Well, sounds like madness with trek and the new and returning missionaries and wedding planning!So this week was just amazing! Just thinking about it makes me smile! Today when we read the weekly email from our mission president, he had quoted mine and Sister Ponce's weekly email from last week! (we feel like pretty cool kids :)
All the prayers I can muster will be sent your way! I am so glad to hear that trek was good/hard. But mostly good right? :) These are exciting times. We were supposed to get transfer calls this morning, but it turns out the we are both staying, so that's a relief. But we are still not sure if we will be in a trio or not because the girl who Hermana Ponce trained last transfer is supposedly coming back to the Memphis side, and we are the only Spanish sister missionaries east of the Mississippi River.
So we had yet another bike week and I will tell you the numbers of our diverse roadkill at the end of the letter. We got burnt to a crisp! (I just got more freckles) We biked to P** and L**'s house (which is super far) in 105 degrees with good ol' southern humidity! Man, was that a treat. And when we got there we taught them a lesson in their cute little trailer (which doesn't have air conditioning, but it was awesome!). I love teaching lessons to them because they always have so many questions! Although we ended up giving them away to the English elders (but obviously it doesn't matter who they hear it from because it's not about the missionaries, but about their salvation!).
We also were able to go on exchanges this week, for the second time this transfer. But it was actually very different from the last time with the Bible basher! I went to the English area and Hermana Ponce stayed in our area. It was a very good experience because I was able meet this lady who is "very happy with her church," but her testimony is so strong! We taught her about the necessity of a prophet and the Spirit was super strong. She found out that I was actually a Spanish speaking missionary and wanted me to bear my testimony in English first, and then in Spanish... we cried. I told her I would go to her baptism though. So at least I get to see her again.
Okay, now for the main event!! ONE OF CHRIST'S SHEEP JUST REENTERED THE FOLD! Our investigator N** (we call him Nefi) got baptized this Saturday! It was so exciting and very peaceful! There is a special spirit present when there are convert baptisms. I am so lucky to have the opportunity to see his conversion and the changes he has made in his life! Words cannot describe the joy I feel for him and his life in the gospel. I was sitting next to him yesterday at church when got up in sacrament meeting to receive the Holy Ghost, and as he sat back down and they proceeded with La Santa Cena I remember thinking how amazing it was sitting next to someone who is "brand new," just absolutely clean from the sins of this world. And then it occurred to me... I am just like that, if I use the atonement and partake of the sacrament worthily every week, I am just like him!! So we were just a couple of "freshly" cleansed Mormons chilling in sacrament meeting. Oh, how amazing and merciful the the gospel of Jesus Christ is! I love it!
Love y'all and talk to ya next week.
Hermana Madsen
Elect of the Lord (June 22, 2015)
TrioTastic! (July 6, 2015)
snakes: 1
cat 1
armadillos 2
rabbit 1
raccoon 3
turtles 2
(and I haven't eaten any road kill yet, gotta love Spanish speaking)
