little victories

The sunrise this morning was crazy orange... (it shows up more red on the camera)  and we keep hearing that some big storms are coming our way.

A lot is different in the area right now.  We are focusing on gaining help from the branch members to attend lessons with us and become more excited about missionary work.  We  are receiving more references and teaching families to sincerely pray to know who is ready to hear the gospel.  A lot of times we hear ¨We´ve tried already, none of our friends are interested!¨  A member who was inactive for six years and then returned said the very same thing.  I told her ¨You had a change of heart and came back to the Church, right?  So maybe these people will have a change of heart too and are now interested in the gospel, when years ago they weren´t ready yet!¨  I think that got her thinking : )  My companion told her to write a list of every single person she knows and when we next see her we are going to have her pray to know which people are ready to hear the gospel. 

Saturday night we had a lesson with a less active member and invited a member of the Branch Presidency.  The less active member has been telling us how lucky we are as missionaries to have the Spirit constantly and have such a strong relationship so close to God.  We kindly reminding him that he too can have the companionship of the Spirit, and although he is not called to be a missionary, he is still able to share the gospel with others and is in the most important mission of his life, the strengthening of his home and family.  I loved listening to the counselor´s testimony of the importance of attending Church and the gift of the Holy Ghost.   The next day at Church the less active man came and bore his testimony,  Let me tell you, little victories like that make me want to jump and do bell kicks down the aisle in the chapel.  But I refrain and resort to dance moves in my head.  YES!

Little victories happen everyday, and each one of us can be part of it.  I love this work!! And the greatest thing about this work is that there is no separation between missionary work and the gospel.  When we are members and not full time missionaries, we are ¨full time finders and missionaries are ¨full time teachers¨.  It´s a beautiful thing, my friends.

Thanks for the birthday messages!   6 years and going strong!  : ) 

Love you all.  xoxo hermana miller 

Hello everyone!  Today was a really great day, and it was a really great week too!  Today we met up with our zone in Rosario.  We played some sports and had a water balloon fight.  I felt like a little kid for a few hours... it´s nice to have something different in our schedule every once in a while to shake things up and recharge.

My poor Hermana Miranda has been fighting some major migranes lately, so we had to travel a bit, see some doctors, and rearrange our normal work so we could figure out how to help her feel better.  Amidst the hiccup in our schedule, we still saw lots of miracles happen!  The nurses that attended to her in Rosario were extremely curious about our nametags, and after a good twenty minutes of explaining The Church, we got their contact info and sent it to the mission office so the elders in their area can go teach them!  I love that the Lord helps us find people even during a doctor´s appointment!

We also found some people while contacting that sound sincerely interested in hearing our message, which is great because sometimes Argentines are too nice to say NO and will let us come by again, but will only want to chat about other things.

On Thursday we had a very inspiring Zone Conference where we heard from President and Hermana Giuliani along with the Assistants to the President.  They talked about the importance of seeking the Spirit in this work and recognizing answers to our prayers.  This is definitely something I have been working harder on, because without it missionaries cannot know exactly where the Lord wants them to go or what to say!  Read D&C 50, it has become our theme in this mission.. and I absolutely love it and am a witness of how vital our connection is with the Spirit.  Prayer is the way that we can form this connection, and this is not smoething exclusive to missionaries!  All of us, Heavenly Father´s children, have been given this hermosa opportunity to converse with Almighty God who is the Supreme Being of all things... which sounds a bit intimidating, no? But He loves us like a father, because He is our Father. We can speak to Him at any moment at any time, aloud or silently in our hearts.  The tricky part that we make harder on ourselves is when we miss His answers.  He  always answers our prayers.. it is our duty to be observant to what is around us, and sensitive to how we feel, because that is how we can recognize His answers and receive revelation.  It definitely takes practice, and it has slowly but surely become easier for me.  I love it!  I love being a missionary.  I love seeing right in front of my eyes when my companion and I are being used as instruments in the Lord´s hands.

I hope you are all well!  I am sorry I dont have many photos as of late.. the connection is a bit slow here.

Besos

Hermana Miller 

Hello!  Happy President´s Day!  I completely forgot that today is a holiday at home until my Dad wrote me about what ¨Washington´s Day¨ was like when he was a kid.  It is also a holiday here today and tomorrow, called ¨Carnival¨.  Nothing much seems different here except not a lot of things are open and there was a huge concert and bingo on Saturday with thousands of people= impossible for us to sleep! 

