AMAZING P-DAY!

P-DAY! Elder Nino and Nielson in the back- Standing in front of the Plazzan  De Armas

So first off, the last p-day we had was amazing. The president re changed the rule that we couldn't leave our mission on p-days, and so each three weeks, the zones have an opportunity to travel to central Lima and see a little of what it has to offer. Luck would have it that this week was our week and we went to the plaza De Armas and toured an church, the covenant of Francois or something like that. We went underneath in the catacombs and saw all the bones that they had. Like THOUSANDS of bones all lined up in a circle with their skulls and everything. it was really really cool! ah ah

Plazza De Armas

On the bus to a super fun p-day! 

Standing in front of a church- not sure of the name.

Elder Peralta & Hyer in front of the church

The baptisms that we had in Collique this week fell through. it was really really sad, we had worked hard to help one sister earn the money to get out of debt with the government so she could be married... but we went and visited her a day after we gave the money and she had used the money for personal things... so we lost the baptism of her and her children. We working with her to see if she really has a desire to be baptized, or if she just wants to use the church for money. It was really sad to see my companion torn up about it, apparently shes been working closely with this Hermana for a while before I came and my companion was... frustrated to say the least.  but regardless we move on, we work hard and we try to bring more people who are ready to accept the gospel to Christ. Whoo!

The RS .President and I on the hill buy where I live

The Other side of the hill 

Something really really really awesome about this week as well is that I was able to return to Las Violetas for the baptism of Elsa. It was soo soo great to come back (a lot of de javu) and see everyone, and see the fruit of our labors come to the baptism of Elsa Gamarra. She was a reference from the other sisters working in Independencia. She wanted to change her life, and so we started visiting her and trying to teach her. This was back when I didn't really understand Spanish really well so when we had transfers the connection was lost. And well as time past she received us less it was really hard for her to pay attention. We were at the point of stopping visiting, and then we contacted her sister in a park. We started visiting her, and this lit up the interested in Elsa again and we have been working with her ever since to prepare to put God in a higher place in her life. Its been a beautiful experience to see the change in her and her sister, and now the other sisters that live in the house are interested to hear about our message as well. The house that they live in, doesn't have the greatest reputation in the neighborhood, and some members were anxious that we were visiting it so much, but it just goes to show that you cant judge a book by its cover and that the Lord works in mysterious ways. It was so great to be there for the baptism and see Dalia as well, our other convert who is living with Elsa right now and being a great support! Also great news, apparently the boyfriend of Dalila has seen the great change in Dalia and wants the same thing in his life as well. The missionaries are working with him and next month if all goes well he´ll be baptized as well! Crazy! Well see how it all pans out.

The Baptism in Las Violatias

At the baptism in Las Violates 

Nellty & I 

Right before the baptism 

2 Sisters who's story I will never forget.. 

The people at the baptism

Elsa & I At the Baptism

This week we also had our Multi zone meeting/ training with the president. We talked a lot about how we can become the fourth missionary. Ha ha I'm trying to be the best missionary I can- and be as obedient as I can, it is tough but I know there will be blessings!

Well I  love you all so much and enjoy the pictures of this week. For a lot of you its the last week of summer, so drink it in! Thanks for your prayers :)

Hermana Bowers

 

Transferred to the City Collique

Transferred to Collique

The City in my neighborhood-Collique

So, it finally happened. I finally, after 6 months, have experienced being transferred! So goodbye good old Las Violetas in Independencia, and hello to Zona Collique, ward Collique. We share the ward with two elders, and we eat lunch together everyday. I`ve only have had about five days here in the ward, so I'm still getting to know the area, the members, and the people that were working with.

My Zone in Independencia

District Jose Galves, -Los Violetas

It was so sad to say goodbye to all the amazing people in Las Violetas. I took pictures with as many of the special people that I could and will always remember them and how amazingly kind they were. It is amazing that I could make such awesome friends in six short months, While I was there half of the time I couldn't understand what in the world these people were saying. But with time a patience I slowly understood and my heart has forever been touched and changed by the people I have met here in Peru.

Kevin-My first convert

Rodriguez Family

Amachi Family

Mirla the wife of the mission leader-a dear friend.

So, Collique is basically the opposite of everything that I had in Las violetas geographically. Ha ha its going to take a bit to get use to, but I will admit that I was a little excited for change as well. The whole area is a HUGE hill with an incline similar to that of "Roseales Hill" in the field behind our house. I am hoping to lose some weight and get back in shape a little. The area I am in now is a lot more humbler than Las Violetas and it has made me realize how much the people in my anterior area really had. Here, its luxurious if you have a cement floor. The majority have only dirt floor, walls made out of brick if your lucky, and tin roofs. Thank goodness it doesnt rain very much here in Lima!!

This week we had another pollada activity to help a sister raise money to get out of debt, so she could get married, so she could get baptized. We were short about 10 people the night before and we worried about how we were going to make it, but by some miracle we sold all the plates of food and yea if all is well, well have a baptism of a family this Saturday. Who-ow!

Also, we had service this week and we helped mix concrete to make a floor for a family that lives in the area of our zone leaders. I´ll admit I watched more than did anything (us girls aren't really good for hard labor) but it was great to help in any way that I could.

My companion now is Hermana Jimenez from Argentina! She just turned 28 this week, so we celebrated with pizza!! She just got done opening the area and training a new North American, so shes really grateful I can somewhat speak Spanish and have a little time under my belt. Seven months now, whoo!

  
My new companion- Hermana Jimenez                            Pizza Celebration!

I love you all and thank you always for your continual support! Keep my in your prayers!

Love,
Hermana Bowers

Another Awesome Week in Peru

WHOOO so this week was AWESOME!

Grandma- she always calls me Barbie

Me and Elsa and Nelle

First off we finally finally FINALLY got Dalila in the waters of baptism, and after yesterday she has received the gift of the Holy Ghost. We bumped into her on the street this morning as we were running around doing errands and she couldn't stop telling us how happy she was. She's a special one that girl! Her boyfriend, whose agreed to her baptism, support her in keeping the law of chastity and her moving out of her house assisted both the baptism and the confirmation. We hope to be able to teach and progress with him someday!

The Mission President and Delila

The Group at the baptism

 

Delila & her boy friend

The Rodriguez

Also, the same Saturday, but early in the morning, we had the apollada de Nancy and Jhonatan (yes that is how you spell it) to raise money for their wedding. We were running around all week trying to get the members to either donate food to help out or buy a plate of chicken to support the pollada and the night before we were really worried if we would come out with a profit. BUT the lord has his hand in all things and not only did we come out with a profit, but just barley enough to pay for the expenses of the wedding! Me and my companion were rejoicing and doing a lot of praying of thanks for our loving Heavenly Father who helped us, help this couple to take one more step to put their life in order. So we don't have a wedding date just yet for them, were working with Jhonathan to overcome a few things, but when we can were going to save the date and finally finally get this family married, and eventually baptized as well! It was really amazing how the whole family of Nancy and Jhonatan help cook and prepare, even though they have thier own religion and beliefs.

Making Chicken for the wedding

Ward members helping with the chicken

              

The only bitter sweet thing of this all is that today is the day of cambios. I´ll find out after internet if I have a change but its 99.9% sure that this is my last two days in Violetas! But you never know. I have six months now in this area, but there are stories of people who have had up to 9 months in one area, so yea I guess you all will find out next week! Also coming up this week we have a Multi zone meeting and a test on the memorization of lesson 1... which well I don't have memorized so this is going to be a little bit of a disaster, but you just keep rolling on no?

Investigator on date for the 23rd 

Thank you so much for your loving support and keep up the work in your own wards! Visiting and Home teaching is SOOO important to sustain a ward and us missionaries are SO HAPPY when you members do you visiting teaching

Miguel who came to buy some chicken

         

Helping out at the Hamburger store

mucho amor
Hermana Bowers

Making cookies for the Latino's

                 

There is a Point to Scripture Reading

So this week I have seen the blessing of fasting and the church in action. Elsa, one of our investigators that we´re working with to be baptized the 23rd of August, had to make some tough choices and leave an abusive boyfriend. They´re still talking and apparently he tries to visit with her, but were working with her to try and put an end to the terror and pain he has inflicted on her and her family. The thing is that she is trying to finish up high school and has no means of work or how to support herself. So we talked to her and she agreed to try and talk to the bishop. At first she absolutely did not want to, but we helped her overcome her fear and ask for help. The bishop then explained what the church can do, and with the help of relief society Elsa can go and buy food for a little while until she can secure work and become independent. This was fast offerings in action, and it was so great to see the end result, and how the charity of the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is being put to use.

I was also studying in Jesus The Christ about how Jesus fasted for 40 days before he started his ministry. There was a point that was very interesting on how the fast was necessary to subject the mortal side to the spiritual. Fasting isn't only going without food for a bit because mom or dad says so. It's not only just a way to get God to notice our prayers a little bit more. It is us subjecting our mortal frames to the spirit that we have, and drawing closer to who we were before we came to this earth. I thought that was interesting.

With hopes and prayers we´ll have a baptism of our Investigators Dalila. This last Sunday she bore her testimony and it was a really tender experience. Dalila is a tender soul, and when she feels she FEELS so she came sobbing back to her chair and gave us a standing hug and kept telling us thank you for how we knocked on her door. It was sweet, but just a little, awkward in front of everyone.... in the middle of someone else s testimony. But yea you take what you can get.
 

My companion and I

Another precious moment was last night when I taught a less active family the game that my family does to read their scriptures. I explained how we read two pages, each person a verse, and whoever reads the last verse gets the point and has to say the family prayers, de rodillas, or of the knees! I had the father pick a letter and then whoever was closest read first. We drew up a piece of paper, wrote all the names and Joseph won the first point. I hope that this will help them read scriptures more as a family and help them further develop their testimony. No one in their family has read the book of Mormon all the way through, so what a better way- than doing it as a family? This also makes me want to give a shout out to my family and I want to say thank you to my parents who always made reading the scriptures a priority. I can testify of the blessings of this in my own life and share it with the people here in Peru. I have really been humbled to recognize how great of a family I have and the blessings that I have been able to take a part of thanks to the gospel constantly in my life.

This week for service we helped cleaned this abandoned house, and the second floor is a storage unit for costumes, so we have some pretty funny pictures as a zone and companionship with random masks and costumes-- I will send them when I can! Sorry to those who e-mailed me, next week I will have time to get back to you, and keep up the good work in Zion!

Having fun cleaning out the costume closet.

As a Mission we read a talk called the Fourth Missionary and I encourage all of you to read it. I am the definition of a third missionary and am repenting and trying to become a servant of the lord with not only my might and strength, but also with my mind and heart. I encourage you to read it and apply it to your life. Your calling in the church is of God and vital to the souls of the children of God that live in your area. But we should not just grit our teeth and serve, but give our hearts to the Lord.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/34660140/The-Fourth-Missionary

Until next week!


Hermana Bowers

Good Luck In Peru

                                                       Studying in my apartment

Ever had a bird poop on your head? If it happened to you you´d think you´d have rotten luck no, you´d ask yourself, "oh wow of all the things and of all the places the bird had to go, why me?". But quite the contrary! Here in Peru it is a sign of GOOD luck and so you can count Hermana Bowers as one of the luckest missionaries there are! The worst thing is that I didn't even realize that I had what I had in my hair until during a lesson with one of our investigators. I just thought it was just water that dripped on my head. NOPE. So when I found out what it was I started squealing -and we had to leave the house and my companion tried to clean it up as best she could with my water from my water bottle. It was pretty funny I´ll admit. (I can say that now after my shower and all that jazz).
Peru in the winter is really really wet and humid (sooo humid to the point that my towel that I used to dry off from my shower two days ago still hasn't dried out)

This week we had a member that were teaching experience some surprising difficulties in his life, so hes been tagging a long with us during the lessons to try and get his mind off things, and so its been fun trying to teach him how to contact, how to teach and be a missionary (he converted late so he didn't have the chance to serve a mission). Other than that, we had two of our investigators show up to church with their little kids, so it was cool to see them together at church.

Transfers are in two weeks, and I'm sure that this time I´ll get moved around so I'm trying to enjoy the last two weeks I have in Las Violetas! Well see what happens! Keep your faith strong and love the Lord.

Mucho Amor De
Hermana Bowers

                                    Y.W. Pres. Y.M. Pres. in our ward- expecting their 1st child