Christmas & Joy

Time goes by so fast on the internet! I will do my best to tell everything that happened this week.

First of all - CHRISTMAS. I wish that I could have 2 times to celebrate it in the mission, because it isnt every year that you can be a set-apart missionary on the celebration of Christ´s birth. Needless to say, it was an awesome day and my companion and I lived it up with the other latina sisters! We did Secret Santa between all four of us on Christmas Eve when the work day had ended and made a video. (It is a little too long, so you all wont be seeing it...but that´s a good thing. haha.)

The next day we studied and got ready for the day. Hna Luque, one of the other sisters, wanted to badly to do mine and Hna Jesperson´s hair and makeup for when we skyped, so we let her. It made her so happy, so we were happy. :)

Lunch and skyping came by way too fast after that. To be honest, we had planned to do weekly planning Christmas day, but there was not enough time in the day to even put a dent into it before our Pensionista expected us to be at her house to eat, and then to be online in time to skype. Things worked out well in the end, and we talked to our families! It was so great to see everyone and to know the latest happenings. I just wish that we could skype more often, but it is probably better the way it is. We all would get too trunky! I´ll just say that I am looking forward to the next opportunity on Mother´s Day. 

As a side note for all those who are interested, our Christmas meal consisted of 3 different meats (chicken, turkey, and duck), tallarin con queso, camote, and ricoto relleno. SO GOOD! I dont have a picture to share, but just know that we had to take half of it home in order to finish. 

Story of the week!

I am not sure if I have shared with you all about our new investigators, Climaco and Yumilca. We met them three or so weeks ago in between lessons when Hna J and I felt excited to go out contacting families in a near by park. We caught up with Climaco and Yumilca with their little girl just as they were about to leave, and we decided to talk to them and share a message of ´´He is the Gift´´. We now recognize that Heavenly Father led us to them, because the Spirit came as we spoke with them about Christmas, Christ and the love of God. Yumilca immediately opened up to us about her depression and how she and Climaco have been desperately searching for comfort and answers. Hna Jesperson was able to offer empathy and share a deep testimony of how prayer has helped her in her own struggles, and the Spirit sealed every word. The best part was that we got the info of Yumica and Climaco, and were able to set up an apointment!

They live about 30-40 minutes away, so we had to take a bus out to their house with the company of a member in order to make it to the appointment. Climaco was still at work, but Yumilca was present and more than willing to listen. She began crying as she opened up more about your desperation to be normal and to no longer have depression. We listened, and the member who was with us bore testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that has saved him while he himself delt with depression. I wish that I could go into more detail with what happened next, but I´ll just say that after our lesson and the sharing of our testimonies of the restored gospel and priesthood power, Yumilca tearfully told us how she recognized that we were sent to her by God, and that she wants us to teach her. Lenin, the brother who accompanied us from the branch, then gave her a blessing of comfort and we left looking forward to returning the following Friday.

This past Friday, Lenin accompanied us again with an appointment with Yumilca and Climaco, and they were all present! We took the time to get to know Climaco and his feelings about God, and then proceeded to share how the Gospel blesses families. They were both really attentive as we spoke, and when asked about how he felt after we taught, Climaco just said, ´´I feel that what you are saying will bless my family, and if it is true, we would like to go forward and accept it.´´

Ah!! I cannot express how happy we were to hear that! We invited them to make the sacrifice to travel almost an hour the next morning to attend Church with us, and they accepted.

The next morning, we were in sacrament meeting a little sad when none of our investigatores showed up. I had been asked to lead the music, so I was searching! And the moment that Yumilca and Climaco walked in was like sunshine. I was so happy that it was hard not to make a scene. :)

They went to all three hours, and we came to find out that they know one of the families in our branch! It was seriously such a good day...We have another cita with them this upcoming Friday, and we will be challening them to be baptized. 

The rest of this week has been spent proselyting and pondering about the ways that I want to be a better teacher of the gospel. I have probably one of the best companions in the world who is also like-minded and wants to improve, and so we both have been studying this. I have come to the conclusion that I want more trials! Seriously, the most powerful testimonies come from those who have experienced hard things, and I am willing to do anything in order to help our investigators, less actives, and recent converts become truly converted. It seems like a small price to pay.

I hope you all keep helping others in their afflictions and continue to seek to know the Savior and the blessings of the Gospel that can be ours if we are obedient. It is my testimony that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true Church of Christ on this earth today, not because we profess things that we know nothing about, but because we have learned them through the Holy Ghost and we have the priesthood of God that authorizes baptism and the other ordenances necessary to return to God´s presence. I know these things are true by the Spirit! And I am happy everyday in my circumstances because I feel God´s guidance and love as I live His Gospel. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Until next week,

Hna Arroyo

Christmas in Peru!

Merry Christmas! 

Also, if you want a real hamburger, youll need to go to Peru to find one.

Feliz Navidad

Merry Christmas! I hope you all are enjoying each other and the season. I think of you all the time, and more especially during this month! I miss my family, but at the same time I wouldnt rather be anywhere in the world than in Peru as a representative of Christ. Christmas has taken on such a deeper meaning. And I already cant wait to share what I have learned when the next one comes around. :)

 There is always something to learn every week, and every moment of every hour. 

To start, off, we had our Christmas dinner with President 5 days earlier than planned! That was a nice surprise, and it was fun to reconnect with other missionary-friends. The day after, my companion recieved a call that she needed to travel to Cusco in order to see the mission´s medic, so we both went together. Our proselyting work was cut super short because of all of the travelling, but it gave me the opportunity to ponder about what it means to be a nurturer like Christ. I read a talk given by Pres Eyring from a 2012 conference called ´´The Caregiver´´ during some waiting and lots of travelling, and have been podering what it truly means to take care of others.

I have thought of examples in my life, and observed the actions of others. I had a companion who didnt think of anything else but serving others. She always was thinking of the next person to help, and made plans to continue doing so even when her mission ended. This companion was proactive about serving, and her taking care of others didnt end even after her release as a missionary. 

While Hna Jesperson and I were travelling home to Quillabamba, I couldnt help but notice how a Peruvian mom kept calling her daughter to remind her to dress warmly and to be safe while she was away. Distance doesnt stop someone from caring about another´s physical and spiritually wellbeing.

My own companion, who has wounds that I cant completely see or understand, still serves me even when she herself needs to be served. 

And then I think of Christ. His life was full of service! He served way more than the records we have tell us. I am always blown away by the way he told one of his disciples to take care of his mother even while he was still suffering on the cross. A caregiver serves from the charity of his or her heart.

Even as a missionary, with all of my flaws, I am still learning and being humbled  by the amazing caregivers around me. They are other missionaries, the native people of Peru, and Christ himself. I am learning that the best nurturers serve selflessly, proactively, and constantly - even when they themselves are running thin. 

I often feel ineffective as a caregiver because of all of my weakness, but my testimony of the constancy of my Savior has only deepened. He is the Ultimate Caregiver, and has given me divine help to serve beyond my capacities every time that I gone to him humbly, with weaknesses and all. And I also know that He sends other helpers to help us when we have reached the end of our rope. 

I have a testimony of Jesus Christ, and of the gospel which I have the priviledge of preaching - that He lives and His gospel is the way to peace in this life and eternal joy in the next. We have been asked to be the Hands of God until He comes again, and although it is challenging, I know of no other joy than to help one of my brothers or sisters feel Christ´s love. 

I hope each of you enjoy being together as family this week, and recognize that we wouldnt be celebrating this time of year if Christ hadnt been born. HE is the reason for the season, and only as we seek to come to Him by living His gospel will we be able to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. (christmas.mormon.org)

I love you all - and Feliz Navidad!

Hna Arroyo

This email is going to be short this week, but I want to share a little more about Juana. 

