Super Bowl Tracting... not so productive

Hello Amazing Family and Friends! I hope you have had a great week. This was a good week, a lot of walking, searching, and teaching which means a normal, but good week. I guess as normal as doing God's work of Salvation for His children in Chicago as a nineteen year old young woman can be that is! :-)

Last Monday our Noche de Hogar with the C.... Family was canceled because it was so cold. Since we didn't have a car and weren't supposed to go out without one, we had dinner and continued working on converting our area book to the iPads. Tuesday was another very cold day that we were supposed to "use good judgement" about going outside. Because of this we spent more time working on our area book and trying to proselyte on Facebook. Facebook is kind of hard sometimes because it can be tricky trying to figure out how to be productive on Facebook as a missionary, something that sounds like an oxymoron!

Wednesday we had District Meeting. It was really good because we also had President's Interviews then. Mine was really great. President Woodbury is so in tune with the Spirit and really uplifts you to just be able to talk with him. Finally that afternoon we were able to go out and do some work. We had the car and went around trying to find some less active members. We found one at home whose wife is not a member. He was really excited to see us and immediately invited us in. We talked for a while, them helping us a lot with our Spanish. He isn't able to attend Church because he has to work on Sunday, that is such a problem for so many people here, it is so sad. His wife is really interested right now. They have been taught many times by missionaries and obviously know the drill! But it was great to talk to them and they invited us over anytime when it is really cold and we need something to do to get out of the cold, something we really appreciate!

Hermana Meanea's Aunt
Christy dropping off a
surprise goodie bag at
Hermana Meanea's
apartment doorstep

Thursday was a pretty busy day because we had the car and wanted to use it as much as possible because we don't have it that often because the other Hermanas need it so much because they are sister training leaders. (Yes, I know that was a great run on sentence!) We had an amazing lesson with an investigator, R....... When Hermana Toney and I first started teaching him, we weren't sure if he had any real intent or was just curious. Our lesson on Thursday was amazing. We taught the Plan of Salvation and he asked some great questions and our member was able to help answer them and reassure him about his concerns. It was great to have her there because his Spanish is really hard to understand and she was able to help a lot with that too! It was a great lesson and he truly wants to learn more and come closer to God. We did some weekly planning and then had a lesson with I....., another investigators. Her and her boyfriend, M....., are great. They truly want to accept this Gospel and have it help them change their lives. She is reading the Book of Mormon and they are good about coming to Church. We hope to try and meet with them more regularly so we can help them progress more and come closer to Christ, hopefully through baptism. That night we went to the Church because the Bishopric had told us they wanted to feed all of the missionaries in the ward dinner. So here we were, all 8 missionaries waiting there, expecting some Mexican food. Then the 2nd Counselor walks in with some pizzas, soda, sets them on a table, sings a song and says a prayer with us, and then says he has to leave. So there are 8 missionaries with pizza, soda, and ice cream in the Church all by ourselves. It was fun but pretty awkward too!

A beautiful sunset in Chicago,
I can never get enough of them

Friday we got a call that morning that our ward mission leader wanted to have MCM. We rescheduled an appointment we had to be a little earlier so we could go. We went to the appointment but no one answered the door. That happens quite often. We just know we will have to try again later. We then spent the afternoon looking for people and trying to contact people. On our way home for dinner we got a call that the C....... Family were throwing a surprise birthday party for Hermana C........... So we went to that. It was a lot of fun and there were a lot of people there, including some of our investigators and some of the elder's investigators. This created quite a funny conversation between us and the Elders through text messages. We texted the elders to let them know that their investigators were there, just so that they would know we saw the investigators and made contact with them. Their investigator, Jose, has been spending a lot of time at our investigators Jesus and Maria's home and we haven't been sure why. Then when Jesus introduced Jose to the C........ Family, he said Jose was his uncle. Things suddenly made a lot of sense to me so I texted the Elders to see if they had known that Jose was Jesus's uncle. Here is how our conversation went:

Us: Did you know Jose is Jesus' uncle?

Elders: No, Jesus is Jose's son...

Us: Hna. C........ just asked if Jose was Jesus's dad and they said no, uncle

Elders: Oh yeah because Jose wasn't the birth father? But legally Joseph is Jesus' dad.
(at this point we were thinking, "What are the Elders talking about?!?!?")

Elders: Wait are we talking about Jesus el Christo or a different Jesus?

I know it probably isn't nearly as funny to you all as it was to us. We were talking about our investigators but the Elders thought we were randomly texting them telling them Joseph was Jesus Christ's uncle! It was so funny because their family, Jesus, Maria, and Jose, just work out like that!

Saturday, we worked. We saw a less active and recent convert, E..... It was really awkward because her sister was watching a movie in the same room we were in and it was definitely rated R! But we shared a scripture, 1 Nephi 16:28, about the Liahona and how it is the Holy Ghost in our lives today and works according to our diligence and faith to following the promptings of the Spirit. That night we tried to see S........ and her family, some of our investigators.That family is breaking my heart right now. We have tried and tried with them so much but they have completely dropped off of the map. We stop by and text and call all the time. I was finally able to talk with her on Facebook that morning. We asked if we could come over that night and she said they wouldn't be home. We stopped by later, just to see, and they were home. But they were eating and she didn't want to invite us in because of that. They have stopped trying to come to Church and I am not sure if they are interested any more. But, I have faith, I fasted for them yesterday, and we will keep trying without being too pushy. I know that everything is on the Lord's timing and in His hands, they are His children. That night we went to another party, without knowing it was a party ahead of time, with the N........, an amazing member family. Good food of course. I just wish I was so much more comfortable with Spanish so I could just talk with these people and have conversations! But it is getting better everyday!

Hna Black and me out trying to find people
on Super Bowl Sunday, didn't go too well

Sunday at Church was great. Unfortunately none of our investigators really came. But that is okay because we are working with them and they will get there. In Gospel Principles we talked about the creation. It just really hit me how the entire earth was created for US. Just the significance of how it started at the basics, light, water, dry land, and then went onto plants and then animals, and then humans. Our lives in the Gospel can be the same. We start with the basic principles and ordinances. But, just like the earth. Nothing else could exist without those basics! We then had studies and then went out looking for less actives. Of course no one really wanted to open the door to us because they were too busy watching the Super Bowl. Back at home, during dinner, we had our own Super Bowl party and watched the two "I Am a Mormon" videos about ex-NFL players. Best Super Bowl party ever!

I truly want to thank all of you soooo much for all that you are doing for me and other missionaries around the world. We feel your love and support and prayers. I hope you all have an amazing week! Remember who you are, a literal Child of God, and that He loves you more than you can imagine! Have some great adventures!

Eternal Love,

Hermana Allyse Meanea