ALHAMBRA!

Last Monday for P-Day we went to
Granada and visited this really famous, i dont even know what you'd
call it: park/gardens/ beautiful architectural place. It was a Muslim
palace and then the Catholics took over but then the Muslims took over
again so its just a big mixture of beautiful cultural structures and
gardens. Its so big though, I dont think we even covered half of what
it really was. It was beautiful and we took a million pictures. So
many though, I think we annoyed the Elders a little bit. There was a
handful of times we found them waiting on benches patiently until we
finished taking all the pictures we wanted in that area,so that we
could all move on. Oh well, props for putting up with us, Elders! Haha 


 The arabics wrote their scriptures on the walls because they were afraid the spaniards would burn their scrolls.  All the walls are covered in this beautiful writing!

We had an amazing miracle this week--my whole time I've been here
we've tried to get an "in" with the husband of one of our recent
converts here in the ward. In my 3 months here, he only came out once
to talk with us. But after a lot of effort and a lot of praying to
follow Heavenly Father's direction, we were finally able to visit him!
We took the bishop with us and at first it was really awkward but then
we shared "Because of Him" Mormon Message to remind him of the Savior
and when it ended, everything just fell into place. The video brought
The Spirit so strongly which allowed him to express his concerns and
the feelings of his heart. Alongside the bishop, we were able to
express our love for him and that Heavenly Father wanted him back
home! He's been inactive for years now and he said he never stopped
believing, he just never knew how to come back. But The Spirit we felt
together was just the exact little push he needed. He promised he'd
come to church the next day and we were worried when he didnt show up
for the first two hours with his family but almost at the very last
second he ran in! He was sweating because he had to run the 45 minutes
to the church because there was a miscommunication with the ride
situation but he came!! It was incredible and very humbling. This man
hasnt come for years and years but all it took was one vist, and this
family is now striving to go to the temple to be sealed together for
all time and all eternity. It was a great reminder of how much
persistence and love pays off. And it makes me wonder how many people
are out there who are ready to come home, who just need a little
reminder of the love the ward members and The Savior has for them.
It's not too late. And I dont know why I'm going off on a rant again
(as always) but I just feel I should encourage you all to pick up the
phone this week and call someone who may need a little help, a little
love, a little push to return to The Sheperd and His fold. Let God
work through you! 

We have also been working with The Frenchies a lot this week. One of
them had a birthday so he had to leave the Youth Center where he was
living. It has been really scary for him (and for us!) because we had
no idea where he would live or where he would get an income, but let
me tell you, this kid has the strongest faith and spirit than anyone
I'd ever met! Whenever we ask him if he's worried or what he plans on
doing, he always just says the typical spanish phrase "si Dios
quiere," which pretty much means "if its God's will." And we have
definitely seen Heavenly Father take care of him during this hard
time. We are working with them towards baptism and its been a
struggle--they both know how important and that its a covenant we make
with God and I think because they understand that so deeply, theyre
scared. Theyre scared of messing up, of not being perfect after
baptism. We shared the Atonement with them and the wonderful gift of
repentance and one of them told us he'd pray about baptism and give us
an answer Sunday. So "si Dios quiere," we'll see them both in white
soon ;) 

We had a lot of really good other citas this week, we're definitely
still looking for people that The Lord is preparing for us. I've never
had such a low amount of people to visit before, so its been a real
change for me. We do lots of finding in the streets and even though
its hot and its hard sometimes when people reject you, you always have
those tender mercies. And we've had a lot this week! We met the nicest
man from Cape Verde and it was super funny because we had seen him
three times already that day and when we saw him the fourth time we
were like alright, this is definitely not by accident! So my cute comp
just started waving crazily and yelling hola at him to get his
attention haha so that he wouldnt cross the street. He was super nice
and we are excited to meet with him tomorrow!
Our cita with our Mali friend went well, and Even though we had to
start real simply with him because he has a Muslim background, I just
loved seeing how this gospel is really truly for EVERYONE.
Nothing else too crazy happened this week, the hermanas from Granada
came up to Jaén to be with us today for P-Day so we'll be doing some
castle-seeing for sure. 

