Kira had to get her Visa on this Prep-Day, so she did not have time to write a letter this week. She just said a short message; " I am alive, NO WORRIES !" ( Lol - Knew her Mom would worry when no letter was received.) She did send the following pictures though.
I am currently serving as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Guatemala Retalhuleu Mission!
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Saturday, September 21, 2013
September 16th - Teaching about the Temple
Hola!!!!!!
So this week we have been focusing on helping recent converts
and less active members to go the temple . It has been incredible. It makes me
so ridiculously happy inside!!!
One of the ladies was so happy when we came to talk to her about the temple. She is so sweet and she is going to teach me how to make tortillas. Now like 50 people have said they will teach me but she is serious. I just have to set the day with her and that’s it!!! So excited!!!
So 3 times a week we have a noche de hermanamiento. It is basically
like a night where we have a spiritual message and sing and eat yummy food.
This week it was at Hermana Toribias house (recent convert) and she is so
adorable. Her love for the Lord inspires me and although she doesn’t understand
very much she is just so willing to do the will of the Lord. i love her!!!
I have been cooking a lot for my comp and I this week and I love
it. I don’t know why I haven’t been doing it more often and it really has
brought us closer. It was rough in the beginning but I really do love her now.
We may not speak the same language but we are both daughters of our Heavenly
Father and we each have a purpose here. I am so grateful for what she has taught
me and I know we are companions for a reason!
Not much really happened this week but the Lord has answered so
many of my prayers. I felt so inadequate for the calling I have but He makes up
for the difference.
I Love the Lord, In Him my soul delights.
Love you all!!! xoxoxoxoox
Hna. Webster
| Sister Ison and Sister Webster |
| Sister Merrill and Sister Webster |
| Sister Pister and Sis. Webster MTC Comp's |
| Cooking with My Comp ! |
| Let's Celebrate ! |
| Getting Cozy on the bus. |
| My District |
September 9th This Gospel really can change lives and it blesses lives.
Earthquakes, car accidents and parasites! Oh
my!
So you don't worry... the car accident was just in front of me.
Hakuna matata.
So last Friday there was a 6.5 quake here in Guatemala!!!! It
was actually pretty cool and not a lot of damage was done. Thankfully. There
are a lot of aftershocks though. aka at 2 am every night. That part is fun.
waking up and seeing the ceiling shaking. haha. But really. I do enjoy it for
some odd reason.
This week I have really been blessed! Hermano Darvin is on track
to be baptized and we are birthday twins!!! He is so willing to make the
necessary changes in his life and to follow the Lord. I love teaching him
because he is so understanding of my Spanish and he is so aware of the Spirit
and what he should do. he taught the lesson in Gospel Principles yesterday.
INCREDIBLE. It was on the family and how families can be eternal. We haven’t
even taught him about the Plan of Salvation yet and he basically taught
himself. It was such a powerful experience to see someone you are teaching,
teach others. he kept saying I didn’t know this before but I know that this is
true. I am so excited for this Saturday!!!!!!!! aka his baptism!!!!
So we were contacting on Wednesday and we passed this door that
was slightly open. We kept walking and then I just felt something stop me. Go
back! So we went back and we found the most adorable family in the world. La
familia Max Lopez! They are so incredible. When we asked them if we could end
with a prayer, both of them automatically started to kneel. It was so neat!! We
were teaching Hna. Iris about the Restoration and the Spirit was definitely
there. She told us that she was going to change her plans so she could go to
all 3 hours of church... and she did! INCREDIBLE. Her children loved it too.
Hammington ( her little boy) kept saying when can I go back?? This Gospel
really can change lives and it blesses lives. I know that if this family
continues to listen and pray to know the message we share is true, that they
will know for themselves that it is the truth. It is of God and this Church is
the Church of Jesus Christ!
My little angels!!! Little girls here love me and I love them.
they brighten my day.
