Week 52:Dios inspira a los hombres

Buenas dias!

This week was super great! I don't have much time, so I'm gonna try to write as much as I can! Elder Villagran and I have worked like horses this whole change and we have seen many miracles. So when I was with Elder Niño 3 changes ago we were teaching this lady named Luz and we ended up baptizing her daughter Julisa. Luz just never really wanted to get baptized even though we worked super hard for her and even fasted and prayed a lot for her. Well, long story short, we went to her house yesterday and told us straight up that she has taken the decision to be baptized! God has a time and place for all things to happen. I know that God answers prayers and prepares all the hearts of His children to accept the gospel. She is going to be baptized in October. 

Also this week we had two baptisms of Fabiana and Valeri Gomez, we really were hoping that their mom was also going to get baptized but it didn't happen. Again, after all we have done, we have to accept the will and time of the Lord in all things. This week Amadeo is going to be baptized as well! It's amazing how God works through His servants when their obedient and diligent. Davis has officially disappeared from off the face of the earth. We haven't been able to contact him in any way at all for almost a week and a half now, its really worrying us. 

Anyways, don't have any more time, but have a great week! 

Con mucho amor, 

Elder Potter

 

Elder Potter, ? Elder Villagran

 

Elder Potter and Elder Villagran in Lima

 

Lima Center

 

Sister Samudio, Sister Beatty, ?, Elder Villagran, Elder Potter, ?

 

Elder Villagran,  Fabiana, Valeri and Elder Potter

 

Book of Mormon in Quechewa, native languange of Peru.

 

Elder Villagran and Elder Potter

 

The view from the hills

 

Week 51: Otra Semana Excelente!

Muy Buenas Dias a todos!

This last week was super awesome! Elder Villagran and I just keep working super hard and were starting to have a lot of success  here in Los Manzanos. We've been focus a lot on our new golden investigators, Amadeo and Davis. It's been great to see their progress and desires to join Christs church and be baptized. It's amazing how people can change through Christ.

This week truly has just flown by! It's funny, at the beginning of my mission, the days slowly started going by faster, then the weeks, then the months, then the changes...it's just crazy, it goes by way to fast. Jaja, I would almost like to serve a 14 year mission like the Sons of Mosiah did. Preaching the gospel and being a representative of Jesus Christ  truly has the power to make someone happy. 

So far this transfer has gone by super, super fast! I'm thinking I'm going to be leaving in three weeks, that hit me this past week, and it made me sad to think about it because this area has turned out to be great. It's crazy to see what hard work, diligence, faith and trusting in God can do. 

Well, that about it for this week. Que todos tengan una muy buena semana!

Elder Potter

I realized I haven't sent many pictures home of what Lima is really like.... so I'm gonna try to do better at that.

The people here build up onto their houses so they leave all the extra concrete and rocks on the side of their house so that they can use it if they want to build more some day. I dont know why but the dogs like to mount the heaps of concrete and stuff and make them their home.

This is one of the main streets by my area, there are hundreds of stray dogs that roam them.

I'll have more pictures next week...

Week 50: La mejor semana de mi misión! (The Best Week of my Mission)

Hola familia y amigos!

Well, to start of with... this week has easily been the best week of my mission!  Elder Villagran and I have been working crazy hard and have had so many incredible experiences this week. It really has been the best week, we have seen so many miracles in our area, in every sense of the word. 

At the beginning of this change we didn't have very many investigators, and almost none that were progressing and it was super hard. But Elder Villagran and I have really been inspired and motivated lately. As we've been working hard we have been able to triple the investigators that are attending church! It was a great week. So, I'm going to give you an "investigator update" so you know who were teaching. 

Doris y Santos - So, last Saturday we got a call from this guy in Madrid, Spain telling us that his parents live in our area and that he wanted us to visit them the next day, so we went on Sunday and it was awesome. They ended up coming to church this last Sunday. Doris is a lot more receptive to the gospel and has a goal for baptism. 

Davis - This was a super inspired contact! We fasted this week to be able to have progressing investigators and on Saturday we went out to contact and we knocked on Davis door. Six years ago he was listening to the missionaries with his family but never got the chance to be baptized. It was so crazy, while we were at his door he told us that he wanted to be baptized in the church and that he knew that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that the church is true. He also came to church yesterday and has a baptismal date for the 26th of this month. 

