I wanted to repost an email that Spencer sent to us when he had been a missionary for a little over 6 months and was in a brand new area with a new companion!

 

Hi, this is Carrie again, I just wanted to repost an experience that Spencer had when he had been on his mission a little over 6 months.  I had a few people tell me that they the story really inspired them, so I thought I would share it once again, in case someone didnt get to read it!! =)  Since Spencer comes home in 12 days, I remember this email very well as I felt so connected to him by the Spirit when I read the end part where he said: Mom I had an amazing experience the other day in my prayer before I went to sleep, I started praying and I just got this distinctive feeling that you were either praying for me or talking to me or in my room just chatting it up with me (I still go in Spencers room at times and just talk to him, like he can hear me.......I know he cant hear me for real but at these times, I have felt very close and connected to him, like the Spirit is connecting us together!) It was incredible! And then Ainsleys experience, that I was praying for her and she felt me praying for her, how amazing is that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Spencers sister Ainsley was out running one day, with much on her mind and she had a feeling so strongly that Spencer was praying for her at that very moment!)

Now onto Spencers experience! =) -------------------------------------------------->>>>>>>

Well now onto my weekly report... To say the least I had one of my biggest Gringo moments of my life this week! So strap on and prepare for this one!  So at the beginning of every month we go to the bank to draw out our money.  And we always just do it in Soles, but for some reason we had to get it out in dollars and then trade it for soles.... yeah, you already know what’s coming!  So me and my new Chilean companion (Peruanos  dont like Chileans)  leave the bank with a butt load of money to pay the pension and the room and laundry and all that stuff... So we go down a street where there are like 50 shops to exchange dollars.  SO we find the shop with the best trade in and we enter.  I had a crapload of money so we enter and we see the exchange rate, they do it all on their calculator and all is well.  We are trading the money in and all that stuff.  When they changed the money I started to count it all for like the 3rd time just in case, and they got annoyed and then took the money and started counting it out loud to me and made me feel stupid so I was like ya, ya it’s alright.  We leave and get back to the room and my comp starts counting his money again.   I was in the bathroom and he starts hooping and hollering, Hey!!! Hey!!! They robbed me 20 soles! And in Peru 20 soles is a pretty good amount of money.  I though he was just being a psycho Chilean who like to accuse the Peruanos for robbing them of everything... haha! So I don’t say anything but he just kept freaking out so, we counted his money and he WAS short 20 soles, so then I start to get a little worried and I count my money and those tools jacked me 50 soles!!! GARBAGE! I was flippin ticked, 50 soles is a bunch of money, I mean the church only gives us like 85 soles for the whole month to live on so you do the math!!! So we got in a taxi and I was like,…WE ARE GETTING OUR MONEY BACK!!! But before we left we said a prayer and it calmed me down, and I got to thinking, what would Jesus do in this situation...  My comp wanted to storm in there and just start rippin heads off, but I got an idea of how Christ would get his money back... So we get to the little sketchy shop and all the little money changers are in there and all got way excited thinking we were there to trade more money so they could rob us more... Boy,  were they wrong! I entered and just said, “Sorry Hermanos, we forgot to invite you to join us in church this Sunday at 9 in the morning!”  Then I whipped out a bunch of Hand out cards with the picture of Jesus in his red robe and said, also we have some gifts for you... laminated pictures of Jesus Christ!!!!! HAHAHAHA!!! I then started to explain a little about our missions, how we are here to serve Christ and it’s all service and they don’t pay us and the money is so that we can pay our pension and eat!!! I then said,”Now brothers you owe me 50 soles and my companion 20”... And you know what………… they all just immediately whipped out the money threw it on the table and just stared at the floor!!! HAHAHAHAHA!!!  How about them apples!!!! They wouldn’t even look me in the eye! I finished up the invite to church told them that it would help them a lot and change their lives! I handed them the Handouts of Christ and we bailed!!! OOOOHHH HECK YEAH BABY!!! I felt like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid or Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry... Come on Boy, Make my DAY!!! HAHA!!  IT might sound way lame but it was totally Legit! Haha…. take that world!!! SO……. that was a big moment this week!!!! As of a week and a half ago we didn’t have 1 investigator and guess how many we had at church yesterday.... 5!!! WHAT!!! MIRACLES FROM THE HAND OF THE LORD! 3 of them have baptismal dates for the 23rd and we have a lesson with the others tonight and we are going to challenge them to see if they want to get baptized!!! MIRACLES; nothing more, nothing less! I love the mission, it’s really, really hard sometimes but I am learning lessons in these 2 years that would take 20 years to learn!

I have to say that your emails family, last week saved me!!! They were answers to my Prayers! Ainsley email of how we should give thanks for our challenges was just what I needed to hear, also Lineys email what so powerful, it put me to tears!!! Fam and Friends I love you all sososososo much, enjoy this 4th of July and don’t forget to sing, “I’m Proud To Be An American, really loud before the 4^th is over!!!!!  You are always in my thoughts and prayers!!

LOVE YOU GUYS!!!
Elder Spencer Marty McGhie.... 

LOVE YALL SOSOSOSOSO MUCH!

Elder McGhie with his new companion Elder Pozo