Week 29- The end of January is here... How fast time goes

Dear Friends and Family,

 

So last Monday was really boring, it POURED… so we stayed inside and cleaned and took a nap and I wrote some letters. But it helped relax us for the rest of the week.

 

Cesar, Brigham, my companion and I at the birthday.

So dumb moment of the week… the Lady who cooks lunch for us, Yesi, we couldn’t go, so we told her to save it for dinner. We went by for dinner and it was her Aunt’s birthday, so she gave us our lunch for breakfast the next day and then we ate dinner with all of the family. Well……. Breakfast the next day. It was omelettes and rice in styrofoam. So, I thought, oh, I’ll put it in the oven to warm it up. Well, I clearly was not thinking and haven’t cooked in SOOOOOOOO long that I just put them in the oven with styrofoam and ALL…. Then we began to study. My companion looks at me and goes, how did you put the breakfast in the oven? I panicked when I realized what I had done and ran to the oven. The styrofoam had melted some and shrunk… Uh oh! But, breakfast was safe!

 

So other awful thing that happened is right now is Carnavales… aka a fiesta where people throw water and other sorts of things… I’m not really sure what they celebrate, just that things like that happen. So last night, we are waiting at the bus stop and making a few phone calls and a group of drunk men dressed up in the native Cusco clothing pass by and squirt us from head to toe with foam………… REALLY???? Who does that? But we then ended up going back to our apartment to change. It was awful. Not super excited about being covered in foam.

 

Well, a lot has happened this past week. It was a rather tough week. We planned really hard and we had a ton of appointments set up that we were really excited and we had members planned to come with us for each of the appointments and you know what happened? Almost every single one canceled. It kind of shot my excitement level. But we still had some cool things happen.

 

Yaneth. We found her in our area book and decided we should visit her. We still aren’t really sure how to help her. I know people can change, but I kind of have a little bit of fear to talk to her spouse. We are praying to know just exactly how to help her. But, the cool thing is she recognizes God’s help in everything. We asked her if she could come to church this Sunday and she says, this is the great thing, normally my spouse doesn’t work, but he didn’t have a lot of work this week and so he said that he was going to work on Sunday. Also, my sister is coming in to town and she said she would watch the kids for a few hours so I could have a few hours to myself to do the things that I need to do and relax and so everything has worked out that I can go to church Sunday. She also said that before she was attending AA meetings for rehab but now can’t leave her kids to go to the meetings. She said that just when this happened and she felt like the temptation was too strong, that we knocked on her door and that we give her just enough strength to continue on. She really wants to follow God, and is slowly solving her own problems to change her life. She says that she already feels happier than before and it’s thanks to God and also to us for God having sent us to her.

 

SO yesterday was the last stake conference with President Calderon. We dedicated the stake building and I got to play the piano! It was great and the spirit was so strong. President Calderon spoke and talked about how when they were establishing the first stake in Sao Paulo that President Kimball went and couldn’t find a stake president. He then asked about a certain man and found out that he was inactive. He went to visit the man who when he saw President Kimball, tried to put out his cigarette and such. President Kimball then said to the man, God has called you to be the next stake president. Which then of course the man said, but I’m not an active member and I am not worthy and have done things that aren’t in accordance with the church. President Kimball said, that may be true, but God has still called you. I then thought about how imperfect I am, but yet I am called as a missionary to preach His gospel. This man obviously wasn’t worthy at the time, but he shaped up and became the stake president. Heavenly Father qualifies those whom He calls and He has helped me in all of my imperfections to be worthy, to be the servant that He wants to serve. I challenge all to not think in your imperfections when you are presented an opportunity, but to accept it and work to be qualified to serve.

 

I hope all is well at home and where ever you all may be. I send all my love and you are in my prayers.

 

Con Amor,

Hermana Carly Jo Lang

The sign we found... I wanted to know if they would actually punish with this, but I haven't tried it out to really see.
 

 

 

Week 28- Exact Obedience Brings Miracles

Dear Friends and Family,

So first off, we putt he goal as a zone to be as obedient as we could be. There’s a saying that I love that says ‘’Obedience brings blessings but exact obedience brings miracles.’’ So we put it to practice this week.

