Surprise! - Feb 25

Dear wonderful family and friends,

 

Guess What! I am still in Denver 4th. It was a surprise to me....I kinda felt like I needed to leave. Elder Ovalle left to the mountains - he is probably my best missionary friend so :(. So another 6 weeks in Denver.

 

Time is going by so fast. I feel like I can't even tell you what is going on it goes so fast.

 

This last week we witnessed a miracle. We were at WalMart and Hilda called to ask us if we could come over. Her mom wanted to talk to us! Hilda's mom has never been mean to us, but have never given a second of interest. Hilda has been praying and hoping that her mom would listen to us one day. So we went by later that day and met with her. I won't lie....I was super nervous, because I knew how imporant this lesson would be to the family. It went well. I felt the Spirit comfirm the things we said. She also cried and prayed at the end of the lesson. I thought, " How wonderful this must be to Hilda - hearing her mom pray."  I really hope that she will decide to learn more about the things we talked about.

 

So I love being a missionary. I love being able to testify to the people the most important things. Lately, I have felt a little worried. I worry that I won't find the people that I need to. I just feel like I am running out of time. I am trying to work hard and keep focused on the work. I feel like I have to work even harder. A couple of weeks ago, I asked for a blessing because I feel tired. I feel like I don't really sleep and that I just exist sometimes. I really want to have the energy to just give it everything I got. I really feel like the blessing helped me as well. President basically tells me to not worry, because I am doing everything I need to do.

 

This last Sunday, I was directing the hymns. As the sacrament was being passed, I saw a less active that we have helped come back. She was sitting in the front, praying. The Spirit came so strong and I was just filled with joy. I love seeing the change in people. She now has a calling - compasionate service leader. She goes and visits people. She loves them. She loves helping others. She also helps other people we teach by saying, "lets read the scriptures together."  She is such a great example. I love these experiences as a missionary.

 

There are so many things that I have learned. I feel like I appreciate people so much more. I really want to be a great member..... better yet a better person. I just want to help people. I want to help them with everything. I want to get rid of every selfish part of myself. I want to only live for others. I am still trying to figure out how I will do this.

 

Our investigators are progressing really well. I really think that we will see many miracles these coming transfers.

 

 

I am trying to figure out why I am here again. Elder Ovalle shared something with me this week. He just got moved to his new area in Vail. He said his first night there he met a man. This man served in Monterey Mexico (where Elder Ovalle is from). On his mission, he met Elder Ovalle's dad, grandma and grandpa and was able to tell him stories about how they joined the church. Afterwards, he said - I really needed to be in this area. So I know that God puts us in places where we need to be. President Maynes told us to find out why we are in a certain area. So this is something that I am working on as well.

 

I love you all very much. I love the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know that Prophets are on the earth and that they tell us the things we should do. I know if we ask of God, we shall receive. He loves us and is so aware of everything we are going through. This week, I have been praying very hard. Every night I get on my knees and a quiet love drifts overme. I know that He listens to our prayers.

 

Love your favorite sister missionary,

Hermana Spencer

 

P.S. Family - Write por favor!

Feliz Dia de Amistad y Amor - Feb 13

Dear wonderful people!

 

Happy Valentines Day! It will just be a normal day for us, but I am super excited. This is the last week of transfers and so we will see what happens. I really want to stay, but most likely I will be moving to another ward. I love it so much here.

 

This last week so many great things have happened. We went on exchanges and I was with Hermana Coughlen. It was really nice to be able to talk to her about things. She has a transfer left and I feel like she is still so much a part of my mission. I really love her and loved seeing how much she has grown. We picked up a new investigator : Susana! She is from Argentina (my first investigator from there). I love the way she talks. She is so wonderful. She has gone to church in another ward for 3 months and wants to get baptized. This next transfer it will happen. I am excited for her.

 

We put three other people on date. One of them was not planned. We were sitting in a lesson with Armando and the Spirit told me "Put him on date!" I had to do it. The date came to my mind and now he is scheduled to be baptized on the 10th of March. I am so excited. We are seeing so much progress with our investigators. I really feel like I am becoming a great missionary. I feel like God is so much more able to use me and I understand the things that I need to do.

