This week I've learned the power of prayer

The Familia Ortiz came to church on Sunday! It was amazing! We hadn't been able to stop by during the week and I was thinking about them all during consejo de barrio (ward council) and during the beginning of the sacrament. Then I looked behind me and there they were! It was such a miracle.  Hermana Fani (the mom) told me that she woke up and decided she was going to go to church, even if Saul  (the Dad) wasn't.   She ironed his clothes and got all ready and he ended up going too! The ward just welcomed them back with open arms.  We are meeting with them on Wednesday and we are also going to start working with the familia de Saul, all of whom are menos activos.  Saul's sister, Pamela, is a return missionary and so is her husband.  We've already met once with her and she is really great.  I really just have so much love for this family, it's crazy.  

There was yet another emergency cambio and now my companion is Hermana Lainez, one of the latinas I lived with in Trompillo! She only has two months left of her mission, so it looks like I'm gonna be the one who kills her.  She's really great and we're having a lot of fun together.  This week was kinda crazy--we had to do a bunch of intercambios with sick hermanas and work in two areas, so we didn't have that much time to work in our area, but this week should be normal and there should be more time to just work and find the familias I know the Lord has prepared for us.  Something that we have noticed is that there are a ton of menos activos that the Lord is putting in our way.  Familias that are ready to go back and just need that extra push.  I'm really grateful for all the families the Lord has put in our path and for being in this ward! The mission is great and the church is true!  This week I've learned how powerful prayer is.  I know that Heavenly Father really does listen to our prayers and that often just the simple act of kneeling and talking to Him has the power to change our very nature.  I'm so grateful for prayer! 

I hope you have the very best week!

Hermana Willes

The hard weeks just make the good ones even better

My week could be summed up by two experiences: the first being when one investigator told us she likes the church because we do sports.  And, the other when we went to contact a woman and her son told us "she says I'm home alone".  Hahaha gotta love the mission.

It was just one of those weeks when it felt like no matter how hard we tried and no matter what we did, no pasa nada.  But it's ok, because all that means is that Heavenly Father has some really great miracles in store for us!

We had cambios and now I'm with Hna Choque from La Paz! She's really sweet and we're both really excited to work together in Guracal! 

Right now we are working with a menos activo family that has taught me more than any one else on my whole mission, the familia Ortiz.  The father is a return missionary and he was the ward mission leader when he just decided to go inactive.  They just barely started recieiving us, which is such a miracle.  It's really interesting, because with his head he knows everything.  And he knows that too.  He's told us multiple times how he knows all the lessons, he just doesn't feel it with his heart.  And he knows his heart is hard right now, but he's sure it will soften someday.  It's really sad because his wife really wants to go back, but she's a convert and he makes her feel like she doesn't know enough.  But, I just love them so much and I know that I'm here to teach them.  I know they will go back, we just have to work really hard with them and pray for them.

As hard as this week was, things are great! I love being a missionary and the hard weeks just make the good ones even better! I know the Savior lives and loves us.  I've learned so much about how much Heavenly Father loves us. I hope you all have a good week! 

Love you!

Hermana Willes

My mission has changed and blessed my life so much!

This week was so crazy! Hermana Furness had to rest because she had some problems with her feet and so we did a bunch of intercambios with Hermana Feddock and Hermana Bauldridge! It was super great because I got to go back to the villa! It was so good to see everyone and be able to say goodbye!

We also had leadership training, which was amazing.  Seriously.  The spirit was incredible.  We talked a lot about family history.  I always knew family history was important before my mission, but now I understand how important it is.  It is just as important as sharing the gospel with people that are living.  There are so many people waiting for their ordinances and we literally have their salvation in our hands.  President Willard got up and testified to us that if we use family history in our lessons and teach it to everyone we can, we will have miracles.  I know that is true!

Tell Kinsey congrats! She'll love Chile.  Spanish is so beautiful! If she has any questions tell her to email me! 

My mission has changed and blessed my life so much.    I can feel His atonement changing me everyday and I can't even put into words how it feels.  There is so much I didn't understand that now I do.  But the most important thing I have learned is that He lives.  He truly does live and it is only through His atonement that we can do anything.  How grateful I am for the atonement and for my Savior!   I am so grateful for the gospel and this opportunity I have to be a missionary. The mission is great!   Everyday is a blessing.  I hope you all have a great week! 

Love you all!

Hermana Willes

Hermana Willes and Hermana Furness

in their apartment

En la calle...

Hermana Willes and Hermana Furness

in front of the church building

Hermana Willes and Hermana Furness 

with ward members

Elizabeth got baptized on Saturday!

Well, Elizabeth got baptized on Saturday! It was a beautiful service and she`s so full of light.  I love her, she's just so great! 

We also taught Leticia and she just bore her testimony of The Book of Mormon to us.  It was incredible.  I know the Lord put her in our path because she is so ready to hear the gospel and accept it.

