Feliz Ano Navidad!

Dec 31, 2012

Hola! Feliz Ano Navidad!

So I hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas. It seems like forever ago. But that’s mission time for ya, its always a little off. (time passes fast... I can't believe that Braden gets home this week, wow two years!!!)

It was so so good to talk to you, and see your faces. One of the best Christmas presents!

Happy Late Birthday P!!! and Congrats Kyrst!!!

So my Christmas was absolutely fabulous!! Last Monday we had the opportunity to go with a recent convert and his family to deliver Christmas to some families. It was the best part of my whole Christmas and some thing that I will never forget. Here in Peru they don't do a whole lot of exchanging gifts, but this family wanted to do something for others. So we went to a family that is less active and that just had a baby. The mom just started crying as we walked in and she saw the gifts that we had for her children and the food for her family. The little kids were so excited. Then as we finished and headed home, the family we were with pulled up to the corner and Hna Lida rolled down the window  and started motioning for the little girl on the corner to come here. The little girl was sitting in her usual spot selling bread for dinner.  She was hesitant but came over anyway. Hna Lida handed her a new barbie doll. The little girls eyes we huge, and she just smiled. It was the best part of my whole Christmas!!! I have chills just remembering it. This is what Christmas is all about! Being like Christ- and full of love. I'm pretty sure this was the only gift this little girl received for Christmas this year. She'll never forget. What did you do for Christmas? Did you do anything that will be life changing in the life of somebody else?

We are teaching this couple, that the elders were teaching before. Rosa and Manuel. They have been to church lots, and love it.  It has been hard for them to come to church this past month because of their business. But this past week we caught them home for a little bit and we were able to teach them and read the Book of Mormon with them. President Turk told us that if we leave something for our investigators to read in the Book of Mormon and they don’t read it, no matter what we have planned we should read with them. We want them to know that the Book of Mormon is so important in their conversion. So Rosa and Manuel hadn’t read so we decided to read 3 Nephi 11 with them. It was perfect. With the inspired questions that we asked--Rosa committed her self to be baptized!! I was jumping in side. Manuel is going to take a little bit more. He wants to be baptized but not yet. But He is going to be baptized too!! I just know it.

I hope that you all have a happy new year! Make some goals, but don’t just make goals, make some plans to accomplish them too. It will help. And if you don’t know how, read Preach my Gospel (chapter 8)

I love you all! I hope you have a great new years. Don’t stay up too late! Who knows if we’ll make it for New Years, Staying up Christmas Eve about did us in for the week. :)

Lots of Love

Hna Sandstrom

Sorry no photos, I forgot my adaptor  :(

Feliz Navidad, Un Prospero Año de Felizidad

 December 24 2012

I cant wait, Im so excited to talk to you TOMORROW.

This past week has been the greatest! I am now understanding why Christmas in the mission is so great. The spirit is just flowing.

So the day before we had our big christmas program in the town square, my companion and the other hnas  in our zone remembered that they didn´t have a white shirt to use for the program. So Hermana Turk said that she was going take us shopping and then to lunch. I was going along to translate. :)  And as we were walking in the mall, she said that if the hermanas could get their shirts all in one store and fast, then we would go to chilis for lunch! I about died. My mouth was watering! And guess what....they did. It was one of the best Christmas Presents Ever!!! So delicious. Its funny how the littlest things can make you happy!

We had our Christmas celebration with President and Hermana Turk on Thursday. It was great. We had a devotional in the morning; which was incredible. They talked about three of the best gifts that we have been given. 1. Book of Mormon 2. The Holy Ghost and 3. Jesus Christ

The spirit was so strong as some of the missionaries shared their testimonies. It was so powerful. And it just kept getting better! Then we celebrated our goal and ate cake before lunch. After lunch at Roky´s we were off to practice for the Christmas Program. It was awesome. It was so fun to see Elders and Hermanas that I haven´t seen in a while. I love them all!!!

I love this time of year to remember our Savior and the example that he has set for me. I can learn to become more like him everyday. He showed us the way. We can choose everyday to follow the example of our older brother.

I am so grateful for this gospel, and for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I know that he suffered for my sins, afflictions, pains and struggles. He knows me and He can help me be better everyday.  I´m grateful for this time of year; a time we have to remember him.

I love you all my Peruvian heart!  

Talk to you soon!!!

Les AMO!

Hna Sandstrom

Feliz Navidad

Dec 17, 2012

Hola Familia Mia! Como Estan?

Feliz Cumpleaños Connor!!! I can’t believe that you are going to be teenager! Ahhh! Stop growing up!  

This week has been great, hard but great. So it definitely doesn’t feel like Christmas here. It’s so hot! The tan lines are coming in and we are sweating like crazy! But I am feeling the Christmas Spirit! 

Thank You so much for the Christmas Packages. I love them! I’m so excited to share the gifts with the little kids here. I even let some little kids in church play with the quiet folders and sewing cards during sacrament meeting on Sunday. So fun! Thank you so much! 

The work this week has been awesome! We have been working really hard, and we are starting to get a hang of the new area. It’s all on an incline, but we are getting to know the streets and the people. The members are willing to help us and love the missionaries. But it was another tough week finding people in their homes.  The first couple of days were really long and we didn’t find anybody.  But Thursday, Friday and Saturday we found people!

