Me Encanta Ver el Templo

Hola cómo están?! todo esta bien en ecuador conmigo! :) estoy trabajando y predicando la palabra de Dios con los hijos de Dios en Samanaes 1.  (Hello how are you?! all is well in Ecuador with me! :) I'm working and preaching the word of God with the children of God in Samanaes 1.)

Another week come and gone. Thanks everyone for your love and concern for me and ecuador after the earthquake. all is well here, and we are busy doing service and humanitarian work to help the people who were more affected in the areas of manta and esmereldas in ecaudor. 

This week we had a fun surprise and were able to go to the temple with our ward and 2 converts... Amalia Beltran and Michel Cirrandy!!! :) ok it was awesome!!! i talked with amalia before she went inside the temple and when she realized that she would be helping someone recieve thier salvation that has died, she was so excited! When we were in the temple and seeing my 2 converts in white, it was such a special moment for me. Watching them progress and feel the Spirit was awesome! After Amalia did baptisms for the dead i asked her how she felt, and she said she felt great! i was a little worried for her, because she has problems with her knees, and i was worried about her bending 6 times, but she didnt even have a problem or say anything about that. she said she would do baptisms as many times as need to help those that have died be baptized. :) she is such a sweet lady and i am so grateful to know her. i love her a lot! :)

This week we also did service and went around the ward asking for donations and informing the people about 72 hr backpacks and emergency safety tips. it was cool to be able to help the nation wide effort of service in ecuador. :)

This week i also had an intercambio with the lideressa in my zone, hermana koster. she is from california, and actually we both had hermana valiente for trainer in quevedo! :) so it was fun to talk about the ward in quevedo and teach with her for a day. i went and taught in her ward friday, and learned a lot from her. she is a great teacher, and she has a lot of love for the people. she uses great examples when she teaches, which i want to apply more in my teachings. 

this week was also week 11 for hermana vargas.. week 11 of 12 weeks of training... shes almost done! this week her goal was to take the initative in all aspects of teaching and planning, and she did great! i am proud of her and the progress she has made as a missionary. she is doing such a great job and will be an amazing leader in the mission! :)

Thats about it for this week! :) I am so grateful to be here in ecuador serving a mission. seeing my converts in the temple makes every hard day, every rejection worth it. seeing them feel the Spirit, and wathching their testimonies grow is something that i almost cant even explain. it is so beautiful, and i feel so grateful to be able to watch this in people. i know that God lives and loves us. He sent His Son to earth for us, and His plans are perfect. He will guide us and give us light even in the darkest of times. :)

love you all! :) thanks for all your prayers for ecuador! have a great week, and remember that you are loved :) Juan 3:16-17

les amo,

Hermana Warburton

me, amalia, michel, hno chacon (lider misional), eva garcia, mariana 

me, amalia, hna vargas

arroz $0... (rice $0).. maybe this is why we eat so much rice.... ??? jajaja

Temblor y Amor

HOLA HOLA! :)

wow what an exciting week! :) i just wanted to let you know that all is well with me and hermana vargas here in ecuador. our ward is fine and all the missionaries in our mission are safe! :)

of course the biggest happening of this week was the EARTHQUAKE! on saturday night we were in the church building, getting ready for a baptism of the lideres de zona. we were just waiting in the baptismal font room with 2 other ladies, and all of the sudden i felt the ground begin to shake. i turned to hermana vargas who was sitting by me and said "yo pienso que hay un temblor!"... and sure enough there was an earthquake. we just sat there in the church for a few mintues, a little suprised, but calm, and the other ladies in the room sat there as well, while one began to cry and pray. we just sat there waiting as the room was shaking and the doors were shaking. and all my grade school training of what to do when there is an earthquake totally went out the window. yep. i forgot it all. but luckily all went well and we were safe!! :) when it ended, i didnt actually realize that it was that big of an earthquake. i thought maybe it was just a normal small one like they have sometimes here.

but when we left the room and talked with other people who were outside of the church, we found out that it was actually a big earthquake!! that many lights had shut off and there was no cell phone service. we had no idea, because we were in the chapel, and there are emergency lights and the chapels are built to support a 9.0 earthquake, so it didnt feel that big.

that night we began to hear more of what happened from the people around us, and realized how blessed and protected we were. it didnt even seem like that big of an earthquake to us, and we werent really that scared.

the next day church was cancelled, but we were able to go downstairs of our apartment to the family that are members below us. they blessed and passed the sacrament for us, about 8 people that were there. i was touched by the Spirit as  i realized the importance and grand blessing the sacrament is and the great opportunity i had to partake of it, even if it was just for a few people in the room.

this morning we got to help the humanitarian effort sort out bags of donated food and clothing for the people who were affected in ecaudor. we were there for 3 hours in the church sorting and bagging items. again i was amazed at the charity and service of the people here. there was TONS of clothing and food. i wish i would have had my camera with me! TONS of items. i was so impressed with these people here who, some of them hardly have anything to give, and yet give away to help others. wow. the spirit of service and love is flying strong here right now in ecuador!

other than that.... it was a pretty normal week! :) i sang a solo for a fireside we had and for the baptism de los lideres de zona. we sent a letter to the golden family who rejected us, the familia gomez... and hope to hear a response in the future! :) we talked to joffry and katty this past week and helped them set goals to go to the temple! also we met this cute couple this past week, they are about 60 yrs old, married, but have never been able to have kids, but are the sweetest happiest little couple!

looking back on this past week i have realized the importance of standing in holy places. when we are in holy places, we are protected from danger and can feel peace during the storm and danger that surrounds us. when we are spiritually and temporarily prepared for the dangers that surround us, we will be ok when things happen. we wont need to feel scared, because we will know that we will be watched over and protected. this gospel is true, and will help us through anything that we are going through!

i love you all lots! thanks for all your love and prayers for ecuador! :)

les amo,

Hermana Warburton

                    me and my new dress!

hna vargas, yo, y hijo de hna magdelena (pres de sociedad de socorro)...aka rachels future husband! ;) jk
(Sister vargas and I and son of Magdelena Sr. ( Relief Society pres ) ... aka rachels future husband ! ; ) Jk

Conversos y Familias

¡Buenas tardes a todos! :) ¿Que tal?

hola hola! another week in ecuador has come and gone! wow! sometimes the weeks seem to fly by and i dont even know what happed with the time!

This week was a pretty normal week of contacting and visitng people- investigators, less actives, and recent converts! we contacted a few new families and hope that they progress and want to learn more! :)

This Sunday we had some cool experiences. One of the new families we are teaching is a single mom and her 4 sons. we taught them saturday night and invited them to church the next morning at 8am, and they agreed to go... even the little kids, ages 13, 11, and 9. So the next morning we go pass by their house at 7:35am to help them walk to church. Jesus, the son that has 13 yrs old answers the door, all up and ready to go! he says he woke up all his brothers and they were just about ready to go. but his mom was still sleeping and couldnt go. but he wanted to go! so he and his 3 other brothers went to church. for all 3 hours! and they were all very reverent and participated! i was so surprised and amazed at them. when we had to leave church when it was over, one of the boys wanted to take the hymn book home with him because he liked it so much! i asked Jesus (13yrs) what he learned, and he told me the whole jose smith story! i was so impressed with this little boy! This boy taught me a great lesson. that truly anyone can be an example for your family, no importa que edad tiene. this boy wanted to go to church, whether or not his mom did, and he was a great example to me!

also amalia (recent convert) shared her testimony during testimony meeting yesterday! wow! i felt like one proud mom watching her up there sharing her testimony. she shared her testimony of the book of mormon (which she didnt have a strong testimony of before) and how the book of mormon helped her when she was going to have her heart exam. it was amazing to hear her say that she knew that this church is true, and that the book of mormon is true! i was so happy for her. watching her in that moment tell everyone in the room, with such conviction that these things are true i felt so much joy! i really realized that this is what missionary work is all about. helping others come unto Christ, and helping them find happiness and peace in this life.

This week we also had interviews with presidente riggins this past week. its good to talk to president, and hear his council and advice. i learned a lot from him. he helped me realize that at times we cannot see our own progress in the moment. but when we look back 1 or 2 years, or even months, we can see how weve changed. how things we used to think were good, have turned into things we are doing now that are better! we can always be better through Jesus Christ.

ok.. and as usual for my language mishap this week.....

so this past week we were in missionary coordination meeting with our lider misional and a sister from the ward. i was telling her about one of the investigators and her progress, and our lider missional started laughing at something i said and the way i said it. i was like what? and he just was like "well your gringa accent is funny!"... oh boy. my red hair and temper came out in that moment. does he think i am trying to have a gringa (USA) accent?? it think not!! haha. ok well, i almost told him to try speaking in english 24/7 to perfect english speakers, but decided to hold my temper in. but that only caused my face to go bright red, and then everyone lauged at my bright red face.... so ya. that was coordination misional this past week for me.... hahahah :)

well i love you all lots! i know this is the true church. this past week i read a lot, and learned alot about the importance of the home and church. in the home we can learn more about Jesus Christ, and it is really where we become the person we are. I, being raised in the church, was taught and converted by missionaries in my house- my parents. how important the role of every member in the families is. parents, children, grandparents, and so on. a home centered on Christ is a home full of the Spirit and love. i have learned this as i have seen different homes and circumstances here, and know that this Gospel can change not only individuals but families!

les amo,

Hermana Warburton

the little boys that came to church Sunday

a typical lunch here in ecuador...

Conferencia General y Conversos

¡Hola familia y amigos! ¿Como están? Wow. ¡Que rápido fue esta semana!

This week we did a lot of looking for new investigators…:) haha because all of our investigators got baptized…. So now we need some new families to teach. Not gonna lie. Its sometimes REALLY hard to find new families to teach. Especially in our sector. We did a lot of contacting, and had a lot of people reject us. Even to the point where one man stuck his hand up to us and did the “talk to the hand” motion. I was a little surprised! Haha!

And then, our family of gold that we have- the familia villa gomez- who really are soooo amazing and are ready to hear and accept the Gospel….sent us a text this past week and said that they didn’t want to meet with us anymore and that please do not call or talk to them anymore. Wow. It was a little bit of a shocker! We literally had NO idea what happened at all whatsoever. The last visit went so well!! We tried to stop by and see what happened, but when we tried talked to them through their little speaker box outside of their house, they hung up the moment they heard “las misioneras”.

But the work goes on!! Our converts are doing great. Amalia and Michel are doing good and growing in their testimonies. Michel enjoyed General Conference for the first time, and we also got to eat a genuine Cuban meal, cooked by him at the Bishops house! Amalia gained a testimony of the Libro de Mormon this past week! I was soooo happy. Before she hadn’t really read the book very much. But this past week she had a heart exam, because she has heart problems, and took the Book of Mormon to read with her before the exams. She told us she enjoyed reading it, and that everything went excellently well during her heart exams! She told us that she knows that the Gospel is true, and that really God is watching over her and blessing her! :) what a great woman!

Well as you all heard in General Conference, a new temple was announced for Quito , Ecuador! The people here are soooo excited! When it was announced everyone was so excited and happy. Ecuador will now have 2 temples, one in Guayaquil, and one in Quito. How neat! The work is spreading more and more each day.

On a funny note… last night I was praying with my comp before bed, and I was the one saying the prayer out loud. I was trying to say “please bless the father of a member in our ward with health”… but the word for father is “el papa” and the word for potato is “la papa”… well you can imagine what I said. I accidently said “la papa” instead of el papa and so I asked to bless the potato with good health (not the dad) ahhaha my comp and I could not stop laughing for the rest of the prayer!! Haha

Wasn’t General Conference great!!?? Ive never been this excited to listen to conference in my life! Haha. I am so grateful and happy that I was able to listen to conference here in Ecuador. I know that the prophets and apostles are servants of God. They truly speak His words. It was neat to listen to the conference in Spanish. I was a little worried at first, but it went really well, and I was able to understand and feel the Spirit during the conference. I also LOVED the music. You know me. I love good, beautiful music! :)

I am grateful for this Church and that this is the unicá iglesia en todo el faz de la tierra que tiene las llaves de sacerdocio (priesthood). I am grateful for Jesus Christ. I am grateful for His Atonment, and that through him we can find peace. We can repent, we can forgive, and we can forgive ourselves. It is a great privilege to be a member of this church, to witness miracles, and to receive blessings from God. I know that this Church is true and that God loves us, and He has blessed us with families, and He sent His Son so that we can return to live with Him. I love you all!!

Les amo,

Hermana Warburton

cuban food made by michel

some sisters in our ward that are just the best! 

Baptismo de Michel y El Libro de Mormon

HOLA!!! ¿cómo estan? ¿cómo le fue su semana santa?!

