Week 65 May 23, 2016 Graduation Time. Caldwell visit.

Hola familia!

This week we  worried about the well being of the hermanas we cover. We are constantly worried about one pair in particular because they don't seem to get the big picture. How do you motivate sisters who don't want to follow the rules? I am still trying to figure out this STL business - one day at a time. If any of you figure it out, let me know.

Tuesday we had lunch with Hermana Zaugg who came all the way from Caldwell to see us :) We ate at Costa Vida and had lots of laughs. I love her so much and just being with her made me feel like I was back in Caldwell again- ahh good times:)

Wednesday we went to see our member's nieces' graduation. It reminded me of my own graduation. Hard to believe that it was 2 years ago and even harder to believe that my younger brother Elijah is going to graduate soon!! 4 cords and 2 medals?!?! He is so much better than I was, and his achievements continue to amaze me. He worked hard all 4 years.  I beam with pride every time someone asks me about my family, there is nothing sweeter than talking about y'all:)  I love you so much.

Thursday we went to Caldwell to surprise visit the sisters, but when we got there they were busy doing service. So we visited some less active families and loved being with the people.  Again- so good to see people in Caldwell!!! Gah, I love it so much!!

Last Sunday and this one I volunteered to translate for our ward. It was awesome getting to do it because there are a plethora of capable translators available and although I am NOT the best at it yet, I like doing it because it gives me an opportunity to practice my Spanish at a faster pace.  

Welp familia! Don't forget that there is a hermana misionera praying for you! 

I love y'all

Hermana Moss:)

May 16, 2016 Week 64 YCSM Fireside, Ana Rosales' Baptism, Sandra Gutierrez's Baptism

Hola familia!!

I love my busy mission!  The pace is insane!  I am learning to keep up with the Lord.

Monday night was kind of scary, I stayed up doing laundry loads and working on different projects. Not even 5 minutes after I turned off the light to go to bed, the lady we live with called out to us screaming. (It was sort of a blessing in disguise that I stayed up late because after I fall asleep I don't hear much.)  We got up immediately and found her on the floor at the top of the stairs. She was having really bad cramps due to a gluten OD she was in the hospital for a few days previously. Vujich and I did everything we could until we decided to call 911. The ambulance came and picked her up around 1:30am. I was really grateful that I stayed calm throughout the whole ordeal. 

Wednesday we had a cool little miracle. We were asked by the driving coordinator to get our oil changed a week ago, but we didn't' have the time last week. I remembered on Tuesday evening and made an appointment to get the car serviced for Wednesday morning. After we got it done, we had some time to kill before our district meeting, so we went to the mission office to drop off the oil change report so we wouldn't have to mail it in. This is where I mentioned to Sister Anderson about my departure date in August because I was concerned that I hadn't received any papers about it yet. She looked at me with wide eyes and told me that she knew nothing about that, even though I mentioned it to PCannon several times. Normally they like to send out the papers 3 months before the missionary goes home, but in my case it is less than 3 months away, so this put them into turbo mode to get everything figured out. After lots of phone calls and paperwork, it looks like my official departure date will be August 16th! 

Friday night we went to Nyssa for Sandra Gutierrez's baptism! She is the woman that Juan Meza is fellow-shipping from Dickinson's.  He is trying to get her to come to the Ontario branch. Although We didn't teach her all of the lessons, we introduced her to the missionaries that cover her area. To get to the baptism, we called Nora & Juan Juarez for a ride. The baptism was special and I am so happy for Sandra, she will become a great source of strength for the Nyssa branch! 

Saturday morning we had our baptism for Ana Rosales!! She has been investigating the church for years and decided to be baptized because of a talk she heard in sacrament meeting and some dreams she's had lately. I met her a long time ago on exchanges and I thought she was a member already haha! She has a wonderful spirit about her and is so strong in her faith. I love her to pieces! We had to have the program take place in the chapel because the relief society room was too small. We had so many people show up, including Guti who has been home about 2 weeks and Eko, who has been home for almost 2 months now.  

