All Good Things Must Come to an End. . .

Blazer day! Aka Blazing hot day!

  BUT NOT TODAY!!!!!  Not for another 6 weeks! Heavenly Father answers fervent, desperate prayers, and so although we were getting really nervous (why are 2 experienced missionaries who already speak Spanish together in the admittedly best rama (branch) in the mission?) We are together for another transfer here in Paradise, for Angel and Christopher's baptism this Saturday, and Elvis's hopefully mid-November. Maybe even Antonio and Iris! Maybe Gloria's dad will soften too! There's so many miracles yet to see! And odds are good I'll be here for Christmas. That would be a dream come true. 

Our rama took all the recent converts to do baptisms. They do it like every other week-ish because they're awesome. So Yolanda got to go the week after her baptism! So great!

Quick miracles:

Antonio and Iris stopped drinking coffee!

Antonio walked 40 minutes alone to stake conference!

I found five pesos just sitting on the road. Twice!

Christopher and Angel showed up to stake conference in white shirts with Joel (if they didn't make it, they couldn't get baptized this Saturday).

I accidentally said the Creole word for gulf (gouf) and again (anko) instead of the Spanish ones! That means I'm learning something! (I'm reading the Book of Mormon this time in Creole. I can read it, but not speak it. Which is semi-useless considering how often you find Creole written, but baby steps)

Long miracle:

The other day, Hna Erickson was reading the Book of Mormon edition Liahona from a while ago. I decided to too. So we were talking about it for a couple days. I was reading about all the people that got the Book and read it in a week, or a few days, or couldn't put it down. Now I'm going to make a generalization, but it's true of all the investigators I've had: Dominicans don't really do that. They like to read a paso. Understanding it and such. They just don't read through things really fast. So I was kind of like, "Ah, well, I probably won't ever see miracles like that. Dang." Which is true if you think that a miracle like that is the only cool kind. Well, we went to Elvis's, and were going to teach him Diezmo--tithing--but he started talking about what he learned from reading the intro, testimony of the 3 and 8 witnesses, and testimony of Joseph Smith. He was already sure the Book of Mormon was true. It just made so much sense to him. And he had read Alma 40, 41, 42 while we were talking about the Plan of Salvation. We felt impressed to start 1 Nephi 1 with him (especially because he just wanted to read all that stuff again because he liked it. That's what they do. They read the same chapter over and over and that's another reason they don't plow through it super fast). It was incredible. We started reading and the spirit was so strong. He stopped us when Lehi had a dream to tell us about a dream of heaven that he had (and they like to stop an analyze, another reason the one week thing doesn't fly). As we read on, it turns out Lehi's dream had crazy similarities to the one he had. He just stopped and looked at us. It was incredible. After we finished, we invited him to pray specifically to know if the Book of Mormon was true. He said, "Yeah. I was praying about it earlier today as I was reading, and I already know  that it is for sure, but ok. I'll pray again." It was incredible. He talked for a few minutes, giving us all the reasons that this Book was true, and how everyone that had the chance to read it and rejected it will probably be judged from it during final judgement. I was thinking, "There's a reference for that." And then he was talking about great things coming from small and simple things. "Another reference" and a whole bunch of other truths. I can't wait for him to read them in the Book of Mormon. 

Book of Mormon miracles happen even in the DR even when they don't read it super fast!! That's what I learned this week. And it was so much cooler in real life. I promise. 

Last minute, the stake president called for us (all the missionaries) to go to stake conference. Because the stake was called by higher authority right before and said they had to change the whole agenda to be "hastening the work". So we went and they had us stand and did all this stuff about member missionary work and it was crazy. I think it's finally starting to sink in that this wasn't just a missionary work kick. Not just a phase. They mean business. They are calling for lifestyle changes in every member to be a part of this work. It's great to be a missionary because I don't have to feel guilty. :) I'm doing my part! Everybody else, get on yours. One person before Christmas!

Love you all, Love the gospel, Love missionary work,

Love, Sarah

It's Christmas in the DR!!!!!!!!!!!!

Christmas music was playing in the grocery store today. We're in Heaven!