NOVEMBER 25, 2013

I'm Trying to be Like Jesus

Ok so this week it really hit me that I need to be be better. I mean i am always telling my investigators that as believers in christ we need to try to better ourselves everyday and strive to live in harmony with HIS teachings not only the ones that come easily. 

this week was a bit difficult as i learned to humble myself and strive to be teachable, patient, and longsuffing. yesterday we were talking to a recent convert in the ward after our plan A, B, C, and D fell through and hearing his conversion story and why it took him 6 monthes to finally be baptized (an eternity to missionaries especially because we can teach all the basics in 1 month and he had a testimony and knew that it was true).  it really helped me to gain more perspective that it really is the LORD´s work not mine, I need to just be willing to listen to what He wants me to do and say....not just randomly think what do I  think they need...but rather what does the Lord want me to say so that i can MEET their needs. I really put that to heart in a lesson with a   Hermana V and her daughter S. both of whom are less active. I really tried to pray for whoever was speaking at the time the entire time and i prayed for the heart of hermana v. that it would be softened and that the words would enter her heart and be what she needed to hear. and while i was in there, i no longer worried what i should say or how we had other people we wanted to see but instead i felt love for her and really discovered the true reason she was less active so that we can really help her.

afterwards, hermana meeks told me she could see the difference. i had the gift of tongues language was not a problem, and she also saw the difference in hermana v. 

christmas call- they will give me a calling card for sure...the question is if i will meet with one of the members to use their skype....so family, now is the time to practice using skype. i have permission to use skype if there are members available that have it...and i think there are...i will figure out more info for you guys. its 1 hour...im pretty sure and i think it is actually the 26th but i am not positive...i will find all that out asap!

(Konrie told us about several of her investigating families, but  sadly we have been told that there are people using blogs to contact the new converts and give them a hard time.  I think it is best that I don't post their names and situations) 

we sing before every lesson...its a great excuse for them to let us in their house to bring the spirit and to help them feel more comfortable in church when they attend and the songs are a little familiar.

it is so weird that you guys have had halloween and thanksgiving...holidays really dont exist in my mind right now...it is still august 2013 in my mind...at the same time i know that it is the end of november... but ya...im going to return and be really confused when its 2015 

i like my shoes (sas grandma shoes are the best) i am sick of my shirts and my skirts are all neutral colors....i can deal with it all, but for Christmas i would really like some new shirts that are fun and slightly nicer. and remember we are in the middle of summer here....it is extremely hot! and gross....

i love you all so much and i enjoyed writing this letter for you all. with lots of love and faith in your ability to touch lives and be gods hands

hermana konrie ming

(Konrie learned that one should never lock yourself out- ha)

(A sweet family that is in their branch)

Monday November 18 2013

2 Transfers 2 Companions and Still Keepin the Faith

iron pills...yes i am taking them....i am trying to remember to take two every day...im on my last bottle...i really can feel an increase in energy than when i started my energy...it isnt perfect but it is much better then before.

so today my companion hermana gallardo goes home....her family is thrilled...she is devasted...you can really see all the lives she touched while she was here...she will really be missed....this is the kind of missionary i want to be....one that will touch lives by my example and my love of the gospel. 

i am in a trio with hermana chachi and hermana dardon my house companions. hermana chachi is from pèru and came to this sector/area at the same time as me. we are buddies i love hna chachi we love to joke with each other, i am helping her learn english :) she has about 7 monthes in the mission and hna dardon is from guatemala shes been in this area for roughly 4 months and has about 6 months in her mission. both are phenominal and i am really excited to work with them today....we all cried really really hard this morning for many hours while waiting to send hermana gallardo off and also when she was officially gone...her presence will be missed but during our morning studies we really could feel the saviors love, comfort, and strength to carry on with the work. we all will miss our companion and dear friend here in our house in this mission in this country, but we know we are still needed here

all i really know about my new companion and trainer is her name is hna meeks, she is from the US and she has about 6 months out on her mission...oh and other people say she works hard...and she will arrive sometime in the morning tomorrow.

there really arent that many WARD activities but the youth have their activities the relief society theirs,...and i think the primary too but to be honest the missionaries arent super involved with the ward activities...i think with time and an increase in their confidence we will plan ward activities with our less active families, recent converts, investigators and of course the ward members...but for right now i am just trying to show them i am here for them...as missionaries we try to strengthen the ward and help it grow. but we cant be the glue...the ward needs to be the glue....that way it is much more permanent...not just for a month or 5 months but for years and years...

