BOOOM CHAGA BOOM!!

Lunch last week on P-day

TUMBES!

15 things I have learned in 15 months (really I wrote 16 because I forgot they eat and cut everything including meat with spoons) 

Hey all!!!

How was your week! My week was full of tender mercies!!! We have been teaching an 18 year old girl named Margori. Her mom is a less active. We found them like the first or second week I got to Tumbes walking around with our list of less actives. Every since then our history with Margori and Maria (her mom) is history. Margori has come to church twice and is slowly getting rid of her strapless and bellyless (is that a word?) shirts. Whoo! She has come to church twice and loves it. And this last week she finally said that she really wants to be baptized June 13! I smiled big when she said that :) 

Next blessing... Hermana Dorris (is the wife of Jose who is in a wheel chair) they both attend church every week now and love it! Jose doesn't have a strong testimony yet and feels embarrassed to be baptized with one leg. Dorris on the other hand finally understands why she needs to be baptized and she said she will do it JUNE 13 BABY. Two children of God are getting dunk for the eternities. 

Our other investigator, Harold, had a baptismal date for June 13 also, but he got Degne Fever this week and went to Lima. He should be back this week but we will have to postpone his baptism. 

I feel so overwhelmingly blessed these days. God hears our prayers it's us that don't listen to HIM. 

This last week we were teaching that family I told you about last week (The Luna Family) and we felt and hurd something rumble and a bright bright flash of light, kind of like gun shots/fire works/lightening. I have never heard something so weird and scary. As we were committing this family to pray to know if Joseph Smith was a Prophet. BOOOM CHAGA BOOM!!! Hermana Macias jumped from her seat. The mom Hermana Jacky also stood up fast to get her baby, the kids dropped their toys, and I just opened my eyes WIDE. I thought someone was bombing Tumbes! We all ran outside and found all of Tumbes on their front porch (well street) looking into the sky. I don't actually know what happened because we can't watch or read the news, but I think it was just lightening. Some say it was a meteor that fell from the sky and landed in the ocean. Who knows what actually happened Saturday night but it was a good memory at least. 

Anyway I love this gospel and I love being a missionary. 

Have a splendid and wet week. 

"Decisions Determine Destiny." ---President Monson

So choose them wisely my friends. 

An Old Fashion Eye Checkup

Hermana Stringham

Ahhh I am freaking out

 

Sarah's screen on Mother's Day :D

Wow this week has been one to remember. It started out great. We started out strong trying to contact every person in Tumbes, because it was the last week of transfers. Wednesday came around and my comp Hermana Macias wasn't feeling to hot. Well she was actually really hot. I took her temp with my thirfty thermometer and it read 103 degrees. Of course she doesn't understand how high 103 is because everything here is in Celcius. I just said "oops Hermana you've got a high fever." I practiced my nursing skills and put cold rags on her forhead, and tried to fan her in our ever so hot sauna room. Her glands were all swollen and had a hard time talking to me. In the mission there is not much you can do when one is sick, just pray no mas. We had splits and I went out with a hermana in my ward. 

I went with Hermana Sandra. She showed me a house that the hermanas had visited before. It had been 3 months since then but we decided to knock on their door. As the daughter opened the door her face lit up! She yelled "Hermanas!" I had never met this family but they invited us in. We found one! Another family! God has been hearing us over here. And they are married!! That's like a miracle in Peru. They have 3 kids. We asked if they had been reading their Book of Mormon and the mom Jacky said no, but the 9 year old daughter shouted I have! She is in 1 Nefi 8. My testimony was strengthened in that moment. This little child is so pure and good. She is reading the Book of Mormon without even being asked! 

Thursday arrived. I woke up feeling ugh a little week to the stomach but I shrugged it off. We had intercambios with the Hermanas in La Cruz (a small town 30 min from us). Hermana Macias was still feeling sick, but Hermana Rowley told us to do the intercambio anyway. So we went to La Cruz. I was supposed to take turns with the hermanas...work with one Hermana in the morning and the other in the afternoon because my comp was sick. I first left with Hermana Pleitez from El Salvador. She took me up a STEEP dirt hill. I was dying. I wasn't sure if it was just because I was out of shape or if it was because I was sick too. When we finally reached the top I was sweating so bad but the view of the beach to my left made it worth it. We kept on walking and walking, until I felt woahhhhh woahahhh "Hermana I need a bathroom." We found a members house and I used the bathroom (a concrete hole in the back yard). Oh man I was about to faint! So I told Hermana Pleitez sorry but I need to go back home. 

Gas Station

We got back to the apartment of the hermanas and I crashed on the mattress, Hermana Macias was on the other mattress. Hahaha we came to their place to just get sick. 

INTERCAMBIO CANCELED. 

We went back home and called it a day. 

Moral of the long story it all passed and I feel great. My comp was left with a cold. 

In church you always have to be on your toes! Teachers don't show about every week. So I was chosen to teach gospel principles again and relief society. I taught the relief society about the Book of Mormon. Very few of them are reading the Book of Mormon so I kind of nicely yelled at them haha. 

Transfers came and my comp and I are staying here!! Whoop! We are happy!!!

Love you all and have a very good week!!!

p.s. I only have 12 weeks left. It's like 1 obsidian challenge! Ahhh I am freaking out!

Ahhh The Beach :D

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MOM AND BIRTHDAY SAM!!!!!!! Well I don't know what to say today because I feel like I said it all yesterday. So this will be kind of a lame letter sorry. I promise better next week. 

I LOVED seen all of your faces it's been a while! I just love my fam so much! More now than I ever have. I could have talked for hours, but the mission rules don't permit us... 

This last week we went to Piura for a leadership meeting! I love the leadership meetings. They are the most spiritual 6 hours of my life. All of the leaders of the mission meet with the President and his wife and we talk about the needs of the mission. We then have to teach everything we learned in our Zone Conference to the other missionaries. We learned all about how to teach better the Restoration. The president of the area told my mission President that "missionaries don't know how to teach." Especially the Restoration, and it is true. I have seen it in the mission. Our message is so unique and if we don't explain it right people will not understand us or be converted. 

While we were in Piura we got permission to go to Tottus! It's the closest thing to a Walmart here. We stocked up on baby wipes for the next drought when the water doesn't come we can bathe with wipes! 

Yesterday we had 3 investigators at church! We are teaching a FAMILY! Well an older couple (Jose and Doris). This is there fourth time at church, but they are having a hard time accepting Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. 

I hope you all have the best week! Until next monday....

Hermana Stringham

"For when I am weak then am I strong."

Hey Mundo! 

First off Happy Birthday Grandma Lucy!!! Sorry I am a little late like always.  

This week has been a roller coaster. First off I can't believe it is May!!! Wow time is flying. This last week started out terrific. I had a visito de trabajo (intercambio) with Hermana Maidana from Argentina here is Tumbes. We learned a lot from each other and at the end of the day ate Tres Leches for dinner (I am on a real healthy diet I know it). We challenged FOUR people to baptism and they all accepted whoop!!! But only 1 of them attended church yesterday, so we have got a lot to do before we get them in the font. The 1 investigator that is progressing a lot is a miracle story. He is an old investigator of Sisters who were here before us. He had a baptismal date for January but had to leave to Lima, and the sisters couldn't ever come in contact with him again. It was like he disappeared! He wouldn't answer his phone. Nada. Just this last week he showed up at church and found us. His name is Harold by the way. We have had two lessons with him, and he is awesome. He is reading the Book of Mormon (he is in 2 Nefi 16), he had a testimony of the church before we even began teaching him! He is Golden. Harold came from the Lord. He is a miracle and a blessing. God is hearing us over here in far away Tumbes. 

The rest of the week went a little bad....we have had water (to bathe ourselves) only about 3 times this week, which calls for a smelly apartment and sticky suzncreen/mosquito repellent legs. After I taught English classes this week we went to a Family Home Evening with some investigators at the Bishops house. We were in such a hurry and we piled 5 people in a small moto that I spaced out and left my Book of Mormon in the moto!!!! NOOOOO! That book is my life! When I found out I felt more hurt then when I lost all of my money, credit card, and drivers liscence in my first transfer. This book is my first Spanish Book of Mormon and it has all of my notes, plus my family history book with all of my pics of my fam and stories. Ahhh. I was frustrated. A few hours later when my anger was calmed a little I thought of the scripture "By small and simple things are great things brought to pass." Then I thought, someone has my Triple right now and maybe that someone is reading it and will be baptized later. Yeah I guess I had to sacrifice my Book of Mormon to help someone else. 

Labor day came around this week. Holidays in Peru are the worst! Before the mission I loved them, but in the mission they have become my worst enemy! The whole city goes wild and gets crazy drunk. Men yelling "Amigita, venga!" or they try to hug us. That's not the worst part...they don't let us sleep! There were 3 parties going on outside of our apartment. We could here 3 different Spanish songs playing all at the same time. They finally shut the party down at 4 am. GUYS BE GRATEFUL FOR A NOISE POLICY. 

Today I read a scripture that calmed my troubled soul. 2 Corithians 12:9-10 "For when I am weak then am I strong." This ended this week feeling very week. Everything was going wrong. As I read this scripture today God once again told me "Hermana Stringham. Be calm. I just want you to be stronger." 

My goal this week is to lift up my head and be a little stronger. I hope you all have the best week and look for the positive. Don't be a negative Nelly like I was this past week. 

Love you all!!!! I can't wait to talk to you this Sunday!

Chau!