Semana Santa (Holy Week)

This week was HOT! We were literally sweating showers of water. I am going to be so grateful for the snow and fall when I get home. Right now I´ve missed one winter and will miss another and have to wait for the next one after my mission! That´s crazy! So this past Friday we had the baptism of Nixon. He´s a pretty big guy so when the baptismal clothes didn't fit him we spent the next 2 hours running around calling people to see who had clothes that would fit him. When we finally got the clothes it was so late and when we finally left the church the AP´s showed up with the ZL´s. Turns out they wanted to meet some of our investigators so we went and showed them around. It was just a really stressful day on Friday due to the clothes but all was well after that! Then on Saturday we had the Women´s conference! Except it was in Spanish so I was able to enjoy most of it but the new missionary in our district Hermana Peterson didn´t understand anything. I tried to translate a little but that didn't happen so we just sat there in the church with our top ramen noodles in a cup and it was basically the best thing of my life! I loved how they talked about serving other people and how we need to look beyond ourselves!

So we have this investigator named Mario and he has gone to church two weeks in a row and I have had the opportunity to see him grow and change. When we first met him he was like "I´ve never been baptized because none of the churches interested me and I´ve been to a lot but this and that and this, so I guess I´ll hear your message I like to talk about Christ with people" So we taught him about the Restoration and invited him to church. But he didn't go! So we we passed his house and we were like " why didn't you go to church? You promised us." and then he got offended and started to argue with us and then I got frustrated and started to argue with him but my sweet comp. had patience and we visited him that Saturday and we thought " ok, if he doesn't come to church, we´ll drop him" BUT HE CAME!!! So we gave him a book of Mormon and he loved the church and how everyone was reverent and everything but wanted to hear more from the Bishop. Also this one girl gave a talk on Adam and Eve and after he had so many questions so we taught him The plan of Salvation and every lesson since he´s changed a little and we just taught him the Word of Wisdom and HE testified of what we said and was like "Yeah, our bodies are a temple and we need to keep them clean" So he has made goals to stop drinking coffee! He is seriously one of my golden investigator. I cannot believe that I was like " we need to drop him, he´s not that positive" Now we laugh and we can talk about the gospel and he really wants to change his life around and follow Christ!

I love a scripture that says "There is more joy and rejoicing in the heavens for one sinner that repents than 99 that need no repentance" I love that because it´s like a " YOU CAN DO IT!" It shows that we all need repentance and through Jesus Christ we can become a little bit better!

Love you all -

Hermana Partridge

Here is my companion and Hermana Peterson. Hermana Peterson is the really white one. Elder Olsen is in the background creepin.

 

Nixon's Baptism

New Area/New Companion: Semana Santa, Parasites, Miracles, Managua and More!

This is last weeks post:  Yep, I`m in Rivas with Hermana Gilbert who just left her training and she has one month less than I do and I`m Hermana Lider.  Ooops nope, I`m Hermana Mayor not Hermana Lider. She's from Utah Kaysville and she`s awesome!

This week's post:
OH MY LANTA!! This week was insane! So Sunday night on the 13 we recieved a call saying that Hna Gilbert and I needed to go to Managua to get her Cedula which is like a Visa but Managua is 4 hours away by bus! So Monday morning we got up at 4:30 and left on a bus FULL of people at 5:30 and when I say it was full I mean that every seat was taken and that we were tightly squeezed together standing so I stood for 3.5 hours straight and about an hour into the trip a man offered my companion his seat which was very nice of him. We got to Managua and had to wait 7 hours in immigration for her Cedulla and then took a bus back to Rivas and we stopped to eat at a place and then went to write but the whole day I kind of felt "car sick" which never happens to me but my stomach was seriously feeling weird. So after we wrote I was like "Hermana Gilbert my stomach hurts so much.....I think I´m going to puke" but we still went to work but half way though the night I had to sit down on a curb because I was seriously going to puke and after 2 min a man came up to us with cigarettes and we started to teach him the Word of Wisdom and he accepted a baptismal date and then while my companion was talking to him a girl came up to us and said that she wanted to stop smoking and drinking so I taught her the Word of Wisdom and she accepted a baptismal date and then she told us her cousin was baptized and he´s a less active that my companion has been trying to find for 3 months and then out of nowhere she was like "There he is right there" and pointed to a teenager and we waved him over and we got to talk with him! Seriously it was a night of Miracles! BUT at 8:30 we returned to the house because I was not doing so hot. So I layed down for about an hour and I woke up at 9:30 and puked......I puked for the first time in over 10 years! Let´s just say I´m grateful that it took that long up until now. But seriously I was having some bad diahrea with my companion the day before and the same day so the next day we called the Nurse and she told us to take a poop test. So we went and had a poop test and we both had two parasites. So we started to take medicine after that and I´m doing so much better right now! 

