Week 47

This week has been another great week full of many blessings in our life. I am so grateful for the mission, so grateful!! One, we constantly are working to become better and two we are wanting each Ward to be at there potential. It has seriously been a blessing getting to know the Ward a Little bit more. Sometimes we feel that we aren't as close as we should be with the members. My companion and I decided to do something different, we are going to pass by a members houses each day and share a spiritual thought and we are going to try and do a family home evening each Monday with members and non members. I love this work so much, my companion and I had the opportunity to do a service Project at a converts house and man I can now say I think I am a pro painter (jaja)!!

But anyways a huge  miracle this week is that my companion and I were just contacting looking for a few directions to a few investigators homes and when we would ask someone for a direction we would end up having a small lesson!! crazy right. We ended up finding 3 people who wanted to hear more about the church. When we finally found the direction to our investigators house we had 2 more people who participated in the discussion!! Definitely made my night and my companions.

Week 46

Well first off this week has been a blast. Having transfers has really helped a ton and Its honestly been a great week. Starting off fresh with Elder Viloria. We first started off by cleaning up the area and starting all over again. This week has been more than anything talking with all (literally). My companion and I have been contacting people door to door or that are on the street. We have found a few who gave interest but we are definatley going to put more into ways we can be more diligent and be more patient with ourselves in this work. Thinking about the question how could we give a little bit more in our lives and ministry is something that I think we should all think about. To me as a missionary I am on a timer or stop watch. Its the same if we aren´t missionaries. God gave us this life to fulfill what he has given us to do. We have a plan to complete and thats to share this gospel to all and to recieve the ordinances of being baptized and recieving the holy ghost with the correct priesthood authority. I think in my life I need to work on the basics of the Christ like attributes by putting him in the center of my life. Starting with faith and hope in him. In moroni 7:32-33 He promises us that he will show us the way according to our faith and that we will have the holy ghost to accompany us. If we have faith and hope he promised us that we will have power to do whatever be convenient. I want to give a little more effort into that so that I can always feel happy and not down and so I can fulfill his promise. 

Tuvimos un milagro esta semana a la domingo pasado cuando fuimos de la casa de un converso se llama norma. Pues cuando la hubimos pasado por su casa tuvimos la oportunidad a charlar con ella por un rato y se puso a llorar por que habia bastante estress ultimo semana. Y cuando la hubimos escuchado lo que pasó nosotros le compartimos una escrituro que se encuentra en Moroni 7:32-33 y literalment nos sentio el espiritu santo y le contestamos sus dudas y todo. Yo testefico que realamente este Iglesia es la verdadero iglesia y que el libro de mormon es en otro testamento de jesu cristo y que pueda ayudarnos en esta vida 

Week 45

Well this week has been another great week. A lot of learning experiences. One thing that my Mission President has taught me recently is to be a stripling warrior in the scriptures in the book of Alma 53-56 has taught us, to drop the things that are maybe valuable to us and trust in the lord and fight on his side. The mission has been really changing me to use my faith and my testimony more and more. Most importantly trust in God that everything will work out. I have come a long way trying to convert myself more and more in the gospel. I was just a teenager without a knowledge of faith or knowledge of the scriptures. Thanks to the mission I have really grown and changed my perspectives in life. Though I have challenges and I know we all do, we are not perfect. I learned that if we put Christ in the center of our lives we will achieve more, feel the love and peace that he promised us that we can have. Like in Alma 42:10 wicked never was once happiness. The key word is to act, because we can believe (That's great to believe in God and his Son) But to really find the truth and what he wants for his children is by acting, and praying.

Life is a battle, it will never be easy, we recently had the baptism of Hermano Carlos who definitely did not get it easily. Having a tougher life with his family and work etc. We have been teaching him since the first week of April and it was definitely a roller coaster with him having doubts and realizing what was more important than work, money, etc. Thanks to the example of his sister who was baptized two years ago, he is now baptized and confirmed a member of The church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Week 44

Well this week has been a great week full of many blessings. It has definitely been a great week to remember. My companion and I have been preparing our investigator Carlos for his baptism tomorrow, and Its just a great feeling to know when someone has there desire focused on God and wants to change for the better. Thanks to the plan that God has for us we have the opportunity to be cleansed from our sins, receive the gift of the holy ghost to guide us in those difficult times of our life. Its the simple acts that we do to get there by being humble, having charity, obeying the commandments, so that we may be able to live with him again. 

