Mission Life

This week was full of funny and sweet moments. 

Last Monday we were in a lesson with Gabriel and he was shocked to find out that I am 19 because he thought I was 15 hahaha. 

Tuesday we were in the park and started talking to two guys playing basketball. One of them is a member, but doesn't go to church much anymore. This was our second time running into him and he kept telling us he had been thinking he needed to go back but just still hadn't. So I made a bet with him that if I made a 3 pointer than he would have to go to church. Ladies and Gentleman it was nothing but net. And we ended up visiting his parents last night who also haven't been to church in a while and they said he went!!! I don't know if it was the shot that did it or the spirit but I'm so glad he went!

Wednesday we had dinner with our friends Claudia and Carlos!!! They are from Guerrero, Mexico so Claudia made us Enchiladas Guerrero style. They were yuummmmmm. 

Saturday we had a lesson with Gabriel and at the end of all our lessons we have been asking him to pray but he hasn't felt comfortable. This lesson, we talked to him more about it, tried assuring him that it doesn't have to be perfect, and he did it!!!! It was so sweet because it was his first prayer ever out loud!!! And it was awesome! 

Being a missionary is super hard, super tiring, and embarrassing sometimes (especially when trying to learn a new language). But it is also so so fun, and all worth it when I get to see people grow their faith in Jesus Christ!!

One transfer done and dusted

Welp one transfer down!! (1 transfer = 6 weeks). It seems like I just got to California haha. Man the next 16 ish months are going to fly by!!!

One of our friends that we met a couple weeks ago, Gabriel, came to church this week! He's like mid-late twenties. He just got here from Oaxaca, Mexico about 4 months ago. He's really cool! I think he really wants to know more!! I'm super excited to keep teaching him and helping him develop a stronger faith in Christ and learn how to apply the gospel of Jesus Christ into his life! 

We are still teaching our friends Claudia and Carlos. They are the sweetest! They want to have us over for dinner because they feel bad that they never feed us when we come over, haha. 

Life is good here in Madera, California!!! We do so much every day, but when it comes time to sit down and write about it, I can hardly think of anything to say haha!!! 

But I just want you all to know how much a appreciate your support! I love being a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I know that the same gospel and authority that Christ established while He was on the earth has been restored through Joseph Smith. I am grateful for the knowledge that I have that I am a child of God, that God has a plan for me, and that part of that plan was to come to Earth to learn and grow. Most importantly, that despite all the trials and tribulations of the world, I can find peace and Christ and the knowledge that I will be able to live with my family for eternity. I know that is the same for us all!!! I love the Book of Mormon and know that just like the Bible, it testifies of Jesus Christ. Y'all should read it 

I hope you all have a great week!!! I love you all. 

Pictures: 

All us Missionaries serving in the Madera 3rd ward!!!!! Woop woop! 

All the fruit people give us!!!!! (it is almost pomegranate season my friends) 

The missionaries in my district! (some of them are being transferred to a different area)  

Making tortillas with members

I love burritos!!! 

Making tortillas with members (part 2) 

 

Las uvas y los chinches

Well friends... You will never guess. This week, the chinches (bed bugs) came back. Well I guess they wouldn't have ever left haha. We were in the clear for like 4 days before I started getting bites again so it was crazy but they must have just needed time to build back up. This time I guess I had like an allergic reaction so the bites broke out into hives. Was not super fun, but I went to a dermatologist and he is having me take claratin, zertec, and zantac (and I normally never take medicine) so I should be on the mend pretty soon haha. Also my mission president is determined not to let us move back in until we are sure they are gone. He said him and his wife are going to go over the apartment with a black light before we can move back in haha. They are so sweet and care for us so dearly!!! I love them! 

But the good news is.. because it is harvest season, and because everyone and their mom works in the fields (literally), we had multiple people give us grapes so I think we got 3 bags total within a 2 day span. I have had grapes with breakfast most days this week, and for a snack every day. I love it. 

This week was filled with tender mercies. One night a lot of our appointments fell through, so we decided to pick a neighborhood to start knocking doors on. It's kinda hard to just pick a spot (especially because I am so indecisive) so we decided to say a little pray to get some help on knowing where to go. My companion said she was feeling a certain street and I was feeling a certain area so we went where the two overlapped! As we got there, the first 5 houses we tried each one someone was home, AND talked to us, AND accepted a little pamphlet so they could read more, AND said we could come back!!! Guys that is not common. It was 100% a miracle. God really does have people prepared to hear our message!!! We just have to work to find them. 