She was a reference that we received from a member that is from Arequipa. She lives outside of our area, but we started teaching her with permission of the zone leaders as they were trying to verify our sector´s bounderies. We taught her for about two weeks, which gave us more than enough time to learn about some of Juana´s trials and to get attached to each other . I seriously have so much respect for that woman! She has suffered so many trials in her life from being widowed, robbed, passing through horrific surgeries, and losing her hearing. Yet, she still has faith in God and has an anxious desire to learn about the gospel and accept it. 

In our last lesson before passing her onto the Elders, Juana accepted to be baptized! It was sad to give her over, but I am so glad for the opportunity we had to teach her for a little bit, and what means more to me is making another eternal frienship. :)

Hna Arroyo

Pictures of the Week

Christmas is almost HERE! 

Re: Families are tender mercies

Sorry for the gross picture...it is super hot here in the selva. We just sweat. :D

On Mon, Dec 8, 2014 at 2:09 PM, Jacqulyn Arroyo <jacqulyn.arroyo@myldsmail.net> wrote:

Hello friends and family!

I have come to the conclusion that some stories will just have to wait to be told until after the mission. But I will share a little bit of what is possible right now!

(Let the rant begin:)

If I ever felt like the adversary was working hard against me before my mission, this feeling has only intesified to the extreme as a missionary! I used to feel bad for him, seriously, I did because he can never be happy. But now I just kind of want to punch him in the face. I strive to be a little more Christ-like everyday, and that is the most charity that I can give to him right now.

(Rant over.)

But I also realize that being mad is also letting him win, so I´ll just let everything go. (Sorry to everyone that is reading this...welcome to my head.)

Hna Jesperson was sick for two days this week, so she slept it off until she was emotionally and physically ready to go out. It has been hard for her to adjust to the mission, and her latest comfort has been in listening to conference talks. Please pray for her. She is one of the best missionaries that I have met, which is reason for all of the opposition that she has been having. But she needs some prayers right now. 

We both do. 

We found some happiness in the week by decorating our room for Christmas! Christmas has so much more meaning to me now that I am so far away from home. And it also means something more to be celebrating it as a missionary. 

We also get to share in ´´El es la Dádiva´´, or...what is that called in the states? ´´He is the Gift´´? it is the latest message that the Church is doing for this season. It is so awesome! Go right now to christmas.mormon.org to check out the video. Right now! Please. :)

We are excited for the holidays! 

We also had some great appointments this week with two recent converts who returned to Quillabamba after a month of a hospital stay. I wish I had a picture to share with you all of them, but youll have to wait. They are some of the most converted people that I have met on the mission. And even when they have health challenges, they´re faith in God only becomes stronger.

This is all for now!

We are doing well, and Heavenly Father is always giving my companion and I tender mercies. When things get hard, we can think of our families who love us and pray for our saftey. I am telling you right now, that Heavenly Father answers your prayers, so keep them coming!

Hna Arroyo

Really read the Book of Mormon!

This week has been by far the best that Hna Jesperson and I have had in the change. We met all of our goals except for one, which definitely made up for the previous week.

There are two things that I want to share about. 1) Juana, a new investigator we just started teaching, and 2) Reading the Book of Mormon.

Last Sunday we recieved a reference from a visiting member to teach her sister-in-law, Juana. She is an older woman of 68 years, and she lives alone. We went to her house to get to know her Wednesday and immediately loved her from the start. Juana´s sister-in-law was with us for the first visit and let us know that she cant hear very well, so we tried our best to shout and to not let our gringa accents complicate things. It went very well, and we set a date for our next visit!

We visited Juana again on Friday with a member, and reviewed our last lesson about prayer. It was such a sweet lesson because she opened up about some of the very hard trials that she has suffered, and I felt prompted to share the story in Mark 5 about the woman with the issue of blood. Although Juana is almost deaf, she reads and her comprehension is amazing. She immediately identified with the woman, and we asked her to notice what the woman did to be healed. We talked about how Christ healed the woman physically because of her faith, and that if we come to Him in like manner, He can also heal us spiritually. Juana really liked that, and learning about who is Christ has helped her want to pray in His name to Heavenly Father. 

That lesson with Juana was one more of many evidences that our job as missionaries is to invite others to Christ and help God´s children learn the principles that will allow them to share in the blessings that He is already willing to give to us, but that are conditional on our asking and working for them. 

We left that lesson inviting Juana to continue praying individualing and to read in the Book of Mormon. 

In that conference with Elder Evans, he admonished us to follow Preach My Gospel by helping investigators and less active members read the Book of Mormon from the beginning. He showed us several examples of how we could use the vision of Lehi in chapter one to talk about the Resoration and Joseph Smith, and so much more. Well, Hna Jesperson and I have been trying to apply what Elder Evans taught this entire week! We have gotten invesigators like Juana to start reading, and we read with them to teach the doctrines that are found in what we read. So far it has been awesome! I have tried to study a chapter a day in 1 Nephi during my personal study, and it is amazing how many gospel principles of faith, obedience, prayer, etc. are found in the writings of Nephi. You all should really take some time to go study it! What is more, our investigators here in Quillabamba are finding more answers to their questions, and if not, we are helping them find them in the scriptures. I am probably on a rant of things that you all probably knew, but I am telling you that things are just seeking in so much deeper for me now that I am a missionary. I have blond moments all of the time. Haha, so sorry if I am a bit redundant. 

Flor and Jaset are also progressing. They have been coming to church every Sunday, and she always has a question to ask. I love it! She is so eager to learn and absorb new knowledge. :D 

This is all for now, love you all!

Hna Arroyo

Miracles from Obedience

I should really get in the habit of writing the weekly email when I first log on, and not at the end...Sorry. 

This week has been so great, that the ten minutes I have to write will hardly be enough to email everything, but I accept the challenge. 

We started on top of the world after our first lesson with a family that was referenced to us by our zone leaders. Wilman and Jane are their names, and they have been looking for a church that is family-centered. What is more, they are MARRIED. Our mouths kind of dropped at the news, because the majority of the people we have met arent. 

We silently sang hallelujah. 

Hna Jesperson and i really work on letting the Spirit guide our lessons more than anything, so we did just that during our time with Wilman and Jane. We asked them about their beliefs and how important prayer is to them. Our conversation led into who God is and how he still guides us. We shared a part of lesson 1, the Restoration and then moved along as they were ready. We could see they´re hearts opening more and more to our message, and the Spirit was undeniably. We also had the Elders Quorum Pres with us, and he gave an incredible testimony. That lesson is now on to one of the best that I have had in the mission. Hna Jesperson and I went home that night just so happy!

My companion and I have also been extending our limits a little more and following the direction of Pres Harbertson to contact all of the families we see in the street. It is truly an act of faith, but we have been experiencing miracles from it. Even thought we experience rejection daily, we have also met with families that are genuinely interested in progressing in the gospel. Miracles really come from obedience and faith! 

Besides, how will we know who is the elect unless we teach everyone? I have experienced a real tesimony builder this week.

We also had division with the hermana leaders! It was great. The hermana leaders live in Cusco, but travel 6 hours here to Quillabamba and stay will us for a day or two to do it. We end up ending the day with double the logros, so it was awesome! I went out with Hna Valverde as my companion, and one of the families we taught was a part-member one. The son, Johan is a member, and a time before, his mom and brother were receiving the lessons. We read on their teaching record that Johan´s mom doesnt want to be baptized, but we went forward just to get in touch with them and be friends. Johan´s mom Flor said something that made us think that she would like to know about family history, so we taught just that! I sensed a little hesitation in Flor as i testified of temples, but we bore our testimonies and invited them to attend church the following day and to make an account on familysearch.org. We set an appointment to help´them do just that, and then we left!

