Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Monday, June 24th



Okay, not too much time to write today because of craziness but let me review the last week a bit.
 
Last Monday was great. We had a really fun preparation day with our district. That district is probably the favorite I've had on the mission because we just felt so cared for and we were always doing things together. Like last preparation day we went to Veteran's park and an elder set up a slack line because he had his family send it to him the week before. So we all got to try it out and we had a great time. We took district pictures in a tree which was so much fun because there were some elders who set the timer on the cameras then hit it and in like 2 seconds climbed the tree and posed. It was so great! We had a blast. Hermana Hardy and I both got training calls that day. She was to train one and I was called to train 2 new missionaries. We were super excited and pretty positive that since I was told that I was staying and that she was going to a bike area that she would just be in the same ward in the bike area being set up. So were were comfortable and excited for everything to come.
 
Tuesday came and we got up and ready to go and we went to the trainer's training then the transfer meeting. The first thing they told us was a huge announcement that 2 new spanish zones were created and I think possibly there were 4 zones created in total. That was amazing to see because I've never seen zones created before and whabam there are 2 more in the San Fernando valley. So cool. Then they were announcing where all everyone would be sent to and it was exciting and everything. Then they came to the San Fernando zone and the San Fernando ward where I was in in Sylmar. Hermana Hardy was called and she stood up so her new missionary could see who she is. Then two other sisters were called to be new hermana training leaders there. And then they moved on. What?! I wasn't told I was moving. What?!! What was going on? I didn't pack because I wasn't told I was moving. What? Now I have to figure out a way to go to the old apartment and pack really quickly. And I have two new missionaries to juggle. And I have to figure out where I'm living. And I have to figure out everything. Opening a new area. Training two new missionaries. I was called evidently to be in the San Fernando Young Single Adult branch. That branch has like 6 active people. How am I supposed to do missionary work for a YSA branch? We can't just go knocking for YSA age people. That doesn't work. What am I supposed to do? AHhhhhh. I came to the transfer meeting very comfortable and excited about the upcoming transfers and then suddenly I was very uncomfortable and scared and not having a clue what I was supposed to do or anything at all.
 
Oh boy.
 
So I guess before I forget, here is my new address for the time being:
 
Hermana Whetten
7025 Woodley Ave #214
Van Nuys, CA 91406
 
I guess either I was a last minute change and president didn't get a chance to tell me that I was leaving or the assistants or someone in the chain made a mistake and said that I was staying when that didn't end up being the case.
 
But everything got figured out. Right now we are living with 5 people in one apartment. Luckily we have 2 bathrooms at least. The three of us work and study in the living room and the other two have their tables for studying set up in their bedroom (we couldn't because we have a bunk bed and another bed in our bedroom).
 
They are working on getting us our own apartment but the apartment they have still has people living in it and so we won't move in until July 7th or so.
 
Our area is the entire San Fernando Valley. We basically have to find less actives in the branch, invite the YSA age members from the whole valley to come, and find pretty much exclusively by referrals from members, non members, and missionaries. I don't really know what I am doing because that is different that anything I've done before. I mean my first area in Reseda also covered 1/2 of the YSA, but at that time we were basically told that almost all of our time would be devoted to Reseda, so we would support the ward in their activities etc but didn't do much work. We are basically starting from scratch and we'll be learning as we go. We feel like the branch has huge amounts of potential, but in the beginning it will be like trying to push against a boulder. When things get rolling momentum could be enormous and unstoppable, but the getting started and changing the culture will be difficult.
 
The really good part is that our branch president loves us and he is so supportive. He was basically crying at the correlation we had. He said they've been praying and fasting and going to the temple so much praying for us to come and now that we're here they want so badly for it all to be succesful.
 
My two companions are Hermana Evans who is 1/2 polynesian and is from Florida and also Hermana O'Hara who is from Utah and is actually here because she is waiting on her visa to go to Argentina. So she could be here for the full 12 weeks of training or she could be out any day. We'll just have to see how it all goes. They are both super cute. Hna Evans is 20 and had her birthday recently and Hna O'Hara is 19. Both of their Spanish is really really low right now. Like when they first started reading the Book of Mormon out loud the first day together I had to tell myself I wasn't goign to laugh because their accent was so white. It was like speaking syllables of spanish at a time. So we have some work to do there but I know they'll get better because Hermana Hardy started similar and was practically fluent by the time we were done.
 
