Fifteen

This week lots of this happened.

Yes we did experience a 6.4 terremoto.  Story.  This night was a huge ward activity.  The activity was about different countries (colombia, peru, guatamala, y mexico).  Different foods to try, dances, and facts/history about the countries.  Tanto divertido.  Before the activity the whole chapel started to shake.  By now I am use to the temblores (small quakes) but this one was different.  There could not have been a better place to be than the chapel right...except for the temple.  Everyone handeled the situation well and the night went on.  Another story to write in my mission diary!  

The ward that I am serving in is one of the biggest ones in the area...so many lovely people!  Hna S and I are going to focus more on working with the members of the ward.  By teaching others about the importance of missionary work and how to go about it hopefully we will be able to open more doors.  

Had an intercambio this week with a fantastic Hna.  I love doing intercambios because I always learn so much.  There is no one type of a perfect missionary.  I love to witness as missionaries use their strengths and personalities to share the evangelio.  This is not our work but the Lord´s, and as we give it our all He will make up for our weaknesses.  

Hna S shared an analogy conmigo which me encantó.  Sometimes in our lives we are waiting for the Lord to build us our perfect house that we have imagined for ourselves..and we are so focused on this that we do not see the mansion that He is building for us.  We must accept Him as our Salvador, to accept who He is and what He did.  

This week we had a super Bakán experience with a couple who is menos activo.  We traveled to the Santiago temple and participated with them in a tour of the temple.  We were able to enter the front part of the temple with them.  Temples are the houses of the Lord.  What a difference we could feel through the doors of the temple.  I loved seeing the faces of this couple change as they pondered on the temple and the goal it is in the life of their family.  Everyone is invited to enter the temple, but we must first do our part and be worthy and prepared to enter.

Disfruten su semana.

mucho amor desde Chile.

Hermana Duffy

Oh today for our pday we are going to learn how to make empanadas chileno style with the wife of the couple I just talked about.  So stoked!

Fourteen

Another week has flown by..

This week I had the opportunity to present health topics to the new missionaries that arrived in our mission.  Everything from not eating homemade mayo to athletes foot.  During this reunion which was basically all day, during the breaks people would come up to me with questions...everything from creaky knees, a cut on the hand, to fungal infections.  I love working with the missionaries!  Being a nurse is basically being a listener.  I little compassion goes a long way.  I am already preparing in my mind my next topic I want to talk with the missionaries entitled ..Por favor, dont use the left over antibiotics from members!  I will let you know how it goes:)

So much potential in this sector.  We had a really neat experience.  Ferias are super popular here...think outdoor market stands with super rica comida!  There is one in our sector every thursday.  We felt like we should ask the supervisor if we could participate in the feria with a stand.  I know the Spirit led us to this idea, because we have been thinking how to find more people to teach.  The supervisor gave us permiso (he said he has a relative who is a member).  Doors open if we act and listen to the spirit.  I will let you know how it goes!

Thought of the week.  Christ can calm the waves and change the water into wine.  Christ can calm our spirits and change our hearts.

I had a really special experience with a lady who is a menos activa.  She had married a returned missionary, sealed in the temple, has a daughter, and their life was happy.  But do to things that happened, she now is sola con her daughter, working constantly (including sundays) to provide, and has kind of given up on a future in the church.  We were able to share a short clip about temples with her.  She started to cry and said that she has a desire to enter the temple again, but feels like it is too late, and she has too many things to change.  We were able to talk about the atonement, that it is never too late to change, and that if she focuses on one goal at a time (start reading the scriptures etc) her can become digna again to enter the temple.  I felt that I needed to share the experience about Lillian/Nanna and her conversion process. I know this lovely woman can change and can once again feel the joy within the walls of the temple.

Families are eternal

mucho amor

Hna Duffy

Thirteen

This week was different....tons of meetings.  I was able to attend a meeting with the doctors and nurses that are serving in Chile.  We received training on how to support missionaries who are experiencing stress and also how to triage abdominal pain over the phone.  I am sooo stoked to apply the things I learned.  I feel so blessed to rub shoulders with amazing dedicated physicians and nurses who are striving to support the missionaries so they can continue to work.  I am learning so much, it is like going through nursing school another time.  In the next month I will have a smart phone so I will have access to an app to look up medications for the missionaries which will be a blessing.

I had the privelege to do an intercambio with 2 wonderful sisters.  The sector was very much downtown...flashbacks of downtown Salt Lake City.  I felt out of place for the first little bit, because it is very different from my sector.  One of the Hermanas I did an intercambio is ending her mission today.  I was able to talk to her about her mission which was a neat opportunity.  I have been thinking how I do not want any regrets at the end of my mission.  Her advice...do all you can in a day, and pray for support and perdon every day.  This is not my work...it is the work of the Lord.  I feel so much peace in my life, as I know I am where I am suppose to be.  I love the schedule of the mission.  Every minute is important...it is not my time but the Lord¨s.  

