hermana mannewitz

Monday, November 6, 2017

2 Gringas en Guemes

And it came to pass on the second day of the eleventh month in the year two thousand seventeen, Hermana Taylor and Hermana Mannewitz went forth in the strength of the Lord. And I, Hermana Mannewitz, testify that we did suffer from great heat (like more than one hundred degrees), nevertheless, laboring diligently according to will of the Lord STILL ATE SOUP FOR LUNCH. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND.

Yup. Another great week in the work of the Lord. And although I have no idea why we continue to eat soup in the blazing eat, I am super grateful for the almuerzos that we receive every day. Bueno, this week was full of adventures, surprises and spiritual greatness!

· I saw my buddy Andres from Limache! And he had a package of love, letters and food from my family! It was great to receive a package but it was also so good to see Andres. I sure do miss Limache and all my homies there but I know that the Lord has called me to serve here in Guemes now!

· Zone conference!!!! With big changes too! Presidente Orquera has lots of excitement for missionary work and is doing everything he can to see the miracles of the Lord here in the best mission in the world. With changes in the way we find new investigadores and how to most effectively stay active in the church and receive the blessings that God is preparing them, we have a lot to improve on! But change is good! Change is a humbling experience and helps me put more trust in my Heavenly Father and His will.

· Surprise interviews with Presidente was the best Halloween surprise here in Argentina. That’s right, Halloween is not a thing here in Argentina, but Presidente was all in on the jokes and scares this Halloween. So yeah, we had surprise interviews but they went really well!

· Me: "God loves each and every one of His children"

Person I’m teaching: "minus the Chinese"

· Our bishop plays ping pong....competitively

· When your companera takes Saracha Sauce out of her bag in the middle of lunch with some members.

· Spanish update: basically Latina. hahajaj jk but I absolutely love Spanish now. I can understand almost everything that the Argentines say (unless they are talking about medical things. Then I suffer a little bit) and I can speak pretty well! Now I am going to focus on my accent so that I am a true Latina by the time I return home....besides the fact that I am BIEN RUBIA.

· Obispo and his family are incredible examples to me! They live right next to us which is a huge blessing. If we ever need help, they are only one hand clapping away. But they are so strong in the gospel. Their two year old son was recently diagnosed with Autism which has been quite the challenge because there are not good medicos here in Guemes. But they continue to put their trust in the Lord. Hermana Isendorf told me that she has seen so many miracles from the Lord, but only if she has her eyes open to see them. Sometimes, we have to actively search for the innumerable ways that Heavenly Father blesses us every day.

· Ward choir continues to be the highlight of my week

· Pray for Aron! Aron has 14 years and has so many desires to be baptized but doesn’t have the support of his parents! Keep him in your prayers! And bueno, if you’re praying, pray for Josefina, Clara, Belen, Sebastian and Exiquel also! thank you so much! I know Heavenly Father hears the heartfelt prayers as long as we ask with faith!

This week I have been studying The Living Christ as suggested by our prophets and leaders of the church. I love reading about the attributes of Jesus Christ and learning how I can be more like him, especially in this time of my life as a disciple of Jesus Christ. I was studying how Jesus Christ is our Advocate unto the Father and found a scripture in D&C and absolutely fell in love

D&C 45:3-5

“Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him –

“Saying: Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified;

“Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life.”

He pleads our case!!!! He wants us to return back to His presence! He wants us to be happy!!!! Wow. I love my Savior, Jesus Christ and everything He did for me! I know that it is only through His atoning sacrifice and mercy that we can return to His presence but I know that He has given us everything we need to receive celestial glory! So be strong! Press forward! God is cheering you on! God lives. God loves. And God has the power to change your live.

Love you all! Thanks for everything! Have a super great week! Oh and happy November!!!!

HOY ES EL DIA!

♥ Hermana Mannewitz

Cute Argentina art

Hermana Taylor - she's the best!

Happy Halloween! I was Hermana Taylor for Halloween

When they show a movie in the bus

IT ACTUALLY RAINED IN GUEMES

Uno and pancakes! Shout out to my mom for the maple

Zone Conference

October 30, 2017

Hola! Another great week in Guemes! We worked so hard and saw lots of miracles! Bueno, here are the latest and greatest things that have happened in the life of a crazy gringa en Guemes.

CHISTOSOS

· Someone legit asked me if I was a real Albino. My buddy, Kassidy, always made fun of me and my white skin throughout high school, calling me albino for a majority of our friendship but one lady really, truly thought that I was a classified albino. She asked me if I could look at the sun. Nope! Just a gringa with really white skin!

