New and Exciting Changes

Hola, mi familia y amigos!!! SO SORRY FOR NOT SENDING AN EMAIL LAST WEEK. I STARTED IT I SWEAR!!! But finishing and sending it is a different story. I think only missionaries understand the true stress it is to right emails in a limited time. But DON'T WORRY BECUASE I HAVE LOTS TO TELL THIS WEEK. 

Well 6 weeks with the most amazing person flew by so fast. I can't even begin to tell you how grateful for the wonderful cambio I had with my lady Hermana Al-malki. I am so sad to see her go but happier than ever to have had the opportunity to serve with someone who truly loves God and wants to serve Him till the very end. BLESSED BEYOND MESSURE

AND SPEAKING OF BLESSINGS. CAMBIOS ARE IN AND YOU WILL NEVER GUESS WHO IS MY NEXT COMPANION......

HERMANA CHRISTENSEN!!!! yes that's right my very first companion in Chile from the CCM and I are back together about to tear up the turf here in Santa Cruz. I cried, screamed and was filled with so much joy and so excited to serve the Lord I love so much with someone I love so much. So THE ADVENTURE IS ABOUT TO CONTINUE AND MIRACLES ARE ABOUT TO POUR DOWN FROM THE HEAVENS.

Ahh but this week was a little crazy with getting my companion out the door. A lot of saying goodbyes, last minute shopping and getting things ready so she could be ready to return home. But I am so grateful for the wonderful miracle we saw with one of the sectors here in Santa Cruz.

Well Santa Cruz first off is one of the smallest districts with the highest number of menos activias in all of Chile and we work extremely hard to bring these lost souls back to Christ. This week when my comp went to Rancagua and to the temple I stayed back with our house mates and we went and worked in their sector. In one day we went to 4 menos activas and taught them but they didn't seem to budge for one second. I ended the day so frustrated and a little sad because I couldn't help someone who didn't want to be helped. I went to bed that night a bit heavy hearted, frustrated and not excited for the next day because I was supposed to go to one of the smallest branches with the stake president and train them for capitals abiertas.

So I went and I AM SO GRATEFUL I DID!

We went in the morning to put goals with the members of how many members they would want normally to come to the rama(the branch) and they put a goal for 30. This rama normally has an assistance of 7 and 9 with the missionaries. So 30 was a little bit of a high goal. But as the reunion started people came OUT OF THE WOODWORK. LITEREALLY JUST SHOWED UP! THE MOST RANDOM PEOPLE AND THERE WERE EXACTLY 30 PEOPLE IN THE CHURCH. And 3 were menos activas that we had taught the other day.

Holy cow can you say miracle. I can't even begin to explain the mircales the Lord shows unto his children who show their faith. 

I'm just so happy here serving my Father in Heaven. I'm so grateful for His mercy and love and I have felt it in every second of my time here.

One thing Hermana Al Malki always said to me is that, "it's not worth it unless it hurts!" And it is so true. 

Life is a long road. Long, narrow, up hill, down hill, rocky, bumpy, smooth, dificult road. We all have to ride it, but only a few will make it to the end. AND HOW BLESSED ARE WE IF WE MAKE IT THERE. I'm so grateful for the gospel in my life and all the tender mercy's of the Lord. I know He lives and that he loves me. I'm so grateful to have 6 more months to serve Him with all my heart. 

Love you all and hope you are able to feel the love of our Father in every second of your life. 

Hermana Hilburn

Always having fun

Hermana Hilburn's Comp to the left and housemates

Kind of like DI shopping?

This wonderful Hermana will be missed

Last time all together!

One way to get there

They went by three

Just Kristen being herself:)

Foot loose and Fancy free

Hermana Tan Lines

Love her Fanny Pack! 

The little kids in Chile are so sweet

Service Bound

This dog thinks he is getting some!

Hermana Revolo. So fun to see her again!

Miracles in Santa Cruz!

GOOD WEEK MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY I AM SO SO SOOSOSOSOSOSOSO HAPPY TODAY TO TELL YOU ABOUT THE CRAZY WEEK WE JUST HAD.

So here in Santa Cruz all the way down to Talca there have been so many fires. Forest fires, buildings burning and houses burning and the smoke has been so strong that we have had to stay inside our house 3 different days becuase it was so thick it was making missionaries really sick. But through the smoke our loving Lord has showed us some MILAGROS THAT ARE WORTH TELLING.

So Tuesday my compi and I left without our cell phone charged, like always and we had a very long day. The smoke was so heavy we weren't feeling all that great and we were just being rejected a lot, one of our fechas called us to tell us she didn't want us to come over anymore. Then to top it all off we had to go to a Catholic misa where we had to listen for 2 hours reciting prayers and hail marries and it was a little difficult to swallow for such a long time. 

