March 11

This week we worked hard! We added a miracle investigator. She is a teenage girl who's parents have been less-active for a long time but came to our ward this week for the first time because they want to support her in her decision to get baptized! The ward was extremely welcoming and we have been bringing over fellowshippers! The parents told us they went inactive in their last ward because they didn't feel welcomed there so on Sunday we let the Bishop, WML and many of the members know, including the Young Women that they were coming and they were very welcomed. 
It was kind of a weird week because we had a couple of conflicts with the Church members this week. Everything has been resolved but it did get me a little down for a couple days. However I know that Satan works against us using our natural man tendencies like our emotions and it's very important to remain patient and work through those kinds of situations. What helps the most is that I love these people very much. 

Transfer news: I'm very excited to be staying here in Manteca! My companion is being transferred. I will really miss Sister Sierra. I love her so much and we have had great success together. But we have been together since I got here so it's exciting to be getting a new companion. I am very looking forward to meeting my new companion tomorrow!

Love you all!

hermana hurley

Feb 24

This week was a little harder and slower than others. My companion and I both felt under the weather and we just got a little down toward the end of the week. As sometimes happens in the mission, the investigators that I was so sure were going to be our March baptisms we are probably going to have to drop this week. I am a little worried if they fall through how are we going to bring truly converted people to baptism in March. Hermana Sierra keeps reminding me that if we show our faith by dropping investigators who are not progressing that the Lord will bless us. We know that there is more we can do this week and we are committed to doing all we can to keep this great work moving forward. We truly just want to be the best missionaries possible and being human just keeps getting in the way. I have to keep reminding myself that it's not fair to get frustrated with myself for being imperfect. I read Pres. Uchtdorf's "The Best Time to Plant a Tree" several times this week. I love that reminder that we set goals to improve ourselves, even if we don't accomplish it the first time, we are better for embarking on the journey.

One great thing that happened this week was we met Gloria! She was a referral from the English Sister Missionaries and when we went to contact her she let us in and we started helping her cook and next thing you know she was telling us her whole life story! She has met with the missionaries a lot before and she has read some of the Book of Mormon. She is just the nicest lady in the world and it has been delightful to get to teach her!

Another little experience that we had that helped me to remember why missionary work is so worth it- yesterday we were in Sunday School at Church and the teacher was asking tons of questions and some of our Recent Converts were answering them and bearing powerful testimony and helping the other new members to find the Scriptures and we have a little running joke "Wow, they must have had some really good missionaries" :) It's so worth it to help others develop a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and become truly converted! 

Here is a fun picture of some our new members and investigators that we had a big Family Home Evening with a couple weeks ago! These people are the best, I love them so much! 

Well, that's all the time for today! Keep smiling!

Love,

Hermana Hurley

Feb 17th

Well this week has been great- we had Zone Conference and that was fantastic! I got to see my old friend from the MTC: Elder Ward! He is so awesome and it made me so happy to see him! We had great classes and workshops centered around the theme "How will I baptize many truly converted people?". We saw many miracles from some of the Spiritual promptings we received there.

We are working with someone who is doing well though it's a slow process to help her come to know that God is there- but she told us this week that she does believe He exists! It was a week full of miracles! We had a baptism this weekend of Nic, I believe I had talked about him a long time ago. He is finally baptized and so happy. He was glowing at his baptism and at church!

Then something cool happened at the baptism- some investigators of the Elders were at the baptism and they wanted to talk to me. They told me that some of their friends said they had been receiving visits from us. When they told us who it was I was suprised because those people live very far away and we had just taught them once, 2 weeks ago and they hadn't seemed interested or hadn't really talked at all. She told me that our investigator has cancer and is going through some really hard times and needs us and our message! Nonmembers doing missionary work is the best! The next day we went and she was expecting us! Her friend had just left and had told them all about the baptism and how great it was and how she should listen to us! We gave her a Book of Mormon and she said "Oh yeah, this is the book that you told me about! The book about the prophets in America! I'm gonna read this!" WHAAT???? 

Love to all of you,

Hermana Hurley