Wow, thanks for the great email this week.
I am so excited for and proud of you Daddy. Thanks for sharing your experience with me about being ordained. The priesthood is so amazing to me and its power is real and all encompassing. You are going to bless that ward and those students so much! And what an exciting and changing time for the family. I wish I could be there and be here at the same time.
Well the sun is starting to shine in Provo and the rain is starting to fall in Nicaragua. It's pretty crazy hearing it pelt the tin roofs here. You can barely hear each other talk and the dirt roads turn into muddy rivers. Lucky Hna. Bustillos left her big rubber boots for me to use for the next few months. Which brings me to the departure of Hna. Bustillos and Hna. Aguilar. They are both home in their houses as I write this. How weird to think about. I miss them already. It was really hard to say goodbye to them, not knowing when will be the next time I'll see them. I learned so much from those hermanas. I want to be like them in so many ways. But I am excited to finish out this change with just the two of us still here, me and Hna. Juárez. She is awesome. Yesterday she committed two people to a baptismal date in two different contacts. Salvaje, I have to learn how to do that. She also goes home in just two weeks. Well, really there isn't a whole lot to say this week. We had the conferencia multi-zona this week and it was really good. Pres. Fraatz talked a lot about our goals for the future, here in the mission and also in life. It made me want to work harder and especially to work with more faith, knowing that I really can meet the high expectations and goals placed upon me.
Sometimes the council we receive from our leaders seems illogical or too difficult to follow with exactness, but I am learning to have more faith and not to question. This is the Lord's work, He is in charge and it is He who will provide the way. All we have to do is trust in Him with our whole heart and soul and give everything we have to His marvellous work. Wow, time is up and I wanted to write back to you all. Sorry Ali and Sam in particular. You will hear individually from me next week. I promise. That's so great that you saw Maclaine, Mom. I wish I had her email so that I could write to her. Well, loves, until next week.
And I can't believe that I in just a few weeks I get to hear all your voices again. !Que rapido¡
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - obedience for eternity.
Love, Hna.Crosland
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
Letter #29 - April 12, 2010
Hey travellers, glad you're all home and that you had a fantastic time in China.
This week was a little bit crazy, a little bit cool. We had four baptisms, two in the cascades of San Ramon and two in the font at the church Sunday morning. It's weird because I wasńt involved in the teaching of these four very much. One of them, Elizabeth, I worked with and taught when I was with Hna. Aguilar but the others not really. So now when Hna. Aguilar and Juarez are both gone in three weeks, I'll have a bunch of recent converts to work with that I don't know very well. Weird. But oh well. Working with two sets of missionaries in one area is hard, but it's only for one more week.
I'll be sad when Hna. Aguilar leaves this Sunday, but being back to two will be nice. So this Saturday, the whole Zone travelled to San Ramon, an area in our zone with some cool cascades to do the baptisms of all the people in all the areas. We had about 30 baptisms in all. It was a short hike to get in to the cascades but everyone made it and it was really cool. About 15 minutes after we got there it started to pour, so everyone ended up getting drenched, not just the baptizers and baptizees. And the hike back was pretty slippery but everyone made it just fine. It was funny because for the first few baptisms, everyone clapped and cheered. A little bit of apostasy for you but what can you do?
The weirdest thing this week though, was teaching a lesson in English. A lady in our branch has a son in law from the United States and this son in law has a guy from England, Machay is his name I think and another girl from Indiana living with them. They all speak a little bit of Spanish and the lady in our branch was talking to them last week and Machay expressed interest in reading the book of mormon, but in English. Well I just happened to have a copy in English that I never gave away in the airport 5 months ago, so I brough it and taught them both yesterday. It was so weird and words kept coming out in Spanish. It was also weird because these people were so different from anyone I've taught here in Nicaragua. The majority of the people in Nicaragua that we teach just smile and nod and you really have to wonder if anything you are saying is sinking in or if they understand.
These people asked a ton of questions and challenged me on everything. On top of that, I was teaching without a companion to support me so it was super hard. But when we left they had committed to read and pray about the Book of Mormon and I'm going back to teach them next Sunday. Such a different experience. It made me realize how different everyone's missions are. I feel like the challenges here are very unique, but every mission has it's unique challenges. It was refreshing to have my views challenged, to think and question a little deeper and to feel the deeply rooted conviction I have that what I am teaching is good and true and right even when the world has such different views. Here in Christian land, it's easy to forget that not everyone believes in God and Jesus Christ the same way that we do and to remember again, how lost we are without the Savior.
I know this church is true. My confidence in God's plan for His children on the earth is sure. Some may say that our vision is narrow and that our beliefs are binding, but I feel more liberated and open-minded the more I study the gospel and learn about the true nature of human kind and our journey here on the earth. The plan is perfect. God knows each of us and loves us. Jesus Christ is the Savior of us all and we need Him so desperately. We can find the kind of deep, abiding happiness that lasts forever as we strive to live in accordance with God's eternal and unalterable laws.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world--we have the truth, and the truth sets us free.
Love,
Hna Crosland
This week was a little bit crazy, a little bit cool. We had four baptisms, two in the cascades of San Ramon and two in the font at the church Sunday morning. It's weird because I wasńt involved in the teaching of these four very much. One of them, Elizabeth, I worked with and taught when I was with Hna. Aguilar but the others not really. So now when Hna. Aguilar and Juarez are both gone in three weeks, I'll have a bunch of recent converts to work with that I don't know very well. Weird. But oh well. Working with two sets of missionaries in one area is hard, but it's only for one more week.
I'll be sad when Hna. Aguilar leaves this Sunday, but being back to two will be nice. So this Saturday, the whole Zone travelled to San Ramon, an area in our zone with some cool cascades to do the baptisms of all the people in all the areas. We had about 30 baptisms in all. It was a short hike to get in to the cascades but everyone made it and it was really cool. About 15 minutes after we got there it started to pour, so everyone ended up getting drenched, not just the baptizers and baptizees. And the hike back was pretty slippery but everyone made it just fine. It was funny because for the first few baptisms, everyone clapped and cheered. A little bit of apostasy for you but what can you do?