Then on Wednesday I hit my 6 month mark! I cant believe it!!! But while we were working we made so many bathroom breaks!

Then on Thursday we had a Multi Zona and so we had to wake up at 2:30 to go to Managua and we heard some great things from President about being a better missionary and how there´s a difference between a consecrated missionary and a bad missionary. Then at 5 we left and had another 4 hour ride to Rivas and didn't get back until 8:00 and worked for a half an hour and then went to bed.

So on Sunday we had three investigators come to church when last week we had 7!! We have to complete every week with 7 but this week was just 3 and so we were kind of down the whole day but it was good because they loved the church! Then we ran out of toilet paper!!! DUN DUN DUHHHHHH! So we used paper from our notebooks. Let me just say it´s better than using our hands. Also everyone here is practically catholic. We have this huge cathedral here and I keep thinking of the movie Notradam.

This coming week is Semana Santa which is the hottest week of the year here! Pray for us that we don't die of dehydration because that´s a problem here because of how much your sweating.

Also why didn't anyone tell me that Snape died!!!? I would have liked to know that! Anyway back to this week.......

All in all it was a good week. My companion is really good at finding the little miracles and tender mercies here and there. 

This week is I CAN DO IT!! We need to look forward with a positive attitude 

WHY I CAN'T. --> WHY CAN'T I??

Set in stone, can't change. --> Hope, Possibility of change

Change the way you feel!

Love you all! 

Hermana Partridge

Now Is The Time For Change

So usually in the mission you only have 2 MAJOR problems to worry about.

1. Getting attacked by a dog and bitten (happens a lot)

2. Getting attacked by a drunk or sober and robbed (happens a lot)

So this week past week I got attacked............by a dog. It wasn't that exciting actually. So the Bishops dog that´s vicious is usually tied up in the back where I wash my hands and I went back there to wash my hands and I was just about to wash my hands when I saw the dog....and then I saw he wasn't tied up......and I thought "Ah crap" and then the dog started to bark and ran right to my leg and started to nip at me and the Bishop's wife came running out when she heard the barking and by this point the dog had already bitten my foot. Luckily it didn't hurt and there wasn't blood. It was great!

Other than that this week was pretty chill and normal! This week is changes and I think I´m going to leave my area because I´ve been here for 5 months. Who knows maybe I´ll go to Granada the hottest place on earth. This month is Semana Santa, a week of the month where it is the hottest and seriously people tell me that people die in the street because of how hot it is. If missionaries in Granada are getting sick from the heat right now, I can't imagine what it could be like this month. I´m excited though, maybe I´ll have changes and have a new area with a new companion, new exciting things! But I´m really going to miss my companion Hermana Perez, she has seriously been there for me through the hard times and has helped me be a better missionary! I love her so much!

I put the title Now is the time for change because we can't just stay in one place our whole lives, we have to move forward and get out of our comfort zone to grow and learn! Don't be afraid of change because through change and discomfort the Lord can mold us into what he wants us to be.

Today I want to share a scripture with you in D&C 123 verse 22.

 22 Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and be exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into singing. Let the dead speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the King Immanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable us to redeem them out of their prison; for the prisoners shall go free.

Isn't that just great! I love this scripture! Keep fighting forward toward Christ and don't let anything get in the way! Love you all!

Hermana Partridge