Week 45 (March 27, 2017)

Temple!

French Toast with nutella and 20 soles peanut butter that was from the sister before me!

Happy Birthday!

Well, this week was a better week for sure. On wednesday we headed off to the temple!! 2nd time in the mission (except for the MTC) and it was absolutely amazing! We went with 2 sisters in the ward (who are literally twin sisters haha) and a Brother who owns a taxi. So we went by taxi this time. I did the session in English again because I wanted to. and it was absolutely amazing. I could feel the spirit so strong and I love the temple so much!! If you havent been this month, GO! You will be blessed more than you know!!

Also friday was my BIRTHDAY!! My first and only in my mission, and although it was still a good one, it was VERY different than like home.  I made french toast for bfast, and ate it with the nutella my mom sent me. Yum. and then lunch was with the family Herrera. which they sent a pic and video to you guys.  But what was very special was after having a normal day of working, the end of the day we went to a members house and they sang and gave us cake, which they luckily didnt shove it in my face like the tradition here haha and we took lots of pics.  But I could feel the love from the ward and everyone and I am so greatful for that.  I am so greatful for this wonderful opportunity to be here. and even though my bday was really almost wierd. It was ok in the end.  Also thank you for all the birthday notes and wishes! I love you all! and I cant believe Im 20! (not a teenager anymore haha) (nineTEEN)

This week was also Womens conference!! Which was amazing! Although it was in spanish, I could understand a lot more that the last conference. Not 100 percent, but the gist. Also sadly I did not see Ally in the chior, but I could feel the spirit so strong listening to them!! I love conference so much!!

This week we also had to let go of Carlos and stop teaching him.  He wasnt progressing and he was almost trying to convince us that our church was wrong. Which was a little scary. but I have a strong testimony that this church is true so I litterally felt like my faith and testimony in Jesus Christ was like a rock (like that scripture says) and it could not be moved. How powerful it was to bare my testimony that this gospel was true after many attemps him telling us there is no true church, or we are just confused and we will get lost. but in reality, he is the one getting lost.  I hope and pray one day he will have a change of heart. but I am greatful for this challenging expierience. Because my testimony has been strengthened so much!!

On the other hand, Raul had his baptism interview. which he will have to have a 2nd one due to some problems, but he also didnt come to church this sunday. So we will have to push his baptism date back another week.. April 7th I think it will be. But I know everything happens for a reason.

I love you all so much and am so greatful for the hard times and the good times in the mission. That is the beauty and the adventure of the mission! so we can learn and progress in this life.

Learn from your times of difficulty because god gives us trials to try us. So stay firm in your faith!!

I hope you all have a beautiful week.

Love, Hna Smoot

Week 44 (March 20, 2017)

Happy St. Patricks Day!

Well, this week has been a very interesting week for sure. I dont know if any of you have heard, but there was a lot of rain this week, in all of Peru. and that also has meant a LOT of flooding, like scary flooding, and half the mission is flooded, but luckily I just left that side of the mission, so in my area, and zone and well all of this side of the mission, is not flooded and all is well. But there have been water outages and sometimes we have to shower with buckets we saved from before.  It goes in and out. 

This week we also continued teaching Raul and Carlos. Which has been kind of stressful, and we actually had interviews this week and from the stress of that and of other things, President Godfrey gave me a priesthood blessing, and these last couple of days I have felt so much peace and so much better. The power of priesthood blessings are so real and I am so greatful for that.  We had to move Rauls baptism date back a week because he still had a lot of doubts and stuff and we started teaching them separate to have less contention which has definetly worked, so because of conference and everything he wont be able to get baptized until the end of April! but we are continuing to work with Raul more and we might stop teaching Carlos.

So my birthday is this friday and one thing I really wanted was to go to the temple. So we worked it all out and me and my comp can go and are going this wednesday for my bday present :)  I love the temple so much!! this will be my second time going in my mission and am so excited!

Last week I forgot to tell you, but we ate rabbit!! which wasnt bad and  actually tasted like chicken. Just a little wierd because its a house pet.  But we didnt think about that haha.

Even though sometime the mission has its stresses and dificulties, I know heavenly father is on our side the whole time watching over and protecting us. I know without a doubt I am supposed to be here, in Peru, serving the lord. I love this gospel so much and am so very greatful for the wonderful opportunity to be here! I know this church is true and this gospel is true. I know Pres Monson is a prophet of god, a seer and revelator and if we follow him we will not go astray. 

I love you all so much and thank you for everything.

Love, Hna Smoot

Week 43 (March 13, 2017)

I got my Package!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

Splits with Hermana Workman from Hawaii! What!! But she grew up also in Michigan

My back was hurting from the hard bed so I asked and they said they could get me a new one! So 3 days later the mission offices brought me the new one! (on the left) and now I can sleep well. 

Wow, this week nothing huge happened, but we have just been working and walking and finding.  My companion walks SO fast so sometimes its hard to keep up haha which is funny because she is in the same group as my hija! (the Sister I trained last transfer) so my comp im with now has been in the mission for 4 months and its actaully been really fun.  Like I said last week, she is from Argentina, and so even though Ive never had a companion from the states, everysingle one of my comps is from a different country! how cool is that. 

Well, this week we taught Raul and Carlos pretty much everyday!  Carlos quit on us Sunday, but then actually apoligized the next day! he said he had been dealing with personal problems and took it out on us. But he started listening to us and after shoving his Book of Mormon we had given him back to us, on tuesday he asked for it back again! They also both came to church on Sunday! and really enjoyed the class. Raul believes and really has a lot of desires to be baptized, which we set a baptism date for March 25! the day after my Birthday haha but Carlos is very hard. He has a lot of doubts about the Book of mormon but likes the Gospel Principles book they used in 2nd hour for the class so we are going to start using that because hes open to listen from that! which is great because its has pretty much all the missionary lessons in that book! So we hope everything will be ok.  Carlos also believes God and Jesus are the same person. and the holy ghost is seperate... so we keep trying to explain and testify that they are 3 seperate.

I know this church is true with all my heart!! I am so greatful for the opportunity to be here! And even if carlos doesnt accept the gospel, my testimony has truly been stregnthen. At times, Carlos would say things, like how no church is true, and we just believe because we were raised in the gospel, and I could feel satans power and influence trying to make me doubt, but I couldnt. I know this is true, and I am so greatful that I WAS raised in the gospel because that just gave me more time to learn and more time to recieve those blessings!! I KNOW this is christs church, under the direction of God the father, who is the father of our spirits. I KNOW that Joseph Smith really did see them and restored Christs church again upon the earth!! I KNOW that the book of mormon is TRUE!! and that the gospel is true.  I am so greatful for the opportunity to be here! and for this amazing gospel!!! I hope and pray that Raul will be able to stay with his desire to be baptized, even with the influence of Carlos's doubt, so he can recieve those blessings too! And that Carlos can live this gospel as well. 

I love you all and am so greatful for your examples to me and for your love and support!! 

Love, Hna Smoot

Week 42 (March 6, 2017)

My family haha. My daughter, my mom, and my sister. Oh, the mission family tree haha.

My new companion and I, Hermana Parra

Jerson Ceballos in the front, served in the same mission as Jade Smoot (my cousin)!!! So fun to talk about that! Brother Ceballos is a member in my ward.

Well, This week was cambios!! and I got transfered to the other side of the mission in the area of Chinchaysuyo, in the zone Independencia, which are the mission offices! so thats exciting.  but my new companion is Hna Parra from Argentina! She is super cool, and I am excited for whats ahead.  They also serve less food at lunch in general on this side of the mission, so its wierd to get a normal size amount of food on my plate on not a mountain of rice, but a normal amount! but all is well. haha

Well this week we were teach Raul and Carlos (they are both 30) and best friends. They were a street contact from the sister before and are both really good people. The only thing is that Carlos knows SO MUCH about the bible and tried many times to have a Bible Bash with us but of course we werent going to do that and invited him to pray about it all. But on sunday he told us he couldnt believe anything except if its in the bible so he didnt even want to read the book of mormon OR the pamphlet on the Restoration and has some interesting theorys. BUT Raul, after teaching them everyday this week, he is actually interested!! and after teaching them the restoration, book of mormon and part of the plan of salvation so far, he actually wants to be baptized. So we are going to continue teaching him and they actually both came to church, but Carlos said the fast and testimony meeting, all the testimonies were to strong for him so he got up and left in the middle of it. It was crazy and just proves that satan was really working on him.  But Raul stayed until 2nd hour! and then had another apt and had to go. but I think he will progress. Anyways we are excited for the future and we will see what happens.

