  And you know what?  IT WORKED!  I felt the Spirit comfort me and give me a spiritual back-pat.  Somehow, I can be told something over and over, and yet I re-learn it once I try it for myself.

It's the same with anything.  As it says in John 7:17, "If any man will do his will, he shall know of his doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."  Try it, and you'll see!  Try reading the Book of Mormon - try praying - try going to church every week - try paying tithing - "and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it." (Malachi 3:10)

Love,
Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - December 11, 2017 - T10, W6 - Elder Renlund Visit and Tumbleweed Harvest

Que tal from Albuquerque!

Whew!  What a week, what a week!

This week, Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Twelve came to speak to us, the missionaries.  I had the opportunity to shake his hand, and during part of the conference, he opened up for questions.  It was really an amazing time, but they said not to transcribe any of it, unfortunately.  But here is the picture!  I'm right behind Elder Renlund, four rows back. :)

This week, I had a profound experience while rendering service to a neighborhood plagued with tumbleweeds.  I wasn't in a talking or socializing mood, it being early in the morning, so I grabbed a pair of gloves and a rake and fairly HACKED at those unsuspecting bushes.  To my surprise, they came up easily; with very little effort, bushes that reached my waist came up easily, like giant, prickly cotton balls.  I was swinging away like a merry old golfer, when I looked behind me to see my companion.

To the idle onlooker, she appeared to be doing nothing, just chipping away at the rocks I had already cleared.  Upon closer examination, she was actually cutting down the much smaller, much more stubborn weeds.  I was reminded of Doctrine and Covenants 4 and the image of the harvester.  Some lucky missionaries get to the really big, obvious, golden investigators first - they open their mouth and thrust in their message, and they harvest a TON.  People see them and think, wow, what a successful missionary.  Missionaries like my companion, who have to come behind these lucky reapers, are often judged for appearing less successful than others, even though they work just as hard if not harder than those who came before.

I considered the uprooted bushes we'd unceremoniously dumped into the road. I thought to myself, if we don't get these bushes into bags, they'll roll in front of a car and be dashed to pieces.  As the thought crossed my mind and we brought out the trash bags to start stuffing, I thought of those who are newly baptized, recent converts.  They have a testimony, but they are still new and need guidance and protection from the breezes that would blow them into danger.  That's why the church focuses so much on having them go to the temple to do baptisms for the dead, and prepare them for more sacred covenants.  The temple is the "bag" - the safe place we gather them into so they don't get run over by temptation, doubt, and pride.

As we stuffed the surprisingly poky plants down into the fast-ripping plastic bags, and the sharp stickers got into our gloves, shoes, and clothing, I was reminded of the crown of thorns that our Savior wore.  He wore it without grumbling or complaining.

Sharing the gospel isn't easy.  There are tough little weeds, prickly thorns, sore muscles, and hard days.  But once we gathered all the weeds into the bags, it was so rewarding and so worth it.  I know that there are people all around us that are just waiting for the gospel.  As we thrust in the sickle and share the Book of Mormon with them, we actually feel the Spirit more in our lives.

My brother, Janson, and the family actually are great examples of that.  A while back, Janson shared the Book of Mormon with a neighbor and actually gave him a copy.  Now, that same neighbor is taking the missionary lessons in our house!  My family are amazing and great examples to me of member missionaries, and it's blessed me on my mission to have them to look up to! :)  Love you, Family!

That's all for this week. 

Con mucho cariño,

Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - December 4, 2017 - T10, W5 - Missionary Lifeguards

Bueno from Albuquerque!

Whew!  What a week, what a week!  What a GOOD week.

This week, a family made the very important decision to be baptized.  The Ramos family is very special and we were so happy to see them progress, help them answer their questions, and develop a relationship with the Savior.

As we witnessed the four of them enter the water and come out clean, one by one, the Spirit was very strong.  I thought of an article I'd read in the Ensign called "The gate called Baptism."  He made this observation:

"Baptism is not just the gate through which we enter the Lord’s Church and subsequently the celestial kingdom; it is also the gateway to the precious, indispensable, and ongoing process of becoming “perfect in Christ” (Moroni 10:32, 33) that each of us needs and wants....In simple terms, we may call this ongoing process conversion."

My most sincere desire for all the people I meet is for them to start or re-start the conversion process and essentially "get back in the boat" that is Jesus Christ's church.  The hardest thing about being a missionary is that sometimes people look at us kind of like annoying lifeguards with the little whistles - "Breeet!  No splashing!  No running!  Read your scriptures!  Do your prayers!  Breeet!"  As they float in their inner-tubes, loosening their life-jackets, they can't see the red on the horizon that means a storm is coming.  Conversion, to me, means listening to the lifeguard - even though it's annoying to be told what to do; it doesn't mean you can't swim.  It just means be careful.  Listen to the Lifeguard.

Safe swimming!

Love, Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - November 27, 2017 - T10, W4 - New Area, Small Branch

Dear wonderful frijoles,

Whew!  What a week, what a week.
This is my new companion, Hermana Page:

(Yes, it's COLD!)​
She's from Boise, Idaho, but she was born in Guatemala.  We actually came out at the same time!
This week, there were many reasons to be grateful.

Day 1
First of all, my new companion and I successfully located our new apartment.  There were remnants of Elders - a Nerf gun here, a pair of slacks there.  We cleaned it out and tried to bring order to the place.  We acquired a map at a nearby Walmart.  We then had dinner with a family of Investigators that've been coming consistently to church for over a year now.  We heart-attacked many people that night!

Day 2
Ready to take on the day.  We stopped by the Miera Family by request.  She was recently called to be the Relief Society President - she was very excited that there were now Hermanas in the branch!  She took us to meet three people - Hermana Greaves, Sandra, and the Huerta Family. 

Hermana Greaves wouldn't sit still - instead, she took the three of us on a grand tour of her house, showing us her dog and the newborn puppies, her back porch that she'd built, and the carpet she planned to pull up.  For a woman with cancer, she sure has a lot of energy! 

Sandra wasn't thrilled to find missionaries on her doorstep, but when she looked past us and saw Hermana Miera, her face lit up!  She simultaneously shook Hermana Mieras hand and pulled her into the apartment.  That's the power of member missionary work!  If we were alone, we never would have contacted Sandra - but Hermana Miera knew Sandra!  It was a beautiful thing to see. 

