Week #21

Hey everyone,

This week I sent home Hermana Butler.  Our time together went by so fast, but I learned so much from her.  Right now I am in a trio with Hermana Aycho from Peru who has about 4 weeks in the mission and is still being trained and with Hermana Dana who is from Argentina who will be going home at the end of January. It has been a little bit hard working in both sectors, but I have enjoyed working with them for the past two days and it is really only for 3 more weeks and then I should have a new companion.

Victor is doing pretty good. His baptism is in 2 weeks, on the 2nd of January, so we are really excited.  He still isn't smoking, which is amazing as he was smoking a lot before. He basically decided to stop the day he commited to a baptismal date and has been staying strong ever since.  The only thing that is really hard with him is his health is still really bad and he is undergoing dialysis and as part of that his memory has gone way down hill, so he has a hard time understanding some things and remembering what he is reading in the scriptures and what we are teaching.  The other thing is he is in the process of a divorce with his wife and is going to move soon after his baptism and so we are really working hard to help him have a firm testimony in the gospel before he leaves.  Please pray for him.

This week I finally found Jacquelin in her house and she let us enter for a little bit, but she told us that she isn't reading or praying and that all of this is a personal decision that she has to make, but it is very hard for her and she is happy with her life as it is right now.  It broke my heart to leave that house after working my whole time here with her, but I know that we did all that we could to help her and maybe she just isnt ready right now, but I pray that one day in the future she will be ready and will receive the missionaries.  We have had to stop teaching several of our investigators, but the others weren't as hard, but it is definitely one of the hardest things we have to do as missionaries.  Please pray for her as well even though we are not teaching her right now.

We taught Belen this week and shared the parable of the 10 virgins and talked about the importance of not putting off the things that are really important.  It was a great lesson and at the end she said that she was going to go to church this week no matter what and she was going to talk to Jonathon more about marriage, but then they weren't at the church on Sunday and so I am not sure what is going to happen with them.  Please pray for them.  They have testimonies and they want badly to be able to go to the temple with their family.  They are just struggling, with other things going on in their lives, to make time to do the things they need to do to reach these goals. 

Other than that we have been teaching a few other people that arent really progressing right now or that we have only been able to teach once, but I am excited to see what is going to happen with them.

This Sunday we had a Christmas devotional with just music, which was really cool we all sang and there were a lot of solos.  It is amazing the power that music has to bring people together and to bring the spirit.

Well I can't wait to see you all for Christmas.  I love you all so much and am So very grateful for all of your support!

Hermana Stringham

Feliz Navidad!

Feliz Navidad, from Chile!

Week #20

Hey everyone,

Okay so this week was a little bit of a harder week with not as much success! So it was a little long and my letter is a little shorter this week again.

My companion went to the temple this week and had a meeting since she is going home, Thursday. I was with other Hermanas a lot this week, which was fun.  Last week had a great week for numbers and this week our numbers weren’t so great!  We spent a lot of time outside, but it was good as well because we worked really hard. Although we didn’t find anyone new to teach, I know that all of our hard work is going to pay off.  Although the week was a little frustrating, it just helped us to work all that more harder. We also had a lot of fun anyways.  We had our Christmas activity, which was really fun. We played a lot of different sport and ate completos and so it was nice to have a little brake and just have fun with the other missionaries.

Victor still is preparing for his baptism, but he is going to move right after. I am a little nervous about that as well. He forgets things a lot and a member told us that it is because of his dialysis.  So we are a little worried what will happen after he moves, so we are really trying to work hard with him.

Belen and Jonathon are doing alright, but again didn’t go to church. They are talking about getting married, but in a year, so we are really trying to work with them to help them to progress. Please pray for them.

I am going to be in a trio after my companion leaves with Hermana Dana from Argentin and Hermana Aycho from Peru, who only has 2 weeks in the mission.  I am excited to work with them and I am sure it will help my Spanish.  I am just a little nervous because we have to work in both of our sectors and we are in different wards so that will be a little interesting.

I love you all and am so very grateful for your support.

Love,

Hermana Stringham

New Companion - Herman Butler!

Herman Stringham & Hermana Butler

Week #19

Everyone,

Wow this week has gone by so fast.  We have been working really hard and we have seen it. Our numbers have like tripled! It is crazy!  We are working a lot with this Christmas video that is called, “He is the gift”.  We have been able to get into so many houses with this video, that would not have said yes otherwise. It has been really cool.

