SHES BACK FROM THE DEAD!

SHES BACK FROM THE DEAD! Sorry again for how awful my last few emails have been. Yes I'm alive, and yes I'm okay, thank you all for the concern (; so I guess I could update you on what's going on here in Villalba.

Every Monday we meet with our cute friend Dayana, she's the only member in her family but she is super strong. I have a ton of respect for her. All you out there who complain to go to church activities or to church because of travel, I don't want to hear it, she lives like a 20 min bus ride away from the church and the bus passes every hour. The motivation she has inspires me, I want to be more like her. She wants to serve a mission too so we've been helping her know how to start being a member missionary now and giving her tips for the future. 

Tuesdays are usually pretty slow. but in the mornings we usually meet with our cute friend Martina. She is from Peru but is visiting her daughter here in Villalba for as long as the government will let her. Here testimony is incredible, she's older but she doesn't let that stop her from looking to God and looking for the truth. Her first language is Quechua so its hard for her to read Spanish but she is doing really well and when she feels ready she will enter into the waters of baptism. That's her greatest desire.

Tuesday nights we used to meet with our friend Hernando but he is out traveling right now and wont get back for a few months. I pray that when he comes back he will take the lessons again with the missionaries here. We now have a new friend that we found from Honduras. She is a MIA member but we found her and we are going to bring her back! We taught her for the first time yesterday and we can see a to of potential in her.

Wednesdays we have District meetings in the morning, English Class at night and lessons in between. Last week we had the Missionary Broadcast, announcing all the changes happening in the mission field, so last week not a ton happened on Wednesday. 

On Thursdays we have weekly planning. Last week we met with our new friend Maria. It takes about 2 hours to get to her house when we leave with the bus so that is a little difficult. But she and her children came to church on Sunday! We have only met with her but we'd like to teach them as a family as a whole, we don't know the next time well be able to meet with them because of their schedules but the family is so cute and I'm excited to witness their progression. (:

Fridays are my favorite days (: In the mornings we've started meeting with our new friend Ramón and his wife Maria. The story of how we found them is actually pretty good. I don't know if I've already said it so I'll say it again!

So on a Tuesday I believe we were waiting at the bus stop to go visit Martina. Her son-in-law just happens to be standing nearby waiting for the same bus. We go over and start talking to him and he told us of how he had lost his phone on the way home from work. I decided to tell him about an experience about when my dad lost his phone. (This is how I remember it dad, I was pretty little so excuse me if its a little hazy) It was when flip phones were generally new and my dad "lost" it. I remember that around the same time, my aunt lost her wedding ring, so as a family we decided to have a special prayer that we could find these two very important things. I don't remember how long it took but I remember we looked and we looked for the lost phone. Until I remembered the small tables leaning against the computer closet. There was a small gap in there that I could reach my little arm in. I remembered seeing my dad's phone left at the computer desk and thought it would be funny to tease him by hiding it in the little gap between the tables and the closet. So when I reached my little arm in the slot to my excitement, I FOUND THE PHONE! And it was an answer to our prayer.

There was a cute elderly couple standing nearby the bus stop that heard my story and gave a little chuckle as well. We included them in the conversation and they agreed to let us meet with them. The first lesson we had with them was incredible. It's amazing to see how God has prepared them to receive his Gospel.

I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have to serve here in Villalba, I know it's where the Lord wants me to be for now. I'm so grateful for my Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Chris. I can do nothing without him, this is truly the Lords work. I'm so grateful for the Temple and for the blessing that it is to have so many all over the world.

I hope you all have a great week! 

Loves and awkward Besos!