Then, finally, we went for a quick visit to the grandma Huerta.  We planned a Family Home evening with her.

We were shocked to discover in our correlation meeting with the President of the Coronado Branch that we'd been missing a page of the ward list!!  Luckily, we were able to print a new copy. :)

Day 3
We literally "lost ourselves" in the work today.  The dirt roads of Rio Rancho show up on Hermana Page's GPS, but there are no street signs out there in the wilderness!  After popping by the Branch President of Bosque's mansion for a quick meeting, we headed up for the hour drive to Thanksgiving dinner.  And what a dinner it was!  There was turkey, ham, yams, and of course, chile, limon, and agua de coco. :)  The member told us that everything was gluten free and sugar free.  We felt very grateful to be a part of that dinner!  It was fun because we were assigned to the kids table.  They have two tiny little kids - and boy, could they talk! :)  We then went for a visit in the home of the Bake's.  They just recently returned from a full-time mission in Guatemala.  It reminded me of my grandparents, who also served a mission in Guatemala! :)

Day 4
The spirit of missionary meetings is definitely different up here in Albuquerque.  The missionaries in my district here are wonderful - very upbeat and positive.  They motivate me to be more prayerful and faithful about the work.  And because there are less missionaries here than in El Paso, the other sisters were so excited to have us here.  One of them told us that she'd never had other sisters in her district for her whole mission!  We then tried eggplant casserole - not bad!  We then tried by a member and met her neighbor, Kimi.  She was very nice!  She told us to stop by anytime.  We then tried by a man named George - he told us he wants the lessons again, even after a year without seeing the missionaries!  We felt so proud to be able to tell the branch mission leader that we have more time now to focus on Bosque.  He said, "Hmm. Good job, Hermanas.  Here's some more people for you to find." :)

Saturday
We went to help out a family that is moving out of the branch.  In a branch of 14 people, one family leaving makes a huge difference.  We had dinner with the Quipse family.  The Quispe boys are the only two youth in Coronado - the older one, Carlos, is planning on serving a mission!  We also stopped by an investigator family named the Perezes.  They have been investigating for a while, and the mom is a member.  They are a young family - her boys are 13 and 15, so we plan on inviting them to a Family Home Evening with the Quispes.

Sunday
8 HOURS OF CHURCH!!  Being a missionary is the best. :)  We're lucky that the two branches meet at 9 and 1, so we're able to attend most of both of them. :)  Bosque had a farewell dinner for the Andersons, who are moving out.  It was a great turnout- almost everyone in the branch was there!

It has been fantastic. More miracles to come next week!

Love, Love, Love,
Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - November 20, 2017 - T10, W3 - Living Alma and Transfers Again

Dear Wonderful people,

Whew!  What a week, what a week.

This week, so much has happened!  On Monday, we met the Perez family, and they are so awesome!  They are a part-member family, so the Dad is not a member, but the Mom is.  We read Alma 32 and talked about the seed of faith.  (The kids decided it was a watermelon seed. :)  Hermana Burrell commented afterward that it felt just like a family home evening back home. :)

One thing that I have noticed during my time up here in Albuquerque is that it is COLD!!  On Tuesday, before zone conference, all the missionaries were outside doing routine vehicle checks - checking the tire pressure, brake lights, horn and whatnot - and it brought me back to those college days at BYU Idaho because my hands were freezing!

During the conference, two men power-washed all the engines of the mission vehicles.  During a break, we brought them ice-cream sandwiches, talked with them, and found out that they weren't members.  Then one of them, Bruce, told us: "I've been waiting for three months for them to send somebody to my house!"

That evening, we had dinner with the Andersons, a young family heading out to Utah next week.  We're helping them move next Saturday.  Then, after we saw the Andersons, we went to go see the Andersons (confusing, no?) who are a golden investigator family!  We walked in on them doing their daily exercise, then proceeded to have a very spiritual lesson.  They have very different religious backgrounds, but as we listened to them, the Spirit took over and we read 1 Nephi one with them.  One of the wife's main concerns is that when she goes to church, she feels like she's not going to make it to heaven, because of commandments she hasn't yet kept.  It was so awesome when the Dad said to his wife, "Look, honey- in verse 14, it says the God won't suffer those who come unto Him to perish.  There's your answer!"

Of course, some crazy things happened this week - we were asked to give service as costumed advertisers for a restaurant (we politely declined); Hermana Burrell's aunt and uncle happened to be traveling in Albuquerque and took them out to dinner while I was on exchanges (NOT allowed, but Hermana Burrell didn't know); and we found the living Alma!  (pics below)

I'll explain: we met a woman on the street named Alma.  I was excited - "No way! Your name is ALMA!?"  I flipped to Alma 32:28 and showed her - "Look! It's YOU! Alma!"  She was very excited.  The very next day, she invited us back for pumpkin pie.  She had told her husband and her grown daughters about us. 

"I just had this great feeling last night when you left!"  She exclaimed.  "That was the Holy Ghost! How do you feel right now?" We asked her.  "I feel good! I feel knowledge and understanding," she said.  "THAT's the Holy Ghost!"  As we shared the message of the Restoration, and told her of the first vision, she got teary.  Finally, as we told her of the Book of Mormon, I held it out to her.  Her reaction was the best I've ever seen - "For ME?!" She gasped.  "Yes, for you!"  "My first book of Mormon!" she said, looking at it eagerly.  "You know what you need to do now," we said.  "Yes! I'm going to read it!" "And pray." "And pray!" :)  The best.  The Book of Mormon speaks for itself - just like Tad R. Callister's talk this past conference.

SO, as many of you know, the most dangerous zone to be in as a missionary the COMFORT zone.  I have learned many things as a missionary, but more recently the skill that I've been able to practice the most is packing.  You guessed it! I'm being transferred again.  Unfortunately another missionary is going home, so her companion will be coming to Bosque and Coronado with me while Hermana Jackson and Hermana Burrell will be staying in Valle del Norte.  Sad to leave - excited to pinkwash!

Love, love, love,
Hermana Smurthwaite

1. The living Alma

2. My most recent mural

3. Tacos from home :)

Mission Log - November 13, 2017 - T10, W2 - Albuquerque, Trio, and Urgency

Hola from ALBUQUERQUE!!

Whew!  What a WEEK, what a week!

