Monday. February 9. 2015-Week 27

Mi Familia

Ok today was freaking crazy so I don’t have a ton of time to write. Today for P Day we went to Sechura (a city in Peru....actually a desert in Peru haha) and we went sand boarding!! Our whole zone went and so did Presidente Rowley and we sand boarded it up!! It was amazing. I’m sending pics. But ya we spent the whole day hiking huge sand dunes and flying down those suckers on snow boards!! I ate it so hard a few times but I guess you could say I’m basically a pro sand boarder now ;) 

This week was great. First off Rony is still progressing super fast!! He is living all the mandamientos we are teaching him and he is really doing everything that he can to reach his goal of baptism. I am 95% sure we will be baptising him the 22 of February but please keep praying for him, he needs all the blessings he can get right now!! We had a lot more success teaching and things are just going great!! We had ward conference this week and let me tell you we witnessed a miracle at that conference. Our ward is sorta not very motivated. They don’t get a lot of the things done that they should and we were really worried about how this conference would turn out so we fasted and prayed and I now have a renewed respect for the power of the fast. Our conference was amazing!! The church was clean (because we cleaned it the day before haha), the classes were great, the speakers were amazing, a ton of people showed up, and the choir sang like angles and that’s saying something because Peruanos are terrible singers hahaha!! So yes I was very pleased with this conference and this week. Were just going to keep working to make this area even better!! 

Sounds like your week went amazing!! Tate that blessing will help you in so many ways you don’t even know it. I read my blessing 2 or 3 times a week and I learn something new every single time. Live your life in a way to receive these blessings.......and that means stop getting the cops called on you!! Freakin criminal hahahahaha!!!! Also I hope you are practicing your spanish because you know what’s coming!! Elder Wilson round 2 in Misión Perú Piura!!!!! Perry I love that you’re going to Off the Field and kicking some serious butt!! I’m still not totally convinced that you’re the toughest Wilson though so well have to see when I get home!! Dad you are one hard working man. I am more and more impressed by you every single day with your work ethic, your love for your family and your love for the church. Never stop being who you are and keep leading our family with your example. Mom I have too many things to say about you but today I’m just going to say thanks for being the best mom in the world and I love you with all of my heart!!

That’s all guys don’t have time to answer all the questions so I’ll get to them next week!! Love you all so much and hope you have an amazing week!! I’m always praying for you!!

Much Love

Elder Wilson

The big orange this is like a bread heater because our house used to be a bakery. 

Jose Gomez Elders Quorum President

 

Monday. February 2. 2015-Week 26

Elder Wilson, Rony, and Elder Mauricio

Mi familia!!

Wow a lot of stuff went down in Idaho this week!! First off Tate I am so dang happy to hear that you will be back on the field in no time!! Don’t go too fast and make sure you do all the exercises you can to strengthen it up and then get back in there and kick some freakin butt!!!! Also Perry had an awesome week!! Skiing and a part in the play and she’s going to start off the field!! Wow that little girl can seriously do it all!! She’s gonna grow up to be one of a kind and amazing. Tell Damen to get better for me and tell him I’ll be praying for him and also a big congrats to Lauren and Maise for joining me out in the mission field!! Also all 3 of us are going to be getting back right around the exact same time!! How many missionaries does our ward have out in the field?? I love hearing about your trips to the temple that place is amazing so never take it for granted. Go as much as you can and always just focus on the feelings you get from the Holy Ghost because I promise you that you can receive so much revelation in the temple.

Also the Super Bowl sounds like it was a good game pero yo odio the Patriots!! I miss football sooooo much:(

So about my area. I really do love it like a lot!! The work is going amazing here and I don’t know if that’s because of the people or if because we are doing a better job of teaching haha. Our ward only has about 85 people that attend every week and about half of them are returned missionaries so that’s pretty cool. My bishop’s name is Obispo Sosa. He is about 40 years old and is actually half crippled. I don’t know exactly what happened to him but I do know that he served a mission and that he is a man very in tune with the spirit. My pensionista se llama Hermana Jaime. She is great and so is her food but we just don’t have a great realation with her like we did with Hermana Rebecca because she’s never really around but that’s ok:) Also I am still serving in Peru so it’s still hot as heck haha but not as hot as Zarumilla. 

You asked a question about the CCM. Ya the CCM didn’t teach my anything!! All we did was play ping pong and watch Mormon Messages in español hahaha but I have learned a heck of a lot out here in the mission field!!