I was really surprised to see Johan sitting in sacrament meeting with his mom and brother, and even more so when they went to all three hours. We talked to them afterward and reminded them of our appointment that evening. After everything was verified, Flor came back and took us aside to tell us something that would blow our minds:

´´Hermanas, just to make things clear, I want you to teach me and my family. Not only this, but I also want you two to prepare me and my son to be baptized.´´

Well, okay! That changes everything. We went to visit them that evening, and we talked more about family history and why they want to be baptized. Flor really likes the Church, how it has helped Johan and that it is family-centered. There was a sweet spirit there. Hna Jesperson and i also made it important to emphasize our work as missionaries is to guide others to Christ, and that baptism means more than just becoming a member of the Church. We gained more of an understanding of one another, and we are going to go forward in preparing Flor and her family for baptism so that they can come even closer to Christ and enjoy the blessings of His Atonement. 

I wish that we could get in contact with the missionaries who taught Flor previously and were rejected. They would be so happy to see her now!

Today is P-day, and we are in Cusco right now for a conference tomorrow. 

This is all that I can write now, but more will definitely come next week!

Hna Arroyo

Instruments

Last week was the begining of taking out teaching records and hunting people down. This week we went out and searched for less active members! We met several, which made us sooo happy.

 One woman is Bertha, who hardly has time to just rest because her family runs a radio station and she teaches school on the side. We spent our visit with her getting to know who she is and what she likes to do, and we found out that she loves to cook and bake! You better believe that we have an appointment to bake a cake coming up. :) We also got to talking about her spiritual core, and what she does to keep it running. Our conversation led to OLA (orar, leer, asistir = pray, read, attend). Bertha obviously is missing several essential parts, and we first talked about what she thought she could improve and we bore testimony of how those three things can bring daily peace and communication with God. It was a great visit. 

We were also given a reference from a member to visit her nonmember friend who has been coming to our branch. We went to visit them, and came to find out that she and her friend both live out of our sector! Anywho, we got to know the member, and got to know know her and her less active grandson. We are going to meet with the elders of their true branch and introduce them this coming week!

This week also has reinforced the fact that missions make you stretch and develop talents that you didnt have before. The branch president slyly asked if my companion and I would choose two hymns that our branch choir could sing for our branch conference that is coming up. Shortly after we chose them, he then asked if I would be the choir director. Never in my life...We are working by faith right now! Well, that is all we ever do - the members are working by faith by having me lead their choir. :) We have definitely had some good laughs about it! 

Let choir members sing in tune. . . and life still goes on. 

The pinacle of this week was when Hermana Harbertson, the wife of our mission president, came and accompanied Hna Jesperson to our appointments! It was after we had a training and interviews from President, and we headed out to visit Percy and Ana. 

Hna Jesperson and I had really prayed and talked about what they would need to learn next days before, and we decided that Lesson 3, the Gospel of Jesus Christ felt right. But when we were in their house, about to begin, our plans suddenly didnt feel right. I took into account how Hna Harbertson has been sealed in the temple to her husband, and the more I considered the idea, the stronger the Spirit grew. Heavenly Father´s Will was undeniable, and so Hna Jesperson and I went forward and taught about temples and celestial marriage. We asked Hna Harbertson to share her testimony and experience with attending the temple, and goodness - when she spoke, the Spirit made His presence undeniably known. 

The Spirit had an amazing effect on Percy and Anna because they were attentive and began asking questions about how they could be be married in the temple and do the work for their dead. At one point, Ana, who is normally quiet, began telling us about her dad who had died sometime before. They both were happy to hear that their loved ones who never had the opportunity to live the gospel are able to receive baptism and other ordinances through them in the temple. Hna Jesperson and I both marveled at how Hna Harbertson´s broken Spanish was made strong, and the effect of the Spirit on Percy and Ana. That lesson was a miracle! And we went home feeling that we allowed God to use us as His Hands. 

As missionaries, we work for that feeling.

We have had more meetings with Percy and Ana, which have told us that they arent ready to be baptized yet, but we have been focusing even more on the temple. Recently we also taught them about forgivness and the importance of praying together as a couple in order to strengthen their relationship. We take it as far as their understanding goes, and we are getting better at using object lessons and analogies. 

Slowly, but surely they are progressing! That is all that we could ask for.

It is easy to get frustrated when your investigators arent progressing like you think they should. I am at fault for this! But certain words from my setting apart blessing keep coming to my mind whenever I feel this way and need comfort. I was promised that I would be a help to bringing many people to Christ, but that they will come in their own ways and times; and that a step toward Christ is a step in the right direction. I was then told to be patient in recognizing those steps. I have been striving to do just that, although it is really difficult sometimes. Hna Jesperson and I have been seeing some real blessings from focusing on the needs of the people, and letting ourselves be the mouth-peace for the Spirit. Percy and Ana arent yet ready to get baptized, but they are definitely developing their faith in Christ and learning about the need of daily repentance. I know now that they are the foundation for everything.

Patience and humility are real virtues! They allow the Spirit to show us the right path, and we are given spiritual power. We will always need to rely on that power. 

This is all for now!

Love,

Hna Arroyo

Pan Wuah-wuah

We have seen some improvement this week. Hna Jesperson and I have been running around making appointments with the members and the people that the hermanas before us had been teaching. Just the other day we went out with the brother from the church and he introduced us to several inactive members. That was such a good day! The houses here dont have numbers, so it is almost imposible to contact someone from our area book without the help of a member. Little by little we are cleaning out our area book.

When we got here, a ton of the teaching records werent up to date with the weekly progress reports that the other missionaries had brought to the branch council, so we have done some digging to find out the progress of the less actives and investigators that they taught. Also - let me just rant for a second - we found pages and PAGES of recent converts and inactives that never received the lessons for the second time. Needless to say, it stressed me out to see how many members have fallen off of the face of the earth. But the work goes on! And we are more happy than sad to have so much work to do. It gives me an adrenaline rush, really. :D 

Hna Jesperson has been awesome through it all. It is so hard to adjust to a new culture and way of life, but she is really pushing forward. Something I really love about her is her diligence. She often feels inadequate because she cant express herself the way that she wants to, but she gives it her all when we go out to teach and contact people. She is teaching me a lot by her drive to work. 

How was everyone's Halloween? I was surprised to see that the little kids here in Peru also like to get dressed up in costumes and ask for candy. The only difference is they ask for it from people in the street rather than knocking on doors. The day after was All Saints Day, where the people go out to cemeteries and visit their deceased relatives. We didnt get dressed up or go to cemeteries, but the morning of All Saints Day, our pensionista Roxanna made hot chocolate with avena and we ate pan wuahua (wah-wah). It takes like panetone, but without the fruit candies, and there is a baby cooked into it!

This is all for now, I love you guys!

Hna Arroyo

Hello Jungle of Quillabamba!

Remeber how I said in my last email that I would be training in Puno? Well an hour after I send out that update, the Zone Leaders called to tell me that they would be moving into our house to open a sector, and that I would be sent to the selva. Last Monday was a whirlwind trying to run errands and meet with people. I felt so blessed to have Hna Hollingshead with me, because she didnt complain once, even as I was crying and writing down a list of the needs of the people we taught

As much as I wanted to go say goodbye to everyone, there just wasnt enough time to do everything, and it was raining, so we didnt dare go hiking up the mountain. But at least my last Sunday in Puno was special, because I felt the need to pull Deysi, Jheysi, Abraham, Carlos, and Maricela aside to tell them how much I loved them and how proud I was to see them following the Savior. And there was time to make some phone calls that night to say goodbye, so I was grateful for that. 

The next day I left at 8am for Cusco, and the whole family of Mama Rosalia came to say goodbye. I can never fully thank them for all of the love that they showered us with. Saying goodbye to them and our investigators, converts, and less actives felt like I was leaving the States all over again. It is always hard to do, but what I have learned from the first time is that Heavenly Father watches over our loved ones. He has yet to let me down in that. :)

I stayed the night in Cusco with the other Hermanas who had also recieved the assignment to train, and two of them were Hna Hoskins and Hna Hunter from my group! We were so happy to see each other. And that night felt like a slumber party :D 

The next day we woke up early and them went to a training with President, and then received our hijas!

