Goodbye Chi 4, Hello Chi 3

 So the snow is here!!!
Ahhh and it's beautiful! Cold but beautiful!

So this week I found out I'm getting transferred :(
I am going to go to Chicago 3rd on Logan Square with this amazing
missionary, Hermana Stout!

On Sunday the bishop asked me to bear my testimony and like usual I
cried like a baby as I told these wonderful people that I loved them
and that I'll never forget them and the things I have learned from
them.
Then we got to see the primary program as I again as usual cried like
a baby as they sang songs that I have sang all my life. The reason it
was so sweet to me is because it was sung by these beautiful angels
that while they were up there they kept waving at me and smiling. And
also because the words they sang are true. They sang "I'm a child of
God" , " a child's prayer" "follow the prophet" and the last song they
sang was "I hope they call me on a mission" and that's what hit home
to my heart. I got these flashbacks of myself singing that song with
Kirsten and Chelsea without a clue that one day I'll actually be on a
mission, so would my best friends.
I got overwhelmed with the spirit as it testified to me that the Lord
knew I would be here with these people having these experiences all my
life.
And he knew that Kirsten would be in Austrailia.
And that Chels would be on a mission being a loyal disciple of the
Savior and because of her example and Kirsten's , I am here.
One thing I have learned in this ward, Chicago 4th ward is to keep on
trying. That it's okay to not be perfect but we gotta keep on trying
and getting better and then trying to be excellent and that it's okay
that there's road blocks and to just keep on trying.
I'm so grateful for the opportunity to serve here and now it's time
for this ward to bless the life of another missionary.

I'm also grateful for the companions I have had while in this area.

My wonderful former comp, Hermana Dyer has taught me to trust that
exact obedience is the key to everything and the way to be successful.

My wonderful daughter Hermana Juan has taught me to be humble and that
"everything is going to be okay"

I know that these beautiful servants of the Lord will accomplish a lot
of things and will help lots of other missionaries!

I'm very excited to grow in another area!

I Can't Think of a Heading for this Email!!

Ahhh this week has been incredible!!

We were able to have our zone conference this week. It's a 6 hour
training! Pheew and that can be draining sometimes but we learn so
much about hastening the Lords work!!
It's great!! One thing that stuck to me is that we were talking about
"ask and ye shall receive"
Something that accord to us is that the scripture DOESN'T say "ask ye
shall receive exactly what you want and when you want it"
It's "ask and ye shall receive what the Lord has in store for you"
It made me think about how many times I put my faith in the wrong
aspect of things when I want something from him. So if it feels like
the  lord isn't responding, check again.

Okay okay okay so I'll start off by sharing that we have a new
investigator who we put on date for the 19th of December! So please
keep her in your prayers, she is so prepared for the gospel!! She was
found as she was crying on her porch when another set of missionaries
approached her, her name is Gaby Luna and she is the sweetest woman
ever with an adorable family!! So we are excited for that!!

We also picked up 2 new investigators! 2 which are part member
families! Which means that the family are members but they are not ,
and it's situations where we had to be extremely bold with love and
authority and it worked! And even came to church this Sunday!!

Also having 4 lessons this week with members present!! Whhoohhoo!!
We have been struggling lately getting members to lessons but all of a
sudden so much willingness and love have been shown by our members
that love missionary work!!
People, if you can do one thing for the missionaries (yes a meal here
and there are nice) but going out with them!!! To see less actives or
to go contacting or tracking or a legit set appointment! DO IT, GO, I
DONT WANNA HEAR THE EXCUSES, GO.

This week this area has bloomed like its spring!
We have been seeing so many miracles lately!!! And so much progress in
the work!! And I know that it's because of the 1 or 2 or 3 times we
have fasted this month!
I can see the Lords hand everyday and I love it!!
I love being a missionary! It's so nice being able to keep my mind
focused on the Lord and on his children.

