SOOO many miracles!

Hey Mom!!!

Wow this week was incredible! My companion and I saw SOOO many miracles! Our investigators, Manuel and Paty got MARRIED and BAPTIZED!!! We are so so happy for them. :) I love missionary work! Seeing two of Gods elect children get baptized this week was an unforgetable experience. They were so well prepared and so ready to make this baptism covenant. Honestly, they look like they´ve been members all of their lives. So to begin with the miracle story:

Last Tuesday we received a phone call that they wouldn´t be able to get married on Friday because there wasn´t a date available... laws of Mexico.. and so we were all trying to search for other places where they could register to get married and after  A LOT searching, tears and prayers we finally found a place! Some other challenges also occured this week but we wont get into that but they were able to overcome all of the opposition that satan had put in this week and they were able to get married civily on Friday and baptized on Saturday!!. Now, they are looking forward to going to the temple to do baptisms for the dead in a few weeks and getting sealed in a year! (which im definitely going to return back for that. :) hahah) AHH im so happy for them!! 

We had interviews with President this week and he wanted me to tell you and dad that I have Mexican parents that love me hahahah. I love my mission president! He told me that he wants to meet you guys. His daughter lives in Bountiful, Utah and so when they finish their mission they are planning on traveling down I-15 to St. George to meet you guys!

We found a new investigator this week who is totally ready to receive the gospel! We were having a lesson with one of our investigators about lesson 3 when Gonzalo walked in the house and started listening to us. He asked us how he is able to really endure to the end and do the will of Father and we were able to explain to him what he is able to do. His heart is so open and is so willing to do anything to be on the right path. We are so excited to continue teaching him and helping him!! We seriously are seeing so many tender mercies in this area, I love it! Our Heavenly Father has been so good to us. I know that all of the miracles that we saw this week came from Him. This is His work and glory and Im so grateful and happy to just be an instrument in His hands. 

Im so happy you guys had a good trip to the lake and that everyone was safe. I love the fun tradition that Grandma Gates has started. Im so grateful for her and for her wonderful example! Please tell her hi for me. Good luck with Kens treatments this week! Everything will be just fine. She is so tough and im so proud of all the progress she´s made in these 15 months. Thats so fun you guys will be traveling to see Riley in Boston this week! Give him a big hug for me! Holy cow you guys are always on the road. I guess its good to keep busy, right? ha! Please take lots of pictures! I LOVE pictures! Im so glad that you are all doing well, and are super happy. Keep enjoying your summer vacations and be safe! I love you guys so much and hope you have an incredible week. :) Fly safe to Boston!!

Love, Hermana Gates

#kickitkdog

1) our new bikes ;) nah jk! I love the trici´s here!!! 

2 & 3) I saw hermana Rawle at the offices for our interviews with Presidente! She´s back! 

2) Getting paty ready for her wedding!

3 & 4) Its official!

5 & 6)They are going straight to the celestial kingdom! they took us out to eat shrimp ha! 

7, 8, 9, & 10) Their baptism!

Things are going super good!

Hey mom!!!

How are you?? Sounds like you´re all doing super great! That stinks that the girls lost in the championship but Im glad they made it that far! Thats so awesome! Next year! Im so happy Ken had a good birthday. Sounds like you guys did a lot that day. I cant believe she´s 12 years old and will be in Young Womens! She´s growing up! She´ll be able to go to the temple to do baptisms for the dead. :)

This week was a good one! It was super crazy, but good. This new area is really confusing hahah. We have a really big area and the streets are super confusing but I know I´ll get them down soon ha! My companion has a lot of patience with me! It´s been a weird adjustment coming into the city but its been really good. Im really happy to be back and a little bit closer to downtown. My companion and I have been getting a long great! She´s a super hardworker and we´ve made plans to travel to Machu piccu  after our missions haha! I love being able to learn something new from all of my companions. Heavenly Father has definitely blessed me with some great companions throughout my mission, Im so grateful! 

Its been really fun getting to know the members in our ward. They are all so welcoming and have been so kind to me. I love meeting the members here in Merida! They are ALL so wonderful! Our ward is so willing to help us in the Lords work. Our bishop has been so willing to go on visits with us this week and we´ve been able to find a lot more people to teach. There is so much work here in Industrial and Im so happy to be here!

