Hola Familia!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, this week was hard....but it ended really, really great with
Maximiliana´s baptism!!  There was a really sweet spirit at her
baptism.  So I will tell you how the day went.  It was crazy.  Well, Friday night we went to go talk to her and she said "hnas you know
what?  I can't be baptized this Saturday."  ahhhhhhh
nooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   I guess she got a notice from the
school that they all had a mandatory meeting Saturday at 4pm (the exact
hour of her baptism.)  And if you don´t go you have to pay and the she barely has enough money to eat every day.  Ahhh and so we said, " If we
do it at 2pm will that work"?  and she said it would be fine so we
planned it for then.

So we went to the church at 11 to prepare the baptismal font, not just
with water, but she needed the water to be warm so it doens't hurt her
body and we don't have a water heater in the font so we got really
huge pots and heated water over the stove.  BUT when we got to the
church there was NO WATER.  How are we supposed to baptize if there is
NO WATER??   So we went running around the yard in the church
looking for a water spout and we found one in the corner of the lot
and one of the Elders found a hose so we hooked the hose up to the
spout and it was all great-- BUT the hose didn't reach the font!!!  So we looked all over the church and we found another hose!  We hooked
them up together with a plastic bag and put the hose in the font and filled it
up.  YEAH!  Beat that Satan.  So Hna Maximiliana was baptized by
immersion :)   And the water was only slightly warm but...it's all
in the head right??  It all worked out in the end.  That was the story
of her baptism.  So crazy!

That night we had a Talent Show for all of the 3 branches here.  We had
a really good turn out and we did a few skits that were really funny.
REALLY funny, we all laughed so hard,.

Well, mom I got your package!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Thank you SO much
for everything...the skirt fits perfectly and the shirt is
beauuuttiful and everything was so perfect I don´t know how you do
that...but that's why you're my mom I guess :) :)  thanks

I also received letters from Suzanne Mitchell, Jasmyn.  I don´t know
if you read this Jasmyn but THANK you for your letter.  It brought many
smiles to my face to hear everything is so well with you!!!   And
Kristie is at BYU-- and Nicole and Hannah!!  I was so happy to hear all
the news!!!  Thanks for not forgetting your old friend in Peru!!

Well family the work goes on.  I love you all so much I am so grateful
every day for such a wonderful family.  Getting to see my companion
end her mission is an interesting experience but I have reflected so
much on the many ways the Lord has blessed my life in this time and
how he has led me step by step even when I didn´t think that was the
case.  May the Lord pour out his blessings this week on each one of
you and may we have the ability to discern what they are and give
thanks unto God for such an opportunity as this to live with the
knowledge of the gospel in our lives.

Lots of love from Peru

Hermana Lindsey

Hola Familia!!!!!! :)

Well, everything is going just fine.  Searching for new people to
teach, trying hard to work with the members but it is hard when we are
out of money and we don´t have a cell phone and our home phone can
only call people with a certain phone company and no one here has that
company..  ahhh but I was told that all the sister missionaries will
be getting a cell phone????  Ojala :)  That would be the best thing
EVER.

Elder Lindsey! Thanks so much for your email:)  Celestial Mission!  Sweet,
though I think every missionary can make his or her mission a
celestial mission if they want.  It's what you put in it, Elder :)  It
sounds like you are having great success i am so happy for you.  Read
Moroni 8:2-3 and 9:25.  It is true that you are always in my prayers.
Keep teaching them the true divinity of Jesus Christ, and inviting
them to come unto Him!  That is our purpose after all :)  Love you!
Sister Lindsey Besos Peruanos!!!!!

DAVID!!!  You tired out your parents with your great project!  Sounds
like it was a lot of really good hard work.  I bet you feel great now.
Only one more week of school and then PARTY!!!!   Enjoy your
summer while it is getting a little cold here in the nights...brrrrr!!!



Well, we had a cool experience yesterday.  We went early in the
morning to get our investigators to come to church.  Right now we are
teaching a hermana named Maximiliana.  She is 65 years old.  We
contacted her in the street with her two grandchildren that she is
taking care of right now.  Seriously at first she was really slow at
learning.  She didn't understand anything we said.  But she was so
grateful for our visits and her eyes would always light up when we
came in.  I can't name the exact moment when she changed, but now she
can understand everything!  The spirit truly "quickeneth" the
understanding I think!!
She can't read normal letters cause it is too small so I wrote the
steps to saying a prayer in huge letters on a sheet  of paper and now
she can read the paper and she says really good and sweet prayers.
She is getting to be more happy.  Anyway, Saturday night we taught
them and said, "Wake up early because we're going to come pick you up
for church tomorrow" .  Last Sunday we had to wake them up and
practically drag them to church.  But they had a great time.
Anyway, yesterday morning we went to go pick them up and they weren´t
there!!!!!!!!!!!!  Ahh we freaked out.  But as we were leaving a
little boy said "oh the old lady? she went early to some church I
think"  QUE????  What???  So I practically ran over to the chapel and
I found them, with Maximiliana and her grandchildren sitting on the
front row waiting for church to start, and Maxmiliana had a little
twinkle in her eye!  It was the best ever!!  They will be baptized
this Saturday!

I am so grateful to have a family like you all!  I hope you all
continue to receive blessings and work hard this week!!!

Love

Hermana Lindsey

Hola Familia!!!!!!!!