Wow this week was great as we got to celebrate Semana Santa and the resurrection of Jesucristo! :) We had a lot of fun experiences and neat spiritual experiences as well.

This week MICHEL GOT BAPTIZED!!! :) i almost couldnt believe it i was so happy!! :) he got baptized on saturday at 5pm, and he was just bursting with excitement. his whole face was lit up with such happiness, and hardly recognized him as the same man we contacted a little more than a month ago. but thats the thing. he is NOT the same person anymore. he has changed soooo much. 

i dont know if ive explained the full story of michel before, but if not.. ill do a quick recap. So we contacted michel right before we wre going to our house to end the day. we were actually passing by the laundy mat where we wash our clothes and he happened to be right outside. we talked to him a little, and asked if we could visit him and he said yes. And so when we came back a few days later, we learned that he was SUPER Catholic and was basically the helper of the pastor or leader in his church in cuba. needless to say, i thought he would never change. he had soooooo many questions that were most of the time pretty frustrating and i felt like he just wanted to prove us wrong. when we explained about jose smith, he got WAY frustrated and defensive. he told us that there was NO way that a man could see Heavenly Father. that was just not possible at all whatsoever. well. no amount of convincing on our side would make him believe. we told him that he needed to pray and ask for himself. God is the source of all knowledge, so He will tell him what is right and what is wrong. 

But the cool thing about him was that he ALWAYS kept his commitments. always. since the first time when we invited him to go to church, he went. on his own will. we were never begging him or encouraging him to go to church, read his scriptures, or pray. he just did them, because he wanted to find the truth. he wanted an answer. and thats why he progressed. thats why he got an answer. he was sincerely seeking! he also went to every activity we had, and when we went to a fireside, he found his answer from a testimony that was shared. after that he knew he wanted to get baptized, and his testimony just kept growing

so back to the baptism.... michel was sooo happy! he requested that hermana vargas and i sing "The Spririt of God" as a special musical number, and he was so happy to listen to that! then when he got baptized it was so sweet. his friend he made in the ward baptized him, and after he came up out of the water, he gave him a BIG hug. it was so sweet. it was like he was thanking his friend for helping him find salvation. wow. it was so neat. 

and then michel shared his testimony. and it was GREAT!!! i about died! he shared some scriptures, and the importance of baptism, and expressed his thanks to us for all our work and patience with his questions. haha! but the best part was the end of his testimony when he said that he knows that Jose smith was a prophet, and that he saw God and Jesus Christ. He said he knows that because he has felt it in his heart, and because he has read the Book of Mormon!!! my mouth literally dropped open. the man that was so against jose smith, just said he was a profeta and knows he saw God. i about died of happiness! then the next day he bore his testimony/gave a talk in sacrament meeting when he got confirmed!! wow!!

my testimony and gratefulness of the Book of Mormon truly grew this past week. Because of the Book of Mormon, michel was able to gain a testimony of Jose smith. his conversion was fast and he has a good testimony, because he read this book. this book changed his life. he is now in 2 Nefi 31... only after a month of studying. The Book of Mormon can change lives, and really can help one gain a testimony of the truth!!! michel changed a ton. before he was so unhappy and serious. now he is happy and actually smiles!! :)

ok... on another note... other happenings of the week....

-we ate this traditional soup called fineska for Good Friday and it was sooooooo NASTY! i thought i was eating vomit. but ya know i ate it all.... because im a missionary... but ewww!

-haha then the next day we ate lunch at a SUPER FANCY restaurant that was DELICIOUS. Im not kidding i felt like i stepped into a movie. the food was great and the restaurante was beautiful!

-i sang opera and "Vanilla Ice Cream" on the stage in Parque Samanes where the Pope, and the President of Ecuador have both spoken. yep. i felt pretty famous for a moment!!! :) (we run at parque samanes every day, and we passed the outdoor stage this past week and i said i wanted to sing... and so hna childs asked the guard and she said yes.. so i sang for a few moments for hna childs and the security guard!)

Well thats my week!! thanks for everything! i know this Church is true and that it really can changes lives!! love you all lots!!! :)

les amo,

Hermana Warburton

              EL LIBRO DE MORMON

lo nuestro.. the super fancy restaurant (2pis)

                          

baptism of michel (he's the really tall one! that looks soooo happy)

MICHEL