Climate for Change

High 5!

1. Pioneer weekend! Joseph and Steve came with us to the luncheon at the church on Saturday and it was so fun! The kids did a parade and were super cute! On Sunday they did a patriotic music program that we went to with Jennifer and Lenzy :)

  Pioneer Day Luncheon with some of our FAVS! (Frankie is the one in the hat)

2. We spent some time with Wendy this week, helping her clean and organize her house. Service is definitely a way to soften hearts. We know she felt the spirit! (Alma 24:8)

3. Sue had a birthday this week! We went to a BBQ at her house and got to meet a lot of her family. On Sunday she brought a couple of her granddaughters to church with her :)

4. We had dinner with the Armstrong family this week! They are Briana's main fellowship so she came too and we taught her about temples! She is such a great example to me because she has NO family support with this and NO plans on changing her mind!

5. Frankie is doing awesome! His baptism interview is next week and he gets so excited every time we talk about it! He is already planning to turn in his mission papers 1 year after his baptism! SO COOL.

Down Low, 2 Slow.

1. It's been a week of SAD, HARD goodbyes :(

2. So sad to be leaving my best friend/ companion tomorrow morning!

(1. We went on a sushi date for our last harrah!

2.Aaaaannnnnddddd last but not least, the worlds greatest companion. So lucky to have spent 4 1/2 months together!)

Guys, you are never going to believe this! I AM GOING BACK TO EL PASO! Manzano/Valencia is getting white washed by the new Los Lunas Zone Leaders and I will be pink washing El Paso 5th Ward with my newbie companion. I am SO sad to leave right before Briana and Frankie's baptisms but pretty dang excited to see my baby area again, this time in a family ward. Sister Ropelato will also be pink washing and training, but in the Bear Canyon Ward in Albuquerque. We report to the transfer site at 8am tomorrow morning! Bitter sweet, for sure!

Change is part of life! Things are constantly changing and because of that I am grateful for a Heavenly Father and brother, Jesus Christ who are unchanging. This week in the trainer's conference call, President Guffey reminded us that there is no growth in the comfort zone, and no comfort in the growth zone. We are here to change and become who God wants us to be! President David O. McKay said, “The purpose of the gospel is to make bad men good and good men better, and to change human nature.”

The Atonement is all about change. Sister Julie B. Beck said, “It is not possible to make real change all by ourselves.” How well we make those changes is dependent on us including Christ in our efforts. I am eternally grateful for the many people's lives that have been changed for the better as they utalized the Atonement. Heavenly Father truly has allowed me to feel a portion of His love for the people I have served with. Being a missionary is a front row seat to the best miracles in the world.

I leave a little piece of my heart in every area I've served in! I look forward to more friends, experiences, and miracles to come in the El Paso 5th Ward!

God speed!

Love, Sister Bowen

Mountains of the Lord

High 5!

(Our favorite little Nathaniel)

1. This week we got to do family history with Joseph and it was SO cool. He was able to print out a name to take it to the temple for baptisms! He really felt the spirit and we are excited for him to go to the temple :)

2. We taught Briana the word of wisdom this week and it was so cool to hear she is already living it! After the lesson we went to a baptism that some other sisters had and she felt the spirit. On Sunday she came to church and LOVED it :)

3. Our lessons with Frankie are going SO well! We taught him about repentance and he told us that just the day before, he called his dad, who he hadn't talked to in years, and made amends with him. When people understand the gospel, they start to change on their own! Miracles!

4. Saturday we had a BBQ and watched meet the Mormon's at the Robinson's with the Jacob's :) AND they came to church on Sunday! We had 7 people there this week! 

5. We had FHE with our favorite family, the Ford's :) We read from the beginning of 3 Nephi 11 about the spirit and did an activity with them. We put different things, like rice, beans, oats, etc., in different cups and they had to shake them and match the sounds. It was a cute idea!

 (Free Slurpees on 7/11 and Korean face masks!)

Down Low, 2 Slow.

1. We were out with a member and she asked if she could take us to try by one of her friends, so we did and he was super nice! We taught him the first lesson and had a return appointment, and then at church the member told us he texted her and asked her to tell us not to come back...It happens.

2. We have gotten TONS of referrals lately and have not turned any of them into news :(

The temple president and his wife came and spoke in our wards this week! They gave awesome talks.

In Exodus 12, we read about the commandment given to the Israelite children to kill a perfect lamb, and put the blood from the lamb on the frames of their door, so the destroying angel would pass by them and not slay them. How important was it, that they did this? What would've happened if they didn't? 

We can relate this to the importance of us always having a temple recommend. I know that the temple is our ultimate goal. Do the things that you need to, in order to be worthy to enter the house of the Lord.

In the movie, Field of Dreams, a young man wants to build a baseball field in the middle of nowhere and everyone thinks he is a fool. His reply is, "If we build it, they will come." Wherever the closest temple is to you, the Lord beckons you to come. There are promised blessings and saving ordinances that take place there and He wants all of us to partake! 

For those who aren't endowed, baptisms for the dead are essential! That is the first ordinance of the gospel and when you participate in temple or family names, you unlock the door from spirit prison to spirit paradise for God's children who have been waiting for so long for their work to be done.

I invite each of you to read D&C 109. It is the dedicatory prayer for the Kirtland temple and it is so powerful!

I am grateful for the temple and my eternal family.

