Dear Familia,
Wow, it has been one crazy week, but how fun it was to talk with you all again :) Nothing much has changed since Christmas, but while we were talking we never really mentioned the people here in beautiful Ovalle. Matilde's (Catalina's mom) didn't get baptized this week because she doesn't have enough attendances in the church....oh Matilde!!!!! But she's great and is like my second mom here in Ovalle. She keeps telling us that the devil is dancing in her head and other "Mema type sayings" :) (LOVE YOU MEMA) But the sad part is that because she didn't come to church yesterday she won't have enough attendances to be baptized before I leave.....ya it's a pretty sad blow, but what can you do. The good news is that she keeps reading the Book of Mormon and I know that she's going to get baptized soon, she just has to get her cute little self to church and build up her confidence that she's ready to get baptized!
Also, this week in church we sat with Javiera and Jesus. I don't know if I've told you about them, but they're like the Herdmans from "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" …they're NUTS! Javiera (10 years old) is a recent convert from last December and Jesus is here little brother (7 years old), and its una lucura! They always sit with the missionaries because none of the members are willing to sit with them, they scream and punch each other during the sacrament, and the only time Jesus is seated in his seat is when they pass the sacrament so that he can get the bread and water. Javiera behaves really well when she's by herself, but with Jesus, there's no end to the fighting. Anywho, I was about ready to banish Jesus from the church after spending my entire sacrament meeting pulling him out from under the benches in front of us, without any members helping, when one of the other missionaries in the ward said "What would Jesus Christ do? Wasn't he the one who said let the little children come unto me." I wanted to give that missionary the stink eye and say, "Where were you when Jesus (the little kid) was running around like a crazed monkey and I had to be the one to try to calm him down!" But I didn't...I bit my tongue and nodded in agreement. And even though it wasn't what I wanted to hear in the moment, I know it's what I needed to hear. Jesus Christ would love him, he would try to help him, and so should I. Please pray for me that I can have enough patience and love to help Javiera and Jesus, because they really and truly need more love and I really need more patience.
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
My companion really wants to learn English, so to help her practice, I say everything in Spanish first and then I repeat everything in English. Ha, and when I forget to translate she says, "Dora por favor." Ha, ya I feel a ton like Dora, but it's fun and we get a kick out of it :)
Every time Hna. Cordova says something in English or makes brownies she always says, "Gringa in the house!"
Monday, December 28, 2015
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
My Sister is a Mom
Dear Familia,
My sister is a mom, my brother-in-law is a dad, my mom and dad are grandparents, my grandparents are great-grandparents, my brothers are uncles, I'm an aunt, and little Indy is starting his journey here on earth...learning and discovering what life is like with a body! GOD'S PLAN FOR US IS AMAZING! The photos of little Indy are so precious, and I'm sure he's even more darling in person! Ah how exciting it all is!!! What's even more wonderful and amazing is that this week we are celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior, the person who makes it all possible that we can come down to earth, receive a physical body, grow and mature, overcome our trials, repent and be made clean, save us from our sorrows and our sins, be resurrected and receive a perfect body, be ready for the final judgment day, and receive a place next to our Heavenly Father in the Celestial Kingdom with our eternal family! HOW AMAZING IS HIS PLAN! It really just fills me up to the point where I want to burst out in song!....ok ok, let’s not get too carried away, I think my singing would offend the spirit, but it does fill me up to the point where I want to go out and share this amazing news with all the people here in Chile.
I'm so grateful for this amazing opportunity to share this AMAZING message during this special time of the year, and I'm so grateful for my parents, my family, my companions, my investigators, my sectors, my mission president, and the Holy Ghost, that have helped me learn and strengthened my testimony of these amazing truths!
Please give a GIANT hug/squeeze to little Indy in my honor and let him know I'm thinking and praying for him! If he could send me more tips and insights on what the pre-earth life is like, and the nature of our loving Heavenly Father it would be greatly appreciated! He, more than anyone knows what it's like up there :)
I love you all and am so excited to see you on Christmas! I don't have the username of the computer where I'm going to Skype home, but I wrote down the family username so we'll just add you right before we Skype home. We'll be Skyping home at 4:00 Chilean (city: Ovalle) time.
See you soon!
XOXOX- Hna. McKenna
Fun Fact:
Some little punks threw a half squeezed lemon peel at us while we were walking in the street and I looked at my companion laughing and said, "Cuando la vida le da limones, haga limonada!" Ha! we got a good laugh out of it!
The gift I'm going to give Jesus this year is my confidence.
My sister is a mom, my brother-in-law is a dad, my mom and dad are grandparents, my grandparents are great-grandparents, my brothers are uncles, I'm an aunt, and little Indy is starting his journey here on earth...learning and discovering what life is like with a body! GOD'S PLAN FOR US IS AMAZING! The photos of little Indy are so precious, and I'm sure he's even more darling in person! Ah how exciting it all is!!! What's even more wonderful and amazing is that this week we are celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior, the person who makes it all possible that we can come down to earth, receive a physical body, grow and mature, overcome our trials, repent and be made clean, save us from our sorrows and our sins, be resurrected and receive a perfect body, be ready for the final judgment day, and receive a place next to our Heavenly Father in the Celestial Kingdom with our eternal family! HOW AMAZING IS HIS PLAN! It really just fills me up to the point where I want to burst out in song!....ok ok, let’s not get too carried away, I think my singing would offend the spirit, but it does fill me up to the point where I want to go out and share this amazing news with all the people here in Chile.
I'm so grateful for this amazing opportunity to share this AMAZING message during this special time of the year, and I'm so grateful for my parents, my family, my companions, my investigators, my sectors, my mission president, and the Holy Ghost, that have helped me learn and strengthened my testimony of these amazing truths!
Please give a GIANT hug/squeeze to little Indy in my honor and let him know I'm thinking and praying for him! If he could send me more tips and insights on what the pre-earth life is like, and the nature of our loving Heavenly Father it would be greatly appreciated! He, more than anyone knows what it's like up there :)
I love you all and am so excited to see you on Christmas! I don't have the username of the computer where I'm going to Skype home, but I wrote down the family username so we'll just add you right before we Skype home. We'll be Skyping home at 4:00 Chilean (city: Ovalle) time.
See you soon!
XOXOX- Hna. McKenna
Fun Fact:
Some little punks threw a half squeezed lemon peel at us while we were walking in the street and I looked at my companion laughing and said, "Cuando la vida le da limones, haga limonada!" Ha! we got a good laugh out of it!
The gift I'm going to give Jesus this year is my confidence.
Monday, December 14, 2015
"FEAR is the absence of FAITH"
Dear Familia,
Another amazing week has come and gone in the beautiful land of Chile. Catalina received the Holy Ghost this past Sunday and her mom, Matilde, came to church to witness the beautiful ordinance. Her mom is amazing and has a baptismal date for 27 de Diciembre!!!!! We're so stoked for her, but she's pretty worried about the whole thing. She's so good that she's worried she's not ready/worthy to be baptized yet and that she needs more time, and needs to prepare herself more (even though she's one of the most prepared people I have known here in the misión). We talked a lot about how important it is to put our confidence in the Lord and His atonement and how he will prepare us to make this promise with our Heavenly Father.
During my personal studies I dedicated a part of my time to learning more about how important it is to trust in the Lord and put our confidence in the plans He has for our lives. This past week I have really been struggling with putting my confidence in the unknown....ha in life after the misión. A couple of the sisters from my MTC group went home this week in order to start their studies in January and with them going home it really hit home that in a couple more weeks I'll be doing the same thing. I felt/feel so unprepared. I started to worry about school and what I'm going to study, where I'm going to live, where I'm going to work, what life is going to be like in the U.S, obviously I thought about dating and finding my future companion (ha after 1 and a half years of focusing on eternal marriage and the plan of salvation it's bound to happen), and needless to say I started to panic & fear for the future...but while I was studying for Matilde a thought popped into my head, "fear is the absence of faith" and I laughed to myself thinking, "Oh Hna. McKenna, are you really that hard headed, has the mission taught you nothing? Where is your confidence in the Lord? Don't you believe He has something planned for you and is ready and willing to guide you? Calm down, trust in Him, and when the time comes be willing to take those steps of faith and let Him lead you along."
After that little conversation with myself...o mejor dicho, con el Espíritu Santo, I started to calm down a bit. And in my study for Matilde I found some of my own answers. Isn't it AMAZING how much helping other people with their problems help us solve our own?! I LOVE the mission so much and am so grateful for this time God has given me to refine me and steady my steps on the pathway back home.
Scripture to medetizar this week:
“Look unto me in every thought, doubt not, fear not.”
-DyC 3:36
I love you all!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
PS…Papito - What year did you serve in Concepción and who was your misión president? Hay una hermana en la rama que quizás sirvió el mismo tiempo?
Tu hijita,
Hna. Mckenna
Another amazing week has come and gone in the beautiful land of Chile. Catalina received the Holy Ghost this past Sunday and her mom, Matilde, came to church to witness the beautiful ordinance. Her mom is amazing and has a baptismal date for 27 de Diciembre!!!!! We're so stoked for her, but she's pretty worried about the whole thing. She's so good that she's worried she's not ready/worthy to be baptized yet and that she needs more time, and needs to prepare herself more (even though she's one of the most prepared people I have known here in the misión). We talked a lot about how important it is to put our confidence in the Lord and His atonement and how he will prepare us to make this promise with our Heavenly Father.
During my personal studies I dedicated a part of my time to learning more about how important it is to trust in the Lord and put our confidence in the plans He has for our lives. This past week I have really been struggling with putting my confidence in the unknown....ha in life after the misión. A couple of the sisters from my MTC group went home this week in order to start their studies in January and with them going home it really hit home that in a couple more weeks I'll be doing the same thing. I felt/feel so unprepared. I started to worry about school and what I'm going to study, where I'm going to live, where I'm going to work, what life is going to be like in the U.S, obviously I thought about dating and finding my future companion (ha after 1 and a half years of focusing on eternal marriage and the plan of salvation it's bound to happen), and needless to say I started to panic & fear for the future...but while I was studying for Matilde a thought popped into my head, "fear is the absence of faith" and I laughed to myself thinking, "Oh Hna. McKenna, are you really that hard headed, has the mission taught you nothing? Where is your confidence in the Lord? Don't you believe He has something planned for you and is ready and willing to guide you? Calm down, trust in Him, and when the time comes be willing to take those steps of faith and let Him lead you along."
After that little conversation with myself...o mejor dicho, con el Espíritu Santo, I started to calm down a bit. And in my study for Matilde I found some of my own answers. Isn't it AMAZING how much helping other people with their problems help us solve our own?! I LOVE the mission so much and am so grateful for this time God has given me to refine me and steady my steps on the pathway back home.
Scripture to medetizar this week:
“Look unto me in every thought, doubt not, fear not.”
-DyC 3:36
I love you all!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
PS…Papito - What year did you serve in Concepción and who was your misión president? Hay una hermana en la rama que quizás sirvió el mismo tiempo?
Tu hijita,
Hna. Mckenna
Monday, December 7, 2015
Where No Missionary Has Gone Before... Kind-of
Dear Familia,
WOWZA! This week has been nothing but AMAZING! I'll have you know they shipped me out of Olmué and I will be ending the mission in the blessed land of Ovalle, it's about an hour away from Coquimbo (my second sector) and about 6 hours from Viña. I was released as Hna. Lider and am now TRAINING AND OPENING A NEW SECTOR! This is exactly how I started the mission and I am so grateful that I will be able to finish in the same fashion but now as the oldie seasoned missionary. My little newbie is CHILEAN and from CONCEPCIÓN!!! (I'm writing all in caps to show I am very excited :)) She is 24, has been a member for a year and a half, and is the only member in her family....ya, you could pretty much say she is AMAZING!!! Ha! I think she is training me more than I am her!