The mission had cambios today......and......I get to stay with my companion and my sector for another cambio!!!!  My comp. only has one cambio left before she goes home to Argentina.  We have set goals and are going to work work work.  I am so excited to serve with her again.  She is so patient with my language...and has been a huge blessing helping me with the medical calls.  Our goal this cambio is to work on the our mission theme of ¨Servir con gozo¨Serve with joy.  

We can know we are progressing in our testimonies when our desire to share the gospel with others increases.  The reason we attend church is to renew our convenants...and that is why it is important to attend church EVERY week!

Thanks for your love and support

Hermana Duffy

 

Twelve

Another Super Bakán week here in Chile

This week was full of miracles...I learned that obedience leads to miracles.  With the new mission schedule we have less time for contacts and lessons.  We were nervous about this decrease in time (more time studying now) but our numbers in lessons increased this week, and I know it is because we decided to be obedient with the schedule.  When we trust the revelation of church leaders, we are trusting in the Restoration...the sacerdocio or the priesthood, the power of God. Moroni 7:33 was our go to scripture this week.  Simple but strong...all things are possible...maybe not easy..but with this kind of faith, miracles come forth.  

 I have been studying the talk "Becoming Perfect in Christ" by Elder Gerrit W. Gongon this week...and seriously probably could focus 18 months of study on this talk.  A quote that really called my attention was ¨Fully accepting our Saviour´s Atonement can increase our faith and give us courage to let go of constraining expectations that we are somehow required to be or to make things perfect.¨ As long as I do my part, the Atonement will sanctify my efforts.  

Sorry if I get too preachy in this letter but I have had sooo many thoughts and lessons this week!  My companion and I talked about how Laman, Lemuel, and Nephi all had the same journey to travel...but Nephi made the most of his time and truely changed from this experience.  We can go through the actions but if we dont truely change our hearts, we will slide back to our natural state.  A mission is a time of changes, and I have been thinking of things I want to change in my life after the mission.  I need to have a true change of heart in the mission in order to perseverar hasta al fin despues the mission.

This week we helped with 2 noches de hogar (FHE).  It has been fun teaching people here games that they have never played before jaja.  The chilean culture is super divertido.  I feel blessed to serve amoung people who are so loving and giving.  Yesterday, a family (recent converts) told us they want to almorzar (to lunch) with us.  This family last week only had enough food for 2 of their 3 kids.  They have been blessed with the support of the ward and the bishop storehouse, but the thought of them sharing with us what they have is a really humbling experience.  Truely the widows mite.  Most of the time I feel like I am getting served more then I am serving others...what great people!  

Funny story of the week...we were singing a hymn with a family when their relatives came in.  They relatives joined us for a prayer..and after the Father opened the door, and I thought earlier they referenced to ending it after the prayers.  So after the prayer I gathered my things and stood up to leave.  But nobody else moved..I looked back and my companion had her scriptures open to share a message...Lets just say I was able to break the ice...jaja.  We are really close with this family so I am sure they are never going to let me forget this :)  They are menos activos and they have a wall in their house where all the missionaries sign.

El evangelio de Jesucristo es perfecto...we have a Salvador we can confide in and through Him be saved.  The Atonement needs to be part of our lives every day.

mucho amor

gracias for your examples, support, and love

Hna Duffy

Eleven

A week of changes and miracles.  Presidente V changed the daily schedule for the missionaries.  His vision for the mission is to have a mission full of joyful, energetic missionaries.  Entonces,  the new schedule is that we wake up an hour earlier now...have dinner as part of our schedule...an hour of studies during the afternoon...to bed earlier...emphasis on exercises in the morning...and an extra our for our p day but now we only have an hour to write letters...so if this one is a little short there is a reason:)  I am excited to see how these changes affect the missionaries.  I think the health and excitement for the work will increase, because before the schedule was basically that we would leave the apartment at 12 in the afternoon and return at 9 or 10 with an hour for lunch.  This change will make it so we will need to plan our time even more effectively!  I am learning a lot about trusting the counsel of leaders.  When we have faith in the dirrection of our leaders, we are showing our faith for the power of the priesthood, and that Christ is over the work.  I am thankful for the time I will be able to serve with Pres. V. I feel like I will learn a lot from him!

This week was a time of reaping.  So many new investigadores...Hna S and I are running around trying to visit all that we can.  There is also a big push to work more with the members also.  A very tender mercy...A sister in the ward..Hna C called us crying one morning...she was sick and nobody in here family was home.  The next day we were able to visit with her...sing..pray...talk about her doubts and trials.  This last Sunday..she bore testimony about this experience.  Small acts of kindness can change lives.  It was not us, but the Spirit that comforted her heart, but I am so grateful for the opportunity to have a first row seat to watch the Spirit and the truth of the Gospel of Christ change lives.  Dios es un dios de milagros.  

