Courtney's Week #42

Well, to start off, Uncle Joe requests that you guys could please update the blog. Thank you so much for keeping the blog up, occasionally I get letters that mention the blog and it makes me super happy. Well, actually it just makes me super happy to get mail in general. So it finally snowed up there, crazy. For the last four months I have been telling people that at my house there is snow, but I guess I´ve just been lying to them. Oh, also, on the subject of mail and home, I received Christmas cards from the Pederson´s and the Benson´s. They are so awesome, they both tried to send them through pouch mail, but pouch mail you can´t send an envelope or anything, just a piece of paper. But they were both persistent and tried again and I got them. I´m going to try to write them little thank you notes this week, but is there anyone else who I should write a thank you note to? Also, just so you are aware when people ask, the address that you guys have is of the mission home. And the mail to there is super reliable, and so you can send things directly there and it gets to me like 2 weeks later. To send a letter to Chile I think it´s about $1.50 or something like that. So if people ask you what is the best way to send things, that is probably it.

 

So this week was pretty good. My companion and I started a purification process to help us improve all of our little falts. So we are working on that, and guess what, I am actually substantially happier. Early in the week we came home after a day full of mediocre lessons with mediocre missionaries. I was irritated with my companion, and I was discouraged, and I didn´t want to be a missionary. I realized that my whole attitude was really just because I was mad at myself because I know that I can be a better missionary than that, but there are little things that I wasn´t doing, so I was preventing myself from receiving the blessings and in turn I was also hindering our investigators, because I wasn´t worthy to have the inspiration that I needed. The thing that was the most heart-breaking for me was that in my prayers I felt like I was just talking to God rather than having a conversation with Him, and that made me feel really alone and abandoned. So, I talked to my companion about this and so we started a fast and made a list of all the things we wanted to change. We made the commitment that every day we are going to work to do all of the things in our list and evaluate between ourselves and with God all the areas where we failed from our list every day for 40 days. So now we are in this purification process, and I am muchisimo more happy and content and our lessons and everything have been improving.

 

So funny story, so the other day I was riding my bike behind my companion and a guy passed on his bike going to opposite direction. I think I said "Hola" or something but I´m not really sure, but the next thing I know,  he is riding his bike along side of me in the middle of the road and asking me questions. I immediately stopped my bike and yelled for my companion to stop too. I presented myself a missionary and everything, but then he asked me if I could have a pareja, or a partner. I told him no that we are here to focus on our purpose and stuff, so then he asked me when I finish, I told him that I still have lots of time, but he insisted that it was really short and that he could wait, I was actually a little bit worried, this guy was really persistent and he wasn´t even drunk. But my companion jumped and saved me, she told him that I have a boyfriend waiting for me back home and pretty much flat-out lied to this man in the street. Then we walked away. But the funny thing is another guy told he was in love with me half an hour later, but this guy was drunk and so it was a lot funnier. Anyways, so one of my commitments from my list of things to work on was to not get down on myself about my appearance, my companion says that perhaps God sent these two guys to try to help me out with that goal. 

 

Well, that´s pretty much all I can think of that was super cool that happened this week. But, I love you all! You guys are awesome!

Hermana Evans

Me and my new Companion

Walker's Week #48

So to start off I had an awesome experience with a drunk guy, so he didn't quite tell me he wanted to marry me or anything but it was still cool. So me and Elder Constantino were walking down the street the other day, because we were in divisions, and some drunk dude stops us and he asks us why we are here. But he didn´t want to here about god. So I told him. "okay say you have a car a super tuanis (awesome in Costa Rica) like a Ferrari, would you show this car to every one you could?" So he answered, yes.

So this is why we´re here, it to share this super awesome thing that we have with every one.

 

And then after that he started talking about how there is a reason that he walked in to us because there is a reason for everything and told us that he couldn´t leave until we told what he needed to here. So I asked if he was drinking, he answered yes, so I told him he had to stop drinking and that's all. 

 

So that is my story for this week.

 

Thanks for everything

Courtney's Week #41

Today we just got the news that we can go to the temple! The area presidency of Chile made a rule pretty much right before I got here that the missionaries could only go to the temple just before they go home with the reasoning that, "missionaries are here to do work for the living, not the dead." But, we were just informed that the rule changed and now we can go once a year! Woot woot! I am pretty excited about that, the temple has a way to give you power and I am so excited to rejuvenate my spiritual power!

 

So the past couple weeks I have been slacking a little bit, just with little things. For example: instead of popping out of my bed at 7:30, saying a quick little prayer, and hurrying over to my exercises like a good missionary, when the alarm goes off in the morning I sit there for a second, curl up in a ball to say a very long prayer that is more like a nap, then I mosie on over to wiggle my toes as my exercises. And then because my companion has the same mosying problem, usually we are not quite ready to start studies right at 9:00 and I usually get there at like 9:08 or something like that. Just little things that I have been slacking with. So the other day I was saying my prayers and I started asking for all of the help that I needed for our investigators and everything, and I felt so guilty. I realized that with all of my slackingness I felt unworthy to ask for help because I wasn´t doing my part.

 

I have been studying a lot about obedience and keeping the commandments and everything for my investigators and the key thing is that we have to do our part. God wants to bless us, because he loves us, but he can´t do it if we are not doing our part. We have to do everything that we can do and that we have the right to ask for blessings, but before that point we are unworthy to receive his help.

