July 29, 2014 - It's Gonna be Great Week!

FAMILY:

 

If I could describe this week, it would be "full". Not necessarily full of teaching (the entire San Diego bay area decided to go to Tijuana for the week....) but full of learning and refining and it's been one of the best weeks of my mission. I love it when the things you learn get all tied up with a nice bow, and you get to reflect and put it all into one cognitive lesson. Things are making more sense to me than ever, and I have loved my Father and Savior so much this week!

 

These past few days I have been learning what it means to have my "eye on the sparrow". My mission president challenged us to "find and help the people you were supposed to find and help on the daily, even hourly basis". We've tried to pay more attention to the people God has put in our paths, members and nonmembers alike. It's such a good reminder of the idea that every single action of ours must have a purpose behind it. It changes street contacting from "I have to contact this person or else I'll feel guilty" to "I am going to talk to this man because he needs this right now, because God has put him there for a reason". It's made the interactions we've made with members that much more significant. There truly is a purpose behind everything and it's a trip to be able to figure it out!

 

Oh my Gonzalez family.....they are still progressing. Slowly but surely. Cheyla, the daughter, came to mutual and loved it and the whole family came to the stake pioneer day activity last Friday and loved it as well! They're so ready for baptism. We were thinking about it the other day and Hermana Barnes and I were trying to figure out what we are missing, and why they won't accept a baptismal date. Mayra says she doesn't want to feel pressured. We were at their house the other day talking about it and she said something interesting, she said "if I had the chance, I would've waited and been baptized right now when I was older". It dawned on us that her kids being baptized scares the living heck out of her. She went inactive so fast and made a lot of mistakes and doesn't want her kids or Arturo to do the same. We are going over to their house tonight with a lesson that we know will change their hearts. I can't even call it a lesson, more like a testimony meeting. I'll let you know how it goes:)

 

This week we've had the coolest opportunity to just bask in the fruits of missionary work. We've had a lot of lessons with the recent converts in the branch and every time I've walked away from those lessons so grateful that Heavenly Father has let me be a part of His perfect work. Man, they are just so solid. Jorge Arellano, the entire Buenrostro Family, Antonio Escobar, they've been changed. And none of it came from us because I know we are not capable of that kind of miracle. Conversion comes from God, and I love looking at those whom I love who have been converted to and by the Spirit. I love being the mouthpiece, I love sitting and watching the Spirit work so intensely that I can literally see people change in front of my eyes. I love introducing people to the Gospel. I love being His servant and I am so glad that that doesn't have to change.

 

They asked me to give a talk on "happiness from being a disciple of Christ" last week at church and they said I'll have 12 to 15 minutes. And then the first two speakers took five minutes each.....when I walked up to the podium the branch president looks over and says "you have 30 minutes!!". WHAT THE HECK. But let me tell you, it was actually a really cool experience to have at the end of my mission. Having to rely 100% on the Spirit to help you with the words these people need to hear. It was an answer to prayer-"hey, don't worry. You've learned how to trust in the Lord to put words into your mouth. You've learned the Spanish language. You love these people. Go up there and talk for 30 minutes for heck's sake!". God is good. And very, very merciful.

 

I know you've heard it over and over again, but I want you all to know that I love this work with all my heart. I know that God lives, and He is an active part of our lives, if we let Him. I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the Lord, and we have reason to be of good cheer, because He has overcome the world. I know with all my heart that Joseph Smith saw what he saw that day in the Sacred Grove because I cannot recite the first vision without tears in my eyes. I know the Book of Mormon is real, and that we can hold it in our hands and know that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. I know that if God can give man power to part the Red Sea, he can appear to a 14 year old boy. I know that heaven is found in small living rooms with dirt floors and no furniture, as well as sitting at our desks reading the Book of Mormon. I know that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives, because it changes hearts. I've seen it. I know that families are forever. I know that God's plan is so perfect. I know the Spirit testifies of truth and that we are able to feel it constantly. I know that I am a child of a loving Heavenly Father. I know They live.

 

It's going to be a great week.

 

I love you all,

 

Hermana Hess

July 22, 2014 - Cantando Alabanzas (Singing Praises)!

OH HEY FAM!

 

I feel like I haven't slept or stop moving for 24682 years. Three exchanges in 5 days and I am ready for a nap, but it won't happen because who in the world has time for that?

 

SUCH a good week! It went by way too fast! Our investigators are doing so well-the Gonzalez family came to all three hours of church for the first time! It was pretty cool- I sang "I Know That My Redeemer Lives" in church and Mayra just cried the whole time. Turns out that it's the hymn that she remembers the most from when she went to church when she was a kid, and she's loved it ever since. It was cool to share my testimony through that song, and I'm grateful I was able to share it with my branch-I love them SO much. It's the best being able to look at their faces and know all their names and most of their stories-that's one of the billion benefits of staying in an area for a longer time. Elena went to church in Imperial Beach with her brother and told us that she wanted to start coming to our branch instead. I was in City Heights yesterday when Hermana Barnes went to teach her, but she told me that it was an incredible lesson and that she is preparing more seriously for baptism. Aw yeah!!

 

We weren't in our area a lot this week because of exchanges, but it was an incredible week. Last Friday we went to the Valley:) Oh man, that place. I don't know why it still has a huge hold on my heart but I don't think it will go away any time soon, at least I hope it doesn't. It's so familiar, but at the same time so much has changed in the past year. The sisters now cover more parts of Calexico and they've had so much success! The ward has had 5 baptisms this year already (which is a full out major MIRACLE!!!!) and they have so much work to do. I went with Hermana Squire, who came out with Hermana Oliver and we just went out and worked out tails off in the heat. Felt so good. We saw Layla Barrera and Hermana Acosta, both of whom have made so many changes this past year that I almost didn't recognize them because their countenances are so different. I am SO blessed that I've been given opportunities to go back and see the progression that area has made-it makes me SO happy. It still has it's little quirks that comes with being a border town, but this past year away from that area has given me more perspective and I look back now and see more of the potential it has. It's cool to be able to share it with those serving down there. Leaving was hard-I don't know the next time I will see "my" families down there. That part was not fun.

