#64

I loooooved the focus of Women's Conference. I found a lot of guidance for my life. I'm slowly leaving the comfort zone that I have made for myself here in the mission, and the things that I learned in Women' s Conference are going to help me with that.

Well this week had some bummers and had some Miracles. 

We always start with bad news right? 

I talked about Elidia last week and how she was going to get baptized this week. Well that didn't happen. There was a HUGE misunderstanding about her sister and a strike that was going on in Machu Picchu and angry words were spoken (mostly by me) and tears were shed (mostly by my companion) and it was just a  big hooplah!  Now, we're not entirely sure what's going to happen with her, but we're hoping she'll be able to get baptized the 7th of October (it's so weird that that is soooo soon.) So yeah, bummer of the week.

But like we learned... 3 months ago maybe, is that there can be miracles when you believe! (has anyone listened to that song?) 

So I was in divisions with Hermana Johnson, she's new in the mission. And we were trying to find our appointment,  ( which we never found) and we were knocking on doors that could possibly be the door of the lady. Well a young man opened the door. At first sight, he just screams PUNK! Like screamo listening, back tatooing, house ransacking punk. I wasn't going to contact him, but something told me that I should. So I did and gave him the card. set an appointment, and we left. So we had our appointment with him Saturday. He's seventeen, got blond hair, wears scary shirts, and has piercings. Like I said, punk. But when we started talking, I asked him why he had accepted our visit. He said he wanted to know God. That simple. He didn't say anything else. Just that he wanted to know God. Well we thought that was just as good a desire as any other. So we continued. We asked him what he felt towards God. He said nothing. And that's why he wanted the visit. He doesn't know if God really exists. First person I've met in allll my mission that has said this. But he wants to know. He talked about repentance. we bore our testimonies of a real living loving God. He listened. It was special. We asked him to pray, and he was really nervous, but he did. He gave thanks over and over again for our visit, saying that he was very content, very happy that we had come. He asked God to help him believe. And then we set another appointment. I have yet to see a youth so.... hungry to know. His name is Ivan and I'm really excited to see where he goes. 

But I learned a valuable lesson. That God looks not upon the outward appearance. And how WONDERFUL is that. He loves blond haired, pierced, and tatooed Ivan. He loves loud mouthed, zitted faced, crazy Hermana Rust. He loves us regardless. And that's what I learned. That we are all children of our Heavenly Father, and each one of us has the light of Christ in our hearts. Each one has the capacity to feel, recognize, and act on that light. Regardless of how we dress, where we are come from, or what we have done. And Ivan has felt that light. It was probably something that he had never before experienced. And I was there to experience it with him. How cool right?

Well weeks will always have there bummers, but they also will always have their miracles. And that's a promise. 

Send my love to all! I'm gonna send some pictures of my P-day with Travis. Best P-day ever! 

Love you all!

Hermana Rust

That's us at Koricancha. 

We bought matching pants. And jumped in the street. And that's an undershirt, worry not. 

Also, Travis found a gross soccer ball and decided it made him look more "street". He was right.

He posed in all my companions pictures.  

We all tried taking selfies, but he's just so dang tall that he had to do it. He did it well!

 And the girlies.

Candid!