Shortie Email :/

Hola!!
This is going to be a short one, sorry folks. I finished my 12 weeks of in-field training today, and transfers are tomorrow, so we`ll see if I get changed again! I`ll let you know next week. I`m loving it here and really becoming more like Christ every day. It is so important that with every decision we make, we are following the Savior`s example. THis life is meant for us to become more like Christ and to progress so that one day we can stand before Him and He will recognize us because we have taken upon ourselves His name (Moroni chapter 6).

I want to invite you all to read and listen to and re-read and re-listen to the conference talks that we were blessed with this weekend (at lds.org). Also, I would to hear from each of you which talk was your favorite and why, and what the speaker talked about. I wasn`t able to listen to all of the conference talks, and the ones that I did listen to were in Spanish, so I didn`t fully understand. I`d love to hear what was said and how it impacted your life :)

Speaking of Spanish skills, my Spanish is becoming so great! I really love the language, and I lvoe the people here.

Read your scriptures every day, love the Lord, and pray to Him to give thanks and to ask for all that you need. He is our Loving Father. He is waiting to hear from you. I know He lives, and I know that He is interested in our lives because we are His children.

¡Cuídense!

-Hermana Busath

ííHOLA!!

íHola!
On Wednesday, I was transferred to the ward Almendros in Guayaquil! My new companion is named Hermana Camacho. It was actually a pretty crazy transition. On Tuesday morning, Hermana Cambal and I left for Guayaquil so that we could take care of some business there. However, we didn´t know at that point that we would have transfers the next day, so we only brought one night´s worth of clothes to stay the night at the mission nurse´s house. So we took the 3.5-hour bus to Guayaquil, wrote our families at a Cyber (a place with a bunch of computers), taught lessons with the missionaries in the area, and slept at the nurse´s house. Then in the morning, we took care of our business then took the bus back to Aurora, where I had 20 minutes to pack everything to catch the very next bus back to Guayaquil. It was the craziest 20 minutes of my life! We raced back to the bus station and barely caught the next one back to Guayaquil. In the bus I got to call a couple of the members from Aurora to say goodbye. Then we stayed the night again at the nurse´s house, and in the morning I met up with my new companion and we took a taxi to the new area. And now I´ve been here for a week, and it´s great! The people here are a lot different from Machala. In Machala, and especially in Aurora, the people are really really poor. They live in shacks made from scrap metal, and the majority of the roads are dirt roads. Here in the city, most of the houses are 2-story nice houses, and all the roads are paved really nicely. The good thing is that there are hardly any dogs in the streets here! Knocking doors doesn´t really work here; we have to work only with references from the members or other people. So I´ve had to change my technique a little bit, haha. But I really love the city, and the ward is great. We don´t have  a ward mission leader at the moment, but a really awesome guy named Alejandro just returned from his mission to New York City, and we think he might be called. He speaks English, so it´s great to go teaching with him because I can ask him lots of questions about what stuff means. Hermana Camacho doesn´t speak a lick of English, like Hermana Cambal did. But it´s okay, because my Spanish is really progressing.

Speaking of my Spanish skills, I am speaking really well now! It´s actually hard to write my letter home because it´s hard for me to think in English, haha. I´m hoping I will still know how to speak English when I come home! Everyone here is surprised that I have only been in the mission for 2 months, so I guess that´s a good sign that the Lord is really helping me to learn Spanish!

Hope you´re all having a good week! I´d love to hear from you, and I´ll try to write back! :D

-Hermana Busath

Lots of pictures! I forgot which ones I attached, but there are some of Hermana Cambal and me, and 2 of us at the temple on Tuesday

:D The one where we have our hands on our hips, I was making fun of her for always doing that in pictures haha she doesn´t look very amused :P I also attached an oldie-but-goodie of Hermana Nazer and me in the CCM, and there´s one of the daughter of Hermana Sabrina from Aurora and me as well. I think that´s all... Disfruta! (Enjoy!)

Transfers!!

