#5

Alright, hey, so it´s been a while since i´ve written, but I´m in Almería, Spain!

 

It is absolutely wonderful here, i am convinced we have the best ward in Spain. For reals, i absolutely love everyone!

My companion is Hermana Crockett, she is from Arizona! She´s super nice and patient, she´s been out for seven months so she knows the language quite well..which is good because I still don´t know it at all!  I have been having a blast here teaching! We walk a lot, which is nice because in the MTC  i complained about never getting fresh air, so i´m appreciating it here!

 

Leaving the CCM was so hard, i met the most incredible people there! I know part of the reason why i got my call to be in the CCM at that specific time was so i could meet some of the people i did, they impacted me so much!  It was super hard to leave Hermana Bennett...we cried a lot- but I´m glad because she´s one of my best friends, so I know we´ll keep in touch! But yeah, the first few days after leaving Madrid were a little hard because i missed her tons!

 

So anyway, we left the MTC at 5 45, and took a 3ish hour long bullet train to Málaga!!!! Ah, Right as we were coming into it i could feel something stir inside me, this place feels so much like home! I know without a doubt this is where i´m meant to be!  So we got to Málaga and missionaries from the office, and the Deere´s were there to greet us!  They are absolutely incredible, I feel so close to them already and seriously...they are amazing.  I´m so blessed.  So we got to have an orientation at the mission home (there were 8 of us from the CCM), then later that night we met our companions! It was super cool also, because i got to see Elder Farrell, who I´ve known since elementary! He´s training one of my best friends from the CCM, Elder Nyland- talk about a power companionship! We also spent that night at the mission home.

 

The next day Hermana Crockett and I got on a bus and headed for Almería!  Ah...i had a lot of mixed emotions, but i was pumped! On the way to Almería, as we were talking on the bus i got super car sick, and there was a point where i was thinking, ´´yep, i´m going throw up. where´s the best place..´´ So i turned to her and was like,´´i´m so sorry, i´m not a dramatic person i swear but i am so sick.¨  And we went silent, and i said a little prayer, and suddenly my stomach was calmed, i turned to her and she had said a prayer for me too. Ah, i mention that because I just want to tell everyone how involved the Lord is in our lives! Like really, i see His hand out here every single day, several times a day. I wish i had recognized it more when i was home, because really every single one of us could, we just have to look a little.

 

Ah, i have had so many incredible experiences!  My first friday we had a zone meeting in Granada, all in Spanish. Ha. What a joke. I just tried to listen and pick up what they were saying generally...but ha i miss the majority, oh well, esta bien.  That night we were teaching some friends of our ward mission leader (who is the most incredible person in the world by the way, he lives his calling and is constantly referring us to his friends and he and his wife come with us and seriously, we´re so lucky to have him!) their names are Monica and Sebastian, and had the opportunity to recite the first vision! The spirit was so strong, ah, it was absolutely incredible! There is power in the words of Joseph Smith. Then i got to invite them to baptism, ah!!! I was nervous, but the spirit was so strong, and they said yes!!! But then they told us they still had some questions...but still, progress!

 

Also, last Thursday we met a man named Jose Manuel, and ah, we feel so strongly he has been prepared for this gospel.  Emilio, an amazing convert in our ward who is literally the perfect example of a member missionary, took us to Jose´s piso, and we also got to meet Jose´s roommate, Paco.  So Paco already said he had a Book of Mormon, and said he found it on the street! And the missionaries had given Jose a Book of Mormon a few months ago, but at that time nothing came of it because he said he didnt have time. So now, his friend Emilio asks if he can bring missionaries by and ah...it´s a lot cooler in real life than it is trying to explain...but anyway, at that first visit they just said they thought it was too many coincidences that just lined up perfectly and they seem so interested! The next night, last Friday, our ward had a  Noche de Hogar (family home evening) and we forgot to invite Jose, so Hna Crockett called him an hour before and he came all the way out to the church to learn about family history!  He even picked up Emilio and some of our other investigators and brought them with him! Ah...so many amazing things happen out here, and i havent even mentioned hardly any but yeah, i just love it out here! I feel the Spirit so stong all the time. I sometimes miss home and family and friends and things, but i realized something a few days ago...

