God's Army

(Written Monday, July 6, 2015)

Hello Everyone!

What a crazy quick week it has been and we are at the end of another transfer! The verdict is that I will be staying here in Los Feliz for another transfer and Sister Stark is moving one area over so I will still see her once a week in meetings, but she will be working in a different area. My next companion's name is Sister Haycock and she came in with Sister Stark, she is super cute and I look forward to working with her! We had a wonderful fourth of July by going to a pancake breakfast with the sisters in our area that day and we tried to go and look at the fireworks on the mountain for a few minutes, it was a crazy party and I really want to come back sometime for the Fourth of July festivities as a regular person! It was so cool to see fireworks all over the valley! I tried to take picture of it but it just didn't do it justice.

4th of July pancake breakfast with the sisters

We didn't end up having any baptisms, but I know that this next transfer we will see so many miracles with people coming into the fold of Jesus Christ. There are so many ready people that we have that are right on the cusp of being ready and I look so forward to all the miracles we are going to have.

We had a very powerful moment this week with a new member of our church, her name is Jackie and her daughter is Veronica. We did an activity where we reminded them how far they had come and how much their testimonies had grown by having them write them down. We played church music and had a bunch of photos of Jesus Christ. It was pretty spiritual as I was writing down what I knew to be 100% true and how much I had learned.

I am so grateful for who I am and who I can become. I know that my Savior loves me. It was so cool being a part of God's Army on the Fourth of July, this will be the one time I will get to say that I got to do that. I wear His son's name on my chest and I am part of the most important army that exists. How cool is that? I read a quote in one of our church magazines this week talking about the importance of Religion and Government working together separately but how they are important together. This quote has quickly become my new favorite because I have seen this come true first hand. An apostle of the lord that was also working on the president's cabinet committee during the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower said
"The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of the people and then they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold people by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature" --Ezra Taft Benson

I have seen the gospel of Jesus Christ change broken homes with abuse, drugs, alcohol, little or no purpose and bring them into a refuge, with more unity and love and a purpose in this life. I have also realized that this gospel that I was privileged to grow up in has protected me from a world of hurt and sorrow. I know Jesus Christ lives, He knows and loves me and you and he can help us become who we want to be and who HE wants us to be.
Much Love,

Hermana Alayna Nelson

The last of Sister Nelson and Sister Stark

Meet the Missionaries

(Written Monday, June 29, 2015)

Hello everyone,

It was another eventful week! Jaime finally came home from his time in Hawaii and we were able to finish his lessons with him this week and he passed his baptismal interview so he will be getting baptized this Saturday July 4th at 3pm! We can't wait for this to happen! It is going to be so great!

We also took Jaime to the documentary that some people made for our church called Meet the Mormons. This was the second time that I have seen it and it made me so happy and feel the spirit again very strongly. He really liked it!

They also had a photo booth there so as you can see, all us missionaries took the opportunity to get a nice shot together! We are only missing two elders, but the random guy that works for cricket I guess makes up for it ;) where did he come from?

I was kind of battling round two of my illness this weekend, I am feeling a little better at the moment, but I think the heat is just getting to me! I don't really know, so prayers are always good! Don't worry, I am resting lots and trying to take care of myself!

There isn't much else exciting or crazy to report! We just keep on going! I love my mission, even when it is hard! Everyone hang in there! I will have more exciting news next week, it's the last week of the transfer so I'll have exciting news about what's happening with next transfer!

Much love!
Hermana Alayna Nelson

"Hoosier finds Corn in Sin City"

 (Written Monday, June 22, 2015)

Hello Family and Friends,

Hope all is going well, this one won't be too long because I was actually kinda sick this week, so a lot of my time was spent sleeping! I am trying to take care of myself in the best way that I can! But we did have some cool things happen this week!

The first picture is of me with corn! YES I FOUND CORN! Yay! One of our members is a bike vendor, just like in Mexico they ride around and sell things like chips, slushies and corn with mayonnaise and chile and Parmesan cheese, it's really good and I haven't had one since my brother made them a long time ago, so it was great and I felt really authentic to the culture for a little bit ;)

But the biggest thing that happened was our valley wide family history fair! We had a man come down from Salt Lake City that is in charge of Latino and Mexican records and he talked to us about our families and learning about them, which was incredible! My Spanish is getting so good now that I don't really have to think so hard and pay attention, but like English I can just sit and realize oh wow, all this is going in one ear and making sense right away! YES! This is a good place to be! At any rate, he really made me want to do family history research and learn more about my family! He talked about how the most important part isn't the date of birth or the date of death but the dash in the middle that sums up our whole lives and that if we can capture stories and pictures of them, they will continue to live on forever and won't really be gone and we can learn from them so much!