Well, I`m writing today from Guayaquil! I am being transferred today! Well probably tomorrow. I am going to be with a missionary named Hermana Camacho in Guayaquil! This is very bitter-sweet because I really enjoy working with Hermana Cambal, and I have such a soft spot in my heart for Aurora now. It`s been a really really great 2 months. I`ve learned a lot from my trainer, from the people in this area, and most importantly, from the Lord. I know that Jesus Christ lives. He really lives, and He really loves us. There really is a Heaven where Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father live, and I know that there are angels around us every day when we are following Christ. I know it. And if any of you don`t know it yet, find your testimony of the Lord, because it is so incredibly comforting to know that you are being watched over, and that you are never alone. Ahhh, I seriously love the work of the Lord. I love that I have the knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and I look forward every day to sharing the love of the Savior and the great news of joy and peace with the humble people here in Ecuador.

This week has really been great! We have been working with some new investigators and a lot with the members to help our investigators have friends at church. That is so key in missionary work. For all of you members of the church-- work with your missionaries to befriend their investigators! It really is the difference between a baptism and a life-long convert.

I don`t have much else to write... I did a bad job at writing things down throughout the week and now I can`t remember what happened this week haha but I hope you all have a wonderful week! Next week I`ll work on replying to everyone`s emails... Don`t worry, I haven`t forgotten about all of you! :)

Love,

Hermanita Busath

Pictures! :)

-Hermana Cambal and me with our view from our apartment

-My 3 converts (the fourth is in a different ward now)

-Hermana Nazer and me livin it up at church on Sunday :)

-Hermana Cambal and me in the Bishop´s car

-I spotted my first iguana! These things are HUGE here, and I was honestly scared to get any closer to it than I was in the picture, haha (click on the pic to make it bigger and look at the far right on the fence)

-Us with our investigator Klever and his motorcycle. The first time we had an appointment with him, he met us at a park and told us that he`d show us where he lived from there... on his motorcycle! Haha don`t worry mom, I wasn`t about to hop on his motorcycle. We took the bus and followed him to his house. SO many people here in Ecuador use motorcycles, and every day you`ll see a family of 4 or 5 riding one. The newborn is strapped to the mom`s back, the two little ones are in between the mom and dad, and one is riding in the front. It`s so incredibly dangerous, but it`s all they can afford to travel.

-The family in the house is another family of investigators that we have been working with. They are so wonderful and welcoming, and por fin have a baptismal date, as of yesterday :)

-Mayra is the woman with her 3 children. They are so sweet and awesome. Her husband (the son of our convert Nancy) died 2 years ago. She means a lot to me, and it`s been so wonderful to help her start a new life with her three children :)

-The 4 of us missionaries that lived together in Aurora this past month. I really love them all so much! Hermana Martinez is going hometomorrow, Hermana Cambal and I are parting ways tomorrow with new companions, and I don`t know where Hermana Nazer is going. But the 3 of them are so wonderful, and such great missionaries. I`m going to miss them :`(   (yes, my hair is wet, just got out of the shower!)

Hola from Aurora down South!

Hallo! This week has been great! I don`t have pictures to send because my camera is at a member´s house who is transferring my pictures to my jump drive. But next week I will send the one of Karem´s baptism!

Karem made it to her baptism, despite many bumps in the road on Saturday and then on Sunday as well. She was having problems with her family, but everything worked out and she was baptized and confirmed this weekend :) She is so wonderful! She´s 20 years old and has a very sweet personality. She is going to make a great Young Women´s president one day :)

On the other hand, Josué wasn´t baptised this weekend. He got really sick and ended up in the hospital :/ We´ve rescheduled his baptism for this coming weekend.

I really loved the talk that you sent me, Mom, and want to recommend it to everyone to read. It´s called Waiting on the Road to Damascus by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf. I shared it with one of our investigators, Edith, this week, because she is having a hard time deciding what to do in her life right now. She feels like she needs a lot more time to learn more about the church and read the bible before she is baptized. Read the talk to find out why I recommended it to her ;)

So this week during companionship study, I was practicing testifying to Hermana Cambal of the Book of Mormon, in Spanish. It was a really spritual moment. I was explaining the history, and said that just like there were people writing the Bible in another continent, there were also people here in the Americas that needed to know the way to salvation as well. I asked if she remembered the story of Christopher Columbus, when he came to the Americas and found the indiginous people here. But instead of saying "indiginous people" (indigenas) I said "unworthy people" ("indignos")! We laughed for a good 5 minutes. Well, first Hermana Cambal laughed, and through her tears she explained what I had said. It´s a good thing that didn´t happen in a real lesson! :P

I invite you all to read the Book of Mormon, starting from the very first page, to read more about these "indiginous people". I know the Book of Mormon is true, and that it is the word of God. I know that the prophet Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon through the power of God, and that Jesus Christ restored His original church again on the earth. His church is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And if you want to see what sort of thing I do every day here in Ecuador, ask my mom or dad to get you in touch with the missionaries in your area, who will come to your home and teach you about what we believe. (Except I´ll be doing it in Spanish, not English like over there in the States :) ) Have a great week!!

