Spirit Whispers Needed Words

Letter Received May 18, 2010:

Well hey,

How’s it going family? It is awesome to hear from you guys!  I have a surprise for you guys so you need to look at the photos, so I won’t tell you what the pictures are, so that you can find out when you look at them.  Let’s just say that it was awesome!

Yes I did get my package and it was awesome and my shoes fit well.  Did you guys put my hat in there? Because it wasn’t there, if you did put it in there.  As for boots, I don’t think that I need to buy boots because I am going to try those new shoes first, because they look like they should do the job, so we will see.   I do think that I need to get a jacket that is not quite so hefty, something that is not so long but is warm, something smaller and cheaper so I am going to look around and see but I think that if I find one, it will only be around thirty dollars because they aren’t really that expensive here.  I should be able to find one at like their WalMart here.  But, as for my birthday I don’t really know, I think that I will need to think of something I really need but as for the moment I need to think about it.  I am not worried about getting it before my birthday. That sounds good a small package and some money.  I think that would be best, I will let you know next week of some stuff that I can think of for a package.

 This week went really well, I really like this sector so much better.  This week we received some really good references and our ward has asked me to sing for them in conference so we'll see ha, ha.  This week we were teaching one of our investigators and his name is Gonzalo and he is 26 and he really accepts everything that we teach. He really loves soccer and he likes to party so he needs to stop drinking with his buddies and he only smokes like three cigarettes a day so he is quitting.  We were teaching him and he had a lot of questions and I was teaching and underneath my shirt I was just shaking, like shivering, because I was feeling the Spirit so strong, and it was so crazy because the Spirit filled my mouth with the words because I had the answers to all his questions.  I never thought that I would have all the answers, but I did because I was blessed.  It was like a duck on the pond, on the surface I was calm as a summer’s day but underneath I was going a million miles an hour.  It was awesome! He came to church this week.  Something told me while we were in the lesson, something said, I am going to baptize you.  So, I know that he is going to get baptized.

We had some awesome lessons this week and some other stuff happen. You will have to look at the pictures.  It sounds like you all are doing really well and are all having good times and staying busy.  Dad
that is crazy that Casey asked you if I was still riding ha ha, it is weird to think that some people don’t know about the fact that I’m here.  He probably recognized the fact that their number one customer for parts isn’t there anymore, because I break everything ha ha.  But, glad to hear that it is getting really warm there and I wish that it was warm like that here.  Good to hear that everything is going good there.  It sounds like everyone is staying busy.  What is a Rosetta Stone?  That is cool that Dad is learning Spanish, so I will have
someone to talk with when I get back ha ha.  I will let you know about the birthday stuff next week.  I love and miss you all a ton, it was so good to talk to all of  you  last week.

Elder Nelson

Great News!!!

First Baptism

All Clean

Letter Received Monday March 21, 2010:

Hey, Hey!

So yeah, look at the pictures first, even though I know that you all are going to read this first, but it will be more cool if you look at the pictures first. I have some really good news. I finally got that first baptism, and it was sweet, because that it was so hard to get it to happen, and that made it all that much better. We finally got Emanuel baptized and he is so happy, and so are his two member daughters. You wouldn’t believe that the girl in the blue pants is only 13 would you? It was awesome except, I forgot to bring other underclothes to the baptism so all day after the baptism I was wearing wet underclothes but what a small price for such and awesome baptism. I and four other missionaries did a cool musical number “Come Follow Me” and
I had a solo, cool huh? It was awesome.

The Family

Pure Power

Por Fin

Us and Big Baldwin

As for changes, it is crazy because me and my comp, my trainer, are in the same area again. They are taking the other two elders out of our massive sector and we are moving into their house, and now it is just me and Elder Murillo, still in our sector for six months, crazy!  I don’t want to live just us two, because that doesn’t sound as fun as with four, but at least our house will be clean. That means that we are going to be even busier. We will have been to every part of our sector, but ya, that’s it for our changes. Not much new that way for me, another six weeks with the same comp and area but I am happy because I know the area and the people. We have been staying really busy and visiting a lot of people and been really trying to do a lot
of contacts to find a lot more people. We have really found some really cool people this week.

Jorgi

Number One

Us and the Family

It is still hot here, but the nights are getting colder, also I have been getting more accustomed to the food here- people here are being a lot more receptive and we have been having a lot more success since the earth quake, I think. Everything is going really well.

Sounds like everything is going well with you guys, everything seems to be changing a ton, since I have been gone and the time is going so fast it’s crazy, but that is the mission for you, but I like it. I have been getting emails from Tyson and he sounds and looks like he is having so much fun, and his sector looks legit. I am glad that Dad is happy about going back to GD and that its all working out there and that everything it is all coming together and I think that Lexie, you changing jobs wouldn’t be such a horrible thing, because why live life to work, you should be able to enjoy your life and not always worry about work. Sounds like you guys are all doing well and loving life along with myself.

