Monday, October 26, 2015

Happy Halloween!

Well... its halloween again.. what? I feel like yesterday I carved a watermelon with Sister Zarate! And now its halloween again! They dont celebrate halloween here... booo hoooo. haha Its okay, im already planning my costume heh heh heh heh its a surprise.

So good news this week? Im not sick any more! YAY! I heard you guys got my flight itinarary (i cant spell in english)? Haha are you kidding me! AJSLGDHLAIS AAAAAAAAAAAH respira respira... todo esta bien. Im actually super nerviosa para terminar la mision. I feel like I have so much to tell you guys but Im drawing a blank.... ummmmmm

They asked me to sing in the christmas conference again! So that will be fun, its in the end of november. Que mas? This week was actually super hard. This sector just in general is really hard, haha its a lot of businesses and a lot of old people that "were born in this religion and plan on dieing in this religion" hahaha... im not gonna say cual.

But thats okay it just forces me to focus more and to work even harder. We are trying our best to find people to teach. We have been working a lot with less active members too. Yesterday 5 less active members came to church :) So, for me, that is success :) haha

Im excited to see you guys but I really, REALLY, REAAALLLY am having a hard time wrapping my head around the idea that my mission is coming to an end. On one hand I feel like ive been here forever, but on the other hand I feel like I just got here.

I just have really confusing feelings. haha

I love you all, hope you have a happy halloween! Dont forget to send me pictures of the pumpkins and costumes! Love you all.

Sister Miller

Suerte

Well, haha I am now in my last transfer. I cant even believe it, its so strange to think that in such little time I will be heading home. I am the next group that leaves the mission.

This week has been... hmmmm... how do you say.. interesting? Haha all of the sicknesses that I COULDVE had during my mission decided to acumulate until the last couple months I think. Heat rash, infected in grown toenail, bug bites, stomache parasite you name it! (And people think sister missionaries are cute, HA) I am feeling lots better now haha but its been a little funny calling the nurses so much. Im sure they just love me.

As far as investigators we are still working hard to find people, but it will be alot easier this week because we are no longer in trio. Sister Rojas is gonna train so she went to Guayaquil to pick up her new companion and will be back on wednesday.

I miss the food from my last sector to tell ya the truth. Here they eat a LOT of mani (peanuts) and they put it on fish, in soups, in paste, haha you name it! But whatever, they still feed me a ton of rice so thats cool.

My companion (la chileana) teaches me lots of funny chilean words. And her accent is pretty silly sometimes. She is awesome.

This week I have been studying lots about the sons of mosiah! What have you been studying??

Love, Sister Miller

























Thursday, October 15, 2015

A change of Heart!

Hola mi familia!

Today, instead of Pday we had a Multi-Zone conference here in Portoviejo. President Dennis came with his wife and the asistants and it was actually really cool. We brought a sack-lunch and we heard a couple of messages. They talked about obedience (and lots more, but this part was my favorite) They talked about how us, as missionaries, need to raise the bar. Change. Become consecrated missionaries. How to really change, and be converted. I am (of course) excited to go home and see you guys. But la verdad, am truly heart broken to leave this part of my life behind. I am terrified that I will go home and fall back into the old "me" ... it isnt that I was a bad person, its just that God spent so much time and effort to make me who I am that I am scared that I will go home and forget that. 

Its not just the missionaries that need to raise the bar. The families of the church are under attack. We live in the time prophetized (haha.... I hope im not inventing words, English is hard) by the prophets of old and we need to do what we can to stay in the right path. Do I kneel to say my prayers? Do I do my family home evenings? Do I read the scriptures every day? Am I keeping the Sabbath Day Holy? These are questions I will be asking myself when I get home.

This week (we are still in trio) has been interestingly long. I read my email from the week pasada and realized just how sad it sounded. I just wanna take a minute and say PERDĂ“NENME. This week I realized what the problem was. ME. My attitude! I had lost sense of my purpose and started to see the negative in everything. Today helped me realize that maybe our result level is low. But if I truly TRUUUULY give it my best I can sleep peacefully at night knowing that God sees my efforts and I will be blessed for what I give here.

I may not have much time left but I will give all of my heart to this glorious work. I havent been the best missionary, the smartest, the strongest, the most obedient, the most succesful. BUT I CAN ALWAYS CHANGE. We are changing, all of us! Everyday! Its a decision that we make to be the best that we can. To truly become concecrated. I have made covenants with a God who WANTS to bless me. But literally CAN NOT do so unless I obey Him. Not only obey, but be happy doing it. 