Hermana Warner

No ganas para nada, lo siento

This week was so good and so crazy!! We invited three of our friends
to be baptized this week and they said YES! Hallelujah! We can only
meet once a week with them though so I will update you about when and
who!
One of our cute friends is Emma. Her mother was baptized many years
ago and hasn't been to church since moving here and being married. I
found her in the street with Hermana Phillips and they finally met
with us! Emma came to church with her mom on Sunday and oh was it a
blast! She is my favorite! When they passed the sacrament she
carefully picked the está looking piece of bread plopped in in her
mouth nodded her head with satisfactory and gave a big "ok" sign to
the deacon. She then proceeded to pass the bread to her mother and
exclaimed, "try it! It's riquísimo!"
And it really is. I'm so great full for this gospel. I'm so grateful
for our Lord and Savior, for His infinite and perfect atonement. He
lives. And because he lives we don't have to sit hopelessly we can
start again we can turn the page and be better than we were yesterday.
I'm so grateful for this gospel and for the opportunity I have to
share the deliciousness to everyone I meet.
I hope you all have a great week!
All the love and happiness and leaves and flowers!

Hermana Warner

 Not an explosion, a sunrise out my piso.

Zone Conference

Bingham

(Elder Kyle Gearig and Hermana Maddie Pitcher)

Día de los Reyes Magos y Segovia!

January 9, 2017

First things first... HUGE shout out to my greatest childhood chum Brooklyn who got her mission call to MALAGA SPAIN!!!! PUMPED! I absolutely love Spain and I'm too  excited to share that love with her. Pumped. Just be warned, in the summer, Malaga is HOT. You got this.

So yeah! With the anticipated email of my sister, this week has been really good! Here in Spain we have a holiday where we celebrate the kings that came to bring gifts to Jesus. It was super fun! We even bought ourselves a traditional dessert they eat called Roscón. It's basically sweet bread shaped into a gigantic doughnut cut in half with whipped cream in side (like a sandwich) and dried sugary fruit on top. It's full of sugar and goodness and I love it. Haha but it was really big so we gave most of it to the Elders. Not to mention the abundance of Roscón the members fed us following the holiday. Yeah, I'll bee good for the year.

With our less active friends, we've been sharing a lot about goals. My favorite part of the new year is reflecting on pass goals and making new ones. There's a quote i like from Elder Ballard that i love, he said, 

"I am so thoroughly convinced that if we don't set goals in our life and learn how to master the techniques of living to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age and look back on our life only to see that we reached but a small part of our full potential. when one learns o master the principles of setting a goal, he will then be able to make a great difference in the results he attains in this life."

Anybody who knows me, knows I'm super passionate about living dreams and achieving goals. I hope all of you take advantage of this time to evaluate where you are, temporally and spiritually and strive to make the changes necessary to reach your full potential. It comes with a lot of work and a lot of sacrifice but I can promise that when we do what the Lord wants us to do, our lives will be greater than we could have ever imagined. I'm grateful everyday for the blessing I have to already have the gospel and to have had incredible parents to teach me to obey the Lord (even when I am a sassy pants and don't listen). The blessings I have received for being obedient are incredible, and I know even more blessings can come as I continue to try to become more obedient.

Well I hope you all have had an awesome last week and that this week is even better! Prayers for all of you that are in school again! Whoot whoot! You can do it! Yeah!

Anyway, lots of besos and handshakes! (Hey Pop, you get a hug!)

Hermana Warner

Since it was still holiday season it was hard to meet with people so we did a lot of door knocking. And when we went the sunset was so beautiful so we took pictures! Enjoy (:

Today we all decided to meet up as a district in Segovia. It's so beautiful and very spanish looking. It's famous for it's cathedral, castle and aqueduct. 

ROSCÓN!!!! So good. So sweet. Oh yeah! Also they have two things in it. If you get the slice with the bean you have to pay for the Roscón, if you get the slice with the toy then yeah, you get a toy! It was fun.

Sister sighting .......

Hello fellow missionary Mum's .....I have just had the opportunity to take part in a lesson with your beautiful daughters , and now they are helping us prepare for a baby shower this evening .  It's such a pleasure to be able to work with them . 

Thank you for sharing them with us   

Much love 

Jane X














 

2017

Whoot Whoot!!!

