February's Letters

02/04/11

Hello family and friends.  The week has blown by and I am sitting here dying of sweat writing you again.  This week was really great.  I found six new families to teach and four of them are married.  So, we will not have any troubles hopefully getting at least two of them baptized.  I am four people down for baptism this month and hopefully we can get them wet.  The ward that I am working with are finally helping out a little bit so we can have a little bit more success.  My mission president made a promise that if we have eight families in teaching at least two of them would get baptized.  So far in my first two transfers, I have had four baptisms, and about 16 investigators that I have taught more than once, so the promise is real.  We just have to do the work and the Lord will bless us.  I am getting better and my Spanish I can now teach without my companion having to re explain it.  So I am feeling better about that.   This week end is conference for our stake. n We are going to have conference with my mission president to help train people with missionary work.  We have a huge goal this year to baptize 600 people and so far we have 30.  Our stake president is basing this whole conference in la obra misional.  Missionary work!  His ideas are that the missionaries will teach and train people  how to do contacts and how to obtain references for us.  So hopefully we can get the work moving.  That is this weekend.  Also the 25 of this month I have an opportunity to go to a sealing.  In the MTC here in Peru I had a teacher Marion Meza who was the coolest guy in the world.  I came out of the MTC and who was my ward mission leader;   Marion Meza.  So I have now been working with him for four months.  He has invited me to attend his temple sealing.  That should be really cool to go to and also give us an excuse to go to the temple.  I will have an opportunity to go next week too, so I am excited.  This month in the mission we are focusing on the priesthood.  My mission president has noticed that most of the baptisms lately have been women and young men and women.  But not fathers and mothers.  So every week we have to contact at least 50 men over the age of 18.  It is really simple to do, but men are harder to contact and teach.  Missionary's love to contact women and children because usually they accept us rather easily.  But my mission Pres. said in a letter that we have to buck up and be men and teach the men.  I* was laughing pretty hard when I read it, but it is true, things are hard in life and we just have to buck up and do them UNCLE TONY. (Clouse Joke).  But I have seen  as I have done this that we have found more people and families to teach.  That is why I have six new families.  It's a testimony to me that if I do what the president says, I will be blessed and I will have more success in the Mission.  He is truly called of God and knows what needs to be done.  My zone leader just walked up to me and asked me to sing this weekend on conference, so that's another opportunity to sing.  He can play the piano really well and I will sing, The Lord My Pasture Will Prepare".  It should be beautiful! Ha ha, in Spanish anyway.  That's all the announcements I have for this week.  Entonces Adios amigos mios.  Ha ha, I love you all and am very grateful that Packers beat the Steelers and that I have all the support and prayers and the love from all of you.  Thank you so much!
With all my Love, Elder Clouse

02/14/11

Hello Family and Friends,
    This week wasn't very exciting.  Nothing really happened this week.  Just the normal stuff.  We had the conference yesterday and it was great.  We had my mission president and his wife.  The temple president and his wife and a member of the seventy and his wife.  It was really powerful.  I ended up not singing, which stinks but I will have more opportunities later.  We could feel the spirit really strongly. and it was great. 
    I have a funny story to tell you.  I had five investigators at the meeting.  One of them was Yasmin.  Yasmin has a little girl who is two and she is really cute.  She was crying so Yasmin took her outside.  In all of the church buildings here, there isn't air conditioning in any of the buildings, so they opened up all the windows and turned on the fans.  So the people can stand outside and still hear everything.  Yasmin was standing at the window holding her little girl, and then the little girl started yelling my name.  ELDER CLOUSE< ELDER CLOUSE, and then I looked over at her and she looked at me and said, "Hola, Elder Clousito".  EVERYONE started laughing including everyone on the stand.  It was funny ha ha!, Oh Man it was funny!  I was laughing my head off. 
   Well, this week we have zone conference.  I will be singing there.  It should be great to baptize again, I am excited.  Well, not much is going on, this are just going normally.  There isn't much to say.  Every day I am able to teach and I have been blessed to not have many bad days.  This are going great, but I do remember something to say!  The month of February in Peru is the month of Carnval.  But it's not the carnival of games.  It's the carnival of water fights.  I can not tell you how many times I have been attacked.  I have to put all of my books and teaching items in plastic sacks to keep them dry.  It's crazy !  I am waling almost to every appointment wet, it's crazy but its really fun.  Well, crazy Peru doesn't have much more to say.  I love you all.  Thanks for everything that you are doing for me, I will write soon, May the Lord bless us all, we all need it.
Love to you all, Elder Clouse 

