Oh how glorious from the thrones above...

“...Shines the gospel light of truth and love!”

I think that's how it goes in english. I can't be sure. But that was my week. Pure light. So let's talk about it.

On Tuesday we had our tri-zone conference with President and the assistants. My companion and I taught a workshop on "receiving" the spirit and did an activity in which we threw balls randomly at people who weren't ready, and then at people who were, and how we need to prepare ourselves to receive the impressions of the spirit. I had the thought about a football receiver and how much he has to train, prepare and change himself physically to be ready to catch that ball in that one game, and then talked about how we can't just be ready out of nowhere but need to exercise our faith and train ourselves, change ourselves day by day to be ready when that one impression comes that we need to help someone.

President talked a lot about one of President Uchtdorf's talks about how "We are doing a great work and cannot come down." We watched the talk and it inspired me beyond words, as did President's words. Wow. The spirit was strong. Then they decided to end with testimonies and said "Who are the hermanas who are leaving this transfer?" I turn around and look behind me and everyone's like "Willllsooonnnn!" That was mean. So the other two and I shared our testimonies along with a bunch of other elders and a couple hermanas. Wow. It was so powerful. I cannot express in this moment how much I love the missionaries in these three zones. In fact, I don't think I've ever loved almost anyone this much, because it's not my love. It brought me to tears several times throughout the conference just watching them and their progress. I never expected how serving among the MISSIONARIES would change me so much, but for me it is even a more priceless work than the investigators. I've learned that the Lord's work will always go forward, and if there were no missionaries, it would continue in some other way. But that this program is so inspired because it takes youth and takes them right up to heaven for a little while so they can then learn how to spend their life getting back to that place and helping others. And I won't even start with th elove for the zone leaders. They are GOOD BOYS and I've seen how they've grown to have that same love, and many times we've been able to talk between the four of us about how to save these missionaries. I just want to marry all six of them. But not in a romantic way. Wait.

After the conference we all ate tacos and laughed a ton with our hermanas. They are ALL hilarious and all the same (and now I'm one of those). I feel like I'm hanging out with Angie and Paul all the time. Latin humor is the best. Last week an American lady came to our church visiting for a humanitarian trip. She didn't speak any spanish so I went and talked to her. We had a short conversation in which she was almost interested and then suddenly she just walked away and it left me almost in shock. We need to be less dry in our country.

After THAT I headed to Comitan to do exchanges with herman Baer from Nevada, which means I got to go with them in their megavan and we sang church music, played games and took pictures all the way down. It was awesome. Sending pictures.

Trip to Comitan

Elder Merrill and the others in the back.

After two days there, I came back up and we decided to do a second pair of exchanges that week although there wasn't a time. It turned out to be the most inspired thing in the world and one of the most beautiful experienes. We arrived to find two girls who hadn't spoken to each other in three days, who were completely consumed in pride and near tears not knowing how to let it go. We were shocked because these are GREAT GIRLS and our good friends. After talking it through a little we split up and I stayed with one of the hermanas. It's really interesting how the Lord does things, because ever since she arrived, we became really good friends and she told me that although she didn't like intercambios [exchanges] OR capacitadoras [sister trainers] that with me it was different, and because of that relationship she was able to open up to me throughout the whole day and I was able to talk to her very directly and talk about all the pride that was going on and what we needed to do to change it. We also had fun and relieved stress and got to teach in their little mountain pueblo, Elambon. The next day we decided to switch companions and do another round of divisions and I talked to the other hermana. We ended up going to the house to talk for about an hour and I let her get it all out and then we read Ezra Taft Benson's "Beware of Pride" which completely changed her perspective. One of the most beautiful moments of my mission was THIS one, as we talked and things were coming out of my mouth that were NOT my words and the spirit was filling the room and then I started to tell her of the companions I have struggled with, my own pride I have struggled with since day one, and HOW MUCH I loved them and how that love is worth absolutely everything. And then how much we--the capacitadoras, the zone leaders, assistants and you--loved them SO MUCH. I started crying because I really could feel the love of the Savior for both of them in that moment and she started crying as well and recognizing all she needed to change. And seeing the process of a daughter of God who I already knew was amazing go from being filled with pride that was just torturing her to being absolutely filled with the love of Christ and start to say all the things she loved about her companion. It was absolutely beautiful and made me realize there's a lot I want to change as well. The atonement is real and it is SO POWERFUL and so beautiful.

We also talked a lot about how the things our companions do that sometimes seem so deliberate and hurtful are often only because Satan is tempting them as well and unfortunately they give in sometimes as do we. So rather than taking offense or using it against them, we need to recognize what is happening in that instant and feel the desire to help them when they fail to rise above their temptations, and that is how we can continue to have a supportive, loving relationship even when bad things happen. We ended with a little testimony meeting and laughed a lot all four of us together, and each talked about what they'd learned and all they were going to change. I think it will be something of a process but they at least understand better now what the real problem is -- not their companion but PRIDE-- and how to fight against it together.

We came home and I was just about in tears once again for how much I loved them and how grateful I was for the Savior's atonement to change our hearts.  

And last but not least, the stake had a Family History fair and since [the RS president] Susy's husband is a stake member, he heard about everything last week and asked me to give one of the workshops. Actually, he asked my companion if I could and she said yes and no one told me anything about what I had to do until we were in the room, it was filled with a group of people and he said "Okay you can start Hermana Wilson" and left the room. I thought I was supporting but apparently I was teaching the class! It was how to find our ancestors, since most have no idea you can search for them and are limited to only do the work for those they already know about. So it was something confusing especially for those who knew nothing and didn't know what we were searching for, but those that have already done something learned a lot and that was awesome. I ended up having to give 4 classes of 30 minutes and I decided after that I never want to be a teacher. Haha but it was awesome at the same time.

Family history activity

AAAAND last but not least I got to speak in church this week and talked about Ammon and King Lamoni which is by far my favorite story in the world. I just adore all the light and joy and falling down in that room that happens because of the gospel, because lately I've just felt like doing the same. I cried a little there too which I've never done in a talk before as I talked about all the joy that comes when we participate in this work. We can choose if we will or won't but we're the only ones who will lose or gain. People cried.

Well, that was my beautiful week! I'm just all swollen up with love. I think if you could see me here you wouldn't ask me to come home. But it's not what you're asking, it's what it's time for so I will do my best to do it in one piece. But I think it might be an important idea if the house is decorated like Christmas and music is playing because somewhere in my subconscience it's going to be Christmas when I get home. I think it's a mental defense. ;) 

Sure love you all like crazy! Have a great week!

[My how Kelsi has grown on her mission!]

El Espíritu de Elías

WOOOOW. This week was so cool. We did...so much.

Starting with a conference and exchanges with Chenalho (Tzotzilandia) where we learned more Tzotzil, taught lessons in the rain, and as always felt like we were in the Shire.

After divisions, I brought Hermana Wong back to San Cris for exchanges and we had a day of HUGE success with 7 lessons with a member present as well as some others and a bunch of street contacts and lots of new people. It was so great. It's cool how when we have to spend time in other areas, the Lord blesses us returning home to be able to do double. Which was good because the next day we went and switched companions, and mine came home throwing up, so we were in home all day. I learned a. TON. Holy studies. I finally learned how I feel like and now I just wish I was studying...all the time.

Friday we were blessed with another double day and had 7 MORE lessons with a member present, and more other lessons and contacts. God loves us. We took a girl whose family is starting to go inactive with us and I silently prayed we could have miracles so she could feel the spirit and be encouraged, and WOW. In two hours we had 4 lessons, found new people in each one, and then leaving one lesson suddenly we're surrounded by a million children smiling at us expectantly, and I realized that the little girl from the first lesson to whom I'd given a CTR ring had rounded up the whole neighborhood. I'm like "WOAH I don't have any more rings! BUT... what's your name?" and we went around memorizing each one of their names and then asked them if they knew how to pray. They all said no and I'm like WHAT! God's not hearing from 9 of his children! Let's change that okay?" We went through the steps and they all repeated and then we all folded our arms and one of them said a prayer right there and everyone was so reverent. Then we left and they all ran after us and hugged us and followed us to the end of the street. It was beautiful. Joana (the girl accompanying us) was so excited and we got home and read with her and she made us promise to tell her when we'd go over there next time. Prayers are answered.

