"UNA VOZ!!!"

October 29, 2012

Dear Family and Friends,

This has been a crazy week! Really, really tiring. I don't think I've been this tired in all my life. The allergies are not helping either with my eyes really itching and having to sneeze all the time. Lots of hard work!

 

Elder King and Elder Jenson

 

Elder King is my new companion. He's awesome and is from Centerville, Utah. He went to Utah State for a year before his mission as well! Elder King even stayed in Snow Hall 201, just one floor above me! He's a year older than me and has been out 14 months. Elder King has 3 younger sisters and is a great worker. I'm looking forward to this cambio with him. We get along really well and just laugh constantly about the wierd stuff that happens here in Chile that we see every 15 minutes like all the dogs and people in the streets acting crazy because they don't follow the Word of Wisdom. Yesterday we had tons of lessons planned and were out on the street alllllllll day walking around our sector trying to visit people. I continue to try to keep my excitement level up even though it's hard at times. One positive this week is that about 20 people told me my Spanish is really good.  

 

 

Logros (Achievements)

 

bautismos  0

 

confirmaciones  0

 

con fecha  3

 

investigadores que asisten a la reunion sac  0

 

lecciones con miembro  4

 

otras lecciones  10

 

inv que estan progresando  0

 

ref recibidas  7

 

ref contactadas  10

 

nueves investigadores  4

 

lecciones a CR MA  2

 

contactos  13

 

MED  343

 

Since the MED has been the measure of success in our mission, I've always strived and worked hard for higher than the expected 300 number. That has been a blessing. I've never stopped working hard. I give it my all 110% that's for sure! Elder King and I set a goal this week to involve the members even more in our lessons and have daily contact with our investigators.  I feel this will help us a lot with the progress of our investigators.  Elder King and I also made a goal to have more people attend church on Sunday.  Member involvement, daily contact and figuring out how to committ our investigators to come to church is what we are focusing on this week. Elder King and I are focusing ALL of our lessons with investigators this week on the committment to come to church!!! 

 

Investigators

 

Maria: Maria told Elder King and I on Thursday that she's not ready to leave her boyfriend and get baptized because she still has feelings for him (they've been in a relationship for 16 years). Elder King and I have continued to pray and have lessons with Maria. Maria says she's been praying hard too! Maria told us that she is going to talk with her boyfriend and tell him she wants to get baptized and if he doesn't want her to, she's going to let him go.....I hope. We'll see what happens this week. When Maria was on her way to church yesterday morning her sandal broke. She said she went home to fix her sandal and by the time she did, she thought it was too late to come back to church (we only had 1 hour this week because it was Mayor Elections).

Alcalde en las Elecciones 28 de Octubre 2012

 

 Maria committed to come to church this next week. Elder King and I have also been talking with Maria's cunada ( Sister In-law), Yaquelin. Elder King and I actually spoke withYaquelin's pareja (boyfriend) about Yaquelin wanting to get married to him and then baptized and he said he'd think about it. Elder King and I talked at length about the importance of baptism to both Maria and Yaquelin. Yaquelin wants to get baptized now!

 

Carlos: Elder King and I had to drop Carlos for a while. Carlos hasn't been truthful about when he's going to be home and how he feels. Elder King and I will go by his house at the end of this week.

 

Paola and Osvaldo: They didn't come to church this week so they lost their baptism date.  Elder King and I are going to work hard with them this week so that they understand more fully the importance of coming to church and making time in their life for the Lord.

 

Oscar: This is a 16 year old boy that is awesome! Elder King and I taught him this week and he's very interested in everything. Oscar's friend is a menos activo (less active) member. We left Oscar with a Book of Mormon and encouraged him to read 3 Nephi 11 before out next visit. Elder King ad I happened to walk by Oscar's house later that day and Oscar yelled at us from his door,"UNA VOZ!!!"(pointing to the sky). I was like, "What are you talking about?" Oscar's like,"UNA VOZ!!!" I finally figured out what Oscar was trying to say the second time because the phrase "una voz" appears in 3 Nephi 11 in the 3rd verse when God is announcing the ascension of Jesus Christ. "And it came to pass that while they were thus conversing one with another, they heard a voice as if it came out of heaven; and they cast their eyes round about, for they understood not the voice which they heard; and it was not a harsh voice, neither was it a loud voice; nevertheless, and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn."  I was so happy Oscar was already studying and reading! Elder King and I are talking with Oscar about baptism the next lesson we have with him. Oscar will be preparing for baptism soon.

 

Lucia: Lucia's doing great. She's always enthusiastic and has her baptismal date for the 18th of November. Lucia didn't come to church this past Sunday because she went to vote (Hna Pino who lives right down the street from her didn't go to church either because she had to vote as well).

