Week 61

Hola Amigos!

This week has been so crazy that I feel like I have barely had any time to sit down and think! I’ve settled down in my new area here in Tablazo, Tumbes, and I really love it here. My companion, Elder Thompson, and I are having a blast together and working super hard. It’s been a little bit of an adjustment being here as a zone leader because I feel like we barely had any time to work in our own area. There’s a lot of additional things that we have to get done for the zone that can really take up some time. It’s a big change for me because I usually love to be going 100% all of the time and working to better my proselyting area, but now we have a few more responsibilities to handle.  Overall though, I really love it here.

The only downside I’d say of this area is the apartment.  When I got here last week I was blown away how the Elders were living before me, ha ha.  There is not really a working sink, the toilet is missing quite a few pieces, the dresser doesn’t have any drawers to put our clothes, and the lock to the main door doesn’t work (just to name a few of the problems).  Despite all that, the biggest problem of all is there is hardly ever running water to shower, wash dishes, flush the toilet, etc.  The only choice we have is to use our buckets of fresh drinking water to do a ll those tasks.  So this week I got to work to make some repairs, ha ha.  The only problem is there isn’t a local Durk’s Plumbing Supply around here ;).  I also called up the owner of the building to let her know about the water problem, and said if we don’t get the water we need soon, we will be leaving.  I think that scared her a little, because the next day she showed up bright and early with a plumber to see what the problem is, lol.  We’ll see what happens.  So, I’d say the room has been our only challenge this week.  Overall you just have to be grateful to have a roof over your head.  Even if it’s just a few sheets of tin.  ;)

On Wednesday, Elder Thompson and I, Elder Jones and Elder Barreto (ZL’s in Poyango) took the 6 hour bus ride down South for a little 2 day stay in Piura for the mission leaders conference.   Those two days were absolutely a blast.  The conference was super good, and we learned a lot of new things to share with our zone.  We all got to hang out the whole time with one of my favorite Elders in the mission, Elder Jones. Elder Jones was an AP for six months and now is up here in Tumbes finish his mission.  He’s from Mountain Green, and is the funniest dude ever.  We literally just heard story after story from his life before the mission and also stories he’s had on his mission, where I was just dying laughing.  Elder Jones is a great example to me of someone who has decided just to live life and enjoy every moment.  He is the man.  I also got to go on a little work visit while we were down there with my hilo (son), Elder Huarcaya.  He’s also a stud and we went to visit a few of my converts that live in what is now his area.  It was way fun to be down there in Piura to see lot of people that I haven’t seen in months.

The weekend was just about the only time that we had to work in our area.  Of those short few days, we saw a lot of miracles.  We are teaching some really cool people who are really close to baptism.  One middle-aged lady named Olivia, is getting baptized this Saturday. Her son Josue was baptized a few years ago and now is serving a mission in Brazil.  According to Elder Thompson, Olivia didn’t really want anything to do with the church for a long time, but now seems to have been influenced by her son’s good example, and now wants to be baptized.  We are super excited for her.  There’s a lot of other great people that we are teaching that I just don’t have time to write about them all.  I’ll try to talk about them in the next few weeks.

This Sunday I gave a talk inn our ward on enduring to the end.  I shared these classic scriptures found in 2 Nephi 31:

17 Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter. For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost.

18 And then are ye in this strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life; yea, ye have entered in by the gate; ye have done according to the commandments of the Father and the Son; and ye have received the Holy Ghost, which witnesses of the Father and the Son, unto the fulfilling of the promise which he hath made, that if ye entered in by the way ye should receive.

19 And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.

20 Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

All of us who have been baptized and confirmed members of this church are now on this “strait and narrow path”.  We all need to be striving each day to keep the faith and stay true to the covenants we have made with our Savior.  One way that we can do this is by small and simple means like daily scripture study, daily prayer, and participating weekly in partaking of the sacrament.  If we are constantly doing theses small and simple things, we will always stay on this covenant path.  One thing that I’ve been thinking about lately pertaining to our hopes and dreams, is that we always need to have our values and actions in line with our goals.  That is as true for our lives as it is for the gospel.  We can’t have our goals and dreams be one thing and our actions say another.  If we say we want a higher score on our test in school, we need to be studying.  If we want to be better in our sport, we have to practice.  In the same way, if our goal is eternal life with our families, we need to be doing the things that will take us there!  We always need to have our value system in line with our goals.

Los amo!

Avanza su Verdad!

Elder Bailey

Week 60: From Beach Life to City Life

Adios playa bonita….

