Happy New Year

Jan 6, 2014

Dear Family and Friends,

Happy New Year!!!! I am celebrating New Year´s with ALL new things--a new area, a new companion (Hermana Rivas, from Nicaragua. she´s a gem. Love her already), and a new batch of hermanas...and I am LOVIN´ it. Down here we celebrated new years Chilean style (except I didn’t stay up until twelve at night) but we hot roasted lamb and a lovely dinner at one of the member´s house. But then, on the second, on Thursday..duh duh duh..CAMBIOS! So we got up extremely early in the morning and headed down to Osorno, and we were there in the bus terminal ALL all all day because we had to make sure that all of the hermanas headed out to the correct place and those that came in from far away (in plane...) but since everyone and their mom passes through the terminal, it was a really special, because I got to see a TON of people and took a trip down memory lane. For example, Hermana Centurion (my trainer)..I´ve forgotten just how beautiful her Spanish is...and (surprise everyone...) ZACH! Elder Jensen.., that is...Oh my heavens it was so crazy to see him. 

And then, I felt a hand on my arm and turned and...ALMENDRA? I doubt any of you remember, but I had taught Almendra in my very first area, she is vegetarian, slender, a massage and yoga princess, and absolutely fantastic, and she had left--out of nowhere--for the North of Chile, and had called us dramatically to say that "I cant explain why, but I have to go..." and so I had thought I would never see her again. And do you know what? I had found out that not only had she returned, she got baptized, and in her testimony said "thank you, to hermana monroe, for listening…" But I got to SEE Her!! And between almost tears and a tight squeeze and holding her close I could see--she is finally happy. ooh. What joy. And to top THAT off…I doubt any of you remember Violetta from my first area? She was a very less active that we worked SO much with...well her daughter? Camila? Who we had taught and my companion always said that she would serve a mission. CAMILA GOT BAPTIZED. And....she wants to serve a mission.

Wow. The seeds we plant. It´s absolutely awe inspiring when we realize that we are just a little tiny piece of the puzzle in the grand plan of God. 

mmhmn. Anyways. Back to my new sector. I am in the CLOUDS ("estoy en los nubes"). The barrio is fit to bursting (for Chilean standards, at least...) so that yesterday they had to open the curtains in the back (music to my ears!!) and we had a fully functioning three hour church hours complete with little children dressed in tiny suits and ties and dresses running in every direction. 

AND for the icing in the cake, we went to ward council, and the bishop sat everyone down, while a returned missionary that just got back from Bolivia rolled out his new vision for how the ward council was going to function, based on missionary work--stating that each organization was going to place the goal of how many people they were going to baptized...

"Relief society? How many sisters do you think you can baptize this year?"

"No..but..relief society can´t..it´s not even fully functioning--how are we going to?"

"I promise you that it can. Missionary work is the lifeblood of the church. You will find and maybe baptize the sisters you need. What about 6? How does six sound?"

And so it went, with every organization. With the result of a goal of forty baptisms for the WARD, no for the missionaries, and the goal that every single organization reactivated five members.

It was bold, ambitious, and it was powerful. He called it the Perry plan, showed video clips, and renovated how our ward functions. 

I have seen many moments of courage, but I don’t think I have ever seen a man with such humble conviction and faith as our bishop...as he looked every member in the eye and testified "So maybe it wont work perfectly this year...maybe we wont have forty baptisms this year. But NOTHING is going to happen if we don’t set the goal. The best time to start is now." I might have almost cried. But I looked at the quote that I have in my scriptures that, summarized, goes something like this "every dispensation begins with a vision. We must have a vision. We must move into the realm of the miracles. We must go to the edge so that God blesses us with the miracles that we need."

And finally, to end the day yesterday, we went to a very faithful couple, Miguel and Veronica, who after ten years of investigating are still waiting for a divorce and to get married, but who have been assisting each Sunday. We talked to them about the power of goals. Set the goal for the marriage on the 13th of May, and kneeled together and Miguel pleaded for God´s strength to make it possible.

I testify that the power of goals, made with the Lord, is real.

Make a goal. Make it with the Lord, and he will help us make it a reality.

I love you all so much--I am happy, so very very content.

Love you all!!!

Hermana Monroe