 

 

 Lucia is reading the Book of Mormon and loving it and is engaged and asking lots of questions. She feels the spirit!

 

Highlights for the week:

 

I received 1 package and also letters from family, Holly Butler (handwritten) and Nana and Papa. Thanks for thinking of me! I love hearing updates from home.

 

Chilean food of the week: Completos are amazing!

 

 

Chilean Completo "American Hotdog"

 



It's a hot dog with avacado, tomatoes and mayonnaise on top.I didn't like completo's too much at first but I've found a street vendor that sells them for 500 pesos (1 dollar) and they are so good!

 

 

Street Vendor in Chile

 



You'll have to try it as a family and tell me how you like it. In Chile, everyone eats soooo many tomatoes. I've actually learned to like tomatoes here on my mission. Never thought that would happen. Probably because I eat tomatoes almost every day I've acquired a taste for them!

 

I gave a Sacrament talk last week! I talked for 15 minutes on Obra Misional (Missionary Work). I talked about how members can get involved in missionry work, their role in missionary work and the idea of thinking of and inviting one friend to church, an activity or a family night. I shared a few scriptures and had lots of people come up to me to tell me how excited they were about missionary work now! Sounds like I did an alright job relaying my feelings and people felt the spirit. That was my first talk in Spanish in Chile. I was pretty scared because I was only given 2 days to prepare. But that's the life of a missionary.  President Ezra Taft Benson said this on missionary work,"We must share the gospel with others. That is our responsibility-every member a missionary. That is the call of prophets of God...."Member-missionary work is one of the great keys to the individual growth of our members.  It is my conviction that member-missionary work will raise the spirituality in any ward where applied" (Preach My Gospel pg. 13)

 

 

President Ezra Taft Benson

13th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints



 

 

This past month there have been 2 pretty strong earthquakes in Chile.

 

 

Chile Earthquake October 2012

 

I think they're awesome and entertaining! Everyone is screaming and laughing at the same time. The earthquake only lasted for about 45 seconds and the strongest part only 10 to 15 seconds. The first earthquake was about a month ago and it occurred right after we had lunch. I was doing the dishes and all of a sudden everything starts to shake! I was so excited! I ran out of our little house jumping up and down thinking this is my first earthquake ever! Ha! Ha! Then, about a week ago, there was another earthquake in the middle of the night around 4am.

 





 

 

Chile Earthqquake #2 October 2012

 

I woke up to my bed shaking all over the place and then just went back to bed. Pretty sweet! 

 

 

I'm becoming quite the baker!

 

 

Elder Jenson rolling out dough for dinner at a members home in Renca

 

Got Taylor's letter and the picture of his high school basketball shoes with the two dates of my leaving and coming home to motivate him to play well this year. That was really touching that he'd do that. I didn't know that I made such a big impact on you Tay! I hope you're doing well! What's the latest update on the colleges and where do you think you'll end up going?

 

 

 

Taylor's Legend Varsity Basketball shoes with 5/30/2012 and 5/30/2014 on them

 





 



Well, that's all. I don't have any more time. I hope all is well with everyone and that you enjoy reading my emails and hearing from me each week.

 

Love,

 

Tan   



 

Heavenly Father Answers Prayers!

October 22, 2012

Hey Family and Friends!

Elder Weigel and Elder Jenson's last P-Day together in Renca!
(Photo by:Carola Riquelme Herrera, a Chilean friend of Elder Jenson's in Renca)

How is everything? This week has been a little bit out of the normal! Elder Weigel and I were finishing up a Family Night at Hna Pino's house and the phone starts ringing...Elder Weigel looks at the phone and it says President Essig. Elder Weigel picks up the phone and President Essig proceeds to tell Elder Weigel that he is going to be the new Secretary of the mission! President Essig said Elder Weigel needed to pack his bags and that the Secretary now would be picking him up at 10pm on Thursday night. President Essig also talked to me and told me that my new companion was going to be Elder King. President Essig told me that Elder King was the Historiador (Historian) of the mission right now and that Elder King would be my new companion starting this Wednesday (in two days!) Elder King has to train the new missionary that was called to be the new Historiador for the mission. Elder King is coming to Renca in a couple of days. I'm excited to work with Elder King, but it was pretty sad saying goodbye to my Daddy (Elder Weigel)!! I learned tons from Elder Weigel in my training in the Jose Miguel Infante 3 in Renca. I will be staying in Renca for the next 6 weeks for my 3rd cambio! I'm excited. For now, I'm staying with the Zone Leaders, Elder Sampson and Elder Huaman.  The three of us had to cover my sector and their sectors from Friday to Sunday. It was a little bit harder to cover all of the appointments, but I actually achieved a lot with what little time we had. It's a blast hanging out and teaching with Elder Sampson and Elder Lawson. They're great Elders!