So when we got back to the house we were so incredibly tired and it was like 9:20 so we charged our phone and we had 7 missed calls from the assistants to president... and we were a little concerned so we called them back and they told us that we have to bring an investigator to the zone conference tommorow and it was almost time to be in the house and we didn't have a clue who to ask! But the thought came to mind that we could go to our investigator, Flors house. So we got on our knees said a prayer to have Heavenly Father help us invite Flor to the conference and we went off in broken bikes to Flors house. We got there invited her and she said YES. TO TRAVEL WITH US 2 HOURS TO RANCAGUA TO GO TO A ZONE MISSIONARY CONFFERENCE THE NIGHT BEFORE. So we took her the next day. It was incredible. We learned together with her. She had a note book out the whole time and the spirit was so incredibly strong. She then came to church with us this Sunday asked for a blessing so she could quit smoking and WE ARE JUST UP THE THE HEAVENS HAPPY WITH FLOR.

We have been working so hard this transfer and we have seen CUAL QUIER OBSTACULO I CAN'T EVEN BEGIN TO EXPLAIN.  But we have seen the miracles that God has in store for us. Our president taught us this conference the importance of loving others as Christ loves them. It has truly helped me know how to better help them.

I love these Chileans with all my heart. This week so many things happened but I think that there's not enough time to tell it all.

I love you all and I'm so happy to be here serving these people. I WILL HIT A YEAR FRIDAY AND I CAN'T EVEN EXPLAIN HOW FAST THE TIME GOES HERE.  Please pray it will go a little bit slower so I can just soak every second of being a missionary in.

Have a great week and don't forget to do the little things. Pray, read scripture and go to church. God is in the details, only if we do them and show Him our obdience to him.

Con mucho amor

Hermana Hilburn

This adorable children come to hug and greet the missionaries everyday

Taking pictures in the elevator- These four Hermana's went to the hospital to visit a sick member

Its Grape season in Chile!

The Weeks Are Flying By

Literally just had to ask my companion if we had interviews this week or the next and it was this week because ... TIME IS NOT THE SAME ON THE MISSION. With loooonnnngggg hot days and short weeks I don't even know what the definition of time is!!! BUT IT'S GREAT!!!!

Ahh seriously this week so much happened. We had interviews with president, intercambios in Nancagua, fechas with Flor, broken bikes and museum visits. ALL IN ONE WEEK!!!! 

But like I said interviews with prez again. It changed mission wide that now every transfer we have to have interviews and training with our president and the poor guy has like a nerve problem due to the intense amount of stress and can't move half of his face. But he still sat through HOURS AND HOURS OF INTERVIEWS WITH HIS BELOVED MISSIONARIES.  What a guy. He helped me so much like he always does and I just have nothing but love in my heart for that man who is giving his all to his Father in Heaven. Ahh what a guy!

Also we had ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING INTERCAMBIOS YET with another peruana Hermana Solano in her sector called Nancagua!!! We saw so many miracles, we taught so many fire lessons it was just so good. 

Then we put a fecha with another investigator named Flor. I almost cried with joy becuase this lady has stolen my heart in a matter of weeks. So start up the prayers for my lady Flor.

Then we went to like the coolest museum in Chile and there are tons of pics.

SOOOOO SORRY THAT THIS WAS A SHORT ONE BUT LOT OF THINGS TO DO. But I hope you all know that I love it here and thinking about leaving these Chileans in a few months really breaks my heart. But I've still got 6 more months to try to bring as many souls back to our Father in Heaven.

Hope you all have an amazing week and if you have time read 4th Nephi becuase it made me cry real hard.

Hermana Hilburn

Taking our broken bikes to our favorite senior couples house

Cool Museum in Chile

New Adventures

Well hello my lovely family! This week was seriously full of so many miracles I don't have time to tell all but I just want you to all know taht GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS AND HE LOVES HIS MISSIONARIES AND HIS CHILEANS.

This week was a huge week of growth for me as a missionary. I just feel so extremely honored to be with my wonderful companion. She is incredible and teaches me so so much. #almalkifanforlife. We are just changing this little branch with a lot of the Lords help. Ahhh I'm so happy I never want to come home. Think I'm gonna turn in my papers to become a permanent Chilean resident. haha

So about the week... AMAZING. This week I did my first intercambios as a sister trainer leader, with a hermana named Hermana W and it went incredibly well SHE'S INCREDIBLE! She is passing through a little bit of a hard time in her sector called Chepica and with some hardships at home. So I prayed for her every single night of the week and for our intercambio we said a specific prayer that we would be able to forget about ourselves and go to work. And that's exactly what we did. We worked HARD. The sun was so strong and we walked a TON and we didn't see the miracle until the very end of the night. But it came and we found new investigators for Chepica. WHICH IS INCREDIBLE because it is a super small branch of an attendance of about 7 people including the missisonaries every Sunday. Hermana W. is an increcible missionary. She truly is. She is strong and understands Gods will for her. These past months have been hard for her but I think I really helped her to see her growth through all these tough times. She really was a huge example to me of someone who could put away her hardships and focus on others.