My companion for the next 3 months is Hna Jesperson! She is from Florida, and came to the mission speaking a ton of Spanish. We are pretty much at the same level, so we know that learning the language is probably not the reason why we are together, but we found our from the very start that we have a lot of things in common. One of them is the reason why she decided to serve a mission. We have gotten along really well since the beginning! 

After that training and planning for the week together, we ate lunch and then went out to contact in Cusco, like my group did when we got here. 

The next morning we took a bus to Quillabamba, which is a province 14 hours or so from Puno. It´s climate is just the opposite of what I have been in for 6 months, with humidity, heat, and tropical flours. It is next to the jungle! Other missionaries like to describe the climate like that of Hawaii, the only thing missing is the ocean! Needless to say, it is beautiful, and the people are really friendly. 

The only difficulties we have had lately is getting to know the investigators and less actives because the houses dont have exact numbers. But we live with another companionship of hermanas and they have showed us around. 

Another thing is, Hna Jesperson has been feeling kind of homesick, so I have been doing my best to show her how to love the mission and have fun. I dont know how Hna Chipunavi did it when she trained me, because I went through something really similar to Hna Jesperson. The only thing is, I am seeking to receive revelation like I have never done before in my life. This new assignment has made me realize how very inadequate I am without God, especially in trying to know the needs of my companion and our investigators. But I take things a day at a time, and He has been with me every step of the way. I am also learning so much from Hna Jesperson. She has been a real blessing to me in so many ways, and I love her so much already! 

I have to go now, but until next week! 

Hna Arroyo

BFFs, It`s a GIRL

Several things happened this week that I want to mention. 

Firstly, our trio went crazy with getting all of our citas in and running errands for Hermana Thompson who ended her mission yesterday. Six weeks goes by so fast, and it lasted for a second in this last change. We were so blessed to be together, to love our investigators and less actives, and to learn from one another. The mission is so great!

Hermana Thompson worked hard until the very end, and she was able to see Waldo and his family come to Church this last Sunday, which made us want to cry. Hermana Agustina, a recently reactivated sister also brought her nonmember husband! Needless to say, two miracles happened, and I cant explain the joy that we felt.

 There is no other place that I would rather be than here in Peru, teaching others about the Savior, that He lives, and seeing them take steps toward Him. Seeing Hermana Thompson ``die`` has really made me realize how short of time we have as missionaries, and I want to live it up!

Today we also receive word about cambios. Hermana Chipunavi, who is now a sister leader in Cusco, called me this morning to tell me it herself before I had a chance to read the email. I will be training a new missionary these next two changes, and I am so nervous! Heavenly Father obviously knows what He is doing, and will allow me to start over from square one all over again. :D 

This is all for now, take care!

Hna Arroyo

Instruments

So the truth is, I spent all of my sweet time responding to all of your letters. I love you guys! This weeks email will have to be short for now.

This weekend were elections in Peru so none of the missionaries or the members were able to gather to watch conference. (Reunions are forbiden on election day.) We spend Saturday and Sunday as normal work days contacting and teaching! Most of the people werent home, so we had a ton of opportunities to meet families in the streets. It was awesome!

Hermana Thompson and I have also been a trio with the lovely Hna Hollingshead for a week. Her companion fell into a hole in her anterior sector, and was recently sent to Cusco to get treated because she hasnt been able to walk for three weeks. We are praying for Hna Sanchez because she is probably one of the best missionaries there has ever been. It is always so interesting for me to see Satan try to tear down these inspiring missionaries through health problems because he knows that he cant make them doubt or lose their testimonies.  

This week we were able to meet with a less active RM and his family. It was a miracle! We taught them the importance of OLA (orar, leer, asistir) and the Spirit came into that home so strongly. At the end, Waldo, the less active RM said to us: ``I hate to watch mechanical missionaries teach. But you two arent mechanical at all - you care and teach from the heart. I want you to know that it  has been a long time since I have felt the Spirit so strongly, so thank you for coming here to visit my family.``

We left that visit feeling so spiritually pumped! It was another testament to me that if we are worthy, we can be used as instruments in the Hands of the Lord to bless His other children.

This P-day we also went to the beach in Juli! We didnt play in the wáter of course, but we did play some fun games and play in the sand!

´´Brightly beams our Father`s mercy...``

Do you remember the story that I told last week, about the woman and her kids that we confused as Glady`s? Well, Heavenly Father totally led us to gold that day.

We met with Edit and her mom this week and got to know them a little better before our lesson. They had met with the missionaries some years before, but then one day, as they told us, those missionaries stopped visiting them. Hna Thompson and I imagine that Edit and her family were dropped because they never progressed with the Elders those years before. But now they have so many desires to meet with us and come to church. We are really hopeful that they will progress  and accept the gospel! But time will tell. All we know is that the Spirit came into the lesson that we had with Edit and her mom really strongly, and they felt it. 

Other news of the week!

We had a multi-zone conference with President. I left on such a spiritual high! It is always inspiring to learn from the other members and to hear when Heavenly Father wants from us in our sectors. There is always room to grow and do better. 

My companion and I also received a ton of help from the members this week in our lessons. Usually we have to make calls and kind of beg the members to acompany us, but lately they have been contacting US to ask if they can come to our lessons! We

 are really loving the new organization we have in the ward. The members are so much more motivated to do missionary work, and they are being amazing examples to us. Just this Sunday Hna T and I watched as Hna Rosalia brought in several less active members with her to Sacrament meeting. She had gotten ready super early in the morning so she could go out and help others come to church. 

I love that woman so much.

Our friend Carlos also helped us! He is from a neighboring ward, but he likes to go out with the missionaries in the stake. He is such a star! But we are a little worried for him because he still isnt married. Haha - he`s worried, too! This is a real problem that all of the RM`s have in Peru after their missions. So will you please pray for Carlos that he will find himself a wife? He`d be eternally grateful.

Other miscellanious happenings of the week:

Jheysi and Abraham received their baptismal interviews! They are so ready to be baptized. Their baptismal date is for the the 9th of Octubre! 

I also found a ginormous bug in my shoe one morning as I was putting them on my feet. You can imagine the conversation that my companion and I had:

Me: ``Eeh...Hermana Thompson!

Hna T: ``Yeah?``

Me: ``There is a BUG in my BOOT!``

Hna T: (laughing)

Me:``Please help me!``

Hna T, laughing and shaking the life out of my shoe: ``There is NOT a bug in your shoe!``

Me:``Yes, there IS! Seriously - It is ginormous!``

Hna T, after shaking it some more: ``Ah! There is a HUGE bug in your shoe!``

We left it there in peace for the entire day. The bug is now dead, but I have plans to burn my boots. 

This is all that I can think of right now! I`ll make sure to do better next week.

Love you all!

Hermana Arroyo

A new way to contact

Let me just start out by saying that Hna Thompson is the best. She comes from Summerlin, and she will be ending her mission this change. (We have a promise between each other never to mention it.) She is also so funny and dorky, which always us laughing to tears. Hna Thompson very much might by my soul mate. 

We have had tons of funny experiences together already, but this next one really is the best:

We set out to meet with Gladys and her kids one day to introduce my new companion and share a message. As we climbed up the stairs to her street, I noticed two of Glady's kids having a good time playing on the railing. Catherine, her daughter called out to us, and so we went to them, les damos saludos with kisses and then went off to meet Gladys. The only problem was that no one answered. We knocked really loudly for a good 5 minutes, and then decided to go ask Catherine and her little brother to come help us. They were a little confused when we told them that their mom wasnt home, but they were happy to show us where their mom was. She was visiting with a friend, they told us, so I wasnt too worried when they led us down an unfamiliar street. They ran inside, got their mom, and I was horrified when I realized that ''Catherine'' and her brother werent them afterall. I couldnt find anything to say, so I just watched as Hna Thompson started talking to the woman:

Hna T: ''Good afternoon! We are looking for Gladys. May we speak with her?''

Woman at the door, confused: '' ...Im sorry, but I dont know Gladys.''

Hna T: ''Are you sure? These are Glady's kids, and they brought us here so that we could meet with their mom.''

