Transfers.... and I am leading the area. !!!!!!!!!!

President and Sister Douglas

Hola family and friends!

Well... I know that I said I wasn't going to email until tomorrow, but................................................... Cambios. Transfers. AHH!!! Things were crazy this transfer, yiiiiiiiikers. lots to fill you in on. 

My companion was transferred, which means I am leading the area. I am  pretty nervous... but I know that I can do it with LOTS AND LOTS of help from Heavenly Father. I just need to have confidence in myself, and trust in the Lord that this is for a reason!!

  

My new companion's name is Hermana Chavez. She is from Chile, and is 29 years old. And once again..... no English. hahaha.  She seems really great though, and it seems like  we are going to get along well.    I am excited for all of the changes that are  going to happen this cambio!

Right now I am actually in Cañete. I am here with 2 Hermanas until tomorrow -  because Hermana Chavez had to go to Lima to receive training on how to be MY trainer. hahaha. So I am here in Cañete (about an hour from Chincha), until tomorrow. 

I am really sorry, I seriously have like ZERO time to email right now.  I will have to fill you in next  week with all the good things about my companion and how the work is going.

Please please pray for me. Pray that I will be able to be confident but humble, and that I will be able to accomplish all that the Lord needs me to do. I know He is preparing me for great things.  I trust in Him 100%. 

THANK YOU for all your love and support. 

This church is true !!!!!

Hermana Sintay :)

A family  of investigators we are teaching! This picture was taken when they came to church yesterday :)

 La familia Guillen !!!! Ellos son lo máximo.   Our neighbors  :)

a  bunch of really wonderful ward members :)

the Hermanas in the ward that always accompany us to lessons :)

Feliz Navidad!

Christmas Day Skype from Chincha... This is one happy family!

MERRY CHRISTMAS :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!!!!!

This week has been INCREDIBLE!!!! Wow!!!! Seriously I am so happy :) So many happy things :)

We had our MultiZona de Navidad on Thursday - fue LO MÁXIMO. En serio. Wow!! President Douglas y Hermana Douglas came down for the whole day. Our Zone leaders BEGGED us to come and help them decorate the entire stake center... They are WONDERFUL zone leaders, but they needed some real help with the decorations. haha so who do they ask? The only Hermanas in the zone, of course ;) We decorated for 3 hours! And it turned out INCREDIBLE. Everything was decorated from top to bottom!! The other zones and President were super impressed :) For the Multizona, we watched a movie, had a White Elephant gift exchange (hahahah this was the funniest thing with a million latinos who have never participated in a white elephant), and ate lunch together! I was just bubbly and bouncing around the whole day, because HELLO IT IS CHRISTMAS TIME!!!! At home, I celebrate Christmas all-out for about 3 weeks leading up to the actual day. But here... I can't do that, because I am focused on the work of the Lord. (which is way happier anyway) :) So when I have a moment to remember that it is Christmas - I bring out the jingle bells and express all my JOY for the season :)

The sign that Hermana Lara and I made for the MultiZona!! Holy cow... we made this the night before, and it took 2 hours. Pero..... vale la pena :) It turned out AWESOME :)

This week we saw miracles in our area. I know that it is because of our obedience and consecrated diligence. We are working SO hard, and this week we were able to see the fruits of those efforts. We found 5 new investigators, and placed 2 more dates for baptism :) We had 11 less actives at church yesterday, as well as 3 investigators! Wow we were so happy. :) 

When we are contacting and finding people, we focus on finding the "escogidos". In English it is like "the chosen ones". hahahahahahahaha but that makes it sound like I am converting Harry Potter's out here in Perú. Mmmmmmm not so much. hehe :) Bascially, an escogido is someone who is truly prepared for the gospel in their lives right now. It is someone who is ready to make commitments and keep them - someone who has been prepared by the Lord for us to teach! Those kind of people really are out there. We just have to find them :)

This week is going to be the BEST. Today we are having lunch together as a zone, and watching a movie. The movies we watch are all approved by the mission, but they are AWESOME! They aren't church movies, just ones that are approved. Thursday we watched "Gifted Hands" (I think that's what it is called), and today we are watching "The Ultimate Gift" :) Then on Christmas Eve, we are also celebrating as a zone!! Hermana Lara and I are cooking a full-blown Peruvian dinner for all the Elders in our zone!! Thank heavens Hermana Lara is Peruvian and knows what she is doing. hahaha it is going to be so fun, cooking Peruvian food is awesome - I have done it once and it was a blast! I hope to learn a lot of fun dishes during my mission :) Also, on Christmas Eve, we are going to watch............. drumroll............ FROZEN!!!!!!! :) Oh happy day :)

I can't wait to Skype with you, family!!!!!! I hope you all have the most amazing Christmas week :)

I love you all!

