Those who are broken can be made whole again

Family and friends,

Well Ive got to tell you guys that this was no doubt the hardest week of my life. Having said that, I'm doing surprisingly well. Thank you for all the emails i got and the support that was showed towards me. I really do appreciate it. Luckily, as well as you guys, I've seen a lot of tender mercies here in the field.

     This letter might be a little longer than usual because I've two weeks to catch you guys up on. To start out I had a lot of fun this week which took my mind off the stress for a little bit. JaJa  I had a drunk guy kiss me on the mouth this week. The dude was super sly and super fast too. He caught me off guard.

      I also got the chance to climb about 3 water towers this week and I took lots of pics.

 

 

      We also went to the house of a less active member that has been coming to church lately and she has about 70 ducks. We showed up and she asked us if we wanted to see her ducks, we told her heck yeah. She did this weird little bird call and all 70 of her ducks flew in and were waiting for their food. Then she asked us we were hungry. And of course we said "siempre" (always). She picked up and duck and told us to kill it. jajaj so we did. Its remarkably easy to break a ducks neck just by twisting its head a couple of times. jajaj so about 2 hours later we were eating duck, it was delicious!

 

 

      Well as you know last Monday was not my day. We were playing a game of soccer with some neighborhood kids and one of them kicked the ball over the fence and it broke a thermos for drinking tereré (an herb drink) The next thing I knew the kid ran away, what a tool right? 

So I climbed the fence and got the ball but the lady was outside and she ripped me a new one. She yelled at me for a good 5 minutes telling me to buy her a new one. After that I went and bought her a new one but put a note inside, along with a lesson 2: plan of salvation pamphlet. JaJa I hope she reads it and gets baptized. Coolest conversion story ever!

 

 

      Paraguay and Argentina played in the copa américa this week and they tied. That might not seam like such an accomplishment but it sure is for Paraguay. Argentina is ranked 2 in the world and Paraguay is ranked 85. Everybody was going crazy. Its like a high school football team beating the Patriots!

      We also had the chance to hitch hike 2 times this week, Paraguayans are so generous.

     Now for a little bit more spiritual stuff, but not really!

     This week we get to have a member of the 70 come and talk to us. His name is Elder Gonzales from Uruguay. It will be super great.

     As well, we have been reading the Book of Mormon together as a mission and marking all the references to Christ and the Atonement. I'm in 4 Nephi and as of right now the word Señor (Lord) appears 1,265 times. Its amazing to think that some people believe that we are not Christians.

     As far as work goes, We have a wedding planned for Alberto and Ofelia. It will be this upcoming change. Our plan is to get them married so that they can be baptized. I pray that everything will go according to plan.

     Last but Definitely not least, I fasted this week. I have to say that it was the most successful, satisfying and important fast of my life. It was the only thing that brought me peace throughout this week. It the only time in my life that I feel I had done a true fast. Thank you Elder Fielding for the advice. 

     This was a hard one. I can't say yet that I'm glad it happened but I'm sure I will on day. I love you guys so much. Thank you for everything. Now its time to go preach the Gospel of our Savior so that others can have the same hope that you and I have.

Elder Petersen

Hitchhiking and the Missionary Mantle

Hey erbody,

   Well this was a week to remember. First of all I'd like to announce that I'll be in the airpot a year from today. whoo hoo!  but its also not enough time to do what I need to do here. I better get crackin. I cant beleive that its been a year already. The next thing i know im going to be on a plane again headed home. flippin loco

   On kind of an interesting note, we had to hitchhike back to our area this week. jaja  Let me tell you all a story:  Elder Benavente and I needed to go visit a recent convert named Mabel. Mabel lives in a little town called Itakurubi del Rosario about an hour and a half bus ride away from our area. We got out there and had a great lesson with her in front of a catholic church. jaja then she had to go back to work.  We went to the terminal to see what time the next bus left and the guy kind of chuckled and told us not until 1 in the morning. jajaj Our next option was to call a taxi and pay about 150 thousand guaranies to get back home, we checked our pockets and we didnt have enough money. Next and final option, call the assistants to ask if we can hitchhike back to our area and to my surprise they said yes. jajaj so we headed to the street. About 3 or 4 cars stopped but they were going to another city. Finally a van stopped a ways up the road so we ran to see where they were headed and to see if we could catch a ride with them, luckily they told us to jump in. We had an hour and a half to teach them about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. We did so. jaja Turns out that they only stopped because they were monnonitas, a church from germany, and they thought we were Germans. jajaj good stuff  

