Apostle, Wedding, and 6 Baptisms.

Hola Familia Y Amigos!

This has been a super awesome jam-packed week. We had transfers on Monday, but as I expected I get to stick around with Elder Ramirez to finish training him! That means I will have 7.5 months here in Comas. 

      Thursday, we woke up at 4 a.m. and headed over towards the Center of Lima to the first Stake Center established in Perú. There we waited for a while, and in walked in Elder David A. Bednar. I can’t even describe the powerful spirit that swept over the room as he walked in. We were privileged to have 3 hours with him, and it honestly felt like 3 minutes. It was great to see the casual side of an apostle. He started by saying...okay lets be honest. Every time an apostle talks you guys write down every word they say. Then, you don’t even read those notes later on, and in the end you can’t even find them. So, the question is, if you are going to take pages and pages of notes, which you won’t even read, which you will ultimately lose, then how effective is that!?!? haha but then he didn’t even give a talk...it was a new format of teaching that he was trying to teach us. Instead of talk talk talk talk talk, he just did a really cool interactive teaching experience, where he just asked a bunch of questions to us and let us ask him questions, so that in the end, we really taught ourselves by the personal revelation that we received. Building instead of talking. I really like that new method, and am going to apply it to my Investigators. It was amazing. IN the end he stood up to bear his testimony, and it was one of the most powerful testimonies I have heard, and he left an apostolic blessing on us that we will all be able to receive this type of personal revelation through the Holy Ghost. It was such a neat experience. 

       Friday was the long awaited wedding!! It was a fun day, and it was nice that all the wedding papers worked out and everything. We had a little more room to breathe!! I was the witness, and so forever they will have my signature on their wedding certificate!! hehe...my name is also on the wedding invitation...spelled Resqui. hehe. But we all took a cool picture with President Erickson and his wife after the wedding. Bety and Henry are super happy to finally be married, and are preparing to enter the temple in a year to be sealed together forever. 

     Saturday came, the best part of the week, and perhaps the best day I have had in all my mission. We were privileged to bring six people from my area to the waters of baptism. Henry and Bety who got married, their two kids Naysha and Erick, and their Nephew Alex and Neice Rosmeri. I can’t even describe the Spirit we felt as they were baptized one by one. I know that the angels up in the heavens were rejoicing, and they are so so so happy to finally be baptized. The best part of it all was, that in one year they will be able to go to the temple and be sealed so that they can live together forever. I am so honored to be the missionary to have taught them, and
they will forever have a special place in my heart.

     My dear family and friends, my heart is full in this moment. I am so content to have this grand opportunity to be an instrument in God´s hands, and help bring the Peruvian people to the knowledge and light of the truth. I know this work is true. This opportunity that I have for two years is the work of helping families be eternal.  I love Peru, I love the Peruvian People, and I love the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Love, Elder Reschke.

P.S. Manuel, our one-legged friend received the Melchizedek Priesthood yesterday, and is super happy!

P.S.S. There was a pigeon trapped in the chapel, and we were trying to shoo it out with a broom, but we accidentally hit it in the head and it went crazy and now there is pigeon blood all over the ceiling. We never could shoo it out, and it is still in the chapel. 

Questions Elder Reschke answered this week:

What was the miracle of the week?

The miracle of the week is that a family took their first steps towards being an eternal family.

Scripture of the week?

3 Nephi 27:20:  "Now this is the commandment:  Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day."

                       Elder Reschke and Elder Ramirez at the meeting to listen to Elder Bednar:

                                         "High on a mountain top.  A banner is unfurled.":

                     Three Generations:  Elder Martinez who was Elder Reschke's Trainer, and
                                      Elder Ramirez who Elder Reschke is now training:

                                                         The wedding of Bety and Henry:

                                                 At the wedding of Henry and Bety:

                                                                      Wedding pictures:

                                                                     At the wedding:

                                                The wedding couple and the witnesses:

The wedding group with President and Sister Erickson:

Elder Reschke and Elder Hilario are the witnesses for the wedding:

                                                          The pigeon in the chapel:

                                       Elder Rameriz and Elder Reschke preparing to baptize:

                                        "Perhaps the best day I have had in all my mission":

                                                                   Before the baptisms:

                                                          Family at the baptisms:

                                                                            Baptisms:

A family is baptized:

                                                        Elder Reschke baptizes Alex:

                                                 Henry, the father of the family is baptized:

                                                                             Baptism:

                                                                  The wedding party:

Elder Hilario and Elder Reschke, preaching the Gospel in Peru:  

Fuimos a la Chacra! (We went to the farm!)

