Crazy Peruvian Chickens!! And .... I have a New Comp!

Mamamamamamamammammamamamaamamamamammammamammammaamamamammama

mamamamamamaamamamamamamamamaamamamamaammamamamamamamammammammama!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMAMAMAMAMAMAMA I LOVE YOU SO DANG MUCH. 

Well, I FINALLY HAVE A REAL COMPANION. Jaja!! Well, so President decided to send me a real comp. He's one of my buddies from Cerro. I'll tell you who it actually is but later. I want you to have to suffer. Jaja!! But, finally I have a comp. Well, this week was super cool and super fast and yeah, it was just a great week!!

First, I am going to start off with the beginning of the week to keep you all sane and not confused with my letter, because some things relate to other days. Well on Monday we went to the Pencion of the other Elders and we made the legendary enchiladas. I don't know if they were just amazing because I haven't had anything that good in like 9 months haha, but that was the greatest pday just because of that! We made those and then we had some Vanilla Coke with them and some 

Grape Crush. ahahaahah I was in heaven! After went over and bought some sling shots so that we could shoot at the chickens in the streets. We also bought some trumpos (they are a top sort of thing that you throw and they get super intense playing with them). They are super cool! Then we just played with those and then watched the Emma Smith story. I love that movie, it is an amazing movie and I highly recommend it. Maybe I love it so much because Joseph is my hero! 

Then on Tuesday me and Rider (the convert) went out to start teaching at like 10:00 in the morning and we didn't finish until like 9:00 that night. We got to teach 12 lessons that day!!!!  That's how many lessons I would have in Carhuamayo almost the whole week. On Tuesday we also went out to Aucayacu to teach the less actives out there and they are all just whiney babies (haha). But we helped quite a few people, but it is just so miserably hot there. 

On Wednesday night my comp arrived. It is Elder CROSLAND!!!! They closed the area he was in and they sent his companion to Satipo and sent him to Tingo Maria! So this week we have been having fun and working hard. We have this cool investigator that is a golden investigator but I probably won't be able to baptize her because she won't have the 3 church attendances that she needs to get baptized before I leave. But we have an investigator that will be baptized in 2 weeks and maybe another in 3 weeks but we aren't for sure yet. 

On Thursday we went to this investigators house and we were teaching her and she broke the news to us that she doesn't want to get baptized until she is 17 years old, and she is only 14 now. So we asked her why and she said that while she was reading the Book of Mormon she received revelation that she should get baptized but in a few years. We were telling her that the answer was not from God. We told her that God would not tell her to wait to be baptized into His church. She just didn't want to change her mind. Crazy girl jaja!! So we dropped her and we aren't visiting her anymore right now. 

That was the week basically. I love having so many investigators and so many people that we can teach. It's fun to see them catch the vision of the gospel! So, other than shooting chickens with my sling shot which is the funniest thing ever, we had a super great week! Just a little glimpse into my chicken story ... we had a chicken literally go bizerk, just like Eminem in his song, haha! This chicken started like screaming, it wasn't just clucking, he ran down the hill and started fighting with another chicken, and it was a chicken, it wasn't even a rooster. haha!! Crazy chickens in Peru make me laugh so hard. Well that is all that I have for today. Tune in next Monday for some more good old stories of my week. 

And I just want to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY LAST WEDNESDAY TO KASS KING MY COUZIN, AND TODAY TO MY MOMMMMMMMMMYYYY!!!! LOVE YOU BOTH SO MUCH AND HOPE YOUR DAYS WERE GREAT. 

Elder Christensen

Chicken Enchilada at the Pencion's House.

It's the best thing I've eaten in 9 months!

A Parrot from the Jungle at my Pencion's House

About to eat Enchilada's at the Pencion's house!!!

Without A Companion!!

