E-mail (Dated: 9/22/14)

Hola mis amores!

Its been amazing to see the miracles and tender mercies since we have started the Purification Project! I want to tell you about an investigator we have! Her name is Marcelina. She is around 55 years old and has a TON of family. We actually havent been able to teach her the last two weeks cause she has been so busy, but we were able to visit her over the weekend. Our lesson with her was so amazing. She told us of how she wants to be baptized in about 2 months and that she is going to be dedicated to learning more so she can ´defend her church´. We also met her daughter in law- Johan- And she told us that she was about to be baptized in the past, but she got sick and then got married. She wouldn't commit to a new baptismal date cause she wanted to talk to her husband first, but there was so much light in her eyes! And Saturday we passed by with some leaders in ward council to invite them to our ward Family Home Evening and Joann knew the Second Counselor!! He was her teacher in High School! Such a huge blessing!! Joann couldn't make it to the Family Home Evening, but Marcelina went and she fit into the ward so incredibly well.

We are working with our ward so much more and it has made all the difference. We feel like they are trusting us with assignments and references and its been so amazing! We have been able to serve them so much more!

So funny story of the week- Tuesday we were able to attend a Night of Mexico with our ward and the one next to us! And Me and my comp, 2 other sisters and our zone leaders sang ¨Ceilito Lindo¨for everyone! Its a super famous Mexican song! My comp told me I had to do it cause never again in my life would I sing as a missionary in front of Mexicans and sing their beloved song... so you know I had to take it haha! But ya I may or may not have blushed the entire time... I was dying! But I have it on film so ill show you all one day (;
Scripture of the week: D&C 58: 3-4

¨Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation.
For after much tribulation come the blessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.¨

Love you all so much! Have such an incredible week! LES AMO!!!

E-mail (Dated: 9/15/2014)

Hey my beautiful family and friends!! 

So today is the 15 of September! Its like the 4th of July for Mexico! And its crazy! These people love to party... Haha its fun to see their culture! My companions birthday is tomorrow and the bishops family invited us over to have a water balloon fight! Aww its was so much fun! They seriously feel like family and im so grateful for them! It helps a lot when your far away from home to have a famiy that takes such great care of you! 

But this week was great! Im feeling so much better and we jumped right back into the work! (: We had a really amazing experience this week with the husband of the family Calderon (Daughter is America with Downs). His wife was sick in the hospital and shes about 5 months pregnant. And one night we stopped by to see how they were doing and were able to sing "I need thee every hour". The spirit filled the room and it was almost tangable. The nanny even started singing with us. It was so special! I think it was a turning point for him- he didnt participate in our lessons very much before but now he does! Its incredible!

We also found a woman named Ereberta. She has been so many times to church but has never been baptized!! We put a baptize goal for her for the end of this month! It was such a tender mercie for us! And I pray everything will work out! With the help of our God, nothing is impossible (:

Also yesterday, it literally rained buckets... we were in the house of a member and it was raining so hard we couldnt hear each other speak... It was nuts! As I looked farther up the mountain, my heart broke and I broke into tears as I realized the houses above could get ruined (There made of wood). I told my companion I wanted to run to their help, but she told me there was nothing we could do. All we could do was put out buckets under the roof to catch water so it wouldnt go down to flood the houses below. Luckily the rain stoped and it hasnt rained today! Everyone was so scared because this exact day last year, it rained for 3 days with the same intensity and ruined so many houses. I know so many prayers were answered and that Heavenly Father was watching over the people here. 

We also started a "purification process" as a zone yesterday! For 40 days, we are going to work on purifying our hearts and to be better missionaries. We will give up all the things that arnt in harmony with what our Heavenly Father wants and strive even harder to become better missionaries. I am super excited! Its gonna be hard, but I know this will help me to have the companionship of the Holy Ghost even stronger! Im grateful for this oportunity! And its been amazing, both me and my companion have felt that already, our lessons are more in harmony and the Spirit has been stronger in our lessons!

I love all of you so so much and Im so grateful to call you my family and friends!! Thanks for all the support once again. You are all in my prayers! LES AMO!!