 

Also yesterday, we were able to meet with all of the leaders in the ward and schedule a meeting jsut to talk about less actives and investigators. They trust me here. I love knowing them. I feel so grateful to be here. I am so excited about this meeting.

 

We are so busy and I just love it. I love the gospel. This letter is really short today because the computers were having a hard time.

 

I love the Book of Mormon. I love everything about the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am so glad that I can be a missionary all of my life. I am so glad that the Lord can help me help others.

 

I hope all is well and that Valentines day is great!

 

Love ,

Hermana Spencer

 

Ohh the weather outside is frightful....as long as we have places to go....Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! -Feb 7

Dear Fam and Friends,

 

Yes it is snowing! Last week it snowed over a 1 & 1/2 feet! And today it is at it again. Last week when it snowed, we couldn't drive. So we got on our gear and decided to walk to a "close" apartment complex. It took us like 2 hours to walk there because of the snow. We were super excited to do it. We were singing and everything. The wind was blowing straight on us lol. By the time we reached the apartment complex...my hair was frozen lol. We taught and then had to head back so it wouldn't be dark. Then we ate dinner and knocked in our apartment complex. Yay for snow!

 

The rest of the week was great. We took out this amazing member with us, her name is Hermana Serrano. She is amazing. She got baptized almost three years ago. She helped us so much this last week. The day she went with us her sister in Mexico died. Her sister just had twins that are two weeks old. We were so shocked that this happened. She told us two days later and we went to visit her. She was such an example to us. She just talked about all of the reasons that it was a blessing and because of the gospel she knows she will see her again. She is the only member in her family and I really think this is a blessing for her family to look towards her to know about the gospel. I just love her.

 

Then this last week we went to visit a less active member and his wife. We got there and got to know them. They were super chatty :) We then talked to them about prayer. She said that she doesn't feel like God listens and answers  her prayers. We ofcourse asked her why. She told us that her husband has a drug addiction and she feels like God has not heard her prayers. This brother will disappear for days and she will have no idea what is going on. She wants a divorce. We invited them to go to church and give it a try. This just showed me that we really have no idea what is going on in the lives of others, but God can help us help them. I fasted that they would come and they did. I really hope that we can help them change their lives.

 

We have so many great investigators right now. I am so excited for all the work. We have such great goals this week and I am really excited to see them come to pass. We are super busy! The best thing to be as a missionary. We have two weeks left in the transfer and I really think I might get transfered. We shall see. Tomorrow I am going on exchanges with Hermana Coughlen and I am really excited to be with her for one more day.

 

Well sorry its so short this week, didn't have a lot of time!

 

I love you all,

Hermana Spencer

 

P.S. The Book of Mormon is amazing!

Vacuuming down the hall- Jan 30

Buenos Dias!

 

This last week was amazing!

 