 On a little bit more of a spiritual note this week I really felt the mantle of being a missionary. Im not sure why, but total strangers seem to trust nineteen and twenty year old kids with little to no life experience with some of theyre biggest secrets. I like to think that people see me as a trustworthy person but i know there is something more than that. Maybe its the Apostalic calling that we have as missionaries that sets us apart from other people or maybe its that we devote all of our time and efforts towards the Lord and the building of His kingdom. 

At this point in the mission I have really felt this mantle rest upon my shoulders. I surely felt it after our hitchhiking adventure when we went to the house of a young single mother with two daughters. We were just teaching a normal lesson to help her find some excitement to come back to church when she started crying. All she said for a while was this is really hard. After a moment or two of silence she told us that she is pregnant again and we are the first people that she has told. Why she trusted us with such a big secret, i still don't know but I have the faith that if she chooses to turn to God in this time that she will find peace. Just like so many of us have.

  I truely love this work and im so grateful to be a part of it. I love you guys so much and i hope you have the best weeks of your lives.

Love Elder Petersen

 

 

 

 

Letter to Dad (and Mom):

 

Hello Dad,

I'm glad everything is going good back home. I love to hear that everything is going fine. How is your hip doing. Mom told me that it has been bothering you lately. How is work going. Any cool new assignments. And the temple, how is that going. Its almost over right.

  Can i just tell you that I'm so glad you raised me the way you did. I'm grateful to you and mom for all the things i know how to do. I'm grateful that you raised me to be not so socially awkward. Thanks to you guys I am a fairly street smart person. And thanks to God I've, had several book smart companions to help me understand the importance of being book smart. Now i know that's not really fair to you guys but that wasn't your fault, i just didn't listen to you guys when you tried to show me that being book smart is just as important. 

I've made a lot of goals throughout the mission that I intend to reach that will help me become a more rounded person. Ive learned that nothing is impossible with the Lord so I've made it a habit to pray to reach my goals. With the testimony that I've received in the mission I know that with the Lords help I will reach my goals. I love goals!

  I know that was a little random but its what I've been working on, personally, here in Paraguay. God works in mysterious ways.

  I love you Dad. I hope you have a fantastic week.

love Jeff

 

Motos in church

Email conversation:

No adventures for now but we did have an investigator come to church with us yesterday which was great. his name is Alberto and he is about 5ft. nothing! haha he is super cool. 
Our other investigator didn't come and we went to his house afterwards to check up on him and he was hammered he had an earring in which was new and he said that the hospital put it in... not sure if real or not but i don't think so! jaja what are ya gonna do??

That is hilarious!  Maybe he's not quite ready yet. Lol!  Sounds like there is a big problem with alcohol down there.  Yes? 

Alcohol and sex!! but strangely enough they seam to go together!! not to be gross but Sunday mornings the streets are lined with beer bottles and used condoms.

jaja!  hey i pulled out some money to buy a soccer ball because our Pdays here aren't that fun and we used it for about an hour and then it popped!!  : (

Oh bummer!  Can you buy a frisbee there?

no!! the only thing to do here is play futbol ( soccer )

If we sent one, could you teach them how to use it?  You could play Frisbee football? 

oh id love that!! all the north american elders always ask if someone has a frisbee!!

Paraguayan Oreos!

Motos IN the church?

Early morning soccer, and gun shot!

Early morning soccer

Howdy,

   This week was full of stories. jajaja everything from soccer at 3am, bullets, progress and rain.

   That sounds a little bit more interesting than it really is. But it has been raining a lot here which is great. It makes it a lot less hot.

