17s:I know yooou I walked with you ooonce upoon a dreeeeeam

I sang that over and over yesterday for I think 30 minutes dancing with 5 children. I was exhausted but it was worth it and they loved it. 

​When it rains here its a good thing. 

Everyone eats with their hands and its a good thing. 

We went to the temple with a few of our investigators on Saturday. I got some really good pics but I cant send them today. Maybe next week. I sang twice and it was great. Latinos have started asking me for a cd again just like in the CCM haha. 

We went with -G- yesterday (the lady who was the UN Ambassador). She has had some incredible dreams all about her being in darkness and following a light and being afraid to follow it too. One was literally the spirit world. We read about the spirit world in the Book of Mormon​ and were like hey does this sound like your dream? And she said yes. She is going to be a slow process but I can tell every little bit she reads of the Book of Mormon is helping her realize there is way more to life than what she knows. We recignize she might be scared. For goodness sakes she has been a devout Catholic for 65 years. Its her life. But if there is something else that is true out there, she feels like the last 65 years have been a lie. I have faith her eyes will be opened to the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. This is His church in its FULLNESS upon the earth. I testify of it. 

Changes are Wednesday and Im done training which very well means Hermana Groll and I might not be companions any more. Especially with 10 new hermanas coming in that need trainers. Im a little nervous. Not ready for a change. Our President goes home on the 2nd of July. 

We baptized my little friend Christian last night. He is so cute. Hes only 8 but all of his family are members. His parents and older sister are very very inactive, but his older brothers always come to church and bring him too.  I love those boys! Pictures next week.

Love you alllllll bye

h.steele

Mom's note: she got her wallet stolen last Sunday. $$, drivers license, insurance cards... But not her debit cards or passport so I guess we can be thankful for that. 

16s I'm really enjoying myself here

This week was an adventure. We had multi zone conference which took up almost an entire day, we were sent home early by our zone leaders another day, we had J's BAPTISM!!!!, and yesterday we had a multi zone activity. So we basically lost four days of real missionary work this week, so our 'dats' (data/stats) were super low. But were gonna make up for it I promise. Were working real hard in this dang area. Its just characteristically hard to baptize. But it doesn't matter. We have had success and we are gonna have even more. 

One little thing before the big message, Banana Soda. I love it.

I really love my companion. We are learning lots from each other and she has been a wonderful trainer and a wonderful friend.

So the multi zone activity was like a night of music and testimonies to bring our investigators to. It was aweeesome and so spiritual. Hermana Groll and I started everything off singing ¨More Holiness Give Me¨(but in Spanish of course) and it went really well. It brought the spirit immediately. The whole night was wonderful. I love Jesus. haha

Everyone mentions my blue eyes. The other day we were with a member and I saw a pretty blue butterfly and was like ¨Mire que bonita!!!!!!!¨ and she's like ¨it flew out of your eyes¨ and I died laughing. That's what happens when I come to a country filled with ojos cafes.

We didn't get to meet with Gudalupe this last week dangit. She was busy fixing up her house and finally moving in. This week.

<B>. I don't think there is anything more we can do. 4 baptismal dates, countless visits, countless prayers, countless effort, (countless monies spent on taxis too haha) but en serio. I really believe at one moment she was prepared, but something went wrong on her end. She is set in her mind that she just can't do it. So thats the end of that.

We met a wonderful woman named Marlene. Ill tell you more about her as we continue to teach her, but in short, she is a single mom with three loving children. She has already accepted our challenge to be baptized and loved our lesson on the Restoration. I LOVE HER!!!

I want to share something I learned this week in personal study. For some reason I had been fascinated with the story of Peter walking on water. It is a story I have always wondered about throughout my life and I wish I would have understood it sooner.

The story is in Matthew 14:24-33. Ill just share some of my insights for sake of time. The thing that has struck me for years is when Jesus says ¨O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?¨ This always confused me. Peter was an apostle. Peter had lots of faith. He exercised
tons of faith just asking for Christ to call him out on the water. But, he obviously lost faith since he started to sink. Why did Peter lose faith even though Christ was RIGHT THERE? RIGHT THERE. right there in front of him and he still lost faith. Why did Christ stop the wind and the waves AFTER they were both safe in the boat, and not before to help Peter walk on the water to Christ?

We all lose faith sometimes even when Christ is RIGHT THERE. even when he is influencing our lives an incredible amount. This happens when we look away from Christ. When we look at the wind and the waves. When we pay more attention to walking on the water than getting to Christ. Christ didnt stop the wind and the waves until Peter was safe on the boat because we need trials of our faith. If everything was easy, why would we need Christ?

This next week, I challenge all of you to focus on Christ rather than focusing on walking on water. Walking on water can be work, school, any endeavour you are pursuing in your life. We fall when we focus more on this than Christ. 

Keep your focus on walking on the water, and you will fall.

Keep your focus on Christ, and you will be able to walk on water.
Peter left the boat not to walk on water, but to go to Christ. 

I love you all!!!!! so much! pray lots and remember Christ is there when you need Him, when you call for Him, when you accept Him.

Honduras is great.

love, 

hermanita steele

15s I'm teaching a former UN Ambassador and wedding pictures

J & L's wedding day (from last week)

Guadalupe. What do I even say. Ben and Pati moved into our ward two ish weeks ago, and last Sunday, they asked us to come teach Ben´s mom. Ben has been a member for awhile and he served a mission in New York speaking Spanish. He also is a Gringo, but his dad is French and his mom is Honduran so he knows English French and Spanish and Im just confused as to his life. His wife Pati is Brazilian. But anyway. They asked us to teach her. Ben told us she is very very Catholic and very very educated and just a real intelligent lady. So we set an appointment and later that week took a taxi to the rich part of our area and got to the house. We started to talk to Guadalupe for a bit to get to know her and Ben slips in Oh yeah she was an Ambassador to the United Nations for Honduras for 30 years. 

WHAT. 

So now my comp and I are of course intimidated as we realize how smart she really is. We went back again yesterday and man, our lessons with her are like none other. This is certainly an opportunity. She is a very powerful woman and says what she thinks. She is reading the Book of Mormon and of course remembers everything she reads and asks us little details. She also believes in some kinds of crazy things so thats an adventure too.  I just keep telling her that hey, sabemos que usted es bien inteligente, but you are going to learn the truths of these things only through prayer and a testimony from the Holy Spirit. This is going to be an adventure.

My companion and I were reading from the Book of Mormon the other day in Spanish and I came across something funny. We read something about churches becoming very rich. We argued for awhile about what the guys name is who sings I CAN BE YOUR HERO BABYYY. I thought it was Enrique Iglesias. But we were like nooo that cant be right. Thats so not his name. Because then his name is rich churches. But ohhh were we right.

 I love Spanish.

The other day we were planning. And there was a point where everything just came to a stop. I was looking at a list of people were teaching on the wall. And my companion and I were trying to decide what to do the next day. And everything just stopped and we were silent for a sec. and then I said ¨Hermana. We just need new investigators.¨ We just need new people to teach. We met a lovely lady yesterday who I already love named Marlene. Were meeting with her later this week and I am so excited. But this is kinda what our focus is right now, meeting new people. And getting J baptized. 

J & L's wedding day (from last week)

FINALLY. J IS GETTING BAPTIZED ON SATURDAY. But an enemigo is really working on him. I can't believe the faith of J and L. J just turned down a real good job and L turned down two because work on Sundays was required. GO DIA DE REPOSO (day of rest). WOO COMMANDMENTS. Theyre awesome. But I really hope they find work soon. 

Keeping an eternal perspective of live gets me thorough the hard times. I read the talk ¨No Other Gods¨ by Elder Oaks last night and this morning (yes twice cause its that good) and just read it. Its great. Always remember your Heavenly Father and your family are the most important things in your life. 

Happy Fathers day on Sunday daddy!! Love you!!!

I invite all of you to read or reread the Book of Mormon. Really its such an interesting book and it has some powerful words. Really truly it is the word of God. I know it. I know this is the church of Christ reestablished upon the Earth. 

I love you all, have a wonderful week, and update me on your lives! 

love, hermanita steele

ps write me letters. :D

reception 

 

14s Star Valley

*Letter from May 26*

Here in Honduras Im making up for all those years I didnt drink soda.

Small world moment, Hermana Suyapa, a wonderful member of my ward who is the mom to my best friend baby Jagger, lived in Star Valley, Wyoming years ago with the Scherbel family. Tommy Scherbel was one of my bosses when I worked as an RA at BYU this last fall.  Also the Perkes family (Chases moms side of the family) is from there, and I was in Star Valley this summer. Super crazy!!

Okay so I started with something awesome so now something sad. Theres been lots of sadness here lately. Don't worry I wont tell you about it all. Two Elders got in a car accident on Thursday. Elder Martinez, from El Salvador, died on Friday and his companion from Utah, Elder Lewis, has been sent back to the states to recover. Its super sad when missionaries die. Really scary too. Especially when it happens so close. Also hermana Carmen in my ward (family you met her on skype!!) fell in her pila and has really serious injuries and could have died. She has to stay in bed but she is recovering. She is the most positive person I know and she has such a wonderful relationship with Heavenly Father. Ive been thinking lots lately about why such awful things happen to bad people. There are reasons for everything. All you have to do is trust in God.

This weekend we have a wedding (WITH FAITH. PRAY THAT THE PAPERS WILL GO THROUGH FAST) and right after a baptism!!! The wedding is for <L> and <J>. L will be baptized right after but we have to wait for J to get baptized until the 14th of June because he needs one month without smoking. FINALLY. This is finally happening!!! they are SOOO ready!!!!! We saw J  de repente in the calle the other night. He was only walking to the pulperia but he was carrying around the church pamplets to give him strength not to smoke. he is such an example to me. He has SOOO much faith!!!! 

I always have all these spiritual things to share with you all that I think of during the week and then I forget them. So just read your scriptures. This is the church of Jesus Christ. I know it is true. Always work hard and always keep the faith. Pray more than you think you need to. Dont waste your time, you dont know when your time on this earth is going to be over. Life is very short, I have learned that in Honduras. You just dont know. Take care of yourself and learn every opportunity you get. Life is too short for anger. Life is too short not to smile. In your trials confide in the Lord and He will give you comfort. Study the life of Christ and become more like Him. Yeah I know its hard. Yeah I know you have to do homework, or work, or run an errand, or whatever. I know. I know. But how much do you love Christ? Do you love Him enough to give Him a few minutes of your day to pray and read your scriptures? How much do you love Him?

Lots of things Ive thought about this week. I wish I could share everything with everyone, but until next week...

H.Steele