1. On Wednesday, I received some really sad news. I felt like I just couldn't work. So I prayed that I could just work. We went to contact someone and they were not home. We went to try to see someone else and they weren't home. I felt like it was difficult to smile. We saw this lady down the hall...far down the hall. She was vacuuming. So sometimes as missionaries you have to be a little awkward. We were going to have to walk all the way down the hall to talk to her. We really do try to talk to everyone. So we went down the hall and as we got closer I realized I know her. Her name is Graciela. Hna. Coughlen and I found her and her husband back in July. They actually live in our apartment complex. She was excited to see me and I was excited to see her. We made an appointment. Seriously a tender mercy!
2. So We went back to see her on Saturday. We got there and there were so many family members there. We had to get rid of some of the distractions that were going on. We sat down at the table and begun talking. I asked Graciela how she felt when she was meeting with us. She said that she felt peace and just didn't worry about things that much, even though they both did not have jobs. They stooped meeting with us because they both got a job and were too busy. Well the day that we saw her, she lost her job. To make things even crazier, so did her husband. The Spirit was there in that lesson. We were able to talk about the blessing that come because of the message we share. You can always tell when a lesson has the Spirit. It is just so much easier to speak and things are so much more fluid. We not only taught Graciela but two of her sons and her daughter in law. They were excited to read! They all accepted getting baptized. This experience just taught me once again, calls from God are real and powerful.
3. Another amazing thing happened right after we left there apartment. We went to the church for a meeting. When we got there, there were two wonderful people dressed in white. A family that I taught several months ago, la familia Mancera, was getting baptized. Maria and Alfredo looked amazing. Earlier that week that had gotten married. They had called earlier that day, but like normal we were running around like crazy. They were so happy to see me there. I was able to stand and take pictures and attend their baptism. I felt the Spirit so strong as they made that convenant with God. They both shared their testimony afterwards. They both spoke of Hermana Coughlen and I teaching them. Freddy really made me amazed. He said something that he had never told us before. At first, he did not meet with us. He said that he would listen as we talked with his wife from the other room. He spoke of a time shortly after he met with us for the frist time. He heard a voice at night telling him this is happiness and the thing he needed to do. So the next morning he took them all to church. He was so important to helping that whole family. I just loved seeing them. So next year.....TEMPLE!
4. Another amazing blessing. Eliva. Elvia is a woman who is returning to church. She was baptized 10 years ago and wasn't very active. She is on fire. The other day we went to teach her the Word of Wisdom and she said that she drinks coffee. That day she just poured it out. Now she just drinks hot chocolate. This woman is amazing. We called her ten minutes before the Mancera's baptism and she came. She said " We don't know when Jesus will come again so we better be ready!" She also is now going to appointments with us. I love her so much.
5. The other day we were down town and went to visit someone. They weren't home :) So I saw this bright green house as we were driving and decided to go and knock it. Well while we were waiting for someone to come to the door, we said hi to the neighbor that was outside. We later went and talked to her. Her name is Clariece and she is a large black woman. I am pretty sure she had been drinking. She was hilarious. When we introduced ourself as missionaries she kissed our hands lol. We asked her if we could sit down and talk to her. So we sat on the pourch and prayed and started talking about her relationship with God. She told us how she had been baptized pentacolastal, went to the buddhist church and said "Even the mormon's baptized me!" I looked at Hermana Rios and we were surprised. So we talked her more about it. Now she is being taught by some other missionaries. We also met another less active just walking and talked to him. The Lord is so aware of us.
6. The last thing I want to talk about it probably the best thing I have learned, received as a missionary. LOVE. Yesterday, I went around the chapel talking to everyone just like normal. I stopped to talk to Hermana Morales. This lady is really old. She is on dialysis and is always very sick. I sad down by her and she just started to tear up. I felt so much love for this lady. When I first got here, she scared me. I felt so much love for this one person. The rest of church I felt it too. Overwhelming love and gratitude. After church, I got a blessing. I just feel tired :) The blessing told me so many great things. I just felt so great. I realized my biggest fear about going home is not having this love for other people. Honestly, I am terrified to go home. I just don't want to loose this love for others. I learned this week a little bit more that I can always be a missionary. I really think this is my motto for my life : Love and missionary work. I love being a missionary so much. I would never trade it for anything.

I hope that you liked the amazing week. I loved it!

 

Love,

Hermana Spencer

Miracles Miracles and More Miracles- Jan 23

Dear Family and Friends,

 

Time is going by so fast! This last week was amazing...really amazing.

 

 

I think the most amazing thing that happened this last week was Veronica. Veronica is Hilda's sister. In the past she didn't really like us....like a week agao. She lives with Hilda and sees us a lot. Well the other day Hilda gives us a call saying that Veronica wants to talk to us. We go over right away....duh. We get there and she has so many questions. She was reading about what we believed and wanted to know more. Her grandma recently got baptized and Veronica really looks up to her. She is the one who taught her to believe in God. Her grandma told her that she really hopes that she will look into this and have all the blessings that she has. Veronica has also noticed the difference in Hilda. She wants happiness, with herself and with her family. It was so amazing to see someone want it. The prayers of Hilda's family have been answered. So now we are teaching her and her boyfriend. It was amazing when we taught them the restoration! They even read before :) The Spirit was so powerful, especially as we shared our testimonies of the Book of Mormon. I felt the Spirit tell me that it was true yet again.

