God is good..............November 17, 2014

Hey hey hey boys and girls! I hope everybody is well and enjoying the first falls of snow that I´m sure are starting to come. Before you complain, take a moment to remember yours truly in 115 degrees who will go 3 years without seeing snow. You´ll feel a lot better. But good thing I love Rivera anyway! 

We went as a zone today to this AWESOME park camping ground thing in the outskirts of Rivera. One of my zone leaders has three BASEBALL mitts and a baseball. Playing catch never felt so good! also, fun fact: Latinos are SUPER amazing at soccer. Baseball...they play about as well as I play soccer. Haha to each his own. 

This week was super great! Full of miracles. Every week is full of miracles. 

So the first is Mirna. Her progression is incredible! On Tuesday we went with a member to her house and taught the first part of the Plan of Salvation (in our mission the lesson is split in 2). She shared the same doubts with the member, Mirta Cal, as she had shared with us. Mirta was a big help because she has also been in other religions but said she never felt so right as she has in her years as a member. My companion and I decided that instead of beating a dead horse constantly talking to her about the priesthood authority that makes the church different from others, which really just brings us around in circles with her, we were just going to keep teaching her the doctrine and continue encouraging her to keep reading and praying and the Spirit would take over. 

She said another amazing prayer at the end, saying "Help me God, because I don´t want to get it wrong this time. I want to be sure. Help me be sure." And then at the end of the prayer she said "While I was praying, I saw a light. It lit up my whole being." She recognized it as an answer, but still wants to keep learning more because she really does want to be sure. But her sincere desire to know is incredible! It´s fun to teach her because it´s amazing to see the way the Spirit always manages to touch her. 

But yet another amazing tender mercy from God was when we went back on Saturday. She said that the night before she went to her church, and the priest took out some herb saying that if they blessed it it would heal them. And so she told us "that´s not from God. I didn´t like that. So I´m going to have to Pastor Nelson." WHAT. Yet ANOTHER way in which the Lord touched her heart! We invited her to church and said we would pass by her house to walk with her. But we were running late, so right at 9 we called her to ask if she was ready, and she said "i´m already here in the church talking with some people!" INCREDIBLE. And the fellowshipping in this ward was phenomenal. We did have much time to talk to her afterwards, but we´re hoping she was able to receive even more of an answer to her prayers. It´s been so awesome to see her progression from the very first time we taught her. Keep praying for Mirna! 

The other thing was José. José is Belén and Valentina´s dad. He´s the only member of his family that isn´t baptized. The mom and their little brother all are. José is someone who requires really sloooowwww warming up to to win his confidence. Before, he would actually drive around the block to avoid seeing the missionaries if he saw them walking on the same street of his house. With the other Hna Barrios, we decided to start to go inside for a glass of water or something every time we went to pick up Belen or Valentina to go out with us, so that we´d at least have an excuse to say hi and shake his hand. From there, he is still slowly warming up, but he will come up and talk to us, he´ll make jokes, he´s a lot less serious. He has NEVER, and I mean EVER, been to church. He has only ever come to an activity or two. Well their little brother Franco turned 12 a little bit ago and was receiving the priesthood yesterday. So we walk out of Sunday school and who do we see? JOSÉ. With his family, waiting to go into sacrament meeting. WHAT. I hugged Belén and Valentina and literally started crying and they just laughed at me. But it´s because I love this family so incredibly much and I want them so badly to be able to be an eternal family. There is still a loooooong way to go, but this was a huge step. 

Long story short: God is good. So, so good. 

I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan 

literally on the line between Uruguay and Brazil!

Me and my comppyyyyy in our area

ice cream time! $1 for this sucker

Rivera sunset (ignore my hair)

Getting fluent in Portugese..............November 10, 2014

And by fluent, I really mean that I now know how to say "I don`t speak Portugese very well" and "I know that God and Jesus Christ live" (Eu se que Deus e Jesuscristo vivem.") I am pretty sure how I mentioned before that up here in the north with the border with Brasìl, there`s a buttload of Portugese speakers. One of them is Leo, a 13 year old kid who lives in front of Familia Valentti. It was actually his mom (who isn`t even a member) told Daniel that she wants Leo to listen to the missionaries because he`s starting to get into a rebellious stage and his grades have been slipping. He hasn`t gone to church yet, but we haven`t really gotten to that either, and he`s super receptive. He`s a good kid. 

As for Mirna...well, bad news and good news. We went back this week, and she said that she`s been thinking about it, and she feels like she shouldn`t be jumping from church to church. We`re pretty sure her priest (is that what it`s called? in spanish it`s pastor) from the Evangelical church went and told her that, because the pastors tend to do that here with the people from their congregation. We`ll have a really good one or even more lessons with someone, and then when we go back they tell us that their pastor went and told them they`re "not allowed" to receive us anymore. 

Anyway, we had already planned to explain the priesthood authority, so we did, but she still doesn`t feel like she`s ready. It was the first time with an investigator that I felt prompted to share Grandma Dolan`s conversion story, because it`s kind of similar, and we both felt like it helped soften her heart. So, shout out to mah Gram! She still said she doesn`t feel ready, but by the end of the lesson she agreed to keep listening, saying "if God tells me that this is the path he wants me to take, i`ll take it. But He has to tell me." Don`t fret girlfriend, He`ll tell you. We went back again on Saturday with Valentina, and she still had the same doubts, but this time she had been reading the Book of Mormon. She also shared a few more questions and doubts she had, which we were able to answer. Val all on her own shared a SUPER capa testimony. We didn`t even ask her to share it, she just felt prompted. She`s our 3rd Nephite. She`s amazing. So by the end of THAT lesson, Mirna agreed to go to church on Sunday. So, pray for Mirna! 

The primary program was on Sunday. Oh my freaking cute. It made me miss my primary class back in my home ward, but it was my first primary program here in Uruguay and I loved it. Uruguayan kids are just so special. 

Funny story for the week:

Gael Valentti is 3 years old, and ever since he got in a buttload of trouble a little over a month ago for kicking me in the chest, every time he sees me he goes "I`m not your friend, and I won`t be until I go to the temple in January!" Haha, so I have to wait until January apparently. But then the other day his mom was telling me he`s been behaving badly in school, so I said "Hey Gael, you`ll never get married if you keep behaving like that." And he goes "Yes I am, I`m going to marry Hermana Barrios." Hahaha soooo my companion is engaged. 

We are officially halfway through the change! And I seriously cannot believe it. Time is going so fast. We have another mission wide conference this week! We don`t know what general authority, just that it`s somebody important enough for the whole mission to get together with the other mission for the second time in less than six months. 

So lately we`ve had a few people who have spoken pretty rotten to us. Some have been inactives, some actual members, and some just contacts in the street. It`s the first time it`s really happened to me in my mission has been in this area, and last week I was feeling pretty frustrated about it. That`s when the image of the Savior came into my mind, a crown of thorns placed on His head, as they scorned and spit upon Him, calling Him Kind of the Jews. And so just like most hard things in my mission, even though it`s hard, it makes me grateful to be able to get to know my Redeemer that much better by walking just somewhat of the path He walked. 

Eu se que Jesuscristo e Deus vivem. Yo se que Dios y Jesucristo viven. However you want to say it, They live. 

I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan 

Happy Halloween!.................November 3, 2014

I know it`s late, but HAPPY HALLOWEEN! And happy end of October. I hope everybody enjoyed my favorite month of the year in the Salt Lake autumn leaves. Halloween was low key here. Nobody celebrates it here in Rivera. Well, almost nobody. Only a handful of kids were out trick or treating and there really aren`t any decorations. Since it was on Friday, that means we had our weekly soccer activity, so that`s what we did. Belèn and Vale lent me and my comp some hats, so I was a witchy princess (it`s hard to explain but that`s what the hat looked like.) 

It was a great week! The rainnnnn came in without warning, which I for once am super grateful for because of the lack of heat. 

So the biggest thing that happened this week was Mirna. We found her on Monday after PDay when we were just going to Family Home Evening and she was working in front of her yard. She talked to us for a bit and said we could go back on Saturday. So on Saturday we went back and taught the Restoration, and she gave an incredible prayer at the end, and told us after "I just feel so full of joy right now. I can`t even describe it." We went back again yesterday to give her The Book of Mormon, and everything that came out of her mouth seriously just made me go "man, God is awesome." She said she had been jumping from church to church but never felt satisfied in any of them, but now she feels like this is it. She talked about this indescribable joy that she`s felt ever since Saturday when she had that lesson with us. And THEN she said "I had read this book a little bit before when I was in the Catholic church, and you know what called my attention? The way it says to do baptism. Because you do it the same way John the Baptist baptized Christ." YES. So we invited her to be baptized the 6 of December, and she accepted. So pray for Mirna that she makes it to December 6! Meanwhile, I`ll also be praying that I stay her in Rivera next change, because the 6 is the Saturday AFTER changes. But either way, God`s got her taken care of.  

She also said "you know why I know this is true? Because the eyes are the window to the soul, and the two of you just shine. It`s something different, and I see in your eyes that it`s true." Capa. 

So anyway, that`s the biggest thing that happened this week. We`re keeping super busy and having a blast. Hna Barrios is awesome! I`ve had some major luck with companions. I`m learning a lot from her and we have a lot of fun.  The only suffering I`ve felt in awhile has come from others not having the desire to repent, because they`re missing out on the joy of coming unto Christ and following Him. But their time will come. 

I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan 

Here we go go go again...............October 27, 2014

....with the other Hermana Barrios! 

haha, you guys, it is so nuts that I have two comps with the same name, and that i`ve served with both of them in the same area. 

Soo Hermana Barrios! Is a CAPA! 

She`s from Guatemala, she`s 23, the oldest companion I`ve ever had, and she just finished her training. But it so doesn`t even seem like it, because she was simply born to be a missionary! She came to the mish super pre trained. She is a SUPER hard worker, with no fear of talking with anyone, and she has a gift with following the spirit. We`ve already started in the search of finding new investigators and I tell you folks, they`re popping up like daisies. I`ll talk about them more as more happens this week! 

Also, she was a hair stylist before she came to the mission, and she brought all of her stuff with her. Soooo maybe my hair will survive the heat! Maybe. 

Speaking of, it is starting to get SO. HOT. Summer is startin`early. I love Rivera and would love to be able to stay here another change after this one, but I also don`t want to die. So we`ll see how the Lord looks at the situation. But for this change, we are going to work our tails off and see some miracles, which we`ve already seen! 

I also wanted to share something about the youth in our ward. They are CAPOS. The Young Women are AMAZING. (like Valentina and Belèn). A couple of months ago, me and the other Hermana Barrios started to help them with their Personal Progress. They still needed to do a project for choice and accountability, so we suggested that they plan a youth dance for the youth in Rivera. And from there, ideas started rolling and they always came to me saying "hey, gringa, what gringa stuff did you guys do in the states?" haha, and the planning began. Between me and the three companions I`ve had since then, we`ve been able to help them plan, decorate, and all that jazz. And last week, the big day finally came! And it was a HUGE success, nobody could believe how many youth, members and a lot of nonmembers, came to the "Under the Sea" dance in the church. The bishop congratulated them and everyone who helped from the pulpit yesterday in church. They were so excited to get to see the fruits of all of their hard work, and get that project signed off! And they told me the other day "Hermana Dolan, when we get our medallion, we`re going to think of you." GAAAAHHHH. I have loved working with the youth here, and it`s proof that the fruits can never be counted in the baptisms. It`s counted in the service and in the heart of doing it. 

Have I mentioned I love it here? Well, I`ll mention again that I love it here. The members keep asking me "you`re STILL here?" haha, and I happily get to respond that I am. Rivera will forever have a special place in my heart. The youth, the new converts, the amazing members, the bishop. They are the greatest people I`ve ever known, fully engaged in this great work, fully following the prophet`s commandment to unite with the missionaries and get to work. I know this work is true. I see it in the change of countenance that occurs in someone`s face as they hear the truth. I always like to say "it doesn`t matter if they accept it or reject it, because I know that they FELT it." Because it`s the truth, and the truth is always felt. 

I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan