MOVING DAY.‏

Hoooooolllllllllllllaaaa!!

How is everybody doing? Sure hope all is well!

So, first off, sorry about not writing yesterday. I had ZERO time to write. We were in the office for 2 hours, and I was swamped with work. Also, yesterday we moved! We were living in the apartment just above the Stake President CARRASCO (Mom, it’s not Contreras, hahaha), but we were experiencing some problems with the landlords. The owner is an alcoholic, and they are always smoking. He yells at the top of his lungs in the middle of the night and wakes us up. They are always having parties, and blasting music. And besides, they apparently need our apartment for some of their family that is coming to Cusco. I don’t know, but it was a headache for us. So, President Calderón and his wife had been looking for an apartment/house for us, and they found one! They found a house, an entire house, about 4 blocks from where we were living before. Awesome! So I get a call from Sister Calderón saying that I need to go with her to sign the contract and pay a guarantee of S/. 2,400 the next morning at 10am. So, I run to the bank that morning, take out the money, and go sign the contract. The house is sweeeet! So long story short, we hired a truck to help us move, and got all moved yesterday. I went and bought some light bulbs that were much needed, but other than that, the house is in good shape. We do have suspicions that it could be haunted though. We always hear creepy noises at night, and we were all kinda hangin out last night right before we went to bed and we heard a loud “THUD” in another room in the house. And last night, Elder Gutierrez said he heard someone literally walking on our ROOF. It’s a shingle roof, and he said that he hit the roof with his hand to maybe scare it away, but it kept walking. He was scared that someone was trying to break into the house! But, it eventually disappeared and he went back to sleep. Looks like today we’ll be dedicating our house! So yeah! Anyways. We are all moved in, and are pretty happy! I love the change. It’s nice to be in a new place.

On to another subject! Carol, a non-member that has been attending the church for what seems like forever, has finally decided to be baptized! She has a date for this Saturday, and if all goes well, she’ll be confirmed this Sunday! We are going to go over everything with her this week, to make sure she really understands what baptism is, and the covenant that she will be making with our Heavenly Father. I am confident though, that she will be a great convert, and will continue to be strong in the church. Her mother is a member, and we helped her to come back to church and be with her daughter. We see them every Sunday in the chapel, and they are great! We haven’t been able to contact Victor this week, but were hoping that today or tomorrow we can find them at home. They have been traveling a little bit, and we haven’t had the luck of finding them. But we continue onward! We went to a FHE at the bishops’ house last night with a couple of our recent converts, Pilar and Alicia, and we had a fun time. The bishop is a really good guy, but at some times can really be… not so great. Haha, Whittaker gets worked up real easy so I literally have to hold him back, or put my hand over his mouth so that he doesn’t do anything he would regret. Hahaha, no, it’s not that bad, but he can be a little silly at times. The work is going great! Me and Whittaker get along really well. We always joke around and have a lot of fun.

Okay, so the meeting with Elder Andersen went really well! He spoke to us on Saturday, and spoke on a few topics: Merits, mercy/compassion, and grace of God. It was a real treat to be able to hear from an Apostle of the Lord here in Cuzco! We had the entire mission here, and this event just happened to fall on the transfer week. Talk about CRAZY. It was one of the most stressful weeks I’ve had in the office. But, it’s all over, and I can take a deep breath. Elder Hallstrom of the Presidency of the Seventy also spoke to us.  On Sunday, the two stakes here in Cuzco had stake conferences. The Cusco Stake had the presence of Elder Andersen, and us in the Inti Raymi Stake had Elder Hallstrom speak to us. He spoke on having our lives facing toward the temple. It was really special, and all the members loved it. It was so big, they had to make huge tents outside of the chapels and had to broadcast the meeting inside the building to the tents by projection.. It was pretty cool, I didn’t take a picture, and kinda wish I did! Oh well.

I just got off the phone with Sister Rogers from South Jordan. She is Elder Rogers’ mom. He needed me to call her and tell her to send a different size of shoe. She sent him really nice shoes through that same company, and they got here. But, they are too small, so he needs a bigger size. She asked for your number, Mom, so be expecting a call from her sometime today! She sounds like such a nice lady.