This week I received the two craziest companions in the mission field!  Hermana Jackson is from Delaware and we actually knew each other before the mission - we went to the same mission prep class at BYUI.  And Hermana Burrell is from Tremonton, Utah, and she's been in the field a fresh two weeks now!

We are covering 3 stakes, which is to say, 3 Spanish branches, the largest area (geographically) in the mission.  The Valle del Norte branch is the largest, with 30 active members and about 80 less active members.  The Bosque branch is the second largest, with about 6 active families and 1 investigator family that goes every week. :)  There's something very special about that branch - everyone is so loving and inclusive.  This is silly, but I wish all church units could be that small, so everyone could know each other and be super close like that.

The smallest branch is the Coronado branch, with about 3 active families and 13 families total.  We haven't gone to their branch yet, because it's at the same time as Valle del Norte, but we'll go next week, for sure!

Many crazy fiascos happened this week - Hermana Jackson got really into studies and dressed as a Pharisee:

And we accidentally chucked the keys in the dumpster when we were taking out the trash:  (I was the only one who could climb in and get it :)

I love this quote from Jeffery R. Holland:

“… if I come to your mission, and I don’t think you are working hard enough, forgive me if I seem to bear down.  A mission is not casual; it is not something we do if it is convenient; it is not something we do if it is comfortable…. I want you to embrace, savor, and cherish every single minute of it – the good times and the hard times, the companions you love and the ones who test your faith.  I want you to enjoy all of it, to learn from it, to grow from it, and to know that it will never come again.  Plan now for the stories your children will hear and ask to hear again about what you learned on your mission, about how much you loved the people and the land…. We cannot guarantee heroic results.  You are going to a wide variety of missions and to a wide variety of peoples, where interests, cultures, needs, politics, materialism, and a whole host of factors will play a role in your success.  We can not and you can not guarantee heroic results.  But every elder and sister in this room can pledge heroic effort.  I ask you to do that.” (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, Provo MTC, 18 January 2000).

He is right - this moment is so short!  And I think this could apply to life, not just to the mission - the time is short!  Even though it might seem long sometimes.  I never understood that before my mission - but now I can feel a sense of urgency.  I feel like I need to MOVE!  And not tomorrow, but NOW!  Every second counts.

Love, love, love,
Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - November 6, 2017 - T10, W1 - Gratitude and Challenges

Dear wonderful people,

My new companion is awesome!  Her name is Hermana Ballantyne, she's from Provo, Utah, and she is such a powerful missionary.

She is so clean and organized - the Area Book was the most organized I had ever seen and the apartment was spotless, a first for right after transfers!  She has excellent posture - and she doesn't eat sugar at all, because of all the health benefits.

She's a shining example of gratitude.  She's always sincerely thanking people for things: "Thank you for texting that investigator." "Thank you for all your hard work." "Thank you for asking that question."

She has an amazingly powerful testimony - during a lesson with the Reyes family this week, we were teaching the plan of Salvation.  She kept looking at them steadily in the eyes and saying," I know this is true.  I know you can be together eternally."  After the lesson, she continued to amaze me and said, "Let's say a prayer of gratitude!"  In the prayer, which was one of the most heartfelt, spiritual prayers I'd ever heard, she thanked Heavenly Father that the family we were teaching was going to the Celestial Kingdom.  She also thanked Heavenly Father for her companion, me.  I felt honored to be included her prayer.

Later in the week, our weekly planning session was the most focused, alert, spiritually directed weekly planning session I've ever had the privilege to be a part of.  I could feel the love my companion had for every single person we discussed - and at the end, when we did "comp inventory", which is like a weekly one-on-one with your companion, she had nothing but positive things to say.  Truly, she is a consecrated missionary.

But.

It is my personal opinion that Satan works the hardest against the best missionaries.  The tool that Satan chose to use against sweet Hermana Ballantyne was severe clinical depression.  She's on the plane back to Utah right now - to heal and prepare to come back.  The four months she spent here touched so many lives - we didn't have time to visit all of the people she had grown to love.

This past week has been the best and also the most difficult week of my mission.  I was heartbroken that she had to leave - she was so good!  I felt as though I could have done something to help her stay - say the right thing, or read her the right scripture.  But we only had a week together.  She assured me there was nothing I could have done - and, of course, she thanked me for being with her in this difficult time.

So I'm off to Albuquerque.  I'm sure it will be full of adventures and whatnot, and the field is white and ready to harvest up there.  But I will miss Texas... and I will never forget Hermana Ballantyne.

Mission Log - October 30, 2017 - T9, W6 - Transfer and Putting God First

Hola from El Paso!  (But Goodbye, Transmountain!)

from left to right: Alejandro (the Bishop's son), Elder Evans, Elder Simmons, Obispo Cigarroa, Elder Andrade, Elder Soria, and Hermana Bishop​

I didn't want to leave Transmountain North!!!

We were finally getting into a good rhythm - establishing daily contact with the focus families, especially all the recent converts.  Three families are working towards getting sealed!  I feel like every time things are running smoothly and you're getting along with your companion, and you don't WANT to get transferred, that's when you're transferred.  But that's how it should be - we can't grow in our comfort zones. :)  I feel satisfied, however, that I did my best - I did all I could - for the Transmountain ward.

Hermana Bishop is a little nervous about taking over - we had a mini weekly planning session and made sure the Area book was completely up-to-date.  Letting her see the organization and structure of missionary work, I hope, will help her continue feeling capable.

I'm excited to be going to a new zone!  It'll be strange not to have the Chamizion phone call every Wednesday, and zone sports at Hondo Pass, but it'll be a wonderful opportunity to branch out. :)

One of the many amazing miracles we saw this my last week in the area came in the form of a referral from Hondo Pass Elders.  They noticed a family on their records that they had never met before and asked if we knew them.  We replied that we didn't, but immediately went to contact them and met the Padilla family.  They are AWESOME!  There's four kids - Yameleth 11, Mayte 9, Ruby 6, and Liam 3.  The older girls have been going to English ward on occasion, which is why they're on the English ward list.  But, the mother, Jessica, doesn't speak English!  So we're working on getting their records transferred over to our ward. :)  We asked them while we were there what their hopes and dreams are for the future.  The kids mentioned wanting to be doctors, or a truck driver for Liam.  Then we asked what they want as a family.  They said, "An Eternal Family!"  So prepared!  Right then and there, we made a plan with them to get them to the temple to be sealed!  It was an AMAZING lesson and miracle to see and to be a part of.