This week was a good one. We still have just been working our butts off and we are meeting new people to teach and also our investigators Rony and Olivia are advancing like crazy!! I am so excited for them and I really almost know that we will be baptising Rony for sure and hopefully Olivia. They both know that this gospel is true but Olivia just has a really hard time getting to church.......even when we pass by for her house haha. We’re really going to work on teaching her about the Sabbath Day haha.

Also I got nailed by another water ballon this week hahaha we were sitting in a resturante eating and BAM I got nailed haha they just love soaking white people!!! But no we barely ever eat in resturantes just every once in a while.

I am also still working out hard every day but I prolly only weigh about 170 pounds right now!!

We did a big service project this week. It was a clean Piura thing so we went around sweeping streets and raking up trash and all of that good stuff with about 150 missionaries and about 500 other Peruanos. It was a great project and I got to see my boy Mooring so that was awesome!! I haven’t seen him forever but he’s doing good and still working hard!! I swear he will be one of my bros for life!! I went and worked for a day with the leaders of our zone and that was good. Always good to learn from them . My castillano is coming along great and I can really teach these dang lessons and speak with everyone now.  

I encourage you all to make reading as a family a huge huge huge important activity in your days. I promise you that our family can be way stronger and this is one of the best ways to do it. Read, ponder and pray and amazing things will come to pass in your lives. I have such a strong testimony of the scriptures because I have been reading them like a mad man haha. They are true, they are the words of God and they change lives. Read and then share what you learn with others. Prepare yourselves siempre to be ready to share the gospel because we are all missionaries!! 

So ya I am officially done with 6 meses here in Peru. Wow let me just say that these have been the fastest 6 months of my life and if it gets faster I might as well already be sitting at home haha. I love this mission and I have loved every single second of serving it I have learned so much and I have felt and seen the spirit change lives and that’s why I have a little question for you guys. What would you think about me extending my mission. I am still a long ways off and it’s not for sure but I just want to hear your opinions on it. 6 months down 18 to go!!

So ya this week was good. Keep praying for me and my area and my compañero and we will be just fine. I love you all so much. You guys really are so important to me and that’s one of the reasons why I am here. To strengthen our family!! I hope you all can feel the blessings of my mission in your lives. Well that’s all I’ve got. The church is true and I love you all!!

Much Love

Elder Asher Dean Wilson

Best Part: We now know for sure (almost) that we will be baptising Rony. He is amazing and is feeling the spirit soooo strong!! Keep praying for him!!

Worst Part: Well it’s not really bad for me but my zone leader got robbed this week right down the street from my house!!

Funniest Part: I got nailed by another water balloon while sitting in a resturante

Most Spiritual Part: Our fast this week. We fasted for a lot of things in particular and we saw basically all of them come true!! 

P Day with Elder Huranga and Elder Clawson, both from my group at the CCM.

Elder Mauricio and Elder Wilson

Monday. January 26. 2015-Week 25

The new district

Mi familia!! 

Well this was the craziest, funniest, most sad, most happy and definitely the most spiritual week of my mission so far. 

Lets start off with that it is carnivals here and they do the whole crazy pelting with water balloons thing haha. So we were walking down the street one night and we heard something go whizzing by our heads so I turned to look at where it came from and BOOM!! I got nailed straight in the throat by a water balloon from the third story of a building!! I’m not even kidding it hit me straight in the front of my throat and it freakin hurt!! I was laughing so hard and we went running away trying not to get hit again haha freakin kids. Gotta love Peru.

So now for the more real parts of this week. First off 4 people died in our neighborhood this week. 2 random people and the other 2 were investigators. I really didn’t know them but I felt so sad when they died. Like seriously it still makes me so sad just to think about it. So we attended a funeral service this week and wow the spirit was so strong there. One of the sister missionaries in our area gave a talk about the power of the plan of salvation and how his whole family has the chance to see him again after this life and wow I don’t know if I’ve ever felt the spirit so strong in my life. There was not a dry eye in that entire room. I have such a strong testimony of the plan of salvation because I know that our God is a loving God. He will give whatever he has to keep us happy with our familias and I am so grateful for this because I know that we will all see Gaven again after our lives here. 

