Just Another Week of Living the Dream! - August 25, 2014

Howdy Howdy family and friends!

Guess what!?! Yep, it was another amazing week filled with light, truth, hope, teaching, running, service, giving a talk in sacrament meeting, legally parking on the wrong side of the street (yep you can do what you want here :P), pictures in cotton fields, eating fish we caught, and miracles and miracles!

You know you are a missionary when it's dinner break, and breakfast felt like they happened yesterday, and two days felt like it happened two seconds ago! Time just goes by SO fast!!! We have been working hardddd! We have been meeting a lot of new people that are interested in being taught while we talk to them, but keep forgetting appointments we set to come and see them again! :P I never thought I'd ever have this problem here in Texas, where people would just want us to talk with them, but not really want to be taught, for the past year a lot of people have just quickly walked away from us! haha, but Sister Carroll and I have been learning lots of fun time management skills! 

Also, this week, I was reunited with an old companion (Sister Plante!!) for a day, because our Sister Training Leaders (just some exceptionally awesome missionaries), came down from Amarillo! It was slightly terrifying not being with Sister Carroll, because I had barely been in town a week, and I was driving all over by myself!! It worked out well though, and we taught a lot of great lessons.

Friday was one of those we-barely-had-a-second-to-have-dinner-or-lunch days, because we helped one of our neighbors pack up their moving truck, and helped at the Food Bank in town for a couple hours in addition to the lessons we'd had planned. When we were helping our neighbors an amazing man that we had met earlier in the week came and helped! We had a little break and were talking about the gospel, and he commented on how Sister Carroll and I seem so happy! He told me: "Y'all have a glow about you, it's a little scary to talk to y'all!' It was really an amazing day, there is so much LOVE in this town, even the one rude lady who slammed a door in our face this week had something to smile about at the Food Bank. I just really can't express the joy that I have when people come together and help each other, I've never hugged so many strangers before in my life!

So you know how everything can relate back to Jesus Christ and His Atonement? Well, I gave a talk this week in church on hope, and some of the concerns of the few solid people we've been teaching came to my mind, along with the usual concerns we have as missionaries, and some of the Sister-Lagrosa-specific questions that will take some time and experience to answer... but as I was studying and reading, I really thought about this path that we are each on individually, and together as we are all returning to our Heavenly Father. The scriptures talk a lot about faith, hope and charity, and the greatest of all is charity, but you do need all three to make it to God's Kingdom.

So I thought and I thought, and I compared my walk to just a fun little out-door stroll, with ditches, fallen trees, and giant walls that represent the trials that I face (and that we all face).I thought about faith, hope and charity and their roles in getting me over those walls. 

Faith is what gives me strength, knowing that all of my strength comes from Christ allows me to have no doubt about the possibility of me facing those trials along the path. It is faith that brings that light to my path, and allows me to see a little bit more of those obstacles ahead.

Hope is what moves me forward, hope come from knowing what is on the other side of those walls I can't see over, hope is what helps me remember the path when I'm treading through a ditch, hope is what gives me the courage to know that climbing over insect-infested fallen trees is worth it as I take each step back to Heavenly Father.

And charity, charity is the attitude I get to have while I'm in these trials, and while I'm on the smoother parts of my trail. It is charity that gives purpose to the knowledge gained from the trials I've overcome, and it's that pure love of Christ, that I get to experience that just reaffirms the faith and hope that I get to have.

It was an interesting thought, because all three of those elements are essential as we face the challenges we have in life, and if I'm lacking in one of them than the other two categories suffer a little bit too. 

But bringing it back to hope, that hope that is precious and priceless, and it cannot come without faith in something or someone. 

Romans 15:4 "For whatsover things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope."

2 Nephi 32:3 "...feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do."

Psalm 119:105 "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."

John 1:5 "And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not"

I'm so grateful for the scriptures, and the Spirit to testify of truth. I'm grateful that the truth that we get to learn gives us hope through our experiences! It is wonderful to know that the words written by prophets and apostles of our perfect Lord do come from Him, and when we fest up His word, we are able to receive direction, and light. And even though there is a lot of darkness in the world, and a lot of people who do not desire to comprehend the things of God, His light will still shine, and everyone has a chance to enjoy the warmth and direction that come from Him.

