Familia!

Welp, here I am, in a little internet shop in Chinendega Oeste. Let me tell you that the past week has been insane and amazing. I will give you a rehash of the most interesting parts.

Sunday: Pues, this sunday Estuardo y Cesar came to church with us and both really liked it. After church we talked to them a little about how it went and then I asked them if they would be baptized the 7 of July and they said yes! Increible! I am sad that I am not going to get to see it, but I know that is the life of a missionary. What a blessing and privilege it was to know them.

 

Monday: Monday I said goodbye to Guatemala and I´ve got to say that that was hard. I love the country but more than that I love the people there. They are incredible and the church is getting stronger. What a privilege it was to attend the CCM there. Probably the hardest part was saying goodbye to my teachers. I came to love them and it is hard when you know you might not see someone again in this lifetime. It was also really hard to say goodbye to the food because en el campo, we dont have guacamole with every meal and a fruit bar and we definitely dont have delicious icecream. Well we boarded a  flight and flew to El Salvador where we connected with a flight to Nicaragua. President and his wife met us at the airport and we went out to a special treat: McDonalds. The second I stepped out of the air port I thought I was going to die. It is SO hot here. THe hottest country in CentroAmerica. That night 6 of us slept on four mattress on the floor of an apt of hermanas, we got to have one last slumber party before being separated.

 

Tuesday: Tuesday we recieved training and were oriented to the mission. We heard a little more from President and a lot more from his wife who is amazing and doesnt take any nonesense. Then President took us to lunch at this delicious place called Tacontento which is like the golden corral of tacos only everything is right on the table like a family style meal....yeah it was amazing. After being fed, we hit the field and prosylited for the rest of the day. The country is beautiful and the people are really friendly and really poor. What a blessing it is to have the necesities of life.

 

Wed. Wednesday was a big day for me because I recieved mi Entrenadora! Her name is Hermana Rojas and she is from Costa RIca. She is incredible and only has 3 cambios. She knows and loves the people of this community and they all have a lot of respect for her. I guess I am just really blessed. First Hna Pearson who is amazing, then Hna Heiner who I cant tell you how much I love and appreciate, and now Hna Rojas who is teaching me the ropes and is helping me to set goals and reach them. Our Area, Naranjo, is about the second hottest in Nicaragua...yeah I think that is pretty funny...but it is gorgeous.  Most of the people live in 2 or 3 room houses and some only in houses made of tin. IN some parts the people dont have food everyday, but dont worry about me. We have a cook and she makes delicious food so I am recieveing the sustenance that I need!   I washed my clothes by hand for the first time today. I am becoming so self sufficient. I am also becoming really sweaty adn stinky. I am really gross all day everyday but after a while you just get used to it becuase there are more important things to think about.

 

So now a little about the work. I got my first fecha this week in Nicaragua! It is for a woman and her son and they are so receptive to the gospel. It is amazing here how some people are so prepared. On the other hand there are a lot of others who can give any excuse in the world why they don´t want to listen. Today for my first P Day my whole zone adn the other zone nearby went to Corintinos to la playa and it was beautiful. I really wish I could just have you guys come down here and experience the life for yourselves because it is incredible. Welp, I dont have a lot of time so I just want you to know that I love you all and I am so grateful for your prayers ands emails. Please keep both of them coming. I know that this work is the work of God and that it is a blessing to be a part of it where ever you are.

 

