I have so much to say, but there's not going to be much order in what I say....so just bear with me! :P I'm going to start with the sad news, and it'll just be uphill from there... :P So this week we had to "cut" Daniela, Lucia, and Tzulian... They weren't progressing, so for now we aren't going back, but someday in the future we'll stop by, or other missionaries will and they will be able to receive the gospel hopefully in that time... It was really sad for me, because we were at Tzulian's house yesterday and teaching him, and all of a sudden Hna Matias said she had such a strong feeling to ask him if he wanted us to continue teaching him. He said exactly this (but in Spanish of course... :P) "I don't really have time right now, so honestly no I don't really want you to keep teaching me." He's 12... I felt so hurt, and it was such a weird hurt... It was more like a pain because he didn't just reject me, he outright rejected Christ... I'm not going to dwell on it, but it was really sad. One day he'll be able to accept it though. :) I also remembered that in the MTC they told us that sometimes it takes a lot of different times being introduced to the gospel to finally accept it. So that was a comforting thought. One day. :)
AND NOW. For the happy stuff. :D We got a call from the Elders and they said they had a contact for us and that he wanted to be baptized. So of course we were super excited, didn't quite know what to expect, but we stopped by his house (his name is Andres by the way.... :P) and he wasn't there... We called him and he didn't answer... But as we were walking away, he called us back, said that he WAS in his house and YES he would LOVE for us to come visit him. He was SOO excited. So we walked back, and started talking to him. Andres started listening to the missionaries 5 years ago, when he was 13. He wanted to be baptized then, but his mom wouldn't let him. He found the elders the other day as he was walking somewhere, and they invited him to come to church on Sunday. So he was at church last week, and then we went over there on Wednesday. He was in a hurry to get to one of his classes, so he put his Book of Mormon on the chair and walked inside, so Hna Matias looked at it really fast. He had read the WHOLE thing and marked it up SO much! Come to find out, he has read the whole Book of Mormon multiple times, and in English too. He asked us if he could be baptized the following Friday (August 30). We said yes of course he could, and went to work things out with Hno Delgado with talks, etc. I cannot explain the excitement he has for this work. He wants to be baptized ASAP and wants to serve a mission in the following year. Yesterday, things changed a bit so his baptism will be the 2nd week in September, but still we are all so excited for him. :)
On Friday, we had a devotional with Elder Viñas of the Area Presidency. It was such an amazing experience! We got to sing I Know That My Redeemer Lives as a special musical number (Hnas Howell, LaFevre, Cluff, and I) and that went very well! I love to sing. :) We talked about the Atonement of Christ, and how it affects us individually in our missions. We were asked to study that subject this past week, and I learned so much, but I wanted to share a couple thoughts. I was stumped on where to start... The Atonement has such a huge impact in my life every single day, but how does one put that into words? I started reading D&C 4 about missionary work, and all of the attributes there are the in the Attributes of Christ section in Preach My Gospel. We are all called to the work, if we want to follow the example of our Savior. Something that Elder Viñas said was that if we effectively utilized the Atonement in our lives every day, we couldn't help from sharing this Gospel. Sometimes we have doubts, but these doubts are thoughts of the natural man. The only thing that stops us from sharing this gospel is ourselves; all we need to do is open our mouths. :) That was an interesting thought to me. Also, I couldn't help think about prayer being such a huge part of the effects of the Atonement. It is only through the name of our Savior that we can talk with our Heavenly Father. Just some food for thought. :)
