We went over to a member's house and had a great visit with them. One thing that Hermana Raban and I have shared with members is the analogy we have of surfing, since we are so close to the ocean. You get your board and swim out with the purpose of catching a wave. In order to catch the wave, you have to turn your back and trust that the wave is there and that you will ride it. The currents start to pull you back, but this is where we need to swim the hardest against the current.
You give it one final stroke and catch the wave. Once you catch the wave, you don't stop there - you stand up.
We can relate this to the gospel and how there are a lot of times where we have to put our trust in God and when the hard times come we need to swim even harder. It is okay to wipe out and miss a wave. The failure is when we swim back into shore and give up. As long as we are trying our best and giving it our all we will reach the goal of eternal life.
Wednesday was my birthday. It was honestly one of the best birthdays I've ever had.
It was an Elder's (who serves in the same ward) birthday too so we woke up and went tot he church to play basketball and decorated their car. When we got home, I took a shower and I got out and Hermana Raban had decorated the whole apartment with streamers and balloons and had made me breakfast. It was so sweet. I opened some packages from friends and family which were GREAT! Then Hermana Raban gave me a bag. I opened it and it was a shirt from a surf shop. She planned a split with the other sisters so that she could make it a surprise and have the Elders pick it up so that it could be a surprise. It was so nice.
We tracted and met lots of people and have a few return appointments. A miracle this week was a member told us about a street we should go try out. We knocked the first door and a lady opened the door. She spoke Spanish and let us in and we taught her a lesson. We are going back soon so that was a miracle.
Oh, and also a member had us over Sunday and asked if I wanted my ears pierced. I kind of thought she was joking but she wasn't Haha. She bought some earrings and I was like "Well, I can't back out now". She pierced my ears on my birthday haha! I never thought I would pierce my ears but I guess that's one way to build member trust Haha.
Today we went on a little hike and this was the view.
She loves getting emails. This is her address:
Email: lily.pita@missionary.org (Don't reply to this blog - it is a public site)
Her mailing address is:
Hermana Lily Pita
California Ventura Mission
3301 W Gonzales Road
Oxnard, CA 93036
This is the direct link to her blog.