He Will Send His Angels...

Hola From Panama!

Time is so short today so I will make this a lot shorter than I anticipated. This week was... interesting... a few side notes before I jump into it. Mom please send those loan forbearance forms... I am not sure where they ended up but they are all filled out and just need to be sent in. Also because of where I am geographically (about three hours from the City and 35 minutes from the Canal) I only get mail about once a transfer so if you sned me some thing dont ask me about it for about four weeks... deal. 

Anyway, this week was probably the hardest but also the best week I have had here. Hard because the problems are worse but the best because God reache dout His hands and not only held me up but lifted me above it all. I have often worrie dthat my situation would break my Spirit and my desire to work my hardest to serve the Lord. I have prayed every day for strength and this past Saturday morning I was reading in the Conference addition of the Liahona. President Uchtdorfs Sunday morning address about  LIving in the Lords light really struck me... especially when I read... 

God does not wish to break your Spirit. To the contrary, He desires that you rise up and be the person that you were designed to be...

My family... my friends... God answers prayers. He hears you... but He does it in His time and in HIs way. Every I have prayed for love for my companion and peace in my soul that despite all that is going on here. And in the moment that I needed it most... with transfers only 9 days away... He has given it to me.. .my soul is filled with this light and this peace that I cannnot quiet describe to you. More amazing is the deep love and concern I have for my companion despite all that has happened... I can honestly say that I love and care for her as a fellow Daughter of God... and while I do not love the things she does her welfare, both spiritual and physical, are the upmost concern to me... if I can make her laugh... then to me... together.. our day has been sucessful. 

I have never sought God more fervently than I have these past 5 weeks. in the mission field... and I can feel Him... the arms of His love..., His merciful light holding me up in the moments that despair could easily consume my soul... at the moment I am reminded of a scripture... the words of our sweet Savior... which read.

I am the light of the world, he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life. John 8, 12

The peace of God... the comfort of a clear conscious... is only found in and through Jesus Christ and HIs Gospel. I pray that each of you will seek Him with your whole heart... I promise you will find Him and His light... 

So I emailed you all on Tuesday because we attended the temple that day... that night Hermana Morale sand Hermana Torres decided to do divisiounes... they left Hermana Bonilla and I in my area which freaked me out... I was so afraid that I would not be able to do to do it... I prayed like crazy the whole three hour bus ride home and expressed my fear to Hermana Bonilla who assured me that I would be fine. When we got back to the house and began to plan to contact new investigators the peace I felt was so sweet... a balm to my troubled Spirit. We decided to leave the immediate area and head up to visit that Family that had dropped dates this past week with Hermana Morales... we made tentative plans to teach them about the beauty of repentance through the atonement... a lesson that was meant to invite the Spirit and calm their uncertainty and uneasiness... 

The day started rather bleakly to be honest... we tried to contact all our nueovos and none of them were home! At that point we were really discouraged and I was beginning to wonder if we would have miracles. Then we saw a little boy sitting in the open doorway of his house eatin ga cookie. We started talking to him when his mom came out. We asked her if we could share some thing with her and her family and she told us that her family would not appreciate it but we could share some thing with her. Standing there on the porch we taught her about God and eternal family.. .we commited her to be baptized... a commitment which she accepted and while she did not accept a date we left her a pamphlet and Book of Mormon, both of which she promised to read with a return appointment for tomorrow afternnoon...

We went and searched for more of our new investigators and when we did not find them yet again we decided to try knocking doors. We knelt down in a secluded spot and offered up a prayer that we could be guided in where we should go... the moment Hermana Bonilla said amen it began to pour... you have not seen rain untli you have been in Panama. We looked at each other and decided this was our answer and we hoped we could use it to our advantage. We knocked three doors... all of them said that they were Catholic and not interested... then we decided to walk up a different street and a woman called out to us askin gwhere our umbrellas were. We told her that we had forgotten them and she asked if we wanted to come in and wait fo rthe rain to stop. We ended up teaching her family, her sister with her family, and her other sister about Jesus Christ... we got two addresses and gave away two pamphlets wiht no commitment to be baptized but with two new investigators.... Hermana Bonilla told me after that when I was testifying to the gorup of about 15 people she said she was goin gto try and learn to testify like me... I told her that the unity that we have together gives me strength and courage and I just say what is in my heart and pray that God touches the people that are listening... I learn so much from Hermana Bonilla... I am so grateful that God brought us together to work and grow together even if it is only for a short while every week. 

After getting more Books of Mormon from the house we tried to contact Hermana Nishka... who we had found together during our first division. We were surprised and happy to find her at home and we taughter her about the Gospel of jesus Christ.... we commited her to baptism but she said that she had already been baptized... Herman aMOrales and I are determined to commit her this week and we are hoping that a fast on Tuesday will help us do that. 