That is so tight about Brach going to Fiji that is one of the places that I would have loved to go, but the call matches Brach so well, that is so tight! Tell him congrats and that I love him. Well I got to go.

Love you all,

Elder Nelson

Later that Day:

Hey Hey Again:

Well, I sent some more photos of me doing some service. I have a ton of pictures that I think that I might send in the card in the mail to you guys because it is almost full and here I have to resize all the pictures to be able to send them to you and it takes a really long time. So yeah, I might do that but also I don't know if you guys put a jump drive in that package or not so if you did please tell me so I don't buy one.

But, I have some bad news that I need your help. Today after email I went back to the house and the speaker that you guys sent me was charging cause it died. I was using a power converter and everything and some how it got fried so I don't know what I am going to do for music because my speaker is messed so I need you guys to send me another speaker or something if you can. I am going to try and find something here for the meanwhile but let me know if you want me to just try and find one here or if you can send me another one of those because it worked awesome. I could take it to the investigator's houses and use it to watch some movies that the Church has on the internet for investigators and it worked really well. Let me know what you can do.

But I forgot to ask, is Brach going to learn another language or is it English? and that is tight that you have been able to start to put your bike back together Dad. What are you thinking that you want to get next? A 450 I hope. But yeah, I got to go but I love you all and miss you a ton. Thanks for the emails and everything let me know about the stuff please and I know that the Lord has me here for a longer reason and that is why I am staying here. I love you all. Miss you tons.

Love,
Elder Nelson

One Life Saved!

Letter Received March 8, 2010:

hey hey my familia:

Well this week has seemed a little more normal because we have got to actually been able to teach some lessons and have been working hard. We have been starting to have some success because I think that we have made kind of a step in our teaching and I have made kind of a change and took a step with the language and have been working really hard to better myself that way so that I can move forward with speaking and understanding better.

But no, Dad, we haven't been told that we need not to wear a badge. We are about back to normal and we haven't had any problems personally with robbings but we all sleep with a weapon next to our bed just in case. I have a claw hammer, ha, ha. But we are ok so don't worry that way we are safe. Last week was bad, but this week is all good because now we have electricity. It was worse like ten or fifteen minutes away from where we live but there is military in the streets at midnight now so we have no need to worry. But we have been doing well.

I have some news that is a little disappointing, Emmanuel didn't get baptized this week but is going to be next week for sure. He had an emergency come up. So he had to go out to the country, but he is still very animated and is still good for the baptism. So we will be good next week.

But yeah, Conce is much worse off then we are. They have to be in their houses at six o' clock at night and they can't leave their houses until noon. They have lunch at 1:30 and they leave lunch at three thirty so they get to work for like four hours, crappy huh! But yeah, they are a lot worse off then we are. We are about back to normal and doing well and I looked at Britt's blog sounds like he is doing really well and seems positive. He sounds really optimistic and I know that he is going to do miracles in the mission field.

Sounds like you are all doing well. Everything seems to be getting back to normal here. I miss you all and sounds like you all have been really busy. But I am thinking that you could send that package next week but I don't know so I would just send it and have to take the chance that it gets to Concepcion because I don't know what its like there. But the Hermanas in my district got theirs so it should be ok. I've got to go but I think that if you send next week, I think that it should be good. I love and miss you all and glad to here that you are all doing good.

Love,
Elder Nelson
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We Received this letter later that same day:

Hey, I forgot to tell you that we went to Constitution to do some service there. That is on the ocean where the tsunami hit and they need a lot of help. Well we went out there to help and bag some food and supplies and we had a really cool experience.

We were working and just doing work when all of a sudden, another tsunami warning came and all the people that we working with started running. All the military guys started running and they yelled tsunami and so we started sprinting away towards the hills and these hills they're all really steap like the mountains in Utah, like the pass. I ran and told my comp and we started sprinting towards the hill. We had a place in Constitution that we are supposed to meet for a situation like this so we were running up this hill where all the cars are going up this really steep hill.

There was this giant loader going up the hill and the streets are really skinny here so there wasn't much room and there was this old guy and his wife pushing there industrial bike up the hill (an industrial bike is one of those bikes like in Nacho Libre, the bike that he rides, that is what it is except it doesn't have a motor) but like they weren't getting anywhere. Me and my Comp were wondering why they weren't just running for there lives. It was an old lady like 60s and her husband probably about the same age and a little girl`probably about three and they were pushing this thing up the hill right next the tractor and the little girl was on the side of the bike right next to traffic. So I saw that and we started running towards them to get them some help to get them out of there. Then I saw the little girl start moving towards the tractor and she went right in the way of the tractor like 5 seconds away from getting killed and I got there just in time, ran to her and her parents weren't watching and I ran past them and swooped her with my arm from under the tractor and pulled her out before she got squashed and I saved her.

