Mission Week Three Moquegua

: A Fire, A Flood, and An Earthquake

This week Moquegua has been shaken to its core and washed clean of its top layer of dirt which underneath is more dirt! There was also a fire close to our room, it destroyed about three houses. A few days after the fire it started to rain when we were in a family home evening with a Family who lives in the highest part of our area and the rain started to poor! It was absolutely insane and the roads were like muddy rivers! My Comp and I went straight home! Luckily our apartment wasn’t flooded like a few other missionaries and dozens of members’ homes! It was more water that Moquegua could handle! It ruined a lot of water pipes so our water supply has been a iffy! Also Sunday We had an earthquake! it was a pretty bad one but i slept right through it! My companion started snoring the other night and i had to use Kaitlyn Tanners Clap Method to get him to stop long enough so i could go to sleep! Other than that we have been doing pretty good in Moquegua we always have lots of investigators and we are having a lot of success in this area! I am looking forward to six months here in Moquegua and the challenges that come with it, because Jesus Christ suffered all things so he could walk shoulder to shoulder with us ever day of our lives! I know that he is there and i can feel him catch me when i start to fall spiritually physically and mentally! He is always there to lend a hand we just have to reach out for him and i promise that he will always be there for us  This is Alejandra  he is a member missionary who is always helping me and my companion anyways that’s all from elder tanner this week i am doing well!

 

 

 

 

 

Mission Week Two Moquegua

Hey Guys

Miracles:

On a more spiritual note my testimony has grown tenfold!!

This week has been great but on Monday i lost my scriptures. I left them in a taxi! When i told my companion he was absolutely devastated as well! I told my companion that if the lord wanted me to have my scriptures i had the faith that the lord would make sure that found their way back to me! That night I went home and cried because i use my English scriptures so much because Spanish is still a little difficult for me to understand! I prayed and prayed for my scriptures to find their way back to me and prayed that the lord would help my unbelief. The next morning me and my companion were eating breakfast when we received a call from the sisters in a different part of Moquegua! They told me that they had my scriptures safe and sound! I still can’t believe that i have my scriptures this day. I also was able to read a story of my friends who had a deadly car accident but they escaped unscathed! I pray every day for the safety and health of my friends and i know that the lord has blessed my life so much! I love you guys and i am thankful for the blessings that you have given me that I can share with the people of Peru! That’s all from elder Tanner this week Chow!

I love the people here the only bad thing is the dogs!  I need something to repel the dogs because everyone has been bitten except me and i do not want to be bitten!

Elder Tanner

Mission Week One Moquegua

Hey guys!

I arrived in Arequipa about a week ago and they had us go through a celebration of receiving our companions and when i got up they told me i was going to Moquegua which is a large city with dust and people and some areas where they can grow fruit! It is surrounded by sand but the people here are amazing! so far we have three baptisms and we are having alot of success with the members.

I was the only gringo sent outside of the main city I am in Moquegua! It makes Nevada look like a rainforest! I would send a picture but it takes forever

I haven’t had time to think since i arrived here its super dirty and always dry and hot but it is beautiful I love the members and the ward here is fantastic. I can understand almost all the words I hear, i want to stay right here in Moquegua! It is LO MAXIMO!

My room is pretty small and the floor is always dusty i am standing at the door but its all good! The Food here is great i am really sad because i can’t send you a picture of Mamita Luz! She is our Pensanista! She is super nice and she always calls me Flacco Which means skinny and tells me that she is going to make me fat in six weeks which might be true because i have been gaining weight i don’t fit into my jeans as well as i did! The food here is great and it is very povertous! i thought that some areas in lima were bad but it is definitely worse here but the people are still very happy and i am happy too! 

Elder tanner

 

Welcome to Arequipa

Dear Brother and Sister Tanner,

We are pleased to inform you that your son, Elder Tanner, has arrived safely here in the mission. The enclosed picture was taken at the mission home the day he arrived.

Please accept our appreciation for raising such a fine son with good qualities and talents that will bless the people of Peru. My wife and I feel he will be a dedicated and hard working missionary. We are committed to his health and well-being, and consider it an honor and privilege to serve with him here in Peru.

 

To send regular mail and packages please use the following address:

o   Elder Tanner, Shaw Boston  

o   Peru Arequipa, Mission

o   Casilla 1884

o   Arequipa, Perú

We appreciate your dedication in preparing your son for his mission. We pray that you will continue to enjoy the Lords choicest blessings.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Richard Zobrist

President

Peru Arequipa Mission

 

CCM Week Five

Hey guys, so far not a ton has happened this week it was still a great one though!

Hermano Lane is the general manager of all the MTC´s is a really cool guy! He is extremely smart and he is super humble too! We were able to watch a video of the first four missionaries in Ukraine. It was super cool and it will probably will be viewed in a lot of the mtc´s in the world

We had pancakes for breakfast! it was the first time i had ever had anything besides eggs and ham! The churros here are amazing! My teachers are awesome! Hermana Chacon speaks four languages fluently and knows a little bit of two more! Hermana louyza has never taken an English class, but she has learned a ton of English from teaching missionaries in the CCM.