ok now for something light to lift the mood...so we have stairs at our house that have gaps in between...i hope you know what i mean...well one day hermana chachi was walking down the stairs when i was behind them...so i did what any child with a sense of humor and lots of siblings would do....i grabbed her ankle as she was walking,.....she screamed sooo loud...i laughed soo hard! "hermana ming!" and naturally with this commotion hna dardon was curous and wandered down the stairs too...."AHHHHH!!!!!! Hermana Ming!!!!!!" hahahahahaha so much fun and so much laughter i really couldnt resist it!!! so worth it! sadly hna gallardo stayed upstairs just yelling to find out what happened and then ran down stairs too fast for me to catch her too....but my oh my did i laugh HARD.  that really helped us to bond, relax, and just enjoy each others company...because as missionaries we need a break and fun too...that is one thing i definitely learned here..

i love you all and i want you to read 2 nephi 4:20 and the first half of 21...it really helped me today

 (20 My God hath been my ^asupport; he hath led me through mine^bafflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.

 21 He hath filled me with his ^alove,)

hermana konrie ming

keep the faith and work hard

not the actual staircase just a visual image for you - ha

Tuesday, November 12 , 2013 11am

Answer to a couple of our questions:  
my branch has about 600 members but it was a record when 103 people were in church a ccouple weeks ago. reactivation is huge here...but the sad thing is it is mostly the job of the missionaries to reactivate because the number of active members is so small. they have a lot to worry about.

my showers and bathrooms are relatively normal smaller and the shower is about the size of the downstairs but with a curtain that tries to eat you while showering. 

honestly i want you guys to see pictures but i hate how long it takes to set it up and send them... but i will try. just for you...

then her letter began:

i don't know what my problem is but i dont want to talk about my week.-..probably because i am sad because i really really really dont want my companion to leave and everyone in the world wants to talk about it...please remember...when a missionary is leaving...they normally do NOT want to leave and it is a topic of sadness...and kinda makes us trunky aka when our mind is on our home and not on the work....

but please forgive me i also forget you guys have no idea what is happening over here....ok

D- he is a young man that we are teaching and had a baptism date but it fell because he didnt attend church...so we prayed to see if we should quit teaching him...spirit told both me and my companion the same answer...wait a little bit.-..so we gave D the talk...you need to know for a fact if this church is true and you need to know now. really blunt and to the point. and asked him to give the closing prayer while all of us was kneeling...and as we were leaving he was a little ....different more withdrawn than normal...but he committed to pray if it was true...turns out he had received his answer and committed to 7 december for baptism and to attend church with us !! so we went to his house in the morning of church with french toast we had made so he wouldnt have any excuse....and he SAID HE COULDNT GO TO CHURCH!! big bummer...but he knows the gospel is true he knew that trials would come...now he just needs to act...

but R- a mama is progressing spoothly i honestly have no idea why she doesnt have a baptism date...but dont worry we are going to fix that...she really is wonderful and totally gets it. 

know that i love the mission and i love the holy ghost and my opportunity to listen to it...we had a miracle the other day...we were contacting in the street when i had a random thought to go to the opposite part of the area across the street a ways...so we acted on it...and a while later we saw that the same street we were at...a house caught on fire! scary right! god really protected us...and hna gallardo was really worried for the family at the hose and the people involved so we prayed for them and found out later no one was hurt :) tender mercies siempre!

i love god and i love the work and i am so proud of your missionary efforts i know that god will bless you with a miracle...it is a righteous desire...simply be open to the whispers of the spirit. love ya lots read mosiah 28:3 to know exactly how i feel about missionary work

hermana konrie ming

Monday, November 4, 1:17pm (No subject - no time)

(after attempting to send us several pictures that did not come through, this is her email...)

and that is all the comp(uter)  will let me send right now... its all maxed out i guess. alright this was a week of milagros (miracles) ! okay more accurate weekend because honestly our week ....well we had 3 lessons with members and our goal was 10.... but we are talking milagros...well during the week we could not get a hold of ANYONE!!! okay we could but the people we really wanted to teach our investigators with a baptismal date...we tried soooo many times to visit them and couldnt....so saturday because we didnt have any appointments we contacted poeple on the street and "knocked on doors" (actually you yell aloe really loud at their gate and they open the door and tell you they are busy so hurry up and convince them this message is worth their time) and we found 5!!!! new investigators that were interested in our message that we will begin teaching....

word to the wise...ask the people if you can sing a little song for them in their home for them and their family....then you are in their house sitting down, can talk about the gospel can turn off the TV, invite all in the house to listen to you,, and best you can sing a hymn and invite the spirit...best technic ever to bring the Spirit in fast!!! 

and more...this is a part of the letter i wrote to my mission president this week because i dont have time:

loosely translated her spanglish:

