September 23rd, 2013

FAMILIA:     

    Another week has come and gone in Austin. The work is progressing and our investigators continue to amaze us..

Before i forget.. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!! (on sunday :) )

     Last Monday night we had dinner at Cesar y Loli's. Pati y Roman and all their 4 little boys came too. All together there were 12 of us. (These are the two families we're losing due to the boundary change) But they made delicious mexican food and then had a cake with my name on it for my "late birthday party." Because of tradition.. they all started chanting "Mordida.. mordida" Which means I had to bite the cake before they would cut it. I knew the trick, but i wanted to be a good sport. As i took a bite of the cake, one of the kids shoved my face in it! They all had a good laugh. We had a great lesson and I gave each of the kids HLJ rings. The parents loved them.
     On Saturday, we had lunch with Cesar y Loli. We talked all through lunch, and then during the lesson, we told them that we could no longer teach them. Loli started to have tears in her eyes.. I was trying not to be sad, but it was just like when I left Eagle Pass and had to say goodbye to my investigators there. I know that the Lord will prepare the way and always does. I have the faith that one day, they'll be able to be sealed as a family forever, and that's what's important. I love these families so much. 

     Yesterday was Stake Conference. Wow. It was incredible. The entire meeting was in English, with headphones for those who needed translation. Not going to lie, it was a little bit of a relief to be able to listen to my first language for a few hours. The whole meeting was centered on "Our Faith in Christ." Our bishop spoke first. He has a thick spanish accent, but speaks English perfectly. His talk was so powerful. He read Mark 9.. When he read verse 24 He paused. Tears started running down his cheeks. I wish i could explain the Spirit we all felt as he continued speaking. "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." I know I sometimes doubt my faith. I seem to forget the fact that we have an all-knowing Father in Heaven who stands ready to help. If we but humble ourselves enough to ask Him to "help our unbelief," we will see a difference.
     I know that Heavenly Father loves us. This Gospel is the way to true happiness. I'm so thankful I have an eternal family. I love you all so much. Thank you for the constant prayers and words you send my way. I am forever grateful for you. Have a great week! I love you!

Con amor,

Hermana Egbert

it's a tradition that you have to bite the cake before they'll cut it.. and they shove your face in the cake too :) hahah i'm going to miss these families..

HLJ rings! they loved them!

I killed this in our apartment.. clorox spray and a shoe haha Hermana Rodriguez was screaming at the top of her lungs..

After the fact

 Cesar, Loli, Julian y cesar y loli

cesar y loli

September 16th, 2013

     Thank you for all your birthday wishes, pictures, messages and packages! Wow it was a great week :) The ward party went well and we had 4 investigators come! I had a great birthday. I'll be honest, I forgot it was my birthday ha ha but my companion made sure that everyone knew about it!

     This week has been filled with all sorts of emotions, celebrations, difficulties, and challenges, but most importantly, the Spirit.
     I feel as though I've finally gotten the hang of things, and found a balance in the rollercoaster of missionary work. We talk about the ups and downs of missionary work as:

The investigators that read the Book of Mormon without being asked..

The investigators that don't come to church..

The people on the street who recognize you as a servant of the Lord and ask if you can come visit them..

The people who slam the door in your face as soon as you say hello.. 

     There are numerous experiences I could share of times when things have gone wrong.. but I am always amazed that the power our Father in Heaven has and the Spirit that guides us in our everyday lives. In the MTC, a counselor in the branch presidency told me "The bad times will OUTNUMBER the good, but the good times will OUTWEIGH the bad." I have seen first hand, the truthfulness of this statement.
     Remember those two families who came to church? We've been teaching them for about 6 weeks and they are progressing really well. We got a call Tuesday night saying our boundaries changed and that they now live outside of our stake. Hermana Rodriguez and I sat in the car just wanting to cry.. I said a silent prayer in my heart that I would be able to handle the situation the way our Savior would. As we got out of the car, I felt peace come over me. Yes, I was, and still am, really sad that we won't be teaching them anymore, but I know that if they truly are converted to the Lord, it won't matter which missionaries are teaching them. I can only pray that one day I will be able to see them in the temple, being sealed as an eternal family.
     Although we had that "ditch" or the bottom part of the rollercoaster, we had the faith that things were looking up. Just like the rollercoaster, we were seeing an upward progression with our other investigators and the work here in Austin.
     We met with Jose this week and he accepted a baptismal date for September 28th! We were/are so happy for him. In that moment, all the sad times we had felt earlier that week, disappeared. The Spirit was strong and manifested to us, and Jose, that he is ready for baptism.
     We've been teaching Ernesto and trying to help him overcome alcoholism through our support and prayers. Time after time, visit after visit, he's still drinking. We went to see him yesterday with Hermana Gonzalez. Before we got out of the car, we prayed that we would be guided to know what to say. We knocked the door and as soon as he opened it, we could smell the overpowering smell of alcohol.. My hope sank and I was trying not to show my disappointment. We sat down and started talking. He was shaking. He told us that he hadn't had a drink in over 24 hours! His hands were shaking and couldn't keep still. He said "this is it. i'm quitting" We decided to sing the hymn, "O Mi Padre", with him. The spirit filled the room. I can't even explain it! It was incredible. He told us he had done his "homework" which was 1 Nephi chapter 7.. but that he also read chapter 8! He explained Lehi's dream perfectly.. The Spirit was SO strong! Wow. We had finished talking and we said "Ernesto.. you're not shaking anymore" he said "I feel better."
     I know that the Lord will ALWAYS bless us. If we do our part, no matter where we're at on the rollercoaster (of missionary work, of life, etc.) He will always lift us back up. This work is true. This Gospel is true. Jesus Christ is the head of this church. We have a living Prophet today who leads us. Let us prepare ourselves for General Conference. I know that if we pray to have our hearts and minds opened, we will find comfort and answers as President Monson and his apostles speaks to us. What a blessing it is to belong to the true Church.
     I love you all and am so thankful for your examples. Thank you for your prayers and support! Have a great week!
Con mucho amor,
Hermana Egbert


