A 911 Call from the Chapel

Hello people!

No crazy weather story this week but I do have a scary story! Saturday afternoon we drove to our chapel to do studies alone until our next lesson that was close by. Keep in mind our chapel is in one of the most dangerous cities in Virginia so there is a huge electric gate around it. As we are pulling in we see a police officer opening the gate. We pull up next to him and he tells us there has been a 911 hang up call from the chapel. So we open up the church building for him and walk in behind him. All the lights were off and everything was dead silent. The cop is walking in slowing holding onto the gun on the side of his right hip and we are tip toeing behind him completely terrified. We check all the rooms and there is no one in the building. He checks and finds out that the call is coming from our bishops office which is locked. We never found out who it was but we did NOT do studies in there. 

As we were all leaving the building I remembered that I made a new personal goal to teach every person I meet a brief explanation of a principal of the restoration and compare it to something that relates to them. So I run over to his car as he's getting ready to leave. We invited him to church and explained the importance of the priesthood by relating it to the authority he has as a cop. Just like police officers have the authority to check a church building, arrest, give speeding tickets there is also a need for some kind of authority when performing sacred ordinances like baptism and confirmation. And how through a prophet named Joseph Smith that authority is once again on earth. It's always fun to think of new approaches to teaching strangers.

PLOT TWIST: when you find out your investigator is already a member of the church after 2 months of teaching them... Flower is a member! We found out yesterday... just a week before her baptism. Let me explain, Flower said she was baptized when she was 12 but never confirmed in the LDS church. The bishop and his counselors looked everywhere for her church records and couldn't find them anywhere so they came to the conclusion that she was never confirmed therefore, she needed to be rebaptized. Yesterday we were in the bishops office talking about her baptism when we noticed they had been missing information. The bishop checks on a church website again with the new information and there we see Flower's record meaning she was a baptized and confirmed member all along. Woops.

But it was crazy because earlier this week we got a referral for a young man in his early 20s who came here from Peru only a week ago. He was taking the missionary discussions in Peru and is SO prepared. He also has family members in our ward who are members of the church! We taught him twice this week and he is already so prepared! It's such a blessing!

I turned 20 yesterday! Thank you all so much for your birthday wishes. I woke up to a decorated desk designed by Hermana McCracken. After church we had dinner with the Incredibles. They made me tallarines verdes (my favorite Peruvian dish), I got to open gifts they got me and we ate a tres leches cake. Then we went to have a lesson with another family and they got me a cake as well!

ALSO!!!!! BEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT EVER! Last night president called and said Elder Ballard of the 12 Apostles is coming to our mission and wants to meet all of us leaders (STLs, Zone Leaders and APs) personally! So we are meeting him at the DC temple visitors center this week along with the leaders of the DC North mission! I AM SOOO FREAKING EXCITED!!!!! I can't wait to tell you how it goes next week!!

Love you all, have a wonderful week and happy Memorial Day! (The DC metro area is PACKED this weekend. Traffic is TERRIBLE!)

Hermana Tapia

Tornados, Lightening & Investigator Finding

Hollaaa todos!

In case you haven't heard, we had a tornado Monday night. At least that's what everyone was telling us (missionaries can't see the news). We were on our way to a restaurant to meet up with a less active when suddenly dark clouds spread out across the clear blue sky and rain started pouring down like I have never seen before. You could barely see the cars or road! Luckily we were close to the restaurant so we got there and ran inside. The wind was SO strong and everything was flying around. We stayed in the restaurant till the storm calmed down. The less active didn't show up because he was scared to drive in the storm. The people at the restaurant were updating us on the tornado. I didn't see it but apparently it was in the city right next to us. Did all of this stop us from going to our next appointment with Nefi and his wife? Nope! Hahaha! I know you will all think I'm crazy but we got to their home safe, had a great lesson and made it home safe so all is well! God protects his missionaries and some people are worth driving through a storm for. :) Speaking of Nefi and his wife, they are incredible, coming to church and progressing so much!

Starting Monday we had lightning storms all week long and we didn't see the sun till yesterday! It was a dark and gloomy week but we had so much success in finding new people to teach and meeting with those we are already teaching. There is a recent convert here who was baptized in February who refers EVERYONE she knows to us. I am not even kidding. We are literally teaching her husband, sister, cousin, nephews, sister-in-law, brother in law and this week she referred us to her best friend. We met her and her two children on Saturday and they came to church yesterday and even stayed all 3 hours. That is RARE. 3 hours of church is overwhelming for a new person that has yet to find their own testimony but she is so willing to learn and understand. It's incredible.

