studies and miracles

It was a bit of a rough but miracle filled week. Sister Wily was down a few days due to headaches but then hers finally broke. She'd had a headache for a month and a half straight and she's now been pain free for 3 days!!! Then I was down a day because my headache got worse! I've now had a headache for 6 months straight. I'm so excited that hers broke!!! But wish mine had as well. Oh well. Just keep pushin on and endurin!

So I had lots of study time this week!!! : ) and I finished The Book of Mormon!!!! It's always an incredible feeling to finish The Book of Mormon from cover to cover. I had been reading The Book of Mormon with the Elder Bednar challenge. It was such an incredible feeling to write the 1-2 page summary after reading the whole Book of Mormon looking for the instances of the enabling power of the Atonement. Before this challenge and talk by Elder Bednar, I had never really even heard of the enabling power of the Atonement and I sure didn't understand it. I'm sure through the many years of church attendance I had heard examples of it but I never really understood it or coined a term for it. I feel as though my understanding and application of the Atonement has grown so much over the past 3 months as I have been doing the Elder Bednar challenge. It has helped me grow in so many ways. I know I don't fully understand the Atonement, nor do I think I ever will in this life but my understanding has grown exponentially through this experience. (for those that have no clue what I'm talking about check this link out, http://www.lds.org/ensign/2012/04/the-atonement-and-the-journey-of-mortality?lang=eng.)

I'm still reading the Book of Mormon in Spanish for the 60 day challenge from President Wall. I'm excited to have more time to focus on that. It takes me a lot longer to read in Spanish. I'm now in the War Chapters. That's kind of fun and interesting in Spanish. haha. I guess I need to learn war lingo in Spanish!

Fun stories from this week:

So on Tuesday we received a call from a less active woman that we had never heard of and isn't on our ward list. She called and asked us for a Book of Mormon for herself and for her friend!!!! Every missionary loves to get a call like that! Turns out that she joined the church two years ago in Texas but recently moved back here. Because of her work schedule she attends the ward in Houma which is why her records aren't here and why we'd never heard of her. She wanted to give a Book of Mormon to her friend that had watched conference with her. We were pretty excited about that!

This week we contacted the very first media referral that I've ever received! Yup, I've been out a year and had never received a media referral. I've found that they are far less common for Spanish missionaries. Well, this media referral, Ginger, lives in the middle of nowhere. Sister Olsen (the senior couple in the mission office) gave her to us because she's not really close to anyone but we seemed the closest. She lives in Pierre Part. We looked that up online and found that it's not even in our branch boundaries but in the Thibadeax Ward. We spoke with out District Leader and Zone Leaders about what to do since she's not in our boundaries and they said we should call and discuss it with the Thibadeax Elders. They asked us to go ahead and contact her. So on Friday we went and contacted Ginger! It was a lot of miles but so worth it. It was an incredible lesson and the spirit was SO strong!! She just loved everything thing we talked to her about. We ending up teaching her the whole Restoration lesson and then some. She just about jumped for joy when we told her that Christ had come to minister here in the Americas. Her response was, "I KNEW IT!!" She responded with an excited yes as we invited her to be baptized as she comes to know these things are true! She has been so prepared and is so wanting to learn everything about the gospel. She even asked for a Book of Mormon for her son!

A member in the branch had a baby this past week! We went over to visit her and the new baby. When we walked in she walked towards us with her hands out reached for us to hold baby Atlas (yeah, they named him Atlas). It was SO hard to tell her we can't hold babies. It's my least favorite rule. I just wanted to hold that adorable baby so badly! I think they made that rule so that Sisters will go home and get married quickly so they can have their own kid to make up for the year and a half when they couldn't hold one. Just kidding. kind of. I know they have the rule for safety and that a lot of missionaries have wrongfully gone to jail due circumstances with children. But it's still hard to not be able to hold children!!! 

Another member from the branch is in the hospital for heart problems. We've gone over a few times this week with the Elders to sing. Sister Wily is incredible at the ukulele so she brings it around to spread the joy and spirit of music! It's a lot of fun and instantly fills a room with the spirit. The member is being moved this morning to another hospital in Houma. The hospital here in Morgan City isn't very good or advanced.

Tonight we are heading to New Iberia to sleep at the New Iberia Sister's apartment then in the morning we'll head to Lafayette for Zone Conference tomorrow! I'm excited for Zone Conference! It's always fun to see President and Sister Wall. And the other missionaries in the Zone. We kind of live far away from the rest of the Zone that all lives close together! So it's always a treat to see them. And I will definitely be getting frozen yogurt while out of Morgan City. Yeah. Morgan City doesn't even have frozen yogurt. It's depressing because I love frozen yogurt so much! But I survive, somehow :)

Well, that a summary of my life this week! Hope y'all had a good week!

con amor,

Kim