Transfers are here! After a quick three months here in La Cruz, I’ve been transferred up north 20 minutes to the big city of Tumbes! They say every missionary puts in their due time in the Zona Tumbes at some point in their mission, and I thought “my time” was going to be 2 or 3 transfers in La Cruz and then maybe head back to Piura. But it turns out that I’ll probably be up here for at least 6 months total in el norte. I will be replacing my “father” in the mission, Elder Bayona, as a zone leader for Tumbes and my new comp is going to be Elder Thompson from Colorado. Elder Thompson is one of my best friends that I’ve made in the mission and I’ve known him since day one in the mission field back in my Sullana days. We’re pretty pumped to be together. As fun and exciting as transfers are, I’m pretty dang sad to leave my area here in La Cruz. I’ve met so many great people here and made some good memories in my time here. I think it’s also going to kill me a little to not be able to see the beach each day. :( It’s going to be back to the busy city life…

Apart from getting our transfers, this week was pretty eventful. On Tuesday we had a little miracle. In the afternoon we were walking to an apartment that we had scheduled, and while going down the busy street we heard someone call us from the other side of the street. We headed over to talk to the guy who looked somewhat familiar, but I couldn’t remember his name. We started talking to him, and he introduced himself as Frank. He said he regularly attends church here in La Cruz. After a little small talk we asked him how long he has been a member, and he told us that he was baptized in Lima over 10 years ago but he seemed a little unsure. We started to ask him questions from there like who were the elders that taught him, what ward he attended, and even how he was baptized. He couldn’t seem to remember the details of his baptism, so after we finished talking to him we gave the bishop a call to verify if Frank is even a member. After looking through the records of the churchgoer bishop couldn’t find any records of Frank. It made sense that he didn’t have any records because when we went back to Frank’s house to give him the newsI first showed him a painting of the baptism of Christ to verify that he was baptized in the same way, and he said he was. I then showed him a picture of the confirmation, or receiving the gift of the spirit, and he told us that he never got that part of the baptism. So we figure that Frank was either baptized and never confirmed, or that he was baptized into another church and his memory is a little fuzzy. After hearing the news he told us “Well, if I’m not in the records of the church I want you guys to baptize me as soon as possible!” Elder Quispe and I just looked at each other and smiled. So, we’re gonna look this week to make sure that Frank actually doesn’t have a membership record and id he doesn’t his baptism, or re-baptism, is going to be next week! This was definitely a little miracle for us and an answer to our prayers, as we’ve been praying hard these past weeks to find someone who has the desire to be baptized. The Lord doesn’t always answer our prayers in our timing or in the way we expect but he always answers if we ask with faith.

On Wednesday I got to do a work visit with mi padre (my trainer) in the mission, Elder Bayona. Bayona goes home tomorrow, so this week we wanted to do a work visit this past week as a final goodbye, and to remember the good old times together. It was so cool to work and be together again after more than a year has passed since we were put together and I could talk basically nothing in Spanish. I have learned so much from Elder Bayona and consider him a brother and one of my best friends ever. As 

we sat together teaching a lesson to a little old lady on Wednesday, I just reflected on how cool it has been to know Elder Bayona, and hoe never before in my life would I have expected that I’d get to be best friends with a 24 year old from Lima, Peru. I’m going to miss that man a ton. Tomorrow the mission loses un gran misionero. 

Saturday and Sunday all the missionaries were invited to attend the sessions of our stake conference of Tumbes. There was a member of the Seventy from Equador that presided over the conference and also our mission president, President Vega, and his wife showed up and gave talks. They each talked to the stake about implementing the Preach My Gospel manual so that the members and missionaries can work more closely together. It was really good and what this stake needed to hear. Hopefully we can start to get a little more help from the members around here. Remember that missionary work isn’t limited to those of us who wear the ties and the name tag! Sharing the gospel should be something we are all engaged in. Let’s all look for more opportunities to share what we have with others around us. I promise they are there if we look!

Well that’s all for this week. The mission is treating me well and I am loving this adventure I’m on. I’m out here learning, growing, and having life changing experiences every day that I can’t get anywhere else. Hasta la proxima semana fifones.

Avanza Su Verdad!

(Also shoutout to Elder Randall! He’s heading out of Tumbes to go open up a new area and to train a newbie. He’s gonna kill it.)

Elder Bailey

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. “ - Matthew 11:28-30

Week 59

Holaaa cholitos!! Ya ha pasado una semana??

Hows everyone?? Not much time to write today, also not much to report on. Luckily I was able to snag a lot of pictures this week. I Really cant believe that another quick week has passed! My man Elder Quispe and I are chuggin along in our area right now, even though our investigators seem to be dropping like flies. Just got to keep on working and keep the faith!
Today was a pretty sweet P-day. We headed up to Tumbes to play a little zone on zone soccer on the professional field. Unfortunetly the Zona Tumbes took an L despite the well-fought battle. After soccer, we spent the day with my good friend Elder Randall and his comp, Elder Hardwick, from Texas (You already know I had to snag a pic together wearing some of his famous cowboy boots). We went together up to Aguas Verdes, which is a huge market on the border of Peru and Ecuador that I believe I have mentioned before. We bought some sweet soccer jerseys, and grabbed some lunch. Not a bad P-day. I never get tired of seeing and spending time with one of my best friends, Elder Randall, while on the mission. What a blessing!!
Transfers are coming next week! I feel like some big changes could be coming... We will see. Prepárense! 