Love Hermana Manning

Familia, Okay to jump right into this week. Things are going really
well. I will start by filling you all in on Estuardo. We found out
that he is only 23 and his nephew is 19. This week he brought his
nephew to our lessons and it was  incredible. We sat down and started
talking and he said, I was hoping that  you would tell Cesar about
Joseph Smith. We were pretty stoked about that so we talked about
authority and then the first vision and while we were talking Estuardo
would say things like, Can share and example, or can I share a
personal experience. He was a better missionary than we were! He cant
come to church with us this sunday but his nephew is so please keep
them both in your prayers. Yesterday Hna Heiner and I taught Estuardo
without any help from our Maestra Hermana Melgar which was pretty much
a our first time all on our own in Spanish with a real investigator.
Im not going to lie it was really hard to keep the lesson focused, but
at the same time, I feel like I was able to understand a lot of what
he was saying and I felt the spirit there as well. He kept saying
things like. You both are special. God has plan for you. You guys are
like Saints or something. I know  that God sent you here right now and
brought me here right now for a reason. So we tried to explain how
special he is and how God has special plan for him and for all of his
children. He kept saying things like, After my baptism.... so that was
really encouraging. He is reading the LDM and praying for a testimony
so I know we will continue to see progression in the one week we have
left with him before we leave for Nicaragua. What a miracle it is to
see the change that comes over a person when the know that God knows
and cares about them!          Okay onto another highlight of the
week. Last Saturday I was getting ready for bed and realized that I
had no idea where my retainers where. I searched through all my things
and through the garbage cans in the CCM with no luck. Then I
remembered that I had put them in a paper towel to dry them and that I
had thrown them in the trashcan in teh bathroom. Of course that
trashcan had already been emptied so I thought all hope was lost. I
decided to get down on my knees and pray. I asked God to help me,
because although two retainers isnt really a big deal, to me it was
pretty important. When I finished my prayer I talked to the other
Hermanas about what happened and next thing I know they have their
shoes on and we are walking to the presidents appartment. He gave us
permission to go dumpster diving and honestly no more than 10 min. and
3 dumpsters later we had found my retainers. What a blessing and
miracle! I know that God hears all prayers and that he knows what we
need in our lives.          Another highlight of the week, a member of
the area presidency came and spoke to us this Thursday. Usually for
these meetings we have head phones and a teacher translates but our
teacher Hermana Melgar told us that we would be fine so we decided to
take a leap of faith and go with help. It was increible! I think I
understood almost everything that was said. The gift of tongues is a
real thing. I only have a week left here in Guatemala before I hit the
field and I have got to say I wish my spanish were a lot better, but I
can say enough and with the help of a companion I will be able to get
by even if it is really painful. I am little sad that my CCM stay is
almost over. I am really going to miss my teachers and it really hurts
my heart to think I will probably never get to see them again in this
life. I am also going to miss Guatemala. It is beautiful here. Along
with all that, it is really hard to leave Estuardo. I just want to see
him continue progressing. I want to see him get the priesthood and go
to the temple and get a calling, but I guess that is the life of a
missionary and only a teaser of what I will be experiencing every
transfer. I leave for Nicaragua not this Monday but the next.   Well I
am out of time, but I want you to knkow that I love you guys and am so
grateful that you help me to live the gospel. Yo se que el evangelio
bendice a las familias. That is something that the spirit really
testified to me this week. Thank you for making our home a heaven.
      Hermana Manning

Dear Familia, well I have officially finished my final week at the CCM
and I have got to say that I am really going to miss it here. I love
Guatemala, I love my teachers and my distrito and the other Hermanas.
I am not really excited to say to goodbye to everyone. Now for the
happenings of this week. It was jam packed. On Sunday I attended
church with Cesar, Estuardos nephew and he really liked the service.
We taught him on wed and he has agreed to be baptized! we just need to
set a date. WE talked to him about the word of wisdom and he was ready
at that moment to give everything up. We told him that he had to stop
drinking and smoking and he just said okay. He told us that he loves
the feeling of having the Savior in his life. Incredible. ON Mon we
went out proselyting in the city only this time it was only with Norte
companions. So yeah, me and Hermana Heiner hit the city and preached
the gospel in our broken Spanish. It was a great experience. We were
able to communicate what we needed to and understand enough of what
was being said to us. We contacted a homeless man and I have got to
say that it broke my heart. We  tried to give him a folleto but he
would not except it because he doesnt know how to read. We tried to
get directions for people to teach him but he doesnt have a house.
Probably the most depressing part of the week. However it was followed
by an amazing experience with Estuardo. We taught him about Pre Earth
life and the Godhead and testified to him that God has  body of flesh
and bones, which he wouldnt believe at first but after we read to him
from the scriptures we began to see the light go on in his eyes and
after the lesson, he prayed to God and not to Senor Jesus which I have
got to say is probably the most amazing moment of my mission so far.
It was a little  thing, but within one lesson we saw him gain greater
understanding and then apply what he had learned. Later in the week we
had another lesson with him and we discovered that he  has a testimony
of everything but Joseph Smith. We told him he needs to pray and
recieve an answer for himself, I hope he is doing this. Please
continue to pray for him. He and Cesar are coming to church with us
tomorrow morning, I pray that he will be able to feel the Spirit
there.   And now on to items of business. I will be in Nicaragua this
time next week and I am not sure what day will be my P Day in the
future or what exactly my address will be so keep your eyes open.
Also, I just want to thank you all for posting my letters and keeping
my address up to date. Thank you for filling me in about the goings
ons in teh family. I dont have a lot of time to write back, but  your
letters always mean so much to me. I love you guys so much. I head for
the field monday afternoon and I am pretty much scared out of my wits
and really excited tambien so please continue to pray for me. I pray
for you all everyday. I know that obedience to the gospel is the
gateway to recieving Gods power in our lives and that through the
gospel we have the ability to change our circumstances. Hermana
Manning