Week 100: I got the sniffles

Buenos Dias a Todos!

This week just flew by with lots to do and a lot happening.

This week was kind of tough because last Sunday (a week and a day ago) it was pouring and I got soaked. Well I got pretty doggone sick from it with a deep chest cough, head ache, and stuffy/runny nose. It made working really hard especially climbing the hills which made my lungs hurt. But we kept going and managed to not die.

This week we also had interchanges with the assistants. I was with 2 of them in their own sector and my companion was in our sector with one of them. It was a good day because we laughed and joked, and prayed, and contacted. The assistants almost never have time to work in their sector so they didn't have investigators so we contacted the whole day. In the mission we are supposed to try to get 20 contacts a day. We contacted 45 people. We worked super hard but no one wanted to let us in. In the end we taught one of their investigators really fast. At night we bought some pizza hut and it was really good!

We have a family of investigators and 3 of the 4 have accepted the invitation to be baptized. Today we have a visit and are going to get to know the last member of the family and we are going to invite her to be baptized as well. They are really receptive and loving but have a very very very basic knowledge of the gospel and of God. I believe that they can be ready for their baptism the 14th of August.

This week we are going to work hard and take out the trash and prepare everyone to be baptized! I gotta go out with a bang!

Sorry for the short letter! I love you all! Stay Golden!

Love,

Elder Nielson :)

Week 99: Backstreet's Back Alright!!!

Buenos Dias!

This week was a good crazy week!

On Monday and Tuesday we worked in a trio which was pretty awesome. We went to all the houses of our investigators and were able to enter because there were 3 of us. We taught "D" and got him ready for his baptism and did some searching for new investigators.

On Wednesday we had changes. We got the call that Elder Diaz was leaving and that he had to pack his bags. After a morning of saying goodbye to the converts and members we went to change meeting. Elder Diaz got sent to Achupallas and I was waiting for my new companion when something that I never thought would happen, happened. I got my new companion and he is... Elder Nasilai!! The Tongan that was my companion in Coquimbo. The one that would beat box and I would rap! We are comps again! Everyone in the change meeting was shocked!! It was super awesome.

So we already know each other so we are just starting to take out the trash! We have seen some miracles this week already. We have been trying to get into a house of some ex investigators that seem pretty good. It is a family of 4 and they are married and everything. Since I first got here I have been trying to get in to their house and hadn't had success. In 5 months i had never been able to get in. Well last night it was pouring rain and we decided to pass by. We rung the doorbell and they talked to us through the doorbell microphone thing and asked what the heck we were doing outside while it was raining. We answered doing missionary work and they asked if we wanted to come it. We said yes and just like that they let us in! They gave us cake and hot milk and we got to teach them a little bit. They don't want to commit to so many lessons each week but they accepted another one this Saturday and seem pretty receptive!

We also have been trying to teach another family that has 3 people who are old enough to get baptized and we have never been able to make a solid appointment. Well last night while we were working the spirit told me that we should pass by them (Instead of going to a less actives house where I knew they would invite us in to eat dinner and let us get out of the rain) but fighting my inner desire to get out of the rain we passed by them. When we got close to the house we saw them getting out of their car and we were able to talk to them a little bit. We managed to make a solid visit for this Wednesday and if everything goes well.

A funny moment from the week was when I first took Elder Nasilai to meet "K" and her kids. When we got there the house was in Chaos and it seemed like a tornado had hit. "K" was apologizing and saying that it normally wasn't that bad but that he had to have patience because the kids were crazy. Right when she said that her youngest son comes up walking really funnily and said "Embarrassment doesn't exist in this family" Then walked away. It was so hilarious!

On Sunday "D" GOT BAPTIZED!! It was a super good service and he was super happy. We are going to keep working with his mom to help progressing so that she can get baptized!

But that was basically our week! We are hoping to see some of the fruits of our Labors Soon! If you could pray that everything goes well with the families that we are going to try to teach that would help a lot!

I love you all! Stay Golden!