The weirdest thing this week though, was teaching a lesson in English. A lady in our branch has a son in law from the United States and this son in law has a guy from England, Machay is his name I think and another girl from Indiana living with them. They all speak a little bit of Spanish and the lady in our branch was talking to them last week and Machay expressed interest in reading the book of mormon, but in English. Well I just happened to have a copy in English that I never gave away in the airport 5 months ago, so I brough it and taught them both yesterday. It was so weird and words kept coming out in Spanish. It was also weird because these people were so different from anyone I've taught here in Nicaragua. The majority of the people in Nicaragua that we teach just smile and nod and you really have to wonder if anything you are saying is sinking in or if they understand.
These people asked a ton of questions and challenged me on everything. On top of that, I was teaching without a companion to support me so it was super hard. But when we left they had committed to read and pray about the Book of Mormon and I'm going back to teach them next Sunday. Such a different experience. It made me realize how different everyone's missions are. I feel like the challenges here are very unique, but every mission has it's unique challenges. It was refreshing to have my views challenged, to think and question a little deeper and to feel the deeply rooted conviction I have that what I am teaching is good and true and right even when the world has such different views. Here in Christian land, it's easy to forget that not everyone believes in God and Jesus Christ the same way that we do and to remember again, how lost we are without the Savior.
I know this church is true. My confidence in God's plan for His children on the earth is sure. Some may say that our vision is narrow and that our beliefs are binding, but I feel more liberated and open-minded the more I study the gospel and learn about the true nature of human kind and our journey here on the earth. The plan is perfect. God knows each of us and loves us. Jesus Christ is the Savior of us all and we need Him so desperately. We can find the kind of deep, abiding happiness that lasts forever as we strive to live in accordance with God's eternal and unalterable laws.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world--we have the truth, and the truth sets us free.
Love,
Hna Crosland
Monday, April 5, 2010
Letter #28 - April 5, 2010
Hey everyone (especially those luckies in China),
So both the packages arrived this week and my companions and I have been enjoying the delicious contents. Unfortunately the goodies are not helping me fit into my clothes any better. The shoes are lovely and very comfortable. I noted all the sweet features Dad, thanks. :)
Okay, I have to tell you about the day that just wasn't our day this week. Saturday we battled with the internet in the morning and only got to watch a tiny bit of conference. The evening session went a little bit better, but then the evening took a turn for the worse. After dinner we had an appointment with a man we had contacted earlier in the week. He lives in an area called Carlos Rizo. I knew about where the area was but wasn't familiar with it at all. So we finally found it and started asking around to try and figure out exactly where he lived. The addresses here are crazy and very vague so you pretty much have to get as close as you can and then hope the neighbors know the person you are looking for. Well, we were directed to climb up a huge dirt hill and ask again. Once we got to where we thought was plenty far up, we asked and were directed to keep climbing. At this point I started thinking of how on earth we were going to get down without slipping to our deaths. After a little while, we were on a narrow dirt path between some houses and the hugest pig I have ever seen was standing in the middle of it. Hmmm... what to do now, right?
So we looked around and saw some ladies standing in front of their house. I called out to them and one of them turned out to be the mother of the guy we were looking for. We crossed over to their house and as we were passing by the side of it, one of their dogs suddenly jumped up and bit Hna. Bustillos. She was very brave and held back tears as she asked the extremely disinterested lady if her son was home (which he wasn't), if she had heard of the church (which she had), and invited her to church (to which she basically shrugged her shoulders). She was also very uninterested that her dog had just bitten my companion. Well, after that complete waste of time, we made our way slowly down the hill and only slipped a little bit.
When we got back into town, Hna. Bustillos pulled out her agenda and promptly dropped it through a grate in the street. It tottered for a few heart-wrenching seconds between two bars and then down it went. Two little boys heard our cries of dismay and one of them quickly offered to shove his hand down into the filthy darkness to see if he could reach it. He couldn't. So the other one went to the opening of gutter system and jumped down the hole and crawled through the garbage the fifteen feet to where the agenda was. Seriouly disgusting. So we rewarded them with 5 pesos (about a quarter) which probably made their week. We stopped by a less active family to try to get them excited about the conference and to my utter dismay, on our way in their dog bit Hna. Bustillos on the heel. This time it wasn't hard, but seriously? Two dogs in the same night? Then our last appointment for the night stood us up as well. We got back to our match-box house, laughing incredulously at our bad luck and feeling very very tired, but happy to be done with the day. Wow, that story turned out to be very very long. Thanks to all those that are still with me.
So, what a great conference it was! It made me pretty trunky because I swear every talk was about how to be a good mom and raise righteous children. Turns out I have some pretty deep and poignant emotions related to that subject, all of which were brought out in abundance during conference. I was pretty ready to pack my bags and jump on the next plane home to get started with the real work. But I know I am where I am for a reason and I really do love being a missionary. My experience here is preparing me better than anything could for the rest of my life and the unequivocally important work of raising a righteous family.
We worked really hard this week and the Lord truly blessed us and helped us so that we could get a whole lot of people to the conference. I think the "official" count was 125, which is about 35 more than we had last week at church. And we had 16 investigators. Wow. It sure makes a difference working with two more missionaries. The best thing was seeing some people show up who we had been working with all week. One of them is a recient convert named Rosario. She is about 55 years old and I think she was baptized quite a while ago, but just within the past year a missionary found her records and resubmitted them because she wasn't in the branch list. Anyway, I don't know who the missionaries were that baptized her, but she had some crazy ideas about the church and about Joseph Smith. I don't think she ever really had a clear idea of what the church is about or where it came from. A week and a half ago, she told Hna. Aguilar and Juarez that she didn't want anything to do with the church, but Hna. Bustillos and I have been visiting with her and listening to her. We showed her the video of the restoration and it really touched her. We asked her to say the closing prayer of the lesson and as she started to openly speak with her Father in Heaven, the Holy Ghost spoke to her heart and she started to cry. She aked for forgiveness for not staying firm and for strength to make the right choices and press forward. She committed to coming to conference and she actually showed up, and even had her grandson with her.