I cannot say that 50 people got baptized this week, but I can say that I saw the Lord helping us in many ways. The first incidence, we went to visit a lady named Francisca. When we went, she wasn’t excited to see us and we were disappointed. She told us that she didn’t want to continue listening because her children had convinced her that it wasn’t in her best interest. Well, I can say that I thought it was a failure… until we noticed a Young man listening to us. When we were about to leave, he stops us and begins to tell us that he was listening to sister missionaries in Lima but had lost contact and had a lot of unanswered questions but wanted to know. We were super excited and we set up another appointment to see him!!! 

Next, we went to contact Marcos who the sister missionaries had visited over a year ago and then he stopped coming to church. Well, last week, we couldn’t find his house. So we agreed to meet at the bus stop this week to find his house. While walking to his house, we found the mother of 4 girls who are set to be baptized in Febuary. We just needed to contact the mom, but hadn’t been able to. She doesn’t even live near the bus stop, but what a miracle that we found her there! 

Zone Leader, Elder Hansen,  Myself and Hermana Espinoza

Well, to continue with Ramiro, he wants to continue learning and is progressing. He has the best questions that make me search and aren’t dumb questions that don’t relate to what we are teaching. He really asks things that helps not only his testimony grow, but ours too. Well, this week we won’t see him much. He is in Lima for chemotherapy. He has opened up a lot recently. We found out that his son in the army died and that he has a grandson that he has never met. Ramiro has a lot of walls that he has put up to block out the things of his life, but recently has opened up and shared a lot with us. He has a hard time changing but has all of the desires to change his life and truly find happiness… something that I don’t think he has really felt in a long time with all of these things guarded up.

Well, I hope that all of you are doing well. Let me know how you are doing, email me  pictures… whatever you have time! I send all my love.

Love,

Hermana Carly Jo Lang

AP at Christmas trying to spell his name ...Fuller

PS. carly.lang@myldsmail.net and if you email me, please send me your address so I can write back. Some of you have emailed within the last month or 2 and I don’t have addresses to write back. Love you all.

Week 27: Slipping and Sliding in Cusco!

Dear Friends and Family,

So first off, I finally wrote a TON of letters last Monday and am mailing them all off today, so in the next week or two, expect mail! Haha

Elder Calderon (our District Leader),
my companion and I. 

The next thing is that my trainer of the mission is Hermana Olivera or my mommy as we say and I was talking with my companion Hermana Espinoza and found out that in the mission, she’s my aunt! So we’re kind of related.

Well funny story, in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we don’t pray and then… um I’m not sure what you call it when you do the cross with your hand over your body. But we were meeting with a member who was baptized not too long ago and it made me smile when I saw him do that after praying. I think he’ll pick up on it eventually that we don’t do all of the things that the Catholics do. 

Next I never thought I would literally save someone’s life here in the mission, but I guess we did. We went to go see Luisa, a lady who we found that the missionaries had visited a year prior but we didn’t know what happened. She isn’t a member, but she has a son that is in the mission in Ecuador. Well we went to visit and when she let us in finally, we could tell she was super depressed. She has told us a few of the things that are happening and the little that I know is that her husband has a complete separate other family and it has destroyed her life. She has told us that if she were to describe her life, she lives in Hell. Well, we entered  this day and we asked how things had been since the last time we saw her. She told us awful and that she was really considering on taking her own life until we knocked on the door. I can say that Heavenly Father really loves His children and that He is aware of us and will send the necessary help. I’m no pyschologist, but just our presence changed her entire day and her decision. Hopefully she continues to progress, but I do know that her life has been made at least a little better since we have come. She has begun to pray and says that she feels peace that she hadn’t felt in such a long time.

The next story is Ramiro. He is super close minded, and likes to argue a little, but the last time we visited him, something had changed. He was in the military when he was younger and was in Bry? I don’t know how to spell it, but it’s an area in Peru with a lot of terrorism and problems. He has seen a lot of people died, killed people in combat, and saw his own mom die when he was 15. He also has cancer now. His life is kind of sad. We asked him if he believed in Christ and he said Yes, but that he didn’t believe that there was life after this life. Well, we finally asked him what has Christ done for you? He kind of broke down. We read in 1 Cor 15 about how Christ died to conquer death and that is when he finally opened up his life. Well, Ramiro came to church Sunday!!!!! And continues to want to learn. He says, I have so many doubts right now, but I want you guys to help me with all of them! Super excited to work with him.