 

The missionaries over there have been trying to find Damian for the past several months- he basically fell off the face of the planet. Heartbreak. We went into that apartment complex and knocked and knocked but no one answered. The sisters had started to give up hope that they were ever going to find him, but as we left the complex we saw an advertisement for a woman named Sna. Noriega who cleans carpets. That's Damian's last name, and both of the numbers were one's we haven't seen before. We both felt that those phone numbers would lead us to him, so we left on Cloud 9. No one answered while I was on the exchange, but I know that Hermana Squire will find him soon. Tender mercy/incredible miracle!

 

I went on another exchange with Hermana DeAngelo (the MTC comp) and it's been cool to see how she has grown these past 17 months! We had an interesting exchange-usually I am "let's get to WORK" and we spend all day hitting the pavement. Exchange days are the only days of the week where we don't do administration stuff or we don't have meetings, so we like taking advantage of those days. But as I picked up Hermana DeAngelo, I felt like I needed to stop the car and LISTEN. She's going through a rough time and she needed someone who would listen to her and help her see things clearly. At the beginning, I was having the "we need to get out of this car and see people this is driving me crazy" heart palpitations, but as I listened to her I realized that this was more important. It was a cool experience and we still saw people, and I realized that our purpose is to invite EVERYONE to Christ. That includes our companions. Actually, if we don't invite out companions to come unto Him, how are we supposed to invite others? It was a good reminder. It was a great exchange!

 

Then yesterday I went up to City Heights (love that place-the night I was there there was a gang fight in front of our complex and we contacted-accidentally-during a drug deal. It was awesome!!!) and I went up with a sister named Hermana Shumway. We started our missions together as well, and she's one of my mission heroes. She gave me a lot of council and just put things into words so clearly. I asked her what was one of the things she had learned on her mission, and she said "I have learned how to learn the will of the Lord". It was a powerful statement-and she so easily put into words the thoughts that I've been having the past few weeks as I've tried to piece together the lessons I've learned as a missionary. She's a fighter and she has a lot of stuff going on back home, yet she is the most peaceful and strongest missionary I know. That is how the Atonement works-I have seen it in her.

 

I sang at my last Mission President's Fireside on Sunday. Me and the other departing sisters sang "One Voice". I didn't cry. Much.

But it's ok, because Antonio was there! He said he heard I was singing and came because he wanted to say goodbye and thank us for helping him find the gospel. I cried then.

 

I have been asked by so many people "how do you think you have changed?". To be honest, I don't feel like there has been this huge mighty change. I just feel like there's more of me. Not different, just MORE. More heart, more understanding, more testimony. I don't really know how to describe 17 months of sacred experiences, but they shape you into something more. And it's a good feeling, feeling your heart getting bigger. I'm grateful that my mission has taught me how to do that, so I can continue becoming "more" for the rest of my life.

 

I love you all. Have a great week-you better be happy!!

 

Hermana Hess

July 15, 2014 - We Passed!

We had interviews with President Schmitt this week. Good news. We passed and will still be able to continue our missionary service.

Hey Fam!

It was actually a very different interview then the one's I've had in the past. President Schmitt said up front "due to the time you have left on your mission, this one is going to be different." He then asked me who I think would be good trainers and who should be the next sister training leader. I was pretty surprised, usually they don't ask for our input in such a straightforward way haha. It was pretty cool to say a quick prayer in my head and all of a sudden have names and faces pop into my head. I can't imagine being in charge of transfers, I had a headache for the rest of the day! But it was cool to talk about the state of the mission one on one and provide input-even though my input doesn't mean a whole lot in the long run. It was nice for him to do, because he really didn't have to. 

Elder Butcher says hi. 

The primary president asked us to help teach baptism to the kids this Sunday. Man, I love the primary. I am my mother's daughter in the thought that the Spirit is always the strongest in the primary room. I wish investigators were invited to that class, they would get baptized instantly. 

Yesterday was an INCREDIBLE day! I am learning that I need to have more faith in accepting the Lord's will haha. I always thought that faith was all about having high expectations and then knowing that they will all happen. That's definitely true. But there's a lot more to faith then I thought (again, thank heavens for missions, I know nothing.). I have learned that, at times, the will of the Lord is not to have 8 lessons a day. And while it is great to have high expectations, it's greater to do exactly what the Lord wants. For the longest time I could not figure out why He wouldn't want days full of appointments, but as the months have passed by, it's the moments where we seek for His guidance and direction when our plans have failed, when we draw close to him. And He always provides, and the days are always enriching and full. 

And then there are days where you teach the world, add 2 more souls as investigators, eat at three separate dinner appointments and invite 4 people to baptism with all of them saying "yes". Those are good days, too. 

The Gonzalez fam came to church again. This time Mayra couldn't come because of work, but Arturo brought all of the kids by himself. This is the first time he's come to church without Mayra's insistence. CHAMP. Bertha was there as well, and Elena (the miracle woman who accepted the baptismal date the first lesson) came as well!! 

We went to the Gonzales house a few days ago to talk about baptism and why we need to be 8 years old. Little Arturo was wondering about what it means to be accountable and he asked "when did I start listening to Satan? Sheyla [his big sis.], when did I start becoming like you??". I couldn't stop laughing. Poor Sheyla haha. 

I am so grateful to be a missionary. I know this Work is real, this is the most important work we can be doing. This is His gospel.  I love you and hope you have a great week! Love you all!!

Hermana Hess!

July 8, 2014 - God Bless Amercia

Hey fam! 

Want to know who doesn't celebrate Independence day? Hispanics. So we were pretty hopeful that people would be home. But, any opportunity to celebrate and peace out to Tijuana is taken, so the 4th of July was pretty quiet haha. But the fireworks were pretty so I can't complain! Dad, i loved your email about the family reunion and it sounded like a blast! The next one should be in San Diego!! I know all the good taco shops, so life would be great! 

This week was great! We finally met our new mission president, President Schmitt, and he is SO COOL! It's %100 different! He's only 40 and has 4 kids ranging from ages 6-15. All of them got up to introduce themselves and we were all so impressed with the whole family. It's definitely a whole new dynamic-having a family at the mission home, but it feels so right. The minute they all walked into the room all of us knew that they were perfect for the mission and the ones who needed to be here at this time. President Schmitt was a lawyer, his wife is a physician, they come play P-day sports with the missionaries, she speaks fluent Spanish, the kids have stronger testimonies than I do, and they say the word "awesome" a lot. It's awesome! We love them already. We are especially grateful in the way they talk about the Claytons-they're so grateful for them and constantly tell us that they don't want to replace them, but build upon the foundations that they've already set. I have full confidence that they will guide the mission where it needs to go and I'm excited for the things that they will accomplish, even within these next few weeks! 

