Merry Christmas

Buenas Familia!!

Wow, okay, so this week was really crazy!! 

First the normal part was teaching investigators. This week was really strong! We have a couple gems that are really starting to come out of the woodwork! This week we have had a couple of moments that were unforgettable! We were visiting a less active family and teaching one of the daughters, Mayley. I got told time and time again in the past that every time that the missionaries tried to set her up with a baptismal date that she either said no or that she just didn't really show interest. This time the spirit was so strong that when we asked she said yes to the date!!! She was so happy! Her mama just started to bawl! We asked her what she can do to help herself get her ready for that day. She said we can start reading the Book of Mormon together everyday. It was amazing to see not only the daughter, but the mother also realize that if they want this they can do it together! Times like that are why I am so grateful for the spirit that testifies to their hearts!! We would be lost without the spirit!

Also this week we have had great success with another less active family. It is a grandmother, daughter, and her two sons. The grandmother is mas o menos acitve. She has come enough to be considered active, but she doesn't come each week. While I have been here we have encouraged the daughter to come back to church with her mother. It has been amazing to see the progression in the family. In the past the daughter would never come.  I am pretty sure that I have wrote about the son last week. Jacksel, is the most brilliant 11 year old that I have ever met! He is really trying to do what is right. We have been teaching him all the lessons to prepare him for his baptism in the first week of January. I know that he is ready. He has the strongest testimony in his family. I honestly think that the reason that his mom has been coming back to church has been because of this amazing boy!!

The crazy part of my week has been because I have had a concert every night this weekend!! I was in San German, Ponce, and Toa Baja which is on the other sides of the island. It was a blast to be able to sing of Christ all over the island. It was an opportunity that I will never be able to replace! So for this weekend I was on companion exchange. I was with the Lovely Sister Human. She is a blast. She has 6 weeks more then me on the mission and was in Humacao the transfer before me. We have been getting along great!! We are finishing our crazy week tonight with a zone Christmas party at President’s house!! I will finally be able to pick up my packages!!! 

Can't wait to see you guys on Christmas Eve!!! I love you all so much.

Best wishes to Jaren and Hannah this weekend of their wedding!! I know that you will never forget or regret the amazing covenants that you are making to each other and the Lord this amazing day!! I love you both and send me tons of pictures!!

Con Amor siempre,

Hermana Harris

I Sing?

Hey family!! 

My week has been pretty great and pretty crazy!!

This week has been great because I still love it here in Humacoa!! It is beautiful. The people are friendly. My companion is crazy and awesome.  We get along so great. She is a powerhouse when teaching the lessons and has a very strong testimony. Also she is a ball. We are always laughing and smiling all day long!! 

This week we have been trying to work on as many less actives and recent converts as possible. I love teaching them because it is like review. We get to teach them something that at one time they knew to be true. Those lessons really just consist of inspired questions to get the Member thinking of what they know. It sometimes feels like I am teaching a child. Like those times that you are digging for a certain response so I ask two different questions to see if they remember. For example, who is our older brother, what did he do on the earth for us, what are some of the stories in the bible that you remember of Christ?

A first in this area is we are actually teaching children too. Just sounds strange to me. Some of the families are part members that we have started to reactivate have children 8-12ish that have to be taught all the lessons before they can be baptized. We have one boy named Jacksel. He is adorable. He is 12 years-old and really has the desire to know for himself. He comes from a whole family of less-active members.  While the sister missionaries in the past found the less-active mother, uncle, and mother they found out that the son hasn't been baptized. This little boy has been a powerhouse example to his family. They have been able to see his example and testimony. His mom and grandma attended church with him this week!! It was so amazing to the see the smile on his face when they all walked in together!! I know that from his example that he will be able to bring his whole family back to church!! 

So this weekend we had three concerts, one concert in Guyanabo, Caguas, and Toa Baja. It was so much fun to be back in my other ward and seeing everyone!! I had tons of hugs! The Caguas and Toa Baja concerts were huge and nerve racking but it turned out great!

So the big news this week is that my Bishop knew I was in the choir and heard us sing in Caguas. So this Sunday right before church he found out our stake president was coming. He asked me to sing a solo in church!! OH my, I was  freaking out!! I sang Angels We Have Heard on High! Oh my! I don't want to do that again. My voice is so not good enough to sing a solo. In a choir I am comfortable but solo no way. Oh and to top it off, I am singing a duet with one of the elders next Sunday for Christmas Sunday. Wish me luck!!

I love you all so, so much. I sent of a package of Puerto Rico Goodies filled with things for everyone in the family and a little thing for my adopted lil’ sis, Kyla. I hope you all like it. You can choose.

Con Amor Siempre!!

Hermana Harris

Transferred

Hey, so I love you guys so, so much!!

Wow! Okay, so this week has been amazing!!

