Chipmunk

Hermana Ostler’s Update – April 21, 2014

I am a chipmunk. This week one of our menos activos gave us cake to eat during the lesson. We were teaching about something really important and I got way excited and forgot that I had a mouthful of cake shoved into the corner of my cheek. I was sitting there expounding and expounding the scriptures. At some point I touch my cheek, and I realize I had had that cake in my mouth for the whole lesson. Only these things happen to me...

The Spirit that fills the room when Peruvian men pray - It is the most amazing thing ever. The men here live so far below their potential. They forget that they are SONS of God. Sons of That Great Being who made all things. They are His sons. He loves them so much and they forget so often. We are teaching a less active family, Hans and Yovanna. I love this family. I love the change that I am seeing in Hans especially. One day we were kneeling and praying and he said, “I don't deserve it, but thanks for changing me.” The humility of this man. He KNEW that he was talking to his Heavenly Father. That prayer really changed me. We are His children and He listens to us. We do not deserve this love but He gives it freely. I really do love it when the Peruvian men pray. 

The dino miracle. First of all. Thanks Mom for sending me a package full of dino toys! They are always in my backpack and I play with them when we are waiting for people to answer the doors. They are the bomb. Second of all, Norka sells chocolates with dinos inside! My compy and I have begun to collect them. Well, this week we were in the process of leaving Norka and Freddy. They do not want to divorce and then get married again. It really broke my heart to see that they didn't want to change. They do not come to church or read or anything anymore, but they KNOW it’s true. With this horrible sadness in my heart, I decided to buy one more dino. BUT THERE WAS ONLY ONE. And my companion snatched it first to buy it. I was so sad. First Norka and then the dino. But when my compy opened the package.... There were two dinos! I am serious. They never have two! It was one of those small miracles to see. God loves us. He doesn't want us to be sad and so he sends us the small things that get overlooked lots of times.

But the best part of the Dino Miracle...Norka came to church this week. Miracles exist People! 

Peruvians have a lot of weird traditions. One of the craziest is that if you sleep with a sore throat then your bones hurt and you get another sore throat. I never believed it. But after about 7 months of living in the jungle and sleeping with a fan... it finally caught up to me. The myth is true. 

I love you all. I love Easter. I love Jesus Christ. I thought about Him all week. We sure forget about Him sometimes, don’t we? We forget that it is because of Him that we are here, that we can be happy. I love that man more than anyone else in the world. He is my Savior and I am His representative. I am so proud to carry His Name. Let us remember Him.

Happy Easter!!!

The day calls your name! What are we going to do with another incredibly beautiful day that God has given us? I hope its something crazy, that makes us laugh, and brings us joy. This life is meant for us to be joyful!

I LOVE YOU ALL.

Sometimes we get bored during the strike. This is me surfing on a log... Hermana Ruiz is spraying the hose on me for a wave... 

My compy in mid lesson when a frog hopped under her chair. She has a phobia that controls her. Poor girl. Pueblo is full of these creatures. I LOVE them but cannot touch them because they probably are full of poison. Cons of living in the jungle. 

This is my companion not walking past that little frog.

This is Ambar and her family. They are awesome.

This little kid had a bike...with PEGS. I got way stoked and begged him to give me a ride.... But really... Dad. Put some pegs on my bike, por favor. 

Rosemery is going through a lot of problems with her marriage. She just got married and baptized but is now feeling like she wants to have her youth back. We are helping her realize that the family is the best thing ever and that the other things just do not matter anymore. I sure love this woman. 

Stacking cups. This was my fifth time trying it before I succeeded. Ronny (the teenager) is a guy that makes me STUDY when I teach him. He saw my abounding impatience with the cups and told me... "how can you preach the word if you don't have patience?" hence... studying patience this week.