Tender Mercy with 3-year-old Bobby.

January 18, 2016

Family and friends:

Thank you all for your love and support. I hope you know how needed and strong you are. Thank you thank you for all you do!!! 

Tender Mercies: 

*One of our investigators, Sara, has a boy named Bobby. He is 3 and super cute but quite the screamer. Last week in the middle of our lesson he came up and put Mac and cheese right in our hands....a whole clump full.  Sara got really mad at him and so he proceeded to scream for the next 20 minutes while we read the Book of Mormon with her. When it came time to pray, I was about at the end of my rope. I remembered a song I have in my iPad. I played it while he was screaming. He was too loud at first, but when he stopped to breathe, he heard the words of 'I Am A Child Of God'. He got so quiet and just listened. He looked down and was instantly calm. Earlier when we started the lesson with a prayer I had specifically asked that Bobby would be able to feel the spirit and be quiet. As we watched him be quiet and reverent for the longest time in the history of Bobby, Sister Erickson and I looked at each other with amazement. I thought about his young little spirit and I wondered if maybe deep down inside he recognized the song. What a special moment. 

* I had a really great training this week with President Van Cott. We talked all about planning. There are 2 reasons why we plan as missionaries 1) it helps us find those who are prepared to receive the gospel and 2) it helps us coordinate our efforts with the other side so we can work together with those missionaries. Even more importantly than that, however, is that God is a master planner. If we are meant to become like him, we must be able to plan like he does. In Genesis, one whole chapter is planning what he will do to create the world and then he does it.  Let's be better at coordinating our missionary work with the one who plans the best of all. Let's promise to always open our mouth so that God can trust us enough to put the prepared people in our way. Ben, our investigator....is one of the best examples of opening your mouth. How did we find Ben? We didn't. A member (from another part of California) was visiting....just visiting. She went out to eat at a restaurant where he worked. She struck up a conversation with him, got his address and phone number and gave us the information. Ben will get baptized within the next few months. OPEN YOUR MOUTHS AND THEY WILL BE FILLED!!!!! 

I love you all so very much!!! Have a great week!!! 

Hermana Wright

 

Transfers...and lots of rain !

January 11, 2016
Family and Friends: 

We had transfers and Sister Erickson and I are still together and we are staying in the San Jacinto Branch. Woot Woot! So by the end of this transfer I will have been here for about 7/7.5 months....woohoo! I really do love it here. 

Updates:

*I am sick with a cold again....but I will make it through. 

* I am still a Sister Training Leader but I am over the Sisters in the new ward (Hermanas Jimenez and Frost) and the Palm Springs sisters (Sisters Hall and White). 

*We FINALLY changed our voicemail that was 10 months old! Woohoo....and it only took 5 tries!!

It's been super rainy....
The other day I had no choice but to step
into a small 'river' just to get into the car.
It covered my ankle

Little Miracle:

We had a cool experience this morning when we were walking into the grocery store we had only brought one English Book of Mormon with us. A subtle thought came in my head that I needed to walk back to the car and grab one in Spanish. Later while we were getting ready to leave the store, we struck up a conversation with man who told us how he wants to change so he can be a better example for his kids. He said that if we had a bible of some sort he would read it. We got the chance to explain the Book of Mormon and testify of its power. It was such a testimony to me of how God loves each of his children so much, and that he guides us by subtle promptings so we can influence people's lives forever. 

 

Working with Members: 

This week we got a call from Hermano Rosas, telling us that he thinks his friends should take the lessons again (I have taught her before her name is Lucia). He said that we would probably need to do some convincing :), we agreed to 'randomly' stop by to see Hermano and find her there 'on accident'. When we went over, she was so surprised to see us. We shared a short message and she told us that she had been thinking about coming back to church and meeting with us the whole day! She told us she has decided to be baptized, but still needs to change her job so she can come to church. We fasted with her yesterday so she will be able to find something. It was really cool!!!!

Yesterday was a great day to work with members. We had a lesson with a Recent Convert and the Reyes family, then a lesson with an Inactive family (actually the family of former investigators: Jair and Jamilli. Then we had a lesson with Ben with Crystal. ALL of the lessons were awesome, and in 2 of the cases we had to leave our members in the houses because they wanted to talk, but we had an appointment. It was so awesome!!!!!