This week was a great one for recognizing small miracles! There wasn't tons of people home all week, but the lessons that we DID have were so powerful and spirit-filled that there is no doubt in our minds that it was a successful one. We had lots of chances to teach simple lessons on one solitary principle- faith, repentance, God is our loving Heavenly Father, etc.. Those lessons are always my favorite! We can simplify and intensify and the spirit so easily carries the truth of the message to the investigator. We were teaching Karina, who stopped coming to church and reading, a simple lesson about faith and the spirit was working so hard in that room. She asked such inspired questions-i love it when they ask inspired questions-and we KNEW that she felt something. Her countenance changed completely. That's the power of simple lessons, people. It's never worth over-complicating things or trying to cram tons of principles into one lesson. 

Remember Bertha? Our investigator who read the whole Book of Mormon in two months, bore her testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel in testimony meeting, and actively participated in church before she went back to Mexico? SHE"S BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Do y'all hear that sound? That's the choir of heavenly angels singing their hallelujahs. All is well in Zion, and i am a happy camper. LOVE HER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

AAAAAND the obligatory Gonzalez report. They are still coming to church and loving it. I looked over during the closing song and Mayra is balling her eyes out (" I know the my Redeemer lives" will do that to ya....). We went over to her house and she told us that the moments she loves the most are when we come over and cook with her and teach her family. They are all so different....understanding the Gospel will do that to ya. They are beginning to UNDERSTAND and not just KNOW the gospel. I feel like that's been such a big lesson that I've learned on my mission. What we teach is the same thing that we were taught in primary, but as we understand it more, which only comes by living it's principles, we change. We become better. And we are happier. I cannot say that i understand my Savior or my Father completely, but I've gotten to know them more these past months and i am grateful that I get the opportunity to understand them more as life goes on. Again, enduring to the end is a blastyblast.

LOVE YOU! I am boring. SORRY! Have a great week!!!!!!!

Hermana Hess 

July 1, 2014 - Mexico Lost

Don't worry, family, Mexico lost in the world cup so people are starting to answer their doors again! People are praying more for comfort and meaning in their lives, and the refiners fire process is taking place. Hearts will be changed as a result. All is well!

 

This week was a great week of a looooot of learning. These past few weeks a lot of the emails and letters I've gotten from friends and family have said a lot of the same thing- "The last few months of your mission is the one you will remember the most!". All my returned-missionary friends have said that that's when they've had the most success and seen the most miracles. These past few weeks have turned out to be some of the hardest and most frustrating haha so it's interesting to see how God teaches me. We've been working and trying and doors still remain unanswered, even though we both feel like we've been working harder than we ever have before. But in turn, I feel like I've learned the most these past few weeks about the nature of God, and about the purpose of the Work in general. So I guess they're right, you really do learn the most you're last few months. Thank heavens I still have a few more weeks to get all the kinks worked out of me.

 

President Clayton is now home and President Schmitt is now our man! I actually haven't met him, but we will tomorrow at mission leadership council. It was pretty cool, we were saying a companionship prayer and when we asked God to bless President Clayton, we both felt and knew that he wasn't our president anymore, but when we mentioned President Schmitt we both received that confirmation that he was here and doing exactly what he needed to be doing. It was pretty cool and both of us are excited to meet him! We had our last transfer meeting last Tuesday and the Claytons were sobbing during the closing song, which means everyone else was too. Why do people cry so much on missions?! What the heck have I turned into??

 

The other day we had an awkward amount of time before an appointment, and Hermana Barnes said to me "there' someone we need to go find!" so we drove around and tried to figure out just who was the person we needed to talk to. A few weeks ago we contacted this family outside their house and they weren't super interested, but we had a feeling to knock that door and try again.A father and son, Antonio and Octavio, answered and were SUPER nice. They didn't have a lot of time so we're going back later this week. God is good! And then yesterday we were running in the morning and this sweet old lady stopped us and started talking to us and basically begged for us to come over! Too bad she isn't in our area....but she's prepared and will be a big blessing to the La Mesa elders! We have definitely seen the hand of the Lord in the work this week. I feel like I've never paid more attention to the "small and simple" things and as a result I've been seeing SO many things that I've probably been missing in the past.

 

The Gonzalez family came to church again:) We're still talking about setting a baptismal date for them-they're super scared. They don't want to rush into anything and I think that they're getting some heat from family members. PLEASE keep them in your prayers!! Man there is so much potential in this family! I swear I've never seen so much change in a family before-every time i LOOK at them I just can't stop thinking about the power of God in the work. I love seeing them walk into the chapel in their church clothes. THIS IS HAPPINESS, PEOPLE!!! They're been such a tender mercy! Gerardo is beginning to read the Book of Mormon and loved the Plan of Salvation lesson......Slowly but surely, these people are getting it. They're feeling the spirit. It's the coolest thing to watch.

 

HEY! I LOVE Y'ALL!! I hope you know that I pray for y'all all the time!!! BE HAPPY!!!!

 

Hermana Hess!!

June 24, 2014 - Breaking Into Cars is O.K.

HI FAMILY!

 

Saturday night, we got a call from the Gonzalez family and when we asked them how they were, they said, "We're terrible. We locked our keys in our car!". They asked if we knew how to break into cars. So we replied with a resounding "YES!" (we've seen enough movies and there was a convenient wire hanger in our trunk)  and were off to the rescue. We got to their house and they said, "Hermanas, we really want to go to church tomorrow but we need to be able to drive our car." Okay, no pressure. After just a few minutes of struggling to get the wire hanger into the door, the blissful sound "Dink!" of the door becoming unlocked began a choir of angels singing. Haha the awesome part of it all is that we had just had a super powerful lesson with 1 Nephi 3:7 the night before about how the Lord will provide a way for them to go to church every Sunday if they had the faith to talk to their bosses and get work off. So it was a perfect object lesson--Satan tries to get you to "lock your keys in your car" but we have been given the tools (faith, prayer, wire hangers, etc.) to "break into our car" if we really have the desire and the faith to keep the commandments. I'm a cheese ball. But anyway, THEY CAME TO CHURCH!!!! All of them were in church dress, when in the past they've come in jeans and t-shirts. Little Arthur was even wearing a sweet white suit. We sat next to them the whole time and couldn't stop smiling. AND both of them are asking their bosses to have at least 2 Sundays a month off so they can come to church as a family:)

 

I think the coolest thing about this family is that when we bring up things like getting work off and getting married, they reply "Oh yeah, we've already been talking about it.". Heavenly Father has been preparing them for so long that they've already made up their minds to follow the commandments before we teach them. We just show up, God has already done the work!