This week we have seen a ton of miracles and I truly feel SO blessed! The sector that we are opening was the sector of two other sister missionaries. One went home because she ended her mission, and the other was called to the Viña del Mar zone, but they left Hna. Cordova (my companion) and me with a golden investigator ready for baptism! Her name is Catalina and she was baptized yesterday! :) She is such a cutie! She is 14 years old and has family that lives in Arica that are members. She got to know the church through them and when she came back home she searched out the church and started attending!!! The missionaries jumped right on that and yesterday Hna. Cordova and I got to be part of her amazing baptism! We have now started working with her family and it looks like we might just have a Christmas miracle and celebrate a white Christmas here in Ovalle! Please keep Catalina and her family in your prayers!
Something I have learned here in the mission is how aware our Heavenly Father is of his children. I'm pretty sure I prayed for a good month and a half so that I'd be able to entrainar (train) my last transfer. It has truly been such a blessing to be serving here in Chile and feel SO strongly that I am a daughter of God. That He knows who I am. That He is aware of my needs.
I love you all and hope you have a fantastic week :)
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-Our first day in our new house the bathroom faucet exploded and we had a nice fountain coming out of the shower!! Ha, lets just say we got to know the ward members in the ward real fast! Especially the Young Men’s President and his wife (they were over at the house all afternoon trying to get things all fixed)
-Everyone here says I talk like a Russian and that I don't have a gringa accent. They call me la rusia :)
-There is a recent convert here that reminds me a ton of the Herdmans from "The Best Christmas Pagent Ever." Her name is Javiera (10 years old) and she always comes to church with her younger siblings. The are pretty crazy kids, and during the baptismal service they hung out in the kitchen eating and getting into mischief...I had to just laugh and think of what the Christmas pagent would be like with them involved, I know they come from a rough background and that coming to church is a good relief for them, even if it keeps all the ward members on their toes!
Photos:
Zone Activity in Olmué!
Hna. Cordova and me on the never-ending bus ride to Ovalle!
Zone Activity in Ovalle, where we went to a little branch in Punitaqui that had their weekly meeting in a little house with a 15 person average attendance. We went out with the members to visit less actives and contact in order to find more members.
Making homemade noodles for Sunday lunch :) Here in Chile lunch is the big meal.
Bautismo de Catalina! :)
WOWZA! This week has been nothing but AMAZING! I'll have you know they shipped me out of Olmué and I will be ending the mission in the blessed land of Ovalle, it's about an hour away from Coquimbo (my second sector) and about 6 hours from Viña. I was released as Hna. Lider and am now TRAINING AND OPENING A NEW SECTOR! This is exactly how I started the mission and I am so grateful that I will be able to finish in the same fashion but now as the oldie seasoned missionary. My little newbie is CHILEAN and from CONCEPCIÓN!!! (I'm writing all in caps to show I am very excited :)) She is 24, has been a member for a year and a half, and is the only member in her family....ya, you could pretty much say she is AMAZING!!! Ha! I think she is training me more than I am her!
This week we have seen a ton of miracles and I truly feel SO blessed! The sector that we are opening was the sector of two other sister missionaries. One went home because she ended her mission, and the other was called to the Viña del Mar zone, but they left Hna. Cordova (my companion) and me with a golden investigator ready for baptism! Her name is Catalina and she was baptized yesterday! :) She is such a cutie! She is 14 years old and has family that lives in Arica that are members. She got to know the church through them and when she came back home she searched out the church and started attending!!! The missionaries jumped right on that and yesterday Hna. Cordova and I got to be part of her amazing baptism! We have now started working with her family and it looks like we might just have a Christmas miracle and celebrate a white Christmas here in Ovalle! Please keep Catalina and her family in your prayers!
Something I have learned here in the mission is how aware our Heavenly Father is of his children. I'm pretty sure I prayed for a good month and a half so that I'd be able to entrainar (train) my last transfer. It has truly been such a blessing to be serving here in Chile and feel SO strongly that I am a daughter of God. That He knows who I am. That He is aware of my needs.
I love you all and hope you have a fantastic week :)
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-Our first day in our new house the bathroom faucet exploded and we had a nice fountain coming out of the shower!! Ha, lets just say we got to know the ward members in the ward real fast! Especially the Young Men’s President and his wife (they were over at the house all afternoon trying to get things all fixed)
-Everyone here says I talk like a Russian and that I don't have a gringa accent. They call me la rusia :)
-There is a recent convert here that reminds me a ton of the Herdmans from "The Best Christmas Pagent Ever." Her name is Javiera (10 years old) and she always comes to church with her younger siblings. The are pretty crazy kids, and during the baptismal service they hung out in the kitchen eating and getting into mischief...I had to just laugh and think of what the Christmas pagent would be like with them involved, I know they come from a rough background and that coming to church is a good relief for them, even if it keeps all the ward members on their toes!
Photos:
Zone Activity in Olmué!
Hna. Cordova and me on the never-ending bus ride to Ovalle!
Zone Activity in Ovalle, where we went to a little branch in Punitaqui that had their weekly meeting in a little house with a 15 person average attendance. We went out with the members to visit less actives and contact in order to find more members.
Making homemade noodles for Sunday lunch :) Here in Chile lunch is the big meal.
Bautismo de Catalina! :)
Monday, November 30, 2015
Inviting a Child of God to Be Baptized
Dear Familia,
What an amazing week you guys had! It was so fun to hear how amazing the weekend was and all the blessings our family has received! Serving here in Chile I really and truly am SO humbled to see how much the Lord has blessed my life and how much he has blessed the lives of each one of you. The very fact that you have family that cares about you is a major blessing in and of itself, and the fact that you live in the United States is an AMAZING blessing God has given you! I loved hearing that Thanksgiving was a ROARING success :) and that the surprise 50th anniversary was a night to remember! What a great time to spend together as a family and get everyone together for the big farewell talk! Thanks for the shout out Nana :) and I'll make sure to be on the lookout for Hna. Olsen.
Now on to the investigators, remember María Jose, the investigator we were going to put a baptismal date with...well folks, she now has a baptismal date to be "reborn" the very day I was literally born, Dec. 12 :) How fun is that?! María Jose is such a sweet and pure spirit, and started to cry when we invited her to be baptized. I think that is one of the things that I love most about being a missionary, inviting a child of God to follow our Savior, Jesus Christ, and be baptized. It's the most rewarding thing I've done in my life up to this point, and will forever cherish those special moments when they say yes.
This week the church put a new video on their web page called, "A Savior is Born." And at the end of the video it says, "More than 2000 years ago God sent Jesus Christ, our Savior. Discover why." Wow! It gives me chills just writing it!!!! This video is SO GOOD! I invite you all to watch it and afterwards spend this Christmas season learning and searching and discovering and feeling the love God has for us and why he sent us a Savior. You can find the video at LDS.org.
Have a fantastic week and know I'm praying and thinking about you all!
Con amor,
Hna. Mckenna
Fun Facts:
Hna. Lopez made some horrible garlic concoction to drink in order to clean her stomach (yearly Paraguay tradition) and the whole house smelled like garlic for days, and my companion also....it was not fun.
We are visiting a family that has a 6 year old little girl, and the other day when she answered the door she went running to find her mom and yelled, "Mom, the twins have arrived!" haha it was the cutest thing!
Photos:
The activity last week
District photo
Priest Quorum President (This man and his family have changed my life FOREVER. I'm so excited for you to meet him and his wife.)
Thanksgiving Dinner :) it turned out pretty dang good if I do say so myself!
Helping Hna. Cecilia put up her Christmas decorations
What an amazing week you guys had! It was so fun to hear how amazing the weekend was and all the blessings our family has received! Serving here in Chile I really and truly am SO humbled to see how much the Lord has blessed my life and how much he has blessed the lives of each one of you. The very fact that you have family that cares about you is a major blessing in and of itself, and the fact that you live in the United States is an AMAZING blessing God has given you! I loved hearing that Thanksgiving was a ROARING success :) and that the surprise 50th anniversary was a night to remember! What a great time to spend together as a family and get everyone together for the big farewell talk! Thanks for the shout out Nana :) and I'll make sure to be on the lookout for Hna. Olsen.
Now on to the investigators, remember María Jose, the investigator we were going to put a baptismal date with...well folks, she now has a baptismal date to be "reborn" the very day I was literally born, Dec. 12 :) How fun is that?! María Jose is such a sweet and pure spirit, and started to cry when we invited her to be baptized. I think that is one of the things that I love most about being a missionary, inviting a child of God to follow our Savior, Jesus Christ, and be baptized. It's the most rewarding thing I've done in my life up to this point, and will forever cherish those special moments when they say yes.
This week the church put a new video on their web page called, "A Savior is Born." And at the end of the video it says, "More than 2000 years ago God sent Jesus Christ, our Savior. Discover why." Wow! It gives me chills just writing it!!!! This video is SO GOOD! I invite you all to watch it and afterwards spend this Christmas season learning and searching and discovering and feeling the love God has for us and why he sent us a Savior. You can find the video at LDS.org.
Have a fantastic week and know I'm praying and thinking about you all!
Con amor,
Hna. Mckenna
Fun Facts:
Hna. Lopez made some horrible garlic concoction to drink in order to clean her stomach (yearly Paraguay tradition) and the whole house smelled like garlic for days, and my companion also....it was not fun.
We are visiting a family that has a 6 year old little girl, and the other day when she answered the door she went running to find her mom and yelled, "Mom, the twins have arrived!" haha it was the cutest thing!
Photos:
The activity last week
District photo
Priest Quorum President (This man and his family have changed my life FOREVER. I'm so excited for you to meet him and his wife.)
Thanksgiving Dinner :) it turned out pretty dang good if I do say so myself!
Helping Hna. Cecilia put up her Christmas decorations
Monday, November 23, 2015
"Conozca a los Mormones"
Dear Familia,
Well folks, the miracles just keep on rolling in! This week we had a mission activity in the ward that Hna. Lopez and I planned called, "Conozca a los Mormones." (Meet the Mormons) We put flyers in every bus stop, in every little street store, and we had a giant poster made to put in front of the chapel. We really went the full ten yards, and the most amazing part is that the bishop and the ward leaders were right behind us supporting us all the way! On Friday we had the activity and over 70 people came, which is a huge success coming from a ward that has an average attendance rate of 74 :) A lot of members invited their friends and family members that aren't active and a good number of investigators that went to the activity showed up in church on Sunday. Yes, we are two very happy little missionaries. Also, the mayor of Olmué came to the activity, which was HUGE for all the members! The mission work is really getting this ward moving! :)
Esteban came to church on Sunday, which was an amazing answer to prayers. We have a lesson with him in a couple hours, so we'll see how things go! María José (20 years old) is an investigator that came to the activity and then showed up to church the following day and stayed after to see a baptism the elders had. She's fantastic, and on Tuesday we're planning on putting a baptismal date with her. After coming to the activity, her mom is also willing to listen to our message. God is working miracles in Olmué!
