his arm of mercy

MY DEAREST FAMILY AND AMIGOS,

The weeks seriously just keep going by faster and faster!!!!  I don't really know how it happened but we are already in the last week of the transfer.  On Sunday, we find out what happens for transfers.  Half of the members have told me that they're praying I finish the mission here but after being in Jerez 6 months, we'll see what happens.  It's most likely I'll be leaving BUT you never know.  Keep your fingers crossed that I stay :))

We've been working A TON with the members.  Getting them involved in lessons, introducing them to our investigators, planning family home evenings, etc.  We even started piano lessons and we are teaching some of the members!!  It's actually been way fun and my love for these 'jerezanas' just grows every day.

This week, we had the opportunity to do a little contacting with Rosa and Rocio, our recent converts.  We took them to a cita (that ultimately wasn't there) and decided to do some finding on the way back home.  Cute little Rocio was so excited but so nervous :')  We stopped literally everyone in our path and only ran into people that wanted nothing to do with us.  It was pretty hard to watch the people reject even sweet Rocio.  But she was so positive and kept saying "I bet the next person will want a Book of Mormon."  She's going to be such a great missionary.  We stopped one man that actually didn't speak Spanish but understood a little English.  So we said, "don't listen to what we're saying, think about how you feel."  Then we asked Rocio to bear her testimony and she bore the SWEETEST, simplest yet boldest testimony I've ever heard.  The spirit was 100% present.  We asked the man if he understood what she said and he said no, but that he actually felt better.  He didn't end up wanting anything but I think it was an experience that Rocio will never forget.  She told us after that she was so nervous but when she started talking she didn't feel scared at all :') I think it also helped Hermana Malterre and I remember to always open our mouth and let it be filled with the words God wants us to say.

This week, I got frustrated because a less active family that we've been visiting for SO long still isn't coming to church.  We've taught every lesson, we've felt the spirit and recognized it, we've read scriptures, watched videos, said prayers and made extra special promises and still nothing.  I was upset because I just love them so much and they aren't doing what's necessary to receive all the blessings God has prepared for them.   Then I realized how frustrated Heavenly Father must be with me, every time I don't do what he's asked me to do. He's helped me and encouraged me and sent me people and answered my prayers and I always seem to fall short of what he asks.  But he loves me and keeps on pushing me and encouraging with the hopes that one day,  my will, will be a little more in line with his.  I'm so grateful for a loving and patient Heavenly Father that will never give up on us.  He knows our potential and he knows what we're capable of.

I was studying a little bit about Christ's "arm of mercy" that is extended to us all day, every day.  (2 Nephi 28:32) I was thinking, when you extend your arm, what do you see? Your hand.  And what's on Christ's hands? The marks from the nails, signifying his atoning sacrifice.  So if Christ's arm is extended all the days of his life, he's looking at his hands every day, and ultimately, ALWAYS thinking of us.  He literally cannot forget us.  I know he loves us and thinks about us and prays for us and worries about us. His arm is always extended just waiting for us to reach up and grab his hand.  But how can we reach him?  It's easy: have faith, repent, be baptized, be worthy of the Holy Ghost, and then KEEP TRYING.  Read the scriptures, say your prayers, go to church, serve your neighbor, forgive, love everyone.  All the basics that we've learned since primary are what will bring us closer to our Savior and our Father in heaven.  I know it because I've seen it in my life and in the lives of these lovely spaniards.

Hey, I love you guys.  Thanks for the constant support and prayers.  Just know it's coming right back at you from yours truly.

Love and hugs and kisses and all those good things,

Hermana Spangler

he lives

MY DEAR PEOPLE-

What a week!!!!!  This week in Spain is just about the most famous week there is.  'La semana santa' is like having Easter the whole entire week.  But instead of the Easter bunny coming and leaving eggs and candy, all the Catholic Churches pull out their GIANT idols and they march them around the streets of Spain and worship them. Jerez has one of the bigger processions in Spain so we've seen our fair share of Jesus statues.  Just to help everyone understand, these people pay to CARRY these humongous Jesus statues (that weigh about 2,000 pounds).  The whole country stops working, gets all dressed up, and follows these statues around wherever they go.  It starts on Monday and goes through Christ's suffering and death and crucifixion throughout the week, until Sunday where they bring out the resurrected Jesus.  The statues really are beautiful to look at and so well made, but it makes me sad because these people just love to see the bloody, dying Jesus.  They come from all parts to see him on the cross and suffering and then no one comes to see the resurrected Jesus-which is the most important part of it all.

I know that Christ died and suffered FOR US and that he did it out of pure love.  It's true that he died, but it's also true that he was resurrected and that HE LIVES.  He lives today and he lives for us.  He loves us so so much that he went through the most horrible, unbelievable pain so that WE might have peace and joy.  I know that he is the savior of the world, the prince of peace, and our older brother.

It's very common in Spain to become catholic the week of Semana Santa and worship the idols and cry when they see Jesus, but when the week is over, they go back to their normal lives like nothing ever happened.  Easter is something that can be celebrated every single day!!!!!  Christ lives!!!  And we can be grateful every single day for his suffering and resurrection.  Because of him, we can be freed from sin and from death.  I love Jesus Christ and I am so eternally grateful for him and his sacrifice.

