June 13th, 2016

My heart is full of mixed emotions right about now. I'm not exactly sure what it is that I am supposed to feel or to expect. When I got onto the plane 2 years ago on July 15th, 2014 my heart as well was filled with mixed emotions. Everyone told me that 2 years was such a short time and that the time goes by way too fast, but it was hard to believe them at first. Now that I am sitting here at a computer screen, realizing that this will be the last time that I will be sending an email about my mission, I realized that what they all told me was right. I never expected my mission to go by so fast but it did. Something that I have tried to do, especially in these last few months, has been to enjoy my mission and the time that I have had to serve. At times you think about asking God to slow the time down but what I have come to understand is that everything has a purpose and all we can do is to control the things that we have control over. I might have not been able to slow the time down but what I was able to do was enjoy every single second of my mission. Everything must come to an end and I guess that this next week will be that end for me. 

Something that I told myself coming into the mission was that I wanted to learn what Heavenly Father wants me to be and what he wants me to do or in other words I wanted to truly understand what all of the return missionaries mean when they talk about CHANGE. What I have come to realize is that the change that missionaries talk about isn't because of the knowledge that they gained being a missionary. Well at least it hasn't been for me. It is about the actions that I have taken that has allowed me to change and become a better person and to understand what it is that my Father in Heaven wanted me to achieve in my mission. Thinking about why this occurred in me has only brought me to one answer and that is my will. No one caused this change within myself besides the only one who can him being the Savior Jesus Christ. I can honestly say that I have seen this change because I have felt it and I have seen the different person that I am. The way I think, act, react, talk, serve, my attitude. Everything. I've realized that my heart has been changed because I allowed my Savior to change it through his Atonement. Through diligent prayer, study, and fasting I have seen the effects of the atonement in my life. 

I will forever be grateful for what my Savior and Redeemer did for me. There is no other way but full surrender to his will to be able to receive the blessings of salvation.​​ I think many people think that the mission is a way of repaying God for everything that he has given us, but I see it just the opposite. My mission has been a blessing for me in every way, shape, and form and I have a lot to thank Heavenly Father for because of it. I have loved seeing my life change and as well as the lives of all of those that I have taught. I truly have seen such incredible changes in the lives of so many people as they have allowed the gospel to work within them and as they have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. It has been such a huge testimony to me that the gospel blesses all who come unto Christ and partake of his atonement because I have seen it happen in so many different people. 

I testify of an all loving God who is our Father. He lives and loves us even more than we can imagine. He has created a plan that we might achieve the potential of being perfect. I know that it is possible to achieve it because our Loving Father prepared the way for us to return back to him and be even as he is through his son Jesus Christ. He truly is the Christ. The Savior and Redeemer of the world. He came into the world be be raised up upon the cross and to die for us so that we might have everlasting life. It is through him and his gospel that we are able to understand this incredible plan that the Father has for us and it is through him that we might be lifted up. He came to the world to establish his gospel and for it to be taught and brought to the whole world through his church in which he called prophets, apostles, and teachers. This gospel and church has been restored to the earth once again through a prophet called of God. I know that Joseph Smith was an instrument in the hands of our loving Father in Heaven to restore the truths that had been once upon this earth so that through them we might understand who our Heavenly Father is and what his plan is. I know that the Priesthood Authority has been restored to the earth so that the gospel can be taught and so that we can be blessed. I know that this authority has been passed down through all of the prophets of our days up until our dear prophet, Thomas S. Monson. I know that he is a prophet of God and that he has been ordained to be a representative of the Savior Jesus Christ here in the earth. I know that He directs the church through revelation and through the Priesthood Power. I know that it is through that very Priesthood Power that one can obtain the saving ordinances that are needed to return back to Heavenly Father. I know that Families can be sealed for time and all eternity and that if all members pertaining to it keep the sacred covenants that they have made, then they will receive the highest kingdom of glory, even that of the celestial glory and life eternal.

I want to thank all of you for your support that you have shown me here in my mission. Thank you for your prayers, for your love, and for desires for me to do what is right. I truly have felt power from those that love me and those that have supported me this entire time of my mission. I want you all to know that I love you so much and that I am excited to see you all really soon! May God be with you forever and until we meet again. 

