August 12: Hola Hola Hola!

This week has been great! 

I still love my companions to death and think they are the best things since sliced bread. They are huge examples to me of patience and love. I am so grateful for them! This week we worked a lot with Becky and Joe (have a baptismal date for Aug 31). Becky has schizophrenia and struggles with low sodium. This week her sodium dropped real low and she dropped us (it was the second time) and threw away the Book of Mormon. We received a distressed call from Joe (her husband) saying that she threw away his bible. He had actually started to read it, liked it, and then she threw it away. We talked to them last night and smoothed it all over--she said that when her sodium gets low she gets cranky and doesn't do nice things. Joe expressed to us that he loves it when we come over because he learns so much. He prayed for the second time at the end of the lesson and I was filled to the brim with the Spirit. His prayer was so simple and incredibly sincere--he prayed for "all the missionaries and Becky" and I felt instantly edified and strengthened as soon as he ended the prayer. It was incredible! My faith has grown so much this week as I have witnessed their faith building and have noticed how much God does love them. I knew He did before, but I felt so much love for them last night in that lesson that my heart nearly exploded (which would have been so gross so I was super relieved it didn't)! I am so grateful that our Heavenly Father allows us to be missionaries and to witness all of these miracles by His hands. I know that the Atonement of Jesus Christ is real and that He will always stand by us--through the sunshine and the torrential downpours.

I haven't gotten the package for Shannon yet--I'll let you know when I do. Thank you so much, Mom! You and Dad are gonna come out with me here to visit all these great people. Especially the Medinas. They are wonderful and are absolute saints to us. She has gone through incredible bouts of cancer and is just a champ! Yesterday one of the Elders' investigators came to Church and was asking tricky questions in Gospel principles. Shannon raised her hand multiple times and bore more powerful testimony than all of us missionaries (five of us) in there combined. It was incredible. Her first Sunday at Church 5ish weeks ago she would barely tell the class her name. Now she's raising her hand, asking questions, and changing people's lives. Wahoo this is the gospel of Jesus Christ, people!! THIS is what happens when they embrace it and trust in God. The investigator wanted NOTHING to do with the BoM during class and kept rebuking it and being real annoying about it. Shannon bore testimony of it, and after she stopped, the investigator was quiet for a moment, turned to the Elders and said, "Can you give me one of those?" They just stared at her, creating a lake of drool on the floor, and my and my comps were like, "Yes they can!!!"

Anyways, so that lady in Church--her life was changed because Shannon Medina came back to church and is totally willing to do what the Lord would have her do. Before, on our first appt with her, she was all, "Mormons shmormons" but now she's the best member missionary I've ever seen and every time she talks I am floored and amazed and filled with the Spirit. That's the gospel, folks!!

Thank you for forwarding Trev's emails. They make my life so much better :)

Hardly any of our little investigators speak espanol. We're working on that :)

Sabbath day was AWESOME as usual, that's why they call it the Sabbath.

Okay, so here's the run down.

Becky and Joe are back on track, folks!! I can identify with them like nobody's business. Like it's ridiculous how well I can teach them and help them understand things and know what they're trying to ask. It's wonderful!!! From the moment I started first talking to Joe, to now--I just love them so much!! Joe always walks us out to our car after every time we see them and yesterday Becky came too! I blew a kiss at her as I was backing the car--she smiled, blew one back, then went back inside. I just cannot express to you all how much I love them.

Martin. Bless his dear little heart. We had a killer lesson with him in a member's home two weeks ago, but he still refuses to come to Church!!! We've had nothing but killer awesome lessons since day one with him, and every time he tells us he wants to come to church and change and read his scriptures and get baptized, but he had some things holding him back. this most recent lesson we helped him see that he's already repentant and that baptism is the next step. he agreed to sept 7th for a date, but still wont come to church. He and his wife nancy are just adorable and have great faith in our savior...we're going to focus this week on ACTING on our faith.

John!!! He is the coolest! A couple of weekends ago, I and the mini missionary found John by random events in a park. The lil mish asked for a spanish referral and that didn't work so I asked if he knew anyone who wanted to learn more about Christ. "I do" was his reply. So I plopped ourselves next to him atop the picnic table and taught the PoS , Atonement, and Restoration (don't worry, that wasnt the idea, I was just answering questions). It was one of the first times that the words came flying outta my mouth perfectly. Like I was past the "thinking" point and everything just happened. Sometimes the Lord makes you work real hard in lessons, but this time He took over. We saw him again a week and a half ago, had a killer awesome lesson on the porch, he accepted baptism and a date Sept 7th, and we haven't seen him since. He wont answer his phone and he's never home.....so we're gonna find him this week.

The story of the man in the hospital from last week--he was going to go to a home in Des Moines but then came back because he hated it,....so he'll get a baptismal date soon. He is remarkable. when we first met him he was practically faithless and hopeless and wanted to get faith back. That was it--that desire. We helped him to work that desire in him until now it's full-blown faith!!! The scriptures say you only need a little bit to move mountains, and thats what's happening--all because of the gospel of Christ!! Hallalujah!!!!

I've finally accepted the fact that I am the worst and won't get anywhere......without God. Only with Christ can I actually do anything meaningful here in good ole Iowa/Argentina. Lots of times I would get all discouraged thinking I was so lame because I wasn't perfect....Then it hit me. You're not perfect!!! Whoa that was hard to swallow. Hahah but really. He has given us weaknesses so that we can become strong unto Him (read Ether 12) and He lets us fail so that we remember to keep coming back to His loving arms. We need to accept where we are and love what God has given us. The desires of your hearts are good and you CAN move forward and improve with God. Nothing you've done or will do is outside of Christ's Atonement.

Know that I love you all dearly and know that more importantly, our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ love you. This week, read the conference talk Peace at Home (something or other...I think that's what it's called). You'll love it. It meant a lot to me this week, especially the end.

Love, Hna Harkness