 

I am not here in the mission because most of my senior class is out in the mission field.  I´m not here because the age to serve was lowered.  I´m here because i know with every fiber of my being that Jesus is the Christ, and that this gospel, His gospel, is true.  I know, without a doubt, that it is true.  And because i have this knowledge i have the responsibility to share it. 

 

Jesus Christ has, in a very personal way, manifested Himself to me, by the power of the Holy Ghost (2 Nephi 26:13).

I´m an imperfect vessel.  I make mistakes and don´t always live according to the knowledge i have, but i´m working on it and in the mean time, on my quest for purity, i have a desire, a burning desire to serve God.  Because the thought of going through this life without a knowledge of the true nature of Him literally, physically hurts my heart.  The idea that there are people in this world without a knowledge of the hope, forgiveness, love and eternal significance of the Gospel of Jesus Christ makes me want to cry.  But instead I´m just going out in the city of Almería everyday, and honestly trying, amidst my imperfection, to share Heavenly Father´s message with His children.  The ordinances of this church allow families to be together forever, and eternal life with our Heavenly Father after death.  I´m not trying to be cheesy, but seriously, let that sink in.  What does that mean to you?  It means everything to me.  Don´t ever doubt Heavenly Father´s love for you (2 Nephi 26: 23-25).  He is more involved in every single one of our lives than we can even comprehend.  He suffered to ¨show forth an example ¨ to us, so maybe on our journey to exaltation there´ll be some hard times.  Well Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ know that- that´s why they were willing to follow through with the Atonement, so they could have mercy on us when we made mistakes and they could relate to us when we struggle. 

 

An important lesson I learned in the CCM was this:  i was studying more about the Atonement, and i realized that when Jesus Christ was in the Garden, He asked Heavenly Father to remove this cup from Him.  I´ve always known that, but it hit me in a different way this time. I have done that many times in my life, asked Heavenly Father to heal one of my family members or friends of an ailment or something of that sort.  And when it didnt happen, honestly i kind of wondered what I did wrong. Was my fast not sincere enough? Was my faith not strong enough to make them whole?  But I realized that God is all knowing.  He can see the beginning to the end.  He wants us to be happy, and become like Him.  And maybe, with His perspective, He can see that we need to go through some things, maybe not be immediately healed physically.  But i know that when we turn to Him during those times of trial and change, we can be healed spiritually.  And really, in the end, that´s what matters. 

 

I am having such a great time, but it hasnt been without its struggles- I dont have enough time to go into detail, but I´ll just say that Heavenly Father is always there for us.  And He knows we´re imperfect, and even though i dont even always try my best, he´s still there to encourage me, and push me along.  I couldn´t do this without Him, and it´s making me realize that I don´t ever want to do anything without Him.  What a blessing that we have a free, direct line to Him always- you realize the importance of prayer when you literally have no where else to turn. 

 

I am so grateful to be out here, in Almería, teaching these amazing people this true gospel!

 

Love, Hermana Miller

 Oh! This is my new address:

 

Hermana Whitney Miller

Avenida de Blas Infante

N·2, 3·C

04006, Almería

España

 

Thank you all for all your support!  And sorry i´m terrible at writing, but Happy Birthday Tay, and Ky, Rachel M and Sidney and Max, and my momma! I love you all so much and thought about you on your big day!

President and Sister Sitterud and myself! I´m so grateful im at this CCM where i get to know this amazing couple!!!

We love eating hot chocolate (literally melted chocolate, not a drink) and churros! 

so weird and so fun. Haha, I seriously dont know where i´d be without Hermana Bennett, she´s one of the greatest people i´ve ever met in my whole life and one of my best friends!

 

This is us getting ready to ring in the new year with the Spanish grapes tradtion! You eat one every time the bell rings, 12 total, one for each month of the new year to bring you luck

#4

These past couple weeks have been Amazing!!!!