It's been great to see the progress of this ward and to feel so much love for all the people here, but unfortunately I don't think I'll be in Olmué for my last transfer. This morning one of the investigators we've been teaching (Warner… 35 years old from Germany) declared, "En mi búsqueda por Dio me enamoré contigo." (In my search for God, I have fallen in love with you) Every time something like that happens we have to inform the leaders, and because he has attended church for about a month now, and has plans to be baptized, the elders are going to start teaching him and most likely they are going to ship me out in the next cambio...which is December 2. I'm really hoping that I can open a new area and train a newbie. That is how I started my mission, opening an area and being trained by an ex-sister trainer leader. I'm willing go wherever the Lord sends me, but a couple extra prayers on my behalf wouldn't hurt :)
We all know that this week is Thanksgiving (yes I will be eating my Thanksgiving dinner from a box...which I am EXTREMELY grateful for), so I can't sign off without a message about giving thanks. Ammon taught in the Book of Mormon, "Let us give thanks to God, for He doth work righteousness forever." Isn't that such a wonderful reminder? In the talk by Elder Russell M. Nelson, "Thanks Be to God" He states "Our degree of gratitude is a measure of our love for Him." We need to be always giving thanks to our Lord and Savior, showing our love for Him and all He does for us.
I love you all and am SO grateful for everything you do and for the blessings you are in my life!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
I GOT THE PACKAGES!!!! wahoooooo!!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I got Mema's package, The Wankier’s package, and the Thanksgiving and Christmas packages from Mom :)
I found two long black hairs in my lunch on Tuesday, Yummy yummy! (daily missionary life)
In the bathroom of Luis and Laura they have shower curtains that have the song "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine"... It made me happy :)
In the neighborhood where we live half of the houses are members and the other half are JWs (Jehovah’s Witnesses). These past couple of weeks we've been having turf wars …Mormon missionary style ;)
The blankets we use in the mission are similar to the prison blankets in the movie "Get Smart" …and I think I found a human tooth in one of them...
Well folks, the miracles just keep on rolling in! This week we had a mission activity in the ward that Hna. Lopez and I planned called, "Conozca a los Mormones." (Meet the Mormons) We put flyers in every bus stop, in every little street store, and we had a giant poster made to put in front of the chapel. We really went the full ten yards, and the most amazing part is that the bishop and the ward leaders were right behind us supporting us all the way! On Friday we had the activity and over 70 people came, which is a huge success coming from a ward that has an average attendance rate of 74 :) A lot of members invited their friends and family members that aren't active and a good number of investigators that went to the activity showed up in church on Sunday. Yes, we are two very happy little missionaries. Also, the mayor of Olmué came to the activity, which was HUGE for all the members! The mission work is really getting this ward moving! :)
Esteban came to church on Sunday, which was an amazing answer to prayers. We have a lesson with him in a couple hours, so we'll see how things go! María José (20 years old) is an investigator that came to the activity and then showed up to church the following day and stayed after to see a baptism the elders had. She's fantastic, and on Tuesday we're planning on putting a baptismal date with her. After coming to the activity, her mom is also willing to listen to our message. God is working miracles in Olmué!
It's been great to see the progress of this ward and to feel so much love for all the people here, but unfortunately I don't think I'll be in Olmué for my last transfer. This morning one of the investigators we've been teaching (Warner… 35 years old from Germany) declared, "En mi búsqueda por Dio me enamoré contigo." (In my search for God, I have fallen in love with you) Every time something like that happens we have to inform the leaders, and because he has attended church for about a month now, and has plans to be baptized, the elders are going to start teaching him and most likely they are going to ship me out in the next cambio...which is December 2. I'm really hoping that I can open a new area and train a newbie. That is how I started my mission, opening an area and being trained by an ex-sister trainer leader. I'm willing go wherever the Lord sends me, but a couple extra prayers on my behalf wouldn't hurt :)
We all know that this week is Thanksgiving (yes I will be eating my Thanksgiving dinner from a box...which I am EXTREMELY grateful for), so I can't sign off without a message about giving thanks. Ammon taught in the Book of Mormon, "Let us give thanks to God, for He doth work righteousness forever." Isn't that such a wonderful reminder? In the talk by Elder Russell M. Nelson, "Thanks Be to God" He states "Our degree of gratitude is a measure of our love for Him." We need to be always giving thanks to our Lord and Savior, showing our love for Him and all He does for us.
I love you all and am SO grateful for everything you do and for the blessings you are in my life!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
I GOT THE PACKAGES!!!! wahoooooo!!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I got Mema's package, The Wankier’s package, and the Thanksgiving and Christmas packages from Mom :)
I found two long black hairs in my lunch on Tuesday, Yummy yummy! (daily missionary life)
In the bathroom of Luis and Laura they have shower curtains that have the song "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine"... It made me happy :)
In the neighborhood where we live half of the houses are members and the other half are JWs (Jehovah’s Witnesses). These past couple of weeks we've been having turf wars …Mormon missionary style ;)
The blankets we use in the mission are similar to the prison blankets in the movie "Get Smart" …and I think I found a human tooth in one of them...
Monday, November 16, 2015
"Who wants to live with God in his Celestial Kingdom?"
Dear Familia,
Well my lovely friends and family, this week two more souls took the first step back home to their loving Heavenly Father. Thanks so much for your loving prayers on behalf of Fernanda and Luis. It truly is so amazing to watch people take these first steps to be ready to return back to their heavenly home.
This week I was thinking a lot about that concept. About our return back home to God. It got me thinking, if someone asked the question, "Who wants to live with God in his Celestial Kingdom?" I'm sure everyone would say raise their hands, I know I would. And if they followed up with the question, "Who believes they would be worthy to live with God in His Kingdom if they died in this moment?" Ha ya, that follow up question really made me stop and think. What am I doing? What do I need to start doing? Thankfully, being a missionary I feel like every lesson God answers my questions through the investigators that we teach and their own personal questions.
This week we taught an investigator named Esteben. He's around 45 years old, crazy smart (in worldly terms) and loves reading the Book of Mormon. We talked with him about our purpose here on earth, the atonement, and the final judgment day. In the start of the lesson he wasn't getting how important it is to accept Christ/the atonement in our lives and follow the steps and guidelines he has given us. But when we got to the final judgment, things finally started to click for him. We talked about how nothing impure can live with God and how the only way to be made clean is through the atonement and accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior. It was an AMAZING experience being able to see his testimony of Jesus Christ growing right before our eyes!!! The spirit was super strong and after a pause in the lesson he looked at us and said, "Now I understand. Now I realize why baptism is important." He accepted baptism but is struggling with setting a date, prayers on behalf of Esteben are more than welcomed!
Love,
Hermana McKenna
Photos:
Baptism :)
The sisters I do exchanges with and Hna. Díaz.
The screen saver in the house of Luis and Laura :) FAMILIAS ETERNAS!
Well my lovely friends and family, this week two more souls took the first step back home to their loving Heavenly Father. Thanks so much for your loving prayers on behalf of Fernanda and Luis. It truly is so amazing to watch people take these first steps to be ready to return back to their heavenly home.
This week I was thinking a lot about that concept. About our return back home to God. It got me thinking, if someone asked the question, "Who wants to live with God in his Celestial Kingdom?" I'm sure everyone would say raise their hands, I know I would. And if they followed up with the question, "Who believes they would be worthy to live with God in His Kingdom if they died in this moment?" Ha ya, that follow up question really made me stop and think. What am I doing? What do I need to start doing? Thankfully, being a missionary I feel like every lesson God answers my questions through the investigators that we teach and their own personal questions.
This week we taught an investigator named Esteben. He's around 45 years old, crazy smart (in worldly terms) and loves reading the Book of Mormon. We talked with him about our purpose here on earth, the atonement, and the final judgment day. In the start of the lesson he wasn't getting how important it is to accept Christ/the atonement in our lives and follow the steps and guidelines he has given us. But when we got to the final judgment, things finally started to click for him. We talked about how nothing impure can live with God and how the only way to be made clean is through the atonement and accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior. It was an AMAZING experience being able to see his testimony of Jesus Christ growing right before our eyes!!! The spirit was super strong and after a pause in the lesson he looked at us and said, "Now I understand. Now I realize why baptism is important." He accepted baptism but is struggling with setting a date, prayers on behalf of Esteben are more than welcomed!
Love,
Hermana McKenna
Photos:
Baptism :)
The sisters I do exchanges with and Hna. Díaz.
The screen saver in the house of Luis and Laura :) FAMILIAS ETERNAS!
Monday, November 9, 2015
Promise We Are Not Spies From the US
Dear Familia,
Me gustan mucho los planes for our Chile trip in March! :) We can change a little bit of the plans in my mission because Coquimbo is about 8 hours from Valpo, it would be best to visit Valpo, Olmue, and then Coquimbo because it's really far north, who knows, maybe we can fly out of Coquimbo or La Sarena. You had mentioned before the possibility of visiting Machu Pichu...I don't know if that is still in the plans, but it would be really neat to visit those ruins after studying the Book of Mormon. Just a thought....but I'm good with whatever :) the trip will be great no matter what :) I sure do love you guys!
What an amazing experience to have Elder Holland at Sacrament Meeting! That's something that everyone will never forget! Please send my love for the Shipp family. I sure love you, Mom, and hope that all is well. I'm still a STL and one of the sisters who I did interchanges with went home this week for some serious problems she was having in the mission. I'll tell you more about it when I get home. But we became really close and I'm going to write her and I also have to send a letter to the President about the interchange. I'll send a couple photos and fun facts, and next week I'll give more details about the sector. Please keep Luis and Fernanda in your prayers.
Fun Facts:
We had 3 people this week tell us we were spies from the United States....that comment always makes me laugh
We got the package with the BYU goodies and the package from Megan Brindley! SHOUT OUT to my South American sister: Muchas gracias por todos tus regalitos! Me encantó y estoy disfrutando todo los dulcesitos :)
I accidently scraped my forehead and now look like a blond-girl version of Harry Potter. Don't worry, I don't think it'll leave a scar quite like Harry's :)
For the first time in 16 months I ate SUBWAY!!!!
PS. Thanks so much dad. I loved the letter, and it was a precious reminder. Have a great week :) Te amo!
Photos:
Lookie Lookie! My sweet mother is famous even in Chile :)
When Rebeca and her husband helped Luis, Laura, Fernanda, and Jose move.
The brother in the middle gave his farewell talk. The closing hymn was "I'll Go Where You Want Me to Go." It brought back SO many memories, and I may or may not have shed a tear....time passes way to fast!
Hna. Lopez and I enjoying the lovely package we received!!! Thank you SO much! She LOVED the package, and is currently wearing the BYU sweatshirt :)
Check out the flowers in the background!!! It's BEAUTIFUL here in Olmué and there are wildflowers everywhere you look! Even though we have to walk about 2-4 miles to get from one lesson to the next, it's definitely worth the walk!
Me gustan mucho los planes for our Chile trip in March! :) We can change a little bit of the plans in my mission because Coquimbo is about 8 hours from Valpo, it would be best to visit Valpo, Olmue, and then Coquimbo because it's really far north, who knows, maybe we can fly out of Coquimbo or La Sarena. You had mentioned before the possibility of visiting Machu Pichu...I don't know if that is still in the plans, but it would be really neat to visit those ruins after studying the Book of Mormon. Just a thought....but I'm good with whatever :) the trip will be great no matter what :) I sure do love you guys!
What an amazing experience to have Elder Holland at Sacrament Meeting! That's something that everyone will never forget! Please send my love for the Shipp family. I sure love you, Mom, and hope that all is well. I'm still a STL and one of the sisters who I did interchanges with went home this week for some serious problems she was having in the mission. I'll tell you more about it when I get home. But we became really close and I'm going to write her and I also have to send a letter to the President about the interchange. I'll send a couple photos and fun facts, and next week I'll give more details about the sector. Please keep Luis and Fernanda in your prayers.