And then possibly the most beautiful part of this week was Saturday. Susy, the RS president, had found out that my dad works in FamilySearch and I know some things and asked me to help them with their activity to get everyone a name to take to the temple. It was supposedly from 12 to 2, but ended up not starting til 3 and not ending til 7 because of a stake activity at the same time. So we ended up helping with the stake activity first and we got to know all the women in the ward better. And then she put me at a computer and had me help sister after sister create their account and put in the information. I helped 72-year-old Eulogia--who thought it was the same thing as an email and why did she have to create another one--was so excited and we ended up finding the dates to get her grandmother to the temple and a few others. She left in tears and every time she saw us after informed us how she was looking through everything she had for names and that she had referrals for us and who knows what else. She's beautiful. I helped a few others and we were there all afternoon finding and creating. And then finally as everyone left and we're finishing up, Susy asks me to help her with some questions she had in her account. So we look and fix some things, and then I taught her how to add sources. In the process, we were looking for sources for her grandfather and suddenly found a record of him and his whole family, who she knew nothing about. At first she didn't understand what was happening but I told her, Look that's his mom! And she gasps, then freezes, then says "DON'T MOVE ANYTHING!" and starts scribbling everything on a paper. I showed her how to connect it to her account and create the new people and get them ready for the temple. We were both SO excited, it seriously felt like Christmas in that room and the feeling still hasn't gone away. I saw her in church the next day and we're just like "YEAAHH." I can't describe it, all I can say is that the spirit of Elijah has TOUCHED this ward and they are changing! We are ALL going to the temple in a couple of weeks with all the names we can get. We'll do what it takes to get permission because wow.

Lastly, we had an FHE with a little humble family yesterday that's always at church but always so quiet, and all reactivated about 3 or 4 years ago except for the teenage daughter who's been making other choices. When I first got here she didn't have much interest in us or anything, but I started talking to her and gave her the first lesson. Since then I've always sort of sought her out and asked how she's doing with the Book of Mormon. A few weeks ago she started quietly coming to church, and she would tell me that she's read a little bit. Yesterday in the FHE we talked about the plan of salvation and the atonement, and then at the end I felt this impression to end with a little testimony meeting and asked if they'd feel comfortable sharing their testimonies. They all said yes and the mom started. She's so sweet and humble. She cried a lot and talked about how hard it was to have a calling in Relief Society when she just wanted to be in the background but how the Lord has helped her and how she'll never leave the church again. When she finished we asked who was next and were surprised when M. (the daughter) said it was her turn. She looked at the floor, said "I don't know..." and then suddenly she was crying really hard. She told us she'd made a lot of bad choices but she felt so grateful to be going to church again and that she can renew her covenants and start over. I didn't even know she understood those things. She ended with her testimony and then we shared ours, and it was a BEAUTIFUL moment. Afterward as we left, I hugged her, and then she wouldn't let go. And it was so cute because every time we let go she would just hold on to me and hug me again and she just said "Thank you." It was such a precious moment. I had NEVER known I'd done absolutely ANYTHING for her, but the spirit works in everyone and as quiet as they may be, they just may be changing as we hug them each week, ask how they're doing and if they're reading their Book of Mormon.

We're going to get her to the temple and quick!

So those are the miracles of this week! Love you all and loving it here!

Queen Sister Wilson. hehe

Traveling the World

Welcome to more last-minute exchanges with Comitan! 

But first going to Tuxtla!

And two zone conferences in between all that.

Leadership council was beautiful. They ended up dividing it for the first time so we were only half the people we usually were, we went up the same day instead of staying the night and then came home afterward. We learned a lot and I liked it. It was interesting to be there with Hermana Coronado and Hickman, my two ex-companions who have also been companions with each other, forming this funny triangle relationship. It was awesome.

We went home and had a great zone conference. We'd planned a lot of new activities and it went pretty well. That afternoon the girls from Comitan call and one had fainted and the other was a little beside herself, and something just told us we should probably get down there. So we called our zone leaders, "We're suddenly going to Comitan, we might come back on Saturday!" And they said "Cool! If people suddenly explode up here too let us know and we'll be you!" We appreciated that. They're awesome.

We went down and it went really well, we were able to help them and have fun and work up there, and the great thing about it was we got to help with their zone conference too which we weren't originally going to do. And it turned out. FANTASTIC. It was by far the best conference I've participated in, and we'd only had an hour to plan with the zone leaders the day before. But we got a flood of ideas and they really outdid themselves with the preparations. I'm going to run through it a litle bit just to give you an idea:

We started out with music and all the seats in a circle and some announcements. Elder Garcia then said that they had one more announcement but it was too hard to say so they were going to have Hermana Wilson give it. I'm like, "Right now?" "Yeah; I think so hermana." So I get up and solemnly tell everyone that the number of missionaries has gone down drastically in the mission (true), that President has to make some hard decisions (true) and that he's decided to close this zone at the end of the transfer (total lie). Everyone's all shocked, and we said we wanted to have the best transfer ever because of that. So we started singing, talked about what manner of missionary we want to be, time management, and then headed to a different room where there were four cakes set up representing four missionaries. A huge, beautiful one, a large, almost beautiful one, and then two pathetic bread rolls, one of which had a bite taken out. We talked about what our "offering" to the Lord is, and how each act of disobedience is taking a bit out of that offering. It sounded better there.

