Sept 17, 2012

¡Hola!

Well we had transfers yesterday...but everything stayed the same here in Congreso!! We’re both really happy!

This week was good. Remember Romina (my little convert from my old area who I always talk about)? Well, she and her family are like best friends with a family here who (half of the family) are recent converts. Small world! So she came this week and we got to see each other. She came with us to do some visits and after we didn’t have lunch so they fed us Peruvian food. It was good, we both cried when we saw each other. I know we were ‘besties’ before we came to earth.

I really love the mission. Thinking back on this past transfer (which absolutely flew by) I can´t help but feel extremely grateful for the fact that I have the gospel in my life; and that I was chosen to be the one to come to Argentina and preach it.

It´s interesting how life works. How we're all a little part of one big plan. I can see how Satan is working to destroy families. If ´´eternal families´´ wasn´t our ´´claim to fame´´ and one of the most important things in this gospel why else would Satan be working so hard to destroy it? Sometimes I wonder how someone could NOT believe the gospel. Especially if you love your family and want to be with them forever, after this life too. To me seems like you would do what ever you have to do to be able to be with your loved ones forever. Well luckily we know that there is a way. Through the gospel we can go to the temple and be sealed forever with our family. I know that it’s true. That our families can be together forever, and I feel extremely grateful to have my eternal family supporting me. So, thanks family! You guys are the best.

I spoke in church yesterday again; On obedience. I actually kind of like speaking in church now. Huge change, I know! Well that’s about all. I love you all tons xoxox

Love,
Hermana Marchant

Sept 10, 2012

This week was awesome!!

We had the dedication, the fire side with Elders Eyring, Balard, and Christofferson, the stadium performance (parade thing) - everything went well.

Yes, I saw Brandon! (Brandon Phillips is John and Voniece Phillips’ son in the Bs.As. South Mission).  I don´t have any pictures because we weren’t allowed to bring them to any of the activities. Sad. But I´ll still never forget this weekend! It was one of my favorites of my mission.

My mission had super strict rules about saying hi to our friends in other missions so I was trying hard not to look for Brandon and my other friends in the other missions.   I didn´t have the temptation, but luckily Brandon was sitting really close in the fire-side and as I was walking out he whispered ´´Abby..Abby...ABBY!´´ …and we shook hands and then I had to go ha-ha. We got to see each other the next day too at the stadium event and we could talk for a few seconds! He seems happy! It was good to see a familiar face!


I feel extreamly lucky to be here right now; with these circumstances with the temple dedication and everything!

Sorry this is short! I love you all have a good week! Congrats Sara and Ryan!
Love,

H. Marchant

Sept 3, 2012

Hi!
This week is the dedication of the temple. All of the missions; Buenos Aires North, West, and South get to have a fireside with Elder Eyring, Bednar and Christoferson on Friday! We got a huge long speech on how we should dress good and look clean and put together.  Ha-ha so I stared at my closet this morning for about 10 minutes looking for ´´clean good clothes´´ to wear this weekend.  Then I realized that even my ´´cleanest, cutest´´ clothes are super ghetto. Luckily its pday and we live down-town. Hopefully we can find something today to buy. I´m sure I´ll have pictures to send this next week of all the events. The fireside is Friday, the parade is Saturday, and the dedication is Sunday. It should be fun!

The chicas Melany, Sharon, and Margarita weren´t baptized this weekend because they really wanted to wait for their dad (traveling in Peru), but he said he was coming back Sunday and didn´t end up coming.  He a really bad dad from they things they have told us. It’s sad. They are so prepared, but they are scared to do anything with out his permission...and we have to have it to baptize them anyways. So we’re waiting to see what he says, if he´s even coming back from Peru, and if he´ll give them permission. It was a let down. Obviously this isn´t the first baptism that’s fallen through on my mission, but it is definitely one of the saddest and most disappointing.

On a happier note...I don´t think I wrote this story last week. If I did, oopsies! But. My companion is learning English. But the thing is, she is suppppppper scared to talk in English to anyone besides me. So in church we learned about developing your talents and I was making fun of her (half joking half not) for not developing her talent to speak English. So the next day as a half joke again when we prayed to leave the house I prayed that we would find people that speak English so she could ´´develop her talent´´ .  Well we live in Congreso. It’s a huge city for tourism. Usually we find or hear 3 or 4 people a day speaking English from England or The US. But no, this day that I prayed, we found AT LEAST 15 people that spoke English as their first language. Even when we weren’t trying to. We asked some girl that looked totally Argentine what road we were on and she starting speaking English. Everyone that passed us and asked us questions or that we asked questions ended up being from the US and England and Australia. It was super funny!

My comp started to conquer her fear and explained the plan of salvation. They didn’t want to have lessons, but my companion was so proud of her self anyways, it was super cute! So I guess that’s my message this week, do the little things to start to conquer your fears! Even if you get rejected! Ha-ha love you all xoxo

Love, Hermana Marchant!

Aug 27, 2012

Hi!
This week was good. I think I typed the wrong date for the dedication of the temple in the past letter because people keep saying things about it but it hasn´t happened yet! Ha-ha.  The dedication is September 9th. So for the past few weeks and this week it has just been the open house.

A lot happened this week! We met the rest of that amazing family and THEY ARE SO AMAZING. They all accepted a date to get baptized, came to church willingly and are super excited! I love teaching families. Not to mention they are hilarious. Every time were there were all laughing hysterically.

Sometimes I wonder why I wasn´t sent to Peru for my mission because every single one of my converts except 2 are from Peru ha-ha. Obviously, because they live here I was sent here. But isn´t it interesting that they are all from Peru?

We spoke in church yesterday, I spoke on Chapter 5 from PMG. The importance of the BOM in conversion. It went really well. I was hardly nervous and I liked my topic; ha-ha so it wasn´t bad!

My comp is super cute, we work hard and laugh all day long! Thanks for your letters and love and prayers!

Love,
Hermana Marchant

Aug 20, 2012

¡Hola! 

This week was good!!  A lot of really good things, and a lot of really hard things happened!  We got to work at the temple this week! It was absolutely amazing. They had 5 companionships of Sisters come to the temple Friday afternoon, and we worked all day Friday, then slept there (at the MTC right next to the temple).  Then we worked half the day Saturday too. I loved it!  It was like a big sleep over with tons of the Hermana’s!! They had more then 8,000 people pass through Saturday. It was extremely busy and turned out better then they were expecting! (It was pouring rain that day too and they still had a ton of success, which is weird! Argentines have a weird phobia of rain...Sundays when it rains more then half the ward doesn’t come to church!)

But it was good; we will go this week sometime again, and on the 9th of September is the dedication! So that was all really good.

A few weeks ago we got a tour of the temple before anyone in the country with Elder Arnold (a 70 that is in charge of all the missions in south America) and when we were in the sealing room he gave us a promise. We are promised with the blessing that in our future we will know with out a doubt exactly who it is that we are supposed to marry. That we will know exactly who it is when it comes time to make the decision. How awesome is that!! One of the coolest experiences of my life. What a blessing. 

My companion is just amazing. She is definitely one of my favorites. This area is amazing if anyone is planning of traveling to Argentina you have to come to Congreso. Well, Sunday morning came and we went to get all our investigators for church (not to mention our baptism Guliana) and turns out her parents put a lock on the door from the out side and left for the day. So she couldn’t leave the house. (¡Qué loco!)  All of our other investigators didn´t come either. It was disappointing and the first time in my mission that we didn’t have even ONE investigator in church.

We were walking to an appointment and I felt extremely sad, literally almost to the point of tears. So I started brain storming everything we did, didn’t do but should have, could have done, everything... trying to find what we can improve and how. Well we were walking and I felt, probably one of the clearest ´´revelations´´ in my life ´´don’t lose your faith, and don’t be discouraged. Discouragement is a lack of faith´´. So we decided to say a prayer and start a fast about where to go and what to do. We both knew (because our President says it all the time) that we will find prepared people through recent converts. So we made a plan to teach all the retention lessons to the recent converts this transfer and get references from them. We went to a recent convert that doesn’t have even ONE of the retention lessons and asked him about 7 times in 7 different ways (he didn’t want to answer) who he knows that needs the gospel and FINALLY he gave us a reference of his cousin that lives in the same building.

We taught him a lesson and went to contact his cousin. Well turns out his cousin wasn´t there, but the daughter was. She’s about 17 years old. We explained who we are and how we have a message and she said ´´and what if I want to get baptized. How can I? ´´ My companion and I looked at each other in shock and told her that we will prepare her baptism service in 3 weeks and we´ll teach her everything. She said ´´Yeah my mom wants to too and my two brothers, we were just talking about this this week´´ hah! What a miracle.

Well, this week was definitely one that made me humble, and was definitely a test of faith. But it ended with a family that wants to get baptized! I know this week will be better and I know the Lord is preparing people to receive his message. 

les amo,

Hermana Marchant

Aug 13, 2012

¡Hola! 

This week was good!!  A lot of really good things, and a lot of really hard things happened!  We got to work at the temple this week! It was absolutely amazing. They had 5 companionships of Sisters come to the temple Friday afternoon, and we worked all day Friday, then slept there (at the MTC right next to the temple).  Then we worked half the day Saturday too. I loved it!  It was like a big sleep over with tons of the Hermana’s!! They had more then 8,000 people pass through Saturday. It was extremely busy and turned out better then they were expecting! (It was pouring rain that day too and they still had a ton of success, which is weird! Argentines have a weird phobia of rain...Sundays when it rains more then half the ward doesn’t come to church!)

