"The Gum Experience"

Hooollllllllllaaaaaaaaaaaa,

I feel like I start my letters the same way every week but oh well. It’s been a good week :) Piero was baptized on Saturday!!! Yay! It was a really good experience. His dad (who has been less active) was able to baptize and confirm him! Their whole family was in church on Sunday. And because it was fast Sunday Piero, and his dad bore their testiomonies. I almost cried. It really affected Jimmy (his dad) to be able to baptize him and we are hoping that this will be the experience they needed to become active in the church. Next step: the Lima Peru Temple! It’s time to get this family sealed. Piero, in his testimony said the cutest thing. He said, ``to all those who aren`t baptized I hope you choose to do so soon so that you can feel as happy as I do`` I looked real quick over at our investigadors to see if they were listening :) 

J., our other investigador with a baptism date will be baptized this Saturday.

Last Tuesday I had kind of an interesting experience. I was walking down the street with my comp and felt something hit my back. I asked Hna Torrico to see what it was for me and she said, ``eww! someone threw a huge wad of gum at you`` I turned around to see (cause it had landed on my backpack) and it was true! It was huge! I didn`t know it was possible to fit that much gum in someones mouth. At first I felt kind of sad like, ```hey! what did I ever do to you?`` but then I remembered Elder Hollands talk from this last conference about sometimes having to face personal abuse simply for being a member (or missionary) and how it is actually a blessing because we are in our own small way ``bearing the shame of the world`` along with Christ. And it made me feel a lot better. And actually kind of glad, like, ``yes! thank you for throwing that gum at me`` Cause now I can say in my own very very small way that I know what it feels like. What else ya got for me?? 

I shook the gum off my backpack and we went on our merry way. What a waste of a good piece of gum for them!

Well, I guess thats it for this week cause I want to try sending some pictures.

Love ya'll. Que tenga un excelente semana! And, if faced with moments where you have to defend your faith, or stand alone for what you believe, or even bear some personal abuse, remember these words from Elder Holland,

''Be strong. Live the gospel faithfully even if others around you don’t live it at all. Defend your beliefs with courtesy and with compassion, but defend them. A long history of inspired voices, including those you will hear in this conference and the voice you just heard in the person of President Thomas S. Monson, point you toward the path of Christian discipleship. It is a strait path, and it is a narrow path without a great deal of latitude at some points, but it can be thrillingly and successfully traveled, “with … steadfastness in Christ, … a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.”19 In courageously pursuing such a course, you will forge unshakable faith, you will find safety against ill winds that blow, even shafts in the whirlwind, and you will feel the rock-like strength of our Redeemer, upon whom if you build your unflagging discipleship, you cannot fall.''

Como siempre y con mucho amor,

Hermana Shelton

Pictures:  Baptism of Piero! And ''studying with my companion'' Don`t worry mom, we don`t really study that way( or are that messy) . We just set it up for the picture :)