Letters from Meredith...

April 14, 2010
Hola, familia y amigas!

I can't believe I've been here for eight weeks today! The most exciting news is. . . I'm leaving on Monday! I'll be in Paraguay in a week! I thought I would be incredibly nervous, but I'm SO excited to get into the mission field and get started on this great work! The more I learn about it, the more I have a testimony that nothing can stop it. God is at the helm, and He directs it all. Anyway, I travel for about 24 hours, and should arrive in Paraguay mid-morning on Tuesday. I'm so excited! Here is my mailing address in Paraguay:

Hermana (or Sister) Meredith Anne Cozzens
Paraguay Asuncion Mission
Casilla de Correo 818
Asuncion
Paraguay

I hear that mail in Paraguay isn't very good, so people suggest putting stickers or taping pictures of Jesus or Mary on envelopes or packages to ensure they arrive. I look forward to hearing from you!

This week has been amazing. There's so much I can share, but I'll try and hit the highlights. Hermana Cooper and I, along with Elders Wallace and Hendrickson from our district, were selected to demonstrate how to begin teaching for the new missionaries in their large group meetings tonight. We went to a training on Monday that was so helpful! In the first seven to ten minutes with an investigator, I'm learning how important it is for them to learn to trust me and my companion and to feel comfortable with us. Really, though, the main goal is to help them want to come closer to Christ. Sometimes with the focus on Spanish and different details of teaching, that fact is pushed to the back of my mind. I realize, though, that everything I do and say should help my investigators feel Christ's love for them and want to come closer to Him. I'm so excited to teach tonight! It's going to be a great experience.

I want to share some scriptures that my companion and I have really relied on this week. It's 3 Nephi 22:4-10. There's actually a song based on these verses called "My Kindness Will Not Depart From Thee," and it's beautiful. Verse 4 reminds us to "fear not" because the Lord is by our sides. Verse 7 is really similar to Section 121 in the Doctrine and Covenants where the Lord comforts the prophet Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail. It says, "For a small moment have I forsaken thee, but with great mercies will I gather thee." This is beautiful! I know that the Lord really does gather us "with great mercies." He knows everything about us--our wants, needs, desires. His plan of happiness is for all His children, but the miracle of it is, the plan is also individualized according to what will help each of us grow the most and become as much like Christ as we possibly can. I know that humility leads to submission, which is key to seeing our desires mesh with God's desires and create beautiful miracles in our lives. Verse 8 tells us that "with everlasting kindness, will I [the Lord] have mercy on thee." He really is merciful and so incredibly loving! Finally, verse 10 is the premise:"For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee." I know this is true! If we are obedient and submissive, we will see miracles wrought in our lives.

Yesterday, we taught in the TRC for the last time. I said so many silent prayers throughout the day that it would be a good experience and it was AMAZING! We taught Hermana Ortiz, a recent convert, (we've taught her once before; sweetest lady ever!) the Plan of Salvation with the law of tithing. She told us that she had family who had died without receiving the gospel, and wanted them to enjoy the blessings. We told her that she could be baptized for her deceased family members in the temple. The Spirit was so strong! It's amazing the connections that come to your mind. Then, I had the thought that we should explain that the law of tithing is one of the interview questions for a temple recommend. It was a great lead-in to tithing! We read 3 Nephi 24:10, which is similar to the promise in Malachi 3 that the windows of heaven will be opened if we pay tithing. We all had tears in our eyes as Hermana Ortiz made it her goal to be worthy of a temple recommend and to take the leap of faith and pay her tithing. My companion later told me that as I started talking about tithing, she had exactly the same thought. The Spirit is amazing! I'm so glad we were worthy to have its guidance, because it really is the only way that people are encouraged to make and keep commitments. And we didn't even worry about Spanish! I know the first month or two in Paraguay are going to be crazy and a lot will be over my head (especially because I'm learning a new dialect), but I'm so excited! I pray the Lord will help me understand and communicate with the people!

One last thing I want to share. Last night, Elder Glenn L. Pace of the Quorum of the Seventy came and spoke at our devotional. He talked about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, really stressing their individuality. He testified to us that they know and love us. He shared some very personal experiences that really brought the Spirit into our meeting. Through his testimony, my testimony of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ was strengthened. I want to share a few particular things he said. First, he quoted Truman Madsen, who said that we can penetrate the veil, the Holy of Holies, within our own being. It's wonderful to think that we can become so pure as to be so close to our Father in Heaven here on earth! He also talked about how we definitely knew Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ before this life. Because of the veil that keeps us from being able to remember that, he reminded us that we need to renew our relationships with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. It made me ask myself what I am doing to come come closer to them and be more like them. We've studied the Christlike attributes a lot in our district, and I feel like I've come a long way in two months! He reminded us that God loves us because of our weaknesses, that He has given us the Holy Ghost to help us overcome the weaknesses of mortality and come closer to Him. It was an amazing talk! I came away feeling very buoyed up and ready to share the gospel!

Thank you all for your thoughts, letters, and prayers. I appreciate your support so much! You can send letters to the above address, or e-mail this address: meredith.cozzens@myldsmail.net McKell and Katy, thank you for your letters! I always love hearing how you're doing. Emily Goodson, you crack me up! I LOVE your letters! So fun! I wish you all the best this coming week! The next time you hear from me, I'll be in South America! I know this church is true and that God and Jesus Christ love all of you!

Con mucho amor,
Hermana Meredith Cozzens