Week 7

Familia y Amigos,

This week was absolutely fantastic!! Dario got baptized!!! What a blessing!! So I haven't really talked about Dario that much so let me fill you in... He's a 13 year old boy that we have been teaching for about 6 weeks. He's really cool and I just love him!  With all of the other investigators I get nervous about my Spanish and how to word things right and all that jazz, but with him it's so simple and comfortable, which in it's own way has helped me to realize what it means to teach/be a missionary. His conversion has been really fast, and it's really amazing to see such dedication in someone so young. His baptism was so special. The room was full of members that came in support, and I can honestly say that I've never been so happy for someone else in my entire life. The joy that comes from seeing someone make a change and accept the gospel, is something that can't be explained, only experienced. What a blessing it is that the Lord let's us witness these beautiful events... this is truly his work!! So yes, a wonderful week it was for me! 

I don't have much time today, so I will leave you with that!! I love and miss you all so very, very much. Thank you for your love and support... it means the world!! Have a wonderful week! Remember who you are. 

Love, 

Hermana Van Deusen 

A little more from another letter:

...I've consumed more ants than I thought possible. We had dinner one night with a sister... and the bread she gave use was COVERED in ants.... and we ate it. Because we are missionaries. And that is what we do. Also I ate cow tongue last week. It's not good. 

...Life is great!! Oh changes!! My companion stayed (tender mercy), but my district completely changed. They shut down our district leaders area, so the whole zone got mixed around. So instead of three districts we now have two, so we are with completely new people. But it's all good... I love my zone and the people in it!! And six more weeks with my comp so yay!! 

Week 6

Mi Familia y Amigos!! 

Well this week was much, much better!! My companion and I are still sad about Nelly of course, but we have visited her a couple times since then, and I am confident that she will be baptized soon!! HOPEFULLY this change! Speaking of which, I've completed one whole change!! Woo Hoo!! Six weeks in the field!! I can hardly believe it... six weeks flew by. Time flies when you're having fun though, right?! Well, there isn't much to report. We have a baptism coming up! Saturday Dario, a 13 year old investigator we started teaching my first week here, will be baptized!! He passed his interview and is all set!! I am really excited for him, it's so cool to see kids that young have a true desire to follow their Savior and be baptized. It's inspiring! 

Well like I said, there's not much to report, so I'll share a scripture that really stuck out to me this week. The focus of my personal studies lately has been the power that Christ has to heal us. Physically, spiritually, the whole shabang. I was searching las escrituras, and I found the scripture mastery scripture Isaiah 53:3-5, 

"He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows,and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God,and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." 

I love the last part of verse 5. With his stripes, we are healed. The Atonement of Jesus Christ was so selfless. So completely selfless. Every single thing that the Savior experienced was for us! For you! He is begging us to let him heal us. He already payed the price.... we just have to use the gift. But that's the thing, he won't force us to be healed. He is standing with his arms out stretched... we just have to come. Come unto Christ!! I can't emphasize this enough! I have met so many people throughout my life and my mission that are hurting, but they don't utilize the Atonement. They won't humble themselves enough to realize that EVERYONE needs help. EVERYONE needs to be healed. Don't be that person!! BE HEALED. The Lord wants to help you, trust him!! 

I don't mean to ramble, but I am so passionate about this particular subject!! I feel like I talk about it every week... but that's okay because I'm a missionary and that's what we do haha(: Invite others to Come unto Christ! Anyways, I love you all and I hope your week is absolutely marvelous!! Haz lo justo!! 

Hermana Van Deusen

Hey I took like 4 pictures this week... progress!! I ATE A COCONUT!! Check that off the bucket list!! 

Week 5

Familia y Amigos!

In all honesty this week was quite depressing... Our wonderful, amazing, golden investigator Nelly couldn´t be baptized. To make a long story short, she has a unique living situation with her ex-husband, and while she is living every commandment faithfully, our mission president said that she has to wait. Ouch. On Friday Nelly had her interview with our district leader, and passed with flying colors, but we warned her that we were going to have to ask about the living situation just to verify that all was well. So all of Friday night my companion and I were anxiously awaiting the call from President Carmack, and the news was not good. He had to confirm with the Area presidency as well because it was such a unique situation, but the verdict came back as "no". Worst day ever. My companion and I called her and told her that we would be stopping by to talk with her about the answer, and she just asked "is it good or bad news"... All our hearts ached when we said "Bad". There were a lot of tears and a lot of questions... and just to sum it up this weekend was really, really sad. BUT here's the cool part. Despite the fact that she can't be baptized yet, despite the fact that she was hurt and her heart was broken, Nelly was at church on Sunday. She showed up on time, brought her entire family, and stayed for all three hours. That is what I call a convert. Her faith and trust in the Lord blows my mind, in a very humbling and amazing way. This week was so hard for my companion and I to deal with, and while it was undoubtably hard for Nelly as well, she remained faithful and strong, and taught my companion and I something in the process. Sometimes things happen that we don't expect, and can't understand. In those moments it is really easy to question "Why?"... but that's not the right question. The right question is "What?"... What does the Lord want me to learn from this? What can I do to follow the example of my Savior, and look outward? The Lord doesn't want us to suffer, he wants us to learn. So in those moments, Don't you DARE lose your faith. Our Heavenly Father has a plan for each and every one of us, and it is perfect. Our Savior knows exactly how we feel, and we can overcome any and every difficulty through his Atonement. This gospel is true, it is perfect, and it is the only way we can return to our Father in Heaven. Don't lose your faith. Trust in the Lord!! 