Hermana Spangler

i found jesus

HOLA MY LOVELY FAMILY AND FRIENDS-

It's Monday already??????  I don't understand how the time flies so fast.  This week was a good summary of the mission because it started off really hard and we had to work a lot to feel animo and have the spirit and find people.  But by the end of the week, we were praying after every single cita, thanking God for the miracles he was giving us.

This week, I did a lot of pondering and thinking and I am SO incredibly grateful for the sacrament.  Earlier this week, I felt like something was lacking in my life and I realized it had been 2 weeks since I've taken the sacrament (because of general conference) and that I needed that spiritual renewal and remission of sins.  The sacrament has become so sacred to me on the mission.  I love having a moment to reflect on the Savior's atonement and repenting and making the changes in my life to feel the spirit more.  This Sunday, I genuinely felt a spiritual cleanse and I felt the warm approval of the spirit that I had received a remission of my sins and that it was only possible through Christ and his atonement.  I'm so grateful for Jesus Christ and the ability to repent of the daily mistakes we make.

This week we met: JESUS.  He is the coolest, and most genuine person I have ever met.  He's 27, from Jerez, and has visited just about every country in the world.  We were visiting another investigator that hasn't been progressing too much and he walked in the door, introduced himself, we invited him to join, and he joined!!!!!  In fact, we set another cita for the next day and went back again to teach him about the restoration and the Book of Mormon.  He loved it all :))  We invited him to be baptized and he accepted!!!!!  His story is cool because he believes in God as of only 8 months!!!!  He used to be a complete anti-christ and finally had to look for God because of certain situations.  He has so much faith and so many desires to follow him and know the truth.  It's difficult because he works on Sundays, but we'll get him to church!!!

We had another miracle with this family from a few weeks ago ((the dad is less active and the 3 girls are not members)) We went over for another noche de hogar and it was SO good.  This time we focused specifically on family prayer.  We had them all put their hands together and we wrapped a string around their hands that represented family prayer.  Then we told them that they were having a huge trial and something pulled all their hands apart.  Well, the string ripped.  So we did it again, but this time we talked about doing it every day.  We wrapped the string around 7 times to represent a whole week and then asked them to pull their hands apart.  Of course, the string was a lot stronger this time.  It made perfect sense to them and to me that prayer can truly strengthen us individually but even more as a family.  (I'm not with my family right now but it also counts as a companionship or a district) Prayer unifies us and strengthens us and brings the spirit even more abundantly into our lives.

LAST MIRACLE: we went by to see a family that has literally never progressed and that the missionaries had dropped a long time ago but I felt like it was time to see them again.  I knew them from intercambios in San Fernando and we actually went to the American navy base with them last summer. (what?????) The dad was home alone but we talked at the door and he opened up to us A TON about his questions and what he wanted.  We told him that our message was just for him and that it would bless him and his family so much.  He accepted and told us that the missionaries that came beforehand had never taught him, they had also just passed by to speak English, eat some cake, and that's about it.  It really hurts me that there are some people like that who are just SEARCHING for answers to their questions and we are totally oblivious in helping them.  Well, now he, his wife, and their two adorable kids are our newest investigators!!!!  We have a cita with them on Monday. Keep them in your prayers!!!!!

I love love love you all,

Hermana Spangler

prince of peace

MI QUERIDA GENTE-

Wasn't conference just so amazing???  I left this weekend refreshed spiritually and ready to work and put my whole heart into this wonderful work.  If you didn't get a chance to watch it, go to lds.org, search general conference, and then you get the chance to watch the living prophet and his apostles talk to us.  I truly believe that they have been called of god and sent to teach what god wants us to know.  Their words are inspired and they will answer your questions.  They answered mine!!!!

I really just want to echo everything that president Thomas S. Monson said about reading the Book of Mormon.  It's truly a powerful book-it protects us, comforts us, teaches us, inspires us, etc.  I know that Christ is my Savior and my older brother because of the Book of Mormon.  It's main purpose is to testify of Jesus Christ and I have truly come to know him in the precious pages of the Book of Mormon.  I know I always say it, but that's my mandate as a missionary!!!  READ IT.  I can promise you it'll change your life.

Hermana Malterre is an actual angel and I am learning so much from her.  She's way funny too and all the people so far just love her, including me.  I feel very very blessed.

This week Hermana Malterre and I got on the train ((more like a dart)) and we sat separately to be able to talk to people.  I said a silent prayer to know who to sit by and I saw this girl that looked about my age and felt like I should talk to her.  Well, she turned out being just about the cutest thing ever!!!!!  Her name is Sofia, she's 21 and she's from Cadiz.  She was just in Jerez because she's studying here at the university.  We talked for a really long time, I showed her the new Easter video, I gave her a Book of Mormon and she just genuinely wanted to know more!!!  In fact, she started to cry and say that she was going through a really hard time in her life and that talking to me brought her peace.  I know that I really had nothing to do with the peace, but that I was just an instrument in the Lord’s hands to help her feel his love in this time.  I know that Jesus Christ is the prince of peace and all he wants is for us to feel that.

Speaking of which, the new Easter video is AMAZING.  I'll attach it here in this email. It's only 3 minutes, please watch it!!!!!  It's seriously so beautiful.  In fact, after you watch it, go post it on Facebook or Twitter and invite everyone else to watch it too :))

I love you all lots and lots and lots,

Hermana Spangler

3 Nephi 9:13-15