Ernesto's Family got Baptized!

This week has been a little crazy..my sweet companion, Hermana Le Starge has returned home due to medical issues. We got the call from President Collado telling us that she would be going home on Monday.While we were crying, I had the crazy impression to call Ernesto and ask them if they would be baptized that night so that Hermana Le Starge could see it. He told me that we was actually not in Ocotal but he would try his best to be back around 5..so right at 5 we were standing in their house, baptsimal clothes at the ready. We explained to them the situation...and THEY GOT BAPTIZED! I wanted, I did, cry tears of joy. The youngest daughter, Gensis, was crying because she couldnt get baptized (she is seven) and each of them were smiling from ear to ear after they left the water. I just love them so much! And on Sunday Ernesto was really sick but he still came to church and all of them were confirmed :) We are planning on giving Ernesto the priesthood really soon!

Also this week...

I survived an earthquake! haha it was a minor earthquake but the nicas are very dramatic so we have been talking to everyone about how we barely survived.

we baptized a daughter of a member! Her name is Valeska and it was beautiful! Her dad was able to baptize her and it was just lovely.

I am now working with a mini missionary from Costa Rica named Hermana Perez! She is in her 60s and finishes her mission on monday so we will really only have this week together. She loves sharing her testimony with everyone and i love her desire to be here and work :)

On Wednesday we will have a multi zone meeting and I think it will be my last time I will see President Collado..AH!

I found this quote that I love:

"We are not here to while away the hours of this life and then pass to a sphere of exaltation. But we are here to qualify ourselves day by day for the positions that our Father expects us to fill hereafter."  -George Albert Smith

I love this quote because each day I am trying to be a better missionary and a better disciple of Christ. I LOVE being a missionary and am so grateful for every miracle I see! I am still in shock that Ernesto and his family got baptized. I know that the family is central to the plan of our Heavenly Father, and I cant wait for the day when I see them all in white in a temple one day.

Love you all!

--

Hermana Willes

The baptism of Ernesto and his family

Valeska's baptism

Studying the Conference Talks

This week was so incredible. We weren't planning on going to Ernesto and his family on Monday night because we were going to let Graciela spend mothers day (it was mothers day here in nicaragua) with her family..but we received a phone call at about 5 from them telling us to come over but they wouldnt tell us why..turns out they surprised us with dinner! It was so cute :) They were so excited to eat with us. I love their family so much.

Other than that things are going really great here in Ocotal. The Lord is blessing me in every which way. I have been studying the conference talks hard core and I am loving every single one..something that I read this week that I loved was, For God, there is no point of no return. We are never too far from the hand of our Savior Jesus Christ. He will always be able to extend his hand to help us, no matter the situation. We can always change and become better, even if we have to make a comple 180 degree turn. I will forever be grateful that the gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of hope and a gospel of light. I know that The Lord will never forget us, because we truly are graven on the palms of his hands.

-- 

Hermana Willes

Enjoying dinner with Ernesto's Family

Nicaragua is Beautiful

This week was a great one. Ernesto and his family and rocking it :) Yesterday we were a little late to help get the little girls to church and Brandy, the ten year old, called me and goes, Hermana Willy we just want to know if you are coming to help or if we should go without you guys? ..That is a missionarys dream. Their family is incredible. The love I feel in their house is unreal! So there is Ernesto, his wife Graciela, and they have three daughters. Katerine who is 12, brandy who is 10, and Genesis who is 7. They are the cutest. Little Genesis loves to pray and little kids speaking spanish just make me melt. We have started leaving them with coloring pages from some of the Liahonas we have in our house and they love them! We are SO blessed to be working with this family. They were able to see a baptism this week and are so excited for the 18th of June.

Today for Pday we climbed a mountain..haha I fell a couple times coming down but it was so fun! Nicaragua is BEAUTIFUL. I can not get over how lucky I am to be serving here. I testify that the Lord knows exactly who we are and what we need. He is always there extending his hand to bless us, we just need to look.

-- 

Hermana Willes

Today's hike.  Nicaragua is so beautiful!

Hermana Willes and Hermana LeStarge enjoying the view.

Brandy and a coloring page from the Liahona.
Each scripture has a color coordinated with it.
She took notes and told us all about how the
Liahona works after.  I just love her!

"I love the Ketchup so much!  And everything
is better in bags!"

This week ROCKED

This week ROCKED. (that is my new favorite phrase in english) WE PUT FECHAS WITH ERNESTO AND HIS FAMILY! The Lord is working miracles right now. We tried almost every day this week and then on Saturday night the mom, Graciela told us, I just feel so confused about whether or not we can be baptized again. Right then, the Spirit took over and I explained the Restoration as simply as possible. My heart was going crazy when she asked me, Are you saying my first baptism wasn't valid? I weirdly wanted to shout for joy because I knew that she was finally understanding. After we told her no, it was like a lightbulb went off in her head. She then told us, ok I feel so much better now,. Everything makes sense. I need to get baptized in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. After that, the dad, Ernesto, still seemed hesitant. We were trying to put a baptismal date for the 10th on June, but he was saying that he wanted more time. After a minute I told him that he could choose his date if he wanted. He chose the following week, the 18th of June. After that, the entire family agreed to preapre and be baptized on the 18th of June!  The joy i felt in this moment was indescribable. I LOVE this family so much and I am SO excited for them to enter this covenant with our Heavenly Father. They are already converts and will continue to be converted before their baptism. When we showed up at their house yesterday before  church they were all ready to go and Ernesto reminded us about the day of their baptism. (just in case we would forget or something) I love them so much and cannot wait to help them prepare. The 18th of June just so happens to be the last week of this change..possibly my last weekend here in Ocotal. What a tender mercy that if I will have changes I will able to see them enter the waters of baptism!