Fun Facts:
We had 3 people this week tell us we were spies from the United States....that comment always makes me laugh
We got the package with the BYU goodies and the package from Megan Brindley! SHOUT OUT to my South American sister: Muchas gracias por todos tus regalitos! Me encantó y estoy disfrutando todo los dulcesitos :)
I accidently scraped my forehead and now look like a blond-girl version of Harry Potter. Don't worry, I don't think it'll leave a scar quite like Harry's :)
For the first time in 16 months I ate SUBWAY!!!!
PS. Thanks so much dad. I loved the letter, and it was a precious reminder. Have a great week :) Te amo!
Photos:
Lookie Lookie! My sweet mother is famous even in Chile :)
When Rebeca and her husband helped Luis, Laura, Fernanda, and Jose move.
The brother in the middle gave his farewell talk. The closing hymn was "I'll Go Where You Want Me to Go." It brought back SO many memories, and I may or may not have shed a tear....time passes way to fast!
Hna. Lopez and I enjoying the lovely package we received!!! Thank you SO much! She LOVED the package, and is currently wearing the BYU sweatshirt :)
Check out the flowers in the background!!! It's BEAUTIFUL here in Olmué and there are wildflowers everywhere you look! Even though we have to walk about 2-4 miles to get from one lesson to the next, it's definitely worth the walk!
Monday, November 2, 2015
We Are All 'Swans'
Dear Familia,
This week it was really fun to see how much the Chileans are getting into Halloween. According to what the members have told me, these past couple of years they have really started celebrating Halloween here in Chile. It was fun to see all the little kids running around with their costumes, it brought back a lot of fun memories of good ol' Santa Clara and all the craziness that goes on over there this time of year. This past week while everyone was preparing for Halloween and planning the costume they were going to use and who they were going to pretend to be, Hna. Lopez and I shared a lot about the importance of our true identity. There's a great Mormon Message called "Our True Identity" that is based off a talk by President Uchtdorf. In the Mormon Message it starts off telling the story of the ugly duckling and how it felt unaccepted, big, ugly, unwanted, and of little importance. It shares how the other ducks teased and made fun of him because he was different. He leaves the others and lives by himself, only to discover one day while looking in the water, he sees his true reflection. He discovers that he's not an ugly duck, he's not even a duck, but rather a beautiful and majestic swan.
Like the swan, most of us have felt at one time or another that we don't quite fit in. Much of the confusion we experience in this life comes from simply not understanding who we are. It's so sad to see, but here in the mission I've seen so many people go about their lives thinking they are of little worth when, in reality, they are beautiful and eternal creature of infinite value with potential beyond imagination!
Part of our purpose here on earth is to discover who we really are. Growing up in the church I have been blessed with the answers of why I'm here on earth, where I came from, and where I'm going after this earthly life. As members of the church we have the answers not because of someone's educated guess or because we found a scientific explanation. We have the answers because heavenly messengers and personal revelation have revealed these mysteries to man. This knowledge that we are children of God changes us. It changes how we act, how we make decisions, it changes everything. There will always be voices telling us that we are foolish to believe that we are swans. But we know better, we've seen our reflection in the water and have felt the love of our Father in Heaven testifying we are his children. We are not ordinary beings...we are glorious and eternal.
Never forget that even though we might dress up as someone different for Halloween, or the world might try telling us we're unimportant, and just an ugly duckling, we should never forget our true identity, that we are children of the most powerful and glorious being in the universe!
I love you all and I love sharing this message with my lovely Chilean brothers and sisters.
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
P.S
Look up the Momon Message, It's SOO good :)
hahahahahaha OH MY!!!! Did Megan and Ashley dress up as Bolivians!? HA that is to funny!
WAHOOOOO I HAD NO IDEA KYLIE WAS CALLED TO SERVE IN CHILE! Ah she is one lucky duck!
This week it was really fun to see how much the Chileans are getting into Halloween. According to what the members have told me, these past couple of years they have really started celebrating Halloween here in Chile. It was fun to see all the little kids running around with their costumes, it brought back a lot of fun memories of good ol' Santa Clara and all the craziness that goes on over there this time of year. This past week while everyone was preparing for Halloween and planning the costume they were going to use and who they were going to pretend to be, Hna. Lopez and I shared a lot about the importance of our true identity. There's a great Mormon Message called "Our True Identity" that is based off a talk by President Uchtdorf. In the Mormon Message it starts off telling the story of the ugly duckling and how it felt unaccepted, big, ugly, unwanted, and of little importance. It shares how the other ducks teased and made fun of him because he was different. He leaves the others and lives by himself, only to discover one day while looking in the water, he sees his true reflection. He discovers that he's not an ugly duck, he's not even a duck, but rather a beautiful and majestic swan.
Like the swan, most of us have felt at one time or another that we don't quite fit in. Much of the confusion we experience in this life comes from simply not understanding who we are. It's so sad to see, but here in the mission I've seen so many people go about their lives thinking they are of little worth when, in reality, they are beautiful and eternal creature of infinite value with potential beyond imagination!
Part of our purpose here on earth is to discover who we really are. Growing up in the church I have been blessed with the answers of why I'm here on earth, where I came from, and where I'm going after this earthly life. As members of the church we have the answers not because of someone's educated guess or because we found a scientific explanation. We have the answers because heavenly messengers and personal revelation have revealed these mysteries to man. This knowledge that we are children of God changes us. It changes how we act, how we make decisions, it changes everything. There will always be voices telling us that we are foolish to believe that we are swans. But we know better, we've seen our reflection in the water and have felt the love of our Father in Heaven testifying we are his children. We are not ordinary beings...we are glorious and eternal.
Never forget that even though we might dress up as someone different for Halloween, or the world might try telling us we're unimportant, and just an ugly duckling, we should never forget our true identity, that we are children of the most powerful and glorious being in the universe!
I love you all and I love sharing this message with my lovely Chilean brothers and sisters.
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
P.S
Look up the Momon Message, It's SOO good :)
hahahahahaha OH MY!!!! Did Megan and Ashley dress up as Bolivians!? HA that is to funny!
WAHOOOOO I HAD NO IDEA KYLIE WAS CALLED TO SERVE IN CHILE! Ah she is one lucky duck!
Monday, October 26, 2015
"More Used Would I Be"
HOLA,
This week we had a bit of a surprise! We have been teaching La Familia Valenzuela these past couple of weeks, we're helping Fernanda (11 years old) prepare for her baptism on the 7th of November. She wanted her stepdad, Luis, to baptize her, so we talked with the Bishop in order to make goals with him so that he could receive the priesthood before her baptism. While trying to get his records sent to the ward here in Olmue, we found out that his records don't exist! We talked with the mission office and with a little research we discovered that he was baptized when he was 8 but he was never confirmed! SURPRISE! When we told him that his baptism isn't valid without receiving the Holy Ghost he asked if that meant he could be baptized again. We told him yes, and his whole face lit up! He said that he has felt such a strong desire to be baptized and start everything over again and that this time he was really going to follow Jesus in this new life that he wants to have. He and his family are so excited and are progressing SO much! They have started saying family prayers every night and are all reading in the Book of Mormón. The spirit that is in their house has changed 100%, and just in these past couple of weeks Hna. Lopez and I have been able to see a grande change in each and every one of them!
This past week I have been reflecting on how important it is to really follow Jesus after our baptism and become more like him. I have been meditating a lot on the hymn "More Holiness Give Me". I have put the lyrics here and I want to focus on the last couple lines "more used would I be, more blessed and holy, more Savior like thee." I know that when we try a little more to be a little better, to be more holy, to be more like our Savior, we become better instruments in the hands of our Lord and Savior to help bless the lives of our brothers and sisters in this world.
1. More holiness give me, More strivings within, More patience in suff'ring, More sorrow for sin, More faith in my Savior, More sense of his care, More joy in his service, More purpose in prayer.
2. More gratitude give me, More trust in the Lord, More pride in his glory, More hope in his word, More tears for his sorrows, More pain at his grief, More meekness in trial, More praise for relief.
3. More purity give me, More strength to o'ercome, More freedom from earth-stains, More longing for home. More fit for the kingdom, More used would I be, More blessed and holy-- More, Savior, like thee.
I love you all and hope you have a fantastic week!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-La Familia Valenzuela has three little weenie dogs that are SOOO CUTE!!! I LOVE them so much :) The other day the grandma was making costumes for them for Halloween, I'll try to send photos next week.
-In the Metro there are always people singing...some are good singers, some are bad, some are entertaining, and some are down right weird. Well, the other day we were in the Metro headed to Viña and the guy that started to sing and play the guitar decided he was going to sing about everything I did! His song went a little like this, "The blond is sitting looking out the window. She closes here eyes. She opens them again. She scratches her nose. She tries not to look at me. You can tell she's not from around here. She doesn't speak our language. Maybe for that reason she's not looking at me." I finally look at him and give him a smile telling him thanks for the song. It was the most uncomfortable train ride I've had here in Chile!
PS… I'm 100% ok with Jack and Carrson coming with us to Chile in March. I think it will be great for them and great family memories. haha Also I think every young woman, investigator and convert that has seen photos of my family is looking forward to meeting my brothers ;)
I'm so happy for Amanda!!! And I LOVE the idea of touring Europe, haha sign me up :) OH how precious is little baby Aaron! He and Indy are going to have so much fun!
Indy’s nursery is SO, SO, SO, SO, SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CUTE!!!!!!!!
PHOTOS:
I might not have been able to be part of the adorable Baby Shower for my adorable little Indy, but I did get to help Karina with her Baby Shower for sweet little Alicia :) I love the little tender mercies God gives us.
Chilean Pride...would you check out that view! Haha yes I did have to climb the hill/mountain in order have the view. There is a recent convert that lives in the 2nd to last house on the tip of the mountain.
Our District Leader gave Hna. Lopez and me little candy dolls modeled after a photo we took as a district....I may or may not have done a photo shoot with mine.
The infamous CHICHA...aka moonshine.
Felipe´s Baptism!!!!
The photo of our District that inspired the candy doll.
An FHE we had with La Familia Figaroa (the husband is the President of the Priest Quorum.) and La Familia Valenzuela (Laura-less active, Luis-investigator, José-less active, and Fernanda-investigator.)
Our neighbor María Virginia. She was an investigator, but we stopped teaching her because she wasn't progressing in the lessons.
This week we had a bit of a surprise! We have been teaching La Familia Valenzuela these past couple of weeks, we're helping Fernanda (11 years old) prepare for her baptism on the 7th of November. She wanted her stepdad, Luis, to baptize her, so we talked with the Bishop in order to make goals with him so that he could receive the priesthood before her baptism. While trying to get his records sent to the ward here in Olmue, we found out that his records don't exist! We talked with the mission office and with a little research we discovered that he was baptized when he was 8 but he was never confirmed! SURPRISE! When we told him that his baptism isn't valid without receiving the Holy Ghost he asked if that meant he could be baptized again. We told him yes, and his whole face lit up! He said that he has felt such a strong desire to be baptized and start everything over again and that this time he was really going to follow Jesus in this new life that he wants to have. He and his family are so excited and are progressing SO much! They have started saying family prayers every night and are all reading in the Book of Mormón. The spirit that is in their house has changed 100%, and just in these past couple of weeks Hna. Lopez and I have been able to see a grande change in each and every one of them!
This past week I have been reflecting on how important it is to really follow Jesus after our baptism and become more like him. I have been meditating a lot on the hymn "More Holiness Give Me". I have put the lyrics here and I want to focus on the last couple lines "more used would I be, more blessed and holy, more Savior like thee." I know that when we try a little more to be a little better, to be more holy, to be more like our Savior, we become better instruments in the hands of our Lord and Savior to help bless the lives of our brothers and sisters in this world.
