Feliz month of cats

FELIZ MONTH OF CATS! (at least here in chile. and ironically I've seen two dead cats in the past week)

well it's been a lovely week. In the mission we're constantly setting goals. Every morning, every nights and for two hours every thursday with a revision every sunday. And it can be hard when you've felt like you've worked you tail off but your numbers come out less than half for what you hoped for. This week was one of those weeks. But you know what? I feel great. 

-Reason number one: Hermana C has grown so much! aww mi hijita. She is so good and pushing herself and me to reach our goals. We both were able to develop new teaching skills and we're starting to teach really well together. 

-Number two: although church attendance was low, more than half of them were our less actives! Hna E came with her three girls and hna P came with her sons and her (ex)boyfriend and J P came! J P is from a new family we found a couple weeks ago. His parents got baptized about 20 years ago but he got baptized 3 years ago. He's 18 years old and wanted to serve a mission but they've been through A LOT! you guys, i can't even express to you the love i feel for this family. They are a miracle and have the most sincere desires to come back to church. But hermano A (the dad) had an accident at work and broke 2 ribs. so they couldn't come. buut next week!

reason number three: we taught a couple that are SO PREPARED. hna C first week i was talking on the phone with a convert and hna C was scared to do contacts but this couple passed and she handed them a card. They told us we could pass by another day. well time passed and we couldnt make contact with them until one day we saw F and he invited us to the baby shower of his girlfriend. we thought "how weird. they don't even know us... pero bueno!" and we set an appointment to visit them. When we came they fed us SOO much food, and afterwards we fed their spirits. They had so many questions and they were so straight forward. P took notes the whole time. They are sooo excited to have their own copy of the book of mormon! We invited them to baptism and P told us she was looking for a church to join because so wants to be baptized for her own desicion and not that of her parents (she was baptized catholic as a baby). They're happy to read and pray to know the truth.

I wish I could tell you guys everything in detail that happens. It's BEAUTIFUL. I LOVE THE MISSION. 

well today we're in valdivia to get shots and they told us they dont have time until tomorrow so we're stuck here with NOTHING. and it's 3.5 hours from our house.

 

p.s. every wondered what horse meat's like? black, tough and taste like the smell of canned dog food. but you can hardly taste it when you put it in a soup.

MUCH LOVE

HNA MEACHAM

fotos de la zona

Buenas!

buenas!

things are good here in Pucón! 

E wasn't able to come to church because she got really sick. ): annnd she'll be out of town for almost 2 weeks for work. She leaves tuesday so we'll see her today to leave her with a bunch of reading homework to keep her spirituly busing (; I pray that she's be able to feel the spirit and power of the Book of Mormon and contintue to progress even though we wont be able to see her.

We've decided to give J and D some time and space. We hadn't seen them for a week and had just asked some members to call them, inviting them to church and what not, hoping that they'd feel a lack of spirit that would draw them to act. and they came to church! after sacrament J said, "we miss your visits! when are you gonna come?" i guess it's working! we'll see where we go from here.

We've been able to find a few new families that are interested and we've invited a couple to baptism. Although they didn't accept the invitation they understand what we hope to help them achieve and accepted to continue to learn and allow baptism to be a possibility. 

The other week another missionary told me something someone had told her and well, it's spot on. People often say, "the mission changed my life" or "thanks to my mission..." etc. But it's not the mission. As missionaries we have a strict dedication and obligation to live the gospel principles at a higher and profound level. We study, teach, breath and live the gospel. Day in, day out. THAT is what changes a missionary. Christ has the ability to change the hearts of men and His gospel is what teaches us how to make it happen. You don't need to be a full time missionary to be changed by Christ. 

As we committ ourselves to Christ and to live His principles at a higher level we recieve light, we come to be more like Him. I've had the opportunity to live the gospel to the fullest for a year. And it has been a priceless year. I thank my Heavenly Father everyday for my mission. But I don't want it to end the day I come home. 

In the conversion of King Lamoni, he declared in prayer, "I will give away all my sins to know thee" (alma 22:18).

As we leave behind what we were yesterday and promise to live the gospel at a higher level today than we did the day before we will come to know our Savior. And that's what changes us. I'm so grateful I have a life time to try to become better each day.

I love you guys. I know Christ love you all perfectly.

xoxo

Hermana Meacham

A love without price

HI FAMILIA,

Well I'm just gonna jump right in with E. On Wednesday we were able to do intercambios (exchanges in english? idk) with the Hermana Lideres, and I was able to visit E with Hna S. She had read the chapter we left her (2 ne 31) TWO times in 3 days! She didn't understand much but by reading it she showed her strong desires to learn and progress. (also fyi, "baptism by fire" freaks people out if they've never heard of the comfirmation before. jaja pobrecita)

We taught her about repentance, and although she had never heard about the atoning sacrifice before she totally understood and loved it. We taught her that repentance = change. She told us she has literally seen this change in herself and was so happy to recognize her own progress. Sept 26th here we come! Some things came up and she wasn't able to come to church but she told us her boyfriend wants to participate in the next lesson!

We had a Family Night with J and D in a members house a few days ago. It was so powerful! We felt the spirit so strong and left in tears. I pray that it was the experience they needed to have a change of heart and JUST GET MARRIED ALREADY.

This week I've really taken the time to study the Atonement. It really is incredible the love that God has for us to sacrifice His own, perfect Son to pay the price of all the mistakes of His imperfect sons and daughters.

2 Nephi 26:

24 He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation.

 25 Behold, doth he cry unto any, saying: Depart from me? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; but he saith: Come unto me all ye ends of the earth, buy milk and honey, without money and without price.

