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

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!

DyC 80:3-5

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

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.

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!