My Recent Converts Gaby and Jorge were there! It was so good to hear that they will be going to do baptism at that temple this Saturday.  The dad an son have the priesthood now and the son went to youth conference in Utah this past week! The parents came to do family history at our fair and they told me that Alejandro has already done so much family history work, this kid is on fire and so elect :) I am so proud of this family! They are doing great things!

Malachi 4:6 is a prophesy that we can fulfill today "and he shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers."  If we turn to them and knit our hearts with theirs, we can learn and grow so much! My invitation to you this week is to visit the church's free website (for anyone in the world to use, not just members of our church ) www.familysearch.org and start learning about your family! One thing the man said was that if we don't record the stories, they die with the person, but if we talk to our grandparents now, we can preserve pieces of them here with us forever :) The biggest question I am dying to know is how my grandpa met and married my grandma! I wish I had time to do family history work right now, so you'll have to do it for me and tell me what you learn this week! I promise it will bind you to them and it will bind you to your savior! David Archuleta has a really cool song that came out about Family History, it's in Spanish and called Nunca Pense.  Get excited about learning about your families by listening! It's wonderful!

Much love,
Hermana Alayna Nelson

Cereal, Folklorico, Rainstorms, Peaches & Umbrellas

(Written Monday, June 15, 2015)

So in case you didn't sense the randomness of this week from the title, it was nuts!

Among many things, we had the exodus of the cereal into the back of our car from a member! We got so much from a member that it fed all the missionaries in this area!

I stole a peach from someone's tree because they didn't answer the door.

I rang another doorbell with an umbrella which required much skill because I had to reach through the gate.

And I took a picture with a TV in the middle of the desert.

We met a lot of wild animals this week and got caught in a rainstorm (which started as a windstorm that felt like a tornado and blew stuff in our eyes). But then I took the opportunity to dance in the rain since it never happens here.

We went to a church party that was a cultural night and they had Mexican decorations and dancing in the traditional dresses called Folklorico. I took videos, but I guess they are too long to send, so one day you will see them! Our bishop got up and sang the song that he used to propose to his wife to her again called "Eres Tu" :) It was so cute! Spanish music literally sings to my soul these days, how did I never know! I LOVE IT!

It's starting to get really hot here, but exciting things are happening when we listen to the spirit. This week we had an appointment to show a lady around our temple but she canceled, normally we would follow our back up plan, but I had a small feeling that we should go walk around the temple and that someone would be there for us to talk to. So we drove there, prayed and said we would walk around the temple once and go back to our other plan. We did so and didn't see anyone, but as we were walking back to our car, I saw a little boy and thought very strongly "go back" as we did, we ran into a Spanish Speaking man and his 10 year old son. They also spoke perfect English, but the dad wasn't a member. We were able to take them into the lobby of the temple and answer some questions for them, it was just so neat to meet them. They told us they were being taught by other missionaries and went to a different building of our church because his wife and ten year old son are members, but we haven't been able to figure out who's teaching them! It was incredible to see that when we listen to the smallest of thoughts, that God uses us as his instruments.

That same day we knocked on a door and I felt as though we should walk further up the street, we knocked on an unplanned door and no one answered, but we were able to talk to another kid outside that was so friendly and has a bunch of Mormon friends and we were able to answer some of his questions about the church too!

Miracles are happening here and this week there will be so many more! I love my Savior, My Brother and My Friend Jesus Christ. He is the reason I am here, because I want others to know of him and love him too in a way so personal that will change their lives! Keep going and be believing!

Much Love,
Hermana Alayna Nelson

Pictures: Literally in the windstorm, so many things were blowing in our eyes!

I found my perfect car! I love Hello Kitty way too much!

Us with the wonderful young women that did the Folklorico dances :)

Check the blog, there are so many more photos on there, I did a good job to make up for last week!

A Trip to Hawaii

(Written Monday, June 8, 2015)

Hello World,

Another week has passed, how, I don't know! It seriously feels like it was just P-day so I hardly took any photos this week! Sorry about that!