We also found a 14 year old girl when we decided to knock doors close to the Church in that area. Hermana Bonilla said President Ward always stressed how helpful it is to have a chapel so close to where people live and we should use that to our advantage. We found Hermana Kaira babysitting her cousins. We taught her about families and planned a return visit for Tuesday as well. When we were ending her grandma called out the window that she should invite us in so I am hopeful that when we return on Tuesday we can teach them both. 

Then we left the area and headed by bus to another part of our area to visit Familia Ovalle. On the way I felt like we should stop and visit another one of our investigators. We found him sitting on his porch and we sat with him for a minute. He told us that right before we showed up he had been praying that somehow he would feel better... he said he had been having a hard day. So we sang a hymn with him... said a prayer and left him feeling better with promises to stop by that next week when we had more time and his wife was home. 

We then headed up for Familia Ovalle. We stopped just before we reached their house and said a prayer... pleading for the Spirit and the wisdom to know how to help them and commit them to a date for baptism. The lesson was one of the most beautiful lessons I have ever had... Hermana Bonilla and I were perfectly united and Hermana Chela was engaged the whole time... she understood every thing we taught her and even though she did not commit to a date we felt that the list of scriptures we had left her and the prayer that she had said would, within the next weeks, bring her to the waters of baptism. 

The last miracle of the day was when we were leaving our last appoitment. It was already 845 and it takes about 10 minutes to get back to the house, by taxi, from where we were. We both wanted to return to the house by 9 and so as we neared the street I said a silent prayer and extended my hand to hail a taxi. The first one... within five seconds... pulled up and we made it back to the house by 855. It truly was a miracle...you guys need to understand that it nev er happens like that... last night Hermana MOrales and I waited for a taxi for almost 20 minutes... 

At the end of the day we had taught 8 lessons, contacted 45 people, found 6 new investigators and commited 4 of those new investigators to baptism.. all of which had said yes once they learned more... it truly was a day o fmiracles and I learn a lot about myself... above all else I learned that I can work this area without Hermana Morales and not just work but have success. 

On Thursday Hermana Bonilla and I went up to Maria Chiquita by ourselves... the other Hermanas decided not to go for reasons that I am still unsure of... We shared D y C 122 with Hermano Chifundo.... we had read it together as a companioship that morning and cried because we knew that God understood how hard things were for us... we knew that to know our Savior we had to take a sip of the bitter cup of Gethsemane and take a few cross laden steps towards Calvary....  the best part of Thursday was teaching a recently converted family the Gospel of Jesus Christ.. as I looked at them I saw them dressed in white... ready to be sealed as a family forever... one day I hope to baptized a family but I know that it will come in Gods time and in His way... 

Ending divisions was hard because there were numerous things that I was scolded for... I just try to remember that as long as I am doing it the Lords way I have nothing to apologize or be sorry for and I as I crawled into bed that night I knew that God was proud of me... 

One more miracle before I end... last night Hermana Morales and I found a family... Family Marina... we were walking and I just felt very strongly that I should talk to them.. they were stiting outside their house. They were so sweet and so welcoming. It is obvious just how important family is to them. We are going to visit them again on Sunday... I am so excited... I am praying for a miracles with them. 

Above every thing I have learned this week it is how much God loves us and is aware of our situations. I was riding on the bus last night.... looking around trying to memorize where the stops were... I have really felt this urgent need to know my area better lately and I am not sure why I am assuming it is for a reason that I will one day understand... anyway, I was looking around for our stop and a landmark or two that would help me remember when the girl next to me asked where I was going... I told her Villa Guadalupe... she smiled and said okay... we talked for a minute more and then when the bus stoppped she told me that this was my stop. I thanked her and followed Hermana Morales off the bus... as I left the best the words came into my head... I will send my angels to help those who put their trust in me... it took all I had not to kneel down and offer a prayer of gratitude to my Lord and Savior.. I was so grateful... I know that no matter what happens come transfers... no matter what God needs me to do for  HIs work here that I will be ready because He will help me be ready. 

Another great quote that I loved...

Trials may come and we may not understand everything that happens to us or around us. But if we humbly quietly trust in the Lord, He will give us strength and guidance in every challenge we face. When our only desire is to please Him we will be blessed with a deep inner peace... Elder Bruce D. Porter

God loves us.. all we experience... even the difficult... we experience because He loves us that much... enough to break us down down that He can then build us up..

If you guys have been worried about me dont be. Know that wherever I go, I go with God. Know that I love you all. That I pray for you and that I carry your words of encouragement and love close to my heart. Be strong and remember... We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Philip. 2,13 Until next week...

All My Love, 
Hermana Wilson

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