Hermanita Addy - Her aunt does my comps laundry and she just
came in and sat down next time and asked me all about my family and I showed
her pictures. then she told me about how her grandma passed away but she knows
she is okay because she is in heaven., Then she pointed to my picture of Christ
and said He takes care of me. SO PRECIOUS: Then we were in Mulua helping some
other missionaries in our zone and I hear HERMANA WEBSTER!!! Little addy came
running out of her house and jumped on me. So adorable. I love her. She is the
little girl in the picture with me this week.
Hermanita Rosario- Pictures from last week. She runs and jumps
on me every time I walk by too. She is adorable.
Hermanita Maria - the other picture of the little girl. She
confuses me with another Hermana that was here over a year ago but finally got
my name right this week. When I left their house, ,she yelled my name for about
2 minutes for me to come back!
hermanita Carlita- She is in my ward and she always comes and
talks to me. I never really understand her but she still tries. Which means a
lot to me. She always is asking me how to say things in English and asked me to
translate one of her story books for her. :)
Another angel this week... Hermana Woods. She entered the
mission with me and she is incredible. She just let me know that I am not
alone. The mission tests you and it is hard but she just really stressed to me
the importance of prayer and it has been so helpful.
Lastly... I LOVE NEPHI. He is soooooooooo amazing and I want to
marry someone just like him!!
Things I have learned from him: pray, believe, obey and
love.
2 Nephi 33: 3,4,7,15
Anyways! I love you alll!! xoxoxo
Hermana Webster
| Adorable Little Addy and Kira |
September 2nd You are never far from the sight of your loving Heavenly Father
So after I wrote you last P day... we had two people approach us
about the Church and they asked US for a Book of Mormon. What the heck! That
just doesn’t{t happen. So of course in that moment we didn´t have one with us.
Just our luck right but then we went shopping and I was about to start praying
that we would run into other missionaries and in that moment, Elder Amundsen
and Elder Chacon walked in the door. The Lord really does listen to our prayers
and He answers them. Even the little ones!!
So milagros of this week!
Hno. Darvin. He has been investigating the Church for a while.
He actually went to General Conference in April and that is what started his
interest in the Church. His only problem is he never really wants to set a date
to be baptized. He reads the Book of Mormon and For the Strength of Youth all
the time too!! It is incredible but he hasn't come to church for a while but
that changed this Sunday! He came and he offered to teach the lesson in Gospel
Principles next week. WHAT!!!! It was an incredible moment not going to lie.
But as we were teaching him, I asked him if he has ever specifically prayed
about the Book Of Mormon. He got kind of quiet and said the truth hermana...
no. I cannot stress how important it is to pray about this book! Without this
knowledge and testimony from God, we will not be able to say we truly know
these things! I encourage all of you to read the introduction of the Book of
Mormon and focus in the last 2 paragraphs specifically. Do what it says and I
promise you that you will receive the knowledge that the Book of Mormon is the
word of God.
B.O.M.
Introduction:
We invite all men
everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it
contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the
book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a
testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost.
(See Moroni
10:3–5.)
Those who gain this divine witness from the
Holy Spirit will also come to know by the same power that Jesus Christ is the
Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith is His revelator and prophet in these
last days, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the
Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the Second
Coming of the Messiah.
Hna. Argentina!!! I really need to take a picture with her soon.
She is so adorable. I love her. She is like my grandma here. She always gives
me food. Our lunch got cancelled on Saturday and of course Hna. Argentina
offered us lunch this day. Without even knowing that our lunch had been
cancelled!! (The Lord is in the details, I am telling ya!!) Anyways, more
importantly, she prayed with us for the first time and she is reading the Book
of Mormon. All she ever says is Everything in this book is about Christ
:)
Hna. Ruth y Hno Hector. Be prepared. This is amazing. So we were
heading back to our house because it was getting pretty late and this boy
passed me on the street. I thought he looked like one of our previous
investigators, Johnathan, that we haven’t got a hold of him, so like the
stalkers we are... we followed him naturally. It turned out to not be him,.....
oops. Anyways we decided to try to contact a reference in that area but instead
we found Ruth y Hector. They are inactive members aka they don’t go to church.