we met these kids last night.. i gave them pass along cards and they asked if they could have more to give their friends! missionaries in training.. :)

Birthday cake before the ward party

may or may not have had poop on my foot.. haha

last week at transfer meeting - sister legge :)

love these little boys! 

September 9th, 2013

Buenos Dias!
     How are all of you? It's such a blessing to receive your letters and e-mails each week. They truly do lift my spirits and keep me going. We had a great week this week. We worked hard and finally figured out the best way to manage our miles with the new apartment location. (Let's hope we wont have to be on bikes at the end of the month haha as much as I love the idea of a bike and skirt combination..)
       We're having a "noche hispana" on Friday with the ward, investigators, and anyone else who wants to come. We're supposed to bring our favorite dish or meal from our "home country." I told my companion it's really just a birthday party for me.. just no one knows it yet. haha Hermana Rodriguez' birthday is today, so we're going to be celebrating all week long!
     Our investigators are doing great! Pati, called us this week and told us she lost her keys and thinks she may have left them at the church. We looked and looked and couldn't find them anywhere. I think we just need to tell her that she has to come back to church next week to find them. :) We're teaching La familia Molina.. Luis, is a single dad and has 3 daughters. Rosie-15 Lizzy-13 and Jessica-8. We had a lesson with them this week and Jessica's friend was there. We were talking about prayer and for some reason Jessica's friend said "my mom has pictures of me getting splashed when i was a baby" We smiled and felt the spirit lead us into talking about baptism. We taught and testified. Taught and testified. And before we could ask, Rosie and Lizzy ASKED US if they could be baptized! They are so excited and want to "be clean" again. Wow. The spirit was so strong.
     As I thought of what I wanted to write home this week, there wasn't one thing in particular.. investigators are doing well, church was incredible yesterday, and i'll be honest, i've been a little homesick. Maybe because everyone is talking about "the mormons" beating the Longhorns.. :) But I said a prayer yesterday after church, and we got to work. We went and visited a former investigator but she wasn't home. There's a man who lives in the apartment above her, who we have seen multiple times, but have never talked to. As we were walking to the car, I knew I could make one of two decisions.. Turn around and talk to him. Or get in the car and hope to see him next time we visited the apartment complex. I said a prayer that I could have the faith to turn around. I stopped immediately and told Hermana Rodriguez we needed to turn around. As we approached his door, he was struggling to put down the stroller, with two little girls in his arms. We talked for a minute and as soon as he said "I've seen you guys around here a lot lately.. who are you" I remembered the scripture in Doctrine and Covenants 84:85.. "neither take ye thought beforehand what ye shall say; but treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man".. As i opened my mouth, literally not knowing what to say, I could feel the spirit come over me and words literally started coming out of my mouth. He told us that his wife had left he and his two little girls. He told us he's been praying and wants to find the "one true church." I am so thankful that we were able to testify in that very minute that we have the truth. We belong to the one true church. What a blessing it is to be members of this Gospel. We have a return appointment with him next week.
      My companion and I were talking the other day about how crazy it is that we talk to random people on the street. That we knock doors of people we don't know. That we talk about the latest Mormon Tabernacle Choir CD. And all of this, because of our Savior. I don't feel like I can ever repay Him for what He did for me, for each one of us. The price He paid by atoning for each one of us. But I know that I'm trying. I will work hard everyday to bring others to the knowledge of the Gospel. So that they can "find joy and peace in this life, and eternal salvation in the life to come."
     I am constantly reminded of your support and love. I can feel it each and everyday. I pray that we can all open our mouths, and share the Gospel. Replace fear with faith. There are other people who need the same blessings that we enjoy. Have a great week! Thanks for all the birthday wishes! 
Con Amor,
Hermana Egbert

