Mairon and Maritza Got Married & Baptized!

This week was GREAT!

Mairon and Maritza got MARRIED & BAPTIZED!!! WOOHOO!!! :) They are the cutest, most pilas couple ever. The week was full of meetings and we were running all over town and could barely work in our area..and then we were fully blessed this weekend with the help of members and seeing a family enter the waters of baptism. They were so excited! So many people came to the wedding on Friday night and Mairon and Maritza both looked so great!  On Saturday, at the baptism they were both grinning ear to ear. They have already started talking about the temple :) I love them so much. People like them make all the hard days and moments of no success totally worth it. Moments like this weekend make me never want to stop being a missionary!!

Yesterday in Sacrament meeting I gave a talk about the Savior's atonement and repentance. I shared the famous story that my Dad tells about when I thought his job at Nestle consisted of mixing chocolate, and they all thought it was pretty funny. I shared about how sometimes we don't understand the "work" of our Heavenly Father. His work really is to help us become like Him..and repentance is essential in that plan. The Plan of Happiness can't function without repentance. I have learned on my mission to repent every single day, because when I do, the Lord helps me be better. I have such a long way to go to become like Him, but I am forever grateful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The plan of our Heavenly Father is perfect. So perfect that it brings me to tears sometimes! After my talk a cute sister in the ward came up and told me, "You spoke so beautifully. I turned to my husband and said, that's a reflection of the things her parents taught her!" I was like AMEN! Haha Birthday shout out to my Dad, the man who has taught me so much. He really does teach and love like the Savior. I have looked up to him my whole life. Thanks for being such a great example and a worthy priesthood holder. Mom you got a good one! (I'd give a shout out to my mom too but I will wait until her birthday to make it more special:))

I love this work. I love this gospel! 

-- 

Hermana Willes

The Wedding

Baptism of Mairon and Maritza
Such a beautiful day!

A New Change is Starting

Buenas!

This week FLEW by and I can't believe that a new change is starting. I am so excited to grow closer to my Savior and keep serving here in Nicaragua :) 

This week Mayron and Maritza scheduled their wedding and their baptism!! We are over the moon excited! :)

We also had the multizone in Matagalpa this week and it was so powerful. I felt the Spirit so strong. I have really tried to recognize more spiritual experiences that I have so that I can see the little tender mercies more. I read this quote that says, "Repetitive daily contact with Christ is like sandpaper to the soul that eventually smooths and polishes a celestial character." I know that I have so many weaknesses as a missionary but little by little He helps me. 

This week we have so many meetings and the baptism! It will be such a great week!

I know that The Savior lives and that being a missionary is the best decision I have ever made!

Love you all!

-- 

Hermana Willes

I love my companion!

Meylin's Baptism

This week FLEW BY!

Seriously the time is flying I cant even believe that this change is flying by so fast!! This week we went to Chinandega to do a multi zone conference there! It was so fun to drive up with the Poncios! The meeting was so powerful. They are showing this video that is so awesome..it makes me cry every time that I see it. I love it! We ate pupusas after the multi zone and had a great time laughing together. I love getting to see a different side of President!

This week we baptized a girl named Meylin. Her mom got baptized about a month ago! She was so excited to get baptized and the service was beautiful. She was beaming..grinning ear to ear the whole time! And today when she came to church she was basically skipping. Her joy was contagious! Also we are working with this couple named Myron and Maritza that are AWESEOME! They saw Meylin's baptism and we are working hard with them so they can be baptized next week!

Well this week I think we might me going to Ocotal!! Yay!! I am so excited to see all of my family there! I will make sure to take lots of pictures!!

Love you all!

—

Hermana Willes

Meylin's Baptism

Me and my comp with Hermana Poncio

Feliz Ano Nuevo!

Feliz Ano Nuevo!

I'm actually writing on an english keyboard so I can't spell that right..oops.

Wow! I hope everyone had a great christmas and new years! Christmas here was so fun. We had dinner at the Bell's house (the mission nurse) and they fed us ham and potatoes. I felt like I was back in the states :) We finished the night by singing Christmas carols and it reminded me of Christmases as home!

Last Week I was also able to go visit Chinandega for the first time to help out some sisters! It was so fun to see a new area. We had lots of fun contacting and looking for new people. I love getting to know more sisters in the mission! 

New Years was pretty mellow for the most part because we still had to be home by 9:30 :) I was so tired that the fireworks didn't even wake me up at midnight! 

Things are going really great here in the greatest mission in the world. I am in shock that the year 2016 went by so fast. I can't believe that it is 2017! This year I have eaten my weight in rice, walked so many miles in one pair of shoes that I call my "golden shoes", and have given out so many pass along cards with the church's website on it. I have testified of the Son of God every day and seen so many miracles! My one full year as a missionary is over and I am so grateful for all the experiences that the Lord gave me this year. I really have felt the enabling power of the Atonement in my life this year and have grown closer to my Savior. I love Him with all the energy of my soul. I will forever be grateful for my decision to serve a mission! 2016 really did change my life. 

Cuidanse mucho!

--

Hermana Willes

Christmas with President and Hermana Poncio

Christmas dinner at the Bell's apartment

Divisions in Chinendega

Happy New Year!!

Feliz Navidad!

Feliz Navidad!!

I am so excited for Christmas this upcoming week!! 