We also set two dates for baptism this week!! We will be baptizing Hermano Rony Santos this 22 of Feb. and we have a goal to baptism Hermana Olivia Ordinola that same day!! Olivia is a little tougher to get to listen and we really need her to find her testimony for herself but Rony has seriously been prepared for us by God. He has been into hard core drugs for about the last 15 years and he is just sick of it. He told us he has been waiting for someone to help him change his life and in all of our lecciones the spirit is seriously soooooo dang strong!! He is going to church, he is reading and he is really feeling the spirit!! This gospel changes lives!! I know it does and I see it working on people every single day!! I love this gospel and this work!!

Well that’s all for this week. First off I want to ask you all to pray for Rony and Olivia. They are really working to change and see if this gospel is true and that means Satan will be working extra hard to tempt them so your prayers can help them so much!! Thanks!!! Thanks for your email mom. Trust me I can feel your love all the way here in Peru. I have learned so much from you guys about how to live the right way and now I am just applying what I am learning in my life. Thanks for your great examples to me and if you are going to follow anyone just put your faith in Jesus Christ and follow His spirit. I love this church and I love this gospel and I love all of you soooo much!! I hope you all have a great week and I will talk to you soon!!

Much Love 

Elder Wilson

P.S- 2 of my favorite scriptures: Ether 12:27 Alma 26:12 

Monday. January 19. 2015-Week 24

No pictures this week from Elder Wilson. So I found this one from one year ago. He was rockin the stache and was SO exhausted from a week of finals.

Mi Familia

Were at a different internet so I can’t send pictures this week so next week you’ll get lots!!

Well you guys were right in thinking that this area is different cause wow it is nothing like Zarumilla!! The first crazy thing here is that everyone here studies english so tons of people want to talk in english!! I still speak in castellano basically 24/7 but tons of people here and my companion know english!! Ok so my new area is awesome!! It is smaller than my area in Zarumilla but I already love the people!! We are also working with a lot more menos activos which is good but different. But we are also progressing people como investigadores. We don’t have many investigadores because Elder Mauricio and his old compañero were trunkies and didn’t really work hard at all in this area. So about that yes Elder Mauricio is a trunky. He doesn’t want to work really at all and he wants to watch movies and listen to the radio and lots of things like that so it’s been a good but hard first week. I have really been sorta ruling this relationship with an iron fist haha!! I have to wake his butt up in the morining and make him study, I have to drag his butt out the door to teach and I basically do every single one of our contacts. Ya its sorta hard but I have noticed that even in this short amount of time together he’s already starting to get better!! He’s starting to teach a lot more in the lecciones and he’s helping me plan and ya good stuff haha. I got a letter from Presidente Rowley basically saying to be an example and to never stop working hard and that I’m here because he has a lot of faith in me. Wow that was good to read and really has motivated me to work even harder!! There is always something more that I can be doing and I will not stop doing as much as I possibly can until I get hit by a truck and can’t move or something like that hahaha. So I really have a lot of love for Elder Mauricio but I’ve just got to get him back on track. 

My new district is vacon, its 4 elderes y 2 hermanas and my new ward is great but very few people assist.......for right now!! My goal is to have that place packed every Sunday by the time I’m done here!! I’m also part of the ward choir and I basically have the lead part singing in spanish hahaha!! It’s a great way to strengthen the ward though. We have people that show up to choir that don’t show up to church so it’s a good way to work with them.

So my new area is great, I’m happy, I’m healthy (working out like a freakin champ every morning!!), and I am working as hard as I can to share this amazing gospel with every single person here in Peru!!

Ok so I freakin knew Ohio State would win 1. They’re from the Big 10 2. Oregon can never finish haha man I miss football so dang much!! Glad to hear everythings going great at home and everyone is happy!! Read, pray, help others, go to church and always put the evangelio de Jesucristo first in your life and watch the blessings flow.

Oh ya dad thanks for the letter. I miss you a ton and don’t worry I will keep working hard and tell the whole church crew I say que tal!! 

So that’s all for this week. Just working hard and loving the people of Peru. If you can please pray for Hermana Olivia Ordinola and the Familia Fernandez for me were working really hard to set a date for them!! I love you all and hope you have a great week!! This church is true I know it with all my heart!!

Much love 

Elder Asher Dean Wilson

It’s not raining any more

My new apartment is way nicer than in Zarumilla I really like it

I still want new sunglasses and possibly a new small sports type bag I could use for proselyting 

We have a pensionista who cooks and washes our clothes for us just like in Zarumilla.

Monday. January 12. 2014-Weel 23

Elder Wilson with his new companion, Elder Mauricio.

Mi Familia!!

It’s official I did not have a transfer.......oh wait ya I did haha!! I am done with my time in Zarumilla and am officially a missionary in Piura. I am in the actual city of Piura about 5 minutes from the airport and the house of Presidente Rowley (by the way he finishes his mission in June). My new area is called Jorge Chavez and it’s in the area Castilla Piura. It’s been a long day of traveling and packing and unpacking but I am settled in and ready to learn my new area!! My new compañero is called Elder Mauricio. He is 20 years old and from Lima, Peru. He is a great guy and I am way excited to work with him but he has been know to be a trunky so I’ve gotta be careful and keep him focused and working. Even with his history he is the lider de distrito here so I will be learing the ropes of how to be a lider de distrito this transfer. This area is night and day different from Zarumilla!! It’s all big city here, like they have resturantes like pizza hut, burger king, chilis, etc., and all the houses are way nicer and wow it’s just way different!! We went to shop for our food today in a store called Totus, basically like the Costco of Peru, and it freakin blew my mind!! I bought PEANUT BUTTER!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can buy peanut butter from a store right down the street!!!! So ya it’s gonna be a lot different here but it will be awesome. Mom you would be very happy because our house is way nicer and there is no mold on the walls and our bathroom is actually usable haha. So ya as I learn the area I will give you some more updates but I am way excited to be here and I am going to work as hard as I possibly can to change this area through the power of this gospel!!

So I had to say good bye to everyone in Zarumilla this week and that sucked!! I visited 3 familias my final night in Zarumilla and they all just cried their eyes out and it was so hard. Hermano Francisco, the husband of hermana Rebeca, is a manly man and he cried like a baby!! It was just really hard. When you dedicate your life to serving these people it is just terrible when you have to leave them. Every single one of them basically said that I have to come back after my mission and visit them and one of our investigators actually said that if I leave his familia was going to stop investigating the church!! So I talked to him and changed his mind on that but this is how I can see the success of my mission. I know I haven’t had any baptisms but I know that through this gospel I have changed the lives of many of the people of Zarumilla and that’s what it’s all about. Baptism is so important but what’s more important is making sure that every single person in this world feels the love that our Savior has for every single one of us. I love this work.

So ya all is well and I am super excited to work in this new area with Elder Mauricio. 

So glad to hear your week went good!! Sounds like you all kept busy and I’m glad to hear it’s nice and cold at home because it is hotter and hotter hear every day!! So that’s all for this week but I love you all so much!! Don’t worry about me because I think I’ve finally got this mission figured out haha!! I hope you all have an amazing week and I really like this scripture 3 Nephi 5:13!! I love you all so dang much and miss you like crazy but I love this work so I’m gonna stay here for another year and a half haha!! Love ya all!!

Much love

Elder Asher Dean Wilson

Familia Ramoz ‏ 

Familia de Liliana y Genaro ‏ 

Monday. January 5. 2015-Week 22

With Francisco and with the family of Genaro with our muñeco!! ‏

Mi Familia

Happy Flippin New Years!!!!!!!!!

Well 2014 was officially the fastest year of my life!!! Its feels like it just started a few days ago and now its gone!! Its crazy to think that a year ago at this time I was in school and gettting ready for lax and now I'm here in Peru preaching the gospel!! Wow things can really change in a year!! But don't worry mom this year is going to go by so dang fast that next thing you know I'll be home......or maybe I'll just live in Peru forever because its pretty awesome haha;) Glad to hear that everything went good with the fam and I hope you told them all that I miss them and there's a new Hobbit!!!??? I don't get to hear about any of this stuff down here in Peru haha but ya that ones going on the list for sure!! Today we went to the beach to play some fútbol in the morining and after that we went to Tumbes to have lunch with some other Elderes.

So this week was a solid week here in Zarumilla. We worked and worked and worked some more and then partied a little for new years hahahaha. So ya they celebrate New Years here for sure!!! On the 31 we had a big ward party that started at 9 and finished at 3 30 in the morning!!!! We didn't stay the whole time. So Elder Antonio, Elder Cisneros, Elder Rapoza y yo went to the house of Hermana Liliana to pass the new year and burn our muñeco. A muñeco is basically a scarecrow type thing that they make and fill with fireworks and other highly illegal explosive things and at 12 they light it on fire and it burns and blows up for like 15 minutes haha its awesome!! Its a tradition here in Peru so everyone did it!! I'm serious every single house had 1 or 2 of them and was just blowing them up like crazy!! Also they shoot off a bunch of big fireworks and they play music in the streets and everyone just dances around haha wow that was one New Years that I will never forget!! 

So the rest of the week we just went back to work. We are seriously teaching so dang much and contacting every person we see because Zarumilla is hard. I've been talking to all the guys and no one has baptisms in this misson. For example Elder Rapoza finishes his mission in 2 months and he only has 2 baptisms and one of them was in the United States!! So that just makes me want to work harder because I know that we can change lives and reactivate and really just make Peru a better and happier place that is full of the spirit!! That is my goal and I will not come home until I accomplish it haha sorry mom;) 

Also the rains started this week and wow they weren't lying!! The streets are seriously rivers!! And it all happened so fast. One minute we were walking down the street and the next second it was like we were in a shower!! It rains so hard that we just have to run to a house and hide because we are seriously like dripping wet, like we jumped in a pool fully clothed wet in a matter of seconds haha its crazy!! So that about raps it up for this week. 

Ok something else important. We have cambios this week on Saturday and I'm pretty sure I'm going to be changing areas so if you don't get an email from me on Monday that's why. But don't worry I'll email on Tuesday or something. 

So I miss you all a ton seriously more and more every single day!! It's so hard to be away from home but I am also becoming more and more focused in this work. I know it's true because I can see the power of the spirit working in people every single day. So that's all I've got for this week. Keep working hard, living happy and loving the Lord with all you've got and I'll keep working hard here!! I love you all so much and hope you have a great week!!

Much Love

Elder Wilson

P.S- I would like a nice pair of sun glasses because mine are crapcito hahaha

P.S.S- I want to hear about your new years goals next week!!

I LOVE YOU ALL!!

Hermana Liliana!!! My 3rd Mother haha ‏

Benditos (The beach we went to today) ‏

Monday. December 29. 2014-Week 21

A view of Tumbes (an area much nicer that mine....but not better haha!!)

Mi Familia!!!!!

Que tal!? Well I’ll just start off by saying that it was awesome to talk to you guys on Christmas!! I loved seeing you and hearing you and all of that good stuff but it made me realize one thing very important......I am going to freakin suck at English by the time I get home!!! I still have 19 months left in this bad boy and I already can’t remember english words and how to make sentences haha ohh boy you’re gonna have a project when I get home!! We had dinner with the Ramoz family after skype and that was about it for our Christmas en Peru. I’m so jealous to hear about seeing the family first off but also of the snow!! I didn’t realize how much I would miss the freezing cold Idaho winters!! It honestly feels like I am living in a heater right now and there’s no escaping it!! I seriously lose like 10 pounds of water weight cada dia from sweating!! Wow I’m looking forward to seeing that snow.....actually I’m going to get home smack dab in the middle of summer in Idaho!!! I’ll never escape the heat haha. 

So this week we just got right back to work teaching!! We actually had a few lessons the night of Christmas because the work never takes a break!! It’s so awesome now that I know spanish because I can really expound on things and help people understand our message better and I think it’s helping because we had 2 of our investigadores llegaron a la iglesia esta domingo!! I was so excited to see them there!! Hermano Francisco and Hermano Luis so please keep them in your prayers and thanks for doing this fast for me!! You don’t understand how much I feel your fasts and prayers here it’s incredible!! You guys seriously impact my life so much with your prayers for me and my area so keep em coming!! Our investigador, hermano Francisco, has a really nasty illness right now with his internal organs so on sábado we gave him a blessing and wow I know that the spirit was in that room with us. At times he can barely stand but after that blessing he stood right up, looked us in the eyes and basically said that he knows the church is true through the power of the spirit and our priesthood. This was incredible!! It made me realize just how important our priesthood is!! So this is my invitation for everyone, we have the priesthood for a reason and it is to bless the lives of others. It isn’t something you can put up on a shelf in the closet until you "really need it" because you always need it!! If you have the priesthood and you’re not using it then you are not living up to your purpose here. You have the ability to change lives through your power so always be searching for oportunidades to use your priesthood!!

That’s about it for this week. We went and played futbol this moring with our zone and I lost my money today in Tumbes but we get money this Thursday so I’ll be just fine haha. 

I love you guys so much and you are always in my prayers. I hope you all have an amazing week and an awesome new year!!! I’ll talk to yall in 2015!! I love you!!

Much Love

Elder Asher Dean Wilson

Elder Wilson with Elder Cisneros

Caroling with my zone in Tumbes