But I do have some exciting news! Someone is going to Hawaii! And it's not me haha Jaime, our investigator is going to Hawaii for some special military training on their base. He will be there for about a week and a half and this is why this story is cool. Jaime had a smoking problem and we hoped that wouldn't mess up teaching him, but as we taught him about God's plan of health for him and how he can receive so many blessings, he quit smoking that day and has only had one since and hasn't bought more or had more. He is doing incredible! He said that he came to realize that it was a temporary solution to his problems and that he didn't need them! It was so cool to hear! We also told him we were going to give up things with him too to help him feel like he was on a team, so I gave up naps, which I have been taking nearly every day during lunch for like the past month so it was a big deal, but I wanted to do something hard and feel how he felt and pray for help and also, I wanted to finally get caught up on my journal. Sister Stark gave up candy and sweets and we did it! I have to say, my first few days, I went through withdrawals and it was so hard, but as I prayed for strength and prayed that Jaime would have strength, it became a little easier. Towards the end of this week though, I have felt like I am coming down with some sort of cold/sore throat thing and the sudafed my mom sent me was only working a little bit. It was exhausting me to no end, so sadly, I had to break my streak and start napping during lunch to get a little extra rest and strength so we wouldn't have to take time out of doing other important things. But I rationalized that sometimes naps are healthy and necessary but that cigarettes will never be healthy or necessary, also, Sister Stark had to break hers because of dinner appointments where members give us candies and such, but it's okay, we are recommitting and the important thing is that Jaime is still going strong.

But the cool thing is that we took Jaime on a tour of the temple and he said that he just felt joyful there which was so cool to hear! He said he wanted to come back and he was going to make it a goal to get married there and do baptisms for his family members! He loved it! Then a brilliant idea popped into my head to tell him to visit the Hawaii temple while he is down there. It is only an hour away from his base and he was looking up directions and photos and getting so excited! He's not sure he will be able to go, but last night he asked us to pray with him that he would be able to go somehow! We know that Heavenly Father will make it happen somehow because it is a worthy cause!

So that was my week! Exciting things are on the horizon, it is so amazing to see the gospel change people's lives and excite them for everything that Heavenly Father has in store for them! I know this church is true! My invitation to you this week is to pick something that you rely heavily on and try to let it go for a bit and pray for help from God. I promise you that your relationship with your Heavenly Father will grow and you will be more productive!

Love, Hermana Alayna Nelson

PS: These are the only two photos I have for you this week.

This is Pepe, the one we teach that has been learning from missionaries for nearly 15 years and he bought us sombreros so that we don't have to walk in the sun, He's such a cute man.

And then of course a picture of me today so you know I am happy and alive and also because I didn't send more pictures. much love

Prayers in my Sleep

(Written Monday, June 1, 2015)

Hello Family and friends!

Lots of pictures are going on the blog today!

Nothing too crazy happened this week, I'm still steadily sleep talking at night by saying prayers in Spanish for my investigators... it's kinda funny actually.

This week we had a big conference for all of the congregations close by and I learned so much from the president of it! They even had a youth session in the evening where us missionaries got to sing for the youth and then share our testimonies about why we are missionaries and what we have learned! I am learning so much and it's still not nearly as much as I want to learn, but I will just keep going and setting goals and trying to work hard!

I hope all of you are making steps in one way or another to move forward and increase your faith and relationship with Jesus Christ! It's such a rewarding feeling and one that is hard to express in words.

I love this mission, it's crazy to think that in July I will be halfway done! I don't want that to happen! So just keep praying that I learn a lot and that people give me water in the streets because it is getting hot.

The picture I attached of me and Sister Stark is from today and my hair will probably continue to only be done up in a ponytail until this heat leaves (so like for the next three months, this is the hairstyle I'm looking at) I'm ready to continue to see miracles!

I'm sorry I don't have too much time or much more to share, my investigators are moving along really well! They are special souls given me to serve from Heavenly Father! I love this work, I know it is true and directed by God!

Have a great week!
Hermana Alayna Nelson

Slushies and Staying Here

(Written on Monday, May 25, 2015)

Hello world!

This week went pretty grand, we learned a lot from leaders of the church about how Ipads are going to help us fulfill our purpose as missionaries so much more and they will prepare us for things to come by teaching us good habits and reasons to use technology. I'm so grateful to learn everything from this time here. Really we learn so much about our futures and how to prepare on the mission.

I am so grateful. I get to stay here for one more transfer (6 weeks) with sister Stark and I'm really grateful for another 6 weeks because we have two people preparing for baptism here, one of which is Jaime who learned about the Holy Ghost and compared it to his "battle buddy" since he is in the army! Whatever works to help you understand! He has decided to get baptized on July 4th! I'm so happy! He has become a very good friend of mine and I know I am here to help him!

Also I wanted to share a quick and cute miracle with you all this week. Here, we are kinda living in a mini Mexico! I love it! There are people riding around on bicycles selling slushies and food and the cowboys and everything. So it was particularly warmer the other day on Saturday and we saw these guys and I was just thinking, "Man, I really want one of those, but I have no money." Then the guy motioned us over and I told him "no tenemos dinero hermano" (we don't have money) and he told us the man in the truck bought them for us. Turned out it was Jose Luis who we were going to be meeting with his family later that day and he told us he knew it was hot and wanted to help us out! It was the nicest and simplest tender mercy, but it helped me know that Heavenly Father is mindful of us even with small and simple things. I'm so grateful!

I love the mission so much!
Everyone have a great week!
Hermana Alayna Nelson

My district

A Quick Hello

(Written Monday, May 18, 2015)

Hello Everyone!

I wish I had more to say, but this week was relatively uneventful, we went on exchanges with our sister leaders and learned a ton from them! We also had a lot of meetings and we are preparing for a giant mission wide conference this Wednesday where we will learn a ton more about ipads and using them as missionaries! There may even be someone really important coming from the church, so we are all very excited!

This transfer is coming to a close and I feel like it just started! Time is seriously running away from me!

I really do love you all! We find out what happens for next transfer this weekend and expect to hear about all kinds of miracles next week!

I love you all so much! Hang in there and keep serving the Lord!

Much Love,
Hermana Alayna Nelson

Us with our Mexican drinks

Us with our 8 year old recent convert Veronica Last night :)

Mother's Day, Cinco de Mayo and Baptisms

Salutations world and Happy Mother's Day once more!

This week has been incredible, there was such a wide variety of things that happened!

We had a zone conference where we were spiritually enlightened by our leaders and learned so much.

We also were able to do our first temple tour with one of our investigators and his girlfriend who is a member that wants to relearn everything. It was so incredible to see the spirit work on both of them as we walked the grounds. Tomas, our investigator described the feeling best when he said' " it's like going on a vacation, but better because all of your problems just leave you and it's not like at the end of your vacation when you're just worried about having to jump back into to everything you were doing... you just feel a never-ending peace." He also said his first out loud prayer with us and his girlfriend, Aarika, started crying. She said she couldn't believe this was happening and that it wasn't too late and I bore testimony that it is never too late for Heavenly Father and just how much He loves her. They also each got to pick a spot on the temple to be their spot and their promise to themselves and to God to enter in one day and be married. It was very special to see how much this was changing them and I know that one day they will be able to be sealed or bound together forever in the temple and not just 'til death do us part.

Another wonderful thing about this week was that Jaime, one of our investigators came to church for the first time this week and loved how he felt and what he learned! It was incredible! I know he is very ready to accept the gospel in his life and he is a really cool guy.

We also celebrated Cinco de Mayo at one of our district meetings... so that was awesome.

But the most exciting moment from this week was being able to go to my first baptism. Gaby, Jorge and Alejandro all made the choice to be baptized and it was so special for me. I know this family will do wonderful and great things here and that this will bless their lives so much! I have grown to love this family and am so grateful for the opportunity I had to teach this family and see them progress. What made it even more special was that their 14 year old son has been reading the Book of Mormon diligently and studying and learning about the church and when the leaders were welcoming him in, he began to cry. I did so well not crying the whole time, but when I saw this, I cried too, because I knew that the spirit was touching his heart so strongly and I also remembered that from the beginning I could see him serving a mission and changing so many lives one day. I know he is realizing that now too and I am so glad! I love them so much.

I also love the gospel of Jesus Christ and how as missionaries, we are able to see it change the lives of so many people in so many different stages, the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is true, Jesus Christ lives and directs this church. I love Him, I serve Him and this time of my life is something I am so grateful for. It was wonderful to talk with my family yesterday and it's crazy to think I only get to do it once more at Christmastime and then I come home in April. It's going to fast, but I am doing everything I can to enjoy it!

Much Love,
Hermana Alayna Nelson

Temples and Cacti

Howdy Y'all

This week has been pretty cool! We got to go to the temple again for Sister Stark because she is a new missionary. It was a beautiful day.

We also tried out riding bikes this week (dorky bike pictures will also be on the blog).

And we had a very awesome zone conference where we painted our hands and committed to consecrate ourselves more fully to this work because our time is so short, it was very impacting and powerful.

