Friday, January 25, 2013

HOLA!!!!!!!! ¿COMO ESTAN? espero que todo esta bien con ustedes.  Que esten felices y animados para la proxima semana....
 
okay so i just wanted to write a little bit in spanish.  but whatever is going to happen this week i hope that you make the concious descision to be happy and excited for whatever will come.  ive realized here that that really just makes all the difference.  Ive realized that there are days and i wake up and im tired and i really just dont want to get out of bed... and those are the days that we arent as successful or happy and arent the best. but there are days when i wake up and im tired and i tell myself.. no shake it off.. this is going to be a great day. and make the concious effort to look for hte blessings and the good things in whatever happens... i am happy and i have a good day... even if everyone says that they arent interestedand we get dumped.. (really we get dumped all the time... so ive just gotten used to it.. :) ).  but ive realized that our attitude is everything in this life. 
 
if we decide that we are just going ot be grumpy about a situation or not like somebody or that we just cant do something.. we will never do it and we will never be happy or accept another person... we have a person that we are teaching... his name is franco and is a teenager taht really lost his way... and we found him thorugh a great miracle... but he has a lot of problems that he has to get under control to be able to move ahead and when he has the mindset that he is so terrible he just falls down again...  like for example.  all week he was so sure that he could go to church.. but so sunday mornig we went to go with him to church he came out and said that he couldnt go... because his shoes were wet.. and he couldnt go in his flip flops... he doesnt have nice clothes... but we were trying to help him understand that its more important to go than worry about that and taht the next week he can plan and be better, but that he really needs to go to church... and he just ahd it in his mind that it was not good. and nothing we could say could convince him.. but htere are other days when he is positive and he feels like he can really accomplish somthing and he does!!!!! and he does a lot... its amazing what attitude can do.
 
I was thinking this week... especially today about alma the younger... and how amazing is his story. i mean really!!!!!! When he knew that somehting was wrong he could change in 3 days!!!! and he left completely clean.. TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY CLEAN from his errors.  he tells us that he was one of the vilest sinners... did some of the most terrible things that he could do.  but once he realized that he had a problem, he started to use the atonement.  OH MAN i am so grateful for the atonement. it is one of hte most amazing gifts the lord has given us.  I love alma 36 because there he really describes how he felt.  he felt terrible!!!! so much guilt. so much. 
 15 Oh, thought I, that I acould be banished and become extinct both soul and body, that I might not be brought to stand in the presence of my God, to be judged of my bdeeds.
 16 And now, for three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the apains of a bdamned soul.
how terrible to feel that way right????  ugh i wish no one had to feel that. 
but he repented!!!!!! we was able to be clean completely from his sins.  he tells us later
19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my apains bno more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.
 20 And oh, what ajoy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!
 21 Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy.
I just love that... i love to tell people that... that they really can be clean from their sins. all of the bad things that theyve done.  they can be clean.  and everyone of you can be too... everyone has mistakes and we all can... even the people who hurt us can be clean.. :) and that makes me so happy. everyone can change and we have to really help ALL people be clean from thier mistakes.  thats why we are here.  is to be clean and help everyone else do the same thing.
thats why the gospel is so stinkin important!!!! becasue this church is the only church who has the authority to help everyone be clean from thier sins. we should use it. and help other people use it nad not think so much about what they have done to us... becasue that just makes US unhappy... it doesnt take away the opportunity for the other person to be clean (taht means we have to forgive.. ourselves and everyone else...)
Ive really realized this a lot lately.  we have a little old lady in our ward who really is sweet and loving... at least to the missionaries.  she really takes good care of us.... but when it comes to everyone else. the ward, her family she is so bitter... so unhappy... becasue really terrible things have happened to her in the church... but she is just so unhappy and all she talks about is the terrible things that everyone has done to her... and its so sad.. nothing that we say helps her come out of htat...and it makes me sad... she doesnt find joy in anything... and ive really realized how bad taht is....
I am so happy here in the mission... so so HAPPY. and because of that i just want everyone else to be happy... when people do things they shouldnt it makes me sooooo sad, but then it makes me love them even more so that they can get out of it and be happy...
i learned that this week.. i know that Christs atonement is real. and i know he loves each and everyone of us..
i love youall and i hope you have a great week.. i hope you make it a wonderful week!!!!
and i just want to share one of my favorite quotes with you.. and least what i can remember from it:
"our deepest fear is not taht we are inadequate. our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. it is our light not our darkness that most defies(?im not sure if thats right) us.  we ask ourselves.  who am i to be lovely, talented, smart beautiful? but really who are you not to be? you are a child of god.  we are all meant to shine as children do. we were born to make manifest the light of god that shines in each of us.  your playing small does not serve the world. there is nothing enlightened aobut shrinking so that other people dont feel insecure around you.  by letting your light shine we unconciously give other people permission to do the same.  as we are liberated from our own fears, our presence, automatically liberates others...

okay its something like that... i dont remember exactly its beena long time since ive read it.
les quiero!!!
hermana applegate

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

hey everyone!!!!


i hope yall had a great christmas!!! and new years.  thanks everyone for your letters.  :) they made me really happy.  

this really was an amazing week for me.  and i learned so much.

one thing i learned that i wanted to share really quickly with everyone is about hte word of wisdom... people dont really follow the word of wisdom here.... im not just talking about the 5 things it says that we shouldnt consume..even though that is a problem sometimes.... but the good things too...  the main part of our diet is meat.... meat a rice. meat and potatoes... meat and noodles... meat and bread... ive realized that i dont really keep that part either. i have to eat what they give me and i eat a lot a lot more than i should and i have reallylearned taht it can have bad consequences.  dont worry!!!! im okay and my health is okay... but its not as good as it could be or should be.... but i think its like that with everyone.. i really studied it and i have sucha  love for this commandment. and i know that it is true. our bodies nad our spirits are so connected that we should do everything that we can to keep them healthy.  sometimes its becasue we eat a lot more htan we should or more sugar than we should. or less veggies than we should. but if we can really start to avoid doing things that damage our bodies... the excess of everything we really are going to be so much happier and healthier... i put the goal to live the word of wisdom a  lot better.... wich so far i need lots and lots of work. but i loved it.  but i hope to be healthier and healthier everyday (and hopefully lose some of the weight ive gained... dont worry.. im not sick or antyhing i just know i have a lot more to go to be perfectly healthy.... like better excercise... :) and not so much junk food...)and i hope you all start to work ont hat with me.. and it will be wonderful.

i dont have a whole lot more time but i want you all to know how wonderfully happy and joyful i am... this is an amazing gospel. this work is marvelous.. and i know that its the owrk of the lord. i can see it in the eyes of everyone that i meet and talk to.... i lvoe to see them happy when they do what they should and we have quite a few who are progressing... :)

have a wonderful week..
love yall

les quiero!!!
hermana applegate