I know this gospel is true! and I am so eternal grateful for this wonderful opportunity to be here!! Thank you for all your love and support!

Love Hna Smoot

Happy Birthday Dad!!! March 7

Week 41 (February 27, 2017)

Some young women in the ward

The sisters in my zone!! So great

Zone Magnolias

Antonella :) the baby of our landlord who is a member. So cute!

Wow, I cant believe the transfer is over. Time is flying by so fast. Tonight we will find out transfers, so I will let you know next week.  But it looks pretty likely I will leave my area. But we will see.

 This week was pretty normal. We are continuing to street contact and visiting the members to get references from them and we were able to get new investigators by doing so. 

Right now, we are teaching Milagros. We werent able to find her this week as much as we wanted to cause she wasnt home a lot,  so she still had a lot of lessons we hadnt taught yet so we had to push her baptism date back a week. So for now its for March 11, not March 4.  But all is well and this week she came to all 3 hours of church!! (came 40 min late, but at least stayed till the end!) So we will see what happens.

We also had a tender mercy this week. We were walking and we decided to visit this convert on the edge of our area. It was about 8 at night and so it was dark. and right as we walked past this park, everything behind us went black and most of our area was in a black out!  It was seriously a miricle because we were able to stay safe in the light and not have to stress about finding a place with light.  God was protecting us and I am so greatful for that.

We also went to the doctor again and my comp had to have an MRI on saturday. So that was fun... but she is doing well and can still walk all day working hard. So they think she has an infection in her femur bone.

I am so greatful for this opportunity to be here and I am so greatful for all my many blessings! I know that god is always looking out for us!  I know this church is true and am so greatful for everything!

love you all!!!

Love Hna Smoot

Week 40 (February 20, 2017)

Zone Meeting

Happy Valentines Day!

Chocolate covered strawberries haha

Me and Damaris a recent convert :) She's working on her personal progress!

First off, sorry this letter is so late. This morning my comp and I had to go to the hospital because my comp when she was little or ever since she was little has had problems with her leg/femor bone and broke it when she was little and so today they had to do an x.ray and see if everything is ok and she might have an infection. so please pray for her. She was going to go with another sister in the ward and have me go with the sister training leaders on splits, but I had an overwhelming feeling that I needed to go with her, and I had no idea why, and I still dont completly, but we went and I was able to talk to Hna godfrey in english and translate for my comp. (hna godfrey is still learing spanish) and mabey it was just for moral support, but in the end I was glad I went.

Well, I hope everyone had a lovely valentines day! My comp and I made chocolate covered strawberries on tuesday that were hideous but super delicious haha. But this week was pretty normal. Except we had a multi zone conference with President and Hermana Godfrey! Which are always amazing and he talked a ton about how we need to Trabajar con FE! or in english, Work with Faith! Like as we contact in the street and extend invitations we need the faith necesary to believe they really are going to accept! If we do all we can, then its up to the lord. But we must try our hardest first!

Also, for service project this week we sanded the cement walls of our landlord (whos a member and returned missionary and she is so amazing) living room and then they painted the next day, but we were white afterwords. My hair, clothes everything but it was super fun. We also had stake conference this week where in the end, president and hna godfrey spoke at it! and spoke on Keeping the sabbath day holy. and how the parents need to be the example because the kids will learn at church, and if the parents are not doing what is taught in church, it will just confuse the kids! so if we obey gods commandments, its obvious we will be blessed and our families will be blessed.

I know with all my heart this church is true!! I love you and pray for you.

I am so greatful for this wonderful opportunity to be here!!!

Love,

Hna Smoot

Week 39 (February 13, 2017)

HAPPY 9 MONTHS!
I can't believe I am at this point. I have learned so much and still have so much to learn! Thank you for your love and support. 

An with my "daughter" in the mission! So great, haha.

Some members and converts gave me a cake like it was my birthday to celebrate. Love them so much!

The familia Hinojosa! Finally with them all, Adriana, who turned 8 this week too!

