“The true key to happiness is to labor for the happiness of others.” -True to the Faith
Hello, hello, hello!!
How is my dear family this week? I hope all is going well. I have had some journal- worthy events this week. The first is that I gave a talk in Sacrament meeting yesterday. I knew it was only a matter of time before I was asked to give one. Pres. Flores asked me Saturday night. On Sunday morning, I was up at the pulpit, speaking in Spanish. It went pretty well and wasn’t as hard to write as I thought it would be. I talked about the Book of Mormon and how important it is to read daily personally as well as with your family everyday to benefit from it. I truly believe that if more families in our little branch took the extra time and effort to read the Book of Mormon as a family everyday, that the love in the branch would increase and the Spirit and the overall unity would grow. I challenged every family to do so. We are promised so many blessings from reading this book! I have grown to love it so much more since I have been on my mission. So that is my challenge to everyone, to read the Book of Mormon for at least 10 minutes everyday with your family.
Another journal-worthy event this week was my first splits with a member. Hermana Astle wasn’t feeling well again for part of the week and so I decided to venture out on my own and preach the Gospel. Any junior companion knows that they can rely on their senior companion a little bit if they don’t quite know how to say something in Spanish but going out with a Paraguayan meant I was teaching the whole lesson SOLO, in charge of everything. Basically it was like a moment of truth..here I am going off on a cold night in Paraguay and it was up to me to understand everything, teach everything, respond to everything. It went WELL! It was a little nerve wracking but I did it. I taught a less-active member and then a 16-year-old girl, named Cristal as well, about the Book of Mormon. I am pretty sure some of the grammar principles went out the window, but they knew what I was trying to say and the Spirit made up for the rest. The gift of tongues is so cool!
So changes (transfers) are coming up NEXT week. Si o si, I am staying in Kokuere. President Madariaga likes to keep missionaries in the same area for 4-5 changes. But the question is, will I get a new companion? My companion has had five changes here already, which usually means it’s time to go. Maybe I will get a Latina companion and then my Spanish will really take off. If Hermana Astle does leave, you can expect some sweet pictures because we get to bring our camera around if one of the companions is leaving. We will see. I LOVE the members in our little branch. I wish they would understand the importance of helping the missionaries in the work more, though. Everyone here is first-generation members so they are still learning a lot about callings and their responsibilities. Even so, they are like my family.
Something that I am grateful for is that I was taught how to pray when I was a little child. Every time we meet someone we teach them how to pray the correct way. A lot of people recite prayers here- they don’t realize that you can speak directly to Heavenly Father like you are having a conversation. And a lot of people pray to and worship the Virgin Mary and Saints. I respect the Virgin Mary but I am so tired of hearing about her! I am grateful that I can have a relationship with God, my loving Heavenly Father, through prayer. It is a great blessing in my life.
Well, enjoy the sun and summer because it is finally winter here! Some days are pretty chilly- it’s like cold with humidity, and other days are not quite as cold. Don’t worry though, we bundle up and stay warm. Usually the members give us hot chocolate and bread. Yum yum.
Well, that´s all, folks!!
Until next week,
Hermana Brittner
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