SHARING THE LIGHT ❂

Hello po!

I am doing well. I am so happy here! I am continuing to learn and grow a lot here in Burgos. I love being a missionary.

On Tuesday we had a special “multi zone zone meeting” where we met President and Sister Hiatt. I was nervous that I wouldn’t like them….but all my worries are gone. They are great! When the meeting started, they stood at the front and everyone went up and shook their hands and talked to them for a second. They read my name tag, shook my hand (Sister Hiatt also gave me a hug), and asked me where I was from and were kind and friendly. President Hiatt said that his son used to live in Sugarhouse too! Small world. He was a coach before at Westminister College.

President and sister Hiatt are from a tiny town in the northern part of Idaho. They have seven kids – three girls and four boys – and they have 17 grandchildren. Their family is outdoorsy and sporty. Some of their kids did track and field. Their house is in the mountains in the woods. It looks like a cozy cabin. They showed us pictures of their family and of their house and their town. Last year, they returned from serving a couples mission in the Philippines Manila Mission for two years. They were home for a few months and now, they’re back in the PH again! They love it here and they are already used to the people and the culture. They didn’t mention what their jobs were or where they went to college or anything like that. I do know that President Hiatt was converted to the church when he was eight years old (like dad!). They didn’t give us a lot of details about themselves, but I’m sure we’ll get to know them more as time goes on.

They each also taught us and shared their testimonies with us. They talked about how excited they are to do missionary work with us, how much they love us, and how much they love their Savior. President Hiatt also scolded us a little because a lot of the missionaries were late. (Me and my companion arrived about 30 minutes early so we weren’t with those that were scolded! Haha.) They are fun and loving and they have strong testimonies. They are very different from President and Sister Rahlf, but a good different. I think they will be great for this mission. I am excited to see what new things the Hiatts will bring to this mission.

My companion is doing great. We are starting this week to have her lead in more of the lessons so that she can get a feel for what it's like to lead an area. She's always striving to be happy and obedient and is diligent in her work. She's doing wonderful.

The rest of the week was just work work work. Which is what I’m here for and is what I love! We taught our investigator German again this week….and German FINALLY prayed! He told us that he has started to pray every day. He also prayed at the end of our lesson. It was very short, but very nice. He opened his prayer, said something like, “We’re thankful for this beautiful day. We thank thee for giving us strength. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.” He didn’t ask for anything, he just gave some simple thanks. It made me so happy to hear him finally pray!

We also got to teach the Garuella family again this week. They accepted a baptismal date for August 27^th, 2016. Yay! They said they really want to be baptized and to be a part of this church, but they have a lot of stuff going on and don’t know if it’s the right time. We told them that God will help them find a ways to be baptized if they put Him first and do everything they can to be baptized. I really hope they start coming to church so they can prepare more for their baptism.

I love you all so much! I hope you have a great week. You are always in my thoughts and prayers. I miss you so much. I hope you are all finding the joy in life and that you always remember how much your Savior loves you. He is by your side every day and He is reaching out to you – to lift you, to comfort you, to give you a little push, to guide you back home - always. Reach back to Him!

I LOVE YOU SO SO SO SO MUCH!

xo Sister Allen