 

So, first off we get to go to the temple every week here in Madrid and let me tell you it is Gorgeous!  It is so incredible, I love the temple so much, the spirit is so strong in there and i feel so at home.  I can´t imagine my life without it now, and seriously remaining worthy to go there is so important to me, it´s worth all of the effort I´ve got! 

 

Also, Elder Tad R. Callister came here!!! He is one of the 7 presidents of the seventy! He has family in Spain he was visiting for the holidays, and we were lucky enough to attend a temple session with him, and have him come speak to us afterwards!  He has spoken in several general conferences, and is the author of ´The Infinite Atonement¨ and ¨The inevitable apostasy¨.  He was an answer to my prayers! Being here and teaching about the apostasy i have realized that i dont fully understand it for myself, let alone be able to explain it to others! But i have just tried to teach it simply, and it´s been great.  But he talked to us all about why the apostasy was needed and why it occured and it made so much sense!  He said many incredible things, but i think the one that hit me the most was when he said, ¨Some may ask, ´why did Heavenly Father wait so long to restore His church?¨.  Which was interesting because i asked one of my teachers that exact question.  He said to think of it like this- what if you were in an airplane, and one of the engines caught fire, you would want to land the plane, right?  But would you want to get it to the ground as fast as you can, just nose dive it straight down to get it there quickly? You want to get it to the ground not only as fast as you can, but also as Safely as you can.  Heavenly father did the same, he got it back to the earth the fastest He could, but many things had to be done to lay the foundation for the Restoration of the true gospel! 

 

Ah, a couple weeks ago we got to watch Joseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration.  Ive seen it many times, it is so powerful!  I know without any doubt in my mind that Joseph Smith

saw God the Father, and Jesus Christ, and this knowledge will sustain my spirit for the rest of my life! I will forever be able to stand unwaivering as a witness of this gospel, because i cannot deny the witness i have recieved. 

 

Christmas was so fun here! On Christmas eve we watched ¨It´s a wonderful life¨ which i absolutely love!!! And on New Years eve, last night, we watched ¨The Sound Of Music¨ it was my first time seeing it and I AM IN LOVE.  Its wonderful. 

Happy birthday shout out to one of my best friends, Natalie!  And to the best brother and Gommie anyone could ask for! I love you all so much. 

 

Thank you for all your letters, i dont have much time to write today, but i appreciate every one and your support and letters so much!

 

I am so happy and grateful to be a full time missionary, but we are all missionaries! Bear your testimony (DyC 80 verse 4).

 

This is mine- I know that God lives, i know Joseph Smith saw Him and Jesucristo and through him the Church of Jesus Christ was again restored to the earth! And because i know this i can handle anything that comes my way!

 

Feliz Año Nuevo!!

 

Love, Hermana Miller 

Dinner at the MTC!

MTC Missionaries

#3

Ah! This week has been filled with so many emotions!

So to start off, on Saturday when we went to the park, i got paired with Sister Davis-- and WE GOT LOST IN MADRID.

So we were talking to these men right as we got into the park, and one of them said he had been to our church before, and he had so many questions for us, but he wouldnt stop talking to let us answer!  It was sad and i just didn´t know what to do, because i want everyone i talk with to feel like i am willing to listen, but i felt like we weren´t really getting anywhere.

 So anyway, while we were talking to them (and getting awkwardly hit on) and trying to tell them about the gospel, i realized we were supposed to be at the fountain in the park to sing and i also needed to go to the bathroom!  So i told them i needed to use the restroom, so we went to a restaurant across the street.  When i came out of the one person bathroom Hermana Davis was talking to a 50 ish year old man.  After talking to him for about 3 minutes I realized he was drunk!  But he was so kind though, and even though we were late for singing i felt like we couldn´t leave him because he said he was dealing with depression and we were angels for talking with him and listening to him.  He cried and told us that even when a stranger smiles at you it brightens your day and touches your heart.  He was sweet!  So we stayed and talked with him.

