Hermana Rachel Anne Boody: Week 29

Happy Pday!! also thanksgiving, right? actually I have no clue when thanksgiving is or rather was...but I`m assuming it was this week cause its the last week of November!! ah man how crazy is THAT, that december is just around the corner. Time is FLYINGGGG and its freaky how fast the weeks have flown by. I feel like we just barely got in October and then BAM-end of November. I got a really nice xmas card from Liz & Drew Armbruster and its crazy that Christmas is coming up!! ahhhhh loco, simply loco.

Peruvians her have this awesome tradition of painting their houses every year around Christmastime and its so fun to see what random color combinations they`ve got goin`.

So thankful that we were able to hear Elder Nelson and his wife this week!! it was incredible. all about how we can each prepare to enter the temple by making our homes a place in which we can grow and learn together, feel the spirit, and progress spiritually. Wow, it was simply incredible. and I`ve never seen so many peruvians headed to a chapel-haha. now if we could only get that turn-out every sunday at 8am!! for reaaaal tho..it was funny how chaotic everything was right before he came to speak. My companion and I squeezed out of the kitchen that we were crammed in, watching it off a tv, rushed to the bathroom-which we ended up using the men`s bathroom since there were far more women waiting than men, then rushed back to our seats. it felt like the women that rushed around trying to get oil for their lamps and who didn`t wanna miss seeing the bride and groom. except in this case, it was a herd of people with Elder Nelson that passed my the window in the room that we were waiting in. The messages were incredible and we`ve been sharing some of the messages with the less-active families that we`ve been visiting in the ward.

With some of the members of ward counsel, we prepared and delivered alfajors to 6 less-active families in the ward this week. it was a great turn-out!! just like the cookies are sweet, the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ are even sweeter! They were really grateful and it was perfect that the bishop could extend his great love and desire to help them with thigns that they are each struggling with. we`ve been visiting a lot and its incredible to see the blessings of these rescued souls!! La obra de salvacion es incredible, en serio!

Yesterday, we had an incredible lesson with Jose!! With 3 ward members too, ahhh it was so boss-they each taught part of the lesson and gave such strong testimonies!!! He accepted and we are VERY excited for his baptism on Dec 7th!!!! wahhoooooo!!!

Luis is doing well, building more of a trust with the members and even taught a part of gospel principles yesterday!! it was awesome. seriously LOVE Luis, esp. that he was willing to take Eduardo and MammaTransito to church yesterday in his taxi. so grateful.

My dearest, dearest pensoniesta`s husband died this week:( He`s been sick with cancer for quite some time, but wow it was so awful to see her so sad. In the morning after she recieved word, I just hugged her and she just cried and cried as I held her. Please pray that Mamma Maria and her family will be comforted! She`s such an incredible woman and at least he`s not in pain anymore. How truly comforting the Plan of Salvation is, that we can see our friends and family again!!

We`ve been room and job hunting for a woman that the other Hnas in our ward met the other week. She`s been abused by her husband for the past few years and recently got kicked out of the house, without anything. She has 4 kids, but only the one thats from a different man has been with her-the rest with the husband, Oh man it just broke my heart, she`s trying to find somewhere to stay and it needs to be close cause her son has colegio until decemberish. please pray for her!!! There`s a few members that we`ve been asking about a room, but as for the job...nothing yet.

We`ve been grateful that more of/a variety of ward members have been accompanying us to our lessons. Except its always just a little funny to me when we ask for their cell number and they don`t have one, cause it just got robbed. people`s cell phones are getting robbed everyday!! and dogs too. kinda random, but a family in the ward`s little pup got jacked earlier this week. just goes to show how truly protected we are, no one`s tried to steal our movistar:)

I have been studying and reading in the Alma chapters in the Book of Mormon and am truly so grateful to be able to read from this specific word of God each morning. I only wish personal study was a few hours longer!! I know that Jesus Christ truly atoned for our sins and its only through Him that we can be cleansed of our sins and come to feel the genuine love, joy, and peace that God wants us to have in life. I`m so thankful for His perfect example to me and that I have the opportunity to improve each day.

Love you all so much!!!!

headeed to the beach today, wahoooo!!!

and we have hot water again!!! ahhh life is good.