It's great to be a missionary. It's great to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It's great to know that we can be a little bit better everyday because of the Atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ! It's great to have a prophet on the earth to day to lead and guide us as he receives revelation from God. 

I encourage you all the watch General Conference this weekend! For my friends who are not familiar with General Conference. It is an awesome opportunity that we get twice a year to hear talks/testimonies from appointed members of our church, including the prophet. There are multiple sessions Saturday and Sunday that are broadcasted and can be watched from our local church building or online at lds.org! (for my east coast people that's 12am-2pm and 4pm-6pm sat and sun. As well as a women's broadcast saturday night 8-10pm I believe). I know that these people have searched, pondered, and prayed about the messages they are going to share. I know their messages will truly be able to bless our lives if we listen to them and apply their council!!!!!!! 

Have a great week friends!!!!

Pictures: A few pictures in there of my hives from the bed bug bites. I don't know if it truly does it justice, but you get the jist. 

Not only are there stray cats and dogs here, but there are also stray chickens

A man walking his child on a horse/pony

Hermana Hernandez, one of the members of the ward, is the cutest and makes these cute crochet dress, hand towels for her kitchen!!!

Two funny signs at houses we saw this week 

Me and Hermana Malmstrom with our uvas!!!

And all of us missionaries that are serving in the Madera 3rd ward!! 

 

 

Milagros/Miracles

This week was really great!!!! Last week we were just walking around knocking doors and the last door that we tried in this one apartment complex was a woman named Claudia. She was really sweet and we set up a time we could come back to talk with her a little more. The lesson did not go that great truth be told. I think she expected us to just talk and she would just nod her head and listen. Also she might have thought we were really intimidating or something. Because each time we asked a question she would get really nervous and would keep saying she didn't know. She just did not seem comfortable. We didn't have a super set return appointment after that. But one night after dinner we were trying to figure out who else we could visit (after a few people fell through) and we felt like we needed to try by them again. This time her husband was there too! At first it was really awkward still, but we kind of explained that we aren't looking for a specific answer when we ask questions. We just want to get to know them better, their beliefs, and see what they think about what we say! It still took a bit to get past the awkwardness but once they realized we were genuine, Claudia especially, opened up so much!!! She was talking and talking. It was awesome. The husband would even throw in his opinion on some things as well. The husband works on Sundays so they wouldn't be able to go to church but he totally offered to ask his boss if he could have Sunday off. Which he said thinks might take some time but he would do it. They even came to our ward activity this past Saturday!!! I think they enjoyed themselves. We also visited them yesterday night and again they are beginning to open up more to us. I am really excited. I think they're super ready to hear the gospel. 

Speaking of El Noche de Talentos. It was super awesome!!!! Everything was like traditional Mexican dances and stuff. I LOVED it. So much fun. They are an awesome group of people.

I'm so grateful for the oppourtunity I have to be here! I love you guys, thank you for all of your support!!! you guys are the BEST!!!! 

...Sorry I accidentally sent this without the pictures!!!!  

I love all the fields here. Featuring one of many almond orchards!!!!

My bed bug bites make the little dipper hahahahaha. Btw I think the chinches are gone!!! 

We sticky note attacked some members doors! Haha one family didn't understand the point of it and apologized that they didn't answer the door.

Chinches/Bedbugs

This week.... We had chinches aka bed bugs. Not fun at all. So we slept at a different place while the pest control guy sprayed, he told us we could stay at our place that night as long as we didn't step on the carpet. So... we did but we kept getting bites. He came back to spray again and informed us that he had mixed up the sprays and used the "mild" one instead of the super strong one. After three nights of still sleeping there. Haha but it's all good. I have so many bits probs like 17-20 on my face, a bunch on my arms and legs, even some on my stomach. Hopefully they will go away soon!!! 

This week was very similar to last week. Mostly trying to get to know the members of the Spanish ward here, Madera 3rd. Also we are trying to talk to anyone and everyone that will listen to us. We are finding more people that don't want to listen to us haha but that's okay. It's interesting because a lot of the people here are Catholic but when we try and ask them what Christ means to them, or what they believe, they basically just say that it's just what they believe or it's just God. We want them to see that they can have a relationship with God and that our message can help them in everyday life. They just don't really see it that way, but it's okay! We can only help them if they are willing to listen and act. 

