¡Hola Familia!

Who knew your heart could break so many times on a mission? Man... agency. This week was incredible with so many spiritual experiences and it was also full of many frustrations and heart breaks. It was good to be back in Shelbyville though! 

Raul... we had the most powerful lesson with him. The struggle with him has been his pride, he hasn't wanted to admit that he needs help from his Heavenly Father and he doesn't like the idea of having to depend on his Savior. We brought Sister Powers with us to his lesson (probably in the top 10 best decisions we made that day) and we taught him the Plan of Salvation. The spirit that was there was incredible, and Sister Powers was so in tune with the spirit. I honestly don't feel like any of us talked in that entire lesson, I think the spirit had total control and he spoke the entire time. It was so powerful. 

We were able to really incorporate the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Atonement, partaking of the sacrament, and baptism into the lesson. We made it very clear what he needs to do in this life in order to prepare for the next. We ended the lesson with the Mormon Message "Waiting on our Road to Damascus" (I'll put the link at the end of this email). And I wish y'all could've been there to feel the spirit that was there. He finally opened up and talked about some concerns he had and admitted to be prideful. He said the closing prayer and said, "Father, please help me to overcome my pride." 

Kristy and Aniyah... they were super busy at the beginning of the week but we were finally able to have a lesson with them on Thursday. They came to the Hurt's home (shout out to the Hurt's for being the best fellow shippers there ever was) and we taught a 15 step program to quit smoking. Again, the spirit was so strong. We started talking about prayer and Kristy broke down crying as she told us of the trials she was going through, we all cried together as we listened to her hardships she was facing. And I know that the Savior was in the room crying with her as well. I was grateful for the spirit that filled the room. We taught the program and she was motivated and excited to start the program the next day.

Friday... this is where the heart breaks come in. We went over to Raul's house on Friday (oh just a side note... Hermana Heil and Parra visited Raul while we were on exchanges and Raul's dad came out and started Bible bashing and yelling... so I guess their hearts weren't softened after all) but we stopped by his house and he was too busy for a lesson. So we asked if we could have a lesson with him on Saturday and he told us he couldn't because he was going to be with his girlfriend the entire day. But he promised us he would go to church. 

Then we texted Kristy to check up on her and to see how she was doing on the 15 step program... she gave up. The grapefruit juice was too gross and she didn't have money for cigarettes anyway so she didn't need the program. Ah, it made me so sad. A few hours later we got a text from her cancelling her appointment for that night. We had even made her and Aniyah a baptismal calendar and everything. 

Saturday, we got a text from Kristy telling us she was mad (and I can't really tell why) but because of someone in the ward. She told us she felt like Christ wouldn't treat her that way and she couldn't believe someone would've treated her the way they did (If you knew the whole story you would know that she was actually treated really well). We tried helping her out the best we could, but she wasn't going to hear it. 

Sunday, we knocked on Raul's door and his not so happy mom came out. We asked for Raul and after what seemed like forever he finally came out. He explained to us that he couldn't come to church because his mom and dad were making him go to their church (also his parents have been flooding him with anti). Ah I was so sad. We got to church and Kristy and Aniyah weren't there either and they wouldn't answer any of our phone calls or text messages. I was so sad. At the beginning of the week if you would've asked me if they were all going to make their baptismal dates of May 27 I would've said there's no way they won't make it. But now I think there's no way they will make it. Opposition, it's a real thing! 

It makes me so sad to watch though because I know how happy they would be if they would just grab onto the gospel and really apply it into their lives. This gospel has brought me so much happiness and I want them to have that same happiness in their lives. I wish so badly this world could learn from the stories of the past in the Bible and the Book of Mormon and realize it never works out without God. Humility will get you so much further than pride ever will. But I did realize this week how frustrated my Heavenly Father must get with me when I don't use my agency for the best, even when I have learned the same lesson over and over. It's probably why he sent me on a mission, to make me realize what it feels like haha! 

But even though there were some really sad moments of the week, there were some really fun and happy ones. Sister Dickerson is doing great and so is Mauricio and Pedro. We had our weekly soccer game and our team won! Hermana Heil and I both scored a goal #thehermanasrule. We did service at the swap and shop this week. The church does it every year it's where everyone brings in things they don't want and then people come in and grab as many things as their arms can carry. It's a big deal. I got to sit at a booth in the very front and welcome people in. My line was, "I'm the Swapp and there's the shop!" 😏 (As I pointed to where they can find their free treasures). I thought I was pretty cool. 

We had lots of other service opportunities like: walking dogs in the animal shelter, working at the food bank, mowing lawns, and much more. Also, Hermana Heil is just a party and it's impossible not to have a fun week when she's your companion. So it really was still a great week here in the GKLM. 

I want you all to know I love my Savior so very much, He is real and I am so grateful to have the opportunity to witness Him change so many lives. I am amazed every day at the love He has for everyone and at all that He does every single day still to help His lost sheep. This is His work, He's at the head of it, and I am so grateful to be His servant. He is the Christ. 

I love you all so very much. I hope you have a great week and remember to be happy. Because life is too short to be anything else. 

Con amor,

Hermana Swapp

PS: "Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers." -D&C 112:10

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2012-01-003-waiting-on-our-road-to-damascus?lang=eng

The Soccer Squad!

Hermana Heil and I found a shopping cart and we had way too much fun.

We got stuck in the worst rain storm. It hit us like a wall, we went from dry to drenched in 0.1 seconds.