November 19, 2013

Čau visiem! (hey to you all!)

I hope you all had a great week, as I know that I had quite the up and down one!!!! So, to quickly explain the title of this email, another transfer has started and I am still in Imanta. I am now training again! :) I am pretty excited about it. Sister M from Provo, Utah is my new trainee, and I am excited to work with her. She is super sweet, but a little shy and I am hoping to help her break out of her shell and open up! I know that I certainly have on my mission. I know family and friends that this may sound crazy, but I am not shy anymore. :) I tell people here that I was once so shy that I couldn't do anything alone and no one believes it! It makes me happy, because that was a weakness I have always wanted to overcome. Sometimes there are still moments when shy Sister Cloward sneak in, but for the most part. I am not shy Sister Cloward anymore. :D

So, this past week was a little crazy and up and down. Sadly, this last week, our most investigator with the most potential to be baptized dropped off this last week. Ag, who I love so much, family decided that they don't want her to meet with us. They didn't forbid her to meet with us, but they are constantly arguing with her about why she would want to meet with us. She had a meeting with us this last Wednesday, and said that she was done, that she couldn't meet with us. I'll admit, it hurt. I cried pretty hard after that lesson with Sister B, but Sister B was strong! She told me that this was right for now. That Ag wasn't gone for good. She loved the people and this church too much to be gone for good and simply, now isn't her time. I know that her time will come and I hope at that time that her family will be able to come with her.

Also, this past week, there was a tremendous up! That was yesterday. The reason why my preparation day was changed to Tuesday is because we had zone conference yesterday. It was a spiritual feast as well, as a little bit of chastisement. Not chastisement from the speaker, because he didn't chastise us, but from the Spirit as we listened to him and realized that as a mission and individually we weren't doing what we need to do to be the Lord's missionaries. We got some new things that we are supposed to be doing so that we can truly become the Lord's servants as well as live the Law of Consecration. The only thing that Lord doesn't have of ours is us. I am committing myself to be fully in the work, to make the Lord's wills and wants mine, and I want nothing, but that which he wants. I know that this will make me into an instrument in the Lord's hands and I will truly be able to help him bring his sheep back into the fold. Here is what I wrote President Boswell about this last week:

 

"So, I really did learn a ton from Elder Bennett and I am looking forward to becoming a more exceptional missionary. I really want to apply teaching on every transport and asking for someone every person knows who could use the gospel. I know that this will improve the work. In what ways, I'm not sure, but I know that the Lord will bless us as we work to become better. I also know that Satan is just waiting there to keep me from succeeding and I set another goal to smile in the trial of my faith. I am not going to let Satan get me down. I know he is going to try, but I won't let it happen and I will win the fight with him. 

"I am also very grateful for the opportunity to be with Sister M. I know it is a wonderful privilege to be able to train and I am grateful for the opportunity to do it again. I loved it last time, and I know I will love it this time. I already love Sister M and look forward to our time serving together. She has great faith, and I am grateful for what you told us at the training meeting because I had her help us pick some transfer goals and things to focus on. I told her that we were both expected to help one person into baptism by the end of the year, and that we are in this together to be able to do this. I thought of a number that we could get, but hadn't said it yet, and asked her how many baptism the Lord was going to help us get in this area in this transfer. She thought about it and said 3. I was thinking that same thing. I thought about it later and realized that that was my personal goal that I set with you. I at first was thinking and thought this area hasn't yielded that in a while. She doesn't know that, but I do. I wasn't sure if this area has ever yielded that many in such a short amount of time, but it has. Last year they had about 4 at this time. I know because all four of them just went off of retention lessons. So, I am committing to you as well as the Lord, that we are going to apply the new things Elder Bennett taught and we are going to work on 3 baptisms in this area in this transfer. I am so excited to get to work and to work hard!"

So, yeah. Also, this week was a week of holidays, with the big celebration being yesterday. Yesterday was Latvians independance day, and it was a big holiday. There were little celebrations going on everywhere! It was amazing! I wish I could send the pictures home, but sadly I can, but I do know that when I come back to Latvia some day to visit, I am coming back the week of the 11 to the 18th, because there were a lot of fun events going on. I heard there were even fireworks over the Daugava river! Overall, this is a great place to be and I love Latvia! What an amazing opportunity to give a year and a half of my life over in the service of the Lord!

I love you all and I hope you have a great week!

Ar mīlestību un lūgšanām, (With love and prayers)

Māsa Klauvarda <3