We're still figuring things out. The dynamics of being in a trio are so different. Sorry figuring out the library with new missionaries is kind of crazy with their library cards and parking and finding the building, so I need to go. But I hope you have a great trip and I'll hear from you later!
 
Oh yeah, and we had to watch the broadcast last night in spanish because where they were going to show the other one, the air conditioning exploded. But I was super pleasantly surprised that I could understand it all because last October when we watched the relief society session of general conference in Spanish I didn't get almost anything. Yay!
 
But love you all.
 
Hermana Whetten

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Monday, June 17, 2013

Good morning! 
First of all, let me share with you the bit of news about transfers. We got the calls on Sunday morning and I will be staying in the area and Hermana Hardy is being transferred to a bike area. Therefore I officially will finish my mission in the California San Fernando Mission. The area we have is being broken up a bit (because it is huge). Part of the area is being given to the San Fernando Bike elders and part is being given to a new companionship who will be in our ward. We did a service project last Saturday of helping the office people move everything into the apartment to open the apartment for the new area. It would make the most sense for that apartment to be an hermana area so that there are sufficient car seats to take everyone to zone meetings. So Hermana Hardy is really hoping that she is just going to be transferred to the new bike area in Sylmar. That would be funny because that would mean that she lives just down the hall from me. There are 45 missionaries coming in to our mission this transfer (16 of them are visa waiters and thus are Spanish speakers). Therefore I am pretty positive I will be training again (at least 1 hermana possibly more) especially since I'm not being transferred away. Hermana Hardy may be training as well. We just haven't received that call yet to make it official. But transfer meeting is tomorrow and we'll find out everything officially tomorrow and I'll be at the same apartment, so letters can still go there. But it is cool to think about. Last transfer there were 6 missionaries in our ward. This transfer there will be 9 (one of the elder companionships got a call that they will be in a trio) unless I get a call saying I am trio training which would mean potentially 10 missionaries in our ward. That is so wonderful! The world really is being flooded with missionary work and it is so great to be able to witness all of that!!! I definitely encourage everyone to take one small step further and figure out something you can do a little bit better to fulfill your mandate to be member missionaries and to catch the wave!!! (http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/04/catch-the-wave?lang=eng )This is the greatest work in all the world and the work which will bring incomparable happiness. I can just imagine if everyone did one small missionary thing the world would be flooded with miracles. But it is like the work of bees, everyone has to do their small part even if it is just 1/12 of a teaspoon's worth of work in an entire lifetime. Also, make sure you make it to the worldwide broadcast this coming Sunday the 23rd called "The Work of Salvation." If you ever wanted to know what the MTC experience is like for mission presidents, this is your chance. They will be broadcasting a special session from this year’s Seminar for New Mission Presidents live on Sunday, June 23, 2013. The following is from a letter from the First Presidency. 

“Ward and stake council members, their spouses, full-time missionaries, and other interested Church members are invited to participate in a special session of the Seminar for New Mission Presidents entitled "The Work of Salvation," which will be broadcast from the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah, on Sunday, June 23, 2013, at 4:00 p.m. mountain daylight time. The program will be subsequently rebroadcast to many areas of the world. President Thomas S. Monson, President Boyd K. Packer, and members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will share messages about missionary work and conversion. Where necessary, we ask local leaders to adjust scheduled worship services so that members are able to participate in the live broadcast of this historic event.”

All full-time missionaries are invited (and required) to attend this broadcast. I would also talk this up in your wards and branches. All ward council members should attend, but invite EVERYONE to attend (note “other interested Church members” – shouldn’t everyone be interested in missionary work?). This will be a very important and memorable broadcast related to this great hastening of the work that is taking place today!