02/24/11

Hello Family and Friends and whoever else thinks they love me!
    I am not dead nor transferred, we just had a change in p-days so that's who I haven't written yet this week.  It has been an eventful week, but I will start on Tuesday the 15th.  We had our zone conference in
Canto Grande.  There we receive a training on how to find people.  It was really great.  During a lot of the practices we had, I was called up to practice contacting the assistant and President Blunk.  It was in front of 100 missionaries, so I was freaking out pretty bad.  I went up there three different times.  After I did the third practice, the President said that I was a great missionary and that my Spanish was really good for only having 5 months in my mission.  I guess I did alright because my zone leaders and my companion said I did really good.  Also I sang in zone conference with an elder [playing the piano;  "Abide With Me".  It was good and everyone said i sang really well.  After that it was back to normal.  We had a good week last week.  We found a lot of new people to teach.  On Saturday, I had 2 baptisms.  Senayda and Diana.  We have been working with them for a month and finally we got them baptized.  We had practically the entire ward there.  We had 120 people there.  It was great.  I baptized Diana.  there isn't another feeling in the world like baptizing.  Every time I have, I have had the same feelings.  Standing in the water with them and watching the difference of the church in their lives is incredible.  Before baptism, you can that they are missing something, and then afterwards, they are literally glowing.  What was really special was hearing their testimonies after the ordinances.  It is a missionary's joy to hear the Holy Ghost testify of the truth through their words.  One thing my companion has taught me is that need to teach so that they feel it is true. When we feel the truth we will never stray from the church.  We now know that they have felt it, and now they are testifying using the Holy Ghost.  It is the best thing ever.  So that was on Saturday, on Sunday was fun too!We  went to ward counsel on Sunday and did our normal meeting stuff, but afterwards the bishop of our ward came up to us and asked us if we could give Senayda and Dioana the gift of the Holy Ghost, and so for the first time ever, I fave the Holy Ghost to someone.  I gave it to Senayda because I baptised Diana.  Wow it was so cool!  The first time I did it was in Spanish, that was interesting, but I did it and no one stoned me for saying something wrong, so I feel pretty good about it.  After that I gave a talk in church about obedience.  It was good and my pensionista told me she could actually understand me.  (She is the lady that cooks for me, Elizabeth Bernal), so I was pretty excited.After that I sang ( Yo se que vive me Senor ( I  Know that My Redeemer Lives) and of course after sacrament meeting no one said anything about my talk. 
"Oh, Elder Clouse,when are you going to sing again?" But that's, OK, I like singing.  Well, that brings me to today.  Today i went to the temple, I was going to do a session, but there were a lot of people there so instead I went to the baptistry and was a witness. and also confirmed.  It was really great to work in the baptistry again.  I really loved it.  I miss working in the Mesa temple.  I really had a lot of good times.  But afterwards I went to  the celestial room.  I course I was with another elder, Elder Cridlebaugh.  I know weird name but a good guy.  I went to the celestial room for an hour and a half.  I could live there.  When I am in there, I can feel like I am in Mesa/  I closed my eyes and just listened to the feelings of my heart and I really felt like I was back in Mesa.  the Church really is the same.  We do have one God for this entire earth and no matter where we go we will always feel the same.  this church really is true.  I have no doubt in my heart and mind.  The people in Peru need Jesus Christ and His church just the same as everyone in the USA.  I thought it would be a little different but we still have the same type of people and the same type of gossip talkers and everything else, Ha ha, and the doctrine is the same, by the way.  Ha ha.  Well that was today, tomorrow i will go to the sealing of my MTC teacher.  It will be really fun and I get to go do a session and see a live sealing.  I should think it will be great!  It has been a fun week.  Thanks for everything.  I love you and am thinking of you all when I can. Thanks, I love you,
Con Amour, Elder Clousito