Estamos enseñando una familia que tienen un hijo de autismo y de verdad está familia es bien fuerte en su fe. Tenia bastantes preguntas sobre El plan del Salvación. Nosotros hablamos acerca de el tema después de está vida y cómo es parte de la propósito de esté vida por que nosotros tendremos los días difíciles. Tenemos pruebas en esta vida por que nuestro padre celestial nos fortalece por medio de estos pruebas. Como podemos fortalecer nuestro fe o testimonio sin los pruebas. no se puede. Pero gracias a Dios que nosotros podemos tener este plan de felicidad. 

Week 43

Time is definitely flying by this transfer with such little time my companion and I have received more blessings this past week. Its definitely a challenge when my companion has a bike and I don´t.(jaja)  Although I might be more exhausted, I know that I have learned a lot with my companion and his situation with his leg and how we can work together. This week we kept looking for more people to teach and to do the little acts of service. We have been blessed just like how heavenly father has promised us. This past weekend we past by an investigators house and we had the opportunity to talk with the family. We were teaching the importance of having a Prophet and how we have a Prophet here today with the correct priesthood power so that he could lead Christ´s church through revelation. Juana was there thinking and felt that she needed to do more in this life. She came out saying that she wants to build her faith and find what is the right path to take to build her life with her family. We invited her to church and the rest of the family if they were interested. The Next day Juana and her sister came to church.  During the second hour The Gospel Principles class, the teacher had prepared a lesson about The Life of Jesus Christ. Juana and her sister were there really engaged and we could definitely feel the spirit so powerful testifying that this is the true church and it amazed us how much they really enjoyed the class.

Week 42

It definitely has been a crazy good week full of many blessings. This week my companion and I were looking for investigators to teach and at the end of our evening on Saturday we happened to re-contact a family who came to church about two weeks ago but couldn't make it to the last one. Once we contacted them the husband couldn´t recognize us and the wife was trying to explain that they are the missionaries that contacted us last time. Apparently he has bad memory but anyways we were outside talking for 20 minutes because he didn't want us to come in the house and have a lesson. He was telling us that all religions are the same and its all going to be the same. After 20 minutes somehow we ended up teaching this couple. Right before we started we also invited there daughter and aunt to join us. We ended up having a really great lesson and they said wow that it is definitely different. The Aunt was even more interested and we gave her a book of Mormon and invited her to pray to see this is true!!

Week 41

This week was a very special week due to it being Mother´s day here in Peru. It was honestly a great opportunity to talk to my mom and also having the opportunity to talk to my dad in Spanish. (kind of haha) Well I was trying to but he still doesn't like speaking Spanish. Its pretty funny because its in his blood. But anyways, it was a blessing being able to talk with my family. One thing that I have learned this past weekend about mother´s day is that thanks to my Mom I am here on my Mission. Thanks to her for showing me the way to follow the path of Christ. Just like in 2 Nephi 31:33 He explains "That this is the only way, Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. I love these basic fundamental principles that Jesus Christ taught us and that we have the chance to teach that to others. Like how we describe Jesus Christ he is the Light of the World. We just need to revolve ourselves around him, he is the way.

Week 40

So this week has been another great week full of many blessings. This past week my companion, myself and another companionship had the opportunity to do a service for an elderly couple who are investigators. Lifting up wood four stories was the best. This wasn´t small wood, It was huge more then nine feet tall. We had to take that up to the last level so that they can build a roof. Once we finished after a few hours we had the chance to talk about the church and why we serve. This couple are so funny and have so much joy in there lives, it makes me smile with joy.
Another blessing that happened this week was when my companion and I were walking on this specific street. We were determined to contact each house on this street. Right as we arrived this elderly couple past by us and the sir stopped us and asked if we were Jehovah witness? That's how the conversation started, we explained that we are missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints. Then they asked "What´s so different about you and the rest of the churches"? That's when we felt the spirit so strong when we explained about the book of Mormon. They were hooked, we invited them to come to church this past Sunday and they did!! They told us that they loved it and want us to come over and teach more about our differences and what we believe!!

