4-27-15 Buenos dias

Buenos diasss!

Well this week was really great. Except Sunday. JK. Sunday was great. But Sunday could have been a lot better, only because NO ONE came to church. Which is probably one of the most frustrating things ever. But it's ok. God's got a plan. So no worries. :)

So, Mom has asked for details of a lesson. I'll tell you about a lesson we had with Olga, an investigator we're working with. Last week we did a zone fast for our baptismal goal. We were out working and were going to try to see if Olga was home and then break our fast. Well, she wasn't. So we stood in her driveway and started to stuff our faces full of crackers and fruit snacks. And then, wouldn't you know it, Olga drove up! It was a little embarrassing but beautiful timing on God's part. We went in and sat with her and had an awesome lesson about the Book of Mormon. We were talking about what it was, doing a little intro, and she had already started looking through it and was on the introduction page when I suggested we read from it. She said, "Oh good! I was going to ask if we could read some!" (I died of happiness inside.)

The whole time her four-year-old son was trying to get her attention and she kept pushing him away saying, "go play! I'm trying to listen to this!" It was awesomeeee. The next day she texted us and told us that her 17-yr-old son had been in the other room and listened to everything we said and wanted to know when we were coming back.

MIRACLES. Seriously. God is so good. I'm 100% that they will get baptized. Hopefully while I'm in Laredo. They just need to go to church is all. :)

Last week I went on an exchange with Sister Tovar. She's new to their area and we were on bikes. Let's just say we road our bikes a LOT. My guess is that we road 20-25 miles on hills that day. I almost died, but we had lots of fun. So no worries.

This week I learned a lot about why we're here and the importance of this dispensation. Also a lot about the atonement. I know that God loves all his children and wants us to reach our potential. I also want to encourage everyone that has a patriarchal blessing to read it! Because we can't reach our potential without a vision of what we can become, right? Early in my mission I received a commitment from a zone leader to read my patriarchal blessing at least once a week. I've learned so much from keeping that commitment and I want to invite all of you to do the same. As you do, you'll know what you need to change to fulfill the promises in your blessing and be sure of the love God has for you. :)

Well, I hope you all have a great week and enjoy the last days of April!

Love

Hermana Lance

Our branch Pres at a branch activity

                                      

                                            Me and the sunburn I earned this week

4-20-15 Happy April

Happy monday! 

I'm running out of ways to begin these things. I'm getting lame. #sorrynotsorry

well this week was AWESOME. why? because we found lots of new investigators and dropped everyone that we were teaching before. A fresh start for the trio! It feels good. We found some people that have lots of potential and we're pumped. 

One of the people we started teaching is AJ! He's the guy that rapped to us last week! Another one is a golden lady named Olga. As she explained how she had been searching for a church but was confused cause they all interpreted the bible differently, I felt like she was reading Joseph Smith History and substituting her name in there. it was crazy. She's awesome. 

We also found lots of young adult men, one of which just got out of prison! woo! 

Seriously though, God is guiding us to lots of prepared people. They're all just starting out right now, but they have some real potential and I'm so excited for them. 

Besides that nothing much has happened this week. We're still having fun in the trio! It's actually really fun to have 2 comps, because we are never bored. 

Laredo is great. it's starting to get pretty hot and I'm scared for summer, but excited for extreme tan lines. 

I hope that everything is going well back home!! love you all a ton! 

Hermana Lance

Ferrari stickers mean they're part of the cartel.  #daredevil   #don'tfreakoutmom

4-13-15 In a threesome!

Hello everyone! Happy mid-April! 

Life in Laredo is beautiful. Last week I got 2 new companions. They are Sister Castillo and Sister Fergesun. Sis Castillo is from California and is my brown half. We literally have the same first and middle names. SO. Literally she is just the brown version of me. She goes home at the same time as me. Sister Fergesun is from Wisconsin. She has been out for about 4 months and is very innocent. She's like the elephant on Tarzan. :) She has definitely never been anywhere hot or anywhere as near to Mexico. We took her to see the river her second day here, it was great. 