 

Also yesterday, we were fasting for many of our investigators. I was just so exited yesterday because Alonso would pass the sacrament for the first time. I was directing the hymns and was sitting in front. Before he was super nervous. When I watched him pass the sacrament, I was so overwhelmed with gratitude. I felt so much love for the people and my Heavenly Father. I felt like every hard second was worth it. Alonso is so sensitive to spiritual things. He gets it. He did such a great job. I just thought of him serving a mission. I know that he will continue to bless people. After church we went to Hilda's house for dinner with the elders. I felt so at home with all of the people I loved. We ate alaphbet soup and spelled our names and we also laughed alot. I just felt like they will always have such a special place in my heart. I cannot tell the story of what happened, but it strengthened my testimony of the priesthood. I am so grateful that I know that it was restored and that we have it today in our lives. I am so grateful for worthy elders who use it. Just miracles keep happening.

 

We also were able to talk to so many people and are really excited to go back and talk to them. I cannot describe the miracles that happened this week.

 

This says it better than I can:

 

Alma 26:16 Therefore, let usaglory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel.

 

This is how I feel about my mission. I love it so muh. There are moments where I am so wrapped up in God's love. I just feel it sometimes. Also lately I have been struggling to understand and feel the Spirit. I have always heard of wonderful spiritual experiences, and I have feel like I haven't had a lot of those. So it made me think or I have been thinking something is wrong with me. Then I studied this talk by Elder Bednar this week. The Spirit of Revelation:

President Joseph F. Smith explained how this pattern of revelation occurred in his life: “As a boy … I would frequently … ask the Lord to show me some marvelous thing, in order that I might receive a testimony. But the Lord withheld marvels from me, and showed me the truth, line upon line … , until He made me to know the truth from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet, and until doubt and fear had been absolutely purged from me. He did not have to send an angel from the heavens to do this, nor did He have to speak with the trump of an archangel. By the whisperings of the still small voice of the spirit of the living God, He gave to me the testimony I possess. And by this principle and power He will give to all the children of men a knowledge of the truth that will stay with them, and it will make them to know the truth, as God knows it, and to do the will of the Father as Christ does it. And no amount of marvelous manifestations will ever accomplish this” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1900, 40–41).
In many of the uncertainties and challenges we encounter in our lives, God requires us to do our best, to act and not be acted upon (see 2 Nephi 2:26), and to trust in Him. We may not see angels, hear heavenly voices, or receive overwhelming spiritual impressions. We frequently may press forward hoping and praying—but without absolute assurance—that we are acting in accordance with God’s will. But as we honor our covenants and keep the commandments, as we strive ever more consistently to do good and to become better, we can walk with the confidence that God will guide our steps. And we can speak with the assurance that God will inspire our utterances. This is in part the meaning of the scripture that declares, “Then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God” (D&C 121:45).
So I just have to keep going! I feel like God is helping me know Him in the small ways. I'm learning that He has great trust in me! I love the gospel and I love all of you. I am busier now than at any other point in the mission so sorry about lack of mail! Pictures are coming soon :)

Love you all,
Hermana Spencer

Ire y Hare....I will go and I will do!- Jan 17

Dear wonderful people who read my emails,

 

I am doing so great this fine morning. I am loving training. I am learning so much about myself and about teaching in general. My new companion is Hermana Rios. She was born in Mexico and grew up in Arizona and Utah. She is really funny and we go along really well together. She is 23 as well and we have a lot of similar experiences. So I am excited to work with her.

 

So this last week was great. For the first time in my mission, I felt like I really knew how to be a missionary. I have been able to talk to so many people and really teach things that people needed. I fell like Heavenly Father is blessing both of us in abundance. I feel so grateful. The first day of the transfer, I had two greenies with me....Hna. Rios and Hna. Ruiz. We went knocking and it was fun to teach them how to do those things. We also had dinner with Elvia. She was so great. She just told the Elders and my two companions how much she has changed. She really has a testimony on fire. I also got to see Hna. Coughlen. It was so great. I really have missed her. She only has two more transfers AAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWHHHHHH. Everytime someone says how little time I have a get scared.

 

We were able to do a lot of things this week. We knocked and street contacted so much. It was great because we were able to talk to so many people. Hermana Rios is some times a little timid to talk to people, but is getting over that. We have also witnessed some amazing things.