Elder Lawson and Elder Sampson

 

 



Logros (Achievements)

bautismos  0
confirmaciones  0
con fecha  7
inv que asisten  0
progresando  0
lecciones con miembro  7
otras lecciones  11
ref recibidas  4
ref contactadas  9
nuevos investigadores  17
lecciones con CR MA  1
contactos  110
MED  380

Remember how Elder Weigel and I  had 1 new investigator this last week?? I set a goal to find people to teach and prayed for lots of new investigators this week and I was blessed with 17!!!! That number is unreal! It's still a struggle to get people to church, but I'm working hard. I think we're going to see the fruits of all of our hard work these next couple of cambios. It's going to be all worth it!!!

Investigators:

Maria:  After a few lessons and explaining to her the commandments, she softened her heart and told me she wanted to change her lifestyle. We talked about her baptism and how that is now her goal and then spent some time talking about how we were going to reach her baptismal goal which included finding work, leaving her boyfriend and starting to completely follow the commandments so she could receive that happiness it talks about in Mosiah 2:22,41..."And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep the commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you." Mosiah 2:41..."And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God.  For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.  O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it."  Maria told me that she wants that happiness and ever since she has made that choice, she has told me her life has been better.  I was teaching with Elder Licea on Saturday when we had Divisions and while we were sharing experiences with Maria, I felt prompted to ask her to put her full trust in the Lord and be baptized on the 28th of October. Maria accepted and I'm so excited for her to get baptized and take that next great step in her life. Maria has already been to church 3 times and is progressing well. Maria was supposed to go with a member of the ward to the Centro de Empleo this morning at 10, but the member told me that Maria never showed up.  I'm arranging all of these things to fix and solve Maria's problems and she isn't following through on her word. We'll see why she wasn't able to go this morning and try and help her. If all goes well this week, we should have a baptism this Sunday!!!

Carlos:  Carlos is so hard to find! We go by his home all the time and he's never home.  Finally, when I called his cell he picked up and said that he was home.  I told him I'd be there in 3 minutes and that I'd give him a lesson. On my way there, we saw Carlos riding his bike towards us and we stopped him to see what was up.  Carlos said he was just going to buy a few things and that we should wait for him at his house.  When we got to Carlos's home his mom said that he wasn't coming back because he was headed to work. Not sure what's up with Carlos, but I do know that we need to figure out the problem and resolve it. I called Carlos on Saturday night to remind him about church and he answered the phone and said that he'd be ready at 9:20 to go to church. We passed by at 920 on Sunday and Carlos wasn't even awake! Carlos told me that he would hurry and get ready and head to church in 20 minutes. Carlos never came to church. I have to be direct with Carlos the next time we visit him so we can get to the core of his problem and resolve it. We'll see how things go!

Amauri: Had a great lesson with Amauri this week about the Word of Wisdom.  Amauri said the only problem he still struggled with was coffee. We took Amauri's coffee out of his house to make sure that temptation was gone and it would be easier for him to keep the Word of Wisdom. We also set a date for Amauri's baptism for the 4th of November. We are hoping that Claudia goes to live with her mom soon so that Amauri and Victor can be baptized in November.  The 4th is the goal! We will work hard this week to prepare Amauri and Victor for that date.

Paola and Osvaldo and Family (11/11/12): We have tried several times to teach this family this week but Paola has been really sick. I keep reminding them of the importance of reading the Book of Mormon and praying together as a family to receive the answer from God that this is the true church.  If Paola and Osvaldo don't come to church this week, they lose their baptism date. This is one of the family's that we are also really focusing on this week.

Lucia: This is an incredible miracle! Miracle of the week! Elder Weigel and I contacted Lucia about 3 weeks ago and she told us to come by another day. We did and then Lucia's daughter came out of their house and said to come by another day. We did and Lucia was finally there on our third try. She let us into her patio so we could teach her. Elder Weigel and I first started talking about what missionaries do. In the course of our conversation it came up that her dad and brother had died in the same year, 2 years ago. Lucia was really heart broken and didn't know what to do. There were questions that she had that still weren't answered. Elder Weigel and I taught her about the spirit world and where her dad and brother are now.  That gave Lucia promise. We also explained the Book of Mormon to Lucia and left her with a copy to read. Lucia said that she would read and that she would pray as well. I shared with Lucia the personal experience I had when Heavenly Father answered by prayer when I was deciding to go to the Leadbetter Academy. I told Lucia I know Heavenly Father answers prayers because he answered mine and he can answer yours too! I couldn't hold back my tears. I felt the spirit was so strong so much to the point that I could barely talk. I know Lucia felt the spirit so strongly as well and that she knows prayers really can be answered from God if we but have faith in him and really plead for an answer. The next time Elder Weigel and I met with Lucia, Wednesday, was when we had the Family Night at Hna Pino's home.