Hola Familia Y Amigos! 

It’s been a SOLID week here in Perú.  Monday we went to a ranch in the outskirts of town to kick it for P. Day. There were tons of open space, fields, a little stream to catch little fishies, and this family really lives like the Peruvian Dream. We made tacos, which were super tasty, and played Fútbol in the farm fields. We had a good time hanging out, and it was good to kind of escape the city for a bit. I jumped in the hammock, and the post broke and I scraped up my leg, but no worries, all is well:) 

Guess what??? I have some good news. The birth certificate finally got here!! We are going to drop it off at the municipalidad today, and that means the family is good to go for the wedding on Friday. We had to take a huge risk and put like 200 soles on the line, and go ahead and register the family. If the birth certificate didn’t arrive from the little village, the family couldn’t get married and the money is not returnable. SO, as you can tell, we were kind of on the edge of our seats the whole week. Super happy it got here!

Bety and Henry are excited to be baptized with their two kids on Saturday. They went on the Ward Temple trip this Thursday to see the gardens, the temple store, and the cafeteria. They felt this super feeling of peace like that is a good place to be. 

We are super happy for all the people we have to teach. Recently, we have been teaching Manuel´s sister Marina, who is super interested, and I can really feel the Spirit as we teach her! Our convert Manuel, is preparing the spare room in his house to make a little store so he can be more self sufficient. 

Our converts Ingird and Joselyn are doing a great job with their new calling as ward missionaries. They made the missionaries a little souvenir video, and watching it was probably one of the most tender moments of my mission. 

Wow, I can't even begin to describe the feeling of joy that a missionary feels as he finds a family to teach and baptize. THIS is what the mission is all about. I am so honored to be a missionary and have all these amazing experiences. 

We are excited this week to hear from Elder Bednar who is coming to Lima, and also the wedding and the baptism.

I will keep y’all posted! Thanks for everything you all do, you are the best.

 Much love, 

Elder Reschke.

Questions Elder Reschke answered this week:

What is your scripture of the week?

Alma 32:31:

“And now, behold, are ye sure that this is a good seed?  I say unto you, Yea; for every seed bringeth forth unto its own likeness.”  That really explains the purpose of faith.

What is the miracle of the week? 

The miracle is that the birth certificate got here.

Random question from Mom:  I discovered a little park with walking trails down off Murray Holladay Road this week, do you know it?

Mom…you of all people should know that your son has run on every street, trail, and little park within a ten mile radius of Cottonwood High School and THEN some.

That little park is called the “duck park”, haha!

                        

                                                                Outside on P. Day:

                                                       P. Day at the farm:                      

                           P. Day at the farm.  They don't really eat tacos here in Peru much.
                                           A missionary from Mexico was the head chef:

                                                                    P. Day at the farm:

La Huaca!

Hola Familia Y Amigos! 

How goes it? Well this was a crazy but good week for us!  Last Monday we had an awesome P. Day, and we rented out a huge real grass field, and played soccer. It was a blast to play on real grass for a change! 

This week was my ONE YEAR MARK! How crazy is that? I cannot believe that a whole year has passed. I can’t even begin to describe the experiences that I have had during this past year, but it has been absolutely amazing. 

This week our converts, Joselyn and Ingrid, threw a birthday party for Elder Hilario, but they made me a Gigantografia, which is a giant poster with pictures, that says “Happy 1st Anniversary Elder Reschke”. That was really nice of them. 

We had a good week teaching all of the Investigators that are preparing for baptism, and they are doing great. We had the baptism of Susy on Saturday, and I had the privilege of baptizing her. She is super happy to be a member of the church, and I just know that she has a great conversion. Seeing your Investigators get baptized is definitely the highlight of the mission.