 

One thing really important that happened was with one of the less actives that we teach. She currently does not have a place to live. We were talking to her about how she was doing and she informed us about how bad things really were. Her boyfriend sold her car without telling her and has pretty much left them broke. She didn't have any food the other night. So we called the bishop and asked for some help. It was Sunday night and we didn't know what to do. The bishop was trying to figure out something. We prayed to know what to do and we ended up called the best family ever. Without hesitation, they said yes to helping. They bought food for the week, dinner for the night and money for whatever else they needed. The thing that impressed me the most was the love that they gave while doing it. He didn't just buy mac and cheese, he bought the good stuff. He said, "I don't want to just feed them, I want them to be happy." It was so wonderful to see that. I know that he was giving freely. I want to be more like that. I want to give everything that I have, no matter how little or how much it is. Hermana Rios and I learned a great lesson that day.

 

I have been so amazed at all of the things that I actually know about missionary work. I really feel like I can help Hermana Rios. I hope she feel s the same. We have been working really hard. I know that we are going to see so many blessings.

 

Ohh other Miracle: Hilda can get divorced! I am so excited. She told us and the elders on Saturday......it will take a couple months and be after I have left the area (most likely).

 

Seriously, I really think that I needed to be on a mission so I could learn some lessons. Heavenly Father has been so great to me. Sometimes I just feel like I can't even describe how wonderful it feels to be doing what we do. I love the way the gospel lightens the life of others. I love feeling the love of God. I love all of these Hispanics. I would have never known them in this way. I feel like they are now part of my family. Incase you didn't know.....Hermana Spencer is half mexican now. My heart is no longer the same. Yesterday, I was writing a letter and just looking out the window. It was snowing and I was just thinking about how wonderful all this is. I know that it is hard, but I am so glad that I have done it. The Lord just continues to bless me. I would do it all over again. I wish I had more time.....so I better take advantage of every second!

 

Love you all,

Hermana Spencer

I'm going to be a Mom! - Jan 9

Dear Family and Friends,

This last week as interesting....just like everyone. I feel so grateful to be on a mission. So TRANSFERS! I am staying in Denver 4th! AND I am TRAINING! So that is exciting. Since there is only one spanish sister coming it is super easy to know what will happen. She already speaks spanish .... which means hers is better than mine. I am super excited to train. I feel like its an answer to my prayers.

 

I feel like the things that have happened recently are so hard to explain. I feel like I need to become a better missionary and am really excited about it. I feel like the Lord needs me to be better and I am excited to change.

 

We had an interesting experience this last week. After district meeting, we went to see Irene. I have taught her for a long time. After hearing about amazing experiences that other missionaries had had....I really wanted to put her on date. We role played it in the car and decided on Feb. 11th. I was super nervous. We had made the plans to do this and I knew the Lord could help us. So we asked her. It wasn't like anything miraclous occured...but she accepted the date. She felt good about it too. It just shows that if we put our faith in the Lord, He can do all things.

 

Also this week, we went to go visit a less active. As we were driving, I saw an apartment building and just thought...we should knock there. Well the LA was not home.....I decided to go and knock. We were led to the second floor and it was like the Spirit was leading me to a door. The first door we knocked a lady opened it holding a baby. She is from Napal. She spoke some english and invited us into her home. We taught her about the restoration. The Spirit was there....and I'm sure that that is what she felt. She invited us back to teach her and her husband this week. I wish that we  didn't have to hand her over.

 

This morning, I read a talk about missionary work. It talks about becoming the missionary the Lord wants us to be. It talks about giving your heart. I realize that I haven't given everything to the Lord. I haven't given Him all of my desires, my good desires. I feel like I have only given part of my heart. So this is what my goal has become for the last 6 months of my mission. I love being a missionary. I love the hardness and the way it helps me to learn. I had a really hard day yesterday. I just felt like I had nothing else to give.... As the day went on, I just chose the people over myself. Last night, I got on my knees and cried. I just felt like I couldn't do it anymore. I just told Heavenly Father everything that was going on and the things that I needed. I didn't just say I prayer...I prayed. I just felt peace and I was so grateful that He listens. That He loves me. That He knows what is best for me. So pray, it works!