Additional information can be found on 
lds.org:
“The Work of Salvation” Missionary Broadcast
http://www.lds.org/church/events/the-work-of-salvation-missionary-broadcast?lang=eng
Also, I can't forget to say thanks so much for sending me your music, Brittany. I am so lucky that Hermana Hardy plays piano. She played and we sang your song and I love it. I've been bragging about you to my district and when she played it for them they were wowed. They were very impressed and Hermana Hardy after playing it for the first time was like, "she's going to make a great musician!" That was an amazing gift and I was tearing up a bit the first time because listening to your music was as if you were here with me. Thank you so much! And I am so glad it became such a beautiful opportunity for you to learn more about the phenomenal process of receiving revelation. You're marvelous! 
Well, the best part of this week was definitely getting to go to the temple. It has been so long since I'd gone that I didn't realize what role this drought of being in the temple was like. When the session started I just started crying because it was like my spirit was at home again. It was an interesting sensation, but being there wasn't like recharging my battery. It was like I was being given an upgrade of a brand new better and larger battery. I love being in the temple! I came home and wrote about 4 or 5 pages in my journal about things that I personally learned from being able to be there. It was amazing to be with my district as well. This district I have right now has definitely been one of the most united and strong districts that I've had yet (I'm so glad I get to stay with them longer!). It was thrilling to be able to be in the celestial room teaching each other, expounding on scriptures much like Christ did in the temple. Temples are definitely houses of learning, houses of glory, houses of God. 
One of the deepest things I learned is about the measure of God's creations. I imagine it like a measuring cup or better yet like a vase. The thing is that early on we find out that we are actually filled with cracks and holes. We aren't a very efficient instrument on our own and the measure of our creation isn't very much because when we measure in more water, it leaks out. But through the atonement, our leaks can be fixed and the measure of our creation can be increased to something we could never do on our own. Likewise, when the problems are fixed, then the cracks actually become beautiful. That is what makes us unique. Through prayer, scripture study, temple attendance, The Family: A Proclamation to the world, our patriarchal blessings, and other sources of personal revelation like that, we can come to know exactly what our measure of creation is. Everyone's measure is very individual and unique. But by filling our own measure of creation, we can find incomparable joy because that is when our will and the Lord's will are in line. 
Another fantastic thing that we were able to do this week was a huge service project. An amazing family in our ward had neighbors moving in next door and so the whole district came over and helped them with their yard. They had been working on jack hammering apart the cement foundation of a pond that used to be in the back yard. So we moved away the cement chunks then the member brought out a huge metal spear thing that is evidently used to break up the ground for making fences. But with that spear and an hour or two, the elders eventually broke apart the cement completely and got it cleaned out. We also raked and cleaned up tons of debris in his yard. He bought us pizza we shared a scripture in Mosiah about service and gave him a Book of Mormon. He was so grateful and we're extremely excited to get to work with the member and with serving him to over time hopefully help him come unto Christ! That was definitely the most amazing service project I'd been able to be a part of yet of the mission. I've grown so much, especially this past transfer to learn to absolutely LOVE serving others. It makes me so happy!! I will be always looking for ways to serve my family and those around me!! 
About our investigators, Ana is doing amazingly well (she's the one who we found by that extremely long process that I explained a few weeks ago). In about a week she's read through 1 Nephi 7 and she came to sacrament meeting yesterday! She had a dream about a spirit who was talking to her telling her that it was in a place of learning and so we were able to teach her the Plan of Salvation and talk to her about what happens immediately after death, where we eventually go, and what happened to her baby who passed away after only a few months. It makes me excited to see her progressing!!! She is such a blessing and she seems like she's been being so prepared for so long! 
The big heartbreak was with Silvia this week with whom we watched the Restoration DVD. She was crying the whole time and right afterward she said she was filled with such peace. Then she got up and started cutting tomatoes and said that that DVD is just a thing made by men. We asked her if she really believed that. No, but she gave us more excuses. She knows that this is the truth but she is absolutely terrified of making the change and giving up her catholic traditions that she's had for 70+ years. We will keep on working with her and hopefully help her to progress.

Well that was pretty much my week. I love you all and am excited for good things to come with this transfer!