But back to the ward. The ward here is so great. They are so sweet to us. All the women are super motherly and just want to take care of us. Many of them are super willing to help us find people to teach or come with us to lessons. They are also fabulous cooks. I'm definitely going to try and get them to teach me. 

There's this video that was made a long time ago by our Church, it is called "They gave up their Christmas" and you remember the Church's vineyard I was talking about last week? Well the video is literally about the vineyard here in my area and the people in the video, the spanish ward they talk about is literally the ward that I am serving in right now. Like most of the people in that video are probably still here. https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2011-05-01-they-gave-up-their-christmas?lang=eng Here is the link to the video if you want to see. So cute. Love these people. 

Me encanta mi tiempo aqui en el campo y tambien aqui en Madera. Se que Jesucristo es nuestro Salvador y podemos sentir paz en nuestras vidas cuando oramos, leemos las escrituras y sirvimos otras personas. Espero que hagamos algo este semana para crecer mas cerca a Dios. Se que recibira bendiciones mediante sus esfuerzos. 

Pics: Huge mango the size of my face, me and my companion (Hermana Malmstrom, from Utah), mis picaduras de chinches (my bed bug bites). 

Love yall!!!! 

First week in the Field!

It's my first week in the mission field, literally. Haha I'm not used to all this farmland, it's everywhere! It's so pretty though. My first area is called "Madera" it is a bit north of Fresno and is 80-90% hispanic/spanish speakers. I think I have seen like 4 white people so far, three of which being other missionaries haha. I love it so much. Madera is known as "Little Oaxaca" because nearly everyone here is from that part of Mexico. Also, there is this ancient Aztec Language that some the people of Oaxaca still speak (my assumption is that it's mainly the older generation), but there are people here in Madera that speak it!!!! Most that do speak it, typically also speak Spanish. But one of our first conversations was with this super old couple who only spoke the Aztec language. I think it's called something like masteca but I don't know exactly nor how to spell it haha. 

Madera has always had Elders here, but there hasn't been Sister Missionaries here for a long time so we are kind of starting from scratch. It has been a bit slow of a start but we are starting to pick up on work and it is great! And the Spanish congregation we are working with is super excited to have us!!!! Especially the women haha. 

Also sad side note. So the church owns a grape vineyard here in Fresno that is fully functioning off volunteers. They harvest the grapes to make raisins and those are then distributed far and wide as a contribution to humanitarian efforts, going to people who are in need of food. The missionaries in this mission get to help with the harvesting which would be so fun!!!!! Except for the fact that I get here and find out they did it LAST WEEK. HAhahahah less than a week late. 

But one of the members in our ward owns an almond orchard and he gave us almonds from his orchard this past week so I can't complain too much. Maybe he'll let me go explore in the future. 

ALSO we met a lady this past week who was so so sweet. She works picking figs and we were chatting with her then she goes into her trunk and fills up a tub of figs for us!!!!! It was so nice! We're meeting with her again this week. Picture below of the figs she gave us. It was my first time having a fresh fig! 

Anyway I dont want to be too long winded so I will try and wrap up. My companion and I have been waking up with a bunch of bug bites and we are fairly certain we have fleas or bed bugs. Last night right before bed my companion said good night and i responded with "sleep tight, dont let the bed bugs bite" without even realizing just how relevant it was hahaha. So funny. gotta love it. I guess there is just never a dull moment here! 

I'm so excited to be here and can't want to get the work going! I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ can bless lives! It has blessed mine!

Sister Brown Has Arrived

From Sister Mackay (Mission President's wife):

We are pleased to let you know that Sister Brown has arrived in the California Fresno Mission and is even now hard at work serving the Lord with her new companion.  Attached are photos of her arrival at the Fresno airport and with her new companion. As a point of information, we maintain a mission blog at californiafresnomission.blogspot.com where you can periodically check for new mission related photos and other materials.

We are grateful to be serving with Sister Brown and give you our unwavering commitment that we will watch over and care for her with love and all diligence while she is here.  We express gratitude for your love and support of your daughter in this great work.

With gratitude,

President and Sister Mackay

California Fresno Mission