Love and Hard Work and Patience

Hey, 

I just wanted to say that I love you guys. :) This week one of the coolest things happened since I entered into the mission and it is all because of love and hard work and patience. (And probably other Christlike attributes, but I like those 3). Our investigator Marcela de Jesus got baptized!! It was so amazing and she has grown SO much. Not going to lie when I say that this week was probably the hardest of my mission because we were not only fighting to program everything and get it all done, but there were unseen forces at work too. There was one point where Marcela did not want to get baptized and Satan almost won. However, it was the Lord´s will that she be baptized, and Marcela had the faith sufficient to fight through it all and enter into the Church of Jesus Christ. 

It was almost like a movie to me, watching her struggle, trying to help her and praying a TON. It was super cool. Her son Sebastian baptized her, and he was baptized about a year ago. It was SO cute because he was amazingly happy to baptize her and he has been a ginormous help in answering her questions when we weren´t there. It was super cool too because her whole family came!! We invited her to invite as many people as she could to her baptism and her 2 sons who aren´t members came, along with her husband, also not a member, and a friend that lives close, also not a member!! Marcela asked me to talk and I focused on how Marcela gained a testimony about the gospel throught the Book of Mormon and how her meta now is the temple. She desperately wants to get there, especially to help all her ancestors get baptized too. I love her!! I really feel like her testimony is stronger than the testimony of a lot of members I have known in my life. She reads the scriptures everyday and applies them to her life right away. It is SO cool and she has taught me a lot, especially about enjoying the blessings of the gospel in her life. I can´t imagine how much the Lord has changed her, and it is all because of her love for Him, her hard work and our patience. We simply taught her what she needed to know, and she applied it to her life with the Lord´s help. 

It is so cool to see the difference He has made in her life, and it reminds me of when Tanner got baptized too. Tanner change a TON and you could just see the light in his eyes and I just stand in awe that the Lord gave me TWO chances to witness the gospel work in the lives of people that I care about a TON. Also, I also sang for Marcela with Hna. Darrington (my new companion) and we sang If You Could Hie to Kolob, but with the Spanish lyrics, a capella. It was AWESOME, because the Spirit was so strong and I almost cried. Actually I did cry, but only a little tear. I just couldn´t stop smiling and wanting to hug everyone that was there!! 

It was also super crazy because we started the service at 5 pm and at about 5;05, President Warne and Hermana Warne walked in and my heart just about stopped. Afterward they told us that they usually choose a random baptism to go to every week and it just happened to be Marcela´s this week. It made me super nervous, but at the same time super grateful to see them and to know that President is concerned with the welfare of the converts here and our welfare. It was definitely and amazing experience. 

After the baptism, Marcela didn´t say anything. She just smiled and quietly got dressed and hugged me super tight. It is so cute because she is a tiny lady and I can just engulf her in my monkey arms and we just stayed like that for about 2 minutes in the bathroom. And I will never forget when she bore her testimony afterward. She just talked about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and how much they have helped her to change and to make the decision to join the true church. She also talked about the missionaries, us, as if we were angels sent from heaven. (And mom, she told me to thank you and Dad for letting me come here so that we could teach her, and that you two are angels also.) She is so sweet and so amazing and I don´t know if anything could make me happier than to help her to the temple. 

So, now that you have read that super long email, I want you to ask yourself what you can do with what you have learned with this experience. The Lord changes people´s lives, especially with those that are humble and need the most changing. Go and find that one friend who you think would never accept the gospel, and share it with them!! You never know, you might see them change and get baptized, and then go on a mission ;D 

I love you all, have an amazing week!!

Hermana McCubbins

Hermana Darrington, Hermana McCubbins and Hermana Silberman with
Marcela de Jesus and her son Sebastian at Marcela's baptism

 We found bunnies!!!!

¿Birthday?