1. More holiness give me, More strivings within, More patience in suff'ring, More sorrow for sin, More faith in my Savior, More sense of his care, More joy in his service, More purpose in prayer.
2. More gratitude give me, More trust in the Lord, More pride in his glory, More hope in his word, More tears for his sorrows, More pain at his grief, More meekness in trial, More praise for relief.
3. More purity give me, More strength to o'ercome, More freedom from earth-stains, More longing for home. More fit for the kingdom, More used would I be, More blessed and holy-- More, Savior, like thee.
I love you all and hope you have a fantastic week!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-La Familia Valenzuela has three little weenie dogs that are SOOO CUTE!!! I LOVE them so much :) The other day the grandma was making costumes for them for Halloween, I'll try to send photos next week.
-In the Metro there are always people singing...some are good singers, some are bad, some are entertaining, and some are down right weird. Well, the other day we were in the Metro headed to Viña and the guy that started to sing and play the guitar decided he was going to sing about everything I did! His song went a little like this, "The blond is sitting looking out the window. She closes here eyes. She opens them again. She scratches her nose. She tries not to look at me. You can tell she's not from around here. She doesn't speak our language. Maybe for that reason she's not looking at me." I finally look at him and give him a smile telling him thanks for the song. It was the most uncomfortable train ride I've had here in Chile!
PS… I'm 100% ok with Jack and Carrson coming with us to Chile in March. I think it will be great for them and great family memories. haha Also I think every young woman, investigator and convert that has seen photos of my family is looking forward to meeting my brothers ;)
I'm so happy for Amanda!!! And I LOVE the idea of touring Europe, haha sign me up :) OH how precious is little baby Aaron! He and Indy are going to have so much fun!
Indy’s nursery is SO, SO, SO, SO, SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CUTE!!!!!!!!
PHOTOS:
I might not have been able to be part of the adorable Baby Shower for my adorable little Indy, but I did get to help Karina with her Baby Shower for sweet little Alicia :) I love the little tender mercies God gives us.
Chilean Pride...would you check out that view! Haha yes I did have to climb the hill/mountain in order have the view. There is a recent convert that lives in the 2nd to last house on the tip of the mountain.
Our District Leader gave Hna. Lopez and me little candy dolls modeled after a photo we took as a district....I may or may not have done a photo shoot with mine.
The infamous CHICHA...aka moonshine.
Felipe´s Baptism!!!!
The photo of our District that inspired the candy doll.
An FHE we had with La Familia Figaroa (the husband is the President of the Priest Quorum.) and La Familia Valenzuela (Laura-less active, Luis-investigator, José-less active, and Fernanda-investigator.)
Our neighbor María Virginia. She was an investigator, but we stopped teaching her because she wasn't progressing in the lessons.
Monday, October 19, 2015
Felipe is Baptized!
Dear Familia,
Felipe got baptized!!!!!!!!! It was by far one of my all time favorite baptismal services. There were so many people there to support him and his decision, and so many of them were family members that had traveled from different cities in order to be part of his baptism. Seeing them all there gathered together supporting him reminded me a lot of our family and how we always get together and are one big crazy bunch! Haha that's how this baptismal service was....a lot of little kids running around everywhere, a lot of noise, a lot of food, and a lot of love!
Hna. Lopez and I knew that the baptismal service was going to be a big deal so we prepared everything PERFECTLY a week in advance and had it all ready to go. But heaven forbid we have a baptismal service without any complications. Ha 5 minutes before the baptismal service is about to start the mission leader informs us that he doesn't know where the keys are to open the curtain for the baptismal font...which means nobody is going to be able to see the baptism! We have 50 people (members, nonmembers, investigators etc...) waiting to see his baptism and the curtains won’t open! We decide that the bishop is going to start the baptismal service while the mission leader figures something out and is running around trying to find a key to open the curtain. While all of this is happening I'm trying not to stress...which is hard for me to do when there are investigators involved (Fernanda and her family came to see the baptism). While I'm silently praying that the curtains will open a thought pops into my head that my family has been praying for Felipe's baptism and that everything is going to be ok. That thought really calmed me down and 10 minutes later the mission leader gives me the thumbs up letting me know that the curtains are opened and after we finish with the musical number everyone is going to be able to see the baptismal service. Just another amazing testimony builder that Heavenly Father hears and answers our prayers.
The following day in Sacrament Meeting all of the testimonies were on how families can be together forever. Felipe got baptized with that goal in mind and he and Karina are already planning their sealing in a year from now. It's the most beautiful thing my little missionary ears have heard, and little missionary eyes have seen. And not only did Fernanda (investigator) and her family (Luis, Laura, and Jose - all of which are less active) attend the baptismal service of Felipe, but they also all attended church on Sunday and LOVED it! Luis got baptized when he was 8 and became less active immediately, Laura was baptized 4 years ago with José in a different ward and when they moved 3 years ago they lost contact with the church, all of them hardly remember anything about the church, but they loved the lessons, especially on the family.
I love being a missionary. I love being able to share this beautiful message with the people of Chile. I love my family I have here in Chile among all my companions and members. And I love my family that supports me and helps me from the home front in Utah!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-In Limache, the neighboring town, there is some crazy Chilean that is always dressed as a clown! I've seen him about 5 times now and it's the weirdest, creepiest thing!
-Rebeca (recent convert) called us at 10 o'clock at night because she was so excited to share with us the symbolism she found in Jacob 5 while she was reading! Bless her heart!
-José (Fernanda's brother) was playing soccer with one of his friends in a field by his house. Hna. Lopez and I passed by and started talking with them and made a deal that if they did more juggles than us we'd buy them an alfajor (chocolate covered cookie with manjar) and if I did more juggles than them we'd have a lesson with them. Needless to say I still got skills while juggling in Danskos and a skirt! José did 14 juggles and I did 15...I didn't want to embarrass the poor guy :) Soccer skills=Saving souls :)
SHOUT OUT: GO SC WARRIORS GIRLS SOCCER!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't worry, you're in my prayers ;)
Felipe got baptized!!!!!!!!! It was by far one of my all time favorite baptismal services. There were so many people there to support him and his decision, and so many of them were family members that had traveled from different cities in order to be part of his baptism. Seeing them all there gathered together supporting him reminded me a lot of our family and how we always get together and are one big crazy bunch! Haha that's how this baptismal service was....a lot of little kids running around everywhere, a lot of noise, a lot of food, and a lot of love!
Hna. Lopez and I knew that the baptismal service was going to be a big deal so we prepared everything PERFECTLY a week in advance and had it all ready to go. But heaven forbid we have a baptismal service without any complications. Ha 5 minutes before the baptismal service is about to start the mission leader informs us that he doesn't know where the keys are to open the curtain for the baptismal font...which means nobody is going to be able to see the baptism! We have 50 people (members, nonmembers, investigators etc...) waiting to see his baptism and the curtains won’t open! We decide that the bishop is going to start the baptismal service while the mission leader figures something out and is running around trying to find a key to open the curtain. While all of this is happening I'm trying not to stress...which is hard for me to do when there are investigators involved (Fernanda and her family came to see the baptism). While I'm silently praying that the curtains will open a thought pops into my head that my family has been praying for Felipe's baptism and that everything is going to be ok. That thought really calmed me down and 10 minutes later the mission leader gives me the thumbs up letting me know that the curtains are opened and after we finish with the musical number everyone is going to be able to see the baptismal service. Just another amazing testimony builder that Heavenly Father hears and answers our prayers.
The following day in Sacrament Meeting all of the testimonies were on how families can be together forever. Felipe got baptized with that goal in mind and he and Karina are already planning their sealing in a year from now. It's the most beautiful thing my little missionary ears have heard, and little missionary eyes have seen. And not only did Fernanda (investigator) and her family (Luis, Laura, and Jose - all of which are less active) attend the baptismal service of Felipe, but they also all attended church on Sunday and LOVED it! Luis got baptized when he was 8 and became less active immediately, Laura was baptized 4 years ago with José in a different ward and when they moved 3 years ago they lost contact with the church, all of them hardly remember anything about the church, but they loved the lessons, especially on the family.
I love being a missionary. I love being able to share this beautiful message with the people of Chile. I love my family I have here in Chile among all my companions and members. And I love my family that supports me and helps me from the home front in Utah!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-In Limache, the neighboring town, there is some crazy Chilean that is always dressed as a clown! I've seen him about 5 times now and it's the weirdest, creepiest thing!
-Rebeca (recent convert) called us at 10 o'clock at night because she was so excited to share with us the symbolism she found in Jacob 5 while she was reading! Bless her heart!
-José (Fernanda's brother) was playing soccer with one of his friends in a field by his house. Hna. Lopez and I passed by and started talking with them and made a deal that if they did more juggles than us we'd buy them an alfajor (chocolate covered cookie with manjar) and if I did more juggles than them we'd have a lesson with them. Needless to say I still got skills while juggling in Danskos and a skirt! José did 14 juggles and I did 15...I didn't want to embarrass the poor guy :) Soccer skills=Saving souls :)
SHOUT OUT: GO SC WARRIORS GIRLS SOCCER!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't worry, you're in my prayers ;)
Monday, October 12, 2015
Even the District Leader Cried
Dear Familia,
Sorry this email is going to be so short. I have a lot to write President about the exchanges I had this week and Hna. Prates wrote me to tell me she is going to get married in the Salt Lake Temple and is waiting for me so that I can be in her sellamamiento!!!! AHHH my missionary daughter is growing up so fast!!! Ha she's even getting married before me!
But I wanted to write you all and let you know that Felipe passed his baptismal interview this week and is SOO excited for his baptism. Our District Leader (who interviewed him) started crying in the interview because Felipe is SOO amazing! Haha and it's no joke! He is 100% a golden investigator sent from the heavens above! I'll send you all photos next week of the baptism.
Also, Rebeca (the recent convert) bore her testimony in Stake Conference this week! That's right, she's a little power house that Rebeca, and she will also be giving a talk at the baptism of Felipe :)
Life is good here in Olmué. I love the mission and am enjoying every minute. Please keep these amazing people in your prayers, and pray that we can continue to find the people the Lord has prepared for us!
Scripture: Jacob 2:18-19 This is a great scripture to medetizar :)
XOXO- Hna. McKenna
PS…Thanks so much for the quote, Mom! It's fantastic! I love the baby shower, it turned out SOOO cute! HAHA and I can't wait to see photos of Jack-Man in his Peter Pan costume :)
Sorry this email is going to be so short. I have a lot to write President about the exchanges I had this week and Hna. Prates wrote me to tell me she is going to get married in the Salt Lake Temple and is waiting for me so that I can be in her sellamamiento!!!! AHHH my missionary daughter is growing up so fast!!! Ha she's even getting married before me!
But I wanted to write you all and let you know that Felipe passed his baptismal interview this week and is SOO excited for his baptism. Our District Leader (who interviewed him) started crying in the interview because Felipe is SOO amazing! Haha and it's no joke! He is 100% a golden investigator sent from the heavens above! I'll send you all photos next week of the baptism.
Also, Rebeca (the recent convert) bore her testimony in Stake Conference this week! That's right, she's a little power house that Rebeca, and she will also be giving a talk at the baptism of Felipe :)
Life is good here in Olmué. I love the mission and am enjoying every minute. Please keep these amazing people in your prayers, and pray that we can continue to find the people the Lord has prepared for us!
Scripture: Jacob 2:18-19 This is a great scripture to medetizar :)
XOXO- Hna. McKenna
PS…Thanks so much for the quote, Mom! It's fantastic! I love the baby shower, it turned out SOOO cute! HAHA and I can't wait to see photos of Jack-Man in his Peter Pan costume :)
Monday, October 5, 2015
"What Lack I Yet?"