Yesterday I attended my first district conference (a district is to a stake as a branch is to a ward : ) )  and heard some amazing talks from the district presidency and our mission president and his wife.  I love President Giuliani´s enthusiasm! The first thing he said when he approached the stand was ¨It is so great to be here and to see your smiling faces! (pointed at his face and made a huge smile) Smile! It´s Sunday!¨ He loves goals, and encourages us missionaries to think of the specific steps necessary in order to reach those goals. Many times we (I know I have done this!) will make a beautiful goal, write it down, and forget about it.  President told us that our main goal here in Misión Argentina Rosario is to one day have a temple in Rosario.  He then told us what other big steps need to take place before this can be made a reality:   
1.  Encourage young men to prepare to serve a mission now, so there will be no doubt whether they are ready or not once they are of age.  (He also put in a nice plug about how even though it is not required for women to serve, they are more than encouraged to serve, and that they bring a certain spirit to the work that elders cannot.  He looked at my companion and I when he shared this, and I of course got tearyeyed.)

2.  Increase Church Attendance. Invite people to church! Help those who are struggling to stay active!

3.  Increase Tithing. Ah I love his explanation for this goal!  He said the Church needs dedicated tithing payers not because we need the money to build the temple, but because we need to show the Lord that we are willing to sacrifice temporal things in order to receive blessings from a higher, spiritual law.  We must follow the simpler commandments first in order to prepare ourselves to receive the blessings that come from higher, more sacred covenants. 

4.  Be worthy to enter the temple

We have some plans to help our branch remember these goals daily, and we are excited to press forward with these goals!  We know that a lot of time and work will have to take place before we can have a temple here, but I have faith that every little effort will help.  

This work is such a beautiful thing.  More and more each day I am reminded of the importance of inviting people to follow through with their committments to read, pray, and come to Church.  We are teaching them to recognize the blessings that come from being obedient, and step by step they are preparing themselves to make and keep sacred covenants! I have been blessed with the knowledge of beautiful and sacred things from going to the temple, and I want everyone I meet to have the same blessings too! 

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday. Love and miss you all! 

xoxo hermana miller 

Buen dia!  Como le va?  I hope everyone is doing well! 

Things are moving along quite nicely here in Cañada de Gomez.  We are receiving more participation from the branch members here, which makes us so happy!  There is something really special about having a member accompany missionaries to a lesson.  It excites the member, and it definitely excites us because the investigators have the chance to see what a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is really like... because well... we missionaries are not exactly your typical normal person.  Sometimes people get confused and think that if they were to join the Church they will have to be full time missionaries like us, wear skirts all the time, and not be able to watch TV or go out on the weekends!  More importantly- participation from members gives people a chance to hear another testimony of the truth of this gospel.  

On Saturday Hermana Miranda and I had to travel to Rosario, and had some time to eat lunch in Parque Independencia.  I love it!  The lake has little paddle boats you can rent (we watched longingly on the shore...)  and a beautiful bridge and free standing pillars!   

One thing that is really interesting about the gospel is when certain themes we think we understand and know (think of a repeated Sunday School lesson you think you{ve heard more than enough) must be taught once again to strengthen our testimonies.  I definitely had that experience yesterday concerning my purpose as a missionary.  I re read a talk by Elder Clayton from last general conference, titled The Time Shall Come.  

I know that I am here in Argentina particpating in a grand work, the gathering of Israel!  I know with all my heart that this work cannot be stopped, it is the work of the Lord and our efforts as missionaries slowly but surely will bring great fruits one day, even though we may not be able to see it right now.  I love being a missionary!!  I am learning to appreciate each day the best way that I can, not only to enjoy the awesome things that come from  being in a foreign country, but moreso the precious time I have been given to interact with so many different people.  This time is already flying by, and I have to use every moment the best way I can and tell all that I meet about this important message of the gospel!  

I love and miss you all! 

Chau,  Hermana Miller 

All Good In The Neighborhood

Hola friends y family!  