She was standing there at the door and it was almost like she was waiting for
us. No joke. She looked so happy when we walked in. Turns out that she had been
hoping that someone from Church would stop by and pray with her, And there we
were. They just kept thanking us and thanking us for coming. It was truly
incredible. I think they just need to know that someone cares about them but
more importantly that the Lord does. I have really learned there are no
coincidences. Everything happens for a reason and has a purpose. I don’t know
if that boy I saw even looked like Johnathan. I really think we just needed to
visit Ruth and Hector that night. :)
Marvincito. So cute. He is two and when we walked in, he
immediately grabbed the Himnos and For the Strength of Youth. He recognized us
and knew what we were going to share with them. :)
Quotes that helped me this week!!
The pain will go away someday but the strength will stay with
you.
You are never far from the sight of your loving Heavenly Father
' Pres. Boyd K. Packer
Read the talk Doing the right thing at the right time, without
delay! Incredible message about how the Savior never delayed but always acted
immediately. It really opened my eyes to what I can do to help others more in
my life.
Well.... I love you all! I appreciate your support more than you
can imagine. I can still receive dearelders.... and it is freeeeeeeee!! Just so
you know... :)
Remember the Lord loves you and you are never far from His
sight. Pray to help recognize His love in your life and you will be amazed by
what you find.
XOXoXoXoxOxO (NACHOOOOOOO)
Love you!
August 26th
August 26th
Greetings from San Felipe! The most amazing part of Guatemala.... I am a little bias but oh well. I am really starting to feel at home here. People on the streets know who I am and they actually like talking to me!!! I really am going to hate when I have to say goodbye to these people. They truly are my brothers and sisters. I LOVE THEM.
So I have just been really wondering why I was supposed to serve a mission. I mean I want to be here but the Lord wants me here too. I found a scripture that helped me figure it out. D y C 24:7-8.
8 Be patient in afflictions, for thou shalt have many; but endure them, for, lo, I am with thee, even unto the dend of thy days.
STRENGTH. My whole life, I have kind of been weak. It sounds bad but I haven{t really ever had a lot of confidence or felt that I was capable of doing things without the help of someone else. But here I am. In another country. Speaking a different language. and I am doing it. :) I have come to realize that I can do a lot more than I thought I could. After I found this scripture, an elder in my zone shared it with all of us the next day. The Lord is in the details!!!
Hermana Ison. I don't have a pic of her yet but she has been an angel. She has helped me so much through everything and something she said really stuck out to me. When Christ was here, He walked with the sick and the afflicted and the poor. They didn´t understand everything He taught but they felt His love and His spirit. We just need to focus on doing the same for the people here. I love that. Christ like love is helping those who can do nothing for you in return and not expecting anything.
So story of the week.....
Hno. Christian....
He asked me the following: " Were you fat before your mission??"
Me : "uhh... no. Why?"
Hno. Christian: "Then why do your thumbs look like that"?
I almost died. if any of you know me… you know that I have fat, short thumbs. You will understand.
Randomness: ONE MONTH IN GUATE!!!
More children put stuffed animals on my lap this week..... it is kind of a thing.
Hna. Miriam. the happiest woman alive. She has nothing but she doesn't see it that way. Before we prayed, I asked her if there was anything I could include in the prayer. She said I have everything I need. The Lord has blessed me with so much. :) What if everyone had that attitude? Amazing huh?
Hno. Jacobo!! So nobody goes outside when it is raining. Nobody. It was raining this Sunday..... so not very many people went to Church. Every Sunday we pick up investigators. Hno. Jacobo wasn’t there but we talked to his kids and he has been reading the Book of Mormon with them. SO SWEET: made my day!!!
Anyways.... I love you all and miss you lots. Say your prayers and trust in the Lord always. He knows what is best!!
LOVE YOU. xoxXOXOxoxox
Hna. Webster
Hna. Webster
Hermana Webster
August 19th Love is taking the time to understand their viewpoint and accepting them for who they are
Hola!!!
