CALLED TO SERVE - PERU LIMA CENTRAL MISSION - JULY 2014 ~ JULY 2016

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

June 22, 2015 Letter...

Hahahahaha, okay that story of dad absolutely killed me.. that is such a dad thing to do.. I'm not kidding. Too great. It makes me smile. Even better, it was at a Willie Nelson concert.. that's good stuff. Hahaha. I'm gonna check the pics out :) thank you I love you mom :) Glad to hear everything is good and everyone is good... it really makes me happy! Dad only has like 11 more months of badge-flashing power left ... he better use it up!

Anyways, this week was good. A bit slow because we had 3 baptisms last week. But, we managed to have a baptism this week also! It was awesssssomeee :) Good stuff. I`ll send pics soon. What else happened this week.. oh ya, we said bye to President Borg and it was sad, but I was like ya, we`ll get a new president ... we`re gonna meet him 5th of July. I'm pumped. He's gonna crack down the hammer and I cant wait. Lettttsss gooo baby. What else happened... ummmmmm... I love seeing my friends here in the mission... and the new homies I've made here. It's awesome stuff. Oh ya, also this week, we got a call from the assistants that one of my investigators I had when I was in Rimac was going to be baptized and he invited me to go to it!!! After 6 months of me praying that he could be baptized... and after 6 months of him praying that he could be baptized... our prayers were finally answered and permission was given (he went to church every week without fail since the first day we met him, but couldn't be baptized because of a situation). So yeah, we went to Rimac and witnessed that baptism.. took pics.. and my beloved investigator Walter Lagos was finally baptized :) SO PUMPED. Prayers really do get answered. If we have faith, and if we`re doing all we can here to be obedient... the Lord is gonna help us out. I really have a testimony so strong of that. Anyways, good stufffffff. Also this week was the dedication of the Peru Trujillo temple... and all of Peru got to watch it. The churches changed into like extensions of the temple for one day, and only those with recommends could enter, and it was such a perfect service. President Uchtdorf and Elder Bednar came and did it, and I have to say, those men are my heroes. I felt the strongest confirmation in my heart, that those men are really called of God. They are His prophets. I know it. They are thee most solid men and I love them. What a blessing it is to have prophets today. Pres Uchtdorf is hilarious and when he was sealing the corner stone he kept cracking jokes and it made me die. Him and Elder Bednar also gave some of the greatest talks regarding temples I have ever heard. Elder Bednar really stressed the fact the OUR ancestors need our help to be saved... and we need THEIR help to be saved, because without them we can't. He really, really focused in on saying OUR ancestors.. OURS. We need to do temple work for OUR ancestors. Anyways, it's important that we do family history, and take the names to the temples. I love you guys.

Elder Cluff

Baptism of Walter Lagos in Rimac District.  Six months of hard work paid off! :) 

Thursday, June 18, 2015

June 15, 2015 Letter...

The only thing I need... hmmm idk but the TIES YOU SENT ME WERE SICK. SEND ME MORE LIKE THOSE. 80'S ONES TOOOO LEGIT. I love you so much. The congo bars... are you kidding me... pure divinity. Also the other things (I forgot what they were called), but they were amazing. Also, the zucchini bread... mom all of it was perfect.. so delicious. I love you. Best piece of home that you could have sent me hahaha.. your cooking. Too amazing. Also everyone who lives with us loved it.. your famous now and everyone wants the recipe hahaha. Thank you, mom, once again! Just know that it was super special for me. So divine.

Thank you Hermana Desiree for delivering the treats!! :) 

Glad to hear you guys are getting into hiking ... are you guys taking Kula with you? Haha. I hope. Sounds awesome tho. When I get back I'd love to go hike a bit. Glad to hear all the brothers are good and that everyone is happy. That always makes me happy :) make sure to always keep the blog updated please, because I'm famous and people wanna hear what I'm up to, but I don't have time to send everyone pics or forward the email to everyone. :)

