Week 68

11/16/15

Hi my loved ones!  Sending you greetings!

Well, it's that time again for Transfers!!  I know! I can't believe it either!  These last 6 weeks have gone by so fast.  I have bad news.....I am leaving Santa Maria again! :(  I am so sad to leave all the people that I love and my companion, but I know that it is what the Lord needs and I should be obedient.  So, my new area will be Camarillo, and I will be serving the 5th Ward in Oxnard with Hermana Brown!!  I am so excited to finally get to work with her!

This past week was full of SO many miracles and special moments.  I want to share two experiences.  Okay!  So, yesterday we went with some members to see a new investigator that we just barely met last week.  We got there, but no one was home.  But since we had our member with us we wanted to use them so we decided to go visit Jose and Amalia (They have told us that they will come to church, but they haven't yet).  So we wanted to go and see why they haven't come.  We got to their house and we knocked and knocked but they didn't open the door.  After the third knock, we saw a light turn on and Amalia opened the door.  She was talking to us at the door and it was so cold, but she didn't invite us in.  I was praying that she would let us in so we could share a short message with them.  After a little while, Jose came and said, "it's cold out there, come in!"  Si!!  We went in and since there were 6 of us there wasn't enough chairs, so Hermana Jeronimo and I shared one.  Kennya and Brad (the members) were talking and asking Jose about his accident and then Brad said, "Brother, can we give you a blessing?"  and Jose said, "Well some elders gave me a blessing already in the hospital" and Brad said, "it's ok, brother we can give you another one."  Jose accepted.  Brad gave him a blessing so great and special.  I don't know if it is because the house is so small or what, but the Spirit was so strong there in that room.  When he finished the blessing, we were all in tears.  Seeing Jose and Amalia you could see that the Spirit really touched their hearts and I know that Jose felt the great love of our Heavenly Father for him.  Then we had a really great lesson guided by the Holy Ghost.  I am so thankful for the perfect plan of our Heavenly Father.  I know that part of that plan was that our investigator wasn't home because we had to go see Jose and Amalia.

I am so thankful for the Spirit that really is what teaches others.

Ok, one more miracle really fast!!  This week while teaching Luis about the gospel of Jesus Christ, we stopped in the middle of teaching about baptism and he told us that he has been praying and that he wants to be baptized the 28th of November!  It is so incredible to see someone that is so ready and that has been prepared by the Lord to be baptized.

I am so sad to leave but at the same time I am so thankful for the love of our Heavenly Father for the opportunity He has given me to be here these last few weeks and see so many miracles.

I love you all so much and I hope that you all have a great week!

- Hermana Cuevas Da Silva ♥

Maria and Jose Jesus

Felix (who we are teaching to read) on the left

Brother Jose, Amalia, and Jackie

Week 67

11/9/15

Hi! Wow!  This week went by so fast!  I can't believe it's Monday again.  The time here in Santa Maria goes so fast, and I don't like it!  I feel like I don't have enough time to do everything that I want to do and to enjoy every moment.  But during the day, during lessons or service projects, or even while we are driving in the car with Hermana Jeronimo I stop to think abou how blessed I am to have such precious, and more than anything, sacred moments with the children of our Heavenly Father.

Okay, here goes the miracle of the week.  In our area we have some investigators that neither I nor Hermana Jermonimo know, but file says that they are a referral from the church office.  Their daughter in Alabama asked that the missionaries go and visit her parents.  So, one day we decided to give them a call.  The wife answers and our conversation goes something like this, "Hi Sister, we are the new missionaries, Hermana Cuevas and Hermana Jeronimo. How are you?"  "Oh, sorry sisters, but I can't talk, I am mourning my husband."  "Okay!"  We didn't know what to say!  So we just told her that we were praying for her and for her family and if they needed anything they could call us.  And that was it.  Then, then next day we had two missed calls from that number and a voice message.  The message said, "Hi missionaries, this is Maria, you don't know me.  I am the daughter of Irma.  You talked to her yesterday.  I just want to know if you can call me when you get a chance."  Okay, so we called her and she said that she was the daughter from Alabama!  The file said that she was a member, but she later told us that she has not yet been baptized.  But she told us that she came to visit because her father has passed away.  She said that the first thing she saw when she got to the house was a Book of Mormon on the dinner table with our phone number.  She called to thank the missionaries that had come to visit her family.  Then she asked if we could meet the next day.  So we met at In-and-Out with her and her two younger sisters.  She said, "missionaries, I want to ask you to teach my sisters the message of the restoration."  Then we taught them.  Then she told us, "okay, now sisters, can you teach us what we need to do to live with our Heavenly Father again and to have eternal life?"  So then we taught them the gospel of Jesus Christ.  All through all of this we also taught them the Plan of Salvation.

