Familia Toalombo‏

It’ has been another great week here in AMBATO!! holllla....

The week really flew by super-fast, feels like it was just Monday. Let’s just start off with the fact that I have 7 months on the mission...CRAZZZYY! Time is flying here, maybe the rice helps...who knows haha Hermana Coronado is getting into the swing of things as a missionary, sometimes I forget that she was just in her house and I am so used to the way things are done here on the mission. 

We had an awesome week the family TOALOMBO they got baptized on Saturday. Everything went perfect and there were over 50 people there. The ward here is SO SUPPORTIVE they are the best. It was a special day; to hear the testimonies of new members of the church are a great example for us. They are the best. Baptisms have got to be one of the happiest moments in the mission, to see people become clean through Christ. 

Other than that this week was a week of finding, we contacted like CRAZY, really broke Hermana Coronado in, with some angry dogs and insane old people, always makes for a great afternoon. I will include pictures but we spent all day Saturday digging holes and playing in lots of dirt on a service project. Oh and my agenda fell in the toilet during church, all my info wet YAY!

This week we leave on Wednesday to have a conference with all the sisters in the mission in Quito, spend the night and have another conference with the new missionaries for my comp the next day, so it will be a little bit of a traveling week, I am sure I will have great stories because we will get to travel with Hermana Castillo whoot whoo!

That is about it for me this week,

 Remember to say your prayers at night..I love you all

Para Siempre Dios este con vos

Hermana Merrill:)

PICTURES:

At the church some random day ahah

Service with the Kim Kardasion of Ambato

Amabato

It has been a LONG week. It all started last Tuesday when, Hermana Pace and Hermana Castillo and I went to Latagunga to Hermana Castillo´s house  and then when back up to Quito to pick up out new companions. We arrived late Tuesday night and stayed with the nurses in the Quito North mission. That was interesting, not even in our mission but there were so many sisters somehow we had to crash somewhere to sleep. So that takes us to Wednesday morning we woke up and went to the big meeting to pick up our new companion my daughter!! We had a huge meeting with all the trainers, the president spoke to us about how he putting his trust and faith in us to help these missionaries. That takes me to Hermana Coranado, She is from the north coast of Columbia close to Panama, and is 20 years old. Her and her families are all members; she has a brother who just got back from serving a mission in Peru! She is GREAT. It is fun having a newbie, she is so ready to work, and is fearless. I love her to death already. 

Now a little about Ambato, we are in the south part of the town, in the ward Pardera. We are the first sisters here in about 10 years. About 200 members assist each week, which is a ton for Ecuador! The member’s here are AMAZING, I have never met people like this is Ecuador let alone in my life. This ward is probably the best ward in the mission, the members work side by side with the missionaries. We have been here for less than a week and we seem to already know most of the member’s. And a side note they don’t give us much rice here, because they know it’s all we ever eat, so that’s a plus!! Ambato, it so much safer and easy going, ahh it’s the best here. 

 We are opening the sector so finding and finding and finding is our work right now. We are teaching the family Tolalumbo, they have been investigating the church for about 7 years but yep they are getting baptized on SATURDAY! They all passed there interviews and are ready. I LOVE them. The mission is great, yeah I do not have my family but I have other families here to serve and treat like my family for this short period of time here in Amabato. They have 4 children that will all get baptized too! I will be sure to have pictures ready next week.

On a more spiritual note, this talk and video has been on my mind all week. I love this talk from Elder Holland..https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2009-02-05-how-do-i-love-thee?category=mormon-messages/mormon-messages-2009&cid=HPFR021315693&lang=eng

Well that’s about it for this long week!

I love it here; I love the mission but sure do miss home sometimes, more than anything Moms cooking. 

Remember to say your prayers at night kids....

xoxoxo

Hermana Merrill:)

TRANSFERS!

We had transfers today and I am now writing you from Ambato! It’s about 3 hours south of Quito. We took the bus down here in the pouring rain all morning. We leave again tomorrow to pick up our other companion in Quito, (yes another TRIO). No idea who she is she’s coming from the MTC! We live near tons of volcano's and the mountains here are beautiful!! 

That’s about it next week I will have more info on where I am, kind of like the last time not really sure exactly where I am.  My last week in the other sector was interesting, my companion from Peru got the flu and went back to Peru she ended her mission. We taught and taught and taught and said goodbye to everyone there. 

I was just praying all week to be put somewhere safe and different to have a new start. This is going to be a new adventure. We already have a lesson
with a family tonight that is going to get baptized next week whooo whoo! I am so happy to be here, I love the mission, I love the people here. I have tons of pictures from the families back in Turtubuma.

I hope everyone has a great week filled with the love of the  Savior.

con amor

Hermana Merrill:)

These pics are us and the bishop and his wife at church,

Making some Ecuadorian food with bananas

and a great shot of me with a pot of rice hahaha!

Learning to Love the Rice.

This week has been much better, we have a house whoot whoo!

I am learning to Love the Rice. Not just literally eating the mountain of rice but learning to love the things that really just seem so Hard. Spanish is so hard. Getting people to accept the gospel is Hard. Walking into a random house is Hard. Getting robbed is Hard.  But learning to love things can be hard if you make it. I really am here to invite every single person I come in contact with to come unto Christ, to feel the power of the atonement in their lives, the same way I have felt it in my life.

We have had a slow week; we found a new house and moved back to our sector yay! We have been continuing to teach the family Arias this week. They are the best, I love them, and they are the hope for me right now in this sector. Opposition is real, I think everything bad as been put in their path throughout this time of them trying to make convents with thee.

Yesterday we had a devotional with the brother of President Christensen, Elder Christensen of the presidency of the 70. It was amazing; we sat in Quito with all the missionaries that are serving in the Quito area. The spirit was so strong and for once I feel like I got something out of a talk in Spanish. Making some progress!  Probably one of my favorite scriptures right now...Alma 34:9-10 more than anything he spoke about the Atonement. I know the atonement of Christ was the most important event that ever happened for mankind. It can be applied to every problem of life. It can repair broken hearts, heal the sick and help every single person that accepts it in their lives.

That is about all I have for this week, next Monday we have transfers, I cannot believe another 6 weeks has already passed.

Thank you for all your support and love.

con amor siempre

Hermana Merrill:)

Pics...the new house, yep its pink and Green ahaha!

and us at church with our converts