Let Us Dream Big and Love Even Bigger

Note to readers:  Re Faith's plea in the 6th paragraph to help her companion, I'm going to ask her more questions next week, such as, wouldn't it be easier to send money so she can choose her own clothing, if there are even stores in their little town.  But if you would like to help in some way, please let me know.  Thank you!

 

Querida Familia,

Primero, happy birthday Jared! I thought about you on the 13th. You are such a great brother in law and bless our entire family so much, just by being the good, righteous guy you are. I hope you had a great day. And felicidades about the temple in Tucson! I am so excited for you all. If I want to get married in Arizona, I am going to have a lot more options than just Meza. Or do you spell it Mesa? I can`t remember. Also, thank you for the email Carrie! The time difference is four hours later than AZ now, by the way.  And dad and Paulette! What a drive! I hope it all went well and the dogs arrived in one piece, as well. Best of luck to you and Levi, Paulette! You are a cute little family.

 

I have my new companion, la Hermana Quito de Trujillo, Peru! She is the only sister who came this change. A bunch of missionaries came from the Argentina MTC. I have to admit that training is.....hard. I was a little intimidated to find out I`m training a Latina, but I am actually eternally grateful because at least she speaks great Spanish. It is hard and lonely to make all the decisions on my own, because she doesn`t know any of the people or really anything about missionary work. But I have truly felt and seen the Lord bless us and I don`t have to be worried because it is HIS work, not mine. She keeps saying how thankful she is that she has me as a companion and how patient I am with her, but really, SHE is the one who is patient with me because I have to ask her to repeat almost everything she says.

Her conversion story is amazing. She was baptized 8 years ago. Her mom had a stroke and was doing really poorly, and her older sister`s grades started dropping because of the stress at home. Her sister`s friend at high school noticed she was really sad in a math class one day, and told her that he had two friends who could give her mom a blessing. His friends were the missionaries, and they taught her family. At first Hna. Quito didn`t want to listen and didn`t want to join a church just because her mom was healed by a blessing. Her older sister got baptized, then her parents and little brothers, then her. Her older sister just got home from a mission in Peru two weeks before Hna. Quito left on her mission, and her brother is currently in the MTC. Just think, a whole family of missionaries all because a member boy in a high school math class opened his mouth! I am so thankful for him, as is Hna. Quito!

On Wednesday we went to Asuncion to change companions and I had a training meeting about how to train. President Madariaga said that if we don`t feel prepared or good enough to train, complain to the Lord about it because HE is the one who definitely, without a doubt, made the assignments of who would train. Very 1 Nephi 3:5 ish, no?

 

I called my old companion Hna. Quispe last night to see how Concepcion is doing. Another of the Meza daughters, Nila who is 17, was baptized a couple weeks ago and is so animada (excited, on fire about) about the gospel she wants to go on a mission! The whole family is going to church still, even Juan Angel went yesterday. The heart breaking news is that he has still not stopped smoking, and even started drinking again. It made my heart just sink. Gladys even wants to separate from him because when he is drunk he is terrible with the family. It makes me so sad. He truly believes the church is true, but believing isn`t enough, he needs to act on what he believes. If you want to write a letter of encouragement or perspective, mom or dad, to Gladys or Juan Angel, or both, I would be happy to translate it and send it to them.

 

Have you already sent me a Christmas package? I hope not, because I have another request. And maybe any blog readers want to help, too. My new companion came with two suitcases that were only half-full. She is from a pretty poor family it looks like (her dad works in the compana, or the fields.) and she has almost nothing. On top of that she gained a lot of weight in the Argentina MTC (Sounds like that happens to everyone who goes there!) and a few of her already-limited skirts don`t fit....She has so few clothes that she can`t even send them to be washed like we usually do because she doesn`t have enough to last until we get them back again, so she does laundry by hand. I would LOVE it if you sent her some christmas presents, wrapped and everything. She is probably a little less than 5 feet tall and probably about a size 10 or 12.  Aside from clothes, she could use about anything. That is what I want for Christmas, is presents for her. I doubt her family will send anything. They don`t even know how to use email. She didn`t know how to use a microwave. It`s a different life.  Letters or Christmas cards would be great, too. She doesn`t get much mail and mail is all we missionaries really want from back home.  

 

We ran into Nelson again this week (you don`t know how many times the Lord has put him in our path! I know it is not a coincidence. That guy is hard to get hold of but God makes it possible.) He said he isn`t going to go to church anymore because it asks too much of him, and also because it has brought him so many problems with his friends and girl friend. He said that now that he decided to stop going to church, things are much better with his girlfriend. Oh, it was so hard to hear a perspective like that. He said everything we teach is good, and that he truly believes this is the true church, just that it asks too much.  Broke my heart.  Hopefully with time he will remember the Spirit he felt and realize what life is really about.

 

And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ...and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him. (Omni 1:26). Whenever we offer anything to Him, the rewards are so much sweeter than anything we gave up. I testify to that. Oh the church is true and vale la pena predicarlo (worth the pain to preach it). I am grateful and just FULL beyond measure that Hope wants to serve a mission. It is truly the way to change the world. Last week during conference I was filled with so many desires to just change the world. I want to start an anti-abortion organizaion, and also save orphans from malnutrition, and do something about all the drunks who abuse their families, and also help people quit smoking, and teach people in developing countries how to prevent disease. But then I realized that, although those are still great options that I would love to and plan to pursue, the gospel cures all those problems in one fell swoop. There is truly no greater work than missionary work, whether it be in the home or in the field.

 

Love,

Your Sister Missionary who doesn`t endure lunches of sausage and white bread and soda for nothing, but because this work is TRUE,

Sister Goimarac