September 8, 2010

It's awesome that you got to invite the new family over to the house. I'm excited that the kids are going to get more people to hang out with their age that have good moral standards. I'm also glad to know that USU is actually looking pretty good at football. They had better be bowl winners by the time I get back from my mission. It's cool that Alex and Trevor both read the Book of Mormon in 26 days. I am loving reading the Book of Mormon really fast. I have been using most of my personal study time and all of my extra free time to finish the Book of Mormon in english as fast as possible. I am learning a ton from it, and it is cool to see all the storiest connect better than when you only read a few pages a night. I am actually reading 30 pages or so every day, minus Sundays when I'm busy with my Zone Leader duties and Wednesdays which are P-days.

On Wednesday last week we got to go into Miraflores in central Lima. It was really cool because it was part of my mission. It is also where the Peru version of the White House is. The main difference is that security in this area is incredibly tight. Because of the political unrest that has been prevalent even in the recent history of Peru they don't take any risks. There are officers with riot shields and AK-47's all around the main building and there were multiple guard dogs in the area. They also have tons of tourists in the area. I also went to a small marketplace and got three pretty cool things. A bag, a beanie which I am saving for when I get home and a Peru soccer jersey. In total it cost me 33 soles which is about 12 dollars.

The rest of the week was pretty slow because we didn't have proselyting on Saturday. I got to stay up late until 1:30 in the morning on Wednesday night to welcome new missionaries flying in from Provo. I actually ran into Isaac Bell who went to elementary school with me. He's in the CCM right now. He was one of the new group of missionaries.

My spiritual experiences were pretty good this week. We were studying for a topic, I don't even know what it is now. But Elder Purvis and I came across Mormon chapter 7. Mormon chapter 7 is basically Mormon's final testimony. It is awesome. In the last four or five verses he talks about judgment, baptism, and the Book of Mormon as another witness of Jesus Christ. It is incredible, and we think we will be able to use it for investigators on our mission. On Sunday we had a fast and testimony meeting and I bore my testimony, which was pretty cool. I also translated a temple orientation with Elder Purvis on Sunday. It was really tough, but I was surprised with how much I knew. I was able to translate a bunch of quotes and articles. It was a definite spiritual experience for me. I also came across a scripture in D&C 76:114-119. This talked about the kingdoms of glory and how we can all receive a witness of them through the Holy Ghost. Also in the introduction for verses 114-119 it says that all the faithful may see the vision of the degrees of glory. That would a great thing to see, and I hope to be faithful enough in my life to be able to see them. I think it's great that all the faithful can see visions like these. I love you all. Have another great week.
Tyler