The Truth is Marching On

I love being a missionary. So much. I have decided that you all should move out here and we can just preach the Gospel here together for the rest of our lives. Yeah? Perfect. NEWS! I have been called to serve as a Sister Trainer Leader here in the Washington D.C. South mission. Can you believe it? I am so nervous, but I am so humbled and excited to be able to serve and help all the sisters in this mission. What I am really excited about is that 2 times every week I get to go on exchanges with different missionaries and learn their areas and help them get "fired up" about missionary work. I LOVE THIS WORK SO MUCH and I can't wait to learn from all the hermanas here in Washington D.C. My companion told me that it is a curse because "Hermana Weenig--you love the people too much...having to travel is going to kill you." I do love the people so much, and part of me just wants to stay and knock doors and focus on the people in one area, but I am also so excited to be able to learn all different types of missionary work and be able to take what President Riggs wants us to take and train them on so that we can learn together how to be better missionaries. I am definitely learning that the Lord DOES NOT call the qualified, but He does (hopefully) qualify those who He calls.  I am really crossing my fingers for that, because I am going to need it. I am just SO SO SO excited to serve more and learn more from these incredible people and missionaries!!!! :) 

Transfers are this Thursday...:( Hermana Wilcox and I have dreaded this week since the beginning of this transfer. President has warned us every week that we will no longer be together. We love working together! Partners in preaching the gospel! We are attached at the hip and have been companions since the beginning of July. I wish I could keep her as my companion for the rest of my mission, but I know that she has a LOT more lives to change. I love her. I don't EVER want to leave Hna. Wilcox! She is ON FIRE! And she is going to change this mission and make a HUGE difference here....she already has. She truly has become one of my best friends, and I am going to miss her like crazy. But we have already decided that we are going to companions again right before I go home. So it is a done deal. The time serving with her has been absolutely incredible, and I don't want it to end. I have learned so much from her and am so grateful for her shimmering example. Also, I have no idea if I will stay in this area or be transferred to a different area. This ward and this area is now my home. I sincerely know and love all the ward members...they are literally my home away from home. I don't want to say goodbye ever to them either! I think it is going to be a bit of a hard week! Lots of tears! I have already cried a lot of losing Hna. Wilcox and even the thought of leaving this ward and area. But I trust that the Lord will let whatever is supposed to happen, happen. I trust His will, although His will is sometimes hard to accept....but it is ALWAYS better. 

As usual, THIS WEEK WAS A WEEK OF MIRACLES! First things first. Jill didn't get baptized this past Saturday because a HUGE miracle happened! Her daughter Adla (she is 12 years old), who never ever wanted to really listen to us when we taught, suddenly took a great interest in the lessons. She came to church last week, and said that she too--wants to be baptized! They are now preparing to be baptized TOGETHER! AMAZING!!!!! She is so smart and she knows so much about the Gospel already and it is so fun to see how fast she is progressing. She reads the Book of Mormon so much and studies the pamphlets we give her. I AM SO SO SO SO HAPPY FOR THEM! They told us that they are praying together as a family and that they are reading the scriptures together....AMAZING. They will be baptized on the 23rd of November! I can't wait for that day. They have been through a LOT and I can't wait to see what happens with them. It has also been amazing to see the ward reach out to them and help them. We have moved from teaching them outside of the homeless shelter of where they live, to inside member's homes. It truly is something spectacular....to see all of these ward members stepping in and helping her pay for what she cannot. It reminds me so much of the story of the good samaritan... Jill is a mere stranger to these people yet they are willing to take her in, feed her, clothe her and care for any need she needs. I hope someday I will be able to be TOTALLY unselfish and TOTALLY giving like the members of this ward. 

Restaurant Miracle. Probably one of the BIGGEST miracles that I have seen on my mission yet. So, it was dinner time, and usually we go home and make something..but we weren't really hungry, and we have a really strong impression to go buy a papusa from this little Hispanic restaurant. We had no idea why, but we went anyways. We walked in. Miracle #1: a less active member saw us, and told us she wants to come back to church. Apparently missionaries had saved her and her mom's life prior and has wanted to come back to church but just moved here from Africa. So we were able to help her find where to go. Miracle #2: There was a woman sitting by us, looking very down and alone, and we were able to teach her the Restoration and now she is investigating the church! Amazing! MIRACLE #3: Our waitress. Her name is Araceli. We hadn't talked to her much when she asked us if we are representatives of Christ and if we go to church. We said "yes!" Her eyes began to tear up as she told us that her husband has been trying to cross the border, but she hadn't heard from him in 18 days. Everyone told her that he was dead, and that he died crossing the river. She said, "But, I have faith and I know that you will help me. Can you please pray for him?" We said we would be more than happy to. We set up a time to go see her the next day. We prayed a lot for her husband to be safe and arrive here in safety. When we went to visit the next day, she came RUNNING outside. She gave us HUGE hugs and said. "It is a miracle, a miracle! My husband just called me from Texas 10 minutes ago! He IS ALIVE!!!!" Amazing. I know that prayer works, and if we have faith, miracles really can and will happen. We entered her home and she intently listened as we taught her that Heavenly Father loves her and sent us to her so that she could learn the Gospel. She said, "Well, I knew that you represented Jesus Christ right when I saw you." We thought she meant she had read our tags. But no. "No, it wasn't your tags there was a huge card on the table where I was serving you that said 'Jesus Christ'. That is how I knew to talk to you." There was no card. I got the chills. But WHAT A MIRACLE! Her and her husband are starting to take the missionary lessons and she says she wants to join our church! WHAT A MIRACLE! I had the goosebumps for like 30 minutes after. I know that Heavenly Father heard and responded to those prayers, and I know that they will be baptized soon! 