Love,

Elder Thorpe

June 6th, 2016

As the days continue to go on I realize how much the Lord still allows me to see such great miracles in my life as well as in the lives of others. It is amazing to see what the Lord is able to do when you allow him to guide his work instead of trying to lead the work on your own. Something that I have learned on my mission comes from a talk that I cherish which is "When you lose, you both win" When I am able to lose and forget about myself, me and the Lord end up winning, but when I try to win and fight for my desires and fight for what I want and it isn't exactly what the Lord has prepared for me or what he wants, then we both end up losing. This principle isn't just for missionaries. In fact Jesus said it the best. 

Matthew 16:24-25  

24 ¶Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

 25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

I know without a doubt that this is true. I know that the Lord desires our hearts because that is what he doesn't have. He wants them through our missions, through our callings, through everything and not just in doing his work. It is a principle that makes us become more like Christ because that is what he wants for us. I know without a doubt that as we focus on applying what the savior has taught us then we are able to become more like him.

I love the gospel so much and I love my mission. like I have been saying for a couple weeks now, I am sad for my mission to end but I know that I have served and done what my Father has asked me to do. 

I love you all and hope that you have a wonderful week!

Thanks for all of the birthday wishes!

Love,

Elder Thorpe

May 30th, 2016

Well the month of May has sure been a fast month. I can't believe that tomorrow is the last day of May and that on Wednesday we will be entering into June! All I have to say is that May was a great month. We might of not had a baptism in May but we still had a great month of teaching the gospel, sharing our testimonies, and loving the work. This whole last month has been a month of teach teach teach and teach even more. It has been so incredible to me how much we have taught and how little we have walked here in my area. To me it has been such a huge miracle to be able to teach at all times of the day because that is what I love to do. I love helping others understand the gospel and apply it into their lives. Sometimes it is hard for people to be able to apply it all due to certain situations, but I know that the gospel is here for us and God has a way for everyone to be able to enjoy the blessings that come from the gospel. He is a JUST God and is not just going to let his children suffer without the blessings of the gospel. Sometimes it takes a little effort on our part, but if we truly do all we can to be able to have these blessings in our lives, God provides the way so that miracles can happen in our lives. That is something that I have seen throughout my entire mission and it sure wasn't different this last month. I can't say that I have been the most successful baptizing missionary that there ever has been, but what I can say is that I have shared the gospel and my testimony of an everlasting Father in Heaven who loves us and of his divine plan that he has for us to become even as he is. I know that the spirit has touched the lives of so many people here in Peru and whether they were baptized by me, after me, or even if they are baptized in twenty years and endure to the end to receive eternal life, I know that I will be able to say to my Father in Heaven that I bore his sons name and his gospel with the testimony that I have in my which is that I know that my savior lives and loves all of us. Jesus is the Christ that came into this world to teach his gospel and to teach unto all to repent, be baptized, and to come unto who and whosoever cometh unto him will have eternal life. I know that these truths have been restored through a Prophet of these are last days, Joseph Smith, who saw God the Eternal Father and his Son Jesus Christ. I know that through his ultimate love and wisdom, God the Father brought forth the light of the Book of Mormon and that those the read, ponder, and pray about, will be able to receive a testimony of the savior Jesus Christ and his restored church. I know that it is true and I know that it is directed by Jesus himself through men called of God. Thomas S. Monson is he who directs this church as a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ here on the Earth. And I know that the divine plan of our loving Heavenly Father is that we may return to him as eternal families which is only reachable through the saving covenants and ordinances that are available in his holy house, the temple.

I love the gospel. I know that it is true and I know that all who come and partake of the the tree of life and taste of it's pureness will be able to gain a testimony of the truthfulness of it.

I want you all to know like always that I love my mission. I wouldn't trade anything for these 2 years that I have had here in Peru. I will be sad when it is finally over, but I know that I will have eternity to cherish some of the best years of my life. 

I love you all and I hope that you have a wonderful week!