Overall a tough week, but a good week of learning. My testimony has been strengthened, and I know that some day soon Nelly will enter into the waters of baptism and participate in the sacred ordinance. I love you all and I hope you have a wonderful, fantastic week!! Remember in whom you have trusted! 

Hermana Van Deusen

Sorry, I failed again with the pictures this week... but there's a couple more, so progress(: 

Week 4

Mi Familia y Amigos,

P-day Again??? I can't believe how fast time is flying... it's exciting but lightweight sad!! Almost a month here in Panama... AHHH! Incredible. There is not much to report, this week was really busy and to be honest it's all kind of a blur! Our zone is trying to prepare for our new presidente who's coming next cambio, so our goals are crazy high and we are working really, really hard. But to sum it up the work is progressing and we are meeting a lot of new people.. but there is just isn't enough time in the day!! But Awesome news, we have a baptism on Saturday!! I am so excited!! Nelly is one of the most dedicated people I have ever met. She is what it means to be a convert! Her son is a member in a different stake and will be coming down to baptize her, and it's so cool to see how much she is looking forward to participating in this sacred ordinance with her son by her side. AHH, Saturday is coing to be a special day!!!!!!!!!!! Hopefully all will go as planned...(: But that is about it. It's been a wonderful week as always! The people here are so wonderful, and I love them more than I can express!! Spanish is coming slowly but surely... some days I feel a little discouraged when I can't communicate in the way that I want to.... but then I just think about how far I've come and I feel better(: The Lord is always helping and strenghthening us.... we just have to take the time to take a step back and see it. There's not much else to say, so I thought I'd share a scripture. In Mosiah 2:41 we read,

"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it."

This Gospel is happiness. That's what it's all about. When we follow the example of our Savior, when we keep the commandments and utilize the Atonement when we fall short of that, we are promised blessings that we can't even imagine. We will be blessed in every single aspect of our lives. We will obtain never-ending happiness IF we are faithful to the end. I mimic the words of Nephi, "Wherefore, let us be faithful to him" (1 Nephi 7:12). 

I love you all and I hope your week is fabulous!! Remember who you represent(:

Hermana Van Deusen

I got to the internet place and realized I took NO pictures this week... no time para nada. So here is a lovely picture of me and my companion walking to write emails! The humidity is doing wonders for my hair, I know(; Also, a cockroach we found in our house last week... Enjoy!!

Week 3 - Panama

Mi Familia y Amigos!!

What an amazing week this has been.... I feel like I say that every week.... But that´s just because being a missionary is so cool(; I'm having so much fun... but I'm also learning so much at the same time. Which, when you think about it, makes sense... when we come to learn and except the gospel, we can't help but be happy! We are SO lucky to have the knowledge that we do. I really learned that this week. It was funny because we were in one of the farther parts of our area, and we had two lessons scheduled. The first lesson was, quite frankly, awful. The daughter of our investigator was there, and she had done some "research" about Mormons online... needless to say she felt the need to put us in our place... The spirit was not there and it was really, really sad. We just bore our testimonies, invited her to read the Book of Mormon, and left. As we were walking to our next appointment, my companion simply said, "I'm glad I know the truth". Our next lesson was the exact opposite. It was with one of my favorite investigators named Nelly. She is a little bit older, and we've taught her about 4 times. She has a baptism date for next week, and she is progressing so well. It was an amazing lesson. I started off by asking her "Why do you want to be baptized?" In that moment her eyes got a little glossy, and she bore a powerful testimony about the Savior and her desire to follow him. Wow. What a contrast between these two lessons. In that moment I realized the blessing that it is to have our testimonies, to know that Salvation is possible through the Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ. But the thing is... we have to work at it. Nelly keeps every single one of our commitments, she is constantly trying to learn more. Therein lies the question... are we doing everything we can to strengthen our testimonies?  Do we realize what a blessing it is to have a knowledge of this wonderful gospel?? The Lord is waiting to teach us more... we just have to put in the effort. I am so, so grateful to be a missionary. I can't physically express what a wonderful experience this has been for me thus far... and I've only been serving 2 months!! I am eternally grateful to have the knowledge that I do, that Jesus Christ is my Savior and Redeemer, and that I can do all things through his Atonement. "Oh how sweet the joy this sentence gives, I know that My Redeemer Lives!!" I love you all and I hope you have an awesome week!! Remember who you represent!