My new companion is really great. She is really hardworking and direct, which has helped our sector a lot.  I have loved working with her even though we only will have a short time together as she goes home on the 18th. I am going to be put in a trio with the other girls in our house.  It will be interesting to see how that goes, as we will have to work in both of our sectors and we are going to have to trade off going to different wards. But I know there is a reason for all things and it will all work out great. 

Okay so this week we taught Victor twice. The first time we taught he said that he wasn’t sure about somethings and that maybe in 2 years he would be ready for a baptism.  We told him that he needed to pray about it. When we returned he had completely changed and asked us when he could be baptized. We set a date for the 2nd of January as he has to quit smoking. But he hasn’t smoked since and is doing pretty good.  Please pray for him.  We are working with a lot of people and I am really excited to see how this week goes.

I am so sorry my letter is really short this week, as I don’t have a lot of  time to write. Sorry!  I love you all so much and I a praying for you all.  I will write more next week.

Love ya,

 Hermana Stringham

Home Sweet Home!

Home Sweet Home!

In the Rain!

Herman Stringham and Hermana Nokes
Playing in the Rain!

Zone Tupahue 1

My Zone

My District

P-day at Safari - November 11, 2014

We rode in these trucks!
The Lions were bribed with meat to climb on the trucks!
Then the visitors could touch the Lions!

They could touch the lion's tongue and paws!

Week #18

Hey everyone,

Yesterday I completed 4 months in my mission! It is all going by so fast and I am sure it is just going to go even faster.  This week has gone by so fast.  Today I had to send home Hermana Nokes which was sad, but she lives in Utah so I will get to see her after my mission so that makes it a lot easier.  As for my new companion her name is Hermana Butler she is also from Utah, but I don’t remember what part.  I was really surprised because I really thought I was going to be with a latina this transfer, but it looks like the Lord has something else in plan for me than I thought.  I haven’t met her yet as transfers happen tomorrow, but I am excited.  I believe that she going home in like 3 weeks though, so I will be having another new companion here really soon.

This week we had divisions as Hermana Nokes had a lot of things to do her last week, so I got to learn from a lot of different missionaries which was really fun.  It was a little bit of a harder week for lessons, but I am excited to get working this week and hopefully find some new people to teach.

Belen and Jonathon-  They were going to move but now they aren’t ,and I am so excited that I have the opportunity to keep teaching them.  This week we taught Belen twice and she just seemed so different.   She is so happy and she basically said that this is what she wants for her family and she feels really good about it but she wants to wait until Jonathon is ready as well because it has to be a family decision. They are progressing so well and it has been amazing seeing the changes in their lives.  We had a lesson with a the president of relief society, with her, that went so well.  It was so cool to see how they were instantly friends. I was able to see what a huge difference it makes when investigators have real friends in the ward who can support them.  Belen told us that she was going to go to church no matter what this Sunday because things always seem to happen, but then their 6 month old got pneumonia and they were in the hospital with her Friday night so they couldn’t go.  Satan is working so hard against them right now as they have had whatever thing pass that has made it so they can’t come to church.  Please pray for them.

Jacquline-  She isn’t going to move either, which is really exciting.  Every time we teach she has been studying and praying a lot, but she still hasn’t asked if this true is true and if baptism is what she should do.  It is really hard because she can feel a difference in her life, but because her family is catholic she knows that to join the church would be a hard change.  I think that she knows it is true or she wouldn’t be going to church and studying the scriptures. She is just afraid because if she gets her answer she has to change a lot in her life.  Please pray for her as we try to help her to move past this challenge.

I had a miracle happen Saturday, that I would like to share.  As missionaries and as members in general we have the amazing opportunity to have lots of miracles, but we often just don’t recognize them because we aren’t looking for the Lord’s hand in our lives.  I have been working hard to look for the Lord’s hand in my life and I have realized that we have so many miracles that happen each week.  Earlier this week I lost the map of our sector.  I was so frustrated because I could not understand what could have happened to it and I was looking everywhere and could not find it.  I was praying that I could find, it as with transfers coming up I really needed it and with no success.  Saturday morning I prayed specifically that something would happen when we were walking in the street and we would find it.  Saturday it rained and so the streets were very muddy and when we were walking to an appointment, my companion found the map covered in dirt on the side of the road.  It had been there for three days and miraculously hadn’t been swept up by someone.  I know that the Lord answers are prayers and I am so grateful for his hand in my life.

I love you all so much and I hope you all have a great week and know that I am praying for you!

Hermana Stringham