January 18, 2016 -- She's coming home!!

There will only be two more letters from Hannah, this being one of them. Her last letter will be next Monday. She returns home on Friday, January 29th. That next Sunday, the 31st of January, she will speaking in church, telling about some of her experiences serving in Chile. If you are interested in coming, the meeting starts at 9:00 am and is located at 1320 West Schaumburg Road, in Schaumburg. All are invited.

Here's this week's letter:

Alright ladies and gents, here come the highlights of the week, and probably a lot of random thoughts:

- My comp's head isn't feeling too much better, but she's been tired of being in the house, so we got to leave a little bit more this week.

- We had a Family Home Evening with the members who live alone, the new members in the ward, and those who are the only members in their family, in the church building on Monday.  It was way fun!  We're having another one today and we plan on playing kickball.  Woohoo!

- One day una abuelita called us to help take her to the post office and we said yes!  Turns out it was a trap!  Haha, she's a really sweet lady who just needed some company.  She didn't even have to go to the post office, but while we were out we stopped to buy her an ice cream cone.  Only afterward did she tell us she didn't know how to eat it... oops!  While she was eating it she dropped it on the floor but said, "this is too good, I'm not losing it!"  so she picked it up, wiped it off with a napkin and just kept right on eating it :)  At least she enjoyed it right? Right :)

- We were contacted by a cop from Santiago vacationing here in Purranque.  He seemed really interested in the church, but was going to Santiago again.  Good thing there are missionaries all over the place!

- La familia Gonzalez gave us completos one day for dinner.  I'm going to miss them (both the familia Gonzalez y los completos)

- Had an awesome lesson with Felicita, one of our investigators, in which she bore a really strong testimony that she knows this gospel is true, and that she's received so many blessings after meeting with the missionaries.  She wants to get baptized so bad, but her pareja (sorry I can't remember how we say that in English) doesn't want to get married yet.  But once they get married she is baptism ready!

- We found a cool new investigator named Lucy!  She really likes what she's learning

- We had an awesome lesson with Manuel, a guy who's visiting from Puerto Montt, and la Hna Sonia went with us.  Members, you guys really don't know how much you can help with your simple powerful testimonies.  He's going to keep listening to the missionaries in Puerto Montt

- Hno Moll, he's a little abuelito member here, ate lunch in a member's house with us and the members this week, and HE IS SO FUNNY.  We laughed so hard.  They asked him to say the blessing on the food and he just said, "they always ask on the youngest to say the prayer."  And then he said so many other funny things during lunch. haha, sorry if you don't think it's as funny as I did.

- Our house has slugs and Hna Schroeder is terrified of them.  She found one of their happy trails in her bed yesterday and I don't think she's ever going to be able to sleep ever again

- And the coolest thing of all.... Mary y Patricio said they want to get baptized on Feb 20th :D  They've been meeting with the missionaries for almost a year and they finally feel like they're ready for baptism.  It was an amazing lesson, completely guided by the spirit.  It was cool.

Don't forget that sometimes things happen a whole lot differently than what we would like, but we just need to roll with the punches, put our trust in the Lord, and look for the blessings that are all around us.  I found a cool scripture today in my studies from when the prophet Mormon is talking to his son Moroni about all the bad things and the destruction of his people (a whole civilization) and he said, "My son, be faithful in Christ, and may not the things which I have written grieve thee... but may Christ lift thee up, and may his sufferings and death... and his mercy and longsuffering, and the hope of his glory and of eternal life, rest in your mind forever."

Basically if things aren't going your way just remember to let Christ lift you up, that his grace and mercy can help you out in whatever situation you find yourself.  There will be difficulties in life of every kind, but there are good things to come.  Just keep chugging along with your confidence placed in him.

Oh, and just to let you all know, my companion is so funny.  We get along so well and we just laugh so hard all the time.  She's great  and as she always says..."that's all autobots, let's roll out!"

Love you guys!

Keep on keeping on,

Hermana Coombs