Happy New Year! What a year and what a week! 2016 was an incredible year and I look forward to what the Lord has in store for Spain in 2017.

This week we've seen a lot of miracles and a lot of blessings. When you are obedient, diligent and faithful, the Lord works wonders.

Well, yesterday, last minute they cancelled the last two hours of church. While everyone else was silently and secretly celebrating, us missionaries were all like, "Shoot, it's flipping cold out and a holiday, what are we supposed to do for the next two hours?" Luckily the day before Hermana Koeber and I had already discussed and felt prompted to walk one of our widow friends, Adi, home. So when the meeting ended we looked for Adi but she was gone. We continued to talk to other members when I saw  Adi slip out of the bishops office and out into the street. We quickly finished the conversation we were in the middle of and went off to find her. After walking for a while we realized there were two different routes she could have taken to get home, acting quick, we took the longer busier route. We walked with haste not knowing whether or not we would actually find her when suddenly, in the distance i saw a fuzzy brown pompon ball on top of her grey winter hat. "I think that's her!" I called to my comp and we sped toward her. 

She was still a good way away from us but i was pretty sure it was her. I prayed in my heart that she would slow down or turn around, and as though the thoughts slipped out of my mouth and into her mind, Adi stopped abruptly, turned around and started running toward us!  She told us that as she was walking she felt prompted to share the gospel with the young men that passed her. So yep, the three of us went booking it to share the gospel but we couldn't catch up to them. She turned around a little defeated but accepted our invitation to walk her home. She told us how disappointed she was in herself that she didn't bring a soul unto the Lord last year. She told us that she had tried but that it wasn't good enough, she still needed to keep working. She then began telling us of her new friend who needed the gospel and decided to take us straight to this friends house. When she let us in, Adi insisted we teach the first lesson. So when the spirit gave us permission, we did, and it was incredible. 

I don't know if anything is going to happen with Adi's friend but I pray that we can help Adi bring someone to Christ this year. I'm grateful for her example to me that it is never too late or too early to share the gospel. It doesn't matter how old you are or where your life is right now, you can always share you testimony and a smile.

The Lord blesses us when we are obedient, diligent and faithful. Act on the prompting the Lord gives you and have confidence in the Lords blessings. I'm so grateful for this new year i get to spend in Spain, what a blessing. I hope you all are safe and warm this winter!

Lots of hugs and awkward besos!

Hermana Warner

I LOVE SPAIN! I love the food I love the people I love the history I love the art I love the culture I love the mission I love the mission President I love my comp oh life is too good! The lord be pourin all sorts a blessins o'me!

I like to read in the scriptures about how when we follow the lord we don't need to worry about what we need to eat or stuff like that because the lord will provide for us. I have a lot of confidence in those scriptures. It's promised that we will receive what we need in the moment that we need it, Even when "the very moment" is a little more stressful than having it before hand I'm grateful for that promise.

I hope your week is so great. <3

Jacquelyn

No pictures this week, but I drew this of my friend Alba and gave it to her for her birthday, I'm excited to come back home and actually have decent art supplies to work with. Love you!!

Merry Christmas!

Good Morning Utah! And Hong Kong... and Argentina... and Brazil... and Arizona... and Oregon... and Idaho... and Florida... and Mexico... and Jerusalem (if you're still there)... and wherever you are right now.... Good morning everyone!

This was such a wonderful week! Like I promised, we had a Christmas Party! One with all the Zones in Madrid and the other one in our Ward here in Villalba. So we took pictures at the Madrid party but i don't have any of them right now... But it was super cool!  Got to see all of my companions again! (Hermana Schriever, Davis, Phillips and Koeber... well she's still my comp ;) It was so wonderful! I'm so grateful for the incredible friendships I've made here in Spain, it was a very nice reunion. (:

The Ward Christmas party was so well done. Nines (our 3 month recent convert) was in charge of it and she did a FANTASTIC job. The theme of the night was "Humility" so we dressed up as if we were in biblical times (kinda) sat on mats and ate theme fitting food from the markets. It was so beautiful, I couldn't have been more proud of Nines! She is incredible. I will attach the photos at the end, definitely an occasion for the books.