Dear Familia,
I'm trying to figure out if the Conferences just keep getting better and better as the years go on, or if it's because I'm becoming more and more receptive and pay more attention. Ha I think it has to do more with me, and the Conferences have always been this inspiring and uplifting, but I LOVED Conference!!!! It was absolutely AMAZING!
Leading up to Conference I had been really hoping and praying to know how I could be better at receiving, recognizing, and following personal revelation from God. I felt like Elder Larry L. Lawrence's talk about the rich young ruler was a message from my Heavenly Father directly for me. The story of the rich young ruler is about a young man who comes to Christ wanting to know what he can do to enter the kingdom of God. Christ tells him to keep his commandments. The young man tells him that he has kept the commandments since birth, and then asks the question that I've been asking myself, and we should all ask ourselves...What lack I yet? The Lord tells the rich young ruler to sell all that he has and give to the poor. The young ruler goes away sad and upset because what the Lord required of him was hard to do.
Many times I find myself asking the Lord, "What lack I yet?" I want to improve, I want to be a better missionary, I want to return to live with God and my family in the Celestial Kingdom. I keep the commandments, and obey the missionary rules, but I know that I'm still lacking. I know I need to improve. Just like the rich young ruler, I'm humble enough to ask the question, but many times...just like the rich young ruler, the answer I receive is hard and many times I don't want to do it. I'm humble enough to ask the question, but too prideful and stubborn to follow the council I receive. This talk addresses how if we humbly ask the Lord what we need to do to improve, the Holy Ghost will give us direct and personal advice and guidance for our lives. The Holy Ghost will tell us what nobody else will. He will give us this guidance line upon line, and if we respond and follow his council, he will give us more. If I ask for guidance, but then don't follow it, there is nothing more the Lord can reveal to me. I have to be humbly accepting to the will of the Lord and be humble enough to follow it. "Have your own way Lord, have your own way. You are the potter and I am the clay." -Sis. Marriot
I love you all and hope that you have a fantastic week!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Updates:
-Felipe is doing great and accepted to live all the commandments.
-Fernanda is an investigator that we have from a less active family that accepted a baptismal date. Keep her in your prayers and I'll give you more updates next week on her family and their story
-Rebeca has plans to go to the temple the end of this month! WAHOO
Fun Facts:
-The mission has a FB page about the earthquake (Mission Viña del Mar)
-Some random guy started singing to me in English when we were in the subway on our way to Viña.
-I didn't get the package, but I did get lots of letters. Thanks so much for your love and support!
-A sister in the ward had a magazine from the Jehovah's Witnesses in her house. We asked her why she was receiving magazines from them. She started laughing and said because they're more faithful than her visiting teachers! Ha she doesn't listen to them and she's a teacher in Relief Society, but it was a good reminder that we should do our visits!
-There was a giant fly that was in our room all night and because of the noise we couldn't sleep. We spent 30 min trying to kill this little bugger and ended up destroying our bedroom in the process. hahaha we were dying of laughter during the crazy process, but I will have you know we did kill it!
Photos:
Interviews with President Díaz, the assistents (Elder Herrera y Elder Frampton), and the pensionero (Elder Call).
A pretty great pasture next to a little stream. It made me think of the talk Shane gave for graduation about how even though we might be little, just like a stream, we can make the world a greener and better place if we give a little everywhere we go.
I'm trying to figure out if the Conferences just keep getting better and better as the years go on, or if it's because I'm becoming more and more receptive and pay more attention. Ha I think it has to do more with me, and the Conferences have always been this inspiring and uplifting, but I LOVED Conference!!!! It was absolutely AMAZING!
Leading up to Conference I had been really hoping and praying to know how I could be better at receiving, recognizing, and following personal revelation from God. I felt like Elder Larry L. Lawrence's talk about the rich young ruler was a message from my Heavenly Father directly for me. The story of the rich young ruler is about a young man who comes to Christ wanting to know what he can do to enter the kingdom of God. Christ tells him to keep his commandments. The young man tells him that he has kept the commandments since birth, and then asks the question that I've been asking myself, and we should all ask ourselves...What lack I yet? The Lord tells the rich young ruler to sell all that he has and give to the poor. The young ruler goes away sad and upset because what the Lord required of him was hard to do.
Many times I find myself asking the Lord, "What lack I yet?" I want to improve, I want to be a better missionary, I want to return to live with God and my family in the Celestial Kingdom. I keep the commandments, and obey the missionary rules, but I know that I'm still lacking. I know I need to improve. Just like the rich young ruler, I'm humble enough to ask the question, but many times...just like the rich young ruler, the answer I receive is hard and many times I don't want to do it. I'm humble enough to ask the question, but too prideful and stubborn to follow the council I receive. This talk addresses how if we humbly ask the Lord what we need to do to improve, the Holy Ghost will give us direct and personal advice and guidance for our lives. The Holy Ghost will tell us what nobody else will. He will give us this guidance line upon line, and if we respond and follow his council, he will give us more. If I ask for guidance, but then don't follow it, there is nothing more the Lord can reveal to me. I have to be humbly accepting to the will of the Lord and be humble enough to follow it. "Have your own way Lord, have your own way. You are the potter and I am the clay." -Sis. Marriot
I love you all and hope that you have a fantastic week!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Updates:
-Felipe is doing great and accepted to live all the commandments.
-Fernanda is an investigator that we have from a less active family that accepted a baptismal date. Keep her in your prayers and I'll give you more updates next week on her family and their story
-Rebeca has plans to go to the temple the end of this month! WAHOO
Fun Facts:
-The mission has a FB page about the earthquake (Mission Viña del Mar)
-Some random guy started singing to me in English when we were in the subway on our way to Viña.
-I didn't get the package, but I did get lots of letters. Thanks so much for your love and support!
-A sister in the ward had a magazine from the Jehovah's Witnesses in her house. We asked her why she was receiving magazines from them. She started laughing and said because they're more faithful than her visiting teachers! Ha she doesn't listen to them and she's a teacher in Relief Society, but it was a good reminder that we should do our visits!
-There was a giant fly that was in our room all night and because of the noise we couldn't sleep. We spent 30 min trying to kill this little bugger and ended up destroying our bedroom in the process. hahaha we were dying of laughter during the crazy process, but I will have you know we did kill it!
Photos:
Interviews with President Díaz, the assistents (Elder Herrera y Elder Frampton), and the pensionero (Elder Call).
A pretty great pasture next to a little stream. It made me think of the talk Shane gave for graduation about how even though we might be little, just like a stream, we can make the world a greener and better place if we give a little everywhere we go.
Monday, September 28, 2015
"If You Could Talk to God What Would You Ask?"
Dear Familia,
Something that I have learned on the mission is how much confusion is out here in the world. How many people are confused and looking for answers, wanting to know about where we came from, our existence before birth, why we are here, what our purpose is, and what happens to us after this life. There are SO many questions that people have that can only be answered by someone who knows EVERYTHING. Someone who knows science perfectly. Someone who knows the beginning and the end. These questions can only be answered by God. Many times when Hna. Lopez and I talk to the people we ask them, "If God was in front of you what would you ask him? What would you do with the answer he gave you?" We get all sorts of replies, but the answer that we always give is that God loves us and wants to answer these questions that we all have. He's not a God of secrets. He's not a God that wants us to suffer in ignorance. He is our loving Heavenly Father.
Our Heavenly Father loves his children and wants us to know and understand his perfect Plan of Happiness. He wants, more than anything, for us to be happy in this life, and for us to return to live with him. And for that reason, He has called prophetas to lead and guide the world, to help us fully understand this plan and do our part to fulfill it. I am so grateful for the restoration, for the blessing of having a prophet called to lead and guide the world, and for the blessing of being a missionary for THE church of Jesus Christ. If this was just another church that preached pretty principles I wouldn't be here, I wouldn't do it. If this was just another church I wouldn't be a member. I do everything I do as a member because I know that this is THE church of Jesus Christ. I'm here in Chile sharing this message because this is the ONLY way we can return and live with God. I am a missionary for the church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, a church that is founded upon prophets and apostles that receive DIRECT revelation and guidance for us from God.
This week we have the opportunity to listen to a prophet of God in General Conference...or in other words, we have the opportunity to listen to the voice of God give us council and direction. But this is an opportunity, it's an option, it's something we can choose to do. God isn't going to come down from Heaven, he's not going to force us to listen. We can ignore, take lightly, or rebel against the words of God given by his prophets. However, if we listen and pay attention. if we have a humble prayer in our hearts to receive answers to our questions and act according to the answers, the Holy Ghost will reveal the answers we are looking for in our mind and in our heart.
I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I know that Thomas S. Monson is called of God to be the prophet and give us guidance in these days. I invite you all to listen to General Conference this weekend asking yourself these questions: "If you could talk to God, what would you ask? What would you do with the answer?" I promise that during the Saturday and Sunday sessions of Conference, God will answer these questions through the inspired words of his prophet and apostles.
I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week!
XOXO- Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
It was Hna. Lopez's birthday this week!!! The Big 21!!!! This week we will be going to the mission office and I'll be able to get the package you sent WAHOOOO :)
We moved into a new house today!!!! YAYA the old house was SOO old. The house you see in the photo is the old house, and yes we found AT LEAST 10 spiders while cleaning and getting everything packed! I'm soooo happy to be out of that place! Although it did have a lovely grape vine in front.
Felipe got his answer to the BofM!!!! It was so sweet! We haven't been able to have a lesson with him because he works and goes to school in Santiago, and is only home on the weekends. But when we called him to see how he was doing and how things were going with his study of the BofM. he told us that he prayed about it, and felt really calm and peaceful and is really excited for his baptism.
-Sidenote: Felipe didn't get baptized this week because we haven't been able to teach him all the lessons. Because he works and studies in Santiago he's hardly ever in his house. Last week we made a schedule with him and Karina of when we are gong to teach him all the lessons, and his baptism has been re-scheduled for the 17th of October. Keep him in your prayers so that he stays strong during these weeks!
Something that I have learned on the mission is how much confusion is out here in the world. How many people are confused and looking for answers, wanting to know about where we came from, our existence before birth, why we are here, what our purpose is, and what happens to us after this life. There are SO many questions that people have that can only be answered by someone who knows EVERYTHING. Someone who knows science perfectly. Someone who knows the beginning and the end. These questions can only be answered by God. Many times when Hna. Lopez and I talk to the people we ask them, "If God was in front of you what would you ask him? What would you do with the answer he gave you?" We get all sorts of replies, but the answer that we always give is that God loves us and wants to answer these questions that we all have. He's not a God of secrets. He's not a God that wants us to suffer in ignorance. He is our loving Heavenly Father.
Our Heavenly Father loves his children and wants us to know and understand his perfect Plan of Happiness. He wants, more than anything, for us to be happy in this life, and for us to return to live with him. And for that reason, He has called prophetas to lead and guide the world, to help us fully understand this plan and do our part to fulfill it. I am so grateful for the restoration, for the blessing of having a prophet called to lead and guide the world, and for the blessing of being a missionary for THE church of Jesus Christ. If this was just another church that preached pretty principles I wouldn't be here, I wouldn't do it. If this was just another church I wouldn't be a member. I do everything I do as a member because I know that this is THE church of Jesus Christ. I'm here in Chile sharing this message because this is the ONLY way we can return and live with God. I am a missionary for the church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, a church that is founded upon prophets and apostles that receive DIRECT revelation and guidance for us from God.