Dear Family,

So.... I don´t know what you all are talking about... I don´t remember my birthday being this week.. ;) Just kidding. Hey thanks for everyone who wished me a happy birthday! Completing 20 years in the mission field is awesome and reading all your emails and life experiences makes me smile tons! I LOVED Mom´s card with you guys making the cake. I LOVED it!! I laughed so hard. It is probably the best present I could recieve. Sorry I won´t be able to reply to you all this week. My fingers are blazing at 120 mph, there is fire on the keyboard and I still won´t be able to reply to everyone! Sorry, but I love you all!! 

So this week was amazing. We celebrated 18 de Septiembre which I believe is when Chile won its independence from Spain... but I didn´t ask anyone for the history, I just ate empenadas y asado ;D We had an AMAZING activity in our rama. It was super simple and we just played a ton of games like 3 leg race and musical chairs and also flied kites (they are kite fanatics here). There were a TON of kids and I accidentally hurt 2 of them.... One got a bloody nose when I was running backward with Hna. Araujo, and the other fell to the ground when we were playing dodgeball and I threw the ball and hit him in the stomach, but he was a little overdramatic because then he just got back up and laughed again. However, I have now put a goal to not kill any children... It is becoming a joke now in the rama that I kill little kids, but suprisingly, the little kids don´t have fear for me, they in fact want to play with me now more than ever... I don´t know if they understand that we should run away from dangerous things instead of play with them.... ;) But anyway, it was super fun and it really has helped the rama come closer together. We now have plans to do noches de rama (instead of noches de hogar) every week and keep it super simple because it is helping our unity a ton. 

Oh, did I mention Marcela de Jesus is getting baptized this week??? She is amazing!! I will send pictures next Monday. Sorry I can´t write more, gotta go! 

Love love love, 

Hna. McCubbins

Birthday cake from an hermano de Guadalupe. He isn´t in our rama, but he´s so nice that he made me a GINORMOUS cake. We have now eaten 3 fourths of it and are getting fat ;D

Day In The Life of a Chilean Missionary

A day in my life is awesome!

We wake up at 7 am to the sound of the phone tone and I usually bolt right out of bed (if I don´t do that, I don´t wake up, cuz I am old) and just sit there until my eyes focus in the dark. I make my bed and then say my prayers. I usually only give thanks to Heavenly Father in the morning because it helps me to start the day off positively. Then I walk downstairs (our house has 3 floors) and put on socks and grab my water bottle, then walk down stairs again, put on my tennis shoes and start exercising. Lately I have been doing strength and cardio together so that I am never still during the short time we have to exercise. I have noticed that the harder I exercise, the happier I am during the day. Then I end stretching and put on the boiler for Hna. Aizama who LOVES to drink Mate and for my companion Hna. Araujo and I who both like to eat oatmeal with dry milk and canela (I can´t remember what that is in english). I make my oatmeal and usually around this time, Hna. Aizama comes down and I yell at her Buenos Dias to make sure she is awake. She makes a funny comment that I don´t usually understand because she doesn´t speak clearly in the morning. Its like a hmmmmmmmhmmm sound. And then she smiles. I then usually like to eat 1 fruit and 1 vegetable because we usually only eat breakfast and lunch, and I never know if the family that gives us lunch will give us healthy food (I like to think that Mom and Grandpa rubbed their healthy germs on me). Lately I have been eating a green apple and carrrot with my oatmeal. The other hermanas usually just laugh at how healthy I am. I also like to drink at least 1 bottle of water in the morning so I can go to the bathroom before having to leave into the street where bathrooms don´t exist. While I am eating breakfast, Hna. Araujo showers and then when she´s done, I go shower (I will leave out the details here), and get dressed and all pretty (that is a joke because we have like 5 minutes to get pretty and just hope that the Spirit makes our eyes shiny and that that passes as pretty). Then by that time it is 8.30 and we start Personal Studies. I LOVE Personal Studies and wish they were longer. I look at my planner at this time to see who we are going to teach and what I put down to study for them. I look up scriptures we can use and really seek for a spiritual experience. I like to write down cool phrases or scriptures and thoughts in my notebook and by the end of studies, my desk is a mess and spilling out onto Hna. Araujo´s desk. Then we start Companionship study by singing a hymn with Hna. Aizama and Hna. Bingham, saying a prayer and reading 3 pages from the Mission Manual. Then we go into our room again and share what we learned from personal studies, then call people to confirm citas, then plan for the lessons we are going to teach. Then if there is time, we do practices, watch a video from the District, or read from Preach My Gospel. After that we have language study for a half hour. I have been talking with a pencil in my mouth to better my accent. People can still tell I´m Gringa (besides my blonde hair) and I hate it! I am trying to sound like a Chilean ;D

