Week 26 - SIX MONTHS!!!

Hi Everyone!

How are you all doing? I hope everyone is doing great and enjoying the snow up there! Send me pictures of the snow! And of all of your beautiful faces! I hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas season and remembering the amazing gift we have of our Savior Jesus Christ.

So we have been focusing a lot down here on Araceli Luna, our cute little investigator who will be getting baptized on December 26th. I am sooooo excited for her! She is 17 years old and has such a strong desire to follow Jesus Christ. She's been through a lot and is going through a lot in her life right now. Last night we had a lesson with her and she had just come from the hospital where her uncle had been for the past month. She said her uncle is like her dad (her mom died when she was little and her dad left). So it's been really hard for her to see him so sick. We had a lesson yesterday about relying on Jesus Christ and His Atonement. We taught her how the Atonement doesn't only cover sins and mistakes, but also how it comforts us when we're sad and gives us strength in our afflictions. She has so much faith and I love seeing her growing and changing as she accepts and loves this gospel. 

Something I have been reflecting on a lot is how we need to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. During this Christmas season, we've been sharing the new Christmas video with lots of families and people to help them remember the reason for Christmas. Over 2,000 years ago, a Savior was born. And that holy moment affects our lives every day. We need to be accepting Him as our Savior every single day. We need to rely on Him in all we do and follow His perfect example. 

I hope you all take time every day this week, this month to reflect on Him and your relationship with Him. I know He loves us! I love each and every one of you and I am grateful for you love and everything you do. Make it an amazing week!

Love, Hermana Rachel Winward :)

Week 25 - There are always Miracles

Buenas Tardes Todos!

How are y'all doing? Hermana Gonzalez and her Texas-ness is rubbing off on me. Haha, she's great! I hope you are all doing really good though. Hopefully you all had the chance to watch the Christmas devotional last night and feel of the CHRISTmas spirit. 

This week has been a little tough because we haven't been able to find new investigators, but we have the faith to find and the diligence to work! I know that as we keep pressing forward and serving with all of our strength, we will discover miracles. 

Right now, we have a baptism planned for December 26th for Araceli Luna. I am so excited for her and I know she is becoming truly converted unto Christ. She is amazing!

This morning, I was studying 3 Nephi 27 and I am just amazed by the way this gospel works. We can be filled with love and mercy if we simply come unto Christ and let ourselves be cleansed by Him. It's a commandment that we do this and keep enduring to the end. He loves us so much that He died for us and then pleads with us to live His gospel so that we can live with Him again. I love my Savior. He is my best friend.

I love you all so much. I invite you all to take a moment this week to study Christ's doctrine and then make the changes you need to so you can LIVE it. He is with you every step of the way! 

Have an amazing week!

Love, Hermana Winward

P.S. Here's a couple of pictures of my area and this cool nativity I got for Christmas!

Week 24 - Feliz Diciembre!

Hey Everyone!

How are you all doing? Did you have an amazing Thanksgiving? I sure did! We ate so much food at the Tharp's last week...it was great! I hope everyone is doing well.

So this week was cambios (transfers) again! I feel like we just barely had them. Hermana Gonzalez and I have been wanting to stay together, but I had already had three transfers here in Cañete, so I thought that I was probably leaving. But the whole time leading up to cambios, we didn't really feel like anything would happen. When I woke up Saturday morning (they call us that night to tell us the changes), I felt like I would be leaving. All day I was thinking of what I would need to tell or show Hermana Gonzalez so that she would know before I left. When they called us that night, our district leader said we didn't have cambios and we'd be staying together! We were both sooooo happy! I am so excited to be staying here in San Vicente and working side by side with Hermana Gonzalez. 

Earlier this week, we had intercambios and I was able to go to Mala with Hermana Ramirez and her companion came here with Hermana Gonzalez. I was able to learn a lot and set some good goals to help me focus on listening to the Spirit and be better in my teaching. 

I hope you all have had the opportunity to watch the new Christmas video. If not, stop what you are doing right now and go watch it! It is amazing. I hope you all catch the Christmas spirit and share it with everyone you see!!! I love you all and hope you have an amazing week! :)

Love, Hermana Winward 

#HaNacidoUnSalvador

Week 23 - Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Buenos Dias Everyone!!!

How are you all doing? I am doing great! I have a funny story...So this week after district and zone meeting, one of the zone leaders pulled out a bunch of packages. And they were almost all for me! Haha it was crazy and awesome. You are all the BEST!!! I loved reading your notes and I am really enjoying the American candy :)

So yesterday was Conferencia de Districto. It's like stake conference, but different since it's only branches here in Cañete. President and Hermana McGinn came down, so it was good to hear from them and other leaders. Araceli Luna, our investigator who is getting baptized December 12th, came with her grandpa. We were able to introduce them to President McGinn. It was really good! 

