Livin la vida loca...

Dear all,

So the most exciting thing this week was that two of the investigators we committed to come to church this week CAME!!! I almost cried when I saw one investigator walk in. I just know that their weeks will be so blessed for the righteous decision they have made.

Since conference, my companion and I have felt that we should start teaching people about the sacrament; the importance of this sacred opportunity and the meaning of it. I want to share a little bit of what I have learned with all of you. The sacrament is a time and a means to remember Jesus Christ and the sacrifice that He made. It is a time to reflect. It is a time of renovation, dedication, and forgiveness. We have the promise that each time we partake of the sacrament we can be clean from our sins. We can start the week with a clean slate. We can have the companionship of the Holy Ghost.

That brings me to another point. So our area is a little pueblo, a very small town. But it also covers a colonia (which just means it's an even smaller town). We try to go over there about once a week, because it's a little far away. We had an appointment there yesterday, and we decided on Saturday night that we would not leave la colonia without teaching somebody, so our efforts would not have been in vain. Our appointment was not at home, so we set out to look for a few other people that we know that live there. We headed up the street, and two dogs started barking. I have never been scared of dogs in my life, but life as a missionary is different. My companion insisted that we go back to Atexcac, but I was determined to teach. I was not going to let our time in la colonia be wasted. Fortunately right then some people that lived a little further up the street were passing by, so we went with them and the dogs left us alone. Then Juana wasn't home, Dolores neither. We had made various street contacts, but no one was interested. There are very few people who live in la colonia, and I didn't know who we could find to have a lesson. Just then, a man walked by and we greeted him and started talking. Turns out the missionaries had taught him once before, and he wasn't busy right then. So we went to his house.

When we arrived he invited us to come into the dining room. We told him we couldn't enter unless there was also a female. He told us nobody else wanted to listen to us because they are Evangelical Christians. I realize this sounds a bit sketchy, but don't worry, the rest of his family was next door in the kitchen. We ended up teaching him inside his dining room from outside. We stood outside on the sidewalk and he was standing in his doorway. He told us that he wants to change. He has started smoking, drinking, and going to the dances (that's not okay to do if you're an Evangelical Christian). He told us that he's been having dreams with God and the Devil and he knows he needs help soon. We taught him about, well, Jesus Christ, the Atonement, and baptism. Included in baptism is the Holy Ghost. He was really worried that after repenting, he would just fall into his vices another time. We explained that through baptism, he would receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, which would help him to make decisions and avoid temptation. But we can only have the Holy Ghost when we are doing what God wants us to do. That made me realize the importance of the Holy Ghost.

It's something that we need. And to have it, we need to be clean. To be clean, we have to be baptized, and then keep the commandments and be able to partake of the sacrament regularly so that we can stay clean.

I hope you have all realized or remembered the importance of weekly church attendance. Yes it is important. Yes you have other things to do. But what matters most to you and what do you want to have achieved at the end of your life? I want to be able to enter into the presence of my Heavenly Father and thank my Savior Jesus Christ for what He has done for me. I want to appear spotless before God at the last day. And believe you me that going to church every week will help me to do that.

Do good things, be good people, live like you believe!

Hermana Cheever :)

Corn, corn, corn, nothing but corn.

Dear all. Welcome to Atexcac

This is called a milpa. I have no idea what it would be in English becuase hey, I pretty much grew up in the city. But there is a ton of corn. And right now, if you didn't know, is pea-harvesting time.

I love it here, it is so pretty, I am astounded every day by the creations of our God!

The people here are pretty great, as well. There is one sister that we visited this week whose name is Gabina. She has had a hard life. She married young and had a lot of kids. Her husband left her a widow, also at a young age and she remarried. For many years her husband didn't allow her to go to church because he was Catholic. Three years ago he died and she was free to go to church again. She is having a really hard time financially, she still has young girls at home to take care of. But her faith in God is amazing. We were asking her about Joseph Smith, and she said, "actually, I don't even know very well who Joseph Smith is" (well, in Spanish). She knew that the Church was true and had a testimony of the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith and the Restoration without even understanding everything. She doesn't know how to read, either.

That just goes to show that when we open our hearts and trust in God, He will give us to know the truth of all things through the Holy Spirit. Gabina is an example to me because she is so trusting, and she believes everything that God tells her, or makes her feel. It would do us good to let go of our pride and our doubts and just believe.

It's amazing all the things that God is teaching me here on the mission. This truly is the greatest blessing of my life. I am so happy and so filled with the Spirit. Even in the face of rejection and opposition, we can find much to be grateful for.

I hope you all have a great week and take some time to notice the great things around you. Don't let your big head get in the way of the little miracles God sends you every day.

Love,
Hermana Cheever

CONFERENCE!

Dear all,

Conference was sweet like cherries, the mission life is great. you should all read the Book of Mormon and spend less time with Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Youtube and more time reviewing the conference messages.

Hermana Cheever
 

Hermana Cheever celebrates 6 months of service. 

 Go here to watch or listen to conference messages:

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2014