 

So this next week should be fun...and hard. I hope that I can really help this new missionary. I hope that we can also find the people God wants us to find.

 

I miss you and love you,

 

Hermana Spencer

Feliz Ano Nuevo- Jan 2

Dear Family and Friends,

 

Seriously, I love being a missionary. I have 6 months left and just can't imagine not being able to invite people to change. I love the gospel so much. I feel the need to repent more and more. I was thinking about my goals for this next year and I just really want to have the Spirit. I was reading in 2 Nephi 4....I want to tremble at the appearce of sin just like Nephi. I want to abhore sin. That is my new goal....I guess it will probably take some time, but I am just excited about the things the Lord will reveal to me.

 

This last week was a rough week. We prepared really hard for a lesson with Javier. He is 17 and is the nephew of a less active I love. He wouldn't open up. I was so excited to teach him and also super nervous. I gave it my best and afterwards, I felt so down. He did come to church and a baptism yesterday. It was really great. I just know that time is going to be required for him. He is a super funny kid though. He played volleyball with us again today.

 

Also Hna. Salazar asked us to prepare a FHE for her grandkids. They were visiting form Mexico and she just is worried about them. I was really nervous because it was just a bunch of teenagers and I had to entertain them....almost by myself (Hna. May doesn't speak tons of spanish). Well the lesson went great. We talked about increasing our testiomonies. It was great and all of them made goals to increase their testimony. Also a less active from the other spanish ward was there. I was able to help her. She hasn't been to church in 5 months and we made a goal. She went to church this last Saturday and then came to play volleyball today. Her daughter is so cute and is saying her prayers. I just felt like Heavenly Father put that opportunity in front of me.

 

New Years was great because we got to spend it with the people we love. I am just amazed at my ability to love. I feel like I can love anyone. Love is a gift from God and can be given to us when we seek it for anyone.

 

Sorry this is so short, but I want to write Josh and Jessica.

 

I love you and know the gospel is true!

 

Love,

Hermana Spencer

 

Its going to be the best Christmas ever!

Dear Family and Friends,

I love you all so dearly. I love being a missionary! So I have some great news!

We had a zone conference this past week with a 70. We learned some really great things. We were also able to ask President about Hilda and her family and their situation with immigration and baptism. Well it may turn out that Hilda might not be able to be baptized until the laws change. This hurt my heart. In the zone conference we talked about having a white Christmas, or in other words a Christmas of baptisms. After hearing about Hilda and Juan and the fact that we would have to wait, the idea came to my mind that Alonzo and Jonathan could get baptized. I prayed about this and thought about it alot. I have always felt like this family needed to get baptized together. I felt like having the kids get baptized was just right. Well we went to talk to Hilda on Thursday. We told her the news and she was pretty sad. She wants to get baptized to keep progressing. She wants these blessing for her family. After this she asked, "what about the kids?" So then we told her what we had been thinking. We told her we have even thought of a date. When we said Christmas, the Spirit was just so strong. We all knew it was what the Lord wanted. So Hilda wanted to tell the kids. They are so happy! So this Christmas will probably be one of the most special days of my mission. These kids mean a lot to me. We asked them who they wanted to baptize them and Jonathan said, "Ovalle!" (He is one of the Elders that serves in the ward with us) and Alonzo said, "Bishop!" They both had already decided. Elder Ovalle is super excited as well. It will be his first time to baptize someone. This has made me so happy! CHRISTMAS = BAPTISM!

We have also seen small miracles this week with less actives. Elvia was baptized and almost immediately stopped going to church. Last week we asked her to pray to know if the Book of Mormon is true. She has been reading the Liahona edition about the Book of Mormon. We went by last week and it was one of my favorite sites, her kitchen table was covered with her scriptures and liahona. She was so excited to have us there. She talked about how she felt about the Book of Mormon. She said that it has to be true because of th way she feels. I really was surprised. She has had a really hard time reading the Book of Mormon. She has been praying for her answer every night and now knows that it has to be true and has the goal of going to the temple this next year. I am so convinced that if anyone will read the Book of Mormon and pray about it, that they will know its true. The Lord is so magnificent. He knows exactly when and how we need to receive this answer.