Hermano Manuel, our one legged friend is Mr. Self-Sufficient now. He organized his own fundraiser to sell chicken to raise money for his medical bills. Now he doesn’t even like us to carry him up and down the stairs anymore, he just wants to use his one leg to hop on up. I can not even believe the conversion that he has had. He went from somebody planning his death, to somebody who aspires to be a better person on a daily basis. Ladies and Gentlemen, the Gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives. Manuel is living testimony of that.

We had to go to the government building a bunch of times to do the wedding papers for Bety and Henry who are going to get married. I have no idea how we managed to do everything in time, but today we went to register the wedding papers and they are all good to go. They will be married on the 28th, and the whole family, the four of them, will be baptized on the 29th. I feel the Spirit so strong when I am with them. 

Yesterday I tried two new fruit's for the first time. Piña, which is a fruit that comes from this spiky tree in the jungle. Unlike anything I have ever tasted in my life, but super tasty. The other one was a Spanish Tomato, which was tasty and super fruit like. 

Anyway,  it's been a good week hear in Peru. The Lord has blessed us in so many ways, and it is truly a miracle that this wedding is going to work out so that Bety and Henry can get married. 

Yesterday, we had a good lesson with Marina, who is Manuel’s sister. She has a ton of potential, and I think she will be able to baptized soon. 

Today, we visited a Huaca in Tungasuka, which is this ancient archeological site, with ancient buildings dated 1000-1400 B.C. That’s like the time period of the Jaredites! Anyway,  pretty neat. 

Today, we had one of the most memorable P. Day's of my mission, we did so many fun things that I don’t even have time to explain it all, but tune in next week to hear all about Fishing, Broken Hammocks, Torn Pants, a big gash on my leg (don’t worry, it’s just a scratch, it looks worse that it is), and chickens on the taco table. 

Love you all so much, and have a fantastic week. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is true! Go share it with someone. Who knows? You might just change their life. 

Con Amor,

Elder Reschke

Who says I'm not living in the jungle:

                                                                P. Day at the soccer field:

                                                            Real grass to play soccer on:

                                                                      One Year Poster:

                                                                    One year mark:

                                                                           

                                                               Baptism of Susy:

                                                                          Baptism day:

                                                                  Susy is baptized:

                                                       Elder Reschke and Elder Ramirez:

                                                      Elder Reschke and Elder Ramirez:

                           Fried chicken in the pan for Manuel's Pollada (chicken)  Fundraiser:

                                                           Manuel and Elder Reschke:

                                                                 Elder Hilario's birthday:

                   My favorite Peruvian dish, lomo saltado (a popular traditional Peruvian dish,
                       a stir fry that typically combines marinated strips of steak with onions,
                          tomatoes, and other ingredients, served with fried potato slices and rice).

                                         Pina, a fruit that comes from a spiky tree in the jungle:

                                            Spanish Tomato.  Tasty and super fruit like:

                                              Bety and Henry registering for the wedding:

                                                                             Exploring:

                                                            Elder Reschke on P. Day:

                                                                Elder Reschke on P. Day:

One Year Mark.

Thoughts from Elder Reschke's mom:

One year ago today, Elder Reschke was set apart as a full-time missionary.

I have been thinking a lot about him today.

And, missing him a lot today as well.

As I walked out to get my mail this afternoon, this is what I found,

a postcard from Peru:

I always teased that I was glad of e-mail because I 

can't read this guy's  handwriting:

                                                            This is what it said:
"Hola Mama`!
Greetings from Lima Peru`.
Your lil' baby is all grown up and preaching
the Restored Gospel to the remainder of the 
Lamanites all the way in South America.
I have learned and grown so much in my mission thus far,
and have had so many incredible experiences that have
changed my life.  I'm so honored to be a worthy servant
of the Lord, and I won't stop sharing the Gospel until this
message has brushed every street and sounded in every ear.
Con Mucho Amor, 
Elder Jacob Reschke"

I have only ever gotten one other letter via  U.S. mail from Elder Reschke
in the past year.  I am not sure if he sent it through the pouch or what.
How amazing that it arrived exactly on his one year mark.
I consider it a little "tender mercy" from Heavenly Father.
Honestly, this truly made my day.  Gosh, it even made my year!