 

By the way, I am not a fan of the World Cup. No one will answer their doors and we can hear them yelling in the back. But I guess Mexico won so we are expecting lots of baptisms as a result. Hurrah for Israel!

 

I was reading in the Book of Mormon the other day at the end of the war chapters. Pahoran was talking to Moroni about the help that he needed and after all this instruction that he received, Pahoran says "See that you strengthen Lehi and Teancum in the Lord.". At this point, I bet Moroni was so tired. He's been at the head of these battles for years, he's been in charge of thousands of people and I am willing to bet that he was so dang tired. And yet, he receives instruction to keep his eye on the sparrow and strengthen his friends. And not only strengthen them, but strengthen them "in the Lord."

There are times when we are tired, but it is a miracle to see that when we are in the business of lifting, we realize that God strengthens our shoulders and our knees, and we receive the strength that we ourselves have been pleading for. And when we think that our energy is spent, this is when we can rely on the reserve tanks that our faith brings us. We will always have enough to do the things we have been asked! And we are happy as a result. And who doesn't want that?

 

Life is so so good. Sorry this is a bit on the short side! Know I love you and pray for you all the time!

 

Les quiero,

 

Hermana Hess

June 17, 2014 - I Hugged President Clayton!

Hey fam!!

 

This week was our last Zone Conference with the Claytons before they leave in about a week, so President decided to break a little rule and hug all of the sisters. It felt like hugging my dad. I love the Claytons!! I'll be so sad to see them go. It'll be a little weird to  have the new President for only one transfer. I think I'll just have to wait to see them before they become mine. Without a doubt, when they enter into that first transfer meeting all of us will think "Oh yeah, he's our new President. He is exactly the right person who needs to be here.". But until that day, all of us are a little sad, because we love they Claytons and will cry like babies the day they leave.

 

It was their last Mission President's Fireside on Sunday and it was the best one yet. TONS of missionaries and members came and it was so powerful. Usually the missionary choir sings simple pieces, but the ones we did this last week were by far the best. We started by singing all the verses of "I Am a Child of God", but in all of the languages that are spoken here in the mission. English, Spanish, Tagalog, Arabic, Lao, Mandarin Chinese and American Sign Language were all represented! The Tagalog was the best-there's only 4 of them but they sang the loudest and proudest. They Claytons cried the whole time! The testimonies that were given were some of the strongest I've ever heard, so I bet it made them feel good about the state that they are leaving the mission in.

President Morgan (first counselor) asked me to sing "Consider the Lilies" because it's their favorite. It wasn't originally a piece that I enjoyed....but of course I was happy to do it. It was cool to study the words of that song, especially on Father's day, and realize just how "seen" we are by our Father in Heaven, and I was glad that I was able to bear my testimony through it. I cried. Duh.

At the end, Sister Clayton said to the congregation, "Please take care of my Missionaries. I love them". Then everyone else cried. We are babies.

 

It's been a great week! We are continuing to work harder and harder. It's definitely been an "Ok hermanas...let's see how hard you are willing to work for Me" week, but both of us have felt so happy in the process that we don't even care. The Gonzalez family continues to be the greatest gift we have been given! They are opening up so much more than before and we can literally SEE the change in their eyes. They are working towards getting baptized at the end of July!!! Arturo's brother, Pablo (the one in the hospital) got a blessing from the missionaries that we sent over there and was released from the hospital a few days ago!! Arturo was so grateful. I think the BIGGEST miracle was that they went to a baptismal service in their brother's ward and both of them commented on how beautiful it was. Mayra cried through the whole thing (There is a lot of tears in this email). I love Heavenly Father! He is working a lot harder up there than we are down here...

 

OK-HUGE MIRACLE! A few days ago we got a referral from Otay Mesa for the sister of a member of their ward. We called her the other day and she said "Please! Come on over!". We went to her house and she just gave us this huge hug and said "it's a joy to have you in my home!". Her name is Elena and I guess when her brother was getting the discussions from the missionaries, she would sit in and listen, but never got baptized. A lot of her family has converted from Catholicism so she has a lot of family who are really solid members! We had a SWEET lesson with her, and she accepted to be baptized on July 26th within the first 15 minutes! She was already talking about what she had to wear at her baptism. I am so grateful for the missionaries who taught her brother. She said they were in and out within an hour and had a very high standard of obedience. She already knows what good missionaries are like and she knows the Spirit that obedient missionaries have! It's a great reminder that missionaries will leave a legacy-both good or bad. SO JUST BE OBEDIENT FOR HEAVENS SAKE. So keep Elena in your prayers! She's the coolest!!!!

 

I've been thinking about the past 16 months or so and the differences of areas I've had. I feel like in the Valley, I got humbled and beaten down, I got my weaknesses thrown in my face and I was made ready to learn. In Chula was where I got to heal a little bit from the Valley haha, and experience what it felt like to have hard work pay off on a DAILY basis. Santee has been my area of refinement. It is where I have learned the most about the nature of my Father and my Savior. I have learned that I really don't know much about them at all, but I am trying. Cory sent me a talk ("The Bitter Cup and the Bloody Baptism"-greatest thing I have ever read.), and Elder Holland brought it home when he said "Surely our sometimes clichéd expressions of testimony and latter-day privilege don’t amount to much until we have had open invitation to test them in the heat of battle and have in such spiritual combat found ourselves to be faithful. We may speak glibly in those Sunday services of having the truth or even of knowing the truth, but only one who is confronting error and conquering it, however painfully or however slowly, can properly speak of loving the truth. And I believe Christ intends us someday to truly, honestly love him—the way, the truth, and the life.".

