Wax Stronger

High 5!

1. New investigator in Manzano! Brianna Ruiz. She is 19 years old, she had a really hard past with not being loved by her parents, and after she graduated high school was kicked out and shipped here to live with her sister and their family. Her group of friends from high school recently joined the church in another state and had been telling her all about it when she began to pray for the Lord to send someone to help her. 1 week later, the elders knocked on her door, and now we are teaching her. She is golden! Pray for her.

2. Exchanges! We had a crazy busy week and amoungst it all did exchanges with Ladera. Sister Hatch came down to Los Lunas with me and we had a good time! I'm totally convinced that I have this calling because I need to learn from so many other sisters! 

3. MLC. President Miller's last MLC was this week and it was a spiritual feast! We learned a lot and in turn had a good Zone Training the next day. We trained on the Book of Mormon and Preach My Gospel being equally yoked, as well as our companionships.

4. We started teaching a less active family this week, the Jim's! He makes Native American jewelry and he let Sister Ropelato and I pick out something for him to make us! They have a non-member son and his 3 daughters living with them so we are excited to start teaching them :)

5. Joseph (recent-convert) takes care of his disabled nephew so it has been hard for him to come to church but this past week him and Steve BOTH came and Steve loved it! Our ward mission leader even invited them over for the BBQ we were going to at their house after church and we had fun with tons of ward members. Steve's heart has been softened a ton! He calls us the nuns-haha!

(Joseph made us this yummy heart shaped cake)

Down Low, 2 Slow.

1. It's week 6 :( Say no to transfers please.

(Because it's not very often that you get to be companions with your very best friend!)

2. Saturday I was SUPER sick. I was throwing up all day. Not fun. I got a blessing that night and in the blessing the Lord told me I would be healed the next morning, and sure enough I was! 

This week our mission experienced a miracle. About a month ago, all of us were informed about an Elder in the mission who had a 9 year old sister who was diagnosed with cancer. The cancer had entered her bones and in turn, she would need a bone marrow transplant. The only match in the family was her brother serving here. About 2 weeks ago, he went home to prepare for the transplant. All of us missionaries had been fasting and praying for little Liberty and the Hanson family. At MLC, President Miller stood with tear filled eyes and informed us that Sister Hanson had just called to give him an update. The doctors were running final tests before starting chemo treatments and were all scratching their heads because in every test they ran, they could not find a trace of cancer. We, however, are not scratching our heads.

This past Sunday, us along with many others joined in a special fast for Jennifer and Warren, so the obstacles holding them back from baptism would be removed. We look forward to the miracles to come! 

The power of God is real and is on the earth. We can access it through prayer, fasting, faith, and the priesthood. Helaman 3:35 "Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God."

God speed!

Love, Sister Bowen