Hermana Oliphant

It has been extremely hot this week! It's only rained like 2 times, but hopefully, it will rain today! 

 

 Patience is something that I have always struggled with. I have learned to Face my Trials with Faith. I found a quote that I like.  It says,  "Even when the future seems uncertain, your faith in the Savior can give you Peace".  We all have trials and each trial is different, but if we have faith in Jesus Christ we can conquer anything! I KNOW that is true. We had some difficult days this week. But like my Momma said a few weeks ago, it is okay to struggle, it is not okay to give up. We need our trials to make us stronger! 

 

We had an adventure the other night. We were sleeping and I woke up with pain in my right side. I was trying to get back to sleep and felt something cold hit my foot. I shook my feet and kicked my sheets off but I didn't see anything so I put my sheets back on and started to try to sleep again. Then I felt something hard and cold on my thigh so I lifted my sheet and saw something black. ´COCKROACH!!!!¨ I yelled at my companion and threw off my sheet. She grabbed my sheet and turned the light on to shake the cockroach out of my sheets when AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH it wasn't a cockroach it was a ALECRAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (scorpian). It crawled up my companion's wrist and she shook it to the ground and we killed it. I WAS SLEEPING WITH  A SCORPIAN! :( Needless to say we didn't sleep very well the rest of the night!) We were literally protected because it didn't sting either of us!

I am pretty sure I am in love with hammocks!

 

 

 

 

Well family and friends I love you so much. I know that families are forever. 

Thanks for everything! 

Hermana Oliphant

9 months photo!

Hello!
We do a lot of walking and praying that someone will open their door and let us in!

 

I miss my harp so much. I don't have calluses to play it but I can't wait to build them up again!

We had our interviews with our new mission president this last week! His name is Arley George and he is from Cody, Wyoming! His wife doesn't speak Spanish and while we were waiting our turn for our interviews, I had the opportunity to work with her in the kitchen (making sandwiches!) and got to know her and also translated everything so that my companion could participate in the conversation! 

 

 

 

 

In my interview, President shared a few scriptures that I really love about how we are the clay in the hands of the Lord. (Isaiah 64:8 and Jeremiah 18:1-6) I love them! We then talked a lot about marriage and how I am learning things from each companion to prepare me for when I find my future husband. He also talked about having the end in mind when we make choices. El fin en mente! We need to remember that every choice, every decision, has a consequence and it can be either good or bad! President George also told me about the meaning of thresh hold (the part under a door). It's called that because before there were floors in houses people would put thresh (like the stalks from wheat) on the floor so that it wouldn't be so muddy, but when people would walk out of the house they would drag the thresh with them. So they put a piece of wood across the opening of the door to hold in the thresh. Therefore, its called a thresh hold! (I hope that makes sense!). 

 

On Friday I forgot my name tag! but we had our meeting with our ward mision leader, Avijavier Bernabe at the church and after he was going with us to lunch, and then to some visits, so we stopped by his house and he lent me his name tag. The funny thing is that no one noticed that my name was Elder all day! People always just see the black tag and that's it. It was a funny joke for us 3 though!

We have been going to provide the sacrament to a family who lives far away each Sunday. We leave before 8 in the morning and ride in the back of a pickup in the wind!!! Needless to say our hair is a bit messy when we get there, but hey its all part of the adventure! 

 

 

 

Well as for my investigators, we had to stop visiting a lot because they just don't want to read, or pray, or go to church. We were teaching a teenager who seemed really excited to learn, accepted baptism and wanted to come to church; but then something terrible happened and his girlfriend died. Now he doesn't want to pray, or anything. We have been visiting him with some guys in the ward, but there isn't any progress happening which is so sad. 

Two sisters are progressing towards their date for baptism!  One has told her older sister who is a member, that she wants to be baptized! The other sister does too, but she is a little scared. We pray for them every day and have been trying to visit them different times each week. It's a little hard because they work, but if everything is good they can be baptized in about 3 weeks! 

We have another investigator who loves listening and wants to change her life but won't go to church!! She always says that her and her family will be there but haven't made it. But she has been sharing the gospel with her friends and invited them to listen to our message, so at least she knows that it's true! 

Well I am afraid that my time is just about up for today. I love you all! 

Love
Hermana Oliphant

Angel missionary!

I just cannot believe that this week I hit the half way mark. It is sooo weird to tell people that I have been out for 9 months already. . . and that I have 9 months left.

We had a rough week to start out.