We also had a miracle phone call this week.  A non-member or less active man named Adam called us out of the blue.  "Are you the Elders?"  He asked.  "We are missionaries - how can we help you?" we asked.  He asked us if we could give his daughter a blessing.  She is in a Children's hospital and has had three surgeries in the past two weeks.  We passed it off to the Elders serving in that area and they gave the little girl the blessing.  Heavenly Father truly guides His children to the Church!

Recently, our Mission President shared the following quote:

“Trying to please others before pleasing God is inverting the first and second great commandments.  It is forgetting which way we face.  And yet, we have all made that mistake because of the fear of men…. For example, some young missionaries carry this fear of men into the mission field and fail to report the flagrant disobedience of a companion to their mission president because they don’t want to offend their wayward companion.  Decisions of character are made by remembering the right order of the first and second great commandments.” (Which Way Do You Face? Elder Lynn G. Robbins of the Seventy, General Conference, October 2014).

This is applicable to everyone; I know it's hard - it's super hard to put God first sometimes.  At times the glorious mansions and castles in the eternities seem so far away on the horizon that we feel like we can explore the thorny side-paths and trails and not get lost - only to look up and find that we're completely turned around.  I know the strait and narrow path seems long, but it's so worth it!  You have to learn to appreciate the flora and fauna from behind the guardrails and not go trampsing around out of bounds.  I've learned that throughout my life, and I'm reminded of it every day.

Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - October 23, 2017 - T9, W5 - Obedience is Essential

Dear friends, loved ones, and fellow missionaries,

Our little pumpkin patch. :)​

Wow!  What a beautiful week of miracles.  This week, we decided to focus on strengthening the recent converts and the less-active members of the ward.  We went by their houses and heart-attacked them, visited them, and helped them make a plan to come to church using the handy-dandy church cards.  And do you know what?  It's working!!  Of their own free will and choice, they came to CHURCH!!  Ceci and Ulysses, a young couple with small children, brought their relatives, Joe, a recent convert, and Debbie, a less-active member.  The whole Adame family came - mom, dad, the daughter, the grandkid, the aunt and uncle, and the grandma!  AND, this was very exciting, our ward mission leader came!!!  We were so happy to see him - we'd been struggling to contact him for a while.  He wasn't able to stay for ward council, but it's a good start!! 

Also, out of the blue, Brianda texted us!  She's the one with an abusive husband who we thought had moved back to Mexico.  She wants to meet with us again!  It was absolutely amazing!!  The Lord has truly prepared her throughout these past 5 months.  We're seeing her soon!

Hermana Bishop is doing well - we're getting over the sniffles/sore throat. :)  She's a tough cookie!
Something our mission president shared recently with us is the principle of obedience.  He said:

"Each of you is a beloved son or daughter of celestial parents.  Their spiritual DNA courses through your spirit veins.  They love you.  They know you have the ability to become celestial beings as they are.  For them this is their everyday reality.  I hope it is yours...

We have to have the basics in place before we can learn the more effective ways to do missionary work."

He discussed some basic things the mission as a whole is struggling with - such as effective exercise, the use of slang, and so on.  He continues:

"Generally [these basics] could be classified as being obedient.  Obedience is the first law of heaven.  It is the first covenant we make in the temple.  There is a reason you go to the temple prior to coming on a mission.  One of them is that, having made that covenant, you’re already committed to be obedient, and should not have to make that decision in the field.  You may feel that disobedience only affects you or your companionship.  Not true.  You affect your companion.  Your companionship affects your district.  Your district affects your zone.  Your zone affects the mission.  Just as the combined prayers of the whole mission strengthen each one of us, disobedience by one hurts all of us.  It diminishes the Spirit."

As an animated character in the movie "Prince of Egypt" once put it, "One weak link can break the chain of a mighty dynasty!"

Elder Holland, in a talk given at the MTC called "Don't you dare go home," has this to say for obedience: “I ask you not to resist the principle of obedience; not to resist it here in the MTC, and not to resist it in the mission field.  Your mission president will probably talk about some aspect of obedience in almost every zone conference.  I’d be surprised if he didn’t.  There’s a reason for it.  Obedience is the first law of missionary work.  We cannot get to laws 2, 3, 4, 20 and 90 until we establish that we will obey.  In fact, obedience is the first law of everything.  We don’t really know very much about the pre-mortal council in heaven.  But one of the things we do know is that the issue was agency and obedience.  That battle is still being waged.  What began in heaven has moved to this earth, but that fight is still on.  It is the most fundamental issue in our lives.  Will we choose, with our agency, to voluntarily, humbly, obediently, follow God the eternal Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, or not?  That is the issue of all eternity.”

Obedience is essential.  It's a tiny thing; but it has eternal consequences.

Mission Log - October 16, 2017 - T9, W4 - Missionary Enthusiasm and Fun

Whew!  What a week, what a week.

Everything is bigger in Texas! (really...)

The influence of Mexico is also undeniable:

Feliz Halloween!​

This week, on Saturday, we had an activity in Chapparal where the whole zone got together with a few members and went out to invite people to their open house next Saturday.  It was fun!  The Chaparral building is very new, only three years old.  It's a beautiful building!  A lot of decorative desert flora outside.  Very refreshing to get out of my own area and just share the gospel.  We even found new investigators for Chapparal Elders!  First, we went to a less-active members house to invite her to the activity.  She not only agreed to go, she agreed to accompany us to the next house to invite her neighbor as well!  She is awesome - and as we walked down the street, we saw a mom with her two daughters working outside.  Emboldened, I walked right up to her and gave her a flyer about the activity.  She accepted it, and I asked if we could come in and share a message with her.  She agreed and we proceeded to teach her about Joseph Smith, the Restoration of the Gospel, and the Book of Mormon.  She accepted a copy and promised to read it with her two daughters!  It was a miracle.  It was as though a weight was lifted off my shoulders - I didn't have to worry about appointments, meetings, making phone calls, or anything!  I could just share the pure Gospel!

