Charity. Los Chillos 12.14.15

HEY FAM!!

This week has been a lot of hard work and contacting.  We have found a lot of new people to teach which is exciting!  It has been interesting because a lot of these people have had mormon friends, or they knew someone that gave them a Book of Mormon... etc.  In fact, we found a family that had three books of mormon that their family members from the coast had given them.  Anyways this has helped me realize just how much it means to us missionaries when someone has had some type of positive contact with the church.  Seriously though, it makes our work so much easier!  People often make excuses not to share the gospel because the people they share with most likely "wont accept".  You know what?  they are probably right!  People most likely will not accept the gospel the first time they hear of it.  And probably not the second or third time either....however, i have seen that everytime they have some type of positive experience, related to the church of Jesus Christ, the Spirit will testify to them and soften ther heart.  Then, the next time they hear of it... they will remember that one positive experience they had, and be more willing to accept.  So... Be fearless!!  share the gospel with EVERYONE.  Live your life in a way that others will want to know the Christ whose name you wear on your heart.  Share, share, share the gospel.  Dont fear rejection. Simply do it.  In every way that you can.  It is a COMMANDMENT of The Lord, that we must follow.  And i know that if we all do, we can be wonderful instruments in The Lord´s hands.  

I have also been thinking about where my heart is. I have been trying to develop more charity. I was talking with my companion and we were realizing that someone who is charitable will always ask, "what can i give?" and then, after they have given much.... they will ask, "what MORE can i give?"  I feel that there have been many times where i have asked myself in my mission "What can i get from this"?  "How many baptisms can I have"?  How many new investigators could i have progressing this week"?  These questions are not unrighteous if our heart is in the right place as we ask them.  However, there are better questions that we can ask.  "How can i bless this family and help them change their lives"?  "How can i be a better instrument in the Lord´s hands, and accept His will for my mission"?  "How can i love these people more perfectly"?  "what MORE can i give"?  We have been asking ourselves this many times throughout this week.  What more can we give?  What more can we give to others, and more importantly, what more can we give to The Lord??  

I have learned that it is easy to love those that love you back.  Here in the mission it is easy to love those that accept our message and keep their commitments.  The challenge is learning to love others without expecting ANYTHING from them.  Christ knew that many would not accpet Him nor His atonement, yet He died for them anyways.  Because He knew and knows how to love perfectly. 

We are His hands here on earth.  There are many important things for us to do, but i feel that the most important among them is to love and serve God and His children.  

I am so infinitely grateful for my mission.  I love the work of The Lord.  

Hermana Neff 

Ok i forgot to share a funny thing that happened this week.  So we went to teach an investigator and she decided to show us how she kills her chickens..... So she took us out back to the chicken pen and lifted up every chicken to know which one was the chosen one to die.  Then she took us even further out back to the "machine."  When she said that we were going to the "machine" we thought it was like a guillotine type of thing.... turns out it was an aluminum cone stapled to a tree.  So she grabs the chicken and shoves the head through the cone, grabs her dull, rusty knife and SAWS the head off!  I think that must have been the slowest and most painful death for that poor chicken.  Five minutes later when we went back, the chicken was still there and her dog was licking the blood off its neck.  We decided that´s probably why we arent allowed to eat in the streets here in Ecuador.  

Have a great week!  Love you all! 

los chillos 12.7.15

My new comp!

HI FAM!!! 

This week has been soooo long and sooo good and i dont have much time again today so bear with me!  

Ok this Sunday was PERFECT.  It was stake conference and i was sitting there with my companion  when i looked outside in the hallway and saw FAMILIA SABANDO AND FAMILIA QUISHPE!!! We were all freaking out just so so so so happy!  And i got to see hermano mauricio quishpe get the priesthood which was SO SPECIAL!! I had no idea so i was literally shaking i was so happy to see them all.  I dont know if you guys remember them but they are two families that are so so special to me.  

Then after the conference i saw Christian Rosero!!! He is doing SO AWESOME.  Literally it just made me remember all the miracles i saw with these people here almost a year ago, and to see that they are still active and strong in the church was a huge huge blessing for me. And then on top of that i saw all of the members and less active etc. from selva alegre it was just so happy!  Such a happy day for me. 

And to top it off a family that we found on Thursday came to church!!  SUCH MIRACLES AND BLESSINGS!!  With Hermana McGill we are working so hard.  She is a really good missionary and we get along so well.  It has been weird being with a Gringa after almost a year of Latinas!  But i am getting used to and loving it.  

