7/31/17 - Pics of the Week

Elder Nielsen and comp with Marina - "when Marina laughs or listens really hard she puts her hands up like that and leans forward and smiles while staring into the distance."

Samir and Gian Pierre with Elder Nielsen and comp. "Young men in our ward who always help us. Without them Marina wouldn't have been baptized."

Elder Nielsen and district

Puppies!

"I want one" - Elder Nielsen

Elder Nielsen and comp with Family Loyaza

7/31/17 - One of the Most Special Birthdays

This week was really good. We are working hard and finding lots and lots of people who are so good - now the trick is getting them their testimonies but don't worry, we have the power!!!!

Thanks for all the birthday wishes! This was one of the most special birthdays in my life for a lot of reasons. It's so wonderful to be a missionary, it's so wonderful helping people come to their Savior and when people look back at their life before this church and then after they are so so so grateful which translates into a ton of food for birthdays baby!! Ya know when you get too much and you don't feel good but there's homemade pie and you gotta eat it hot and you are sitting on the couch questioning if that was the right thing to do? Yeah I felt like that for 12 hours... I LOVE PERU!!!!!

Hma Conisla's dog had puppies and they are so cute - I want one. We visited famly Loyaza and they are really excited about marriage - the gears are starting to move. Marriage is a pain here in Peru but forward with faith people!!! 

Please pray for Ana Maria Conisla and Leonardo, family Loyaza and Evangelia and Sumer and Guillimina. 

We have this sweet old lady we are teaching named Gerillmina. I think I talked about her a few weeks back but she is a recent widow and is devastated. Right before her husband died he gave her a puppy. We passed by her house and the puppy just died of unknown causes and she was beside herself. Please pray for her. I feel so bad. We are trying our best to help her and it's so wonderful to watch her love grow for this work and for her Savior. I love you all.

Mariana is doing great. When she heard it was my birthday she jumped up and started running towards my voice (she's blind) - it was so funny.  Please pray for her and her kids. She is the best missionary. She is inviting all her family to be baptized and 2 of her granddaughters have baptism dates. I love this work!

Love,

Elder Nielsen

7/24/17 - Pictures of the Week

Drinking a quinoa drink they make -" it's life changing and wonderful. Shout out to my mom for making quinoa before it was cool."

Marina was baptized! (with Elder Nielsen and his companion)

7/24/17 - He Can Trust Me With the Little Things

This week was incredible!!!! We baptized Marina!!!! She is honestly one of my favorite investigators I've ever had. She is just like my best friend, but is 80, blind, and is from the rain forest and has the most wonderful accent. We have been through so much trying to baptize her. She lost all of her old friends (she used to go to a church up the street and that's where all her friends were) and her own family deserted her and she got super super sick and has bronchitis. The doctor told her she couldn't get wet but we felt soo strongly that she should be baptized last Saturday. I felt sooo strongly that I should promise her in the name of Christ that it would be okay. The water was freezing, seriously, I swear there was ice flowing around or something and she was trembling because it was so cold but she was baptized!!! Her testimony after was fire and it was one of the happiest moments in my mission I think. It's a miracle because she did recover a lot from her illness!!! She was joking and was like "if i get baptized again I'll be healed all the way (shes been sick for over a month.) I love her.

I want to testify about the importance of the spirit in our work. I've been thinking a lot about the promptings I get. I feel sooo strongly to talk to someone only to have them ignore me and walk away, or knock a house but they don't want any of it or no ones home. Why do I get them? I've come to learn that the Lord is seeing if I'm going to be obedient. If he can trust me with the little things he will bless me with the big ones. We were walking on Friday and planning a lesson and I felt that I should talk to this man, but we were late for a  lesson so I didn't stop right away but after 5 steps I felt it again and this time I stopped and walked back over to him and started talking. His name is Luis and he accepted a baptismal date without a problem and came to church on Sunday. I know that if we do our part HE will do His. I love this work and I'm so happy for this principle. 

Our converts had a birthday lunch for me with duck and rice and tres leches cake!!! I love the people of Peru!!!

Love,

Elder Nielsen

7/17/17 - Pics of the Week

Elder Nielsen and two missionaries

Elder Nielsen and his companion

Baptisms! - with President and Sister Stauffer

Elder Nielsen and his companion at Jesus and Celia's baptism

"I love the mountains" -Elder Nielsen and his distsrict

Elder  Nielsen on top of the mountain

7/17/17 - The Best Week

This week was honestly one of the best, if not THE best week, of my entire mission. I'm approaching one year which breaks my heart, but this week was incredible.

Monday and Tuesday I was with Elder Wells and we get along great. We had a family home evening with a member and they gave us food. We were dead for the next 2 days. You really don't appreciate what it feels like to feel normal until you're sick and dying. It was bad, but we got over it. 

We are working hard and finding a lot of great people. About 2 months ago we asked a person who didn't want to listen to us if they knew anyone who was through hard times. He told us about a certain house. We passed by but no one was there, then again and talked to a man, but nada. We were walking by there last Friday and I felt sooooo strong to knock the house again. We found this little old lady and she wanted us to come in but we have rules so we came back with a member 2 hours later. Her husband just died a few months ago after 55 years of marriage and it destroyed her, absolutely destroyed her. We taught her the plan of salvation and through her tears she thanked God over and over for sending us to her house. She came to church on Sunday and fell in love with all of it and she is so excited to come back and to learn more. Her name is Gerimillina and she"s wonderful.