It touched me to see other members crammed on the bus on the way to conference, who haven't been to church in a very long time (anywhere from a month to five years) and to know that Heavenly Father is using us along with the members of the branch who are willing to lend a hand, in rescuing the souls of those who stray. He has plenty of work for us to do. We just have to show Him that He can trust us and that we're ready to work.
Being a missionary truly is the best thing in the world - at least for 12 more months, until the real work begins. :)
Love you all tremendously,
Hna. Crosland
So both the packages arrived this week and my companions and I have been enjoying the delicious contents. Unfortunately the goodies are not helping me fit into my clothes any better. The shoes are lovely and very comfortable. I noted all the sweet features Dad, thanks. :)
Okay, I have to tell you about the day that just wasn't our day this week. Saturday we battled with the internet in the morning and only got to watch a tiny bit of conference. The evening session went a little bit better, but then the evening took a turn for the worse. After dinner we had an appointment with a man we had contacted earlier in the week. He lives in an area called Carlos Rizo. I knew about where the area was but wasn't familiar with it at all. So we finally found it and started asking around to try and figure out exactly where he lived. The addresses here are crazy and very vague so you pretty much have to get as close as you can and then hope the neighbors know the person you are looking for. Well, we were directed to climb up a huge dirt hill and ask again. Once we got to where we thought was plenty far up, we asked and were directed to keep climbing. At this point I started thinking of how on earth we were going to get down without slipping to our deaths. After a little while, we were on a narrow dirt path between some houses and the hugest pig I have ever seen was standing in the middle of it. Hmmm... what to do now, right?
So we looked around and saw some ladies standing in front of their house. I called out to them and one of them turned out to be the mother of the guy we were looking for. We crossed over to their house and as we were passing by the side of it, one of their dogs suddenly jumped up and bit Hna. Bustillos. She was very brave and held back tears as she asked the extremely disinterested lady if her son was home (which he wasn't), if she had heard of the church (which she had), and invited her to church (to which she basically shrugged her shoulders). She was also very uninterested that her dog had just bitten my companion. Well, after that complete waste of time, we made our way slowly down the hill and only slipped a little bit.
When we got back into town, Hna. Bustillos pulled out her agenda and promptly dropped it through a grate in the street. It tottered for a few heart-wrenching seconds between two bars and then down it went. Two little boys heard our cries of dismay and one of them quickly offered to shove his hand down into the filthy darkness to see if he could reach it. He couldn't. So the other one went to the opening of gutter system and jumped down the hole and crawled through the garbage the fifteen feet to where the agenda was. Seriouly disgusting. So we rewarded them with 5 pesos (about a quarter) which probably made their week. We stopped by a less active family to try to get them excited about the conference and to my utter dismay, on our way in their dog bit Hna. Bustillos on the heel. This time it wasn't hard, but seriously? Two dogs in the same night? Then our last appointment for the night stood us up as well. We got back to our match-box house, laughing incredulously at our bad luck and feeling very very tired, but happy to be done with the day. Wow, that story turned out to be very very long. Thanks to all those that are still with me.
So, what a great conference it was! It made me pretty trunky because I swear every talk was about how to be a good mom and raise righteous children. Turns out I have some pretty deep and poignant emotions related to that subject, all of which were brought out in abundance during conference. I was pretty ready to pack my bags and jump on the next plane home to get started with the real work. But I know I am where I am for a reason and I really do love being a missionary. My experience here is preparing me better than anything could for the rest of my life and the unequivocally important work of raising a righteous family.
We worked really hard this week and the Lord truly blessed us and helped us so that we could get a whole lot of people to the conference. I think the "official" count was 125, which is about 35 more than we had last week at church. And we had 16 investigators. Wow. It sure makes a difference working with two more missionaries. The best thing was seeing some people show up who we had been working with all week. One of them is a recient convert named Rosario. She is about 55 years old and I think she was baptized quite a while ago, but just within the past year a missionary found her records and resubmitted them because she wasn't in the branch list. Anyway, I don't know who the missionaries were that baptized her, but she had some crazy ideas about the church and about Joseph Smith. I don't think she ever really had a clear idea of what the church is about or where it came from. A week and a half ago, she told Hna. Aguilar and Juarez that she didn't want anything to do with the church, but Hna. Bustillos and I have been visiting with her and listening to her. We showed her the video of the restoration and it really touched her. We asked her to say the closing prayer of the lesson and as she started to openly speak with her Father in Heaven, the Holy Ghost spoke to her heart and she started to cry. She aked for forgiveness for not staying firm and for strength to make the right choices and press forward. She committed to coming to conference and she actually showed up, and even had her grandson with her.
It touched me to see other members crammed on the bus on the way to conference, who haven't been to church in a very long time (anywhere from a month to five years) and to know that Heavenly Father is using us along with the members of the branch who are willing to lend a hand, in rescuing the souls of those who stray. He has plenty of work for us to do. We just have to show Him that He can trust us and that we're ready to work.
Being a missionary truly is the best thing in the world - at least for 12 more months, until the real work begins. :)
Love you all tremendously,
Hna. Crosland
Monday, March 29, 2010
Letter #27 - March 29, 2010
Greetings from... JINOTEGA!