This week we have the opportunity to listen to a prophet of God in General Conference...or in other words, we have the opportunity to listen to the voice of God give us council and direction. But this is an opportunity, it's an option, it's something we can choose to do. God isn't going to come down from Heaven, he's not going to force us to listen. We can ignore, take lightly, or rebel against the words of God given by his prophets. However, if we listen and pay attention. if we have a humble prayer in our hearts to receive answers to our questions and act according to the answers, the Holy Ghost will reveal the answers we are looking for in our mind and in our heart.
I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I know that Thomas S. Monson is called of God to be the prophet and give us guidance in these days. I invite you all to listen to General Conference this weekend asking yourself these questions: "If you could talk to God, what would you ask? What would you do with the answer?" I promise that during the Saturday and Sunday sessions of Conference, God will answer these questions through the inspired words of his prophet and apostles.
I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week!
XOXO- Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
It was Hna. Lopez's birthday this week!!! The Big 21!!!! This week we will be going to the mission office and I'll be able to get the package you sent WAHOOOO :)
We moved into a new house today!!!! YAYA the old house was SOO old. The house you see in the photo is the old house, and yes we found AT LEAST 10 spiders while cleaning and getting everything packed! I'm soooo happy to be out of that place! Although it did have a lovely grape vine in front.
Felipe got his answer to the BofM!!!! It was so sweet! We haven't been able to have a lesson with him because he works and goes to school in Santiago, and is only home on the weekends. But when we called him to see how he was doing and how things were going with his study of the BofM. he told us that he prayed about it, and felt really calm and peaceful and is really excited for his baptism.
-Sidenote: Felipe didn't get baptized this week because we haven't been able to teach him all the lessons. Because he works and studies in Santiago he's hardly ever in his house. Last week we made a schedule with him and Karina of when we are gong to teach him all the lessons, and his baptism has been re-scheduled for the 17th of October. Keep him in your prayers so that he stays strong during these weeks!
Monday, September 21, 2015
Earthquake--I'm OK
Dear Familia,
Here in Olmue the earthquake lasted for about 3 minutes. We were pretty far from the center of it all so it wasn't that strong and according to the Chileans, the movement of the earth was side to side, which causes a lot less damage. The destruction comes when the earth moves up and down. I was in the chapel when it happened, in a meeting with all the leaders. In the beginning, we all thought it was a temblor (which just means tiny earthquake), they happen all the time here and last for about 3 seconds. HAHAHAHA oh my goodness the moment I wrote that there was a temblor! It's sooooo normal here, but there have been a lot more temblores since the earthquake. The people say it'll be that way for the next 6 months, if you're lucky you'll get to feel one when you come to visit :) But any who, it started shaking and we all thought it would stop in a few seconds…but when it didn't stop, and the leaders started to get scared and nervous, Hna. Lopez and I also began to get pretty worried! We all stood in the door frames of the church and waited for it to pass. Hna. Lopez got really scared and started to cry. I'm not going to lie, it was a pretty long 3 minutes! There was only one death in Olmue because of the earthquake, and no real damage. The death came in the aftermath. The light got cut in a couple sectors because of the earthquake and a lot of people used candles at night. The lady fell asleep with the candle lit and during the night the candle fell and burned down the house because of one of the replicas (little earthquakes that follow) However, I heard Coquimbo was hit really hard because of the ocean. It'll be interesting to see the difference when we go back. What I love is how the Chileans all group together during these natural disasters. El 18 de Septiembre this year was a neat experience because of how much the Chileans love their country and work together to overcome these trials.
Love you lots!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
When we were in a lesson there was a temblor after Hna. Lopez shared the 1st Vision and I was testifying that Joseph Smith was a prophet!!! Hahaha ya, I guess you could say the earth shook because of the truthfulness of our message!
The Chileans always make juice from fresh fruits. When we were eating lunch in the house of a less actives the husband, who's not a member and a little out of it, offered us "grape juice" called chicha. We had no idea what it was, and he assured us it wasn't wine. I took one gulp of that stuff and it burned all the way down my throat and into my stomach!!!!! But to confirm my suspicions that I had just drank liquor, after lunch we went to visit the Bishop to see how we could help the ward, and out of nowhere he mentions something about chicha and how it's a homemade liquor. Well, if someone offers you chichi, I'm here to inform you folks that it is the Chilean version of moonshine!!!!!! Hna. Lopez and I started panicking and talked with all our leaders. We were informed that we didn't break the Word of Wisdom and that we weren’t going to be sent home, ha but that everything is a-ok! Ha but it does make for a pretty funny story!
We have a FHE with a less active family of little kids and made a treasure hunt map for them. I wanted to get really crafty and burn the edges and ended up burning the whole map!!! oops!
Photo Comments:
Hna. Cecilia celebrating her Cumpleaños with her daughters!
The activity of 18 de Septiembre!!!!
-familia Rios, they're going to move down by Concepción and they said the doors are always open when we want to come and visit! They're awesome and the wife is a great cook! She's an ex-mamita for the missionaries :)
-The hombres jovens in the ward! Haha
-The Bishop and Hno. Severino with the real Chilean get up!
Hna. Monica (presidenta of the relief society) and her son Leonardo. He served in Concepción
The amazing view from Rebeca´s house!
Putting to good use the hand puppets Timette sent! This little girl LOVES them!
Here in Olmue the earthquake lasted for about 3 minutes. We were pretty far from the center of it all so it wasn't that strong and according to the Chileans, the movement of the earth was side to side, which causes a lot less damage. The destruction comes when the earth moves up and down. I was in the chapel when it happened, in a meeting with all the leaders. In the beginning, we all thought it was a temblor (which just means tiny earthquake), they happen all the time here and last for about 3 seconds. HAHAHAHA oh my goodness the moment I wrote that there was a temblor! It's sooooo normal here, but there have been a lot more temblores since the earthquake. The people say it'll be that way for the next 6 months, if you're lucky you'll get to feel one when you come to visit :) But any who, it started shaking and we all thought it would stop in a few seconds…but when it didn't stop, and the leaders started to get scared and nervous, Hna. Lopez and I also began to get pretty worried! We all stood in the door frames of the church and waited for it to pass. Hna. Lopez got really scared and started to cry. I'm not going to lie, it was a pretty long 3 minutes! There was only one death in Olmue because of the earthquake, and no real damage. The death came in the aftermath. The light got cut in a couple sectors because of the earthquake and a lot of people used candles at night. The lady fell asleep with the candle lit and during the night the candle fell and burned down the house because of one of the replicas (little earthquakes that follow) However, I heard Coquimbo was hit really hard because of the ocean. It'll be interesting to see the difference when we go back. What I love is how the Chileans all group together during these natural disasters. El 18 de Septiembre this year was a neat experience because of how much the Chileans love their country and work together to overcome these trials.
Love you lots!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
When we were in a lesson there was a temblor after Hna. Lopez shared the 1st Vision and I was testifying that Joseph Smith was a prophet!!! Hahaha ya, I guess you could say the earth shook because of the truthfulness of our message!
The Chileans always make juice from fresh fruits. When we were eating lunch in the house of a less actives the husband, who's not a member and a little out of it, offered us "grape juice" called chicha. We had no idea what it was, and he assured us it wasn't wine. I took one gulp of that stuff and it burned all the way down my throat and into my stomach!!!!! But to confirm my suspicions that I had just drank liquor, after lunch we went to visit the Bishop to see how we could help the ward, and out of nowhere he mentions something about chicha and how it's a homemade liquor. Well, if someone offers you chichi, I'm here to inform you folks that it is the Chilean version of moonshine!!!!!! Hna. Lopez and I started panicking and talked with all our leaders. We were informed that we didn't break the Word of Wisdom and that we weren’t going to be sent home, ha but that everything is a-ok! Ha but it does make for a pretty funny story!
We have a FHE with a less active family of little kids and made a treasure hunt map for them. I wanted to get really crafty and burn the edges and ended up burning the whole map!!! oops!
Photo Comments:
Hna. Cecilia celebrating her Cumpleaños with her daughters!
The activity of 18 de Septiembre!!!!
-familia Rios, they're going to move down by Concepción and they said the doors are always open when we want to come and visit! They're awesome and the wife is a great cook! She's an ex-mamita for the missionaries :)
-The Bishop and Hno. Severino with the real Chilean get up!
Hna. Monica (presidenta of the relief society) and her son Leonardo. He served in Concepción
The amazing view from Rebeca´s house!
Putting to good use the hand puppets Timette sent! This little girl LOVES them!
Monday, September 14, 2015
Priesthood Power
Dear Familia,
Ok, so as you all know we have been teaching our lovely little family, Felipe and Karina, this past week, and you'll all be happy to know that Felipe now has a baptismal date for the 27th of Sep.!!!! WE'RE SO EXCITED FOR HIM!!!! The only bump in the road is that Karina is a little worried about the baptismal date, she feels like it's really soon and that he's not read yet. We explained that we're going to help him prepare for this date and that if they both do their part to prepare with the commitments we leave them (read the BofM as a couple, pray as a couple, attend all three hours of church, etc...) that he will be prepared to be baptized that day. We left them with the invitation to pray about the baptismal date, and pray that the Lord will help Felipe be ready. Personally, I think he's the most ready person I've ever taught, ha and it's only been 2 weeks! However, it wouldn't hurt if you could also remember them in your prayers.
Because of this extra focus Hna. Lopez and I have in strengthening the priesthood, we've been reading a lot of talks and scriptures about the responsibility of priesthood holders and the blessings we receive thanks to the priesthood. Out of all the talks I've read, my favorite has been "Fatherhood-Our Eternal Destiny" by Larry M. Gibson. Here he talks about how the Aaronic Priesthood prepares young men to lead and guide their family. He compares all the roles of an Aaronic Priesthood holder to the family and I'm going to share what he wrote because it's AWESOME and helped so much with Felipe!
D&C 20
-Invite all of your family to come unto Christ
-Watch over them always, and be with and strengthen them
-Preach, teach, expound, exhort, and baptize members of your family
-Exhort them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties
-See that there is no iniquity in your family, neither hardness with each other, neither lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking
-See that your family meets together often
-Assist your father in his duties as patriarch. Support your mother with priesthood strength when a father is not present
-When asked, ordain other priests, teachers, and deacons in your family.
When we taught Felipe the Restoration we talked a lot about the role of the priesthood and how it's one of the biggest differences that sets us apart from other churches. Thanks to the amazing priesthood holders I have in my family I was able to bare my testimony on how much this heavenly help has played a role in my life growing up. I testified of the blessings of comfort, and the blessings of health that I received when I needed this spiritual and physical strength. We talked a lot with them about how the priesthood will bless his family after his baptism and what it means to be a worthy priesthood holder. He shared with us that even though it's a lot of responsibility, he really wants to have the priesthood in his home in order to bless his wife and daughter....bless his heart!!!
I LOVE this restored gospel! I LOVE the blessings we receive from the priesthood! I'm so grateful that I've been able to grow up with these amazing blessings in my home and I LOVE that I get to share this glorious message 24-7! I know the priesthood power is real, I know it blesses families, and I know, thanks to the priesthood, that families can be together forever! Shout out to my family that I love so much! Bompa, Dad, Shane, Jack, Carr-man, and all my crazy uncles and cousins that have the priesthood, thank you so much for everything you do, and please keep being this example for the world!
XOXO- Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-We were in the house of one of our investigators and she asked me if I would like some creamy vegetables, thinking she was talking about some creamy veggie soup, I said yes. What she brought me was some luke-warm, boiled veggies with milk, without any seasoning...I'm pretty sure if someone tried to feed me that a year ago I would have cried. Needless to say I'll be more than willing to eat the green bean casserole that Mom used to make when I get home.
-I learned this week that chickens sleep in trees...mind blown!
