Time is Flying By

Letter Received August 15, 2011:

Me and my son in Conce just after we met . Cool, huh?

Hey:

Well, this week was a pretty good one. Me and my companion get a long really well. He is from Salt Lake City and his name is Elder White. Wow! Time as a trainer goes even faster and the time is going by so stinking fast. I feel like I just barely put my head down at night and it is already time for another day.

Everything is going well and we are going to have another baptism on Sunday, so that should be really awesome. Our first week together didn't really go all that well and I am kinda nervous because tomorrow we have interviews with President and I am pretty sure that he is going to give me a pretty good lecture. So we will have to see how that is going to go.

Time is going fast and we are seeing miracles. I am hoping that we find some more people to teach because we are starting to get a little low again and I don't want to leave the Sector without people. That would suck. Me and companion are getting along really well. I am going to send a picture of us. I have three suitcases mom and a backpack. So, whatever you guys think about the car. Sorry this one is kinda short. I am running a little short on time and I want to show a good example to my companion. I love you glad to hear everything is going good.

Love,

Elder Nelson

Who's Your Daddy? That's Right, Me!

Letter Received August 8, 2011:

Me and Maria

Hey:

So, I guess I will start off with the really big news! So, yes I have had a transfer but they threw something that I really didn't expect. Out of the 27 trainers in the mission, I am now going to have a son and train and I also am going to keep being Counselor. So, my last transfer in the mission I am going to be training but I don't know who yet. They are going to tell us tomorrow. Elder Haws also is going to be training and so is everyone else in my District. That is nuts! Not only that but all the missionaries in the world are going to be doing a new training program. It is weird but it is going to be cool.

I am kinda having some mixed feelings about training. I didn't really have the desires to train but I also am excited to teach someone all the things that I know and help someone start out. I am hoping that I get a gringo. We will have to see tomorrow.

Maria and Family and Friends

I am really focused and happy with how my mission is going. I just know that these last six weeks are going to go so fast. I just have always felt that the time goes so fast when you first get a comp and your first cambio always goes so fast. It is so nuts. I don't feel that I am dying off. That is so weird to me.

We had a baptism this week and a confirmation. It was really awesome! Not only that, but she also bore her testimony in church by herself, so that was really awesome! I have realized that all of my converts here are so solid and it makes me so happy to see that they are really converted to the gospel and that they aren't  just going to go inactive after I leave.

Maria Irene Ceballos Rossi

I was thinking about when you guys come that I would love to do some baptisms for the dead here with some of my converts and have them meet up with us in Santiago. I invited them. I hope that is okay. Nothing is for sure that my converts would be able to meet up with us but I would love to do that.

Also, I have confirmed we are all good for somewhere to stay in Santiago. I have talked to the member that was talking to her friends in Santiago, so its good. I was also thinking about General Conference. I would really like for you guys to get some tickets so that we could go to a session, especially the priesthood session. Just something to think about.

Me, Maris and Flores

This is going to be a good change for me because I know that being a trainer is going to be something that is going to make me stay focused. I am hoping that the package will be here tomorrow cause I don't know when I will get if I don't get it tomorrow. Well, I don't really have all that much more to tell. Glad to hear that everyone is doing well. Got to go. I love you all so much. Talk to you all later.

Elder Nelson

The Spirit Touches Hearts at Baptism

Letter Received August 1, 2011:

Hey Hey Everyone:

I had a pretty interesting week but I am going to try and put this all in words ha, ha, ha. First off, we had Conference with the President. I don't know if they did this with other missions but they always have all the old dying missionaries and the newbie’s share their testimonies. It was time for me to share my last testimony with the mission and it made me really trunky and it was really hard to share because to tell you the truth it still seems like I have an eternity before I come home. But I also, at other times, am like, I only have like a month and a half left! That is so weird to me. 

For the last couple of weeks we have been teaching this girl named Maria. She is really good but she had some problems and she didn't want to get baptized. She also told us from the beginning that she didn't want to get baptized, but we kept teaching her anyway and this week she accepted a date for baptism. It is for this Saturday.