-Hermanita Angela Busath

Lovin' It Here!

Hi All,

I`m sending an awesome picture of a sunset here-- they`re gorgeous! But that`s all that would work to send from this computer. More to come next week :)

I am really loving the work here in Ecuador! This week has been great. We have been working with Josué and Karem to prepare them for baptism this week. They are both really great and are prepared to make this amazing covenant with Heavenly Father, but they could both use a little boost of faith. Josué´s mom is a little hesitant for him to be baptized, and he`s only 14, so we have had to talk a lot with his mom. But once we told her that he will have an interview to see if he`s ready to be baptized, she opened up a lot. I think that was when she realized that we aren`t just 2 chicas teaching about Jesus and asking everyone to be baptized-- we are representatives of the Church of Jesus Christ and we don`t just baptize anyone who talks to us, haha.

Karem is 20 years old and lives with her sister. She is dating a boy named Edwin who is a member of the Church, and she`s been to church 3 times but in his ward, not her own. She came to church with us this week, and she is totally ready to be baptized. She still has a few questions about the details, but we are teaching her every day and answering all of her questions. She`s really sweet and kind and she`s going to make a great Young Women`s president one day ;) We have a Family Home Evening planned with both of them tonight with a family from our ward, so that should be great! I`ll send pictures next week of the baptism.

We`re also working with more people, but I don`t have time to write about all of them, haha. Last night we started teaching a family who are friends with a man named Louis in our ward. Familia Bermeo actually only consists of the mom and her daughter Julianna, who has Downs Syndrome. I am really grateful for the privelege to work with them. They are so down-to-earth and ready to learn. Last night Julianna cuddled up next to me during the whole lesson; she`s a really sweet girl.

So here are some things that I`ve written down during the week to write home about:

-Have I told you that I have been eating fish and shrimp here?? It`s a miracle! Some of it is really disgusting, but some is actually pretty good! Did you hear that, Dad? I actually like seafood! I`m a changed woman! It`s amazing what the Lord can do to His missionaries to help on their missions ;)

-In the ward here in Aurora there are some really great jovenes. Youth. I always think of Jeff and wish that he lived here so that he could be friends with them. (I guess he`d probably have to learn Spanish first, haha) One of them is my convert Kevin. They`re all really great friends and they come out teaching with us a lot. (By the way, Jeff, it was SO GOOD to hear from you! (StrongBad voice) I`m so happy to hear about your Patriarchal Blessing! It sounds like you have some wonderful blessings awaiting you in the future-- Be sure to always be worthy to receive them from Heavenly Father! I can`t wait to hear from you again in a week! ;) )

-One of our investigators, Louis, always wears a shirt that says in big letters, "CAN YOU DIG IT?" It always makes me laugh and think of Dad. The people here wear shirts all the time with English writing on them, and I know that they have no idea what they say, because they wouldn`t wear half of them  if they did know haha

-Something funny here is that the people keep cheesy Christmas decorations up all year. I don`t know if they just don`t have time to take them down or if they just love Christmas, but it`s great!

I`ve been thinking a lot about what kind of missionary Christ was, and trying to be more like Him in my teaching and in my relationships with everyone here. I think it`s always good to think about Christ and how we can be more like HIm. So that is my invitation to all of you this week-- think about how you can be more like Christ, and do it!

Love,
Hermanita Busath

Great News!!

