Audio Files For This Week…

Elissa sent two audio files this week instead of a letter. We miss her letters, but it was so fun to hear her voice! I have never done this before and wonder if the links will work. Please leave a comment if you have any trouble.

Audio 1

Audio 2

Gifts of the Spirit

Bolivia 101 its mango season. we get free mangos. if you buy them, the equivalent in the states would be 21 delicious mangos for 1 dollar. blessings of the mission right?!

My personal studies this week have improved greatly; I also have been able to use PME a lot more during the week. I feel small differences, but significant to me, and that’s what I have been looking for.

There are many spiritual gifts I believe we are all given to discover and use to bless others, not ourselves. Some are not accessed until we choose to act in accordance with God´s will. Other gifts are given when we feel unworthy to receive them.  Some gifts remain hidden until we have the faith enough to use them, and some are kept away until the recipient is spiritually ready, having exercised the patience, faith, obedience and dignity to unlock the gifts prepared for us. I think many of us have the opportunity to access these last types of gifts, but rarely ever do. I don’t want to be that way. I think on the mission, I have seen missionaries’ spiritual gifts magnify ten-fold just on their mission. I, too, have felt and seen that in my own life, on a few special occasions. There are other gifts that I am far from developing as I still have so much to learn and experience. These gifts sometimes are the most precious of all because of the amount of work it takes to develop them. Perhaps one day I will be able to use them, but for now, I will work on patience, obedience and faith.

This week the lord allowed me to taste a little bit of the gifts the Lord sends to help us magnify our callings. I found myself talking to an elderly woman in Spanish, who responded to me in Quechuan, not knowing how to speak Spanish. After a minute, I realized we understood each other regardless of the differences in languages. She told me of a recent accident that left her in a wheel chair and with a lot of pain. She grabbed my arm and told me that I could heal her. I looked into her eyes, feeling her faith almost penetrate through me. Maybe it was even her faith that allowed me to understand a language that is still foreign to me. She asked again to bless her, saying that I could heal her. I felt my heart sink as I felt unsure about what I can do as a missionary in that situation. I was holding her hand, in the middle of the street as she sat in her wheel chair while her daughter bought medicine. Perhaps my doubts clouded the guidance of the Spirit, and for that I regret it, but I didn’t know what to do. I squatted by her side, so we saw each other eye to eye. Still feeling her faith I said something with all the love and faith in my heart that I could give her. I don’t remember what I said, but I walked away with a stronger testimony that god loves all of his children, and blesses every single one of them, regardless of race or religion.

Sister Greenman

Be Still and Know that I am God

My not so Bolivia 101:
A few days ago we heard many sirens and saw helicopers beam their bright lights against the dark Bolivian sky. We hardly hear sirens and never see police so we wondered what was going on. As we walked, I looked to my left, surprised to see the news on a TV channel, as it is always on channel “calle 7”, a game show that occupies every TV in Santa Cruz, Bolivia (no exaggeration). Something caught my attention on the screen, forcing me to retract a few steps to see the illuminate images flashing on the screen. As I read the subtitles to the news flash, my blood ran cold and dropped like lead to my tired feet, paralizing my legs and prohibiting any movement. With my  heart racing faster, I saw on the screen, buildings I know well and love. The vague subtitles read: 43 fighter fighters killed in paris… 3 attacks… north part of Paris… it may have been my imagination, but the white Parisian building in the background looked like the same that I had walked by a million times during my stay there in Paris. Feeling that this was a situation much bigger than I understood, I thirsted for more news, who, why, what how?? Before I could decipher any other information, the news cut off and I was painfully reminded that Paris was some country far away that had no importance or connection to the people I love hear in Bolivia. MY mission does not depend on anything that happens there and needs my complete focus and devotion on these beautiful dusty streets of Bolivia which contrast so much to those wonderful streets in Paris I once roamed. I put a little Band-Aid on my heart, fought back tears, and said a prayer for all my friends in Paris.  (Editor’s Note: Elissa’s words made me cry! What are the chances that Elissa could see news about her other homeland?! I wanted to reach out and tell her more details and results, but alas, she has the right idea. Her mission must focus on the beautiful souls in Bolivia, for now. Although difficult, she is correct and right. However, our family can pray for Paris for her and for us and for Paris!)

A loss for the Catholic church

After such a painful moment of watching 30 seconds of Parisian news (first time ever on my whole mission seeing news on for that long and it happened to be related to me in some slight way), I prayefully put it in the back of my mind and with my companion, taught one of the most Spirit-packed lessons to a family who OWNS (built) a catholic cathederal in the City Center. They accepted baptism and said they could attend once their Catholic responsibilities were done at the end of the month. They need prayers (…so does everyone in Paris, by the way)

I am so happy to be here serving a mission!

