Sorry no time today!!! Perfect obedience, right?!

Yo he aprendido mucho este semana! Bueno, cada día en la mission estoy aprendiendo! 

Martes teníamos intercambios con las hermanas lideres. Fue muy diferente estar sin Hermana Steele y tener que guiar Hermana Baker en nuestros planes pero fue super bien! Yo aprende mucho de Hermana Baker ese dia. 

 google translate I learned a lot this week! Well, every day in the mission I'm learning ! Tuesday we had exchanges with leaders sisters. It was very different being without Sister Steele and Sister Baker have to guide our plans but it was super good! I learn a lot from Sister Baker that day

I recognized the importance of planning and following those plans to insure no time is wasted. Hermana Baker works with an urgency that I really admire. She is doing an amazing job as Hermana leader! I was intimidated at first, but she helped me recognize my strengths as well as things i can do to serve with todo mi corazon, alma, mente y fuerza! 

google translate... all my heart , soul, mind and strength

It was hard for me to think I could be called on to train a new missionary. And though I still have many things to learn and many weaknesses, I've learned to focus on the strength I do receive and can receive through my Savior. I want to be worthy and able to whatever is asked of me.

I'm becoming more comfortable talking to people in lessons and on the streets. I'm grateful that my companion pushes me to be better everyday. 

We don't have very many people to teach at the time. We really trying hard to do more contacts, knock more doors and teach to find and find to teach!

I'm so grateful for the things I'm learning here on my mission about the world, myself, but mostly of my Savior!

Hermana Meacham

CHRISTMAS DAY SKYPE!!!!

OUR VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS PRESENT!

SUCH A GREAT TIME SKYPING THIS CUTIE PIE WITH HER SWEET COMPANION SISTER STEELE! PAIGE LOOKED SO HAPPY AND HAS A GLOW LIKE NONE OTHER! WE MISS AND LOVE HER AND HAD A GREAT TIME TALKING TO HER! 

Feliz Navidad!

Can't believe it's DECEMBER 22. where does time go?

This week had both ends of the spectrum of missionary work. 

L and A (the couple we've been teaching, he's inactive, she not a member). Well we couldn't get a hold of them for a while, then when we finally did it was awesome and they even asked for their own commitments to read in the book of Mormon AND set up their on appointment to tour the church. Everything seemed to be going great and we made plans to re invite her to be baptized. Well they had been wanting to move and L was looking for a new job but we didn't realize it might happen any day. About a week ago we went to their house for an appointment and they weren't there. We called with no answer, so we went again the next day. Their neighbor came out and told us that they had come to gather their stuff that day and moved. I wanted to cry. They still haven't answered our calls and we don't know how they're doing but we're still praying for them. 

I now realize the time I have with these people is so precious and I don't want to waste anytime. I hope the faith we helped them find is sufficient enough for them to continue to seek for the truth.

But when God closes a door he opens another right? so We have an investigator named P. The Hermana's before us began teaching her but we couldn't get a hold of her for the whole time I've been here! But this week we finally were able to set an appointment and she was actually home! I was a great lesson and though she said she still wasn't ready for baptism she said she'd think about coming to the Relief Society activity with us on Saturday. Which is awesome because she really has a hard time getting out of her comfort zone and has never come to church. We called her on Saturday before the activity to see if she would come with us and she said she wasn't feeling up to it. Luckily my companion is genius and remembered a quote we read that morning in our study by Elder Holland that says we need to be devastated when our investigators don't meet their commitments because this is their salvation! So she didn't hide the fact that she was upset as they finished their conversation. 2 minutes later P called back and said she changed her mind! The activity went so well and the Hermanas in the ward really befriended her.

 

It's seriously such a privilege to see these changes in people's lives and the way the gospel truly does bring a light we can't find any other way.

 I'm so grateful for this season and spirit of Christ it holds. I know my Savior lives. I love what it says in "the Living Christ", that his life "neither began in Bethlehem nor concluded on Calvary". We can celebrate the life of Christ like everyday is Christmas. We can shine the light of Christ when we demonstrate charity, His pure love, in all we do.

love you all

merry christmas!

xoxo

hermana meacham

Christmas card!

ADORABLE HERMANA'S

Sister Steele y (and)

Sister Meacham

on the back she writes...

I can't believe Christmas is already here! It's warm here so I keep thinking I just left home and Christmas will be here in a few months...nada que ver. It's definitely different to have Christmas here in the mission, but all the same, Christ is the center and I get to testify of Him everyday! It's hard sometimes to be away from you all but I know I can live with you forever because of my Savior.  This is what I want the people here to have! I'm so grateful for each one of you in my life, this family was not randomly selected- that's for sure.  Hug each other for me okay? YEAH! Miss you, love you, praying for you always. 

Can't wait to talk to you! 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Hermana Paige Meacham

the Living Christ and His gospel

Everyone:

i keep waiting for the week where i'll have more email time so i can catch you all up and write an actual, really good email. but here i am again with 5 minutes left. So just remember to study the life of the Savior. i've been reading a lot in 3 Nephi lately about the birth of the savior and then His coming. I know as we study His life and His teachings we can come to not just appreciate the Christmas season but come to know Christ and acquire His attributes.

Love you all! 

praying for you all!

part of my letter to pres you can read:

This week has been great! I really loved being able to come and listen to the doctor speak to us. I love that he focused on the fact that we're all weak because we're human, but that's why we have the atonement. The grace of Christ really is sufficient to make up for all that we're not. This week I've really been trying to trust in God and rely on His grace. I seem to always forget that I can't serve this mission on my own and I don't have to! I'm a representative of Christ so I should learn to lean on Him and do things in His way and His timing. 