The referrals came prouring down as hard as the rain! We also had 2 dinners this week where members invited their non-member relatives to join us and we ended up teaching them. An older couple had their Chilean friend join us for dinner and he is amazing and also so preapred. A less-active Peruvian hermana had her Mexican boyfriend join us for dinner Friday night and we got along so well with him, he is also willing to learn more. The most powerful lessons we have start with just showing people that we are NORMAL (sort of) and showing genuine intrest in them and their lives. It starts with finding small ways to serve them and helping them feel of God's love. That has not only lead to friendships with investigators but with strong members as well who now trust us and love us enough to teach their loved ones.

This reminds me of Ammon in the Book of Mormon. He is the perfect example of serving others and loving them into the gospel. Ammon was this incredible missionary that would travel anywhere the Lord needed him to preach the gospel. When he gets to this place called the land of Ishmael he realizes very quickly that the people want nothing to do with him or his message. He is taken to their King to be punished. But he literally asks to become the SLAVE of their King. So the King is super impressed with him and well... lets him become his slave. You'll have to read Alma 17-18 to find out how it is done but Ammon ends up becoming such a great slave that the King ends up converting and the land of Ishmael becomes a peaceful land. All because Ammon chose to serve them and humble himself enough to become a slave. I have found as a missionary that service can often be the most powerful way to share my testimony and has lead me to see miracles.

The new transfer started this week so we had lots of meetings and took many group pictures. Here's a run down of the first week of a new transfer:

• Transfers: Event where missionaries go to switch companions for the new transfer. There is lots of luggage carrying, goodbye hugs and this is where we meet the brand new missionaries as well. It lasts normally about half an hour.
• Zone Kick-off: Meeting where you get together with your individual zones. We make transfer goals, get to know each other and talk about important dates coming up.
• MLC (Mission Leadership Council): This is strictly for mission leaders. We get together at a chapel normally but this time it was in the mission home! The STLs, Zone leaders and AP's get together with the president and his wife to discuss needs of the mission and prepare to train at the next zone conference. It's always super spiritual and great!

It's been a busy first week of the transfer and we have zone conference this week so it's been great! More on that next week! Love you all, have a great week! Los quiero mucho!

Hermana Tapia

What's 18 divided by 2?

Buenas tardes!

My 9 month mark is in two days and I feel like I just got here yesterday... ANYWAYS, I am basically the happiest girl in the world for the following reasons:

• This week was incredible!
• The people we are meeting and teaching here are INCREDIBLE and progressing so so much!
• I am staying in Sudley as an S.T.L. with Hermana McCracken another transfer!!!
• I got to see my brothers and Momma yesterday over Skype for Mothers Day and they are happy, healthy and SO DANG CUTE! The youngest recognized my voice and would stare at my face on the screen and smile/giggle. I DIED! I am so grateful the Lord is watching over them while I am here. Only He knows how hard it is for me to be so far from them. He is definitely providing the blessings promised in D&C 31.

I NEED to share an amazing experience I had this week. We are teaching a young and very special young woman, "Moon". Moon and I have very similar conversion stories, it is almost mind blowing! She was introduced to the church at a young age by her best friend and was taught by Elders and ALMOST got baptized. The difference between our stories is that her parents never gave her permission to be baptized, they told her she had to wait until she was 18. It was hard for her but she continued to go to church and mutual with her best friend. Over the years for many different reasons she had to stop going. The missionaries lost contact with her a while ago when she suddenly became uninterested in the lessons. She is 18 now and we just so happened to find her! We have had two lessons with her but the lesson this week was amazing. She shared her story about how hard it is to go to church alone, her fear of being the only member in her family and how no one understood her. I was like "Hm... I think I kinda know what that's like..." hahahha! I shared my experience and explained how being a faithful member of the church even though my parents aren't has actually STRENGTHENED my relationship not only with God but with my parents as well. I also shared all the miracles I have seen being a member and preparing to serve a mission. Moon literally said, "Dang girl, you should write a book." Hahahaha! It was the perfect timing and the perfect place. She opened up so much to us and is now one of our best friends. All I can say is Heavenly Father's plan is SO perfect. If you feel lost, if you feel lonely, if you are going through a hard time DO NOT give up. He knows what He is doing and one day you will look back at the hardest time in your life, see how much it has helped you and why it needed to happen. And miraculously enough, it will have the power to help someone else. Isn't that what the Atonement is all about? Christ willingly felt all our pain and all our sins so we wouldn't have to do it alone. It is a privilege to be that support for someone else.

