Teaching with the Mission President!

Hi Everyone! We had an amazing experience being able to teach with our mission president this week! Here's what happened.

We got an email from the APs Friday morning saying that President Hansen would be in our area that night and was wanting to go teaching with some of the missionaries. So if anyone had any solid appointments, to let them know. So of course we texted the APs super speedy quick and told them we had a dinner appointment/first lesson tonight with someone that has been coming to our English class. And that's basically how we got President Hansen to come teaching with us and had the best lesson ever with Leonel and Flor! 

Hermana Robles and I were so nervous to teach in front of President even though it would be in Spanish, but the spirit ended up being so strong!! Probably the best lesson I've ever taught on my mission. After we went over the first vision, President said he's heard it said 2-3 thousand times in English and that was his first time he had heard it in Spanish but that he felt the Spirit just the same. He later told Leonel and Flor that one of the reasons they came from El Salvador was for this. 

As I was translating that for them, I just felt the Spirit confirm to me that they are people that I am supposed to teach on my mission.That was way cool becase I don´t always fee that about everyone I meet. And then President invited them to church and promised them that if they came and put God first in their lives, He will bless them with more money and better later in the week. And then Leonel came to church!! And stayed for all 3 hours!! It was the best thing ever! This is what President said about it in his letter to the whole mission:

"I was in a teaching situation, on Friday evening, with two of our missionaries in the Memphis area. I was a little worried about this as it was in Spanish and I don't speak or understand more then a couple of words. I wanted to be able to contribute something to this discussion, but didn't have any idea of how I would be able to do that, so I was forced to really focus on the Spirit and it's promptings.  

"As the lesson started, I decided to just say a prayer in my heart that the missionaries would know what to say and that this family would want to continue with the lessons. As the lesson started and I was praying, I could feel the Spirit prompting me to say certain things ever now and then. The missionaries would then interpret it into Spanish for the investigator. We were teaching this family for the very first time. I was surprised that everything that I felt prompted to say was in exact harmony with what the missionaries were teaching at that very moment, yet I wasn't certain if my timing was right, or if I was making any sense. At the end of the lesson, I felt very strongly that I needed to invite them to attend Church this Sunday. (I am doing this in English and it is getting interpreted into Spanish.) They accepted the invitation, and last night I got a text from the missionaries telling me that the father came to all three hours of Church yesterday and really enjoyed it. (His wife had to work and is planning on attending next week.)

"This was a wonderful experience for me as it is the first time I have every heard the Restoration in Spanish, yet the feelings I had were the same as the feelings that I have had the other hundreds of times I have heard it in English. I believe that I was able to play a very important role in helping the missionaries to teach and commit this family. They received the Book of Mormon with great interest and the Father even offered a kneeling word of prayer. My testimony of the importance of listening to the Spirit and following it's promptings, at any given moment, was strengthen and it was reinforced in my mind that the Lord is in charge and can use any of us, regardless of the situation, if we are willing and ready to do the work. (This even becomes a bigger miracle when you understand the Spanish Culture and how hard it is to get them to come to Church for the first time.)"

So yeah. Basically the biggest miracle ever.

This week, I did an activity in Preach My Gospel where I read Alma 4:23-33 and thought about the spiritual gifts that Peter and John sought and how the Lord answered their prayers. I thought it was really cool that they asked to be able to speak with all boldness, specifically. And then they were filled with Holy Ghost and given great power to teach. I thought that was cool because those are spiritual gifts that are really nice to have as a missionary. :) 

On Saturday, as we were getting ready for our lesson with Leonel and Flor, we were really nervous. (Obviously because we were about to teach in front of the mission president). But we prayed to be able to teach with power and say the things they needed to hear, and the Holy Ghost was definitely present during that lesson! I loved that not very long after I did this activity that taught me how to have specifically the spiritual gift of the Holy Ghost when teaching, I was given the opportunity to put it into practice. And I know that lesson was a thousand times better because of it!

Marisol Bustamante and fam- moved to CA this week :((

On Saturday night our branch had a trunk or treat. Hermana Robles and I helped in the kitchen and with games and we even decorated our car to participate. I think it was really good that we were able to show our support to the branch and show them we love them. Also we had a chili cook off which was pretty funny because not a lot of people knew what chili was and they kept saying it's an American food and they don't know how to make it. But 5 people brought chili so it turned out ok. 👍 

We got to do the Musical Tribute in Little Rock! And I got to see the Lopez family (Los Lopez)! :)

Some more friends I got to see in Little Rock! Hermana López, Hermana Barrientos, Hermana Sonia!

More Little Rock peeps- Los Viveros, Hermana Roper, and Hermana Roper's brother.

I got to see my Hermanas in Little Rock too! Hermanas Hunt, Wilson, Petty, Colwell, yo, Robles, Olson

Wow we're so festive we carved pumpkins today🙂🙂🙂 🎃 🎃 🎃 

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