Amardo- On Friday we got on to a bus and Elder Villagran sat next to this guy that was getting off the bus but contacted him and the exchanged phone numbers and all that. Well, yesterday we got a call from so missionaries in the Mision Lima Central asking to see if we had talked to a guy on a bus named Amardo, and we said yes. Turns out this guy lives in our area but has been attending for some time in Central Lima and has received a few lessons from the Elders there. It was super inspired that we got on that bus. 

We have been able to find a whole bunch of other people in the process as well that also came to church this past week. 

I have gained a strong testimony this week that through diligence, faith, hard work, and prayer miracles can happen and the people who are prepared to receive the gospel will be put in the way of the gospel. 

Also, this week Hermana Carrasco, who was in my district for a while, received her visa for Utah this week and left for the Temple Square mission yesterday. So if you happen to see a short Peruvian sister walking around in Temple Square named Hermana Carrasco, you'll have to say hi to her. 

Ha sido una excelente semana y espero que tengan una buena semana y que puedan ver la mano de Dios en sus vidas. (It was a great week and hope you have a good week and you can see the hand of God in your lives.)

Love, 

Elder Potter

Elder Potter, Elder Villagran, Hermana Carrasco, Hermana Beatty, and Hermana ?

Here is a picture of a tube of toothpaste on a mission. Drastic circumstances call for drastic measures. I was out of toothpaste.

Week 49: Cambios y muchas cosas mas!

Buenas Días Todos!

This week was incredible! I had some great experiences and some great strengthening moments this week. So to start out with, Elder Escobar and I had a change on Martes! But they didn't tell us in the changes meeting so the zone leaders called us at 11:30 at night and told us that Elder Escobar had a change, but within the zone! As well as Elder Glover, one of our zone leaders. So basically, everyone just got moved to a different area within the zone, it is kind of crazy. 

My new companion is Elder Villagran from Colonia, Uruguay and has 6 months on the mission. He is super cool and I'm super excited to work with him! He also speaks fluent english because he lived in Farmington, Utah for a year and in New Zealand for a year! We teach very well together and work super hard! We are always talking to someone and we were super blessed for our diligence and were able to find a ton of new people! Inlcuding a reference from Madrid, Spain! We also found this family that has been going to church for months now in La Molina, about 2 or 3 hours from San Juan de Lurigancho. We found them and now they have a baptismal date for the 14 of September! Their names are Sara, Valeri, and Fabiana, and they are all awesome! 

Well, thats about all for this past week! 

Que tengan un buen semana!

Elder Potter

Elder Potter and Elder Villagran

Week 48: Cambios! (Changes)

Muy Buenas Día a todo! (Very good day to all,)

This week was a really good week! We reached all of our goals and had some great lessons with our converts and the less actives that we are working with right now. We were able to rescue, or reactivate, 2 sisters this week. It makes me happy to rescue people and bring them back to the church that have gone a stray for a little bit. 

Also, this week, today, in about 1 hour, I'm going to know if I have a change. Ive been with Elder Escobar for 2 changes and I have 3 in total in this area, so its very possible that I have a change. I have learned a ton in this area, Los Manzanos, and have grown to absolutely love the people here! There's nothing better than serving the Lord! 

Also, this last Saturday, we did an open doors activity for the ward and investigators and it was sweet! 3 wards participated, ours, Canto Chico, and Viñas. Each youth group prepared a Peruvian dance to perform and it was super cool! Then the Stake President, Pdte. Garcia, spoke and then there was food! It was definitely a success and now we are going to have some good lessons this week from the referrals we received. 

Elder Escobar and I are super excited for this week! 

Espero que tengan una semana exitosa y llena de felicidad! (I hope you have a successful week full of happiness!)

Elder Potter

Week 47: Joy of the gospel and birthday surprises

Buenos dias,

Well, this week was quite the week. We had many of our friends in the chapel yesterday to partake of the sacrament. Elder E and I were very happy yesterday about the success that we had, well, the success the Lord has had through two of His servants. There are 25 recent converts of one year in our ward and it has been hard to juggle them all and help them all progress, especially because many of them were inactive before Elder E and I came. Only about 30% of them have been attending, but yesterday we had 50% of them come! We have been working very hard with them and we have finally been able to see the hand of God in their lives! We also had more than 12 less actives come yesterday that we have been working with! It was so great to see them all there renewing their covenants. It made me very happy. 

Many times we forget about the blessings and purification that only come through sincere repentance. I will be honest, before the mission I didn't understand repentance and the true importance of the Atonement. Of course I knew of what it consisted, but I didn't truly understand it. I didn't truly understand the Godly joy that one feels when they truly repent of their sins. Before the mission I didn't understand very well how the mercy and justice of God worked. I still have much to learn, but I now know that we receive forgiveness through the mercy provided by Christs Atonement and repentance. I am so, so grateful for the chance that our Heavenly Father has blessed us with every day to repent, to me that is one of the biggest signs of His love for us. I know that our Savior lives.

Changes are always good to progress, and I think I might have a change next week, but I am really going to miss Juan Javier, his birthday was yesterday so Nancy and Julio planned a "surprise" birthday party for us.  Fue lo máximo! It's been a blessing in my life to share the gospel with my best friends, they truly bring joy to my life. The promise in DyC 18 10 to18 (something like that) is true, I can bear testimony of that.

Well, I hope that you have a great week! I hope that you feel the Spirit in abundance and I hope that you can go to the temple and recieve blessings there. Love ya lots, for my birthday present go to the temple!

Love, 

Elder Potter

Elder E and Elder Potter

Elder Potter and Brother Fuentes

Julio, Elder E, Juan, Elder Potter, Sisters, and Nancy at the surprise birthday party for Elder Potter and Juan

Birthday Party preparations

Fun hats and ties for the party

Juan eating his cake with Elder Potter watches

Elder Potter enjoying his birthday cake

The Elders, The Sisters and Nancy

Elder E, Elder Potter, Juan, and Julio

Week 46: El Valor del Conocimiento (The Value of the Knowledge)

Buenas Dias todos!

This past week was very crazy and a lot of things went on! This week we had a great training from our zone leaders, Elder Brimhall and and Elder Glover, that they had received from President Erickson about conocimiento, or knowledge. It was so good! It really motivated me to study the scriptures and words of the prophets even more than I am now. There is a great scripture in Doctrine and Covenants 131:6 (and many others) that says a man cannot save himself in ignorance. And it is so true! We cannot be saved if we do not have a knowledge of the commandments that are written in the scriptures (in the Book of Mormon, Bible, Pearl of Great Price, and the words of living day prophets). I've gained a strong testimony of the scriptures on my mission and I know that they are the words of God. 

Also, Julio was baptized on Saturday and confirmed on Sunday! It has been great to see the changes that he has made in his life. It is amazing what a knowledge of the commandments can do to a person when that knowledge is put together with the Atonement of Jesus Christ and repentance, baptism, and the gift of the Holy Ghost. I know this church is true and that its the only church and gospel that will lift us the eternal life with our families. 

This upcoming week should also be really great! Sister Samudio, Beatty and Carrasco are going to have a baptism this week and we are all working hard and trying to work even more diligently. Diligence brings success when its mixed with obedience and a desire to do good. 

Well, that is about all for this week! ¡Que tengan un buen semana!

Con mucho amor, 

Elder Potter

Elder Potter, Julio, and Elder Escobar before Julio's baptism

Elder Potter, Julio, and Elder Escobar  We went and ate after Julio's baptism. We had Salchi Papa (it is french fries with hot dogs, it sounds super lame and plain, but its super good how the prepare it jaja).

Eating after Julio's baptism with the Sister Samudio, Beatty, and Carrasco.

Elder Potter, Elder Escobar, and Juan - a great convert and friend. We went to see Juan's family that lives on the hills.

Hurtado, Savaleta (2 families that we are reactivating), y Cordova (the bishop and his family) after a Noche de Hogar (Family Home Evening)

Gigantic hamburguesa Peruana that I ate. It had a fried egg, french fries, 2 patties, bacon and a bunch of other stuff on it.