Then the last of the celebrations we had a baptism yesterday! Her name is Emma, she's the youngest of a part member family that we've been eating with and she just turned 8. It was such a beautiful service, the spirit was so powerful as she and her mother and sisters bore their testimonies of the truthfulness of the gospel and of our Savior Jesus Christ. They invited EVERYONE. I admire their confidence as they share what they believe with others. They had been planing the baptismal service for over 3 months and inviting their friends and family to the sacred event.

In the scriptures, baptism is described as the gateway to the straight and narrow path. It's the first covenant we make with the Lord and so important that Christ himself did it. I loved watching this family as they recognized the importance of the event and hope to remember their faith and testimony as I prepare myself every Sunday to partake of the sacrament.

I'm so grateful to be a missionary during the most wonderful time of the year! I absolutely love it! It's incredible to see the change in everyone all around me and for the light of Christ that shines just a little bit brighter every day. I am so grateful for this Gospel, that it has been restored, never to be taken away from the earth again. I'm so grateful for my family and for all of you who support me. If you haven't already, I highly recommend reading or listening to or watching the Christmas Devotional. I'm so grateful for our Savior and know that He lives. No matter how many people don't believe it, it will always be true. I am grateful for that truth.

I hope you all have a very merry Christmas!

Loves and snowflakes ❄️☃️

Hermana Warner

1. Nines at the ward Christmas Party

2. Emma's Baptism!

Villalba

I love Christmas!!!

This week was overall pretty great. We've been so very blessed and I'm so grateful for all the miracles we've seen.

1. Hernando! We met with Hernando again on Tuesday. He's been reading a ton in the Book of Mormon and is doing really well, he just couldn't come to church because he was out of town.
2. Norma and Antonio. They are my FAVORITE! They are visiting their daughters right now from Argentina. We met with them for the second time this week and they are doing really well. When we met, Antonio told us of how his son-in-law had been reading the Book of Mormon and while he was reading he was like, "Mama mia! Mama mia! Nefi, que haces!?" Antonio got pretty excited to read 1 Nephi 4 and we will be meeting with the whole family later this up and coming week. 
3. Monica and Marisol. Hermana Phillips and I contacted them in the street a few weeks ago. Marisol works a ton but got hit by a car and broke her leg so when I called on a whim (the spirit) she answered and invited us to finally come teach them. When we started getting to know them more Monica (15 year old) started just talking to Hermana Koeber and Marisol turned to me and said, "You know, I was about her age when the missionaries found and baptized me, but you know, life just gets in the way." With like a little chuckle thing. What the heck!? So yeah, we found a MIA member and are now teaching her and her daughter. Miracle.
4. Fabian and Jerolin. The biggest miracle! About a month ago Hermana Koeber and I contacted a lady named Alba, she is also a MIA member form Columbia. We finally were able to get in contact with her and we had a lesson on Sunday. Her son and daughter-in-law were also there so we taught all of them. We had already planned and prepared to teach them about #ILLUMINATEtheWORLD and it ended up being exactly what they needed and thy are excited to learn more about how they can become more united as a family as they draw closer to Christ.

I'm so grateful to be a full time representative of Christ. I am studying the New Testament more and the more I learn the more I love our Savior. I'm so grateful for this holiday season that we have to remember what's really important, its like the Sabbath day of all the year. Idk I just love it. Everyone is so much more happy and open and willing to talk. I'm just so grateful! This week we are going to have and incredible Christmas party I will take pics an tell you all how it goes!

I hope you all have a great week!

Hermana Warner

I make snowflakes!

I make food.

Mmmm smells like churros and chocolate

I love fall! There are leaves everywhere and snow on the tips of the mountains! I couldn't be more happy (: Well happy December!