This week, we had a complete miracle! Felix and Gladys, the married couple we have been working with for the last month and a half or so, got baptized this week along with one other person named Israel!!! I'm so pumped I'm not kidding. The work is progressing so much here. We are destroying it. So many people are knowing the gospel and we are working are tails off to get them baptized. And it's happening. And hey, this week we have another baptism!!!! Wednesday. But really, the baptism of Felix and Gladys was a miracle. The first time we met them, back in May, we put a baptismal date on them for the 13th of June, because that's what the spirit told us. Honestly, I don't know why the 13th of June came into my head over a month ago, but that's what came, and that's when we invited them to be baptized. We put in our part and all of our effort and worked hard and they met that goal. We completed with the Lord. I'm not gonna lie and say it was easy, moreover it was one of the hardest and most stressful times of my life, but it was worth it. When the Lord gives us responsibilities, we need to complete them. Felix received his testimony more quickly than Gladys, and for the last 2 weeks or so she has had so many doubts concerning the baptisms, due to the fact that she was baptized in another church when she was younger with her mom, and it was a really special experience for her through which she was able to feel the spirit. Anyways, we kept helping her overcome her doubts with the Book of Mormon and kept inviting her to pray about it and ask the Lord. The Friday before the baptism, she still wasn't sure if she was going to be baptized on Saturday. She still had this doubt; this insecurity. We had fasted, prayed every day, visited them every day and in every moment so that she would feel ready to be baptized the Saturday. It was hard for us not to doubt, but we managed to put our faith in the Lord, that if we did all our part, he would do His. So we had our final visit with them the Friday before their baptisms, and this lesson was a battle. Let me tell you, it was a straight battle. I walked into that lesson, SO nervous. Because their destiny, if they would be baptized on Saturday or not depended on this lesson, and if we would be able to pay enough attention to the spirit to help her feel secure and ready. Felix and Gladys have a son named Felix Jr. and he accompanied us in the lesson, and helped us SO much. We also brought a SICK Hermana from the relief society that teaches gospel doctrine. Anyways once we got in and sat down, the spirit just hit me, and I knew it would be a lesson guided purely by the spirit. We taught, and it was so present. The spirit was the real teacher, like it always should be. We had to help her understand that the baptism that she would be performing was ordained from God, and not man. After touching on various points of doctrine, with the help of the Book of Mormon, and the members, and her husband who was ya already ready for Saturday, she made the decision. She accepted the invitation with a firm YES!!! "I will be baptized tomorrow." WOOOOO HOOOOOO. Then Saturday in the morning they had their interviews, and that night they got baptized! Our zone had a "white night" because we baptized like 19 people. I'll send pics. It was amazing. So freakin' stressful that day and night, but we got everything arranged and got it done. They are so happy, and we are so happy. We worked for our goal and we accomplished it. We completed with the Lord, and we feel great. We had faith that it would happen, but instead of just believing, we did everything in our power to make it happen... that is the true faith. That's the faith that the apostle James talked about. If we have faith, we need action. We have another baptism Wednesday and I'm pumped.

All is good here. I know God exists, I know he answers prayers. I know what we need to do, is listen. Listen to the spirit, and ACT. ACT in every moment. I love you guys.

Elder Cluff

Me and zone leader Elder Patterson did the tandem bike (felt like 400 miles up a Suncrest hill, lol).

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELDER MERA! Pretty much our last time together before his transfer.

Elder Mera, Me, Elder Ramirez and Elder Richards with the familia of our pensionista.

Saying goodbye to the big family Tello.. I love them.

Sick shirts I bought.

Me with a neighborhood kid Andres. He is too bossss.

 The temple!

Elder Caipo and me at the temple!

June 8, 2015, Letter...

Mac's a boss and I love him. I hope I get a sign like that on that fence when I get home :) hahahaha. plzzz.. it would be too great.

And I love you, Mom. I hope I have time to look at the pics :)

I'm gonna be in contact with Hermana Desiree so I get the package tho! thankkkss mama :) love you! and thank you for the other goodies.. they are things that I have needed but I'm too lazy to buy... love ya. Better when sent from home :)

Gma and Gpa make me laugh so much... cross country in their RV... too great.