Other than intercambios Hermana Al-malki and I worked like BURROS this week to find someone who really is interested in the gospel and let me tell you I have been the most tired I've been on my mission. It's so hot here and we don't have bikes in a big sector where we walk everywhere. This week we put 2 fechas with some investigators that have been investigating for a long time but they accepted and we are going to work so extremely hard to get them to their date. 

We also had a very cool experience this week that I'd like to tell you about.

So we had recieved a prompting that we needed to contact an area for 3 days in a row but things came up and we couldn't go. So we said. Sunday SI O SI we are going to this street to contact. So Sunday we went and we blocked out an hour and a half to find the people we knew were on this street and we said a prayer for guidance in which houses we should contact. So we said a prayer and we asked what came to mind. Then I thought of the color white and my compi flowers. So we went and contacted every single house that had something white and something with flowers... well.. almost every house had these 2 things. So we spent an hour going to every single house that had white and flowers. After and hour of rejection, we came to a house at the very end of the street with white flowers. We yelled and a sweet old lady came out and invited us in. We went in sang a song and she told us that she had just been a little sad because she was thinking about her husband who had just passed away. So we introduced the Book of Mormon to her, made a cita and were set. We have a lesson with her this week but after that experience I am more than grateful for the opportunity to show my diligence to the Lord and to see Him bless us with the things we need.

It's been an incredible week. A week of work that's for sure. We walked so much in these last few days, worked some wholes in my socks, starting to have knee probs like mommers and hit the pillow and fall asleep in seconds. But the Lord has really been answering my prayers. He has blessed me so much that I don't even know where to begin with my gratitude. The mission has been the most tiring painful difficult thing I've ever done. But I go to bed every single night with the fullest heart. I love these people so much and I feel incredibly blessed to be able to serve them.

Keep the faith and remember our Book of Mormon challenge!!! 3 months to read the whole book!!!!

I LOVE YOU ALL HAVE A GREAT WEEK

Hermana Hilburn

Love this new comp of mine

long long days of walking

walking holes in the socks!

Holes in the socks and tan lines on the feet

love these Hermana's

Completos and Pepsi-It's the Chilean way

New Area! Yippee!!! Santa Cruz-Hermana Hilburn is Here!

WOW HEAVENLY FATHER LOVES ME SO MUCH THAT HE SENT ME TO SANTA CRUZ WITH THE BEST COMPANION THAT EVER WALKED THE EARTH THIS HERMANA IS A HAPPPPPPYYYYY ONNNNEEEE.

Well as you can probably tell this girl is so happy. Honestly I am just filled with joy to be in Santa Cruz with Hermana Almaki!!

So to start off my companion is incredible. She is from Peru/Argentina and her dad is from Qatar and her mother from Peru. Long story short she is probably one of the most incredible people I've ever met and in one week I truly feel an extreme amount of love for her and so grateful for her example to perserverar hasta el fin because it is her final cambio and she is not giving up for one second. 

We are working in a sector called Almendrosa which is a branch in a district of all branches who are struggling a lot but the missionaries are all teaming up to put our shoulders to the wheel and get Chile back to where it was!

We live with 2 other hermanas who are also working in our ward and it's so fun because now I'm not living alone and I AM SO HAPPY. I was going a lil crazy in the last house living with just one other person but now' its a party and a half because we have other hermanas and a sector full of wonderful people.

So this week I had my first training meeting as sister training leader and how PRIVILEGED I feel right now to be given this opportunity to grow. In just one week I feel like I have grown closer to my father in heaven and learned more how to serve and follow Him. This weeek in Consejo we talked a bout teaching repentance and baptizing converts and the role of the spirit in our propio conversion. It was incredible and especially to listen to our mission president, the most perfect man tell us his need for the atonement in his life and how he too is a sinner who needs the help of our savior. It really made me realize how much I need it as well and how I could better use it in my every day life to repent and become more like Him. Ahhhh IT'S INCREDIBLE HOW TRUE THE GOSPEL IS.

As for other news it was a huge week of service. My companion and I are working to win the hearts of the members so they will help our investigators when we bring them to church. Our service consisted of washing huge Saint Bernard's, taking bikes to the bike shop, cleaning curtains, teaching Spanish to Haitians, and preparing completeos for a newly returned missionary. 

I feel like there was so much that happened in this week that I am forgetting it all but it was because this week was an incredible week of change for me.

I have been praying for a long time to feel the power of the atonement in my life and I really honestly can say that I feel it so strong. I feel the strength from my Savior to hush my fears and my weaknesses and He is the one who gives me strength and I truly have never felt more grateful for Him.

I sure love these Chileans sometimes more than all of you.. haha jk you ALL still have my heart!

Have a great week!!!

Hermana Hilburn

Sweet Reunions

Moving Day

Will miss this sweet little comp

Making and eating Completo's

Happy day to see Hermana Christensen

New bike-with a Baby seat?

Ice cream with her Heidi shirt:)