So while I was doing my personal study the other day I was astounded
reading in Alma 35,36 and chapter 37, mostly where Helaman is being
told some awesome advice about life and stuff and then this one line
in a random scripture just touched me, actually mostly punched me by
the spirit.
It's Alma 37:47 where it says "See that ye look to God and live"
Such a simple line!! It honestly sounds like something that would be
pinned on Pinterest with very nice cursive and pastel colors being
pinned by people who probably don't even get the quote but it looks
pretty and like something young hip people would post.
ANYWAYS,
Something I have been noticing is that there's some people out there
that we have been talking to that make the gospel look so dang hard to
live and I hate hate hate that!!! Or that make the gospel feel just
too demanding !!!
All he asks of us is too keep him in our lives . Do our part and he
will do the rest.
I hope everyone enjoyed their week! Thanks for all the love and support!!!
Yours truly,
Hermana Curapil

We met the happiest guy and were so happy when we gave them a card
with Jesus on it ;)

Receiving a Witness

Hello everyone!!

I hope everyone has had a good week!

highlight!

- it was 8:30 and our appointment fell through and our back up plan
fell through so we were wondering where we were meant to go, so we
decide to drive down this street where it's more city like and people
on the street, when we get there there was no people because it was so
cold and windy. So we were driving and we see these two Hispanic
ladies walking with their dog and so we immediately pull over and
catch up to them. I told them I liked their dog so we didn't come off
weird as we came up behind them and then Hermana Juan asked if we can
show a video to them real quick (blessings of having iPads) and we
showed them "because of him" and as they were watching this video I
get this impression that one of the ladies has cancer. So When the
video was over Hermana Juan asks "what was a big trial in your life
where you have seen Gods hand?" And one the ladies (Jenny) says "I
think she (Berenice) has a better answer then I do" and she says "I
had cancer and almost died and was suppose to die and I didn't and I
know it's because God has a purpose for me in this life" I was amazed
how the spirit told me beforehand cause I was able to tell her
everything the spirit has guided me to say to her and I was talking
her eyes were glued to mine and I dared not to look away. We told them
we have answers to their questions and Berenice immediately took our
her phone and asked us to save our number on it, they are moving down
the street this week so they said we can visit them next week! But it
was so amazing!!!! The spirit was so strong, right there in the cold
in the middle of a street. I could see the spirit in their eyes , I
could see tears forming in their eyes but were able to hold it back
and they were so grateful, and I know that the lord was grateful for
our boldness and love we have to share the gospel with anyone, anytime
under any circumstances.


- ANOTHER HIGHLIGHT! We have an inactive lady who hasn't been to
church for almost a year! And it was mostly because her husband is
against the church and is an alcoholic and is super scary and we only
go over when he isn't home because he doesn't even know that she
receives us . And we have been working to hard with her telling her
about how the lord loves her and how she is capable and has the
courage to do what she needs to do with her husband! And this past
week we ate and her kids left To do their homework and she says
"hermanas I talked to my husband, I told him I'm leaving him with my
kids and I'm COMING BACK TO CHURCH" me and Hermana Juan leaped with
joy and started crying with her and gave her a hug and she said
"thanks for all you have done, I realize now that you guys were right,
I was never alone and I was strong the whole time and had enough faith
the whole time" and we are working with the ward council so that they
can help out ASAP and we are super excited to see her at church with
her kids there this Sunday!!!

I am so amazed how it's true.....we don't receive a witness until
AFTER the trial of our faith! I know that to be true because I have
seen it in my life and I love seeing it in other people's lives!! it
was also a reassurance that only believing and hoping can only get you
so far, it's all about ACTING! And showing the lord that you are
willing to do what must be done! And he will do the rest!! He loves
us, and is so ready to help us and answer our prayers as long as we do
our part and have patience and trust in him!


Highlight
    - going to alzas birthday party

Story time!

Hola everyone!

( if this too much to read , feel free to look at the pictures and highlights)

This week was so awesome!
The first story I will tell is when during exchanges , me and Hermana
stout had to go to that lesson with the deaf investigator where
Hermana stout got to use her sign language skills, and it was probably
the most strongest lessons I have ever been to. The spirit was so
strong and the whole time I was holding back tears and the funny part
is that I was the least involved person in that lesson. It was so
beautiful to see the way Hermana Stout could communicate with her, and
the thing that impacted me the most is that I could feel Gods love for
her so strongly! She showed such gratitude and had such amazing
questions! It's kind of hard to explain what I felt in that lesson.
For some reason I can't find words but all I know is that the spirit
confirmed to me how much he loves his children and how he really does
provide for the gospel to be taught to anyone in anyway. Not only that
but we watched the restoration with her and as we watched it, I could
see it in her face how the spirit let her know that what she was
watching was true! And my heart was SO FULL!! The spirit confirmed to
me that the restoration happened and Joseph Smith is a true prophet!
And I think that's one of the main things that hit me. That being a
member my whole life , just now on my mission have I gained a
testimony of the Restoration and of The Book Of Mormon and that's the
greatest feeling ever.

