Transfers

Hi!!

I am doing awesome! I am a little sad because we have transfers tomorrow, and it's time for me to leave El Rio :(. It's really hard saying goodbye to so many people I know and love so much!! But change is good, and I am excited! I am going to be transferred to the eastern part of Tucson and will be with 4 other sets of missionaries in the El Dorado ward. Usually there are not that many sets of missionaries in a ward, but a lot is changing to prepare Tucson for a new temple, so they are changing around a bunch of stake boundaries. It's really exciting and a bit stressful though because we have way too many Spanish missionaries right now for the amount of areas we have! In a few months things will change because a huge group of Spanish missionaries is leaving in January!

I am getting a new companion tomorrow! Her name is Hermana Dominguez! She's super awesome, and I have already been on exchanges with her since she was my STL last transfer. Hermana Anderson and I are just switching places which doesn't usually happen. That also means that I will be companions with another STL this transfer which is great, because I will get to go on exchanges and spend time with a bunch of the hermanas in my Zone! Also Hermana Budge just got made into an STL, so that's exciting for her! Hermana Dominguez is super hard working and really great missionary, so I am sure we are going to have a great time together. I am a bit sad though because she leaves in January, so I get to kill her (send her home)! I am going to really miss Hermana Flake a lot, but that's ok because most likely we are still in the same district!

This week we have been doing a lot of finding and just kind of organizing everything before I leave and Hermana Flake takes over the area. This week we found 8 new investigators and we only were able to keep one because the rest were either English or in the biking elders area. That’s ok work is work and at least we are helping others out!

We have also found some really amazing families to teach these last couple of weeks, and it is really exciting because the Spirit has been really strong in all of our lessons. One of the families we are teaching is very strongly Pentecostal, but they've let us in a few times because we helped them clean out their house when they were moving in a few weeks ago on the way to try visiting some formers. It's crazy what just little acts of service do, because a few weeks later we were able to start teaching them a little bit. Then yesterday we taught them the restoration, and I don't think I have ever felt the Spirit so strongly during the restoration as it was yesterday in their home. It was really beautiful, and I was almost in tears. They all thought it was very beautiful and could feel the Spirit teaching them.  We invited them to pray to know if it is true and even the son who we thought wasn't really paying attention told us he would pray and knew that he would know it was true through the Holy Ghost which is awesome! Hopefully Hermana Flake and Hermana Anderson will be able to stop by tomorrow or Wednesday to see how it went!

Our other progressing investigator Juana who has a baptism date for the 18th of December was able to come to church yesterday! She really loved it and had a lot of good questions. We are also excited because she is starting to let us come and visit her during the weekdays rather just on Sundays. It's an answer to our prayers! We are super excited for her and her progress. I am super grateful I will be close enough to go to her baptism this coming month! We were also finally able to meet her son yesterday. She absolutely adores him and is always telling us how sweet and amazing he is, so it was good to finally meet him ourselves. He definitely radiates with the light of Christ, and I am super excited that they are going to be able to start teaching him. We don't know how interested he is right now, but hopefully as his mom gets closer to baptism he will be! I am really sad to be saying bye to Juana. She is just super amazing and so in tune with the Spirit. I don't think we go one lesson without one of us crying, because we feel it so strong. She's super sweet, and I will send a picture of her next week.  We are going over their tonight to say goodbye.

This past transfer has been super awesome because I have been focusing a lot on learning how to recognize the Spirit and teaching more like the Savior taught. It's been really fun because right now we are working on using silence as a way to help our investigators feel the Spirit stronger along with asking inspired questions. It just kind of hit me this week that usually when Jesus is teaching someone and they ask Him a question He almost always responds with a question back. I love that, because it really gives the people you are teaching a chance to think and ponder for themselves. Today I was studying the story of the Samaritan Women at the well and how after she had met Christ she went to the city and called all of the people to come and see the Savior. My favorite part is in John 4:42 I think, where it says that they all knew for themselves that He was the Christ and not just because the women told them who is was. I really like that because it reminds me that I can teach people and answer their questions myself, but I can't gain a testimony for those I am teaching. That's their agency and they have to use it to come and know for themselves if it's true!

I am not sure what I am doing for Thanksgiving. Hermana Flake and Anderson have like 4 dinners to go to that day, but since I am leaving who knows! I wish I could be there with you all and to be completely honest I am a little worried to see how Hispanics do Thanksgiving haha, but I am sure it will be fine!

I love you all a lot! I hope you have a good week!

Love,

Hermana Burgoyne