We are going to have a baptism in 2 weeks.  A sweet sister who is so ready to enter through the door of baptism.  So many changes she has made in her life to prepare, and I know there are tanto bendiciones ahead for her.  

The craziness of the flu and cold season is dying down.  I have my Chilean drugs for congestion down pretty well;)

Funny story...so there is a dog that lives in the sector we have been spending most of our time in.  The perro de Hades..I am pretty sure it has rabies..if no it something else is going on in that scruffy head of his.  Last week..I almost busted through a persons door because it was charging us.  I now have a deeper understanding why so many RMs are not to keen on dogs.  Anyway, I was on a intercambio with a Sister Leader.  She said what she does is she carries bread with her, and will throw bread at the dog to eat if it is bothering her.  So we bought bread that night, but by the time we were around his territory we had already eaten the bread...there went our plan jaja.  I also found out that she has been bitten twice by dogs..so maybe I should not trust her advice;)  Perros are always a topic of conversation...Dad you were gummed by a toothless dog on your mission..right!?!

Miracle contact in the street..her name is M.  She is my same age, and she was super receptive to the invitation to be taught.  We were able to teach her the first lesson yesterday...she suffers from depression and during the lesson she stated that she felt so much paz.  She accepted a fecha for baptism with fuerte and estoy tan animada por ella.  

The Gospel is true. 

Dios es nuestro padre celestial

Ten

Hola,

This week was busy with traveling!  On Saturday we organized a meeting for the doctors (both physical and mental health) of all the missions in Chile to meet with Presidente y Hna Vi y yo in the mission office to talk about the sistema medical in our mission.  I am excited to work closely with Hna V to ensure the missionaries are taken care of.  What a blessing it is to work closely with the leaders and to learn from their examples.  Presidente y Hna V son bakàn!  So chileno and they know the things that the people who live here need.  They have huge hearts and are going to do great things for the mission.  

Special experience of the week...

We taught a lesson over the Plan of Salvation with a family ( mother and 4 children ) this week.  We have been trying to work a lot with them.  The two things that are road blocks are the parents need to become legally married and the family needs to attend church.  They have the testimonio and now they need to act.  Me encanta teaching families the plan of salvacion.  My friend Tiffani sent me a puzzle about the Plan of Salvacion in español and the kids loved using the pieces as we taught.  When we talked about the importance of baptism...the kids started jumping for joy and asking their mom if they could get baptised.  One of the daughters (9 yrs) has read more out of the Book of Mormon I think than any of our other investigadors.  When we set a meta and a fecha or date for them to work towards for baptism...the kids did a big group hug with us.  Tan lindo...I love this family and I want to do everything in my power with the help of the Spirit for this family to be baptized so they can be sealed together as a family for eternity.  The hijos or children love the song ¨Yo soy un hijo de Dios¨ and they want to sing it basically every lesson.  I love the hearts of the children...so intune with the Spirit.  Their cat`s name is GRINGO...so now GRINGA and GRINGO are friends :)  

I love meeting the people here...everyone has a story...fears...hopes.  As we center our mind and heart on Jesucristo we can find purpose, comfort, and perdon.  The gospel is true.  Jesucristo lived and lives.  I have been studying the theme of thoughts...and how to focus my thoughts to become more christlike.  Faith in Christ is not solely a belief...fe in christ needs to be in the very core of our almas or souls.  I am thankful for this time to learn.  I am thankful for the patience Jesucristo y mi padre celestial have with me as I work towards becoming a representative of them with the help of the Espiritu Santo.

I love studying the Book of Mormon in spanish because it forces me to focus on the meaning of every work and phrase.  

I love Chile.  I love the gospel.  I love this work...the work of the Lord to bring others to Him

Thank you for your letters and support.

Hermana Duffy

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Nine

So many milagros or miracles this week.  One was we were invited back to teach a family that we thought did not want to hear from us again.  The first time we taught them I felt the Spirit sooo strongly.  If they could only fully know the blessings that come from the Gospel.  The 2nd lesson the Spirit was pounding with strength in the room.  The sister of the mother was also participating in the lesson started crying...and I am eternally grateful for the opportunity I had to bare testimony (still working on being about to teach in Spanish).  The Spirit is the true teacher!  18 months of serving is worth experiencing this lesson with this family.  I will never forget the love of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ  I felt in this home.  The gospel changes lives...and serving a mission I have had time to reflect on how it has changed mine.

Also this week I was able to do an intercambio with the Sister leaders.  They live more in the country and it was fun traveling out their and learning from them.  So Friday night I was told that I would be giving a discurso en Sacrament meeting.  The theme was Missionary Work...and I decided to focus on the Charity behind the work.  Funny part...still most people have a hard time understanding all of my spanish.  One mom came up to me after and said that her son asked her during my talk if I was giving a talk in english haha.  Too funny.  Poco a Poco.

Hna Duffy

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