letter from June 14

Mom,

Still haven't gotten the package yet so I bought boots because it has started to rain more and my feet are getting wet but the boots were really cheap! I wear a layer of thermals constantly (sleeping, exercising, being alive, etc.)

Transfers... I'm staying here in Santa Sabina for at least another Cambio with my hija Hermana Robertson. She is the best hija I have ever had. Seriously. She is like your best-friend roommate but she is my best-friend roommate. Your favorite elder is no longer my Zone Leader so your ability to stalk me will decrease.

Oscar came to church on Sunday! Love that kid. We had breakfast before and went together. Legit.

Eduardo didn't come because he slept in. :( But we have had some good lessons with him lately so I hope he can really take the initiative to find out for himself. Ironically enough he has a problem with the two things that sealed the deal for you. He told us yesterday that he didn't like/understand vicarious baptisms nor the sealing of families which really are, for me, some of the most beautiful parts of the gospel.

We aren't sure what happened with Patricio. We thing he had to work on Sunday in the end because he didn't come to church and then we couldn't get a hold of him later, which isn't like him at all.

We went to Eduardo's church because his parents invited us. It was a really good experience. It was a nice church, the people were happy and everything and I felt the Spirit there but overall the experience really strengthened my testimony of this church. For me it was a concrete experience that showed me that what I always say, that almost all the churches can help us be better people and reach a certain level of happiness here on earth, really is true. But it also made me understand a little better that what makes our church different, among other things, is the ability we have to make binding covenants with God and therefore have the chance to be faithful to those promises and progress. Basically we are working to help people enter the celestial kingdom which is only possible through making and keeping covenants with God. It really does make sense. He already has set and told us what we need to do to go where and so we just have to decide where we want to go and do the things He has established. A lot of times we make it a whole lot more complicated than that or than it has to be.

Mom, a big difference between you pre-conversion and a lot of people we talk to is the desire to search and to know.  have never taught anyone who really wanted to know who never found out or received an answer. I have taught a lot of people who never really had a desire to search out these things for themselves and so just kind of trickled of without every getting an answer but that was because they weren't looking, not because it wasn't there. So good work for searching, Mom. I'm really glad that you did. :)

love you all! (not just Mom)

Hermana Smith / Sami

Letters from June 7 - to us and to President Chavez

Letter from June 7
Hey Family,

Here are some photos I forgot to send last time from when we went to the beach. It was awesome. We had to hike down from pretty high and there is an abandoned train tunnel and we tried to take cool jumping pictures inside because it is pitch black but...it turns out I can´t jump so that was a downer. Literally. jajaja.

jajaja = hahaha

Anyway, this week was pretty good. Hermana Robertson and I get along so well that is actually blows my mind a little. We have some really awesome people that we are teaching. It´s nice that we get along so well because we can focus in the work and not in getting along (sometimes that happens...)

We are still working with Eduardo. He came to church for the 4th time this Sunday but he says he still hasn´t felt that Spirit. He has only stayed for all three hours twice. He is a really good joven and has a lot of knowledge, especially about the Scriptures but he doesn´t really feel it. At least is doesn´t seem like he does. We are trying to help him feel the Spirit, or maybe recognize it because I think he has probably already felt it but he doesn´t know what it is. Mom, maybe you could share with me how it was when you were trying to fell and recognize the Spirit. It might help me to help him by having another perspective to share.

We also have Patricio. He is really prepared and has a lot of desire to get baptized but he is working with the Word od Wisdom. He is having some financial problems right now and has a lot of stress so he took a step back and drank one night to try to forget but he feels so bad for it. He felt the Spirit reallyt strongly the first time he came to church and because of that he was able to give up smoking and drinking almost completely. We are trying to help him be more positive and feel prepared to be baptized the 20th of this month. He is kind of the opposite of Eduardo in the sense that he doesn´t have a lot of knowledge but he can feel the Spirit and he has the desire to learn and because of his knowledge, Eduardo closes off a little more easily.