So about a month ago When I was with Hermana Phillips, we went to Pavones for the Stake Conference to hear Ninez speak, I wrote about it on the 7th of November. To get to Pavones, where the temple is we need to take a Bus to Moncloa and then from Moncloa we take the Metro to the Pavones stop. While we were on the metro I remember looking across to the passengers sitting on the other side. There were a few people but the one who caught my attention was a middle aged man wearing a tan sweater, who instead of looking down at his phone or tablet, looked up and was smiling. We were a few stops away from Pavones when another man, with obvious mental health conditions came into our car. He started yelling and shouting random things that I couldn't understand. He seemed to be really angry and everyone on the train would look up then look away or continue whatever it was they were doing. But the man with the tan sweater didn't. He looked up at the frustrated man, thought for a moment, then motioned for the man to come toward him. The man in the tan sweater calmed the troubled man down and talked to him like a normal person. I was really impressed with this man and felt that we needed to talk with him. Luckily, he was headed for Pavones as well. So as we were going up the escalator I turned around and told him how impressed I was with what he had done. We talked for a few more moments as we reached the top when I felt prompted to give him a Book of Mormon. I told him that it was a book that was very important to me and that i thought he would like it. He accepted gratefully and we parted our ways, Hermana Phillips and I running to get to the church on time.

When we made it to Pavones we met the missionaries serving there and told them of the experience. One of them asked, "Well did you get his number?" And without thinking I said, "No, but don't worry, he will call." We continued the night, went home, and everything continued as normal.

Just a few days ago a man called us, he told his name and that we had given him a book in Pavones. He had been reading the book and wanted the missionaries to visit him. We wrote down his name and address to give the the missionaries in Barcelona.

I don't know all that will happen with this man in the tan sweater. But there is one thing i do know. I know that this is God's work. I know it is true. We live in a world bombarded with lies and scandals, a world full of people looking for the truth. I'm so grateful that i have the opportunity to help bring these people the Lords truth. I'm grateful for the Book of Mormon. It is truly the word of God, translated by a modern day prophet. I know that God's true church is on the earth today. 

I'm grateful everyday for my parents and church leaders who have all helped me in my journey to recognize and accept this truth. I'm grateful for our Savior Jesus Christ and for this wonderful season to celebrate him. He lives. He is at the head of His church. "As to my strength, I am weak... [but] in his strength I can do all things"

I hope you all have an amazing week and an even more fantastic holiday!

Hermana Warner

Hermana Koeber and I with our member friend Ana

I found a dead cat. 

A cuter picture when I made a cake with our member friend Sadith (:

Insert my dad saying, "It's Christmas" yep it's November. Yes it's Christmas.

Wow what a week! Well more like week and a half, it feels like forever since I've written. So this week was pretty good! We officially have two progressing investigators! Whoot whoot! My week in a nutshell: Thanksgiving feast with the Zone, Inercambios, miracles with Sadith, New investigator Hernando, we went to the temple today, El Escorial Monastery, all our lights burning out (we still have all our Christmas Lights though so don't worry), finally breaking through (literally they are shredded) those $10 boots I bought last min before I left and I can still breath... kinda... the inversion kills man.

But yeah the most important thing I wanted to write about is our miracle with Sadith! Sadith is incredible and I know I've introduced her before so I'll just get to it. Last weekend we felt prompted to teach her about keeping the commandments we studied and prayed and planned but when we got to the door step to her piso we knew we needed to change the game plan. We prayed again before entering and 100% relied on the spirit. As we started the lesson I felt prompted to follow up on her reading and daily prayers. She told us that she hadn't been reading and that she thought it might be a good idea to just read. So that's what we did. I prayed and prayed in those minuscule moments to try to remember a good chapter about keeping the commandments without the "and he shall be thrust down to hell" part. So yeah, I was at a blank. I asked her where she was at in her study, she said 1 Nephi 3....