I kind of wished I could always be that positive - then I thought, "Well, why not?"  I made it a personal goal to be just as positive and happy about my calling all the time, not just when things are going my way.  I realized the reason why it was so easy for me to be positive and upbeat during was because I thought it was FUN.  People will do literally anything if it's fun.  Sometimes I get so bogged down with the busywork of missionary work sometimes, like 5-6 hours of church, that it's exhausting - but I remembered that missionary work should also be full of joy and fun!  So that's this week's theme - respecting the dignity of my calling, I have decided to have more fun and have a more positive outlook. :)

By way if inspiration, our mission president recently shared this very thing with us.  He said:

"Have you ever been in a quiet room of people who are maybe a little down-hearted, and had someone walk in who was genuinely happy and excited to be with those in the room?  What happens to the spirit in the room?  It changes and people’s spirits are lifted.

It is my experience that 90% of what drives a ward to be missionary minded is the excitement and enthusiasm of the missionaries, and their focus on their work.  We saw it in our ward at home.  We will always remember Sis. Hatch (now a teacher at the MTC) and Sis. Choppa.  They lightened our home a number of times (I was Ward Mission Leader at the time) and our church meetings by their very presence.  Missionaries who are excited for the work just naturally radiate warmth and enthusiasm.

We have seen this in various places in the mission.  Missionaries who understand their purpose and are intently focused on it, and are happy, can literally change the spirit of a ward or branch almost single-handedly.  That is what Susan Fulcher did – a true story, incidentally.

So if things aren't going as well as you'd like in your ward or branch, have a look in the mirror.  Smile!  Greet people warmly.  Be engaged in the work.  Be with investigators or members."

Love, love, love,
Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - October 10, 2017 - T9, W3 - Family History Lessons and Love erases Fear

Hola from El Paso!

WHEW!  What a WEEK, what a week!
We went on a hike this morning - it was a doozy!

Worth it.  I wish El ​Paso could've heard us from up there - "Read the Book of Mormon! IT'S TRUE!!" :)

My two "hijas"- troopers!
Elder Evans hurt himself pretty bad, but he just laughed!  He's a tough cookie.

This Friday, we woke up at 4:00 am so we could get in 30 minutes of exercise before going to seminary, which starts at 5:30 in El Paso.  To save miles, we stayed at the church and were able to do our 3 1/2 hours of studies and even vacuum and set up the tables real nice for district council, which turned out to be a blessing, because we were surprised to be joined by our mission president!!  He gave us some very inspired advice for our ward and our investigators and less active members.  Then, we went home to do three hours of weekly planning, in the which we dropped about 3 fourths of our investigators. 😥

We have also rediscovered the joy and power of sharing Family History with less-active members.  We had an appointment with a family whose father hadn't been all that enthusiastic to have us over.  We planned, we prayed, and we prepared to teach them about Family History.  It was like night and day difference - before, the Hermano was squirming in his seat and happy to show us to the door - now, he was completely engaged in the lesson.  He said, "Yeah! I need to find my family - and my father's family needs this!"  We were also able to teach them the Plan of Salvation.  We left them both with a determined resolution to go to the temple.

We got two new elders in our ward, thanks to the missionaries coming in from Puerto Rico.  In our ward council meeting on Sunday, the missionaries almost outnumbered the other members!  The four Elders are now on bikes and, having been on bikes myself, I am far more willing and happy to give them a ride than I probably would have been if I never had.  Fun times!

I was reading in the missionary chapters in Alma recently.  At one point, it looks like things are just going downhill for them:

"And now behold, we have come and been forth amongst them; and we have been patient in our sufferings, and we have suffered every privation; yea, we have traveled from house to house, relying upon the mercies of the world – not upon the mercies of the world alone but upon the mercies of God.  And we have entered into their houses and taught them, and we have taught them in their streets; yea, and we have taught them upon their hills; and we have also entered into their temples and their synagogues and taught them; and we have been cast out, and mocked, and spit upon, and smote upon our cheeks; and we have been stoned, and taken and bound with strong cords, and cast into prison; and through the power and wisdom of God we have been delivered again.  And we have suffered all manner of afflictions, and all this, that perhaps we might be the means of saving some soul; and we suppose that our joy would be full if perhaps we could be the means of saving some.” (Alma 26:28-30)

I thought as I read that, "Why!?  Why would anyone be crazy enough to teach not only in people's houses, but in the street, in their churches, on the hillside, just to be mocked, spit on, ridiculed, and thrown in prison?"  I then thought, "Man, and I think getting chased by a dog on a bike is bad news!"  I continued studying and came across this verse:

“Behold, I speak with boldness, having authority from God; and I fear not what man can do; for perfect love casteth out all fear.  And I am filled with charity, which is everlasting love” (Moroni 8:16, 17).  So this is Mormon writing a letter to his son Moroni; the one fleeing from LITERALLY everyone because they're all Lamanites out to kill him - and in the chapter before, Moroni records some of his father's words to the people:

“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ.” (Moroni 7:48).

These verses made it obvious to me - if you love the people, you'll have no fear!  It's like the song, "There is beauty all around, when there's love at home [or at school, or at work, or on the field, or in the ward]"

So love, love, love,
Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - October 2, 2017 - T9, W2 - Missionary Work is Hard and the Touch of the Master's Hand

Dear friends, family, loved ones, and pals,

Missionary work is hard.

But missionaries do hard things.  We've done hard things in this life, we did hard things before we were born.  Something our Mission President told us recently is that, "Heavenly Father is growing you to become as He is, a god, and gods are not wimps!"

Missionary work is also the most awesome, most rewarding work we can do.  We show people the way back to Father, just like Elder Utchdorf was saying in his talk about the animal instinct to migrate back home.  "No one else can do this"(PMG); seriously - The eternal future of the world is placed in the hands of 18-21 year olds!  Talk about pressure!

But the thing is, if it's done right, missionary work actually doesn't involve any pressure at all.  What did Christ tell His apostles right before sending them out on their missions?  "For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."  If I heard that, I would've thought, "Whew!  That's a relief."

I've been reading in the war chapters recently; they would make SUCH a good movie!  There's this one part where it mentions that Moroni was wounded, and I just imagined the scene -

"AAAUUGH!"
"Captain!"
"Verily, continue thee to fight! I shall be alright..."

And then there was another verse that said that Moroni, Teancum, and some other generals held a war council.  I grew to appreciate more the character of Teancum - in Alma 51, Moroni was off fighting in (this is my guess) the Colorado-Kansas area.  He was kinda busy - but while he was doing that, sneaky Amalikiah was curving down left field in East Mexico,  Alabama, and Virginia in a pattern similar to that of a man who is slaying in the board game Risk.  Teancum stops the invasion in it's tracks - then, he gets a letter from Helaman saying, (this is paraphrased) "Teancum, how are things?  We're up to our ears in Lamanites over here and got the message that it's about equal over there.  Would you mind maintaining the Nephite lands, driving back Amalikiah's armies, and striking courage into the hearts of the Nephites in the cause of liberty?  Thanks, 'preciate ya, buh-bye."
And Teancum, "'... 'Kay, no problem."  He's a boss.  He not only does those things, he also assassinated Amalikiah in his tent while he slept!!  As I said, it would make an epic movie.

So missionary work is hard.  But we should love to do hard things - just like Stanley G. Ellis yesterday afternoon.

Something very special that happened this week was this:



The woman on the right is our investigators' mom.  She's been kind of closed off to us - she appreciates what we're doing for her son, but she's just not interested herself.  We went to an appointment to find that her son had gone to the store.  We asked, as we always do, if there was anything we could do for her, and she said, "actually, yes - do you ladies know anyone who can fix a violin?  Shawn has a violin, and he broke the string when he was trying to tune it.  With all the faith I had, a exclaimed, "Sure! I can fix it for you!"  I didn't tell her that I didn't actually know how to fix a violin, but I was confident that Heavenly Father knew how to fix a violin, and He would show me once I saw it.  And He did!  I successfully stringed the violin.  My companion just happened to have some experience playing the violin, so she took a little black box called the Rosin and began to rosin up the bow.  As she did so, we shared Boyd K. Packer's poem. "the touch of a Master's hand."  It was a powerful object lesson!  And my companion was able to play a song for her. :)

Miracles, lessons, insights, and more to come next week! :)

Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - September 26, 2017 - T9, W1 - New Greenie and Super Busy Week

Hola from El Paso!

Whew!  What a week, what a week.  This week we saw a ton of miracles!

On Monday, of course, it was time to say goodbye to Hermana Beamer.  We all signed each other's transfer journals - one sister I'm especially going to miss is Sister Olsen, one of the Sister Training Leaders.  She's so funny!  She has surprised me over and over with her words of wisdom - the Lord truly does qualify those he calls!

On Tuesday, I met my greenie, Hermana Bishop!! SHE CAN DRIVE!
​
(Goodbye bikes) She's from American Fork, Utah, and she is an only child.  She likes sculpting and playing softball, and she's so awesome!  We went to the Relief society activity and were able to also attend the Primary activity and help them practice for the Primary program.  One of the kids invited us into her personal parlor and insisted on doing our hair for free while we waited to see the bishop.  And, a less-active member we hadn't seen in forever, Cynthia, was there!

Our interview with the Bishop went well!  We talked about the ward mission plan and how we could best contribute to the work in the ward.

On Wednesday, we had the busiest day I've seen in 3 months!  We went to the baptismal interview for our investigator, Eulalia, and she passed!  It was a miracle, because she has a problem where it's hard for her to retain information.  But she was able to answer truthfully all the questions and was found worthy of being baptized!  Unfortunately she couldn't get baptized on Saturday because her friend was in the hospital, but for sure next week!

We then visited an investigator named Claudia.  She shared with us that her mother had passed away about a month ago.  Hermana Bishop was able to testify powerfully of the Plan of Salvation.

We then went to see a less-active family I'd not seen for the longest time, the Castanedas.  They have tiny little kids, so as we shared 2 Nephi 25:26, we instructed them to clap every  time they heard the name Christ.  We set up a family home evening with them that I am really looking forward to!

We had dinner with an awesome family, the Martinez's.  The Hermana's brother is inactive.  We talked about how to help him and his wife, who is a recent convert.  It felt like we were in a correlation meeting. :)

We then went to see our investigators Ronnie and Marcela.  Ronnie's 58 and a retired veteran, and his wife is about 4 feet tall.  Bless his heart, he'd been reading a lot in revelations, and was convinced the world was going to end this past Saturday.  We tried to ease his mind on the subject, but he was sorely depressed.  We'll see how it goes this next Wednesday!

We ended the night with Joe, a young investigator with a TON of doctrinal questions.  We answered as best we could and were exhausted by the end of the day.  It was wonderful!

On Thursday, we had Hermana Bishop's first weekly planning session!  She did great - we talked about the investigators and the less-actives and how to reach them and what to teach them.  She had a lot of great input and it got us excited for the next week!

On Friday, we went to Seminary! Yes, it was early, but SO worth it!  If you are in Seminary or know someone who is, love it!  I honestly wish I could go back and do it again - seminary is awesome!  It was a good class - we talked about Laman and Lemuel's attitudes contrasted with Nephi's attitude and how it applies to each of us, especially as missionaries.  We then had an awesome District Council,  led out by the new District leader, Elder Murri.  We did a role play about the Doctrine of Christ, which is basically contained in the fourth article of faith.  We had to find a scripture about it, and invite the person to be baptized using that scripture.

Sunday - Hermana Bishop's first Sunday in the ward!  The ward members love her - she gave her testimony in Spanish and many ward members commented on how good her Spanish was!

Then, yesterday, we went to the temple, which is why I'm writing you all today. :)  The temple was so special, as always.  Something I realized as I was sitting in that holy house is that without love, nothing will ever work.  With love, everything will work like magic!

Love is the word of the week!  So,

Love, love, love,

Hermana Smurthwaite

"If we die, we will be with God; if we live, God will be with us,"
-John Bytheway, speaking about the Stripling Warriors

Mission Log - September 18, 2017 - T8, W6 - Companionship Blessings

The historic Douglas Chapel

Goodbye pictures! (Yes, we're tired :) )

The bishop's son is going back out to Jacksonville, Florida to finish his mission!​

I've been called to train again!!  I've been thinking a lot about companions and relationships lately.  Here's something our mission president shared with us recently:

"One of the great blessings of being a missionary is learning to work with a companion.  You’ve been called to a place you haven’t chosen, and assigned to work with a person you don’t know!  Think of how this prepares you for your eternal companionship.  You think you’re going to marry someone you know a lot about.  Guess what?  Unless you take some unusual steps, you’re going to marry someone that you really don’t know as well as you may think!  You’ll come to realize that more fully several months after you’ve been married.

But that is part of the adventure of life!  We really did want to come to mortality just so we could experience these types of things.  And a true disciple of Christ can make any relationship work.