Well long story short, we were too late for singing and everyone was gone by the time we got there!  And as we were walking out of the park we just met all of these awesome people!  So honestly I was so grateful for us being late because it made it so we met awesome people, and even handed out another Book of Mormon to a boy our age!

Then we got lost on the metro on the way back, but luckily a member saw us and helped us out! But yeah we got back to the CCM like 90 minutes late! Everyone was worried and looking for us and for that i felt terrible! But Sis Davis and i had fun, and we knew we´d get back eventually so we just laughed the whole time and had fun! 

OKAY. So Highlight of the week/month/mission-- I SAW ELDER GROVES!!!!!!!

It was amazing! So the 1st counselor in our mission presidency and his wife, Presidente Sullivan and Sis Sullivan organized this singing program for Christmas where us at the CCM and other missionaries around Madrid area sang!  I had no clue if Elder Groves was still in Vigo or not since ive been here. I couldnt wait all of last week, just thinking, ¨What if i get to see one of my best friends?!?!?!¨ So when we walked into the stake center and i saw him waving at me i just broke down in tears! I was so grateful to see him, and i just couldnt even contain myself!  Ah! Then i got to talk to him with my comp for a while, and one of the teachers kept saying you can talk later but you need to go with the other missionaries into the relief society room right now, and im just sitting there thinking, I can see those CCM missionaries whenever (too often in fact haha) I had my amazing Comp Sister B and Elder Groves and i was more than content with that! So i was kinda bad and just kept saying ¨im coming im coming...¨ but yeah anyway it was just wonderful to get to talk to him and he is just such an incredible Elder and person and friend!  Once we stopped talking i kind of started to break down again but Hermana Bennett comforted me-- SERIOUSLY I wish i had time/words to describe how amazing and Christlike she is!  She is such a strong person, I dont know how i could have a better companion, she´s become one of my best friends!

I have the best district in the world! We have six sisters and only 2 elders (Elder Anderson and Nyland), but the elders are the best of the best!  We can all talk about everything, and we´re just great friends! A little too close, because we just love talking and get distracted easily! But they all just have amazing testimonies and i pray we´ll be life long friends!  I feel so loved and beautiful around them, probably more than ever before in my life.  They are uplifting and wonderful and im blessed to know them.

Hermana Bennett and I sang on Sunday!  We sang (in spanish) nearer my God to thee!  It was amazing because at home i would´ve never done that. but sister bennett has such an amazing voice and she gives me confidence in mine! It´s wonderful.  Even though i kinda messed up on the song and sang the wrong verse (haha) i still felt so good about it because we did it!  I feel like here i can do and be anything and i feel like im growing so much! I absolutely love it. 

I feel the Spirit all the time, it is so in abundance here! This gospel is true without a doubt. 

God is mindful of all of us!

He lives!  I love Him and i love being a missionary!

And España is the greatest. Truly.  I cant wait until i can speak this language- i love it!

Love, Hermana Miller

Whitney teaching in spanish! 

Singing in front of the temple!

Preparing to teach in the park!

Teaching in the park!

#2
And then there were fifteen!

Ahh this week has been so crazy and amazing! Last P-day we got to go walk around Madrid (a place called Seoul I think) and this city is GORGEOUS.  We went into a gorgeous cathedral, and saw some incredible buildings!  This place is unreal. 

 

Also, last Saturday we went to el parque and it was AMAZING.

Seriously the Lord´s hand is in this work.  Right before we left for the park, one of the teachers told me and my companion to interrupt people even if they´re texting or listening to music because this message is more important than any hobby.  Which lead us to this experience...

My park companion, Sis. Andrus and I saw a woman sitting on a park bench listening to music, we just went up to her and started talking-- SHE IS SO PREPARED FOR THIS GOSPEL.

