We found H on the bus one day on our way to another appointment. We were going to meet our other investigator at the big mall/ underground station near the chapel and then take him back there to teach him. Just as we got there he cancelled the appointment. The miracle is however, that because he cancelled we were able to teach H that day instead. 

We taught him the message of the restoration. He accepted everything we taught him! It was amazing. Two months later he was baptised, and two weeks after that he received the Aaronic Priesthood.

It is amazing to see how the gospel can transform a stranger on the street into a priesthood holder. Preaching the simple truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ -- faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end-- is a beautiful privilege and blessing. It truly changes the lives of others, but most of all it changes my own life. 

Here are the photos of H (our trip to the temple visitors' centre, his baptism, and one day when he made lunch for us). 

Our investigator took us to her favourite Colombian restaurant and told the waiter to bring us a surprise. This is what we got.

Also heads up to anyone with read hair and blue eyes, if you go to any Latin American restaurants and speak in Spanish everyone in the whole place will stare at you. It is so funny. Every time we go with members or investigators to eat, I get a lot of strange looks. 

 As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints we believe that the bodies we have are sacred gifts from God, and that they have an important part in the plan that our Heavenly Father has for us. Therefore, it is important to take care of them. Heavenly Father revealed to the prophet Joseph Smith a commandment outlining how we should take care of our bodies. We call this commandment the Word of Wisdom. To follow the Word of Wisdom we need to abstain from five substances: alcohol, tobacco, tea, coffee, and illegal drugs. Keeping the Word of Wisdom is a requirement for baptism in the Church.

The photos are of an amazing woman who we taught. She had a desire to follow the Savior Jesus Christ by being baptized, and therefore abandoned all of her coffee and tea. She is from Colombia, and coffee is a very big part of Colombian culture. She had drank coffee and tea her whole life, yet in one day she gave it up completely.  The photos are of the day she threw it all in the rubbish. It was a wonderful and empowering experience, both for us and for her.

I am really behind on sending pictures, so I'm going to try to send a whole bunch today. These first ones are from January... sorry for getting so behind.

I treated everyone to Nando's while the Peckham Sisters were on an exchange so we could all have dinner together. 

Sister K is from Thailand and thinks that extra extra hot is too bland :) 

We have a tradition to put the stickers that come with the food on the back of our badges.

Time goes by so quickly for missionaries. I can't believe that I am now more than half way finished with my mission. As I have pondered and reflected on being in the middle of my full-time service I remembered some wise words from President Ucthdorf about being in the middle. I hope that you will enjoy them and take some time to reflect on the blessings of always considering yourselves as in the middle.

"Beginnings are times for making resolutions, for creating plans, for bursts of energy. Endings are times for winding down and may involve feelings of completion or loss. But with the proper outlook, considering ourselves as in the middle of things can help us not only to understand life a little better but also to live it a little more meaningfully.

When I speak to our young missionaries, I often tell them they are in the middle of their missions. Whether they just arrived the day before or are to depart for home the day after, I ask them to think of themselves as always being in the middle.

New missionaries may feel they are too inexperienced to be effective, and so they delay speaking or acting with confidence and boldness. Seasoned missionaries who are close to completing their missions may feel sad their missions are coming to a close, or they may slow down as they contemplate what they will do after their missions.

Whatever the circumstances and wherever they serve, the truth is that the Lord’s missionaries are daily sowing countless seeds of good tidings. Thinking of themselves as always being in the middle of their missions will embolden and energize these faithful representatives of the Lord. As it is with full-time missionaries, so it is with all of us.

This change in perspective is more than a simple trick of the mind. There is a sublime truth behind the idea that we are always in the middle. If we look at our location on a map, we are tempted to say we are at a beginning. But if we look more closely, wherever we are is simply in the middle of a larger place.

As it is with space, so it is with time. We may feel we are at the beginning or end of our lives, but when we look at where we are against the backdrop of eternity—when we realize that our spirit has existed for time beyond our capacity to measure and, because of the perfect sacrifice and Atonement of Jesus Christ, that our soul will exist for an eternity to come—we can recognize that we are truly in the middle.

Whatever our age, whatever our location, when things occur in our lives, we are always in the middle. What’s more, we will forever be in the middle.

Yes, there will be moments of beginnings and moments of endings throughout our lives, but these are only markers along the way of the great middle of our eternal lives. Whether we are at the beginning or the end, whether we are young or old, the Lord can use us for His purposes if we simply set aside whatever thoughts limit our ability to serve and allow His will to shape our lives.

The Psalmist says, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we [should] rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). Amulek reminds us that “this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors” (Alma 34:32; emphasis added). And a poet muses, “Forever—is composed of Nows.”¹

Being always in the middle means that the game is never over, hope is never lost, defeat is never final. For no matter where we are or what our circumstances, an eternity of beginnings and an eternity of endings stretch out before us.
We are always in the middle."

I believe that these words from President Ucthdorf are inspiring, and although I am literally in the middle of my mission now I will strive to continue to have my mindset "always in the middle" throughout my mission and my life.

I hope that you too will find yourselves "smack dab in the middle!"
The article is from President Ucthdorf in  the July 2012 Ensign, and you can find the full version at the link below.

 https://www.lds.org/ensign/2012/07/always-in-the-middle?lang=eng

 One of our investigators made a deal with my companion. If he came to church five times- she would have to make paella for everyone for Sunday dinner. They both came through with their ends of the deal so the fifth Sunday after church we all learned how to make a delicious Spanish paella and then enjoyed the feast :)