December 15, 2014

Diez dias mas hasta Navidad!

Hola Todos

     This week has been frustrating and rewarding at the same time. I feel like there is a lot of progress happening with the members of the Branch and I feel like I have progressed so much with my Spanish and with how to serve the members and how to let them know that I love them. But it's frustrating because I feel like nothing is happening. It feels like were running around in circles like chickens with our heads cut off just hoping and praying that someone gets baptized. We haven't been able to see the family that we had on date for 

Christmas Eve so now they won't be able to be baptized that day, super sad.

     But on a brighter note, this week my testimony that the Lord picks the Leaders in the KWM was strengthened so much. Sister Fairbourn came on exchanges here and I loved it. I was a little nervous at first since she doesn't speak Spanish and would be all alone with out anyone to help me but the Gift of Tongues is REAL and everything went great! We also did everything that we were supposed to (talk to absolutely everyone, invite for baptism, work hard, and follow the Spirit). It was awesome! She helped me so much because I was able to see what can happen in this area as we continually strive to keep all of the commitments that have been given to us. Now I just have to do it without her here. We also had our District Leader Interviews this week, we talk with our District Leader about goals for area, problems, etc... it's pretty much just like a interview with President Bell but it happens every transfer). Elder Ibarra is awesome and I am so glad that I get to have him as a district leader before he goes home. I am learning so much from all of the other wonderful missionaries here and I feel so blessed to be here in Wichita West Spanish. I know that these trails are only going to strengthen my faith and are for my benefit. I just need to stay diligent and the blessings will come.

     And I love serving here in Wichita because it's awesome AND because I keep seeing members from Newton!! At the branch Chirstmas party the Medina family showed up and I just about died!! I love them so much and I know for sure that my jaw hit the ground when they walked in! Tender Mercies of the Lord!!! :)

     So Hna Wilks and I have been super excited for Christmas but we totally don't want it to be Christmas because then we won't get to do Christmas-y stuff anymore. And I can not believe that there's only ten more days until Christmas!!! Ah, so crazy!!!! Where has December gone?!? Ojala que todos de ustedes tengan una buena Navidad!!!

Con Mucho Amor,

Hermana Kammeyer

Pics:

Zone Picture for #SharetheGift
Elder Snow, just one of our many decorations for Chirstmas! :)
Racoon that Sister Fairbourn and I ran into while tracting

December 8, 2014

Christmas craziness!

Hola mis queridos!

     This week went by sooo fast! Which is really good because it means that you are working hard and being obedient!

     We had a huge miracle on Thursday! We had been challenged by our Zone Leaders to invite two people to be baptized by the end of the day. We had one family in mind that we knew that they were ready to accept an invitation to be baptized and that it would help them progress. But we had the hardest time finding them at home. We finally caught them at home at 8:15 pm. We taught them the first half of the Restoration and asked them a lot of inspired questions. It was awesome! The spirit was so strong and they expected a baptismal date for Nochebuena! We are so excited for them!! Jose y Ernestina and their two kids also came to an activity that the Wichita Stake was having this weekend. It was an exhibition of different nativities from all over the world. It was actually a lot of fun, I was surprised to be honest with you. They loved it and we showed them around the church and they really had a great time. I also got to see the Ellsworth family and a few other families from Newton there at the activity!! The Lord's Tender Mercies are the BEST!!!!!!!!!!

     Our Saturday was crazy! The Stake activity lasted from Friday night until Saturday night and they had missionaries ushering and helping out the whole time! Hna Wilks and I went over to the activity that morning to help the branch with a Christmas musical thing that they were doing for the activity. Side note; I think I've played the piano more in the last 10 months on my mission than in the last two years before my mission! It went over pretty well considering how tone deaf our little branch is. :) You gotta love them though! After that we went and got lunch then it was back to the Nativity thing to help usher. Then right after that we went over to the City Building to help with and Christmas activity that they were having over there. Phew! It was a crazy day full of service!

     Sunday we went Caroling with one of the members and her boyfriend to a bunch of their non-member family and friends. It was a lot of fun and we got to meet a lot of different people that way. The night ended by watching the Christmas Devotional, in Spanish. Man did that first lady talk fast I understood like nothing! The other two were a little bit slower so I got what they were saying. Just goes to show me that I still have a lot of work to do when it comes to my Spanish.

     I love you all so much and I hope that you are having a wonderful Christmas time! Remember that He (Jesucristo) is the gift and the reason for the season!

Con Mucho Amor,

Hermana Kammeyer

December 1, 2014

Me encanta español!

Hola Todos!

     This week was definitely one of the harder weeks on my mission! But also a very good week. It was so so hard to leave Garden City! I love that place so much! Ugh! It's crazy how hard it is to leave a place that you love so much. It was especially hard to say goodbye to Consuelo. Aw! Thinking about it makes me tear up!

     I was so surprised that I could get everything packed that I needed to in just one day! Man, do you accumulate a lot of stuff as a missionary! The transfer devotional was good as usual and I got to see Hna Seigfried and Hna Wheadon which totally brightened my day!
I'm not gonna lie the first few days in the Wichita West Spanish Branch were rough! We cover a HUGE area! All of Wichita Stake! So we have a long of ground to cover... except we didn't have any miles to do so. :( So we rode our bike over 30 miles Wednesday and Thursday! Ugh!! I was so tired!! Thanksgiving was a little rough, not gonna lie. It was hard not to think about Garden City and what I would've been doing there. But Heavenly Father helped me get over it and get to work and by the end of the day I was really grateful for the Thanksgiving that I did have.

     It's so different being in a Branch! I'm so used to serving around tons of members and missionaries so adjusting to how small the support network is here was actually a little lonely. But going to church on Sunday and meeting most of the members really helped.
I can not even begin to explain to you how much my Spanish has grown since I got here. It's like serving in a Spanish Branch just opens up the flood gates to the gift of tongues. There's also a lot of responsibility when you serve in a branch, super glad I'm not an Elder because they're the branch presidents counselors! But I played the piano in sacrament meeting and I gave a surprise talk, was orginally supposed to be a short testimony, in sacrament meeting. 

     All of these experiences reminded me of how much I've grown in the last few months and it's incredible to see! I am so grateful of all of the wonderful blessings and gifts that Heavenly Father has given me. So even though there's hard times Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are always there for me strengthening me and helping me become better person in Christ!

     I love you all so much and I am so grateful to be a missionary here in the sacred land of Kansas! Heavenly Father is aware of all of his children here. I love this work and I am so grateful for my Savior! Keep the faith and let your light shine!!

Con Amor,

Hermana Kammeyer

Pic:
We were so cold after biking Wednesday night that we filled the tub up with warm water and planned with our feet in the tub!