Monday, November 30, 2015

Gratitude

Dear Family,

After writing you all and seeing your beautiful pictures, I finally found a bit of time to write this letter to you guys. What do I write? I want to write so many things. Can happiness really be described in words?

This transfer has been full of so many miracles! The mission has been full of so many miracles! But this transfer has been one of the most miraculous. After everything that happened the first three week- four weeks, the Lord has showered blessings upon our area, making the scripture in DyC 58:2-4 even more real and powerful. We went through having people yell at us, helping out in a funeral, and dengue, to seeing the Lord lift us up and show his hand in our missionary work. We have found so many families that are interested in the gospel! We helped 10 people go to church yesterday! We have seen people change lives! I have seen how the gospel blesses families in amazing ways. 

The miracle that will always be remembered is the miracle of the Duarte Family. I helped Asucena and her two children enter the waters of baptism a few months ago, but Asucena's husband, Remedios, wanted nothing to do with the church. Bit by bit, his heart was softened. The Lord works in miraculous ways and has blessed his life. Sadly, the family had to pass through the hardest moments of their lives, but these hard moments softened Remedios into deciding to be baptized. He is going to be baptized Saturday morning, my last day in glorious Navojoa. He is so ready and so eager to be sealed to his family a year from now. I am so humbled knowing this family and seeing how the gospel as unified them, just as Heavenly Father promises us. 

If there is one thing I have learned these past weeks, it is how to be grateful for all the Lord has done for me this past year and a half. I am 100% certain that angels have been helping me in this work and it has been wonderful helping others come unto Christ. This is the true gospel, this is the one and only church, and I love being a part of this work! My relationship with my Heavenly Father has grown so much and I am so happy to be able to say that I am His daughter!  I have seen miracle after miracle here in Mexico and I know that the Lord is going to continue to provide miracles for me, for my companion, and for everyone I have met here. (Moroni 7:27, 29) This work is not over and will never be over. It is great knowing that the Lord provided me the opportunity to be completely dedicated for this work for 18 months. I plan on keeping on working till the very end. The Lord still has a lot of work for us to do! 

I love you all! 

Hermana Zubeldia

(Omni 1:26, Ether 12:32)

We got caught in the rain. It is so cold here! It's raining!

Monday, November 23, 2015

I love you all!

Dear Family,

This week.... was a week I will always remember.... Haha we had highs and lows. Do I start with the highs or with the lows? :) There are more highs than lows, so i'll start with the one little low...

The low: We both got dengue. Let me just say that no one should ever get dengue. It doesn't exist in Utah, so you are all going to be okay. When we weren't in the hospital, we were in bed. It was pretty hilarious really because we became friends with the nurses and there were a bunch of jokes :) My companion had it worse than I, so I would leave her with a sister and I would work with another sister in our area. I had gone through the whole mission without dengue and... it got me. But we're all good now :D

The highs:
  • We had divisiones with Huatabampo and it was awesome being with such great sisters!
  • The members helped us out a bunch and kept us stocked with food! We didn't even buy food today because they gave us so much.
  • We saw some AMAZING miracles with our friends this week. I'll talk more about this next week.
I learned a huge lesson on gratitude this week. The Lord helped me see all the blessings He has given me throughout my mission. He truly cares for me and my companion as much as He cares for the people we help every day. This week was truly humbling for me because He taught me A LOT and I am so grateful that He is still giving me more time to keep on working as one of His servants. Alma 26:12

Hermana Zubeldia

Monday, November 16, 2015

Emotional Roller Coaster

Dear Family,

This week has been emotionally crazy! We have had our highs and our lows. It has been all over the place. I'll start with the highs of the roller coaster and then I'll get to the lows...

The highs: well, I'm writing my favorite people right now and I have seen some great pictures that have made me smile :D Thank you! Another high is that we spent some time with the other sisters today and went to eat Mexican Chinese food. I ordered a "Mexican Sushi"... and it had bacon. Oh yes.

Another high is that we have been working a lot with the young adults in the yard and we have found many of their friends to teach! The young adults are going to have a convention with all the youth in the mission the 16-19th of December and we have a few investigators going, I am so excited for them! All the the young adults were as anxious as we were on Sunday morning, hoping everyone would come. They were also as happy as we were when they came :) I love working with the members! We have a group of 2 returned missionaries and 2 that are waiting for their mission calls, and it has been a blast working with them.

Another high is that we have had some pretty amazing Family Home Evening with the members and with our investigators, especially with Esperanza, Kitzia, and Yavel. We have been helping get everyone ready to enter the temple in December and focusing on the family history of the members and our investigators. It has been so much fun!

Another high is that we went to Obregón on Friday for a meeting and I got to see some of the great friends of the mission! I can't believe that time has been moving by so fast for all of us! We have all changed so much!

And now, our sad low: The brother of a family I helped enter the waters of baptism passed away on Saturday and they are all VERY sad. We didn't find out until Sunday evening and we were with them for a while helping out. The ward leaders were notified and we held a service in the church just before I started writing you guys. It has been pretty crazy. Everyone was saying Catholic prayers in the front room on Sunday... while the Elders and the members of the ward were in the back room with la Familia Duarte, giving priesthood blessings and singing hymns. It was a big contrast, and let me say that the spirit was felt VERY strongly in the back room. 