Really we have just been talking so much about how blessed we are to have served a mission.  I am learning SO MUCH!  I feel like these last few months have been pretty hard, bit really good for my personal growth, and now The Lord is giving us lots of miracles!  

The members of the ward are aweomse.  So so so helpful and always asking what THEY can do to help us.  I love Los Chillos!   

and i love you all!! Have a GREAT WEEK!!

Hermana Neff

guess where i am! 11.30.15

HI EVERYONE I HAVE NO TIME!!!!!

ok transfers..... i am no longer in riobamba.  i am BACK IN LOS CHILLOS!!!! I am so so so so so so happy you have nooooo idea.  So so EXCITED!!!  I am training a new hermana lider from UTAH Hermana McGill which is so exciting!  We are opening a sector called San Rafael so i am really just so happy and content.  

And we already had our first miracle!  We were walking over here to email and i saw a less active from one of my older sectors TAMBILLO.  And she gave us a reference of an hermana that is already in Alma of the BOM.... apparently missionaries taught her a long time ago.   So that was pretty cool!

Anyways i was really sad to leave Riobamba yesterday... there were a few tears shed....hahaha i came to love that place so so much )even though i wont miss the cold.  We saw miracles yesterday at church so i was a little bummed to be leaving at first,   But now i am so happy and excited to be back in Los Chillos!! 

Anyways i love you all soooo much.  Sorry i have no time but i hope you all have a WONDERFUL week.  

Hermana Neff 

11.23.15

{i am not actually sure if this is allowed...}

Hello family!  

first off... happy thankgiving this week and happy birthday BEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  i hope you have just the happiest birthday!  Are you 14 now??  

This week i dont have too much to share with you all.  Sorry!  We are working hard and finding lots of people to teach.  (lots of catholics)  And i am happy as always!  

This week we had interviews with President.  I think i was feeling a little doubtful of myself and my work.  He simply reminded me that the Savior is so patient with us! 

This transfer has been so great. Busy, but great. I have felt so so blessed to be with Hermana Peralta! I feel that when i have doubts and fears, she always knows EXACTLY what to say to me. I think that The Lord has answered a lot of my prayers through her. I think a lot of my doubts come from a fear that the work i have done here in the mission hasnt really made a difference, and then the question of have i truly been loosing myself in the service of God? I realized today that if i hadnt lost myself up until now, my mission would not have changed me for the better. And i feel so changed. And so incredibly greatful for what The Lord has taught me and what i know that He will surely teach me over the next few months. We truly find ourselves as we loose ourselves in the service of others. We are becoming disciples of Christ, and as we learn He is so aware of us and so incredibly patient. I am so infinitely grateful for His patience with me.

I copied and pasted what i wrote to the president this week so that you can understand a little better what i am feeling.  Really i just love and am so so grateful for the things that i am learning out here in the mission!  I will never be able to repay The Lord for all that He has given me.  

I hope that you all have a great week, remembering what you are grateful for.  We are so indebted to The Lord... sometimes it is overwhelming.  But He is so perfectly patient with us.  

I love you all so much.  

Hermana Neff 

tunguragua has been exploding all week...... 11.16.15

I wish i had more to say about this week!  There were some great moments and some harder moments too!  One of the harder moments was spending 4 hours in the sun with NO ONE to visit during divisions and getting terribly burned!  I have no idea what to do because even if i put sunscreen on, i still get burned! 

Our investigator that had a baptismal date for the 28th didnt come to church this week. I felt so sad and frustrated..... but i am trying to trust in The Lord and have faith that everything will work out!

We had divisions in Guaranda.  When i went two months ago to Guaranda, we found an investigator with Hermana Tello.  When i went this week, i had the opportunity to visit the same investigator and her and her chidren are getting baptized this week!  Such a sweet experience.  

I am doing GREAT.  Happy, content, and working!  

Oh please pray for our investigator Edwin. We are going to try to help accept baptism today so hopefully all goes well.  

Yesterday we watched the Restoration with some recent converts.  I love watching that movie because it reminds me of the sacrifices that the early saints of the church made and the power of the restoration.  We are so blessed to be a part of it.  

I LOVE YOU ALL!! 

have a happy week :)

Hermana Neff 

This is the oldest church in Ecuador!  I think it dates back to like 1582 or something like that..... 