We had a couple of exchanges this week! (one due to the fact that I had to attend a Mission Leadership Conference--which I learned a TON!). I learned A LOT! It was super weird not having my buddy--Hna. Wilcox--right there! I am going to miss her! But on the upswing of things, I learned a lot and a TON of miracles happened on the exchanges. I went on an exchange with Hna. Shelton, who is currently a Sister Trainer leader, and we saw miracle after miracle! Juana, the most amazing recent convert ever, called us and told us that she wanted to come out all day and night with us to preach the Gospel. She is such a GEM! So she went to EVERY Lesson with us! It was wonderful! Reina Reyes, who has been praying and praying for her baptismal date, FINALLY received an answer!! She was SO happy and so excited to tell us! She studies the Book of Mormon and Bible everyday, comes to church, reads the Ensign, and knows more about the Gospel than anyone I have ever known. She will be baptized on the 23 of December! I believe that is her birthday, and that is why she wants to do it then. We have tried to get it sooner, but she is dead set on that day. BUT I AM SO SO HAPPY for her. When we heard the news I started jumping up and down! This is something that we have been praying and fasting for for months now. Miracles happen! Also Ruben has been praying and thinking about the Book of Mormon and wants to be baptized this month too!! AMAZING!! Apparently, the Hispanics of surrounding areas have heard my companion and I sing! One of them wants us to come down to Fairfax, VA to sing at her wedding! I don't think that is going to be possible, but I got a good laugh about that! 

Yesterday, SACRAMENT MEETING WAS INCREDIBLE!!!! We had 5 investigators at sacrament meeting!! MIRACLE!!!! We have been trying to get Marta Lida to come to church for like 2 months now and she always tells us that she has work....we were almost about to give up on her...but then! A MIRACLE! We have been praying for her and have tried every avenue to get her to come to church. But I have such a strong testimony of prayer ...We walked into church, and there on the back row was Marta! Sitting there, ready to go! We had called her earlier that morning to see if she was coming, and she didn't answer. But there she was in church! She said she wanted to make it a surprise...and boy were we surprised! We were smiling so big! She said that she has been working really hard to get Sundays off so that she can come to church every week! AMAZING! And if that wasn't enough, Sunday morning, Louderes, one of our other investigators that never comes to church, call us and told us that she wants to come and bring her little girl! She did! She got a ride with someone in the ward and told us that she only wanted to stay for the first hour, but after the first hour she wanted to stay for more. She fell in love with church and said that she wants to come back! MIRACLE! I know that she will be baptized soon. Also Ricardo and Jaqueline came! With their WHOLE family! What joy! Also, Jill came and sat next to Juana! THIS WARD IS ON FIRE! The Chapel was FILLED with investigators. I couldn't even stop smiling. The ward welcomed every single investigator with open arms and they commented on how "at home" they felt. AMAZING. 

Thank you so much for all of your love, support and prayers. I love you all so much and pray for you always. I hope you know how and realize what an opportunity it is to live here on the earth as such a time as this! We have such hope and such destiny to live!!! I can't thank you all enough for your examples and for all you do for me. I hope you take every advantage you possible have to serve other people and use this time that we have been given to become the absolute best we can be. That doesn't mean perfect. Also, I am starting to realize something. The more and more I study the life of our Savior Jesus Christ, the more I want to be like Him. He is my best friend, hero and never leaves our side. Rely on Him. Learn of Him. Become like Him. He is our number one fan. I love Him, and am so grateful for His atoning sacrifice so that I could have the opportunity to change. Rely on Him. Change. Smile. Serve.   Tear it up this week, champs! STAND UP for who you are and what you believe. This world makes you want to think that you are nothing, and not good enough! But, much on the contrary, YOU ARE NOBLE AND GREAT. Don't you ever forget that. 

STAND STRONG. 

Hermana Weenig

We went to Washington D.C. today with Hna. Escobar! What a blast! We saw Obama's 304983098 cars that passed by with 20 helicopters and the FBI escorting him! Here is the white house!

 I finally got to go to the famous Holocaust museum! It about ripped my heart out! It was so powerful, but sad. 

 Still looks like the Washington mounment is being re-done.