Love,
Elder Thorpe

May 23rd, 2016

Well we are pretty much here in the last week of May! Wow May sure went by super fast, and even though it is hard to say... this is my last month here in the mission. This last week I have been reflecting back on a lot of things that have happened here in my mission and it has been such a blessing to see all that has happened and the person that I have become! These last few weeks I have been reading in the Book of Mormon one last time in English here on my mission. Right now I am just about in Alma and something that I have been paying a lot of attention to is the changes that happen to all the people in the Book of Mormon and what I have realized is that I as well have been able to witness this same change in my own life. I love how much we are able to relate to the Book of Mormon. It truly is the word of God and it truly can guide us and give the answers that we need to our prayers. I have such a strong testimony of it and I know without a doubt that it is true.

This last week was super good. My companion and I keep teaching a lot of lessons and we keep having a lot of success. Something that we are trying to work on is having shorter lessons because we literally teach and teach and we have no time to walk around to find new investigators to teach because we are always in houses! It's not something that I am complaining about but rather something that my companion and I see as a blessing here in our area. Anyways we are working on having 20 to 30 minute lessons instead of 45 minute lessons so that we can find more investigators to teach. 

I can tell you all enough how much I love this work and my mission. At times I wonder why Heavenly Father sent me here to this mission and I wonder why things are so different in other missions around the world, but what I have come to know is that every missionary is called to serve in the place that God needs them to serve in and that he has prepared people for every missionary to meet. Maybe all the people that I talk to won't get baptized, but I have come to know that with every person I talk to, there is a purpose and I as a representative of Jesus Christ must stand as a witness of him and testify of him to all kindred tongue and people.

I love the gospel, love my commission and love my mission.

I love you all and I hope you have a wonderful week! 

Love,

Elder Thorpe

P.S. I will be emailing on Tuesday next week because I'm going to the Temple for Pday!

May 16th, 2016

This week has been such a great week. It has been incredible to see how much the Lord is here in his work. I'm not even sure how we had so much success this last week since we didn't have a whole lot of time to proselyte. We ended up going to Trujillo for a leadership training which took up 2 days of the week and so for that reason we weren't able to proselyte as much as normal, but other than that the week was super good! 

I've decided to start reading the Book of Mormon again one last time in English while I am here on my mission. I've read it so many times in Spanish that I decided that I would read it once again in English since I will be going home pretty soon and so this time around it has been so good to once again start the Book of Mormon and learn something new!

This last week teaching my new companion the area as well as the responsibilities responsibilities responsibilities being a zone leader has been really good. It's been a lot for my companion to take in since zone leaders have a little more things to do than other missionaries and so our time is more limited, but he is getting the hang of it. I have no doubt that he will be ready to lead the area as well as the zone by the time that I leave in 5 weeks! 

We have had a lot of success this last week with teaching a lot of different people as well as finding more investigators to teach and so you could say that it has been a pretty good week! A couple of our investigators like Daniela and Milagros are progressing pretty well and so hopefully we will be able to have a baptismal service for them in the next couple of weeks. I'm super excited to see what we can do here in the short time that I have left. I want you all to know that I love this work so much. I know that the Church is true and that Families can be together forever! I love the gospel and I know that it is what makes us happy!

I love you all and I hope that you have a wonderful week!

Love,
Elder Thorpe

May 9th, 2016

Well once again happy late Mother's Day! This last week for me has been super good and like I say every week, it went by so fast! This whole last transfer has gone by super fast and I think it is because I've had such a great companion. Well, the big moment has finally come! I am in my very last transfer of the mission and the missionary that I will be with is Elder Rivera. He is a missionary that I have known for a long time and was actually over him as a zone leader about a year ago. I'm excited to be able to help him become a new zone leader. I was told that I have 6 weeks to prepare him so that he will be able to lead the zone here in Chimbote Sur and so I look forward to these 6 short weeks that I will have to train him.

Right now I am just feeling extremely blessed and grateful for all the things that my Father in Heaven has given me. He truly has molded me into a better person and I know without a doubt that I am a better person because of it. I'm grateful for my Family and for what they have done to be able to help me realize how I have become a better person. I know with all of my heart that the gospel brings about change in our lives and that it is through the savior Jesus Christ that we are able to become the people that our Father in Heaven wants us to be. I think I said this about a year ago, but change is the actual meaning of the gospel. If we couldn't change we would never be able to become like Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father. I know that it is this change that allows us to understand the will of God and understand the Atonement of Christ. Oh how grateful I am to be able to change. I'm not a perfect person and I know that the Lord will require even more changes after my mission and now for me the change will be something that isn't foreign to me but rather something that must happen in me to become more like the Savior and I know that it is the same for all of you as well.

I love the gospel so much. I love my mission. I wouldn't trade anything for these last 2 years that I have had here in Peru. Maybe it cost me a little bit to learn the language, love the food, and even understand all of the customs here, but I truly love my mission for what it has taught me and for what it has made me. Thank you for your support and for your love. I hope you all know that I am grateful for all of you and that I love you.

Love,

Elder Thorpe

Elder Thorpe and Elder Perkes

May 2nd, 2016

Well welcome to May everyone! I'm not sure if it feels like Spring over in the states but luckily for me the temperature is starting to go down a little bit here and so it isn't too hot! This last week was a really interesting but good week! For some reason no one wanted to be in their houses until 5 every single day and so it was a little rough finding people to teach in the early afternoon, but other than that we had a pretty good teaching week. My companion and I are teaching this one family that is so awesome. His name is Genaro and her name is Elena. We had a couple of really good lessons with them this last week and they committed to come to church with us the next week since they had a family get together that they normally never have, and so we are super excited to see them go to church this Sunday!

We have also been working a lot with Liria's family (The one that got baptized) and they are doing really good! Her daughter is so close to getting baptized we just need to help her understand a few more things and then she will for sure get baptized! Her name is Milagros and so if you wouldn't mind having her in your prayers.

Other than that the week has been pretty much the same. Today for P-day we ended up going to this place down south by Casma which was interesting. We didn't plan on going there but that is where the bus driver took us and it was pretty cool because we saw a mummy and played some football and so it wasn't too bad. 

Anyways like I said, this week was a pretty good week and I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Mother's Day! 

Love,

Elder Thorpe

April 25th, 2016

Well at the end of this week we will be in the month of May! It is so crazy how fast time goes by here in the mission.

To start off I want to say that we had our baptism this last week! Hermana Lidia was baptized on Saturday! It was probably one of the most spiritual baptisms that I have ever had here in the mission. Lidia for the past 2 weeks has been expressing to us her desire to be forgiven and to be clean of everything that she has ever done in her life and we explained to her that through baptism she would be able to receive the forgiveness of her sins and be washed clean. When she got into the baptismal font she had such a calmness about her. She new that this was the moment to be washed clean and to be forgiven. When she came straight way out of the water she looked at us and started praying and publicly thanking her Father in Heaven for the forgiveness of her sins and then started to testify of Christ and that it is only through him that we can receive the remission of sins. It was such an incredible experience. 

This whole last week has been super good and full of miracles. I just love being a missionary and I love beeing able to be guided by the spirit and for the dirrection that it gives me to be able to help other people. I love my mission so much and I am sad that it is going to come to an end soon, but luckily I still have more time to serve with all my heart for these last 2 months!

I love you all so much and hope you have a great week!

Love,
Elder Thorpe

April 18th, 2016

Hey everyone! This last week for me was absolutely fantastic! My companion and I have really got a hold of things here in Bellamar and let me tell you, things are going super good for the both of us. This last week we were able to teach so many lessons it was so great! Something that I have been noticing these last 6 months of my mission is the way that I have been teaching. It has been so amazing to see a change from when I had 18 months in the mission until now and it wasn't necessarily a change in language but rather a change in how I present the gospel so that it is easier for others to understand it and apply it in their lives. Teaching the gospel is probably my favorite thing to do and I think I love it because it is something that I feel like I'm really good at. There is one thing for sure that I know and that is without the spirit, I wouldn't be able to teach how I teach and I wouldn't be able to help people with their problems and concerns if it weren't for the spirit. I feel like Ammon when he praised God in giving him such strength to be able to be a tool in his hand in converting so many of his Lamanite brethren. I love the gospel and know that it is true with all of my heart!

