Weak Things Made Strong

This week was really good! Feels like it went by really fast. One of those weeks that we didn`t see HUGE progress in a lot of people, but we saw a lot of great, significant starts to great things. We have been visiting a lady, Viki, since I have been here. She is a less active and has a lot of physical, mental, emotional, financial, and spiritual struggles. However, her faith is firm and strong in God. She knows who Jesus Christ is and understands His hand in her life... that will never change. She is a single mom with three kids and is only 26 years old. I have grown such a great love for her. Especially this week. We had the opportunity to visit with her a little more often than usual and have really powerful lessons guided directly by the spirit. We had planned one day to talk about the Chastity and ended up going from that into the Gospel of Jesus Christ and repentance... another day we were going to talk about Tithing and ended up talking about the redemption that comes from the atonement and Faith in Christ... Each lesson we had, we felt guided by the spirit to change our lesson plans and focus on Jesus Christ and his gospel. In each lesson we testified in a different way how the Atonement can heal us. I know that is true. It is truly all in our hands. If we truly desire to be freed from a certain burden, guilt, or challenge we have, we need to turn to Jesus Christ and his gospel. Like the Book of Mormon and Bible teach us countless times... He is the only way by which we can find true happiness in this life, be redeemed of our sins, and eventually recieve the blessings of eternal life, the greatest of all gifts. 

I am grateful for the Atonement in my life and how I have seen it work in the lives of others. It is a gift for all of us to use for our whole lives. We`ll never be perfect, but we were made to become better everyday. Thankfully, the Atonement makes that possible. 

I love you so much!!

Love,

Hermana Nelson

Mosiah 5:13

HOLA familia! Como estàn? Estoy muy bien! Hace calor aquì. Me gustan gatos. 

I guess you could say my spanish is getting better, right? No, but seriously, despite the 4 North American companions I`ve had, I feel like I am really picking up on Spanish. Yesterday in a meeting we watched a short video and part of it was in English with subtitles and then it switched to spanish without the subtitles and I didn`t even realize... I was like "wait where are the subtitles in spanish?, these latin missionaries aren`t going to understand what it is saying!" and then I realized that it was speaking spanish. It`s all becoming just a part of my brain. It`s a weird thing.

So, as you all know I am training again! It`s going super well and I am learning a lot. Hermana McMahon studied spanish before so she pretty much knows everything, we`re just practicing speaking more. She is learning and progressing so much everyday! Seriously everytime we do those super fun and sometimes really awkward "practice lessons" during companion study, she puts everything we studied into practice and then applies it what we do during the day. She is really helping me to go back to the basics. I feel like I am really remembering the most important things of missionary work and that I am progressing a ton. I feel more fully emmersed in the work! I don`t feel so strange to be a missionary, but it just feels more of who I am now.

We have seen some great miracles these past couple weeks in our sector. We recently found and are teaching FOUR NEW FAMILIES! Talk about miracles. I am super excited about each of them because I feel that they all have a desire to learn about Jesus Christ which is a great first step! One family, Alicia and Renè (we contacted Alicia in the street because her friend was holding a cute puppy... we look for all sorts of excuses to talk to people haha) came to church yesterday! The whole family! And they loved it. It was the first time Renè, the husband came to church, but he was beaming the whole time. He said his work called him during church, but he just ignored their calls haha. We sincerely prayed that they would come to church as a family this week and it was a perfect answer to our prayers. 

Lots of other little miracles are happening as we are becoming more fully engaged in this work. I am coming to know my Savior as I serve him more fully. I read a really great scripture in Mosiah today that you all need to read... Mosiah 5:13. #cometoknowhimbyservinghim

Love you all tons! Know that I am happy, and eating lots of bananas and avocado... and sometimes ice cream... so I would say I`m fairly healthy too :)

also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAILEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOohoo!!! Good job on the first 2 years of your life, now you`re going into the third one. It`s going to be great, lot`s of ups and downs ahead, but stay strong and keep helping grandma make yummy cookies and practice that cannon ball into the pool for me when I get home... Love you lots!

Con un abrazo MUY grande por todos!

Hermana Nelson

Lo Siento!

Hey sorry I didn´t write yesterday! I guess it´s what happens when the
power goes out... and the water... yikes.