My heart just exploded with happiness and I knew that that was exactly what Heavenly Father wanted us to do. The Spirit truly testified to her and to us that we need to be obedient to all of God's commandments and that the Lord truly will provide a way. I invited her to read every day and to attend church. She came!

The next lesson we had with her was even more of a miracle. We knew we wanted to teach her about baptism and covenants. Again we made the lesson plan prayed and studied. When we got there we still felt confident of what to teach. I followed up again about how her Scripture study had been for the week. She told us that she had found time to read the Book of Mormon just by taking it everywhere with her. She said she studied it between classes or on the bus ride home. She then proceeded in sharing two scriptures that impacted her deeply. She explained that they were the answers to her prayers. She told us of her desire to be baptized, we asked the baptismal questions and picked a date. It was incredible. 

I'm so grateful for the commandments of the Lord. No matter how small and simple they may seem they really do make a difference. I know that God answers prayers, that he wants to help us in our lives. I know that that BOM is the word of God and that as we apply it to our lives we will know what the Lord would have us do. I'm so grateful for the opportunity we have to attend church every Sunday to partake of the sacrament and to strengthen each other's testimonies. These things are small but I truly believe that, 

"...by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.

   And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the wise and bringeth about the salvation of many souls." Alma 37:6-7

I'm so grateful to be one of the small and simple, I hope you all have a fantastic 25 days of serving this December.

 #ILLUMINATEtheWORLD  #LIGHTtheWORLD

Yeah do it soon!

That kid Elder Cample kills me with the chicken hahaha you can see me laughing hahaha.

Thanks for the Peanut-butter Mom

Hello all!

This week felt like FOREVER. In the white handbook it talks about P-day and shares the scripture in Mosiah 4:27 And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order.

I now completely understand why that is there. It was hardly a Pday last Monday so I'm super grateful to have another one today. But no importa! This week has been INCREDIBLE! I've seen so many miracles and so many blessings. This really is the Lords work.

A few weeks ago Hermana Philips and I found a man near the new chapel that's being built. We gave him a BOM and he promised to read and meet with us after a few weeks. Well those few weeks passed and we had an appointment set up with him and his family on Tuesday. I was tooooooooo excited! This man was so happy and seemed so prepared when we met him and I was so excited to finally find and teach a family. So on Monday right after the end of "Preparation Day" I decided to give him a call to confirm the appointment that we had set up. He told us that because of family visits he wouldn't be able to meet, but then continued to explain that he had been reading the BOM, felt good about it, then went on our website to the frequently asked questions page. He explained that he no longer had questions about our faith and that the appointment would be entirely unnecessary. 

My heart stopped. I stumbled to find the right words to say and the next thing i knew, the conversation was over. I was completely heartbroken. I prayed to God saying, "I've been working so hard. I've been giving it my all. The gospel is true, why wont they listen? Where did I go wrong? What should I have said? What should I have done? What can I do?" This family was so close to receiving the most incredible gift of eternity that we can find on the earth but he was too easily satisfied with the answers to his questions. I invited him to continue reading the Book of Mormon and to pray if it was true and that further down the road we could visit him again. 

We have another friend about two pueblos away from Villalba. Last Saturday she accounted the trials and struggles in her life. She lives a great distance from any loved ones and feels completely alone. We were able to teach her the lesson of the Restoration and testify how the Gospel blesses our lives. She told us of her experience in the prominente church here in Spain, explaining that everyone kept to themselves and that even there she felt alone. 

I know the gospel can help her but she still can't see it. I've been pondering the idea of how we can help these people progress in their conversion to the Lord and although it's a working progress, I have found a bit of the answer.

Yesterday Ninez, our recent convert, came to me and told me of a revelation she received in the temple as she was doing baptisms for the dead. She told me that she felt strongly impressed that she needed to be doing more to share the Gospel. She discussed with me a family member and asked me for help in inviting her to the Gospel. As she finished writing down the information of this beloved family member and handed me the paper I thanked her for the reference. She in turn said, "No, thank you for helping me keep a commandment of the Lord."