And last but not least, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL MOTHER!! She's
incredible. And even though we've been apart for so long, my love and
appreciation for her just grows and grows for her each day. She is a
very special person and I am so proud and grateful for her example and
how she has raised me in this gospel. Its the best thing she could
have done for me. And I owe who I am and where I am today all to her. 

I LOVE YOU MOM!

And I love you all and wish you the best week ever!! 

HURRAH FOR ISRAEL! 

 Love,
Hermana Morrow

GRANADA WEEK!

Hello all! This week has been pretty darn good. Its hot still but it
never seems to feel as hot as it really is if that makes sense. We've
been working hard despite it all and of course, as always, we've seen
the miracles come!
The most exciting thing we did this week was go to Granada--three
times haha! The first was because Hermana Anderson had to go back to
Málaga to finish her residency papers so I got to have yet ANOTHER
pijamada with Hermana Carmen and Hermana Garcia. They are pretty much
the cutest, most amazing people I know! Thats one thing I love about
the mission--you get to know and meet SO many people and you build
relationships and friendships that will last a lifetime. And it was
really special for me because Hermana Carmen and I, wayyyyyyy back in
the MTC, planned on being comps again out in the field. And even
though it looks like its not going to happen, we still got the chance
to teach together and see how much we have grown since one year ago in
the MTC!! Holy cow we've changed so much....as missionaries and as
people too. I for one have come out of my shell a little bit and even
though I may still blush a lot haha, I have noticed a newfound
confidence and fire that Ive developed as I meet new people and stand
up for my Savior. 

 The next time we went to Granada was for Zone Meeting which was great
and fired me up to keep finding the people Heavenly Father is
preparing for us. We set a Zone goal of finding 200 future
investigators this week, which is about 20 per companionship and is
going to be a challenge for us but Im excited to see the miracles that
will come if we have faith and we work , hard. In fact, we already saw
some miracles the first night of the week. After talking to so many
people amd getting rejected in sometimes not so nice ways, literally
the last 15 minutes we were able to find three men who were really
really interested in our message. And so nice. 

One is from Mali and
the other two from Western Sahara, which means theyre all Muslim.
It'll be interesting because they dont have that Christian background
but I know the gospel is for everybody! And it was no accident we came
across these men, let me tell you! One appointment had run late that
night and so we were going to arrive late to choir but we had a
feeling that maybe we shouldnt go this week and I'm glad we listened
to that prompting because the Lord literally guided us directly to
them. We'll see how it all goes! 

And lastly, we are actually on our way to the Alhambra in Granada
which is super exciting! I still actually dont really know what it is
but apparently its one of the most beautiful things in the world and
people travel from all around to see it! Hermana Garcia and Hermana
Carmen waited in line for us all morning for our tickets so shout out
to them! They spoil us. So Im sure I'll tell you allllll about it next
week. Stay tuned for a million pics. 

 Two other cool things that happened this week was when we ran into a
woman who served in Jaen 20 years ago and her family. It was so not by
accident either, jaen is huge and we just happened to walk by this
family eating outside and they stopped us (which actually freaked us
out for a second because usually only the crazy, creepy people stop
us) and we were able to swap stories and tell them where the church
was. They came to church the next day and we got to hang out with her
daughters--our young womens class grew from one to four which was a
big deal for us. And the other cool thing was when we helped an
investigator make decorations for her mothers party. We helped set it
up too and ended up being invited to stay for the party! Haha it was a
lot of fun, we were just two random Americans among 50 Bolivians but
hey, we were even able to teach a Word of Wisdom lesson! So win-win.
And i know it helped our friend know that we really care for her and
her family and we want to tech them because we really do truly love
them. 

As for everything else, between all the traveling and recovering from
being sick, we have had a pretty dry week. Haha literally though, you
have no idea. Half our investigators have left to escape the heat and
the other half just seems to not want to have anything to do with us
anymore which is sad. And it doesnt help that people dont leave their
houses until 9pm and sleep until at least 6pm haha. But especially
with this new goal we have we are excited to find new friends and I
know we will.

