The sons of Mosiah

Have you ever considered how amazing the sons of Mosiah were? I love to read about their missionary work and the way that they prepared themselves spiritually to preach with power and authority. They are huge examples of the kind of missionary I want to become!

It also comforts me to know that even they recieved trials in the work, and doubted a little when things were hard. As of lately, I have been considering what I can improve in order to follow their examples of faith when the field seems to be dry.

For a while Flor de Maria and Jaset went missing for a month every time we showed up for an appointment, and it seemed like the rest of the teaching pool decided to take vacations far out of our area. Hna Roman and I contacted like crazy, trying to find those that were ready and willing to listen to the gospel, and out of all of those contacts, none showed up. It was a little discouraging! And has brought me to consider options that I never looked for. The whole experience has made me pray a little more, be a little more creative, and prepare myself to be an instrument in the Lord´s Hands.  I have learned a whole lot! The first and foremost, is reliance on the Lord.

I chose to rely on Him this week by smiling and choosing to be happy no matter the circumstance. Hna Roman and I decided to stop by the home of some less active members who have always made excuses for not to talk to us. We walked into their tienda to try to win their confidence, and did so by making them laugh and asking them about themselves. At one point I felt the impression to pull out my Family History pamphlet that I´ve filled with pictures of the family, and allowed them to look at them for a while. It was amazing how easily it was to share a short message and break the ice! The dad, whose name is Jose Carlos couldnt stop looking at Alex´s picture and kept saying how much he recognized him from somewhere, but he couldnt remember exactly. Hna Roman then happily commented, ´´Hermano, it´s because you were friends in the preexistence!´´ I loved every minute of that visit. We now have an appointment to teach them how to do Family History tomorrow.

Also, after nearly a month of trying to connect with Flor and Jaset to teach them, we had an appointment this last Saturday. I was nervous right before going into that visit that she was going to drop us, but to our relief, it turns out that she has just had medical problems and trouble keeping the appointments. We talked it out, and she told us that every time we had an appointment, something came up and prevented her and Jaset from making it! That was music to our ears. My companion and I talked about opposition that comes to us when we are doing something good and important, and them transitioned into talking about the requirements of baptism (D&C 20:37). That turned out to be one of the best lessons ever! The spirit was really strong as we committed Flor and Jaset to keep preparing for baptism and following the example of Christ.

Those two experiences were some of my favorites of the week! I just want to share that the best and happiest solution to any problem is to depend on the Lord. He will comfort us with the Spirit and guide us to the right road if we just look for Him.

Quiero compartir mi testimonio con ustedes. Yo sé que el Evangelio de Jesucristo ha sido restaurado por un profeta de Dios. Hoy en día, tenemos la autoridad a efectuar ordenanzas sagradas que nos conducirán a la presencia de El. Yo amo a este Evangelio con todo de mi corazón y quiero compartirlo con cada uno de mis hermanos y hermanas. Siga confiando en La Expiación de Jesucristo. Sé que El es la único fuente que brindará paz en este mundo y en el venidero. ¡Soy su amiga en el evangelio y los quiero muchísimo! 

Hna Arroyo

Adventures with Hna Roman!

This week started off on a sad note because of transfers. Hna Jesperson and I had a really fun time being companions, and so it was hard to be separated. It is amazing how close you get to each other in the mission! I just hope that we will be able to see each other soon.

My new companion is the lovely Peruvian from Piura, Hna Roman! I seriously have felt so blessed with every one of my companions. Each one has taught me something knew, and Hna Roman does just that every day! She is really silly and loves to laugh. She is always smiling and making every situation better. I just love her so much already and it feels as if we have been friends for years! I am so excited to have at least one transfer together as companions. :D

We had a really fun week going around doing visits with investigators and branch members. I´ll share some fotos that we took to entertain ourselves:

One morning we decided to go and visit a less active young woman named Pamela.  We didnt have her number to tell her that we were coming, so we stopped by as she and her mom were cooking. Hna Roman and I took advantage of the opportunity by helping them cook and getting to know them. We must have done a great job because we left Pamela´s house with a return date for a lesson and our arms full of oranges, mangos, and plantains. Blessings from the Lord!

Another day we went and visited Percy and Ana to teach them how to do family history. They still dont want to get married, which complicates things, but they still want to come to church and learn, so we still teach them once or twice a week. Before Hna Jesperson and I were praying really hard to know how we could get them progressing, and then the idea came to teach them family history. After our lesson, we left them with the pamphlets to fill out, and we were so surprised to come back the following lesson to see how Ana had filled hers out. It was a miracle! And this week we helped Percy and Ana make acounts on familysearch.org. It was a happy moment for Percy to find a birth record for his mom. We indexed her information online and sent it to the temple! Although they havent been baptized, they are gaining a testimony of the vicarious work in the temple and are anxious to get the work done for their ancestors. It is a miracle to me to see so much light in their eyes as they search for records. Now all we need to do is help them prepare to recieve the ordinances of baptism, confirmation, and all of the rest in the temple for themselves! 

Now for the really sad part of the week. Do you all remember Vicente and Cristina, recent converts from the hermanas before us? Vicente has been really sick, and Cristina has always been worrying about her husband. They´ve waited anxiously for the time when they could be sealed in the temple, and this past week and a half, Cristina died suddenly of an anerysm. It has been so sad to go to her funeral and see Vicente broken. But the most insperational thing has been to see how he has thanked God for all of his trials, even the death of Cristina. Even though he still isnt healthy enough to travel all the way to the Lima temple, his faith is stronger than ever! It almost made me cry to see him walk into the capilla yesterday to partake of the sacrament. He is such a huge example of faithfulness to all those who know him.

I have to go now, but I love you all!

Hna Arroyo

Cambios!

This week is cambios! 

Hna Jesperson and I am so sad. She´s recieved a change to Cusco, and I will be recieving a latina companion. It is actually bittersweet. Change is always good, and latinas are fun, but Hna Jesperson and I just want to be companions still!

We had some rough times opening a new sector, adjusting to Quillabamba, and fighting off evil spirits, that we have become close. I hate goodbyes! But I know that her next companion is going to be so grateful for her fighting spirit and her drive. 

A wonderful thing happened this week! Actually, many wonderful things happened, but the most wonderful event was when Juana was baptized! Do you remember Juana? She is about 70 years old, and was a reference to us given by a member from Arequipa, Peru. We quickly came to love her in the 2 1/2 weeks that we taught her before we got information confirmed that she lived outside of our sector. The elders from the neighboring area then began teaching her. Well, she is now a member of the Church! I about exploded with happiness when those elders called to invite my companion and I to her baptism. It was a great day!

As far as other news go, Flor de Maria and her son Jaset have a new baptismal date for the 30th of this month, but she has been hard to contact, so we might have to change it again. :( That´s okay, though. We have been doing our part to help them make and keep covenants!

Hna Arroyo

Re: A Peruvian Christmas

Correction to number three, the sisters are sitting with our pensionista ROXANA. :)

On Mon, Jan 5, 2015 at 12:06 PM, Jacqulyn Arroyo <jacqulyn.arroyo@myldsmail.net> wrote:

1) I couldnt wait until Christmas morning to open packages. I was very much pleased to see that a very kind soul sent 5 lbs of peanutbutter. Jackpott!

2) Hna Jesperson invented her own wrapping paper out of old pages of Ensigns. And look! Doesnt she resemble an Elf-on-the-shelf? We thought so. 

3) Hermana Luque, Hna Garcia, and Brissa on Christmas Eve. :)

Opposition & New living arrangments

I wont go into too much detail about this week, but I will briefly share some of the latest happenings.

Celebrating New Years in Peru was awesome! We still had a normal workday, but we ´´stayed up´´ a little late to watch all of the crazy huge, booming fireworks that went off all through the night. I have some videos that I will try to share! It was definitely interesting to see the contrast between Christmas and the start of the New Year. There were way more craziness and fireworks on the 1st, which is one of many signs of the ebbing focus on Christ that is happening throughout the world. But that just makes my time here as a missionary of Christ all the more special! I get to help bring others back to Him, and feel the joy of being an instrument in His Hands.

But being an emissary of Christ isnt easy! Besides the obvious fact of being far away from home in a foreign country, learning a new language, opposition is very real, and comes in more forms than the everyday drunk man who hits on us in the street. Believe me! Hna Jesperson and I. the latinas, and the hermana leaders that visited us this weak have experienced a whirlwind of things this week that involve haunted houses and being homeless.

Before you go off all crazy (Mom), we are doing fine. :) Let me just say again - opposition is REAL, and the things that oppose us come in all forms. I have felt this from the moment I decided to serve a mission, and even more so now that I am set apart as a missionary. To be honest, I thought the opposition would stop once I got to Perú. I know now that the hard trials that I recieved months before was just a beginning. But I am perfectly okay with that! I asked for more trials that would push me to apply the gospel more in my life, didnt I? It is perfect!

Anyway, an unwanted, unseen visiter(s) is/are occupying our apartment, and we no longer feel safe there. For now, we are staying with our Pensionista, the lovely Roxana and her daughter Brissa, until we get our new living arraingment approved by the mission office this week. We are so excited to move! We´ll once again be able to study and sleep in peace. I cant tell you how much that means to us! 

I know this letter is super vague, but one day, when I get back I will share exactly what happened. It is just too creepy, and not very edifying to share more than what is necessary. :D I will just keep this short, and end with saying that I am sure that something big and wonderful is going to happen soon or else the adversary wouldnt be so angry with us.

I love you all! Thank you for all of your prayers of protection. Me, my companion, and the other sisters that live with us have felt them. They mean a lot the us! I also promise to have more next week - until then, take care!

Hna Arroyo