Keep searching out that light!

God is great!

With all my heart,

Sister Heather Ann Lagrosa

Pictures:

1- Moving! We had a good 'ol time! It was fun putting organizational skills to the test, and getting everything in there all snug :)

2- Cotton fields: increasing my allergy symptoms and glasses wearing! The fields are soon gonna be white, already to harvest!!!

3- We helped one of our investigators fix her flat tire! I'm not sure why people think the Sisters aren't much good for service (I think it's the skirts :P), but the member that came and helped get it patched up said "We got a couple of stout missionaries here! They broke them lugnuts like they was nothin'!" :D

 

 

Oh Sweet, Sweet Childress! - August 18, 2014

Howdy howdy family and friends! 

So, quick housekeeping item, the mission office can't forward our mail anymore, so you're going to have to send letters & packages, directly to me! So for anyone who's down for that my new address is: 

 

Sister Heather Ann Lagrosa

1305 Ave E NW 

Childress, TX 79201

Okay, now that the boring stuff is out of the way! CHILDRESS IS SOOOOO AMAZING!!! Except for the layout, it's set up like the 4 quadrants of a graph, there's Ave (Letters) going N and S on the Y Axis, and Numbered Streets going E and W on the X axis, so every address has an exact same address 3 other times! (So there's always a NW, NE, SW, or SE on every street address!) Craziness right?? But, it makes it pretty simple to get around, and no one even pays attention to addresses here, they all know landmarks lol! This cute little town is so amazing, it's a LOT bigger than I thought too, and I'm not going to lie, it's nice to be back in the country again -- we even cover some towns that don't even show up on the GPS!! 

It was a crazy time getting here (because the other Sister who left accidentally swiped the phone!) but we took a 2 1/2 hour detour to Amarillo, and we got a temporary one for a little). Sister Carroll is SO AMAZING! No other words to explain it! :P She's just out of training, and she is a fireball! We are having so much fun, and the work here is going SO well!! I don't know if I've ever fallen in love with a place so fast. I'm actually starting to talk a little funny now, in no other place I've served, have I been around so many people with their Texan accents! "Do what" "Fixin'" and drawled out vowels are saturating my vocabulary now! :P

Wow, so I don't even know what to say! The work here is going great! The little branch here, is fixin' to be a ward, it's growing a lot, and we have members coming out with us every day, and introducing us to their friends and family, and there is just such a good Spirit here in this town! It was weird going to only 3 hours of church on Sunday, but we had three investigators come who had never been before, and it was very spiritually uplifting. :)

My favorite part of last week was when we had a lesson outside in the tall grass, behind a trailer, looking over a field! It reminded me a little of Dexter (my first area), but it was also, just so peaceful, the Spirit was so strong, while we taught the plan of Salvation, I love it when the Spirit speaks more than we do in lessons. :)

Life is truly, truly amazing! The Lord's work is incredible, and I am awe-struck by everything I'm learning out here!! I barely have a second to take it all in!!!

I love you all!

With all of my heart,

Sister Heather Ann Lagrosa

Pictures!

1- Sister Carroll and I! :D We're pretty rad. 

2- We went fishing this morning!! 

3- We had a game with knocking numbered cups over with nerf guns and saying the 13 articles of faith. :D I'm getting them down! :P

 

 

 

 

Texas Twisters and Trails of Faith - May 27, 2014

Hello hello family and friends!

So you can't see it that well, but there were some really dark clouds back there, and I got to witness the convergence of two storm fronts yesterday evening! So luckily, with the libraries closed yesterday, you get to hear about it today!

 

Don't worry (mom) there wasn't actually a tornado, but it totally COULD have happened, and we were grounded safely inside the church for awhile, in case we did actually have a tornado. We lost some of our p-day and proselyting time, but it was really neat to see two cloud-fronts converge on each other, and I got to learn more about the weather!