Isn't it cool how we have the rest of our lives to figure out how to love our Savior? Enduring to the end-what a beautiful thing.

 

I love you all! Have a rockin week and know that you are always in my prayers!

 

Hermana Hess

June 9, 2014 - The Week Where We Got Blessed

HEY FAM!!

Sorry this email is getting out to you a little late! We had a meeting this morning over in the city that took up most of our morning. But it's okay because they fed us. Go senior missionaries!! 

HOW THE HECK IS EVERYONE!? How was your birthday, dad? Is there a firepit in the backyard? I knew there would be. I know how long you have been wanting one:)  But I hope everyone is happy and not getting swept up by tornadoes. 

This week was our first week since Sister Barnes and I got put together where we didn't have meetings or exchanges or trainings to do, except for zone meeting, so we straight up went to work! Both of us just kept looking at our schedules and said "we have so much tiiiiiiiiiiiiime!!!" so we set some high goals and went to work. Unfortunately, satan is a JERK and decided to work extra hard in our area this week. I have never felt so persecuted my whole mission, haha. I feel like the majority of people that we talked to has just yelled at us or said awful things to us about the church. Managers not letting us into their apartment complexes, people yelling at us from across the street to "stop trying and go home", stuff like that. I've been pretty blessed to be surrounded by nice people my whole mission so I guess the majority of the haters were getting all saved up for the end haha. I was so glad for the lesson I learned about opposition last week! So instead of getting down, Hermana Barnes and I just get stoked, because if satan is working this hard, there must be some amazing things coming. 

I feel like these past few weeks have been a major refining period-I've been more frustrated and tired than I ever have been, I've been on my knees more in prayer and the answers aren't exactly coming as we expect them too (doesn't that always happen?), and I feel like we are working as hard as we can and being as obedient as we can, but things are kindof at a stand still. I'm not gonna lie, there have been moments where I have questioned if God really wants to answer my prayers, or if He just says "You're on your own with that one". It's been humbling, thinking "you've been out for this long and you're still figuring out if God can actually hear you??", but just goes to show that there must always be growth, even in the fundamentals. Sometimes we think-especially those of us who've been members our whole lives-that if we question the basics, if we say "holy crud--can God hear me??", we don't have faith and we freak out a little bit. But I've learned that our testimonies of the basics always need to be reevaluated, and we have the ability to question everything, no matter how simple they may seem. With honest questioning brings strengthened faith, which is always worth it. 

Anyways, I feel like that was a whiny paragraph. This week we street contacted this lady who told us that she was a Pentecostal, and after we told her a little about what missionaries do, she was so pleased that she put her hands on our heads and literally shouted out a blessing for us in the name of Jesus. I had to try to hard not to laugh, but at the same time I just wanted to shout out to the people passing by that "THIS IS NOT WHAT MORMON MISSIONARIES DO!!!". So that was a fun experience. 

AAAND we have to have the obligatory Gonzalez family paragraph:) OH man, I can't believe how much I love this family. And we love them so much because I don't think we've ever worked harder for a family before. We stopped by for dinner the other day, and after we had a "faith through opposition" lesson (which, by the way, we have taught to almost every member and investigator we teach no matter what we had originally planned. Santee is going through some challenges....) and after we had a SOLID lesson with them, Arturo asks his kids to leave the room, because he had something to tell us. We were terrified....we were thinking "are they gonna drop us? are they breaking up?? whats going on??". He ended up breaking down crying and told us that his little brother who lived in San Antonio was sick, and that no doctor knows whats wrong with him. The minute he found out he was ill, he wanted to call us. He said he knew that we had the power to call down miracles, so he asked us to pray for his brother and he had the faith that if we did, he would be okay. We had a great conversation, and when Arturo offered the prayer, it was the most powerful and sincere prayer we've ever heard! He said "I have been praying to know what direction I need to take in my life, and these missionaries keep coming back, and I know that this church is where I need to be.". All throughout this prayer, big, tough, Arturo was crying. The spirit was so strong and WE LOVE THEM SO MUCH!!!! So keep his brother, Pablo Ambriz in your prayers, along with the rest of the family!!!! 

HEY! I LOVE YALL! I hope this week is the best!! HAPPY FATHERS DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hermanita Hess 

June 3, 2014 - Life is Good

And today begins the ever-awaited birthday week for dad! Don't worry, I didn't forget. People have been singing "Feliz Cumpleanos" for you since last Saturday.

 

Super good week! It started out with the last MTE of the season. I got to go back down to San Ysidro and Rio Otay to be with Hermana Oliver again:) It was SO cool to see how much she has grown and how she's changed. From brand new to over a year out. We became comps just about a year ago and it was the best to just go right back to work with her. It was so familiar yet way different and it was a good reminder that she wasn't the only one who has changed, but I guess I'm a little different as well. A year ago I was just barely three months out and she was fresh out of the MTC and as we look back on it, both of us just said "how in the heck did God TRUST us out there without supervision??"

 

Our area is starting to really pick up and it's the coolest to see how many prayers are getting answered! It strengthened my testimony of "waiting" and accepting God's timing. This week the Gonzales family actually cracked open the Book of Mormon and told us how their faith is growing so much! They're visiting their brother (who's a member) this weekend and he invited them to a baptismal service that they're having over there. Mayra made Arturo take off work so that everyone could go and see what a baptism is like!! I NEVER thought Mayra would instigate something like that. All the kids are wanting to get baptized soon, and when we asked Arturo (the dad), he just said "yeah!" super casually.....um WHAT?? DID YOU JUST SAY WHAT I THINK YOU SAID? Now all they have to do is get married. We talked about it a few weeks ago and they were totally opposed to it, but las Friday we went over and they're starting to actually make some plans. Whenever I think about it my mouth just drops to the floor and I just drop to my knees. Missionary work is miracle work. I can't even get over how good God is.

 

We've been teaching Lyanne and Gerardo for a little over a month and we saw some pretty crazy miracles with them as well! We taught Lyanne about the Book of Mormon and promised a TON of blessings and all she could say at the end was "wow....i think i need to read and pray. I actually want this answer now". And then an hour later when we saw Gerardo, we taught him a way powerful restoration lesson and he just look like he had a million things going through his mind the whole time. When we asked him what his thoughts were, he replied "I just need to have a loooong talk with God tonight. I have to know if this is true!". This is why I will never NOT want to be a missionary. Statements of total faith like that. Worth it.

 

We had our last Mission Leadership Council with the Claytons yesterday. It was pretty unforgettable, and a lot harder than I thought it would be haha. The spirit was super strong and it was definitely a sight to see 14 pairs of zone leaders and the mission presidency all in tears. There's a tradition where all of the departing missionaries bear there testimony at the end of the meeting so we got to hear it from President and Sister Clayton. We've heard their testimonies a thousand times, but it was never like this. President's was short, he looked at us all in the eyes and just said "I Know". It was two words but the most powerful testimony I've ever heard. We all knew that we were his, and that if there was a time where our testimonies wavered, we could always lean on the ones of President and Sister Clayton. That's what makes good leaders, people.

 

At the end of MLC yesterday President Clayton wrote the word "opposition" on the board. He said that these past few weeks have been rough for him, that Satan is angry with the work going on in the California San Diego Mission, and that Satan is attacking the mission more than he has ever seen. He looked at us and said "Look forward to opposition, it will make you mighty. Don't be afraid to repent, it will make you mighty. Work through the pain, it will make you mighty". When we return to the presence of Heavenly Father, we need to be mighty. Opposition is an incredible opportunity to become more like our Savior. Besides, we can't rise if we don't fall.

 

I love you! Be SO happy and know that people are praying for you over here in the promised land:)

 

All my heart,

 

Hermana Hess

May 27, 2014 - The Week Where we Didn't Eat Breakfast...Ever

I'm still trying to catch my breath from this week-it's flown and I feel like I've left a part of my brain in the 4 areas we coached in so this might not be the most eloquent letter that has ever been written. MTE season is full in force, so we haven't been in our area at all. But it's so cool to see how Heavenly Father has kept our area going. It's the most miraculous thing ever - seeing progression when we haven't even seen people. It's been pretty humbling to see God making up for the many, many things that I lack. This MTE was all about teaching simply, street contacting, and member-missionary work and it was a good reminder for things that I need to improve. Being a coach in the biggest blessing because we can get the lessons 5 or 6 times in a week - I need it. I think that's why I'm an STL, I need more reminders haha.

 

The coolest thing about MTE's is the sheer amount of miracles that we get to see in other people's areas! I went up to Poway with a companionship who has been struggling with adding investigators. We had a goal to apply every single little thing we learned that morning in the meeting in ALL the lessons with the faith that Heavenly Father would put people in our path. Those Hermana's ended up adding 4 new investigators in one day and they met 2 solid potentials. 3 of those 4 was a family:) They got another family with a baptismal date and we taught like crazy! Man, I love coming home on those days-you're totally whipped and your feet kill you but you're the happiest person in the world.

 

The next day we went to City Heights for another coaching day and we did my favorite thing I've ever done on my mission: We're doing this big promotion for the REAL Book of Mormon (the musical is coming to town this week) so literally all day we walked around downtown San Diego and talked to people on the streets by the theaters about the Book of Mormon. DANG it was so cool! I was in heaven being in the big city! The area where we were reminded me a lot of 16th street in Denver so I was trippin' out a little. We met the craziest people and it was a blast. It took us forever to find a parking spot so for an hour or so we literally did some drive-by contacting (tell the driver to pull over, open your window, and yell really loud.) I was loving every minute of it. Also, I learned how to contact people in Arabic. Missions are the best.

 

We were at a member's house the other day and all of a sudden she says, "Let's go walk around my trailer park and contact people!" SHE'S THE COOLEST!!! A young teenager walked by us and she straight up called her out and said "Hey! these two sisters have something for you! listen to them!". The girl said she was a Jehovah's Witness and so Hermana Solis just said "well, good luck.". She turned around, made a nasty face and said quietly, "Testigos de Jeovah! I hate them, They don't believe in Jesucristo. What is that??". Oh Hermana Solis....LOVE HER. We might have a lesson in charity sometime soon.

 

Jorge (our recent convert) is doing the same thing. He tells EVERYONE he's LDS and last night he literally yelled at the top of his lungs "COME JOIN MY CHURCH!!" on his street. I love it when people are converted!!!!

 

It was an interesting weekend. Some members of our zone had to get emergency transferred for a few different reasons. Sometimes, I just don't want to know the details and I wish people just wouldn't tell us.  Breaks your heart. The worst part is that these missionaries go home in a month...they were SO close and now run the risk of having to go home. I don't think I've ever prayed for a group of missionaries more.  Hermana Barnes and I were talking last night and I mentioned to her, "Why didn't they just FINISH??". I feel so awful for these missionaries that I looked up to so much. It was a rough reminder that Satan doesn't stop working on you, even if you wear a tag. It's the compilation of the little things that create big sins and it was a wake up call for a lot of us that Heavenly Father will ALWAYS uncover the things we keep secret. So just finish. Do the little things - don't fall into the trap of being obedient to just the BIG commandments. They're all big and they're all worth keeping. Endure to the end. Finish up. Be happy.

 

And while the mission is hard and you heart breaks on a daily basis, when Heavenly Father tells you "well done" at the end of the day, it's worth it.

 

This is a boring email....my bad! I'm going on an exchange with HERMANA OLIVER this week so next week's will have a lot more exclamation points haha.

 

I love you!

 

Hermana Hess

May 20, 2014 - Don't Worry - the Fire Didn't Get Us!

HEY FAM!!!