Con mucho mucho mucho amor, 

Your Brookie Cookie (:

E-mail (Dated: 9/1/2014)

Wow I dont even know where to start this week.. So this week has been rough. It started Thursday morning when my comp woke up and told me her scalp itched.. yup she had lice. And it had been itching since SUNDAY.. and she told me THURSDAY. Ya I combed lice out of her hair for 3 hours that morning. Not my cup of tea... Heavenly Father has been answering my prayers and so far I dont have lice. Pray for me!

My health hasnt been too good this week, but it will all be good (: Just keep me in your prayers please. 

We have been teaching so many incredible families this week! The first one is la familia Calvo. They have two kids and they were so receptive to the first lesson! They accpeted a baptism date and I cant wait to see what happens with them! (: It was incredible to look back at the lesson and see how much Heavenly Father helped me talk in Spanish! Its incredible! SO grateful for the help of our Heavenly Father and Savior.
 We also had an amazing lesson with a mom and daughter- Rosy and Rosita- When we started the lesson, the mom had a super bad headache and at the end, she told us it was gone! She cried as she told us how hard her family life is (Her husband drinks and I think he abuses her) and I was able to promise her that this gospel would change and improve her life and the life of her family.She also told us she could feel all the fruits of the spirit- love, peace, happiness, etc. The only thing is she is having a hard time leaving the catholic church cause its all shes known. But i know as she learns more about our message, she will want to come to our church every sunday! (: 

We havent seen the family of America (Sweetheart who has downs) Because the mom has been sick (Shes prego) But ill update you next week (:
Oh and Im staying here in Chilpanchingo with my same comp. this transter! And I also hit 7 months on my mission this week.. where did time go?!

Okayy Scrip of the week: Heleman 5:12 
"And now, my sons, remember,remember that it is upon therock of our Redeemer, who isChrist, the Son of God, that yemust build your foundation;that when the devil shall sendforth his mighty winds, yea, hisshafts in the whirlwind, yea,when all his hail and his mightystorm shall beat upon you, itshall have no power over youto drag you down to the gulf ofmisery and endless wo,because of the rock uponwhich ye are built, which is asure foundation, a foundationwhereon if men build theycannot fall."I have especially felt the truth of this scripture this week as I have fought my battles. I know that when Christ is our priority, everything else will fall into place. I know that we will be able to withstand all the firey darts and storms of the advesary. We will be strong enough to fight through ALL our battles, no matter how hard they may be, BECAUSE we have Christ on our side. I am so grateful for my Savior. I know he is always with us and I feel SO priveliged to wear his name.

Well I love you all! Have such a great week! And Happy labor day!! LES AMO!!
Your Brookie Cookie (:

E-mail (Dated: 8/25/2014)

Hi!!!

So to start off, shout out to my home girl ROSE!! She leaves this week for her MISSION!! Rose i love you!!! So proud and excited for you!!! 

So this week we had a huge multizone conference. And the zone from Iguala came (its an hour and a half bus ride) so they got to stay the night here with our zone. And guess who got to stay with me in my house.... Hermana STURT!!!!! (My best friend from the MTC) I about died when I saw her!! What a HUGE tender mercie for me to be able to see her and have her stay the night with me!! Ahh I missed her so much! Heavenly Father reminded me that he is watching over me. The conference was so amazing. The spirit always teaches me SO much. And Im always so grateful for the opportunity to learn and to hear from all my leaders! 

One thing i am working on this week is the Christlike attribute- Charity and Love- I am going to pray every day with the energy of my heart to be able to be blessed with this gift. I want to be able to feel the pure love that Christ has for EVERY single person I come in contact with. I know this will help and bless me in so many ways!!

The family Calderon (Daughter is America who has Downs) is so special. We watched the 20 min. video of the Restuaration with them and the spirit was so sweet. The mom is such a believer and has so much faith! They are continuing to soak up all the lessons! I feel so blessed to be able to be a part of their conversion.

So one thing that our area is struggling with is church attendence. We pass by for multiple investigators before church and something ALWAYS comes up. Satan does ALL he can to put something in the way of church! And most the time he puts something good in the way... but church is the best thing!! 