· WOW. Ward choir was probably the funniest thing that has happened on my mission. First of all, latinos cannot sing very well but they are not ashamed. I was asked to play the piano for the choir and wow. It is so hard to concentrate and not laugh so much. One of the members asked me ¨what is so funny__ please stop laughing! hahah I can´t help but laugh when they sing so loud and sooooo off tune. But one of the members finished his solo and turned around and told everyone that he obviously has the best voice in the choir. We have another practice on Wednesday and I’m pumped to say the least!

MILAGROS

· OH MY GOODNESS!!!!! I saw Hermano Vieira!!!! The Vieira family is from Limache and are basically my best friends. They are so funny and bueno, I love them so much! But when I left Limache, I didn´t get to say goodbye and that was really tough. But the other day we had a meeting in the church in Salta and he was in the church! Such a great surprise!!!! I sure do miss my Limache homies but I know that this is the work of the Lord and so it’s all good!

· We recently found a golden family!! I know that the gospel blesses the families so much so I have always wanted to find and teach a family! We found Belen and her family this week and she is amazing. She has so many desires to help her family have more unity and love and has already seen changes in her family by listening to the message of Jesus Christ. She has 4 kids and 2 of them are identical twins and they are both named Sylvana ' wierd no__ but keep Belen and her family in your prayers! They have a lot of economic problems and so it is difficult to attend church on Sundays!

· The power of fast is so real!!!!! I know that I have already talked about the power and strength received from fasting but my testimony has been strengthened again! There is an investigator her in Guemes that has been investigating the church for a couple months and wants to be baptized but only has 14 years so he needs permission from his parents. But we did a fast, together - Aron, me and my companion - to receive divine help from above. And bueno, God listens to our prayers and recognizes our sacrifices! Aron came to church yesterday and his mom gave him permission to be baptized! We are truly seeing so many miracles as we put our faith in God and work with all our diligence!!!

D&C 68:6

Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the Son of the

living God, that I was, that I am, and that I am to come.

I know that God is on our side!!! Don’t be afraid to share the joy that we have in our life! We constantly have the support we need!

Thank you for everything!!! Love you all!!

HOY ES EL DIA!

♥ Hermana Mannewitz

Cemeteries here in Argentina are above ground...super weird.

Homies can be together forever. Shout out to my homies in Limache

Rock in the House . . . again

Nueva Esperanza

October 23, 3017

Hola from Guemes!!! Sorry I was not able to write last week. Things were a little crazy with transfers and everything! But I hope you are all doing well and enjoying pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin carving and bueno, everything pumpkin!!!!

Alrighty, so these past two weeks have been a little crazy. But here are some of the funny and memorable moments:

· Sandra got baptized!!!! Sandra has been investigating the church for over a year and finally was able to be baptized. She has truly been waiting for this day for forever so I felt so blessed to be in Limache on her special day. Right before her baptism, she was explaining that the spirit was so strong and she was so happy to make a covenant with our loving Heavenly Father. The member support was great! Our mission leader was out of town so things were a little extra stressful but it all turned out well! Sandra was confirmed a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on Sunday and was truly beautiful. She cried, i cried, we all cried!

· Bueno, I left Limache and it was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. I really came to love the people in Limache. And it was a complete surprise which made it a lot harder. Last Sunday night, we received a phone call from the assistants telling us that they are gonna white wash Limache. We were in Obispo´s house when we received the news and I started to cry right in front of their family haha oops. We took a couple pictures and then we ran to another family and had to say ¨see you later¨ again. I didn´t know that it was going to be so hard to leave my area but wow. I left part of my heart in Limache. But don´t worry! Hermana Mannewitz will be making a trip back!!!!

· I saw Hermana Norman!!! But I forgot to take a picture Ñ) but it was so good to see her! We got to spend the whole afternoon together and we talked and talked and talked. En verdad, I have made lifelong friendships in the mission YA

· One of our investigadores here in Guemes was recently in a fight and lost his eye. HIS EYE!!!!! Now he has a fake eye and in the middle of our lesson he took out his eye!!!!!!!!!!! That´s right. I saw an eyeless man. it was really creepy

· (dramatic elder) Ï either have a sinus infection or I have cancer¨

· One of the chicos here in Guemes was telling me of his lifelong dreams to go to the USA and so I asked him why he wanted to go. Like maybe for the white house, temple square, statue of liberty ' the natural touristic things. But no. He told me he only wanted to go to the USA to go to Chuck-E-Cheese. hahahahaha

· Mariano, a recent convert here in Guemes, is tan capo!!! About a year and a half ago, he was in a terrible motorcycle accident and now doesn´t now have feeling in his arm and has lots of troubles with his leg. He lives in pain poor thing. But he is such an incredible example to me because he always has a positive attitude. And he rides his bike everywhere. Tbh, I have no idea how he does it but I respect him. I agreed that I would never complain about my bike again. Also, he is basically doing all the missionary work in the ward. He was telling us of all the activities he wants to have in the church to help the youth. que capo!

