Sister Alex Hartvigsen-- January 2, 2012

Dear Familia, I hope all of you had a fun and safe New Year Celebration. We didn't do too much down here other than work at the Visitors Center. I was outside a little later in the evening and was able to see some of the fireworks that people were shooting off. It was fun. This week was good. We had a meeting with our recently called branch mission leader, on Monday. On Tuesday we met with a less active women and talked to her about the blessings of obedience. On Thursday we met with a recent convert lady and her sister. We talked about revelation through church attendance and the importance of feasting on the words of Christ to feed our spirits. We shared with them 2 Nefi 32:3 and talked about how that spiritual nourishment can help us have the strength we need the rest of the week. We met with the a recent convert family and one of their family members. We watched Finding Faith in Christ and talked about what we can do to strengthen our faith. We asked each family member what they can do to strengthen their own faith. We had a discussion about how our faith will often be tested before we see the fruits of it. It was a really good lesson. This week as I was in the Visitors Center, I was giving a presentation in front of the Christus Statue that we have here ( its just like the one in Salt Lake but about a foot shorter). After I got done giving the presentation, I went and started talking to a man who was sitting on the bench looking at the Christus. He looked like he was about to cry. I asked him if he was OK and he answered back in broken English. ( sometimes its really hard to tell who speaks which language) I switched to Spanish and we started to talk. He was really struggling with choices that he had made in his life and came to the Visitors Center so that he could find some peace. I explained that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ all those feelings of guilt and shame can be healed completely as we repent of our sins and come unto the Savior. I testified that the Savior knew him and loved him. It was really cool to watch his demeanor change as I talked with him. He accepted my invitation to send the missionaries to visit with him and teach him more. It was such a good experience. This coming week will be really good. A family that I taught in my English area back in May is going to the temple on Thursday and Friday for the first time to be sealed as a family. I am so excited for them.
I love you all. I hope that you all have a great week.
Love Alex