The Savior said, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”  Our mission vision, given to us as part of our Area Vision developed by the Seven Presidents of Seventy, encourages us to “become true followers of Jesus Christ.”  So a hallmark of true disciples, including missionaries, has to be having love for each other, and demonstrating that love constantly.

Exaltation, the highest form of life we know, is largely based on our ability to get along with others.  Chapters 12, 13 and 14 of 3rd Nephi contain a number of lessons that the Savior gave to the Nephites about how to get along with each other.

One of the most important features of a companionship, whether missionary or eternal, is the habit of daily companionship prayer, at morning and at night (and in between as you feel the need).  A good practice to develop is to talk about what you would like to remember in your prayer before starting the prayer.  It helps each of us to contemplate that we are about to have a conversation with Our Eternal Father, something we should not take lightly.  And it shows respect for each other by showing you care enough to ask for their thoughts on what to pray for.  A true sign of spiritual maturity is whether we think taking the time to do this is important, and not just say prayer to “check the box.” "

Have a good week!
Love,

Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - September 11, 2017 - T8, W5 - Prepared for the Gospel

Hola from El Paso!

Whew!  What a week, what a week.  This week, we saw many miracles.

First, on Monday, we met Jacob and Rosa, a young couple who just recently moved into our apartment complex.  Jacob's brother is a member, and Rosa has gone to church a few times with her friends in Oregon.  They're so prepared!  We taught them the first lesson and they both committed to read and pray about the Book of Mormon.  Jacob told us that when he was young, his dad would always chase Mormons off their porch.  "But you're not... weird people," he admitted. ^.^  Thanks!  We try. :)

The second miracle was a young man named Joe.  We met him in Subway last week, and before we'd even taught him the first lesson, he texted us out of the blue, saying: "Im at work get off at 8 if you would like to talk here about being baptised and so forth."  He has a TON of questions, which is good!  The Lord truly is preparing the hearts of the people.

(Notice my companion's reaction in the background) :)

Our investigator, Yolanda, and her husband, Octavio, are so amazing!  It's been a week, and already Yolanda has read up to Alma!  She had a lot of great questions, about Lehi's vision of the Tree of life and whatnot, and by the time we were ready to teach her the Law of Chastity, she had landed on Alma 39, which was perfect!  We've taught them with the Bishop twice (no small feat) and once with the Relief Society President.  Their biggest struggle that's keeping them from being baptized is coming to church.  The reason they can't go is that Octavio, at 97, cannot sit for too long without falling asleep.  When his wife tries to wake him up, he gets angry.  We talked to the Bishop about it, and he spoke of how there were certain people in the ward who were too old to leave their house, and to these two sisters, the Bishopric takes and administers the sacrament once a month. We'll see what happens!

That's all for this week - sorry for the short letter! Love, 

Hermana Smurthwaite

Some SUPER exciting news, and what may be the greatest miracle of all the miracles, my new baby sister was BORN this week!!!!!!

Sierra Quinn Smurthwaite

Born: September 9th, 2017 at 6:55 PM

10 lbs 5 oz

23 1/4 inches

Mission Log - September 5, 2017 - T8, W4 - Miracle after Miracle

Hola, mis queridos amigos!

Yesterday, our zone had a Barbecue!

Last Monday, we visited Lincoln Park, a Chicano park.  Chicano​ means a person of Mexican origin or descent, especially a man or boy.  Here in El Paso, they use the term to describe Mexican-American culture - specifically, someone whose parents were born and raised in Mexico, but they were born and raised in the United States.

Lots of beautiful artwork.  I love El Paso!
​
Whew!  What a week, what a week.

Last Tuesday, we went to an appointment and they weren't home.  As we began walking away, a man called out to us, "Sisters!"  We turned around and biked right over to discover that it was Ruben, an investigator for who we didn't have the address!  We'd gone to the address he gave us, and the person at the door said they didn't know any Ruben.  He told us that was his niece - and she's never home when he is.  He also told us he was still interested in our message!  He gave us his other address, his sister's house, and we said a prayer with him.  It was a miracle!

Our new investigator, Shawn, accepted baptism!  Shawn has had a hard life - he hasn't told us the details.  He has many tattoos and he sells trashy comic-book art from the side yard of his trailer for a living.  He hadn't had the chance to read since our first visit, so we felt prompted to read in 3 Nephi 11 with him.  The Spirit took over and it was incredible - despite the 80's music blasting from the neighboring trailer, the little kids screaming and splashing in the pool, and the noise from the flautas truck, the Spirit, "notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear to the center," (3 Nephi 11:3).  He began to cry and when we invited him to be baptized, he said, "I've been looking forward to it for years."  A miracle!

On Thursday, our plans fell through, so we started biking on down to the church, an hour-long ride.  It is amazing how well the Spirit knows each and every one of us, because He led us to the elect through our very appetites!  We biked past Subway and decided to stop because we hadn't had dinner.  In Subway, a man greeted us: "Well, hi, there, Sisters! It's been a long time."  It was Phillip; we had never met him before, but the English sisters used to teach him.  He's homeless, so he told us the name of the park he sleeps in and asked if we could come teach him and his girlfriend!  THEN, as we high-5'd and ordered our sandwiches, the man behind the counter, whom we'd met before on a Subway trip, asked us, "What scares you most about the Bible?"  We learned that he'd also been homeless, but he got back on his feet and was going to school.  He expressed to us that he "reads the Word," but he doesn't "live the Word," and for this reason he fears the Second Coming spoken of in Revelations. We were able to share with him a Plan of Salvation pamphlet and he's ready to take the lessons! Double miracles!

We taught a lesson to Ronnie, an older, hardened veteran.  He likes to argue, so when he said to us, "A lot of people don't believe in Joseph Smith because he had all them wives," (imagine a strong Southern drawl), we were nervous.  But it was a blessing and a miracle, because in the same breath, he answered his own doubt: "But I read the Bible! King David did the same thing - Moses had a stutter, and Samuel was a kid!  We're all human - God doesn't choose perfect people. They [the prophets] are men just like us!"  Miracle!