My companion is Sister Sanchez. She is from El Salvador. She speaks very little (meaning practically no) English! It has been amazing.  My Spanish has grown leaps and bounds in the past week! She, Sister Sanchez, is a convert of three years and has an incredible testimony!!

The area here is BEAUTIFUL!!! I am next to the beach, the air is fresh, and the people are very, very nice! My ward is incredible.  We have different member missionaries go out with us every single day. Oh, and the best part of this area, we have investigators!!! 

We have an investigator that we have taught the last couple of lessons to. She now is only an interview away from Baptism!! Her name is Reina.  She grew up in the states with a Spanish-speaking mother and English-speaking Dad so she is fluent in both. She loves talking to me in English.  She says that she really misses it. She talked to me all about her family and her life for a good hour while she was cooking us dinner. Wow, she is incredible mother of 9 kids!! She has taken care of her sibling’s kids too! The only thing stopping her from baptism right now is she hasn't told her husband that she wants to be baptized. Which is a huge problem, but she said that she will do it this week! She said that she just doesn't want to cause contention in the house. She wants to be able to talk it all out with him first. She also told us that if she is baptized that it might make him more curious in hearing the message. Now he greets us and disappears. He will eventually have a softened heart I just know it!!

Wow, Sister Sanchez and I get along so, so well!! She told me today that I am the first American sister that she knows that is not boring!! :) Ha, ha, she told me that I must have a little Latina in me!! :) 

We also have been teaching another family. It is a family consisting of a Mom and her two children. She is very welcoming. We have taught her twice this week. The only problem is she has always got something going on, on Sundays. So now we have to get her to church so that she can feel the spirit!! I know that once she feels the spirit that is in the chapel that she will have the desire to truly know if these things are true! We were prompted to teach her and her kids the Plan of Salvation, which they have already been taught. Sister Sanchez said that last time they didn't really understand it fully. I feel like this time when we left they really did understand it and why we need to work while we are on the Earth to be able to be with our families for time and all eternity!!

I will tell you more next week!!

I love you guys more then anyone else in the whole World!!! 

Con Amor,

Hermana Harris 

Zone Conference!

Hey family!!

Well first things, first.

I want to say that I love you guys so, so much! I am so incredibly blessed to have an amazing family like you! I know that we can be together forever and that brings so much happiness to my soul!

Well this week we did a lot of walking, ha ha, mission life! We are continuing to contact every area that we go to! We have been going through the ward list and contacting as many as we can find. Wow, our list needs to be updated, but hey we are just doing more work for the ward. We have found a lot of less-actives and tried to talk to them! 

Well, one of the big things for this week is that we had Zone Conference! It was a great opportunity to get a reboot. To be spiritually uplifted and to be recharged! We focused on the 9th chapter of preach my gospel, finding people. Honestly, it was exactly what we needed for our area! It really makes you think about how to meet people. It really is the little things where the Lord prepares someone that is ready for the gospel. We are constantly in the streets talking to people we pass, in the buses, in the gas stations getting change for the buses, everywhere! All of Heavenly Fathers children need the gospel so it is worth the time and effort to try to talk to each one of them! I love zone conference and it was also a great opportunity to be able to talk to all the missionaries in my zone! I had the opportunity to see three missionaries that were in the CCM with me, so that was amazing!! 

The next amazing occurrence of the week is that I had the opportunity to meet and listen to two members of the seventy!!! Elder Packer (Elder Boyd K. Packers son) and Elder Martinez!! They were here talking to our stake about family history! Wow, it was so powerful! It is amazing to hear them talk about the importance of family history. One thing that was said that I loved was: Family history is really simple, first, just start talking to any family member that has a story, and write down memories that we have. One of the speakers said this

"1. Find a name of an ancestor,

2. Take it to the temple, and

3. Get someone else to do the same."

How simple is that? Really, if everyone just continued to do this cycle, time and time again, just think about how grateful the ones in heaven waiting will be. I know that when I get off my mission this will be one of the ways that I will continue to be a missionary. We have the opportunity everyday to bring the gospel to our ancestors through family history! The church has made it so much simpler these days with famlysearch.org. 

Well another really cool thing about this week was yesterday. So we were walking to an area really close to our house. Normally we take the long way around.  I was just kind of being lazy so I said, like what is the point at taking the long way when we can cut off some of the walking time? It just happened that when we were walking the short cut we passed a newly moved less-active!! They got in their car an followed us to where we were walking. They stopped next to us and explained that they had seen us walking and really wanted to talk to us. It just so happens that they had just moved to this area. They wanted to know where the church was. The husband is a less active and admitted it. His wife has never even looked into the church! I am so excited to teach them this coming week!

Well, that is all for my week! I love you all so, so much and miss you always!

Con amor siempre,

Hermana Harris