Hermana Whetten 

Monday, June 10, 2013

Monday, June 10, 2013

This has been a pretty miracle filled week! One of the ways was that we received something like 7 referrals! That has never happened so much! Some were by members we visited from the ward and asked who they knew that needed the message. One came by elders from North Hollywood who had done a family home evening where the family invited friends over and so they shared a short message about the restoration and watched the restoration DVD. It ended up that they live in our area and agreed for us to come to their house. Another came by the elders in Pacoima talking to everyone and one lady who lived in our area agreed to us coming over. But my personal favorite was that our ward on their own initiative decided to do a less active blitz of a sort. Last Sunday after church they got together and divided into twos to go try to stop by as many less actives as possible to see if they still live there etc. Our area ended up getting two referrals from that from houses where the member wasn't home but the person who anwered the door agreed to us coming over. It makes a missionary's heart so extremely happy hearing that the ward is putting forth efforts in the missionary work of nourishing all members and sharing the gospel with all those around them. It makes us even more excited to do our part to support the ward even more and help them in anything and everything.
Just in general this week has been an amazing week of ministration. We've gotten to sing to a person who had a birthday, We listened to the member's stories of their faith building moments. We've served people--the most fun service being helping Hermana De Leon pack because she's moving from an apartment to a house soon. There happened to be a grocery cart hanging out side by the parking lot (that happens a lot here) and so she told us to get it and fill it up with stuff from the storage that she needed brought up to the house. So we felt a lot more like nativas walking around inside pushing a grocery cart haha! Then we went out to the apartment grill place and burned a box full of old bills haha. That was super fun and we got random pictures from it.

The Santa Clarita stake on Saturday was doing this youth conference activity called "Mission I'm Possible." They did lots of activities. Like they were each assigned a mission, a companion et cetera. On Friday they went to different people's houses who served them food from whatever country they were assigned to. On Saturday morning they did some studies and thing like that. Then after that they each went with their companion and went and did missionary work with the missionaries. So that meant all of the sister missionaries from the San Fernanado and Santa Clarita valleys were utilized and many elders too. It was super fun being out with them. The funny parts were when we were in situations where the people only spoke Spanish because about all they spoke was "hola. como estas?" or "gracias." But it was so beautiful to be with them and to do our best to make sure that they both had a spiritual experience and also that they had a great perception of what missionary work is actually like and things good missionaries do (like talk to EVERYONE, testify, et cetera). It was super cute when we were at an apartment complex and they just wanted to give everyone a pass along card or a Book of Mormon or both. They wanted to talk to everyone and their testimonies were simple but powerful. We even saw an amazing miracle with them. We tried to contact one of our referrals and she wasn't home, so we decided to knock the neighbor’s houses and the next door neighbor was a 16 year old. She was super Catholic-- is a teacher of a catholic communion class and has read the Bible one an a half times. When one of the girls offered a Book of Mormon and bore a simple testimony of what it meant to her she accepted the Book of Mormon. We invited her to be baptized and she said that if she finds out it is true like what the youth were testifying about, she would be baptized.
This work is soooo great!!! I am so excited because this Wednesday we also get to go to the TEMPLE!!!!!!!!!! That is my favorite place ever!

Tenga el Espiritu consigo siempre!
~Hermana Whetten

Monday, June 3, 2013

This week was so cool. One of the cool people we met was a person named Blanca and she was a referral that came through the "system" (basically we get a text saying that someone referred someone who lives in our area. or sometimes they are the church headquarter referrals like at the visitors centers or mormon.org). We were finally able to contact her and her story was so great. At first she was very apprehensive about us, but we just got to know her and listened. It turns out that she had a friend who has even given her a Book of Mormon (but it was in English so she couldn't read it at all) and she's also been to a church dance. She has questions and she really opened up and told us a 20 minute long crazy story about her kidney transplant. She was on dialysis for like 9 years and she was getting tired of it, so she prayed for like 6 hours on a Saturday and was basically like an all or nothing thing with God and then the next Monday at dialysis she found out that they finally had a kidney match! She has a lot of faith and we're excited to work with her.

I think the coolest thing from this week was a recommitment to actively work to develop the character of Christ which is turning outward when the natural man would turn inward. One of the things that started that recommitment was an absolutely amazing district meeting. The topic was simply having effective studies, but the spirit was able to teach me some important things. When on a mission you are supposed to study for others. Study for your investigators, for how you can better work with the ward, et cetera. I really like studying for myself---things that I find interesting, things that I want to know more about, etc. But through my mission I've been trying to put that off little by little and I've been okay with that because I just tell myself that after my mission is over, then I can study for myself. But the spirit taught me something very important and that is that my studies should always be in a way related to others. I was kind of sad with that conclusion at first. 
But then the next day something clicked. I realized that slowly throughout my mission I have been learning certain skills (like how chapter 1 has that quote about how we need to be devistated. It took me about a year to finally learn how to effectively be devistated as a missionary) and that Britt and Courtney need to learn what I have learned so that they can be effective missionaries from the start. So I decided (and I hope you are all okay with the decision) that when I get back from my mission, I'm still going to be studying for others. I'm going to teach you all little by little about how cool Preach My Gospel is, especially Britt and Court. I was thinking that could be like my companionship study for like 15-20 minutes or so with you all every day. It could be so fun.