 

Anyways so this is my resolution this week, and I will let you know how it goes, the thing is, really missionaries are just regular people without the help of God, but being a regular person is not enough for a missionary. We need to be instruments in God´s hands. So that is my new goal.

 

Well, my computer was a little bit silly today, so I am out of time, but I love you all and I will write to you all again next week!

 

Love you!

Hermana Evans

Walker's Week #47

Okay how's it going. So about the shoes, the other ones are pretty worn out too I just don´t have a picture of them so yeah. So this week at church I met someone that was companions with Drew Long. Can´t really remember the name but yeah did Drew serve a mission in Paraguay. Just a question. So we have two really awesome families that we are teaching. But they both have problems. One of them just has to get divorced and remarried witch will take like three months. The other however has to do the same thing but she is only a citizen here because she got married but she has to obtain citizinship then get divorced then remarried. I have no idea how long that will take.

But on a better note, I can go to the Temple once every 6 months which I think is a little bit better that once every year. I have been 3 times in my mission so far, it's pretty cool, just to brag a little. Thats about it.

Courtney's Week #40

So here are a few things that I learned this week:

 

1. Riding a bike in a skirt is an art that I haven´t quite mastered yet. Oh my goodness, this whole week I have been trying to figure out a way to ride my bike without showing my underwear to the whole world, I think I have almost figured it out. The other problem, is that if you wear a skirt that is a little bit longer it gets caught in the wheel and in the brakes. I´ve decided what seems to work best is to pedal like a frog, then it seems to work out okay. But just as a little tip of advice, if you can, use pants when riding a bike.

 

2. If the bishop does not attend church, a ward does not function very well. My new ward is having this very problem, the bishop works one of those schedules where you work for 7 days and then you´re off for 4 or something like that, I still haven´t met him, but this ward is falling apart. There isn´t a Young Mens President at all, and the first counselor doesn´t do anything because I guess he was never set apart, and he can´t be set apart because he doesn´t have the Melquesidec priesthood, and he couldn´t recieve the Melquesidec priesthood because the bishop wasn´t there at the last stake conference and so he wasn´t sustained. The ward is also kind of split in two, there is kind of like a rebelion against the bishop going on, and the bishop is losing because he´s never present. It´s pretty bad.

 

3. Without members, missionary work is good for nothing. My sector has had some pretty awesome missionaries in the last few years. This sector was actually for Elders until about 3 months ago, when they put Hermanas here. The missionaries that were here in this sector did a lot of work and baptized a lot of really really great people, but, all of these people are now inactive because they didn´t have any support or friendship from the members. It is really really sad.

 

4. The church is true!!

 

Well, that´s about all I learned this week that I can think of for the moment. I actually really like my sector, it´s mostly country, we have to bike past huge vineyards to get to parts of our sector, but it is so pretty. The people in this area are mostly really old people that have lived here since the beginning of time.

 

So exciting news, I found out this week that the mom of the kids that I baptized back in August finally got baptized!! It was the family that was really poor, Larissa worked our all of her difficulties and was able to be baptized Christmas Eve! Their family is complete now!

 

Well, that´s about all for this week. Things are going great!

 

Love you all!

Hermana Evans

Larissa and Hermana Taggart, my companion from the MTC, who baptized her!

Walker's Week #46

So, first off I would like to know what I need to do to get some new shoes. These ones are not doing so good right now. I would like to get some new ones before the raining season.

So just kidding I am not in Guapulis I am in Tibas witch is where the Saprisa Stadium is. It's pretty cool, there are to big soccer teams in Costa Rica, the Liga which is from Alajuela, and Saprissa which is from San Jose. But my first area in Alajuela had the Liga Stadium in it and now I have the Saprissa Stadium in my area. But right now it is super cold. As in I am dying every night. Because we don´t have heaters so I am walking around with a jacket all day and at night I still have the jacket and every other piece of clothing I can find. But it is so cold. But my ward is super awesome as in super super awesome. But yep because I am in the city I am catching lots of buses. As in at least three every day. But yep that's about it, so write you next week.

Courtney's Week #39

Hola Familia!!

Well, as you probably noticed today is Tuesday and not Monday. This week we had cambios, but I think what happened is that Presidente wasn´t ready yet or something, because Sunday night when we should have recieved the notice of our cambios instead we were told that P-day and cambios were delayed one day. So guess what, I changed sectors and companions, and I am no longer in a trio! Woot Woot! I am back in Los Andes, it's the same city where I was about 5 months ago, but I am in a different ward. My sector has a lot of country and its really really big. We have bikes and I think we use them every day. Also, it is hotter here than it is in Santiago, I think I might die. It is so hot. I think its probably about the same as summer in Utah, but the big difference is that normally people are not outside, running or walking really fast all day. And, the houses do not have air condicioning at all. It is so hot here, I am so glad that I only have 1 summer in Chile.

So how was it to talk to Walker, did you talk through skype? Did you talk for a long time? It´s probably a really good thing that missionaries can only talk to their family 2 a year. All day I was just day-dreaming of my family and how great they are, but don´t worry I am now focused again.

Well, so my new companion´s name is Hermana Forebush, she is from Ely, Nevada. She actually finishes her mission in March, so I may be her last companion. She is actually the trainer of Hermana Taggart, my companion from the MTC. I´m pretty excited, we´re going to baptize the world together, or at least all of our humungous sector.

Well, I don´t really have much else to say. Love you all and I will talk to you next week!
Hermana Evans