 

Highlights this week consisted of me losing another bike race to my awesome companion, and remembering again why the word of wisdom is so great, while I was puffing some albuterol. :P But also, being in two congregations full time is really interesting. And since our YSA branch covers Midland AND Odessa, I can now officially say that all of the areas I've served in connect! ... even though it'll take you all day to drive through them haha!

The most amazing part of the week though was church, for sure! Having an overlapping hour is a little bit stressful, but the spiritual upliftment is wonderful, and I'm glad I was prepared last transfer to be able to handle it now.

There was a question posed in or gospel principles class that got me to thinking:

What does faith in the Lord Jesus Christ mean to you?

My immediate reaction was: What does it not mean to me!?!?! ...I was promptly annoyed with my answer, because that doesn't lead to any good conversation. But then I really got to thinking, and the realization that I had was amazing. My faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, it really DOES mean everything to me, it gives me purpose and CONFIDENCE in Heavenly Father and His perfect plan. Without Him I would never fulfill my potential. As we continued to discuss truth and the Spirit I thought more. Before I came to know my Savior I kind of wandered around picking and choosing what I thought was good and would fit... trying to find happiness, but it was really confusing... and there's a lot of junk in the world to try out. Since I've come to know my Savior I've learned I don't have to pick and choose, His truth is here in it's fullness, and He wants to give it to me FREELY! I have answers to ALL of my questions, in His time, and because it's been given to me freely, I now have a responsibility to share what I've received... and it might not be in the same way it was given to me, but I know, with all of my heart, might and mind, because of my faith in Jesus Christ, that it truly is by small and simple things that GREAT things are brought to pass. I'm a pretty special puzzle piece in the bigger picture of life, and He'll help me find exactly where I belong.

Alma 37: 6-7 and 2 Nephi 28:30 have been coming up a lot lately in lessons, studies and just in my thoughts, and it's really amazing how faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is that first principle of the gospel, the first principle in receiving the fullness of the restored gospel, because we really DO come closer to Him as we do those simple things like reading, praying and going to church. As we grow closer to Him, we have that desire in us grow to make and keep eternal covenants or promises with Him, and our hearts and minds reach a place where we are willing to receive help down that path that is sure, that Christ walked already for us.

The gospel is truly the good news!

I'm glad we get to chose to live it every day!

I love you all, keep searching for the Lord's hand in your life, and make sure you give Him thanks for all He does ;)

All my heart,

Sister Heather Ann Lagrosa

Chapter 11: Back to the Boonies! - August 11, 2014

Howdy Howdy family and friends!

Soooo, it's that time again, and transfer calls came this weekend. I'll be headed out of Midland, and I'm going all the way up to the panhandle of Texas! I'm really sad to leave, mainly because I've spent 6 months of my mission and I've had half of my areas here in Midland! But, there are no endings, only great eternal beginnings :)

But my new area is a little town (about the size of Monahans) called Childress, and my new companion is Sister Carroll! I've never met her, but I'm excited for the work we're going to be doing together! :D

I came up with some more numbers to map out a little bit of my mission, get excited. :P

I've served in 1 district (The Ft. Stockton District)

With 2 mission presidents (and 2 states! :P)

In 3 stakes, 4 zones, 5 towns, 6 mailing addresses, 7 moves, 8 areas, 11 transfers, and 14 companions... oh and 435ish ounces of peanut butter :P (I'm missing some numbers though haha)

Anyway, we had quite the week, it was busy, busy, with a few surprises!

We had district meeting outside, and dodged some of the sprinklers that were watering parts of the pavilion.

found this awesome street sign during our 16 miles on bike day!

(it is Stellar!)

And one of the members in YSA wore her Zebra pjs to FHE (notice the tail) :P It was a good excuse to get a picture since I'm leaving :P

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But yeah, missionary work is always fun and exciting!

