Week 26 - Curacao

Hellooooo!!!

I hit my 6 monthaversary a few days agoooo! So weird! It has been a great week with lots of craziness like usual. Soooo here in Curacao it is pretty much all Papiamentu. My papi is getting QUITE the workout! Its rough but fun and the members here just want to help! Romeo, a recent convert, and Yvonne are so willing to help and I am so eager to learn so it has been really fun. I have learned a lot already! Curacaolanians are really honest so they don't hold back haha! I love it though because I can actually learn!

I met the person who translsated the Book of Mormon into Papiamentu! That was cool! He is nice but honestly he is kinda less active... He is coming back though :) So we have been teaching this guy named Boyci (I have NO idea how to spell his name) and he is really cool! He has a baptismal date for October 7th! He is progressing well and I have high hopes for him! as well this week we had to say goodbye to the Scotts :( That was a SAD day. They have been the most incredible missionaries ever and I truly just love them both so much. This mission won't be the same without them and they are just so loved by all of us and especially by the branch here in curacao! We were actually in a lesson with a less active and he said "I miss Elder Scott" randomly, the day after they left! It was really sweet and just goes to show how much of an impact they left on these people.

So on Tuesday I contacted this INCREDIBLE person named Roy. He lives in the Elders area but he is so cool. He has had a hard long life and I actually teared up as he was telling me about it. It was such a spiritual experience though because we actually went to visit someone else, but we couldn't teach her, so we ended up talking with him and two others.  Sister Hardy was talking to one while sister Burrup was contacting Roy's friend Karen who is actually a less-active from Venezuela! And I talked with Roy, one of the reasons why we needed to be in a trio for sure. I was able to teach Roy and wow he is amazing. I read him a verse in the book of Mormon in Alma 5 and he said he wanted to read that and so I left him with that chapter and invited him to church, and he Came!! He and Karen came to church and he said he read the chapter and loved it. He kept telling me as i was contacting him that he was a lost sheep and he is really searching for God right now. It was just a really amazing experience to know that God puts us right where he wants us.  Also, a lady named Mourine called us and asked where our church was out of the blue! That was cool!  We went to a lunch appointment at a members house a couple of weeks ago and she was there, but she left before we taught the lesson. She was nice but not very interested at the time, going through a lot. Then, she just calls us up and then comes to church and loved it! So amazing! We are hoping to teach her soon but her family doesn't really want us coming by so we will see if we can!  Also DARíO WAS BAPTIZED!!!!!!!!!!!!  I was so sad that I couldn't attend but I am just so happy that he got baptized. He is truly so amazing and I love him with all my heart.

We also had Zone Conference this last week and that was really good! It was about the atonement of Jesus Christ. So good!  We also talked a lot about the Priesthood and I just wanted to thank my Father and my brothers for holding the priesthood. I never even realized what a blessing that was in my life and how blessed i am for having righteous priesthood holders around me my entire life. Thank you so much. I am so beyond grateful for you and for all of the many blessings i have received from you being able to hold the priesthood!  I love you!

Also I never thought about this before, but Sister Egbert taught us about what a sacrifice it was for Heavenly father as well. While His son was suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane he had to turn away his head, even after His son called out to him. He loves us so much that he had to let His son suffer through that. I was also thinking about the atonement this morning, and I realized that if Jesus Christ sinned or transgressed one time, just ONCE, then atonement wouldn't have worked. We sin all day everyday and we have repent constantly, but he was and is completely perfect. So amazing. I am so grateful. I truly love all of you so much and I hope you have a great week! Be a missionary and share the gospel! 

Love,

Sister Woodbury