TRANSFERED TO OTUZCO IN THE MOUNTAINS

So this week I have been dying of cold and climbing....  First off, its cold here at night.  During the day im dying of heat and at night I actually am using my sweaters haha.  Also, its up in the mountains... im dying of lack of oxygen like at sea level.  that and the fact that we climb up hills and down them all the time...  Its super different than my old area. 

So my companion is Elder Nystrom, there is a picture of him here.  He has 5 months in his mission but I think his Spanish is a ton better than mine was when I had his time.  He works hard..  a lot harder than my last two comps.  I like him.  My district leader is Elder May.  Idk if you guys got the picture back at Christmas of me and him but its Andrews and Devons cousin from Heyburn.  Its cool haha.  His companion is one of the latinos from my group, Elder Salazar.  I only have contact with these three.  Missionaries more than that not really.  In my time here, I had one of the Zone Leaders call but thats it. 

So Otuzco, its cold, its a mountain and like almost everyone works on Sunday so its hard to have people at church...  but its going to be good.  Us four are going to break the streak of bad luck here in Otuzco.  The area of Elder May and Salazar hasnt had a baptism for more than 9 months, the longest an area has gone without a baptism in the mission, and my area is number 2 with the last one 3 months ago.  We are changing that. 

Its so weird here to me.  Everyone that we contact, unless its in the door of someones house doesnt live here...  Sorry if i sound mad at all in this letter but im exhausted from the change and well a lot of changes... and frustrated...  and ya I just need to get use to the hills here and all........... 

Sorry about anything that sounds rude but ya its im tired frustrated and annoyed that the office missionaries are mad at me for stuff i really cant control but whatever.  Well see how it is this next week...

Love you

Sam

Javier and Cinthia in the Gospel together!

Well the exciting news is that I am leaving Chimbote Peru to go to Otuzco, a city or village in the middle of the mountains, YES!!!! its going to be cold por fin!!!!  haha so I leave tomorrow in the morning to travel to Trujillo and then from there i go to Otuzco.  Yep...  So I also...  got moved to senior comp....  wow... that was weird to hear.  My companion is going to be elder Nighstrom.  He just finished his training.  It reminds me a lot of when I was with Elder Johnson.  wow so weird.  Elder Johnson had my time in the mission and I had my new comps time...  Oh other side note,  my second comp and friend Elder Johnson became a Zone Leader 6 weeks ago.  It was awesome to see that in all honesty. 

So exciting news this week as well,  We had a baptism!!!!  The Husband of Cinthia, Javier, got baptized this last Saturday.  Im sending the foto of his baptism.  It is awesome to see that this family is all together in the gospel.  Im so excited for them.  It has been awesome to see this family grow in the Gospel.  I have literally watched the Light of Christ illuminate this family and their lives.  It is so amazing the difference the gospel makes in some ones life.

So on the bad news side...  I have not received that package...  My companion told me that he would send me the things through the mission but...  thats through the mission and who knows.. probably will take an extra 2 or 3 weeks.........  So I really hope it gets here today...  Oh how i hope so... 

So that is the things that have happened this week.  we will see how everything is this next week.  im kinda sketched out about senior comp honestly...

Love you all

Sam

Wow about time that we'll see that change haha. 6 years? I thought 2 years was long but I realized just how wrong my thought are... These last 2 weeks have flown by so fast that I can't believe that its Pday again. So the reason why I'm not writing earlier today is because the zone decided that they didnt want to play soccer but instead go to the megaplaza which is just a mall... how stupid...... First off, everything there is real, which means it costs a ton of money. Second, were missionaries, and dont have the luxury of tv and well that. Guess what was in like every store? TVs, video games, ipods, tablets, and pretty much everything that we leave home for 2 years (Longboards..... the worst part....) So I spent the whole morning walking around honestly homesick... I only wanted to go for one thing. Pizza Hut! that was super nice haha. I ate pizza today for the first time in well ok its not super big haha in my other area we ate pizza a lot haha. but it was a nice change from rice every meal haha. 
 So this week I have awesome news haha First off there is a picture of me with a youth. He is wearing my straight purple tie. I gave him that tie so that he could have a tie to pass the sacrament. He was baptized a month and a half ago and received the priesthood. Its awesome to see the converts here really taking hold of the gospel. I really am seeing what the sons of mosiah saw. their converts were more faithful and strong than those who had been born into the church. I was really happy to see him and also one of the other converts. Cinthia was baptized on the 9th of June. on the 8th of July she was set apart as Relief Society President. Ya... Its awesome to see them continuing in the gospel like I said a few lines ago haha
 





Sam and a youth in his ward.  The purple tie,
one of Sam's fav's!

So next exciting news. Javier, the Husband of Cinthia, is getting baptized this 21 of July. He came to us and said baptize me haha. We werent even planning on talking about baptism. I realized that the power of the Book of Mormon is powerful. the last time that we had visited with him we read the first chapter of Nefi. sorry Nephi haha. When we went by the next time he suprised us with telling us to baptize him. 



So 4th of July was interesting. I started wearing my tie and got a feeling that i should change it, so I did. But I did wear it for part of the day haha. I'll wear it another day.  .

Cock fight outside my window......









And the last pictures are idk if you can see it well but it is of a cock fight... I think that what there called right? This was going on outside of my room in front of the church. I talked with someone. There are laws against it but no one follows it... and the police dont enforce anything... It made me realize that I love the US. Really we are blessed when we follow the commandments and the laws of the land. I know the blessings of the Book of Mormon apply to here as well but there is so much more corruption that they dont enjoy the blessings of prosperity like we do...

So that was the week. Oh grandma, so I have decided a few things. Im starting to take the piano thing serious. The problem is that I cant practice but like once a week. In the book that you sent me, it said that there also was a cardboard keyboard, a book of simplified hymns, and note cards to learn the notes. Could you send that with some other things that i have thought of this week and actually written down haha. the first and this is more for comfort for me haha, could you send a big pack of Pilot G-2 Pens of the .5 mm tip. and the other thing is if you could send me some dri-lux round neck medium top garments. I have plenty of bottoms but the tops I have are super super small. They dont have dri-lux here in Peru and it also takes like 6 months to actually receive garments through the mission. Those things would be awesome if you could send those to me.

So, I'm excited to hear about this new Bishop this next week haha. Well I love you guys a ton! miss you all everyday and dad, I did get the picture. Thats awesome she got married.

Oh mom, so idk if i said this in the letter i sent or the email last week, but with the sd cards, could you take all the videos with your camera? I cant watch some of the videos from kiri and andrew and all of them that would be cool.

Love you all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sam

Haha well it would be buenas tardes right now for you all huh? haha its all good. sorry that we didnt write earlier today but we went to some place that is closed every monday except this week. Why is it open today you might ask? ya its open for the week of saint peter. ya.... they celebrate holidays for the saints of the catholic church... but hey owell haha it was open and i wanted to go. we were so close to hitting up a zipline course.. until i thought about the rules of the mission and realized that it probably would not be a good thing to do sooooo we didnt do it. it would have been a lot of fun. haha. so im sorry that this recording im sending is kinda long and especially because im explaining some things that dont matter a ton haha until the end haha. well you can hear my voice at least.

so how was your week this week. crap.... i felt that it flew... I honestly woke up saturday thinking that it was friday. maybe that would attest to the being sick on Friday.......... Ya my companion and i were/are sick right now. we couldnt leave to prosylite on Friday. he got an intestinal infection and well i just have diarrea haha. but you know what? I cant do anything about my diarrea but just keeping taking the meds a little. haha its all good. I dont hurt like before. my companion got a shot in his butt for his infection. he couldnt walk for the night haha. i felt bad but it was funny looking back on it now haha.

So tonight, wow i about started writing in spanish haha, we have a lesson with a young man. he loves to go to church. we invited him two weeks ago and loved it. were inviting him with a date tonight. wish us luck haha were going to try this saturday or the next. we arent 100 % sure right now. were going to go by the spirit. I love learning about things of the gospel. Its interesting to learn about the spirit and how it works i have to really focus on my feelings and the thoughts in my mind. I am still having trouble following the spirit 100% of the time but i am learning to....... uh... confiar sorry haha in the spirit.

I love getting the letter each week from Elders Holmquist and Cross haha its funny to hear how theyre doing and with Nicks letters, i can think a lot about my time 2 months ago when i had that same experience. its awesome every week haha.

well im gonna finish up this letter as i need to send some quick comments to grandma. Thank you so much each week for the emails and for the continued support. Nickolas, i would love an email or something to hear how youre doing haha. Love you all so much!!!!!