This week flew by and was so crazy. I am trying to adjust to a different kind of missionary life..We spent most of the week in the office this week and were only able to work for about 3 or 4 hours every day! It is definitely an adjustment but I figure that its a blessing too because I get to work close to President Poncio. Sometimes in our meetings he will just stop and share a spiritual experience with us and I will just feel so lucky to be able to work with him.

This week we did something a little different with the training the new leaders in the mission! We invited ALL the leaders and some future leaders in the mission and did two different meetings, the elders and the sisters separated. So Hermana Zafra and I were in charge of planning the meeting with the Sisters! We focused a lot on the Savior and why we are here as missionaries. Hermana Poncio shared some experiences from her mission. In one of them she said that in her training her and her companion prayed in the street to be guided by the spirit to find someone that was prepared. So her companion had her choose the house that they contacted and when they talked to the man he told them he was Jehovahs Witness. But he had never heard of the Book of Mormon and told them that if they came back in one week He would read the book cover to cover and let them know what he thought. They hesitated because they didnt know if he would actually read it, but when they returned to the house a week later he told them that He had read the whole book and that he wanted to be baptized. My eyes filled with tears as she told us of this experience! God has not ceased to be a God of miracles.

We had a mission service day and went to clean a capilla with all the people in the office! It was the dirtiest capilla i had ever seen...but we left it sparkling clean! I am so grateful that my mom taught me how to clean. 😝

Anyways, with next sunday being Christmas I wont write because I will be SKYPING my cute little fam. I hope everyone has such a wonderful Christmas and remembers that He is the reason for the season! I know that Christ lives. I know that He is the only person that has the power to redeem us. To lift us when we fall, and to walk with us back into the presence of the Father. I love him with all my heart and soul. I know that My Redeemer Lives!

and last—a HAPPY TO MY SISTER LUNDY who has her birthday this week!  I LOVE YOU LUNBUN!!

-- 

Hermana Willes

Playing at President's desk while
waiting for a meeting to start

Love giving Service!

President's Whiteboard--the magic day!!

In the office with Elder Lee and Hermana Zafra

Elder Ochoa

Hey Everyone!

I hope that everyone had a great week! This week was so special to be with Elder Ochoa. On Tuesday we had the big meeting where are the newbies got their trainers. It was so fun to see all of them so excited to get to work! Afterwards my companion and I spent the night in Esteli with one of the couples from the US that are serving here because on Wednesday we had the first MultiZone with Elder Ochoa! The multi zone was SO great but something so embarrassing happened....

So during lunch time everyone was eating..except for Elder Ochoa and President Poncio. Well Hermana Zafra and I didnt think that was fair so we asked President Poncio if we should bring them their lunch and he told us YES! Wohoo! We were so happy to help. So we go back and bring them the normal food that everyone was eating..plastic plates and styrofoam cups..no problem there right? So as we are giving Elder Ochoa and his wife the food President is looking at us weird and Hermana Ponio calls out to my comp as we are walking away but we didnt hear here. Well we go back to the members that were preparing the food and they take out these beautiful ceramic plates and huge tall glasses full of juice. Oops. The members got so mad at us because we took him the wrong food! But we didnt know that they had other plates and nice glasses for him so he ate off of a plastic plates like the missionaries. OOPS. The good thing was he was too hungry to even notice. But that will defenitely be a moment to remember...I will never forget the faces of those members when they realized what we had done.

Other than that the week has been good!! Managua is SO HOT and I am melting a little bit each day but I love our area. Hermana Zafra is an incredible missionary and I am so excited to work with her this change! We are praying for miracles and looking for a family to baptize.

Love you all so much! And shout out to my parents because this week is their anniversary! Arent they just the best couple ever? I love them so much and I am so grateful for their example to me! One day I will have a marriage like theirs!

-- 

Hermana Willes

All the sister training leaders

Elders Leaders' Conference

With my companion, Hermana Zafra

With President Poncio and Elder Ochoa

Changes

BUENAS!!

PUES...this last week in Jinotega was CRAZY SNAKES. haha crazy snakes. Favorite phrase that I have learned on my mission :) I loved working with Hermana Amado. On Saturday we heard about our CHANGES....and so President Poncio called me. He says, Hermana Willes, you have a new assignment this change! The Lord has called you to be the Sister Training Leader of the Nicaragua Managua North Mission! ......I didnt say anything I was so shocked! and He goes...Is that ok Hermana! Haha I was SHOCKED and so Humbled. I told Him that if the Lord wanted me to do it of course I would do it. So yesterday I came to Managua and I am here with my new companion Hermana Zafra. We are so excited to work together this change and throw fire! We share the area with another companionship of sisters so they can work in the area while we travel with President sometimes.

Tonight we get all the new hermanas that are coming and I am so excited to meet them! Also this week Elder Ochoa is coming to speak to the mission and Hermana Zafra told me that we are going to dinner with Him and President Poncio! Wohoo! I am so nervous about this new calling but also excited. I know that I will have to rely on the Lord alot. Good thing he is all powerful!

This week my trainer, Hermana Walborn, goes home!! We are so blessed because we will be able to spend her last night together here in Managua. I'm sure it will be full of tears and telling stories. I am so grateful to have made a best friend here on the mission. :) The Lord really knows what is best! And I know that people come into our lives for a reason. #cueWICKEDmusic

I hope you are all doing well and are excited for CHRISTMAS!! I know that I am!!! :)

-- 

Hermana Willes

Ready to Go!!

Excited for the new opportunity!