I love being part of this gospel! We have had so many opportunities to share the gospel and to share the plan of salvation this week. I am so happy knowing that I am sealed to a family that loves me and it comforts me to know that I will see ALL my family members again in the next life. I have never been happier and I hope that we can share this happiness with EVERYONE! Because everyone needs to hear this message of joy :)

I love you all! Please pray for Esperanza! She wants to get baptized but is having trouble getting the permission from her husband. We need to see a miracle and a change of heart! We're going to have a family home evening tonight with them and a member. Your prayers are much appreciated!!!


Hermana Zubeldia

My companion and I heading to Obregón at 7 in the morning...
my companion is borrowing all of my clothes because she's tired of hers :)

Here are the great missionaries of Barrio Aeropuerto.
We went to a meeting in Obregón and my companion decided that we
should show pride for our ward by all wearing blue :)

Monday, November 9, 2015

So happy!

Dear family,

I am so happy right now! Time isn't slowing down, which is a bummer, but we are getting so much done in such a short time! I love how much the Lord loves me!

Here are the wonderful sisters in my generation
at the meeting in Obregon.
I can't believe we have been together for so long!
I love these sisters so much!
We were all very different from when we first started...
Also... we're missionary gangsters ;)
On Monday, we headed to Obregón because we had a meeting the next day. We arrived early and... there was time to visit one of the most important people to me: María Jesús! We visited the first person I helped to be baptized, and I almost cried with happiness!! She and her kids were in pjs (it was around 7:30pm) and we both were in shock as we hugged and caught up with how she is doing. She told me that it was the best early Christmas present ever, and I have to agree. I haven't seen her in almost a year! She is planning on receiving her endowments in December and she is currently the Primary President!!!! Wow, this work is worth every hard moment. All the experiences I have had on the mission have been amazing, but Monday night was one of the most memorable. It was a teary farewell when it was finally time for us to leave. We headed over to the secretaria's home and had a wonderful night with 12 other sisters before our meeting on Tuesday.

My two hermanas: Hna Mena. and Hna. García,
at our meeting in Obregón. These two are so great!
Tuesday: We had our meeting with missionaries throughout the mission. The spirit was so strong!!! I love these missionaries so much! Hna. Mena and I gave a training that turned out nicely and we were pretty happy :) This is my 3rd time training in these Obregón meetings and I liked this training much more than the last 2. Wow, I don't know how to describe how great this day was!

Friday: We had our zone conference and the President and his wife came! It was fantastic! I know that our zone is going to have great success this month and all of us are very excited to keep on working. We have put a lot of emphasis in working with the members and are excited to see miracles occur.

Sunday: One of our investigators, Yaveel, came to church in a suit jacket and tie! He was so happy! 

I climbed a tree today...Hooray for Pdays!
I got stuck trying to get down :)
Today: We had planned to have an activity with the sisters to play basketball and have lunch together in the church. My companion and I were in charge of bringing Mexican style tortas (better-than-subway-sandwiches), and woke up super early to buy the ingredients and get to the church before 8 to study in the church building. When we got there, we started getting phone calls from the sisters: all of them said that they couldn't come to the activity because they were sick or had plans. What?!?! We had tons of tortas, and everyone decided to bail!!! We called Hna. Franco and Hna. Rojas and explained the situation, and they decided to come to participate a little... but we still had tons of tortas!!! Hna. Mena and I played basketball, I climbed a tree, and we called the Elders to tell them that we had tortas. So, our sister activity turned into the elders activity, with free food provided. But, Hna. Franco, Hna. Rojas, Hna. Mena, and I were able to go to el centro together, so that was fun :)

I love my companion!
And that was my awesome week! I love you all so much! Keep on taking things one at a time. Remember, the Lord helps those who help themselves :) And then, help others: Hebrews 12:12

Love you!

Hermana Zubeldia





We made jello this week. I am such a pro at jello making right now :)

Monday, November 2, 2015

¡Felíz Día de los Muertos!

Hola Familia!!!

Here is my wonderful companion! Hna. Mena!
I am loving this transfer! My companion, Hna. Mena, is absolutely amazing and I am loving every second. She's a short sister from the capital of Mexico and is full of amazing ideas to help our area and our investigators. Not to mention that her attitude towards life is awesome! She is a joy and I am so happy that the Lord let us share this transfer together!!! These transfers, for the whole zone, were completely inspired!!

We've been encouraging the members to start working in the Work of Salvation by helping us in our visits and helping their ancestors through family history work. We want the whole ward to go to the temple in December, especially the new members, and I know the Lord is going to help us in our efforts. We had a Family Home Evening with a family that went awesome!... Until the 10yr old son began crying when he lost a game we were playing to see who would say the closing prayer. He took it hard because he lost the game to say the opening prayer, poor thing :). His older brother was laughing at him pretty hard. Haha I love large families!

Here we are, working in the dust of Navojoa!
We found some amazing people to teach! We went to see Esperanza and she told us that she is going to be baptized (!!!), but we haven't put a date yet. We tried visiting her this weekend, but her family was on their way to the cemetery to celebrate Día de los Muertos. We'll be seeing her on Wednesday (pray for us!). 

Speaking of Día de los Muertos, no one, I repeat, no one was home on Sunday. Everyone went to the cemetery to put candles and flowers on graves. We spent most of the week talking about the spirit world, the plan of salvation, and temples :) It was the first time when NO ONE was outside on a Sunday night, which was pretty crazy. Also, we ate Pan de Muerto (so good!). Aunque los niños chiquitos piensan que el pan de muerto lleva personas muertas, no es cierto... ya pregunté ;) [translate]

I'm sorry if my email is all over the place! We are right about to leave to go to Obregón for a meeting tomorrow. Hna. Mena and I are going to give a training, so my mind is elsewhere, but I love you guys tons! Wish us luck for tomorrow!

Here are some amazing scriptures I came across this week: Luke 9:24, DyC 14:7, 1 Samuel 15:22, DyC 108:7

Hermana Zubeldia

Here are the wonderful sisters in my zone before they left to their next areas.
I love these sisters so much!
The sister on the far left, Hna. Rojas, was my second companion in the field.
My companion and I were having fun taking pictures in the church. Have a great day!



Monday, October 26, 2015

Can life get better?

Dear family,

Oh my goodness gracious!!!! I love this place with all my heart!!! I don't even have words! I've been thinking a lot about "ministering angels" and have come to the conclusion that they are also very happy (thousands of youth decide to be ministering angels for 18-24months). So it's okay to be a ministering angel forever, right? I'll just stay here and preach the gospel forever :)

Well, the last week of the transfer flew by incredibly fast. From trying to find new people to teach, to teaching the people we already have, and from trying to say goodbye to all the members before Hna.  Ortíz finished her mission here to start another mission in her homeland, the week went by quickly and crazy. We got a surprise farewell party set up for Hna. Ortíz, so that was fun (I am loving these surprise parties! I think I've done 4 or 5 now here on the mission). We shed a tear, hugged a bunch, and now she's long gone :´(

But, on the bright side, my new companion is amazing!!! The Lord has blessed me to be with Hna. Mena, a short chilanga that is full of energy, spirit, and fun. I am more than excited!!! Also, two sisters in our zone are going to train!!! Hooray!!! I am so happy for them, the lucky girls! Also, Hna. Franco, my hermanita from the MTC, is here in our zone! This transfer is gong to be absolutely amazing!

This week, in terms of my dear friends, well, it's going to get better, that I know for sure. Esperanza, Kitzia, and Yaveel almost entered the waters of baptism on Saturday, but they are going to wait a couple more weeks. I still am holding onto the promise the Lord provides in DyC 103:12. All is going to be okay, we just need more patience and more faith. We've been on the lookout for more chosen people (los escogidos!) and I know that we will find them.

I was reading the Liahona for this month and found something that caught my attention. Elder Hales said, "Eternal perspective informs our daily decisions and our actions. It steadies our minds and souls. When persuasive but eternally flawed opinions swirl about us, we are steadfast and immovable." This really caught my attention, because it is so true. We have an eternal perspective as members of the church. Everything we do is connected to the eternities. Isn't that amazing? I'm so happy that we figured this out sooner, and not later. Thank you family for raising me in the gospel!!!

I love you all so much! I hope you have an amazing week and that many miracles are seen! Happy Halloween

Hermana Zubeldia

A sister from my ward in Mochis sent me this today :)
This is me eating lunch on a Sunday

Monday, October 19, 2015

Oh Chiltepín!

Dear Family,

I'm sorry to hear that some of you are sick. That's never any fun :/ If it makes you feel any better, almost all the sisters in the zone are sick, including my companion. I'm not sick yet... let's see how long my luck lasts. I'm always with my companion.... so what she has, I get, and vice versa. I ate chile this week and they say that chile helps people so that they don't get sick (I'm going to see if this myth is true).

But really, I ate some crazy hot chile this week! I ate chiltepines!!! Oh my goodness gracious it has been almost a year since I ate my last chiltepín, and it wasn't even that hot. We were trying to see who could eat the most spice, so we ate a pickled chiltepín. It wasn't too bad, so I thought my mind could muster another round of heat. So... I ate a dried chiltepín... and my body caught fire! I was laughing and crying at the same time because my mouth and stomach were killing me! Just thinking about the experience makes my stomach feel on fire. Haha wow, it was a feeling I will never forget! I can't believe that, before my mission, I wouldn't eat chili. Now, I'm putting some of the craziest chiles in my mouth, just to see what will happen. The mission sure does crazy things to you :)

We've been working really hard and I know that the Lord is waiting to see how patient we can be in order to receive some serious help. Santiago, our 20year old investigator, went to visit his family in Hermosillo and will be gone for 2 weeks. He lives next to a chapel in Hermosillo, so we're praying that he continues going on Sundays :) He's a good kid, I have faith in him. Also, Esperanza, Kitzia, and Yaveel are doing fantastic! They invited family members to go to church yesterday and it was wonderful seeing that their family members enjoyed their Sabbath in the chapel. They're already missionaries! They just need to get baptized. The Lord is doing his work much better than we are and He knows when their time will be right. I just hope He lets us know when the right time is right as well. Maybe this Saturday?

Again, I love the mission!!! My companion is amazing and super fantastic. It's sad to think that our time as companions is coming to an end because this is the last week of the transfer :/. She has been such a blessing to me these past 3 months. We are going to work as hard and harder than we worked last week. I want this last week to be the best, who knows what is going to happen next transfer! Miracles ARE going to happen in this dusty town of Navojoa. There is so much work to do!


Also, I invite you all to not listen to "wordly music" this week and to just listen to church music. What we listen to affects every part of our lives :) So listen to MoTab and EFY. I love you guys! Let me know if you notice a difference :D

Hermana Zubeldia

Monday, October 12, 2015

This is the place!

Dear family,

What do you guys want me to write about? Anything specific?

All of us sisters on Tuesday morning.
It was a blast trying to get ready Tuesday morning with all of these sisters!
Last Monday night, Hna. Ortíz and I, along with 6 other sisters, stayed the night with the secretarias for a day long meeting the next day. Talk about a party of sister missionaries!!! We had a ton of fun and made sure to sing happy birthday to my companion as soon as she woke up :) It was great seeing the wonderful sisters, as well as seeing Hna. García, Hna. Franco... There was a lot to say and catch up on! The next day was full of sitting, taking notes, talking about how we can improve our zones... and all that jazz. It was fantastic! We finished by around 7pm and were back in Navojoa by 10pm. I kind of got a fever throughout the meeting, but the Lord loves me and helped me get better. Also, Mexican medicine works REALLY well!  

All of these sisters are from my generation :)
And there's another photo bomber in the back...
We had a power packed zone meeting on Friday and were able to have divisiones with 2 fantastic sisters. I love all of these people so much! 

We saw a little miracle over the weekend. We've been teaching a young adult, Santiago, who wants to get baptized, but never goes to church on Sunday. His girlfriend is being taught by the Elders and is excitedly preparing for her baptism. I don't know if having her excited about the gospel is helping him be excited about the gospel, but we visited him on Saturday and discovered that he is almost done with reading 1 Nephi and that he wants to get baptized now! What?! That's awesome!  We taught him the importance of the Sabbath and put a date for him baptism for mid November. The Lord is preparing him, that's for sure. We want to make sure that he meets with the standards found in DyC 20:37 so that he can be a strong member for the rest of days :)

Esperanza, Kitzia, y Yaveel are doing fantastic! Pray for them! Please pray for them! We have faith that they will be baptized this Saturday. They are so prepared!!! They are already strong members :) I pray with all my heart that they can be baptized before the end of this transfer.

Life is so peaceful right now. It's a hard feeling to describe, but I feel very happy right now. It's not the jumping up and down kind of happy, but the happy feeling that comes knowing that the Lord is in charge and He wants us to accept His will in all things. 

Anyways, I love you guys!!! I got your package full of letters. Thank you! Have a fantastic week!

Hermana Zubeldia

We decided to finally take a shower ;).
This is us on Tuesday, before leaving the house for the day long meeting

Zone meeting. Our companions are leaving us!!! So we decided to carry them on our backs. Haha I'm the only one who could lift my companion (it's all the exercise in the mornings...)




One more picture!!! I can´t believe this sister is leaving! Hermana Capps (the blonde) has been an amazing friend throughout my entire mission.











The internet is working really well! So here is another picture of some other fantastic sisters who have helped me throughout the mission.

Monday, October 5, 2015

General Conference!!!!

Dear Family,

This week was so fantastic! Oh my goodness gracious, wasn't conference amazing? Isn't the gospel amazing? Isn't the church amazing? Wow, isn't the Lord and His plan amazing??? I am so happy right now I don't have words. Life just keeps on getting better and better. 

To start of this happy letter, we had divisions with the sisters in the other ward. Hna. Rojas and I got to work together again!!!! Just like when we first started!!!... But, completely different at the same time. Hna. Rojas now has 13 months of experience and growth. The mission has changed both of us in many ways, and it was amazing looking back on everything that has happened. I remember when she had one day in the field, I had 3 months, and neither of us were completely sure of what we were doing :) We grew so much together and apart. She and I had such an amazing 24 hours together. Wow! It was so great! She's still the only companion with whom we cried leaving. She truly is a sister to me, through all the crazy times we had together.

Then, drum roll please.... CONFERENCE!!!! I had so many questions answered, even questions I didn't ask nor write down were answered. The Lord sure answered each and every one of my prayers. I don't have a favorite talk just yet, but I loved how everyone talked about obedience, the Sabbath Day, and LIVING the gospel, not just cruising through it. This gospel is true!!! The church is true!!! It's not complicated: We need to simplify life, be obedient, receive the Holy Ghost and make covenants with God, and "ponderize." It was great listening to the new 3 special witnesses of the Savior :) I can't wait to hear more from them. One of our good friends, Kitzia, attended 3 of the 4 sessions, and loved it :) She is on the right tract and is preparing for her personal commitments with God for next week.

Also, Hna. Ortíz's birthday is tomorrow! She's turning 22! To celebrate her birthday, as well as the birthday of Elder Vaca (poor elder, his name is vaca!! We all make fun of his last name), which is also tomorrow, we through a surprise party for them. I love these surprises! They are some of the funnest moments, helping your companion feel loved! The other elders, 3 wonderful sisters, and I planned a secret lunch and cake party today right before I began writing you guys. It's so hard planning something without your companion knowing! Hna. Ortíz is ALWAYS by my side!!!! It was a nice treat and a nice surprise; she didn't suspect a thing :D. We couldn't do any little surprise parties tomorrow because my companion and I are going to be in an all day meeting in Obregón and are leaving for Obregón tonight. But, I still have my little surprises planned for her ;)

Life is so amazing. The Conference came right when I needed it, and I am super excited for the next months to come. I have no idea what will be said in the conference in April, but I know that I have a lot to prepare spiritual to get ready for that day

I love you guys! I'm going to "ponderize" 2 Nephi 29:8 this week. what are you going to ponderize?

Love,

Hermana Zubeldia
We are some of the sister missionaries and I taking pictures between the conference sessions. On Saturday, Hna. Ortíz and I left the building between the sessions and got caught in a sudden downpour of rain! Boy, that was fun :)

More pictures of conference. someone was photo bombing....

We made mole from scratch with the bishops wife! It was so good! and It's super easy to make. It has peanuts, bananas, cinnamon, and other secret ingredients :)
Here we are: los misioneros en Navojoa! This is what we look like when we don't know that someone is taking a picture of us.
Hna Ortíz's surprise cake in the church today. Hooray for tres leches!











Monday, September 28, 2015

Wow o wow!

Dear family,

You guys are all amazing! You all sent some pretty intense emails and it has been fun gasping, laughing, and then letting my companion know how you all are doing. It seems life is going to be pretty crazy these next few months. 

Life is so amazing here in Mexico! The climate change is helping us out a ton. We only sweat 5-6 hours of the day instead of all hours, which is nice. It's still hot, but it's a nice hot :) The members are still second guessing us when we ask them to help us out in the mornings and cancel us if it's hot outside. So all our lessons with members take place after the sun goes down. 

We had a lesson with Lu and Ivan this week that blew my mind! Lu and Ivan are a young couple who are seriously thinking about getting married in the temple (of course, they need to get baptized first, so they are thinking about that a lot as well). We asked them what they liked from reading the introduction of the Book of Mormon, and Lu practically gave us a word by word account! By golly, she memorized it! Their faces were glowing as they said that they have felt a lot of peace in understanding the church. Wow o wow I love being a missionary and being allowed to witness miracles such as these. The Gospel truly blesses lives!

We have also been teaching Esperanza and her family. They are so great! They have also been keeping their commitments to read, pray, and attend church, and are glowing with happiness as well. The members have embraced them wholeheartedly and Esperanza's grand-kids are thrilled with the friends they have made at church. Again, it is so humbling to help these families strengthen the bonds that they already have.

And... Remedios found a remedy!!!! Remedios, the father of a recent member family, is slowly progressing. He was supposed to be baptized last Saturday... he wasn't. A miracle occurred last night when we ran into the 2nd counselor and his wife as they were visiting less actives (we happened to be at the right place and the right time through the guidance of the Holy Ghost), so we invited them to come with us to visit Remedios and the family. Wow o wow, the Lord works in mysterious ways!!!! The 2nd counselor was the exact person Remedios needed to hear! He's going to pray and let us know when he will be ready to be baptized next Sunday.

And... that's the week. We had a Zone Conference, which was fantastic, and I am anxiously waiting for General Conference. There are going to be so many miracles and "¡buenas nuevas!" Wow o Wow am I excited!!!! I don't know how to describe how exciting this next week is going to be.

Love you all!

Hermana Zubeldia

ps. I committed apostasy in my last email to you guys. I said that the verses in DyC were in section 131... that's a total lie.... they are in 121. Sorry! So read DyC 121

pss. Guess what!!!! A sister got sick and had to go home, and Hna. Rojas came to take her place! ¡Mi hijita está aquí en Navojoa! She has changed so much since the first day of her mission a year ago. Missions change lives! I love seeing how happy she is to be here, serving the Lord. This is going to be such a fun transfer with her in the zone!

Our "backyard" we have a washer, which is fantastic :)

Our penthouse apartment, viewed from the bathroom.

Monday, September 21, 2015

Navojoa has been baptized!

Dear family,

Wow o wow, this week was completely crazy. Really, 100% unexpected. But, it was a week full of learning and growth, not to mention a week full of rain (hence the subject of the email).

The week was crazy because I was hardly in the area all week. On Wednesday morning, we surprised the sisters and went to study with them (bring breakfast, of course!) It was great studying all together and it was awesome being with other "soldiers" in the field, preparing to teach our investigators for the day. One of my goals this transfer is to have a lot of unity here in Navojoa. As said in PMG, we are called to invite others to come unto Christ. We are all on the same team and fighting for the same thing, so we must all be one in heart and mind! If you have any "unifying" ideas, let me know!

The next day, we had divisiones with some incredible sisters in Huatabampo. I love divisions! Divisions are the perfect opportunity to learn from others, and I learned so much! The sisters in Huatabampo are amazing examples of showing love to the members, something we have been trying to apply here in our ward.

Then, the next day, before I could officially unpack my bags, we got a call from our leaders saying that we needed to do special divisions with a companionship right then. What? We made the necessary phone calls and I picked up my overnight bag once again to spend time with a sister in another district until further notice. Oh my goodness gracious, I have some crazy stories for after the mission, let me tell you!

I know that this letter doesn't make tons of sense, but it makes sense to me, so all is well. I'm finally back in my area, but I have no idea how our investigators are doing because I didn't see them :/

What did I learn from all of this you might ask? Well, a lot of things! One, I learned about the importance of being true to yourself instead of being someone that you're not. Two, I learned how to demonstrate more love to those around me. Three, I learned that it doesn't matter what people say, but it DOES matter what God says. And four I re-understood the importance of having a missionary name tag. We are representatives of Christ at ALL TIMES, IN ALL THINGS, AND IN ALL PLACES. We musty be worthy to bear His name in order to preach His gospel. I wish I could explain more, but alas, time escapes me!

Also, read DyC 121:34-46. It was amazing studying this this week!

Love you!

Hermana Zubeldia
Hna. Ortiz and I. She is the most amazing companion!
She is super patient and sweet, with has been helping me out so much!

Monday, September 14, 2015

Temple Rededication

Dear family,

This week was amazing! To start out, we got transfers...and I'm staying in Navojoa!!! Hna. Ortiz and I have another transfer together and I am so excited to make some changes in myself, the area, the district, and the zone. 

On Wednesday, we got a call from Presidente Munive wanting to have an interview via Skype. I was super excited because interviews with him always help me out, and I have never had an interview with him over Skype. But, he decided to change his mind and invited my companion and I to a "district leader meeting" the next day in Obregón, where our interview would take place afterwards. The district leader meeting was so amazing! I learned so much and it got me so excited to follow up on my personal commitments and the commitments of my investigators. The spirit was so strong! We also discussed the importance of being examples in every moment. This is so true. I have seen the power of being an example in these recent transfers. When we aren't being an example and a true disciple of Christ, it is absolutely necessary to repent and to change. 

Afterwards, I got to have an interview with Presidente Munive. He put a twist on things and gave the interview in English! Finishing up around 2pm, Hna. Ortiz and I were ready to make the hour trip to Navojoa and buy something quick to eat so that we could keep on working when we got back, but Presidente Munive and his wife surprised the two of us and took us to eat tacos before taking us to the bus station. I love Pres. Munive and his wife so much!

On Saturday, we taught the greatest lesson in the world about Adam and Eve. We have been working with Esperanza and her family, and we have been trying to make the lessons dynamic to help the little ones understand. Oh my goodness gracious, the funniest comments were made by Esperanza and her husband as they analyzed 2 Nefi 2. Esperanza said that it made sense that they had to eat the fruit and leave their innocent state. She said that God probably felt embarrassed about explaining the cycle of life with them because they were "innocent like little babies", so He waited until their eyes were opened. Haha not quite... but she was happy to understand the world-wide confusion about Adam and Eve.

Saturday afternoon, my companion was cutting chiles serranos to help out with lunch, when she had an allergic reaction and the chiles burned her hands!!! This only happens in Mexico!!! She tried tomato, toothpaste, ice, milk... and nothing would get the burning sensation to leave. She was completely desperate and, 5 hours later (her hands were still burning!!) We took her to the doctors. We were at a ward activity and everyone was worrying over her hands. The investigators that were there were also asking about her hands when we visited them the next day. Poor girl! She has decided to never eat nor touch chile again (this isn't going to last long).

We went to Obregón yesterday to see the Rededication of the Temple in Mexico City. It was so amazing! The most amazing part was being there with 3 of our friends who have decided to accept the gospel. It was also great seeing Pres. Eyring and Elder Holland. General Conference is almost here!

I found an amazing verse in my personal studies today! Alma 37:37 and also D&C 138:1-11. It is so important to study the scriptures in order to receive revelation!

Love you!

Hermana Zubeldia

Monday, September 7, 2015

Let me stay!

Dear family,

We heading into our last week of the transfer and I am so excited to see what the Lord has in store for us here in Navojoa. I know that it's the Lord's will, so I am excited no matter what happens, but I hope and pray that His will is to let me stay in Navojoa with Hna. Ortíz. We'll see what happens!

I love all these missionaries!
Here we are in el Concilio in Obregón.
This week was great and crazy. We headed over to Obregón for a meeting and it was full of the spirit! I woke up that morning with the flu, so I didn't say too much, but I loved hearing the comments of everyone else. We focused on the importance of the Sabbath and truly making it a special day for EVERYONE, including the missionaries. We also focused on how we can plan and use our time better as missionaries. 2% of our mission life is to plan the other 98%. When we use that 2% constructively, the other 98% works out as the Lord wants it to. This is the Lord's time and it is so precious!!! Also, another great part of the day long meeting was that our zone, with the merciful help of the Lord, had a ton of success!!! Never, in the history of the mission Ciudad Obregón, has Zone Navojoa had the success we had in the month of August. The zone is happy and pumped to continue working and seeing miracles in September. We are all so excited!!

I was sick with the flu throughout the week, but we continued working all the same. I was mostly better by our zone conference on Friday, so it's all good. There's too much to do here to take a break, and I'm all better now, so we'll continue working hard this week :)

We saw some major miracles this through our English classes. I'm finally getting the hang of teaching English, ¡por fín! People LOVE  free English classes! We contacted a young couple who wanted nothing to do with the church, so we invited them to our English classes. Lu e Ivan came to learn English!!! They loved the classes, and we gave them a tour with one of Ivan's friends, who happened to be a member. We were able to visit them later that week and they excited to learn more and accept the possibility of being baptized! Then, they came to church on Sunday, dresses spiffy and ready to learn (they even got their baby boy in a church shirt!) I have been loving seeing how the Lord works in mysterious ways. Angels have been preparing the hearts of the people in our area, and it has been so amazing seeing them discover that they are ready to come unto Christ.

The México City temple re-dedication is this Sunday!!! We're going to go to Ciudad Obregón again to participate. It is so great being part of the true church and being able to attend a spiritual event such as this!  

Also, for the second time in my mission, I dyed my companion's hair. Who would have thought that I would do this as a missionary?! Haha the difference this time is that Hna. Ortíz bought the right box and it turned out the way she wanted it to.

Missionary work is amazing! The Holy Ghost has been helping so many wonderful people!!! I don't even have words to describe how fantastic this all is!

I love you all!

Hermana Zubeldia
My companion and I after the water activity during the concilio in Obregón. We got so wet!!

Monday, August 31, 2015

Another Week in Navojoa

Dear Family,

Another week has come and gone. What?! When did that happen? I'm glad that everyone is doing well and that everyone is excited with school. Keep on being smart!

My companion and I got caught in the rain
This week was full of crazy miracles. But, it's hot and I can't remember all of them. I think my brain is half fried, literally, but that's okay :) Only a couple more weeks of heat and then we get to less heat.

We had divisiones this week and I got to work with Hna. Rodriguez, an amazing missionary from California. She started the mission at the same time Hna. Garcia (¡mi hijita!) started. I can't believe that they have 9 months out in the field! They all grow up so fast!  We both got a bit sick the night of divisiones, but we both woke up the next day healthy and sound, so all is well :)

Kenia's baptism. She was so excited! (I'm also sunburnt)
Kenia was baptized on Saturday! Oh my goodness gracious she was so excited! She was a bit worried that she wasn't "perfect" before her baptism, but the Spirit, and a few amazing scriptures, helped her out to make the decision to be make covenants with our Heavenly Father.  Of course, Satan wasn't happy with her decision, so he made Saturday crazy for us missionaries in preparing her baptism. Many things happened (such as finding a messy font an hour before the service that someone forgot to fill with water, not finding a shirt for her to be baptized in (My companion and I had to run to our house to find one of my shirts), and a few other crazy things) The baptism was one of the most stressful baptisms I've seen on the mission, but the light on Kenia's face was priceless and made everything worth it. The ward is ecstatic that she is now a member, and she is equally excited to start a new page in her life. I love her and everyone here so much!

We've been working other friends who are equally interested in knowing if this church is true. Wow! I love seeing people eager to learn about the gospel and ask Heavenly Father if what we teach is true! From the short time I have out in the field, the key ingredients to gaining a testimony are essential for someone to progress: they NEED to prayer; they NEED to read the Book of Mormon; and they NEED to go to church to know if this is right. Joseph Smith really did see Heavenly Father and His Son. He really did translate the Book of Mormon. This really is the true church. But, people need to figure that out for themselves. The most amazing thing out here is seeing people figure that with the help of the Holy Ghost. Their whole face changes. Their lives change. Heavenly Father's plan is so amazing!

If you guys can, please pray for Remedios. And Esperanza, Kitzia, and Yaveel. And Martha and Maria Teresa. Pray that they read the Book of Mormon. If they do, the Spirit will fill in the gaps they are missing, I just know it.


I love you guys! Good luck with the week!

Hermana Zubeldia

Monday, August 24, 2015

Mud, beautiful mud!

Dear family,

It sounds like everyone had a wonderful summer, which is fantastic! Everyone here is starting school as well, so we've been having to make better plans to catch the youth we've been teaching. Good luck with school, everyone! I'll just keep on studying my scriptures and PMG everyday ;)


This week had its up and downs, but, in the end, it's all going as it should. The ups included finding some fantastic people to teach! Really, I can't believe how much the Lord is helping us! We found a family thanks to our wonderful new friend and member, Mónica, and everyone is very excited to learn more about the gospel. Mónica invited her friend to our English classes, her friend liked them, and now the whole family is on board! One of the girls in the family goes to school with our ward mission leader and was very excited to learn about why we act different and why we are happy people :) I love how every member is a missionary here! The down with this situation is that, due to uncontrollable issues, they couldn't go to church yesterday. The Lord knows what's up :)

Another up is that we visited our wonderful friends, Esperanza and her family! We got to teach her husband, José, and he told us that he felt something inside his heart when we talked about the gospel. Esperanza immediately let him know that he was feeling the Holy Ghost (!!!!) I love her so much! The Holy Ghost is working wonders here and it's wonderful seeing people grow and learn. 

Kenia, a wonderful 17 year old, is still progressing and investigating. She has stopped drinking coffee and easily accepted the law of chastity. She's super excited to join JAS some day Pray for her!!! We're going over to her house tonight to talk about her her goals, plans, the Sabbath day, and tithing.

We had divisiones this week with two wonderful sisters. We all learned a lot and we all found things that we can improve on, which was great. It's always great doing divisions because all of us can apply what we learn to our areas.

And well, that was my week! It's been raining tons and I almost lost my shoes last night in the mud. Haha everything is so muddy! I am never going to forget these wonderful moments! One knows when it is about to rain because everything get muggy and super hot, and then... it pours like cats and dogs!

Read D&C 84:80. It's super great :)

I love you guys!

Hermana Zubeldia


 The "lake" below used to be a street :-)

Monday, August 17, 2015

Because I'm Happy :)

Dear family,

Where do I even begin? Really, this week was a week to remember. The Lord showered us with tender mercies and I reminded me again that I will always be in His debt.

On Tuesday, a young woman, Selma, walked into the church after our district meeting and asked us about the church. We gave her a tour and she asked us to teach her, saying that she wanted to better her relationship with God. We went to her house on Wednesday and she was so receptive! We were able to set a date for her to prepare to be baptized and she has tons of potential! Wow! 

On Wednesday, we discovered three new members in our English class: Esperanza, Kitzia, and Yabel. We contacted Kitzia last week and invited her to our English classes, and she brought her family! They loved the church instantly and found faces they knew.

On Friday, we were able to help our dear friend, Rosario, enter the waters of baptism. It was such an amazing service! He invited Kitzia, Esperanza, and Yabel and they were able to witness his baptism. Afterward, Esperanza was without words as she tried to describe to me the "fire" she had felt in witnessing the baptism of one of her friends. She said that she didn't now if she wanted to laugh or to cry because she could't describe her feelings. After helping her understand that this was the Holy Ghost, we scheduled an appointment the next day. They were all very so happy! The Spirit touched their hearts in such a way that they accepted to be baptized in September. 

Sunday was a day of even more miracles! All our friends who came to church were just glowing!!! The members were amazing and helped us help our friends go to Primary, Young Women, Single Adults, Priesthood, and Relief Society. The Spirit was so strong and testified to our friends that this church is true. This church is so true!!! I know it is!! The gospel we know is the true gospel of Christ and it is changing lives!

Looking back on the week, I am still stunned to see that the Lord loves us so much! This isn't my work, this isn't my companion's work. Everything that happened this week was done through the tender hands of He who loves all of us. I can't believe my Heavenly Father as allowed us to witness so many miracles! It makes me want to strengthen my relationship with Him much much much to be able to thank Him for all that He has done.

I love you all! I invite you guys to visit with the missionaries this week! It will help make the day of the missionaries, of the investigators, and yours as well!

Hermana Zubeldia

This is how we have fun in Navojoa

Monday, August 10, 2015

Ándele!

Dear Family,
This week was super great! We went to Obregón on Monday night and got back on Tuesday, where we were finally able to get to work and help Hna. Ortiz get to know the area. Hna. Ortiz is such a sweetheart! She's a bit shy, but she works really well with investigators and is an amazing teacher! She's also a fantastic listener. We're going to have a lot of good times this transfer, I just know it.
Throughout the week, we focused much of our efforts on our friends who have made the decision to make commitments with our Heavenly Father. We went with young women and young adults and helped our friends, Osmara and Kenia, make more friends and get more excited about coming to church. They are both loving church! Really, I love seeing Kenia's face as she meets new people and I love helping Osmara see that she can change her life, little by little. I also love involving the other sisters in the ward! My goal is to have all the young women and YSA sisters excited about missionary work! Please pray for Osmara and Kenia (especially Osmara so she can get over some bad habits). Also, please pray for Rosario, un viejito, that now has many more "viejito" friends.
We had our zone conference on Thursday and I got the package the family sent! Thank you so much! I now have good socks! Hooray :)
I want to share my testimony on the amazingness of this gospel and missionary work! In PMG, it says, "our main task is to declare the gospel and do it effectively. We are not obligated to answer every objection. Every man eventually is backed up to the wall of faith, and there he must make his stand.... The Book of Mormon is a springboard to testimony and personaly revelation... investigators must resolve for themselves their concerns and objections... the first question for an investigator to answer is whether Joseph Smith was a prophet, and he or she can answer this by reading and praying about the Book of Mormon." These words are so true! The Book of Mormon is the perfect way to know if the church is true. I know that my testimony started when I began to read the Book of Mormon, and I know that the Lord WILL help us if we want to know the truth of this gospel. I love this work and I am so excited to keep on working this week!
Hermana Zubeldia

Monday, August 3, 2015

Week of Miracles!

Dear Family,

This week was so busy, but so much fun! It was the last week of the transfer and we made sure that it was the best week ever for Hna. Carvajal's last moments in Mexico. Also, I feel like this letter is going to be full of grammatical errors, so hang in there.

Monday: We celebrated P-day by eating salads! (crazy right...no?!) The salad we ate was 100x better than Zupa's and it was the most amazing thing ever! Afterwards, a sister invited us to Dairy Queen. 

Tuesday: Worked super hard, super hard! Hna. Carvajal worked as hard as her little body could all week and we helped prepare the wonderful people of Navojoa.

Wednesday: We prepared for our "act" in the ward talent show. Us missionaries did a sketch about Nephi retrieving the plates from Laban. Since there aren't many "girl" parts, I was Sam. Oh my goodness, I had so much fun with that part! Sam doesn't say much in the Book of Mormon, so the elders decided to "ignore" everything I said doing the sketch and it was pretty hilarious.

Thursday: The sisters in the ward and I prepared a surprise farewell dinner for Hna. Carvajal and the Elder that left. They were so surprised! They thought it was a "service project" and were surprised with a room full of members, dinner, and cake!

Friday: Hna. Herlinda (bless her heart!) took us to Hna. Carvajal's favorite pizza place for lunch and we had more cake :). We also had the ward talent show and a wonderful youth, Kenia, came. She made friends fast with the members and had a wonderful time.

Saturday: We ate lunch with Hna. Herlinda and had the famous meal of Sonora: tacos de carne asada. Then, an ice cream cake. 

Monica, the sweetest girl in the world.
What a special day for her!
She's so happy!
(even though people don't smile in pictures here)
Also, on Saturday, we helped Monica, a fantastic 17 year old, get baptized. Monica was so excited for her baptism!!! She didn't get baptized with her mom and brother a month ago because she got sick, and Saturday night was specially done to help her feel the spirit. The hug she gave me before entering the font was something that I will never forget! It's moments like that that make every moment in the mission field totally worth it. After the baptismal service, we had Hna. Carvajal's "last supper" with Monica and her family. More tacos de carne asada and more cake!

Sunday: Hna. Carvajal left and I stayed with Hna. Herlinda in the morning. She gave me left over cake for breakfast! We went to pick up Kenia to go to church and she loved her first Sunday :) It was so great! Miracles also were provided because many others made it to church, including Rosario (a 70 year old) and Osmara (15 years old). After church, I worked with a recent RM, Nicol, from Chihuahua (she knows Elder Womack!). She and I worked all afternoon until it started to rain really hard and the lights went out in our area, making teaching impossible because it was so dark in the homes. We got permission from Pres. Munive and she stayed the night with me. She loved being back in the mission life for a day!

Today, I picked up my new companion, Hna. Ortiz. She is from El Salvador and has around the same time in the field as me. She's super sweet and I'm super excited! It was pouring cats and dogs when she arrived and we were soaking wet to the bone in seconds. All the clothes I washed this morning are now soaking wet outside :)

And that was my week of miracles! I almost cried when the week was over because I loved this week so much! I'm super excited for the month of August and I know that more miracles are about to come. 

Also, I am so tired of eating so much cake this past week! 

Love you all,

Hermana Zubeldia