Todo esta bien en esta area!! Wow, what a wonderful week it's been!
It was so hard to say goodbye to the Lake Travis area. What a blessing it
was to be able to serve there for so long and have come to love those
people so much! I will miss them dearly! As a farewell for now to all
those people back in Lake Travis, I wanted to share a part of a talk
given in the General Conference back in October 1997 in my email
today. It says, "When true friends sing the well-known hymn, "God be
was to be able to serve there for so long and have come to love those
people so much! I will miss them dearly! As a farewell for now to all
those people back in Lake Travis, I wanted to share a part of a talk
given in the General Conference back in October 1997 in my email
today. It says, "When true friends sing the well-known hymn, "God be
with you till we meet again," we offer a prayer that the Holy Ghost will
accompany our loved ones after we leave them. This hymn is a deeply
moving expression of our need for companionship with one another and
with the Spirit of God. Our most common English expression of
farewell is the word "Good-bye" and this came to us over the years as
contraction for the expression "God be with you." In a day when people
recognized our dependence on God more publicly, this wonderful phrase
was used at times of departure to express love. It is still a sweet
expression invoking the companionship of God during periods of
separation. The phrase "good-bye," then, when fully understood,
means, "If we can't be together, if we must part, if I can't be with
you--then may God be with you."
accompany our loved ones after we leave them. This hymn is a deeply
moving expression of our need for companionship with one another and
with the Spirit of God. Our most common English expression of
farewell is the word "Good-bye" and this came to us over the years as
contraction for the expression "God be with you." In a day when people
recognized our dependence on God more publicly, this wonderful phrase
was used at times of departure to express love. It is still a sweet
expression invoking the companionship of God during periods of
separation. The phrase "good-bye," then, when fully understood,
means, "If we can't be together, if we must part, if I can't be with
you--then may God be with you."
The last night that I was in LakeTravis we were invited to come and teach
the restoration to the Young Woman in the ward and then have them do role
plays with each other. It was a lot of fun and a wonderful experience for them
and for us. I hope all went well for them this week as they continued to be
missionaries and share the gospel with their friends!
Thursday morning we packed up the rest of our stuff and headed to
Rutherford Chapel in Austin where I would say goodbye to my wonderful
companion Sister Loveridge who I will forever miss. I got into the
van with some other Elders and Sisters and headed to San Antonio where
I met my new companion Sister Landon (wow I love her)! When we got
there we got into another car and headed to Eagle Pass where we would
pick up our truck and head to Carrizo Springs. The whole trip took about
6 and 1/2 hours. We finally made it down here! What a culture shock
it is here! We are pretty much the only white people. There is about
5 different fast food places including Subway, so I am grateful for
that! There is nothing for miles but it is really pretty! We cover
the area of Carrizo Springs, Crystal City, Catullua, Asherton,
Encinal, and BIg Wells, which are all little cities about 30 minutes
in opposite directions from Carrizo Springs. We live in a little blue
house (shed) in the back yard of a wonderful family in our Branch
(the Russo's). They have a cute little dog named Twister and they love
cooking us yummy Mexican food! I have spoken way more Spanish down
here then I ever have. It is great because I feel like I'm learning it
again and getting to practice more! It is less humid here because it
is more South but it definitely seems a lot hotter. It got up to 99
degrees this week! We are in a very small English/Spanish branch and
we translate for those who don't know English, which is a lot of fun.
So about my new companion Sister Landon! Wow, what a wonderful person
she is with such a strong testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
She is from Northern California and is the youngest of 7 kids (first
girl to go on a mission). She is 21 years old and loves to make me
laugh! She plays the Ukulele (YAY), eats peanut butter excessively,
and loves to quote movies with me! She is also on a Spanish speaking mission
missionaries and share the gospel with their friends!
Thursday morning we packed up the rest of our stuff and headed to
Rutherford Chapel in Austin where I would say goodbye to my wonderful
companion Sister Loveridge who I will forever miss. I got into the
van with some other Elders and Sisters and headed to San Antonio where
I met my new companion Sister Landon (wow I love her)! When we got
there we got into another car and headed to Eagle Pass where we would
pick up our truck and head to Carrizo Springs. The whole trip took about
6 and 1/2 hours. We finally made it down here! What a culture shock
it is here! We are pretty much the only white people. There is about
5 different fast food places including Subway, so I am grateful for
that! There is nothing for miles but it is really pretty! We cover
the area of Carrizo Springs, Crystal City, Catullua, Asherton,
Encinal, and BIg Wells, which are all little cities about 30 minutes
in opposite directions from Carrizo Springs. We live in a little blue
house (shed) in the back yard of a wonderful family in our Branch
(the Russo's). They have a cute little dog named Twister and they love
cooking us yummy Mexican food! I have spoken way more Spanish down
here then I ever have. It is great because I feel like I'm learning it
again and getting to practice more! It is less humid here because it
is more South but it definitely seems a lot hotter. It got up to 99
degrees this week! We are in a very small English/Spanish branch and
we translate for those who don't know English, which is a lot of fun.
