Last transfer… six weeks left! 11-17-14

Alright folks, I have been pretty bad about responding to my emails from my mom and dad, so I am just going to let you hear a little bit from my email to Presidente and update you on a few things. Thank you for your understanding.

We had such a sweet experience with Freddy and Kathy when we went to visit them this week. Freddy was rescued a few months ago by other sisters but still has struggled to maintain activity, and because of a disease and a hip replacement and a long recovery process, Kathy has been confined to her house and the hospital for several months. We have visited them every once in awhile and a few weeks ago we found out they weren't putting the Book of Mormon in very high priority, so we got them on a regimen of daily scripture study and family prayer. This whole week my companion and I have been struggling to recognize the influence of the Spirit - we are working, being obedient, praying with faith, planning, and all the basics, but we still haven't felt like He was really strongly present in our lessons. We had been discussing it on the way to our appointment with Freddy and Kathy and when we sat with them they said they had been reading and praying every single day. When we asked how they felt, Kathy said she felt pretty good but wasn't sure how she SHOULD feel. Freddy looked at his wife and talked to her about the peace and happiness they had both felt when they read and he began to cry as he explained that THAT was the Spirit. He took her hand and they both shed tears as they themselves testified of the power of the Holy Ghost. We had gone to strengthen them and in turn WE left edified and filled with the Spirit. 

This week I had some GREAT experiences in personal and companionship study. We had a work visit and I went to Puente Piedra with Hermana Aliaga, and there I began to study about spiritual creation in Moses 3. Much of what I studied had to do with what we discussed in the interview, about desires and how our righteous desires will read to righteous actions. My understanding of the relationship between our desires, our thoughts, our words, and our actions has been strengthened and deepened. As I studied, I wrote down questions - lots of them - that arose, and those questions led to other questions whose answers led to the answers of the original questions and well, it was a lot of fun. If I am going to have success now on the mission and throughout my life, I first must plan it, and in order to plan it with God and receive His power, I need to primarily have the desire to obey His commandments. Those commandments govern all creation - His laws are eternal; they do not just apply to this mortal life. He didn't just make them up to keep us in line. The power of God is the power to create, and if we are to become gods and create throughout the eternities, we must be able to master ourselves - the desires of our spirit AND the desires of our body - to become aligned with God's commandments. Because righteous desires become obedience that becomes faith which becomes power that sparks and fuels action.

So, my couple updates: we found out transfers and it looks like I will be staying here in sunny San Diego with my darling Hermana Paredes to baptize thousands! Woohoo! She sure is excited about killing me... 

Also, Elder Hernandez, our district leader, is on the plane to Panamá right now. His goodbye talk yesterday made me cry, obviously. He was a great DL and now we'll have a new one. But other than him, our whole district is staying together! I am so so happy!

Alsooooo, let's see what more. Don't send me mail after this week! Hahaha I say that as if I were Harry Potter the day he found out he was a wizard. Just letting you all know...if the notion happened to cross your mind to send me mail...take advantage and send it now. I will receive it with open arms. And with the Journey song playing in the background.

Okay I think that's it for the updates!

Oh yes I almost forgot! Have I told you lately that I love you?

Hermana Hewitt

Our district - Elder Hernandez, Elder Riquelme, Hermana Hewitt, Hermana Paredes, Elder Quenta, Elder Starita, Elder Poma, and Elder Gillies. 

The sunburn I brought back from my work visit in Puente.

Follow the Prophet! 11-10-14

Hey hey hey! It's Hermaaaaaana Hewitt!

I know you've all been on the edge of your seats wanting to know what kind of exciting adventures have come to pass in San Diego 2. Let me just tell ya...we spent the whole week sleeping. 

Well, that's only partially true. We were practically walking zombies but I have never felt so alive! This week was marvelous! As our beloved mission president instructed, we began to use a bunch of new finding techniques and oh boy, were we blessed for our obedience!

