April 1, 2013
Hola Familia!
This week went by a lot faster than our first week in the area- and church wasn't quite as overwhelming, maybe because I could understand the Spanish more and there were a lot of familiar faces. There are too many stories to share- sometimes I just wish I could share them with my family right away, but we have to be patient and just keep working! I want you all to meet Hermana Robles, a cute little Puerto Rican lady who speaks really fast (or it seems to me) and kisses us a million times and says she loves us. Then she prays with a really loud, deep voice... She's so cute.
We are still living in a really nice home in Princeton Junction, NJ with a member family, the Deardens. Bro. Dearden (who reminds me of Uncle Ryan) is in the bishopbric and Sis. Dearden is a convert who teaches seminary in her home early in the morning. They have a daughter who got recruited to play soccer for BYU next fall. They shared leftovers of their yummy Easter dinner with us last night. We should be getting into our own apartment in about a week.
This week we had a huge 2-day training meeting with our whole zone and Pres. and Sis. Jeppson were there, as well as the Assistants to the President. We learned how to improve our teaching skills with the "fundamentals" and "Preach My Gospel" and did lots and lots of role plays with other missionaries as we practiced applying what we'd learned. It was a lot of class time, but it's great to learn from other missionaries and the Jeppsons and get better prepared to teach.
The first night after training Hermana Nava, Hermana Daniels, and I went to teach a young lady in the branch named Crisanny. There were three other men in the house (a lot of people live together with their families and friends around here) and we invited them to listen. We were so excited that they were willing to listen to us and we jumped into "How to Begin Teaching" from Preach My Gospel and the 3rd lesson: The Gospel of Jesus Christ. Part-way through another Guatemalan man named Paulo came home from work and he was eager to listen to us. We invited them all to be baptized, and Paulo accepted and the others will think about it. The Spirit was strong and we were SO grateful for that experience. The elders taught Paulo again and he came to church yesterday with his daughter! Those moments are so rewarding.
We found out that those people we taught were not in our area, so we can't teach them. But we found out that the Lord still blesses you for all your efforts with things you can't imagine! We were having a "Noche de Hogar" (Family Home Evening) with a less-active family and a friend they invited and had planned to show the movie, "Finding Faith in Christ." The Spirit was so strong and halfway through the movie more family burst in the door all loud with pizzas! We invited them to join and all of a sudden there were 13 people besides us, including little kids, all silent and entranced in this beautiful video about Christ. It was a great opportunity for us to testify of Christ and let them know that we invite people to follow him by their actions, including baptism. Unfortunately, we didn't see any of them at church yesterday, but we are looking forward to meeting with them again.
Did I mention that New Jersey is really random? There are statues on the side of the road like 50 feet tall of a giant mariachi band, and then a huge tooth- yes, an enormous statue of a tooth- with statues of life-size people looking up at it with really confused expressions. Then there are some obscure, metal modern art displays here and there. You have pretty sunsets and cornfields, mansions and gothic churches, cute homes painted every color, and then tiny apartments and lots of honking cars. I love the area around Princeton campus! It is cute and fun and there are a lot of nice restaurants and shops.
I love you all so much! Please keep me updated on family news. I love getting pictures and emails and letters from you. I miss my sisters, parents, and all my family, but I am loving the work. Personal and companionship studies have been SUCH a blessing to me and I realize more and more how amazing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is. God had a plan from the beginning how we could come to a knowledge of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and have true happiness in this life and after we die. I am so grateful for Joseph Smith and the Restoration. I love the Book of Mormon so much! I know I've been told to read it my whole life, but I'm realizing more and more why it is really so important and relevant to all of us! Don't be afraid to open your mouth to share it. I'm still working on that too. I love you all. Sorry for writing so much about me. Let me know how you're doing!
Much love,
Hermana Martin
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