Love,
Elder Nielson :)

Week 98: Fun is in the small and simple things :)

Buenos Dias a Todos!

This week was a good week! We worked hard, and worked hard, and had success and miracles.

This week we were able to teach "D" the little boy that has a baptismal date for this next Sunday (the 17th). He is doing well. The hard part is that his mom has been finishing her semester of studies so she has been busy studying and hasn't been able to participate in the lessons so she will have to get baptized in a later date. He came to church this last Sunday so everything is good for his baptism this weekend.

This week we also saw a miracle! We went to go teach our recent convert "S" who got baptized like a month and a half ago. When we got there she wasn't home but we decided to talk to her mom about supporting her and helping her to go to church and to go to church activities. We had a good lesson with her and were about to leaver when her (basically husband but they aren't married because she has to get divorced from her first husband but laws here make it super difficult so they are just living together) showed up. We have shared with him a couple times but he sat down so we started sharing with him as well. In the end of a short simple lesson we felt the spirit tell us that we needed to invite them to church. When we invited them he said that he would like to go and committed to go the very next day. And the miracle is that he actually showed up the next day with his "Wife" and he liked church a lot. They are progressing very slowly, but I believe that they will get baptized eventually. It was fantastic that they went and he shared his testimony about the teachings of Jesus Christ being a light of hope in his life.

This week we remembered that fun is in the small and simple things. We had had a long day of work and walking in the street. As we were walking down the steep street to get to the house a collectivo (A taxi that runs a specific route so it is cheaper) passed by. After it went by I thought "Wow if I was in a collectivo I would get home a lot faster..." And I don't know why, but I decided to be a collectivo. I pretended like I was sitting down with my hands on the steering wheel and I started running down the hill. After I had taken a few steps  running my companion called out to me and told me to stop so I stopped. I thought he was telling me to stop because I was acting childish but instead he ran up behind me, acted like he was opening up the back door of the collectivo, and got in a sitting position behind me. Then we both ran down the hill as if I was driving a collectivo and as if he was sitting down in the back. We got to the house laughing our heads off. It was something so small and simple and stupid, but it made our day. Ever since that we have tried to make the most out of the small and simple moments.

Today one of our district leaders finished his mission and is going home so his companion is going to be with us until Wednesday so we are going to party hard! Night pizza parties and crazy moments. It is going to be a blast :)

Well this week I start my last 6 weeks of the mission. It still doesnt feel real which is super good. I get my trunky papers on Wednesday.

I love you all so much! Stay golden!

Love,
Elder Nielson :)

Week 97: Cuz Im Proud to be an American!!

Happy 4th of July!!!!!! AMERICA!!!!!

Well we are in something called... The Busqueda! (The search) which is the hardest longest part about the mission. It is when all of your investigators get baptized and you have literally no one to teach so you spend all day talking to people who yell at you until you find one who says you can come back another day and then repeat all day every day of the week. Lets just say my legs are super tired ha ha.

It was an interesting week because my stomach felt a little iffy so I didn't eat much which made me have a low energy level which just took away all enthusiasm I had to do the work. But the great thing is the week is over and we can start again! :)

We have " D"and his mom still but they haven't had much time to come to have lessons and they didn't come to church because it was raining (In Chile if it is raining it is the end of the world). So we will have to wait a little bit longer to help them get ready for their baptism.

That was basically the week. Nothing really happened but this next week will be a bunch better :)

The thing that saved me was reading Alma 7 in my studies today. He told me to pick up my game and get to work.

23 And now I would that ye should be humble, and be submissive and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering; being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the commandments of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive.

 24 And see that ye have faith, hope, and charity, and then ye will always abound in good works.

I realized that this week I had very few of the attributes that he said that we needed to have so I decided to pick up my game this week.

I know that the scriptures give us guidance and help when we need it. I know that if we humble ourselves and actually live the guidance that God gives us that he will complete with his promises and will change our lives and our heart. Keep reading the scriptures, keep living what you learn, and keep receiving the blessings and change of heart.

I love you all! Stay Golden!

Love,

Elder Nielson :)