Last week, my best friend in the mission had 4 baptisms on Saturday and I thought that it would be a good idea to take Maria to the baptism. So, we traveled the forty minutes to get to the baptism and she said that she had something that she would like to talk to us about. We were really worried about what she was going to want to say. But we went to the baptism anyway and she saw the baptisms. I looked over at her during the first baptism and she was fine, then I looked over during the second baptism and she was just bawling and crying her eyes out. You could tell that it was the spirit testifying to her that it is what she needs to do. After that we did a special musical number where I and 4 other elders sang "I Know That My Redeemer Lives". It was awesome because you just looked at Maria and I could tell that she had made her decision that she is going to be baptized this week. 

The problem that she has been having is that she wants to share this with her parents but they don't want anything to do with it. It bothers her a lot.  After the baptism, we were on the bus and we talked out all of her doubts and she is going to have her interview tomorrow and it is going to be bomb. 

It has been a lot better with this new Branch President. This week I had a good idea that I gave to President to think about my transfer. I asked him if I could finish my mission with one of my old comps, Elder Haws. I think that he would be a bomb counselor and I would love to finish my mission with him. I think that it would be awesome because we wouldn't have to do all the getting to know you stuff and we could just work and I know that he could make sure to make me work hard. But we are going to have to see. 

I know that my companion is now officially ready to leave. Not that anything is going bad just like you can tell that he is kinda zoning out of the area and is really wanting to go to another place. At the conference, President told him that he is going to be changed and someone else is going to kill me off. 

I am super pumped for this week because we are going to baptize and confirm. Man I have missed baptizing, ha, ha, ha. I hope that everything goes good with the trip and miss you all. Time is going quick so got to go. Love you all and miss you a bunch. 

Elder Nelson 

Ready for Zone Conference

Letter Received July 25, 2011:

Hey:

I know that this email is going to be really really short. It is because we are really running late and we still have to go back to Bulnes and change because we are here in Chillan. Not only that but I really don’t have a whole lot of news.

It went pretty well this week. My new Branch President is bomb, and this week the Assistants to the President came out and did a mini transfer and one of my best buddies from the mission is Assistant and he came and taught me some things. So, it really helped me out a ton. We also have Conference with President tomorrow and it is going to be really cool. I am really excited.

I also have some bad news. I am completely out of money and I have to go to Concepcion tomorrow and I have to pay with my card because I don’t really have any choice. Sorry. Everything is good with me and my companion. We are working hard and doing well. Our time is getting short together, so we are enjoying it to the max.  I love you all, sorry this is so short, love you all, ciao!

Elder Nelson

God Does Exist and He Loves Me!

Letter Received July 18, 2011:

This week, I have absolutely amazing news! Ha, ha, ha! Are you ready yet? Are you sure? Yeah? Okay, I will tell you, ha, ha!! Well, they have now decided to change the Branch President and the Stake Presidency came last week and changed him out for a member of the High Counsel and it is going to be awesome! The guy is super excited and willing to help and I know that everything is going to turn around. He lives in Chillan but he has a car. It is like a twenty minute drive, if that. He is going to help so much and now I won't have to be babysitting anymore.

Not only that, but this week we found 10 new investigators! A lot of them are really good and some aren't so good, but God has all power and can do miracles and you never know.

I don't know why but I really do feel like a new man and feel like renewed and I feel a lot more happy. I think that it is because I have been worried about the Branch and now I don't have that because the new Branch President is going to take care of everything and now I don't really have act as the Branch President but without a title. Now I am a counselor and I can help really how I should. Not only that but me and my comp have been able to make up a new program on how we are going to work and we are going to start on it this week. So, we are going to have a really good week, I know it. My comp is a lot happier but I know that he feels that he is ready to leave Bulnes. He is still working hard and it seems that he has loosened up a little bit.

Today we had a really good p-day. We went and played soccer and had a BBQ. It was awesome and I played well. I put in 8 goals so I was content.

Time is going quick and it seems that no matter what I do it doesn't slow down but goes faster. I know that the time is going to go by quick, but that is the mission. I feel bad for Lyndsay, I hope that she is okay! I am praying for you all all of the time. Some ideas for packages are some Snickers, Fastbreaks, Recess, Amazing Sauce (ha, ha, love it), the Bible and D&C stickers for the scriptures, zingers (the red ones), jerky, whatchamacallit bars, cliff bars (Lexie knows what they are), any kind of candy. I would really love to have the scripture mastery scripture stickers. Yeah, thank you all, I love you so much.

Elder Nelson