I wanted to share my testimony today about being in the right place at the right time. I know that Heavenly Father is pleased with the work we are doing because he helps us to be where he needs us when we are being obedient. Two instances happened yesterday where I know his hands are in our work. We were pulled into a driveway and hadn't headed in yet because we needed to send a text and a car pulls over and a girl gets out and knocks on our window. She was about to go on a mission and really wanted to go out with sister missionaries and serve with them. She hadn't been able to find any but saw our bike rack and turned around. It was very inspired that we hadn't gone inside yet so that we could help her.
We also were supposed to be on a street to try a family and as I pulled onto the street I saw all these Hispanic women crowded around a baby and something told me turn around. I called out to them and asked if they needed help and they said yes. A two year old boy named Anthony had grabbed a cactus and it was stuck in his hand, we ran down the street and knocked on two doors, one of them was a member and he ran down with a first aid kit and then the parents of this member walked by and helped us too. We couldn't pry it out of his hand and so we called an ambulance. It broke my heart it see this boy in so much pain, but the mother was so grateful that we got help and asked what church we were from. We waited until he was safely in the ambulance and then the mother came and talked to us and said please give me your card, I want to bring my daughter to church and maybe you can come meet with me and a family I know that is in need. I was incredibly grateful for the opportunity to do just a little bit of service and see that Heavenly Father really needed us there.

I love this church! I know the gospel of Jesus Christ is true and that he is mindful of all of us!

Take care and have a good week,
Hermana Alayna Nelson

PS: Happy mother's day to all the wonderful moms and examples that have blessed my life! Talk to you next week!
PPS: Don't I look like snow white today, it was an accident, but then we needed to take a picture of this beautiful accident. Much Loves :)

Rain and Eternal Families

(Written Monday, April 27, 2015)

Well y’all, today is my half birthday and basically my 6 month mark. I travel home next year on April 26th. So from here on out, I only have one year left to make the mission count. I have finished one third of my mission already. It is crazy how fast time goes. What a significant time.

I am so glad to be serving. Although things right now are mainly driving around a lot to try and get to know our members and the people that the elders were teaching before, you still get to see the hand of God. We stopped in on a recent convert family and they are on fire. They were getting ready to go into the temple the next day and we were able to help them feel excited. Their eight year old twins are geniuses and knew so much about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith and were quizzing us, it was so fun. Then right before we left, they sang Families Can Be Together Forever about going to the temple and being sealed as a family. This whole family was about to do something so special and beautiful and they were doing it together. I know the family is ordained of God and that he loves us so much. What made it even better was that they sang in Spanish and I understood. I will admit that I cried a little bit, but the gospel of Jesus Christ and the promises we can make are so special and I love seeing it bless the lives of others.

I hope you all have a wonderful week!
Hermana Alayna Nelson

PS: It rained here and I was so happy, but now it is really cold, (like 65 degrees... but that's super cold for me now)
PPS: Me and Sister Stark this morning, still doing great :)

HOLY HOT HOMELESS HORSES!

(Written Monday, April 20, 2015)

Dear wonderful friends and family,

How different this area is for me! MY GOODNESS! So many changes! I received my trainee (baby) Wednesday evening and her name is Hermana Stark, She is from Auburn Alabama but doesn't have an accent and she loves cats like me, so we bonded fast obviously. She was at BYU for a bit and she is planning on going into computer science so she can be an animator for Pixar. So that's pretty cool!

My baby <3

So to talk about this area more, I was "born" in a fairly wealthy area in Henderson, Nevada. I am now in a place called Sunrise Manor (I believe) and it's more north east and boy is it a change! Probably 80% of the people here are Spanish speakers (which is really good for me!) The first person I talked to in the street was a homeless man named Gino going through a trash can to find aluminum cans to get money for them. He was really friendly though. And there are essentially Mexican Cowboys that ride their horses by the side of the road! It's quite the interesting place! Lots of GIANT CACTI! It's more desert here, and more rural and slightly rundown. I live near a street called Hollywood, but it looks nothing like Hollywood here and of course, the heat is starting to move in which will be so fun (sarcasm)

But the most exciting thing is that the Las Vegas Temple is in my area and only about 5-10 minutes away from our apartment! Last night, we went to try to visit everyone and when we finished all of our plans and still had time, I decided to show Sister Stark the temple site. It is so beautiful at night and the spirit is so strong and peaceful there. I know that the temples are the houses of the Lord on the Earth and the closest place we can be to Him here. I am so grateful for the peace it brings to be so close.

Angel Moroni on our Beautiful Temple

I feel so strongly that we are going to see so many miracles in this area, the ward we are serving in is incredible! They are so ready to help us and so nice! There are so many ready people here! There are lots of crazy changes to get used to, but I know that Heavenly Father is serving here with us just like he promises us in Jacob chapter 5. I love my mission and I am so grateful to be here!

I hope you all have a wonderful week!
Hermana Alayna Nelson

Please check out the blog for more pictures! There are lots this week!

Of course, you can find a little piece of redneck heaven here in Vegas #Murica