This week we will have a wedding and 2 baptisms! Our investigators, Manuel and Patty are so incredible! The Lord really did prepare them to enter into the waters of baptism. I guess manuels grandaughter is serving a mission in Argentina and she sent a request for the missionaries to visit her grandpa. They´ve been preparing for their baptism for 3 months and this week they will be getting baptized. They are so excited! Im so happy for them!! It will be a great week filled with so many activities. :) 

OH YEAH!! Hermano Manuel (my old mission leader) dad got baptized Saturday!!! Im sooo happy for him and their family. :)

Things are going super good! I cant believe how fast the time is going right now. I love the mission! It´s an incredible adventure. I hope you guys are doing well and happy. Please be safe and have a good trip at Lake Powell!! Eat some dangling rope ice cream for me. ;) I love you guys!! Have a great week!!

Love, Hermana Gates

#kickitkdog

Stuck in a rainstorm!

HEY!!!!

SORRY IM ALIVE.. hahah how is everyone doing?? This week was the best-craziest! The reason why I didn´t write yesterday is because we had special transfers! There´s a sister who is returning home a couple weeks early and so I got transfered back to the city! Im in an area called Industrial and my new companion is Hermana Cordova! She is from Peru. :) Our zone leaders called us at 2 yesterday and told me I had to hurry and pack and head to the offices... It was a crazy adventure! BUT yeah, we didn´t have time to write yesterday so they´re giving us this time to do so now. :) 

This passed week was a good one. I LOVE Halachó and Im gonna miss it a lot but Im super excited to be in the city again. In Halachó we set a date for Nicholas (The one who received the Book of Mormon about 5 years ago from the Elders in Cancun and knows that its true) to be baptized in two weeks and so we have been preparing him for that. And you remember Wilium my convert? His brother wants to get baptized! He also had problems drinking but hasn´t drunk in a 1 month! HE IS A CHOSEN ONE TOO. So hermana Poroj and her new companion will be finishing the mission lessons with those investigators. :) We had also been working a lot with the less actives in our ward. We visited an hermana who hasn´t been to church in 12 years! We started talking to her about faith and the repentance process and she has so many desires to return back to the church and renew her covenants. The spirit totally guided the lesson and really touched her heart. It was SOOO amazing!!! She committed to coming to church with us. :)

This new area is really great. We have some great investigators who have a date to get married and be baptized in two weeks so we´re really excited about that. :) I don´t really know a whole lot about this area or know the members so I´ll inform you on that next week hahaha. IM HAPPY!

Sounds like you guys had a wonderful week! And sounds like there´s lots of new changes going on. But yeah, like you said change can be good. :) Im so glad you are all enjoying your summer vacations! WOW.. it´s hard to keep up with you guys hahah. You guys all sound so good and Im so so so so grateful to my Heavenly Father that he has been watching over and protecting each one of you. It seriously is music to my ears to hear how everyone is doing. I LOVE YOU GUYS. Im so happy you had a wonderful 4th of July! This year, my companion and I and our sister training leaders got caught in a rain/thunderstorm in halachó hahah.. but it was all good. We took shelter in a floor business for about 3 hours!😂 We were able to teach some of the workers about the Book of Mormon and the restoration. It was actually a way cool experience. I LOVE THE MISSION. Every change, every experience, every person, every companion. Its been so amazing serving here in merida. I love you guys so much! Seriously, I cant thank you enough for all of the support, love and prayers. I hope you have a wonderful week full of blessings!! LOVE YOU!!!

Love, Hermana Gates

#kickitkdog

1) Caught in the thunderstorm!!! 

2) A nice home welcoming to my new home in Industrial! I watched my comp be born in the field and ever since we met we always said that one day we´d be companions! That day has come haha!!

Happy Fourth of July!!

Hey mom and family!!!

How are you all doing?? You sound so great and sounds like this week was a good one!!! Im so glad kens treatment went well this week. I´ve been praying for her a lot! Im so grateful that she wasn´t paralyzed by the same medication again. That is a blessing! She is working so hard and I´m so proud to call her my sister! I love the pictures you send with her playing softball. She has been progressing so much. Before we all know it she will be at 100% in no time! 

So fun you guys had girls camp this week!! I love girls camp! It was always such a blast! Pres told me she was super excited to do the 4th year hike with Tabby. I hope she´s doing well! What is she up to? Please tell her I say hi. :) Thats so sweet ken was able to give a little talk at girls camp. Im proud of her for agreeing to talk to the whole stake! It sounds like camp was a very spiritual experience for all of you. :)  Tell Laikenn congrats or getting baptized! Im so proud of that little girl! And how fun the twins got blessed. Im so excited to meet them! 

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY. I hope you all eat some good hamburgers and hot dogs and enjoy the fireworks this year. What a wonderful time to celebrate our country! 