In Zone Conference we talked about what does it mean to be a successful missionary. Elder Wilson said it means to make a difference. I know that I have made a difference here. I know the ward is better because I have been here. I now am going to be able to see two awesome kids get baptized. I love the gospel so much. It is everything to me. I think one of the purposes of me going on a mission was to help me see just really how it works, why its important and how I can love people. I also think another reason is because I need to get married and have children. I feel like my love for children grows everyday and my desire to have a family grows as well.....SCARY!

After zone conference we had a small sisters meeting with Sister Wilson and Sister Maynes. We were able to ask questions and I asked something that I really didn't want to ask. I asked how to overcome the feeling of always feeling like I have never done my best, that I could always do more. It is a feeling that is hard to describe. Sister Wilson read something so great out of 2 Cor. and she said something that I will not forget. She said that Satan wants us to feel this way and get us to focus on ourselves and not on others. He wants us to feel like we are never good enough and that we can never be good enough. This has helped me so much this last week. I feel like I have been suffering from this and for a while not even realizing it. So no more thinking about Hermana Spencer.

I have also been given another opportunity to grow. Something that I can't really talk about. I am so grateful for the mission. For everything that I have and every experience.

I love you all and hope that you get something from my emails.

Love,

Hermana Spencer

Snow, Puzzles, and 1 Year

Dear Family and Friends,

This last week was insane. We had transfers which were really great. I love hearing the testimonies of the missionaries that are going home. I can see that the mission really has changed them. I only have 5 transfers left in the mission....this is crazy.

So on Saturday, I hit my one year mark since I was set apart as a missionary. This year has gone faster than any other year in my life. I am so grateful that I am here.

This last week my companion was sick and we spent a lot of time at the apartment. She was super sick! It started on Tuesday and is still not quite over. At night, I went out with members and left her at a members house. It was wonderful going out with the bishops wife. I learned so much from her. She just told me so much about her life and the gospel. She accepted it with her whole heart and you can see the testimony of obedience in her. I was very touched by everything she said. She has had hard times. I really feel like that is the only way you can gain a testimony. Yesterday, when I was out with her we went to see Hilda and Juan. Yesterday, they did not go to church (it was the first time they haven't gone since I have known them). Hilda is having a hard time. Satan is working really hard on them. Juan left for work when we got there and shortly there after, came back. He just lost his job. The only way I can describe how I felt is, I felt like they were my children and they were suffering and there was nothing I could do to help them. My heart broke. Juan's eyes were filled with despair. The bishop's wife helped me. She said that they have to gain their own testimony. It has to be hard so they can trust Him. They are really important to Heavenly Father. Satan is just working really hard. Their faith is being tested and he will probably find a better job. We invited them to the baptism of an 8 year girl that was going to happen right after.

We went to the baptism....to be honest I was a little down....and guess what I saw!?!?!?! THE MANCERA FAMILY - SO if you remember we were teaching this awesome family that was super ready to get baptized but them had to move. Well they were there meeting with the bishop of the other Spanish ward. My heart swelled with so much happiness. They were so happy to see me. The husband and older son almost hugged me....I had to refuse very strongly lol. They are doing so great. They have remembered the things that we taught them! They are going to get baptized and will be married very soon! I probably get to go because they will do it in our church building. Seriously best thing ever!

Also, it has snowed so much lately. It snowed Saturday and yesterday. We were eating dinner (Mexican bread and hot chocolate together are the best just so you know) and we got a text from our zone leaders saying that we needed to park the cars. We looked outside and three inches had fallen since we started eating. It was super hard to get home. It is supposed to get below 0. Hello Winter! I just worry about what will happen if we cannot drive. Our area is so big! I guess we will knock.

So being at home as a missionary is really hard. Luckily I found a puzzle under the sink. It really helped me. I thought I would go crazy. I also cleaned and read a lot. Also, lets just say that I would be fine if we never watched any of the church videos again lol.

Tomorrow is Zone Conference and a member of the 70 is coming. So it should be super great!

This week I also hit a year mark of entering the MTC! This year has been incredible.

I love you all and hope that you are all warm where ever you are!

Love,

Hermana Spencer