It'll be weird going back to just 3 hours of church a week! But that'll be good. I got to bear my testimony this week in 1st ward and it was really amazing. I've been here awhile, so I don't know why my heart was pounding, there are a lot of new families that have moved in the past couple of months, so there were some new faces, but I talked mainly about faith, and how miracles are a direct result of having that hope for things that we can't see, but we know they are true... I bore testimony that I've witnessed many miracles the past 18 weeks I've been here, and the fact that I even spent 18 straight weeks in the same ward is a miracle haha, but it was good. I never did think I'd learn solidarity as a missionary, but it makes sense I guess I think about how being out here is really just edifying and re-edifying my faith, helping me to create and secure habits I'll be taking with me for the rest of my life! It's amazing being out here, it really is, and I love how we really learn and are built over time, as we look back we can see it, and as we look forward we can hope for it as well!

The gospel really is the good news, it gives meaning to everything in life, and I know that is truly amazing. I got a letter this week reminding me of something I used to say all the time: God is great, life is good, and people are crazy, just as they should be! :) That made me really happy, because, well, it's true haha, and also, it's comforting to know we're not alone sometimes. There's a lot we each can do.

I love you all, and I hope this week you find peace and love, more fully and deeply.

and some words from the prophets :)

Alma 37:46-47 "...so was [the way] prepared for [our fathers], that if they would look they might life; even so it is with us. The way is prepared, and if we will look we may live forever. And now, my son, see that ye take care of these sacred things, yea, see that ye look to God and live. Go unto this people and declare the word, and be sober. My son, farewell."

With all of my heart,

Sister Heather Ann Lagrosa

"Ask the missionari​es! They can help you." - August 4, 2014

Howdy Howdy family and friends!

I feel like this week has gone by so fast!!! We had a LOT happen this past week, I just can't remember it all, haha, I spent some time in Odessa on exchanges, with my Sister-- Sister Brown (she's brown, I'm brown, get it? :P) Haha, but yeah, it was a good time, and it was neat to work in someone else's area again, I've been in Midland for a LONG TIME! 

Not that I don't love it ;) Midland is so much fun, and I absolutely LOVE working in first ward, and with the YSA branch, we have truly been blessed!

We took some awkward District pictures, which is always a good time!

And we worked, HARD, this week! Not many people were outside, or interested in talking to us, but we still had a good time ,and made missionary work fun! :D

We've been working a lot with the members lately, getting them pumped up for the work, and I think the Lord used us this week to comfort some of those members who needed a little extra boost, I love it when you end up right where you need to be.

In the FHE lesson with the YSA's we talked about family, and it amazed me that we have quite a few members in the branch who are the only members in their families. And we also talked about how our ward/branch/congregation is our extended family, really and truly! That's why we call each other brother and sister! :)

But it was really good, and having that on my mind carrying over to this morning, at the baptism of the Robert's family (well, the dad and youngest daughter, their oldest girl was baptized a few months ago, and their mom will be baptized in the next few months too hopefully! :D), but I'm glad we got to go, even on p-day because it was really special, and the Spirit there was so strong. And family is really what the gospel is all about, it brings us closer to our families, and through God's Priesthood authority, we can be sealed together forever. That's pretty amazing, and the joy that that knowledge alone has changed that family, they've acted on their faith, and are taking steps forward to return together to live with Heavenly Father again.

Also, Elder Benbrook gave a little lesson while everyone was changing, and he gave me a new way to understand authority, he described it like this: You're speeding and a well-meaning ice-cream truck pulls you over to write you a ticket, you're not going to take it, he doesn't know anything! But if a ​lawyer pulls you over to write you a ticket, he knows the law, he wants you to be safe, but still no authority, so you wouldn't take the ticket! But if a state trooper pulled you over, he has the authority, so you have to pay that ticket! It was pretty cool, somehow it made things make more sense in my brain too. :)

Anyway I love you all! Stay classy, and don't speed! ;)

With all my heart,

Sister Heather Ann Lagrosa

p.s.

Sister Hoover and I are kind of like an old married couple, as we've been together so long, we love and annoy each other all the time, her allergies are crazy, so she's always got tissues on her, my back hurts all the time, so I walk funny sometimes, haha but we still manage to have some fun. :P

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