Story number two!
Our plans fell through on Thursday. And I have a huge testimony of
when things fall through is because we are needed somewhere else. So
we were trying to find a few PNIs (potential new investigators) and I
parked a few blocks away by accident because I got confused of where
the house was. That PNI wasn't home. So me and Hermana Juan were
walking, and she stops and says" do you think that Hispanics live in
that house? "And I said "idk, let's try it out"  so we walk to the
house a little hesitant , and scared of it being a nonhispanic I tell
Hermana Juan "okay you go for it" and she went and knocked and it was
a Hispanic family!!! It was a lady with 3 sons and we told her who we
were and that we had a 2 minute video on our iPad to show her. And she
let us in and we watched gracias a el and she loved it, she's not
really religious either so she really liked the video. And then we
just testified and asked to come back and she said yes! She was a
little hesitant but we do have a return appointment !

Story number three!
Me and Hermana Stout during exchanges were trying to find a PNI and as
we were walking away from the unanswered door, this polish lady was
raking leaves and we offered to help and she gladly handed over her
rake. And got an extra one for me. And we talked to her a little and
she pointed us to a house and said "you girls need to go visit this
guy, he's needs something spiritual , he's also puerto rican. And one
thing I have learned in the suburbs is once you find a Hispanic ,
right away ask them to start pointing at the houses that Hispanics
live in.  So we asked her if she knows of any other Hispanics and as I
asked her , a couple walks out of their house and Hermana stout goes
over there to talk to them as the polish lady was pointing to me where
the other Hispanics live, We were able to get 3 referrals that day!
And the other day me and Hermana Juan went back to that area and
started asking for more referrals and got 1 more, and we plan on
seeing those people this coming up week. So that's pretty awesome!!

Highlights
RAKING LEAVES FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE .

Love Being a Missionary

Somebody Hit Hump Day

Racking Leaves for the First Time in Her Life.

The Main Thing This Week

Hello people!

I have an awesome lesson to tell you all about that happened!

It's Alejandro! We went over to have a lesson, but as usual we never
get to it cause he has awesome questions all the time. So he asked if
he can skip over to the part of where Christ comes to the Americas,
which is perfect because that chapter talks a lot about baptism ☺️
So our minds were blown, and he said "so baptism is the only way" and we said "yes"
And then we asked "Alejandro do you know that the Book of Mormon is
true?" And he said "Of course I do, it makes perfect sense" , "when
will you feel ready for baptism?"
And he said...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
"Let me read a little bit more"
Ahhhhh I don't care about the fact that he didn't want to set a date
for baptism.  The fact that he's actually gaining a testimony of the
gospel and seeing blessings in his life is what literally makes my
heart want to explode with happiness!!!
AND he came to church this Sunday which was awesome, there's a recent
convert that is from Columbia that just got baptized last week.  They hit it off perfectly!
And made plans to hang out !!! SO AWESOME!
ITS ALL ABOUT THE FRUIT!!!! It's not just about getting them in the
water! It's about seeing their progress, seeing them exercise their
faith! Seeing a smile on their face and letting us know that they have
felt the spirit and that they know the Book of Mormon is true is
literally what makes everything worth it!
And THEN getting them in the water!
That's literally the only thing I will say in this email because it's
the main thing that has happened this week.

Here are some funny highlights
* we met a drunk men, where he went on a rant about how my skin was
too white to be Hispanic :(

HALLOWEEN DECORATIONS EVERYWHERE #ILOVECHICAGO

* Not being able to sleep, and Hermana Juan sang to me 5 different
Mexican lullabys till I fell asleep
* One of our less actives that is still kind of Catholic went on
vacation to Tennessee and they got us these rocks that are fools gold
and said to us " Here Hermanas we got you guys these because you girls
are like jewels in the eyes of Jesus"
* The Elders and we awfully sang at a fireside and literally practiced
for 2 hours and it still didn't sound good.