Sister Greenman

Mosquitos and Chastity

Bolivia 101

Sometimes we come up with tricks to eat less food at members’ houses. Yesterday, we miraculously entered a less active home who has rejected missionaries for the past year and a half. They were happy to have us come in after we picked up rakes and helped them work in the small yard they rent. After 20 minutes, they invited us to come back later to teach them a lesson and eat food. We would have preferred to skip the latter, but promised to come back in an hour. Long story short, we served ourselves up some kind of hot drink made straight from cacao beans from the jungle. I served myself half a cup in a black mug. Feeling smug, I started eating the fried plantain mash with cheese while I waited for the drink to cool. The members pointed out that I wasn’t drinking enough. I looked at my mug and to my horror I found it turned white from the heat. It was less than half full. Well, sometimes our plans don’t quite work out. It made me think about how I sometimes try to appear to do something right, but in reality, I’m selling my self short of a good experience and other people can tell when that happens. gulp.

Welcoming the Angels

We have a member in the ward, Jacinta, who is tiny tiny because of scoliosis or something. I called her Saturday night intending to ask her if she would pick up an investigator. I asked her what time she leaves in the mornings (church starts at 8) and she said, Oh sister, I leave really early so I can be the first to welcome the angels to our Sabbath meetings. Touched by her comment, I figured her little duty was pretty special to her and found someone else to pick up our investigators (my companion and I).

Another Bug Analogy

Almost every Sunday I teach Gospel Principles Class and I don’t get the chance to even see the topic until Sunday, when we set up the chairs. I have learned to rely on the Spirit and have developed a talent to have an engaged discussion for 50 minutes. I love it. …Until this Sunday, when I looked at the topic: The Law of Chastity. I asked the other missionaries in our ward if anybody wanted to teach. Nothing. Our ward mission leader? Nope. It was all on me.

After the prayer, I immediately felt the guidance of the Spirit and we started the lesson off  REALLY well. I actually enjoyed it! My Companion drew a little bug analogy that made the discussion even 10 times better. I drew what she wrote on the paper onto the board: one stick figure with dengue (what my last comp had last week from a mosquito), another with Chickengunia (spelling??), this is also from a mosquito, but can hurt for months and months afterward; and a third figure with the title, pornography. We talked about the three sicknesses and about the protection against all three. It sparked up so many inspired themes of the gospel that we could have gone on for another 30 minutes. Thank you Sister Wilson!! We talked about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the relation to it with an injection for the mosquito sicknesses. I would do it again a thousand times!

Families:

We have been teaching incredible FAMILIES this week! One who is catholic, so catholic, that their family BUILT the cathedral. They read the Book of Mormon and love when we come. They are progressing so much! I love families, I love seeing people feel the Spirit and make connections in the Gospel. I LOVE that I get do to this every day.

Family Mission Statement Inspires Others

Bolivia 101

My dad mentioned that he saw a Bolivian dance last week. I thought I’d tell you that Bolivians dance so much here. They really love to express themselves through music and movement. It is beautiful to watch them practice and dance through the streets for parades. I love how they beam when they dance!

Summary

Aida (35-ish) and Elaine (11) are members of a very Catholic family that let us into their home this week. We found common ground on the Family Proclamation to the World the lesson was powerful and caused them to ask many questions they had never pondered before. The whole family is very polite and educated and we feel they will contiue to progress.

Jose and Gabriella work in a key shop the size of a walk-in closet and have their humble home right behind the thinnest wall I’ve ever seen. We taught them about the restoration and the wife felt the Spirit SO strongly. Her husband has always been agnostic, but said a prayer for the first time EVER when we asked him to pray at the end. Gabriella´s dream is to be a good mother and wife.

Our next lesson, we found her alone and through inspired questions and the guidance of the spirit, we opened up a beautiful discussion on the family. I felt prompted to share a little piece of paper that was pasted to the inside of my scriptures from home (spanish scriptures from my childhood-thanks Erica) I shared with her our Greenman Family Mission:

“Nosotros, la familia Greenman, amaremos, apoyaremos, y seremos unidos unos con el otro. Somos dedicados a edificar un atmósfera de confianza, fe, y aprendizaje en nuestro hogar. Somos acontables, responsables y honest en todo lo que hacemos. Guardamos nuestra casa en orden. Brindamos amor y felicidad hacía los demás. Tenemos paciencia y sabiduría en nuestras relaciones. Sabemos que somos hijos de nuestro Padre Celestial y nos esforzamos a volver a Su presencia como familia eterna. Padre Celestial nos ama y nos guía a cada uno para que podamos cumplir con las misiones de la vida.”

I still have that thing memorized Mom and Dad, but hearing Gabriella read it really touched my heart. Reciting it 6 years ago, I never would have thought that a sweet struggling mother would read it aloud and feel inspired from the very words my mother wrote, in order to be a better mother. She sat there silently looking at the treasured words of my adolescence. She is ready for baptism and to take the steps to prepare her family to be unified and temple ready. Ask my mom about the Greenman Family Mission. I don’t know if my parents know how much it really impacted me, but it did. And your family mission can impact your children’s lives, though you may not even know it.

I love the gospel. It truly is meant for families. Please look for a way to strengthen your family in your attitude, service, and words you speak.

Sister Greenman