"keep Austin weird" that's the motto here.. nothing like walking around with a snake around your neck! - i was freaking out.

we've had crazy thunderstorms here lately.. this was 9:00 at night driving home..

package from julianne

investigators at church :)

September 2nd, 2013

Mi Familia..       
         I'm staying in Riverside! We received calls last night from the Assistants, and Sister Rodriguez and I will continue working together in Riverside. Our area is Austin, but we are over the Riverside ward. We cover the southern part of Austin.. but we are so excited, we've been working really hard and neither of us wanted to leave. More importantly, I know that the Lord puts us where He needs us. I know that there is a reason why I'm here at this time, and I'm going to serve diligently so that I can find it. 
        We moved! We were running low on miles this month and still had a week to go, we decided to walk to visit a few former investigators. After 2 miles in the heat, we were dripping wet with sweat. We knocked the door, no one came. Knocked again, no one. We decided it was more effective to go to another neighborhood and knock since we had already contacted the nearby homes. On our way back, I told Hermana Rodriguez I felt like we should knock these two little homes, they looked like haunted houses. We walked up to the first one and a snake went under the porch, so we decided not to knock it. The other house was about 10 yards away. As we approached the porch, we heard someone yell "I thought I told you never to come back-" We just started running. I grabbed my pepper-spray out of my bag while Hermana Rodriguez was laughing.. Haha we got back to the sidewalk and turned around, nothing happened. Mom, we're fine. But it definitely got my adrenaline going! After we calmed down a little and laughed about the experience we had, we received a call from the mission office. We got the news that we would be moving apartments! We were told to go home and pack our things. We needed a little good news to help us in the heat of the day. So Friday of this week, we moved to Buda. It's about 2 miles south of our area. We are still covering the same proselyting area and ward, we just live a little further away. But it's worth it! Thanks to Brother Turner (that serves with dad in his ward) we have a very nice apartment and are able to work much more effectively. 
        We had exchanges this week and i was able to serve with Hermana Alfaro, she's from Australia and is going home tomorrow, but it was an incredible experience to work with her. We truly saw miracles. We worked really hard all day Saturday and visited all of our investigators to invite them to church. So when Hermana Rodriguez and I left for church the next morning, we were praying that they would come. I never understood when people said "Sundays are the most stressful days for missionaries"... we had SEVEN investigators at church! Although it was very stressful trying to manage sitting with them and explaining things to them, I can't explain how happy we were. The joy we felt seeing them all come into the chapel. Abacuc and Jose were there first. Then Cesar, Loli, and their 2 kids came in! We were sitting with them and then Cesar told us that Roman and Pati were outside, so we hurried and went out to the parking lot. There they were, walking in with their four boys. Each one of them with their bible in their hands. As we sat down behind Cesar and Loli, Julian, Cesar's son, gave a high five to each one of Roman and Pati's sons. Haha just a little comic relief during a very emotional testimony meeting. After a few minutes of sitting with them, it hit me, this was gong to make it or break it for these families. I started praying that they would feel the spirit. That they could understand the importance of church, the Book of Mormon, everything. I found myself stressing out even. I love these families and want to see them in the temple together one day. After I prayed, I felt a peace come over me, knowing that Heavenly Father will take care of them and guide them in His timing. We went to the classes and Relief Society. After church, they all had smiles on their faces and they had made many new friends (thanks to the members). It was an incredible experience.
        I love this Gospel. I love the Book of Mormon. It's true. I am so thankful for our Savior, Jesus Christ. I know that we are never alone. He is always with us. I'm thankful that we have the opportunity each week to attend sacrament meeting and to renew our covenants with our Heavenly Father. That we can reflect on our week, and be made clean again. I'm so thankful for each one of you. Your support and prayers help me every second. I can feel them. This truly is a "marvelous work". Thank you for all you do. I LOVE YOU!!!
Con Amor,
        Hermana Egbert

p.s. Not that this is important or anything.. but my birthday IS coming up.. :) here's our new address:

1480 Cabelas Drive Apt. # 1016
Buda, Texas
78610 


HAPPY LABOR DAY!!!

Pati y Roman.. Brian, Danny, Alex, Jeremiah

Cesar y Loli... Julian, Karen