This week was especially hard. There is a woman who´s name is Lorena. She is an amazing woman with so much faith. Last wednesday we extended a baptismal date and she accepted. To be baptized this 7th of november she would have to get married one week earlier. She is 42 years old, absolutely in love with her best friend who has lived with her for more than 15 years. He is sick with a variety of sicknesses and the thought of a temple marriage touched her heart. In her prayer before we left she said "anhelo casarme y bautizarme. Gracias padre por enviarme estas dos angeles." (She longs to get married and baptized. She thanked God for sending her two angels) after weeks of looking and searching we found someone who was willing to progress... but that night Lorena was sent to the emergency room. She had a stroke. 

She is okay, and is now in therapy and is at home as well.

We dont know why the things that happen, happen. But I am sure that God is loving. And all knowing, and He will make sure that everything turns out right. 

This week (once again) my perspective has changed. Maybe the results I want arent here yet. Maybe my goals are just out of reach... maybe the sector is still hard, the sun is still strong, my companions are still imperfect, and I am still impatient...... But my attitude is different. I know that I will be going home soon. But I also know, and promise that with the little time that I have left I will give all that I have. In hopes to some how repay God even the smallest portion of what I owe him. Ive spent all of my mission in hopes of becoming the "perfect" missionary or what we call a "concecrated" missionary. But I have FINALLY realized something....Being a concecrated missionary isnt the goal. The goal is to give it our all, to work hard everyday, to stay focused, and in the process of doing so we truly become converted and concecrated. Its inevitable. I, with all my many imperfections, will become a little bit more like my Savior.

Im sorry that this email is so long, and maybe a little preachy.... but I truly hope that you guys can read and think about what ive said. and to my missionary friends reading this... if there is no time to read all of this now print it out and read it later. I hope that in some way, Ive been able to help.

Even though we are all far away, I know that our love for God keeps us close.

Loves!
Hna Miller

Thursday, October 8, 2015

Capacitacion!

Greetings earthlings!
ha ha, well... if you haven't noticed today is Tuesday! Yesterday was a leadership meeting literally all day so no P day for me.. but whatever ha ha I like the meetings. I'm a mission nerd ha-ha. and today I gave a training seminar on obedience and mission rules, ha ha it was epic but I was super nervous ha-ha
I loved conference! It was so cool to see the new apostles, we weren't able to bring anyone to conference though. We are passing through hard times here in the sector and we don't really have anything good going for us. But we are trying our hardest to keep a positive attitude.
HEY OH MY GOSH I ALMOST FORGOT! The weirdest thing has happened! The other day there we were when all of the sudden a 48 year old women went walking past us in the street BUTT NAKED! oh my gosh menos mal that we were sisters and not elders but I guess I had a horrific look on my face because my companion looked at me and said sister miller... are you okay??? Because she didn't see her at first. Hahahahahaha ew ew ew...... I need to be brain washed to get the picture out of my brain-
any whoo im now in trio... i don't have one companion I have TWO ha-ha Sister Rojas from Peru and Sister Espinoza from Chile still. So that's fun, we´ll see how this goes it should be interesting lol
I love you guys! Behave yourselves.
Love, Hna Miller.

Thursday, October 1, 2015

Refiners Fire

Well, here we are again, la verdad, I cant believe its already Monday.TIME IS GOING SO FAST! Chutica no se como es Pday otra vez.

This week we were able to go to the temple! Woohoo! We were able to do a session and it was just what I needed. The truth is things here in La Paz 2 havent gotten any easier. We are really sturggling finding people to teach but the work must go on! There have been many times this week were all I wanted to do was just give up. Sit down on the curb, and cry. But I look around and see alllllll these people that need this gospel and know that I must keep looking and searching! I know that there are people here who need us! They are just really good at hiding! haha This sector feels like my final trial, haha the refiners fire to finally polish me up before going home.

Thanks for the emails and pictures, My email will be a little shorter today and Im not sure if I will have time to respond to all of your emails because I had difficulties in opening my account and now I dont have very much time left (and I wanna send pics haha)

My companion is really great. She is obedient and works hard and tries her best everyday to contribute. Im pretty sure she thinks im super weird though haha she is a little on the serious side and as you guys know.... Im not very serious hahaha.. ut whatever, She loves me.

Today we are going to a mall outside of our sector to eat cheese cake. hahahahaha Dont judge, I will lose weight when I get home. DEJENME SER FELIZ! haha

I love the fact that I speak spanish, sabe? Its so much fun! 

Love you all! Pray for you too... Love,
Sister Miller