Loving the Mission

Dear everyone,

Can you believe that another week has gone by? I seriously feel like the mission is a total time warp. So fast at times, and at other times it seems like ¨home¨ was another life. 

So we had another great week. Seriously. I am loving my time in Guadalupe, and LOVING my time with Hermana Coburn. We just get along so great.  I love sharing my ward with 2 other companionships of elders.  I have never worked so much with elders. They are great guys and are really working so hard. We have an incredible ward with so much love from the members. I also love being the ¨new sisters¨ because we seriously are getting so spoiled. 

Starting about a weekish ago, the elders decided that we are going to play soccer every morning at 5 AM for exercise. If I wasn´t tired before, I sure am now.  I have been getting some great battle wounds. Also, (and not always soccer related)  I have been falling a lot. I am not really sure when I got to be so clumsy. Hermana Coburn and I joke that I am a cursed Sim and that I have made someone mad, and that’s why I cant seem to go more than 3 days without tripping. Sigh…..

Last Monday our pday turned out to be almost a normal day. After helping out with changes in San

Jose all day, we had finally gotten back into our area and we ready to buy groceries and get cleaning done, when our buddies Elder Pratt and Elder Lewis from the office call.  They need be to ¨babysit¨ a sister who is going home this week for two days. So we turn around and head BACK to San Jose. It was crazy to have her for a couple of days, and I guess it just made me realize how close I am to being in her position! Lets not talk about it..... 

So this last week we had to plan a Zone meeting with the Zone leaders. With changes, almost every companionship had changes and we wanted to get to know the new people and make it great. We talked about working in Unity with the members, with our companions, and as districts and zones. We played a lot of Unity games and we came up with some good stuff. First we played the Newlywed game with the districts and their district leaders. We learned a lot about each other and we were CRACKING up. Then we had a contest for the most united companionship which included who dressed alike, who could say the first vision one word each companion, and ended with an interpretive dance to see how unified they could me. The Zone leaders cracked EVERYONE up with their dance, because one is short and one is tall. They got totally into it and even had some great lifts. It was a great way to have fun and then feel the spirit to get the zone going for our ¨new¨ zone.

Saturday Rorigo was finally baptized! The very next day he received the gift of the holy ghost, and then the priesthood! So stinkin quick! He is passing though so many problems right now, but he just keeps pressing on with so much FAITH. He even got fired from a job that he really needed when they found out he was going to be baptized. But today he called to say he has an interview for an even Better job, so wooo!  He is so great, and also, he only has 4 fingers! Cool right?!?!?

One of the members in our Ward who is SO nice to us got married the same hour as our baptism.... not our fault.

Pablo (our mission dad and the best Ward mission leader in the world) had his birthday. Right after the baptism we celebrated with cake and we gave him a picture of us for his birthday. Ha!

Yesterday, Said, blessed the sacrament for the first time. I was all grins! He did SO great and didnt mess up even once. He was glowing. He is getting excited as one of his friends from church is preparing to leave for his mission this week and wants to serve one too. Finding people like Said make all the hard times on the mission worth it. :)

Okay, the last little bit is copied and pasted from my companions email to her family because I am out of time. Blame tipos on her! MMMKAYGREATBYE!

Love,

Hermana Patterson

Okay so we went out with a member on Friday and it was just crazy because we planned to contact a few houses as soon as the member left because she said she only had an hour to leave and work with us, so we did a lesson and at the hour mark we were like we{re going to this street to go contact... and shes like i want to go with you. so we go and we all are like THIS HOUSE. So we yell and a dog Like curby comes out and is just barking and barking and trying to bite us and its awful but we don't give up we just wait. and wait .and wait. because we know there's a reason for this and so finally a little boy comes and then finally he calls and gets his mom and before saying like anything shes letting us in. so we go in and we are just talking and teaching and she starts crying and shes like i have been waiting for  this because i'm not really religious and i want to change and i want to find god and so i prayed and here you are and then she was like id love to be baptized and we were going to put the date for the 2nd of august when my comp looked at me and was like i know the lord wants you to be baptized the 9th and shes like that's the day after my birthday and i want to give this gift to the lord. and it was just amazing as this member was able to be apart of the miracles we've been having. I know the lord always will lead us to the people that are searching for Christ and i  know that as we are obedient we will be able to hear the spirit whispering to us where they are. I love this work and I love the miracles we have been able to experience.

Okay so lets just talk about how amazing JOCELI is. So we were so worried on sunday, because she didnt get to church and was like im coming im coming its just i have a surprise for yall.. and then as the closing prayer of sacrament meeting is said she walks in and brings with her, her two cousins. she was like i just want them to feel how i feel and then she was like im so excited for my baptism this weekend! And so that was just amazing and this morning she started going to seminary. im just so amazed. because shes just so strong and we dont have to do anything. we dont have to bring her to church we dont have to make her read we dont have to make her go to seminary. she does it all her self because she feels it. Her life has been hard but finally shes finding the light at the end of the tunnel. and shes already halfway done with 2nd nephi. i just hope she can get through those stinking isaiah chapters haha so she can get to Alma. haha.

Costa Rica goes WILD!