Now to answer a couple of questions, and then I'll be off for the week! So the conversion story of Hna Matias' family! (So sorry, Dad! I keep forgetting!) Her uncle joined the church and went on a mission. While he was gone, his WHOLE family joined, including Hna Matias´dad. Then he met her mom and she wasn't a member, but they got married and had Hna Matias and when she was 4 years old, her mom joined the church and they went to the temple to be sealed, and she has 2 little siblings. So that is her story! It's pretty incredible how her uncle going on a mission had such an eternal influence on her whole family. :) The power of a small leap of faith... :) With the ward going to the temple in a couple weeks, they are getting so excited and doing LOTS of family history. We are helping with those efforts by answers questions and helping get others that can't go involved in different ways. The youth are also going, and Pia might be going as well. She hasn't made a definite choice yet, but it is a large chunk of money too, so she might be going in the following trip. But she is very excited, so that is so much fun to see. :) Also with the language, I feel confident in speaking mas o menos, and if people don't understand what I'm trying to say, I know enough these days that I can reword it and then they help me out the rest of the way. :) Or Hna Matias translates into something more understandable. :P She's had 4 North Americans as companions so far. And she's only been out for almost 6 months. So she's pro these days at translating broken spanish... :P
I think that's all for this week! I'm so glad that things at home are going so well and that school has started back up well! It's so crazy to think that when I left you all were just finishing school, and now you're ALREADY started back up! TIME FLIES!!! Love it. :D I love this gospel, and I know with all of my heart that it is true. I know I am here in Chile to share the gospel, and that I have been called by a living prophet through revelation in these the latter-days. The work is hastening so quickly, and we ALL have a job to do! I love you all so much, thank you for your love, support, and continued prayers. I know that our Savior, Jesus Christ lives.
All my love,
Hermana Tuft
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Hello Mom and Dad! I'm going to forgo my family note this week, because I want to write all the siblings back separately. :) So here's a quick little note to you both! :) Thank you for all the news and stories from this week! And the pictures!! I get all the pictures, and they don't take time away to upload at all, so don't worry about that Mom. :) I have plenty of time for everything. :) The bathroom is SOOO different BUT it looks so great and I LOVE the shower curtain. :) I hope that most the questions you both asked were answered in the main letter! But a couple other answers... :) Yes I use my orthotics every single day. In the MTC, I didn't use them all day, but I do here because my feet have adjusted well. :) Yes, Hna Matias is taller than me. :P Yes, she is pretty tall! Hahaha but I laughed at the short joke comment. :P Thank you both for the info on Megan Walker's farewell! Tell her to just love this last week. It flies by sooo darn fast. :) BUT she is going to be such an amazing missionary. I am so excited for her! ALSO PLEASE TELL MIRANDA A PERSONAL HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO HER FROM ME!!! But tell her I love her loads and miss her guts and I wrote "Miranda Danda's birthday" in my planner for Saturday. :P
Also, if I have a choice I always drink water, but otherwise yes I drink Fanta or Coke. (This is so random, SO sorry.) But Dad, yes I was in that Sunday School lesson with Brother Caron a couple years ago about the birthright. I love that thought. It's so sad to see people "sell their birthright," but we can do our part and every day choose to follow the Savior and therein keep our birthright. Also, thank you for your thoughts on my empanada lady. :) I'll keep that in mind and see what we can work out. We don't pass by there as much these days, but every once and a while. :) Also, I printed everything last week and forgot to print the parable of the keys, so I printed it this week and will be reading it this week. :) Thank you once again!
Also, I loved the thought from Elder Scott. I love keeping the thought in mind that we are all becomings. Also the thought, "Be thankful that sometimes God lets you struggle for a long time before that answer comes. That causes your faith to increase and your character to grow." I know that it so true. Thank you for the thoughts and reminders from both of you. :) I do keep a smile on my face and I am so very happy every day. I honestly can't feel sad these days. Sad for other people's choices, but sharing this gospel has made me so happy. I was a happy person before my mission, but that happiness has increased exponentially. :D I love you both so much and I am so continually grateful for your prayers and examples. I couldn't have asked for better parents. Thank you for being my parents and that I can be with you and the rest of the family for all of eternity. I love you so much!
Love from Chile to the sun, the moon, the stars, and back to Utah,
Kristen :D
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