Coolest Lesson: 

Yesterday we had a lesson with Hermano Puente, a recent convert that is switching his records to our branch. We brought the Reyes family and they were AWESOME! We talked about his baptism and he shared with us his conversion story. He also shared some really hard things he is going through right now. It was so cool to see that our members INSTANTLY connected with him as they shared similar experiences and how they overcame them. The spirit was so strong. 

I love you all so very much!!!!! Have a great day!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hermana Wright

Our Zone - Missionaries in the Palm Desert Stake.

¡FELÍZ AÑO NUEVO!

¡FELÍZ AÑO NUEVO!

Hermano Cardoso taught us to make tamales.

Dearest Family and friends! I hope you are all having a great start of the year with all of your new goals!!!!! This week can probably be best summarized with some short experiences, I love you all!!!!! 

* This week President Van Cott challenged us to read the Book of Mormon in about a day. So when we had to come in early New Years Eve night we all just read....as fast as we could. We went to sleep at 10:30 and then woke up and read the whole next day. It was really cool. In 16 hours & 15 minutes, I read the WHOLE Book of Mormon. It was actually a really cool experience. I would definitely recommend it!

*Went to MLC and found out we will be having a missionary broadcast on the 20th. We did mini trainings, so everybody prepared to train for 10 minutes, exciting. 

Our District

*Because of the branch split and the fact that we lost many of our leaders, we taught Relief Society....woohoo. It was actually a really good lesson. We taught from the Daughters in my Kingdom, about the pioneer women and how they were so converted at the core. We had the sisters read the stories of the women and wrote characteristics on the board as we read. At the end we drew on the board the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Faith, Repentance, Baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Endure to the End). We told them that the reason these powerful women never fell away and endured so much was because they LIVED the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was really powerful as we watched them understand it. When people understand these 5 simple principles, there is no way they will get offended and leave, there is no way that the bishop will get released and people will stop going, and there is no way that people would say no to traveling thousands of miles in treacherous weather. The leaders of the church can make decisions, but if we are ROOTED in the doctrine/Gospel of Jesus Christ, then we don't have to worry. So if you are having a hard time holding on to what you say you believe in, go back to Faith......it's that simple. We WILL NOT know everything, because like Alma teaches us, it isn't faith if we know (Alma 32). 

*Sister Erickson had a baptism to go to yesterday so she went with a member and I stayed with Carina (a returned missionary). It was pretty fun!!! 

Funny Experiences: 

 *A few nights back we stopped to talk to this man on the street and he was pretty cool. We had a good conversation and left him with our number so he could call if he needed anything. Sister Erickson said, "Have a good night" and me not thinking said "you too". The man was very confused to say the least. So we just walked away quickly.....

* While talking to this 20 year old guy (it was a little uncomfortable) we had a good conversation about God, and then all of a sudden he asked us "what race are you", and then he was like "oh sorry I mean what religion are you" we laughed pretty hard at that one. 

Love you all,  Hermana Wright 

Happy New Year (Almost)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! I guess not yet...but still this week is when the New Year starts. The highlights of my week:

* Monday- we prepared for Christmas by buying gifts for some of our members and investigators. And also got to have lunch on the border of our area with Sister Ramos and Sister Ipson. 

* Tuesday- did ALOT of caroling!!!!!!! 

* Wednesday- got to sing in the big mall over here called The River. It was actually a really special experience and something I would like to do again. It was so interesting to watch people when we sang. The Young Single Adults arranged an activity to go sing next to the food court and invited all the missionaries to join in. It was so cool to be able to drown out the world for some people that stopped to listen. 

*Thursday- Christmas Eve!!!! We got to eat dinner with a great little family who gave us some champurrado (hot chocolate....kind of.) and tacos. Then we spent the rest of the night inside. I got the chance to read and study about the birth of Jesus Christ. It was also a special experience. I have never understood Christmas like I did this year. 

*Friday- I was a little bit sick but we worked through it and ate with a great sister from the wars, and then I got to Skype the family. It was so good to get to see at least some of my siblings. I adore my family.....it was so different being away from them this year, but I am grateful to be here. I got to see Christmas in a new light. I got to see why Christmas is important. 

* I got to speak in church yesterday about goal setting for the New Year and a little bit of repentance. We spoke last. The elders and I took up all of the time and Sister Erickson didn't even get to speak.....but maybe next week. I am excited for her to show off her Spanish. 