I keep being reminded of the Conference Talk about the Lord being the Gardener and cutting us back because he knows what he wants us to be and who we can become. I love this talk and how it applies to me right now. Right now I am studying chapter 6 in preach my gospel and it’s all about Christ-like attributes.  And I think this is what I need to learn. To realize that it’s all in the Lords hands and that He is going to help us, but we need to be humble and patient and full of love and charity. So much to learn! I love it! 

This next we have lots of Christmas stuff going on. It’s funny here, because they only start getting ready for Christmas about a week before the big day. In the states they are just dying to get started on Christmas, just waiting for thanksgiving to get over. haha.  We are singing Thursday – half of the missionaries in the town center, it should be great fun.  We will have a devotional with President and Hna Turk that day too.  Friday is the ward Christmas party. Then Monday is Christmas eve! yay! Here they don’t wake up early. They all stay up until midnight Christmas eve and then have a big dinner together, then the visit all of their family. So the party starts Monday night. Its fun! And there are lots of fireworks that go off too. It will be a great view from the sixth floor! 

I love you all! And hope that you are enjoying the spirit of Christmas! I love this time of year. People change, they are happier, we express more love! Why can’t it be Christmas all year round! 

Loves and Hugs!  Hermana Sandstrom 

Mi alma se delita en las cosas del Señor

December 10, 2012

Mi alma se delita en las cosas del Señor

(My soul delights in the things of the Lord)

Hola Familia Mia! 

Como estan?  Esta Todo Bien aqui! 

This week has been great; so much has happened here it seems like last week was forever ago. Lets start off from last Tuesday. On Tuesday we were able to hear from Elder Hooker. He is a member of the Seventy and a member of the area presidency. It was a great meeting. It was so full of the spirit and we were able to learn lots from President and Hermana Turk, and Elder and Hermana Hooker. Its so amazing how the church is growing. And it is even going to expand more. Yea for Missionary work, and yea for working with members! 

There is another exciting thing that happened! We had ward council this week!!! I know that it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, but it is! Having ward council is the key to success! In the past 6 months all the wards have been asked to have ward council every week. Its a time when all of the leaders of the ward can get together to help out and to share ideas, and plan the best ways to help out the members.  We have been trying for a while to help our ward have ward council.  Normally it is usually just the bishop or one of his counselors that meet together. Well yesterday during sacrament meeting the bishop announced that we were having ward council at 5. Yea!! We were shocked and it was the miracle that we had been praying for. And it was great! The ward has some great new goals for this next year, and it was just what we needed to start 2013 off right! 

We have been working hard this week. We have been getting to know the new part of our area, we have found some great new investigators and are excited because the members up there.  They are really excited to help us out. As we walked down the street there were members calling us from their houses to come in. They were also presenting us to their friends and neighbors. :)

About a month ago the elders in our ward had a baptism. Hno Pacheco. He has lots of friends in Utah, and he was actually a reference from there. The missionaries have been visiting him for about a year. Well he finally got baptized. And he just had an interview yesterday, and is getting the priesthood this next Sunday. :) Also we are teaching his wife and daughter. His wife wants to get baptized but she wants to wait for her daughter. So we are working hard with them, we need to get more confidence from Roxana (their daughter) so this week, I’ll be helping her with her English homework, who knew it would be so useful to speak English. (but I have realized how much grammar I have forgotten oops)

So that has pretty much been our week. I love being a missionary. I love Peru. I love my family. I love Christmas. (Here they don’t really celebrate Christmas until like the 20th, its different, but I love spreading Christmas cheer. It’s the best!)

I love you all so much! 

I am so grateful for the miracles that I have in my life! I am grateful that I have had my eyes opened to see the miracles that are around us everyday!

Smile! Be Happy! Share! Pray!!! LOVE!!!!

Love you LOTS!!

Hna Sandstrom!! 

Its the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

December 3 2012

Hola! 

Como estan?

La Vida es maravillosa aqui en Primavera!

This past week has been quite the whirlwind. But we are loving it and we are riding right along with the spirit of Christmas and of Miracles! We have decided to be a lot better at looking for the miracles that are all around us. And we have found quite a few this past week.  

First of all I had a great time with Hna Barrios and Hna Villanueva (new sisters). It was great. They both are so so excited serve a mission. It was fun to remember the excitement I had when I started the mission and all of the nerves I had my first day. haha. I have changed a lot since then.

   

So to start things off, the work with my new companion and It is going great. We have had a lot of the same areas and have had a great time looking back on old investigators and members.

One of the biggest miracles this past week has been that we had a baptism! So the elders told me before they left that there was a little kid that would be turning 9 the next week, and that his whole family are members. The bishop wanted to wait to let the missionaries prepare him and baptize him. So that’s what we did. We went to get to know Gustavo on Tuesday and then we verified that he knew the commandments. But everything went great and there was a huge turnout of members at his baptism Saturday! 

This week has been spent getting to know a lot of the new area, its huge, and we have been walking a lot!  Lots more still to see and to know. I’ll let you know next week how we are doing and who we are teaching. Sorry I’m about out of time! 

Love you all!! 

eating cow tongue 

Have a Happy Cheerful Holiday Season!

Spread the Christmas Cheer for All to hear!

(sing loud too :) )

Hna Sandstrom