-When we went to a FHE with Rebeca (the recent convert) we were riding in the taxi together and the driver asked us if we were Mormons and why they called us by that name. Before I had time to open my mouth, Rebeca started talking to him about the BofM and how Jesus came to Las Americas, and invited him to come to church with us the following Sunday! I was one proud missionary!!!
PS...Thanks SO MUCH Dad! I sure do love you and I'm so happy to hear that you guys had such a fun time at the BYU game!
Ok, so as you all know we have been teaching our lovely little family, Felipe and Karina, this past week, and you'll all be happy to know that Felipe now has a baptismal date for the 27th of Sep.!!!! WE'RE SO EXCITED FOR HIM!!!! The only bump in the road is that Karina is a little worried about the baptismal date, she feels like it's really soon and that he's not read yet. We explained that we're going to help him prepare for this date and that if they both do their part to prepare with the commitments we leave them (read the BofM as a couple, pray as a couple, attend all three hours of church, etc...) that he will be prepared to be baptized that day. We left them with the invitation to pray about the baptismal date, and pray that the Lord will help Felipe be ready. Personally, I think he's the most ready person I've ever taught, ha and it's only been 2 weeks! However, it wouldn't hurt if you could also remember them in your prayers.
Because of this extra focus Hna. Lopez and I have in strengthening the priesthood, we've been reading a lot of talks and scriptures about the responsibility of priesthood holders and the blessings we receive thanks to the priesthood. Out of all the talks I've read, my favorite has been "Fatherhood-Our Eternal Destiny" by Larry M. Gibson. Here he talks about how the Aaronic Priesthood prepares young men to lead and guide their family. He compares all the roles of an Aaronic Priesthood holder to the family and I'm going to share what he wrote because it's AWESOME and helped so much with Felipe!
D&C 20
-Invite all of your family to come unto Christ
-Watch over them always, and be with and strengthen them
-Preach, teach, expound, exhort, and baptize members of your family
-Exhort them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties
-See that there is no iniquity in your family, neither hardness with each other, neither lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking
-See that your family meets together often
-Assist your father in his duties as patriarch. Support your mother with priesthood strength when a father is not present
-When asked, ordain other priests, teachers, and deacons in your family.
When we taught Felipe the Restoration we talked a lot about the role of the priesthood and how it's one of the biggest differences that sets us apart from other churches. Thanks to the amazing priesthood holders I have in my family I was able to bare my testimony on how much this heavenly help has played a role in my life growing up. I testified of the blessings of comfort, and the blessings of health that I received when I needed this spiritual and physical strength. We talked a lot with them about how the priesthood will bless his family after his baptism and what it means to be a worthy priesthood holder. He shared with us that even though it's a lot of responsibility, he really wants to have the priesthood in his home in order to bless his wife and daughter....bless his heart!!!
I LOVE this restored gospel! I LOVE the blessings we receive from the priesthood! I'm so grateful that I've been able to grow up with these amazing blessings in my home and I LOVE that I get to share this glorious message 24-7! I know the priesthood power is real, I know it blesses families, and I know, thanks to the priesthood, that families can be together forever! Shout out to my family that I love so much! Bompa, Dad, Shane, Jack, Carr-man, and all my crazy uncles and cousins that have the priesthood, thank you so much for everything you do, and please keep being this example for the world!
XOXO- Hna. McKenna
Fun Facts:
-We were in the house of one of our investigators and she asked me if I would like some creamy vegetables, thinking she was talking about some creamy veggie soup, I said yes. What she brought me was some luke-warm, boiled veggies with milk, without any seasoning...I'm pretty sure if someone tried to feed me that a year ago I would have cried. Needless to say I'll be more than willing to eat the green bean casserole that Mom used to make when I get home.
-I learned this week that chickens sleep in trees...mind blown!
-When we went to a FHE with Rebeca (the recent convert) we were riding in the taxi together and the driver asked us if we were Mormons and why they called us by that name. Before I had time to open my mouth, Rebeca started talking to him about the BofM and how Jesus came to Las Americas, and invited him to come to church with us the following Sunday! I was one proud missionary!!!
PS...Thanks SO MUCH Dad! I sure do love you and I'm so happy to hear that you guys had such a fun time at the BYU game!
Monday, September 7, 2015
A Golden Contact and Family
Dear Familia,
This past week we had the chance to have Elder Viñas (a General Authority in the 70 for South America) come talk to our mission. He talked a lot about the Priesthood and how important this AMAZING power and authority is. He talked a lot with us about how we need to have more worthy priesthood holders here in Chile if the church is going to continue growing at this rate. It is starting to become a real problem for the church here, which means it has now become a big focus in the mission. After the conference, Hna. Lopez and I put our little brains together and came up with a plan to work with the priesthood here in Olmue...the priesthood that we have, the less actives, and how to find more. Of course we included the Lord in on our plans and asked him for help in every step. Well, no sooner had we left our house the very next day when we found ourselves finding soooo many future priesthood holders. Ha it seemed that every door we knocked the dad answered. We were able to bare our testimony of the Book of Mormon and put a set time when we could pass by and visit him and his family. We're really excited to see what happens with these future investigators and to help bless their family with the power of the priesthood.
However, the biggest blessing with our future priesthood holders is Felipe! Felipe is the husband of a less active named Karina. Karina has been a member for her whole life, but when she went off to college she separated herself from the church, got married to Felipe, and has lived her life with gospel principles, but without the blessings that come from obeying the commandments and fulfilling her part with the promises she made with Heavenly Father. Karina came to church last Sunday because she is 6 months pregnant with her first little wee one and really wants to help her daughter have good moral values and she really wants the best for her family. She asked if we could pass by and visit her and her husband on Saturday (they work in Santiago during the week and are only home on the weekends). We were MORE than happy to pass by, and when we paid them a visit it was one of the most powerful "first lessons" I've ever had. I felt like I was on the District (for those of you who are ex missionaries you'll know what I'm talking about). Felipe is SOO ready for the gospel! The whole time we talked with him I was trying to keep my jaw off the floor from the answers he had for the reasons he wants to listen to us, the goals he has for his family, what he wants to provide for his daughter that's on the way. And my jaw did in fact hit the floor when I explained to him that by listening to our message he will learn more about how to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and desire to be baptized in His church, in order to continue progressing in this life and go to the temple with his family (he already knows what the temple is and has visited it in Santiago a couple times with his wife). He told us that the temple is his goal and he's really willing to learn and do anything that's necessary to make it there!!!!!!!! In the words of the little dragon from Mulan, “DID I HEAR SOMEONE ASK FOR A MIRACLE!!!!!!!” Oh my goodness I didn't think people like that existed!!! Needless to say we are SO excited to work with him!
I'm here to tell you folks that God hears and answers our prayers, and that He, more than anyone, wants his gospel to progress! Please keep Felipe and Karina in your prayers. It'll be hard to have constant contact with them because they live in Santiago during the week, but they've promised to read (the BOM) and pray together as a couple every night!
XOXO-Hna. McKenna
Fun Fact:
THE WINTER PACKAGE FINALLY CAME! THANKS SO MUCH!
Here the people cut ice cream with a knife...I really don't think anyone has scooped me out a dish of ice cream!
Our bathroom has been mal-functioning for the entire week...needless to say things have been very interesting and smelly!
Hna. Lopez wants to learn "Called to Serve" in English and we have been singing it every morning for the past month and a half!!!!
Karina and Felipe are proud recipients of a Libro de Mormón with the testimony and photo of the Wankiers! They were really touched by the message and are excited to read it :)
The due date for Karina's baby is Dec. 12…my birthday!!!
P.S. Thank you so much for sending the sweater!!!
Yes, I’m still an STL, but at the meeting we had for the month of Sep. only the winter package was there.
Monday, August 31, 2015
"No Half-Measures Will Do"
Dear Familia,
This week I've really learned a lot about how important change is in our lives. How much I've changed these past months, how much more I need to change, how I have the opportunity to help people change, how our fear of change often t impedes our progress.
We've been working a lot with María Virginia and Victor Hugo and have really been trying to help them change. María Virginia is a reference from some ward members and is passing through some really hard times with her family. Her daughter is 17 years old and has down syndrome, and this past month the doctors told María and her husband that due to the heart condition of her daughter, it's most likely that in the next year or so her heart will fail her. It's been a really hard time for María and she loves listening to our message, but she says that she's not ready to change here religion...she's Catholic, just like 99.9% of Chileans, and she's really been struggling with the change needed to go from being a non-practicing Catholic to being a loyal member of the Church of Jesus Christ. Victor Hugo is also Catholic, but is very faithful in his religion. He's around 70-75 years old and has been a professor of religion (Catholic religion that is) for the past 20 year. About 2 years ago his wife had a stroke and has been in the hospital ever since. Victor visits her every day and bore the sweetest testimony of how powerful prayer is and how he asks everyone to pray for his sweet wife, and thanks to those prayers, she's recovering...slowly but surely she's recovering. He asked us to prayer for his sweet wife and we offered a prayer with him in the street outside his house. We then explained how we can offer him even more, we explained the restoration and left him with a part in the BofM to read. We invited him to come to church with us, and on Sunday morning when we passed by his house, he was outside waiting for us!!! He had to leave after Sacrament Meeting because he wanted to go to the Catholic misa at 12 (hey, we'll take what we can get), but he said he wanted to talk more with us about what we believe. We're really excited to share more of our message with him and are praying that his heart is ready to except our message and he's willing to make the necessary changes in his life to be truly converted to the Lord.
There's a quote by C.S. Lewis that I LOVE that talks about how important change is. Here C.S. Lewis is paraphrasing what the Lord says to us: " Give me all. I don't want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work. I want you. All of you. I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man, but to kill it. No half-measures will do. I don't want to only prune a branch here and another there, rather, I want the whole tree out. Hand it all over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them all over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self in my image. Give me yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will, shall become your will. My heart, shall become your heart." I LOVE that! As a missionary I'm called to be a representative of Jesus Christ, and to do that I have to change 100%. My personality will still be my personality, ha it's what makes me, me! But my will has to become the will of my Heavenly Father. My desires have to become His desires. Before the mission I didn't understand how important that change really was. And it's not just a change for missionaries. It's a change for every member of the church. We don't just take his name upon us when we're missionaries, but rather when we're baptized, and every sacrament meeting after. I love this gospel! I love the chance I have to change! I love the help and opportunities God gives me to change! And I love the change I get to see in the lives of the people who decide to give their will over to their Heavenly Father and make this change!
Love you all!
Hermana McKenna
1. The YM and YW in our stake were part of a play based off the life of Joseph Smith. We got permision to go because Diego had a lead role. Diego is the young man in the front with the white shirt. The young woman sitting next to him is the member that introduced him to the church.
2. Hna. Day and I with Leontina and her daughter Matildad. Leontina is less active and we've been working with her and her husband, who's not a member, to help them be an eternal family!
3. The package that Timette sent!
4. DIEGO'S BAPTISIM!
5. All the non-members Diego invited to his baptism! He's going to be a rock solid missionary!
7. When the high heels the member lent me broke...let’s face it, I may be a shoe killer, but the earth has yet to invent a pair of high heels that can withstand the mission.
8. When we helped Bishop Jimenez! He's amazing! For a long time he had some pretty high up callings in the church and got to work with Elder Holland and Elder Perry here in Chile. He's also been in meetings with Pres. Monson...needless to say, he's really helped the ward here in Olmue.
9. A NDH (Family Home Evening) we had with Gloria, Sirleny, and Sirleny's sons (Nelson and Maxi) in the house of la Familia Figaroa. The Familia Figaroa is AMAZING and I can't wait for you to meet them. They recently moved from Santiago and are a HUGE help in La Obra Misional!
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