Yep, I'm still here - but what's even better is that Hna. Aguilar is still here too, and now we have two more sisters living and working with us. Hna. Bustillos (mi madre y entrenadora) and Hna. Juarez arrived Wednesday afternoon and the four of us are all crammed into our tiny matchbox house. It's pretty comical. We moved the two desks that were upstairs to the main level and put two additional mattresses on the floor in the room where the desks were. They barely fit wall to wall in that little room with just a tiny bit of space at the head of the mattresses for their suitcases. And with four desks and our chairs downstairs...there isn't space to walk through when we're all sitting to study, so if one person gets up to go to the bathroom or something, everyone has to stand up to let her by. Haha. We mostly laugh it up. Hna. Bustillos and Hna. Aguilar have exactly three more weeks from today before they finish their missions and Hna. Juarez is just two and a half weeks behind them. She will finish out the change with me when the other two leave.
Technically, I'm working with Hna. Bustillos again and it is very interesting to be back with her. I can see how much I've changed and how much I've improved with the language. I understand her a lot better and I am more capable of incorporating her great qualities into the way I work. It's also funny because she and Hna. Aguilar are basically complete opposites.
Hna. Bustillos does everything exactly by the book and is probably the most dilligent person I have ever met in my life. She teaches very seriously and tends to teach too much sometimes. But she seems to never get tired and has this energy that comes directly from her desire to serve the Lord with all she has.
Hna. Aguilar is loud and loveable and is constantly laughing. When she enters a house, everyone starts to smile and trust her immediately. Most of the time she leaves out the hymn and sometimes she doesn't teach anything at all, just chats with them and listens and jokes around. She is pretty disorganized and when she is tired tends to put things off. But she has a rockin' testimony and the ability to connect with everyone, so when she teaches it really hits home. I want to be the perfect combination of them both.
It's interesting to be sort of stuck in the middle and of course living with four people is twice as hard as living with two. But we are all working hard and learning from each other and it's amazing the difference two extra missionaries make in an area. We had 12 investigators at church yesterday... sweetness. The challenge continues to be getting the MEMEBERS to church. The attendance went down yesterday and President Fraatz wasn't very happy with us, but we are going to do better this week and watch the miracles unfold.
Hno. Raul was baptized this Saturday and confirmed yesterday in sacrament meeting. He's so cool. We found some families this week that I'm really excited about and Hna. Bustillos and I are working with the ward list to find and meet all the members (there are about 410) and figure out why they don't come to church. Many have moved, some have died, and others are now Evangelicos or J-dubs. Everyone has their excuse, right? It's disheartening to see all the problems within the ward and hear all the gossip and silly circumstances that keep people from finding the peace and joy that only gospel of Jesus Christ can bring. But it's equally heart-warming to watch people's lives change as they embrace the truths that will save them. The Book of Mormon has amazing power. It truly is a book for our time, for our challenges, for our salvation.
I'm excited for conference this weekend but I think we'll only be able to see the Sunday session. We have to travel to Matagalpa to watch it. So send me the ensign as soon as you get your hands on it! Oh, that reminds me - thanks for all the awesome valentines and chocolates. Love Love Love. I finally got the V-day package and it looked like it got hammered in the mail, but no damage was done to the precious cargo within.
Okay, time is up. But I love you all a whole bunch.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - and it's four times better with four working together!
Love, Hna. Crosland
Yep, I'm still here - but what's even better is that Hna. Aguilar is still here too, and now we have two more sisters living and working with us. Hna. Bustillos (mi madre y entrenadora) and Hna. Juarez arrived Wednesday afternoon and the four of us are all crammed into our tiny matchbox house. It's pretty comical. We moved the two desks that were upstairs to the main level and put two additional mattresses on the floor in the room where the desks were. They barely fit wall to wall in that little room with just a tiny bit of space at the head of the mattresses for their suitcases. And with four desks and our chairs downstairs...there isn't space to walk through when we're all sitting to study, so if one person gets up to go to the bathroom or something, everyone has to stand up to let her by. Haha. We mostly laugh it up. Hna. Bustillos and Hna. Aguilar have exactly three more weeks from today before they finish their missions and Hna. Juarez is just two and a half weeks behind them. She will finish out the change with me when the other two leave.
Technically, I'm working with Hna. Bustillos again and it is very interesting to be back with her. I can see how much I've changed and how much I've improved with the language. I understand her a lot better and I am more capable of incorporating her great qualities into the way I work. It's also funny because she and Hna. Aguilar are basically complete opposites.
Hna. Bustillos does everything exactly by the book and is probably the most dilligent person I have ever met in my life. She teaches very seriously and tends to teach too much sometimes. But she seems to never get tired and has this energy that comes directly from her desire to serve the Lord with all she has.
Hna. Aguilar is loud and loveable and is constantly laughing. When she enters a house, everyone starts to smile and trust her immediately. Most of the time she leaves out the hymn and sometimes she doesn't teach anything at all, just chats with them and listens and jokes around. She is pretty disorganized and when she is tired tends to put things off. But she has a rockin' testimony and the ability to connect with everyone, so when she teaches it really hits home. I want to be the perfect combination of them both.
It's interesting to be sort of stuck in the middle and of course living with four people is twice as hard as living with two. But we are all working hard and learning from each other and it's amazing the difference two extra missionaries make in an area. We had 12 investigators at church yesterday... sweetness. The challenge continues to be getting the MEMEBERS to church. The attendance went down yesterday and President Fraatz wasn't very happy with us, but we are going to do better this week and watch the miracles unfold.
Hno. Raul was baptized this Saturday and confirmed yesterday in sacrament meeting. He's so cool. We found some families this week that I'm really excited about and Hna. Bustillos and I are working with the ward list to find and meet all the members (there are about 410) and figure out why they don't come to church. Many have moved, some have died, and others are now Evangelicos or J-dubs. Everyone has their excuse, right? It's disheartening to see all the problems within the ward and hear all the gossip and silly circumstances that keep people from finding the peace and joy that only gospel of Jesus Christ can bring. But it's equally heart-warming to watch people's lives change as they embrace the truths that will save them. The Book of Mormon has amazing power. It truly is a book for our time, for our challenges, for our salvation.
