Hi Faaaamily! :)
Still miss you. Still love you. Just in case you were wondering. :) I hope your New Year's was lovely! Our Mission President let us stay up and welcome in the new year because he is kind of the bee's knees like that. There was some loud, obnoxious pot banging that went on in memory of you, family! :) Here's the weekly scoop:
- Um. Hi. So, I hit my half-way mark. How did that even happen?! It just kinda snuck up on me and pounced me when I wasn't looking! In the mission they say once you are half way through, you are "over the hump". I've never really like that because I like to think of life as a continual, upward climb. But for the sake of the phrase, I'd like to apply the following example: One time Josh Blotter, Micail, her friend, and I climbed this crazy, cool mountain. We scrambled up the mountain with great effort, but as we were coming down, Josh and I decided to sprint down the trail. It was so invigorating! We only stopped running for water and to take glances at the scenic views. That is kind of my plan for the next 9 months: RUN. I have done alot of struggling and scrambling, trying to figure this missionary thing out, but now I kind of know the trail, and I am just going to trust in the Lord and sprint. I will push myself as hard as I can, give all my heart, and love every moment of it. I am excited to see what things the Lord has in store for the next 9 months!
- Sister Martins (who now changed her name to Sister Marona...Yeah, it's too long of a story...) and I have been doing A TON of splits this week with the other two sisters in our apartment, Sister Santos and Sister Caceres. A while back, Sister Santos broke her foot hiking and it is still bothering her. President Hart advised her to stay inside for a week or so and let it heal. We are really hoping for a miracle because we don't want her to have to go home. So! We have been going on splits with Sister Caceres, an adorable missionary from Utah, and have made out two areas into one, big, fat area. It's been CRAZY. But, it's been good. I am getting to know the other half of Senhor do Bonfim and the sister's investigators too. It's a lot of work, but we are seeing alot of miracles!
- One of the miracles was yesterday! I have never seen our church building so full! It did my heart good to look over the piano to see the chapel full of people I love, including two investigators! We have been praying, fasting, praying, and fasting for our area. Our little branch has been struggling, and with us only having two sisters out at a time during the day, it has been really hard on the work. But the Lord blessed us with a full chapel! That is such a good feeling. :)
- So New Year's is great and all, but NOT as a missionary. It's the WORST. Partying... Drinking... Yeah. On New Year's Day, we arrived a little early to Almoco and the food wasn't quite ready. We decided to go back out and invite people to church with the time we had. As we left the refuge of the member's home, I looked down the street to see people dancing in the streets, beer bottles in hand, and there was horrid, unholy music being blasted into my ears. To my left was a man who had been so incredibly drunk that he has passed at and was now sleeping in the middle of the road. My heart faltered a bit at the sight, and I hugged my Book of Mormon tighter to my chest. By some miracle, we managed to sort out 28 people to invite to church before we rushed back to lunch. Heavenly Father always prepares a way for his missionaries to work.
Sometimes I get awful discouraged by the amount of sin and iniquity I see on a daily basis. It's so heart breaking to know you have the truth, something so beautiful, and watch as people just throw it away and live a life in sin. It's actually been among the most difficult things in my mission. With all the shenanigans this week, I found it hard to feel the spirit and even do something I thought I could do best - love the people. But today I was reading in Mark 11, in which Jesus Christ throws out those who were selling and buying in the temple. I thought of how difficult and lonely that must have been for Him to live a perfect life amongst so much sin and wickedness. He had a perfect knowledge of God and of sacred things and the people around him defiled and neglected them. He must have felt alone in his desire to do what is right sometimes too. But did He let that get him down? Nope! Did he stop loving the people? Nope! He kept going and kept loving with the purest, most beautiful love this world has ever known!
I haven't the foggiest how he did that, but I love Him and I want to follow his example of perfect love and perfect dilligence. I love Him so much. And I am not alone! I know he is with me and will go with me all the way!
I love you family. Keep my area in your prayers.
All my love (which is kind of a big deal),
Sister Mann
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