Hello family and friends,

Well, this week was pretty normal. We are teaching this women, Milagros, who came to church last week but then stepped on a nail or something and so went to the hospital so she couldnt come this week, but shes ok dont worry! but during her lesson on sunday, we read the introuction of the book of mormon with her and after invited her to be baptized which she nodded her head and said ''now what do I need to prepare for that?'' we were so happy and explained we would help her and teach her and that she needs to continue to pray, read, and attend church. We then invited her to be baptized March 4 and she said YES!! We are so excited for her and we will see what happens.

We have also been teaching a part member where the wife is a less active and the husband isnt a member, but they arent married but have two kids.  We are working toward there marriage and his baptism, but they didnt come to church this sunday, so we will see.  But the wife is learning english and in an English class, so as a service, I helped her with her english HW which was actually really great. and glad I could use my english here in PERU! :)

In church, all the youth that went to EFY last week went and bore there testimonies in church!  It just made me remember all the good memories and wonderful spirit of EFY! And how great it was to building testimonies. Even though its probably not ''life changing'' it is still a wonderful opportunity they had and I am so greatful I got to go when I was a youth as well.  Anyways but the two teenagers from the Hinajosa family got to go to EFY!! Which was a miracle because they were literally batized like 2 weeks before!! So amazing.

I hope you all have a wonderful week this week and I am so greatful for this wonderful opportunity I have to be here. I love you all, HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!! Share your joy and love for others this holiday by serving them.

Love Hna Smoot.

Week 38 (February 6, 2017)

I got my hair cut! (only 2 inches) but my comp cut about 6 inches off! Last night my companion helped me put sable plant in my hair which is like this dewy stuff, but now my hair feels softer and not so dead and broken. So thats good haha.

A picture of a picture, but here is the llama (after Service)!!

Dear Family and Friends,

This week was pretty normal except the whole new schedule thing. Which I actually really like and its been a lot less stressful! We have more time to think it feels like. And we have a little bit more time to sleep! So our new schedule is go to bed at 11 or 11:30 depending if you need more sleep and wake up at 7 or 7:30. We just have to get 8 hours of sleep or more :)  I actually really like it.

We also had a work visit exchange (i dont know what its called in english) but for 24 hours we exchange comps. So I went to the area of the sister training leaders and one of them went to our area with my comp. So I was with Hna Rockhill who is from Utah!! So that was fun to be with another gringa! she has 5 months in the mission so shes a little new but is our sister training leader and is actually really good :) but after our service project, we were walking home and there was a llama in the park!! so of course we got a picture :)  So funny. Only in PERU!

I forgot to say, but last week we had interviews with president and clean checks, which hna Godfrey gave us homemade chocolate chip cookies which I havent had my whole mission so it was a very sweet treat.

But we are continuing to find and teach, working with part member familys, referals, and contacting. Here in peru is Summer right now so no ones in school and they are also having EFY this week in the stake center! All the youth are getting so excited and it just reminded me of when I went to EFY and how amazing it was and just really greatful for that opportunity, but even more so greatful for this amazing opportunity to be here on my mission! Not everyday is amazing and not everyday is happy ville, but in the end it is all worth it. Those moments of seeing a family baptised or when someone finds for themself that this church is true, those are the moments that make up for all the low moments. I know this church is absolutly true and this gospel is so perfect! Members arent perfect, but this gospel is! Put you trust in God and continue forward in faith and god wont let you go astray if you are obedient and worthy! 

I love you all so much!!

Love, Hna Smoot

The new schedule from our mission pres for our mission. Sorry its in spanish. Google translate? or Ally can translate haha

7:30am Levantarse (afuera de la cama—no es solo despertarse, es salir de la cama)

7:30am-10:30am –Orar, hacer ejercicio (30 minutos), bañarse, comer, preparar por el día, planificar (30 minutos), Estudio Personal (60 minutos), llenar la carpeta de área.

10:30am-10:00pm prosélito (hasta 10:30 pm si están ensenando una lección), estudio de compañerismo (30 a 60 minutos), Primeras 12 Semanas (30 minutos), Idioma (30 minutos), cena (menos de 30 minutos).

1:30-2pm Lunch

10pm Regresar a casa (10:30pm si están ensenando una lección)

10:00pm-11:30pm—Escribir en diario, preparar para acostarse, orar

10:30pm-11:30pm—Acostarse

Hermanas tienen que tener un miembro con ellos después de las 9:30pm a menos que estén en un área segura y tranquila. Élderes debe utilizar cuidado y sabiduría en la noche también.