Other than that, not a lot has been going on because our appointments keep falling! God is just testing our faith a lot, but it's just making us stronger :) 

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving this week! We are about to go to the Tharps to have a big Thanksgiving dinner and I am SO excited!!! Haha :)

Read Alma 26:12,37. My great Thanksgiving is God's mercy over all of His children. I am so grateful for the gift of grace.

I love you all and I am so grateful for your love and support, it never ceases to amaze me!

Love, Hermana Winward :)

Week 22 - I ate a Reese's

Good morning everyone! How are you all doing? I hope all is well in cold Utah. :) Guess what? Two things: Yes, I actually did eat a Reese's this morning. There's this store that sells American candy and I wish I would have never found it... Hahaha. And numero dos: Today marks me being a missionary for CINCO MESES
Five months feels like five minutes. It is so crazy. 

So not a whole lot has been going on this week. Actually we saw a lot of miracles from God. For example, it has been like two weeks since we've been able to find Giorgino, but we found him on Saturday night and he's alive!!! He told us he was going to come to church and bring two friends. It was great! He didn't end up coming to church, but at least we know he's alive and still praying and reading his scriptures! We'll have an appointment with him tomorrow. So another good thing that happened was we found a new investigator named Roberta. She is a cute little abuelita that loves to knit. She is adorable! She doesn't understand a word I say, even though I am speaking Spanish, so my companion has to translate it all. It's pretty funny. That actually happens a lot. Haha.

On Wednesday, we had a training with President and Hermana McGinn in Chincha. It was just the hermanas and district and zone leaders. It was so great! Another huge miracle that happened there was watching the new Christmas video. It was a miracle that it worked and we were able to watch it twice. We were some of the first to see it and it was amazing! I can't wait for you all to see it. It's called ''A Savior is Born.'' I felt the spirit so strongly as I watched it. I love this time of year and knowing that just 2,015 years ago, our Savior was humbly born into this earth. I know He lives! What better good news is there than that? Just Remember Him! 

I love you all sooooo much! Thank you for everything you do! Keep doing what you can to be a missionary in your example and words. He will give you all the strength to do it!

Love, Hermana Rachel Winward :)

Week 21 - 360 degrees

Hey Everyone!!!

How are you all doing? Things here in San Vicente are absolutely amazing! I feel like things have completely changed since last week. Last Sunday, I was feeling really down because we hadn't found hardly any new investigators for a couple weeks. This week, we found EIGHT new investigators! It was such a miracle. On Friday during our giant weekly planning session, Hermana Gonzalez and I were both feeling a little discouraged. She has been feeling really homesick and I was stressing out about the area. So we were both crying and then hugging each other. But when we left to work that day, we ended up having a really good day! And then Saturday was even better! We actually sing a little song everyday together that's from Spongebob...hahaha. ''It's the best day ever! (Best day ever!)'' It helps us always stay positive and see the blessing a lot more in every day. I am so grateful that God is in charge of this work and can bring so much hope and happiness.

So yesterday, we had an amazing experience. We were planning a Noche de Hogar (Family Home Evening) for our pensionista's family. Milagros, our pensionista, was rescued in June and her son Alonso was also baptized in June. She has another son, Esmith, who is 8 and will probably get baptized soon too. Her husband is also name Alonso and we taught him a few times with Hna Guzman when I first got here, but then he didn't really want to listen anymore. So we invited them to the church for the NDH, along with a lot of other families. Well they are the only ones who showed up, but it ended up being perfect. We talked about Thanksgiving and being grateful for the Atonement. My companion started it off and as she was talking, a thought came to my mind that we should watch that ''Because of Him'' video. So we ran into the little family history room and looked up the video. After we watched it, we were talking with them about the video. I felt sooooo strongly that we needed to ask Alonso to be baptized. As I extended the invitation, I felt the spirit so much. I could feel it working through me. He nodded his head and said ''Yes''. His family was surprised but so happy. It was absolutely incredible. Before they left that night, Alonso drew on the whiteboard. We were all watching him to see what it was and then we realized it was Jesus Christ. It was so amazing! Afterwards, we made a little thankful turkey and played some fun games. Their family was having so much fun and laughing so much. I loved being a part of that. I know that they will be sealed in the temple. They all want it so bad. I am so blessed to be a part of their journey and to see the Atonement of Jesus Christ working in their lives. I testify that families are eternal. I am so grateful for the happiness and hope our families provide for us. I LOVE MY AMAZING FAMILY!!!

I hope you all have a wonderful week and look for miracles every day. They come, they are always there. Our loving families are such wonderful miracles in our lives. I love you all so much!!!

Love, Hermana Winward 

P.S. Alma 26:27