I am enjoying the work here in Chilpo! There are some really great people here! The weather is great- It has been raining like every day!! We hike through the mud (: My comp is good... were struggling a little bit but its all good! SO much miscommunication with the language... My Spanish is continually improving.. little by little! It will come eventually! Heavenly Father is teaching me a lot of patience haha (: But everything is great! I have faith that some miracles are around the corner for us! Changes arenext monday but I will most likely stay here with Hermana Canaan!

Okay Scripture of the week:

Hermana Kusch (Presidents wife) shared this scripture with us at the confrence- Its in Mormon 5:23 "Know ye not that ye are in the hands of the Lord? Know ye not that he hath all power?" It was such a great reminder for me that Heavenly Father is right by our side and wants the best for us. All of us truely are in his hands!

I love you all so much! Have such a great week!

LES AMO!!! 

Your Brookie Cookie

Fun Fact of the week: We got serenated by drunks last night hahaha. And the guy was actually really good at the guitar!!

E-mail (Dated: 8/18/2014)

I am loving Chilpancingo! The people here are so amazing! Hermana Canaan is such a sweetheart too! Haha she doesnt speak ANY english.. and not gonna lie I dont know what shes saying like 30 percent of the time haha! I am so excited to work here though! Its amazing to see the Lords hand in my life. He is so willing to help us-especially when we ask. My testimony on the power of prayer has grown so much here on the mission. Im so grateful for all the lessons im able to learn here in this special time. I will be eternally grateful for my mission!!

So this week was full of crazy stories! First off, when I took my first shower, the whole nob flew off and starting spraying water at me! Aparently the shower is broken and my comp didnt tell me! Sooo I get to shower in a bucket again (: We also ate the same meal this week, literally for 3 days in a row! Taquitos for daysss! And one day when we were eating with a member, lightning landed 5 houses away from us! Ive never experienced anything like it-it was crazy! Everything shook and it was so bright and loud! And craziest story happened last night..  we were late to an appointment, so my comp said lets try to take a shortcut! So we crossed a tiny bridge and started hiking up this tiny pathway (pretty much in the forest) And all the sudden a tiny little dog starts barking at me ( I was first) and almost bites us! So we turned around but by this time, other dogs had come to see what was going on. Above us (up the hill) were 2 big dogs, and on the other side of us were probably the scariest dogs ive ever seen in my life. Their teeth were huge. They were pretty much wolves and yes I felt like Bell in the forest! We were completly surrounded by dogs. I completely just anticipated the bites and to be tackled to the ground to be eaten. My comp screamed and I looked up to the Heavens and said "Heavenly Father please help us"  And exactely right after I said those words, A little boy came from the top of the hill and scared the dogs away with his little lighter (Dont know how it worked but it did!) He was literally our saving angel! We ran up the rest of the hill, and he said "Are you bitten?" And we said No were okay! And he said "Those dogs ALWAYS bite whoever comes up that path..." It was a pure miracle that we got out safe! I know there were angels protecting us. There is no other way we would have made it out safely!

But back to the important stuff- We found a very special family this week! They have a daughter named America that has downs, and every member of the family is so so tender. They all accepted baptismal dates (Mom, Dad, and the Nanny), and are so receptive to the lessons! They just soak up every word! The mom is pregnant again too! This gospel is going to change their lives! I cant wait for the day when they can be sealed as a family!

Also an entire family came with us one day for an hour and a half to give us references! It was incredible! Its so so amazing to have the help of the members. Missionary work really is for EVERY member! We are all in this together! I want to challenge you guys to help someone come closer to Christ. Pray and ask Heavenly Father who you can help and what you can do to help this person and I promise he will answer you. He WILL put someone in your mind! Everyone can come closer to Christ. And I promise as you do this, you will find so much more joy and will be SO blessed!

My scripture of the week is D & C 112:13
"And after their temptations and much tribulation, behold, I, the Lord, will feel after them, and if they harden not thir hearts, and stiffen not their necks against me, they shall be converted, and I will heal them. "

Con mucho amor,
Your Brookie Cookie (:
LES AMO!!
And ps to all yall who started school this week... Have fun (;

E-mail (Dated: 8/11/2014)

Hey my loved ones! Wow so much has happened in the last couple days...

