Strange Transfer

Hey everyone

So first thing.... Suprise!!! haha i didnt have a change like i thought i would. Im going to be here in Cajamarca for at least another month (maybe even three more). I guess President Risso likes the way Elder Driggs and I are working so he kept us together. (Its rare that two gringos are together especially when they both have over a year in the mission - I have over 14 months now... isnt that crazy!!!) So that was a pleasant and unexpected suprise. Haha we have no idea what will happen in the future but we are happy for now. 

Another suprise for this change was that last night at 9:00 we got a message from the Zone Leaders saying they wanted us to call them as soon as we could. So we called them and they informed us that the districts were being changed and that they received instruction to asign and train me as a district leader.... wow. haha. im a little overwhelmed and excited and humbled really. When i first started the mission i would have loved to be district leader but after a time i lost that desire and i was really scared of the idea, but now.... I dont know... its going to be an interesting experience i guess. I have a lot to learn this week. I feel like the Lord is pushing me a little more now.

So... The area... has been rough... wont lie. But we are still happy and working. These last few days we have been looking for people to teach and not even some of the members have time for us right now... haha i guess its because everyone is on vacation and has things to do. That and we are still trying to get over a small reputational problem in the area. Because of a few past events a few of the members dont have much respect for the missionaries right now... (there are many who help us a lot though... they are truly heaven sent)

We havent been able to work with Diana much this week like we hoped. There is a lot going on in her life despite the fact she isnt studying at the moment....

We did find, however 2 really wonderful woman that we are excited to teach. They are both in their 80´s and really sweet. One is named Maria and the other Delfina. They are friends and have been going through a few dificulties with health and such. one of the members gave them a blessing that helped and they accepted to listen to us... we have been teaching them about the plan of salvation and they are really loving everything we teach. We have to teach slow but they love everything. There have been a few teary moments with them. We love them. I hope they keep progressing. Some members of their families dont want them to listen to us, but they like listening.

so thats about everything I can write this week, its been a suprising transfer.... I might have my first baptismal interveiw this week i super nervous. (I willl have to travel almost 3 hours to get to the place where the missionaries of my district are to to the interveiw... I will most likely have the chance to get to know more of peru very soon.)

Les amo a todos. Espero que todos estén bien.

Always turn outward and keep smiling,

Elder Bunker

De Repente La Ultima Semana en Cajamarca

Hey Everyone!!

So first, Bonnie and Ryan Slade thanks for the Nuts. My comp and i have really enjoyed them. The letter meant a lot to me too.

So this week has been interesting. we have worked hard this week but i feel like we are treading wáter a Little bit. I think I might have to work on my patience a Little. People sometimes dont progess like we would like them too, but then looking back on it again the Lord has His hand in everything that has been hapening

So this week we have been super worried because many of our investigators are in the middle of finals week and they dont have much time to listen to us and so there has been very Little progression in a lot of cases.

Many of them forget to read the book of mormon.

One of such is our investigator Diana, i beleieve i have mentioned her before in emails. She is an amazing Young woman that we had hoped to help get baptized this weekend but we have been running into obstacles this week with her studies and we havent really been able to teach her.... I hope she still gets baptized. I never want to push it, but i feel like i might have a transfer soon and I wont be here for the baptism. I hate leaving things in the air.

We had a really good experience with her this sunday though. We got to the house (she didnt attend church that day) and she was clearly not the same. The light that is usually in her eyes was out... and of course... she had not been Reading the book of mormon. (ALMOST ALWAYS when people read the Book of mormon and keep their comitments we can tell) I felt imediatly really sad because i realized that what we had hoped for her might not fall through as planned. So instead of teaching what we had planned we dropped the plan and started asking her how she felt about everything.

She is really intelegent and she feels like she knows Joseph Smith is a prophet but she isnt sure if the Book of Mormon is true. (thats kind of weird cause its normally the other way around), but what we found is that she has been Reading it like it was a text book... and she hasnt really gotten anything out of it. Also, she is studying a theology that uses the Book of Mormon as a book from a list of 'good reading' but not scripture and she has been confused about a few things.

we really are fighting for her.

The lesson in the end was one of the lessons most powerful i have taught in the misión. we started answering some of her doubts and things like that, but then we started explaining why it was so important that she reads. I felt impressed to share my own testimony of the Book of Mormon and some really personal spiritual experiences that i dont share much on the misión. Little by Little the light returned to her eyes.

When we left her house yesterday there was definately a difference in the way she apeared. I honestly dont know if i will ever see that miracle of baptism in her life but i know its just right around the corner.

We are really fighting, i feel, for the salvation of these people (including the members) I dont know what has happened here but it seems that the faith of many has been weakend. The missionaries are truly called to the front lines... but we are not alone.

The Lord is watching out for us and I can see Him working in small and simple ways in the lives of the people. sometimes the people who receive the greatest testimony are the ones who have to go through the most to obtain it... thats what we are seeing with Diana and many others.

This may be my last week here. like i mentioned. I feel and its been said among the missionaries that the President might be taking me out soon. I have to just beleive though that i will be here forever. I dont want to give anything less than my all.

Well thats about everything.

Love you all

Always turn outward, and keep smiling!

Elder Bunker

ps Mom, Hermana Elizabeth Soria says HI... we are at her house at least once a week to visit her. haha. she is like my second mom here in the misión.

pps this picture is a giant tarantula that was on our window. we saw it after we had turn the lights out and were in bed. Regardless to say it was a Little more dificult to fall right to sleep like before.

Solid Week

Hey everyone,

So I finally have a little bit of time to write haha.

Haha so this week has been a little bit better. We have been able to get out a lot more to proselyte and meet people, and we have been doing a few divisions with the members to cover more ground. My comp was a little sick last week but now that he is better we have just hit the ground running.

So... this week has been full of experiences i never expected. The Lord has been helping and blessing us abundantly in our labor. To start out the week we had booked all of our nights to have family home evening with the members. all of a sudden all the members just wanted us to come visit them and we fill our evening schedules with visits with them. It resulted in a getting a few good references that will hopefully turn into something soon. Im starting to get a better idea of what the ward is really like and where the strong members are and where we can really start asking and getting for references and visit them with members

This week we also had a work visit with our district leader. He came to our area to work with me and give me a few pointers. It was really instructive and i learned a lot from him. But what was even greater was we ending up placing a baptismal date with one of our investigators that i was afraid would take more time to progress... 

Her name is Diana and she is a reference from a member but it has been hard to get through to her sometimes because she has so many ideas and questions that take things off track haha. We taught the first half of the first lesson in two visits... haha she just has some strange comments haha. But in the last few visits we have had with her i have seen a huge change in... i dont know... just her composure and the light she has... She has been reading the book of mormon.

When Elder Smith (our district leader) and I went to go visit i was praying that everything would go alright. I didnt want elder Smith to go running into the visit with a bautismal invitation and scare her away. (because that sometimes happens) but we went in there and from the start i could tell she had read. She just seemed happy. and we began talking to her about the book of mormon and she explained what we left with her and what she thought about it. we answered a few of her questions and then watched a short restauration video, and explained the resauration. The spirit was so strong. Hahah and i was suprised when i heard the invitation to baptism coming from my mouth instead of my companions. haha. 

Diana will be getting baptized the end of this month (27th) if she keeps reading and praying and gets her answer. Every time we meet with her i can see little changes in her. Im excited to see what happens.

One of the other highlights of the week was finding the Familia Chavez. They are a lost member family that has been inactive a for a few years and they dont show up on the ward directory because their records where never transfered. So no one knows that they exist. But one of the members vagily remembered a family living in one of the houses we were passing so he took me to go meet them. (we were on divisions with the members) and when we entered the house the family was clearly estatic about seeing missionaries again and having someone come visit them. the dad has been unemployed for a time now and is looking for work and the kids have fond memories of the missionaries from years before. 

We talked for a bit and left a short uplifting message with them. They expressed that they wanted to return to church and they would like us to visit them often. so we set up a FHE with them and the next day picked them up for our ward missionary game night that we have every week. We had the chance to meet them because one of our super important visits felll through. They have been one of the greatest blessings from this week.

Im so grateful for the the many blessings we have been receiving. The ward is progressing little by little. we will hopefully see some baptisms soon.

Love you all

Always turn outward and keep smiling!!

Elder Bunker

Short

Hey Everyone,

So sorry about the short email again. 

So im doing good. im still in cajamarca. 

This last week was really good. we had a ward baptism of 4 kids and one of our investigators came to participate! His name is carlos and he really likes the church, his wife is a member and his daughter got baptized. He will probably be our next baptism. 

We are working a lot more with the members and we have been getting a few references. Im really not sure how long i will be here. i have a feeling my time in this ward will be short... ive been here for 3 weeks and i might only be here for 3 more.

sorry so short everyone, 

I miss you all.