Woman at the door: ''No - they are MY kids.''

We ended up making the most out of the situation and contacting the woman. I then explained the mistake that we had made, and the woman started to laugh with us. We couldnt have asked for a better ice breaker! We now have an appointment with she and her family. :D

(As a sidenote, Gladys answered the door almost immediately when we returned. We feel like we were ment to meet Edith and her kids, no matter how incredibly embarrazed we were about the situation! haha.)

As far as investigators go, Jheysi and Abraham are progressing! We are meeting with them several times a week. 

We also met with some less active members! I am always blown away by how well Hna Thompson is able to gain the confidence of the members with her personality. Every person has a gift that the other doesnt have, and they can touch someone that others have a hard time doing, and I am seeing this with her! I couldnt be more grateful to be working with Hna T. She has a desire to work hard and to give it her all, which is something that I want to do to. This change is going to be great - I know it!

Hermana Arroyo

''I like to look for rainbows, whenever there is rain...'' :)

Re: I´m getting a gringa!

On Mon, Sep 8, 2014 at 12:48 PM, Jacqulyn Arroyo <jacqulyn.arroyo@myldsmail.net> wrote:

I...dont even know where to start. 

Carlitos was baptized! We went a little crazy looking for baptism clothes, and Carlos arrived an hour late to his own baptism, but the end goal was met, so we were SO happy. He had all of the support of his parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and cousins. It was so great to see them all come together, and Carlos just beamed! 

Also, we were finally able to meet with his dad! He is always avoiding us, so it was huge that he came to the baptism and attended church this Sunday. We have some plans to gain his trust. :)

After 2-3 months we have a new bishop!! He has served as a counselor in the Mission presidency for 4 years, and was bishop of our ward just before that. So needless to say, everyone was surprised. But we are so excited to be starting a new chapter in this sector. Bishop Quispe´s first Sunday was the beginning of some big changes. He announced to all of the members that this Tuesday he will be holding interviews with everyone who doesnt now have a calling, and every one will be be receiving an assignment. The next announcement was that the ward will now be starting exactly on time, the way the Lord would have it. (Punctuality is a problem here in South America, which doesnt help the ´´Mormon-standard-time´´.) I love his enthusiasm to get the work here rolling! I can already tell that we will be experiencing some great miracles with the missionary work in the near future. 

This weekend we also met with Maricela and Manuel (Maricela was baptized in August) to go out for some pizza. They knew that we would have cambios, so this was a way to say goodbye in the case that one of us leaves. We had a blast! It was a day of eating way too much, but thus is the mission life. We laughed hard and remembered some funny things that had happened to us a while back. We also asked them about their wedding date...haha, it is sometimes fun to make others feel uncomfortable. But only if they are your good friends! We love them both so much. 

Today is also the day of cambios. Hna C and I were so nervous to log on and read our emails from President...but now we feel better to know our assignments. We are both still confused about Hna Chipunavi´s assignment - we dont know if it means that she will train again or become a sister leader, but we will find out more today. As for me, I will be receiving a gringa! Her name is Hna Thompson; we met when I first came to the mission, and so I know that we share the same home town! Everyone is also telling me how much they love her, and that she works hard, so I cant be any happier!

This is all for the week - love you all!

Hermana Arroyo

I´m getting a gringa!

I...dont even know where to start. 

Carlitos was baptized! We went a little crazy looking for baptism clothes, and Carlos arrived an hour late to his own baptism, but the end goal was met, so we were SO happy. He had all of the support of his parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and cousins. It was so great to see them all come together, and Carlos just beamed! 

Also, we were finally able to meet with his dad! He is always avoiding us, so it was huge that he came to the baptism and attended church this Sunday. We have some plans to gain his trust. :)

After 2-3 months we have a new bishop!! He has served as a counselor in the Mission presidency for 4 years, and was bishop of our ward just before that. So needless to say, everyone was surprised. But we are so excited to be starting a new chapter in this sector. Bishop Quispe´s first Sunday was the beginning of some big changes. He announced to all of the members that this Tuesday he will be holding interviews with everyone who doesnt now have a calling, and every one will be be receiving an assignment. The next announcement was that the ward will now be starting exactly on time, the way the Lord would have it. (Punctuality is a problem here in South America, which doesnt help the ´´Mormon-standard-time´´.) I love his enthusiasm to get the work here rolling! I can already tell that we will be experiencing some great miracles with the missionary work in the near future. 

This weekend we also met with Maricela and Manuel (Maricela was baptized in August) to go out for some pizza. They knew that we would have cambios, so this was a way to say goodbye in the case that one of us leaves. We had a blast! It was a day of eating way too much, but thus is the mission life. We laughed hard and remembered some funny things that had happened to us a while back. We also asked them about their wedding date...haha, it is sometimes fun to make others feel uncomfortable. But only if they are your good friends! We love them both so much. 

Today is also the day of cambios. Hna C and I were so nervous to log on and read our emails from President...but now we feel better to know our assignments. We are both still confused about Hna Chipunavi´s assignment - we dont know if it means that she will train again or become a sister leader, but we will find out more today. As for me, I will be receiving a gringa! Her name is Hna Thompson; we met when I first came to the mission, and so I know that we share the same home town! Everyone is also telling me how much they love her, and that she works hard, so I cant be any happier!

This is all for the week - love you all!

Hermana Arroyo

Re: Faith

These are pictures of the day that we were caught in a rainstorm on the way to an appointment with the Mayhua family. We´re making memories. :)

On Mon, Aug 25, 2014 at 11:58 AM, Jacqulyn Arroyo <jacqulyn.arroyo@myldsmail.net> wrote:

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jacqulyn Arroyo <jacqulyn.arroyo@myldsmail.net>
Date: Mon, Aug 25, 2014 at 11:56 AM
Subject: Faith
To: angie1717@msn.com, cav788@yahoo.com, jarroyo.pv3.cusco@blogger.com, Angela Kaufman <angela.ken625@gmail.com>, Brook Schaefermeyer <brookschaef@gmail.com>, Doug Roundy <dcr1003@gmail.com>, georgie arroyo <caligirl102028@gmail.com>, georgie juarez <gjuarez90631@yahoo.com>, irene juarez <irene_juarez2@hotmail.com>, Ken Kaufman <kenkaufman45@gmail.com>, Lars Jenson <lars.jenson@gmail.com>, Nathan Powell <nathan.powell@myldsmail.net>, Quinn Bushman <quinn.bushman@myldsmail.net>, Steven Roundy <steven.roundy@myldsmail.net>, Kelsie Harper <kelsie.harper13@gmail.com>, charlotte.payton@myldsmail.net, dallyne.olivas@myldsmail.net, hannah.givens@myldsmail.net, kailani.klingler@myldsmail.net, Daniel Kaufman <ripstix@gmail.com>

So, long story short, my compi is my best friend! She came back from Cusco on Friday and we have been having a blast since.

This Sunday a ton of our less actives that we are working with came to Church. (It is seriously the best to see them walk through the doors smiling!)

We´ve recieved more references from the members.

Every morning we do Insanity. (We started a new video today, and I was so close to puking.)

Oh. And chocolate. We eat chocolate daily. :D

Hermana Chipunavi and I are putting in our everything this week because after all of the time that she has been away, we only have two more weeks together! And we feel that it is about time that we had cambios. We are almost positive that she will be the one leaving because of the sensitive skin condition she has here in Puno. AND those 30 new hermanas will be coming to the mission in the next transfer! Who wants to bet that the both of us will be training and/or opening new sectors? We try not to think about it too much. :)

This week has made me think even more about my purpose here in Puno as a missionary. It seems to be to help others return to church, and the other is to strengthen the youth. We have received several references to teach part-member families whose kids and cousins have desires to be baptized. But the main things that are keeping them from progressing is the permission we need to teach them, and we also would rather teach whole families with parents who will support their kids in the gospel. We as misionaries, dont work hard to bring others to the gospel for them to fall away from it shortly after. And so we are working out the details in order to be able to teach these youth and their families. It is maybe the funnest thing that I have done!