This last week we have been preparing and investigator that has been preparing for baptism. Her name is Lidia and will be getting baptized on the 23rd of April so if you could have her in your prayers that would be wonderful. We are also working with her husband Pablo as well as daughter Milagros and they hopefully will be able to make the same decision that Lidia has made. This last week we also found a young man named Cesar. He is such a great person and has the desires to change. In our first lesson with him he expressed his desires to follow God and do what he wants him to do and so we are super excited for him and to be able to help him achieve what he and God wants him to achieve. 

Well that was pretty much my week. I guess you could say that this last week I have been focussing a lot on faith and trust in the Lord which has really helped me this last week and I can for sure tell you that I saw many miracles and the Lord´s hand throughout this entire week.

I love you all and hope you have a great week!
Love,
Elder Thorpe

April 11th, 2016

The Lord works in mysterious ways and at times the results of what he does don't even come in the time that we might expect them to come in but somehow they always come. This last week I was able to see a few tender mercies here in my area of bellamar. On Wednesdays my companion and I teach an English class in our church building. This particular Wednesday there was a familiar face that I recognized but wasn't quite sure who it was until after we started talking and I soon realized and he soon realized that we had know each other before. He ended up being an old investigator of mine that I was teaching in my very first area. It was good to hear from him and hear that his mom is doing excellent. His mom was a less active that we were trying to activate and from what it sounded like to me, his mom is still active in the church. Then on Saturday we took our district leaders out to eat and while we were in the mall I noticed that someone had called out my name and so I turned around and standing before me was another old investigator that I had in my first area named Soledad. I'm not sure if I told you but she was someone that was preparing to be baptized while I was in Buenos Aires but wasn't able to. I am happy to say that she has now been baptized and a member of the church. Where am I going with this? Well to be honest part of the tender mercy was the fact that I saw these two people again and that they are doing good, but more than anything is that the Lord works through imperfectness. When I was in my first area I didn't think anyone would understand me or even remember who I was since I was only there for a short amount of time, but this week I have received testimony that the Lord works through imperfect things to be able to bring to pass his perfect gospel, and through the imperfectness and the spirit, the gospel is taught and peoples lives are changed.

This morning I was studying a little bit about what President Nelson shared in conference about accessing our priesthood. I found myself studying in 1 Samuel chapters 9 and 10. Two priciples that I learned while studying these chapters is that, one, In order to access priesthood power we must go to where God is, meaning that we must study the doctrine of the gospel. And two, we must have a changed heart. Most importantly is that we can not change our heart BY OUR SELVES. God has to change our heart. 1 Samuel 10:9. I know that this is true and I have noticed that by having a changed heart and by understaning the Lord's doctrine is when we are able to access priesthood power.

This week has been a good week and I hope the next one is just as good. I love you all a lot and hope you have a great week!

Love,
Elder Thorpe

Elder Perkes and Elder Thorpe

 Leadership training

April 4th, 2016

Well we have made it to April! Like I say all the time, March flew by and I'm sure April will be just about the same. This last week has been a really good week and not just because it was missionary vacation weekend but because we had a lot of success here in the area. We started out the week with a member calling us up asking if he could come and accompany us for the entire day which we said yes! It was really awesome because he is a recent convert from a different ward that is preparing to serve a mission. The entire time he was asking us about missionary life and what we did to prepare to serve a mission! I have no doubt that he is going to be an excellent missionary! We had a really good teaching day with him and so that was a plus!

On Wednesday we had our trimester interviews with President Rios. Those also went really well. It has got to the point with my mission president that we are so comfortable around each other that the setting feels like we are just great friends which I really like. Every time I walk into an interview my President always makes sure to tell me how much he trusts me and it wasn't different this time around. In fact he told me how the rest of my mission will be going and the reason why he still has me here as a zone leader after being a zone leader for 1 year! His response was simple, "Elder Thorpe, I need mature zone leaders that can train new zone leaders that will be coming up" A lot of the former zone leaders received different assignments this last transfer and so I was shocked when I was told that I would finish my mission as a zone leader, but I know that the lord needs me doing this. So that was really good hearing from my mission president how much he trusts in me and what he has planned for me as one of his leaders here in the mission. 

Here in the area we have a couple of people progressing such as Mitsuka and Milagros. We are working really hard with both of them so that they can be baptized.