Dad, I was thinking of you all week as I saw the firetrucks zoom past our house! They got pretty close to a bunch to our members' houses but all is well! It was hotter than heck, and the immunity to heat I built up in the Valley apparently doesn't exist anymore, but we found a lot of new investigators by going up to random people's houses asking for water so I guess miracles can be found anywhere:)

SUPER SOLID WEEK! It's amazing what an attitude switch will do to ya. We've been able to recognize the hand of the Lord a lot more and as a result, we've been tons happier and better and more humble servants. There's been a LOT of faith-building experiences for sure. We were contacting a referral last Wednesday (one of the hottest days of the week) and she immediately invites us in so we were like, "Awwww yeah! This is gonna be good!". And then she tells us she's a Born-Again Christian and proceeds to bash us for the next 10 minutes. We just got raked across the coals. The scariest part was the look in her eyes-I swear if there was a look of just evil, she had it. She was particularly vehement about the Book of Mormon. We just stood there and said "Be a Representative of Jesus Christ. Do Not Fight Back" over and over again in our minds and got out of there as soon as we could. It was interesting. The adversary was definitely present in that room but both my companion and I felt the reassurance of the companionship of the Spirit so clearly and strongly.  As we walked back to our car we both said that the hardest part of that whole experience was what she said against the Book that we love so much. She could have gone off about us personally and neither of us would have minded, but our hearts hurt so much for what she said about the Book of Mormon. We left having such strengthened testimonies about it. Later that night we had a lesson with the Gonzalez family, who previously asked us never to use the Book of Mormon in the lessons. Our experience with the referral contact gave us the courage we needed to have a full-out Book of Mormon lesson with them, and both of us have never testified so strongly of it. The spirit was so strong  and they LISTENED. I am so grateful for those two experiences that we had - just in the space of three or so hours - that helped me realize that I am not ashamed of the Book of Mormon. Ask me about it. I'll tell ya. 

MTE season is upon us again so we wont have the chance to work in our area for the next two weeks or so. But we both know that Heavenly Father will take care of our area in our absence. Santee's was last week and there are no other Spanish sisters in our zone so we actually got the chance to go out and work in our own area for an MTE! President Clayton gave us such good training and we focused a lot on how to get members excited about the work. We had the chance to visit a few member that day and we asked all of them "if you were a full-time missionary, what would be your favorite thing to say to potential investigators?". It was cool to see their responses and testimonies and as we helped them understand that only THEY could share that with people, their faces totally lit up! ALL the members gave us the names of their friends to go visit and asked if they could go with us. After months of not having much success with member referrals, that was a major miracle. It's amazing what inspired questions can do. 

We had a Mission President's Fireside this last Sunday. It was in Spanish so basically it was the best thing ever. Actually, it was my favorite one I've attended. An elder in my district and I sang the same piece we did for Easter and it was another one of those "perfect moments" that come by every so often. We did a "There is a Green Hill Far Away" arrangement and we've had the chance to sing it at a few different activities, so it definitely wasn't the first time it was being performed. But when we got to the last verse both of us just started to cry (riiiight in front of president and his wife and a kajillion investigators....awesome.) and weren't able to finish it. The Spirit choked us both. There are a few moments where you feel the Spirit so strong that your heart almost hurts, and this was definitely one of those. It felt SO good to bear our testimony in that way, and we are so grateful for the chance to be conduits for the Spirit. We found out yesterday from a companionship that's serving in the city that their investigator leaned over after we ended the piece and said to them "If that's what the Spirit feels like, then I want to be baptized.". Perfect moments. God is Good. I am happy. 

The Gonzalez fam gave us a waffle maker! Miracles! 

I've learned much about faith this week. Instead of being worried about getting everything done, I've made a conscious effort to just take that leap of faith and put EVERYTHING into God's hand. Every day seems like a trend. From 12 to about 4:30 we knock and knock and no one is home or we get rejected. But from about 5 to 9, it's like God puts people directly in our path and we see tangible miracles. During the afternoon it's easy to get frustrated and question; "We're working so hard! Why aren't we seeing these people". This week I have learned that there is a very important principle to be learned in waiting. If we just wait patiently for Heavenly Father's plan to unfold, then we will be amazed at the things we see. God trusts us enough to wait and not get discouraged and LEARN. I have learned that yes, receiving a witness after a trial of your faith is wonderful and amazing, but sometimes knowing that you are doing the work of the Lord is enough. The witness will come....don't miss out on the miracles if you're too preoccupied with the lack of it:)

Life is good. There are so many good things and I love learning all the different "good things" there are. 

I LOVVVVE YOU!

Hermana Hess! 

May 13, 2014 - Vale la Pena!

It's the same in Italian!!

 

So it was the best thing ever to hear your voices!!! Everyone sounds so happy and well and even though it gave me a shoot dang heart attack to hear how LOW DAVID'S VOICE IS, it made me happy! Russell is the best!

 

It's week #1 of transfer #11 and Hermana Barnes and I are staying together! None of us were surprised. We think that we'll be here together until August. I think ours is the only companionship that stayed the same in the entire zone! So I am STOKED to see what happens this transfer. I've got some good feelings and high expectations. Our zone leader just went AP so even the ZL's got switched. I love it when zones get switched around like this....new faces bring new energies and new goals so I am one stoked missionary right here.

 

It was a good week full of learning experiences....which basically means it was long and hard yet worth it haha. We went on two exchanges and I brought 2 missionaries down here in Santee with me. One of them was probably the hardest exchange I've been on. She is a brand new missionary and is very much not happy. I think the hardest thing about it is the decision she made that while on her mission, she was not going to find joy. She is expecting to go home soon and is looking forward to that day. I don't know, but that whole day and the days since then I've had this heavy feeling with me. It broke our hearts to see the early decision that some missionaries make that their missions are more about "enduring" than "enjoying". No matter what I or my companion said, her mind was made up and we can only pray that she lets herself feel the joy that only a mission can bring. It was one of those rough moments where we sat there and I had no idea how to fix it. And you know how well I react to those situations.....:) But the Lord can, and I am confident that she will find the peace that comes from being in His service soon!

 

We had a lesson with an investigator named Lyanne, whom we have been teaching for a couple weeks! She is 20 and has two kids and whenever we go to their home, they're screaming and her little sister keeps interrupting and I can never feel the Spirit. We had one of those lessons haha and I was getting frustrated, but my companion asked her how she felt and she replied "You know, I feel good. Peace. Like I have the energy to do the things that I didn't think I could do. Whenever you come, I feel so much happier!". Hellooooo humbling moment. I wasn't paying enough attention to the Spirit, but she was and it was felt by all those who were listening.

 

We were teaching a woman named Diana my first few transfers here (she is a boss!!), but with the area change we had to give her over to the elders. We had a dinner appointment with a member last night, who took it upon herself to invite Diana without telling us!! BEST surprise ever!! It was so good to see her. The elders hadn't been able to come by because she is a single mom and her son is in juvie, so it was definitely a needed lesson. She told us that even though she hasn't been reading or going to church, she was always confident that we and Heavenly Father were there. She says she wants to start taking the lessons again!!!!! Major miracle!!