I hope that everyone is loving life and enjoying every day. I am about to finish reading the infinite atonement and I am amazed by how beautiful that book is every time that I open it. A quote that I love says, "The Savior is anxious that the Atonement make us better. He must be gravely disappointed if people merely acknowledge His atonement as a magnificent sacrifice to be viewed in awe, but with no thought of change. The Atoning sacrifice was designed to motivate us, to draw us unto Him,. to lift us to higher ground, and ultimately to assist us in becoming as He is.”  I know that the Atonement can change us, can help us, and will save us. I know that this church, the church of Jesus Christ, is the only true church on the earth today. I know that with all of my heart.

love you all!

-- 

Hermana Willes

A picture outside of the tiny house where we hold
our church meetings.  We finally made a sign out
of a whiteboard.  haha!

The daughters of Ernesto and his niece.
I LOVE THESE GIRLS! We are headed to church.

Multi zone meeting in Esteli

Exactly 10 investigators

This week we saw MIRACLES like we do every week.

Right now we are working with a family, the familia Casco Fuente. They are such a beautiful family..they have three daughters and i immediately loved them.

At the beginning of the week, my companion set a CRAZY goal in our zone meeting.She told everyone that we were going to bring ten people to church. I was like...my comp is crazy. Haha I have never ever done that in my mission.So yesterday, we woke up full of faith and went to work to get our ten people.In the morning all of our investigators were making excuses after excuses, and we showed up without anyone. But after the sacrament, a man that we contacted walked in..what are the chances of that? Also, a member brought her cousin that we are going to start teaching. In the afternoon, when we went to get investigators and when we went to get the big family they were all waiting for us! And not only that, their neighbors came with us! And you will never guess what happened..when we totaled our investigators that showed up in the afternoon..we had exactly10 investigators in church yesterday.I wanted to cry. The Lord is so good!

I love you all so much!

-- 

Hermana Willes

Headed to our afternoon branch...
packed in the car

The daughters of the Familia Casa Fuente
and their friends--so cute!

Jose and Rosario
Wally and I taught them and
they were baptized. I love them!

I Will Be Staying Here in Ocotal

Loved talking to our beautiful missionary!

Best part of Mothers Day!

Well this week was crazy snakes! I got to talk to the cute family yesterday :) Happy Mothers Day Mom!! :) I loved seeing their faces and hearing their voices. I love my family so much!

Well we had changes...and looks like I will be staying here in Ocotal for more time :) Woohoo! My plan is to never leave. I love my little town of Ocotal :) 

Yesterday we went to Esteli for stake conference and it was so fun to go with all of the members. In the morning when we were getting investigators we went to the house of an old investigator named Dennis who is a friend of my convert Lorenzo. He has a huge fear of being baptized but I felt prompted that we needed to pass by for him. So we went to his house and I was like Dennis, we are not leaving your house without you. (i can be really stubborn sometimes) and so we waiting. And 10 minutes before the bus left Ocotal he finally was like ok i will go and we started running to the church! Luckily the Lord placed a taxi right in our path and made it to the church just in time..such a miracle! He loved seeing the church in Esteli and I hope that this will help him a little bit more to enter the waters of baptism.

I am reading the book the Infinite Atonement right now and every page blows my mind. It is so beautifully written. I am starting the understand the Atonement a little bit more every day. I testify the the Atonement really is Infinite..there are no limits. And when we feel like we are alone, we are never alone. The Savior always understands our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Isnt the gospel just so beautiful?

Anyways, I love you all so much and hope that you are doing just fabulous. Here is a lovely picture of all of my family here in Ocotal on the bus yesterday!

-- 

Hermana Willes

On the bus...one blonde head among all the latinos

Seven Months

I hit seven months in the mission this week....yes I cried. My poor companion was like, 'Hermana you still have a year left...' hehehe oh well. I just love being a missionary too much! The time is going too fast.

This week we had so many miracles.. (as usual)

We found an old investigator named Wendell and reput a fecha with him to be baptized! He is preparing for the 21st of this month and he ROCKS. When we first went back his dad was bashing us (he is the pastor of another church) and when his dad left Wendell just goes, 'Sorry Hes crazy. He just doesnt understand about the one true church of Jesus Christ.' :) We taught him the plan of salvation this week and he loved it..And he came to church yesterday and after wards he told us that he wants to take us to his friends houses! Yay! Wendell Rocks!

Also..JIMMY IS BACK IN OCOTAL!!!!!!! I love Jimmy! He came to church yesterday and bore his testimony about how his life has changed..that is the most beautiful thing to hear as a missionary. Also my convert CHRISTIAN is back from El Salvador! :) She suprised me and came an activity on thursday night..I teared up I was so happy to see her! I love my converts so much!

This week I finished the Book of Mormon again. I love the Book of Mormon so much. I think the end of the Book of Mormon is the most beautiful part..I love Moroni. The Book of Mormon really has changed my life. I can not wait to start reading it again! I challenge each of you to start reading the Book of Mormon if you are not reading it right now. Go right now! haha. 

Well this week we have changes again..I am praying I will have one final change here in Ocotal! :) And I get to speak to my beautiful family on sunday..ahhh! Happy Mothers Day all of you beautiful Moms!

Have a great week!

-- 

Hermana Willes

Jimmy back in Ocotal!

Our recent convert Christian

Spider in our bathroom...I wanted to cry!