Being in a trio is definitely different, but lots of fun! The biggest struggle is how cramped we are in our apartment. There are 5 sisters in there, and only one shower and mirror. So... that's fun. haha We still share a car with the other sisters. So really we only have one car and one shower for all of us. It's really not too bad, though, and they have good attitudes about it and all the hills, so no worries :) 

This week was pretty average, not counting transfers. yesterday was awesome because we got a gangster to free-style rap for us. that was absolutely fantastic. At the same time, this other guy taught us some self-defense moves. So, no worries Mom and Dad! If anyone tries anything I can either just take them down, or call our new friends. They've got our back. 

We found some new investigators this week and are excited to start working more with them. 

Good luck with finals to all my siblings and others that are dealing with that right now. Don't forget to keep praying and reading your scriptures! that's what'll get you through it. :) 

Anyways, I love you all! Have a great week and don't forget to pray!

Hermana Lance

Sister Lance, Sister Fergesun and Sister Castillo 

Sister Fergesun, Sister Lance and Sister Castillo 

4-6-15 Love and concern for the one

Happy Easter!! 

We had a great time here in Laredo. We smashed eggs filled with confetti on each other and ate so much Mexican food we all got sick. It was beautiful. 

As well we got to listen to conference all weekend! It was incredible. I learned so much and felt the spirit so strongly. I hope all of you got a chance to watch! There was so much about the family and about Christ and His atonement. All of it so needed in the world. I felt like the messages were just what the church/society needed. Seriously it was perfect. I encourage everyone to read, study, ponder, and keep reading those messages given to us by God's servants. That is what God wants us to hear and do. So let's do it! :) Guaranteed blessings to come.

Well. This week was probably the craziest week of my whole mission. On Wednesday morning (April fool's day), we got a call from some elders in our zone asking if we had seen Elder So-and-So, because when they woke up, he was missing. We naturally didn't believe them because it was APRIL FOOLS. Turns out, that elder (a new greenie about to finish his first transfer) had legitimately RAN AWAY. And that's when the craziness started. That morning both the Laredo North and South zones got together and started searching everywhere. Driving down all the streets of that elder's area, checking gas stations, restaurants, bus stations, the airport, hotels, everywhere. We search for five hours and then it was called off. His parents hadn't heard from him and we were at a loss. 

The next day we started searching again around 1pm.  We literally searched ALL DAY. a lot of the time we camped out at bus stations and public places to make sure he couldn't get on a bus or fly away. We even got special permission to stay out past our normal curfew to keep looking, but unfortunately we still couldn't find him, only tiny hints that made us think he was still in Laredo. 

Friday we met up at 7am to resume the search. Tired but determined, we searched on. Sis. Dupape and I had to sit at the airport for 5 hours till we got reassigned to another part of town. That's how intense this was. The APs came up and gave out assignments as well. Finally, around 6 o clock, the search was call off, he had called his family and was on a bus to san antonio. And then we somehow went back to regular missionary life. 

SERIOUSLY THE CRAZIEST THREE DAYS.

We all learned a ton from the experience. Trusting your leaders, following the spirit, enduring to the end, how powerful 40 missionaries can be, and how valuable every single one of us is. The love and concern for that elder and for each other as we searched was really cool to see. We were all exhausted by the end and really glad that he was safe. Laredo is not a good place to be by yourself. haha. Really we were all just relieved it was over and it all turned out ok. That elder went home and hopefully is doing well. 

So.. missionary work was definitely not a huge priority this week because of all that, so nothing to report on that front. Hopefully some things will start to pick up this week :) 

Also, transfers are here once again! and I'm staying in Cielito Lindo!! Woo!! Sis Dupape is leaving, and I'm staying here in good ole Laredo! I don't know who my new comp is going to be yet, but  I'm going to be in a trio and get 2 new comps. SO...... that's crazy! Definitely going to be a struggle and an adventure. Bring it on. :) 

I hope you all have a great week and remember the spirit you felt in conference, and if you didn't see it, go watch it! 

All my love,

Sister Lance

PS I got bit by a dog yesterday,  So that's fun

Search party selfie

Conference selfie

#selfiesfordays