(I think Angie may have tried to attach pictures, but none came through) 

So we had cambios last week, and we received 2 new missionaries in our ward. Guess who`s one of them?? Hermana Nazer!!! She and Hermana Martinez are living in our apartment with us for the next 6 weeks! I am so happy! It`s been really great to catch up with her and spend time with her :)

This week has been really great. We didn`t have any baptisms on Saturday, but we`ve had some rockin lessons with our investigators. We`ve used the story in Alma 22 about Aaron teaching King Lamoni a lot in our lessons. Read in the Book of Mormon (if you don`t have a copy, you can find the scriptures on lds.org) Alma 22:14-15. What was the king willing to give up to have the happiness and joy of which Aaron spoke? Then read verse 16. What did Aaron say was the price for this happines? Then read Mosiah 2:41. What do we need to do/what do we need to give up to have this joy? What do you personally need to do to invite this happiness into your life? I`d love to hear anyone`s thoughts/feelings that you have when you read these verses! :)

So yesterday we had a great adventure. We left an investigator`s house and caught the bus which we thought would take us back to town. One wrong turn turned into another and into another, and pretty soon we were totally lost haha But all the buses go in loops, so we figured we`d just stay on until it looped back to where we started. 10 minutes, we figured. Well, 10 minutes turned into 30 minutes, which turned into 1 hour, and we ended up being on that bus for 2 hours! We made it back safely, but it was such a horrible waste of time. I`m really sad about that. As we reached our city limits again, Hermana Cambal turned to me and said in English, "Never in my life..." hahaha As we got off, the driver said, "Thanks for the company!" I`m sending a picture from the bus ride. Definitely a story I will never forget!

The people here are so receptive to the message that have to share. We`ve had great success in finding people to teach; they are so humble and love to talk and learn about the word of God. We are teaching one girl, Nathaly, who is so humble and prepared to fix things in her life so that she can live in accordance with the commandments of God. She wasn`t able to go to church this week, but I have great faith that she will come to know of the truthfulness of the restored gospel and be able to bless many in her service in the church.

We have so much help from our members in the ward here. They teach with us almost every day and are great at fellowshippìng our investigators. I really love Aurora. I`m going to be sad when the day comes that I have to leave here :( The Lord has really prepared these people to find answers to their questions in the gospel. I am so blessed to be able to work as a representative of Jesus Christ to help others find true joy and happiness.

Oh, and Happy Labor-day Weekend! I`d love to hear what each of you did today for the holiday! Remember always that Jesus Christ always has His arm extended to lift you when you`re having a rough time. He knows you, and He is always waiting to help you. Have a great week!

-Hermana Busath

3 Months.....Check!

Today is my 3 month mark! I have been on my mission for exactly 2 transfers (12 weeks) and we had transfers yesterday.... I`m still in Aurora with Hermana Cambal! I am really happy about that because I am finally getting to the point where I can have real conversations and joke around with her, haha! It`s going to be a great 6 more weeks here in Aurora :)

We had 2 more baptisms on Saturday! Their names are Kevin and Dalto. Kevin is 16 years old and reminds me a lot of Jeff. He lives with his aunt and he is really quiet, but he has such a strong testimony. He loves to play soccer and is just a really chill person. After his baptism, he asked, "Am I allowed to shower before my confirmation?" :) He has a really pure heart and he is really trying to do what`s right. He`s awesome.

Dalto is 9 years old, and he such a sweet boy. He is so loving and really loves to hear about Jesus Christ and learn about the gospel. He loves going to church and is always so happy to be there. His familiy life isn`t very good, so it`s been great to get to know him and be his friend, and bring the joy and happiness of the gospel into his life.

One of the sweetest experiences here in the mission is when I get to experience with someone the joy that they feel when they are introduced to God`s plan for them. What I mean is, as a representative of Jesus Christ, I am able to look into the eyes of another person and feel the pain that they are going through, them I am able to testify to them of the love that Heavenly Father has for them and of the help that He is waiting to give. I get to testify of gospel truths and of the incredible act of the Atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Then, I have the privilege of looking in their eyes and seeing the understanding that they have and the love and Spirit that they feel. I am the means of bringing consolation to their hearts and peace to their minds. It`s an incredible privilege.

I hope you all know of the Savior`s love and of your Father in Heaven`s love for you. They know who you are and how you feel. They have a plan for your life. We receive their guidance and love as we follow their teachings. Read the scriptures and pray every morning and night, and I promise you will be able to feel their love for you.