I love you mom... the year mark is definitely coming. And the shirts I bought are siccckkk, aren't they? :) 

I love you guys and I hope everyone at home is doing amazing. I pray for you guys every single day and I know the Lord will continue blessing you as you continue reading and studying as a family. :) This week was super good. We had a lot of amazing lessons that the spirit guided. Really there in no better feeling than the spirit. We also went to the temple, and I was in the celestial room for maybe an hour... wow. My favorite place on earth. I'm so grateful for temples. We are excited here because
we´re going to be able to watch the temple dedication of the Trujillo Peru temple and that's gonna be a great experience. Even though I had 1000 opportunities to see the live broadcast of a temple dedication at home, I never went. So I'm happy I'll be able to see this one. This week we are going to have a "white night"... or better said, our zone will be baptizing more than 20 people in one night... and three of them will be from us. It's this Saturday and we are soooo stoked. The Lord has answered every one of our prayers out here and my testimony of this gospel and the Book of Mormon strengthens every day. This week has been great and we've been working extremely hard to get these baptisms ready for this 13th of June for the "white night" that our zone will be having. We have been praying extremely hard for miracles, and we´ve been doing everything to make those miracles happen. We have been working with an amazing married couple named Felix Sr. and Gladys. They are the worlds greatest people. Felix has been able to gain a powerful testimony in the course of the last month, and his wife, too. But she has had some doubts concerning being baptized again (she was baptized in another religion), having fear that it would be ¨playing with God¨. So the other day we were teaching her, praying for a way to help her, praying for an answer so she could get over this doubt and be ready for June 13th, and right in the middle of the lesson, her son Felix Jr. (a member who is super, super strong who lives in the north mission) Skype's them and begins helping us teach, shares powerful testimony, and then we were able to help her resolve her doubt with the help of her son. It was an answer to SO many prayers. The spirit was so strong during this lesson, and we taught it with pure testimonies. I know that's our most powerful tool as missionaries; testimonies. Even more so, testimonies from members and family members. Anyways, everything good in Zion. Love you guys! Thanks mama :)

Love, Elder Cluff

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

June 1, 2015 Letter...

Hey first thing.. I'll send pics soon don't worry ... I promise.. and wow, holy cow what an email you have sent me.. But I want to reply to it because I have some questions. First off, when Grandma Cluff told me she bought an RV.. I thought camp trailer... hahaha but an RV? You are kidding me. That's the greatest thing I've ever heard, hahaha. I love them. And Bill and Jen's (haha, Ben and Jill) sealing just sounds like it was great. That's the point of life right there. The temple... being sealed for time and all eternity... that's the goal here in the mission :) get families to the temple!!! And that's hilarious Zack went on a date.. what a legend.. pics?? Glad he had fun. What a good date. I'm pumped... super pumped Zack was able to bless the sacrament the other day. I love him. I'm proud of him. And hey mom, we're going to the temple this Thursday, and really quick I need you to tell Grandma J to send me a temple name so I can do their endowments!!!! Okay??? PLEASE DON'T FORGET!

Anyways, I love Cam... he is a boss... hahaha "I need to start running to get in to shape," he says... hahaha he cracks me up. I'm glad he'll get a lot of good experience.. (I don't have apostrophes and I just swore sorry) Anyways I'm pumped for Skyler, too.. I knew he would kill it... I love him so much :) Glad Brig had a good b-day too... everyone is doing good and it makes me happy.

I'm sure I'll get the package next week... Lovveee ya mom.

Anyways, I love you and I have to go I'm short with time, but remember to talk to Gma Jensen to send me a name ready to print before Thursday...because I'll print it Wednesday...please don't forget.

Love you...

Elder Cluff

May 25, 2015 Letter

Yeah, soon I'll upload fotos.. sorry for slacking on that.. but I'll get that done super soon don't worry about it. :) My new son's name is Elder Caipo (K-eye-po) Like eye from your head... yeah. He's a boss.. and he's ready to work which makes me happy because that's what I needed. Someone ready to work and get things done. And that's awesome school is out.. it makes me sick how fast it went.. but hey what do you do.. seriously so weird how fast it went. But happy birthday also to Brigham! I love him and hope he is happy and got cool presents for his birthday :) And delinquent stoner longboard... hahahahahaha. My heavens I love dad. That kid is one of a kind. Glad Zack got through school though!

And that's awesome you guys are getting in shape and losing weight and are gonna work out at Golds/Vasa! Super sweet :) Keep working hard and working out hard. You guys rock and I love you all! And yeah, that will be solid for Zack's college application.. coaching lacrosse. solllidd. I'll keep Skyler in my prayers. He'll be fine. I love you all.

This week was good.. my old comp is gone and I have my new comp who is a boss. We're learning a lot together and working super hard. We are happy and it's awesome. Yesterday not a lot of people came to church and I'll be honest it ticked me off, but hey what can you do? We did sooo much to get them to go to church, but in the end no one came. So irritating. This week we're gonna be focusing more on going to church so they can get there, then get baptized. We have a lot of people ready to be baptized. June will be a super successful month. I love the family we live with and when I leave I'm gonna miss them so much. They are seriously my family now and it's been such a blessing having been able to live with them. They'll be there first people I visit when I come back :) The family Culqui! Soliiiidddd. But yeah, we have a lot of investigators who will be baptized in June.. and I'm excited. We are seeing so much success here. I love getting work done, because when we put in our all, the Lord blesses us, and helps us with what we can't do by ourselves. Remember that. If we want a special blessing, if we need something, we need to put in our part; put in our all, to receive that special blessing. The Lord is more than willing to help, he knows what we need, but he wants us to exercise our faith in him with our obedience. Obedience is the key to life. I know as we live obediently to the commandments -- not just some of them, but all of them -- we are going to feel such a more complete feeling of joy and love in our lives. We'll be more patient, more loving, more understanding, more like Christ. This really is the ultimate goal, becoming like Christ. Loving everyone like he did. Like he does. It's not always easy here in the mission... it's never easy haha, to be honest. There are a lot of people I would love to punch, but as I try to do what I can to love them, I start to see them as Christ does, in their true potential, and the ways that I can help to change them into better people. The gospel is true. Don't ever doubt it.

Love you guys!

Elder Cluff

May 18, 2015 Letter...

Hello Familia!

Zack wrecked the Geo? Are you kidding? What happened? :( poor guy I bet he feels horrible.. please go easy on him...love you guys. Tell him I love him a lot. hahaha okay wait I just read that you guys were pretty cool with it, that's good to hear haha. :) Dad... "Here son, take the truck!" Classic loving Dad, lol. Tell Zack to be freakin careful especially in the rain... rookies these days. amen and amen, life goes on, the Lord continues blessing us. I got pulled over maybe 10 times but never got a ticket. I always pulled the good ol "Ahhh, my dad is gonna kill me. He is a cop too, and he takes these things seriously." "Oh, crap son.. I'm not gonna give you a ticket this time, just be more careful."

LESSS GOOO high school memories all day baby!

Glad the tenants rock hahah that´s great.. 3 families living in my house.. too amazing. Keep it up! GO Josh and Breeeecia lol.

This week was good mama, not much happened, but I love you guys. And hey I'll update you guys more next week I don't have a lot of time today. We met a couple a week or two back and their names are Felix and Gladys. One of their sons is a super faithful member who has his own family and for that they are super receptive and prepared and want to learn more. So we have been teaching them. This week they came to church for the first time and stayed for the three hours (and absolutely LOVED it) and they have their baptismal dates for June 13th. They are the greatest. I have seen the spirit work in them, and they have changed SO MUCH since the first time we met them. They have such strong desires to follow the Savior. We are so grateful. We are still seeing so many miracles here. They never stop. Honestly my testimony of obedience strengthens every day. We´re not perfect but when we strive to just do our best, the Lord blesses us and guides us to what he wants us to accomplish. :)

Love you guys,

Elder Cluff

Monday, June 1, 2015

May 11, 2015 Letter...

Love you momma! It was great talking to you guys yesterday, I'm serious. Greatest thing ever. Everyone sounds good, looks good, and most of all is happy. That pumped me up and I'm not kidding. You guys are my heroes. But hey, the next time we'll plan it better and get it to work out, but hey it worked just fine, what are we saying? :) I thought it went perfect. Love you mom :) I´ll talk to you next weeeeek. Today we went and rode bikes by the beach as always, but this time we did tandem bikes, well I did it will one of my zone leaders and it was soooo hard, but we did it and climbed the worlds biggest hill... it was too good. Love you mom! You look and sound great, and I'm so glad you are happy. Don't forget about them ties :) Love ya!

Elder Cluff