December 22, 2014

So I am planning on using the internet between 4-6 here in Acre on the 25th. My companion is going to use the computer to talk with her family first, so just as always keep your eyes out. I dont know how long she will be talking to her family. Anyways, I am excited to talk with you all!

I had a good week. A really good week. :) I was getting nervous about coming home and having to say goodbye to all of my friends. It was really messing up my ability to work. I finally was able to turn everything around with the help of the scriptures. I decided to read in my english set. I looked up fear in the bible dictionary and started to read. I read how it was a feeling unworthy of Gods children. I stopped and made a list of what I was worried or preoccupied about. Then I kept reading. I finally came to the conclusion that the solution to get rid of those feelings was to really repent. I noticed that I hadnt really been repenting lately. Therefore as a consequence I began to build up all of these feelings of anxiety and fear. I said a prayer to Heavenly Father that moment. I prayed with confidence that He would forgive me of my sins, just like it said to do in the Bible Dictionary. Just like that all of my anxiety was gone. It is like I am a whole new person. It is crazy cool how the gospel works. This experience really opened my eyes as to how there is a consequence to every decision we make. My faith has grown so strong these past few weeks. I really am excited to come home and begin sharing the gospel from another persepective. 

Mom, your crazy. I am glad that I was not home to witness that experience. lol. Remmi should cut his hair. Its so long that I dont recognize him anymore. Guys. I really am excited to see you in the airport!!!

Anyways. I am looking forward to talking with you on Christmas. I am sad that you werent able to go to Colorado, but I am glad that I get to talk to you. How is the weather in Oklahoma... cold i bet.  I am not so sure how I will handle the cold. It rained today and I got cold with all the wind. Boa sorte. 

Last week was our Christmas Conference. It was a lot of fun. I got to bear my testimony because I was leaving in a few weeks. Two of the Elders that were in my district last christmas were in my zone again for this christmas. It was fun to see how much everyone has changed and how quickly time flies. :)

Love you all a lot! 

Sister Chatwin.

December 29, 2014

It was great to talk with you too! 

As for inspiring stories, I have one that just happend. :)

So in my area we have been having difficulties finding people to teach. Which is uncommon in this mission. This is the first area where I have had people flat out reject what we have to say. We were kind of bummed out and resulted early on in the transfer to spend a day contacting people in the streets. Anyways, we made contact with an artist. He was sneaking pictures of us on his camera while we were giving him a friendship card. He told us he would go to church if we came to his exposition at and indian culture fair. He works a lot with the indigenous tribes here in Acre. Anyways, we couldnt leave our area to go to his exposition. We didnt see him again. 

This last week I kept thinking about him and I told my companion that we needed to go see him again. She had forgotten who he was and wasnt very interested in going back to see him.  This Saturday we were on the bus coming back from doing divisions with some other sisters. We took a bus we had never taken before. As I sat down I heard someone behind me say, hey! Your Sister Chata right?? I turned around to see who it was. No one remembers my name here, so I was very surprised to see this artist. We talked with him briefly and explained to his friends why we were so far away from home serving missions. 

We invited him to church and he said that he would come. We passed by his house to leave him a Book of Mormon later that day to read. Come Sunday when we got there he didnt remember saying that he would come to church with us. He was very polite, and conversing with him was very interesting. You could feel the Spirit strongly. He started talking about his son Amon, and how we should invite him to church too. Ended up that Amon came to church with us, but his dad had something come up that he had to attend too. At church everyone made a big deal about Amons name and about how he wasnt a member yet. We sat down in class and a Sister (irma) pulled me out of class to tell me that she had talked with his dad before. She told me about how his dad had a vision and that is where he chose the name for his son Amon. We showed Amon where his name was in the Book of Mormon. 

This family is very intelligent and active in learing about other cultures etc. We wont be able to pass by again until Wed. or Thurs. because we are in Manaus for a meeting. But I really hope to be able to baptize Amon before I leave. It looks like I will be spending my last week here in Flores because of a training that President will do with those who are leaving. Therefore my last sunday on the mission will be in the ward where I began my mission. It is a great blessing to be able to see everyone that I love so dearly. It sure will be hard to leave here!

Love you all so much!! :) :) 

I am excited to see you! 

Sister Chatwin

p.s. That experience was inspirational because if we hadn't been having difficulties finding people to teach we would have never resulted to street contacts and therefore we would have never found this family. There is a plan in everything. 

December 15, 2014

I am doing great here. Getting excited to see everyone again. I hope that Daddy feels better. :) I love you all so much.  My new companion is great! She is super loving and just what I need. We work really well together.

Right now we are looking for a family to baptize before I leave. A miracle happened and we finally found the street where a family that was baptized but never confirmed lives. We are going to do a family home evening there tonight. I hope that everything goes well and they accept the gospel again. Seeing as it has been more than one year they will all have to be baptized again. 

My companion was serving in Flores before coming here. She is filling me in on all that has happened. My second baptism, Fernando, is now preparing to go on a mission. The rest of his family moved to Manaus from Columbia and were also baptized. It is amazing the things that can happen. I remember how it was a miracle that we found Fernando to teach. It made me really happy to see the fruits of our efforts. 

I am excited to continue doing missionary work when I come home. I have really loved to do retention work. A.K.A visit the less actives. They are so much fun to get to know and help come back to church. Plus there is almost always someone in the family or visiting that hasn’t been baptized yet.

Love you all bunches! 

Sister Chatwin