She only spoke Spanish, so in my Spanglish we tried to communicate with her, but it was just so difficult!  Her name is Maisabel (Said like Maribelle),  i tried to ask her if she like music, and she said yes, so i told her that we sing at 4 by a fountain in the park.  It wasn´t for another hour so i was sure she´d be gone by then, but she agreed to come see us.  I thought maybe she was just being nice, but i prayed she would come!  When we went to go sing- there she was!!! Ah we freaked out.  We went and said hi to her, then went to go sing.  So i went up to a Sister in my district, Hermana Samuelson, who speaks spanish very well, and asked her to go talk to her about the gospel. WE GOT A REFERRAL!!!!!!! She wrote down her information and also wrote, ¨Please call me!!!¨ AHHHHHHHHHH. We were on a spiritual high!  We also met a man named Juan, he is 81.  He also only spoke Spanish, but we talked to him to forty ish minutes! He loved us, but didnt really want to here about the gospel, so i just asked if we could practice our spanish with him.  After making some spanish small talk, i asked my companion to tell him about the book of Mormon (¨she needs to practice her Spanish¨ i told him) so we then talked with him about the gospel and ahhh it was awesome!  He said he would like to learn more, even though he thinks he´s too old for religion, and he gave us a thorough referall! I just love this work, and i love testifying of how happy it makes me, i just want everyone i see to feel happy like me! 

 

So to explain my title-- there are literally FIFTEEN PEOPLE AT THE CCM NOW.  Uh. 10 Hermanas and 5 Elderes.  I cried so much when the others left, the next time i see most of them will probably be on the other side, I just love them so much!  And im seriously obsessed with the Russian language, and now there are no more Russians/Americans learning Russian. And im sad about it.  Now who can i practice my limited Russian words on?! The first day they left my companion and I got called as the new Sister Training Leaders! So that was exciting, i am excited, i need to learn how to better put others before myself, what a great opportunity! Ha, but after i had all of those feelings of gratitude, i got into a funk for the rest of the day, and seriously i was just so depressed.  There´s no one here but my district and one other one and i just thought i was gonna go crazy!!!!! I looked at them all and was like, ¨i seriously dont know if i can handle being with only you missionaries.´´ i think they all can kinda relate because no one was offended (i think) when i said that. Ah, but that day this place just felt like a prison! I miss everyone who left...if it werent for my companion i wouldve had a nervous breakdown! but i think i´m over those depressing feelings now and im just trying to enjoy the small number we have here. Ha, its so funny to think provo has thousands and we have 15. Weird.

 

We have been getting better at teaching, there are so many things to cover and our limited language abilities make it difficult, but one of the Americans learning Russian said, ´´God is not going to let our limited language skills get in the way of moving His work forward.´´ and i truly believe that!  Yesterday was such a cool experience, Hermana Bennett testified in Spanish to one of our investigators, and it was such a simple testimony.  I´ve heard her testify of José Smith in spanish before, but the spirit was just so strong this time...we were both in tears and i could feel my testimony burning inside me! 

 

 

 

Okay so I want to share an experience i had on THE BEST THANKSGIVING EVER.

 

So in my setting apart blessing my Stake President told me that I would have the opportunity to bear witness of Joseph Smith and the Restoration everyday that i prayed to have that opportunity.  It meant a lot to me because my testimony of Joseph Smith is so strong and close to my heart.  So on thanksgiving day i woke up and had the prompting to pray to have that experience.  So in our thanksgiving devotional there was this huge bucket full of slips of paper, everyone´s said different things like, ´´Say why youre grateful for eternal families.´´ and stuff like that and most all of them were different.  So there were like 40 different things you could get.  As i opened my paper it said, ´´´Bear testimony on the Restoration and tell how it has blessed your life.´´ I just broke down crying. What a tender mercy!  God is mindful of us. I know without a doubt that I did not recieve that paper by coincidence.  And i was reminded by a small slip of paper that God is involved in my life, and in this work, and that our leaders truly are called of God.  We can immediately talk to Him through prayer! We are blessed.  So so blessed, even if sometimes we dont take the time to step back and see it- but life´s a lot more enjoyable if we do!

 

I love you all, thank you for your prayers in my behalf.  I can feel them strengthening me!

 

Love, Hermana Miller