I'm excited for conference this weekend but I think we'll only be able to see the Sunday session. We have to travel to Matagalpa to watch it. So send me the ensign as soon as you get your hands on it! Oh, that reminds me - thanks for all the awesome valentines and chocolates. Love Love Love. I finally got the V-day package and it looked like it got hammered in the mail, but no damage was done to the precious cargo within.
Okay, time is up. But I love you all a whole bunch.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - and it's four times better with four working together!
Love, Hna. Crosland
Monday, March 22, 2010
Letter #26 - March 22, 2010
Dear lovies,
Yes, I'm still here in Jinotega. We'll find out tomorrow night if we have changes. For one part I hope I have changes because I want to go to the change conference to see all the newbies and get the package you sent and get away from the things that are eating me here, but for the other part I don't want a new companion. Hna. Aguilar and I have so much fun working together and I would love to have the priviledge of "killing" her. She came from the MTC together with 3 other hermanas (Hna. Bustillos is one of them, my trainer) and Pres. Fraatz basically forced all of them to extend their missions nearly two months. They all completed 18 months the 4th of March and aren't leaving until the 19th of April. So I hope we can stay together for four more weeks but I don't think it's likely. I'll let you know next week where I am and who I'm with.
The weather in Jinotega is super hot in the day and gets cool at night. It hasn't been super cold for a few weeks. But semana santa (passion week) is supposed to be the hottest week of the year in all of Central America so it would be nice to be in the coolest area (Jinotega) for that week, but we'll see.
We had a good week of finding and teaching, but unfortunately all the baptisms we had lined up for this week fell through. Raul got really sick on thursday and still had a fever and wasn't doing great Saturday and Sunday so we are postponing his baptism until next week. Elizabeth and her 8-year-old son were going to be baptized too but she just has a lot of fears that have to do with her family (the part that aren't members), so we don't know when she finally put aside her fears and follow the Lord. But I did have some cool experiences teaching and we found some great new investigators.
This week we stopped by the house of an investigator named Isaac. I don't know if I've written about him, but he's about 60, knows the bible really well and is active in his own church (I can't remember if it's evangelical or what), but we taught him the first lesson a couple weeks ago and gave him a Book of Mormon with the commitment to read 3 Ne 11 and pray about it and come to church last sunday. But when he didn't come to church last week and we showed up this week and he hadn't done anything, I was disappointed. So Hna. Aguilar started to lay it down. I listened in awe as she bore a bold and powerful witness of the Book of Mormon and the Restoration. It was the kind of testimony that you can't just ignore or cast aside, the kind of testimony that is not apologetic in the least, straight forward and full of the spirit. Then I added my witness that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the kindom of God on the earth and that it is the only church that has the power to perform the saving ordinances of baptism with the authority of God. I bore testimony of the veracity of the Book of Mormon and of Joseph Smith and told Isaac that if he doesn't ask the Lord in earnest, than he will never know the truth of our words. It was exhilirating, and a spiritual high different from any other. And the cool part is that he came to church yesterday. Hopefully he will find his answer that the Book of Mormon is true soon. I'm excited to meet with him again this week.
Now for some sad news. The first counsellor in the branch presidency, Hno. Felipe, works as a night guard for some sort of offices I think. Saturday night, a lady that he had seen walk by and say hello for quite a few days, stopped by and offered him a drink. Hno. Felipe is the kind of person that can't offend anyone, a super kind and gentle old guy. So he accepted the
drink through the window. Well, it turns out the drink was drugged and when he was passed out the theives forced the door and robbed the place. Sunday morning his wife got worried because he hadn't come home and was late for his 7:00am meeting in the church so she went and found him unconscious on the floor. He's still in the hospital in and out of consciousness and the doctors said that the drugs have affected his heart. They still don't know what they gave him but it's pretty bad and we're all praying for him. Sorry to end on a sad note...
I love you all a lot. I'm glad you got my package a while ago but I can't believe no one liked the Pinol. Nicaragua is famous for that stuff. In fact a nickname for Nicas is Pinoleros. I'm going to bring a bunch home in my suitcase! Anyway, hopefully I'll be able to pick up your package at the change conference. Loves.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - when we are obedient, the Lord speaks through our mouths to take the truth to the world.
Love, Hna. Crosland
my legs (que feas) with the horrible tan and bug bites
Yes, I'm still here in Jinotega. We'll find out tomorrow night if we have changes. For one part I hope I have changes because I want to go to the change conference to see all the newbies and get the package you sent and get away from the things that are eating me here, but for the other part I don't want a new companion. Hna. Aguilar and I have so much fun working together and I would love to have the priviledge of "killing" her. She came from the MTC together with 3 other hermanas (Hna. Bustillos is one of them, my trainer) and Pres. Fraatz basically forced all of them to extend their missions nearly two months. They all completed 18 months the 4th of March and aren't leaving until the 19th of April. So I hope we can stay together for four more weeks but I don't think it's likely. I'll let you know next week where I am and who I'm with.
The weather in Jinotega is super hot in the day and gets cool at night. It hasn't been super cold for a few weeks. But semana santa (passion week) is supposed to be the hottest week of the year in all of Central America so it would be nice to be in the coolest area (Jinotega) for that week, but we'll see.
We had a good week of finding and teaching, but unfortunately all the baptisms we had lined up for this week fell through. Raul got really sick on thursday and still had a fever and wasn't doing great Saturday and Sunday so we are postponing his baptism until next week. Elizabeth and her 8-year-old son were going to be baptized too but she just has a lot of fears that have to do with her family (the part that aren't members), so we don't know when she finally put aside her fears and follow the Lord. But I did have some cool experiences teaching and we found some great new investigators.