"(yesterday, our bishop told us and the other missionaries that our less active mission leader was going to return to his calling and help us with the work. and also that they were inviting us to help the ward counsel.  It was a miracle because our efforts with Hermana Gallardo and I to receive the confidence of the members in the branch (and help them gain a desire for the missionary work) worked, we have more help from the ward in the work of the Lord.  I am very happy except for one thing...  you know about our two investigators and our new investigators.    But our companionship is fantastic.  One of the highest compliments I can give Hermana Gallardo is that I trust her judgment completely. "

I love you all Im sorry I can't write more... and Mings I will read your letter later and respond

Stay strong and be missionaries now :)

Hermana Konrie Ming

Monday, October 28, Week of Change of Mind

i like my title. because it fits.

this week i experienced my first splits (24 hours with a new sector aka area and new companion) and i am not going to lie, it was difficult. i didnt really look at the good in the day until after i regrouped with my companion. we had a lot of ppl say too busy dont want to  listen to your message and even a creeper (guy only wanted the sister missionaries to come over to his house....not necessarily interested in the gospel) but we also have 2 miricles  we fgound an investigator that had moved and desired to have the gospel but was lost in the cracks when she moved and 5 people in a store that seemed like they were going to have a whole bunch of people come and listen to the gospel at onces (just ilke the missionaries in the 1800s with joseph smith)

D--18 year old, lives with grandma (less active) and takes care of her. he has a baptism date. we were thinking he no longer wanted to hear the gospel but turns out when he skipped church and said he was busy for our second appt it was because he really was busy and also because he didnt have church cloths and so felt inadequate...hes all good now....kinda...he decided to hand over his green tea so we could destroy it :) one of my fav e things to do! destroy things that are bad for other people!!!  

Ma "I" a 27 yr old mother of 2 (M-7? A-3?) been investigating the church for a few months now and has a desire for an eternal family only problem....her husband is no longer interested in the church (totally broke hna Gallardos heart when the dad said he didnt want to go to church and when he would leave our lessons with the family to go clean the car)

H- 26 yr old mother of 3 (14 10 ...and another child) she is awesome and we started teaching her when i arrived. shes sweet and her daughter LOVES the Lord and to show us her love for the Lord :) she just needs a desire past liking to hear and agree with our words

C and F (15 and 12 respectively) they have my heart...not sure why, but they totally do. they are just so sweet and innocent i just want to take them under my wing and guide them through life. sadly though they may not be as interested in the gospel as we thought...but we will keepp trying...

its hard when people dont see the importance and urgency for the gospel NOW. because you never know how long you have and this can bring you happiness now and forever...yes its hard...but doesnt that make the reward sweeter?

i am working on looking for the good otra vez and laughing more and enjoying the moment...because honestly life is good. i really appreciate all the supportive emails. they really helped. (ps for pday the missionaries in our zone aka like 320 or 30 of us went to the chile beach in case your wondering it looks very similar to CA they even had a sign claiming they had the best surf in the world LIES!!)

Hermana Konrie Ming

THE NEXT WEEK:    and that is all the comp(uter)  will let me send right now... its all maxed out i guess. alright this was a week of milagros! okay more accurate weekend because honestly our week ....well we had 3 lessons with members and our goal was 10.... but we are talking milagros...well during the week we could not get a hold of ANYONE!!! okay we could but the people we really wanted to teach our investigators with a baptismal date...we tried soooo many times to visit them and couldnt....so saturday because we didnt have any appointments we contacted poeple on the street and "knocked on doors" (actually you yell aloe really loud at their gate and they onçpen the door and tell you they are busy so hurry up and convince them this message is worth their time) and we found 5!!!! new investigators that were interested in our message that we will begin teaching....

word to the wise...ask the people if you can sing a little song for them in their home for them and their family....then you are in their house sitting down, can talk about the gospel can turn off the TV, invite all in the house to listen to you,, and best you can sing a hymn and invite the spirit...best technic ever!!! 

and more...this is a part of the letter i wrote to my mission president this week bc i dont have time

yesterday our bishop told us and the other missionaries that  our less active mission leader was going to return to his calling and help us in the work.  And also he invited us to help with the ward council.  It was a miracle because of the efforts of Hermana Gallardo and I to receive the confidence of the members in our ward and and help them gain the desire for the missionary work.  We have more help from the ward in the work of the Lord  I am very happy except one thing:  our two investigaors and new ones,, but our companionship is fantastic.  One of the hightest compliments I can give Hna Gallardo is that I trust her judgment completely.

I love you all  Im sorry I can't write more... and mings I will read your letter later and respond
stay Strong and be missionaries now :)
Hermana Konrie Ming: