October 21, 2013 - Mundelein, IL

Hey everyone, heyyyyy!!!!!!

Gotta make this letter quick.........because it's FACEBOOK time!

Two highlights.

First.

Remember that lady that Hmna Kennedy and I contacted in McDonald'
s back in August? ...She was baptized in Mexico, but never found the church when she came to the states- she recognized me from my name badge, in the drivethru...ringing any bells?

Anyway. long story short, it's been a crazy month or so for the poor lady- and we met her for the first time on Thursday. We had a really nice chit chat, and when we were about to leave, I felt impressed to tell her how we came about finding her....so I asked her if I could tell her a story. Slightly weird, maybe. Obviously she agreed, and I told her about the afternoon before we contacted her- and how Hmna Kennedy and I were really struggling to find anyone, and that she was pretty much a miracle. After all this, she asked me if she could tell me a story. Haha #lovestorytime. The night before we found her, she said she had a dream that two missionaries came to her door and were really mad that she hadn't come to church, and they pretty much begged her to come- and she woke up frustrated, because she couldn't find it. The next day, she stayed late at work, because she felt that she needed to stay. And then we found her. Coincidence? No. Miracle? I like to think so. She's a total gem though. She's not in our area, so we probably won't be stopping by anymore :( She's dating a non-member though, who has cancer (not sure what type, or how serious it is), but she asked for the elders to stop by and give him a blessing. Who knows! Maybe something will come from that. Hopefully healing: physical and spiritual.

Second. All the missionaries here received permission to watch some broadcast on Saturday night. I didn't pay too much attention to the details but we went anyway. Long story short, we showed up a little late...missed the introduction, and had no idea who was talking. And then, I realized that I recognized the man speaking (from an article dad sent me) and where he was speaking from. Clay Christensen from the Naperville stake center (that's where we used to have transfers/meetings, back before the mission split...it's in the West mission now). The devotional was ROCKING!  Wish that could have been broadcast all around, so all ya'll could have seen it.

This is what I liked. Alma 45:16...."the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance"...BUT(!),  as we read in D&C 58:42...."Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more.". It's the exact opposite of the adversary. He delights in you sinning, and will NOT let you forget what you've done. Satan pulls you in and keeps you in. Our loving Heavenly Father wants nothing more than for you to repent, feel free of that burden, and move on with your life. I really liked that concept.

Also. He talked a bit about receiving answers to our prayers. If we don't ask, we wont receive anything. But when we ask, we're essentially putting a piece of Velcro into our brains - demonstrating that we're ready to receive an answer.

Hope things are well for everyone back in the real world! Hmna Ocampo, better known as McDonald's lady, told us that there were some nutsy hurricanes that hit Mexico a few weeks ago? So weird being out of that.

Know that I love you!

Hmna Mortensen

....also, transfers are next week. Haha. I haven't packed my bags (I've been here all of my 5 transfers- wouldn't be surprised if they made it one more...just for kicks) but I've pretty much been guaranteed outta here. For all of you that are dying to send me letters and packages...this is the mission office address:  

Illinois Chicago Mission

800 Waukegan Rd. Ste. 203

Glenview, IL 60025

As for the pictures...

That's Hmna Ocampo

...and Hmna Montiel (a ward missionary) invited all the Hermanas over for dinner...and ended up teaching us how to make tortillas. SO GOOD!!! :) Like the apron?