It was awesome and the Lord blessed me because I have never ran that fast in my life but I got to her and then I gave her to the mom or the grandma and she thanked me so much and we got them out. Then after we left and got to the spot where we were all supposed to meet we found out that it ended up being a false alarm and we left and came home. We had been there for a reason, I know it! It was amazing! But yeah, I just wanted to tell you guys. Well, I love and miss you all, I will write you next week.

Elder Nelson
one life saved

Fath Building Experiences

Letter Received January 11, 2010"

Hey everyone, it was really good to hear from everyone this week. This week was a good one but also had some upsets with some of our investigators. We had a bunch that we expected to have in church that didn't show. So we went to find all the ones that didn't go and none of them were there. So we had some baptismal dates fall which Sucks and it is seeming that a lot of our investigators get to a point and then they won't do the finish work we can only teach them so much, you know what I mean. People here are all down and say that they believe it and everything. But then when you tell them that they have to do something more than just believe, there's your problem. But some of my investigators have been progressing but some not. We are still working hard it is still scorching hot, ha, ha, but still working hard.

Getting more accustomed to eating a ton for lunch.  Also, I had a couple of really bomb experiences faith building ways. One of them being when we had comp changes.  We got a fresh newbie right out of the MTC because my comp. and the other elder that lives with us (he's from Argentina) are both fluent Spanish speakers and are both District Leaders. So, we got a newbie in the house and our sink in the bathroom, you can't put any weight on it at all because it is broken off of the wall and so when the newbie came we forgot to tell him so he put his had on it when he was trying to get undressed to get in the shower and he broke our sink off.  So, water was shooting everywhere and we turned the water off and we didn't have water in the house for two days.  Finally, I was like, I am going to look at this sink so that I can take a shower because I stink and I want a shower. I thought that I could fix it because I worked at Great Western Plumbing Supply before the mish. So, I tore the sink of the pedestal and looked at it and I tried to fix it and it still leaked until I found out that when he pulled the sink off the wall he broke a seal so I am like, okay, so now we have to go look for a seal and at this time we didn't have our monthly money yet so neither one of us had money to go to the store that is the closest thing to a Home Depot and to get there we would have had to take a collectivo which is like a taxi for which we didn't have money.  So we where going to scrap some money some how to get there and I had my emergency money so I was set but my companion didn't have any money so we were scraping.  Then, as we were getting ready to go to the store, I hear a knock at the door and I went and answered it and we as missionarys were blessed because it was a repair man that knocks doors and he happened to be knocking in our area but we couldn't pay him to fix our sink or our heat for our water. But we asked him if he happened to have a seal and sure enough he had one! Who but missionaries would be that lucky.  But that was the Lord right there.

But that is just one story for you guys, then yesterday the Lord blessed us again. Like a month ago, me and my companion had to go on a mini combio which is a mini change of companions. My companion went to the other elder's sector and I stayed with my District Leader from the MTC, Elder Roberts. Elder Roberts and I went contacting when we did the combio and we knocked and knocked and nothing, then this lady named Maria was really nice to us and we gave her a pass along card and she was like thanks, then we had to bounce because we had an appointment and then I never went back to here house until Saturday. When we passed by, we invited her to church and we didn't really expect her to show then she came and went to all the classes and invited us to here house sometime this week.  So we were blessed with her this week.

The rest of this week we have contacted a lot of  people.  But that's the spiritual expieriences this week and I decided not to go to the dentista because I think that I am getting everything taken care of by just making sure that I am flossing and brushing better and I don't have pain anymore so that is good and I definitely want Supercross highlights for sure!

Sounds like it is freezing up there.  I was so glad to hear from all you guys it sounds like you are all doing really well and sounds like a lot of fun. Sounds like a lot of traveling going on and everyone sounds like they are doing good.  Lyndsay, what were those flip flops called that you wanted me to look for?  I might have found them. Well, I don't really have much more new stuff to tell you guys. But here lately I have been having a bunch of like racist people that are like "No, I'm not going to listen to you because you are a gringo." Crappy huh?

But its sounds like everyone is doing well and way to go Jake this year!  I think this is the year that he will take it and I am excited to see what Dungy has for the 450 class so keep the info on that coming. sounds cool about the gto and boyd and what not tell everyone hi for me.

Has Elder Merrill called you about givng you my pictures or anything that way?  Sounds good about school for Justin and Craig. It was so good to hear from you guys and Lyndsay too. thank you. Sounds like everyone is doing great . Glad to hear from all of you keep them coming. Well that is about it.

Miss you guys a ton love you all

Elder Nelson