 

"Hna Pino being goofy with a Chicago Bulls hat!"

 

 We all watched a video called Together Forever.

Together Forever Video

There are 5 different segments. We watched a 7 min clip of when a couple lost their daughter. During the video, Lucia started to cry. The video talks about how families really can be together forever and that that blessing is found in the Church of Jesus Christ.  Luca felt the spirit so strong. Such a memorable lesson! We ended the night by me making french toast for everyone!!!

 

Who knew Elder Jenson was such a great cook!

The Pino family and Lucia obviously had not tried or heard of french toast before. I had Hna Pino go to Linder and get maple syrup. I made it for them and they loved it so much!! All of them were saying this is "tan rico"! It was great! We had a great night being all together. The next day we had another lesson with Lucia and Hna Pino and taught her about the Restoration and how that power to seal families was found in the Church. Lucia had read the Book of Mormon and said,"I love it!" Elder Weigel and I reinforced the importance of prayer. Lucia wasn't able to make it to church yesterday because she went to the cemetary to visit her dad and brother. Lucia committed herself to coming this Sunday! I'm so excited for her. Lucia's son told her that if she gets baptized in the church that he would follow her example and get baptized as well! Elder Weigel and I haven't even met Lucia's son yet, but that sounds sweet to me!

Highlights of my Week:

Cerro Colorado Chile Chapel

 

*This is the craziest thing ever....I was on an exchange with Elder Holland in Cerro Colorado this week. We were teaching a lesson with one of Elder Holland's recent converts and somehow in our conversation it came up that she had just bought a "pernil". I was like, "what's that?" The convert proceeded to go to her kitchen and came back with his PIG LEG...wrap it up and gave it to Elder Holland and I as a gift! It weighs like 15 pounds!!!!!!

 



 

Elder Jenson loving his "PERNIL!"

 

 

 

Close-up of Elder Jenson's "gift"!

 

*Elder Jenson heard from his best friend Cory Calvert for the first time! 

 

 



Cory (Crathzy as Elder Jenson calls him) is #23 and a Guard for BYU basketball this season.

 

 

*Spending time in training with my Renca District before transfers one last time!

 



 

Elder Jenson and his Renca District

 

 

*Watching Taylor's SLAMDUNK videos..."Those are sweet!!!! Loved it! Showed Elder Sampson (ZL) and he was like DUDE!"

 

*Loved getting all your letters and packages. I got 29 dearelder letters and 3 packages this week! It was crazy getting so much stuff. The mail system is so unpredictable. I got your Halloween so quick and the Brigham City packages took 7 weeks! The jaws drop of every single missionary here when all of the packages and letters arrive (I share!)...I love it :)

 

 

Happy Halloween Elder Jenson!

 

 

Elder Jenson's missionary Halloween costume this year!

 

 

Brigham City Utah temple, the Church's 14th completed temple in Utah

 

 

*All 29 Horsley's (Elder Jenson's mother's family) attended an Open House for the Brigham City Temple on September 1, 2012. Nana wanted Elder Jenson to feel of our love since he was unable to attend and made this poster where each of us shared our feelings and testimonies of being in the House of the Lord and missionary work. Some nieces and nephews even drew pictures. Elder Jenson wrote, "Such an incredible idea. So cool. I felt so much love. I'm hanging this in my room throughout my mission."

 



 

Elder Jenson and his poster of  family love and testimonies

 

 

All is well here in Chile. I'm having a great time. I'm trying to not get down with no investigators coming to church and am really excited for this week!!! Hope all is well with each of you! Thank-you for your love and support. It means a lot!



 





Love,

Tan

Temples Bring Blessings

October 15, 2012

Hey Family and Friends!

I don't have a lot of time this week because the Internet Cafe is only open for a short while because of a Chilean holiday today, Columbus Day.

 

Renca Chapel where Elder Jenson attends church

Elder Weigel and I just attended a really great activity at our Church which included the Branch that I'm in and also the Ward in our building as well...basically a combined Ward/Branch activity.

Elder Jenson and members of the Renca Branch

 

 

Family Pino (Couple-Macarena and Sabastian and their son Tomas)-Great Family that helps the missionaries out a lot.

 

 

Hna Pati and her 17 year old daughter Carla-Awesome members!



 

 

 



It was really fun to be able to relax a bit and talk to members. When playing soccer with the Branch today, one of the members clipped me really bad and I smacked the ground pretty hard and my hand got all cut up. It's pretty difficult to type. I apologize for the shorter letter this week:(

This week has been hard for sure. There's so many ups and downs as a missionary it's crazy! I've come to learn that I just have to maintain my excitement no matter what happens. At times it's hard to do, but it's not impossible!