Wow.  It was such a cool experience!  Maria told us that she is going back to Alabama in two week but that we wants us to continue to teach her family.  We will let her know how it goes :)  I know that our Father has a perfect plan and that we can all be instruments in His hands.

I leave you with a scripture and with an invitation from a prophet from the Book of Mormon and with in invitation that I give to you and everyone that I love.

25 And it came to pass that I began to be old; and, having no seed, and knowing king Benjamin to be a just man before the Lord, wherefore, I shall deliver up these platesunto him, exhorting all men to come unto God, the Holy One of Israel, and believe in prophesying, and in revelations, and in the ministering of angels, and in the gift of speaking with tongues, and in the gift of interpreting languages, and in all things which are good; for there is nothing which is good save it comes from the Lord: and that which is evil cometh from the devil.

 26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye shouldcome unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as anoffering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved."  Omni 1:25-26

Hope you have a great week and can see the hand of God in your lives :)

- Hermana Cuevas Da Silva ♥

Week 66

11/2/15

Hi Family!!  Wow! What a great week!

This week we had exchanges with the Sisters in Santa Barbara.  I stayed in Santa Maria and worked with Hermana Eames!  She is such a great missionary and has such a great desire to share the gospel with others!  I learned so much from her and really enjoyed the time we had together.  But it doesn't matter how much I enjoy serving with other sisters, I always miss Hermana Jeronimo and I was so happy at the end of the day when we changed again :)

Wednesday we had so many discussions but we felt that something was missing.  We were teaching what we planned and they were there listening, but them we realized that we were not being guided by the Spirit during the lessons.  It felt so bad to feel alone and not know what to say.  So we decided to study in Preach My Gospel (such an inspired book) and in the scriptures to see what we can do or what we can change in order to have the Spirit there with us teaching and testifying with us.  Now we are doing everything possible to prepare ourselves spiritually in order to invite the Spirit for every lesson we give.

We have an investigator named Jose Jesus.  He is half blind but he can read the big Book of Mormon that we gave him with a magnifying glass.  Wow, I love to see the desire that Jose Jesus has to know if these thing are true.  He reads the Book of Mormon everyday and he wants to get baptized.  The other day we were teaching him and we were asking him the baptism questions and he started testifying about the prophet Joseph Smith and Thomas S. Monson and how he knows that this is the church that Jesus Christ restored on the earth.  It was so cool.  He had not been to church yet (and it is important that he goes before he is baptized).  But yesterday he came with his wife!!  It was so nice and super cool!!  They were participating in the classes and the members of the branch were there helping them.  It was so nice to see the members helping so much :)

We saw some many mircales this week but I don't have time to tell them all.  But I know that our Heavenly Father has His hand in every aspect of this work and that without His help, we couldn't do anything.

"Now they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not bear that any human soul should perish; yea, even the very thoughts that any soul should endure endless torment did cause them to quake and tremble."  Mosiah 28:3

Hope you have a great week!! :)

- Hermana Cuevas Da Silva ♥

Week 65

10/26/15

Hello my loved ones!  Sending you a big hug from Santa Maria!

We have a new family that we are teaching, Jose, Amalia, and their daughter Jackie.  Ah!  They are so prepared!  Every time that we teach them something, the Spirit is there and testifies of the truth.  We met them last week, they were a member referral and the member came with us to teach them.  Then yesterday, the whole family came to church and they really liked it!  They want to get baptized and feel that it is truth and are praying to receive confirmation.  It is so cool to teach them!  We have another investigator named Felix.  He doesn't know how to write or read in Spanish so we are teaching him :)  It is a really cool and speical experience.  He wants to read the Book of Mormon and ask if it is truth, but he can't read.  He doesn't have internet either so he can't listen to it either, but he told us the other day that he is going to do everything possible to try and listen to it and soon try to read it because he knows that if he prays and asks, he will be able to know if it is true.

This week we also found Chris.  He is a guy that Hermana Newman and I found a year ago, but then we left the area and no one went to teach him!  So we went and he told us that we were the last people that we though he would find at his door.  He was so happy to see us because this last year he has been though a lot of problems and he knew he needed to look for God.  He knows that God is helping him and he is ready and willing to accept this help.

We are teaching so many people who have been prepared by the Spirit and it is a privilege to be able to serve as an instrument in the Lord's hands.

I know that this is the true church.  The Spirit has testified to me everyday by studying and sharing my testimony with others and as Paul said, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek." (Romans 1:16)

I love you all so much, look for an opportunity to share your testimony this week, and I know that the Lord has a son or daughter that needs to hear your testimony and it will strengthen them.