That vision started me onto brainstorming and I began writing in cross references into my Preach My Gospel manual of inspiration I've received from my Book of Revelations, of notes I've taken, of scriptures I've found, object lessons I've used, stories and experiences I've had, et cetera. It is good because I've already been doing fun little family home evening training things for Hermana Hardy every Sunday night, so I just have to continue putting together ideas in my head. Preach My Gospel is so amazing that we could even have a whole 15 minute comp study on a paragraph of it or something like that. I'd also want to help you all have little missionary experiences of service or sharing the gospel often. Like for instance, when I read that you had a new neighbor moving in, my immediate thought was "oh, I hope they bring them cookies!" I think that has a way of breaking ice. They are moving in too, so offer and keep on offering service. Love them, talk to them, invite them over to eat just to get to know them, et cetera and I think it will all be good. 
Life is so wonderful! It is hard sometimes too, but it is hard for everyone, so why not just help each other out in this journey? I think that's partially why we were sent here in families, why we have parents, siblings, companions... so that we never have to go through it alone. But at the end of the day, life is so good. It is full of simple joys and tender mercies. I love simple joys like being able to sit next to Hermana Hardy and sing with her when she plays piano, singing powerfully at baptismal services like last night, spinning in circles on the grass, driving with the windows rolled down and singing hymns loudly at red lights, crying during spiritual thoughts at our own little noche de hogar, seeing a recent convert finally coming to church again. It really is the little things. Talking to the fruit vendor on the corner because you felt you should go to a street and it turned out being a street with only businesses and he is the only person in sight. Going on hikes in the mountains. Getting to train the someone who gets excited at the smallest things (like, "guess what! I wore socks today and my feet didn't stink!") but who has a testimony like fire in her bones. Calling drunkards to repentance. Life is so great! I love being a missionary. Sometimes I think I was made to be a missionary. 
Well, I hope you all have a fantastic week. Know I am on your side and I love you! 
Tenga el espiritu consigo siempre! 
~Hermana Whetten