So thats all. 

Once again, I love Jaen and its diversity. 

PS I read a 2015 Devotional for Young Adults this week titled, "Living
with Purpose: the Importance of Real Intent" by Brother Ridd and it
kind of changed my life. I encourage you all to read it!!

 I love you all and wish you the best week!! 

 HURRAH FOR ISRAEL!! 

 Love,
Hermana Morrow

SICK!

Sorry guys, this ones going to be a short one! Not much has happened,
probably since we' ve been SICK ALLLLLL WEEK. 102 degree fevers,
unable to keep any food down (or water for that matter ), and lots of
achiness. Pretty much the works. Ugh I hate it. Being sick is probably
the worst thing on the mission, you just want to do so much but you
cant. But we're all better now and we're going to KILL this week!

And there were lots of tender mercies along the way. My comp had to go
to Málaga to work on her residency papers and even though we werent
feeling too good still, we were blessed to have our fevers taken away
literally just in time to make it to the bus. So while my comp was in
Málaga, i got to spend the entire next day with my favorite Hermanas
Carmen and Garcia in Granada again! And that was seriously tender
mercy, I cant even tell you! They took care of me and during mediodia
they took me on a "woman date" out to lunch and ice cream! And we even
took pictures on a hill with a really famous place (la Alhambra) in
the background. We're going to try and go there with them next Pday!
So shout out to them! They make everything so much better and Im so
grateful to have friends like them!

And before any of this all started, we had an AMAZING DAY! Heavenly
Father must have known what was coming so He just blessed us with an
amazing successful day. It was actually frustrating because we had SO
many people that wanted to talk to us but we already had appointments
for every hour for the entire night. The worst was when we were
walking down a street and we see one of our French friends just
standing in the middle with this huge grin on his face. Somehow he
knew we were going to come that way and he wanted us to teach him a
lesson. But we already had an appointment so we just said a prayer
with him and I dont know why, but I think he really needed it. He
teared up and thanked us and we went on our way. I love being an
instrument in the Lord's hands!

So this week was kind of rough and browght me to my knees many times,

but I recieved comfort in a way that I thought was really unexpected.
I usually find answers to my prayers through the scriptures or
feelings of peace when I pray but this time was different. Sunday
morning we woke up again feeling awful but we decided that it was
important to go to church and the The Lord would bless us if we went.
We walked all the way down the mountain, in not very good mood haha,
but when we got there, everything was okay. Almost immediately. We had
to teach in Relief Society and Gospel Principles class and even though
we didnt have a lot of time to prepare, the Lord blessed us to be
able to say what everyone needed to hear. And then during the
Sacrament, I just felt so much peace. I think that sometimes Ive not
valued going to church in my life, I mean, I always go and its never a
temptaion NOT to go but this week My testimony was truly strengthened
and I realized how fully we can all be healed, as we keep this
commandment. Partaking of the Sacrament has also become a new sacred
experience for me, every week, and I am so grateful for my Savior and
His Atonement.

Anyway, i hope you all have a great week! Stay out of the heat! Its an
average of 115 degrees here and its killing us! Haha one night Hermana
Anderson and I were walking and we were like, hey it feels so much
cooler, I wonder what the temperature is? It was 100 degrees, my
friends. Thats sad when 100 degrees feels cool. But we're troopers and
we've got The Lord on our side and I know its worse in other places.
So stay cool and go to the pool for me, okay?
LOVE YOU ALL!

HURRAH FOR ISRAEL!!

Love,
Hermana Morrow

PS shout out to my amazing Oma! Feliz Cumpleanos! I love you to Spain and back.

¡MADRE MÍA! Best week EVER. So many great things have happened, I'm going to have to keep everything as brief as possible (which will be hard for me) and see how many things I can fit in.

First of alllllllll THE ANDERSENS ARE HERE! We traveled to Málaga this week for a Zone Conference with two other zones to meet them, fresh off the Airplane the day before. They're amazing people and as much as I miss the Deere's, I am just really excited to serve with them. 

