God is in the details, and also in the bushes

We worked a lot with plants and fruit this week.

Miracles exist people. In case you were wondering.

We saw all sorts of miracles this week. Like the fact that we are working to complete the new mission goals and we had 7 new investigators this week. How we did that we may never know. But it’s a true story.

-We had a gr8 zone service project (AT LAST) in Cabrero. We thought we were going to help the firemen build their station, but they didn’t show up, so we went to a Garden where many of the local people with disabilities sell plants. It was a disaster so we cleaned it right up and made the Director cry because he was so happy to have help. Missionary work is cool like that. Sometimes the most help we can give isn’t in sharing a scripture, but serving and working with people who really need someone else to pay a little attention to their needs.

And now a things that happened that you’ll just have to wonder about:

-A drunk spilled his wine into my missionary bag. #sharing-is-caring

-We had a mateado with the Rama where we had Tortillas Al rescoldo and Mate #Mate-is-just-hot-soggy-grass

-We went to the mountains to collect Mora (Blackberries) with Inez (the future wife of Humberto) and it was great. We got to commune with nature and lots of thorns. Inez the best investigator we have is going to make us Mermelade. #hotjam

-Humberto has three asistencias [church attendance] and is now qualified for baptism......sort of #put-a-ring-on-it-pls

-I almost had to eat fish for lunch, but my companion is the best and was like, "Hermana? What is that distraction??" and ate it for me. #blessed
It’s not that I don’t like fish, I just never want to eat it. Ever.

Have you ever noticed how great the scriptures are?
I like all of them, but especially right now I like Moses, right after God appears to Moses in (as) the Burning Bush. Because we’re reading it as companions and it’s blowing our tiny minds. #it-might-be-deep-doctrine
God is in every particle of the earth; it’s like Science and Religion were created by the same person or something.....

And one last thing: Our best recent converts have amazing questions. About the Holy Ghost and we’re doing our best to answer them, but we want to know what you think. Did we know the Holy Ghost before this life? Will the Holy Ghost receive a body? if so... when? Won’t we always need the help of the Holy Ghost?
We went right to the scriptures; 1 Nephi 13:22 But what do you know?

could it be Love?
 -Hermana Baer

An artist at work

Inez and her niece, Natalia

Meet the Mormons of our Mateada

There’s Just....No TIME!!

Subject line because I live in the no time zone

This week I developed a Testimony of Prayer with my best Companion Hermana Salmeron.

Remember that one time when Hermana Salmeron prayed to receive revelation about how to make Empenadas de Queso....... and then she made the most delicious empenadas I’ve ever had? and I said.... Is this real life?? #Godisinthedetails #alsointhekitchen

Next we prayed for our investigator Eugenia to assist [attend] Church Sunday. And when we arrived at her house before church and she came to the door in her pearly white pijamas we were like.....oh no. And she said, "I dunno, Hermanas, maybe it’s better that I just don’t go........." and after a brief pause she said, "okay actually let’s go!! help me make breakfast!" and thus we hastily departed to eat and also walk to church. And I think she liked it a lot! Now she’s going to pray to see if she should be baptized march 10th.

All sorts of little prayers have been answered.

One more!
Today we were walking like five miles to our Zone activity, and Hermana Salmeron Prayed that someone (good) would pass by and give us a ride. AND THIS REALLY HAPPENED: A cute little lady passed and said, "Hermanas! I know exactly where you are going, it’s right next to my house, I saw the other missionaries there this morning! Let’s go!!" I almost died right there because she’s not even a member.......YET.
#shegonnabebaptized

OKAY I GOTTA GO!! I promise photos next time. HA HA. time. lol.

I’m also going to send the coolest baby names you’ve ever not heard. #MAPUCHE

See you all in one year.
-Hermanerm Baer



A huge thanks to everyone else who believes in Prayer and is praying for the missionaries and for our investigators. Pls to pray for these people:
Fredy
Eugenia
Catalina y Jose
Marian
Ines y Humberto

:))


Oh hey, here are photos of our zone activity today! Can you see me now?

A dog peed on Hermana Salmerón

It’s true. That really happened. She was thrilled.

And now for the week in bulletin:

-We’re having a party with the Rama. Everyone is invited this Friday. Literally all of Cabrero. Karaoke and pool party. NO alcoholic beverages, please.

-Isidora decided to go to church in Yumbel.... but not the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints aka the Only True Church Where We Can Find Lasting Happiness, but the OTHER church, if you know what I mean. So feel free to pray for her.

-We contacted the entire police department in Monte Aguila. They’re really friendly. Also, Fun Fact: the police live with their families at the police station. Who knew?

-We sang at the super Catholic funeral of a little boy. It was...........weird. Also turns out we don’t sing very good.

