Showing posts with label Abinadi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Abinadi. Show all posts

Thursday, September 19, 2013

"application is the bridge between comprehension and obedience" (Hilary)

 
Dear Family,
Thank you so much for writing! I was writing down what I wanted to respond but I don't have it with me. I love you all. It was so fun to hear from Adam! I think you mentioned that you didn't have the exact date of when I would get home yet. It is like November 19 I think. I will leave late Monday night and get home who knows what time Tuesday. They should be updating you soon. They are already making me fill out paperwork and everything. I still don't feel like enough time has passed.
We have been doing two splits every week and it is exciting and exhausting and overwhelming. It is such a blessing. This week we were in the other half of the Calderon ward and a member saw me from about a block away and started running toward me saying, "Que Dios me la bendiga!!" and hugged me and said so many nice things like, "Frankly, with you I learned to work." (She used to go out visiting with us about once or twice a week.) It was so cute. Those little moments just make my day/week.
I have some really great companions right now. I love them and I am learning a lot from them.

The Book of Mormon challenge is going well. I am loving every moment and growing to love the Book of Mormon even more than I did before. I was mentioning one part to my companions the other day that in Mosiah 12 Abidani explains that the priests and King Noah are not wise because they do not apply and understand in their hearts. I realized that wisdom is not (just) knowledge, but it is knowing and APPLYING. That's why Jacob 6:12 says, "Be wise, what more can I say?" One of my favorite parts of Preach My Gospel is in the chapter about the Book of Mormon because it explains that application is the bridge between comprension and obedience. Some of our investigators haven't been progressing much, and I am going to focus more on the application this week to see if it makes a difference.
We are working with a great family right now.  I don't have time to write more, but please pray for the work down here!!
Okay, I love you all! Keep studying! It is the greatest! This is all the truth and I know it with all my heart. Heavenly Father's plan is perfect!

Hermana Norton
No empty chairs.

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

"I didn´t hear, THANKS TO MY DEEP SLEEPING, but my comp didn´t sleep a wink." (Sam)


Hello family and friends!

   What an awesome week! I hope you all had an enjoyable week and Easter as well.

   What´s new here in Spain and the mission field?? President visited our zone last week and we had an awesome meeting with the zones combined. I asked to translate.. :) which I ended up kind of shooting myself in the foot. I thought I was just going to translate Hermana Deere´s talk into Spanish for the natives here that don´t speak English but what ended up happening was that I translated that part to spanish and the rest of the meeting into english for this senior couple of missionaries. :) Hah it was fun though cuz it made me realize how BAD my english is right now. I was saying english words but putting it in spanish order and with spanish grammer.... ha! I need to practice both languages now!

   We have really great investigators right now that are very stable and have very bright futures... there are obstacles that  need to be overcome so they can be baptized...but, It is almost innevitable that they will all be baptized. How long? We don´t know.. Haha so we are all looking forward to this general conference and the fast sunday after for some direction and divine help.

   DAD. HAPPY BIRTHDAY IN A COUPLE OF DAYS. Sorry to jump the gun.. :) I just won´t be able to email you on your birthday so i´ll send it to you now. Hey fill me in on the golf tourney that you played in when you were in italy!! I wanna hear how it went! Hey, Elder Olsen comes into the field next transfer I think... If not next transfer it will be the next. We´ll see where he goes and who he´ll be with. I´ll keep you updated.

 
Semana Santa in Spain
 The week of easter is CRAZY in spain!! Look up ´´semana santa´´ in google. It isn´t just a one day celebration. It is a week long celebration. Random fairs or circuses. Random bands walking through the streets at random hours of the day or night. I think thursday night every single person in spain was awake the entire night... they had a celebration and played drums and trumpets all night. I didn´t hear THANKS TO MY DEEP SLEEPING, but my comp didn´t sleep a wink. :(((( :D So anyways, its super crazy here. Look on the mission blog. Hermana Deere posted a couple pictures and some explainations of the week. We as a mission decided to really try to plan the week ahead of time.. so people were expecting our visits instead of trying to plan it as we went. That way people would be waiting for us instead of trying to ask them to make time during "Semana Santa". It worked well and we had a successful week. President Deere is extremely smart and very imspired.

   Our ward right now is a very small ward. In fact, it is the same size as a fairly large branch. The average attendance is like 55 people... Our second counselor, american btw, that is living with his family in spain for work, has been traveling europe with the fam this last three weeks. So I´ve been taking over teaching the young mens class. I LOVE IT. I LOVE IT. Yesterday was the last class i´ll teach and it was on the doctrine of Jesus Christ. I use the classes to prep the boys for their missions.. aka I make THEM teach ME... :) and then I tie it back to them to help them apply the lessons to their own lives. I LOVE TEACHING YOUTH.

   Sorry my memory card took a long time. I´m glad you enjoyed the photos.  And, keep going mama! Use this time wisely! You have the right to be ´´on vacation´´ right now. :) you need to recuperate so don´t let people expect you to do things! Relax and read the Book of Mormon or spanish. Everyone wishes they could have a ´´break´´ like you have right now. Relájate y disfruta. :)

   Tell all the one-year-older-than-me guys ´´hi and to go get married´´ -from elder norton. :)

   I love you all! Reread the story of Abinadi and recommit to having greater faith in the 
Lord´s will.
-Elder Norton
Mosiah 17: 20 And now, when Abinadi had said these words, he fell, having suffered death by fire; yea, having been put to death because he would not deny the commandments of God, having sealed the truth of his words by his death.