Compañerismos tienen que estar de acuerdo y acostarse a la misma hora.

Por favor, informe a sus obispos de estos cambios, especialmente los que dan almuerzo. Con gratitud, pídeles si pueden cambiar el horario para llegar a la 1:30 y poder salir a las 2pm. 

Ustedes deciden como compañerismo cuando hacen su estudio de compañerismos, Primeras 12 Semanas (por los que están entrenando), estudio de idioma y cena durante las horas de 10:30am y 10pm. Pueden quedar a enseñar lecciones hasta las 10:30pm.


El Día de Preparación:

7:30am Levantarse
7:30am a 9:00am Orar, bañarse, comer, preparar por el día, planificar (30 minutos), Estudio Personal (por lo menos 30 minutos)

9:00am a 12:pm Escribir el Presidente de Misión y entrar indicadores claves en el portal misional. Leer la carta del Presidente de Misión y otras actividades apropiadas para el día de preparación según el Manual Misional.

12:pm a 5 o 6pm- Actividades apropiadas para el día de preparación según el Manual Misional.

5 o 6pm a 10pm—Prosélito

10pm Regresar a casa (10:30pm si están ensenando una lección)

10:00pm-11:30pm—Escribir en diario, preparar para acostarse, orar

10:30pm-11:30pm—Acostarse


Preguntas frecuentes:

Sé que tenemos que acostarnos al mismo tiempo, pero, ¿tenemos que levantarnos a la misma hora? No, uno puede levantarse más temprano, pero todos deben tener por lo menos 8 horas de sueño.

¿Con este cambio, vamos a empezar intercambios de 24 horas en la mañana en vez de empezar en la noche? Si, este cambio facilita mejor un comienzo en la mañana antes de las 10:30am.

¿Podemos ensenar una lección en las mañanas antes de las 10:30am cuando sea necesario? Si, pueden ajustar su horario de vez en cuando por oportunidades especiales y necesarias.

¿Podemos enseñar lecciones durante el día de preparación antes de 6pm? Si, pueden ajustar su horario de vez en cuando por oportunidades especiales y necesarias.

¿Qué significa 5 a 6pm a 10pm—Psoselito en el dia de preparación? Esto quiere decir que ustedes pueden escoger la hora de salida entre 5 y 6pm como compañerismo.

Week 37 (January 30, 2017)

Family Hinojosa

I saw Hermana Richardson at the conference of Elder Cook, my companion from the MTC and I haven't seen her since we got our visas 6 months ago! So fun!

My new companion Hermana Velasquez :)

Well, This week was full of lots of things and lots of changes but also was a very beautiful week.

First, on tuesday, Elder Quintin L Cook came to Peru!! and we had the amazing opportunity, our mission Lima North, and the mission Lima West, to shake hands with an apostle of god! and listen to him speak!  It was amazing and he spoke of so many things and at the end he said, there are just some expieriences to sacred to shard, but let me just say, I know his voice, and I know his face, and I testify he lives!! It was so powerful! he spoke in english and then had a translater speak next to him in spanish after every phrase or so, so it was very wonderful i could actaully understand every single word! 

Then, on Wednesday, there was another training but it was a broadcast from Salt lake with some of the General authority and leaders of the church.  Which the main thing from this conference was the change in the everyday mission schedule! Now we wake up at 7:30 and go to bed at 11:00 or 11:30(depending if we need more sleep) this will be very different because we have been doing the same schedule since I got here and so it will be exciting but strange to change. But change is good.  also instead of 1 hour to eat lunch and 1 hour to eat dinner, now its 30 min for each. Also, now we will have time at night to write in our journal longer, which will be good cause it felt like we never had time! and we have daily planning in the mornings! but anyway we will see how it goes.

This week was also a water shortage. Apparently a ton of mountain dirty water got into the tank of water or something like that so for 2.5 days (which everyone thougt it was going to  be 4 or 5 day, so that was a blessing,) there was no water, in ALL OF LIMA!  it was crazy and the church has a big storage water tank underground int he chapel so the church still had water and people were freaking out and stealing water from the church, haha and we thought we werent going to have enough water for the baptism, but there was and that was another blessing!