I am sorry, I don{t have a lot of time to write, but I am still here in Cañada de Gomez and I have a new companion, Hermana Miranda, from Cordaba Argentina!  Her castellano is beautiful, and I am already seeing changes in my own abilities to speak this beautiful language.  She is an awesome missionary and I am learning so much from her ability to connect with the people, and it{s not just because she{s Argentine.  We have a lot of goals to strengthen the less active families and find new people!! 

Hope you are all doing well. Sorry for such a short note!  

Con amor 

Hermana Miller 

*** Hillary's birthday is coming up on Feb 29!!  She will finally be turning 6!!!  She will actually be having a real birthday this year since it is Leap Year!!  Don't forget to send her a quick Happy Birthday note!!  Thanks :) Cara

Tomorrow is transfers, and as of now we still do not know the details!  I am going to miss Hermana Gerratt so much... but we both know that this next transfer is inspired by the Lord, and whomever we are placed to work with next will bring a lot of great learning experiences!  It is a really special thing to have the Lord help me recognize the specific reasons why I was placed with all the companions I have had thus far. Let the adventure continue! 

  Yesterday gave me a lot of things to think about.  We visited some member families and recent converts to say goodbye even though we do not know which one of us is leaving.. quite the awkward circumstance because one of us will be seeing them again, but nevertheless still very necessary por la duda (just in case).  It ended up being a really beautiful experience for me.  My companion Hermana Gerratt has been here for six months, and she has such a great love for the people here. There is something very special about the way people send you off with love-  instead of just a hug and a [good luck with everything![ they will hold you and say the most sincere and beautiful words while our cheek touches theirs.  One couple, the Gomez family, gave us a parting gift after we took pictures with them.  Hermana Gomez held me tight and wished me to be safe, to have blessings in all my days, and to have the Lord protect me and give me happiness.  Her husband was in tears and couldn{t even speak, and she soon after started to cry.  I also saw a really sweet connection between one of my favorite member families here, the Bustamante{s, and two elders who just ended their mission and came to visit yesterday before flying home. Hermana Bustamante told us she sees them as her own sons, and cried and cried when they came and left.  I especially loved hearing hear express such great appreciation for one of the elders who when serving here could barely speak the language, [even though he couldn{t understand us you could see he had such a sweet spirit and a good heart![  That meant a lot to me, and I especially loved seeing their excitement hearing this elder speak beautiful castellano with an awesome accent.  It really gave me something to think about, seeing the connection between these people and these wonderful missionaries who have year(s) more experience in the mission than me.  It gave me a bit of a preview of what it might be like when I will leave an area or go home, and how much the people really love missionaries.

xoxo hermana miller 

Right now Hermana Gerratt and I are in Rosario at a cyber (internet café) a few blocks away from el monumento de la bandera, the monument of the Argentina Flag! It is beautiful, and we walked along the Paraná river for a bit as well.

 

We found out last week that she is training again and that I will have a new companion next transfer (Feb 1) but we don´t know who is staying in Cañada de Gómez.  It is a bit nerve racking and we are trying to make the most of our last weeks together, so we decided to live it up and come out here to see the city!

 

A little food for thought;  we just received the January revista of the Liahona (a church magazine that publishes inspiring talks by our church leaders, including our prophet and president of the church Thomas S Monson and the 12 Apostles)  and Hermana Gerratt and I were so excited to finally read it!  As we flipped through the pages during our personal study after church, we were pleasantly surprised to find page after page filled with inspiring words perfect for our investigator who has been going through a rough bit struggling with having a positive attitude during some struggles.  We read the talk by President Monson about living the abundant life, as well as the talk about the Book of Mormon, ¨giving us our daily bread¨, and finding the hand of the Lord in the blessings we are given each day. These were all themes we had discussed with this woman, and she also expressed having a hard time believing in a latter day prophet, so this was a speedy answer to our prayers to show her an example that the prophet gives us inspired words of comfort from the Lord, specifically to help us in the here and now in the last days.  We were pretty stoked to hand her tangible evidence of a true and living prophet just hours after reading his words.  The hands of the Lord are in this work!  He is looking out for each of his children, and it is my responsibilty as a missionary to recognize it so we can help the people here see that He loves them and wants them to endure to the end during their struggles.   

 

By the way,  thank you so much for the Christmas cards!  I have put all of your photos on my wall to give me a daily reminder of some of the beautiful friends and family I have!!

 

Chau!  xoxo  hermana miller