Harbor City week 6

 Sister Malani, Sister Deskins and I after a spanish baptism
we attended with one of our investigators.

Well - I've officially been in Harbor City for a whole transfer! I can hardly believe it! Seriously - with each passing transfer the times just seems to fly by quicker and quicker. And with that flying time means that transfers are this week....we will get the call tomorrow night knowing whether we are staying are going, then Wednesday all necessary changes will be made! Ah it's a stressful time, but an exciting one as well. Sister Malani and I think we're going to be staying together, especially because this is her last transfer (sad! I know!) and so we don't think that President/The Lord will move either one of us. But, we never know. So, you'll find out next week! haha I just pray that whatever happens the Lord will help me to see why I'm where I am and why I'm with who I'm with. It can be hard to accept change sometimes, but accept it we do and then try to move on and keep working. After all, it's not my work but His, and so I think He knows what's best for it :D Better than I do at least....

This week was amazing! We had some really great experiences by following the Spirit. For this month, our zone is really focusing on working with the members in our areas to help move the work forward.  Sister Malani and I have really been trying to do that, we haven't been spending as much time finding. Not to say that we haven't been finding (cause appointments always fall through, and there is always time to knock on a few doors) but our focus has just been shifted. And so, this week we decided that we were really going to follow the spirit when it came to finding. We decided to go to a part of our area that we are almost NEVER in, and just tract for 30 minutes. We both felt really good about being there, but had no idea why. Stop and park the car and start walking. We knock some doors, not many people are home and so we turn down a little side street which ends in a cul-de-sac. We start knocking and people are nice but nobody is interested. We had an appointment coming up soon and so we decided to head back to the car when we realized that there was one door left on the block that we hadn't knocked. Then we turned around and when back to that house. When we knocked on the door a GIGANTIC dog came barking and running at the screen door (the actual door was open) and we thought for sure it was going to break down the door and tackle us. Luckily, it stopped short of coming outside. We just stood there. Trust me, we contemplated just leaving but we felt like we should stay. I mean, after all if a door is open someone ought to be home. Sure enough, out comes a man and he opens the door and his big, giant golden lab comes outside and starts licking us and being super friendly. He asked who we were, we told him we were missionaries and then he said, "Ok. Share with me the good news" Slightly shocked we smiled and then shared a message with him about prophets and The Book of Mormon. We gave him a card to get a free copy and to check out mormon.org. And you know what? He was super nice and told us that he works with some Mormons and has always admired them and the way they live their lives - and how they just seem like happy people. We testified that our message/the Gospel of Jesus Christ would bless his life an he said, "yeah, I know" and then he stopped and said, "You know, it's funny that you two girls stopped by today. I've been going through a really tough time with my parents and so I've been trying to really get closer to God lately. In fact, the reason it took me a little to get to the door was that I had actually been praying for guidance. And then I heard a knock. that's crazy, huh?" WOW RIGHT?? Heavenly Father is SO good! He knew that we would be in that area and that this man would be praying and everything. What a beautiful experience. Then we tried to set a specific time to come back but he just said he works a lot and so we could 'stop by anytime' so...we'll see. If nothing else, this man now knows that God answers prayers. Cool, huh?

And to add to that experience the next day we had about 10 minutes before our dinner appointment and so we turned to our backup plans and decided to contact a potential named N****. When we went to her apartment and knocked she wasn't there, but across the way in another apartment visiting for a birthday party or something. Because the door was open she saw us and came to talk for a bit. We introduced ourselves and got to know her a little bit. After about 5 minutes we could see her kids were running around so we asked for a return appointment she told us "Absolutely, when are you guys free?" So, we set an appointment for the next day. The cool thing about this experience was that as we were about to leave she turned around and said, "You know, it's funny that you two girls should come by today. I've been going through a lot lately and so last night after I put my kids to bed I was talking to God and asking him for his help and guidance, to know what I need to do in my life. And then you girls came by today. Isn't that weird?" Sister Malani and I were shocked, especially because the day before we had talked to the man who said the same thing. So once again we testified of how the Gospel blesses families and left her with a card. Sadly, when we went for our appoitnemtn the next day she wasn't there, but she left us a note telling us to please call her and reschedule, so we're in the process of doing that now :)

So this week, I've really learned that the Lord truly listens to an answers all of our prayers. If I had more time, I could tell you about many more experiences that we've had this week regarding prayer and those that we teach. But just know that the Lord knows your desires, he knows what you pray for, and if you put forth the study and effort and faith he will answer you. Why? Because he LOVES you!!!

The work is great!