Love,

-Hermana Busath

-Me with the coolest thing ever-- a collection of banana stickers. The people here collect them (because there are so many bananas) so I started a collection of my very own!

 -A beautiful sunset here

-Hermana Cambal and me with a little girl in our ward. Her hair is a little crazy!

 -Hermana Harper and me

-Kevin and Dalto, our baptisms this week!

 -My zone

-The sisters in my zone

Baptism!!

Hola!!! I had my first baptism!!! It was amazing. Her name is Nancy and she has such a strong testimony of the Gospel. She just has so much faith that she believes everything we teach her the moment we teach. It makes sense to her; that`s how the gospel of Jesus Christ should be! We all have the Light of Christ in us, so when we hear the gospel of Christ, if we are prepared, our spirits recognize the truth. The Holy Ghost can testify to our spirits that it is true. 

There are so many people here who are ready and waiting to hear the truth of the restored gospel that I will probably have lots of baptisms here, so I`ll try to tell you a little something about each person when I send pictures. This week we have 2 baptisms planned-- Kevin and Dalto. I`ll send pictures!!

Mom, I really don`t drink that much coke like I thought I would. Like one cup a week, haha We drink lots and lots of water, and a little bit of natural juices from oranges or tomatoes. The thing that I need to eat less of is rice and bread haha It`s incredible how different the diet is here! Oh and could you tell Grams about the coke too? She emailed me last week but I don`t have time to email her back. And please tell her thank you for emailing me! And not to worry.

I love you all! Thank you for your support, emails and prayers. Have a great week!

-Hermana Busath

(I'm thinking Nancy is the woman in the middle?

Angela did not specify which person Nancy was in the pic)

(I believe this is one of her big lunches?

Again, she didn't label the pics, gonna have to remind her on that!)

Halooo!

HOLA!!!

I got a picture with One Direction at the mall!!!! (Check out the picture!!)

The other two pictures are from this afternoon when we made cake with one of my favorite sisters in the ward, Hermana Sabrina. Her husband is the ward mission leader. My clothes are all wet because an egg cracked and splattered all over me! I seriously don`t know how it could have had that much of a trajectory...

This week has been wonderful! We had a meeting with our mission president this weekend, then he spoke in our ward on Sunday. My mission president is awesome!!!!! His name is President Torres. He loves us so much! I really love him and his wife very much. He cries every time he talks to us, and when I had my initial interview with him, we both finished in tears. I feel like I barely know him because I barely ever get to see him, but at the same time I feel so much love for him and so much love FROM him. He always calls us "God`s angels" and cannot express how much of a privilege it is for him to be working alongside us. He came down to Machala this weekend to have a capacitacion (I don`t know the word in English haha) and told us that he`s going to plan for each of the zones to start attending the temple from now on!!!! How wonderful!!!! I cannot tell you how incredibly excited I was to hear that news. Then he spoke in our ward yesterday, and he had us 4 missionaries stand up, and he shared with the ward his love for all the missionaries and how we have sacrificed so much to be here and how we need the help of the ward members and how great of a work we are doing and a lot of other wonderful stuff. Definitely the best mission president there is ;) hehe. Before he sent me to my first area, he told me that my area is full of people waiting to hear the message of the gospel and that I have one of the best trainers there is. Our group from the CCM was his first new group, and he shared with us that before he was called to be a mission president, he had a dream in which he had many many more children, of many different races and they all looked different, and there was even a red-head in his dream. He wondered how that could be possible. Then he got called as a mission president, and he was waiting for us at the airport, and out walks Hermana Nazer (my CCM companion) from the terminal. Lo and behold, the red-head from his dream. He was crying before we even shook his hand! He is so loving. He is brand-new, but his focus, however, is on faith, charity, diligence, and humility. Ahhh, he`s amazing. I hope I get to know him a lot better in the next year and a half. I mean, 16 months haha.

Contacting people is great! We tract a lot, and the people are really receptive to hear our message. We get some REALLY devoted catholics, and then Testigos de Jehova, but other than that the people are really sweet and loving. We always invite them to be baptized in the first visit, and it`s amazing to me how many people accept it! The people here are just so ready for this message. They`re so humble. I love so much watching people feel the spirit for the first time, then praying with them on our knees and looking into their eyes as they feel the spirit testify to them of the truth of our message. I`m really trying to enjoy every minute!