The church is true!!

Hermana Sintay :)

#happiestdayEVER

Hola everyone! :)

Okay family, I will be skyping on the 25th, probably around 4 or 5 my time - I have no idea what the time difference is, haha. BUT, I will hopefully get some more solid plans soon so I can give you a more specific time next week :)

I'm sorry, I don't have a lot of time this week!!! So this might be a little short. 

First thing - WE GOT A CHRISTMAS TREE. OhmygoodnessIwassoexcitedIcouldhardlyhandlemyself. #literallyhappiestdayEVER  Our neighbors bought it for us, and we got to decorate it and everything!!!  I decorated the whole thing by myself, because my companion was not that into it. hahaha..... she probably thought I was crazy. I was running around with tinsel and ornaments, spinning and singing along to the 4 Christmas songs I have on my iPod... on repeat over and over and over. tehe :) What a tender mercy. 

Things here have been great, I cannot BELIEVE we are in week 5 of the transfer!! Only 2 more weeks until transfers! I will stay here in Chincha because I am in training, but I don't know if I will get a new comp or not. I guess we will find out in 2 weeks!

So Hermana Leiva is still really sick, and has to stay in Lima. This week we took all of her luggage up to Lima for her. So now it is officially just Hermana Lara and I here in this area! We are also the only Hermanas in all of our zone. But Hermana Lara and I get along well, so it is just fine :)

We worked really hard this week, and maybe that is why the time flew by so fast! We work BASTANTE con los menos activos. So many less actives. But we also have some investigators that we get to teach, so that is great :) My goal this week was to not have any fear, expecially when it came to speaking to people en la calle. I did well, with the help of the Lord, and lots of specific prayers :)

Yikers, I really don't have any time left! I am so sorry! But I get to see you in 10 DAYS :) I am so excited!! If you want, you can write some questions that you want me to answer so we make sure that whole 40 minutes is used well :)

I love you all dearly!! Have a great week! :)

Love, 

Hermana Sintay :)

Remember the real reason for the season :)

With Him, you can do ALL things.

Hello family and friends!

The struggle is real trying to remember everything to tell from this week. WOW. Every day is just packed with things that I want to share with all of you. I will try my hardest to cover everything :)

First off... CHRISTMAS. I can Skype with you! What a miracle! I will be doing it in the house of a member, and I have 40 minutes, nada más. I can Skype the 22nd, 24th, or 25th. And if we need to do a quick call to make sure it works, I have 3 minutes on the 22nd! But ONLY 3 minutes that day. Whatever day works best for you guys we can Skype! I am assuming it will probably be Christmas Day... but just let me know :)

Alrighty - on to news from this week :) 

We had a Multi Zona activity this week, and it was LO MÁXIMO. Our zone and 2 others got together with President Douglas and his wife for a day of training. The other 2 zones traveled here to Chincha for the training :) Wow, I learned so much. There are so many things that I can improve to become a sanctified missionary. It gave me such a boost, honestly best thing ever :)

Yikers.... every day is SO hot and long...  we are entering into summer right now! I forgot sunscreen one day and got the WORST sunburn. hahahaha.... in December, who would have thought? 

We didn't have church on Sunday because there were regional elections for something here in Perú.... I'm not sure why that is a reason to cancel church, but every ward did! hahaha that made Sunday pretty much the longest day ever, because we don't have Language Study or Training on Sundays, meaning we were proselyting for an extra 3 hours almost! And the sun was bien fuerte that day. But it was a good day :)

I did get to watch the Christmas Devotional! But... it was in Spanish. haha. So the songs were probably the most spiritual and uplifting part for me :) Holy gorgeous, MoTab!

Things are wonderful in Perú, but I would be lying if I didn't say this is the hardest thing I have ever done. Every day has it's own challenges, struggles, and fears to be overcome. I am growing and learning every second of every day, but it does not come without a price. It is hard. REALLY hard. But I know that with the help of my Savior, I truly can do all things. 

Today marks exactly 2 months since I entered the CCM. In these two months, I have done things I never thought I could do. I have BECOME something greater as I continue learning what it really means to be a missionary and representative of Jesus Christ. 