Sister Hensley

Oh - and on a funnier note, I totally threw up after a dinner appointment this week. On the sidewalk (or rather, the grass in between the sidewalk and the road). About 3 houses down from the members we ate. It's not that the food was bad....just too much and an odd combination of things (including red kool aid and choclate brownies and ice cream) that my body just didn't agree with. It was super awkward. And I felt bad for anyone who walked by after we drove away....

Note from Dad. Shannon has almost always thrown up red kool-aide. We don't know why but we finally stopped making it when she was a kid.

Plus we had a baptism this week.

 left to right: our ward mission leader, me, maya and her primary teacher's husband, sister malani, and maya's mom

The son of a family that we have FHE (Family Home Evening) with every week...we came over and he had ong an astros shirt! (all the little league teams here are named after real teams, and I guess he's on the astros) anyway - had to take a picture!

Harbor City Week 5

I can't believe that I've been here in Harbor City for 5 weeks already?? Oh man - the time really does fly on the mission.

And boy do I have exciting news! This weekend, we're having a baptism! Yeah! Its of a 10 year old girl named Maya. Her mother is a member, and they've just recently come back into activity and so we've been teaching Maya and she wants to be baptized! It's really exciting. It's a bit of a surprise, and at the same time it's not. We were planning on having her baptism this past weekend, but scheduling conflicts have kept the plans kind of up in the air.  Then all of the sudden the schedule opened up and the baptism is moving forward! And the most wonderful thing about it all is how excited Maya is to be baptized. She reads her scriptures with her mom, watches the church movies, and even reads the stories in "The Friend" magazines that we've given her. She's very sweet and has a great testimony of the Gospel and so we're looking forward to this Saturday. It should be a very special day for everyone involved :)

Sister Malani and I had an interesting experience last night. It was the first time that I've ever really been attacked for what I believe. For the most part here on the mission people are respectful and even if they disagree usually take a "we'll agree to disagree" status and tell us to "be safe". However, last night that was not the case. We started to talking to a woman who was very set in her ways and was very knowledgeable about the Bible and about many religions. She talked for quite a while and then asked us about what we build our foundations on, and why we believe what we do. We hadn't even said 1/2 a sentence when we were interrupted and the bashed. We then tried to speak again, but any time we said the words "Book of Mormon" off she'd go an not let us get a word in. Even when we tried to take a different approach and talk about Christ, she brought it back to the Book of Mormon and then went off. Finally after we were able to find an opening we politely thanked her for her time and tried to go. It was unsuccessful. Finally we were able to get away. Boy what an experience it was. It just further strengthened my testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ and of the truthfulness of this restored gospel. I knew what I believed, and while it hurt me that she was mistaken about us and our beliefs it didn't shake my testimony. And I am so grateful for the Gospel in my life and for the opportunity that I have to serve Him for this short time.

Well. I'm sure there are many more things to say and experiences to be recounted but....I can't think of them at the moment. Just know that I love you all!! And I hope that y'all had a very lovely Mother's Day

LOVE,
Hna Hensley

In case you haven't gone to the mission blog I have copied the pictures of Shannon and put them here.
Dad.
 
Her current zone.

Harbor City Week 4

Y'all will never guess where I just came from - THE BEACH!

Hola Familia!

Yeah! Today was beach preparation day! Once a year, all the missionaries get a turn to go with President and Sister Baker to the beach! Our zone went, along with 2 other zones. It was a blast! Oh how I miss being out in the sunshine and playing in the sand. I put on plenty of sunscreen and then played beach volleyball for about 2 hours and then just sat and relaxed and took some pictures :) it was nice! My feet are sore from running around in the sand, and I'm quite tired but it was all totally worth it!

Bula

And, in case you were wondering, "Bula" means "Hi" in Fijian :)


This week has been an amazing one. We were able to see a wonderful miracle the week with S***** and A******, the Indian couple we've been teaching. I was on splits with Hna Alcantara and we had an appointment with them - our final appointment of the day. At our last appointment they committed to read 3rd Nephi 11. When we started the lesson, A****** told us that they had started to read together but that it was difficult to understand, so they weren't able to get very far. We were ecstatic that they took the effort to even start reading! It's not every day that our investigators keep their commitments! Hahaha So we abandoned the "planned" lesson that we had and decided to just read the chapter with them. The Spirit was so strong.  They are so sincerely learning the Gospel - it was beautiful. They are so humble and prepared to receive this message at this time. When we got to the section of the chapter where Jesus teaches about baptism we stopped reading and talked about baptism, then we talked a little bit more about baptism. We had talked to them in our first lesson about it but they were still a little confused on the concept and what exactly it meant.  We decided to teach them a little bit more about Christ and His plan before approaching it again. This time, it was perfect. Like I said, the Spirit of God was so strong, We asked them if they would follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized by someone holding the Priesthood authority of God - and they said yes! They decided on the 26th of May to be baptized! It was a wonderful experience. They came to church this Sunday for the 2nd time and the ward members were great. Everyone was coming up and introducing themselves and saying hello. Ah - it was great! Such a testament to how much more effective the work of the Lord is when members and missionaries work together.


