PANTS AND PRAYERS

HAPPY SPRING EVERYONE!!! today is a GORGEOUS day here in houston...blue skies and sunshine ;) we feel extra lucky because we are going to the zoo to celebrate hermana johnson's birthday!!!!! we feel like it is Heavenly Father's "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" to our little hermana ;) that being said...we are cutting email time short today...so buckle up!

PANTS:

This week i wore pants almost as much as i wore a skirt...WAIT WHAT?! it was THE BOMB!!! it was like wait...i have legs?! we were so blessed..because we served a ton this week!!! first we pulled weeds in a butterfly garden at memorial park (3 mile long park with trails and fitness centers etc in downtown), second because we did laundry for homeless people at another place downtown called "the beacon", and last but not least....we found out one of our investigators needed help. we didnt finish organizing her apartment....so there is prognosis for pants in the future!!! #itsthelittlethings

PRAYERS:

this week my zone focused BIG TIME on prayers...making sure that we are using them to their full potential and really having that conversation with our Heavenly Father! im gonna re-write something i wrote in my study journal after talking with my Heavenly Father one morning...i think it's something i knew all along...just hit me on March 19th! 

"As i was praying today the spirit taught me something. it was cool because i was talking through it and receiving my personal witness of prayers made in the name of Jesus Christ. i felt like i could almost picture Heavenly Father sitting there smiling and nodding his head like "uh huh..yes..now youre getting it!" and what it was that i came to understand today is-->I am not worthy to pray. not because im a bad person--because im not--but because i am not perfect. ive made mistakes. i am unpure. and NO unclean thing can be in the presence of God. and praying is entering into His presence. like i said in my prayer today, i have a hard time picturing a loving father not wanting to hear their child's cry because of a little smudge on their face..or even covered in mud! God wants to talk to us regardless of the unworthiness of our state. and that's when it clicked. THAT is why we pray in the name of Jesus Christ. He is perfect. He can be in God's presence. so when we pray, we borrow his perfection--we lean on his merits--to snatch a few special moments of communication with our Father. God loves me. He wants to hear what i have to say. Jesus was sent to suffer and die and be perfect so that i could communicate with the Father. Prayer doesnt exist without the Savior. whoa...crying unto the Lord for help, pleading for comfort, begging for blessings, etc is NOT POSSIBLE without Jesus Christ. I love Him. I am so thankful for Him. I Know He Lives." 

(hope that made sense..i was typing fast and copying from my journal!)

but praying is my new favorite thing!!! i recommend it!! okay lame way to close things up but i gotta go!  

have a blessed week!

paz y bendiciones

LOVE YOU ALL

hermana hull 

wait..what? EIGHT MONTHS BABY!!

kicked-off a great week with a STELLAR family home evening! there were like thirty people from the ward all piled into a little apartment! Wilson and us taught the lesson...we shared the talk from the past general conference by M. Russel Ballard! the STAY IN THE BOAT AND HOLD ON one! and then afterwards...we played pictionary! there is no way i can describe the event and do it justice...but lets just say when Rosario was up to draw and her word was "diaper" everybody on her team was guessing things like "boat! ship! TITANIC!!" etc...hahaha it was a riot! I LOVE THESE MEMBERS!

lately, as a ward, as well as our companionship specifically, have been working on what the bishop is calling a "rescue effort" aka we are seeking out and bringing back all the lost sheep...aka inactive/less active members! aka...this week we knocked A LOT of doors haha but we ended up finding a member that lives in our SAME APARTMENT COMPLEX!!! homeboy has been hiding right under our noses!!!!!!! he is super nice and invited us back to teach his wife and daughter :) 

we also have been knocking on the doors of a lot of former investigators...we felt like now just might be "the right time" for them! and turns out we were right with a cute older couple named Paula and Claudio! missionaries have taught them for AT LEAST a year...and they have always been very welcoming and warm to the missionaries..but just never progressed..when we went to go visit them..we re-taught them the restoration and then invited them to be baptized....they went off for about an hour (no joke) about how much they appreciate what we do and how much they respect our church but that they cant be baptized....etc etc etc..we felt inspired to bring up General Conference and turn their attention to modern prophets--specifically thomas s monson. we explained to them that we will have the chance to hear him speak the first week of april and when they join us to watch him they will receive confirmation for themselves that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet called of God to lead and direct His church in these days and with that confirmation comes confirmation that the church of jesus christ of latter day saints is the true church of God restored to the earth.....we then set a date for a baptismal service for them the following sunday ;) 

i am so thankful for the confirmation i have received that Thomas S Monson IS THE PROPHET!!!!!!! Our Heavenly Father loves us soooo much and wants us to always have the direction and guidance we need to find joy in this life. He wants to see the path back to him clearly. He wants us ALL to come back and live with Him again...so OF COURSE he has called prophets and apostles to do just that! to provide the direction/guidance--to show us the clear path to our Heavenly Father. i have never been to excited for General Conference IN MY LIFE!!!!!! i would encourage yall to start thinking and praying NOW about those questions you have, or should be asking for General Conference. i know the Lord has called inpspired men to answers those questions. 