I think too often as members of the church we become complacent in our efforts to share the Gospel with others, forgetting that it truly is a commandment of the Lord. I remember these two friends who are so close to receiving the fullness of joy God has in store for them. As a missionary there are many things I need to improve within myself and within my teaching, that is obvious and to state otherwise would be frankly dishonest. But I am thoroughly convinced that if these two friends were befriended by a member, their stories would be completely different. 

I know I've shared before the story of Ninez and Kike. They were a reference from the Bishops wife Monica. As their kids were friends the mothers decided to have a brunch together. At the brunch Ninez offered Monica a coffee. Monica stated boldly that she does not drink coffee because of her religion. This caught the attention of Ninez enough to start asking questions. Monica answered simply and clearly. The questions continued and Monica invited her to learn more from the Missionaries. She and her family are now baptized, active, contributing members of the Ward.

I am grateful for Monica's example to share the gospel and I'd like to invite you all to do the same. I love talk given by Elder Oaks this last General Conference. He explains simply and clearly we as members can share the gospel in a natural way, no matter the friend or circumstance. Pray for opportunities to share the gospel and when the opportunities come be proud of what you believe and continue to give them opportunities to ask you questions.

I'm so grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We really can be forgiven of our wrongdoings and feel free from guilt. I know Christ lives and that he loves us individually. He set the perfect example. As you follow His example and study his words you will know what to say in the exact moment you need to say it.

I hope you all have a fabulous week! We had a few more miracles that I wont get to share today but I know that God's hand truly is in the work. 

Awkward besitos to everyone!

--Hermana Warner

What a week. What a transfer. Time flies way too quick.

So guess what! I have a new comp! Her name is Hermana Koeber! She's a cute chica from Highland Utah and we are going to kill it this transfer. When we got transfer calls Saturday night I honestly didn't believe Hermana Phillips would be leaving, We thought for sure we'd have another transfer together but God knows what he's doing and all I can be is grateful. I've truly had the most incredible companions.

So yep! I'm staying her in Villalba! And I'm so happy! I absolutely love it here! This week our out of the area proselyting efforts paid off and we were able to teach three new people in Torre Ledones, a pueblo about two train stops away from Villalba. We are also going to start teaching a guy in Las Rosas, Alpedrete and La Escorial. So yep lots of first lessons this week! We are so excited! 

Las week we taught Sadith again and she came to sacrament meeting yesterday! Speaking of which, I spoke! Oh my goodness I was not made to talk in big groups, but I did it! and I'm grateful for the experience. I talked about the importance of the Book of Mormon and how it's helped me in my life. I am so grateful for the BOM everyday. I know it was written for our day and that as we read it we can receive the answers we need to continue with faith in this life.

So yeah back to Sadith, she's a student and lives with her Grandmother, also named Sadith. She is so cute! Sometimes we visit her because she's home bound and gets super lonely. So for lunch she taught us how to make papa de Juan Something.... I'm really bad at spelling so I'm not going to try right now. It's like potatoes with this pepper cheese sauce. It's delicious. I love Peruvian food! This week I also learned how to roast chestnuts and I tried a persimmon! It's so good! And it's called Kaki here, so even better. 

As far as any other investigators, friends, go they are all really new or they aren't progressing. It breaks my heart. These people are so close to receiving the greatest joy they could ever imagine. The relief they need is so close. All they need to do is keep their commitments and come to church. 

I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have to serve here in Spain, specifically Villalba. I'm so excited to see what this transfer will bring.

God blesses us when we work our hardest AND our smartest. I strive to be the missionary the Lord wants me to be.

I hope you all have a fantastic week!! 

You're happier when you put the Lord first. Do it.

Loves and besos

Hermana Warner 

Last selfie with my cute comp Hermana Phillips

Me and my new cute comp. Pumped.

Ninez spoke in Conference!

Hey hey hey

Well it's another week in Villalba! I honestly can't believe I've already been here a month. Crazy. I love Villalba! The members here are incredible and I'm so excited for all the new friends we've been meeting. Thanks for everyone who's given advice and for all the prayers in our behalf. Prayers are being answered. People are being found. We are praying for miracles this week.

So update. Sadith, our friend that was going to be baptized this week, hasn't been coming to church so we will have to postpone it. Satan doesn't give anyone a break. She's been really stressed about school and has had to learn the hard way the promise in D&C 82:10 I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise. We've set some goals and made plans to help her organize her life a little bit more. 

I've been thinking a lot about obedience and sacrifice. We've taught our investigators and other friends time after time that really, when they are willing to put the lord first, he will provide for us. As we pay our tithing, the Lord will help us, as we keep the sabbath day holy, the Lord will give us strength to take on the challenges in the coming week, as we fast sincerely we can receive the revelation we need in our lives. With every Commandment there is a promised blessing. As we align our will to the Lords, and do as He asks, He will keep His promise.

This last weekend we had Stake Conference in Pavones (where the temple is in Madrid) We were allowed to go to the Saturday night session because our recent convert Ninez was asked to bear her testimony of her conversion! The spirit was so powerful as this woman with only a month as a member testified of the truthfulness of the Gospel. I absolutely love her! Her husbands name is Kike and they have two daughters Maura and Alba. They are the absolute sweetest most sincere people. We haven't been able to meet with them very much this transfer because of their crazy work schedules and because we've all been getting sick. But they come to church every sunday and the times we have met have been incredible. Maura and I like to play with Hermana Phillips hair together and Alba is an artist so we are great friends (:

At Stake conference we also heard from President Pack, Hermana Pack and a member of the 70, Elder Homer. Before Elder Homer went up to talk he was like, "There are two more people I feel we should hear from enforce I speak." Logically I thought he'd invite the members who invited Ninez and Kike to the Gospel and then he's like, "Sisters, will you come up and share your testimony?" We completely froze. We didn't expect it at all, I haven't been so nervous for a long long time. But we went up there said a few good words and sat down. I need to be better at expecting things like this. 

Anyway! It's been a really great week and I'm grateful everyday to be a missionary! I hope your weeks are fantastic and that you bake some delicious pie. We will be. 

Loves!

Hermana Warner

Photo from Halloween

Leaves are falling

Hello November. 

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)

I got to go to the temple today! That's why I didn't get to write on Monday. I'm so grateful for the temple! It was so wonderful. I felt so much peace. I'm so grateful for the blessing it is to be in the house of the Lord. 

The other day as we were contacting in a building, we found a middle aged man. As we started to introduce ourselves saying that we are of the church of Jesus Christ, he cut us off and finished the sentence. He explained that his brother was a bishop living in Georgia USA. He continued saying that the majority of his family had been baptized and that he was the only one who wasn't a member. His brother had already made efforts in convincing him into joining the church and that we couldn't convince him either. We told him more about ourselves, our families and that we were here for a year and a half to preach the gospel. He replied that it is important that we remember our family back at home, wished us luck, and waved us on our way. 

We continued knocking the rest of the doors in the building and continued my day. It wasn't until later that I realized the miracle we had been a part of. I am sure the family of this man have offered countless prayers in his behalf. It wouldn't surprise me if they had prayed that some how he could get in contact with the missionaries and understand why the gospel is so important to them. 

I'm trying to better understand how the Lord is the artist and I am the tool. I can be the answer to the prayers of others, I just need to recognize and act on the spirit. I look forward to meeting with this man and other amazing people we have found. 

It's still slow but it's going! We are finding people who are ready. I hope you all had a fantastic Halloween and that this week is wonderful! 

--Hermana Warner 

Oh yeah, we also rode bikes today in Madrid. That was pretty fun.