This week was a good one! We had tons of great experiences with the members in our ward. :) We invited one of the older ladies in our ward to some appointments we had and it was AWESOME. She was so great! Her name is Hermana Irma and has the one of the strongest testimonies I have ever heard. She grew up catholic and was known here in the pueblo as the "resadora". EVERYONE knows her. As we would walk down the street she greeted almost every person that passed by which was a perfect opportunity to share the gospel. Her conversion story is so powerful. It was amazing to see her share her testimony and stand up for her beliefs in front of her peers. It made me think about all the people I know who aren´t members of the church. She taught me the importance of ALWAYS sharing the gospel and standing up for what I believe in, even if it might be a little awkward with those we know. It was SOOO great!!!!

We saw tons of miracles with some converts who had gone astray. Carlos and Lorena got baptized in December and during this time had stopped coming to church and reading their scriptures. We´ve been really trying to work with them and last night we talked about how their family can be eternal and how they can prepare for the temple to be sealed. The attitude of the night had changed and the spirit touched their hearts. They were once again enligtened by the gospel and set goals so that they can be sealed together in December. It was so great for me and my comp to see their attitudes change about everything! Its an amazing experience to be an instrument in the hands of God. This is His work and glory and he is working mighty miracles here in this pueblo. 

Oh yes! Martha had her baby!! we´re gonna go see her this week to check on her and see if they need anything. :) 

Things are going good! Im super happy to be serving my Heavenly Father! I hope you all are happy and healthy. Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you. :) LOVE YOU!!!!! have a great week!!

Love, 

Hermana Gates

#kickitkdog

1) Chillin with lucky ;)

2) Relief Society Activity! We also celebrated some birthdays. :)

3) This is Abril!! She reminds me SOO much of Kdog!! 

4 & 5) She made a little paper ¨Hermana Gates¨ hahahhaha

Little Miracles

Hey Mom and Fam!!

How are you all doing?? WOW! It sounds like you guys are just living it up! Im so glad you´re keeping busy, staying safe and having fun. It´s so fun to hear how everyone is doing and what you´ve been up to. I hope all goes well with Kennadi´s treatment today. She will be in my prayers for sure! Thats so exciting that girls camp is this week. Thats so fun that all of you girls will be able to go. ahahah Im proud of ken for agreeing to speaking in front of the whole stake! She´s going to do awesome!! You´ll have to let me know how it goes. If you can, send a video!! 

This week was really good! But I have some bad news.. Last monday I found out that my misión leader in Dolores Otero passed away. He was my misión leader for 6 months so we got to know each other really well. Ah it breaks my heart but I know he is in a better place keeping the missionary work going. He seriously was such a good leader! The members in Dolores Otero  have been keeping in contact with me and it sounds like they´re doing well and are content. Something thats pretty cool though is that Manuel´s (misión leader) dad isn´t a member and now he wants to get baptized! It´s a miracle! He never wanted to listen to me and Hermana Gonzalez hahah but now he´s wanting to take the missionary lessons and get baptized! I know the Lords time for everything is perfect. His plan is perfect. Even though we have these trials in our life we just need to keep pushing forward with faith. Gods got the better plan!

BUT this week was a really good one! We had transfers! But me and Hermana Poroj are staying here in Halachó another transfer! Not gonna lie, I totally thought I was leaving the área but im so happy to have more time here! I love Halachó and everyone in it haha. :) It´s a beautiful Little pueblo with tons of mosquitos haha (Dont worry i bought a whole lot of repellent). This week we had an awesome experience. My companion and I were looking for a reference and ran into someone named Nicholas. We got talking to Nicholas and he said that when he was in cancun, mormon missionaries gave him a Book of Mormon to read. He said that he always reads and feels that its true! Mine and my companions jaws dropped when he said he knew it was true. God really does prepare His children to hear about the góspel! We are so excited to teach him and help him understand the restoration and the other missionary lessons. :) Please pray for him! he´s gold!

This week my companion and I found an old investigating family who the elders had taught over a year ago and with transfers between the elders they stopped meeting with this family. Well.. We showed up at the door and the dad saw us and immediately ran out of his house to greet us. He yelled out, "yeny! ven! los elderes están aquí!" hahah😂 he was so excited He told us that we could visit him and his family today because they want to know more about the church. It was pretty coool!!!!

I know that the Lord really does prepare his children to hear the góspel. It´s amazing to be a witness of it here in Merida. Im so grateful for this time in my life to serve him. I really cant believe how fast the time is going by! Im trying to enjoy every single day! The misión is so fun and exciting. Every day is so different. Im so grateful for all of your love and support. If there is anything I can do for you, please let me know!! Love you alll!!!

Love, Hermana Gates

#kickitkdog

1) Hermana Yescas and Hermana Terry! Hermana Terry will be returning home this Wednesday! If you see her strolling around St. George please give her a big hug from me!!!

3) We are the only sisters in our district hahah. Its great!