This week has been great! I went to Cusco and picked up my new comp!
Hermana McMahon is her name. She is from Indiana, likes to sing, likes
ice cream, is a convert of about 6 years, and is really beautiful! She
has an amazing spirit about her. I know that we are going to work hard
together and learn lots. She showed a lot of patience with me when I
locked us out of our room our first night here... whoops!

I´m sorry I haven´t written much these past few weeks, but I am really
doing well and loving Puerto! It´s hot as ever and I never stop
sweating, but I LOVE IT! I will write more next week I swear!!

I love you all so much!

Con Amor,

Hermana Nelson


Bus ride to CUSCO! hashtag barf hashtag so beautiful

Hermana Condie and my last day together in Puerto. Super sad, but fun
to see all the great lives she influenced while here in Puerto. She
was an amazing companion. I learned so much from her by her humble
example. She truly made me a better person.

My new companion! Hermana McMahon from INDIANA. You can only imagine
how much the peruvians are butchering her name! It even took me a day
to get it right.

FIRMES EN LA FE

This week was a lot different than last to be honest. We didn`t see a
lot of immediate success... like NO ONE was home. Nor did many people
come to church. But we had unexpected success... or unanticipated
blessings from the Lord. It was a good week. Just another lesson to
live firm in the faith of our Heavenly Father and Savior.

Also, I don`t have a change this transfer, but I will be training
again! My companion, Hermana Condie will go to Cusco! AHHHH we are a
little shocked and sad, but I feel really calm and good about what`s
to come! I will receive my new companion in Cusco on Wednesday!


Love,

Hermana Nelson

"I can hear the bells...

...Can`t ya hear them ring?"

This week was ahhh... so amazing.

Jhasmina and Yersin got married!! and right after the ceremony, he
changed into all white and was baptized. Despite the expected and oh
so unexpected chaos of that day (the couple almost bailing on the
wedding, food being 3 hours behind schedule, trying to fry wantans in
the light of a candle bc the power went out... are just a few
examples), we saw incredible blessings. One of them being the  Grandma
of Jhasmina coming to the rescue! We were through it all with Yersin
and Jhasmina... all their doubts, troubles, and being bugged by
eachother... and then the grandma walked in the room and said, "Hey,
look I have a few more years of experience under my belt. I think I
could help whatever is happening here!" And she did. It was an answer
to my prayers in this desperate moment. Honestly, everything was
perfect. I mean, not perfect at all, but that`s exactly how weddings
and baptisms should be! The most important thing was that they were
incredibly happy. After the wedding ceremony, they were beaming... ah
but it just got better after the baptism! Yersin bore his testimony,
and i think he said, "I`m so happy" like 20 times. I could immediately
see a change in both of them. They both made huge life changes that
day. Changes that took a lot of faith in the Lord. They chose to test
their own faith, and truly recieved so much joy from choosing to do
what the Lord wanted for them. As we sat and talked with them
yesterday, Yersin and Jhasmina just expressed the joy they feel.
Yersin told us he wants to help other people change their lives like
he changed his own through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I learned from them a great lesson. Although we may be comfortable in
life, and things are going alright. You will never experience true,
pure JOY and HAPPINESS until you go through the trial of faith and try
your obedience to the Lord. There is always something more in store
for us. The Lord is waiting  on us to follow Him and then, when we
have shown sufficient faith, he will pour out the blessings upon us.


Con Amor,

Hermana Nelson

Peruvian leafs are cool.

I`m changing the world by converting my companion to "LOVING" sunscreen!

There`s a house that has this one plant that smells SOOO good. It
smells like lemon cookies or pinesol, lemon scent... ahh we love it.
So everytime we pass by that house we take a leaf of the plant... I
wonder if the owner has noticed that their plant is slowly shrinking.
ha. ha.

Yesterday this little kid came up to us and said, "Look what we
found!" Here, a present for you. Well, we took it and then didn`t know
what to do with it because it`s just a baby and can`t fly yet! I felt
so bad... and my companion, well really doesn`t love animals. haha so
while she voted to just stick it in a bush somewhere (and let it DIE),
I voted to take it to the member we live with and ask her what to do.
Luckily she has a soft spot for animals... and well, right now the
bird is in a cardboard box under my desk... The member we live with,
Julia, is going to buy a bird cage and take care of it until it can
fly. haha. Brought back memories to when I somehow convinced Mom and
Dad to bring a stray cat from Mexico home from us. Still don`t know
how I pulled that one off.