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Okay, to start off another great update on the status of missionary work from Ryan: 
"The size of the MTC is going to practically double over the next month. The church bought out an entire apartment complex for the next two years and they took over a bunch of BYU housing and are basically setting up a second MTC in Provo. You know what that means right? More hours for me :) We are also going to start doing devotionals at the Marriott center which should be fun!! " 
Craziness!!!!! Missionaries are so great!! 
Okay, last week was kind of a crazy week for me. Like the Sunday before last we had dropped 14 investigators. By Tuesday we had 10, by Sunday 6 of those had dropped us. Sad. Also, I got sick on Sunday and threw up several times, so we didn't leave the apartment at all. It was super weird not going to church as a missionary and that it has been a long time since I haven't gone to church. By Monday I was mostly better but my intestines were still a little weird and it was also a lazy basically stay at home except for laundry and food shopping day. By yesterday I was all good again. 
The good part is that I got a priesthood blessing and the priesthood is so great! It is one of those things that makes everything in this church click that this is the one true church. The priesthood, the power and authority of Jesus Christ-- the same power and authority he used to create miracles- is on the earth again because of the restoration! And receiving the priesthood blessing was really beautiful and inspiring and I believe it also helped me get well. One interesting thing said was that my name Whitney is closely associated with the word white which is associated with purity. However, it is less well known that white also is the color of victory. And Christ is helping me to gain victory over all of my battles, the things that are hard for me in this life. 
One of those victories of a sort was that we had interviews with the mission president this week. (Which was kind of funny. We were the very last in the zone to go and we had been scheduled to be interviewed at 5:45 and 6:00 pm. We ended up having our interviews finish at about 10:14 or so and we got home at 10:32. Haha! We're supposed to be in the house by 9 and in bed by10:30 haha. Not our fault!) But I had the chance to talk with him about what was upsetting me from the exchange the week before. I love him because he took the time to really understand my point of view. I am a person who is extremely hard working, very obedient, very independent, intelligent, problem solving, patient (but not very tolerant), charitable, et cetera. Those are qualities that make me who I am and I don't plan on changing them about me ever. And the thing that President Hall helped me see is that I am a perfectionist too. It is like a huge strength and a huge weakness at the same time. As such, I constantly am trying to do my best on my own and as such I am my own biggest critic. I constantly am analyzing and trying to improve and work to get better. So if criticism is offered in the wrong way it feels like an attack at me. I feel like there are probably books about how to communicate with a perfectionist haha. But the interview was able to help me so much because I was able to analyze myself through someone else's eyes which was very enlightening! He is so great! But now that I realized that about myself it helps because I can better notice what feelings happen in me in some conditions, understand why, then choose whether or not to act upon them. In 3 Nephi 12 and Matthew 5 it asks us to be therefore perfect. But in the last few verses of Moroni 10 it clarifies that we can come unto Christ and become perfect through him. I still have plenty of pondering about perfectionism to do, but that is my start for right now. 
But yeah, we started off the week with 4 investigators and we may not even be keeping all of them for long. But we did get 2 cool new investigators last night and their lesson went so well! What I kind of want to tell, though, is the story of how they were found. The process, rather. This is how it happened. 
~It started with the elders in San Fernando (the next city over, still in our ward) who wasn't interested but they asked if she knew someone who was going through hard times and she referred her sister who lives in Sylmar. We visited this sister and she speaks English was better than Spanish, so we referred her to the English elders here. 
~We really liked the feel of the neighborhood because it just had the right feeling for neighborhoods full of Hispanics. So we decided to come back when we had more time a different day and knock some of that street. By so doing we found Benancio who was a really cool person and seemed so prepared, but wouldn't progress because he wouldn't set specific appointments and didn't come to church or read. 
~One day while we were trying by Benancio's place no one answered, so I was in the process of writing a note to leave on his door when Hermana Hardy saw someone walking by on the sidewalk and she wanted to go give her a pass along card. So we did that and she seemed so prepared. She said she had talked to missionaries before in Guatemala. She was just moving into her house and so she didn't know her address right then but she gave us her phone number and said she'd come to church the next day. The phone number ended up being a disconnected number that didn't work.
~But while I finished up Benancio's note, Hermana Hardy was watching where that person was walking to. She just kept on walking and walking on that road, so we decided to try knocking somewhere further down the road. On the day we came back, we were driving on that road until the end and we weren't sure where to stop because there was a lot of rich and poor mixed together in this neighborhood (we typically look for the poor houses to find the Hispanics who speak Spanish). So we stopped and prayed. Afterward, we both felt we should get out and go to the house on the right. That person talked to us but didn't have time right then. But we kept coming back and coming back several times. We finally were able to meet with them yesterday and the lesson was so amazing! The wife especially seems so prepared. She was born, baptized, and confirmed catholic but she doesn't believe in that and especially the saints anymore. She has talked to a lot of missionaries and people like that before, but in going to churches, she hasn't found one yet that felt right yet. She is a truth seeker! She is interested in learning about ours and reading and going to church to see if it feels good and she said that if she finds out it is the truth, she would be baptized. She said that it doesn't make sense to her why there are so many churches because if God isn't a god of confusion, there should only be one church with all the truth! And she doesn't know it yet, but she needs the peace this gospel can bring to know that families can be eternal. She lost the only baby she has had so far when he was 5 months old. So she needs the peace that the plan of salvation brings. She is so great and we are so excited to have found her!!!

The part that amazes me about her story is that God couldn't have just inserted her address directly into my GPS and said "go here now." Rather, as we did good things that we were supposed to (contacting referrals, knocking around the referrals, talking to everyone, listening to the spirit guide us, et cetera) we were able to be directed to one thing that lead us to another thing that eventually led us to her. I think that is how God works. He doesn't always just give us the easy solution of go here right now, do this right now. Rather, by allowing us to use our agency to listen and be guided by the spirit, we are able to come to know how great God is by seeing how his hand is in everything! 
That's about all for this week. 
Oh, one more random story. I love service! We helped someone in our apartment complex bring up their groceries because there were too many of them to make one trip. It was a simple thing we did but they said we're the first neighbors they've talked to since they've moved in. They aren't looking to change religion or anything, but they do have an interest in learning about family history! Random acts of service are so great! And I hope the English elders are able to help her eventually find the truth through that! 
Tenga el espiritu consigo para siempre! 
~Hermana Whetten