Hermana Paredes and I were both tried immensely. There was a lot of temptation to get frustrated, to give up, to think negatively, to tell the neighbor lady to stop being such a meanie, to cry like babies, etc. Well, I won't say I didn't cry like a baby for a few minutes at one point. Nevertheless! There was also a lot of companionship prayer, a lot of working, a lot of smiling, a LOT of laughter, and a whole heap of divine guidance and strength. We worked with the Lord this week, and I know it. 

So things are picking up here in San Diego 2. We have some in-sacs, some good strong fechas, 18 new investigators (woohoo! The blood is circulating again!), and great joy in our hearts knowing that we beat the adversary this week. 

I love being a missionary! It is the hardest, most painful, most testimony-trying thing I have ever done, and as well it is one of the happiest, most rewarding, most testimony-strengthening blessings I will come to know.

If you are considering serving a mission, but you're kind of on the fence or not sure if you oughta, I invite and encourage you to kneel humbly and ask your Heavenly Father. Young men who hold the priesthood, go and don't wait. The prophet has already given you the answer. When he speaks to you, he says exactly what God wants you to know. If you don't have a personal testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith or the prophet Thomas S. Monson, you may do one or all of the following suggestions:

1. Ask the missionaries! They can help you!

2. Ask Kiersten Wilson! She can too!

3. Read the last two paragraphs of the Introduction to the Book of Mormon, as well as Moroni 10:4-6, and follow the instructions there.

4. Attend church every week.

5. Pay your tithing as quick as you receive your paycheck.

6. FAST. (This is quite the useful trick. For more information, see Isaiah 58 as well as my letter from last week.)

7. Watch, listen to, or read General Conference. https://www.lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2014/10?lang=eng

8. Ask of God.

If you do these things, you will know as surely as I do that God speaks to us through the mouth of His chosen servants. I know that He does! And only those who are willing and dedicated to following faithfully the guidance of the prophets will be able to walk in the light in this ever-darkening world. 

So, because I am persistent, I repeat: All young men who hold the holy priesthood of God, that which has been restored by the prophet Joseph Smith and remains active on the earth today in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and who have at least 18 years of age, 

Serve a mission.

I promise that if you will get yourself clean and prepare yourself well, you will never ever regret that decision. Only those who choose not to listen to God will have regrets. I'm just telling you... I know it!

I'm so grateful for parents who have raised me to trust in the Savior and in the prophets. I will one day be one of those parents! (One day, very far away, because here I still am, giving it all to Perú...) Parents, be those parents who choose to lead righteous families. Children, listen to Mom and Dad. Choose to be righteous children. That will prepare you to be a righteous adults who will lead all of God's righteous children home to Him.

First and foremost, follow the prophet. Follow the apostles. Follow the seventies, the area seventies, the stake president, the bishop. They have all been called by revelation.

Ha! I was thinking the other day that I had finally stopped preaching in my emails home. Maybe it's to the choir, but you can never be too holy.

I love you all!

Hermana Hewitt

Ah yes so a fun experience. We were walking to catch the bus this morning in the middle of a bustle of people and a happy, chubby little man let out a cat-call whistle and as he passed us, he grinned and raised his eyebrows and said, "I luuuuhhhh you." 

I'm going to miss Perú.

An abandoned baby puppy that some of our investigators recently rescued. Awwwww! 

Gillies decided to borrow my camera. His loss.

We had a fantastic ward activity this week to help the investigators and the members make friends. Basically we and the elders played with all the Primary kids for an hour and a half and the Relief Society sisters chatted with our investigators. SUCCESS.