Afterward we went to a different room with a video and an activity with an alter to leave old behaviors. Then a different room where I had three paper swords and had them fight against Satan, then against God AND Satan (with disobedience, mind at home, etc) and then united with God AGAINST Satan. Because really, it doesn't work when we're fighting against both.

And we did a couple more, but the point is we felt so inspired and had so much help in that conference and it answered a lot of questions we had of how to improve the zone. We then set an impossible goal for each week of the transfer and sent them off with the challenge.

Oh! And Elder Merrill is in the zone so that was awesome. He was my Satan ;)

Meanwhile we're having a ton of fun with the comp. 

She's just like Erika and says random things and makes weird faces. And she's the sweetest human ever.

(For comparison, we’ve got Erika here on the right…)

(The Comitan zone; I'd awkwardlky understood that this was the crazy picture and...it wasn’t.)

So we're loving it in San Cris! I love you all, and I'll try to be more spiritual next week! Because holy tired. THIS IS THE BEST!

P.S. [Dad: "So did you ever tell them you were full of frijoles?"] Yeah forgot to tell that part! It was awesome, at the end I said I had one more announcement.... we're not closing the zone... but if we WERE.... what would you want to leave these people with? And everyone was like "HEEEYYYY" and some hermanas almost cried in relief but then we talked about how they'd felt and it turned out to be a really awesome thing. That's when we started putting impossible goals for each week, one in each category to really go for it and we ended singing the Army of Helaman with me at the piano. It was superb.

Like a FIRE is burning

Well this was a beautiful crazy week.

First, it was Monday. We had several sisters from the zone and tzotzilandia come eat lunch with us to bid my companion farewell, and then one of them helped me by asking if I could pass her some music and we escaped off to the internet cafe of a member to get together a surprise for my companion. It took a while but turned out great. I'll send a copy. We had been planning what to do for her all last week in secret phone calls and whispers in the church hallways. I will tell you that it is HARD to keep a secret from a companion. They are just always there. But we successfully got a poster printed out, hung up in her room, and sent everyone back to her area. When we got home she wasn't feeling well and went into her bed, a moment of silence, and then she shouts "TE PASAS WILSON!! AWWW!!!" She said she's going to frame it once she gets home. 

Here's the poster for Caraballo. We printed it out huge. Everyone always tells her she looks like the princess and the frog princess and she gets mad and says it's not true, but then one day we found a frog bag made out of a real frog and I was sneaky enough to get her to kiss it, get a picture, and put it all together here and she laughed a ton. 

Still got it! ;)

The next day, the hermanas called us really early saying that apparently one of them was sick and couldn't drop her companion off at the bus stop to go to her new area, and could we please magically be ready and go take her RIGHT NOW, and the ironic part was that my companion had to throw me the phone and run to throw up because she's actually sick. So we ran all over town, ate breakfast, took some stuff to the sisters that are staying, realized we were all sick, so made an appointment and all went to the doctor together. And then Sister George calls and says she'll be coming down so she'll take my companion away and to not worry about the bus. But they didn't get there til 8:30 that night. Which was perfectly fine with me. Saying goodbye to her may have been one of the hardest things I've done on this mission and I was emotional for days. ME! COLD HEARTED WILSON! But luckily President was really sweet and brought me my package and a letter to make up for it and I got to drown my sorrow in goldfish and nuttella. THANKS MOM!

But the next day as I was studying and just about every scripture was bringing tears to my eyes I realized how the Lord has changed me and purified me in this transfer, and I guess the whole mission. I was feeling the spirit like never before, and something I talked to my new companion about was that sometimes I think the Lord makes holes in you so that He can fill them up with something else. And that "else" is absolutely beautiful. He wants us to be a different material, and He has to change us piece by piece. The love He let me feel this last transfer was a gift from Him and the sadness afterward created just the hole He needed to make me a completely different person, and I haven't felt the same since! My new companion and I sat down and made some goals for this transfer and I just have this constant feeling of overwhelming gratitude and humility for all that has happened. We met with our zone leaders who are also new now and I was equally grateful to see their love for the missionaries and their desire to help each one. It is the first time we have had four leaders, all together, who only want to do good and not just mess around and we met together in prayer and HOLY REVELATION that just came raining upon us. This zone conference will be beautiful.

I just can't get over any of it. Everything I knew is so different now! I just want to get to heaven and fast! But not that fast. Don't worry. I just can't wait to love more and more people because it's incredible. I think I'll have ten kids.

Well, love you all! Hope you have a superb day and feel the spirit this whole week!

Hermana Wilson