Faith, Love, and Charity.

Hola Familia Y Amigos! 

The big news of the week is that Elder Bednar is going to come to Lima to speak to us! 

I am beyond excited to hear what he has to say! This is going to be such a neat experience. 

We had a good week. For P. Day, we watched a Disney movie and ordered pizza. It was a fun day. Wednesday, we continued our service project of making a tire staircase for our beloved hill, La Cruz.  It’s coming along quite nicely! 

This week was really busy for us, because we are preparing nine people with a baptismal date. Three families included in this nine. Every one of them has different needs, and we are working hard to prepare them for their baptisms. We had 12 Investigators come to church yesterday, which I think is a new personal record for me. The other companionship in the Ward had like 11, which means District Año Nuevo is killin' it! 

I am so amazed to see what this week brings! We are focusing a lot on Bety, Henry, and their two kids. They need to get married still, so it all depends on if the birth certificate arrives from the little village in Junin in time. I don’t know how, but we finally established contact with the little village that doesn’t even have phones, internet, cable, or radio. Now we just have to cross our fingers! 

We are working super hard, and I would really appreciate all of your prayers for us. I know you’re already praying, but keep it up please! 

Oh by the way, somebody should hit up the Peruvian Restaurant in Salt Lake and let me know what they have, I’m kinda curious.  But yeah, that’s about all that is new this week. 

        I was reading a lot in the Book of Mormon about faith this week. I think that a lot of us have really forgotten the true definition of faith. Remember, that faith and fear cannot coincide. We need to leave behind all doubt, and look to the future with a firmness in our faith in Jesus Christ. I know that Jesus Christ made possible that we can overcome the adversary. I know that we need to put our trust in him one hundred percent, and not be like Lot’s wife. She looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt. I don’t think anyone here wants that. If we can make little steps every day to increase our faith and testimony in the Lord, Jesus Christ, we are going to see MIRACLES. Miracles that we didn’t even think were possible. I testify of that, because I have seen that type of Miracles every day for the last year. I have been reflecting a lot on the things that I have learned this past year, and I think everything I have learned can be concentrated in three words: Faith, Love, and Charity. 

I love you all so much, and thanks for being such a support. One year down, one year and a lifetime of miracles to go. 

Con Mucho Amor,

Elder Reschke

Questions Elder Reschke answered this week:

Miracle of the week?

The Miracle is that we were able to contact the little village in  Junin to send us the birth certificate.

Scripture of the week?

The scripture in Alma 32:28 (look it up) where it talks about how our faith is like a seed and we need to make room in our hearts for this faith to grow into a tree so that someday we can enjoy the delicious fruit.  

Weather update?

The weather is a lot colder!  Kinda Chilly!

How are things going with training your new companion?

It has been a really good week.  Elder Ramirez is progressing quite well and learning a lot, and I love him.  The Lord has definitely prepared the Peruvians to hear the gospel.  I am glad Elder Rameriz has come to the mission in the midst of all this!  

What are you doing for P. Day today?

For P. Day today I suggested that we invite another Zone to Comas and rent this giant soccer field with REAL grass (it’s worth 3 soles).  So, that’s what they are doing. AND, it’s funny because the person that suggests something always gets put in charge, so yeah we are going to have a fun P. Day. 

Ciao Ciao, Elder Reschke

                                                       Visiting a home on the hill:

                                                                Sign on the hill:

                                          We were teaching an Investigator,
                          they got up for a minute and their dog jumped up in the chair:

                    Elder Ramirez and Elder Reschke working on the service project on the hill:

                    Elder Ramirez, Elder Lopez, Elder Reschke working on the path up to the hill:

         Elder Lopez, Elder Ramirez, Elder Reschke, Elder Hilario working on the path up the hill:

                                                           Sign on the mountain: