WEEK 47 - The One with Charity

This week we had a lot of miracles!  A week of charity! We found so many families. It seems as if everyone we find is a family! Its a miracle. This week I've been thinking a lot about the talk by Henry B Eyring, "Show your Faith!" How important it is to show what you believe. Never be afraid to stand up for your religion, your beliefs and family. I keep a very sweet example close in my heart. That of my dad. I can remember more times than one when he stood up for his beliefs and for me. I remember one time in specific when I was out with him and there were some young adult men sitting next to us, probably around 25 years old, and they were using foul language. To my surprise, my dad turned to them and with firmness but respect said, "Lets not use that language when I'm with my daughter." I remember their little giggles afterwards because as young adults we think we know everything and I remember myself feeling a little embarrassed that someone had to reprimand them.. haha. But how grateful am I for this amazing example! He knows who he is! He knows what is righteous and what isn't and he isn't afraid to stand up for it. Remember who you are, what you believe and who's name you carry! The name of Christ! The right or the wrong you do is with his name. Remember to show your faith.

  

      This week I received a package from my mom for the relief society here! It was a beautiful table cloth and a picture from of the relief society theme. And what a special moment it was when they presented it to the relief society this past Sunday! They were all so happy and so grateful! All of them came up to me and said, "please tell your mom thank you and that she is wonderful" They all loved the table cloth so much and were so excited that they are now making a table cloth for your relief society, there in good old Folsom! They are so excited to have their table cloth in your relief society. It was such a testimony building experience, to see the love between sisters, even countries away. This church really is true, we are all small no matter where we are and we are all God's children. 

The members have so much love, they just keep giving. We made cookies for one of our church classes this week and to give to one of our less actives that is having some problems and it was such a sweet experience to see her face light up from this little act of kindness, all I took was cookies. Another act of kindness, my dearest Lynsey and Maddie; thank you for visiting my sister at this huge time in her life. Thank you for loving her and caring for her as you do for me. Charity truly is the basic of everything, and without it we are nothing.  

  I've been thinking a lot about this time in our life, for my family and friends at least as we all go our separate was.  Life keeps on flying by and we keep changing, but let us never change from being brothers and sisters in Christ. Time takes us all different places, with different experiences and trials but our love never changes, and neither does the love of Christ. Let us remember the words of Alma as we move throughout our lives,

  

   "And the Lord said unto them also: go forth among the Lamanites, thy brethren, and establish my word: yet ye shall be patient in long-suffering and afflictions, that ye may show forth good examples unto them in me, and I will make you an instrument in my hands unto the salvation of many souls. And it came to pass that the hearts of the sons of Mosiah, and also those who were with them, took courage to go forth unto the Lamanites to declare unto them the word of God.
  And it came to pass when they had arrived in the borders of the land of the Lamanites, that they separated themselves and departed one from another, trusting in the Lord that they should meet again at the close of their harvest; for they supposed that great was the work which they had undertaken and assuredly it was great, for they had undertaken to preach the word of God."

Alma 17:11-12

 Hermana Ellison 

WEEK 46 - The One with NO Blog

Guess we know she is busy when we don't get any Blog email from our dear sweet Hermana Elise.

We sure Love and appreciate all that she is doing and sacrificing for others.  She loves her mission and loves the people of Bolivia.  Already passed the 10 month mark...counting down to less than 8 months till we see and hug our daughter again.

Till next week!
Daddy.

WEEK 45 - The One with the Savior

All is well here in Tarija! We see that we have so much more room to improve so that the Lord can work miracles here in this area. We had a great fast dedicated to repentance to show the Lord we are ready for miracles. Its amazing to not only talk about new eyes but to everyday really have new eyes. To see people differently, to see the world differently and to see the work differently. With an eternal perspective everything really is so different and we all look incredible in white. I am more aware of where I lack and how I can improve and I'm grateful for the Lord who strengthens me. I'm so grateful I get to be a missionary for the rest of my life.
   We had a lot of conferences this week. Almost everyday for me. Hermana Willard, the Presidents wife said something that really was amazing. She said "thank you for not drawing attention to yourself, thank you for doing the little humble things". She said that Christ already did the greatest thing and there is nothing grand or huge we can do for him, only the little small things. My Aunt Gayle sent me an email last week and told me about this bird, how it makes itself an incredibly easy target to distract the predators away from her babies. She said that's like Christ... he made himself and easy target to save us through the Atonement. Now can you imagine if those babies tried as well to get the attention and tried to be the center of attention? Their mother wouldn't have been able to save them and her sacrifice would have been in vain.

  I am so grateful for the Savior and everything He does and did and will do for me. All I have to do is the little small humble things and try to not take away his glory and attention. He is the light and life of the world, He is the first and the Last, Alpha and Omega and nothing offends me more than when we don't recognize His hand in all Things.

Hermana Ellison

"Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny." -C.S. Lewis, Thanks Lynsey :)

WEEK 44 - The One with Transfers

  Hello! this week was cambios, I'm still here in my same area with my same companion. The only difference is I've been called to be Sister Training Leader.

  For those of you who don't know what that means it just means you've been called to serve the other sisters in your zone! Cool huh. But about two months ago The President changed a little bit about the role of the Sister training leaders here because we have some zones with a lot of hermanas. So the sister training leaders are now in pairs like Zone leaders and we have the responsibility of district and zone leader for the sisters in our zone, Not all the responsibilities but for instance; they say that all the 6 sisters that are in our zone are like our other district and we have to be responsible for their numbers and investigators as well. Freak! I didn't know that till my zone leader this last Thursday said, sister and what are the numbers for your sisters for last month... uh???..... were my words. haha. But that's okay. So now we have to do their inspections and call them every week and go on inter-cambios to help them and lucky for us our sisters are the best and we have two new sisters. I'm so excited to learn from them and serve them. 

We had an inter-cambio with a sister from my group this week and it was amazing to serve her! She is really struggling and she cried the whole morning saying she wanted to go home and that the Lord doesn't love her and it was amazing to feel the spirit working through me as we read in the bible about the love of Christ and as we set goals together to better our relationship with Christ and endure to the end.

 Today for my P day my companion and I and the Zone leaders are going To Santa Cruz for a reunion and I'm so excited to eat cuneapes!

MIRACLE: one of the the young men I was teaching in my old area who thought that he was never going to go to heaven and didn't want to get baptized was baptized this last week!!!!!!!! I'm so filled with joy. I love this work!!

Love Hermana Ellison 

Pic 1: Pizza!

Pic 2: Hermana Jojola se fue :(

Pic 3: Lunch!