Well this week I've been #Ponderizing and meditating a ton. I've had a lot of time to do that .... So Elder Perez, my newest comp, was a good guy, he would work hard and he was a guy that was very humble. Well, that's what he thought anyway!! He would say that he was the most humble of all the missionaries, and he said there were other gringos that would give him a ton of candy so he liked the gringos. Really, I think he was "acting" humble to get candy!! haha So that is the story that I got from Elder Perez anyway. I was with him for a week and a half, and I liked him, but it was a hard week and a half! haha So about a month ago he was in Tarma (a city about 2 hours away from Huancayo.) He was playing soccer and rolled his ankle. He pulled a bunch of muscles in his leg. Then President sent him to Tingo to be with me. He was with me for a week and he walked decently fine. Then one day he decide he had to go to the hospital. So we sent him to Huanuco and when he got back he told us that he needed to rest for a week. So on Tuesday all I could do was sit in the house all day while he was sitting there in pain trying to get better. I was kind of like his maid and slave. Then on Thursday we sent him to Huanuco to go to the doctor again, and then later that day Elder Bartsch and I went to Huanuco too. Then Friday came around and no one was telling me anything about Elder Perez. Not even he would tell me!! I was wondering all day and the finally President came to me and he broke the news that my comp was headed home and will never come back to the mission. Elder Perez is 27 years old, so they won't let him come back after he heals. The bad news about that is that I am now without a comp again! I have to find a member to go out with me everyday, and I have to teach everything. I have been going out with Rider (a new convert) all weekend because we are like best buds. He is trying to learn English so we speak English sometimes, but most of the time we speak in Spanish. So my comp is gone, and I am without a comp for anytime between now and the next transfer. So it is a possibility that I will be here another transfer!! So that would mean I would be here for 7-1/2 months!! 

So after kind of a downer week, on Friday we had a Multi-Zone Conference and I learned a toooooooooooooon!!!!!! I learned how I need to better myself to be a Preach my Gospel missionary. I also learned how to be super humble and patient. So those are the things that I am working on. There are also some other things I need an want to work on so I've been praying super hard to obtain some different gifts from God.

Last Monday we didn't do anything really, we just chilled and made some super good steak, jaja! It was amazing, It reminded me of home. We ate it with a Vanilla Coke and also some Pork and Beans!

My area is coming along. I really have noticed that the harder you work the happier you are. I have like 10 people that's I've been working with that should be baptised in the next 3 months. 

Also, I had a super cool experience last night. Elder Bartschi doesn't have great health these days. It started out like over a year ago and he was like literally dying from what it sounds like, so he went home for a few months and came back out. He is here in Tingo and has been for the past two transfers, but his heath is getting worse. So he asked me if I could give him a blessing of strength so that he would be able to finish his mission. While I was giving him this blessing I felt like I was having an out of body experience, and that the spirit had completely taken over my body. I felt like I was literally not inside of my body. The spirit was talking through my lips, and when I finished I was so physically tired that I had to go straight to sleep. It really was the craziest thing that has ever happened to me, I felt so in tune, and it made me realize how much God loves us, and that He wants the best for us. I know He is our Father and Jesus is our brother, and through the Atonement of Christ, Elder Bartschi will recover and be healed. I love you all and I want you to all know that I know that His church is true. 

Have a great week!

Love,

Elder Christensen

Beautiful Tingo Maria, Peru

Cooking Steak and Pork and Beans

"The Lord Let Me See Things From a Different Perspective"

Hey there family and friends and all those that shalt read my letter this week...

Well, this week was a decent week. First off, my mini-missionary went home this last week, and I got a new companion! His name is Elder Perez, he is from Ecuador and he has been out about 14 months. I think I'm going to like this little butterball! 

So, this week was a fast week, but yet a slow week. I am still trying to decide which one it was. I'm only going to write a short letter because I don't have a ton of time and I really don't have a lot to say. haha. So to start off. Monday we went to a place called Velo de las Ninfas, (Vail of the Nimphs). I think that's some sort of fly or somthing haha. But on the way up to the actual waterfall there are 11 more waterfalls that you pass by to get there. It was so cool. Elder Bartschi and I were like scaling the side of these waterfalls to get there, and no, we didn't do anything against the mission rules. We didn't swim or anything!! But, on the side of the waterfall in the mountain there is a little path that you can use to see all of them or you can use the less dangerous path to get up to the top. So Bartschi and I did half and half. When it got too dangerous we used the path. The other path you can't see all of the waterfalls, so I missed a few. 

On Tuesday we woke up at 6:00 a.m. to go to Huanuco, and we dropped off my comp. Then we had a training and came back to Tingo. I got back and went on divisions with Rider (Rider is a new member in Tingo Maria). Rider and I had the greatest lesson of my whole mission with a lady whose baby just died like a month ago. We went and cheered her up, and made her super happy. She said that she cried every day before that, and so I went with Rider because I felt that it would be a good thing to do for her. It changed me and how I think. It was the biggest impression that the spirit has made on me in a long time. I knew I just needed to go and start talking to her. I always feel directed by the spirit, but this was different, it was so strong and so powerful! We started talking and had a great lesson. She shed a few tears of sadness, and then tears of joy. I loved the lesson! It had such a huge impact on me and it made me realize the impact we have on other people. It made me see what we are capable of, if the spirit is with us. The lesson helped us both in different ways. We were able to teach her about the Plan of Salvation and the Lord let me see things from a different perspective. 

The next day I couldn't go and see anyone in my area because I was with the other missionaries all day because my comp didn't arrive until Thursday. When my comp arrived we figured out he was a gimp, haha!! He couldn't even walk. So we sent him back to Huanuco on Saturday to have it checked. So, basically I was in my area for only 3 days this week out of 6 days. My comp is cool and I think he will help me a ton  to be a better missionary. I think we'll get along great! I love this gospel! I miss you all and I will write next week. 

Love you all,

Elder Christensen

Velo de las Ninfas, (Vail of the Nimphs)

Sketchy Caves in the Jungle

Hey there!! 

It was a great time talking to the family yesterday. Now I am feeling super trunky and miss the family.

 

Let's start off with the great waterfall and the Cave of Death. So the waterfall was crazy! Not really, it was just super super tall, and super skinny! But, it was pretty cool still and we got some great pictures, and I still really loved it. So after that we had like 5 more hours to kill on p-day, so we decided to go to the cave. It was the same cave that I went into last week, but we couldn't get anywhere because there was no light. So, we went in this time and I brought a mini flashlight and Elder Bartschi brought one too, and we went inside. I was a little bit scared, I'm not going to lie!! I went first, we had a member that followed me, and then Rider (a new member from Tingo Maria) was following us, then the other three missionaries followed. We got like 4 or 5 minutes into the cave and we came across a part where we had to army crawl to get passed. It was a little less than an army crawl actually, we were basically just dragging our bodies behind us, using only our hands to drag ourselves for like 10 to 15 yards. It was pretty crazy, but for some reason it wasn't too scary. We kept going and everything was fine. We entered in super deep, and then got about thirty minutes into the cave and found that it was basically a dead end, well for missionaries it was. We ran into a part that we would have to swim to get any further. I was disappionted because there is a cool waterfall that is at the end, but we weren't told that we would have to swim to get there. I was a little bummed we didn't get to finish our adventure!

This week we have been mainly focusing on the people that really matter. The people that are progressing and want to learn. We have continued working with Veronica and her daughter Arely. We have also been working with a girl named Dianna.  This transfer should be really great. I will miss my mini missionary comp, Rosas, hopefully my new comp will be able to learn the area super fast. We have so many people these days that we just can't keep up with all of them. We only have time to visit the people we are teaching like 1 time a week, if we're lucky we can fit in a visit twice a week. But Veronica is coming along very well. Her daughter (the one we baptized last week) is in love with the church. She said that she is never going to leave the church untill she dies. She is thirteen and she has a powerfull testimony. She reads like 1 to 2 chapters of the Book of Mormon everyday. She is super cool. I really hope that Veronica and family will be ready for their baptismal date for the 21st of May. Dianna is a little girl that is Aamirs cousin. Remember Aamir that we baptized back when I first came to Tingo. Dianna started coming after Aamir got baptised and she really wants me to baptize her, but she lacks a few lessons. So we will see if she will be able to be baptized this week or the next week. It's fun to see people progress! This gospel is true! I know it and I love it when others know it too!!

Yesterday I finally got to talk to my Mother. It felt like forever since I had talked to my Mama and the fam. I guess it was 8, no 5 months ago, but still I had an amazing time. It was so good to see my cute little niece Teigen. Wish I could hold her! I loved that I also got to talk to Marci, Dave, Tate, Demi, Kolt, and Jen, super sad that Kass and Christina couldn't be there. But, it's ok they are on a cruise. those lucky nerds!! haha Well that was my week. I miss you all!  I'll just end with a little story to give you a chuckle. Yesterday in church there was no one there to pass the Sacrament, so we missionaries decided to pass the Sacrament. So we pass the Sacrament and everything is going great. We lined up to go back to the Sacrament table and we started walking back and I was looking straight forward, but for some reason some demon little girl decided to slide a little baby craddle into the aisle and under my feet while I was walking, and I slipped and i fell (jaja)!! I saved myself from dying, but I still fell to my knees and everyone started laughing, even the bishop haha! The good thing is, that the water didn't spill at all, I kept it steady! haha. 