"Brothers and sisters, all of us at one time or another have or will feel lonely, sick, depressed, poor, or far from home. Thankfully, we have an Eternal Father and a Savior who understand us. As we go to Them, They will take us by the hand and help us through every challenge. And brothers and sisters, at one time or another we will all know someone else who is lonely, sick, depressed, poor, or far from home. Our Father and the Savior may direct us to help others, and it will be our privilege to do so." - Elder Kevin R. Duncan of the Seventy

I am just going to stop there because NOTHING will top my experience with Moon. Here's a fun missionary selfie taken this week on that one day I wasn't dying with allergies and a sinus infection. (I'm all better now).

I love you guys and hope you have the best week! Happy Mothers Day to all you amazing mothers, everything I am I owe to my mom!

Los quiero!

Hermana Tapia

May 4th of 2013

Hey hey! It's already May?! 

Where is the time going?! This is the LAST WEEK of the transfer... it went by SO FAST! We will find out what is happening with transfers this Saturday night. Here is a picture from my district this transfer, we really have no idea who could be leaving or staying. Wish me luck on the news this coming week!

Yesterday we had another Charla Fogonera (event where recent converts share their experiences and testimonies. This involves the whole Spanish program in our mission.) The Spanish zone leaders and the Spanish STLs are in charge of this event so when we were assigned to organized the musical number I realized it was going to fall on the week of my 5 year baptism mark. Suddenly I thought of a recent convert who is 16 years old and the young women in the ward. Much like my young women when I was 15, they are the recent convert's best friends. We got the idea to ask them to sing a song together. We have been practicing every Sunday and yesterday was the big day! The young womem sung "Peace in Christ" (the 2018 youth theme song for the church) in Spanish with the recent convert. The congregation was so emotional and the spirit was so song.  The following lyrics are from the song:

"He gives us hope
When hope is gone
He gives us strength
When we can’t go on
He gives us shelter
In the storms of life
When there’s no peace on earth
There is peace in Christ"

English & Español

  

One by one the speakers shared how the gospel brought stability into their lives and the peace they felt after making that sacred covenant with the Lord by being baptized. Some had gone through divorces, miscarriages, a time of rebellion, guilt, depression, loneliness and all found comfort in the Savior Jesus Christ and His restored gospel. And that is exactly what the song we chose was all about, peace in those times that comes through our loving, patient, meek and perfect brother, Jesus Christ.

May 4th of 2013 was such a great day. The gospel came to me at the perfect time and in the most incredible way. It was amazing how God really prepared me at a young age and how much I have come to learn and change. I can't think of a better way to thank him for the missionaries He put in my life than dedicating these 18 months to find and teach people that were looking for peace just like I was. I am eternally grateful for my missionaries; Elder Hill, Elder Stoneman, Rocio (Hermana Vasquez), the Seaver family and the Lakeridge 1st Ward Young Women. I would NOT be who I am today or where I am without these people and the gospel. This is the purpose of missionary work, not only to bring people peace but to let that peace lead to a desire to be better so we can be confident on that last day when we stand before our Heavenly Father.

Alma 13: 24 "For behold, angels are declaring it unto many at this time in our land; and this is for the purpose of preparing the hearts of the children of men to receive his word at the time of his coming in his glory."

We had our last exchange of the transfer this week and I got to be with Sister Inman from California. She's amazing and so hilarious. We saw so many miracles that day! It was also 95 degrees outside for the first time since September... it was AMAZING but also so hotttt. Pray for me to get through the humidity this summer.

Investigators are doing AMAZING!

• Nefi from Little River is coming to the Spanish ward now with his member wife so he's my investigator again! It's so crazy that I got transferred to their new area but I know better than to think this is a coincidence. Here is a picture they sent me from their wedding in March. It's so good to have them back! 

• Flower is doing super great as well and preparing for her baptism coming soon!
• The stubborn dad from the recent convert family joined us for family prayer again. This time their 13 year old son said the prayer and softly ended by saying, "and please help us so that my dad can come to church with us one day." Tears swelled up in the dad's eyes. It was a precious moment.

I'm off to enjoy this suddenly warm weather and continue to work hard and give my mission everything I have. I love you all and I love missionary work so much. I have really found the peace I have been searching for. I know you all can too.

Love,
Hermana Tapia