Muy Buenos Dias,

Questions on the video....yes there are many. :) haha but i loved it!!! Some of my buds here sitting by me were laughing really really hard :)

Well what to tell you guys. 

We did our second recital muscial again...this time in ilo! We had a great time again! not as many people showed up as the last time but it was the same spirit that was felt. and it was the same wonderful feeling afterwards. my comp is the BEST EVER (he just wrote that on my screen). anyways....  saturday was sure busy for us because we had to go down to tacna and get them ready for their rectial musical the 2nd of november and then we had to travel up the ocean scenic route up to ilo where we had that other performance. i got to play again another violin solo and it was so cool the feeling that i got as elder chipman and i played. this weekend is stake conference and elder uceda of the 70 will be coming to preside over the meeting: and elder chipman and i will be playing along with a chior that we put together of members of the stake. so we are excited for that. 

We also had a baptism this last week! his name is diego and we have been working with him for a couple of months now. his dad is a less active along iwth his 2 siblings and we were able to get their whole family in the church and we rescued his older bro as well. its still dificult to work with his parents becasue they dont want to really come and do that which the lord wants. but with prayer and faith we can do it! 

This change is sure flying by. chipman is going home in 2 weeks...but we are not trunky! we are continuing to find a bunch of people to teach. this last week has actually been really really cool watching all the miracles happen right before our faces. because we for the first time in months we recieved some references and the ward has really been helping us out now. there is an excitement now and we are all on fire to work and find more people. a lot of less actives showed up to church and we were sure excited as well. 

we are working with a sweet lady named modesta who is so close to baptism. i ask for your prayers on her behalf to help her understand the importance and finally take the step in to the waters. 

i have been filled with love. love for the work, love for the people here, love for all of you back home, and love for the lord. i have been trying to renew my testimony and my studies have improved. i encourage you all to renew your testimonies. though we may know and it may seem silly to ask the lord once more if these things are true....i know that if we do, we can develope a testimony even more powerful in these the latterdays and satan will have no power over our hearts. we will abstain sin and want to do that which the lord desires of us. we will become better sons and daughters of the almighty and we will be instruments in the hands of the lord for the salvation of many more souls who are lost. as elder holland has said. santify yourselfs. and watch the miracles from heaven appear before your eyes. 

may we always do what is right. when people are watching and when they arent.

i love you all so much. 

cuídense bastante.

Elder Birtcher

1-4-3

       Elder Birtcher

Perú - Arequipa Mission

PICTURES!!! 

 

 

October 5, 2014

 

 

Coming to you live from Moquegua...

ITS THE ELDER BIRTCHER REALITY MISSION SHOW!!!!!

Welcome to all of you on the update of this last weeks events.

Well...i am finally here in moquegua again:) haha we sure have been traveling a lot lately. last saturday we went to Tacna (where i started the mission!!!) to help prepare the 3 zones there for their rectial musical that they are doing the 2nd of november and the 25 and the 30th i think...(one for each of the stakes there). we (elder chipman and i) will be playing with them for sure on the 2nd...the others not sure yet, there will be changes that same day. so who knows?? i sure hope i get to play for my old stake on the 30th of nov. and get to see everyone again. i miss them a bunch. 

along the same lines of the recital musciales that we have been doing. the one we did here in moquegua turned out great and we will now be traveling over to ilo the 18th of october to do the same thing over there!! So we got to start really getting prepared for this next saturday. should be great!

Then this last monday and tuesday we have been in arequipa for zone leader meetings with president. i enjoy the cousel that we had and we are really starting to focus our time on the reciente converts to the church. the area is really hitting us hard on the retention and we have created many many things that we are going to start doing here in the mission that will help us do that. we sure had fun taking some pictures afterwards with all my buds and with president. a lot of my friends are leaving this change. so so so sad. really really gonna miss them. especially my comp. we are getting along just great and are really trying to do what the lord wants us to do.  

our investigators are doing well. still need to progress a bunch to gain their own testimonies so that they can gain their own conversions. i have come to realize the importance of true conversion, not just baptisms. the lord does not want baptisms. he doesnt want more people in his church for numbers. he wants his children to be converted so that nothing will shake them. that they will be baptized and STAY active all the way home to the celestial kingdom. not to have us just baptize a bunch and have them linger and fall by the way side. we must see a change of heart in them before they can enter into the waters of baptism. and that we are trying to do. our teaching pool has been a little on the shy side...but i was able to do divisions with one of our district leaders this last week and we went contacting in the outskirts of our area and found some potential investigators that have invited us to come back and teach them and their families. i hope the lord will bless us and help us teach more of his kids. 

this week we were invited to go to a stake presidency lunch with all 20 of us elders and hermanas and really enjoyed that activity. our relationship with the stake presidency in the past here in moquegua has been absoluetly horrible. but ever since priebe, chipman, and i have gotten here we have turned that right around so it has been great to work with them and help the work move along. i was talking with some of the newbies as well this last week about a bunch of different things and really helped me realize all the many many miracles that i have seen here. the mission is wonderful. its the best. wouldnt have it any other way. i have grow to know my savior. he lives. and i am still growing. i still sure have a long way to go. but its a happy road to take. and i lvoe it. 

i hope you enjoyed all the pics. know that i really do love you all and pray for you each and every day. 

if you are ever feeling down or low. cheer up for there is one, a peruvian, who loves you. (i know that didnt rhym...but thats okay :) ) 

we get to watch conference this saturday and sunday! so i am sure excited ofr that!!

give my love to todos. 

Thank you for tuning in to fun times with the birtch. 

till next time from peru.

Weston 

--

      Elder Birtcher

Perú - Arequipa Mission