Hi Family!
How are you all doing…I hope your doing good!
Well guess what…This is the mark of my first week in Washington! ahhhh! I’ll sum this all up for you….
So we landed in Washington around 1:20pm Washington time…which was like 3:20 in Mexico. Then we drove from Seattle to Everett around 30 min drive. Then we went to the mission office which is attatched to a beautiful church…EVERYTHING IS SO GREEN! The first I did right off the plane was take a big ol wiff of the clean air…i love clean air…also I drank water from a drinking fountain without having to use a filter! imagine that.
Then at the church/mission office we ate and had interviews and met all of the new english sisters (there were 8 new engilsh sister and 8 new spanish) then we got papers after papers…loads of presentaions then we went into the chapel to sing while President Bohman decides the companionships…They asked me to play the piano and I was so tired that It was good because it helped me stay awake haha.
Then Presidente came in and we were all in the chapel and my heart was racing…we had the met the trainers earlier but we didnt know who was going where…So presidente called my name first.. he said “Hermana Lyman…you are called to Labor in Lynnwood Washington with Hermana….Andersen…” We meet in the center of the chapel by the pulpet and give each other hugs! I was SO exicted!
After that we get out luggage and our packages. Then we get our cars and leave for our areas….We are whitewashing so we had no Idea where we were going…we should up to our apt and the key wouldnt open the door! She called the DL’s and they were and hour away so we prayed and prayed…then these elders showed up and turns out we were trying to break into their apt. haha the mission office had given us the wrong keys!
So we went back and got new keys and drove to our apt….then the mission office rememberd that the apt they assigned us was OUT of mission boundries. So we were only in that apt for 2 days…we had unpacked and got settle in and gone grocery shopping…BEFORE the ap’s called and were like….Sooooo sorry but you have to move apts…
So we packed up and the next day the DL’s came and we moved again haha. But our new apt is SO NICE. we have a gym and our apt is inside so we have to get buzzed in and out..soups nice.
We went contacting and proselyting and at first I was like….okay woah, this is weird. I dont even know this person and Im just supposed to share the gospel with them?
But I had faith that I could and my companion has been super patient and nice. Its so scary speaking in spanish and trying to get everything right. But one thing ive learned is…as long as the spirit is with you, you dont have to have all of the words right.
So Ive been speaking in spanish and walking up to random people and being like “Hola! nosotros somos los missioneras de la iglesia de jesucristo de los santos de los ultimos dias….compartimos mensajes sobre jesucristo….y la iglesia de jesucrist es restaurado en la tierra hoy…”
But its been so faith building to have to rely on the spirit and the words of christ alone to make it though!
On saturday guess who was in my mission…DAVID A BEDNAR!
it was so amazing! we spend 4 hours with him! he didnt give us a talk…but he taught us more than a talk ever could….we were assigned 3 talks and 3 pages of scriptures to have all ready and studied at least 5 times before satuday. we were all so prepared and so instead of just lecturing us we asked him question….he asked us….he asked us…what did you learn, what does this mean to you…how can you teach this…then we let us ask him antying…we had the opportuinty to learn from an apostle of god for 4 hours. it was amazing. If theres one thing I can teach you from this, its this….ACT.
Don’t wait around to be acted upon…act for yourself, act in faith and act with the knowledge that christ WILL be with you.
I want to share some of my first experiences up here.
My first day proselyting…. we go to this apartment complex, we both are new in the area so we know zero people here. we knock on a door….Claudia answers to door…she lets us in. shes from peru and her boy friend still lives here….we teach her the restauracion and she say…this is to funny…your mormon right? we are like…we are. then she says…my boyfriend is mormon and he just said I should learn more..and I said…yeah I should huh..then you guys knocked on the door. Claudia is so prepared and she is going to be baptized!
Then we meet anadelia…we met her street contacting and we went to her house last night…her house is broken and old, we walked in and her house was dirty and trash everywhere…they cant afford electricity or heat, so they carry around flash lights…we spent 3 hours cleaning and teaching her, then we found out her husband was baptized in Mexico…shes out of our area so we had to turn her over…but she is soild and so ready!
My branch is awesome! there are 9 of us missionaries in this branch and we are expecting miracles! We are having thanksgiving at the branch presdients house….there are alot of english speakers in the branch and the branch pres. is english and they are way good friends with our mission president. So thats awesome!
We are strictly spanish speakers, we dont speak or teach anything english which is awesome and kind of scary sometime but I LOVE IT!
Its SO COLD UP HERE! So on our weird pday (thursday) I am going to buy scarfs…gloves…tighs and some cardigans kk….just so ya know. We went to 5guys burgers and my first meal then the relief society pres. took us there a couple nights ago!
Lastly, I just want to say Thank you, thank you for the support and thank you for the love and letters and outpouring spirit of the prayers that I feel!
I know the gospel is true, i was telling my companion that I am so blessed to be speaking spanish because I know that in order for me to say antyhing in spanish I have to actually have a firm testimony of it in english. This is the best thing i have ever done. I have never been so close to my savior and I have never felt to much joy and already sorrow.
I have never loved to speak to strangers to much and to tell them that we have the restored church on the earth, that GOD LIVES AND LOVES US! and that we can return to live with him someday. That families are forever and only through the atonement can we be cleansed. I love this everyday, I love waking up everyday to the spirit and love.
I love you all! Talk to you next Monday!!
Bueno 