And so,

On Friday, the Familia Hinojosa got married!!! and on saturday the 4 of them (Oscar and Carmen, and there 2 of 4 (the other 2 are under 8) Lusia and Sara) GOT BAPTIZED!!! It was a beautiful service and the lord was perparing them. They changed there lives for the gospel and the members here are so amazing and the youth have welcomed them into there group of friends without a question.  And then they were all confirmed on sunday as members of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints!!  They have such a desire to learn and grow and they read as a family in the book of mormon every day!!!  I still cant believe that they have entered into the path to eternal life and in 1 year they want to be sealed as a family in the temple for time and all eternity!!

I love this gospel and know it is absolutely true! People are not perfect, but this gospel is. I love you all and am so greatful and happy to be here!! 

Love, Hna Smoot

Hey PS I officially tried Chicken feet. It was gewy and not the greatest also felt like I was eating a human finger.. so ya haha and I also got on our plate this wierd looking meat, and I cant remember if I told you, but we also

 ate cow lungs! chopped up with potatoes and spagetti.  Super interesting and lets just say I couldnt finish that one.. haha the joys of the mission :)

Week 36 (January 23, 2017)

Well, this week the main event that happened was CAMBIOS!!! (transfers)  My comp, Hna Meza got transfered to the other side of the mission, and I stayed here in my area Bayover in the Zone Magnolias, and my new comp is Hermana Velasquez from Arequipa Peru!! She has also been in the mission 2 months, so I am her step mom in the mission. The mission language  and family trees are super funny. but that means I am her trainer for the 2nd half of her training! Its been a little stressful with all the changes, but she is super awesome.  She is a quite a bit older than me so its funny that my 'daughter' is older than me haha if that makes any sense, but anyways.

This week we were also teaching the familia Hinojosa and they had there interviews for there baptism and everything seems clear for this saturday!! we are so excited and they were definetly so prepared!! The lord is working with them and they feel that it is all true!! They have been continually praying for an anwser and felt like they werent recieving one. Then we felt impressed to ask what they were expecting for an anwser, and Oscar (the dad) said 'i dont know, like a dream or vision or something' and so then we shared the scripture in 3 nephi 11:3 about how the spirit isnt going to jump out and scream saying its all true! but that the spirit is a still small voice, which mulitiple times they had said they felt more calm and peace when reading and praying and everything and they definetly have been feeling the spirit and just need to recognize that that was the spirit talking to them! It was so amazing.  

I know this church is true with all my heart! And that this gospel is true!! I am so greatful for this opportunity i have to be hear in Peru!!

Love you all,

Love Hna Smoot.  

also sorry, no pics this week cause the computer wont except my memory card for some reason in this internet cafe. so next week ill send one of me and my new comp.

Week 35 (January 16, 2017)

My Companion and Me

Our lovely Christmas tree that I never got to send a picture of. It totally made Christmas! Thanks mom for sending it!!

The Familia Hinojosa (except their 7 year old daughter)

With the Relief Society. Not all of them, there are actually quite a few RS members :) 

Happy New Years!!

With our landlord and her daughter, so cute!

Well,

Today is the last day in the transfer, and so tonight we find out what will happen with CAMBIOS (transfers) and it is more prabable that my comp will leave and I will stay and could possibly train a newbie (my first time) and so we will see what will happen. But this week was amazing!! So this week we literally went every single day and taught the Familia Hinojosa! And figured everything out and on tuesday went by bus 1.5 hours to the marriage license place and registered them for marriage! and So it is official!! On January 27, Oscar and Carmin Hinojosa are going to get married and then on Jan 28 them and there 2 teenage daughters are getting Baptized!! It is seriously a miricle!! They were referencias from a member and seriously god was preparing them so much! They have continued to read the book of mormon every day and pray and are so excited to continue to progress and learn and actually want to obey the commandments to the best of there abilities!! And Adrian, their 7 year old daughter turns 8 in febuary so he could possible baptized his daughter by then! 

This gospel really is so amazing! 

This week I was also studying a lot about the atonement which has been amazing and litterally we would be nothing without christ and without the atonement of Jesus Christ!

Also funny story, so it rained saturday morning like in the middle of the night and we woke up and the street in front of our house was flooded!! and when we left to work, our neighbor was trying to move the water, so we helped her out and unflooded the street by carring buckets of water from the huge slope to where it started going down hill the other direction.  It was actually kind of fun and different.  But we asked if we could share a measage with her and we set up a return apointment with her! She wanted to listen cause we helped her out and so the best way to show your love for others is by serving others. So go SERVE!