This Sunday we rounded up the three girls that we are meeting with to attend Young Womens. Each one of them has her own background with hard challenges and is shy, so Hermana and I made a special effort to join them in this class. And as we sat in to learn, I couldnt help but take in the moment and consider how lucky we are to teach these girls who need to learn the gospel early in life in order to bless their own families. Each one is so good, inocent, and full of hope in the future! And because of the challenges that they have had, they know who Heavenly Father is and have been able to recognize the truth. It is so great! Can you tell how excited I am to teach them what i know and to share my testimony? They are going to be my daughters. :D

Other news! This week I had a bomb-day of personal study. Have you guys ever read in Hebrews 11 about faith? It is really similar to Ether 12, but with different examples of faith. Go and read it and study it! I went through the day feeling so inspired.

Would we study if we didnt believe that we could recieve more knowledge? Would we work if we didnt believe that we could receive wages? Everyday we act on things to receive an end that we cant see from the beginning. This is faith. And this is the principle we walk by every day of our lives.

We are here on the earth to progress and become more like Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. We have trials and sicknesses in order to learn obedience and faith, because these are things that They live by.  And so, we cant reach any of our goals here if we dont develop our faith and obedience. These things are so simple, but are critical to our happiness and salvacion!

This letter of the week is a bit longer than usual, so I hope you can learn with me from my experiences.

Haz lo justo,

Hermana Arroyo

 

Faith

So, long story short, my compi is my best friend! She came back from Cusco on Friday and we have been having a blast since.

This Sunday a ton of our less actives that we are working with came to Church. (It is seriously the best to see them walk through the doors smiling!)

We´ve recieved more references from the members.

Every morning we do Insanity. (We started a new video today, and I was so close to puking.)

Oh. And chocolate. We eat chocolate daily. :D

Hermana Chipunavi and I are putting in our everything this week because after all of the time that she has been away, we only have two more weeks together! And we feel that it is about time that we had cambios. We are almost positive that she will be the one leaving because of the sensitive skin condition she has here in Puno. AND those 30 new hermanas will be coming to the mission in the next transfer! Who wants to bet that the both of us will be training and/or opening new sectors? We try not to think about it too much. :)

This week has made me think even more about my purpose here in Puno as a missionary. It seems to be to help others return to church, and the other is to strengthen the youth. We have received several references to teach part-member families whose kids and cousins have desires to be baptized. But the main things that are keeping them from progressing is the permission we need to teach them, and we also would rather teach whole families with parents who will support their kids in the gospel. We as misionaries, dont work hard to bring others to the gospel for them to fall away from it shortly after. And so we are working out the details in order to be able to teach these youth and their families. It is maybe the funnest thing that I have done!

This Sunday we rounded up the three girls that we are meeting with to attend Young Womens. Each one of them has her own background with hard challenges and is shy, so Hermana and I made a special effort to join them in this class. And as we sat in to learn, I couldnt help but take in the moment and consider how lucky we are to teach these girls who need to learn the gospel early in life in order to bless their own families. Each one is so good, inocent, and full of hope in the future! And because of the challenges that they have had, they know who Heavenly Father is and have been able to recognize the truth. It is so great! Can you tell how excited I am to teach them what i know and to share my testimony? They are going to be my daughters. :D

Other news! This week I had a bomb-day of personal study. Have you guys ever read in Hebrews 11 about faith? It is really similar to Ether 12, but with different examples of faith. Go and read it and study it! I went through the day feeling so inspired.

Would we study if we didnt believe that we could recieve more knowledge? Would we work if we didnt believe that we could receive wages? Everyday we act on things to receive an end that we cant see from the beginning. This is faith. And this is the principle we walk by every day of our lives.

We are here on the earth to progress and become more like Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. We have trials and sicknesses in order to learn obedience and faith, because these are things that They live by.  And so, we cant reach any of our goals here if we dont develop our faith and obedience. These things are so simple, but are critical to our happiness and salvacion!

This letter of the week is a bit longer than usual, so I hope you can learn with me from my experiences.

Haz lo justo,

Hermana Arroyo

 

Del Rio & Arroyo

I´ve found my long lost sister...Hermana Del Rio!

Pictures

Hermana Rosalia has been one of my study budies for the week since Hermana C has been in Cusco. I love her sooo much. She reminds me of you, Mom. :)Abuela Hansen! She is the mission mom of Hermana C, and she is now a Hermana Leader in our zone! We had an awesome time in our splits together. Here we are learning how to make lasagna from Hugo, a member in the ward.
Tajin! My life just got better. :)

Rain

This week has been a bit of a challenge! But not because we didnt have lessons - we´ve been blessed with lots of less actives and new investigators to teach. Hermana Chipunavi has been in Cusco for the second week in the row for medical problems, and I have been a little stressed out leading the sector. I´ve totally relied on her for everything, and so  now I am getting a taste of what it will be like when we separate. But I have learned something really important through it all. We need to be pushed out of our comfort zones in order to gain confidence; we need trials to increase our faith; and we need to know unhappiness in order to experience true joy. My faith has been challenged this week as I have gone out with members for visits, but I have also been blessed to know that although it is scary to lead, it is also so rewarding to know that I am capable. And I know that Heavenly Father is always with me, which has been a tremendous comfort.

This week we obtained permission to teach Carlos, an investigator who is 11 and all but him and his dad are members in his family. We are so excited that he wants to be baptized this month! What is more, we´ve found more people to teach through his friends at school. And so, as always, Heavenly Father is preparing his children. It is amazing to see and to be an instrument in His Hands at this time. I am so excited to help these people progress!

I have to tell you guys, though. Hermana C and I got caught in a rain storm on a mountain as we were heading to our last appointment with Carlos. It would have been miserable if we didnt have each other to laugh with and a lesson to teach. We got to the appointment SOAKED, but we had the lesson as planned where we were able to make more goals with the family. But seriously, when will we have another opportunity like this one that we had again? I love Puno!


Hermana Arroyo

Repentance

I have some great news! Maricela was baptized this Saturday. The baptism was performed in another chapel since she lives in a different ward, and I got the chance to speak about the gift of the Holy Ghost. Talk about a whirlwind of emotions! I was so antsy and excited right before and I cried way more than I expected. It was such a special moment. The sad part was that Hermana Chipunavi couldnt go because she left for Cusco that morning. (My companion has some kind of weird infection in her eyes and needed to see the mission doctor. Please pray for her!)

The other great part of this week was divisiones. I met my grandma for the very first time! Her name is Hermana Hansen, and she trained my mom, but now she is a hermana leader in our area! We went on splits in my sector and she taught me so much about obedience and repentance. I dont think there is a greater joy than to work with God in helping others repent and change their lives. We get to do this everyday as missionaries, but it has really made me ponder how I helped others through this process before my mission. Repentence is personal and it isnt a daily conversation that we start with just anyone. And as members and not full-time missionaries, we dont have the authority to extend promises or to teach in the place of the missionaries. But we can help others to repent by loving them, uplifting them, and most importantly by refraining from judging them. And so my question is this: Do I make it easier for others to repent? I think this is something important to consider. Do we forget the wrong doings of others just as the Lord does? I know that I´ve had my slip-ups, and havent always been so willing to forgive. But I do know how it feels to have guilt and a desire to leave a sin behind. I know this is why Christ suffered for our sins, so that we might be forgiven if we repent. (D&C 19:15-20) The Atonement is so beautiful! And anyone can have access to it. The Lord only asks us to confess our sins, leave them behind, and go forward by keeping His commandments. I love this scripture in Doctrine and Covenants:

´´For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance;

Nevertheless, he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven.´´ D&C :31-32)

An attribute of Christ is forgiveness, and I want to always be able to forgive even when someone has wronged me. It isnt easy, but it is possible. I know that we can be a lot happier following Christ than the world, and so I am trying this out. I know that we can also love others as Christ would by forgiving them and helping them forgive themselves. I promise you all that if you do this, you will feel a desire to bring others to the gospel. There is no other truer happiness than the joy of repentance and being reconciled with God.