This week we stopped by the house of an investigator named Isaac. I don't know if I've written about him, but he's about 60, knows the bible really well and is active in his own church (I can't remember if it's evangelical or what), but we taught him the first lesson a couple weeks ago and gave him a Book of Mormon with the commitment to read 3 Ne 11 and pray about it and come to church last sunday. But when he didn't come to church last week and we showed up this week and he hadn't done anything, I was disappointed. So Hna. Aguilar started to lay it down. I listened in awe as she bore a bold and powerful witness of the Book of Mormon and the Restoration. It was the kind of testimony that you can't just ignore or cast aside, the kind of testimony that is not apologetic in the least, straight forward and full of the spirit. Then I added my witness that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the kindom of God on the earth and that it is the only church that has the power to perform the saving ordinances of baptism with the authority of God. I bore testimony of the veracity of the Book of Mormon and of Joseph Smith and told Isaac that if he doesn't ask the Lord in earnest, than he will never know the truth of our words. It was exhilirating, and a spiritual high different from any other. And the cool part is that he came to church yesterday. Hopefully he will find his answer that the Book of Mormon is true soon. I'm excited to meet with him again this week.
Now for some sad news. The first counsellor in the branch presidency, Hno. Felipe, works as a night guard for some sort of offices I think. Saturday night, a lady that he had seen walk by and say hello for quite a few days, stopped by and offered him a drink. Hno. Felipe is the kind of person that can't offend anyone, a super kind and gentle old guy. So he accepted the
drink through the window. Well, it turns out the drink was drugged and when he was passed out the theives forced the door and robbed the place. Sunday morning his wife got worried because he hadn't come home and was late for his 7:00am meeting in the church so she went and found him unconscious on the floor. He's still in the hospital in and out of consciousness and the doctors said that the drugs have affected his heart. They still don't know what they gave him but it's pretty bad and we're all praying for him. Sorry to end on a sad note...
I love you all a lot. I'm glad you got my package a while ago but I can't believe no one liked the Pinol. Nicaragua is famous for that stuff. In fact a nickname for Nicas is Pinoleros. I'm going to bring a bunch home in my suitcase! Anyway, hopefully I'll be able to pick up your package at the change conference. Loves.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - when we are obedient, the Lord speaks through our mouths to take the truth to the world.
Love, Hna. Crosland
Photos from a recent conference with Elder Clayton and Elder Martino of the Seventy
my legs (que feas) with the horrible tan and bug bitesquick video of Hna. Aguilar
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Letter #25 - March 15, 2010
Wow! Tomorrow is my 6th month mark. How crazy is that?
I hope everyone is happy and healthy and not suffering from insect bites. It's a miracle I don't have dengue. ;) All the members comment on my pock-marked legs and suggest solutions, but nothing seems to help. But even if you tried to send something, it wouldn't likely get to me until I'm in a different area and by then the problem will have passed. Plus I'm still not sure what is biting me. Maybe it's mosquitos in the streets but at night in the house it's either fleas or the mites that the pigeon's living in the roof have. If there was any time we could do something about it, but changes are next week. If I stay here I'll look into it more. But way too much about insect bites already... sorry.
How cool about Elder Oaks at stake conference. Wow, how spoiled you Utah folks are! I forgot how often I got to hear the apostles or the profet speak at home. Lucky, lucky, lucky. Thanks for sharing your experience of listening to the spirit mom. It amazes me all the time how the spirit prompts and directs us, even giving us specific instruction for our lives and the lives of the people we are responsible for. It really is the most important thing we can do to live worthly of the Holy Ghost's constant companionship.
This week was a bit of a downer because the family we had planned to baptize this weekend still wont commit to get married. Sheesh. But we'll keep working with them. Raul came to church again this week. Man, this old guy is pilas. He made a sweet cover for his Libro de Mormon with heavy cream-colored paper and he told us that he reads it for 30 min. in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon. How sweet is that. I wish we could get everyone to read the Book of Mormon like that. We taught him about the word of wisdom a couple days ago and he accepted it right off the bat and committed to quit drinking coffee and to quit smoking. Yay for Raul!
As I strive to keep improving and work hard, I seem to be bombarded with all my flaws and weaknesses. Serving a mission is like lifting up a big rock in the garden. Everything looks all pretty until you pick that rock up, and then all the critters underneath scatter and start running around in plain daylight. All of the weaknesses that I never confronted seem to highlight themselves to me here on the mission. And now that I've picked the rock up, I have to face them. It's discouraging at times to see all my flaws so clearly, but I know that the best way to diminish them is to lose myself in the work. Because as I lose myself in my Savior, he makes me so much more than I could make of myself. We can try to fix every little thing that's wrong with us and make very little progress, but if we focus on others and on serving the Lord in the way He desires, we will find that we are changing without even realizing it.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - I'll never regret picking up this rock.
I love you all a whole bunch and more.
Love, Hna. Crosland
P.S. No, I haven't received any packages yet, but hopefully this week or next at interview or the change conference. And speaking of packages, I sent one to mom my last week in Nagarote which would have been 5 or 6 weeks ago. Has it gotten to you? I sent it the same way I sent the first package home, so I'm sad it didn't arrive quickly like the other. Let me know when (if) you get it. Loves.
P.P.S. Just keep sending everthing to the mission address. It comes through the pouch fast enough. Just the packages take a while because we only get them when we go to Managua for multi-zonas, but that is the same as before. Loves.
I hope everyone is happy and healthy and not suffering from insect bites. It's a miracle I don't have dengue. ;) All the members comment on my pock-marked legs and suggest solutions, but nothing seems to help. But even if you tried to send something, it wouldn't likely get to me until I'm in a different area and by then the problem will have passed. Plus I'm still not sure what is biting me. Maybe it's mosquitos in the streets but at night in the house it's either fleas or the mites that the pigeon's living in the roof have. If there was any time we could do something about it, but changes are next week. If I stay here I'll look into it more. But way too much about insect bites already... sorry.