Investigators:

Maria: Elder Weigel and I talked with Maria a few times this past week. We had a really straightforward lesson with her this week as well. We agreed to help Maria find employment and are going to contact the employment center to get her numbers of people who can help her find work. Becoming independent and being able to make her own decisions is a goal we have for Maria. Maria expressed her desire to be baptized once again and we put that goal down for her. Setting a baptismal date is the next step. Elder Weigel and I read Psalms 28:7 with Maria..."The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with song will I praise him." Although Maria has no support from family, she has the support of Jehovah. That was a great scripture for her to hear.

Paola and Osvaldo and Family: Elder Weigel and I had a really strong lesson with this family last night. We focused on their needs and listened to them express their feelings towards what we are teaching. They expressed a few doubts about baptism even though they have a baptismal date set for the 11th of November. Paola and Osvaldo said that they were already baptized as babies in the Catholic church. Elder Weigel and I read a few scriptures in 3 Nephi 11 and talked about the power of authority that is necessary to be baptized. 3 Nephi talks about the mode and manner of baptism. I also asked Paola the following question,"If God were to tell you that you needed to be baptized in the Church of Jesus Christ, would you do it?" Paola thought about it for a while and then said, "Ya!" I then talked with Paola about the importance of prayer to finding her own answer. I  told her God would respond to her question if she should be baptized if she prayed and asked Him. Paola told me that she would pray and ask God. We also talked about and resolved their doubts about the Book of Mormon and Paola and Osvaldo committed to read and pray. Before this experience tonight, Paola and Osvaldo were like, "Ya, whatever we'll read and pray." But this time the spirit was different. Paola and Osvaldo were sure that they were going to read this time. We'll see what happens!

Amauri/Victor: Elder Weigel and I talked to Claudia for about 45 minutes on her doorstep about her situation this week.Claudia committed to Elder Weigel and I that she would live at her moms house for a little while until she and Amauri were married. Claudia went through the temple 9 years ago and really needs the blessings of the temple in her life. Once Claudia separates herself from Amauri and Victor, they can be baptized!!! Woo hoo!!! That's going to happen here shortly and I'm really excited!

Santiago Chile Temple

Carlos: Carlos hasn't smoked or had coffee for a whole week! He went to the "feria" (where there are alot of tables set up and people selling  food, clothes, games, toys and all kinds of stuff. It's awesome and is in the street every Thursday and Sunday). Carlos told Elder Weigel and I a few days ago that he bought a suit, a shirt and a tie so he could come to church with us!  Carlos has all the desire in the world. He's very hard to find sometimes to teach and was non committal in showing up for church yesterday. We have to change Carlos's desire into action now!! Elder Weigel and I moved Carlos's baptismal date to the 4th of November to give him a little more time to prepare himself and get his life in order.

Misc Thoughts:

For P-Day this week we got to spend some time and play soccer with the missionaries serving in the sector of Valle de Azapa

Elder Jenson. Elder Gomez, Elder Perez and Elder Wortham

I got like10 dearelder letters this week. It was great! Thank-you so much to all who wrote me!

*Elder Bednar is coming to talk to the North and East Missions this Saturday!!!!! It's going to be so sweet. I'll tell you all about what happens this next Monday in my letter home.

Elder David A. Bednar-Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Cambios (transfers) are next Monday! I could actually be in another sector. I think Elder Weigel is going to get transferred because he's been in this sector (Renca) for 7 months and I stay, but you never know. We'll see.

Last picture of Elder Jenson's Renca District before Cambios on Monday!

 

 

Elder Lawson (L) and Elder Sampson (R)

 

Elder Sampson is one of Elder Jenson's favorite friends he's met while on his mission. He was a tightend on the BYU football team before coming to the Chile Santiago North Mission in June of 2011and is from Pleasant Grove, Utah.



* Our family received our first package home from Elder Jenson!

*Tarryn received her very own letter from Elder Jenson this week!

 I hope all is well!! Much love from Chile!

Love,

Tan

"Lovest Thou Me?"

October 8, 2012

Hey Family and Friends!

Elder Jenson's Sector in Renca

 

This week has been really good!! We had our Zone Conference Thursday and General Conference this weekend! Crazy that girls can go on missions at 19 and guys at 18 now! What's Taylor going to do?

 

Elder Jenson and 2 Chilean Sister Missionaries excited for the lower missionary service age

 

Church Lowers Missionary Service Age

 

In a move to expand the opportunities for young members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to serve full-time missions, Church President Thomas S. Monson announced that, effective immediately, men may now begin serving at age 18 and women at age 19. The announcement was made during the opening session of the Church's 182nd Semiannual General Conference, broadcast worldwide from Salt Lake City, Utah. The Church anticipates that lowering the age requirement will significantly increase the number of missionaries who will serve by expanding the options for when they may begin their service.

