Happy New Year

Family and Friends!! Happy New Year! Cant believe another year has passed. I had never seen so many drunk people in my life than I did on New Years Day. Thankfully our mission President recieved revelation that we should all meet up as a zone and read the Book of Mormon. We got together as a zone of missionaries and read a chart that had 90 days of the Book of Mormon, and read it all in one day. We read from 8 in the morning until 8 at night! It was a lot of reading, but it was a great experience. President Zobrist wants us to focus more on the Book of Mormon this year, in our studies and in our lessons. So we basically read almost the whole book of mormon on the first day of the year. I loved it! After the reading as a zone many missionaries shared their testimonies about the Book of Mormon. Since I didnt have the chance to share mine, I would like to share mine with you! I know that the Book of Mormon is an inspried book written by prophets of old time specifically for us. Through the principles taught in the Book of Mormon we can become better people. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and I love reading it everyday. I encourage all those that havent read the book to read it. If you really want to know for yourself if the book is true, just read it and ask in prayer and I know that God will answer if you have faith. If you have a testimony of the Book of Mormon, share your testimony with at least one person. I know that this book can change lives. I am thankful to have the opportunity to be a full time missioanry and share this testimony I have with the people here in Peru. This year, read the book of mormon. Share your testimony about the book of mormon. We really are in the last days in preparation for the Second Coming of Christ. We need to prepare now. I encourage you all to start preparing little by little everyday. We can prepare by trying to be more like Christ everyday. Smile at someone you dont know. Write a nice note to a family member or friend. Act in service to others. Love unconditionally. I would like to share one of the last verses in the Book of Mormon which is in Moroni 10 verse 32 says...Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind, and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ. We are all invited to come into Christ and be perfected through Him. It is now up to us to see if we want to accpet His invitation or not. Love you all! Love always, Hermana Flora

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One Hour

Family and Friends!! I am coming on my last week here in Moquegua with Hermana Bourque. Nothing is set or sure but Im thinking that I will be leaving this tranfer so this is probably my last week in Moquegua. Its a little sad to think of leaving the people here so I try not to think about it for too long. The weeks have been mixing together and time just keeps flying by. Highlight, we are going to see Cristian and his younger brother get baptized THIS Saturday! Were super excited. We also set up an activity as missionaries to have a Sports Night that consisted of Ping Pong and Basketball. It was a good turn out with less actives and members and a few investigators. Another highlight of the week was Sunday talks. Its the 3rd week so naturally the missionaries speak. I wasnt wanting to speak at alllll because I feel like everytime I go up to speak no one listens because theyre either on their phones or sleeping or talking to others next to them. The worst is that the Bishop and his counsels wont set a good example since Ive seen them every Sunday on their phones looking at FaceBook or Instagram. I was talking about my frustration with a member and he remembered a talk that was in the Priesthood Session in April 2014 called the Chosen Generation. I asked him to print it off and it was Perfect! I planned to read much from the talk because I loved exactly what the man had said. I prayed a lot so that I could teach with the Spirit so that I would be able to help the members understand the importance of the sacrament meeting. When it was time to go up I begin teaching from what I had planned but one by one people starting going off into their other world found through their phones. I pushed the talk aside and began to teach from the heart. I taught, There is a time and place for everything. Sacrament Meeting is NOT the time for Instagram or FaceBook. Can you not give an hour or three hours to the Lord? Is it really that difficult to put your phone aside for just an hour? The rest I dont remember but the feeling I do remember. The room was silent and everyone was focused on what I was saying, as never before had happened. After the meeting the counselor came up and told me sorry and that he wouldnt go on Internet again, I was surpried. Then the bishop told me he was going to cut the Wifi in the building. Woah. I wasnt expecting that much of a reaction but I am just glad to see some actions happening so that the members can better focus on the importance of the Sacrament Meeting rather than be playing on their phones. Hope all of you can also remember the importance of the Sacrament Meeting. Can you leave your phone for 3 hours for the Lord? Love always, Hermana Flora

Following the Spirit

January 12, 2015 Family and Friends!! Good week. Filled with many highs and lows but I would like to share the best part of the week when I followed the small promptings of the Spirit. It happened to be the same day as Jaymes birthday! haha good day! Well in the night we had a lesson set up with a member and their friend that is investigating the church in the chapel. It was 7 and we waited until 715 and then he told me they werent probably going to come but if he didnt call in 30 minutes then it would be rescheduled for another day, so we waited there a few minutes later. I was reading the Liahona when I was thinking they would probably not be able to come but I continued reading then thought that we could just enter for dinner a few minutes earlier. Then I had a thought come into my head super strong that said Get up and Go out to work. I literally stood up and told my companiong, Let go! Hermana Bourque had no idea where we were going but we went out and left. We decided to go to Cristians house. He had his baptismal interview with President the day earlier, but after the interview he still wasnt set on getting baptized. When we got there the lesson was very inspired. The Spirit was super strong and we were calling him to repentace. He told us that he stilll wasnt ready for baptism and still needed to prepare more because he felt like his sins were too big. We then taught him about how that is what Satan wants us to think. We talked about what team he wanted to be on. Satans team or Jesus Christs team? Of course he wants to do whats right. We then commited him to do what Christ would have him do if He himself were in the room with us. We commited him to baptism for when he felt comfortable. He accepted for the 24th of January! Cristian just needed a little push to get him on the path and get his animos back up! Then 2 days later we went back and invited his brother, Humberto, to get baptized with his brother the same day. He accepted as well! We are excited to see them both get baptized this month! ALSO! We have been teaching their cousins who are members but less active. Paul, who is 17, is now active, but the older brother, Renato, 22, we are trying to activate. When I first met him I didnt think I would ever see him in the chapel since his heart was super hard. Well weve been teaching him these past weeks and Sunday when he came to church we asked him to talk to the bishop. I completly saw the change in his heart. We are hoping to get him prepared to recieve the priesthood and ready to baptize his cousin Cristian and his brother Paul to baptize Humberto! It would really be the best thing! The bishop told us that it would be possible but it all depends upon Renato and how the interview goes and how his desires are to come back to church and fully reactivate. I REALLY HOPE SO! I fasted in the beginning on the month to see a miracle. This would be the miracle that I would hope to see. Love always, Hermana Flora

Come unto Christ

January 5, 2015 Family and Friends!! Happy New Year! Cant believe another year has passed. I had never seen so many drunk people in my life than I did on New Years Day. Thankfully our mission President recieved revelation that we should all meet up as a zone and read the Book of Mormon. We got together as a zone of missionaries and read a chart that had 90 days of the Book of Mormon, and read it all in one day. We read from 8 in the morning until 8 at night! It was a lot of reading, but it was a great experience. President Zobrist wants us to focus more on the Book of Mormon this year, in our studies and in our lessons. So we basically read almost the whole book of mormon on the first day of the year. I loved it! After the reading as a zone many missionaries shared their testimonies about the Book of Mormon. Since I didnt have the chance to share mine, I would like to share mine with you! I know that the Book of Mormon is an inspried book written by prophets of old time specifically for us. Through the principles taught in the Book of Mormon we can become better people. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and I love reading it everyday. I encourage all those that havent read the book to read it. If you really want to know for yourself if the book is true, just read it and ask in prayer and I know that God will answer if you have faith. If you have a testimony of the Book of Mormon, share your testimony with at least one person. I know that this book can change lives. I am thankful to have the opportunity to be a full time missioanry and share this testimony I have with the people here in Peru. This year, read the book of mormon. Share your testimony about the book of mormon. We really are in the last days in preparation for the Second Coming of Christ. We need to prepare now. I encourage you all to start preparing little by little everyday. We can prepare by trying to be more like Christ everyday. Smile at someone you dont know. Write a nice note to a family member or friend. Act in service to others. Love unconditionally. I would like to share one of the last verses in the Book of Mormon which is in Moroni 10 verse 32 says...Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind, and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ. We are all invited to come into Christ and be perfected through Him. It is now up to us to see if we want to accpet His invitation or not. Love you all! Love always, Hermana Flora