34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

Love these words of Christ. They seemed to hit me hard as I read them this week. Let us always love one another and show Christ that we are His disciples!

Avanza Su Verdad!

Elder Bailey

Week 58

This week was filled with looking for new people to teach. Down here in South America there seems to be lots of people who listen to our messages, but very few who take it seriously and progress towards baptism. You can have a handful of investigators that all look great one week, and then the next they all decide to go south on you. That’s just the way it goes. Unfortunately that’s what has been happening the past two weeks here. We had so many awesome people that we were teaching that all decided they don’y want to listen any more, or that we just can’t find. So you could say we’re in a little bit of a “rebuilding season” right now, trying to find those who are prepared to receive us. 

We do, however, have on investigator named Lucero who has some promise. She’s 25 and lives alone with her little 4 year-old son. She actually was the one who found us, as we were teaching her neighbor and asked if she could listen too. She turned out to be a lot more interested then her neighbor, and since then we have taught 3 or 4 really spiritual lessons. Lucero seems to be really lonely and is having a really hard time since her boyfriend left her. She also has told us how she feels really disconnected from God and feels really guilty for some of the things she has done in her life. We shared with her the plan of salvation, and how Christ’s infinite atonement is the central part of God’s plan. We told her how it doesn’t matter what trials we are passing through, how much pain we feel, or what things we have done wrong, Christ’s open arms are always extended towards us and his atoning sacrifice will always help lift us up. She seemed to be really touched by our words and couldn’t take her eyes off of the picture of the Savior that was on the pamphlet that we gave her. After a little silence, I asked her she felt. Holding back the tears she looked up and said, “Like there is hope.” The spirit was so strong and I knew at that moment she was feeling the love of Christ. Since that lesson I have kept thinking about the words Lucero replied. One of the biggest feelings that the gospel brings to our lives, it is hope. Hope for something more, hope for a better life, hope for new beginnings, etc. I’m so grateful for this gospel and the hope that it brings to my life.

Another cool person we came across this week was a kid named Cristofer. We had taught Cristofer’s mom the week before and on Thursday we had our return visit scheduled with her. In the first lesson she hadn’t really shown any interest and reluctantly accepted a return visit, so I was really hesitant to go back and teach her again. However I felt like we needed to go, so we went. She ended up not being there, but we found her 15 year-old son, Cristofer. He agreed to listen to our message and was really interested in it. He knew a lot about Jesus and the Bible and loved the idea of modern day prophets. He agreed to think and pray about what we taught him to see if it’s true. He looks like he might have some potential.

Sunday night I had a pretty cool experience. As we were heading back to our room at the end of the day, I was feeling a little bit down due to our slow progress we’d had during the week but even more just due to all the “bad” in the world. Sunday nights are always a little rough tp be out an the streets because of all the parties, drunk people, etc, but this Sunday seemed to be extra crazy. I was walking and just wishing that I could stand up on a wall like a prophet and teach to everyone the good word. When we got back to the room, to help boost my spirits I randomly opened up the Book of Mormon. Interestingly, I opened right up to Alma 29, and started reading:

1 O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!

2 Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth.

3 But behold, I am a man, and do sin in my wish; for I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me.

4 I ought not to harrow up in my desires the firm decree of a just God, for I know that he granteth unto men according to their desire, whether it be unto death or unto life; yea, I know that he allotteth unto men, yea, decreeth unto them decrees which are unalterable, according to their wills, whether they be unto salvation or unto destruction.

Yea, and I know that good and evil have come before all men; he that knoweth not good from evil is blameless; but he that knoweth good and evil, to him it is given according to his desires, whether he desireth good or evil, life or death, joy or remorse of conscience.

6 Now, seeing that I know these things, why should I desire more than to perform the work to which I have been called?

I totally felt like this was speaking to me. It gave me some comfort to know that a missionary and prophet in the Book of Mormon had had some of the same feeling and desires that I was feeling at that moment. But Alma also teaches some important doctrine here to missionaries. Although sometimes we want to be that angel with a trumpet “declaring repentance” to all the ends of the earth, “changing the lives of all” we need to remember that the Lord has given each one of his children the gift of agency to choose evil or to choose good. We have to remember that he is a just God, and will force no man to heaven. We just have to do our part in the stewardship that the Lord has given us as missionaries, and invite others to come to repentance. If we do that, the Lord will always be content with us. I love the Book of Mormon and am grateful that I was able to receive that counsel from it on Sunday.

Que tengan una semana fantastica! Los amo!!

Avanza Su Verdad

Elder Bailey