How cool about Elder Oaks at stake conference. Wow, how spoiled you Utah folks are! I forgot how often I got to hear the apostles or the profet speak at home. Lucky, lucky, lucky. Thanks for sharing your experience of listening to the spirit mom. It amazes me all the time how the spirit prompts and directs us, even giving us specific instruction for our lives and the lives of the people we are responsible for. It really is the most important thing we can do to live worthly of the Holy Ghost's constant companionship.
This week was a bit of a downer because the family we had planned to baptize this weekend still wont commit to get married. Sheesh. But we'll keep working with them. Raul came to church again this week. Man, this old guy is pilas. He made a sweet cover for his Libro de Mormon with heavy cream-colored paper and he told us that he reads it for 30 min. in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon. How sweet is that. I wish we could get everyone to read the Book of Mormon like that. We taught him about the word of wisdom a couple days ago and he accepted it right off the bat and committed to quit drinking coffee and to quit smoking. Yay for Raul!
As I strive to keep improving and work hard, I seem to be bombarded with all my flaws and weaknesses. Serving a mission is like lifting up a big rock in the garden. Everything looks all pretty until you pick that rock up, and then all the critters underneath scatter and start running around in plain daylight. All of the weaknesses that I never confronted seem to highlight themselves to me here on the mission. And now that I've picked the rock up, I have to face them. It's discouraging at times to see all my flaws so clearly, but I know that the best way to diminish them is to lose myself in the work. Because as I lose myself in my Savior, he makes me so much more than I could make of myself. We can try to fix every little thing that's wrong with us and make very little progress, but if we focus on others and on serving the Lord in the way He desires, we will find that we are changing without even realizing it.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - I'll never regret picking up this rock.
I love you all a whole bunch and more.
Love, Hna. Crosland
P.S. No, I haven't received any packages yet, but hopefully this week or next at interview or the change conference. And speaking of packages, I sent one to mom my last week in Nagarote which would have been 5 or 6 weeks ago. Has it gotten to you? I sent it the same way I sent the first package home, so I'm sad it didn't arrive quickly like the other. Let me know when (if) you get it. Loves.
P.P.S. Just keep sending everthing to the mission address. It comes through the pouch fast enough. Just the packages take a while because we only get them when we go to Managua for multi-zonas, but that is the same as before. Loves.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Letter #24 - March 8, 2010
!Buenas¡
Espero que todos estén muy muy bien. Thanks for your email this week mom & dad. To answer mom's question, I had two weeks in Nagarote when we didn't baptize and we didn't baptize again this week here in Jinotega. So that makes 4 in total. Boo. I hate it when we don't baptize.
We are working with a muchacha named Elizabeth who is ready, has a testimony, is reading the book of mormon, has come to church a bunch of times, and who wants to be baptized... she just has the huge obstacle of her family including her husband who are against it and she is afraid to disrupt the peace. It's frustrating. I was hoping that she would take the plunge this weekend but we're still waiting.
We're also teaching two families who live in a really poor area of Jinotega called Villa Valencia. Jinotega is surrounded by "mountains" kind of like Utah Valley, but everything is on a smaller scale. And Villa Valencia is up on the benches in the North end of Jinotega. Olga y Julio live in a house of black plasitc, kind of like a tarp, wrapped around four big branches stuck in the dirt. Half of their house is taken up by the bed that they sleep in with their two little girls, smaller than a double bed, and there is a fire pit in the opposite corner. They haven't come to church yet but we're hoping we can get them there next week. A few houses above them on the hill live María y José Luis in a slightly bigger, but very similar house. María has been to church twice now and two of her six kids, Fabiola y David, have been twice as well. Her husband works every Sunday and he's only been there for one or two lessons, but María and her two kids want to be baptized. The only hold-up is that she and José Luis need to get married and he's really hesitant about it.
While working in Villa Valencia yesterday, we saw this tiny little girl, probably about 4 years old trying to carry a bucket of water up the hill. The dirt paths are really steep and I always slip on the dust and rocks trying to get around. But this little girl was so small and struggling with her bucket. So Hna. Aguilar started talking to her, asked where she was going and took the bucket to help her up the hill. After a second we came up upon her older sister, probably 12 years old, hauling one of those 5 gallon buckets filled with water and sealed with a lid. So I took that bucket and we continued up the hill. Holy cow, seriouly I don't know how the people in Villa Valencia haul their water up to their houses every day from the spigot by the little tienda at the bottom. I'm glad we have running water in our little house, even if it's super cold coming out of the shower in the morning.
We also had Raul come to church this week, a viejito of 81 years who we're teaching. This guy has the most interesting life. He was born in Mexico and when he was still pretty small, was interned at a school taught by Jesuits. Later he worked on a passenger ship and he knows all the port cities along the atlantic and pacific coasts up and down from Mexico to Peru. He likes to tell us stories and we like to listen. He also has great faith in the Savior and accepts everything we teach him very easily. I just hope the importance of the message can sink in and that he will see the need for baptism. But he showed up at church all by himself (45 min. late) because he wasn't home when we passed by in the morning. I was thrilled to see him walk in.
So we have a flock of doves that live in the rafters of our house and since there are holes in the roof (like right above my bed), we get all sorts of nasty creatures that are nearly too small to see, but that bite us in the night. My body looks like I have chicken pox for all the bug bites I have and I'm constantly plagued with itches. I think more than one type of animalito is biting me. Because I think during the day mosquitos attack my feet, ankels and heels, and during the night the little devils bite my back, legs, shoulders and arms. Hmmm... we've talked to the lady we pay rent to and I think she is going to have someone come and seal up the holes and evict the doves. I hope that will help aliviate at least part of the problem.