Sé que me van a disculpar. (Three weeks of catch up!) 11-3-14

OK… Mom (Kiersten) here… I have to apologize for not posting the last two weeks.  Lex didn't have a group letter 3 weeks ago but did send some pics (which will follow in this post) and did ask that I tell everyone that she is just great but didn't have time to write a group update. (Totally my bad for not posting!) Then last week she started a group letter but right in the middle of describing what sounded like a potentially frightening incident she abruptly ended her letter because her zone was heading to the beach… THANKS, HERMANA HEWITT!  So, I didn't have the heart to keep you all in the same suspense as I endured for the past week.  But… this week she wrote a beautiful long letter that I'm sure you will all enjoy as much as I did!  :-)

Here are the pics from two weeks ago… 10-20-14

This photo is me and Hermana Celadita, one of the most helpful sisters in the ward. She is also one of the most hilarious people I have ever met in my life. She just gets RIGHT UP IN YOUR FACE to yell how much she loves you.

The son of some investigators washing his car. This is Perú.

The street here all decorated for the Catholic celebration of Señor de los Milagros. Just havin' fun!

And here is her post from last week…

SAFE 10-27-14
We had some pretty crazy experiences this week. Several different people who just came up and contacted US and said they wanted to know more about the gospel and probably get baptized. That was either Heavenly Father's way of telling us Good job, Hermanas, here ya go... or CONTACT MORE.

Or both.

I apologize in advance for the brevity of this update because we are going to go to ANCÓN! The beach in Puente Piedra! Ohhhh I am going to feel so trunky for Puente. But Elder Riquelme, one of the elders in my district, was the ZL there after I left so we can cry together at an appropriate distance. 

  

My lovely companion just doin' her thang. She is one excellent photographer! Awe, I adore her. We have way too much in common and sometimes we get carried away talking about awesome things. But she betters me. How precious. 

Zone on Ancon Beach

Our zone in Ancón...I'd name them all but I am just far too occupied! The sea lion in front is our prodigy child ZL Elder Starita. Hahaha.

Anyway. I'd like to share an experience with you all that was pretty special and pretty personal, but illustrates well the truth of God's promises. 

When I was set apart I was promised that I would have impressions and visions to know when danger was around me, and that my companions and I would be protected by angels. A good majority of my mission has passed and I have been guided by the Spirit and even had a few dreams that indicated certain dangers to avoid, but I figured that I wasn't going to be carried away like Lehi. Anyway. 

We were in a less secure part of our area and we knew we were going to need to leave pretty soon because evening was coming on. We decided to stop by and see if one of our investigators, Antonio, and his wife were home to remind them to come to church the next day. Antonio let us in and as we sat down I asked if his wife was there. She wasn't. Well, we aren't supposed to teach men without a woman with us, so we told him we were going to have to come back later. 

OH NO! Well here's a lesson on obedience. Time to go right now! Sorry! I will continue this story next week because it's a good one! Love you all!

Hermana Hewitt

And here is the rest of the story…. sent today…

I know you all enjoyed that cliffhanger last week! Let´s see if I can finish that story up real quick. Hahaha sorry for being the worst. 

Alright. So, we sat down with Antonio and made the mistake of not STANDING UP when we said we needed to leave if his wife wasn´t there. Antonio is a nice, calm, little old fella but the commandments are the commandments. He asked why we couldn't stay and we explained it briefly. Foolishly we decided to ask if he was reading his Book of Mormon and that began a nice long history of the land of Perú and something about poetry and his self-diagnostic skills. I waited for a gap in the story to tell him "Sorry, love ya, but we gotta go." 

And, of course, you all guessed it...the gap didn't come.

He continued on as we suffered and I frantically grasped around in my mind for how to leave without offending him. Then suddenly I saw a vision of exactly what would happen if we decided to disobey this rule. It had nothing to do with Antonio, but it wasn't pretty. The words came to my head, "You need to leave right now." Two or three times they sounded and I - still foolishly - still waited for the pause. Still didn't come. So, I grabbed my bag and stood up in the middle of Antonio's sentence. 

"Hermano, I am so sorry, but it is very important that we obey our leaders. PLEASE hold on to your story for Wednesday when we can stop by and visit you. We'll have a member with us and we DO want to hear what you have to say! We are SO sorry for interrupting you, but we need to go right away." My companion on cue stood up and Antonio agreed that we should obedient and we shook his hand and high-tailed it outta that joint.

Subsequently we contacted a woman who has two children of baptizing age whose father was a member of the Church and has always been extremely interested to know more and probably become a member.

I just want you all to be aware of one little thing as you go about your week:

Coincidences do not exist.

Yes, we did go to Ancón on Monday. And yes, it was very emotional. And very beautiful. Kind of like a good funeral. I'll be attaching some fotografías. 

Ahahaha...that last paragraph made me giggle. I talk about funerals as if they were blockbusters. But maybe I have a skewed perspective. I was definitely one of the six or seven people in the United States that liked Seven Pounds.

Also, the speakers in this internet cafe are currently serenading me with "Staying Alive."

HA-HA-HA-HA STAYING ALIVE. STAYING ALIVE.

I'm going nowhere. Somebody help me. (Ahhhhhhhhhhh)

Alright so sorry. Probably only my parents (all 4) will appreciate that. But hey, Malea Moody, there's still hope for you. Oh now it's Buffalo Soldier. Alright I'm done I'm going to get my mind back on the gospel.

Oh just to make you all SUPER Hermana Hewitt-trunky...I saw Elder Larsen this week and he told me that my official release date is December 30th. Apparently a bunch of the elders that are going home that same transfer thought President might send us home the week before to be en casa para Navidad! 

Evidently they are confused.

Don't be offended, but I am SO DARN EXCITED to pass one more Christmas here in Perú! I have basically been praying for that my whole mission. Anyway. Save me a slice of fruitcake. I've heard they're better after having fermented a few days.

Already in the Christmas spirit??

President and Hermana Archibald changed our lives again this week with interviews and a multi-zone training with Trébol. Hermana Paredes and I were both so edified! We have already begun to put into practice the amazing counsel and directions we have been given. One of the best ones I would recommend to all of you, my fellow children of Heavenly Father, is to always be thinking about the success we want. Creating spiritually the success we will create physically. 

Also, as we seek personal revelation, it is important that we use well the nighttime and early morning hours to feel the Spirit. In the night, the world is quieter and we are more receptive to impressions and inspiration. So we should ALWAYS say a prayer before going to bed asking for the specific revelation we need and ponder on that thing as we sleep. Perhaps we won't have a dream to tell us what to do, but often we will arise with the same thought in our mind accompanied with still, small answers. Try it - it definitely works!

Ah this was such a good week. Again I am running out of time but let's just suffice it to say that yesterday we taught the law of chastity to some brand new investigators and on the spot they decided they want to repent and change and get married. It was the sweetest thing to see their facial expressions range from passive to attentive to guilty to humble to hopeful to happy and excited to build their faith and become united as a family. I saw in their eyes a true desire to learn more about the gospel and to feel the love of a Heavenly Father who they have not been close to for many years. My heart is full with the knowledge that they can, and they will.

I am so indescribably grateful for the simple and marvelous truths which I know. I know that God loves His children. I know that everything that happens, happens because of that love He has for us. I know that He wants us to return home to Him, and I know that Jesus Christ made it possible through His Atonement if we choose to follow Him and obey His gospel. I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is THE true church - HIS true church. I know that it is led by prophets, called of God, who hold the very same priesthood keys that Jesus gave to His apostles when He was on the earth. I know that they follow Jesus Christ, and I know that if we will follow them with whole purpose of heart and faith that God would never allow His prophets to mislead His children, we will return to live with Him forever. I know it! And I echo the words of Alma: 

"And this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety?

"Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me.

"And moreover, I say unto you that it has thus been revealed unto me, that the words which have been spoken by our fathers are true, even so according to the spirit of prophecy which is in me, which is also by the manifestation of the Spirit of God."

I know it's true.

See y'all in two. :)

Hermana Hewitt

"The more you worry, the more you have to worry about."

"Thinking it right and doing it wrong: Life's easier from an armchair." - Queen, quoted in my interview by President Archibald

"My sister is hot, but I am hotter." - Hermana Paredes, practicing her English