33...and he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.

 I love you all. I know God and Jesus Christ love you even more.

Wish I could write more and tell you about all these beautiful things I'm learning and experiencing but this will just have to do.

MUCH LOVE, HNA MEACHAM 

short on time!

Sorry i'm short on time! But I wanted to tell you all that we had a lesson with E yesterday and she accepted a baptism date! the 26th of september! She is so incredible! She said the last time we taught her there was something that told her she as to get baptized and she wanted to shout it to us! She has a lot of habits we'll have to help her drop but she's already making small changes and has so much faith, i know God will help her. We left our appointment and we were literally just beaming. sooo giddy. It was so amazing to see Hermana C so happy to have her first investigador with a baptismal date. She was radiading light as she testified of the happiness of the gospel to some contacts we did after the lesson.

the gospel really is happiness.

sorry for a messy short email but i love yall.

hna meacham 

Longest week of my life!

LONGEST WEEK OF MY LIFE. 

transfers came and monday night at about 1030 they called us to let us know we would have to leave at 630 am to go to a meeting in pangipulli. It was a long travel and we got back home at 300 and had to catch another bus at 400 to go to Osorno for transfers. and on top of it all the main bus transportation is on strike. SO it was a crazy couple of days full of uncomfortable bus rides. But it was so great to go to the mission home and meet my new companion! (and hna Davis was there! i missed her so much)

Hermana Cordoba. She's great, seriously. I forget I'm training her because she already just rockin it. She extended her first baptism invitation to our investigador Emilia. It went so well! I visited her with a member and we were so happy to hear that she had read the restoration pamphlet we left her and she had prayed! For the second time in her whole time! And she asked if what we had shared with her was true and she said she felt the spirit so strong! Her family and friends and her boyfriend don't support her and make fun of her for listening to "the mormons" but she said she doesn't care cause shes the one who's learning and feeling the spirit. Yesterday she finally relized that she's had faith all along without realizing it. She's going to be praying about baptism and this thursday we hope to be able to help her accept a date. 

Also, our ward mission leader finally came home after a 2 month vacacion! i can't wait to meet him. we'll also have our branch council meeting this saturday for the first time in months! yay for progress!!!

I love my mission you guys. I love Chile. I love the Lord. I love the Book of Mormom. I love the gospel. I love my family. I love you all. 

In the words of our drunk friend here in Pucón who likes to practice his english, "take it easy. slow down. love bobby brown"

or in this case

love, hermana meacham

New companion Hermana Cordoba

Hermana's Davis and Meacham

yesica y damian and fam

pucon y  hna alonso

Hola mis chanchitos!

hola mis chanchitos.

it's been a crazy week. but that just the mission for you. We taught Andrea (less active), she really is progressing so much. She's taking it so serious, which is so cool. She really understands what it means to partake of the sacrament to renew our covenants and what's even cooler is that she's totally renewing them. We're working a lot with the youth of the branch. They're so excited to be missionaries and it makes me so happy. I seriously love missionary work. I wish everyone could serve a full time mission.

but we've got some sad news too. Maria, our progressing investigador, is moving... ): she really opened up to us this week. she could use some prayers. She's really sad to leave us but we'll make sure the missionary make contact with her in her new home. It stinks because she's on the brink of baptism but I know it's what she needs to progress in all honesty. I wish I could be the one to see her walk into the waters of baptism but I'm just here to do the will of God. 

but

guess what? i'm a trainer. eeek! I'm super excited. Nervous too, but mostly excited. Something I've really learned on my mission is how God qualifies the called, not the other way around. My companion is from columbia. (and i totally already forgot her name. oops, terrible mom). NUEVITA.

pray for us please.

sorry for a short email. asi es.

Love you all so much

hna meacham

Al Punto de Milagros

 So yesterday, the beautiful day of fasting and testimonies, I was sitting in church and I felt just this overwhelming love that God has for His children. As missionaries, we're blessed to get to know so many people and God blesses us with the ability to love them almost instantly so that we can teach them and help them. I had this feeling that if I continued to work in charity and love we'd see miracles here in Pucón. After church an elder in the ward said, "the chapel was different today, I think we're about to see some miracles." Needless to say, we're getting ready to work our tails off to make it happen.

   This week we were able to visit Maria, we talked about the plan of Salvation and she told us she's scared to commit to baptism because she's scared of failing. Her family and friends put her down for not being a "saint" but wanting to join the church of latter-day saint. This morning I read an amazing talk from the last conference, "Latter-day Saint Keep Trying" or something like that. I'm excited to share if with her. But she got terribly sick and couldn't attend the baptism in Villarrica with us ): ): but Yésica and Damian were able to come! It was incredible! So beautiful. Hermana Orlando got baptized. His wife was baptized in march and his son was baptized last year. They waited and prayed for this day to come and it came. Yésica said it's motivated her and Damian fasted a full 24 hours! AND they came to church with us. I think we're hitting a turning point with them

   Also, we're teaching a less active, Andrea. She's great. She's really opened up to us. and she came to church too! Which was seriously a major step for her! yay

   ALSO we taught Emilia yesterday! remember the girl that add the experience with prayer but desn't know much about God? yeah her. She is so excited to learn. We talked about Joseph Smith. But she has lots of questions about what faith is and what it means to have it. So will start there with her.

   This sector is challenging me in a lot of ways but I'm growing to love it for it's challenges and all.

Thanks for the prayers and the love.

xoxo hna Meacham