Thanks for the news of the ward. I'm sorry to hear about Sis. Parrot. If you see Brookie again anytime soon, tell her that she was in one of my dreams a few weeks ago. I don't remember the dream now, just that she was in it. Congrats to the Timpview STATE CHAMPS! That's so fun to be a part of, especially your senior year. Also congrats to Heather. I want to see pictures, so tell her to send me an email with some. But seriously, that's so exciting. And I also want to congradulate my smarty-pants cuñado. Way to go Mikey. Felicidades, en serio. Sé que trabajas muy duro y siempre estoy agradecida que mi hermanita le hallo.
I can't put into words sufficiently the strength it is to me to have a family like you, serving in the church, striving everyday to live the gospel and build your testimonies, pressing forward along the path of discipleship. It makes me want to be better, to work harder, and to keep progressing so that one day we can all be together as an eternal family. And because of your wonderful example, I have a much clearer picture of what I want my future family to look like. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Keep doing your best everyday and let the Lord take care of the rest. If we put him in the first place in our lives, everything else will work out for our good. I'm grateful for the unifying and edifying goal we have as a familiy of being together for the eternities.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - sometimes the path of the disciple is carrying a 5 gallon bucket up a steep dirt hill.
Love you more than life.
Hna. Crosland
Espero que todos estén muy muy bien. Thanks for your email this week mom & dad. To answer mom's question, I had two weeks in Nagarote when we didn't baptize and we didn't baptize again this week here in Jinotega. So that makes 4 in total. Boo. I hate it when we don't baptize.
We are working with a muchacha named Elizabeth who is ready, has a testimony, is reading the book of mormon, has come to church a bunch of times, and who wants to be baptized... she just has the huge obstacle of her family including her husband who are against it and she is afraid to disrupt the peace. It's frustrating. I was hoping that she would take the plunge this weekend but we're still waiting.
We're also teaching two families who live in a really poor area of Jinotega called Villa Valencia. Jinotega is surrounded by "mountains" kind of like Utah Valley, but everything is on a smaller scale. And Villa Valencia is up on the benches in the North end of Jinotega. Olga y Julio live in a house of black plasitc, kind of like a tarp, wrapped around four big branches stuck in the dirt. Half of their house is taken up by the bed that they sleep in with their two little girls, smaller than a double bed, and there is a fire pit in the opposite corner. They haven't come to church yet but we're hoping we can get them there next week. A few houses above them on the hill live María y José Luis in a slightly bigger, but very similar house. María has been to church twice now and two of her six kids, Fabiola y David, have been twice as well. Her husband works every Sunday and he's only been there for one or two lessons, but María and her two kids want to be baptized. The only hold-up is that she and José Luis need to get married and he's really hesitant about it.
While working in Villa Valencia yesterday, we saw this tiny little girl, probably about 4 years old trying to carry a bucket of water up the hill. The dirt paths are really steep and I always slip on the dust and rocks trying to get around. But this little girl was so small and struggling with her bucket. So Hna. Aguilar started talking to her, asked where she was going and took the bucket to help her up the hill. After a second we came up upon her older sister, probably 12 years old, hauling one of those 5 gallon buckets filled with water and sealed with a lid. So I took that bucket and we continued up the hill. Holy cow, seriouly I don't know how the people in Villa Valencia haul their water up to their houses every day from the spigot by the little tienda at the bottom. I'm glad we have running water in our little house, even if it's super cold coming out of the shower in the morning.
We also had Raul come to church this week, a viejito of 81 years who we're teaching. This guy has the most interesting life. He was born in Mexico and when he was still pretty small, was interned at a school taught by Jesuits. Later he worked on a passenger ship and he knows all the port cities along the atlantic and pacific coasts up and down from Mexico to Peru. He likes to tell us stories and we like to listen. He also has great faith in the Savior and accepts everything we teach him very easily. I just hope the importance of the message can sink in and that he will see the need for baptism. But he showed up at church all by himself (45 min. late) because he wasn't home when we passed by in the morning. I was thrilled to see him walk in.
So we have a flock of doves that live in the rafters of our house and since there are holes in the roof (like right above my bed), we get all sorts of nasty creatures that are nearly too small to see, but that bite us in the night. My body looks like I have chicken pox for all the bug bites I have and I'm constantly plagued with itches. I think more than one type of animalito is biting me. Because I think during the day mosquitos attack my feet, ankels and heels, and during the night the little devils bite my back, legs, shoulders and arms. Hmmm... we've talked to the lady we pay rent to and I think she is going to have someone come and seal up the holes and evict the doves. I hope that will help aliviate at least part of the problem.
Thanks for the news of the ward. I'm sorry to hear about Sis. Parrot. If you see Brookie again anytime soon, tell her that she was in one of my dreams a few weeks ago. I don't remember the dream now, just that she was in it. Congrats to the Timpview STATE CHAMPS! That's so fun to be a part of, especially your senior year. Also congrats to Heather. I want to see pictures, so tell her to send me an email with some. But seriously, that's so exciting. And I also want to congradulate my smarty-pants cuñado. Way to go Mikey. Felicidades, en serio. Sé que trabajas muy duro y siempre estoy agradecida que mi hermanita le hallo.
I can't put into words sufficiently the strength it is to me to have a family like you, serving in the church, striving everyday to live the gospel and build your testimonies, pressing forward along the path of discipleship. It makes me want to be better, to work harder, and to keep progressing so that one day we can all be together as an eternal family. And because of your wonderful example, I have a much clearer picture of what I want my future family to look like. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Keep doing your best everyday and let the Lord take care of the rest. If we put him in the first place in our lives, everything else will work out for our good. I'm grateful for the unifying and edifying goal we have as a familiy of being together for the eternities.
Being a missionary is the best thing in the world - sometimes the path of the disciple is carrying a 5 gallon bucket up a steep dirt hill.
Love you more than life.
Hna. Crosland
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