Conference was absolutely amazing. I loved all of the talks and loved being instructed by my leaders. I sustain and support each and every one of them. I could probably go on for hours talking about conference, but I will leave that for another day. Just know that I really enjoyed it. 

Anyways, that is how my week went! I hope you all had amazing weeks and that this week as well is a good one!
Love,
Elder Thorpe

Oh I totally forgot to tell you all! I ran into my first convert this last week! He teaches dance classes here in my area and so I will be able to seen him often! If you don't remember his name is Dario. He is doing really good and hopefully I can help him with his desires to serve a mission! He told me that one of my trainers (Elder Diaz) Is planning on getting married and so that is exciting! I love you all!

March 28th, 2016

Well, we are just about to finish up the month of March and I can't believe it. These months have been going by super fast and now being here with my old companion has just made the time go by even faster. 

This last week has actually been a really good week. It was hard saying bye to a lot of the people in Huaraz because I was able to have such a good relationship with all of them, but I am excited to be here in Chimbote. My area is called bellamar. (Beautiful Ocean) Well really it should be beautiful sea but they translate mar to ocean here. It's kind of interesting because we are no where near the ocean and so I'm not sure why it is called beautiful ocean but oh well.

The people here in Bellamar are really awesome. I think I forgot how much I liked Chimbote when I was here the last time, but I am coming back to realize how much I really do like Chimbote. I'm really excited to be here and I am excited to serve the people here.

This last week there was a scripture or a chapter that was really on my mind this last week which was Romans 6. It pretty much talks about the importance of baptism and the importance of repentance. Paul symbolizes the baptism to the death and resurrection of Christ and so I really liked that and I was able to get a little more out of it than I had before.

Anyways, nothing much else happened. I'm still getting to know the area and the members and so I am excited for this upcoming week.

I love you all and hope you have a great week! Happy Easter yesterday! 

Love,

Elder Thorpe

March 21st, 2016

Well this has got to be one of the greatest weeks that I have had on my mission. I can't say that we taught as many people as we have other weeks here in the mission, but the spirit that I was able to feel this last week was incredible. This week I decided to study all about the atonement which was such a great experience for me! I loved being able to feel the power of the atonement working in my life and for the blessings that I was able to see as I applied the atonement! My companion and I also decided to do an activity with the zone in teaching about the atonement which was super spiritual. One of my all time favorite things to do is testify and hear other testimonies about the atonement! It was such a great experience. 

This last week my companion and I had a lot of success in visiting with a lot of different people. We were able to see a lot of mini miracles throughout the week including meeting a drunk guy. Normaly we try not talking to drunk people but this last week we were on our way home and we took a route that we normaly don't take and so as we were walking a guy yelled over to us to come and talk with him and so we decided to talk to him and he expressed his desires to change his life. The very next day he came to church with us and we were able to go over to his house to teach him about the gospel. The Lord works in mysterious ways and at times we can't recognize the people that surround us that are ready to receive the gospel and that is why we must talk to everyone as missionaries! 

Yesterday my companion and I got a phone call and so I have been assigned to a new zone (still as a zone leader) I have been changed 1 week early and it was because my mission president said that they need help in the zone I am going to, and so I will be leaving tonight to be with my old companion from the MTC, Elder Perkes! I am super excited to go to Chimbote again to serve the people there!

Well. I love you all and hope you have a great week! I'll let you know how Chimbote goes!
Love,

Elder Thorpe

March 14th, 2016

Through all of the struggles and trials that I have faced as a missionary, there has always been one thing that has lifted me up and has given me hope, and that is the love that my Father in Heaven has for me. As an imperfect son of a perfect father I think often of the parable of the prodigal son, and that I have a Heavenly Father that loves me and awaits for my return. We might struggle and feel alone when in reality, God is here for us and is watching over us with his angels. I think often of the story in the Bible when Elisha shows to his servant the power of God and the love that he has for his children by sending horses and chariots of fire to protect them. (2 Kings 6:15-17)

This last week I've been thinking a lot about Charity. Not just thinking about it but as well as trying to apply it even more in my life. One of my favorite chapters in the Bible is 1 Corinthians 13 when Paul speaks to the members of the church on Charity. If we have no charity we truly are nothing. If we are not pure in heart we aren't able to have this love for other people. We might have all the knowledge of the world and even be a person that other people look up to, but if we don't have charity, we are nothing. I love verse 11.