· One grandma was telling us about her conversion story and the elders who taught her. Then she told us that the elder got dear-johned and he went to her house and cried and cried and cried. haha the grandma told us that she just saying ¨please. Would you stop crying? She’s fat anyways.¨

5 things I love about Guemes:

1. We have bikes!! Our area is really big so we have bikes to get around faster. They are so much fun!!! I always feel like singing (aka screaming) “Called to Serve” while we are riding in Centro and yeah. Lots of people stare. A blonde gringa smiling and singing on her bike! But life is too good! You gotta enjoy it!

2. Grido is right around the corner from our apartment!!!! And I have already made friends with the people who work there! Sebastian and Facundo are true homies.

3. The church is also in our area which is AMAZING! I didn´t realize how much of a struggle it was to walk all the way to the church in Limache so now that it’s so close, I am truly counting my blessings.

4. The members are great! I don´t know why I thought I wouldn´t find good members in other areas but I was wrong! The members here have a lot of love for missionary work and are always willing to help us out!

5. Hermana Taylor!!!! That´s right! Another gringa! Pretty crazy! But Hermana Taylor is incredible. Her dad served here in Guemes several years ago. What a special experience that she gets to serve where her dad served! But Hermana Taylor is so patient and always looking for ways to improve! She has lots of time here in Guemes and so she knows the area really well but is helping me learn the area quickly! She is so in tune with the spirit and is so good at identifying the needs of our investigadores! This is gonna be a great transfer!

Yup. I feel so blessed. The Lord is truly looking out for me!!! Although change is hard, I have found great comfort in the promises of the Lord. And I know that He ALWAYS completes His promises. One of the promises that I have read over and over again this week is found in Alma 26:5-7

“Behold, the field was ripe, and blessed are ye, for ye did thrust in the sickle, and did reap with your might, yea, all the day long did ye labor; and behold the number of your sheaves! And they shall be gathered into the garners, that they are not wasted.

“Yea, they shall not be beaten down by the storm at the last day; yea, neither shall they be harrowed up by the whirlwinds; but when the storm cometh they shall be gathered together in their place, that the storm cannot penetrate to them; yea, neither shall they be driven with fierce winds whithersoever the enemy listeth to carry them.

“But behold, they are in the hands of the Lord of the harvest, and they are his; and he will raise them up at the last day.”

I know that it reads in past tense and I still have 11 months to go but I was reading this chapter specifically for Limache. I am far from perfect, but I worked my hardest and witnessed lots of miracles! I had the opportunity to help a few people receive the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ and was really sad to leave them behind. But there is a promise!!!!! They are not my converts. They are now in the hands of the Lord. He will look after them and He will help them press forward. I know that to be true. I’m so glad for all the things that I have learned with these changes in my life. I know that God is our loving Heavenly Father and that He wants us to be happy! I know that He has prepared a perfect plan of happiness that is specific for every one of us!

So happy! So blessed! So grateful!

Thanks for all the prayers, love and support! Have a super great week!

HOY ES EL DIA!

Hermana Mannewitz

Have to use hats here in Guemes because it is so hot!!!

I love my life!!!

Transfers

October 16, 2017

We got a note (and the attached pictures) from a member in Limache last night saying that Hermana Mannewitz was being transferred today. We have since learned that she is in a small town called Guemes which is about 40 minutes from Limache. She was surprised by the transfer and is a little overwhelmed. Her new companion is Hermana Taylor from Portland. They get to ride bikes in this area so it will add excitement and adventure to this next chapter.

Keep her in your prayers! We look forward to hearing from her next week!

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers in her behalf. It means a lot to her (and to her family here as well).

Enfirmita

October 9, 2017

Hola from good ole Limache! My poor companion has been super sick this week so sadly we were trapped in the apartment for a few days. But I was able to leave with some members to work on Saturday and Sunday so that’s super exciting. But yeah, I don’t have a lot of news this week because we didn’t do much. Perdon!

