Week 52 - One Year

Hola Family & Friends,

Well this week we were able to put together a very small Family Home Evening and the only people that came were Cindy and this less active family, the Valle family.  I have known this family since I got here in Cabo Rojo and they have a very special place in my heart.  We were planning on watching a DVD that was an hour long, but we decided to watch the DVD we brought, which was 20 minutes long, about the Atoning Sacrifice Christ did for us.  It was very fuerte (strong) and was very descriptive, but at the end, it has the hope and peace that Christ rose from the dead, and fulfilled the mission He came to do.  After wards we all shared our testimonies, including their two kids, Jamar and Leoanis (9, and 4) and Giselle, their mom.  It was a very special FHE filled with an amazing Spirit and this dear family was very touched and felt the Spirit as well.  I love how the Spirit testifies of Christ, and all we have to do is follow the promptings, show up and open our mouths, the Savior and the Holy Ghost do all the rest.  It is amazing to be an instrument in the Lord's hands.

Investigators:

Dolores: So we went with Hermana Vasquez (one of my favorite people I have ever met) to a cita (appointment) with Dolores and we read through 3 Nephi 11.  It is just so amazing to see the progress and testimony that she already has.  Hermana Vasquez bore a wonderful testimony and we are going to see Dolores tomorrow.  She didn't come to church, so hopefully we can help her go this week.  She always talks about the peace that we bring into her home.  She has to take care of her sister who has Alzheimer's and it is really hard for them to get along at times, but she said that every time we come over, there is just peace in their home.  I love hearing how the Spirit brings peace and comfort to the people we visit, it makes me happy!!

Miriam: So we are not sure how much interest she actually has.... but we are going over to her house tomorrow to teach her the plan of Salvation!  We are excited and we are not giving up!

Luis: LUIS was such a miracle.  So Hermana Post and I decided to pray and to find a joven (teenager) who is 16 and that would want to go on a mission.  So we decided we were going to go to this one place that I haven't visited for 6 months.  So we went, and we actually got there an hour later than we planned.  The only way to get in this apartment complex is if someone has a code.  We walked up and right at that moment, we saw someone on a bike ride up, and punch a code in.  He turned around and asked, "you guys going in?" and we replied, yes and once we were in we offered him a tarjeta (pass-along card) and he stopped and asked us what we did. That led to an hour long contact with him and he just was SO open and had so many questions and asked us if he could come to church with us, yeah, I was SHOCKED.  Then he told us he was 16 and my jaw almost dropped to the floor.  He is so cool and so prepared.  We are so excited to see him again and start teaching him!  I continue to be amazed at the Lord's miracles we witness each day, it is so humbling, but awesome at the same time!!!

My lovely family and friends, I am just so, so, so, grateful for all of you.  I know I say that every week, but I pray for you all every night, and I am grateful for the role each one of you has had in my life.  This email is very special because this week I have one year in the mission.  Words can't describe the joy and blessings I have seen in this last year.  A year ago yesterday I was giving my farewell talk.  A year ago today I was set apart, and a year ago tomorrow is when I began this crazy, wonderful, journey.  A year sure does fly!!!  I think about good ol' DP (Daniel Parker) who just got back home from his mission.  What a wonderful example he has been to me and I know he served his mission well!  Go you, DP!  Those two years flew by too! 

I often think of something my sweet mother said to me during a rough point in my mission.  She said, "The Lord did not send you to Puerto Rico to fail".  Ever since that moment, those words have been etched in my heart. There are times of my mission where I did not think I could last another second, and then I would remember those words and like the Puerto Ricans say, "seguir pa'lante" (press forward).  In this last year, I have seen so many miracles.  I have seen lives change.  I have learned a language I never thought I could learn.  I have met people who have filled in holes in my heart I didn't know were there.  I have seen the power of the Atonement help someone understand that it is NEVER too late to change.  I have seen families healed.  I have walked QUITE A LOT.  I have prayed harder than I ever have in my life.  I have found a love for studying the scriptures, and I know without a doubt that the message I have the privilege of sharing is TRUE.  I know that Christ established His gospel while he was on the earth, complete with a prophet, his 12 apostles, the Priesthood authority to work these miracles, to baptize, and interpret the scriptures, and receive revelation directly from God to us.  I know that after the death of Christ and His apostles NO ONE had that authority for years and years and years, until God called a prophet to restore that same church and authority Christ himself established.  I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that he truly saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in a grove of trees.  I know that only through the power and authority of God he was able to translate the Book of Mormon, another testament of Jesus Christ.  I have felt my personal relationship with my Heavenly Father and The Savior grow immensely, unlike anything I have ever experienced, while reading the Book of Mormon.  Every single page testifies of Christ and that He truly is the Savior and Redeemer of the world.  I know that the Book of Mormon truly does contain the fullness of the gospel and that if ANYONE reads it with an open heart, really, truly meditating in the things they read, and pray and ask God if these things are true, they will get an answer.  I know because I asked, and I RECEIVED MY ANSWER.  I know that Heavenly Father is truly mindful of us and knows us so much more than we think.  He answers our prayers.  He has set a perfect plan that allows each and every one of us to return to him to live as families in His presence once again, for time and all eternity.  I know that having the TEMPLE IS A PRIVILEGE that allows us to have that happiness, and that even when we have family and loved ones who have passed on, it isn't too late for them either.  I know that Christ died and suffered for everything we would ever experience in this life, every pain and heartache, why?  Because of His love that He has for each one of us.  He is the Great Mediator, who will be our constant example if we just follow His invitation to, "follow and trust him".  I know that these things are true, and I will continue sharing this message that will help our world become a better place until the day I have to take this tag off, but I will not stop then, I will continue to share this message for the rest of my life and throughout eternity.  I love this gospel and I love my family and friends.  I love being a missionary and a disciple of Christ.  I love the person I have become through my trials and experiences, but mostly through the Savior's love for me.  I love what I still can become through continuing to seek His will for me, and through this His Great Plan of Happiness.

Love always,

Hermana Green