 

I love the opportunity at the beginning of a new transfer to do some goal-setting. It's like a chance to have a change of heart every six weeks. This last transfer was a stressful one, what with losing all our investigators to the elders (who are great and doing great things with them!!) and having to start all over with a new area. I found myself having the wrong motives (like numbers and meeting the expectations of the other missionaries'...I am not proud of it! I have repented!!). I kept thinking "I'm an STL, people are looking to us to have a flourishing area and high numbers and a ton of baptisms.". And because of that attitude I had, I was missing out on a lot of the miracles that were there, but not recognized. I attribute a lot of the problems we face to that attitude I had....SO I had a little re-commitment "Come to Jesus" moment a few days ago. I needed to change my desires! And then this morning I read Alma 29....and verses 3-6 were some more answers to prayers. My motive is now "Because I Love God" (which is what it has always been....just got a little lost this past week or so....) instead of "because everyone expects great things out of the STL's". And just because of that attitude switch I had, I have been able to see more miracles and have gotten so much more stoked about the work, even in just 24 hours. I am grateful for chances to struggle and change. I am so far from perfect, but at least He makes up for the many things I lack.

 

Sorry it's a boring one! MTE season is upon us so now we get to go figure out how many days we are going to be able to proselyte in our own area this next month....our estimate is 13. I love MTE's (where we go and do some coaching to all the other zones in the mission). Miracles, people, they're going to happen!

 

I LOVE YOU!!!!!

 

Hermana Hess

May 6, 2014 - Elder Ballard and I are BFFs!

Cinco de Mayo (Cinco de Michael!) is a good day when an apostle of the Lord comes to town. I'll talk about that more later but SHOOT it was SO COOL.

 

It was a solid week! We didn't have an exchange this week (which means that we'll be doing three this week...not sure who the heck planned that. OH WAIT. We did.) so it was weird to have a full work week in our own area, so we took advantage of it and just went full steam ahead. We had mission leadership council and a bunch of other meetings but it's still been a good work week. It's been a bit frustrating these past couple of weeks; every single person we have seen only has about five minutes of time and is running out the door. We do our best to teach the message of the restoration, and it's definitely possible and the Spirit is always there, but both of us were really missing the chances to sit down for 30 or 40 minutes and have a full-out LESSON. We did some major praying at the end of last week, that this week we would be given opportunities to share the first vision and HELLOOOOOO God answers prayers! A few days ago we went and visited our investigator, Priscilla. Whenever we go over she is usually running around chasing her insane children (i have never seen so much energy in a 2 year old in my LIFE) who are yelling and screaming....not exactly the easiest place to feel the Spirit. But, to our surprise and deLIGHT, when we came over she demanded that all of her kids go outside and play and "leave mommy alone for thirty minutes". We got to sit and have one of the most powerful lessons I've experienced on my mission! She had the EYES-they were completely riveted on us as we testified of the first vision and you could just tell that she was feeling the same things we were. I had a grateful heart as she accepted the invitation to be baptized with this huge smile on her face. I love the message of the Restoration, I love reciting the first vision, I love it when my companion says the things that never come to my mind but need to be said. Man, life is good.

 

I know I mention the Gonzalez family every email but I can't get over how miraculous they are to me. They were in Murietta (hour north of SD) all weekend and told us that they probably weren't going to be able to come to church. So we were bummed, but right before sacrament meeting starts we get a text from them that said "we're almost there!"! They drove straight from Murietta to the church building to come for the last hour. Oh man....so much joy! We loved sitting next to Cassandra and Arturo (8 and 9) and hearing that they wanted to go to the primary activity this week, we loved sitting next to Shayla when she said "I want to go to girls camp!", and we loved looking over and seeing Mayra singing along to the hymns that she sang 20 years ago with her family when she was little. She looked so peaceful and happy sitting there, with her daughter on her lap singing "I Know That My Redeemer Lives" (good song...) and Hermana Barnes and I just looked at each other smiling the whole time.

 

We aren't a tracting mission so all of our investigators either come from referrals or street contacts, but this week we had a day where we didn't have a whole lot of appointments planned so Hermana Barnes and I went and did some smart-tracting, which basically means we walked around a trailer park and knocked on all the doors that either had Christmas lights still up, a bunch of flowerpots, or a mop outside their door (all of which mean "SPANISH-SPEAKERS LIVE HERE".). Its cool how Heavenly Father blesses you with miracles by going out and sweating. We added a woman named Maria (the first door we knocked on!) and she told us that she was praying for help right before we knocked on the door. I love it when you follow the Spirit without even realizing it. We're stoked to keep teaching her and her family!

 

SO. Elder Ballard was here. Hermana Barnes played piano and I led the music so it was cool to sit on the stand and look at all of the missionaries. I don't know all of their names but I love them all. I can't even imagine how President and Sister Clayton must feel. The mission president from the Alabama mission and his wife were here, along with our area seventy so basically it was a slap-in-the-face-with-the-spirit meeting and all of us were in Heaven. They all took turns bearing their testimony. The president from Alabama was very intense, and talked a lot about how we are successful when we are baptizing-very much a "fire and brimstone" kind of guy. We were a little scared. It was and interesting comparison after he spoke, when both of the Claytons went up and simply told us how much they loved us. They focused on how we measure success here in the San Diego mission-by obedience. By feeling the Spirit and following its promptings. By giving ourselves over to the will of the Lord. I look at the Claytons and how much love we all felt from and FOR them, and I just kept thinking "They are mine. We needed them.". It was comforting when they told us that we will be theirs for the eternities (they're leaving in a month....). It's true. They're ours.

Elder Ballard brought it all home. I wish I could relate everything that he said but it was just cool to hear him say things that were meant specifically for our mission. We were all very proud missionaries when he said "I am so proud of my daughter and son-in-law". I think the coolest thing was seeing him a lot lighter than he is at general conference. He was crackin' jokes all over the place! We talked a lot about determining success and following the spirit. He ended his talk by talking about happiness- "If you are not happy here, doing the Lords work in the California San Diego mission, you have a few things to figure out. This is joy.". I testify to that.

 

Another fun quote from him- "You're gonna be doing it in the Spirit world, for heaven's sake, so you might as well get good at teaching here in the field!"

 

I love you all! I'll expand more when I TALK TO YOU THIS SUNDAY!

 

Hermana Hess