Week 39

Well this week has been full of many blessings. I want to start off with a big blessing from this past Saturday.  We had the opportunity to have a baptism, It was definitely one to remember.  Norma had all of her family there to witness her baptism. Now its Norma and her brother that are members of the church. The huge blessing is that the sisters of norma want to hear our message and follow the foots steps of the older siblings. So now my companion and I are working on the rest of the family to help bring the Joy, Love, and peace that god promisses us.

Another blessings was that we had the oportunity to do a service for one of our investigator Carlos. We helped clean and reshape his restaurant before they opened today. I loved these small opportunities that we have to serve others whenever the opportunity arises. 

Week 38

So this past week has been another great week. This week my companion and I were looking for a reference and each day he wasn´t their because he would leave his home. So one day my companion and I had been standing in front of his apartment. We were on the first floor where there is a little  restaurant. My Companion and I saw a man just sitting there at his work, he seemed a little sad so we went over to talk with him.  We talked with him for a good 15 minutes and then after we shared a principal of the church. He was interested and wanted us to comeback and visit him the next day. So the very next day when we went back,  he was there but a little busy with one of his workers. As we were leaving his daughter told us to wait and after five minutes of waiting we had the chance to teach the both of them about our beliefs and what is the difference between our church and the others. They were super happy and they want to hear more! Its a blessing who we find and who we share the gospel with each day. I know that God puts us in these positions specifically for a reason.

Week 37

It has been a great week full of many changes and adjusments in my first week with my new companion. One of the things I am greatful for is to serve with my new companion elder Mamani. Elder Mamani suffers from a disability but is still serving the Lord, I am honored to be serving with him. So this week I have been adjusting more on the exercising side of my life haha, I can tell you I am out of shape. Proselyting is a little different sense he has a bike and I walk, or run. But I am definitely enjoying it. I am just a little extra tired but it will all work out. This week we have been focusing on our investigators that are preparing for baptism. It was a huge blessing to have a missionary night with our investigators and members and being able to complete our purpose of having our investigators interact with the members of the ward. 

Otro bendicion que lo pasó este semana era que yo tenia la oportunidad a regresar a mi Barrio anterior Vista Alegre por un bautismo que le enseñe en febrero y marzo y por fin nosotros recibimos la firma de su papá de Julio para tener el permiso a bautizarse. Este experiencia me siento algo muy especial dentro mi corazón. Sé que dios nos da bendiciones y que nosotros podemos ver los bendiciones cada dia. 

week 36

 Well this week was another quick week, full of many more blessings. This week we had the opportunity to do a quick service with an investigator. He had to move his family to another apartment. A few members, my companion and I had the chance to move boxes and clothes inside their car to take over to their new house. We also had the opportunity to have a bunch of investigators attend sacrament meeting this past Sunday. Even if it’s just for one hour, Sacrament is the most sacred and important part of our reunions. This past Sunday we also had a convert bare her testimony and an Investigator bare her testimony. It was unique to see how much they have grown, how much they love the change and how they have strengthen themselves in the gospel. It’s amazing how much we can see each person grow just by putting Christ in the center of their lives. I can testify that putting Christ in the center of our lives will change our hearts for the better!

Week 35

Well this week has been a great and exciting weekend with conference. So much that I learned just in two days. One of my favorite talks was from the Saturday session from Mark A. Bragg. He puts a big emphasis on the word "Light" and its starts with number 1. (The light of the church), "the church is a beacon of light to a darkening world". The church is so strong and we are only growing.  2. The light of the gospel, "The light of the gospel is the path that shinneth more and more until the perfect day and it shines brightest through families and temples". "Our families must be great sources of great light".  "As we establish families of faith, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, and compassion, we will feel a more increase in love towards the savior and towards one another, the family will grow stronger and the light in each of us will grow brighter”. 3. The light of Christ, "You cannot speak of the light in the world without speaking of the light of the world (Jesus Christ). The Light of Christ will always bring us home to our Father in Heaven. I know that if we put him in the center of our lives, we will see more light in our lives, more meaning of our lives, and joy. I love this talk that was given, it really does open up our eyes about the world and helps us focus on each one of God’s children, we are his children and we do have a purpose in this life. His Atonement was for us all.