However, Sandra is preparing for her baptism and is super humble and ready to make a covenant with our Heavenly Father! She has been preparing for her baptism for over a year so is super excited to receive the innumerable blessings that come from baptism. Keep praying for her progress!
I got asked to play the piano on Sunday and we sang “Called to Serve” and bueno, I’m a missionary so I played it really loud, fast and with a lot of energy. Afterwards, all the members were like, “Wow Hermana Mannewitz, que fuerte!” Haha I just love missionary work, that’s all!
I had extra time to study my scriptures, general conference talks and other resources that gave me even more encouragement to do missionary work – the work of salvation. Although it is not always easy, we are promised that “those who WHOLEHEARTEDLY turn their lives over to our Savior and serve God and fellowmen discover a richness and fullness to life that the selfish will never experience.” And the Lord is on our side!

Jacob 5:71-72 reads:

“And the Lord of the vineyard said unto them: Go to, and labor in the vineyard, with your might. For behold, this is the last time that I shall nourish my vineyard; for the end is night at hand, and the season speedily cometh; and if ye labor with your might with me ye shall have joy in the fruit which I shall lay up unto myself against the time which will soon come.

And it came to pass that the servants did go and labor with their mights; and the Lord of the vineyard labored also with them; and they did obey the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things.”

I testify that this is the truth. That the work of the Lord requires all our power and as doing so we can rejoice! SO HAGALA YA! Don’t give up! Don’t lose faith! Keep your heart close to the Lord and He will lead you to the people who are waiting. I love missionary work! I love serving others. And I love my Savior Jesus Christ.

Thank you for all the support! I’ll have more exciting news next week since we will be able to work!

HOY ES EL DIA!

Les amo!

♥ Hermana Mannewitz

District photos

Alcohol-less Alcohol - it's disgusting!!!

Obisopo's dog

Servicio = car wash

Dress-up with Valentina y Lucia

Monday, October 2, 2017

La Conferencia General

Hola! Feliz Octubre!! I hope you are all preparing your pumpkins, candy apples, and costumes. Another great week here in Limache! Stay tuned:

CHISTOSOS:

· I’m going on a diet for the month of October. That’s funny!

· The life of a missionary in one sentence: “Tengo hambre and teng 12 pesos.” (I’m hungry and I have 12 pesos). 12 pesos is approximately $0.75, but luckily I could buy 2 alfajores. But the man laughed at me when I said that.

· This is less funny and more just an interesting fact. Elder Damron (our district leader) got robbed and punched in the face. Poor thing!

· While we were walking and working in Limache, we saw a mother holding her young daughter over the street and she was pooping! I didn’t want to see that!!

MILAGROS:

· There are some really great Hermanas in my ward here in Limache that helped me make a skirt and dress. I am so thankful for their time and help.

· We had interviews with Presidente this week that went really well! Even though he was 3 hours behind, when it was finally my turn, I was able to receive counsel and direction. I know that Presidente Orquera is called by a prophet of God to lead and guide our mission and I am so thankful for him and his family.

· GENERAL CONFERENCE!! Wow! General Conference was so good and I got to watch it in English which was truly a blessing. I know that General Conference is a worldwide broadcast but I truly felt like they were speaking directly to me. I learned a lot and have a lot to improve, but am grateful for the inspiration I received. Keep President Monson and the family of Robert D. Hales in your prayers! I know these men are called of God. I know they receive revelation directly from our Heavenly Father that will help us have more peace and joy in this life. Follow the Prophet!!!

· There are always miracles in member missionary work. This week we have been working extra hard to teach with members in every lesson. The power in the testimony of an average latter-day saint truly helps our investigadores understand the importance of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

· This week we had a lesson with Maria Emilia, our recent convert. We began the lesson with just her by singing “I am a Child of God”. By the second verse, her little brother and sister had wandered into the room to join us. Music is powerful! Her siblings are young and can’t read but were singing along. Maria Emilia told us that she always sings “I am a Child of God” in her home to lift spirits. I almost cried. So grateful for her incredible example through music.

This week I was studying in Mosiah 24 and absolutely loved what I learned. Alma and his people were having some difficulties and needed divine help. The first thing they did in their moment of crisis is pray. Then we read how the Lord responded to their heart-felt cries:

“And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.

And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord.” (verses 14-15)

I love these verses. It doesn’t say that God took away their trials, but gave them strength to press forward. And what did Alma and his people do? GAVE THANKS! I love the chain of events in this story: cry unto the Lord → receive strength → give thanks. There is so much power in being grateful! Gratitude has changed my life.

Les amo! HOY ES EL DIA!

♥ Hermana Mannewitz