Wednesday, June 8, 2016

05/02/16 He said the closing prayer with all of us kneeling together.

Mitchel is going to the Lima North mission? That's cool! His mission president lives in the same building as mine. If I'm not mistaken he's a fairly new mission president and he, as well as the other mission presidents here in Lima asked president Archibald to help them to have more success baptizing and retaining since the area presidency always uses our mission as the example to say if they're baptizing every week and retaining you can do it too. They have a good president and he's going to be happy there.  The North mission is out in the boonies of Lima instead of central Lima so people are pretty receptive.  Their area has been having a lot of baptisms right now they're having a better retention rate. He will have to work hard but he'll be able to have lots of success, right next to the best mission in the world and among the best people in the world! Seriously, tell him that Peru is awesome and there is a reason it is the only Spanish speaking country in South America with 101 stakes, and the only one with 2 working temples and 4 temples announced! And, if I'm not mistaken the new Lima temple is going to be up here in the north so he'll be pretty close to the temple as they start to put the foundations.

Y______ had her baptismal date changed for the 7th, this coming week instead of the 14th. S_______ is still for the 14th and they are both progressing very well. Y______ was interviewed yesterday and will be baptized this Saturday at 7 pm. We taught S_______ the commandments at the church on Saturday at 6 since he had committed to come and help clean the church with the high priests group at 7. He helped clean and we took him to see the baptism at 7:30. After which he continued to help clean. Sunday morning the zone leaders had a last minute baptism so we couldn't go get S_______.  We were trying to call him and just as we were calling he came around the corner like half an hour early complaining that the traffic had delayed him. While we were at church a convert from the zone leaders' area had brought a friend named M_____ who's 25 and we found out he lives in our area so we taught him in the third hour in an empty classroom (since there wouldn't be time after church because of ward council) and put a baptismal date for the 28th! 

We had an interesting experience as we were knocking doors.  On the second door we came to a woman came to the window and told us that she was super busy doing her daughter's homework, I needed to use the restroom but I knew if there wasn't a man there I can't go in, so I was trying to look around the window curtain and could barely see a 50ish year old man watching TV so then I asked to use the bathroom and she stood there like umm I'm going to ask my parents so she went in and came back out saying come in. I went to the bathroom and my companion was out there unsure of what to say until the man said missionaries have visited us before so then they started talking and when I came out we got him to call his wife to come listen as we taught them.  We started to teach standing up, while D_____ and his wife A_____ were sitting on the couch and their daughter was in the background at the table painting her daughter's Styrofoam school project. We put a baptismal date with the three of them for the 11th of June and D_____ said the closing prayer with all of us kneeling together. It was a great experience.

To his dad:
My current area borders with the North mission, well it's on the other side of a huge hill. It would have been better if he'd gone to the West mission since it's the best mission in the South America northwest area but Lima North is good too. haha I'll be super happy to talk to him about how it is here, that will be super fun!
I'll be calling at 5 from my account. thanks for everything chao

Elder Castro is great, he's outgoing, funny and a good worker so I think we'll be fine!  He was telling me that towards the end of his time in Pativilca they were starting to have good success which was pretty difficult for me as you remember. I'm not sure if I told you that the district became a stake and was the 101st stake in Peru? L___ and N_____ are doing well but I think L___ is having problems with his family and friends or something he didn't go to church yesterday.  They have two children Z_____ who is 18 and was baptized about 6 years ago and R______ who is 10 and was baptized with him. Y______ is N______'s niece.

The mission office prints up a little mini newspaper for the mission every week that shows the baptismal goal for the mission (this years goal is 1400 and we have a goal of 800 before president finishes his mission the beginning of July), the amount so far, as well as the goals for each zone.  Every month there is information on which companionship's have had more baptisms and which district has had the most and the best companionship, etc. The district that has the most is rewarded by going to the temple. It's not a huge deal but it's just something that's kind of cool to see how the mission is doing generally. 


Anyway we were thinking of skyping at 5:00 my time.

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