- Hermana Cuevas Da Silva ♥

Pictures from our activity last week :)

Week 64

10/19/15

Hello, my loved ones :)  I love you all so much.

I hope that you've had a good week and I have that you have really been able to enjoy the day of rest and do edifying activities so that you can really feel the Spirit.

This week has been so great, I don't even know what to share with you all!

This week we have interviews with Presidente Felix and I always love this.  I really enjoy the time I get with him to talk about missionary work in my area and to ask him how I can be better.  This transfer we are focusing on how to sanctify the Sabbath Day.  As missionaries, everyday is almost the same, and Sunday doesn't really feel that different from the other days, except that we go to church.  So we have been trying to think of ways that we can make it more holy.  Hermana Jeronimo and I have been cleaning our apartment a little bit on Saturday night, so that it is ready for Sunday.  We have also been listening to Hymns and at night and on Sunday morning to invite the spirit.  Another thing we have been doing is during the sacrament meeting, and even more while the sacrament is being passed, we are really trying to concentrate on the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for us and what the bread and water really symbolize.  Just by doing these small things, I have been able to enjoy the Sabbath day more.  The time while the sacrament is being passed is a great time for reflection and for revelation so that I can really ask in what I can do better.  I have received answers!  It's like what was shared during General Conference.  When we pray and ask how we can be better, the spirit will whisper these small things to us.  I invite you to do it next Sunday.

We also have Exchanges this week.  I got to stay with Hermana Pirir again!  It was such a great day full of miracles!  I really felt that I was supposed to be with her that day.

We have been working a lot with the members so that they can help us with the missionary work.  This week various families were able to come with us to teach our investigators and it is so beautiful because our investigators need the members in order to have that friendship, and also it helps the members strengthen their testimonies.  I invite you this week to go visit someone with the missionaries, and I promise you that they will feel edified and their testimonies will be strengthened.

- Hermana Cuevas Da Silva ♥

We went to play Mini Golf this week with our District :)

They are remodeling our deck

Exchanges with Hermana Pirir

Week 63

10/12/15

Hello my loved ones :)  Sending you a big hug from Santa Maria!!

I am so happy to be able to serve here again!!  I was so happy when we went to church yesterday and the members remembered me!  They are also happy that I am there again.  It also made me so happy to walk into the chapel and see so many people there!  Many family who were less active when I was there now have callings and are active.

The only difference is that when I was there, there were 6 missionaries working the the branch, but now there is only my companion and I!  T

here are so many Hispanic people in Santa Maria!!  We need more missionaries here.  We are always running around from one appointment to another.  But I can't complain.  I like to be busy and teaching.

We are trying to focus on working with the members.  Because with their help, our investigators will be able to progress faster :)

Sorry, that this email is so short, but I love you all.  Keep the Sabbath day holy.  This week I have been studying, and they Lord promises us that our lives and the world would be in a better state if we keep the Sabbath day holy.

Hope you have a great week :)

- Hermana Cuevas Da Silva ♥

Saying goodbye to Hermana Garza

Hermana Jeronimo and I!

My District!

Week 62

10/5/15

Okay!  Hi family!

Sending you lots of greetings and hugs!

Well, it's that time again....Tranfers!!!

Friday night Presidente Felix called me to tell me that I have been chosen to be a Sister Training Leader, so I am going to be doing the same thing as always, but the only difference is that I am going to be serving the sisters in the mission.  My companion and I will be doing exchanges with the other sisters.  I am excited to be able to serve the sisters in our mission more.  So, I am going to change area, and I am going to return to Santa Maria!!!  My companion will be Hermana Jeronimo!!  I am Super excited to go back to Santa Maria and be able to work with the branch again.  It has almost been a year since I served there with Hermana Newman.  I feel a little bit inadequate to be able to help the other sisters but during the conference I felt a lot of peace hearing the three new apostles share their testimonies and their feelings about being called as apostles.  Like one of them said, "I need to focus on what I can do, and not on what I can't do."  Another also said that the Lord qualifies whom He chooses.  I know that with the help of my Father in Heaven, I can be an instrument in His hands.

Well, I am also really sad because I really have grown to love everyone in Newbury Park.  It has been a blessing to be able to serve here and be able to help others.  I know that the Lord put me here for the last four months for a reason and I have really grown during this time.

I love you all so much, I invite you to reflect on what the Spirit taught you during conference.

Love you!!

- Hermana Cuevas Da Silva ♥

The Jimenez family

Elena

Cristina & Omar and their family