I got to see my MC comp at a training and we were comps in the practice. Hermana Pister. I love her so much and it is so nice to see a familiar face. These companionships are definitely inspired by God. Hermana Moore and Pister have helped prepare me for all of things I have faced here.
I got to see my MC comp at a training and we were comps in the practice. Hermana Pister. I love her so much and it is so nice to see a familiar face. These companionships are definitely inspired by God. Hermana Moore and Pister have helped prepare me for all of things I have faced here.
COCKROACHES SUCK. I lifted up the blender and there were 6!!
6!!!!! I almost died. So my instinct was to grab a knife and stab them. I got
3!!! But I seriously hate them so much. that and ormigas aka ants. In my Peanut
Butter.... :(
This week I have learned a lot of things but most of all, I have
learned how essential love is in all things. Everybody has faults and no one is
perfect. We cannot expect others to change and the only thing we can do is
change ourselves. Love is taking the time to understand their viewpoint and accepting
them for who they are. I have really learned that when we pray to love those
around us, the Lord will do exactly just that and the little things don{t
matter as much. They may still annoy us but we can put them behind us. love is
essential in this work and in life. It really is what motivates us and keeps us
going.
So we taught this family with only little boys and the middle
child kept putting his stuffed animals on my lap. Then I said the prayer and my
comp had the rest of the stuffed animals on her lap. After we got home that
night, I opened my bag and found a little stuffed animal bee in my backpack. It
made my day :)
We had a baptism!! Hermana Toribia. She is this cute little old
lady and she has such a strong faith in Christ. She just got her arm taken out
of a cast so her bones are really sensitive to the cold so we went and bought a
water heater... but now we use it for us. I love it so much. Anyways back to
Hermana Toribia, she is so adorable. She always tells Hermana Pineda to take
care of her gringita. :) aka me. After her baptism, we went to house and she
just told how grateful she is that we taught her. It was definitely a special
moment. Then when she received the Holy Ghost the next day, she just started
crying on the stand and told the Bishop that she felt a warmth in her chest. I
know this warmth is the Holy Ghost and only these feelings of joy and comfort
and truth can be felt by the Holy Ghost. I know that the Holy Ghost is real and
it truly does testify of the truth to all of us.
We are also teaching a young man named Enrique. he is hilarious
and he writes songs. He has 125 so far! He is amazing. We taught him the Plan
of Salvation and it was amazing to see how much the Spirit guided the lesson.
The Lord really does have a plan for each of us here. For
Enrique, for me and for you. He knows us and He knows what is best. We just
need to trust in Him always.
Oh by the way.... Elder Cory in my district is from Spokane!
woohoo. Go Spokane. Everyone here thinks I am from Washington DC. It rains
everyday at 3 pm... a lot. I love it though.
That is about my week. Continue to learn always and study the
scriptures every day! the Lord has given them to us for a reason. Always seek
for His Guidance in all things His comfort as well. there is nothing else like
it.
I love you all!
Hermana Webster
| Yes.. The volcanoe is smoking... |
August 12th - Beautiful San Felipe
Hola familia:)
This week has been full of rain, joy,
laughter, miracles and lots of food. I have never seen rain like this in my
life. It is seriously incredible. Also, they have tons of mini earthquakes here
and I got a taste of my first one at 12 am. I was so tired. I had no idea what
was going on so I just went back to sleep. hahah.
The food here is incredible. I LOVE TORTILLAS HERE. They are
amazing. I want to learn how to make them and I tried once... failed...
Eventually I will.. I hope :)
This week we went and taught a family in the ward and their
cousin happened to be there too. We found out that she had actually met with
the missionaries before and wants to be baptized but her mom won’t let her :(
We started teaching her again though. There is something special about Jennifer.
I feel like I am here to help her. I feel like every time we teach her, I know
exactly what to say even though my Spanish is far from perfect, she listens. We
talked about The Book of Mormon with her and how it is so much more than just a
book. I shared with her my favorite. 2 Nephi 4 20-24. The words that came out
of my mouth after that were not my own. I basically said “This book is not just
a book. It is the word of God. It is a comfort. It is a support and it was
written specially for us today. Any problem you may have you can open this book
and you will find an answer or solution to it. I promise you that as a a
representative of Jesus Christ". It was silent and I couldn’t{t even
believe the words that had left my mouth. It reaffirmed my testimony that
The Book of Mormon is true- there is no denying it.