CHIMBORAZO 11.9.15

Hi FAMILY!! 

First off.... HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANDY MY ANGEL AND BEST FRIEND!!!!! I miss you and i am dead that you are 10 years old! I Love you!! 

Ok so this week we had a leadership conference.  It was so so special!  President Christensen used an example with two cups.  He filled one with water and the other with ice.... and he shared the example of how we all need to be like water, conformable, and willing to conform ourselves to the will of the Lord.  When ice needs to turn to water (in order to conform itself to the shape of the cup) it needs the sun.  It needs light.  In our lives it is no different.  When we need to change our hearts from "ice-cold" to moldeable "water"  we need our light source, which is the Savior.  Only through the Savior can we be changed.  I am so grateful for the many ways that He has changed me in my mission.  The other night i was just thinking about how after this mission i feel that i have not repayed The Lord for anything, but rather, i am much more indebted to Him than i was before.

Yesterday i had a special experience with Paty and Nicole our recent converts.  Paty has been sick the last two weeks so they hadnt been to church.  My companion and I have been visiting a little bit less because we have had to travel so much for divisions and leadership conference.  Anyways she said to me yesterday, "Hermana, i want to tell you something.  Today Nicole and i realized that we are never going to leave the church."  She proceeded to tell me that earlier that day,  they were getting ready to go to church.  She said that she didnt feel excited to go at all.  Thay she was confused and doubting, but that she got in the taxi and went with Nicole. In the taxi they talked about how they just simply didnt want to go to church, and how they had never felt this way about church before (obviously  the adversary..)  Anyways she said that after church they walked out and said that they felt so renewed and happy and excited and at peace.  I was so grateful for a loving Father in Heaven!  Who helped my recent converts learn a lesson that will help them remain actives in the church for the rest of their lives.  I testified to them that there have been many times in my life when i havent felt the desire to continue either, but every time that i do, The Lord helps me feel His love, and helps me know that He is proud of me.  And those feelings are enough to make want to remain active in His church always.  

So we are teaching the nephew of paty.  His name is Edwin.  We really have had such a hard time figuring out why he wont accept baptism.  This week we FOUND HIS ICEBERG!! Finally.  In the lesson he was telling me that he wanted to have more of an anwser. So i asked him what blessings he has recieved in his life since he started attending church and reading the book of moromon (he is almost to mosiah). He told me that he has seen many differneces and has felt a lot of peace.  I testified to him in that moment that he HAS recieved an answer from the spirit.  And then i asked him "so what ELSE is keeping you from being baptized?"  and he told us!  He is afraid to be baptized without his dad.  FINALLY he told us!   And all it took was a simple and direct question.... guided by the spirit.  

We are also working with a reference from a member with her two sons.  They came to church this Sunday so we are hoping to help them make it to baptism this transfer!  Her name is Rosario.  

Anyways i am happy.  Just content as you all know!  This week we have two divisions so it should be pretty busy!  

Oh and TODAY WE WENT TO MY FAVORITE VOLCANO IN THE WORLD CHIMBORAZO!!!!!  I was so happy because there was SNOW!! I havent seen snow in SOO LONG. 

 But i am burned now because we were at one of the highest points on earth.  Chimborazo is the highest point on earth that extends from the center of the earth... i dont know if that made sense... but it was SO FUN.  I LOVE ECUADOR!  I am so lucky.  

LOVE YOU ALL!! Have a grrrrreat week

Hermana Neff   

So we went to a little Pueblito called licto.  We went to visit a contact there.... but we called him when we got there and he said that he had gone to save all his animals from drowning because it was going to rain... so we took advantage and took some pictures. So beautiful.  

CHIMBORAZO!!!

Disciples 11.2.15

HEY EVERYONE!  

This week has consisted of..... COLADA MORADA.  And if you all remember from last year, i am obsessed with the colada morada. It is so so delicious! And wa was de pan!! 

Ok first off I am so grateful that Hermana Peralta is my companion!  We are having so much fun together and finding lots of new people to teach.  I learned this week in preach my gospel that the spirit will lead us to the people who are ready to hear the message of the restored gospel.  It doesnt say that he will lead us to only those that will be baptized, but EVERYONE that is ready to hear the message of the restored gospel.  I have felt that so much this week!  We have met so many people that arent married, that work on sundays, etc. etc.  who are waiting for their papers until next year who i will probably never see be baptized BUT i could feel and see in the lessons with them that they needed the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.  What a blessing it is to be a missionary!