 

Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said at a press conference following the announcement referring to a mural in the room that illustrates Jesus Christ's instruction to His apostles to preach to all the world, "We are expanding our efforts to give more young men and women an opportunity to participate in that divine commission."

 

 

Elder Russell M. Nelson of The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

 



 

 

Logros (Achievements)

 

INVESTIGADORES CON FECHA  8

 

Investigadores que asisten a la reunion sac.  3

 

Lecciones con miembro  3

 

Otras lecciones  11

 

Investigadores que estan progresando  2

 

Ref recibidas  7

 

Ref contactadas  7

 

Nuevos investigadores  6

 

Lecciones a conv. rec. menos act.  7

 

Contactos  101

 

MED  311

 

*MED is new in our mission as of Thursday.  MED is a measure of effectiveness in your work.  10 points for a lesson with  investigadores, 10 points for ref contacted and 1 point for a contact.  At the end of the week you add it all up. President Essig wants each companionship to have at least 300 for the week (on a normal week of proselyting). This week with Zone Conference and General Conference, Elder Weigel and I were pretty limited but had 311. Last week we had 440!! This is a new system in our mission that is pretty cool.

 

INVESTIGATORS WITH A BAPTISM DATE

 

Carlos: (21/10/12) Carlos came to one session of General Conference and liked it. Carlos actually got a call after a little while after the session started and had to leave. After a while, Elder Weigel and I went looking for him and he was no where to be found. Carlos is struggling with alot of problems in his life. At 20 years old he had a 4 yr. old daughter die right before her 5th birthday. The last lesson Elder Weigel and I had with Carlos before Conference started out with him saying,"Yo tengo puras ganas de bautizarme!" That was cool! Carlos has the drive, it's just going to take him a while to put his life in order and change some things in order for him to be able to be baptized and a faithful member of the church.

 

Paola, Osvaldo, Osvaldo Jr. and Gonzalo: (11/11/12) This is a really great family that we have been in contact with lately. They couldn't come to Conference but they really wanted to! Paola could be the nicest person I've ever met in my whole life! Osvaldo, the Dad, likes to play soccer tons! That's all he does during the weekends. Osvaldo Jr. is 13 and he's great. Gonzalo is 11 and he's a funny little guy. Elder Weigel and I were reading in 2 Nephi 31:5 (And now, if the Lamb of God, he being holy, should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfill all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being unholy, to be baptized, yea, even by water!) about the importance of baptism with this family. We committed them to baptism after a little bit of doubt on their part but they all said they would prepare themselves for 11/11/12. Elder Weigel and I have another lesson with this great family Wednesday.

 

Beatriz and Genesis: (21/10/12) It seemed like these 2 disappeared this week! Elder Weigel and I visited their house Wed,Thurs,Fri and Sat and they were no where to be found! We also left tons of notes with the General Conference schedule on their house. We finally were able to talk with Beautriz on Sunday in between sessions and she said that she was unable to attend. We don't really know what is going on with them or why they were never at their house this week. They probably went vacationing somewhere. 

 

Victor: (4/11/12): Victor came to Conference! My favorite session too! Victor came to the morning session on Sunday where I heard the most powerful talk I've ever heard in my entire life...the talk by Elder Holland.

 

 

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

 

"The voice of Christ comes ringing down through the halls of time asking each one of us, while there is time, "Do you love me?" And for every one of us I answer with my honor and my soul, "Yea, Lord, we do love thee." And having set our hand to the plough, we will never look back until the work is finished and that love of God and neighbor rules the world." Drawing from the teachings of the Savior during His life and ministry, Elder Holland reminded Church members of His powerful words, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

 

Wow, whenever I have a bad thought enter into my mind, I will remember Elder Holland's talk and picture the Savior looking at me and asking me the question,"Lovest thou me?" Victor said that he loved Conference and that he was going to call Elder Weigel and I today when he got off work so that we could come over and continue teaching him. The only thing Victor has to do now is to live separately from Amauri and Claudia. We can make this happen! 

 

 

OTHERS

 

Maria: Maria came to the Sunday morning session of General Conference as well. She came with Hermana Pati who has been her friend for a while or at least since Elder Weigel and I have been teaching her. We visited with Maria this week and she said she was doing good. She wants to be baptized but it's a hard time in her life right now with her boyfriend who she's been with for 14 years. Hermana Pati is going to continue talking with (fellowshipping) Maria and updating us on her situation.

 

 

 

Renca Sector right by the Jose Miguel Infante 3 Church

 

Lots of success this week! Elder Weigel and I are working so hard and giving it all our effort. We have to be patient with those that are struggling with reading, praying and going to church. I just want a baptism! This is definately a test of my patience and faith. This last Zone Conference was in Quilicura and was so awesome. We started at 9 in the morning and didn't end until 5.