-Following an unusual but powerful spiritual prompting, we promised our unmarried investigator couple of ages 60 and 42 that if they got married and were working to be sealed in the temple, they could finally have kids. The Hermano nearly died right there in our lesson.

-We’re teaching English. Or at least attempting to do so.

-In our Zone Conference Presidente May revealed the new weekly mission goals. Each week we will now work to have 1 baptism, 15 new investigators, 15 investigators with a baptismal date, and 12 investigators attending church. #vamos_que_se_puede
Ya know, I once read in 1 Nephi 3:7 that "the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." We will now be excersicing 297% more faith because I dunno how we’re gonna do that, but if Presidente May said we can, we’re gonna do it.

- I know that this is God’s work. The Book of Mormon is True.

I don’t know why we don’t have more photos:
One and only: The president of the Rama didn’t understand the names of Hermana Salmerón or Hermana Gourley and wrote this to introduce them to the Ward.
#meetmynewcompanions #MasDespacioPorFavor #NoEntenderNada #HermanaSanMenor

AM I TALKING LOUDER THAN NORMAL?*

*[references this Spiderman clip]

If so, it’s because we’re excited, because at last Isidora took the dip at 7:00, February 3, 2018 . She’s now a member of the True Church. It was all very precious and spiritual. And crazy pants. Like the kind of crazy where we saw opposition in ALL THINGS and also miracles in all things.

Here’s what happened:
The whole week: we were in search of a tunic for Isidora because.... turns out Cabrero doesn’t have one.

Friday Night: So there we were. Contacting. Knockin' doors. Like always. When suddenly we see one of our investigators frantically throwing all of their possessions out of their house into a truck. Hna Salmeron and I are like, "What in the fweet is going on??" Turns out, she’s moving. RIGHT NOW. to Monte Aguila! So we call some members to help her move the last few things Saturday morning. And we receive a call that we don’t actually have lunch for Saturday anymore. :) yay. No problem. It’s at this moment that the Assistants call us and say, we’re going to be in your house tomorrow to see if it’s clean. Not a problem; our house is just a slight disaster because of cambios and also 10,000 things to do for a baptism.

Saturday: THE INSANITY BEGINS! (also literally because I have an Insanity workout disc which we use every single day. #I<3pain. I know, right? Who even am I?? ) We got up bright and extra early to clean our house and still be normal missionaries.
We still don’t have clothes for Isidora or food for us. But now we’re helping the investigator move and clean. Suddenly another lady/investigator across the street sees us in pants and says something I didn’t understand and probably shouldn’t repeat but also says, "HERMANAS! Mi papa va a tener un asado hoy!! VENGAN!!" Or translation, the angels sent us lunch. And it was delicious. A little weird. But good.
THEN we’re working, but also we have to be in the church to clean and fill the font for 5 hours. yay. Good news is our district leader came in in the clutch and brought a tunic for Isi. More good news the font is full by 6:00. The bad news is the filter is broken so we got all kinds of floaty/swimmy/questionable friends in the water. WHICH IS ALSO FOR SOME REASON GREEN????  Ya, no worries. I’m sure it’s fine. Good news: our mission leader called everyone and so we have a program. Bad news: it’s only a piece of wrinkly paper with names, and so we don’t have anything to pass to those in attendance. Good news: The elders got us covered, and I’ve attached the amazing program. (side note this was created in POWERPOINT in like 5 minutes. Go Elders.) Now it’s 6:30, and Isidora shows up with all of the other people, and we’re running around making sure all of the food we bought is ready and everything is perfect. At 6:55 someone’s like, “HERMANAS, Isidora doesn’t have a towel!!” NOT A PROBLEM. We just run to our house and then also run back to the church just as everything begins. And as soon as we started, everything went great. Except for the part where we forgot that it was fast Sunday, so all the members were just eating cake and cookies. But not us. :)))))

So good. So many words. So many things happened this week. I think it’s because I have a new companion. I dunno, I think both of us have that 'weird stuff happens' curse. So now it’s like 2x the weirdness. But we’re good. Hna Salmeron is fabulous. Also everything about her is huge and crazy. But in the best way possible.

There’s just no time to say more but feel free to put this in your prayers, because we have a testimony of prayers.
-Jose and Catalina Constanzo Silva - that they can resolve a small civil matter and get married so as to be baptized ASAP
-Inez and Humberto - also to get hitched
-Us - that we can find the people

I’m at my word limit for this letter. I dunwan tak mor.

PHOTOS
BAUTISMO, Poh!

That one time when the bus broke down in the middle of a field somewhere in Chile. #kodakmoment

My companion is the best Mexican I know. Also here is her family’s secret traditional HORCHATA recipe. The best.#thisiswhywestudyspanish

Isidora's baptism program