I love you all and God speed!

Love, Sister Bowen

P.S. P-Day will be Monday next week due to transfers and I will be training a new missionary! 

Keepers of the Flame

High 5!

1. New Investigator! Derek is SO solid! He just moved here from Las Cruces and was a member referral to the Zone Leaders down there. He came up here for the police academy and is super prepared. We taught him the Restoration and he is totally getting baptized. The date is not set because he can't leave the county while he is in the academy, so we are working out the details :)

2. Brianna has been FOUND! Ahh, we finally got in contact with her again and she has a new date for August 13th. Keep her in your prayers! There are a lot of family issues there :(

3. Jared is a less active we have been working with ever since I got into this area. He has made HUGE improvements! He has quit smoking, met with President Fraley, can now pass the sacrament, and will be ordained an elder at our next Stake Conference if he keeps this up :) We love him!

4. Shawn was a media referral! (We got him awhile ago so maybe you recall this name.) He is 12 years old and knows a lot of the deacons in Valencia! We have started teaching him and his mom this week. SUPER prepared. There is no doubt that Heavenly Father's hand is involved in this work.

5. MLC was amazing and our training went well the next day :)

Down Low, 2 Slow.

1. We got an awesome referral from some other sisters. His name is Nathaniel and he is 9. We went by for the return appointment and his grandpa was NOT happy to see us.He informed us that he didn't like the church and wasn't too sure about us teaching his grandson. PRAY FOR HIM because he is 9 and has already dealt with his mom leaving him and his dad passing away. 

2. We had NO ONE at church again. That is our biggest struggle right now. 

Our mission president started this new thing! Every Tuesday night we have a huge conference call with everyone in the mission and share miracles and testimonies. It is SO cool! It has made us feel more unified, for sure!

In the brief training President Guffey closed with, he talked about light. Sometimes when our light grows brighter and brighter, the darkness around us seems to be darker and darker. For example, turning on a flash light in a dark room, causes the darkness to seem even darker. BUT, the light is still light and will always overpower the darkness. As we strive to deepen our conversion and grow our testimonies, we might face greater opposition, but we can have confidence in our standing with God.

In Matthew 5:14-16 we read, "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle , and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

I love you all and pray that your light will be seen by others! God speed!

Love, Sister Bowen

(Mary and Jimmy surprised me and came to church!)

(Such a CUTE puppy!)

Noble and Great Ones!

High 5!

1. 4th of July! Yesterday was pretty good, considering I'm on a mission for my favorite holiday for the 2nd time! Valencia ward had a breakfast and Joseph and Steve came and brought their neighbor family! The mom came with her 5 kids. Her name is Emily and she really warmed up to us. She has seen us over at Joseph's so we were pretty excited! They invited us to sit with them for the parade afterwards too so we were there long enough to watch Jennifer, Warren, Ervin and Lenzy go by :) Later in the day we went to a BBQ at the Taylors and Wendy was there and then that night we helped Sue with some things for her new calling! We got to see a few fireworks on our drive home :)

2. This week we got to meet our new mission president and his wife! What a spiritual feast! Oh my, we were blown away! It was fun getting to know them and we look forward to seeing them at MLC on Thursday :)

3. Exchanges! Sister Kelso and I spent a day together in Albuquerque! It was fun! She goes home in 3 weeks so SOON! The Ladera sisters are awesome missionaries :) Manzano also got a new investigator from it! His name is Joey, from LAS VEGAS! Him and his girl friend just moved here and she is already a member! He has a baptism date for August 27th!

4. This week, Frankie dropped into our laps! We were at the Young Single Adult Program on Thursday night and a member had invited him. We taught him right then and there and he is SO elect! We will teach him the 2nd discussion tonight!

5. Regina and Daniel are NEWS! They are the couple who visited SLC. It was fun to teach them and find out how many members they know! Daniel is actually from GERMANY and I LOVE his accent because it reminds me of my Oma! Pray for them!

Down Low, 2 Slow.

1. Marion had a baptism date and dropped us all in the same week :( We will get to see her one more time so keep her and us in your prayers!

2. NO ONE came to church in Valencia this week :(

President Guffey talked a lot about foreordination in our meeting this week. The spirit was SO incredibly strong. He shared some of it in his weekly e-mail to us and I am SO glad because he said it much better than I could. 

"Several prophets, apostles and other church leaders have said that we are part of a special group of strong spirits who were reserved to come forth in this day. This is not because of things you have done in mortality, but because of what you did before this life. John speaks of this in Revelations 12:11 (your testimony), and Alma in Alma 13:3 (your faith)."

"You were confronted by Satan and his followers in our pre-earthly life. They tried to convince you that Jehovah was not able to carry out the Atonement, that it would only take one small mistake on His part, and the whole Plan of Salvation would collapse. But you were valiant in your testimony of Jehovah. You bore strong witness to Satan’s followers that Jehovah would carry out the Plan, because you knew Him, and the Holy Ghost bore witness to you that He would. And then you put your arm on the shoulder of many of those who were not sure what to think, and bore strong witness to them as well, and helped them to follow Jehovah."

One of my favorite scriptures is found in the Pearl of Great Price in Abraham chapter 3...

22. Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
23. And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham [insert your name], thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born.

Remember your roots and where you came from. Do as you did before you came to earth and reach out to those who don't know. 

I love you all! God speed!

Love, Sister Bowen