Hermana Van Deusen

This week was a holiday for Panama... I can't remember what its called, but the stake had a dance party and it was awesome!!! I love Panama!!

Week 2

Hola Familia y Amigos!!

What a crazy, amazing week. I love Panama so much... it is seriously my favorite place on earth! It is so beautiful and the people are wonderful. This week was a lot of fun... we did a LOT of traveling. On Friday we had to go to Panama City so I could get all of my migration stuff done... We left at 10 pm and arrived at 4:30 am, and then waited for 2 hours for the office to open. To make a long story short... We didn't leave until 12 pm. The DMV has nothing on Panama Migrations. But it was a lot of fun to see all of the other missionaries and to enjoy the city for a little bit... it is so different from David! After migrations my comp and I went to the Temple. WOW. The Panama City temple is gorgeous, and doing a session in Spanish was a really cool experience. I love the fact that we can feel the spirit despite the language we are hearing, because the language of the spirit is universal! 

We also were able to go to Boquete today which was awesome... its about 40 minutes outside of my area, and its more in the mountains and a little bit cooler. AWESOME. We went to the Jungle! Literally... a place called the jungle(; It was like a petting zoo but they had a baby porcupine, monkeys, and parrots!! I love Panama!! 

On a more spiritual note, this week was a good week for the work. We have 4 people on date for baptism and we are trying really hard to make sure they are prepared for their dates. Spanish is coming along... I am really trying to just open my mouth more and trust in the Lord. My spanish is far from perfect, but He knows who he wants in his church, I just have to trust that he won't let me mess that up(; I am so grateful to be a missionary and to be apart of this wonderful work. This church is TRUE!! What a blessing it is to have that knowledge. Jesus Christ is our Savior, he is always there! We always have someone cheering us on!! What comfort that can bring. I love you all and I hope you have a wonderful week!! 

Hermana Van Deusen

Panama - Week One

Mi Familia y Amigos!!

I'm here!! In Panama!! I can hardly believe it! It has been a crazy 5 days to say the least. I LOVE PANAMA. My area is right outside of the city David... its a really large, poor area and the people are very calm and go with the flow. My trainer is amazing. Her name is Hermana Peralta and basically I love her to death.... she is a really hard worker, and we have so much fun together! She is from Mexico, but she speaks a decent amount of English so we are able to communicate pretty well. I feel really blessed to have her as a companion, I am learning so much(: Our house is a pretty typical house for Panama... but it is completely different from the US. All of the houses here are made of cinderblocks and have concrete floors.... I'll try to figure out how to send pictures haha. But it's not too bad other than the fact that we live with a bat who likes to make an appearance every now and then haha.... we will be having companionship study and all of a sudden it's duck and cover because the bat swoops in. Panama. Here in Panama I am what they call a "gringa" (white girl) and it's quite funny because people will stop and stare, and everyone we walk up to wants to talk to me in English. It's actually a pretty good ice breaker to be honest(: But it is a different experience to be sure. The mosquitos have no mercy. I counted this morning a total of 114 on my legs.... Killer. But like I said I love it here.... the people are amazing. The other night we had dinner at a less active family's house... and it was a really cool experience. It was amazing to me because we sat in this house that only had a dirt floor and two chairs, and ate rice and chicken because that's all the family could afford... and we had so much fun! Their little boy came up to me and showed me his collection of water bottle caps, and we sat there and played a counting game with them for a good 30 minutes. We just sat their and talked, and they were helping me with my spanish, and we were just enjoying each others company. It was humbling! Panama is amazing. Sometimes it is so hard to be here, because my spanish is aweful and life here is so different... but then I have an experience like that and I remember that this is not about me. This is the work of the Savior, I am his representative. I feel so blessed to be able to witness the change in a persons face when Holy Ghost testifies to them that he is their Savior and that this is his Gospel. It is a privilidge to be apart of this work! I don't have a lot of time... but I love you all and I hope you have a wonderful week!! Remember who you are. 

Hermana Van Deusen