Is it a sacrifice being on a mission? Yes. Is it hard? YES.  But there is one thing that gets me through every challenge here on the mission.... and that is my Savior. Right now, I have Christ's name carved on my chest... right next to my own. On my name tag. But He had MY name carved on His back. He had nails put through His hand's for my weaknesses and every single one of my sins. He suffered for ME. He died for ME. ... and He did it because He loves me. If He can do that, I sure can give EVERYTHING I have to His work the next 16 months.

I love you all. I hope you remember that WHATEVER trial or pain you are going through - He knows. Let Him help you and heal you.

Also - smile :) I promise, it helps.

All my love, 

Hermana Sintay :)

"Give me your heart, and I will give you my Spirit."

Hello my dear family and friends!

Wow. What a week. I totally forgot that it was Thanksgiving until my district leader told us as we were reporting our numbers Thursday night. And IT'S DECEMBER NOW?! How did that happen. Yeesh. Sure does not feel like it with this 85 degree weather, and me over here getting sunburned everyday. jajaja but really, I am getting the best tan of my life!

First thing first - Hermana Leiva's stomach has not improved... and so she had to be emergency transferred to Lima where she can be closer to the doctors and all. Right now it is just for a week, and then if she gets better she can come back to Chincha. Soooooo this week it is just Hermana Lara and I. Ahh! It will be quite an adjustment. But it is going to be a big learning experience for me. I know it will help make me a stronger missionary. Hermana Lara speaks zero English, and we haven't really gotten as many chances to become close the last 2 weeks. Now, Heavenly Father is giving us that chance! We just got done with 6 hours of traveling in bus (to Lima and back). I have been to Lima way too many times the last couple weeks. jajaja. 

Okay about the rest of the week...!! As you can see from the pictures, we went to the playa for Pday last Monday :) That was super fun!! We played this game called "Mata Gente", which literally means "Kill The People"...... jajaja it is a Latino version of dodgeball, SO MUCH FUN; we are totally playing it at Sintay get-togethers when I get home :)

OH I ALMOST FORGOT. I got your Christmas package!!!!!!!!! Yay!!!!! Thank you SO much!!! Seriously family - you are the greatest ever. I love you so much!! Also.... ehem.... sorry, but I didn't see the note about the goodies being for Christmas day, and when I saw the Subway mints I kind of lost control. hehehe. Um..... So I opened that. hahaha lo siento!!! Everything else I am saving like I should :) And Mom I LOVE the advent calendar! I started it this morning :)

So this Sunday was fast and testimony meeting - and I bore my testimony in Sacrament meeting :) I wasn't even nervous, which was incredible, considering I was speaking in front of nearly 200 people who don't know a lick of English! But the Spirit was definitely there. 

Something that I have definitely learned out here in the field is that the SPIRIT is everything. Without the Spirit, you cannot teach, you cannot find people - you can't do anything! As a missionary, you have to constantly do everything you can to live worthy of the Spirit so you can do the Lord's work. Life is just better with the Spirit as your guide :) I testify of that.

I had a really tender experience this week. We were on our way to an appointment, and had some extra time. When we have extra time we go visit less actives and try and teach a lesson to them. We prayed to know where we should go, and arrived at the house of a woman named Fa**. She has been inactive for about 3 years. She let us inside (thankfully!), and we sat down to begin a short lesson. We heard some noises from the back room (it sounded like a baby or something), and then she excused herself and went back to tend to the problem. When she returned, she was holding in her arms her son, who was probably 15 years old, and who has cerebral palsy. She was apoogizing over and over, and we assured her that everything was fine. Most people here are terrified of people with disabilities, because they just don't understand. My heart opened up so big, and I began to simply interact with him. His face lit up like the sun. All I had to do was smile. hold his hand, look into his eyes, and he was happy. His mom was completely in tears. She said that NEVER had someone acted that way towards her son. We taught a simple lesson, and invited her to come to church this week. She came :) She said that she felt more love from us as missionaries than she has ever felt from anyone. 

You know how they always say that there are people prepared for YOU in your mission? Well, I don't know if this was one of them, but I know that Heavenly Father helped me help one of his children. I know that He helps me everyday. He uses our strengths... our weaknesses... everything we have - to HELP others. His promise - "Give me your heart, and I will give you my Spirit. And together, we will change the world.. heart by heart."

I am giving Him my heart. He is giving me His Spirit. Time to change some hearts :)

I love you all. Seek for the Spirit this week, and watch the miracles.

Love, 

Hermana Sintay :)

I love this flag!