11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

This has been something that I have tried to apply to my life, especially being here on my mission. I understand that when I was younger I made mistakes and probably acted as a child, but now as I have been able to reflect back on those times and see the person that I am now, I've realized that I have changed in my thoughts, actions, attitude, but most importantly in my heart. 

I truly do love the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is all about change and all about love. I have been able to see the truthfulness of it in the lives of so many people but probably most importantly in my own life. I can't say that I am perfect and that I always do exactly what my Father in Heaven wants me to do, but I feel like I am progressing and that I am getting there. 

What a huge blessing it has been to be here on my mission. I know that the Gospel is true. I know that we have a loving Father in Heaven that lives and loves us. Christ is the redeemer of the world and he lives. I know that through him and his gospel we can change and become the people that our Father desires us to be. I will never be able to doubt the truthfulness of these things because they have all been testfied to me through the Holy Spirit. What greater calling can I have than to share these things with all my brothers and sisters.

I love you all so much and hope you have a great week!

Love,
Elder Thorpe

March 7th, 2016

Well once again another week has come and gone. This week went by super fast and was actually a really weird week. To start off, my companion and I were only able to go out proselyting about 2 to 3 days this last week. On Tuesday our Stake President asked us to do a training for the bishops here in Huaraz and so on Tuesday we were busy planning that with the stake president. The training went super good and there was a lot that everyone could learn. It was kind of interesting because that was my first training that I have done on a stake level. Our stake president asked us if we could do them every month, which we told him we would be able to. I'm excited to be able to participate in these trainings. I think I've said it before, but I love doing trainings. Whether it be with missionaries, ward members, or even stake leaders. It's always good to be able to train and learn at the same time.   On Wednesday we had a successful day in teaching various people. I think my companion and I are starting to get to a point where we are able to get a good group of people that are listening to us and are able to progress, which is good because we have been lacking that in the last few weeks. Hopefully by the end of this change we will be able to have the golden group that we are working for. We ended up teaching a less active a couple of times this last week which was really good. We helped her understand the importance of choosing the right path even if it might be the hardest. 

On Friday I ended up staying in the clinic and room all day because one of the missionaries got bit by a dog and so he couldn't leave the room or move around too much. Luckily he is doing better. On Saturday we had a Zone conference with President Rios It was really good to hear from him and the vision that he has for the mission. We talked a lot about conversion as well as the spirit. Afterward he took my companion and I out to lunch to express his appreciation for us and the confidence that he has in us. It was really good to hear that from him and feel the love that he has for us. 

On Sunday we had Stake Conference which was really good. The Stake President talked a lot about trusting in the Lord and having the faith to rely fully in the gospel and the atonement of Christ. It was a really good conference and I was able to learn a lot.

This week for me was a little different but yet really good. I was able to learn a lot but even better was that I was able to apply a lot of what I learned. 

Well, I love you all so much and hope you have a great week!

Love,
Elder Thorpe

February 29th, 2016

Happy Leap Year! Well I'm not sure what we even do on a leap year but I guess it's good to say since it only happens once every 4 years! So Happy Leap Year!

This week has been a week of such great experiences. It has been a week that has helped me grow in my faith and trust in the Lord. As we trust in our Savior and the spiritual promptings that we receive we will always be led to do what the Savior would have us do. I love that part of my missionary commission. I am here to do and say what the Savior himself would do and say if we were here in my very position. I have no doubt that as we trust in the Lord and in the Holy Ghost we are able to understand the will that our Father in Heaven has for us. At times it is hard to do it. It was even hard for the Savior, but he continually said through the pain, trials, and anguish that he experienced, that he didn't come into the world to do his will nor the worlds will. Rather he came to the world to do the will of his Father. Oh how grateful I am for a Savior that was so strong in following what his Father would have him do.