02/28/11
Hello Everyone! 
   It has only been four days since i have written, but you get to hear from me again.  Well, I didn't go to the temple on Friday.  remember I was going to go to mt teachers sealing on Friday, its a weird story!
  the girls family are not members and so they were against the marriage in the first place.  they were not going to help with the wedding at all money or anything.  so the guys family was doing it all.  Well, on the day of tghe wedding the guy who is named Marion go a message from the girl saying, " I am locked in the Closet!"  the parents forced her into a closet and locked the door so she wouldn't be able to go.  Marion and his dad went over there and knocked on the door and the parents said that she wasn't there.  They acted all normal with them, they invited them in, gave them some drink,s, and then the dad of Marion pulled out what????The Family Proclamation to the World, and started teaching them.  After they got done , the mom and dad went and unlocked the closet and door and the girl started running, But then stopped when she saw Marion and his dad in the living room.  they all talked and now her parents agreed to help with the wedding.  they rescheduled for June, so it is a little sad happy ending.  Ha ha it';s funny though. 
   On Sunday I sang in church again.  It was pretty good, but there aren't any good piano players, so I do the best I can and pray for the rest.  Today we went and played soccer against the other zone,  IT was fun, but the other zone has 18 missionaries and we only have 12.  They were rotating around getting rest and drinking a lot of water when we were running around like animals for an hour and a half straight.  I don't know what I am doing today.  I have some awesome families to teach tonight, but I think Tio Kev ( Uncle Kev) is going to get nap in o9r something.  Well, this week are transfers and now I am free to go anywhere in the mission.  So I have no idea where I will be going or if I will at all.  Tomorrow is 6 months done with my mission and time has felt like it has flown.  I can pretty much say whatever I want in Spanish or at least explain a word if I don't know it in Spanish.  I am not perfect, but I feel al  lot more comfortable like I can talk to anyone and understand what they are saying, except the old grandma's  None of them have teeth so I can't understand them.  But it is coming along.
      I am doing great health wise and am loving life in the mission.  It has been a while since I have written my testimony in Spanish so I think I will do that.  Yo se quye la iglesia de Jesucristo es verdadera.  No Tengo ninguyna duda en me mente.  Ya he visto muchos milagros y Puedo decir que si o si, la obra que estoy haciendo, es la obra del Senor.  Soy un instrumento en sus manos y con El, puedo hacer y decir lo que es necesario para el aqui en el Peru.  Se que el libro de mormon es la palabra de dios, y mediante este libro, podemos saber que la iglesia es verdadera y que Jose' Smith fue un profeta verdadero.  se que Jesucristo es nuestro salvador y redentor.  Solo Por el, podemos regresar a la  presencia de Dios.  Se Que Thomas S. Monson es la Persona que dirige la iglesia hoy en dia.  Tengo Mucho amor por cada uno de ustedes.  Gracias Por Todo.
Con Amour,
Elder Clouse


02/28/11
Dear Mom,
    I have a little extra time this week so I have decided to write you a little personal note.  I hope and pray for your health and I know that the Lord will always take care of us.  We have the promise  to be blessed if we are obedient to the commandments and you are the most obedient person I know.  So you will receive blessings.  When we have worries in our mind, turn to the scriptures, pray, sing a  hymn, and remember all of the blessings that we have already received.  I am really worried for this next transfer because I will be leaving my area I think, but I know the Lord will take care of me like He always has.  I hope you are enjoying yourself.  remember to always laugh.  It is a pill that doesn't cost anything.  I love you a lot and am thinking of you always.  I will pray for you every night like I have been.
Love you a lot , mom.
With Love, Elder Clouse

02/28/11

Hi dad!
   I am on my pday today, no it was just last week that is was on Thursday.  I went to the temple last week and we can't have a p-day and go to the temple so the pday was changed.  the offices have the package I am just waiting to get it.  I f the package costs you over 50 buck's they open to see what is inside.  But under 50-, they don't do anything, so it should be safe in the offices right now.  I will be excited to have a little bit of coca cola money.  Will, I will write a little message for everyone now  I don';t have a lot to say, but just a little guy.  transfers are next week and by the time I write again, I will know if I will change areas for the fist time.
Well, life is great thanks for everything.
Love ya!  Tio Kev