One More Change! January 23, 2017

Good Evening everyone, Well it has been a crazy week this week getting ready for everything with changes. Last week I was told that there was a possibility of me staying here in the offices for a 5th change but that he would confirm that with me on Wednesday. Anyways so we got to Presidents house on Wednesday to pick up all of the changes and Elder Caballero and I will for sure be staying one more change here. At first it was a little hard to accept that I would be staying another change but then I realized that the Lord still has people prepared for us in Casa Blanca more than anything. With the very little time that we had to work there last change I feel like he is giving us our time to actually be able to work there now and find the people that he has prepared for us at this time. My testimony has grown because I have been able to see his hand in all of this work. It has been an extremely stressful 6 months but I am so thankful for it, because it has brought me closer to my Heavenly Father, it has taught me to depend on him more, and it has helped me to realize that he is watching over me, my companion, and this mission at all times. More so when we are in the pit of trial is when he is carrying us, and when we rise to the top he is always cheering us on and encouraging us to do more and achieve more with the capacity that he has given us. For that I am so thankful to be here one more change to help me see this relationship I have with him. Anyways so getting to what happened in our week. On Monday of this week we started out really excited because we had all of our investigators come to church on Sunday. So we decided to put all of our focus on them to help them try to progress. When we got to our area on Monday we went and we were looking all afternoon for them and couldn't find one single one. It was hard to have that happen after a week filled with so many miracles of seeing the people begin to come forth and progress. On Tuesday it was the same story. We looked and looked and looked and we couldn't find anyone. We ended up having to try to look for people to teach, contacting and trying to get referrals from the members but nothing seemed to be working. On Wednesday after we recieved the changes we finally found Belen and Jorge, the couple that we are trying to help get married. They were so excited to see us and they had been waiting for us to find them all week. Anyways we talked to them and we were able to make a little headway on getting their paperwork for their wedding. On Thursday Sister Madsen called me saying that we needed to start getting ready for the program that we were going to do here in the city. So on Thursday we did the same drill that we had done the last week, except Sister Madsen listened and corrected and I just played for about 4 hours working with all of the missionaries and their special parts that they were singing. On top of that Sister Madsen also told me about parts that I would be singing in as well. It was so fun to be able to sing with all the missionaries but also to help Sister Madsen prepare everything. On Friday we had a huge practice with all the missionaries. It was long but it was fun to be able to participate in all of that and see all the missionaries here in the city. That night we had a big ward activity to have a BBQ and do Family History. It was so cool because our 5 investigators showed up and we were able to teach them and help them start their own family history. It was a great experience to be able to see them get excited about all of that and it also helped them to realize the great importance of getting baptized themselves. All of the ward members did so good to include them in everything and in the end it was as if everyone was a part of the ward. Something that was a little sad was that the Stake President heard about Madai and how she didnt get permission to get baptized. So he came with us to talk to her Mom to try to help her understand, but when we got there the mom got scared and left before we could talk to her. Madai felt so bad about it and we felt bad too because everyone had made such a huge effort to talk to the mom. We know that there will be another time for her to receive a full testimony. On Saturday we had another huge practice and then right after that we had a BBQ with President at his house to say goodbye to Elder Ardon the finance secretary. It was fun to finally be able to relax a little and see the President relax a little too. We ate hamburgers and hot dogs, had pasta salad, with ice cream, and all in January!! It was pretty fun to have. After wards we went out in the street and played frisbee with everyone and President has a hidden talent for that!! But then the fun ended and we went off to go to the program in one of the stakes here in Oaxaca to do the program. There werent a lot of people that showed up that night and it was hard to really perform really good for them. It was sad to see all of that hard work be to perform for so little people. On Sunday we went to church and it was a hard day there. We had commited everyone to come to church but no one showed up from our investigators. After church we went to the program to prepare to perform in our own stake. 15 minutes before it started everyone started pooring in. By the time we were singing the first song it was filled up all the way to the back stage as if it was stake conference there. Geez that made me so nervous. For the program I had been assigned to play the piano as an accompaniment for Oh Holy Night, and then sing I am a Child of God in a acappela quartet, and then a duet/solo with a Hermana as the final song. It made me so nervous to sing for that many people and I think my voice was shaking so bad but in the end I think it turned out. Anyways it was a busy week, but I dont think I have been happier before. I did things that I had never done before, and I am so thankful to Heavenly Father for helping me to do those things. I still have a strong testimony that he strengthens us and takes us beyond our capacity. It was a hard week in finding our investigators, but I feel as if it was a week in which I could strengthen my own testimony in a way that has always been powerful to me, through the music. I had several confirmations that this work and this church is true through the power of the sacred music that we have. I am so thankful for the opportunity to perform it and have it in my life. I know that if someone ever has a doubt, that through music that doubt will always go away because it is the most powerful way that the Holy Ghost bears witness of the truthfulness of all that Heavenly Father has done for us. I am thankful for these opportunities that we have had here in the mission and I am thankful to be here. Thank you all for always supporting me and for all of your letters each week. I hope you all have a great week! Elder Peterson

Showing Maria how to do her Family History work

I cut Elder Ardon's hair but I messed it up too...

Elder Sosa, Me and Elder Jimenez