  

This week i especially loved this passage. I feel that The Lord has truly chastised me in certain moments throughout my mission, for which i am so grateful. Anways I looked at the footnote for"exercised" and it says "trained or disciplined"  I learned that to be a true DISCIPLE of Christ it takes DISCIPLINE!  I love what verse twelve says.  All the training, discipline, chastening that we will recieve in our lives is ultimately to make us better disciples of Jesus Christ.  It is to enable us to better "lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;"

 6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.

 7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?

 8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.

 9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?

 10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.

 11 Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.

 12 Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;

 

There is nothing better than just learning a sweet doctrine from the scriptures that we can apply in our lives! 

We had a halloween dance thing in a war this week.  It was fun.... and a little crazy.  Everyone dressed up and we had a contest for the best costume!  I love Latin America! 

i love the mission!

Hermana Neff 

Measuring Success: 10.26.15

FAMILY!!

Ok first off, i had the opportunity to listen to Garrison´s talk and it made me SO PROUD!!  The shout out made me weap so that was awkward in the internet café.... but i am so proud and excited for you!  The mission is the best thing in the world for our personal progression!  I love it and i know that you are going to be an excellent missionary filled with the spirit!    

This week has been great with Hermana Peralta.  There have been some harder and sadder moments... like when we had to drop a family that i really love, because they just wont attend church!  But there were also beautiful moments for me personally.  

With Hermana Peralta we have ventured to some areas a little bit farther away to do some contacting.  The sun has been SCORCHING here in Riobamba.  It is cold outside, but the sun is so so strong.  I put on 70 SPF sunscreenon Tuesday and still got burned.  The sector that we have been working in is called La Libertad. It is all dirt and dusty roads, cows, and the other day we saw a dog eating a donkey head on the side of the road..... bienvenidos a ecuador.   But Hermana Peralta and i have been enjoying ourselves!  It has been fun to give the people a little bit of contact with the church and we are hoping to see some progress!  

This week i learned a couple of things.  On Friday we were doing our comp inventory.  Before i start i should share with you all that something i have been trying to completely change about myself is my pride!  I have realized in my mission that i am a very proud person.  One way to change this is to want take critisism and want it more than praise.  So in comp inventory my companion (by the way i LOVE her we are getting along so welll!)  But my companion told me something that i can do better.  To be honest it stung a little bit and normally i would have been offended and tried to defend myself.  But in the moment that i started to feel bothered i thought (well i think that really the spirit whispered to me) "do i want praise or critisism?"  I thought about how i could accept this critisism and become a better person.... or i could justify and defend myself and not improve in the slightest.  I felt SO GOOD after i realized that!  If we constantly seek praise, we may feel good about ourselves our whole lives, but we will NEVER progress to become more like our Savior Jesus Christ.  It was such an exciting realization for me!  I love the fact that The Lord shows me my weaknesses.  Every night i write in my journal something that i am grateful for... and i have looked back and many nights in my mission i have written "i am grateful that The Lord shows me my weaknesses."  Sometimes it is discouraging because i feel that i have such a long way to go, but i know that He helps me!  And it gives me the opportunity to draw closer to Him.  

One thing that my companion is helping me improve is to simply not stress.  I am realizing that my whole mission, thought i have been happy, i have been a complete stress case!  And i realized yesterday that the majority of my stress comes from the fact that i MEASURE my success.   I am realizing that success in the mission simply cannot be measured,  If we try to measure our success we deny The Lord´s hand in our lives and His grace and mercy.... that makes up for our weaknesses and shortcomings.  I have realized that much of the success that missionaries have is success that simply cannot be measured nor seen by our mortal eyes.  It is success that is seen by The Lord alone.  We must trust in the fact that He sees the fruits of all that we do here in the mission field.... even if we cannot see them.  Realizing this has helped me feel so much more at peace and has helped me to just enjoy everyday so much more!  I love missionary work!  

We ponderized this week with my companion 2 Ne 25:29.  Faith in Christ.  I love Him.  

I love the mission! I am just so content and at peace with my decision to serve.  It is something that i will be grateful for my whole entire life.  

Have a great week!  

Read Cuidaos del orgullo!  Its by Ezra taft Benson and i have no idea how it is in english so look it up!  

LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!  

Hermana Neff 

wa wa de pan!! so delicious and tradition this time of year 

tunguragua exploded.  It wasnt even a big deal..... people here are so accustomed to volcanic explosions 

CUI Riobamba 10.19.15

HEY!!!!!

SO MUCH HAPPENED THIS WEEK I DONT KNOW WHERE TO START!! 

Ok so on Monday and Tuesday we went to Quito for the leaders conference and they talked a lot about changing the "mission culture."  Really there have been a lot of challenges in these past few months and we are trying to find solutions!  It was cool to see the spirit work in us as we talked with president and tried to come up with help for our mission!  

So it has been raining a lot in Quito and we got soaked on Tuesday.  On Wednesday i felt a little weird and on thursday i was really sick with a fever and sore throat.  Turns out it was strep....... blahhh it may possibly be the worst thing to have strep on your mission!  I was dying.  But i got some good antibiotics and i feel great now!! (oh also i recieved a priesthood blessing which was a major help) By the way a member here sent me home with coca cola and a lime and told me to drink the coke scalding hot and squeez the lime.  I was doubtful, but i tried it and.... miracle!!!  It was the BEST remedy and i felt 10000 times better.  I dont know how but these Ecuadorians are healers and i was so so grateful. 

On saturday Paty and Nicole were baptized.  It was such a special service! We were honestly so happy.  

^^paty and nicole. i love them!

{i know. i cant ever look like a normal unawkward human being in pictures with Ecuadorians.... i am far too tall.}

I dont know if you all remember but Paty and Nicole were the mom and daughter that had a tragic death in their family--- and because of it their whole family is knowing the gospel!  Hermana Costa and I sang "Jesus the very thought of thee".  The spirit was so strong!  After Paty and Nicole bore testimony of the changes they have seen in their life since they accepted the gospel.  Nicole (she is 13) talked about how grateful she was for us in helping her family find the gospel..... Hermana Costa and I were dying of happiness!!  

paty and nicole's confirmations:

Now we are teaching 2 more of their family members that we hope will get baptized this transfer!  

Hermana Costa finished her mission and now i have a new companion! I was so sad to see Hermana Costa leave because she was such a good companion to me.  We worked an taught great together, but now i am excited to be with hermana peralta!! 

She is an excellent missionary that doesnt have too much time in the mission, so i am going to be training her how to be sister training leader.  I did divisions with her last transfer and teased her that she would be the next hermana leader.... and i was right!  She is from Bolivia and makes me laugh all the time.  

I am so excited for this new transfer!  Time is flying way way too fast for me and i wish it would just slow down.  Sorry for the cliché missionary talk, but i really am understanding now just how wonderful it is to be a missionary.  I love it so much.  

This week i am ponderizing the scripture omni 1:26 (that talk was amazing wasnt it?) It talks about offering our whole souls to Christ.  I am trying to apply that in my life.  Offer my WHOLE soul to Him... that is, to accept His will in all things.  I am trying to accept His will for me and my mission.  Where He wants me to be, what He wants me to do, and how He wants me to do it.  

I LOVE being a missionary.  I am so happy and at peace to be here at this time.  It is the greatest blessing that The Lord has given me.  

I love you all! 

Hermana Neff 

ps i ate CUI!! o sea, guinea pig!!!!!  and it was SO SO DELICIOUS!! Tell the gisele to feed her guinea pigs a lot so that they are nice and fat when i get home...... je je 

one of the recent convert families we visit ^^

 one of our last pictures together :(

^^ CHAMBO I LOVE YOU

 ^^ a usual sight in ecuador ^^

i love our zone!

my two favorite things.  missionary work and food 

^^ its that time of year... wa wa de pan

Riobamba. 10.12.15

sorry but i dont get tired of this!! I have the prettiest area! 

CHAMBO. here live 6 of my favorite investigators!  

hermananas! 

one of my favorite ecuadorian dishes.   encebollado.  

this was my real reaction.  I loooove ecuadorian food!!!  

AHHHH I WROTE YOU ALL A LONG EMAIL AND IT GOT DELETED AND I AM SO SO MAD!!!!!

ok well i will just tell you in short 

patty and nicole are getting baptized this week! Pray for them! 

I helped a member realize that he needed to keep the sabbath day holy and i was scared to do so... but he told me after that it really helped!

ahh you dont know how madddddd i am right now!!! 

Ok but love you all and i am so sorry for this TOTALLY LAME email this week.  

hermana neff