 

 

Quilicura Chile

Quilicura (pronounced KILL-eeKOOR-uh) is located at the northwestern edge of Santiago and borders Renca to the south. The origin of the name Quilicura comes from the words kila meaning three and kura meaning stones. The "Three Stones" are three hills which separate the area and form the border with Renca. Quilicura is home to many industries and its residents are mostly low-income families.

 

At Zone Conference we discussed obedience and how to resolve problems that arise with reading the Book of Mormon, Law of Chastity and the Word of Wisdom. We spent the day practicing scenarios with another missionary inviting them to commit to reading the Book of Mormon, living the Law of Chastity and keeping the Word of Wisdom. We practiced different problems and then had to do our best to resolve them. This was a really helpful exercise to practice because when you come across this problem with investigators, you already have practiced ways to resolve the problem.

 

I thought General Conference was the best conference yet! President Monson's talk in Priesthood was really, really good and powerful and Elder Holland's talk as I said was the most powerful talk I've heard in my life.  I was able to understand everything that was being said in the talks even though it was in Spanish. My Spanish is really improving!!

 

 

President Thomas S. Monson

 

We should develop the capacity to see men not as they are, but as they can become when they are members of the Church, when they have a testimony of the gospel and when their lives are in harmony with its teachings. "Courage is the word we need to hold near our heart," President Monson told the assembled priesthood brethern, "Courage to turn our backs on temptation, courage to life up our voices in testimony, to all whom we meet, remembering that everyone must have an opprotunity to hear the message. It is not an easy thing for most to do this.  But we can come to believe in the words of Paul to Timothy: "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord" (2 Timothy 1:7-8).

 

 

Favorite Chilean food for the week is....BERLINES!

 

 



 

Berlines are "better than a donut" according to Elder Jenson!

 

Berlines are usually filled with custard, jam or dulce de leche (called manjar). Berlines are the quintessential Chilean midmorning snack or after school treat.

 

 



 

Renca School Van-(The driver picks the kids up at their houses every morning for school)

 

I received 10 letters this week! Thank-you so much for your support! I love hearing from friends and family!

 

For P-day we went downtown and I picked up a few items and was able to send a few letters in the mail.

 

Elder Jenson sent his brother Taylor a special letter wishing him a Happy 18th Birthday. Part of his letter included the following...

 

"If there's one bit of advice I have for you, it's to STUDY the scriptures with a purpose!"

 

 



I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you all!!!!

 

 

Love,

 

Tan

 

 

 



 

 



"ALWAYS TRUST THE LORD!"

October 1, 2012

Hey Family and Friends!

 

Elder Jenson at the Internet Cafe site in Renca where he sends his weekly letters home

 

WE HAD OUR BEST WEEK YET! This week Elder Weigel and I really saw miracles happen. It was such a fun week to be able to witness and expereince these miracles. But first, this is what we achieved this week in the form of numbers!

 

Logros (Achievements)

 

Bautismos  0

 

Confirmaciones  0

 

INVESTIGADORES CON FECHA BAUTISMAL  3

 

INVESTIGADORES QUE ASISTEN A LA REUNION SAC 2

 

Lecciones con miembro  8

 

Otras lecciones  12

 

INVESTIGADORES QUE ESTAN PROGRESANDO  2

 

Referencias recibidas  2

 

Ref contactadas  10

 

Nuevos investigadores  11

 

Lecciones a conv recien menos act.  5

 

Contactos  140 

 

 

Such a good week here in Jose Miguel Infante 3! I put in all caps the numbers that have been 0 for much too long, especially investigators that come to church and investigators progressing (that come to church and have a baptism date). On top of this we had 20 lessons, 11 new investigators (taught one lesson and got a return visit), 140 contacts and 10 ref contacted (when you get a referral, it goes in received and when you contact it, it gets moved to contacted).

 

INVESTIGATORS:

 

 

Milagro=Miracle

 

Carlos:MILAGRO #1!  This past Tuesday, after our District class, Elder Weigel and I were waiting at the bus stop in Cerro Colorado to catch a ride back to our sector to get to work.