Week 34

Wow what a great and marvelous week! It has been a great week full of many miracles and blessings! This past Thursday we were going to our references and contacted them to set a date to visit them. We felt the need to keep going around to other references. We gave it a shot, tried to set more times and although we didn’t earn anymore dates something special happened. We were walking down the street and we came to a stop waiting for the cars to pass, I turned and contacted a lady that was waiting too. It so happened to be that she was a less active of the church for 10 years, she just moved to our area and the first thing she thought was to find The Church of Jesus Christ of latter day saints. Since living here for a few months she never had the chance to find one. She was very happy that we contacted her because her daughter about 10 days before told her mom she wanted to be baptized, she is almost 9 and hasn´t attended church in a long time either. We helped this lady with our directions to the church so that she could take her daughter this past Sunday. On Sunday we saw her at church and after sacrament meeting she told my companion and I thank you for contacting me and helping my daughter and I return to church. The mom then asked us how could she be reactivated and how can her husband and her daughter take the lessons like she once did many years ago? This coming week we have a set time and day to have a lesson with her, her husband and her daughter to hear our message. It’s a miracle how Heavenly Father continues to put us in areas at the right place and time. We just have to trust in him, be prepared, open our mouths and share our testimony.

 

Week 33

Well this week has been another great week full of many blessings and miracles. This week has been a rough. We have been without water to shower due to the floods, I am grateful that I am not in the area that has been impacted the most. It’s definitely a blessing that each stake is helping and serving them! We are hoping to have an opportunity to serve and help with clean up in the coming weeks. This week has been another blessing we changed one of our investigators baptismal date to the 4th of April! It’s so amazing to see how much he is progressing and how he is showing the love that he has for the Lord! This week I went on splits with another missionary so that we could help each other out and see how we can better our work. One of the many blessings here came when we were contacting a mom and her daughter. It just so happens that she has been waiting for missionaries to come and visit her. So this week we plan on stopping by to have a lesson with her and her daughter. Another blessing has been working with members of the church! I love how the ward is like one big family, working together trying to focus on the needs of investigators, helping everyone’s progression and gaining a testimony!

Week 32

This week has been another great week full of many blessings. This week my companion and I had the opportunity to teach Julio and Pilar. The best part, we invited them to baptism and they accepted. It brings me joy that they have the desire to come unto Christ and having a desire to change. Julio has been consistently attending seminary, this brought me such joy! It builds my testimony that anything is possible when we continue to invite. I am so grateful for this opportunity to teach him, he isn’t just going through the motions and listening, he has prepared questions before each lesson and I love it. Pilar is another miracle, she has a great desire of how to receive answers after praying.  Pilar has been focusing on her faith instead of focusing on the proof and wanting to see proof!! I love this gospel with all my heart and I am so grateful for it!

Week 31

Well this week was my first week as a district leader. I had my training and I learned something that I felt was very specific for me. I wanted to take that and act upon it. It is to Serve, to serve my district, help and learn from all the companionships, we are united. I am very grateful for this opportunity so I can learn and grow. This week has been another great week. We had the opportunity to teach a younger kid who is 17 years old who is very intelligent and knows the bible very well. We’ve had three lessons with him, and when we are done we  leave him with homework, to pray, read, and attend church.  We have been working with him on faith and to act upon and to know for himself.  What’s crazy is that now he is attending seminary, church, and reading his scriptures. Julio has desire and I am so proud of him for acting and building upon his faith.