 

 

 

 

 

 I was really weak from the hospital trip and the meds were a little funky with my body. Tuesday we didn't teach much and had a meeting with our bishop. Wednesday we had our zone meeting and welcomed 3 brand new missionaries into our area! We have a new Mission President, President George.  For now, we have all the same mission rules and guidelines, which yes, means that I still cannot drink Mexican Coke.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was getting my hopes up that I could finally try real Mexican Coke, but I guess now's not my time hahahaha! We worked with our bishop a lot this week. Arnold, our old ward mission leader, was with the elders in a different ward and couldn't come with us so our bishop made time to go on visits with us. We found 13 new people to teach this week. Saturday was an AWESOME day because we taught many lessons and found 9 new people and invited all of them to be baptized. Almost all of them said yes! Now we just need to work really hard to get them to church and help them progress. Sunday morning, nice and early, we went to take the sacrament to a family who live REALLY far away and can't get to the church, and we also taught them about the temple and invited them to start preparing to be sealed as a family. I love the temple and I love teaching about the blessings we can receive if we are faithful!! When we got to church, I rushed up front to play the piano and we received  a new Ward Mission Leader, Bernabe. I KNEW HE WAS GOING TO BE CALLED! Revelation.... :) He is going to be so great to work with; he returned home from his mission about 8 months ago where he served in Monterrey, and also has a calling in the stake young men presidency. On our way back home last night we stopped by his house and I asked for a blessing. I had a migraine all day yesterday and it was soo hard to concentrate in the lessons that we had.  I am thankful that there are worthy men who hold the priesthood of God and can give blessings. I never knew the power of the priesthood until I came here on my mission. I know that the Lord loves me and through his faithful servants He can bless my life!!!!!! 

 

This is Elder Monson from South Jordan!

This morning something CRAZY happened! About 6:20 am we were violently awakened because our beds were shaking and our whole house was rumbling (we live in the second story of a house). We jumped out of bed and clung to each other to stay standing up ( I am serious, the house was SHAKING) and without shoes or anything ran to the door and as we were trying to unlock it, the shaking stopped. It lasted about 1 minute, but MAN, we were so scared!!!! I have felt little tiny quakes here but never like this one! Needless to say, it was pointless to go back to bed, and our hearts were POUNDING, so we put on our tennies and went running. Oh how I love running! it helped us calm down! 

 

 

 

 

 

Well I love you all.  I was happy to see all the pictures from camping. I don't think I will ever complain about the mud and bugs from camping anymore... haha I am now just used to always having dirty feet and red bites all over my arms and legs! 

Happy birthday Grandma and Grandpa and Wendy!!!

Love

Hermana Oliphant

Yes as my subject line says, I spent last night in the hospital.

But don't worry because I am better... or will be soon! I don't know really what I had or have but they put me on an IV and, yes, I was brave and didn't cry when they poked me... two times--once in my right hand and they couldn't get it in the vein so they poked my left wrist and it went in great. Here I am with Doctor Arriaga and my nurse. I will be honest I don't remember her name. Elder Perez was also here with us because he has Dengue, and he will probably be there for a few more days. 

I started feeling sick Sunday at church and that night I had a really high fever and my companion took care of me all night putting cold water on my forehead and stomach and helping me to the bathroom and everything. We went to the doctor Monday morning and returned home this  Tuesday afternoon. I am still weak a little but I am ready to get working again. 

Our new area is HUGE and the investigators are so far apart! The members are really good and have been helping us SO much by going with us and introducing us to the investigators. I have received 3 priesthood blessings in this last week. One from my District leader, one from a counselor in the Bishopric and one from my Obispó... Bishop. :) I am so thankful for the power of the priesthood in my life especially right now where I am so far from home.  I know I am being watched out for and protected. 

We were asked to go help provide a sacrament meeting to some members who live really far away (in our area!!!) on Sunday and left at 7:50 am and made it back right in time to start our sacrament meeting at 12. We drove about an hour and then walked about 30 minutes up a mountain to their house. It was so neat to see the Priesthood in action and that we don't have to be in a church to partake of the sacrament.  We only need someone who holds the Priesthood and has permission to bless the sacrament!
I am so thankful for the opportunity to serve the Lord. I am learning so much. I love this work . I love this gospel. Yeah I get muddy shoes every day and come home with stains on my backside from sitting in dirt. Yes, I eat weird food EVERYDAY ( we ate cow STOMACH that looked like BRAINS this week. I wanted to BARF right there....) But I am happy to be here. I am happy to learn, to repent, to grow, to cry, to become stronger. It's not easy but I don't want to go home. I love it here and I love love love love love LOVE the people. Everyone is like my family. They all watch out for us as missionaries. 

Oh and something a little funny, Hna Garcia and I are friends with the pastors of the other churches here in our colonial. Its so funny because they are so friendly to us and their people... not so much. But hey we do what we can.

Well I have to go; we didn't have much time today. I will write more next week. Have a happy FOURTH of JULY! and know that I love you all soooooo much!
Love

Hermana Oliphant