Saturday night was a huge Nampa fiesta! Lots of Spanish people from Nampa, Caldwell, Ontario, Nyssa, and probably some from Boise showed up! There were bounce houses, carnival games, shaved ice and cotton candy, and food featured from different countries!! The best part were the dances from Spain, Mexico, Argentina, and El Salvador performed by dance companies and members.  It was so much fun to see all the Spanish missionaries in the mission too:)

Sunday we had a YCSM fireside broadcast from Salt Lake. The Nampa North, Nampa West, and Kuna Zones were asked to attend to support the YCSM missionaries serving in this area. The director of the fireside shared a story of when he was giving a presentation about the program in a meeting with the 1st presidency. He was prompted to add a picture of his own 2 grandsons with a mental disability to the slideshow. After the slideshow ended, President Monson asked who among the members in the meeting actually had a relative who was in the program and the director raised his hand. He went back to the picture from the slideshow and told President Monson about his grandsons and a time when his daughter asked him what to tell her boys who have strong testimonies and want to serve missions, but she didn't want to discourage them because they have disabilities that would hinder them from serving full time missions. President Monson then responded to the director to tell his daughter that they will be able to serve an honorable mission. The fireside was so inspiring, and the spirit was so strong. The only other speaker that night was Brad Wilcox. He talked about an acronym that we can use the next time we are asked to speak or give a spiritual thought: GOSPEL. G=Godhead, O=Only true church, S=Spirit, P=Priesthood authority, E= Everyone, L=Living Prophets. I always enjoy listening to Brother Wilcox, his way of explaining things is so simple and makes me laugh.  It was a great fireside.

Welp familia! I love y'all! Remember that there is an hermana misionera praying for you!

Hermana Moss:)

Week 63 May 9th, 2016 Mother's Day, Zone Conference, MLC, DLC Meetings.

Hola familia!!

This week started out rough, but amazing in many ways! 

Monday was quiet, particularly because I left Ontario, a place that holds a big piece to my heart. After emailing and grocery shopping, we went home to get some housework done. In the process, the closet door I opened completely fell off and it caused a bit of craziness between us and the member we live with. This and missing Ontario made me feel a bit down. So p-day was rough.

Tuesday was better, we helped a family in the Spanish ward move. Later that day Vuiich and I got a blessing from Pres Cannon. It was exactly what I needed to lift my spirits. 

Wednesday we had a MLC in Caldwell. It was a long meeting that lasted over 6 hours... I love being in leadership because we work alongside Pres Cannon a lot which is very rewarding, but the meetings challenge my ability to focus for long periods of time, haha! 

Thursday I was able to see the Palominos Family!!  I was so excited to learn that they are in my new area so we will definitely be visiting them frequently. Fond memories of this family make the move that much easier. 

Friday we had a zone meeting. We were asked to give a training on developing our divine potential. We came prepared to read and discuss a devotional that was included in the Timeless Treasures by Elder Tad R. Callister. Even though most of our preparation was last minute, it turned out great and we had a lot of participation. The Nampa North zone has good, hardworking missionaries and I can see a lot of success coming from our tiny zone! Friday evening there was a Mother's Day activity in the Spanish ward. It was fun to get to meet and mingle with the members. It's also interesting because I already know a bunch of them from exchanges. 

Saturday we were invited to the DLC meeting for the other Nampa zone, since we cover the sisters in that zone as well. It was the first DLC I have been to that was actually productive! (There is a quote from Boyd K. Packer that P Cannon likes to repeat, "It takes an awfully good meeting to beat no meeting at all." And DLC's are by definition the most unproductive meetings ever.)  Saturday evening we went back to Ontario for Juan Meza's baptism!!! It filled me with so much joy to see him wearing white in the baptismal font. I knew he would eventually be baptized when he was ready, but I did NOT expect it to happen when I was still on my mission! I kid y'all not, I have been praying and fasting for him for more than a year now. I truly have a testimony that miracles DO happen and that prayers ARE answered. This family is on their way to a Temple sealing in a year, and I will not miss it for the world! 

Sunday was my first in this area and it surprised me to see almost he entire chapel filled with people! It was certainly new for me because Ontario and Caldwell both struggle to fill the room even on a good day. We were asked to teach sharing time in Primary last minute about Joseph Smith and the Restoration. I love working with kids because they have such a brightness to them and a spirit that you can feel strongly. Then after church we had dinner and we called home for Mother's day! It was so nice to talk to y'all and to see your faces! 