    Soccer at 3 is a pretty dope story though. We had to take to sisters to the terminal where the bus leaves to go to Asuncion and the only bus left at 2:30 in the morning.  Santaní is a little bit dangerous at 2:30 in the morning so we needed to accompany them to the terminal so that they wouldn't get robbed or something. We decided to call up the other elders here in the city and invite them to play some soccer after the sisters were safely on the bus. To my surprise they came and we played soccer until 5 in the morning. it was super fun and an experience that I wont forget.

   This Saturday we decided to go by and visit an investigator who has tons of potential to progress and eventually be baptized. So we stopped by his house to invite him to come to church with us on Sunday. jaja  He told us that he wouldn't be able to because he accidentally shot himself in the arm and he needed to go have surgery on Sunday. Who shoots themselves in the arm?

    We gave him a priesthood blessing to comfort him and let him know that he would be alright. I think he was a little bit weirded out because that was the first blessing he had seen or received in his life. Afterward he told us that he had felt something pass through him. I would assume that would be the Spirit.  : )

    The work here is moving along. Not too many investigators progressing but we did have 3 less actives come to church yesterday which was fantastic. 

    Oh and we have changes tomorrow but i don't suspect that i will receive changes. But that's about it for this week. I love you all and hope you have a great week.

 

Love Jeffrey

Oh ya...Mother's Day!

I totally spaced it yesterday but HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!!! you're truly the best mother I could have even imagined of having!!

I truly cant even start thanking you for everything that you have given me or taught me, i just want you to know that i love you so much!!

only about a year until I'll see you in person!! i'm stoked!!

Elder Benevente and Jeffrey

Pork...the other white meat!

So while chatting with Jeffrey I asked him about the "whitewashing" thing and he said that they were asked to basically go into another area to help the missionaries there because they were really struggling and getting down because there were only 2 people at church...them. They just needed a pick-me-up and to know that they aren't alone. They went in for 2 days just to give the others some help and encouragement. I asked if it helped and he said "I hope so." I love that there is always someone to lend a helping hand. A great lesson to learn, no matter what side of it you're on.
Oh ya, and he helped slaughter a pig! Eeew.

I think this is Elder Benevente

500,000.00 for 3 stiches

First of all we has the awesome opportunity to go to the Temple with our zone and another one from Luque! In the other zone was my trainer, Elder Fielding. It was really good to get to see him again and catch up. I learned so much in the Temple. And it was all around a good experience.

Next we had a service project with a member. We chopped a tree down with machetes= super fun! Until my companion cut himself. jaja We went to the hospital and he got 3 stitches. We had to pay $500,000.00 guaranis which is about $100 dollars. I offered my super glue but he didnt dig that idea. jaja

This week we were walking down this highway and there was a lady on a motorcycle that hit a speedbump going about 40mps. She wiped out and slid for about 20 yards. We were the first ones to get to her. Almost all of her body was one big road rash and she must have hit her head because she had a massive bulge on her head and where the bulge was there was no hair, just a bloody mess. 

After running to get to her she was just whispering Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. We just stuck with her until someone else could come and help her. She wanted to go to the hospital but she didn't want to leave her motorcycle, she wanted to drive it to the hospital.  I told her no because she was probably concussed, if not worse. Other people heard me tell her no and they weren't really happy with me. They started yelling at me and told me to leave and let her do what she wants. So I did what they asked and left. She hopped on her moto and left. I hope nothing else happened.

Last of all, We had a lesson with one of our investgater who was absolutely hammered. We asked him if he had been drinking and he told us no but he definately was. I asked him if I could smell his "coke", he told me that I probably shouldnt. I asked him why and he said "because you'll know that I'm lying".  Drunk people are so dumb. jaja  We asked him if he'd like to change his life and he said yes. I told him to pour out his alcohol and after looking at me for a good couple minutes not saying anything, he stood up and poured out his alcohol. It was very surprising but so awesome at the same time. I couldn't help but smile.

I sure hope he progresses. I guess we will see. 

This week we also get to skype with the fam and im super stoked to see em!! I'm going to hit a year here in a couple weeks, that means after this week I only get to skype 2 more times!! Its flying by!!

I hope you all have a great week!! I love you guys!!

Elder Petersen