Baños round 4

¡hola!

Well today as a zone we went to Pailon del Diablo. It is a REALLY STRONG waterfall in Baños and seriously it is so pretty and really just puts me in awe about nature and about the creations of God. I seriously love this beautiful planet, and especially beautiful Ecuador and its wonderful waterfalls. We got completely soaked again, and so we came back super cold, so we were happy to put on nice warm clothes. Just my hair has a nice after effect of the humidity of Baños and being soaked :) 

This week I kept focusing on focusing on the spirit and really noticed a difference. This week a ton of appointments fell through, everyday. And we were found where all of our appointments, including backup plans, were null and we weren´t sure what to do. But, this week I noticed alot more of the hand of God in this work, and I am convinced its because we turned to Him more. We found ourselves praying to Him, letting Him guide us, and really trying to focus on what the Spirit was saying. And I know that if we keep doing that, we will see a huge difference. 

One miracle was that we were walking in the rain going over to try and find someone we had contacted a couple of days earlier. While walking there, we noticed some kids huddled under a poncho running to their house, and then they noticed us. They all started waving, and we waved thinking it was probably some little kids that wanted to wave to the two gringas, but then one of the kids asked us if we remembered him, and then it clicked in my mind that it was the kids of the person we were headed to. So we said yes, and we asked if they were going to their house and if their mom was home, they said yes, and then they showed us to their house. Their house was really complicated to get to and so we never would have found it if we hadn´t had run into them. They are a cute little family, and we haven´t been able to visit with them again, but we are praying that we find them this week. We were really grateful for that little "coincidence" or better said miracle from God. 

We also were able to visit with 2 other new families this week that are really great and seem like they have a lot of desire to follow God and to learn more about Him, we have been praying to find a family and we were able to find 3 this week. I know that families can help each other progress and really come to God, so I am grateful for the chance to be teaching them and helping them to know the way that can bless their family. 

We have 2 progressing investigators right now, and they are really great! One is Fernando, and he is a 18 year old boy and has a ton of desire to know God and to follow Him. One thing that really respect about him, is his prayers. He really has such sincere prayers and pours his heart out to God, and with that desire we have seen him grow over the last 2 weeks and really have come so much closer to God. The other is Patricia, she is great and has been really doing all she can to follow God and to change her life for the better. She loves what she sees in the church and she wants her daughter to grow up in the atmosphere of the church. We are excited to be working with her as well and to really see the change in her from the gospel. They both have baptism dates for the 8th of October, and we are praying for them.

Hermana Bench and I are getting along great as well. We work hard and I love her desire to work and her desire to just do that much more. She is great and I love working with her.

It was a great week and I really love this work and these people.

Con mucho Amor,

Hermana Cordon

Me with Fernando (our investigator), Gaby (a member, and his girlfriend), and Jessica (the less active we have been working with). I love them!

Us with a member that came with us for the afternoon

We had divisions this week and I was with Hna Loayza, she is great

Trusting in the Spirit

Today was a great Pday! We went as a zone to Baños! It is a cool tourist place here in Ecuador, and I haven`t had the chance before to get to know it, so it was cool to be able to finally go! We went to a waterfall called El Pailon del Diablo (The Devil`s bowl) and it was so cool!!! When we got there it was raining, so we knew the waterfall was going to be huge, but it was a lot bigger than we expected. When we got to the waterfall there is stairs to go down to get down to the bottom of the waterfall and we started walking down and within 2 seconds a huge wave came crashing down and we were drenched!! And there was a way to go up behind the waterfall and it was so cool!! Seriously so pretty and a cool experience, and we were drenched from head to foot. Also as we were taking our district photo all of a sudden a giant wave crashed in a soaked us again, we were very surprised! And the problem was, was I was wearing a sweater (Because they didn`t tell us what we were going to do in Baños, and it wasn`t raining in Ambato) and it got super stretched out and now I am going to have to wash it by hand.. Lets see how that works out for me :) But, everyone was laughing really hard and screaming about how cold the water was and because we did not expect to get soaked.. haha just a cool experience! Ecuador is such a pretty country!!