* Big news for the branch, they are splitting it. So we used to cover Cathedral City, Thousand Palms, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, and La Quinta....but they are taking La Quinta out and making a new Ward out of it and parts of the other Spanish Ward. Wow. That came as a shocker. We will be losing almost half of our leadership and some very strong members. But, what a great way for the branch to step it up and be stronger. 

Sister Erickson reminded me of a funny experience this week. About the beginning of the week we met a woman on the street named Petra....she is awesome and said we could come back to read the bible story of Jesus' birth with her and her husband. So we went over and they had been expecting us. We sat down and the husband said that he had always wondered what his purpose was in life. They told us that they have other missionaries come over from other religions too. We proceeded and gave a super brief summary of where we come from and why we are here and then read the bible story. They asked us to come back to talk more about the plan of salvation and we said w would. We closed with a prayer and in the process of getting up off the couch.... Someone knocked.....and guess who came in? The Jehovah Witness missionaries. The husband says, "the competition"..... Needless to say we got out of there after some brief conversation and laughed all the way the car.

I love you all I hope this week we will all take the time to make some really good goals, repent, and move forward. Next week I am sure we will have more news to share. I love you!!!!!!! This is the last week of the transfer..... Ahhhh I will let you all know what is happening next week 

Love,    
 Hermana Wright 

MERRY CHRISTMAS !

¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!
To my dearest family and friends.

What a wonderful time of year. This Christmas has definitely been different. I miss the family, and watching Christmas movies, and sleeping in. BUT..... I get to see first hand WHY we even celebrate Christmas. That is so valuable to me, to see people's hearts, eyes and lives change because they come to a realization that there is a father who loves them enough to sacrifice his son.

A Couple of experiences-

- We have been doing a lot of caroling. We got to go with our Roommates the other night and sing to some older ladies that live in a retirement community. Every time we sang to someone, we asked if there was anyone else they would like us to sing to. After a couple times of doing that we were referred to someone name Laticia. She opened the door and we sang to her, at the end of Cantan Santos Angeles (Angels we have Heard on High) with tears in her eyes, she called one of her friends and then told her to listen as we sang Silent Night. She kept telling her friend how God had sent us. It was so awesome to see the Holy Ghost touch her.

- Another day we decided to carol to a couple of our neighbors, one who barely speaks English and just moved in, and then another named Amy who we know pretty well. When we sang to the first neighbor, she was kind of surprised to see us. We asked if we could sing one more. At the end she hugged us and started to cry. She invited us to come back and read with her the Christmas story from the Bible.

Some big things have happened this week.

-Last Pday, Maria and her sister Sophie took us to candy cane lane. It was really fun and pretty. Pictures to come next week.
-Thursday our roommates got a call from President Van Cott. He said that because of some recent changes the trio was going to be separated. The next morning Sister Romrell got emergency transferred. So we are one less in our apartment.

Love you All! I hope you have a safe Christmas! I love you!!!!!!
Hermana Wright

Mariah's Baptism

December 14, 2015

Well family and friends, we are quickly approaching Christmas and I hope you have ALL watched the video, A Savior is Born. Share it!!!!!!!!!! 

This week was really great! I don't have a lot of time, so I will be quick, but

 *Mariah got baptized!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was so great and she is so awesome! Tonight she and her family are taking us to Candy Cane lane to see the lights before P-day ends. woohoo!!! I love her so much! The baptism was awesome, and the spirit was so strong. Her mom bore her testimony and kept talking about how it took so long for her daughters to want to join the church. They are so excited because now that both of the daughters are baptized, the dad will be next. 

*This week we went to have a lesson with Mariah before her baptism (maybe Wednesday). They told us that Mariah got in a car accident and totaled her car!! She is perfectly fine though...MIRACLES!! It was so cool to hear her bear her testimony about how she knew that Satan was trying to get in the way of her getting baptized.WOW!!! She is so great!!!!! 

*Got to go on exchanges this week. I was so impressed at how well Sister Erickson took over the area. I came back and she had contacted TONS of people and found some golden investigators. What a great way to help the sisters we do exchanges with. WOW!!! She is great! 

*We are preparing for Christmas over here. We are giving Christmas to a few families in need and we are going to do lots of caroling. I am so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOHOO! 