 I also got a huge spider bite on my leg. I have no idea how, but sorry for the grossness, but it got really red and swollen ect. but after about a week it went away.  but it didnt itch just hurt real bad haha.

Anyways, finally figured out the pictures ect, so here are some from the past 3 weeks.

Anywasys,  I know this gospel is absolutely true and am so very greatful for it!! Thank you mom and dad for raising me in the gospel and for being such amazing examples to me! 

I love you all,

Hna Smoot

Week 34 (January 9, 2017)

Hello!

Well this week was very exciting for my comp and me.  First of all, Tuesday we had a conference with president and hna Godfrey, his wife, and it was so amazing!! My mission president is seriously the best.  Anyways they got people off the street and payed them to listen to us to have practices, but on real people (usually its just with each other) so that was crazy, but aparently by the end the 6 people they grabbed, in the end 3 were interested in the church! That itself is a miracle.  But our president went over again the way he wants us to work. Which is to work with the members! And let me just say, it totally works.  We asked for references every time we visited members, and they gave us some really good ones.  This sunday 7 of our investigators came to church  (2 families and another lady).. That is more than any other time in my whole mission! We were very excited and although those families are not married yet, we are working to have them marry this month or next but they want to get baptized!! One family specifically, the Familia Inojosa we contacted the reference on saturday and then they came to church with the help of the member, and we taught them sunday evening. And they want to be marry and be baptized. They have a 14 and 15 and 7 year old girls and a 2 year old boy.  So cute and so beyond prepared its ridiculous.  We really are just the instruments in the hands of the lord.  But we are so excited and happy for them. I just hope and pray all goes well.  

I know this church is true and I know that as a missionary, the help of members is not only important or necessary, but essential.  So its up to you all as members to share the gospel and look for your friends who are not members and spread the joy you all feel!  I know this gospel is true and that gods plan for us, through the atonement of Jesus christ is true and the only way we can really be happy is by obeying his commandments! I love you all and hope you have a beautiful week!!

Love, Hna Smoot

PS my pictures are still not working and so I will try again this week. only a little annoying but all is well.

Week 33 (January 2, 2017)

Nicole! (Standing to the right of me) with the familia Pena in our ward and the others :)

Ward Christmas Party!

Wow, this week was so crazy. To start off, like I mentioned last week, me and my comp were robbed in the internet cafe, but we were just so greatful we were not harmed and all is well. DO NOT WORRY :) Everything happens for a reason when you are obeying gods commandments.  So we got over it in a couple of days. But this week to start off on tuesday afternoon we had a work visit where the sister leader comes and I went to her area and worked with her comp for 24 hours.  It was great and always exciting to switch it up a little. Also this week me and my comp, following the council from our mission president, we have started working A LOT more with the members and leaders in the church.  We found 27 references this week as a result of those members which is normally around 15 and as a result 2 investigatores came to church this week!! Which its been a while. And so we were very greatful for that because it lifted our spirits from everything.  We had a wonderful week and I am positive it was from all your prayers. So thank you.  As all of you know, it was also New Years! Which I cant believe it is already 2017!! That is absolutely crazy! But new years eve we worked normal did divisions with 2 sister members to find more people to teach and basically no was home, but before going back to be with my comp, I had a feeling to knock on this door so we did and we taught him and we set up a return apointment! so even though from the holiday craziness, God is still blessing and helping us as we work diligently to follow those promptings.  Also we went to bed like normal but we were woken up at 12 from the 20 or 30 min huge Firework show out side our house in the air.  we looked out our window, which was pretty much the same as what happend for christmas eve.  It was massive, but we went to bed after a couple of min, it was just super loud.

Our mission president also has instructed us to make goals! but SMART Goals, because goals can feel overwhelming at times. so its important to break it up into smaller goals, daily weekly monthly and yearly goals.  That way we can change into the people god wants us to be as we prayerfully set goals, then take action and pray for help to accomplish them.  

I love you all so much and hope you all had a wonderful New Years and Christmas. Also happy aniversary to my parents Dec 28! Love you mom and dad!! So glad you got married :)

Love, Hna Smoot