Two New Members

Flor and Jaset were baptized this Saturday! And the best part is, Johan, Flor´s oldest son, was able to baptize his mom and little brother. :) They had so much support from the branch; they all beamed before and after it all. After years and years of receiving the discussions, Flor and Jaset are finally members of the Church. :D Halelujah!

Sunday was also very spiritual for all of us. Right before Flor and Jaset entered the chapel, Hna Roman and I were starting to get worried because they were late for their confirmations, but they came right on time. And during their confirmation, all we could do was pray for them that they would feel the Spirit witness of the convenants that they had made, and Heavenly Father made sure to answer our prayers. Right after, we went to gospel principles, and justo the lesson was on the Holy Ghost. Flor raised her hand to make a comment about how she feels the Spirit and shared her experience about being confirmed. Jaset had turned to her and said, ¨´Mom, I have this special feeling...but I cant explain it...´´ Flor: ´´Me, too! It´s the Holy Ghost!´´

I. love, them. SO much! They were both glowing and  talking with everyone and anyone the rest of the day. This weekend has been another testament to me that this gospel is true!

The baptismal services of Flor and Jaset was also a great opportunity to invite our investigators to attend. Gloria, the nonmember wife of a less active came with her five year-old daughter! At one point she turned over to my companion and asked her, ´´´Sister, when will I be baptized?´´ I´ve felt like on cloud 9 this whole week. After so many months of feeling like we werent teaching well or doing things right because we couldnt see the effects of our hard work, Heavenly Father has blessed us with people who are ready and willing to make covenants with Him now. Any good effort never is in vane.

I love you all!

Hna Arroyo

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Re: Progress and birthday fun

Now you know how I felt when your mom said she would marry Alex. It was so exciting. It caught her so off guard when she said she wanted to be baptized. And we told her she couldn't because she wasn't married. She was shocked!

It sounds like your birthday was fun. And the work is moving forward. Good luck. 

Love you. 

Angela

Sent from my iPhone

On Feb 2, 2015, at 11:07 AM, Jacqulyn Arroyo <jacqulyn.arroyo@myldsmail.net> wrote:

This week has been about progress.

To start off with the wonderful news, Percy and Ana have decided to get married! Halelujah. They attend church like they have been members for years. We are feeling really happy and relieved, and so I am sure that the rest of the branch is silently singing. :) We went over to visit them this week to talk out the details and found out that they are trying to learn how to be kind and love one another better. We noticed that there has been a lack of loving communication between them, which has attributed to grudges on both ends, so Hna Roman and I gave our personal testimonies of how the gospel blesses families and helps us love and forgive one another. We even shared how being on a mission and living with someone we dont know can be hard, but how communication and patience is key. It was a great lesson! We invited them both pray together as a couple, and to come to the activity we had that night. They came and were able to mingle with other couples! It was great.

We´ve had several lessons with Flor and Jaset, and they are ready to be baptized on the 14th. Flor is so excited to be a member of the church and to have her whole family unified. Her happiness during our lessons was contagious. It makes us happy :)

We are now visiting Vicente at night when his daughters are home. He has grandkids that have been baptized, but dont attend too consistently, and so we have hopes to motivate them with the help of their moms. It has turned out to work pretty well! The little kids climb all over Vicente every time that we are over to read from the Book of Mormon, and are always asking when we will be coming over to visit with them and their moms, too. As crazy as little kids can be sometimes, they just want love, attention, and to be close to their parents. The gospel is the glue that keeps families together, and my testimony is strengthened whenever I can see how even little kids notice this truth. They might not be able to explain it, but the gospel brings happiness and feelings of togetherness. It is just so great! Vicente also keeps coming to Church even if he has to walk slowly every step of the way, and his grandkids are right there with him. 

As for my birthday, it was awesome! I woke up that morning to loud birthday music and hugs from the other hermanas. They tricked me out of my bed and attacked me with eggs and flour (that´s a tradition in Peru). It took about 4 washes to get all of the gunk out, but it was worth it. Afterward, Roxana and Brissa made a surprise visit with hot chocolate and cake. :) 

The rest of the day was spent working, contacting, and teaching. The last hour of the day, we went to our weekly coorelation meeting, and as we were leaving, our mission leader and his brother, the first counselor in the branch walked in with a surprise birthday cake. Not too long after, there was another surprise with eggs and flour. :) It was a crazy fun day with lots of surprises! It was fun to turn 20 here in Peru. 

Gotta go - but i´ll send pictures of the crazinesss next week!

Hna Arroyo

NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.

Progress and birthday fun

This week has been about progress.

To start off with the wonderful news, Percy and Ana have decided to get married! Halelujah. They attend church like they have been members for years. We are feeling really happy and relieved, and so I am sure that the rest of the branch is silently singing. :) We went over to visit them this week to talk out the details and found out that they are trying to learn how to be kind and love one another better. We noticed that there has been a lack of loving communication between them, which has attributed to grudges on both ends, so Hna Roman and I gave our personal testimonies of how the gospel blesses families and helps us love and forgive one another. We even shared how being on a mission and living with someone we dont know can be hard, but how communication and patience is key. It was a great lesson! We invited them both pray together as a couple, and to come to the activity we had that night. They came and were able to mingle with other couples! It was great.

We´ve had several lessons with Flor and Jaset, and they are ready to be baptized on the 14th. Flor is so excited to be a member of the church and to have her whole family unified. Her happiness during our lessons was contagious. It makes us happy :)

We are now visiting Vicente at night when his daughters are home. He has grandkids that have been baptized, but dont attend too consistently, and so we have hopes to motivate them with the help of their moms. It has turned out to work pretty well! The little kids climb all over Vicente every time that we are over to read from the Book of Mormon, and are always asking when we will be coming over to visit with them and their moms, too. As crazy as little kids can be sometimes, they just want love, attention, and to be close to their parents. The gospel is the glue that keeps families together, and my testimony is strengthened whenever I can see how even little kids notice this truth. They might not be able to explain it, but the gospel brings happiness and feelings of togetherness. It is just so great! Vicente also keeps coming to Church even if he has to walk slowly every step of the way, and his grandkids are right there with him. 

As for my birthday, it was awesome! I woke up that morning to loud birthday music and hugs from the other hermanas. They tricked me out of my bed and attacked me with eggs and flour (that´s a tradition in Peru). It took about 4 washes to get all of the gunk out, but it was worth it. Afterward, Roxana and Brissa made a surprise visit with hot chocolate and cake. :) 

The rest of the day was spent working, contacting, and teaching. The last hour of the day, we went to our weekly coorelation meeting, and as we were leaving, our mission leader and his brother, the first counselor in the branch walked in with a surprise birthday cake. Not too long after, there was another surprise with eggs and flour. :) It was a crazy fun day with lots of surprises! It was fun to turn 20 here in Peru. 

Gotta go - but i´ll send pictures of the crazinesss next week!

Hna Arroyo

NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.