Hermana Arroyo

Help to accomplish

This week we fasted to be able to meet more people to teach, and our fast and prayers were answered the day of! In the beginning of Sunday we recieved happy and sad news that our investigator Maricela wants to be baptized this week, but that we will need to give her record over to other missionaries because she lives one block out of our sector. We were crushed when we found this out, but we are also so happy to see so much happiness and light in Maricela`s eyes. Heavenly Father has blessed us for sure. He even sent us more blessings yesterday by putting prepared people and a less active family into our path. Seeing Maricela so converted has given Hna Chipunavi and I so much hope and excitement for the future. I thought that I knew what missionary work was before my mission, and I am learning that there is so much more to it. We experience saddness when others misuse their agency because we love them so much, but it is a saddness that I would not give away. There is happiness in being able to empathize with another's suffering and love them despite their imperfections.

We also recieved word from President that we need to focus more on less active members. He is really concerned about Puno because it has the lowest attendance in all of the mission; even two sectors in my zone needed to be closed in the last change. Mine and Hermana C`s sector is better than most, but there are still so many less actives that we need to find! Like I mentioned before, she and I were really sad to refer our golden investigator to other missionaries after having worked three months to prepare her for baptism, but reactivations are just as important as having a baptism. It is seriously the best to see the light of Christ shine brightly in another`s eyes when they understand the Atonement and who they are, whether it is for the first time or after a long process of repentance.

I also have a story to share. Yesterday after a lesson that we had, Hermana and I met with an old woman who was having a hard time walking up the mountainside. My companion is seriously such a great example to me! Hermana Chipunavi noticed that she was crying and quickly went to the side of the old woman and helped her to the nearest tienda. We tried speaking to her in Spanish, but quickly realized that the grandma speaks mostly Quechua and knows only signal words in Spanish. With the help of the girl who works in the tienda we were able to figure out that the old woman is sick and needed kindling to make a fire. We received the kindling and helped the woman to her house. At the exact same time that we were trying to communicate with her, a member came up in the path and started speaking Quechua. We only know him as abuelito because he is the grandpa of the second counselor in the bishopric and is normally too timid to speak. But during this time we saw a miracle as he began translating for us. He related the story of the Quechuan woman to us, and began crying as he explained how she lives alone without light and sometimes food. We helped Nicolesa, the old woman, into her house, and we now have plans to visit her with Mama Rosalia who also speaks Quechua. I cant stop thinking of the signifigance of this experience. Heavenly Father put us in the path of this old woman so we could help her. A language barrier was the challenge, but He provided a way for us to share the gospel with her through the help of abuelito. Heavenly Father really loves us, and has given every one a gift that the other doesnt have so that we can serve each other. This is a commandment that we have to serve others, and although it sometimes appears hard to accomplish, He has prepared a way for our success. We need only be willing to do our part.

 
This is all for now because I am out of time, but I love you all! Reach out to less actives and always be willing to serve.

Hermana Arroyo

Agency

This week started out will cambios! My companion was in Lima for her carnet, and so I went out with Hermana Tui´one for two days. She is so great! She is half Mexican and half Polynesian so you can just imagine her personality. Hermana Tui´one is real, a little loud, fun, and really bold in her questions to people. She is a lot like Nana! lol. I loved every minute that I had with her to proselyte because she is such a great example of how we should teach with boldness and love. I totally gained another best friend in the mission this week.

Also: My compi is back!

Yesterday night Hermana C. and I were able to have another appointment with a progressing investigator. We have set several baptismal dates with her, but have not been able to meet each date. It was two weeks ago that Maricela told us that she wants to learn more about the church before she commits to baptism, and so she wants to wait until September. We were so sad to hear this from her, and so up to our latest appointment had been praying and studying in order to know how to help her. Yesterday during Church Maricela confided in Hermana Chipunavi that she has recieved an answer that she should be baptized, and she wants to do it, but that someone close in her life is telling her to wait. We tried so hard not to be upset at this! Maricela KNOWS the doctrines, is changing her life, attending church regularly, and has a testimony. How is she not ready for baptism? Anyway, we felt impressed to teach about obedience and reading the scriptures in our lesson last night. At one point I felt impressed to testify of how each commandment is calculated to bring us more happiness than before, and that she had chosen to follow the Savior in the life before. In this life she is now being asked to follow Him again, but it is now an issue of when. The Spirit was strong during this time, and even though Maricela still told us that she wants to wait,  Hermana Chipunavi and I walked away feeling that we did everything in our power and according to the Spirit that we needed to do. In the end, salvation comes down to the agency of the individual. 

As of now, we are still praying and seeking to help those we teach. We know that even when others use their agency incorrectly, our responsibility is to be guides in this work as we invite others to excerise their agency correctly. It is often times disappointing, but so amazing when we can see how people are willing to change their lives in order to experience the blessings. Nothing that the Lord asks us to do will take anything of worth from us. His commandments are designed to make us better, stronger, and happier in this life. This is my testiomony! 

Hermana Arroyo

Pictures from Cusco a very long time ago!

Inviting others back

Sadly, this week has been low in numbers as far as appointments go with investigators. Hermana Chipunavi and I have had so many people cancel on us, but on the flip side we have had so many opportunities to meet with less actives! I cannot think of anything better to do than to eleviate someone´s pain and inspire hope through the Atonement.

One lesson that sticks out to me was with a single mom. We met with Daisy and her mom Gladys and taught about the Word of Wisdom. Gladys hasnt been active in the church for a really long time, so some of the things we talked about had been forgotten. Besides talking about some of her doubts, Gladys also shared that she feels bad for regressing back to old habits. She is feeling a little dispondant and down that she doesnt fit in with the other ´´perfect´´ members. It made me so sad to hear her talk this way. Hermana Chipunavi testified to her that there is always a way back, and the Savior is just waiting for her to decide to do it. Gladys has so much faith and a desire to change that there is no doubt in my mind of the potential she can reach.
 

3 Ne 9:13 comes to mind right now.

´´Yea, verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, my arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I recieve: and blessed are those who come unto me.´´

Sometimes as members we judge others who have weaknesses. I cant say that I have never done the same, but I am learning to see others as the Savior would. We have the gospel of Jesus Christ because we are ALL sinners. An apostol has testified that the Church is for the spiritually inferm, and so rather than give in to judging, we should keep loving and caring for each other - more especially those who have committed some serious sins. This is not only what the Savior would do, but there is so much more peace and happiness in following His example. I am making a committment to be better for people like Gladys.

Also, this week we had three drunk men come up to us at different times, asking to hear the word of God. The first two were totally gone, but we took their numbers and directions anyway. But the third made us take a step back and consider what Heavenly Father may be trying to tell us. As the this man was talking to us, he begged to hear something that would give him peace, and then he started to cry. There was a different feeling present as we shared a message with him about the restored gospel and Atonement. As the man was talking, I felt his sincerity and just how much he hurt. Seeing him cry almost made me do the same. This experience has made me remember a talk given by Elder Cook (?) about the peace this gospel brings. There are so many people in this world who need to feel the joy of repentance, but dont know how or where to find the cure. We know this Cure, and we have the restored gospel and the authority needed to experience a remission of sins. There is such a big need to share what we know with others! This gospel is what brings true happiness.

Daily updates! For the next two days I am in a trio with the other Hermanas in our sector while Hermana Chipunavi travels to Lima for her visa. :( It is so weird without her! But the other hermanas are pretty great. One is Mexican and she speaks PERFECT English, and the other is new to the mission from California. So we´re speaking a lot of English! I would have loved this three months ago, but now I am having trouble remembering certain words and how to pronounce them. Crazy! Heavenly Father answers our prayers and works miracles in our lives when we have faith and do our part to obtain them.

