December 12, 2022 - Montes de Oca

 Week 69

ET came to our house this week! 

We had emergency transfers and now I'm in an area called Montes de Oca.  I'm in zona los yoses, so I am in a zone I've never been in (but I've really only been in 2 zones my whole mission so...). It was all so crazy! We got a call from President Monday night and packed our bags because we both got transferred. Tuesday was crazy getting to the offices, but there I got my new companion, hna Arjona. We are actually going home on the same day so that's kind of crazy. 

It's been crazing getting to know a bunch of new people again, but I am so thankful for the revelation the mission has received. This past week we had zone conference and got to hear a lot from the whole mission presidency which was cool. We were encouraged to really help and get to know the members by just stopping by for 5 to 10 minutes to say a prayer.  It is always just so peaceful and there is almost an instant connection with the members. My favorite was getting to meet a member and her grandkids and getting teach a 4 and 2 year old how to pray. They were so cute as we also taught them that Mary and Joseph were in a picture of the nativity and they're both named María and José. 

As for the people progressing, there is someone so great that the sisters have been teaching here. Just hearing her story about how she has turned her whole life around because she really has the desire to follow christ and do what's right is inspiring. She has the spirit of conversion and what's the coolest is that she wants to be baptized and is choosing her date. 

Also some cool news! Starting with my goeuo of missionaries, the departing group of missionaries will get to go to a session in the temple just before leaving! 🥳

And in zone conference we are as a mission praying and working for lots of miracles. And we talked about how we need to be participators in the miracle. We can't just watch as Moses parts the red sea, but we too need to walk along the dry land for the miracle to have the lasting effect. Also the wisdom of man is a lot different than the wisdom of God. 1 +1=2, but as 2 missionaries pray, 1+1 = 5 and maybe even more! Nunca están solos! Esta obra es real. 

Mucho amor,

Hermana Warburton 

My new companion

 Friends at zone conference 

Celebrating bdays in the el alto ward.  

December 5, 2022 - getting schooled by a 3 year old

 Week 68

Last week I would say we spent a lot of time getting to know the members and this week we tried to clean out the area book. We made a lot of calls but what was cool was that it was worth it because out of all those calls we found someone who asked us straight up if she could have a book of mormón. She had been waiting to get one. So even though it's a lot of calls I am glad we are splitting our time in different finding methods because that would have been really sad if she would have just been another gray dot. 

Something else cool was that after CCM (capacitación cada miércoles) we went to a members house and got to share exactly what we talked about and what I've been studying about from the prophet this past week. We talked about the importance of being close to the temple and how it's such a blessing when they are built because it means more access to godly power. Our Heavenly Father "is also making it easier for each of us to become spiritually refined. I promise that increased time in the temple will bless your life in ways nothing else can." What a beautiful promise! And now our member friend is praying for someone to invite to a noche de hogar. I have high hopes for the area even thought we haven't found a ton of people who are progressing progressing, I can feel that they're out there. Haha this weekend I also got a cold, which means i have a stuffy nose and watery eyes, but hopefully it will pass today.

Other fun things: 

- we tried cascos de caballo 

- light the world started! Wuuub share tu luz! 

- someone taught us about "adam's first wife, lili"

- we had some really good flour tortillas made by flor 

-exchanges with hna quick which is when we shared about the temple with a member. 

- stake activities = I get to see a lot of members from my old areas! 

- a little primary kid taught us that Christ walked on water, visited the America's, multiplied the bread and fish, and multiplied the fish of his disciples in like 2 minutes! 

Mucho amor, 

Hermana Warburton 

Oh and something super exciting my friend who had an asthma attack the day of her baptism and wasn't fully submerged got special permission from the presidency and was confirmed this week!

 Ministering to members. 

Someone bought us pops ice cream!

 Exchanges 

The tortilla!

 And casco de caballo (luckily it's not a literal translation) 

 The baptism in Tres Rios that was completed! 

November 28, 2022 - ay ay ay como me duele

 Weeek 67

It was a tiring week because of a few things. On Tuesday we got to our new area here in el alto. We moved into the house of the elders and it was not a pretty sight when we got here. We spent a lot of that day cleaning the apartment. What freaked me out the most was when I was cleaning by the microwave and killing a bunch of little bugs when my companion comes out and tells my that they were all little cockroaches and that there was probably a nest in the microwave! Needless to say we asked for a new microwave. It was tiring work and we were sore the next day, but we know to be able to really be comfortable the first thing we needed was the spirit in our home.  

Haha and the next day we were walking around sore all over, the knees, the arm, the back, and that brings us to the second tiring thing. All the members. It was was also a good kind of tiring. We have met and got to know quite a few members, and it's great! But also tiring talking and listening and traveling. But worth it because now we know where more people live. This ward has a lot of gifted members and they are gifted in many ways. And they share their gifts. We were able to serve a sister and she taught us things about pastries, (our arms were sore after making Italian fondant but it was fun!) Another sister shared about her experience of moving to different places in Costa Rica just to turn branches into wards and then moving back home. Another sister that does massage type things, and many more sisters and amazing families. 

We are excited to work here, and even though it's super tiring, we look forward to finding those the Lord is preparing through the members. No one ever said it would be easy and it feels great coming back tired knowing we could help a lot of people. 

We also had a Thanksgiving celebreation with dinner and everything and I even got see a family from my first área who live in their stake and were helping with the dinner. I met a lot of great families and look forward to teaching here for maybe the next three months, maybe 👀

Also I loved studying again the words from our prophet this past general conference. "Our covenants are a place of rest. The reward is godly power! This power eases our way." The book talks about a group of people that learned the gospel of Jesus Christ and were baptized in the waters Mormón and later on they were straightened by their testimony and covenants. They remained faithful to the Lord even in intense tests. The same can be true for us! Christ wants to help us, and He really will help ease our way. 

Mucho amor, 

Hermana Warburton 

 Idk why but there was a car 

 A gift from a member 

 Our reposteria service 

 I'm on the transfer board 😱

Goodbyes to great families! 

 Thanksgiving dinner.