Week 30

Well this week has been another great week full of many miracles and learning experiences! This past week my companion and I had the opportunity to find more investigators in an area that doesn´t have many. What made this a blessing was that 6 investigators attended church this past Sunday and an inactive that we found in the park one day about two months ago. That was a miracle as well.  I remembered when he yelled "Elders", he told us he was a member and wanted to say hello. We invited him to church. We didn’t know that he was inactive or even a member, but all we did was invite him.  We asked if we could visit one day, he said "I don’t want to do anything with the church, this is where I draw my line". This past Sunday HE came to church for three hours! No clue what made him come to church but it brought great Peace, Joy, and Love in the heart of my companion and I.  I can testify that blessings come when keep inviting and inviting and one day someone will come.

Week 29

Letter to come, but pictures to enjoy!

Week 28

This week has been another great week full of many miracles and learning experiences. The lord just blesses us whenever he wants and it happens in every moment as well! This past week we happened to contact a reference this past Thursday. It was our only opportunity to have the time to visit with them. So when we called they said that we could come and share a message with them! So my companion and I ran because there was no transportation near us at all, once we arrived we had the opportunity to meet them and had a lesson with them! It was such a miracle because this family has been looking and searching for the TRUE church. They would hear messages from everyone as well, very strong Catholics. Once we shared with them what the church is about and the importance and principles about our church they were just hooked. They asked what was the difference between, The Church of Jesus Christ of latter day saints and other religions? It was that simple and we felt the spirit and shared about The Book of Mormon Another Testament of Jesus Christ. This family has such desire to learn more and I can’t wait for our next visit this week!

Week 27

This week has been another great week, full of blessings. I can’t believe how fast time flies each week. This week we did a lot of contacting and trying to reach out to people. It’s amazing what happens and the results we have at the end of each day. Though we might feel rejected most of the time, the ones that accept the invitation to hear a message are the ones that enlighten my companion and I. I am truly grateful for members in our ward who help us and work with us to find new people teach and share the gospel with. My companion and I have been working with members and youth in how we can have more investigators or friends attend activities or who would like to hear a message. This past Monday, we had a lesson with a member and her friend who isn’t a member. By the end of the meeting you could tell she had desire and wanted to know more, we invited her to baptism and accepted! It’s a miracle how if we work together as a ward that we can find people who want the gospel! I love this gospel so much! God pours out miracles on his children every day!

Week 26

This past week has been great, filled with tiny miracles! This week we had a family home evening with members of the church along with a mom and her daughter. Their names are Gleni and Nicole. They’ve been attending church for the past month and a half; we had a little lesson with them on Repentance and Baptism. We invited them to baptism and they accepted for the 25th February. Another miracle is this past week on Sunday we had another activity with our zone to contact and plant seeds in each of our contacts. It was a little harder in this area. My companion and I and another companionship had an idea to swap companions for one last contact. It was funny because it ended up being myself and another missionary from the states, so neither of us are fluent in the language. This particular missionary is still in his training, so I felt some weight on my shoulders. We both felt that we needed to Contact a couple that was sitting right in front of us. One of the coolest experiences ever, the first few moments with them they didn’t want anything to do with us they were catholic. I don’t remember how we were able to have a fifteen to twenty minute conversation with them. Basically we went from zero lesson to sharing a little of lesson one. They were anxious to hear more so we left with them the restoration! Clearly the Holy Ghost played a big role; I couldn't believe that I understood everything they said to me! Honestly I am so grateful to have had that experience. I love this gospel with all my heart!

Week 25

So this week has been a great week, my companion is great. I am learning a lot from him each day, new attributes to learn and grow from. Honestly so grateful for having him as a companion. We have been working hard but I feel not to our potential. Though it’s only been a week so far in this transfer there’s not a lot a time in between each transfer for this work. I am starting to realize how time is so precious in these moments. This week has been a great week; one of the little miracles we experienced was during a zone activity. We had the opportunity to do an activity where we contact whomever at a big park. The objective is to bring them to a table where there is a missionary companionship that gives out a Book of Mormon or a folleto of what we teach to investigators. We almost got up to 100 people that we talked too and brought several to receive a folleto or a Book of Mormon. To me it was a huge blessing and I’m so grateful to have been part of this activity, Planting a seed in a person’s heart is the best. It gives an opportunity for someone in the future to be an instrument of God’s hands. I am so grateful for this work and that I get to live it each and every day!!