Anyway, I really wished you would have sent the camera, but it’s a good thing you didn’t send it through the post office. If you ever do decide to send it use the company in Salt Lake. Talk to Sister Rogers, and she’ll convince you. Thanks! Or…. maybe she can include it with the shoes of Elder Rogers! I just talked with Elder Rogers and he says that she will totally do it! She will be sending them tomorrow, so here is her number to ask: Home, 801-254-8868. Cell, 801-842-5739.

I love you all! Thanks so much for the support. It means more than you know.

MUCH LOVE. 

--
ELDER CHRISTENSEN
Secretario Financiero

Misión Perú Cuzco

(51) 984-503-861

(51) 084-242-521

RPM #623574

Days to Remember‏

¡Hooooolllllllaaaa mi querida familia!

Tomorrow morning, Williams will be on the plane going home! It’s crazy to think that he’s going home. Seems like just yesterday I got here and I still had 2 changes with him! But Whittaker and I are kicking butt out here. We are getting along great, and are trying to be the example for the office. I love the kid. We always have so much fun, but we WORK. Tomorrow in the afternoon we will be picking up the newbies from the airport and giving them the training in the mission home. That means homemade-mission home-northern Perú food! Booya.

So, this week has been really awesome! We have been seeing great success here in our sector. To start off, Victor was baptized on the 19^th and confirmed yesterday! We could really see his willingness to accept and live the gospel principles, as he came to his baptism alone. His wife and his son could not make it. It made me a little sad to not see them there, but he came alone, and also came alone to the church yesterday. He has a great testimony, and we hope that his wife and son’s heart will be softened and they will accept this gospel as well.

On the 20^th, Merli was baptized by her grandfather and confirmed by him as well on Sunday. She is the cutest little girl! We have been visiting them and having family nights, and she loves us. She was so happy on the day of her baptism. Her older sisters are so great. They will come to church alone, while the parents are at home. We really try to get them to come, but the dad just doesn’t seem to budge. The mom is a lot more understanding, but we can’t force them. The dad did give her permission to be baptized, but still didn’t come to the service. That made me pretty mad. I’m gonna go talk to him sometime this week.

We are teaching Lisett’s little sisters, and we found out that the mom was also baptized when she was little!! Crazy right? The dad is still pretty closed off, but we are praying that he will open his heart, and take the time to listen to us. Her little sisters both accepted a baptismal date for the 3^rd of September! Hopefully their dad will give them permission as well! As for Victor’s wife, Vilma, we are still visiting her and she is reading the Book of Mormon. I’m confident that in time she will be baptized within the next couple weeks. The most important thing is that the investigator has a spiritual experience. Whether reading the Book of Mormon, praying, or while we are teaching them. They NEED to feel that Spirit, and recognize that it is a sign from our Heavenly Father. Most investigators feel it, but they don’t realize what it is. That’s why we as missionaries help them understand what it is exactly that they are feeling. I love to teach. It’s such a good feeling when you teach a good lesson, they accept the commitment to read and pray, and we can promise them as representatives of Jesus Christ that they will receive that answer. And they really DO receive the answer. How grateful I am for my testimony of the Church. It is by the power of a simple testimony that one may feel the Spirit. When I testify of this gospel, I can literally feel my chest burn. And its that burn that testifies to me that what I’m saying is true. I’ve had investigators that no matter how hard we try, no matter how hard we pray; they just don’t accept the gospel. And I cry. There’s nothing sadder, to me, than to see someone that I’ve come to love deny the gospel. I look at them as literally my brothers and sisters, and I care so much for them. But then again, the pure joy that comes from seeing these people I love accept the gospel is incomparable.  The people of Perú have my heart. I love these people so much.

So dad, good news! I have a way for you to get packages to me for cheaper, and faster! Elder Rogers (yes, like the Best Two Years) gave me a card of a company in Salt Lake that sends packages to Perú, and only Perú. Its called, “El Inka Envios”. They send whatever. Elder Rogers is from South Jordan, and his parents have been using it for a while now. He tells me that they don’t open it up, and its 100% safe. Another kid, Elder Sperry from SLC, his parents use it as well. They have sent him Ecco shoes, and iPod, and everything has gotten here safely. Anyway, I would trust in this company. The number is: 801-548-0561 or 801-301-1301. Address: 1604 S. Prospect St. SLC UT 84104. Give it a try! I hear it’s a lot cheaper, and the package Elder Rogers had got here in a week. A WEEK!!! Haha, so let me know next week what you decide to do. But PLEASE send the camera! I want it so badly! But when you send the camera, make sure to use bubble wrap.

Here are some IDEAS for the package: Be sure to send pics, LETTERS, as well as a tape in the package! A bottle of Dewski too… (But make sure to like triple bag it, that’s what Whittakers mom does). Sunflower seeds – Spitz, drink mixes (I don’t remember the name of the little individual mixes we always have in the pantry – Lemonade, pink lemonade, koolaide, etc.), mangoes, a page or two of Sunday comics couldn’t hurt. A multi color scripture marker (lost it along with my scriptures when we were proselyting in Chancay). EFY CD’s for 2010 and 2011. Deodorant - Red Spice Swagger. More Nivea chapstick. Small calendar. Something that a missionary does is he records voice on a digital recorder and sends it with his emails! If you'd like weekly clips of voice, look it up! Look as well for ideas on the internet for ideas for good package fillers. :) Oh and mom, something for the Stake Presidents family would be really cool. Doesn’t matter what it is, but something small to show our appreciation for all they do for us. They sacrifice so much for us, and I want to do something for them. But all of what I wrote are just ideas! So whatever you can, I would greatly appreciate it.

Not much else is going on… Today I looked over all our expenses for the year and past year, and with the President we estimated what we would spend in the following year. That was fun…. Haha. Anyway, today we are all going to play soccer! Like we do almost every week! Haha, I am getting better, but my ankle still just bothers me. I am wearing the brace that the doc from the MTC gave me. Hopefully nothing tragic happens. But don’t worry, I am being careful. We had some jerseys custom made as an office and Williams went to pick them up today. Hopefully we can play with them! The assistants with another companionship in the office along with a ton of other missionaries went to Machu Picchu today, Whittaker and I turned down the offer, seeing that we want to go later on in the year. And besides, someone needs to be here in the office as well.

Anyway, I love all of you so much! Like I say every week, haha. Pretty crazy that in a week I’ll have been out a year! Can’t wait for the hump day package! But seriously think about that business to send it, and give them a call. Elder Andersen gets here today, but I dont know when we will be able to see him. Next week hopefully you'll have a picture of me and him! I am living some of the best days of my life here in Cuzco. Days to remember, for sure.

Take care everyone, till next week. Much love!!

PS, enjoy the pictures! One is a long exposure I did from a bridge here in our sector. The one of all us eating is after a multi zone conference we had here in Cusco.

ELDER CHRISTENSEN
Secretario Financiero

Misión Perú Cuzco

(51) 984-503-861

(51) 084-242-521

RPM #623574

I'm a soldier, in the army of the Lord.‏

Seres queridos,

How is everyone? I hope this week went by just as fast as it did for me! The best weeks seem to always go by so fast… A lot has happened in the short span of 7 days, let’s see if I can update everyone.

Firstly, last Monday, the stake president’s brother, Edwin, invited all the office elders over to his house for dinner. He cooked tacos!! Oh man, were they good. I got two down, and couldn’t take another bite. Homemade tortillas, ground beef, guacamole, and to top it off, homemade salsa! I was so happy that night. The salsa here KICKS. The Peruvians have a special pepper that I doubt is easily found in the states, its called the Rocoto. It’s really spicy, but has a good flavor. They mixed tomatoes, cilantro, onions, and rocoto together to make a really delicious salsa. We also had some cold Inca Kola to wash it down… MMMmm….. Sounds tasty doesn’t it? Well, it was! Jajajaja