Anyways, love you all!

20 And a Little Wiser....

Who Needs a Fork
When you can eat cake with your face!!!

Hello everyone!!

I am so sorry I barely got to email last week.

But THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the wonderful birthday wishes!! They mean so much!!

I had a wonderful birthday!

Birthday Girl!!!!!

 Our sweet landlords are members of all the museums in Chicago, so they took us to 3 museums and it was all so awesome!!

We went to Shedd aquarium , the field museum, and the Alder planetarium.

 Even  on Pday I had the most spiritual experience.

My head could not stop thinking of the lyrics "how great thou art"

How great and creative and powerful is God to create EVERYTHING that exists.

It was confirmed to me that there's no way all this stuff just appeared by coincidence.

The water, the sea horses, the Dolphins , the jellyfish, the Sharks, The earth, the mountains, the volcanoes, the rivers, the sand The sky, the air, the clouds, wind, stars,  sun, planets and galaxies !

With this experience it has made me realize how tiny I am. And how I am literally nothing without my Lord, my God, Made me think of 

Mosiah 21 (when the people of Limhi turn to the Lord and put their trust in him.)

13 And they did humble themselves even to the dust, subjecting themselves to the yoke of bondage, submitting themselves to be smitten, and to be driven to and fro, and burdened, according to the desires of their enemies.

14 And they did humble themselves even in the depths of humility; and they did cry mightily to God; yea, even all the day long did they cry unto their God that he would deliver them out of their afflictions. And they humbled themselves even to the dust.

They humbled themselves even to the dust???

With that being said, I thought of

Helaman 12

7 O how great is the nothingness of the children of men; yea, even they are less than the dust of the earth.

8 For behold, the dust of the earth moveth hither and thither, to the dividing asunder, at the command of our great and everlasting God.

The dust is more obedient then the children of God.

How ridiculous is that? How true is that?

As I take a self inventory, I see that the dust moves when Gods says so, but do I move and act when God says so? Definitely not. Because I am a bratty child of God that thinks can take care of everything myself and I don't need to depend on anyone or anything.

And do things suck when I do that?

Yes. Without a doubt.

But do I learn from those things? Of course.

So sometimes I think of myself as an awful person, who isn't spiritual enough or diligent enough or just not enough in general.

As I was humming "How Great Thou Art" and looking at the stars and planets in the planetarium . I said to myself. Yes, God and Jesus Christ created all these beautiful and powerful things, But He created me too.

Just as he created every little and big thing on earth to fulfill its purpose, he has created me to fulfill my own purpose as well. I really do believe that.

And I believe (back to the scriptures) that if we humble ourselves before the Lord and allow him to help us by trusting in him, we will be able to see our potential and that we truly are meant to succeed.

God created gravity and air and that will never fail us.

Why would he allow his children to fail?

Brother and sisters , am I having a change of heart and an understanding of life?

Holy cow, I think I am.

Do you think you need a change of heart?

My comp took this picture just in time when all the Sharks and cool fishes weren't around.

Is it Monday Again?

So this week went by in a flash . What is happening?

So I don't have a lot of time so I'm gonna get down to the point here.

Highlights

* EXCHANGES! Totally forgot to take pictures with my BFF STL Hermana Dowdle. We had so much fun!! We did visited some awesome members and contacted some very awesome people and went to woman's conference. I am so grateful for my mission leaders and all I learn from them.

Hermana Curapil and Juan

* NEW MISSIONARY TRAINING MEETING. MAN I LOVE THIS MEETINGS! There are so inspired for the new missionaries and learned so much. After the meeting Hermana Juan and I got to open up about some things and we have been working so great together. We always have, but now it's EVEN BETTER!

We went to the famous "Portillos Hot Dogs"

* DISTRICT LUNCH .  Chicagoans go nuts over this place. It was fun to be able to get to know the other missionaries more and really talk about life and what makes want to be better!