On Wednesday night we were out trying to contact a less active from our ward directory. When we arrived to the house, no one was there so we started to leave but as we were leaving we saw a couple walking towards the house and so we decided to go up to talk to them. They then told us that this less active had moved which we ended up going to try and find this house after receiving directions from Peruvians. Something you need to understand is that Peruvians don't really give that great of directions but we headed off and ended up in this ally. We decided to knock on the last door but the person that answered didn't want anything to do with us. We decided to knock one more door and 2 minutes later a man came out from the 3rd floor. We decided to contact him and ended up sharing the whole message of the restoration of the gospel. (All in English) He then asked how it could all be true and how he could know in which we shared the Book of Mormon with him and told him through the spirit he would be able to know if it was true. He then promised that he would read the entire Book of Mormon and asked if we could come back on Monday (Today). And so today we will go back to share a more amplified message of the restoration. 

I have no doubt that we were led by God to find this Man and I look forward to visiting with him in just a little bit. 

I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ direct this work and that as servants of them we must always be willing and ready to do what they want us to do so that we are able to truly bring fruits unto him. I love the gospel and I love my mission!

I love you all and hope you have a great week!

Love,

Elder Thorpe

February 22nd, 2016

Well this week has been a great week. I say this because it has been a week of learning. I know that I have mentioned this before, but Huaraz at times is super hard. Especially when it comes down to finding new investigators and getting into their houses. This week my comp and I have been focussing a lot on how to enter into houses and how we can invite the spirit more into our contacts that we do. What we have tried to do this last week is start off by testifying of a loving Heavenly Father who has a plan for them and that we are here as representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ to share this plan and to help people understand the importance of the Savior in their lives. As we have focussed on teaching right out of a contact instead of saying "We would like to share a message with you about Jesus Christ" we have noticed that more people have desires to learn. My companion and I were talking and we feel like many people are tired of hearing from people that are from different churches. So instead of saying we are from a different church we try to look for what they need and share solutions to their needs. It has helped us out a lot and we plan on continuing teaching in this way.

This week we had a lot of success with less actives and we are excited to see about 4 of them take the next steps and become full time active members. It has been so good to get to know each and every one of them and to share with them my testimony of the gospel. They are such great people and have such great spirits. One of them the other day mentioned how strong she could feel the spirit as we shared with her our testimonies and just the presence of us being in their house. I know that the Lord works through his spirit to be able to testify and confirm the messages of his restored gospel.

I love the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is perfect. As we strive to apply it in our lives we can truly be changed. I love what PMG says. As we learn about the atonement we are able to apply it in our lives and see the miracles that come only from the sacrifice of the Savior Jesus Christ.

I want you all to know that I love you so much and I am thankful for all of your thoughts and prayers.

Love,

Elder Thorpe

February 15th, 2016

Well this week has been a really interesting week. Nothing out of the usual really happened. My new companion, Elder Andia, arrived Wednesday morning. He is adapting to the way things are here in Huaraz since the work here is a little different. This week we actually had a lot of success with less actives that are really close to being considered active members again. It has been good to be able to work with them and to help them recognize the principles of the gospel and the importance they have in our lives. It has been good to be able to work with Elder Andia this last week and to find a unity between the two of us. I know that there is still a lot of work to do with our companionship but we have for sure got off to a good start. 

This last week we ended up having our monthy leadership council. Luckily it was a lot better then last leadership council. I'm looking forward to sharing with the zone what I was able to learn but as well as what I was able to feel. I'm excited for this change and for all of the 8 new missionaries that arrived on Wednesday. 

As far as the work here in Huaraz, I won't say that we are having all of the success in the world because we aren't. But we are sure getting better and we are excited to continue imporving every single week. Many missionaries want to come to the zone because it is such a cool place but once they are here they want to leave because it is super hard, but I see it as a blessing for me to learn more about patience and learn to love the people more even if at times they don't love me back.

I want to leave you with my testimony that although we may face trials and although we might fall, our savior is here to pick us up and to come along with us all of the way if we allow him to. His gospel is perfect. At times we might not be perfect and we might not follow his gospel perfectly but as we strive to live it the best that we can and rely on the Lord and his Holy Spirit we can truly reach exaltation.

I love you all so much and hope you have a wonderful week!

Love,

Elder Thorpe