Welp that was my week. I love you all and miss you all. Be safe.  

Elder Christensen

Elder Christensen, Elder Bartschi, Rider Ted

Cave of the Virgins

Luke meeting Teigen for the first time!

Skyping with Luke 

 Tate and Luke Skyping

 Mother's Day Skype with Luke

Mini Missionary Rosas with Elder Christensen

Luke's testimony on Mother's Day

No Waterfall this Week, but Sweet Angela was Baptized!

Welp family and friends, and other people that are bored so they are reading my letters....

This week was a super good week! We have been contacting like crazy this week! We found a lot of people that are really quite interested in the church and learning the gospel. But, first, I am going to start off and tell you that our last week's p-day kind of got destroyed. jaja We were eating fajitas, and there is a super fat guy that is here. Well, he went first to eat, and he ate like 4 fajitas! I was really quite mad because Elder Bartchi and I made the food, bought the tortillas and all the stuff that goes in them, and then I only got one and Bartchi got 2, and my comp took like 4! I was just super enojado (angry) just kidding! It was a nice way to work on my patience with fat latinos! haha they really don't have any respect for us though. ahhh jaja 

Ok let me chill out just a bit!  So after that found a moto (a small buggy pulled by a motorcycle) and started heading to a waterfall. Turns out that we couldn't get there because there is some cage that you have to use to get across a gigantic river. So we went to a cave instead. We were almost there and the driver of the moto got all mad at us, and tryed to charge us a bunch of money, but I just gave him the amount that I thought was fair and walked away. When he was driving away his moto broke down, so we were nice and helped him a bit, and some guy walked by and started helping him also. We left and went to the Cueva de los Virgenes, (the Virgin's cave, jaja what a name!!) but we got there and we realized that we didn't have the flashlight power to be able to enter. So I went in there alone with a phone flashlight and I got about 15 seconds in and a bat started chasing me. So we just left. When we were leaving we found the same guy and his bajaj (moto taxi). He had fixed his taxi and so we decided to jump in and go with him. We're about 15 minutes in to the trip and the police pull us over because there was 5 of us in a moto, and it only fits 4. So the driver paid him off (dang corrupted Peru police) and we were on our way. So, I realized that my day wasn't that bad compared to the moto taxi driver's day. jaja He dropped us off at a zoo that was on the way home, and it was the same zoo that I went to a few weeks ago. It was even better the second time. 

Then the rest of the week was pretty fast. On Saturday I got the opportunity to baptize sweet little Angela, and it was a beautiful baptism. She insisted that I baptize her, and I was totally honored to do it! After she bore her testimony and it was one of the most powerful testimonies that I have heard, especially from a 13 year old girl. Serious, I thought about how it was even more powerful than my testimony at age 18. It really was just overall a great week. I really like my companion, we work hard together.  My buddy Elder Baca finishes his mission this next week. And so does my comp, the mini missionary. Guess I'll see what happens next. I love you all and Mom and family,  will see you face to face on the computer screen next Sunday!!!! Love you all, and be safe this week.

-Elder Christensen

Elder Christensen, Angela, Eduardo Rosas (Luke's Mini-Missionary from Huancayo)

Angela and Elder Christensen before the baptism

Luke's Room that he shares with

Brother Rosas, Elder Bartchi and Elder Bartchi's companion

Looks like they all need a lesson in bed making

Lifting weights or rolling out his back.... or something??

Luke's says this is basically the 4 Elder's whole house.

They do have an upstairs, but it does not have a roof, so they don't use it!!

This house actually looks like pretty nice living quarters!

Cueva de los Virgenes, (the Virgin's Cave)

Elder Christensen, Elder Bartschi, Rider Ted (a member from Tingo)

Cueva de los Virgenes, (the Virgin's Cave)
Elder Rodriguez, Elder Bartschi, Brother Rosas, Elder Christensen, Rider Ted