Then we have Oscar. This kid cracks me up. He was going to come to church Sunday until he went to bed at 9am that morning. He is a little bit of a partier. That is an understatement, by the way. But he felt the Spirit when he prayed and we are working with him to help him recognize his answer so he can have the strength of will to change a few things. His house always smells a little funny when we share with him :) Working on that...

And Mariane. She is the wife of a member and super awesome. She prays and reads every day and is getting baptized the 20th of this month. She has a lot of support which I think REALLY helps in the conversion process.

Sooooo... Basically I still love being a missionary even though it is hard sometimes because I love seeing people accept the Gospel and have the Holy Ghost help them make changes that bring them more happiness. So cool.

That is all for now. No package. :(

But there is always NEXT monday....

love,
HERMANA SAMI SMITH

Letter to President Chavez – June 7
Presidente Chávez,

Este semana me di cuenta que la Hermana Robertson y yo podríamos tener mucho más éxito juntas porque nos caimos tan bien que podemos concentrarnos completemente en la obra. Solo necesitamos ayudar a una al otra a tener el ánimo suficiente. Si hay algo que nos falta aveces, es el ánimo. Bueno, otra cosa que me siento que me falta ahora es la Visión porque siento que he dejado que el temor de los hombres tiene más poder en mi corazón. Estoy trabajando para sacar eso y aplicar la Visión mucho mejor. Tenemos una meta que es bien pequeña peor algo que puede ayudarnos a tener la Visión de invitar a una persona a bautizarse cada una cada día. Yo sé que no es mucho pero siento la necesidad de empezar con leche antes de carne y linea por linea vamos a ver milagros. Tenemos algunas personas que solo les falta poquito para bautizarse en este mez y trabajaremos por esa meta para cad uno. He pensando estes días en Éter 12:6 donde dice que el testimonio viene despues de la prueba de nuestra fe. Estoy queriendo un testimonio de la Visión y la única manera de lograr uno es ejercer mi fe en eso y hacerlo hasta que pueda yo sentirlo con fuerza y certeza. Hazlo no más.

Hermana Smith

A translation thanks to google translate & some creative license on my part.
President Chavez

This week I realized that Sister Robertson and I could be far more successful together because we get along so well that we can fully concentrate on the work. We just need to help one another have enough courage. If there is something we sometimes lack, it is the spirit. Well, another thing I feel I need now is the Vision because I feel like I let the fear of man have more power in my heart. I'm working to get that and better implement the Vision. We have a goal that is very small: something thing that can help us have the vision is to invite a person to be baptized every one every day. I know it's not much but I feel the need to start with meat and milk before going line by line to see miracles. We have some people who just lack a little to be ready to be baptized so we will work for that goal for a while. In Ether 12:6 it says that testimony comes after the test of our faith. I want a testament to the Vision and the only way to achieve one is to exercise my faith in that and I will do that until I can feel it strongly and with certainty.

Sister Smith

Letter from May 31

Letter from May 31
This week will be a short letter because I want to take a nap. I am good. I have NOT gotten your package yet. Our investigators are progressing well, I think we will have a baptismal service this Sunday and possibly the following as weel but we will see what the Lord and our investigators think. I found a cool trilobyte (sp?) like shell on the beach and I am going to make a necklace out of it. We´ll see how that goes next Monday. Sorry this letter is lame but,

I love you and appreciate cool things that you tell me.

GOODBYEEEEEE!!!!!

love,
Sami

Letter from May 24

I got your email. I thought I replied... Your favorite missionary goes home in October so don´t sweat it, you have a good 4 months of stalkage left. What I have learned about being in a foreign country is that it is just best to laugh when awkward things happen. And then later, laugh again because you only live once so you might as well enjoy everything that happens.