But it was good; we will go this week sometime again, and on the 9th of September is the dedication! So that was all really good.

A few weeks ago we got a tour of the temple before anyone in the country with Elder Arnold (a 70 that is in charge of all the missions in south America) and when we were in the sealing room he gave us a promise. We are promised with the blessing that in our future we will know with out a doubt exactly who it is that we are supposed to marry. That we will know exactly who it is when it comes time to make the decision. How awesome is that!! One of the coolest experiences of my life. What a blessing. 

My companion is just amazing. She is definitely one of my favorites. This area is amazing if anyone is planning of traveling to Argentina you have to come to Congreso. Well, Sunday morning came and we went to get all our investigators for church (not to mention our baptism Guliana) and turns out her parents put a lock on the door from the out side and left for the day. So she couldn’t leave the house. (¡Qué loco!)  All of our other investigators didn´t come either. It was disappointing and the first time in my mission that we didn’t have even ONE investigator in church.

We were walking to an appointment and I felt extremely sad, literally almost to the point of tears. So I started brain storming everything we did, didn’t do but should have, could have done, everything... trying to find what we can improve and how. Well we were walking and I felt, probably one of the clearest ´´revelations´´ in my life ´´don’t lose your faith, and don’t be discouraged. Discouragement is a lack of faith´´. So we decided to say a prayer and start a fast about where to go and what to do. We both knew (because our President says it all the time) that we will find prepared people through recent converts. So we made a plan to teach all the retention lessons to the recent converts this transfer and get references from them. We went to a recent convert that doesn’t have even ONE of the retention lessons and asked him about 7 times in 7 different ways (he didn’t want to answer) who he knows that needs the gospel and FINALLY he gave us a reference of his cousin that lives in the same building.

We taught him a lesson and went to contact his cousin. Well turns out his cousin wasn´t there, but the daughter was. She’s about 17 years old. We explained who we are and how we have a message and she said ´´and what if I want to get baptized. How can I? ´´ My companion and I looked at each other in shock and told her that we will prepare her baptism service in 3 weeks and we´ll teach her everything. She said ´´Yeah my mom wants to too and my two brothers, we were just talking about this this week´´ hah! What a miracle.

Well, this week was definitely one that made me humble, and was definitely a test of faith. But it ended with a family that wants to get baptized! I know this week will be better and I know the Lord is preparing people to receive his message. 

les amo,

Hermana Marchant

Colorful houses

Hermana Sperry, me, my comp Hermana Malhue in our super LINDO room at the MTC this past week

MISSION SLEEP OVER

My new district!

This is today. Its starting to warm up here. POR FIN!

la casa rosada...and look its the argentine flag in the middle made of out lights!!

my advertisement for the church sunday morning in the bus!!

Aug 6, 2012

Wow...this week was AMAZING!  Daniel (the last child in the family that was baptized a few weeks ago) was baptized yesterday!!!   How amazing, and not just baptized by anyone, but by his BEST FRIEND in the church who JUST received the priesthood last week. Tons of people from the ward were there to support them. THEY LOVE THIS FAMILY SO MUCH.

That´s the advice I can give to you all this week is be best friends with those who are recent converts. Well, as if that wasn´t a dream come true already, Madeleine (the mom of this family) bore her testimony in church yesterday in front of everyone. Oh yeah, not to mention I was sitting right by my best friends ever Hermana Kapp and Hermana Sperry. This was definitely one of my favorite weeks of my mission.

Well, it was all perfect...too perfect to stay like that so guess what... I GOT TRANSFERD. Today I got transferred to CAPITAL... down, down -town Buenos Aires. Everything you´ve heard about that’s famous in Buenos Aires is in this area, everything touristic, and everything! It’s beautiful. And my dream comes true. I´m with La Hermana Malhue (said like malway) from Chile. She is super cute and bubbly. This transfer is going to be awesome. 

Leaving Urquiza was one of the saddest, but most exciting things I´ve done in my mission. I was there for 6 months, after my very first transfer I went there and was there ever since. It shaped me. I went from a normal girl to a real missionary in Urquiza. Obviously yesterday, with completing the family of baptisms, Madeleine baring testimony, and my best friends saying good-bye to me the day was full of tears.

But I know I´m supposed to be here in Congreso. And I am more then excited and willing to be here. I love and miss you all but the interesting thing is that that’s not the hard thing about the mission. Leaving converts and areas where you learn and grown sooo much.. that´s  the hardest thing about the mission. BUT IM SO STOKED TO BE HERE IN CAPITAL,and I love my companion already. When Pres. saw us today at transfers he pointed at us both and gave us a ´´ …you guys are going to love each other´´ look! ha-ha

Well love you all thanks for your prayers and love and letters and support! xoxo You should all go to a lesson with the missionaries to help their investigators in your ward this week! Chau chau!

Besos,

Hermana Marchant!!