Hermana Miller

I just realized that! But seriously? That is so cool! People come here to vacation, but we get to live here! It is really cool.

That aside, it was a really cool week this week. We are teaching a lot, which is really a blessing, because that is what missionaries like to do. We are always busy, and that is also a blessing. We have lots of investigator news.

Remember Rolando? I don't think I've talked about him in a while, but we are still visiting him and his friend Mariely. They are doing really well. They are progressing and reading in the Book of Mormon. We realized we need to kind of teach them like we would teach children, so we have been leaving cool stories for them to read from the Book of Mormon. For example, we left Nephi building the boat and they read the whole thing and remembered it and learned things from it. We talked about the importance of obedience with that story. Then, we decided to leave the story of King Noah and the prophet Abinadi. We told them to start in Mosiah 11 and that the story ends in Mosiah 17, but if they could at least read chapter 11, that would be good. We came back this week and they had read the whole thing. It was really cool because we knew they would read, but we didn't think they'd read the entire story. It was exciting. And they understood the story too. They remembered what they read. We used the story to talk about follow the prophet, the 10 commandments, and the Sabbath day. It was a really good lesson. So, they are making great progress. They still haven't come to church, but that is a work in progress.

With Carolina...she loved church! It was great to hear her tell us, because we weren't sure. She said that she didn't even realize the time...that it just flew by. When she has gone to church before, even though it is just an hour long, it just crept by, but she loved how it was, she loved how she felt, and she said that she's going to keep coming back. And she is getting her own ride (without us even asking...she just told us!). So, we set a baptismal date. Initially, she said "I think this is the right church, but I want to make sure before I make a commitment like that." Um. Yes! She is awesome. Then we came back later that week and she said she knew it was the right thing for her to do. So, we made the date official and she is preparing. Yay! I love going over there, because she is the investigator that every missionary wants. She is there for the appointments, she reads, she has great questions, she has amazing responses to our questions, she understands the scriptures, she uses her mind and can think. It is just so cool to find someone who is truly prepared. We talked about the word of wisdom, this week because she wanted to know if there were things we couldn't eat (I'm sure her friend is still telling her crazy things), and she accepted it so easily. She said, "Well, I smoke once in a while when I'm stressed, but I can stop that." She asked if we were allowed to get vaccinations...so we know her friend is still throwing crazy things at her, but she knows it is true and knows where to continue finding more truth...directly from the scriptures and the spirit.

She is an agent (not and object...she acts in place of being acted upon), and it is so refreshing. So many people in this world want to be treated like objects. They want people to do things for them. Because, it is not easy to convert yourself to the gospel. You have to work and be willing to search and take responsibility for yourself. So many people we work with just throw excuse after excuse at us about why they didn't do something, or why they can't do something, etc, but I remember when Elder Bednar came and talked about agents vs. objects. He said that when people make excuses they are removing their agency and putting it on some thing else. I have really thought about that a lot since his visit, and it is so true! When we don't take responsibility for our own lives, for our own actions, we are removing our agency, and allowing something else to act upon us. I think it is ironic that people strive to be objects though, because that is what we were fighting for in heaven; the ability to choose for ourselves. But people are constantly trying to remove that and put it on some one or some thing else. It is sad and frustrating. And so, Carolina is exciting and refreshing and prepared. I love visiting her.

Other random stories from this week are the following:

1. Juan. We contacted this guy named Juan at the end of January...a long time ago! But, he was really cool and interested in our message, so we set a cita and went to visit him. He wasn't there at the cita, but we talked to his wife, and she seemed rather dis-interested in our message. We tried to call him, but his phone was disconnected, and since his wife seemed frustrated with our visit, we didn't try to contact him again. Fast-forward to this Friday. Our zone leaders call us with a referral from their bishop, and I recognize that the street and the name match up, and it turns out that Juan knows the bishop of the Bayamon ward, and the missionaries went to teach him, because he lives right on the edge...the corner of our area. He really liked the lesson and wants us to keep coming to visit him (because he lives in our area). So, it is really cool that the Lord will always make sure that those people who are prepared for the gospel are taught it.

2. We met a guy on Saturday while we were toc-ing doors named Edwin, and we left him a restoration pamphlet and our number and he actually called us yesterday to see if we could come by and visit him on Thursday this week. Yay! As you know, I love it when people call us! :)

3. Jose Luis (btw. Everyone named Jose in Spanish is Jose Luis. And every one named Juan is Juan Carlos. It is just how it is, and it just kind of cracks me up a little). We met him while toc-ing yesterday, and he let us in and we taught him about the restoration. He really liked it, and he had really good, thoughtful answers to questions.

4. Yvonne. The neighbor of a member. We invited her while right before lunch at the member's home, and I complemented one of plants (because it was a cool vine thing). She said she has talked to the neighbor before, and that we could come and visit her in the future sometime when her kids are home from University, which was really cool. When we came out of the member home, she had cut a part of the plant for us to bring home in a little terra cota. So, no we have our very own house plant. I named him Pete...or maybe it's Peet. I'm not sure how to spell it, but that's his name. :)

5. When we were knocking doors one day this week, there was someone in a car, so we went over to talk to him. We started testifying, and he interrupted us and said "I'm drunk." I didn't really know how to respond, and even thought it was a little funny at first, but then, as we were walking away I realized how sad it is. The Word of Wisdom is such a blessing! He may have lost his one chance to learn about the gospel because he gave up his agency in an important moment. It made me sad, and helped me realize what a wonderful blessing the commandment are. It was an important experience for me, I think.

I love you! Keep doing what you're doing; being examples and helping people learn about the gospel!

Hermana Miller.