First off I LEFT YAUTEPEC, Cuautla. I am now in CHILPANCHINGO, GUERRERO!!! I left the state of Moreles (So im now closer to the ocean if that helps you guys haha)! We had emergency transfers because of an incident that happened to me. But no worries ALL IS GOOD! I am fine and healthy! A little shaken up, but its all good (: I know I have angels protecting me. My new companion is Hermana Canaan! She is from Puebla Mexico! She has 4 months in the mission and she is so fun! She only has 3 weeks in this area, so we will be doing a lot of exploring! How fun right!? Were excited!

But back in Yautepec we had such a beautiful week! We found such an amazing woman named MariaLouisa (mom of a contact in the street). She accepted a baptism date and she told us that she knew that what we were teaching was true! She told us that she didnt let other preachers in her house before! The spirit guided the lesson so beautifully! I was also able to talk more spanish! It was incredible. I know she will be baptized soon by the other Missionaries!

We also had such a beautiful baptism!! His name is Arturo and his parents were just baptized about 4 weeks ago! His dad was actually able to baptize him too!! He received the Aaronic Priesthood this past week! Ahh soo soo tender! I've never seen anyone so happy! He literally just glowed and had the biggest smile on his face when he walked out of the waters of his baptism. It was so tender to see how happy his whole family was. They all have the goal of the temple in mind and look forward to being sealed in one year from now!!! I was so grateful to be apart of that beautiful moment.

I was also able to see some of my old investigators from Chapultepec yesterday!! They surprised me came to my ward! Ahh it was so amazing to see them!! I love the people of Chapultepec! And it was incredible to see their progress in the Church. You can literally see a difference in them! I am so grateful for this gospel and for this opportunity to share this happiness with others!

I am so excited to start working here in Chilpanchingo! I am always grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow. I love you all! Hope you are all doing well!!

Con MUCHO amor,
Brookie Cookie (:
Ps my new comp is the one with the orange skirt in this pic! (:

E-mail (Dated: 8/4/2014)

Can you believe that I will see you all in one year from yesterday!!? And tomorrow is my official 6 months on the mission! How crazy is time?!

Well this has been a week full of ups and downs. One of our investigators Farriol (73 yrs old), decided he didn't want to be baptized and to stop taking our lessons. His baptism was for next weekend :( It was devastating. We found out he has an problem with cigarettes, and we had to push his baptismal date back. When we told him this, it was like a different person came out in him. I've never seen Satan get a hold of someone so fast. In one second the lesson was going great, and the next he was giving his pamphlets and the Book of Mormon back to us and then grabbed a cigarette to smoke in front of us. We were devastated. We had a less active member with us who is very good friends with Farriol, and we all just started crying. I don't know how to explain how it was... I felt so devastated that he was turning away from his Savior. It broke my heart.

But on the bright side, yesterday we had such an amazing experience! We had a first lesson with a woman named Anabel. And I can honestly say I've never been in a more powerful first lesson in my entire lesson. The spirit was SO strong! And it was so so incredible! Hermana Carmona shared a scripture about the Holy Ghost- in Galatians 5:22-23 (Talks about the fruits of the Spirit) And after I asked Anabel if she could feel any of those fruits right now. And she started crying and said ¨Yes! I can feel ALL of them!¨Ah it was so so incredible. I am so grateful for the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Because without it, I would be useless here. I know it is ONLY through the Holy Ghost that these people can know and feel the truth of this beautiful message!

Our area is slowly growing. We are trying our best. Hermana Carmona is incredible and teaching me SO much! I feel so blessed to be her companion and to be able to learn from her! My Spanish is still really rough. I'm actually still really frustrated with it. But having a Latin companion is helping me so much!
I love you all so so much! Miss and pray for all of you everyday! Have such an incredible week!
Con mucho amor, Brookie Cookie

PS: I am not aloud to chat back and forth one I get on to talk to you guys :( I can send one email to each of you personally but after that I have to wait till the next week to reply again. Hard I know, but its from the Lord, so it must be for our good. Oh and I can't figure out how to send pics on this computer this week sorry! LOVE YOU!