7/7/14 Email

From: Camille Weller [mailto:camille.weller@myldsmail.net]
Sent: Monday, July 07, 2014 11:44 AM
To: Melissa Wheatley;
Subject: Happy Late 4th of July!!! God bless America(:

 Wow did i miss my country this week (: You could definately say im proud to be an American... but then again i do love my peruvians...so you could also say my hearts a little confused (: Also happy late birthday to CHLOE and happy birthday week to my mama(: Last birthday youll have to have without me there (: what are you 25 now??? haha

Anyways this week was..... wait for it... another awesome week (: is there truly ever a bad week in the mission??? i dont think so (: Ill just go through the hightlights today instead of boring you all with the day to day (: 

Monday we had THE BEST family home evening of my life. We are trying to have it each week at a different members house and this week we did it at cecillia and elisbans house, the cutest 75 year olds in the world.. when we got there they were already sleeping.. but woke up.. troopers. haha we had a little lesson and then everyone showed up and we played that game where you cant show your teeth and have to say something to the person next to you.. this time the word was "terradactoral" and then that person had to do a dinosaur noise back at them haha the two oldies were the most hilarious thing ive ever seen going back and forth... it was just one of those moments where i realized  how happy i am to be here and how much i love the mission and being in Peru. Best night ever. 

Wednesday we had kareoke for mutual but only 2 young woman came so we all just ended up doing a bunch of songs and most of them were in spanish and we didnt know the tone or beat which turned out really funny. We did have a good lesson about talents and sharing the talents we have. 

Friday we had a killer 4th of July BBQ with the branch up here, we had an american flag, american music and me and hermana stone even did a sweet duet rendition of "God bless the USA"... one day you´ll all see that blessed video (: The activity turned out super well though, lots of members came with non member friends and family members and we  had some less actives come that havent been to church in forever. We talked about how the restoration happened in the states and why it happened there. Plus we had super yummy hamburgers and french fries.. cant beat a good hamburger on the fourth of July. 

Sunday we had testimony meeting and this time only 3 missionaries had the chance to bear their testimonies because the members were just getting up there, Victor even got up and bore his testimony and it seemed as though he had been a member his whole life. It was awesome. He bore his testimony about the Book of Mormon and how his whole life he studied the Bible but still had lots of questions but as he reads the two books together he finds the answers and said that the two together just make everything make sense. Something really cool for me because ive never really read the Bible super in depth and love to see the truth between the two sacred books. 

One day in our studies i found a scripture for one of our investigators...  Jacob 2:18 "But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God." and then Hna Stone shared a talk that she read called "Where your treasure is" by Elder Michael John U. Teh from last general conference and it went right along with that scripture. That whole talk is amazing and such a good reminder of what is important in this life and what isnt.. a lot of times us missionaries ask ourselves or eachother "why dont they get it??" why dont the members and people get that nothing on this earth is more important than the Gospel? that instead of spending their money on other things, if they just paid their tithing they will recieve a million times more blessings.. that giving up 3 hours on sunday to go to church doesnt compare to what God has already given us and the 165 hours that we have to ourselves the rest of the week. Anyways that talk tied right in with that.. heres some quotes..

Out of necessity, most of us are involved in earning money and acquiring some of the world’s goods to be able to sustain our families. It requires a good part of our time and attention. There is no end to what the world has to offer, so it is critical that we learn to recognize when we have enough. If we are not careful, we will begin to chase after the temporal more than the spiritual. Our pursuit for the spiritual and eternal will then take a backseat, instead of the other way around. Sadly, there appears to be a strong inclination to acquire more and more and to own the latest and the most sophisticated.
 I hope none of us spend money for that which is of no worth nor labor for that which does not satisfy.
We all know that our list of earthly treasures consists of pride, wealth, material things, power, and the honors of men. They do not merit any more time and attention, so I will focus instead on the things that will constitute our treasures in heaven.
What are some treasures in heaven that we can lay up for ourselves? For starters, it will be well for us to acquire the Christlike attributes of faith, hope, humility, and charity. We have been counseled repeatedly to “[put] off the natural man and … [become] as a child.”5 The Savior’s admonition is for us to strive to be perfect like Him and our Heavenly Father.6
Second, we need to put more quality time and effort into strengthening family relationships.

After all, “the family is ordained of God. It is the most important unit in time and in eternity.”7
Third, serving others is a hallmark of a true follower of Christ. He said, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”8

Fourth, understanding the doctrine of Christ and strengthening our testimony is a labor that will bring real joy and satisfaction. We need to consistently study the words of Christ as found in the scriptures and the words of living prophets. “For behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.”9

Sorry for the huge quotes its just something i know that is hard for me and probably others... to “lay aside the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better” and i thought it was cool that we were both reminded of that in our studies. 

Well a little update on the work here, we have a new investigator, Vilma whose cousin is a member, she is so awesome, she comes to all the activities and said the only reason she didnt come before was because her mom really doesnt like the church. We´ve already grown to love her so much and im excited to help her learn and grow. Also her cousin(the one thats the member) parents are planning on getting their papers so they can get married at the end of the month... something we´ve been waiting for pretty much since we got here, so pray for them! The place they have to go to get them is a day and a half trip in van.... talk about sacrifice! We also got an investigator from the elders that left last week.. his name is Qussayn ( ku-sai-yn) and he is the cutest little 10 year old ever. Love him. Plus his older sister is a less active so were hoping to help them both and their mom all at once (: This week was kind of a rough one with Brenda.. we had a lesson with her and her mom and i ended up in tears telling them how much i love their family and am sad that theyre moving... We still havent seen much progress with her dad which also breaks my heart. but she told us last night that shes going to talk to him today... keep praying for miracles (: So thats where were at right now! Elder Boyd is our new District leader and has helped us a ton with our goals we also have a lot of things planned this week to get some new investigators!(:

I am so amazed at the love that my companion has and that i have grown to have for this work. I remember asking RM´s what the mission is like, or what the hardest thing was for them, or if they ate anything gross haha and all i really remember is them saying that it would be hard but it would be worth it .. I dont thing anyone really understands that until they live it. Words cant describe the struggles missionaries go through.. homesickness, language dificulties, non progressing investigators, and the physical and emotional challenges of the work.... but all of those, along with the struggles at 10:30 prayer time do not even compare to the Joy that doing the work of the Lord along side him brings. Words cant describe the pure happiness that comes from helping others come closer to their Savior Jesus Christ and overcome personal challenges through his help.. and through helping them, overcoming personal weaknesses and selfishness as a missionary..  i love this work, more than anything i´ve ever done. Missions are the best. (:

I hope everyone had a safe and fun 4th of July and that everyone is healthy and happy! Love you all! (:

Hermana Weller