We also had the Branch Christmas Party right after Mariah's baptism. It was really great, they had Posole (I think that's how you spell it, that's how you say it...) It's a really good soup. It was super delicious and they also had Champurrado (a type of really thick hot chocolate....super delicious as well). I have officially become completely Spanish. For groceries, all I buy is Mexican yogurt, tortillas, avocado, and cheese...sometimes beans and rice. I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you guys for your love, support and prayers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love,

Hermana Wright

 

Almost Christmas

Christmas package from home!!!

Well family and friends, we are starting week 3 of the transfer already. It is almost Christmas and I hope you are making the most of this time of the year to share your testimony of Jesus Christ with others. 

Good news: I am still alive. We actually haven't seen any effects from the terrorist activity in Redlands earlier this week. It was about 1 1/2 hours away from us....so rest assured, we are doing great. 

Also, MARIAH IS GETTING BAPTIZED!!!!!!!!!! Her baptism is this Saturday, I am so excited. She is the sweetest and I really do feel like we are best friends. She is AWESOME! The cool part is that if she goes to the temple within the next 30 days after her baptism then we can go with her. She is beyond excited to be able to be baptized for her grandma and other family members. 

Sister Romrell & I in matching coats.

We had some more lessons with Ben...needless to say; he is the most awesome person ever!!!!!!!!! We got to finish the restoration and bear testimony of the Book of Mormon...which is my favorite part. We talked about how it will help him resist temptation. He is so great. He is really sensitive to the spirit. After I was bearing my testimony of the Book of Mormon he talked about how he could feel it, and how it helps him know there is hope because it worked for me and it can work for him. It was really cool. He complimented me how on how I said it with emotion.  He came to a baptism the next morning and the Christmas Concert the stake did that night. IT WAS SUPER AWESOME!!!!  I love Ben....he is so great, and also really prepared. 

One experience that I have been sharing with EVERYONE!!! (especially other investigators) is a lesson we had this week with Maria. We were talking with her and asked her how she has been feeling since we have been coming over? How she feels about the Book of Mormon? She told us that she knows it's true because she feels fed. She feels like it builds up a shield against Satan. She said that she can feel her faith growing. WOW....it made me so excited! Why? Because I have found someone who feels the same way about the Book of Mormon as I do! WOW!!!!! I have said it before and I will say it again, but the Book of Mormon changes lives, it changed mine! I am so beyond happy and fulfilled to know that it has helped one more person. No, not all of her life problems are solved, and no not every waking moment is filled with happiness and prancing through daisies, but YES her life is better with it. I have been able to share that experience with several other investigators who NEED the power that you can receive from the Book of Mormon, it is REAL! If you are worried that your friends won't accept the gospel or that the neighbors will never speak to you again because you invited them over to eat with the missionaries, think again!!!!! This book is power. You are offering them a chance of a life time. If they take the lessons with the missionaries and really do the things they invite them to do, they WILL feel it!!!!! 

 

Roommates

I was able to receive a blessing this week from President Van Cott. It was so personal and so helpful. We talked about some of the things I am struggling with in this area and as a missionary. He helped me feel understood and then gave me some great counsel! It was very much needed. He gave me a priesthood blessing and I knew that Heavenly Father was at my side, and not just then. He has always been at my side, always. He never left. 

*This week I invite you to ponder what you can give Christ for Christmas---an old habit, more time, service....a sacrifice. I know that as soon as we talk about sacrifice something always pops in our heads, but we tend to push it out because we don't want to give it up, or know that it would be hard. I encourage you and invite you to get up the courage this Christmas to repent and be better. That is the whole purpose of Christmas. God has given a practical gift that he would like us to use. What better way to give back to him than to use the gift he has given us, Jesus Christ. Please remember that this Christmas season, the best most valuable gift you can give is the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (Doctrine and Covenants 15:6). 

*I love you all! Please also take some time this week to watch and Share with 5 other people (member or nonmember, but preferably the latter) the new Christmas video, A Savior is Born (or Ha Nacido un Salvador). It is such a powerful tool. Help out your neighbor, your friend, or even the stranger. Let's be what we are meant to be this Christmas, the salt of the Earth, the light that cannot be hid! 

*Tell your missionaries you love them, give them an extra hug, and give them someone to visit or carol to! 

 Love you!

Hermana Wright