A little curly dog was following us, so we cornered it to try the number on the collar.  The number was to the dog pound, which was closed, so we stopped at a gas station to call a member to take care of it until it could be returned.  The man behind the counter asked, "Are you the missionaries?" "That's us!" we replied.  "Oh. Well, good luck on your mission!" ...
Come on, man, you can't get away with that! :)  So after leaving the dog with a member, we went back and, in between customers, we talked to him and found out that his brother is a member, but he'd joined a Christian church a while back and had fallen away.  He gave us his number and address and we're planning on teaching him the lessons!  MIRACLE!

Just yesterday, we met a young couple, Jacob and Rosa, who'd just moved in to our apartment complex.  The husband's brother is a member and the wife's gone to church a few times with her friends back in Oregon!  They're golden - Miracle!
That's all for this week! Tune in next week for more MIRACLES!

Hermana Smurthwaite

Mission Log - August 28, 2017 - T8, W3 - Gospel Glasses and Real Miracles

Hola from El Paso!

Fisrt, no, there are no floods here. :)  All high and dry!

Whew!  What a week, what a week!

Last Monday, we had a once-in-a-lifetime finding opportunity: a solar eclipse.  One of the sisters we were with happened to have some eclipse glasses, so first, we got to look at it.  We then proceeded to offer the glasses to passersby on EPCC campus.

The first find was a young lady whose family was Jehovah's Witnesses.  While looking at the eclipse, she expressed that she didn't agree with her family's beliefs - but was too afraid to tell them because they had threatened to disown her if she did.  The second was a hardened nursing major who'd recently lost both parents.  She gladly accepted a Plan of Salvation pamphlet.

As we flagged people down and offered them the glasses, I thought of how much we really do help people see.  For most people, they can't look directly at the sun, they'll burn their retinas.  All they could see was that it was darker and colder (Temp drop: 30 degrees).  They knew something was happening, but it's not until they had the right tools that they were able to see.

When they were offered the glasses, most all of them gladly accepted.  "Wow! How beautiful!" "That's legit!" they said.  There was a young couple with eccentric clothes.  The girl accepted the glasses - "Whoa - babe, you gotta check this out!" but her boyfriend refused.  "Babe, it's an eclipse!" she told him - but still he refused to see.

When we offer people the gospel, we're offering glasses.  Most people don't want to face their own guilt or look directly at it because the truth is too bright and hard to understand.  But through the eye-opening lens of the gospel, all other distractions are blocked out and they can safely look.  For most, the reaction is, 'Wow! It's beautiful!" and perhaps may think, 'I wish my family could see this!' like the eccentric girl.  But then, there are some who downright refuse to see.

For miracles this week, I must be brief:

• We found a less-active member who's not on the ward list outside the public library (perfect timing).  Wagner Ioanis recently moved here with his 16-year old daughter after going through a hard divorce.  He wants to come back to church and asked us to tell the Bishop to send over some home teachers! 
• We broke the car door of a member and it wouldn't close.  We were running late but she couldn't drive off with a broken door- then, the latch flipped back into place on it's own!
• We actually got weekly planning done in three hours (a first!)
• We contacted a referral, and the members who'd given us a ride KNEW the people we were contacting!  They're the perfect fellowship and Chuy and Maria are so prepared!
• A member texted us out of the blue on Saturday asking if we needed a ride - she was free all night, and we were able to go to four different people with her!
• We went to contact another referral and he's also awesome!  His name is Ronnie Rios, and he's a retired special ops interrogation officer.  He's very sincere and has a lot of real intent - AND, the man who referred us to him, Elder Arce, is the perfect fellowship!! 

MIRACLES ARE REAL! SO REAL!!

Love, love, love,
Hna Smurthwaite

Also, found a butterfly!

Mission Log - August 21, 2017 - T8, W2 - Cactus Encounter and Teaching by the Spirit

Dear People of the Earth!

On Tuesday, while riding home, it was completely dark.  Since I was in front, I literally could not see anything in front of me.  I was pedaling along, when all of a sudden my foot got stabbed!  I had ridden directly into a cactus!  Once we got to a streetlight, I looked down to see three needle-like tines sticking out in a neat row.  I had two thoughts: 'Oh, good, there's only three!' and 'AAAAAAAAAAOOOUUGH HA HOI!'  It felt like a hundred bug bites or four bee stings or something.  Luckily, they came cleanly out - along with the 40-50 tiny little ones I didn't discover until we got home.

But other than that, it has been a good week!  We found two new investigators that are very prepared to receive the gospel.  The very first lesson we had with them, the Relief Society President came with us and shared her testimony about how she knows that God is her Loving Heavenly Father.  The Spirit was so strong!  She also offered to give them a ride to church next Sunday.

Whenever we take a member to a lesson, it is always an awesome lesson.  We honestly can't do this without them - members are like spiritual nukes - you just have to point them towards the target goal, and they'll blow it out of the water!

We were visiting a sister that had had a problem with another sister last Sunday.  We didn't want to directly call her out on it, but we didn't know how to tactfully handle the situation.  We prepared a lesson based on the talk about becoming a disciple of Christ and decided to let the Spirit take it.  We got in there, and the first thing out of her mouth was gossip about the other sister.

Internally banging my head on a brick wall, we smiled and asked if we could share a message.  She said, "Of course!"  We talked a bit about faith and read some excerpts from the talk.  The sister told us, "Oh, yes - I have a TON of faith! I don't know how it got so strong, but it's incredible!"  We continued talking (the whole time, I was thinking, 'how in the world are we going to teach her if she won't listen?'), and in the talk there was a scripture.  It was 1 Corinthians 13:1-2, which says:

1. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
2. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

BOOM. Way to go, Paul!  Telling it how it is.  I walked out of that lesson with a stronger faith in teaching from the scriptures, relying on the Spirit, and not being afraid to tell it straight.

Hermana Bosch, a missionary in our mission, shared over the mission-wide conference call that she'd been getting up an hour earlier to be more consecrated.  It motivated me to purify and consecrate my service even more.  I fasted and prayed, and wrote a list of 25 things I could do or not do to be more consecrated.  Using this list, I plan to become the best missionary I can possibly be.

We contacted an investigator named Eulalia that had been in Denver for about a transfer.  She was very happy to see us!  She told us she wanted to be baptized, and she even came to Stake Conference!  Her baptismal date is the 16th of September - she has a hard time remembering things, but she's very willing to read, pray, and come to church!  Golden.

Love, Love, Love, Hermana Smurthwaite

P.S. We found a cool rock on the way to a less-active member's house - we thought it would be perfect to give to her little son as a prayer rock!