We had 2 baptisms this week!!! Jesus and his mom Celia. President Stauffer was there and it was incredible - such a  privilege to have them. His wife gave a talk on the Holy Ghost that was great. I know they are called of God and that this work is true. I love this mission with all my heart and I love all of you. Thank you for everything!!!!!

Please please pray for Anna Maria Conisla and Marina. Thank you!!

We climbed the mountain again because it was a clear day and it was amazing. I just feel so at home in the mountains - I love them. 

Love,

Elder Nielsen

7/10/17 - Pics of the Week

Elder Nielsen and David - "the light of the ward"

Happy 4th of July

Deep fried grubbs

Cemetery on the top of a mountain

"It was green up there! We almost started to cry!"

Houses on top of the mountain

7/10/17 - Like a Dream Come True

THIS WEEK WAS GREAT!!!!!!!!

To start out I went on a 2 day transfer with Elder Moyano. He's from Argentina and is a funny guy. We worked hard and taught back to back amazing lessons together - it's so great. We taught a man who is really struggling with his son and we read Mosiah 27 and put himself in the shoes of Alma's father. I love the Book of Mormon!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was probably my least patriotic 4th of July but it'll do haha I still love you America - don't worry.  Our zone leader Elder Stodmeister sent us messages of patriotic stuff to help us celebrate including this scripture 1 Nephi 13:17-19. It is sooo amazing!!!  

There is a man with down syndrome in the other ward and his name is David. He is the light of Zapallal 2 and he is the funnest, sweetest person I've ever met. He always gives us hugs and he helps his mom do laundry. I love him so much - he's wonderful. 

We ate more sordi!!! (those grubs). It's getting cold here (which is the best) and I guess they got cold so they made themselves little cocoons out of the coconut where they live. They were really really warm. I love nature- it's so cool. Anyway, this time we deep fried them hahaha. It had the same taste as an egg yolk just with different texture. 

So we went on a hike for p-day. There is this huge mountain in the other area and we just started walking straight up it. We found a cemetery which was actually really pretty and then a bunch of houses wayyyyy up there. It was soo foggy that we couldn't see much but it's green up there!! We almost started to cry. We were freaking out so bad - nothing naturally grows here because it's so dry so to be surrounded by green - it was like a dream come true!! It just felt so great to be hiking in shorts and clean air because we were in a cloud. It was so incredibly humid. I love nature - God is great. 

We worked really hard this week and found people just fine but it's getting them to church that's the problem. Remember the family Colcas from like 3 months ago? The father was chill but he grew cold and they weren't progressing so we dropped them. Anyway, we went over there and taught them and we were sharing scriptures about how we need to repent NOW and how there are only 2 paths. The Spirit was so strong! It was insane. It was honestly incredible - the love of the Savior was there and everyone in the family promised to be better and to work harder. I love this work. There is nothing better than teaching with the spirit and bringing people to Christ. Nothing. 

We are working with a family named family Loyaza. They need to get married to be baptized and we are working with them. The problem is he's from the Amazon, the border of Peru and Brazil. It's over 40 hours away by car and boat, but a miracle happened and he's in the computer so he doesn't have to travel!! They are so worried about money and food and everything but they are so great. I love them so much. They have so much faith.  He's read first Nephi and second Nephi and is loving it. We watched "The Testaments" with them and they were asking where they can buy it. I love that movie. Christ was perfect - He was perfect surrounded by such imperfect people it must have been soooo frustrating but He never fell. It blows my mind. I'm so grateful for my Savior. I want to be like Him. 

All in all such a great week. Time is flying at an unhealthy rate, it scares me, but it's all good. I love this gospel and if you have a problem or a doubt or anything just pray and HE will help you!!! He loves us!! I love you all. Thanks for everything and very happy 4 of July!!

Love,

Elder Nielsen

7/3/17 - Pictures of the Week

Elder Nielsen and Elder Staten

Northern part of the city

"This pineapple changed my life - only 5 soles!"

7/3/17 - Working Hard and Learning A Lot

This week was solid. We are working hard and learning a lot. My comp and I get along great. We are working hard and even though we are trying to do everything we can we can always do better, we can always learn more. 

I've talked about it before, but I have like an obsession with reading now. I could read for hours and hours. What a blessing to be a missionary and have your whole life dedicated to the work. Time is flying and it makes me sad it's going so fast. 

Marina doesn't want it anymore. She talked to her neighbors and they blew up on her, started telling her every anti- mormon thing you can think of. We sat there for an hour and cleaned up every single doubt she had but still she is done. They told her she is going to die alone and no one is going to talk to her ever again. It breaks my heart, but we know she knows it's true so we can't and won't lose hope.

We had visitas de trabajo con Elder Staten and he's the best. We get along great and we taught his investigators who were just baptized on Saturday. They have 2 orphans from Brazil who live with their family. They are so funny- the 11 year old boy's Spanish still isn't very good. It's nice to have someone understand how I feel. 

I have sent a pic of the northern part of our mission. We got lost trying to find an address - directions here legit make no sense. It's so frustrating.  Brigham Young and the grid system win hands down man. 

Love you all!!

Love,

Elder Nielsen