Okay, lets be honest everyone. I am really short on time and I feel like I have SO MUCH  to share with you, but this internet cafe is the worst and isn´t working very well.....

1. JULIO! Okay so my comp and I had to go to a meet in a different district on Wednesday.  We were already running so late, and everything was going wrong. We both were feeling a little frustrated. But I am sitting on the bus, and a man in a seat near me calls me and asks ¨Are you a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter day saints?¨ Obviously, as a missionary, you get a little excited. 

He starts telling me that he was on a bus about 2 weeks ago when a young man (not in white shirt or tie, who didn't give him any details, in other words, one of the three Nephites)  starts talking to him about the premortal life which TOTALLY gets his attention. They start chatting and the Nephite tells him that he should download the LDS library on his phone, then, almost without saying good bye, gets off the bus. Julio, starts reading everything from the Scripture guide, to doctrine and covenants. He LOVES it. He was eating it up. But he had NO IDEA where to find the church. When he saw my badge, he knew that the Lord had sent him his answer. 

I will be honest. As get is super excited explaining everything that happened to him, and then showing me on his phone what he has been reading I thought he must be a member trying to trick me. My dad is good at this game. Whenever we are on vacation and we see missionaries he likes to pretend that he isn´t a member until the missionaries start getting really excited and he tells them the truth. I thought for sure it couldn´t be real. So I decide the only way I can know If this guy is serious is invite him to be baptized. RIGHT THERE. IN THE BUS. So I look at him square in the eye and do it. I invite him to be baptized. His eyes got wide and he just blinked for a minute, and then the spirit got SO STRONG. He tells me that yes! He wants to be baptized! He has been looking for this all of his life! I almost started choking! I realize ¨Holy cow!¨This is REAL! THIS GUY I JUST MET ON A BUS ACCEPTED BEING BAPTIZED!¨ At this point we are in San Jose, and its time to get off the bus. So we all get off, and we keep talking with Julio, but now my companion has walked up and is trying to figure out whats going on. She had been standing next to me for about 5 seconds when I tell Julio ¨Hermano, I want you to know that we are preparing a baptismal service in Guadalupe the 19th of July. Hermano, I know without a doubt in my mind that you will be ready to be baptized that day. Will you prepare to be baptized the 19 of July?¨ Immediately he accepts. My companions jaw dropped. I was almost crying. It was crazy. This man is incredible. He already came to church and LOVED it. He participated and got to know a lot members. HIs baptism is what we call in the mission San Jose, Costa Rica FIJISIMO, o sea, Si o Si. 

  

2. Adela! She got married and baptized and it was beautiful and she was beautiful and we were like her bridesmaids matching at her wedding and it was just really special! I love her shes adorable! (On a funny and embarrassing note, right after the whole Kiss the bride moment, she spins around, hands me the bouquet of flowers and says ¨I´m not even going to through it, you need it so you can get married when you get home!¨ IN FRONT OF EVERYONE. I WAS SO RED!) LOTs of pictures to come when I find an internet cafe that isn´t the worst.

3. Also so Said even though hes been with the elders because of the rule,. hes our convert in our hearts and he got baptized with Adela got the spirit and got the priesthood. I'm so excited for him! Hes awesome and already preparing for the mission!! .... More pictures to come.

4. ALEX. okay so the day we met Julio, we then went to the district meeting as Hna Especialistas to help out and it was a great meeting and i learned a lot so i thought maybe this is my answer to the prayer in the bus about how i wanted to see a miracle and make the trip worth it. BUT THEN we were traveling back Hna Coburn and I with the zone leaders and we were like you know what. lets contact  this bus. I'm on a spiritual high. So we prepare what were are going to talk about and We give a really strong testimony and I could see people who weren't caring and then i look in the back there's a guy with tattoos and earrings and hes like shaking his head like he likes what we are saying so i walk back and start talking to him and its amazing. His name is Alex he lives in another zone, but he tells us that he has been praying for a while for the lord to put a church in his path where he can get married and then he felt that he should get on this bus, which isn't normal., and then we were there and we were teaching and he said he just felt that this was his answer. so i know it was. so i put a baptismal date with him and gace the number to the elders.. but the next morning at 6 he calls and says he wants us to go over at 1 and then i call the elders and set up the appointment for them and so tomorrow ill get to see how its going with our sweet alex and his wife and kid!!

5. YOCELI AND ARIELKA! so I'm running low on time... but they are great. they went to church. they are progressing a lot. and i am so excited to teach them and their family. they are sharing the gospel with everyone and everyone they share it with meets us and is already reading the Book of Mormon so they end up accepting a date for baptism too! I really am so so so  happy about them. and there's so much I wish I could tell but i don't have time .

6. COSTA RICA IN THE WORLD CUP!! IS A MAD HOUSE HERE BUT I LOVEEE ITT!! I LIVE IN THE BEST PLACE IN THE WORLD!! I LOVE THE MISSION! AND I LOVE THAT I GET To be apart of this world wide news. i love soccer now. haha.... sorry i am like 22 years late dad!

Theres so much more but I am out of time. I love you all and I love the Lord and I love the Mission!!

Hope my pictures work this next week because I have some great ones!!!

Love, Hermana Patterson