Week 24

So this week we had another great week. Learning from our investigators, and seeking to be better missionaries each day.  I am learning how to strengthen myself more and more during studying time, or whenever we have spare time. I am starting to like studying, which is a little strange for me.

So this week has been sweet, I am really sad that I had to say goodbye to my companion today because of transfers and because he finished his mission. He honestly taught me a lot and has a strong testimony of this gospel and to better my listening skills. Something I appreciate from him is that he really helped me with listening.

This past week has been a great last week before transfers. A cool thing happened this past Sunday I didn´t notice but there was an older couple who was from the states who attended our ward. They didn´t know any Spanish. Brother and sister Hummel were just visiting because brother Hummel was touring Peru where his close friend had served. He happened to have served in the ward my companion and I are in.  The coolest part was that I had the opportunity to help translate with my companion during second and third hour of church. I really didn´t think I could translate at all until I just listened and started talking! It’s amazing how god knows our needs and is there to help us; all we have to do is ask.

Week 23

So this past week my companion and I were walking back from Stake Conference on Saturday night and in the middle of the intersection was a broken down taxi car with a man needing help to move his car out of the busy traffic around him. So my companion and I went to help (when it was safe to go across) we pushed his car to a safer part a few blocks down. The reaction that he had was a surprised one and when he tried re-paying us we told him no, instead we gave him something more valuable, It was a card of Jesus Christ and a spiritual thought about his atonement for all the people including him. I am so grateful to serve and to have these opportunities to find ways to serve. It is such a blessing to have the gospel in our lives.

Week 22

So this week I had the opportunity to baptize a little boy whose name is Harold. Honestly made my day, I’m so grateful to have met him. He has an awesome testimony for just being 12 years old. It’s amazing how much gratitude he has and how much desire he has to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints. Right after baptizing him, I’ll never forget this moment, when he gave me a big hug and said "thank you" it made me tear up a little. But knowing that he knows this is the true church and knows it’s important to be baptized at his age is amazing. I love this gospel so much and have a testimony of how much this church is true!

Harold's Baptism

His Birthday Celebration




Their 21 days of Christmas with his companion

Week 21

It has been a crazy two weeks. Being sick for a few days doesn´t help much but now I am feeling excellent. A lot of good things have happened this week, we had the opportunity to spread the word and the importance of our loving Savior Jesus Christ. It really makes me think more about him and how he is the gift, not just of the world, but for the world. Its amazing how we are loved from our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. One of the coolest experiences that happened this week was this past thursday. My companion and I were just walking down the street and we randomly had an impression to go and talk with the first person we saw on the street. A few seconds later a man entered the same street we were on and we just went straight to him. Usually while contacting its a little hard with a lot of people not interested in hearing our message. But with Hermano Corazco it was not, It was the complete opposite. We had the opportunity to share a scripture about Jesus Christ and how he is who we need to remember this Christmas. In just 30 minutes we grew so much love for the man,and so did he. He asked how we can teach him more about our church. I am growing so much love for this gospel and the people here. This work is hard but at the same time God makes up the difference.

Week 20

This is Christians Mom,


No e-mail today since they had a Christmas party on their Preparation day. I did receive and early Christmas present. I was worried that I had not received my weekly e-mail, I began to panic. How was I going to know when we were to Skype on Christmas? While at work, I went into the staff workroom to send out a quick message to the other missionary moms. A minute after I hit send I received a call from an unknown number. I hesitated to answer, one, I was at work and two, I don't usually answer calls from numbers I have no idea who they belong too. I went ahead and answered the call, I said "hello" the voice on the other end said "Mom", I said "Ethan", No Mom its "Christian". I may have squealed just a little. He only had 5 minutes to talk, but it was to finalize our Skype time. He quickly told me about his day and the Christmas party they had. He asked about the family and how everyone was doing, he managed to slip in "how are the raiders doing" in the conversation (haha). His love for sports hasn't changed. He is doing well!