The first 12 weeks has really helped me. This week it has lead me to make some new goals for myself. I'm learning to trust in the spirit and, most importantly, act on the spirit. If I can learn to not let anything keep me from sharing the gospel I'll not only invite other to come unto Christ but myself as well. 

Our investigators are doing well. We've just recently made some progress with our investigator and her pareja who is in-active. They're now very willing and excited to read. We just had a tour with ella in the capilla and she really loved it! They were out of town this week and it looks like they might move. We're trying to help them to come to church so if they do move they can still feel comfortable attending in a new ward. 

We're also made some plan to "baptize, retain, and reactivate". I think it will help us to focus and the people we should be visiting. I'm very grateful for my companion and her excitment to make new goals and always improve. 

I'm so grateful to be a missionary this time of year and share the message of the living Christ and His gospel.

some personal notes

HI MOM! sorry we didn't write yesterday, it was kinda like some labor day i guess so nothing was open. 

i got my packages today!!! all three!! thank you so much for the treats and decor and gifts. I love it!!! we're excited to hang up the tinsel and things and LISTEN TO CHRISTMAS MUSIC. that ipod is packed. thx. 

thank you for your always uplifing words! you help remind me of who i am and what i have to offer to people. im so grateful for that.

we're not allowed to leave our house on christmas or christmas eve unless we have appointments because its so dangerous. so we'll just set a bunch of citas with the members! i hope. but we have a christmas dinner as a zone in like 10 days where i'll have my first interview with President Obeso. eek, im a little nervous, i hope he understands my spanish. haha

i love that to think of the blessings from the temple as water overflowing. Im trying to have more of a vision of temple here in the work. Its easier for me to relate the blessings of the gospel/convenants to the temple. I think of the way i felt in the temple when i recieved my endowments and try to express that when i talk to people about baptism. Temple is the goal for all these people anyway right?! i miss the temple. but i know im still recieve the blessings of the temple even though i cant go like id like to. Im keeping my covenants and helping others to make covenants too!

love you so much mom! keep being the mom, friend, neighbor, sister etc. i know you are! id like to think we'd be bffs even if you weren't my mom. Good luck with the christmas party!

love paige

Thanks for the email dad! sorry we couldnt write yesterday. it was some kind of holiday like labor day so nothing was open. 

yeah the church is a pretty good size! we have about 80 people attending church on average each week. there's one more ward that meets there too with 4 elders. The area really is pretty and nice too. some of the houses we`ve been in definitely gave me major culture shock when we first got here... it's crazy, most of our work is in Colol but we have a couple random sections (mirador and el faro) that are further away and they're like the states. especially el faro they have like 3 story houses with 1-3 cars and full kitchens its just sooo crazy the difference in peoples lives that live maybe 2 minutes away. theres not many people that listen to us in el faro though. 

weve been visiting this family a lot that less active, the parents are divorced and their youngest daughter hasnt been baptized but cause their waiting for her dad to be worthy of the priesthood again. She'll be nine in march and he's not doing anything to change. It just made me think of how gratful i am for you and your always worthiness to hold the preisthood for our family. i know our family will never be withheld from those priesthood blessings. THANK YOU!!

love you so much daddy!

a letter to her mission Pres.

This week was the fastest week of my life! I'm starting to wish every night that we could have a couple more hours in the day to visit just a couple more people or study just a little longer. I'm just glad I get day after day to work again. I'm beginning to really adjust, and feel a lot better day to day. I'm starting to recognize my strengths and that I really can add to the lessons. I really grateful that my trainer has pushed me to keep up with things even though it's been hard at times. She has taught me a lot and really has desires to make a difference. 

We`re still working a lot with the ward leaders to strengthen the ward and I think we'll begin to see results. We've starting teaching a new couple and they're willing to learn more and more. I have high hopes for them. We`ve set some baptism goals for them and will invite them our next visit. I want to do all I can to insure that they'll recognize the spirit and the blessing of this gospel. The other couple we're teaching are progressing slowly but we're trying really hard to work with members and finding ways to help them feel comfortable attending church. We have a young girl committed to baptism but we're still trying to help her gain her own testimony. Her parents aren't active so we'll be trying to met with her parents too. 

This area is tough sometimes and it's easy to feel like I haven't made much of a difference here but the scriptures and Preach my Gospel remind me that I am called of the Lord and that if i serve with all my heart the Lord will make up for the rest.

¡HOLA DAD!

great to hear from you! Yeah the whole timing thing is way weird. Everyday seems forever long for sure and the weeks really do go by so fast! but then again sometime it feels opposite. today is my first day of my second transfer in the field! i cant believe it. its weird that its starting to get warm because its makes it feel like time kinda stopped, i keep waiting for the snow to come and it never does haha. Thanksgiving was just another day, usually we eat with the member for lunch but our appointment fell through so my comp and i made lunch at home, it was kind of our cute little thanksgiving. we also justified ourselves in stopping at a mini market to buy cake cause it was thanksgiving. the cake was kind of terrible though. we`re definitely busy on sundays too! i cant imagine christmas in tiawan, weird...

i dont know my exact address but we live on the corner of las lumas and Puente in a "cabaña" in the backyard of a little white house. the chapel is on Imperial. Our area goes from the coast up to the street Colòn then we have a section in Mirador too. All these streets are in puerto varas. hope you can find some it!

LOVE YOU DADDY!

p.s. i wish i could go to the temple soooo bad!!

note from Mom, 

we think we found them...

the church on Imperial 

Paige lives behind this house in what she calls a "cabana"