New President = Junio

We have some great investigators that are working to receive their answer from Heavenly Father so we are trying to help with that. Life is great. I really appreciate receiving the letters Elder Kutterer writes (I don´t know if I already said that) because it helps me appreciate everthing here more. We have an awesome investigator named Patricio that has already come to church twice and he loves it. Miracle. Siempre hay milagros. Que estén bien. (There are always miracles. They are well).

con cariño,
Hermana Smith

Sami's letter from May 17

Letter from May 17
Hey Family,

This week has been a little tough on finding new people to teach but with that even we found 5 new people which is great. When I read Elder Kutterer's letters I realize how well the Lord knows me to send me here and not to Germany to preach His gospel. We had zone conference last Thursday which was awesome. I always feel like there are a million things that I need to learn and sometimes I just don't even know where to start. We are trying to be more diligent and better at recognizing and following the Spirit instead of just feeling it testify. We have really awesome investigators so we are trying to help them progress as much as we can but we still have a lot of work to do so we can be better teachers for them. That is how I feel at least. It's amazing the difference the Spirit makes in my ability to teach, especially in Spanish. So I am working so I can be better at having the Spirit with me always by applying all the things I am teaching. Missionaries need to repent too. Sorry this letter is short. I was reading on of Elder Holland's talks and then I ran out of time...
Love you all!!!
Hermana Smith

Pictures from April and May

Letter from May 10 & Mother's day call

We had a great conversation with Sami on Mother's day. Jennie and I were in Bad Hersfeld, Germany & Ed, Brian, Jess, Xander, Mike, Jeannie, Suzanne & Zack were in Kent (her other 2 sisters & their families were unavailable) - so we did conference calling with SKYPE (to landlines not computer). She told us how much she and her new companion have in common (they both even play the guitar) and how well they are getting along - right from the start. She loves her new area though it is harder than the poorer, humbler one she was in before. She can't quite get used to the fact that many of the members in this ward are well off (at least by Chile standards). They even got ordered in pizza for lunch one day which she says is expensive & she is actually learning to enjoy eating fish now that she is nearer to the Ocean. Her zone order sweat shirts which you will see in some later pictures - they haven't done any service related work lately, but she expects them to do more in the future. So far, the Chile Spring/Winter weather has not really hit. It is cold at night, but not too much rain so far (probably because all of the rain is in the US & Europe)
 
Dear Family,

Here are some pictures. I know they don't exactly make up for the past 3 months but that's the best I have right now.

So I am basically having an awesome time. I'm really excited to be working with my new companion, we get along really well and have a lot of work to do here in Santa Sabina so that works out. Wow, that's a lot of work. Ahahaha. I am just too funny, too funny.

Thanks for the photos, Dad. It is nice to know that you all look exactly the same. Me too. Just with more meat. Speaking of meat, I need to cut back on the peanut butter seeing as I eat meat every day. I think I might have a protein overload. So no more peanut butter UNLESS.... it is in the form of candy. I will never say no to that.

I still haven't received your package yet but maybe at zone conference or next Monday...

I haven't felt any temblores all week! Weird.

Thanks for talking to me on the phone, Everyone.

Brian, they are playing your favorite song in the internet café right now: "Hit Me With Your Best Shot"

We have some really great investigators that just need a little help in applying the things that they are learning. But we also need to find more people to teach so we are working to accomplish that as well. One of our investigators named Katarin just got a new job that doesn't make her work Sundays so she can come to church now. She has been keeping the Word of Wisdom for about half a week now, which may not sound like a long time but for a lot of people that is a big deal. Every time that we share with her I leave so happy! She is so funny and energetic.

We are also teaching Eduardo, a young college student with Evangelical roots. I guess they are more than roots because he plays guitar for his church meetings (I didn't catch that when we started sharing). He is really awesome too. He said he hasn't heard any false doctrine from us yet so he will keep sharing. :) He understands the message we share and what it really means but he doesn't feel it yet, if that makes sense. Logically it makes sense, but that is useless without feeling his own answer from God, so we are working with him in that aspect.

Until next week.

Love,

Hermana Smith