Called to Serve! Hermana Mikayla Davis, Asuncion Paraguay: November 2018

Well this week was super super insane!!!!!!

Okay so we had cambios and we were waiting for the colectivo. It came late so I was panicked a little bit because we had to be in offices at a certain time to be able to have a meeting before we met our new trainees. So we finally got there and first I got to meet Hermana Jardines parents!! It was so much fun to see her get to see them for the first time after 18 months.

And then Presidente called me and told me he needed to talk to me. So I went into his office and Hermana fife was there. So we sat down and Presidente looked at us and told us that WE WERE GOING TO BE COMPANIONS!!!! So we started crying as we hugged each other and we were freaking out. He told us he prayed and he felt that without a doubt that we needed to be together in Fernando de la Mora. So guess who is still an Hermana leader, with her kid, in the place she started her mission!!! This Hermana!!! God really does answer prayers.

But we got to Fernando and it was so insane being back here. We got to go visit some members and seeing Amelia and Arami and Eder was the best!! Presidente had already called Amelia and so she knew. I wanted it to be a surprise was por lo menos Arami and Eder didn't know and they were surprised to see me. It was a lot of fun. We got to see Juan and a lot of other members. We got to work and being in white wash is super fun. Even though I still remember some what the area. All the people we have are new and all the people I was working with, well we aren't anymore jaja so its super awesome to see who got baptized while I was gone and who maybe its there time now to be baptized. I love it. And I am having a ton of major flashbacks to my training being here and being with my hija!!

Its literally so much fun and its super funny because Hermana Fife has never been in the city so the way she works is funny because she isn't use to it. We went to contact someone and in the campana you can be like hey can we come in and pray with you and get to know you and they are like sure come on in and then they will talk to us for hours. But in the city it is very different and so we went to talk to someone and Hermana Fife was just like can we come in and the lady was like no I hate Mormons more than I hate anything you teach lies and you praise sinners and all sorts of stuff. She was very rude the lady and didn't even want anything to do with us. Hermana Fife was very shocked and didn't know what to do. But I felt the spirit and I started asking her questions and we started talking to her. It threw me back to how I would work in my training and at the end of the contact she invited us back to talk to her more. It was fun to see Hermana Fife be thrown into city working jaja but she is gonna do great. And its funny because the members are like wait I think I've seen you before. And I'm like yeah its cause I was here a year ago but I couldn't speak Spanish. Its so awesome.

This week we have worked really hard to show presidente that his decision and revelation to put us together was a good idea. Its all revelacion but still he said that we are the power team and we need to prove it. This week I had had one of the best weeks in the last 6 months of my mission. We were able to find lots of new people and we were able to invite people to be baptized and have Margarita come to church. She is preparing to be baptized next week on the 8 so that is super fun. We also got to go to consejo de lideres and it was so much to be there with Hermana Fife. She is so great and I got to be with 3 of my 6 companions all day. We were able to learn how to be better and it was super awesome. Presidente gave us a ride home too so that was fun. We started working again and I just am loving it!

Also for thanksgiving we ate Kraft Mac n Cheese THANKS MOM AND DAD!! It literally was sooooo good I cant even tell you guys how much we enjoyed that!! And I also gave a talk in church yesterday and it was so fun and all the members came up to me and told me wow its so awesome that you can speak Spanish now because before you couldn't speak to save your life but now look at you jaja. It is super fun to be back here.

I just want to thank each and everyone of you for your support and for your prayers. I can testify that God answers prayers. He hears us and wants to help us but we have to be willing to do our part. I know that if we can trust in him and exercise our faith we will find miracles in every detail of our lives. I testify that is true. I love everyone of you!! Thanks for everything!!

Get ready for a lot of photos. There was so much more I wanted to send but I already sent a ton so that's okay. Its been amazing to say the least

To Heaven and Back!

Hermana Davis

Wow this week so much stuff happened I hope I can remember everything.

First okay we had intercambios with Caaguazu Rama 3 and I went there with Hermana McDougal! She is super awesome I love her tons. But when we got to Caaguazu we were waiting in the terminal for the Hermana's. And we waited and waited and they never came. So we decided to call them and it turns out that they had tried calling us but our phone never said we missed a call. But Hermana McDougal had pike and Hermana Ostvig was trying to get it out. So we went to their house and right as we got there, after an hour and a half and fighting pike they finally got it out. So we were like awesome this intercambio is gonna be good we got all the bad stuff out of the way.

So we were on intercambios and everything was going great until we get a call from the Hermana's. Well we were in a lesson so we called them after and it turns out that my companion, Hermana Galeano had fainted.