ive said it once, ill say it a million times...THE CHURCH IS TRUE I PROMISE!!!!!!!!!!! 

more happened this week i promise..but pictures speak louder than words so ill do a little mix of both ;)

love yall!

paz y bendiciones

hermana hull

got our carpets cleaned this week!!!! piled everything into the kitchen and on desks!! jenga is a real thing.

empenadas are one of my top FAVORITE foods!!! 

wait..what? EIGHT MONTHS TODAY BABY!! 

a solid week

CCM reunion!!! just missin three out of the 7 hermanas that came in with me ;) 

hey hey hey!! how we doin??? 

another solid week here in houston!!! a couple quick highlights for y'all...so we are teaching Jose from Angola, Africa right? as we were winding down the lesson this last time he goes "i think i want to start reading the Book of Mormon more on my own so there is less reading and more teaching/explaining in our visits....also i think it would be best if i read the Book of Mormon in a quite place..maybe like a park..so that when i pray with all of my heart i can hear the holy spirit tell me it is true." ALRIGHT JOSE! YOU DA BOSS! 

i also had the privilege of going on exchanges with Hermana Turner this week! she is one of the Senior Sister Training Leaders! she goes home at the end of the transfer...so i took advantage of the time and PICKED HER BRAIN APART! i wanted to get as much advice/tips/etc for the mission as possible!!! the poor thing literally woke up with a migrane..but was a trooper throughout the whole day--getting questions shot at her and all!! she is an amazing example of true discipleship and a missionary who really understands her purpose. one of the highlights of the day though was definitely when we got hit on by Flaco and Rusty...i wont get into the details..but lets just say their names do them justice ;) 

this week as i was praying and asking Heavenly Father what i need to improve on (it is AMAZING how good he is at telling you what needs some work haha love the brutal honesty!) my answer was "consecrate your thoughts".. now i dont want anyone of yall thinking my mind was scrapin around in the gutter haha but i would be lying if i didnt say the occasional thought of home/family popped in...or i would accidentally start humming along to a song i recognized from a car passing by....its the little things, but they make a difference!! ive started getting good at catching myself if i ever start to think anything less than holy...i just start reciting the first vision in spanish to myself! "vi una columna de luz..." etc etc etc or start humming my favorite hymn...its amazing to me how more often than not..the answer to my problems here on the mission are the same they have been all along! those primary answers that have been drilled into my head since day one!  

i am so lucky to have been raised in this gospel. i am so blessed to have a tool box full of instruments THAT WORK!! the gospel just WORKS! i know this is God's  true church and I am the luckiest girl alive to be sharing it ;)thank you for the prayers!! im sendin them your way too! 

hasta pronto! hermana hull

la familia ponce!!!!!!!!! love this family like nobodies business!!!!

got hermana whitehead to get a wolf shirt ;) i mean come on! it was 3 bucks!

sushi sushi sushi with Jess and Rosario!!!! WE ARE SO SPOILED!

pictures are the best part anyway..right?

MERRY MARCH WORLD!! how yall doing?

this week was filled with one meeting after the other....no joke! had MLC (missionary leadership counsel), new missionary training, and DLC (District Leadership counsel)/zone meething! all of the meetings were AMAZING and i learned a BUNCH! but by the end of the week i just wanted to GO TEACH!!! so we did ;) 

but hands down HIGHLIGHT of the week was taking JESSICA THROUGH THE TEMPLE FOR THE FIRST TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it was amazing :) any excuse to go to the temple is a good one, but being about to take someone to receive their endowment is off the charts, hands down, THE BEST! i feel spoiled silly to have been blessed with so many chances to go to the temple while on my mission! 

sorry this is RIDICULOUSLY short this week...but at least im sending pictures, right??? 

church is true i promise!!! also read mosiah 4:1-12...i started re-reading chapter 4 this morning for personal study and only got to verse 12 because i was LOVING IT TOO MUCH!!! the book of mormon is true guys..dont believe me? give it a shot ;) 

paz y bendiciones

hermana hull

having TOO MUCH FUN at the houston history museum of natural science!!! 

downtown with the sisters <3

GENERATION PICTURE....LOVE MY GIRLIES

CONGRATS JESS!!!!!!!!! SO PROUD :)

also...wilson has a party bus....okay maybe it's a work van...but it sure didnt seem like one!!