Always turn outward and keep smiling,

Elder Bunker

Working With Members

Hey Everyone,

 

So i only have very Little time to write but i want to write a Little because i didnt have the chance last week.

 

This last two weeks have been good. and hard Haha. I dont know how many people watched the special missionary conference this last week. wow how amazing. I feel super priveledged to be a missionary at this time. The work is changing fast and there are many more doors being opened. (we should be hearing about the Facebook work this week)

 

Im in a new área with a new companion named Elder Driggs. He is a really cool guy from las vegas and we have been having a lot of fun working together. hope we can help the people in this área. My new área is really big and full of steep hills. im losing a lot of weight now due to the extra amount of excercise haha.

 

This last week we just started our Ward game night. It has been a lot of fun to get to know the members and play games with them. we will be doign that more in the future.

 

sorry so short.

 

Love you all

Always turn outward and keep smiling.

Elder Bunker

Pictures 2.5

Cajamarca - Cajamarca

Hey everyone,

wow wow wow, so this week has been awesome! Im so happy with everything we have been able to see and experience with the people this week! 

But first thing first. Before i forget I want to wish everyone a late happy fathers day! (Especially my own dad!!!)

This has been the last week of the change. But has been amazing. We have had many people who have been on the verge of getting baptized for a while and with the help of the Lord we have been able to help a small family take fhe first steps of the gospel and become baptized members of the church. Hermana Roxanna and her son Jaime were baptized this last saturday. Roxanna is a single mom that is 31 and her son is 13 and they have been some of my Favorite people to teach.

The baptismal service we held was one of the greatest experiences i have had in the mission. The spirit was present and none of us couldnt help but smile. 

Roxana and Jaime got baptized with a young girl from another ward and it was so great to watch their excitement as they each waited their turn to be baptized. I know that they will keep being great members of the church and they will stay strong.

I just got news on sunday that i will be transfered tomorrow. Im not leaving the zone and i wont be too far from the converts. I hope i will have the chance to keep working with them. My new area (i already know where im going, i was with the zone leaders when they got the call) is called cajamarca and i will be with my 3rd gringo comp! Im excited to start working with more members but im sad to leave my comp Elder Molina. He has been a great freind. There hasnt been a day we havent laughed together despite all of our trials opening an area.

I hope and pray the lord continues to further his work.

sorry so short

Love you all

Always turn outward, and keep smiling

Elder Bunker

Happy Fathers Day

Seeing that fathers day was yesterday i want to share a few thougths

I am so grateful to have such a wonderful dad who has shown me the importance of a mission, service in the church, but most of all the importance of the family. I have been thinking about a few of the teachings of Dad that have really influenced my life (espeically here in the mission) and I want to share them.

1. Priorities - dad has alwasy helped me understand the importance of putting priorities into order. I remember one night he taught a lesson with sand and rocks and he showed it was only possible to put all of the materials in a jar IF you put the rocks in first. I dont know if dad realized, but that has always stuck with me and I am so grateful for his loving teachings to help the kids.

2. Be Able to Face Falts (Lesson of Humility, and Repentance) - I think its funny sometimes becasue the little girls in our family do NOT have the same dad I did growing up. haha dad has changed a lot over the years, BUT instead of that being a weakness (like some people veiw it) it is a great strength. Dad is super humble and is even will to ask forgiveness from his own kids. That has taught me a great deal about who i would like to become. Dad is the kind of man who will reach perfection because he is willing to leave imperfect things behind. 

3. Do your Work with Pride - haha i have to laugh a little when i think of this one. I feel like a large part the teachings dad has given the kids have been centered on this principle. haha Dad has always shown us how to work, by example, by the scriptues and by many FFD´s (Family Fun Days... where we all work... all day haha) I have loved working on the roof with dad, in the basement, and redoing that bathroom. I often think about our last project in the basement. I really wanted to finish that basement and do it well before I left for the mission. I think dad instilled that spirit into me. There is a saying i like a lot that reminds me of dad and that is "a job worth doing is a job worth doing well" and also this idea of "leave it better than you found it" I have tried SO hard to apply that to the mission. and thanks to that i have gained the name "La Maquina" or "the Machine" haha thats because of dad.

4. Take Care of What you have and the Lord will bless you with More - This is an amazing teaching from dad and I hope i never lose this principle. Ive been getting better at THANKING our heavenly father for things but its another thing to SHOW your appreciation. When we truley show our gratitude for the things we receive (things materials, people, opertunities, callings) the lord amplifies our blessings.

Thanks dad for your many teachings,

I lvoe you Happy Fathers day.

Elder Bunker