 

 Cerro Colorado, Chile

 

I was just looking around and I saw a man that signaled for me to come over to talk to him. I walked over to him and Elder Weigel followed. We met in the middle and started talking a bit. The first thing that he said was,"I want to go to your school."  Being a little confused, I was like "What?"  He repeated the same thing and I was like,"the church?". He nodded his head yes and then proceeded to tell Elder Weigel and I that, "I want to be Mormon!" After hearing that, I smiled thinking to myself, "Ya, I think we can help you with that!" We talked to him for a little longer and found out he has friends that are members of the church. I then asked him for his name and address. "My name is Carlos and I live on the street Poseidon." I was like,"Wait , that's in our sector!!!!" (I just assumed that he was going to live in the sector Cerro Colorado). Elder Weigel and I told Carlos that we would pass by his house the next day. We met with Carlos on Wednesday and taught him the first lesson.  Carlos accepted all of what we said and was loving every minute of our meeting and what we taught him. We've seen Carlos one other time this week as well. We watched the movie of the Restoration and extended him a baptismal date. Before Elder Weigel and I were even done with the invitation, Carlos had already said "YES!!!" Carlos wasn't able to attend Church yesterday because he had to go to the cemetery. Carlos said he'd come with us next week! So crazy and exciting! Carlos's baptismal date is the 21st of October, right before cambios (transfers). Literally, after these past couple of weeks I was feeling like everything was falling apart in our sector. Then, Carlos came. I learned that the Lord will help me. I just have to be patient.

 

Beatriz and Genesis: MILAGRO #2! We taught Beautriz and Genesis the Plan of Salvation this week and they were really receptive.

 

Plan of Salvation in Spanish

 

After teaching them about the Plan of Salvation, Elder Weigel and I extended a baptismal date for the 21st of October. They were a little iffy at first, but after resolving a few doubts of theirs, they told us that they would prepare themselves for October 21st! We then committed Beatriz and Genesis really strongly to coming to church and MILAGRO 3# THEY CAME!!!  They told Elder Weigel and I that they like church a lot. After Sacrament meeting (it's the last hour in our Branch) they stayed to watch a baptism that Elder Huaman (Zone Leader) and Elder Licea (Zone Leader) had in our same Branch.  Beatriz and Genesis enjoyed the baptism as well. I know that they received an answer that this is the true church.

 

Amauri: Elder Weigel and I had some really strong lessons with Amauri this week on the Law of Chastity. Amauri now understands the importance of keeping this commandment and he is going to work as hard as he can to be able to speed up the process with his contract and then getting his carnet so he can get married.(A Carnet (pronounced kar-nay) is an international customs and export-import document. It is used to clear customs without paying duties and import taxes on merchandise that will be re-exported within 12 months.)

 

Carnet Document

 

Amauri has lots of desire to get baptized, it's just going to take a little while.

 

Flor: Every time Elder Weigel and I go to her house and know she's home, she never answers the door. If Flor wants to learn more about the church, sadly she's going to have to put forth some effort, show some interest and contact us.

 

Misc. Info/thoughts:

 

The dearelder system was down this week which meant no letters but I did receive a package with some of my favorites treats-mentos and beef jerky! Thanks!

 

Elder Weigel and I attended Brother Caballero's "Spongebob" themed birthday party!

 

Brother Caballero, Elder Weigel and Elder Jenson eating hamburgers

 



 

Elder Weigel and Elder Jenson loving the Spongebob hats!

 

When I get my haircut in Chile, it's a room in someone's house that basically has a chair or two and a mirror in front of you. The haircuts here are horrible, so I play it safe and just get a buzz cut every time!

 

I thought you'd like to see the Chilean money I carry around with me...

 

 

Monedas(coins in order from left to right): 500 pesos (1 dollar), 100 pesos (20 cents), 50 pesos (dime), 10 pesos (2 cents), 5 pesos (penny), 1 peso (.2cents)

Bills (Paper money): 1000 pesos or un mil (2 dollars), 2000 pesos or dos mil (4 dollars), 5000 pesos or cinco mil (10 dollars), 10000 pesos or diez mil (20 dollars), and 20000 pesos or viente mil (40 dollars)

 

 

Elder Weigel and Elder Jenson with Chilean children in the Jose Miguel Infante 3 Branch

 



 

My favorite scripture for this week is 2 Nephi 2:24..."But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things." Always trust the Lord!

 

 

 

I get to see Conferencia General this week! It's delayed so Priesthood meeting ends at 11pm!

 

The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles invite members and friends of the Church to participate in the 182nd Semiannial General conference on Saturday and Sunday, October 6 and 7, 2012. (Disfrute de reportajes inspiradores y eleve su alma con los discursos de la Conferencia General de la iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Ultimos Dias. Escuche los mensajes de la Primera Presidencia, del Quorum de los Doce y demas autoridades generales desde el Centro de Conferencias de Salt Lake City.)

 

President Thomas S. Monson, 16th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

 



 

I hope you enjoy reading my letters and the SD card I sent arrives soon! Hopefully it doesn't get lost in the mail! Hope all is well! I REALLY enjoy reading your letters about your daily activities! I'm so grateful for everyone's support and prayers! Have a great week!

 

Love,

 

Tan