Mezapa 3!

March 10, 2014

Hola friends and family! 

It´s been a great couple of days here in Mezapa 3. It really is a different world from where I was before. Super small town. All the roads are dirt and super rocky. There are lots of cows, pigs, and horses roaming the streets. One pig even started chasing me and my companion yesterday as we were leaving a house. I´ve heard of missionaries getting chased by dogs, but pigs.... hmm... :) This area is SUPER green. Lots of palm trees, banana trees, and every other type of tree you can think of. It rains frequently and the streets fill up with water and rivers (mixed with cow and horse dung... yum!) There are no buses here, just mototaxis, but we just walk everywhere we go. It´s a pretty big area, but not as big as my last one. I still have yet to get to know the whole area but we´ve got lots more time! We come home with sore feet and sore legs, but it gives me the satisfaction that I´ve worked hard :)

My companion Hermana Maldonado and I get along really well! She´s been in the mission a year now.Our personalities are very similar (very laid back and go with the flow). "Should we do this? Sure! Do you want to eat this? Sure! Let´s talk to this person... Okay! Let´s go down this street... Why not?!" haha it´s been really wonderful actually. One of the goals we have as a zone or mission (i´m not sure which one) is to find 40 new people to teach each week... Wow! For example, for the past six months we would have 10-12 new investigators each week. But we decided that if it was the goal of the mission we were going to do it, even though we didn´t have a full week to do it! We ended up finding a lot of big families to teach and by the end of 5 days we had found 44 new people to teach! It´s incredible how a seemingly impossible task becomes possible when you put your trust in the Lord and let him lead and guide you in the work. I haven´t been here long but I´m already falling in love with the place. The branch meets in a house currently and are working there way up to get a chapel. The branch consists of only 2 people that were born into the church. The rest are converts! Crazy, huh? It´s amazing to see how the church throughout the world is growing. It also means that we are working a lot with the members and helping them with the doctrine and the organization of things. I already love the people here. I love to ask the members how they came to find the gospel and their conversion stories. The faith and the miracles that have happened in these people´s lives are incredible!

Power of prayer manifested in a simple way: We were teaching the first lesson to two jovencitas and the ENTIRE time their dog was barking it´s brains out. It took everything in me not to go shew it away! My companion started talking about Joseph Smith and the Restoration and I just started praying and praying in my heart that they would be able to feel the spirit and that the dog would stop barking. As soon as she started in on the first vision (Vi una columna de luz...)

(I saw a pillar of light) the dog stopped barking :) The whole time he was silent (with a couple growls here and there) and we were able to feel the spirit. After she was done he started in barking again, but I know that the spirit was able to be there when it really counted! I just love the little miracles that we get to see each day :)

I sure love you all! Thank you for all your prayers and support. They are definitely needed, and definitely felt. I love this work, I love this country, I love these people, I love my Savior, I love this Gospel, and there isn´t anywhere else I would rather be at this moment than right where Heavenly Father needs me. 


Until next week!
Hermana Bennett