Then at 11 we leave the house!!!! Usually in the mornings we contact, or do service because not a lot of people like us to pass by in the mornings. But there are a lot of people that are doing housework in the morning, so we just go talk to them. The other day we went and did service for an Hna. and I climbed a lemon tree for her. It was pretty fun and super funny because the tree liked to grab my hair. Then we have lunch at 1.30 to 3.30. We usually go to eat at a member´s house.

Sorry! I have to finish my day next week! Almost out of time. I love you guys a ton! Remember to be specific to the Lord when confessing to Him and repenting. Then He can specifically help you ;)

Hna. McCubbins

 Go Josh!!! I'm praying for Josh to recover.

 This was my attempt at making cookies. Number 1 and Number 2. We ate the burned ones too ;)

 Hna. Araujo completed 1 year!!! She´s so old ;)

 Hna. Bingham has an awesome wall of spiritual thoughts. I might copy her in the near future.

 Recipe for Lemon Pie

Hermana Araujo's desk after studies

What my desk looks like after studies. I get so excited during studies that my things overflow.

Hermana McCubbins and Hermana Araujo

Awesome Week!

Dear Family,

Just so you know, I love you! But slowly I am losing my english. There are days now where I NEVER speak english because I live with two latinas and it is just easier to speak spanish. So, sorry if my english doesn´t make sense. It was actually pretty funny because this week we are looking for a new house (our house is too big, fancy and expensive) and we had to go through two houses with the missionary couple in charge of the houses. The hermana only speaks english, and so she depended on me and Hna. Bingham to translate a lot. Its not that I can´t, but I don´t think I like english anymore... :) I am kind of in love with Spanish. So I stayed back with Hna. Araujo and Hna. Aizama, and we just talked Spanish. The rest of the day I told Hna. Araujo that I don´t like english. She then said: Yo tampoco. ;D She is so funny. She doesn´t study english because she is trying to learn Spanish still. I love her tons! 

Also, we discovered that 12 Semanas (the book we use to train missionaries) says that we need to be able to teach all the lessons in our native tongue... So we had to practice doing that. Me in english and Hna. Araujo in Portugese. OH MAN IT WAS HARD!! I only know how to express some things in Spanish and I haven´t opened my english scriptures in a long time. I might have to go to the Spanish ward after my mission until I recover ;) 

So, our main investigator is Marcela de Jesus, and she is AWESOME!! She is amazing and is more faithful than a lot of members! During testimony meeting, (she was fasting) and she turned to me and asked where she could find an envelope to pay her fast offerings!!! (She knew what that was because we taught her tithing and fasting the week before.) I was so impressed and I just wanted to hug her and cry for joy. I don´t think there is any other investigator as cool as her. It is amazing to see what the Lord does with us when we truly choose to follow Him and obey ALL His commandments! I love her so much! She met the District leader, and he said, Solo falta agua. ;D

And so yeah, that is the coolest thing that happened this week. I hope you all have an amazing week and be as converted to the Lord as Marcela. All you have to do is Pray with your heart, Read the scriptures as if you were eating thanksgiving dinner, and go to Church with a broken heart and contrite spirit. Love you guys! 

Hna.McCubbins

Pichilemu