Last story, we received a reference from a member yesterday. He brought his cousin with him who is living with his family for the next 2 months. We went to visit his house…. Uh…. Well he lives at the top of this giant step hill. And you know what? It rained a TON yesterday, so yes… it was complete mud. It was like climbing up a slippery slide. Then we get to the house and we climbed over a huge pile of dirt to reach a ladder to climb into what I thought was going to be a cave with plastic covering the opening… well we drop down into the hole and then find a door and inside was a rather nice little home. I was kind of shocked. But there we found out that the mom was struggling and she also adopted a daughter who wants to be baptized. The cousin, Luis, we taught him about the restoration and the book of mormom and asked if he would pray and he goes I’m going to pray tonight and forever! He was so precious. He told us he didn’t have questions because we explain things so well. Then he and his cousin walked with us to the bottom of the hill… well, I don’t have a picture, but I definitely slid part way down the hill in the mud… not on purpose! But we ended the day super happy and laughing.

Well, I hope you all are doing well at home and not slipping and sliding in the mud! Love you all and wish the best.

Love,

Hermana Carly Lang

Ps. Email me! carly.lang@myldsmail.net

Or write

Hermana Carly Jo Lang

Misiòn Cusco Perù

Urb. Jeròn Ricardo Palma

Manzana A Lt. 2 4to Piso

Santa Mònica, Cusco

PERU

My zone at Christmas! 

Week 26: A New Year in the Field

Dear Friends and Family,

Well New Years ended up being a Little more crazy than I expected. We went by to visit the Family Perez who love us. Well the mom had called President and asked him permission for us to spend New Years Eve with them on the conditions that they would drive us home at 1. So we spent new years with their family and returned home SUPER tired but happy after eating a lot of food and watching all of the Fireworks that people set off. It was perfect because one of our investigators was also there and we had a good conversation with him and then we got busy the next day with work. New Years day, we ate lunch with the Family Palomino. They live up the Street from us and have a HUGE family. We met a few references from them too.

The down side of this week is we went to try and find Yanina. She was baptized almost a year ago and we had no clue who she was. Well, we called her and she was SUPER friendly. We went to visit her and unfortunately, it was pouring!!! It was a cold rain too. We had our ponchos, but we came home COMPLETELY soaked. Well…… I ended up super sick from that. A fabulous fever that put me in bed 2 days with medicine that if I didn’t sleep killed my head. I went to church yesterday and Hermana Calderon told me that I needed to be home in bed. So we rested before lunch and then back to work! Luckily, modern medicine Works! I feel great today and no longer have a fever! The exciting part of all of this is that Yanina came to church yesterday and she told us everything that had happened and asked for our help!

So EXCITING NEWS!!! Mary and Jesus didn’t end up moving! They are still here. The sad part is we didn’t find out until yesterday but we have lunch with them on Wednesday to see how they are doing. The other thing is Katy is a member of about 7 years and her mom isn’t a member. The missionaries have been visiting her on and off for a long time now and we have been visiting her. It’s super hard to actually teach because Seba (her son who is mentally handicapped) requires a LOT of attention. She is always attending to Seba. Well yesterday we finally were able to teach and right when we get to the important part, Seba starts running and shouting. I felt the need to go and play with Seba. Seba and I ended up running up and down the stairs (a great workout by the way) and my companion continued to talk to her. She said that she wanted to get baptized!!!!!! But that she was going to travel the 17th of January so she’s going to call us during the week and tell us a day that she wants to be baptized before she travels because she’s going to be gone 2 months traveling.

The other thing is tomorrow is transfers and…….. I AM STAYING HERE WITH HERMANA ESPINOZA!!! I’m super excited to be with her another transfer. She said that she really needed me this transfer and I am not sure what I’m going to do the transfer after her because there really aren’t another pair of sister missionaries like us 2.

Anyways, I hope you all are doing fabulous and would love to hear from you all. Write me or email me.

Oh and someone had asked when I come home... I come home in a LONG time. I completely 6 months in the mission the 5th of January, but I come home Febuary 11, 2014

Love,

Hermana Carly Lang

carly.lang@myldsmail.net

The pig we cooked! This is mommy, Mamita Perez. They have a bakery and the bread... so YUMMY!!