Lisett Callapiña is.. er.. was one of our investigators that we had been visiting for about 3 weeks. On Saturday, she made the decision to be baptized and to follow her Savior Jesus Christ. It was a great service, and she chose to have our ZL, Elder Rogers from South Jordan baptize her. Yesterday, she was confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Just barely after her confirmation, she whispered something to the bishop, he nodded his head, and she went over to the pulpit and started to bear her testimony! Wow, I thought to myself. The first thing she said was, “I’m so grateful to Joseph Smith for restoring this true church.” She continued to thank my companion and I while sharing her testimony, and finished. After church, she invited all the missionaries over to her home to eat. Her family members are not members, but they gladly invited us into their home. Her father cooked mixed ceviche for all of us. The bishop was also there, as well as some of her friends that she had made in the church. It was DELICIOUS. We know it’s a rule not to eat it, but being in the situation that we were in, we couldn’t turn it down. (Not like we had a hard time with it either! Haha) Her mom and dad had cooked a ton, and we were so grateful to them for it. The mixed ceviche contains: squid, octopus, shrimp, and fish. All raw, except for the shrimp. They served it with a piece of choclo (corn on steroids), deep fried octopus, cooked corn nut type things,  seaweed, lots of onions, and two pieces of sweet potato (“camote” {cah-moh-tay} in Spanish).  That’s what a typical plate of ceviche is. I’ve included a photo, so you can see what its like. I’m learning how to prepare it as well, so prepare your stomachs now for when I get back! You ALL are going to try it. :)

As for our other investigators, Victor Luna has a baptismal date for this Friday at 4 in the afternoon! He is stoked. He had some doubts about being baptized twice, but we explained everything to him. In Acts 19:1-6, we read that Paul baptized these people a second time. Why? Because they had not received the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. So, even though they were baptized correctly by immersion, without receiving the Holy Ghost, their baptism was not complete. I also really like Mark 10:38-39, where Jesus Himself explains that we are to be baptized with His same baptism. We cleared up that doubt, and he agreed to be baptized on Friday. We have an appointment with them tomorrow, and Wednesday, so we are hoping to encourage his wife to be baptized with her husband on the same day. They have attended church the past 3 weeks, and she is great. So please keep them in your prayers.

Also, we have been visiting an inactive family trying to get them to come back to church. The dad, is very stubborn, and says he has his "reasons" why he doesn't attend anymore. But his daughter will be 9 on Friday, so we are going to baptize her on Saturday! He totally approves her baptism, and that's the important thing. Her name is Merli. Such a sweet little girl. She loves it when we come over. I'll have to send the pic of the family night we had with them and a bunch of kids in the neighborhood. A picture is included. Merli is the one that's sitting on my lap.

I thought of some more little things that you guys could include in the next package: The Dazer 2. It’s a high pitched device that scares dogs away. Also.. another memory card for the camera would be nice. And... PLEASE, I really want that film camera... the one that Uncle Mike gave to Ethan. If you can't find it, then send mine that should be in my closet in a camera bag. PRETTY PLEASE!! And thank you. We will be going to Machu Picchu before the year is over, and I would LOVE to have that with me when I go.

The work really is going well. I am enjoying my time in the office with my new comp Elder Whittaker! We tear it up out here. We are being really obedient; getting to bed on time, getting up at 6:25 for comp prayer, and everything in between. I know that that sounds easy, but for other elders in the office/mission, not so much. We are trying to be a good example.   (edited out, don't ask why...LOL)   It’s kind of hard when other missionaries are kinda lax on the rules, but I know that when we are meticulously obedient, is when we receive the most blessings. I love this gospel with all my heart. It brings so much joy to me being here in Perú. When we are truly happy, we don’t think about home, or the things that would distract us. We think about this amazing work that we are doing, and that we are preparing the way of the Lord. After all, we only have these 2 years to serve how we choose… and we have eternity to think about how we spent them. Elder Whittaker looked at me the other day and said, “Dude, we really are on the front lines, aren’t we?” And it’s true! We as missionaries fight for the truth every day. We don’t back down, and we don’t give up. I’m a soldier in the army of the Lord.