This mission is the hardest thing I've ever done, but it's also the best thing I've ever done. I can't even put into words how incredible it is and how grateful I am.  I'm so grateful for the gospel and the plan of salvation! The church is true and Christ lives! 

Have the very best week!

Hermana Willes

Hermana Willes, Elizabeth, 

and Hermana Furness

With Elizabeth and her family

This week was full of miracles!

This week was full of miracles! 

Hermana Furness and I are working so hard to find new investigators and this week we were going through our carpeta de area and we found a family that we decided to visit.  We went to their house, but they had moved.  We taught the woman that lived there and then just assumed that that was the end of it with this family.  Well, a few days later, we were walking in the street and we saw this woman with her daughter.  We went up to contact her and I literally thought she was a member, because she was like "hermanas! how are you?" Then we asked her name and it was the woman from our carpeta de area, Leticia! We're going to visit her this week, I'm so excited!

We also have a baptism this week, Hermana Elizabeth.  She is the sweetest person ever.  Her sister is a member and she's so excited to get baptized.  She is so ready.  I love her so much! 

This week has been full of miracles and I know that they will just continue coming! I love being a missionary and I love Bolivia! 

I hope you all have the best week!

Hermana Willes

The Atonement is Everything

Last week, Lundy's email was just a couple sentences, just letting us know that she was doing well. Her companion, Sister Feddock had been in the hospital most of the week with some ongoing medical problems and Lundy spent the week with her, sleeping on the hospital floor next to her bed.  (I've tried really hard not to think about the germs on a Bolivian hospital floor....)  Lots of Prayers going Hermana Feddock's way! 

Well, emergencia cambio otra vez! I'm now serving in the barrio Guarrcal with Hermana Furness and we are sister training leaders! Hermana Furness super great, I love her so much! It was really hard to leave Hermana Feddock,  (pray for her!) she has become one of my best friends and we accomplished so much together.  But, I'm super excited to be in this ward.   It's in the same zone as my first area, Trompillo, and it's a super strong ward.

We are really working right now on finding families to teach.  We talk to everyone.  I love it. On Thursday, we were riding home from district meeting on the micro and I was able to talk to this woman for about twenty minutes.  She was so great. I gave her a Book of Mormon and took her reference down.  She doesn't live in our area, but I could just feel how special she is and I really hope she'll have a desire to learn more and get baptized! 

On Tuesday, we had a zone conference for all of Santa Cruz and it was all about Christ.  We all stood in a circle and said The Living Christ from memory.  It was incredible.  Then, at the end, President Willard and his family (his three daughters were there, they are all so great) sang Families can be Together Forever and we sang with them during the chorus.  It was so powerful and such a strong reminder of why we are here, to help other families be forever families.  

I've learned so much during this time on my mission, but the most important thing is how essential the atonement is.  The atonement is everything, without it we can't do anything. I'm so grateful for the atonement and the power it gives me.  I've felt it's power everyday. I know that Christ lives and that he has borne all our sorrows and with Him we can overcome all. 

I hope everyone has the best week! Love you!

Hermana Willes 

Joselin was baptized!

Well, I stayed in the Villa! and Joselin was baptized! It was such a special experience! She just glowed and glowed.  Right before she got baptized, she told us that the night before she had a dream where she was in a garden all in white with her grandparents and they were hugging her, telling her she was making the right decision.  All during her baptism she could feel their presence with her.  It was so wonderful. I hugged her before she came out of the font, soaking wet, because I was just so happy! Then yesterday she was confirmed and she just looked like an angel.  She is a really special daughter of God and I'm so grateful to have the privilege to teach her! 

We also started teaching this wonderful woman, Maria Lorena! her husband is a less active but she came to church last week and told us she wants to get the lessons.  When we started teaching her she told us that she wants to get baptized so she and her husband can get married in the temple.  We're going to set a goal with them this week for getting married so that she can get baptized.  But seriously, she's golden.  When we gave her the Book of Mormon, we asked her to read the introduccion.  Usually, that's a huge deal for people.  But, she told us "if you guys want me to read more, I can read more." Our jaws dropped.  We told her that ya for sure, if she wants to read more, then read more!  Yesterday when she came to church she said "I'm on the testimonio of Jose Smith...it's wonderful!" Seriously, she's awesome.  

This week was really good, I love being a missionary.  Yesterday we helped with the mission prep class in the ward for a few minutes and the teacher had us share why we came on the mission and how it has blessed our lives. It just reminded me of how blessed I am to be here.  I'm so grateful for my mission, I can't even say the number of ways it has blessed my life.  I will eternally grateful for the opportunity I have to serve and especially to serve here in Bolivia.  There is nothing greater!

I hope you all have the very best week! Love you all!

Hermana Willes

Hermana Willes, Joselin, & Hermana Feddock

Hermana Willes with her zone