This week we also had many opportunities to do service for the members of the ward. A lot of people are moving (which is sad) but we've been able to help them. It was a lot with packing and cleaning and getting ready. It's always an amazing experience for me to see the personalities of the people around me through the items that they've accumulated over the years. No matter what, I love to serve and it's such a blessing of my missionary service to be able to help people out in that way, as well as in teaching them the Gospel.


Sister Malani and I had a rather interesting experience yesterday while we were out tracting.

We didn't have any set appointments for the afternoon after church and so we decided to try and go find some potentials and formers. None of them were home and so we decided to knock some doors around the area we were in. People were generally nice but nobody was interested in having us come back. So we decided to knock one last door before moving on. This time it was my turn.  We take turns knocking and talking, and so I picked a door that seemed unintimidating. This older woman opened the door and she was holding a Rosary. So, I knew she was Catholic and didn't expect her to let us in - but she did! We walked into her house, and I've never seen so many statues in my life, almost all of them were different versions of 'Our Holy Mother".  Right away she started to tell us all about her family and about the different statues and about her beliefs and some miracles that she's seen in her life.  We could not get a word in edgewise. It took about an hour :) It was all very interesting and inspiring but by then we had to go and so we said about 3 minutes worth about ourselves and then set a time to come back tomorrow! So we'll see how that goes :)


Whelp, my time is about gone. I love you all! Don't forget to read and pray and go to church!


Love,
Sister Hensley

P.S. Here is another picture of the Sisters in our Zone.

Harbor City Week 3

Wow. I can't believe this transfer is halfway over! I mean...where does the time go?

This week,as always has been a very busy one for our companionship. We had zone conference,exchanges,and Mormon helping hands!
Not to mention all of the regular missionary duties to attend to. I hit the bed absolutely exhausted every day this week and it's a great feeling. Knowing that you've worked hard and done all you can for the Lord that day is very satisfying - and while I never seem to get enough sleep, I know that the Lord gives me strength to be able to carry out His work here in this part of the vineyard. However, just be prepared to have me hit a sleep-coma for about a week when I come home haha

Zone conference was amazing. It focused on working with the members of the church in further the missionary efforts. we talked about how we can help the members and allow them to help us as well. I learned so many things about the organization of the church and the Priesthood that I thought my head was going to explode. It can be overwhelming to think of all of the things that the Lord needs us to do in our short time on the Earth,but I know that if we (or I) just take it one day at a time then everything will be ok. It's much better for Him to be in charge of it all than me anyway :) He is perfect,after all. I attached a picture of Sister Bahr (she's one of the other sisters in the zone) and Sister Malani and me that was taken while we were waiting on the last few Elders to show up for the zone picture,which I'm assuming is on the CLAM blog -so check it out!



The mission blog is in the links on the right in this blog.

This week I also went on exchanges and was able to spend the day with Sister Lameko (she's from Samoa).
 Exchanges can be difficult because you have to work with somebody new for the day and/or in a new area. Luckily this time I stayed in Harbor City and double luckily I was able to work with and learn from Sister Lameko. We're actually working with an investigator who is Samoan and so we were able to stop by and she spoke to him in Samoan and was able to communicated to him better than Sister Malani and I can in English. The Lord truly knows what he's doing when he inspires our leaders to make decisions - even ones so seemingly simple as who goes where for exchanges. Something else that we were able to do while we were on exchanges was more service! We missionaries were able to participate in our stake's Mormon Helping Hands project,which was cleaning up the streets of San Pedro. We basically walked up and down the streets picking up trash and debris for a few hours. While picking up other people's garbage is not one of my favorite past times, somehow when you're doing it to help others and the community it isn't that bad. And by the end of the day,I was only mildly sunburned -triple bonus!


The work here is going great. We have several people who are working towards being baptized in May and so it's a joy to help them grow. With the Lord's help we've been able to do good things here in Harbor City - and I'm looking forward to an even better week than the last! Don't forget to read and pray every day - it'll make all the difference in the world. I promise :)


Con amor,
Hna Hensley