People who make me smile: Benjamin owns a store here in San
Felipe and when I first met him he asked me if he can go back to the states. I
told him that I have 16 more months here and he said oh... I can wait. hahah. Every
time he sees me, he pops his head out of the shop and yells "Good
Morning" or something else in English.
Hna. Argentina. The most stylish and in shape old woman I have
met here. She is absolutely adorable. It was pouring outside and she let us
into her shop and gave us towels and mangoestans, a type of fruit here
(?).Turns out she had been taught by the missionaries before but she left for
the states for 8 years without telling them. Oh the Lord works in mysterious
ways.
Carlos- He is incredible. He is so smart and he listens so
intently when we teach. He is so ready for the Gospel but he doesn’t{t think
so. he told us that he doesn’t want to change religions but I feel like there
is more I can do. He told his mom that he had been really sad and then we
started visiting him and we prayed for him and it made all the difference. His
family and him refer to us as angels but don’t want to listen... at least for
now :)
Hno. Manases- He teaches with us and he is so awesome. He turns
in his mission papers this coming week and I am so excited for him. A lot of
the time, I feel like he is the missionary. he teaches me so much and his
testimony is rock solid. The members here are seriously incredible.
MILAGRO: La familia Joj. I love this family. 3 cute little kids.
One has down syndrome and she is so adorable. I feel like so many experiences
that I have had with Special Olympics and such have helped prepare me to help
this family. They have a desire to change. they just have to put some things
behind them. They haven{t really made progress but this Sunday we went to go
pick them up for church and they were all dressed up. My heart was so full of
joy in that moment. they looked so good and so happy together. I am so excited
to teach them tonight :) People really can change through faith and
repentance in Jesus Christ.
I love you all so much and I love this Gospel. I know that the
Lord is with us always and He will never leave us alone. Like my favorite
scripture, 2 Nephi 4:16-35 and hymn, I Need Thee Every Hour say, My God hath
been my support.
Remember an Hermana in Reu loves you :)
Hermana Webster
| Beautiful San Felipe ! |
Aug 6th "Who Am I"
First of all.... I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH.
I could not do this without knowing I have your support. I´m not
going to lie, it is hard and it is rough but it´s all worth it. I really have
been focusing on my relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
The questions Who Am I to Christ kept coming to my mind. And I
realized I am His representative. My favorite picture has always been of Christ
helping up Mary ( I think it is). It makes me think of the song "You Raise
Me Up". He really does raise us up. He went down to the lowest of lows in
the garden of gethsemane so that He could raise us up. I had that realization
this morning and I could not help but start crying. He is with me and He is
lifting me up and that´s all I need to know.
This week I have really noticed the Savior´s hand in this work.
I have felt the Spirit guide me to places where I have needed to go. We were
looking for a less active member named Johnathon and all we knew is that he
lived in this one area (they don´t really have addresses here). So we knocked
on the door and asked for Johnathon but someone else came. The best part is he
listened. truly listened. A lot of people here are just too scared to say no so
when someone actually pays attention in a lesson, IT IS AWESOME!! It also
reminded me that the Lord has a sense of humor. :)
I found a scripture this week thata I absolutely love. D&C
58: 2-4! Read it :)
I am starting to feel more at home here. The people are so
loving to me and even though I cannot understand everything they say aka the
majority they are so sweet to me. People actually get excited to see me now. I
think that is the best part :)
The members here are awesome too. Especially recent converts.
They teach with us all of the time and for like 4 hours at a time! Their
testimonies strengthen me so much and, I am so grateful for their examples.
I don´t really have anytime to say more but please know that I
love you. Always and I miss you.
Xoxoxox.
Hermana Webster
| Beautiful Guatemala ! |
| Yummy ! |
| My Dad's Mission Card |
| Mc D's |
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