Bueno....we talked yesterday and to be honest I was really really sad
because communication was so hard but I trust that everything is going
well- that Dad´s health is well and that David is doing just great and
that Mom had a great Mothers Day.  I felt kinda upset because we
didn´t get to communicate very well but I was grateful for whatever I
could get and that I got to hear your voices.  Honestly its really
hard for me to call home- its mixed feelings I am sure you understand
but know that I love you all and that I have prayed for each one of
you every day in the mission field and I pray that the Lord will
continue to bless you all more and more.

The mission has changed my life.  Changed the way I think, the way I
learn, the way I work.  The goals I once had before the mission seem
to be of little or no importance now.  The only thing that matters is
the work of the Lord and it is the only thing that brings this joy and
satisfaction even though there are days when all you can do is put one
foot in front of the other and leave the rest to the Lord.  Sometimes
I feel like I am not good enough, my weaknesses hold me back.  But its
line upon line.  Change is gradual.  I can´t think of one moment where
it all just clicked but through the little things every day that
happen the lord is teaching me and helping me learn.  And its the same
for you all too.  Little effort, but consistent, brings change.  I
found a quote last night that I had written down in the MTC but
forgotten all about it that has helped me

¨"God does not just focus on our ABILITY, but rather on our
AVAILABLITLY.  If we then prove our DEPENDABLITY, he will increase our
CAPABILITY"-- Neal A. Maxwell.

I am not sure what abilities I have but through obedience I guess I
will show the Lord that I am available!! :)

Its true.  I wrote in my journal a couple days ago when I was
reflecting on the opportunity I had to call mom and talk to everyone
and the reality is that I can´t wait to see you all again....but then
again I can.  Not because I don´t love you, or I don´t like being
home, but because I love this work and I never want it to end, though
I know one day it will.  I don´t want to leave Peru.  Thank goodness I
have 9 months left!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know you might not want to hear that, but it is the truth.  So...yeah :)

Thank you for all your supporting and encouraging words every week and
your love you have demonstrated to me throughout the mission.  I am so
grateful to have such a wonderful family.  Grateful beyond words.

Hope you all have a fantastic week!

Love

Hermana Lindsey

Hola Familia!!

Bueno, estoy con mi nueva compañera Hermana Alcantera.  She is from
Taropoto (northern peru in the jungle) and she only has this change
left.   So, she isn´t much up to working hard, is pretty trunky, but
oh well.  I am trying my best to keep working, though I feel very
incapable at times….but the work goes on.
BUT I think I will be here for the next two changes!!  Maybe even for
my birthday!!!
So we had the five baptisms!!!  Chevere!!!!!!!  I promise I will send
photos, only that I forgot my camera today.
Now we are searching for new people.  We found a new cute family of 3
that want to be baptized BUT they didn´t come to church…so we are
working on that .  I am leading the sector, and it is great, just that
I don´t know why but none of our investigators are EVER home!!  Ahh!
I think I need to listen to the Spirit more.
Speaking of listening to the Spirit, I learned a cool lesson from the Book of Mormon this week.  I am studying in 1 Nephi when Nephi and his
brothers go and get the brass plates and at first Nephi uses his own
ideas and goes up and gets all his riches and proposes to trade them
for the brass plates.  But it didn´t work.  After they came back, his
brothers beat him up and the angel appeared but Nephi didn´t give up.
This time he went in “not knowing beforehand what he should do”  and
“went by the Spirit” and THAT is when he had success.  We may think
that our ideas are really great, but unless we have the Spirit and we
follow its impressions, we can´t have success.  Success in the Lords
eyes anyway .  And thanks mom for the email.  It helped me a lot and
it was just what I needed to hear in this time!!
So Romari.  I think it is the most beautiful name too.  I absolutely
love it.  She is so beautiful too.  I can´t wait to send a picture of
her.  So the story that I wantéd to tell you just made my day when I
heard it.  I don´t know if y'all will think its that cool, but I did.
So one day, about a week before her baptism, she found some gifts that
they had received from Christmas, and when she opened them, they were
two wine bottles.  She asked her mom why they still had them if they
knew they couldn´t drink anymore, her mom replied she didn´t know.  So
one day when her mom was gone, she took the bottles down to the river
below their house and threw them away.  That a girl! I felt so proud
of her.
Please Clark, eat your vegetables.  I don´t know if it is a change in
climate or what, but the first two months of my mission I couldn´t
feel full either.  AND that is when I began to have stomach problems
that led me to the hospital.  Be careful.  I don´t know if you ever
read my emails, but esta bien.  You have much better things to do--
just be careful.
Congrats to dad with 8 days of no sugar!!!!!!!!!
 So MOM thank you SOO Very much for emailing your number because last
night I seriously spent half the night trying to remember the number
and it wasn´t coming to my head.  You saved my life.  But just in
case, here is my number (code de peru)084786834  You still communicate
with Sister Hoffman?  That is cool!  Cori…ahem Hermana Hoffman is
doing great.  She just finished training and has had lots of success in
her mission…but its hard for her to be happy.  So I worry about her
sometimes.  But she is one of the best missionaries I know.
HAPPPPYYY MOTHERS DAY!!!!  FELìZ DÌA MAMÀ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I
can´t wait to talk to you this Sunday!  I don´t know when exactly I
will be calling…but just wait for my call.  Church ends here at 11, 8
in the morning your time I think…if I remember the time difference
right.  Yeah so I don´t know, but I will be calling!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!