Welp familia! I love y'all. Remember that there is an hermana misionera praying for you!!

Hermana Moss :)

Happy Mother's Day!!

5/8/16

New Companion

Week 62 May 2, 2015 Sister's Conference, Transferred to Nampa & Juan wants to get baptized!

Hola familia!!!!

Soooo, this week has been kind of crazy. Mostly because I got transferred to Nampa and I was NOT expecting it! I am already missing Ontario like crazy, but I know this is where the Lord needs me to be.  HELLO AGAIN NAMPA!

Tuesday we had Sisters Conference, where we had all the sisters in the mission get together for special trainings, given by President Cannon, Sister Cannon, and the STL's! Webb and I prepared a training on recognizing our individual worth. We started out by giving them a handout with the scripture that talked about how we are the salt and the light of the world. During Christ's ministry, salt was a very valuable mineral used for preserving and adding flavor to foods. In many cases only the rich were able to afford it and use it. So when Christ called us the salt of the earth, that was a noble compliment. We lend seasoning and tenderizing and flavor and light and value.  Then we explained that sometimes through our interactions with others we can prejudge and label them. We had them each come up and write down a trait on a poster board they see in others or they see in themselves that they don't like. When they all finished, we had them come up and take a pushpin to make a little hole to the adjectives they didn't like. After that, I took the poster and turned it around to show them a picture of Christ with all of the sisters names written on it covered in holes from the pushpin. We taught that while they label and tear down their sisters, they are also doing it to Christ. It was a powerful scene. I shared the experience I learned from last Thursday and extended an invitation to them to show love and respect to others the way Christ did. We ended our training by giving them a certificate with their names on it and 3 positive adjectives that described them. I have never been to a sisters conference before, and they only have it once a year, so this will be my first and last conference. I am glad I had the opportunity to attend, there was a wonderful spirit and I enjoyed seeing all the sisters together:) I am grateful to my Savior who Atones for all our shortcomings and our imperfections.

Wednesday we had a lot of work to catch up on, so we brought all of our projects to the Webster's house to get it all done. I also made dinner for the family because Sis Webster wasn't feeling well and was not up to it. I made lasagna casserole, and they loved it!!!! I even made a double batch and it was still gone by the next day:) I don't know if you noticed that I colored my hair. Don't worry Mom, I went with a temporary black so it will wash out in 6 weeks.  Later that day a hermana asked us and the elders to come over and pull weeds for her. Service work Yea!  Friday we had our last district meeting with our district leader and his companion who are going home, they both shared their testimonies and we sang God Be With You Till We Meet Again.  It made us all cry. But hey, it is a tradition, so it must be done!

Saturday we got transfer calls in the morning.... Let's just say that I was a wreck and I practically chewed out the Assistants. They informed me that I was originally going to stay in Ontario with Webb, but after President Cannon said the closing prayer for the transfer planning meeting, I was one of the first names to be changed on the list. it was inspired, and I can't argue with Heavenly Father haha..Anyway, after that, we got a last minute call from the Nampa sisters to come to a baptism for a lady I taught on exchanges. It was great to see Guti before she goes home. It's so funny that I have been on exchanges many times to Nampa, and that I already know a lot of people in my new area. I am hopeful this change will be an easy adjustment. 

Sunday was full of visiting people to saying goodbye. I cried a lot! I never knew I would turn into such a crybaby on my mish. We had a special carne asada dinner that we scheduled with the Websters followed by an FHE! I loved hearing everybody's testimonies, and of course we sang God Be With You as the closing prayer. BAHH! Leaving hurts! :(( Shortly after we left, Hermana Meza texted us to see if Saturday was a good day for Juan, her husband, to get baptized! Whaaat!  I started crying all over again. If you remember, he is the investigator we have waited a long time to hear those words "I want to get baptized!" Hopefully, everything will go well and it will happen on Saturday! Please pray for Juan!!

Welp familia! I love y'all!!!  And don't forget, there is a hermana misionera praying for you!

Hermana Moss :)

President & Sister Canon