July's letters 2011

July 25 2011
Hello family and friends. How is it all gong back in the United states. I hope and pray that everything is going great and all of you are having a wonderful time. Well here in Iquitos it is going great! I have a few activities coming up this week. First is zone conference this Friday with interviews with President Blunck. Then Sister Blunck will be coming after that to do a house check. So we are going to have to do something amazing for her. Also this week the branch is going to sell counry fried chicken, French fries and stir fried rice to make money for one of the couples that I am helping get married. That is this Thursday and it should be a whole lot of work. SO... I hope everything will go great this Thursday. If you would like to come this Thursday to buy some chicken come on down closer to the south pole.  I would really appreciate it. Ha ha.  Those are the two activities that are really big this week.

    Well with my new companion we are doing really great. We are singing all the time; in every lesson and at every moment that we can. He sings really well and I am really happy to have him. These last two weeks we have been the examples for the zone, having the most lessons and more people for baptism. The zone is struggling just a bit with the wards not wanting to help the missionaries out. But we are still working hard and trying to do the best we can. The members are more willing to help us now that we are visiting them and gaining their confidence that we are missionaries that they can trust. I hope that we can continue to work hard and receive the help that we need.

     Well the time is flying by. Next week I will have 11 months in the mission and this transfer will be half over. It seems as if is going faster and faster every single week. I already have 3 months in this area and will pass my b- day in this area. As the time has gone by I have really learned to love this area and don't know if this area or my first area was better. Some of the elders just think it's because " I am loving and I could be happy living in a cardboard box with soda and a fan". End quote Elder Smith. I think he is about right. But that's all you have to do on the mission. Learn to love the situation that you are in and make the most of it.

      This week we found a new investigator who is awesome. After two lessons he accepted baptism. He has told us that we were sent from God and that he feels like he has been lost for a little while. He has attended a church for over 19 years and know the bible really well. Every scripture that we used he knew the background information and told us about the scripture. I feel like I was the one being taught. The only problem that he has is that he works on Sundays, but with a little faith we can get him wet. This is just a little testimony that they are people who are ready to hear the gospel. We just have to find them.

          Well things here are great and will continue to be great. Thanks for your prayers and love. I will write next week. Love you all Elder Clouse

July 18, 2011
Hello everybody. How are things going in the U S of A. Well things are going really good with me. It was my first week as a senior companion and it was Awesome. Finally I can work like I want to. This week me and my new companion Elder Olguin Worked really hard and we made more progress in one week than the entire other 2 transfers.  To begin the week, we found a family that have previously recieved the elders. They have always accepted the gospel and already have a testimony of the church. But they are not married. The elders before said that they would help them get married but have never done anything. So this week we asked them if marriage and baptism was something that they wanted to do. They said yes, But they said nobody has wanted to help them. And so I said "lets get ya hitched". And then they asked me what I said in english and I repeated, vamos a ayudarles a casarse. So now we have plans to get them married the 13  of august and then baptism the 20 of august. That will be a great birthday gift if everything goes well. But They said that they dont have money to get married. So yesterday I talked to the ward leaders and we will be doing a fund raiser this next week. So that should be great. The coolest part is that they have 5 other children that can be baptised. SO that should be awesome! Also we are working with another girl for baptism the 30 of July and another couple of people for the 6 of August and for the 13 of August. So this transfer should be really sucsessful.

     Well my new companion is from Chile. Elder Olguin. He has 5 months in the  mission and is a hard worker. He is 19 and up to this point I haven't had any problems with him; Only his accent and he talked 9,473 miles per hour. But I am getting used to it and I can understand him just fine. He sings too and so we have been singing at every lesson. He has a little fear for bugs. Its pretty funny. He walks around with a can of bug spray, sleeps with it uses the batheroom with it. Ha ha. I have been joking around with him freaking out about it, but I have told him I have been trained for 5 years with somebody who has a fear of bugs.So I can help him with his fear and kill bugs. Ha ha.

      Well this week in the branch council was a little different. Usually the members fight and argue and I feel like I have been in a boxing ring every time I leave. But this week we talked about helping the family to get married and it was really different the way it went yesterday. They all came up with ideas to help the family and did it without the fight. After we had everything planned and ready to go I brought that to everyones attention. I bore a testimony to them that if they worked with each other in the way that they did yesterday, they would help the branch grow spritually and in every other way that is needed. After I was done everyone was crying and they realized how well they actually worked with each other.  I am hoping that things change a little bit from here on out. We have had a lot of progress so far and we can really go far.

      Well I love you all and thank you for your prayers. Things are going really good and I am happy to be serving my mission. Love you all, elder clouse

Hello family.

       Well this week was not very good. Number one the little u s b port that I bought to load up my camera broke. and so now I dont have anything to send pictures and also my hammock broke. So its been kind of a tragedy these last couple of days. But I do have some good news.  Transfers are tomorow. My companion is leaving to lima and I am recieving a new companion. He is from Chile and I dont know how to pronounce or spell his name so you will have to wait until next week to get his name. But the best part is that I am moving up to be senoir companion. Finally I can work as hard as I have been wanting to. I am hoping and praying that my new companion is good and wants to help me with this branch. Tomorow I will take my companion to the air port and wait there to pick up my companion in the afternoon. So tomorow will be an eventful day for me.

    Well in the work, it is going just fine. I have alot of people to teach but nobody that wants to progress. It seems like they have just come to a brick wall and now are just waiting there for something amzing to happen. So this week we will focus on finding new investigators and work with the members. We havent been working alot with the members and I think that would help out the work alot. The members used to go out everyday with the elders and now they dont want to. So hopefully I can change that. 

     Well this week I had a work visit with one of the ex assistants of the mission; Elder mendoza. I went to his area and worked with him for a day and learned alot of new stuff. He gave me alot of tips on how to be a senior companion. He told me just to act humble and be willing to listen to your companion and to try to have as much funny moments as posible. So I will take his advice and hope to do my best. Well we taught a lady in his area about baptism and about following the example of Jesus Christ. I asked her if she would follow him by being baptised, and afterward she said yes but she wants me to baptise her. I dont know what I did so well. But I gained her confidence really fast and she says she doesn't like the real companion of elder Mendoza. So I thought that was pretty funny. After the lesson she told me that I have a really strong testimony and that she could feel that baptism was something that she needs to do. But I told her it wasn't me. It was the holy ghost testifying to her of what she needs to do. So that was a really special moment to be there and experience that with them.

      Well I have to go. Sorry its so short but I was monkeying with my u s b for too long. I love you all and will write you and hopefully send pictures next week. Love you all,

 Elder CLouse