Till next week everyone, much love.

-- ELDER CHRISTENSEN
Secretario Financiero

Misión Perú Cuzco

(51) 984-503-861

(51) 084-242-521

RPM #623574

Letter from Jordan!

Dear Family and Friends, 

How is everyone? I hope that everything is going well at home! Everything here in Perú is going, well, pretty busy. Let me give you somewhat of an update… So, on the 25^th of this month, Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will be coming to Cuzco!!! Can you believe it? An apostle of the Lord, coming to our mission. I am so excited. But also pretty stressed. This means A LOT of work on my part. We as an office are making this our number one priority right now. The ENTIRE mission will be traveling to Cuzco and that means paying for a ton of stuff. President has asked us to give our best, and to make sure that everything is ready for when he comes.  SO.. It’s pretty stressed right now.

But were doing good! It’s me, Williams and Whittaker right now. We split up pretty often and we are getting some good numbers right now, which always feels good. Whittaker and I got a feel of what it’s gonna be like as comps the other day when we went out solo! It was WAY good. We taught great. We visited the Luna family, but it was just Victor that was there to hear us. His wife and son had been traveling to Urubamba,  which is in the Sacred Valley. Apparently they got home today, and we have another appt with them tomorrow… So we’ll get caught up with them to see how they are doing. Victor however, is really showing is faith lately. About a week ago, he went to his brothers’ house and they offered him some coffee. He said no at first, and that he had been listening to us and how he learned about the Word of Wisdom. They kept insisting, so he put just a little bit of it in his hot chocolate. When he got home, he said that he got a fever out of nowhere. He told us, “I knew right then that it was a sign from God, and that I had been disobedient to that commandment. I’ll never do that again.” He continues to progress and follow the Gospel. He is so incredibly humble, it’s amazing. He truly accepts that what we teach him is the truth, and he puts it into practice in his personal life. He prays every morning and night, and reads the Book of Mormon every day. He says that every time he prays, he feels more at peace and a lot more tranquilo.

We have been really working hard with Medali, but she just recently told us that in order for her to be baptized is that first she needs to have faith in Jesus Christ. So, that’s where were at with her. She still seems to be having problems believing in God, so that’s our main focus. To help her to believe in God. Pray for her please!

I am SO glad that you all enjoyed the surprise package!! I was so happy when they offered, so I ran around and picked up some things for each of you. Dad, glad you like the Ray Bans! They are way better than your old ones… Hahaha. And dad, congrats on your riding! I am so proud of you. Really. I can wait to get home next year and ride with you again. Don’t quit it okay? You have one month before the big ride… you can do it big guy.  :) But please be careful! When I heard about what happened, and your leg, you had me nervous! Don’t get psyched out, just do it! Like Nike. Glad to also hear about your feet, that they’re doing better.

Hey, so my 1 year mark is coming around… I was just thinking if you decided to send me a celebratory package, I would love it! Some things I miss/need: Peanut Butter. Pilot G2 0.5 pens. Not the 0.7. Red, blue, green, and black. BYU Soccer shirt. The watermelons that I LOVE (Mom, you know what I’m talking about). Some new socks. Ties. Candy (Hi-Chew, Snickers, MikeN’Ikes). Anyway, just whatever else you think I would like! I’ll let you know if I think of anything next week. :)

Bridger and Ethan! Get your butts going on your eagle scouts! Don’t have dad be your baby sitter and hold your hands through the process! Take the initiative and get ‘er done! Alright? I know each of you are only missing a little bit more, so follow through!

Well, that’s all the time I have to write this week. I think of each of you often and pray for you daily. Stay strong, keep the faith. Sorry no pics, just too bust here in the office. Love you all sooo much!! Missions are the greatest!

--
ELDER CHRISTENSEN
Secretario Financiero

Misión Perú Cuzco

(51) 984-503-861

(51) 084-242-521

RPM #623574