Super 8 Sabbath!

Serious Chicas

Our tailor investigator (Lelo) made us matching skirts!

Entertaining children during meetings..they try to copy!

Photo shoot with DR Flag

Hi Fam!

This week was pretty good. The highlight was having EIGHT investigators at church! And we are for sure having at least one baptism this week, and at least 3 more coming very soon. We also got the Branch President to come to the house of a person we're teaching and he helped answer some of the investigator's questions.

We also finally had a Branch Council! Most arrived 40 minutes late. It was thee most wild council I've ever seen, with everyone talking over each other and three conversations going on at once and everyone answering phone calls for two hours-- it made me appreciate the tight ship Dad runs in BYC (Bishop Youth Committee)!

I just got back from a zone activity in the capital. We hung out at President's house in his driveway. President made us rico burgers 🍔 with lots of seasoning. I went to Bravo, which is a supermarket that makes you feel like you're in the States. Everything was so clean and organized. I forgot what it was like to find the price of the food under the food you want to buy. What a concept. It's the little things. My comp bought snacks that you can't find out in the South and we brought them back to share with the rest of the zone.

This is my last full week with my trainer, Hermana Perez, and I'm going to miss her so much!! We had a small photo shoot, and I attached my favorites.

Love you lots!!! Thanks to everyone who wrote me!

Hermana Ludlam

I know that my Redeemer lives!

Jenna opening her Easter package

Wow fam!

I got my packageeeee!!! :D  It made me so happy. I cried. I showed off my dress at a big zone conference for everyone in the south. That was a good score, Mom!! It made me feel so happy and loved just imagining all the work you guys put into making the pretty eggs and decorating the box with Embra and Guillerma.

Azua summer has me beat! The mission tribulations just got a lot more physical. First, the antsssss are unbeatable!! And it’s not like in NJ where you can just keep the counters clean and then the ants go away. Also, the ants got my peeps, Mom :'(  and they ate giant holes in our tortillas and bread and nothing is safe in the house.

Also, I’ve had a fever all week and the sun didn't help. Just achy and sore and fatigued. But luckily I was able to push through most days and we went out all week except Saturday. (Saturday I had these super weird-red-blotchy-spots all over my skin. It wasn't really itchy and it wasn't bumpy. I don't know what it was.) The members were super sweet at church and checked up on me. But the glorious good news is that I woke up this morning and felt completely normal.

Also, EASTERRRR! I’m so grateful for Easter. Sometimes I wish I could be as eloquent as the Apostles so I could say how I really feel about the whole thing, but I'll just be simple.

I know that my Redeemer lives.
What comfort this sweet sentence gives!
He lives, he lives, who once was dead.
He lives, my ever-living Head.
He lives to bless me with his love.
He lives to plead for me above.
He lives my hungry soul to feed.
He lives to bless in time of need.
He lives to grant me rich supply.
He lives to guide me with his eye.
He lives to comfort me when faint.
He lives to hear my soul's complaint.
He lives to silence all my fears.
He lives to wipe away my tears.
He lives to calm my troubled heart.
He lives all blessings to impart.
He lives, my kind, wise heav'nly Friend.
He lives and loves me to the end.
He lives, and while he lives, I'll sing.
He lives, my Prophet, Priest, and King.
He lives and grants me daily breath.
He lives, and I shall conquer death.
He lives my mansion to prepare.
He lives to bring me safely there.
He lives! All glory to his name!
He lives, my Savior, still the same.
Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives:
"I know that my Redeemer lives!"
He lives! All glory to his name!
He lives, my Savior, still the same.
Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives:
"I know that my Redeemer lives!"

It’s a good song. Click here to listen. I used to think that the significance in saying "Christ lives" is that we can live again, too, but it's a lot more than that. My heart is happy.

Also, we got a bunch of investigators to church this week!! Woo! Crossing my fingers that we can still have a baptism this week!!

Love you, fam!
Hermana Ludlam

Jenna keeps telling us her feet are fine and then
she sends pictures like these!

Some good hustle

Hi Family!

This week was pretty good. We put in some good hustle. We got some good new people to teach who are friends of members. I’m excited for them because they all seem interested, and they already have friends at church who come with us to lessons. Except it was kind of disappointing on Sunday when no one came to church because I thought we were making a lot of progress with everyone!

I really tried to triple my Spanish-learning efforts this week. The new vocab is trickling in. 💦

Today we had a zone activity! We hiked for almost 4 hours trying to find a waterfall. We found one, and then we met a guy who said if we go for another 5 minutes, we'll find a better one. So we hiked for 20 minutes and found a better one! It was fun.

Somehow, we hiked back home in only a little over an hour. I can’t tell you why it took so long the first time. Also, there are stray cows 🐄 out here in the forest. You can’t always see them, but you hear some ominous cow bells all along the trail. Also, I spent stinkin' $400 pesos on our zone shirts that our zone leader told us would be "dope."

I don't really have any hot dog! stories to share this week. Just little things that made me happy. Like we were in a lesson sharing about Alma 32 and the seed of faith and I was having a hard time following, and I knew my companion was going to turn to me to have me explain faith, but I had no idea what I would say. And then when she turned to me, suddenly I had the idea to just ask the person we were teaching what faith means to her.  She then shared her testimony and I understood 75% of what she said and then I thought of stuff to add to what she shared and she liked what I said.  She said my Spanish is getting better and it was good.

Also, I am learning to really enjoy my night time prayers. Prayers used to just be this whatever thing I did because I had to, but ever since I started putting more effort into this wonderful gift of communication I have with my Heavenly Father, I just feel really good when I pray.

Also, last thing, but it was my first time bearing my testimony in church last week! It was kind of scary-- but I made Yensis (the girl we just baptized) promise to go up if I went up to bear my testimony. So I went up, and she laughed when I came to sit back down and told me it was a trap and she wasn’t going up. Oh well!

I love you, Family! And I love the gospel! And it’s so fun to be out here. I hope everyone has a great week.

Love,
Hermana Ludlam

I didn't want to miss a second...

FAMILY: Holy Smokes! What a week! And what a weekend!

Baptism Day for Yensis and Lisbeth or Sisters on Lawn at Sundown

I'll start with my account of Yensis and Lisbeth's baptism. We finally got permission from their mom! We met with her on Tuesday, ready to pull some teeth, but she just told us she had no problem with them getting baptized and that they could do whatever they wanted. Cool. On Friday, we picked the girls up and got them dressed in their suits and then waited TWO HOURS for a third priesthood holder to show up. It’s harder to get people to attend a baptism than you would hope.

Hermana Perez doing Lisbeth's hair

During those two hours, Yensis and Lisbeth escaped and ran outside (we asked around to see if anyone saw two girls running around town in white suits) and they came back with a hyperactive puppy and rough housed with it on the lawn for a while, resulting in staining their suits green and Lisbeth splitting her underpants wide open. Then someone let that dog in the church and they gave it a bath in the bathroom sink. During the actual baptism, Lisbeth was so nervous she couldn’t stop laughing, and after the event, Yensis and Lisbeth jumped back in the font to go swimming. It wasn’t the most reverent baptism, but it made the girls super happy. So. Ezequiel baptized them.

The next day was General Conference! I don’t even know where to start. I think I should begin by explaining that I’ve been reading, "Our Search for Happiness," and even though I’m barely halfway through, somehow my testimony of the church has swollen so big. Like my feet. In the book, M Russell Ballard explains in a very clear, respectful, delicate, yet powerful and personal way what our church believes. While I did learn new things, the book caused me to reflect on what I already know and I feel like it’s forever changed the way I see myself as a disciple of Christ. My testimony brings me so much happiness that I just want to get a trumpet and tell everyone to repent and let Christ change their life the way he changes mine. Kinda like Alma in Chapter 29.

Also, before embarking on General Conference, the mission president asked the missionaries to prepare by reading Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and 3 Nephi. I didn’t even finish Matthew because I was so intrigued by the changes found in the Joseph Smith translation. I spent Saturday morning reading Matthew 24 where Christ is telling his apostles about the Second Coming and how the elect won’t be deceived. Joseph Smith clarifies that the elect are the covenant people. It reminded me the importance of covenants! (I owe it to Mom for being the first to teach me the importance of covenants!)

And guess what the common themes of General Conference were? Covenants! Staying on the covenant path. Preparing for the second coming. Do stinkin’ missionary work and minister and be a good disciple of Christ. Establish faith-filled homes that serve as sanctuaries and places that can prepare people to go to the temple. I did not fall asleep during this conference-- in fact I took notes on every single talk. I brought extra paper to doodle on in case I got bored but I didn't want to miss a second of such a wonderful opportunity to hear from APOSTLES and our PROPHET and other SERVANTS of the Lord-- I can’t even explain the new meaning those words have for me since starting my mission. I felt such love for those inspired men and women. So well-learned and well-spoken, and also so loving and such shining examples of disciples of Christ.

I know the church is true, and I am beyond grateful to be led by prophets and apostles who have the special keys and authority to direct God’s church.

Send me your favorite conference messages!
I love you SOOO MUCH.
Have a fabulous week.

Love, Hermana Ludlam

Improvement in Myself

Hey Fam—

They’re fumigating the church right now, so it’s a bit hectic here on my island.

I made friends with a cat. She hangs out by our lovely neighbors (Killian and Awilda) new sandwich shop location, and they do not like her. No one on the street does. But she's the cleanest prettiest cat I've seen here, so I pet her. Then I found out she kills other cats. Their 5-year old son named her Embra.

Killian and Awilda making sandwiches

So this week was kind of slow. Not a lot of successes. But! I noticed a lot of improvement in myself. The biggest thing and most important thing is that I’m comfortable enough in the lessons that when I teach, I don’t just say whatever comes next in Preach My Gospel. I say what comes to my mind and heart. I’m really starting to feel the spirit when I teach!! And I just pray in my head that they can feel it, too.

One of the happiest things that happened this week is we were able to talk to an investigator that was on fire, and then we lost him, and then we found him again! We read Alma 32 with him about faith, and we taught him how to recognize the spirit. We saw him two days later to ask if he prayed to know if our message was true (he had tried two times earlier before we lost him, and he told us he felt nothing). He did!! And he told us that he felt a good feeling in his chest. And I told him in my weak Spanish that that’s the Spirit! And that’s how the Spirit makes us feel when something is true.

There was no baptism this week. We're working on the mom to get permission. This week is General Conference, so I'm not sure when it will happen. But soon!

Flippy

Also, fam, I keep forgetting to tell you about the reason God sent me to Azua. Cops. As we drove up to Azua for my first time, my trainer told me "this is our area," right as we pulled up to a giant national police building. And they had a gigantic parade a week or so ago to show off every kind of cop/ military in the country. Dominican Republic cops don’t really do anything as far as policing the streets, but they can do tricks when it’s show time!! My neighbor has the video of the parade and the cops all piled on the back of a motorcycle. I am working on getting it from her. They all look like beautiful, tactical police ninjas. I promise the video for next week!

Love you fam!! Hope you have a great week.
Hermana Ludlam

And also, just for you to see how the thumbs are evolving, I drew this one for Ava. I was thinking of naming it Flippy. Livi will know.

love youuu

Here is my comp holding a chicken. I did not hold the chicken, but I did touch the lumpy red thing on it's head.