Part of being a Zone leader is planning firesides and church meetings, and every time the zone leaders before us have forgotten something and they would be yelled at by the CCM President but my companion and I were able to plan a fireside and everything went smoothly! Hermano Lane taught about Preach my gospel and the spirit was so strong.

So far i have come to love Lima, the people are extremely friendly and the city is beautiful. The temple here reminds me of the one at home! I can definitely feel the love that the savior has for the people of Peru!

So far, we have had two groups transfer out of the CCM, My roommates Elder Cruz, Elder Varner, Elder Fritz and Elder Robertson left last week! It was really weird not having anyone else in the room except for me and my comp and I miss my roommates a ton but i have lots of time to write you guys before i go to bed now!

Before i got to know him the president of the CCM was one of the most intimidating people i have ever met, however he has an awesome sense of humor! He is also insanely good at ping pong! Elder Leavitt from my district is the only one here who has been able to beat him at ping pong!

Physical Activity is a ton of fun but the new Latino’s don’t like to pass the ball a ton. I don’t play as much as i used to but today is Prep Day and all the gringos will play together!

Just watched Meet the Mormons, it’s a pretty great show. It was a little hard to watch the family with a missionary who was leaving, having just left a few weeks ago, but the message was great and it was really uplifting!

The Mission has a way of changing people, we are set apart as elders and hermanas who’s objective is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel, through faith in Jesus Christ and his atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the holy ghost and enduring to the end! The gospel is why I am happy! Through the gospel the lord has led me to the most amazing people. A scripture stuck out in my mind today and it was Proverbs 28:1. My class’s goal this week is to be bold because fortune favors the bold! I wish this Sunday did end but as i lay in my bunk I can’t help but feel the overwhelming peace that the spirit brings to my soul! The Days may be long, but they are worth it, they may be overwhelming, but god comforts me, they may be hard, but they are full of learning. They may be challenging but i represent him who walked all paths alone but he is always with me! Know that whenever you feel alone I always keep you in my heart! No matter where I am, I take you with me!

-Elder Tanner

CCM Week Four

Hey Guys,

Its Elder Tanner, I am doing great, Spanish is really hard to learn but i can already keep up a good conversation and we are learning to talk in all of the different past forms! it’s a ton of learning to do but I am Definitely getting help. The CCM is still probably one of the most beautiful places I have lived aside from my home! It’s Just an insanely awesome place to be! The Food here is still good it’s always chicken or beef with rice day in and day out! One of the lunch ladies always gives me a ton of food! We became advanced CCM people today which means we leave in two weeks for the campo which is an insane thought, yo estoy muy nervoso! But it’s going to be insane!

In two weeks exactly! I will leave in the morning and i won’t get to email. One of our Hermana’s isn’t going to her mission she completely tore her ACL while playing soccer That was the one that i got to bless for the first time! Elder heath and I were called as Zone Leaders! Now we are avansados which means advanced! its super great and the atmosphere couldn’t be better!

We are about to be observed by the Person in charge of all the MTCs its super insane

The last two pictures are of my district! We are all super close and we love each other in the most Christ like way.

Yeah we ride these super crowded busses and we are compacted like sardines; a lot of the people on the streets don’t want to talk but every now and then we place a book of Mormon!

:D love elder tanner

CCM Week Three

Hey guys!

 

I have got the photoshop picture from  my weber buddies and i couldnt stop laughing! The CCM has been treating me great I can talk pretty well in spanish but the great thing is that there is no end goal! on a mission it is constant improvement and there is little time for rest. We study eat study eat study eat sleep and do it all over again. The Food here is great and the people are super nice. I have befriended two of the latino elders who are as animated as i am! We are talking in spanglish and it is extremely helpful for learning the language. My district is fantastic there are ten of us in one class and we do everything together. We all help eachother and constantly seek to serve one another.  This is a very stressful place, however, the message of the gospel is happiness and before you preach it, you´ve got to live it.

 My district was chosen as part of a pilot test group for a new teaching method. The president of all the MTC´s is coming here to observe us while we teach investigators while in the mtc. These aren´t real investigators but they are real scenarios and we probably haven´t ever talked to the actors or actresses before. Its super intimidating but i am sure District 109 is up for the test! so far my favorite part of the MTC has been my teachers. they are insanely good at teaching and they are always trying to help and push us farther. My goal this week is to be more diligent in personal study because i often find myself day dreaming. The CCM is a very blessed place i have learned more spanish then i did french in highschool and i have only been here for two weeks.... i think... Moreover i miss you guys a ton but i know that this is where i am suppose to be! I love you guys so much and i am using all the talents you taught me to become a better missionary. OH also i have proven myself to the latinos to be one of the best gringo soccer players! We play soccer everyday for an hour and it is a ton of fun! it reminds me of my weber state tournament where we had a ton of fun! anyways thats all from elder tanner this week but i will email you guys more next week!

 

 

Love elder tanner