Our baptisms didn`t go through this week :( Both Gerarda and Javier say that they aren`t ready for baptism. It`s really incredible how much Satan works on us right when we are making good choices in our lives. He doesn`t want us to be happy, so he will do everything he can to stop us from following God`s commandments. We need to always remember to stay on guard against the enticings of Satan! Remember that the Lord`s way always leads to happiness, and that we receive blessings after the trial of our faith.

I don`t have much time, but I recommend you should read Helaman 6:3 in the Book of Mormon this week. :)

Love, 
Hermana Busath

Greetings from Guayaquil!

Hola!

Guess who has an hour to write letters now! Wahoo! Maybe now I can respond to all the people who have been writing me emails and letters since I came out on my mission... Starting next week! Sorry about that....

We`re in Guayaquil today to finish up some VISA stuff. I love traveling to Guayaquil, but it puts a damper on our work with our investigators! Hopefully we will have time to visit a few of them tonight when we return back to Machala. 

Someone remind me next week to share the story about the lady with the bum shots... It`s hilarious. Bt I don`t have time now cause we`ve gotta catch the bus home!

The work is so great here! We have 2 baptisms planned for this Saturday! I will send pictures on Monday. Sorry I have no pictures today. And my Spanish is really progressing! How wonderful it is to have the Lord to help me learn this language. As I rely on His strength and serve Him, He blesses me in my efforts. I know that is the same for all of you. Rely on Him, and He will bless you. Follow Him, and He will make life easier for you. I know it`s true! I see it in my life and in the lives of my investigators every day!

Love, Hermana Busath

Mom asked me some questions, so here are the answers:

1. Give me an idea of what your day is like, what you usually do on the weekdays other than Pday, and also how far do you have to travel, and by what method, to get to a store for groceries? And do you have a "mamita", a woman who cooks for you? 

Every day is work, work, work. We wake up at 6:30, get ready until 8, study until 11 or 12, go to appointments, eat lunch with a member, and then tract and go to appointments until 9p. At 9 we plan for the next day for an hour, then get ready for bed and go to bed by 10:30. Lunches are HUGE, so we don`t usually get much dinner. We usually buy bread and fruit from the local tiendas (little stores) for dinner, but don`t really need more cause lunch is so big. And that is my day! Oh and Sundays are a little different. We wake up at 5:30 and leave by 7 to go around and wake up all our investigators for church. They won`t come if we don`t wake them up. So we spend 2 hours doing that before church at 9. Then after church is just the same as all the other days!

We have a mamacita for lunch. We don`t have to pay them, but a different lady every day of the week cooks lunch for us. Lunch is the biggest meal, so we get a lot of food!

2. What kinds of foods are you eating now that you are in Ecuador? 

I eat a LOT of rice. We get a heaping of rice with every lunch, then a side of something and a piece of meat. Also, before the main dish, we get a big bowl of soup. I`m starting to really use my exercise time wisely, because if I don`t, I will be very large when I get home! Let`s hope that`s not the case :) The food is not like what we usually have in USA, but it`s not bad or weird. It`s just cooked with different spices. And we are expected to eat every on our plate, which means practically licking the plate clean and eating absolutely everything off the bones. We drink coke with almost every lunch, and water the rest of the time. I have a really great water bottle with a filter that they gave us, so don`t worry about me getting sick from the water! And they DO eat with only spoons! It was true! The more wealthy families have forks and knives, but mostly we just use spoons.

3. Your pinky toe looked REALLY swollen and red in the picture of your feet that you sent last week. Was that a bite or was that from walking so much? I hope it's not like that anymore!! Made me really sad to see that!! 

Don`t worry at all about my pinky toe; I wore another sister`s shoes (she gave them to me while at the MTC because they hurt her feet...now I understand why) for like 15 minutes in the morning before we left our house. They fit weird and squeeze my toes, and that`s why my pinky toe was red. But I don`t plan on wearing those shoes, so don`t worry! The redness went down in like 10 minutes after that :)

By the way, I really like all the spiritual thoughts you send me! Please send them when you write me! It`s nice cause I print them out so I have them to read over and over. And I don`t really have any other way of getting quotes in English... It`s nice to get a little spiritual upliftment in English :) Thank you.