So about my new companion Sister Landon! Wow, what a wonderful person
she is with such a strong testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
She is from Northern California and is the youngest of 7 kids (first
girl to go on a mission). She is 21 years old and loves to make me
laugh! She plays the Ukulele (YAY), eats peanut butter excessively,
and loves to quote movies with me! She is also on a Spanish speaking mission
and has been out for 7 months now. Wow, we've seen so many miracles
together this week already. We've met a couple new investigators and have
been able to have a lot of lessons. It was good to get back on my
bike again! I love it because its easier to talk to people along the
way. It's mostly dirt roads in some of the cities out here so
hopefully my tires won't pop! I want to share a couple miracles with
y'all! One day I received an impression that we needed to knock on
this trailer door. We started walking over to it and a man walked up
beside his house and we stopped to talk to him. He told us his name
was Jesse Gomez. As we continued to talk he said he wasn't too
religious and he had lost some faith when his parents both passed away
recently. He invited us inside where we met his cute grandma. We sat
them both down and taught them the Plan of Salvation. Jesse felt the
spirit because he was so into learning about what we were teaching
him. He told us that he wants to gain his faith back in God and
wanted our help, and is willing to learn more about the Restored Gospel
of Jesus Christ. He accepted a copy of the Book Of Mormon and was
eager to read it and meet with us again this week (Milagro - miracle)! Also, we
met with Brenda (another one of our new investigators that we found).
We taught her the Restoration, and during the lesson she told us that
she was confused why there were so many churches, but wanted to know
which one was the true and right one to follow (Milagro)! She was so
excited about what we had discussed and accepted a copy of the Book of
Mormon as well, and asked us if she could read more than just the
introduction and we said "of course!" She is excited for us to come
back and teach her and her family this week! She has a bunch of cute
little kids and she also just had a new baby girl.
together this week already. We've met a couple new investigators and have
been able to have a lot of lessons. It was good to get back on my
bike again! I love it because its easier to talk to people along the
way. It's mostly dirt roads in some of the cities out here so
hopefully my tires won't pop! I want to share a couple miracles with
y'all! One day I received an impression that we needed to knock on
this trailer door. We started walking over to it and a man walked up
beside his house and we stopped to talk to him. He told us his name
was Jesse Gomez. As we continued to talk he said he wasn't too
religious and he had lost some faith when his parents both passed away
recently. He invited us inside where we met his cute grandma. We sat
them both down and taught them the Plan of Salvation. Jesse felt the
spirit because he was so into learning about what we were teaching
him. He told us that he wants to gain his faith back in God and
wanted our help, and is willing to learn more about the Restored Gospel
of Jesus Christ. He accepted a copy of the Book Of Mormon and was
eager to read it and meet with us again this week (Milagro - miracle)! Also, we
met with Brenda (another one of our new investigators that we found).
We taught her the Restoration, and during the lesson she told us that
she was confused why there were so many churches, but wanted to know
which one was the true and right one to follow (Milagro)! She was so
excited about what we had discussed and accepted a copy of the Book of
Mormon as well, and asked us if she could read more than just the
introduction and we said "of course!" She is excited for us to come
back and teach her and her family this week! She has a bunch of cute
little kids and she also just had a new baby girl.
Many people are prepared in this area and I can't wait to continue
finding them! It has been wonderful so far being able to serve here
in Carrizo Springs! I'm beginning to love it here and am excited for
the journey ahead and for the people we will meet!! Last thing I
wanted to share with y'all in my email today is about true conversion.
Bonnie L. Oscarson said this, "True conversion is more than merely
finding them! It has been wonderful so far being able to serve here
in Carrizo Springs! I'm beginning to love it here and am excited for
the journey ahead and for the people we will meet!! Last thing I
wanted to share with y'all in my email today is about true conversion.
Bonnie L. Oscarson said this, "True conversion is more than merely
having a knowledge of gospel principles and implies even more than just
having a testimony of those principles. It is impossible to have a testimony
of the gospel without living it. Being truly converted means we are acting upon
what we believe and allowing it to create “a mighty change in us, or in our
hearts.” In the booklet True to the Faith, we learn that “conversion
is a process, not an event. You become converted as a result of …
righteous efforts to follow the Savior.” It takes time, effort, and work.
The prophet Moroni, in the Book of Mormon, taught, “I would show unto
the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen;
wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness
until after the trial of your faith.” In our world where instant
gratification is the expectation, we are often guilty of expecting the
reward without having to work for it. I believe Moroni is telling us
that we must do the work first and exercise faith by living the
gospel, and then we will receive the witness that it is true. True
conversion occurs as you continue to act upon the doctrines you know
are true and keep the commandments, day after day, month after month."
As a representative of Jesus Christ we don't convert others. We
invite others to act for themselves and see the blessings that come
from living the Gospel of Jesus Christ and begin to have their own
conversion. I know the blessings and happiness that come from living
the Gospel. I know it's true because I have received a witness from
God that it is true. I have acted on my faith and KNOW the truth! I
would invite all of you to act on the faith you have and find your own
conversion. I hope y'all have a wonderful week! I love you! Be safe out
there!
Con Amor,
Hermana Mann
hearts.” In the booklet True to the Faith, we learn that “conversion
is a process, not an event. You become converted as a result of …
righteous efforts to follow the Savior.” It takes time, effort, and work.
The prophet Moroni, in the Book of Mormon, taught, “I would show unto
the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen;
wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness
until after the trial of your faith.” In our world where instant
gratification is the expectation, we are often guilty of expecting the
reward without having to work for it. I believe Moroni is telling us
that we must do the work first and exercise faith by living the
gospel, and then we will receive the witness that it is true. True
conversion occurs as you continue to act upon the doctrines you know
are true and keep the commandments, day after day, month after month."
As a representative of Jesus Christ we don't convert others. We
invite others to act for themselves and see the blessings that come
from living the Gospel of Jesus Christ and begin to have their own
conversion. I know the blessings and happiness that come from living
the Gospel. I know it's true because I have received a witness from
God that it is true. I have acted on my faith and KNOW the truth! I
would invite all of you to act on the faith you have and find your own
conversion. I hope y'all have a wonderful week! I love you! Be safe out
there!
Con Amor,
Hermana Mann
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