¡Hola del Salvador!

Good morning mi familia! I hope you all are doing well! I appreciate all of you and everyone who receives these emails I consider family and I love you all so much! 

It's the start of a new transfer over here and it feels like I have been transfered to the country of El Salvador sometimes! Really, I haven't even been transfered at all, we just had an area boundary change and the new places we get to go find in are poppin with Salvadoreños! Some like to practice their English though so they talk to us in English and we respond in Spanish. Two people in the last month have told me I have a portugase accent with how I form words and such. Hermana Miley thinks I just sound white which is probably more accurate! 

So this week was a week full of finding and we found many people ready to come unto Christ! A lot of the amazing people we found speak English or French so we had to refer them to the other missionaries but we also found a couple of Spanish speakers we get to work with! 

One of these people is named Ruben. He is 21 and searching how to return to Christ through the difficulties of this life. He was so excited for our visit that when we knocked on the door he grabbed his shoes, left the party they were having and headed out the door before we could say ¿cómo está? He was so open with us and wants to progress and feel forgiven for some things of his past. He knows we can help show him how he can feel the peace he has been searching for. We have another visit with him tonight which I'm excited for! 

Another person we found is actually a neighbor and good friend of Hermana Quintanilla! Hermana Quintanilla is the bishops mom who's friend Leticia is investigating the church. This lady we found is named Raquel and she is the sweetest old lady ever! She is from Mexico and she is an angel! White fluffy hair and all haha. We took her to a birthday party for the relief society and she had a good time getting to meet the bishop and other sisters in the church. She asked some good questions about the church as well and she agreed to let us come visit her and teach her more of this message soon! 

A couple of times throughout this week I had the overwhelming feeling that the Lord prepares hearts to receive this message of the gospel. I know that is true and I feel the spirit testify so strong as we talk to specific people that are ready to receive the gospel. There are hearts ready now, and more hearts being prepared everyday for this message. At times it's  hard because people reject what could be the best thing for their life but the Lord has a time for them to take upon his name and follow in his footsteps. I know God's timing is perfect that our timing is not. He knows more than we do and has a specific plan for every one of his children.  He will guide us all through this life, we just have to trust him and follow him in faith. 

I love you all! Have a wonderful week! 

-Hermana Barthlome 

Baptism and fiestas

Hola! 

So many awesome things happened this week so sorry if this email is kind of jumpy! 

Angel got baptized on Saturday! It was such a spirit filled baptism. When he came up out of the water he had such a peaceful look on his face and you could tell he was so content with his decision to be baptized. After he got dressed he was asked to share his thoughts and bear his testimony and he made the whole room cry! He is such a humble person who loves his savior so much. Angel is an angel on earth! 

When we were filling out his baptiaimal record, Angel needed to sign his name to make it valid. He doesn't know how to read or write but we had the opportunity to teach him to write his name so he could sign his own baptisimal record. It was such an humbling experience to teach him how to write letters and practice writing his name for the first time for something so special such as baptism. 

After Angel's baptism, we all crashed the English ward's international night party in the gym. They invited us for food and dancing and to "tour the world" of displays with little baby passport books! 

The funniest part of the night was when all 8 of the elders and the mission leaders were invited to dance onstage with an awesome African guy. Then they let the ladies dance and it was really fun! It was like zumba! 

 It was so amazing to feel the culture in that room from all over the world. All of God's children from every continent coming together to worship our Savior and show him our love by loving one another. It is truely amazing to be in a place where we can be so different in how we are raised but so much the same in our love for the Savior. I know this is where I am supposed to be. Serving these people in Maryland and helping these people learn of the restored gospel of Jesua Christ. 

Last night we got to teach a man from the Caribbean and it was my first english lesson! It was really weird because we arent supposed to teach in english but he let us in and wanted to hear our message then and there. he understood the restoration so well and took us right into the plan of salvation! He has such a strong testimony and I think he will get baptized! God prepares some people and I'm sure he is one of them! Also! We got to teach Leticia yesterday and she is doing so well with her testimony! She is the friend of the member who called us and said she wanted to get baptized. She isnt ready for a date yet but I think she will be soon! She has come to church 3 times now and is really making the effort to be baptized. I know God has prepared her and she will be ready sooner than she thinks!

Well crazy week but it has been full if miracles! I am so grateful for these people and their desire to come closer to Christ! 

I love you all so much!

-Hermana Barthlome 

Lose your life for his sake and save it!

Hola familia! 

What a week! Yesterday in sacrament meeting I realized another week had flown by and I couldn't believe it! 

This week was a week of finding and searching for those with whom we can share the message of the gospel. Hermana Miley and I have been praying and working hard to recognize those who are ready to receive this message and I am faithful we will see results soon! We are starting new with our pool if investigators so we have a lot of work ahead of us! 

Angel will have his baptism this Saturday and he seems to be more at ease with his decision to be baptized. He was worried he had too much to learn in such little time but it has been so wonderful to watch the spirit work on him to prepare him for baptism. The spirit is so powerful that it can prepare any troubled mind or worried heart to receive Christ and take upon them his name. 

I know the gospel of Jesus Christ is true with all of my heart. I am so grateful to witness the gospel bless the lives of others everyday and to share the joy that it brings. I love this work. I have worked hard to find the joy in this work and this week I found it, when I least expected it. A good friend taught me the principle of this scripture as I was preparing to serve the mission and I can testify that it is true and this is how we find the that incredible joy in missionary service.

Mark 8:35 

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it. 

Les quierdo! 

-Hermana Barthlome 

Letter to my Sis

Spanish is coming. I just take it day by day. I can talk to people on the phone alright. I am still having a hard time understanding everyone though. I've talked to people from all over and its fun to learn the differences in the language. Same spanish language, different cultures. Its really neat. We also use a lot of english because there are people from everywhere and english is the universal go to around here. 

Yesterday we talked with a lady named Lilian from Cameroon for a good 15 minutes. Her english was really good and she was such a sweetie! She made my day yesterday because she was talking about how awesome it is to see young people out teaching about Christ. A lot of people dont listen to us because we are young. We get preached to a lot because of that but she was so sweet. She gave us big hugs and we told her we love her and that made her happy.

 Its amazing to meet people from all over the world everyday who are so loving and kind. They are so humble too. I could go on for days about these people I have met who are so grateful for the opportunity to live in this country and who are so humble as they share their experiences. A man from Togo who told us his story of getting here and showing us scars from being stabbed many times, an Egyptian who came to know and love his savior, Jesus Christ, another from British Ginea who so sweetly treated us like princesses out under the hot sun and encouraged us to keep doing what we are doing as servants of God. These people don't care for possesions or money, they care to give us water and a good experience to go with it. They are so full of love and they know their worth in this world. It is so humbling. 

-Hermana Barthlome

This week has been so good!

This week has been so good! 

We had zone conference on Thursday and meetings with President Johnson on Friday which was awesome! I love him and his wife so much! 

Angel accepted a date for baptism! He is getting baptized on August 18th and he is getting so excited. Yesterday at church, he fasted and pulled us aside to help him pay his fast offering. It has been such a blessing to see where he was when I first met him to where he is now. His testimony has grown so much and he is so happy. I am in awe of his example and how much he grows in the gospel everyday. 

Leticia came to church and it was good to finally meet her! Her friend called us sating she was ready to get baptized last week. Leticia is taking it nice and easy and tolds us she will meet with us when she is ready. Hermana Quintanilla is being the best member missionary! She is such a great example! 

Today we had district activity which was fun. We made tacos and played soccer and it was a blast. Sorry the email is short today but I'll send pictures! 

-Hermana Barthlome 

Angel at the visitors center for the first time and district activity today! 

-Hermana Barthlome 

Pictures!

A

Wow this week flew! 

I think I am finally adjusting to missionary time because it feels like I was just emailing home yesterday! 

Sorry I'm emailing kinda late today. I was having some Idaho withdrawls and made some baked potato soup. Hermana Miley says "A companionship that cooks together, stays together" so we spend our Mondays in the kitchen a lot. 

This week was so spiritually uplifting! So many firsts happened this week in the field. I had my first companion exchange which was a lot of fun and attended a baptism on Saturday for two 16 year old twins and a young boy who's father recently converted to the church. It was so special to be there with them in that moment and to see them so happy to follow in Christ's footsteps. 

Also, the bishop's mom called one night and said her friend wants to be baptized! The hermanas worked with her before I got here and she didn't want to stop smoking or drinking coffee then so she stopped lessons. Since then she has stopped doing those things, has read in the Book of Mormon and she says she knows its true! She said she's ready to get baptized! I'm so excited to start working with her this week. 

Angel has been another wonderful example to me this week! I am so impressed by some of the people we get the opportunity to work with because they teach me to be better every single day. Angel has been praying a lot about his baptisimal date lately and is doing all he can to recognize personal revelation in his life. On Sunday he called us saying he couldn't come to church because his feet were hurting really bad. He has some problems with his feet where he cant be on them for very long and they were really hurting him on Sunday. Angel has never missed a week of church before so hermana Miley and I knew he was in pain but we promised him that if he came to church, Heavenly Father would bless him and help his feet to allow him to attend church. He came! For all 3 hours! I was so impressed by his dedication and desire to come admist his pain. I know he really wants to be baptized, he is doing all he can to work towards that goal. 

I am so grateful to see the dedication some of these people have to come closer to Christ. I get to learn from amazing people everyday and feel a little bit of the love Jesus Christ has for them.

I love you all! Have a blessed week! 

-Hermana Barthlome