Have a great week everyone! I love you!

Hermana Arroyo

Listening to the Spirit

Hola!

Hermana and I met with Samuel once again this week to talk about the Book of Mormon. This guy is so awesome! We had given him a folleto of the Plan of Salvation in our last visit, and he testified to us of it after he had read the whole thing. Who does that? I know that if we can get Samuel to attend Church on Sundays so that he can be baptized that he will be a leader in the Church someday. There is no doubt about it!

We also sat down with Maricela to teach our very last lesson before her baptism this Saturday. But she expressed to us that she feels like she needs more time before she can  make such a big decision. Maricela wants to read the Book of Mormon all the way through and then wait for September to be baptized. Our hearts dropped when she said this. (I wonder how the missionaries felt when I told them I wanted to wait until I was eighteen to be baptized.) But we listened to her feelings and asked her questions about whether she is keeping her committments to read and pray everyday. We have comfort in knowing the Maricela has received an answer that the Church is true, so her situation is more of a matter of faith. That lessson with Maricela ended with testimony, the scriptures, and another committment to receive a confirmation from God that her decision to be baptized is correct.

But since that lesson with Maricela I have been studying about faith and how Hermana and I can help Maricela recieve and recognize answers through the Spirit. Joseph Smith taught that we need three things in order to excercise true faith: 1) Belief in the existence of God, 2) A knowledge of His character and attributes (i.e., merciful, forgiving, loving, trustworthy, ect.), and 3) A knowledge that our chosen path in life has His approval. We know that Maricela believes in God and who He is, but she wants to know that her decision to join the Church is right. And so my question is how Hermana and I can teach her how to recognize answers from heaven powerfully enough to act.

This whole experience has really made me think about how I first learned to recognize answers from Heavenly Father, and what kind of testimony the missionaries shared with me that inspired me to act. I´ve come to the conclusion that we need to pray, study, and fast to have a more powerful influence of the Spirit in our lessons. People arent converted to missionaries, we are only instruments. Within every person is an immortal spirit that once lived with and learned from Heavenly Parents before this life, and so there is also the ability to communicate with heaven. ´´True to the Faith´´ says that we can only recieve a sure testimony of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ only through the power of the Holy Ghost. His communication with ours carries more certainty than any communication we can receive through our natural senses. (pg 89.) This makes our jobs as missionaries so much easier! Investigators will learn what they need to through the Spirit, and when they learn how to recognize promptings and how to communicate with their Father in Heaven, they will have what they need to endure to the end. My compi and I need only to have the Spirit to testify of the message of the Gospel.

So these are our current worries this week! We hope to talk to Maricela really soon. OH! And just last week our sector lost its elders and we recieve another companionship of hermanas. Sisters are taking over the mission! Haha, but seriously. The Peru Cusco mission has 230+ missionaries already - go compare this to others - and we will be recieving 20 more hermanas in the next transfer. There is a big possibility that I will be training...Ah! Pray for me.

Hermana Arroyo

The elect of Puno

Hermana Chipunavi and I have recieved several surprises this week as far as investigators go. The other day we were walking in the street to another appointment, and a construction worker stopped us to ask a question. He saw me carrying my scriptures out of my bag, and so he firsted asked if we believed in the Bible. His next question was about why there are so many churches in the world if there is only one God, one Church, and one baptism. I kind of stood in disbelief after someone as prepared as he is contacted US first, so Hermana started talking first. He didnt want to give us his address to meet with him, so we are going to contact him in the street again this week. 

We had another similar experience after there was a Young Single Adult activity in the chapel. One of the ward members presented to us her friend Samuel, and so we set up an appointment to meet with him another day. Samuel is a bit timid to talk, so we made a special effort to get to know him and gain his confidence on the day of our appointment. It wasnt hard to get him to open up, especially as we started to ask him about his faith in Christ and what he knows about the Bible. We came to find out that he loves the scriptures and knows them really well, and so he began talking and sharing his testimony about pray and the Savior. The Spirit came into that room so strongly, and there was no doubt in my mind that Samuel is one of the elect in Puno. 

Experiences like these two make me so grateful to be a missionary at this time. I love the light that shines in the eyes of our investigators when the Light of Christ connects with the truth. And I love to be able to remind one of my brothers and sisters about who they are and what their purpose is in the life. No matter what kind of challenge Hna C and I face during the week, it is all worth it if we can find those whom we have been sent to find. This life is great! And this gospel is even better.

I love you all! If you ever have questions about anything, you can ask me. We may be far away from each other, but every one of you is important to me - and even more to Heavenly Father. Dont forget it.

Hermana Arroyo

Change and blessings

Today is p-day! One of the best days of the week. This day started off bad for my companion, though. Last night we ate a huge meal with Mama Rosalia and her family for Father´s Day, and she woke up needing to puke. The worst! Our Zone Leaders came this morning to give her a blessing, and now she is sleeping. During it all, I have been able to serve Rosalia by doing some cleaning! Let me tell you all...it feels so good to be able to clean a real house! (Mom, I think I am becoming like you.) So despite my companion feeling under the weather, we are still blessed, and Rosalia has been our mom away from our moms.

As far as the miracle go for this week, they´ve all been about change!

About three weeks ago we made a connect with an older man named Leonzio. We finally had our first meeting with him two weeks ago, and we found out that he is grieving for his deceased wife who died only within the last two months. He cried and cried, but his attitude made a total 360 as we taught him the Plan of Salvation. Although he is still grieving, he has so much more peace and comfort. He committed to baptism in the first lesson, and seeing him change has been a testemant of the truthfulness of the Restored Gospel.

At another time during the last two weeks, we have met with Juana. She is also older, with grown kids, but is less active. We found her as we were trying to meet with a contact we havent been able to sit down with. This contact wasnt hope, but we came to find out that she has members in the church, and Juana is her grandma! So we sat with Juana and began asking her questions about herself. During this time the thought came to mind to share about family history. But I was having such a hard time catching what she was saying, that I doubted this as a prompting. As time past, Juana began to cry as she confinded in us that she feels so upset that he kids arent happy in their lives right now. We listened as she talked, and then she shared how she made a promise with her husband before he died that she would be sealed to him in the temple. At this point I felt so many emotions: shame because I doubted the prompting I recieve, but gratitude for the opportunity to testify of something so important to me. Afterward, Juana confirmed this impression again by sharing how just the other day she was thinking about her parents who never joined the church and other relatives who need their work done. This church is so TRUE! This past week we set out to meet with her again, and found Juana having some pain from a lung disease she has. We set out to find the Elders in the street, if we could, because neither of us have cell phones. We searched and searched for a worthy priesthood holder for maybe an hour before we could find one to offer Juana a blessing. Finally we found one of Rosalia´s sons, and he was able to bless her. This experience has made me more firm in my desire to not only marry a priesthood holder, but someone who I can count on to be worthy to offer blessings at any time.

One more story about this week, but this one is about Daisy. Daisy is the daughter of a single mom and less active member. We started meeting with her one day when her mom couldnt make it to our appointment, and it semed like the perfect opportunity to get to know her kids. And Daisy is so full of sweetness, and she really impressed me from the beginning with her eagerness to learn more about the gospel and live it. Hermana C. and I have felt impressed to help Daisy get into the habit of daily scripture study, so we are meeting with her several times a week to help and encourage her. In one of our last visits, we read in 2 Ne 31 about the doctrine of Christ, and afterward she asked us how she can start paying tithing! Teaching Daisy and helping her with scripture study has brought to mind so many memories of doing this same thing with the sister missionaries how taught me. They are a big reason why I love the scriptures, and I really want to give this same gift to her. I know that she is going to need a testimony that she can receive answers through the scriptures and prayer, especially if she will be the only active member in her home.

Everyday we have opportunities to lift others, strengthen them, and watch them grow. Missionary work is to beautiful! Even with all of its challenges, it is the best work there is.

I love you all! Until next week.

Hermana Arroyo