So being in Málaga was fun, we even got to spend the night before with my MTC comp and her companion. Dang, I just love Hermana Carmen so much. I've been so lucky to have practically lived the same mission with her (we shared our trainers, have been in the same zone twice, and trained together the first time). So just a little shout out to her!

As to things in Jaén.....its just hot. Thats the only way I can think to describe it right now haha. We're at a steady 95-110 degrees right now. It's awesome. The tender mercy about it though is that we get lots of free stuff now!. We've made a lot of shop-owner friends who have given us free ice cream and door contacting is awesome because people just take one look at us and invite us in for a cold coke (they dont drink water here) haha. People here think we are INSANE to be out in the heat. And its really hard to proselyte, everyone naps until 6-6:30. Just. So. Hot. But I'm not complaining. I have the best message anyone could ever hear and I will share it with everyone I can!

And we've been doing it. We've had some incredibly powerful lessons this week. I take back what I said about getting used to feeling The Spirit as a missionary. This week has shown me that testifying of our Savior and His message can bring the Spirit so strongly, that no one can deny feeling it. We have had lessons this week where my heart has just burned with love and the fire of The Spirit and it felt like a new experience every time. And every time is just as powerful as the rest and has been written in my heart. Even when the people didnt want to listen to us or open up their hearts to our message, we know rhey recieved a witness of the truth of our message and at the very least, it has strengthened my testimony. I think I've finally figured out why I'm here. I mean I've always known but I've finally been able to figure out how to work with The Spirit and how to teach children of God just as who they are-His children. And I've finally figured out how important our message is. Just trying and getting rejected isn't enough for me anymore. I don't feel that I've done my part until I've at least born my simple testimony of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer, and of our message of great importance that they NEED. A message that will give them hope and heal them and change them in ways that they would never think is possible. Ive seen it time and time again and I cannot deny it. Just took me a year to figure it out haha. So don't ever give up. If people reject your testimony or your attempt to share the gospel with them, don't just stop and say "Ive done my part, they just dont want anything." Keep trying. They need it and they need to know that they need it. Im not saying be annoying (well, maybe a little bit ;) but be persistent! And the Lord will help you, I promise.

So yes, we've had an undeniably spiritual week this week but we've also had some fun! Haha the highlight of my week was when we visited an Evangelical church with one of our investigators. She invited us and we promised to go if she came to ours and she said yes! So we went and it was a really interesting experience. Ive gained so much respect for other religions and I love meeting people from different faiths and seeing the way they worship God. But these experiences have alzo strenghtened my testimony even more that Christ has restored his church on the Earth and I am one of His many missionaries. But it was a fun experience. I love her and her family, they are such GOOD people. We even got a video of them singing for us songs from their church haha!

My funny moment of the week was when we were teaching the Frenchies and during a REALLY spiritual and serious moment, plop! A bird pooped on one of their heads. We were holding it in until he shrugged it off and said, "estamos debajo de la carretera de los pájaros" (we're under the highway of pigeons). Its apoarently happened before, what were we expecting? Hahaha. I love them so much, theyre hilarious and even better, they are the most humble and kind people I know. They have gone through so many hard things but they still have their faith. And they want to follow Christ completely. 

And to end, just a quick update on Oscar and Clara! Clara showed us pictures of Oscar in his Sunday best, his first Sunday in his new ward in Germany! He even sent us a sweet message of how his baptism has completely changed him and that he feels like a new person. We're so happy for him and wish him the best in his new ward. Clara is also doing fantastic and it feels like shes been in the ward forever. Her testimony is so strong and I am constantly amazed at her faith and her love for the Savior and his church.

So pretty much, life is good here. So good. I love my companion so much. I have learned so many things from here and she has helped me to become a better missionary and a better person (she's helping me to be less messy haha ;) and I love her with all of my heart! Shes da bae. And Im super lucky to be able to stay here and finish her training (transfer calls were this week). Especially since I would have DIED if I had to leave Jaén. Im in love and I may never leave! 

I love you all so much and wish you an amazing week!

HURRAH FOR ISRAEL!!

Love,

Hermana Morrow