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