We had a really cool experience yesterday with a less active, Miquel. Our appointments that we had planned yesterday afternoon fell through, so we decided to call the Flia Baus (some members) to visit them and to get to know them better. When we got there, Miquel was there as well. He is the brother of the Hno Baus, and he is a member as well, but hasn`t gone to church in over 39 years (he was baptized 40 years ago). We were talking and then we ended up starting our lesson and we had asked him if there was a reason why he wasn`t going to church, he said that it is because he never felt the spirit and that he was expecting to feel differently, so he left, because he never felt the spirit. Then he told us a story of how he had gone to a christian church service and just had a really overwhelming feeling of happiness and he was like that was the Spirit, I know that is what I felt and it is what I didn`t feel in your church! I then shared how growing up in the church I always had the doubt that I never felt that I had felt the spirit, because everyone always explained it as a burning in your chest, but I never felt that, so I was convinced it was just because the spirit wasn`t talking to me. But, over time I began to recognize the way it talked to me and how he testified of the truth of the gospel to me. We then explained how everyone feels the Holy Ghost differently and it is different for everyone. Then the granddaughter of Hno Baus was able to share her experience as well, and she explained how she had the same experience as Miquel. She felt great in another church and she was convinced that she had never felt the spirit in our church, and she was confused. But, as she kept explaining her story the spirit just filled the room and we were all developed with the spirit, honestly the strongest I have felt the spirit in a lesson, and we all were crying. And she was saying how she began to look back at her life in the church and realized the many moments that she had felt the spirit and didn`t put much importance in it, and she had just forgotten. She explained how there were many moments that the Lord had completely lifted off her burdens when she was weighed down and she had just forgotten. It was a really powerful experience and you could feel the spirit literally confirming what she was saying was completely true. Then we were able to testify to Miquel that what he felt why she was talking was the Holy Ghost confirming that it was true. He then started crying and saying that he has always been looking for Christ and has just wanted to follow Christ. He said that what she had said really got to him and touched his heart and he felt really good. When we testified again that that was the Holy Ghost, he was like Really?? That is the Holy Ghost?? And he really changed, his whole demeanor and his outlook changed. We commited him to keep listening to the missionary discussions and to come to church this sunday. He doesn`t actually live in our ward boundaries, he lives in a different ward. But, I am so grateful for the experience to have felt the strength of the spirit and the importance of having the spirit testify in a lesson, because we can talk all we want, but if they don`t feel the spirit than it won`t change them.

We were guided to three new people and were able to visit them this week! One is Monica, who doesn`t believe alot in religions, but God is the most important thing for her. Hopefully we can keep helping her to enjoy and love even more God and realize that His was is an organized way. Also we met with Ruth on tuesday and she was really receptive and had lots of questions, then on friday when she came to our second appointment she brought her son as well!! He seems really receptive as well and wants to know the truth of all things. Hopefully we can help them to keep growing in faith and to feel the spirit. 

We contacted a lot this week, but really I enjoy contacting and I just remind byself that whether we visit them or not we are planting seeds for when missionaries come around again they will be more receptive. I love this work and I know that this is the Lord`s work so I need to make sure to give it my all and to trust in Him and give myself over to Him. I just need to forget myself and get to work!! 

I love you all and I hope you have a great week!! 

Mucho Amor, 

Hermana Cordon

The Hermanas

My District

Me of course!

My companion and I

My Zone on the bridge

Conocoto!

¡Hola!

So this week was an interesting week trying to get to know my new area and adjusting to the random change that came about, but I love my new area!! The people here are great and my new zone and district are pretty great too! In my district is an Elder that was in the MTC with me so it´s fun seeing him again! It´s good to be not the only one struggling with the language! 

But the highlight of this week was definitely being able to watch conference! It was such an amazing, spiritually uplifiting, and inspiring weekend for me! I definiltey loved Nelson´s talk about Covenant-Keeping women and making me think on how I need to change and do better to be the woman he was talking about. I am definitely grateful for the opportunity to know how to do better and how to become closer to God. I also like the idea to ponderize a scripture every week to keep your thoughts on a higher plane and grow closer to God. Also to ask in prayer "What lack I yet?" These talks were definitely inpsired by God and I recieved many answers to my prayers. I hope you all had the chance to watch and be uplifted as well!

Today we went to yet another watefall hike with my new zone, it was fun :) Enjoy the pictures!

Me and my companion Hna Molina

 My district right now

Love you all and look to God always!

Love, Hermana Cordon