1-23-16

Friends, family,

Hey. So I got a new companion this week which I am very excited about. His name is Elder Alcázar and he is from Tijuana, Mexico! Baja California baby! My first mexican companion. I love it, I love being with someone so close to home (even though my last comp is from Arizona, haha). He is really quiet, but humble, and just kind of stares at me a lot (I´m pretty strange). He has taught me all the mexican slang and that makes me super excited to talk to all the mexican cooks at Waldo´s when I get back, haha. He has about a year in his mission so I´ve got a little bit more time than him and it will be fun to learn with him and to be his friend.

This week was great, I was able to teach a lot. I have come to really revere the bible videos the Church has come out with on biblevideos.org. We have the CD here in our apartment and I just love to watch Jesus teach. So pure, simple, powerful. Even though they´re actors, there is still a special spirit about it. President Packer taught once: "It is not untoward for us to aspire to teach like Him. It is not untoward for us to aspire to be like Him."

Francisco was unfortunately in Huamachuco all week so we didn´t get a chance to help him progress much for his date on the 30th, but I´ve been trying to be avid on calling him everynight making sure how he is doing. But while my old companion has been training Elder Alcázar on how to be a Secretary I´ve been able to go on work visits with my other Secretary friends, Elder Maldonando and Elder Ramos. We have been going out every night finding and teaching people. It is beautiful. A man we visited twice this week was a guy named Robinson. He is hilarious, has the most contagious laugh and I think he might have ADHD because he is all over the place. One minute picking up his guitar, one minute talking about how he just broke up with his girlfriend and how hard that was, to talking about the Book of Mormon. We are just really trying to help him read the Book of Mormon, and it has been a trial for me to learn how to teach better and get to the level where I can give the commitment to him to read everyday, and help him truly have the desire to do it. It´s hard work.

We also had the awesome pleasure of having the Worldwide Missionary Broadcast on the 20th. Some great general authorities gave training and spoke on the importance of "teaching repentance, and baptizing converts". I´ve been reflectioning a lot on that little line and how it captures what we need to be trying to do every day. Teaching, proclaiming the joys of repentance so the people can be truly converted and prepared for their baptism in the future. Elder Bednar especially gave a training that really struck me. 

Well I´m out here still growing and enjoying it. Love you all. Please have a good week por mi!

Elder Caldwell.

pics: 

As I said last week, Cynthia got baptized. It was one of the most flawless, spiritual baptisms I have attended. She is great. 

An american family from Arizona had lived in Peru for 3 years in the ward we are in right now. Theyre leaving today to go live back in Arizona! We are going to miss them.

A picture of some of the receipts I have to deal with. It doesnt look like a very big pile from this perspective, but you have no idea.

And the night with us and Robinson. 

(sorry no picture of my new comp just yet)

1-16-16

Heyo,

Another week, they keep going real fast. 

I like this quote: “Never assume that you can make it alone. You need the help of the Lord. Never hesitate to get on your knees in some private place and speak with Him.”

—Gordon B. Hinckley,

I printed it out and handed it to my district here in the office to put up by their desk. I don´t know much about others, but when hard things come along, be it spiritual, physical, mental, I tend to put the Lord and the basic principles on the back-burner and just try to figure it out by myself. I can´t do that anymore. Another lesson learned here in the mission, #374. 

I have found myself trying to put God first more in my life, and I don´t know why I haven´t tried it before. Like Dieter F. Uchtdorf says, "It works wonderfully!". 

We keep chugging along, learning lessons along the way here. I realize all my life will be like this. Keep going, learning, fighting trials, holding on to the gospel to get me through. Woo!

We were able to catch Francisco twice this week (Thanks for your guys´prayers) and to teach him very important commandments of God. I loved to see how willing he was to accept the commandments of the Word of Wisdom, Chastity, and among others. He is up in Huamachucho now working but I pray he remembers to read his scriptures and remember the lessons we taught him. More than anything, I remember the lessons he has taught us. Tonight we have the gran gusto to go to the baptism of Cynthia, my how fast she progressed in just 3 weeks. She came in this week and told us she had fasted and had gotten her concrete answer that this is for her and that she will get baptized today. Excited for you guys to see her next week when I send pictures, and also of Francisco.

Today for Pday we had the opportunity to also cook and eat with our good taxi/chauffer friend Joel. He has been one of my best friends in the office, and although doesn´t share the same beliefs as us, invited us into his house to learn to cook Arroz Chaufa with him and his family. They are amazing. At the table eating, I don´t know how much the subject of Joseph Smith got put on. And so we shared what we believed Joseph Smith did and he was pretty struck (in a good way). I hope that is an opportunity for the gospel to go into his life, if not shared by us than by other good missionaries in the future. 

Well, I love you all. January is already passing us by. Recuerdan a poner Dios en el primer plano. Les amo.

-Elder Caldwell.

1-10-16

hey there,

hi. we were very blessed to be able to go to the temple today. I hadnt been in like 4 months so it was algo much needed. My testimony has been built so much by the temple here. It is our place of refuge for the world, where you can feel the same spirit as you felt back in Mesa, Az, even all the way in Trujillo, Peru. I love how universal it is, and how grand God is. I remember when I got assigned to speak about temples for my farewell talk and inwardly I thought, "ah, I didnt really want to talk about this..." But I realize now, what God had in store for me here in the mission with the dedication, being able to take investigators to the open house, just "marinating" we could say in the spirit. I hope you all can go to the temple more, even if you cant enter just yet, go. You will feel a penetrating peace engulf you. I can only say that because I have felt it numerous times now. There is a special hope that you can feel there that lets you know good things lie in wait in the future. It was awesome to go with our other secretary friends, Elder Ramos and Elder Maldonado. They have only been able to do sessions in the temple just to count on one hand so they were so giddy as they entered. 

pile of good news for you: We were able to go out a few nights and share our testimonies with the gente de Perú. We met a less active man who had begun to believe there was no God, and it was an interesting lesson. Sometimes we as religious people have the impulse to just shove doctrine and facts and scripture down disbelieving peoples throats but I always try to take the approach by getting to know them, getting to know how they get to that point, and just sharing simple testimony. At the end of it all, your testimony that you have obtained through trial is the only thing that matter to people, not the knowledge of the scriptures. 

But I guess that isnt the good news. I think I said last week, but Ill say it again this week: Cynthia, the single mother who came into the office Christmas day is getting baptized next week, and she is so happy. Also our favorite chacra man, Francisco has committed to the date of the 30th this january to be baptized as well. That would be kinda like a late birthday present for me. All I want to see is him truly be converted to this gospel. If you can, please play for Francisco that he might be able to meet up with us more to keep being taught because he travels much to go farm. 

We are working hard here and I hope to truly "forget myself" for this last stretch. There is nothing more I would rather have. Thanks for all the letters and love, you guys are my rock. Have a good week.

Elder Caldwell. 

pics:

bus travel #33

chacra

temple

the other ones are with elder uceda when he come. this is the whole office

1-2-16

buenas,

its going peachy keen over here. Well, allí. This week was hectic due to we had transfers and were running all over, but in the end we realized we did our job and we hit our heads to our pillows in pure cansado-ness every night. So all is well!

"Prayer is not asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is daily admission of one's weakness . . . It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart." -Gandhi (thanks for giving me the quote book stef, hace más que un año atras)

 I feel like the biggest thing I have learned out here in the mission thus far is dealing with ups and downs, but dealing with it all through prayer. Prayer is our anchor and I feel like you guys have noticed how much I like to talk about it and how many scripture references I give to it. Prayer is the number one thing that can help us feel good, and closer to God always. It is so easy, even as Gandhi explains it here. We prayed a lot this week, maybe we did some asking, but I want to try to be better being more thankful for all I have, and that everything for the day turned out alright. 

Good news: The woman I talked about not too long ago, Cynthia, the one who approached us on Christmas day is being taught and has decided to get baptized this 16 of January. She came into the office and greeted us this morning again and thanked us for everything. She is so happy and she told us a few of her experiences with prayer as well. She is so great and I am excited for her, and the elders teaching her. What an experience. En cuanto of our friend, Francisco, he has been travelling to the jungle and the mountains so we got a little out of touch with him recently. But he is back now in Trujillo, so we are going to call him tonight to invite him to church again. He is a little above middle-aged and has great desires to just know more and make the right decision. He says he knows the church is true but he wants to prepare a little more (we sure hope we can help him prepare a little more) before he gets baptized. 

Im also grateful I was able to skype with the family a little bit and see how mom was doing after her surgery. Love you guys! It gives us so much more encouragement and animo as missionaries to talk to our families and see that they are still rooting us on. It helps me understand how much our Heavenly Father is rooting for us all and wishes we return well. 

Welp, these are some of my thoughts for the week. Love you guys. 

Elder Caldwell.

pics:::

Nelson (Elder) Lloyd came to town with his family this week to visit for the Holidays. I was lucky to see my old companion of 6 months when he stopped by the office. one of my best friends.

we also greeted the new ones and took them on a tour to the temple. always nice.