Wednesday, April 27, 2011

This is Nauta Peru. Nauta is located about two hours by car from Iquitos. We have four elders and a senior couple working on establishing a new church here. Missionaries initially opened the city last fall for the first time. Our senior couple arrived in Nauta in January of 2011. At that time there were 8 baptized members. As of Sunday April 24, 20011 there were 31 baptized members and 73 people attending church. The missionaries are doing an amazing work here.

Nauta is located on a river. Many towns are located on rivers, as that is the means of transportation for many people. Nauta was a two day boat ride from Iquitos but now you can reach it by car in two hours.


These boys from Nauta were pretty proud of their catch. The biggest fish was three inches long. They were fishing off a bridge with fishing line and hook tied around the end of a long stick.

Many of the jungle cities have high water right now because of the rain. They build temporary walk paths with 12 inch wide boards. For years Nauta's economy was supported by the fishing. Several years ago a company polluted the river and the fish were killed. As a result many people live in great poverty. Children need shoes, school supplies and clothing. They do what ever they can to earn a bit of money to buy food. Most homes have dirt floors and very little furnishings.



This senior couple are doing a great work of establishing the church in Nauta. They bring with them so much experience and they know how the church is to operate. The people love them and they love the people. They are carefully watching over this little flock in Nauta. Each week they account for every family that should be there. After church on Sunday a little boy ran up to Hermana Nelson and gave her a great big kiss on the cheek.

On Easter Sunday Nauta became an official group of the church. This is the casa capilla or house chapel that they meet in. There were 73 people in attendance on Sunday.

The Nelsons were anxious for their church members to hear the words of the prophet during general conference the first weekend in April. So they worked hard to make it happen. This is the group that traveled two hours to attend a satellite broadcast in a stake center in Iquitos.

Elder Nelson worked hard to make the trip to Iquitos possible. What great vision this senior couple has in helping these new converts and investigators gain their own testimonies.

3 comments:

  1. Sister Blunck: I love reading your blog. My son will start his mission on Aug. 3, and your blog has helped me (and him) prepare for life in Peru and put my mind at ease about him serving a foreign mission. Just a quick question regarding mission supplies... the packet mentions he needs waterproof boots. What brand do you or other missionaries recommend? Do the boots need to be polishable? Also, the packet says he needs a raincoat with a zip-out liner for warmth. Do you have any suggestions for a specific brand that seems to work well and is affordable? Thanks for any direction and help you can give us! My son is excited to get out into the field and start teaching and serving soon!

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  2. I forgot to leave contact information... You can e-mail me at tywilson@wirelessbeehive.com with any info on shoes, raincoat, and boots that would be helpful. Thanks again. Teresa Wilson (soon to be a missionary mom!)

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  3. We loved serving in Nauta for 15 months. We are the senior couple that helped start the Nauta branch of the church. When we arrived in Nauta there were 6 youth baptisms. When we left our mission in June of 2012 there were 164 people at church. We have sent 9 missionaries out in the field and have helped to send 59 people to the temple in Lima. We are very greatful for the help and efforts of president and sister blunck. Also president and sister chucos who came to Nauta to replace us. We love the people of Peru and we love the people of Nauta. My wife and I have been back 2 times and worked for a humanitarian Company called Eagle Condor. We have worked in Iquitos and Nauta. We are turning in our papers to serve another mission, we hope to be helping president and sister Gomez in the new Iquitos Mission. Scott and Carol Nelson

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