Elder Sam Spencer

forgot to share this one ha ha

NEW MISSION COMP

how the time just flies... crap haha.  So number one......  I got a new comp in my area!!!!  but i forgot the photo... sorry.  His name is Elder Perez.  he is from the jungle of Peru.  He is really calm and is a super hard worker!!!!  ah por fin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I learned this week the miracles that you can see when your comp wants to work and both missionaries want to put there full effort.  I have never been more tired in my life but it has been more rewarding than any other time in my mission so far.  Elder Aquino, my old comp would complain about how the ward is bad and that its hard to work.  ya its true, but only if you look at it that way.  I have learned to have a new point of view haha.  Im looking at everything more optimistically now.  there is only one thing that we need to fix....  a ward member that honestly, because of him and his mouth and many other things, he is the reason the work can be held back here.    but hey i cant do anything about it haha...  i just have to in the words of the madagascar penguins, smile and wave. just smile and wave.  

So last week, with elder aquino, the vago, we only had 2 new investigators.  with Elder Perez, we now have found 12 other people to teach and help find christ.  that is just one...  there are many many many improvements haha.  Im just super happy with the work and how it is going here now.  

So grandma, details about everything.1.  I received the sobes.  ahhhhhh they were awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  thank you so much for those, honestly.2.  I have received every movie that you have sent and wow.  how powerful and awesome is the Emma Smith Movie.  Thank you for each one of those.  Each one will help in one way or another with furthering the work honestly.  whether it is to further my understanding to teach better or to help directly the investigators.3.  the treats.  all have come safe and sound. I have enjoyed each one of those cookies other than 4.  But 3 of the other 4 elders enjoyed them just as much.  I know that this sounds bad, but i hate when latin elders come snooping around and beg for your food.  they dont appreciate anything and in all honesty, im never giving one a homemade cookie again.  But the American Elders, ya they understand the amazingness of the cookies.  Thank you from each one who took a bite from those wonderful treats.  So it would be cool by the way to receive more peanut butter m&ms and more variety.  honestly grandma i will enjoy whatever you guys send.  oh im using the lazy tie at this instant because we are going to play soccer like usual haha and i just want to change fast :)  

So before my time is up i just want to say to every father that reads this HAPPY FATHERS DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  (one day late)  Thank you for everything that each one of you have done to help me get where I am today.  I am eternally grateful for each person that has influenced me to come to this point in my life.  I would not give anything else to be a missionary.  I cant even imagine myself home right now.  I just couldnt do it with what i know now and what ive done in these short 9 months.  wow 9 months...  hey the next home coming will be mine in the ward huh?  weird...  Its weird to look at the blog and see one missionary on it who is now in his home.  he became one of my really good friends over the past 2 months and a half.  its crazy how fast time goes in life.  Well, im out of time like every week but thats ok.  Im more excited to be working here now with Elder Perez.  we are working our butts off to change everything here to be a better area than it has been for 6 months.

Love you all so much!!!!!Elder Spencer

These photos were on Elder Spencer's Mission Presidents Blog.  There was a Mission Conference in his area just after he arrived in Chimpote.

Blessing in Peru

Wow...  I cant believe its another Lunes...  haha.  So ya I dont know really a lot I can report on but hey here is a recording about the 5 people that we have to teach that really are worth mentioning at this time. 

All I can say is that we are going to have a baptism this Saturday!!!  A young man.  He is super excited and I really feel that he is more excited to be able to help with the Sacrament.  

Thats algo that I would like to say...  Dont forget what a blessing it is to have the Priesthood in our lives.  and more than that, Im so grateful to have the Melchezidec Priesthood in my house and pretty much all around me back home.  Here, There are many but I am just sad for all of the others who do not want or are not worthy to hold such a holy authority.  I thought a lot at church.  We have one young man that is active.  16 or 17 years old and only a teacher....  How sad... He could so easily talk with the bishop to be ordained to a priest.  I really am suprised that it is so easy to stop on the line of progression.  dont stop.  Dont ever stop. continue on until the end.  

Thats my rambling for the week.  sorry i dont have more to send.  Im going to try to think really hard for things that happened this week to let you know. 

LOVE YOU GUYS so much!!!!

Elder Sam Spencer