Well... So I don't (want) them to go home and we got that all situated. So we thought well what else is gonna happen today. Never ask yourself that. We got back to the apartment that night and as we got home it started to rain and a huge storm hit. We were fine until we started to go to bed. It was extremely hot and around midnight the power went out in the whole city. There was so much lightening and thunder it looked like a light show and a concert or something. But it was about 100 degrees in our house. So we waited for what seemed like an hour (it was probably only 30 minutes) and the power came back on. We finally went to bed but the next morning, to our surprise, our apartment on the third flood was completely flooded with a good 3 to 4 inches of water. How I do not know. Well I do. The apartment has two balconies and they both were flooded and so everything seeped through the windows and doors and walls. So we got to work to try and clean out all the water. It took us 3 hours but the whole time it was still raining so it continued to flood. We had to go back with the other Hermana's to finish intercambios. So after moving everything in their apartment we headed back. We got there and my companion was super sick still. So we finished intercambios and the other Hermana's left.

I was there with Hermana Galeano and we were under house arrest. She wasn't allowed to leave by Hermana Hansen's ruling. So she went to bed and I caught up on my journal and other things that I had been putting off for a very long time. It was good because I have also been sick for the last 2 weeks or so. I have bronchitis. Okay so that now leads us to Thursday when I had 15 months on the mission. Oh its so sad how much time I have because that means I am closer and closer to going home. But it was a great day because we got to take a colective with Zona 7,8,9 and head to Asuncion to meet Elder Gong.

The bus ride was awesome as I got to talk to Hermana Ostvig and Hermana Jardine the whole time. It was super fun. We made it to Pinoza and Got ready to take a picture with Elder Gong then individually got to meet him. I also got to talk to his wife and it turns out she has family that lives close to me jaja. Small world.

But then we got to listen to some talks. One by a member of the 70 who lives in Fernando de la Mora, and his wife. Then a member of the Presidencia de Sudamerica Sur and his wife and then Hermana Gong and then Elder Gong. It was so awesome.

Their talks were very inspiring and the spirit was so strong. Elder Gong talked a lot about how God will use our talents we have to bless the lives of other people if we let Him. And also the power of listening to the Holy Ghost and to other people. I also liked that he talked about the will of the Lord and how we don't know what the Lord has in plans so we have to trust in Him. And how our companions should be loved and served because they are helping us for our future. Oh my goodness there were so many great things he talked about. I wish you all could have been there. After we went to the offices to have a meeting with the mission. I got to talk to my hija again!! It was so much fun to spend time with her. I translated again for Hermana Hansen but things got a little crazy when we had lots of Hermana's who were sick and throwing up. As their Hermana leaders we were running around trying to get everything worked out and help them feel better.

But then we were finally able to make it back on the bus for the 5 hour drive home. We were partying it up again as we talked and hung out on the very packed bus. We finally made it home at around 9_30 and we were so tired we just got ready for bed. On Friday we were under house arrest again as the trip took all the energy out of the Hermana Galeano. So I woke up and planned by myself and did my personal study and my language study while my companion slept. It was weird jaja. But I did finish the Book of Mormon again and I just want to testify the truthfulness of this book. IT IS TRUE. It is another testimente of Jesucristo. It is sacred scriptures given to us by the power of God through ancient profetas in the American continents. I know that every page testifies of our Savior and that anyone, I repeat anyone, will become closer to God through reading this sacred book. I encourage all to do it. Read everyday, and when you finish write your testimony down and then start over! It is one of the biggest blessings in my life.

Anyways after my studies I again caught up on some stuff. I wrote notes for some of the Hermana's because I had the feeling I was leaving this cambios. Well I was about 200% positive. Which by the way we did have receive cambios. But let me tell you about Saturday and Sunday first. Cant get ahead of myself.

Saturday we were also in the house and I wrote letters and caught up on my journal writing. I watched the Testamente movie like 5 times. I also got completely packed. On Sunday I was excited because I thought I was going to be able to say goodbye to almost all the members I wanted to at church. But it rained super, super, SUPER hard and no one came to church. So that was fun. We had a great relief society class that consisted of the 4 missionaries here and then we had Gospel Doctrines with the elders and the other 2 members that were there. By the time sacrament came around there was about 15 of us maybe jaja. We went home after and Hermana Galeano rested some more so that we were able to go say goodbye to a few people.

So for cambios I have been in Coronel Oviedo for 6 months. It has been a wild ride as I have learned so much and come to love the people here even though it is a little harder of an area. Not because it is a bad area but because there is a lot of work that is in need of being done. I had the privilege of being here with my mom and best friend Hermana Robinson and then had the chance to gain new best friends in the Hermana Gomez and Hermana Galeano. But now its time to learn and grow even more.

Okay so cambios. I thought for sure I was going to stay an Hermana leader but God had other plans. I am going to train another new missionary in what is called a white wash. Which means we are going to be in a brand new area that neither of us have been. But its not true because I am going back to Fernando de la Mora which is where I started my mission!! I am so stoked.

I know God answers prayers because I have been praying to go back to Fernando de la Mora with my hija. I was just not expecting to get another hija jaja. But I love the mission!!! Next email is going to be super crazy!!!!

To Heaven and Back!

Hermana Davis