04/18/2011-04/25/2011

Hello again everyone!

 

Happy late Easter!!  I hope it was great for everyone and that we're all able to remember the blessings which the Atonement brings into our lives!!

 

Man it's been a crazy week!!  We had exchanges this week, and exchanges always seem to bring about miracles.  We got 4 new investigators (one accepted a baptismal date but it's going to be moved cause they didn't come to church yesterday)  and a bunch more potentials!  It's been crazy!!

 

We went tracting on wednesday 4/20 and of course we were doing so in the ghetto.  Everywhere smelled like weed haha.  It doesn't help that there's distribution stores everywhere in our area!  We had one guy tell us there is no god and to take our voodoo somewhere else.  It was awesome! 

 

Yesterday was probably the most interesting day I've had out here.  We have been trying to get ahold of a less active girl who is about to graduate high school, whose parents are apparently very anti.  Well, we stopped by, talked to her mom and invited her to and easter cantata (musical performance thing) she like wise invited us to her church's easter program.  Which we went to at the first free evangelical.  Man it was awesome, closest thing to real music we've heard in a long time!  They had some great musicians definitely.  She seemed really excited we went and even invited us to a diner thing at her house!  We weren't able to make it tho.  The best part is everyone just STARED at us the whole time.  I caught this elderly lady from 4 chairs down just eyeballing me lol.  And a guy wanted to bash with my companion.  We just wanted to see the service!!  Sheesh.  But either way a lot of people seemed to be more accepting when we told them why we were there and were very respectful.  It was an awesome experience and seems to really open up people to our church.  But now I keep saying that we need a drum set next to the organ!

 

Well I must depart and so on, Love you all and I testify with all my heart this is the true Church of Christ. 

Elder Nielson

 

Pichas

Dad this one is for you.  The Truck-vette has been replaced with the Truck-allac.  The license plate said Radillac.

04/11/2011-04/17/2011

Hello everyone

Well, it has been a week this week for sure.  Had interviews with President and Sister Pfile, which was pretty cool.  I haven't had them yet so it was an awesome experience.  We had some pretty awesome learning experiences and promises from President.

Not a whole lot of stuff happened this week, Elder Glines has been feeling sick and passed his cold onto me so we've been just taking it easy.  Not to worry tho we're doing better today and are planning on hitting it hard this week!

This week we got an opportunity to do a baptism!  Johnathan Kinda just fell into our laps, he's about to go float in the navy, and was living out in New York when he took the lessons.  But he wanted to be baptized out here with his wife's family.  Who happen to be in our ward.  So Elder Glines and I got to take care of it!  His father in law performed the ordinance, but Glines and I helped in confirming him yesterday!  Pretty cool stuff!

We also got a few more people we're going to try to start working with this week, it's pretty cool how it seems like things are turning around in this area! Hopefully everything will go according to plan!

Oh, I've learned a few new songs on the guitar which is pretty cool.  Met a professional harmonica player, I'm hoping he moves back again.  AND there's a guy in one of the wards who has played with tool, and the guitarist from Iron Butterfly, pretty awesome stuff.  I'm building connections.  I hope.  But really he said he'd help us build our own little guitar amp.  The dude is pretty awesome!

Well that's all for now, Love you all!

Elder Nielson

This is the picture after the baptism, Johnathan, his wife Melissa and Father in law Vincent

Be jealous of our awesome mustaches.  This was after district meeting haha

Just straight Chillin in front of the 'rola!

04/06/2011-04/11/2011

Well hello again!

Man this week has been... This week!  Crazy that's what.  Had transfer meeting on wednesday, two new elders to the district are here, but they're pretty cool it seems.  Elder Glines and I are still basically rocking it as usual.  No surprise there. 

It was a pretty slow week because of transfers and all that but some pretty awesome stuff happened still which I'll get to.

So it turns out that I'm pretty good at turning planting beds.  We did some service on monday for the Engeseth family and I started joking around that it was a family business.  Pretty random thought but it was really funny.  And now I can say that on my mission I have helped move 3 pianos thus far.  Any of you moving pianos, DON'T DO IT!!!  It sucks haha.

Alright so epic story time.

Soooooo My companion and I decided to tract a street downtown CS and so we're knocking on doors and had no luck.  Then this guy answers the door and says "oh no you guys again..."  Turns out that the other Elders had tracted that street already... the day before.  Poopy.  So we decided to bail on that plan and came up with the idea to bike into Manitou Springs since we're low on miles.  Oh biking how I loathe thee.  Anyway, it's not that far or hard so we do it to go and see a contact my companion and I know.  We get there, are just walking away from our bikes and see this guy a block and a half away waving us down... Kinda strange... Well we go over there and he tells us he just moved into the area, his wife is a member and he's not... yet... in his own words, and wants to know where the building is.  Sweet.  We share the address and get his info and we're going to visit him this week.  Well then we go up to visit the Contact in Manitou and it turns out that he left the commune/religion group he was in.  And this dude is awesome before even tho most in the commune really didn't think too fondly of us.  Well he left and is interested in learning more, has been for awhile.  So he and his whole family, 6 total are going to be visited this week as well.  Miracles do indeed happen. 

So THEN we're heading home, feeling awesome and whatnot.  Stop by a less active members bike shop as he's closing to get air in our tires.  He says "hey, you guys heading home?  Let's go through Garden of the Gods!  It's on the way home and it's not hard at all!"  Yeah... Never trust a professional cyclist when they say it's not hard.  I almost wrecked twice, chain came off twice, and my heart was racing.  He took us on the trails that were way technical with loose dirt and rocks lol.  But!  I can now say I've been mountain biking in a white shirt and tie!  Lol.  Made it back home safe just dead tired, but still ecstatic about the day.  It was an amazing week,  and I know that the Lord is the master planner of this work.  I know he guided us to go to that street where the others had been so we would end up in Manitou and find those people.  It was amazing.  I also know that he watches out for us and keeps us from dying on mountain bikes lol.  The church is true, keep up the good work everyone!

Elder Nielson

03/28/2011-04/05/2011

Hello everyone!

This week has been a pretty good one!  Hope everyone enjoyed conference as much as I did!  It was great! We've been having some fun the 4 of us elders who are in this area serving together and hanging out between conferences!

We had some crazy wind here!  Our neighbors fence blew over and a big old tree branch broke off and crushed his boat... Pretty crazy to wake up to and look out at!

We have a new potential investigator!  She's from the UK and her husband is from Scotland, we're going to try and meet with her this week before the kids come home from school is when she said is best.

We've been going around just doing a pretty fair amount of tracting this week, and it's been pretty fun.  There's a family we've been visiting who are recent converts but are having a hard time.  If my camera will sync I'll send a picture of their youngest son, who is hilarious.  Their oldest boy is funny too, we harass him a lot and he kicked me in the ankle!  I deserved it tho, I must admit. 

Oh for anyone who is wondering who reads this I'm not being transferred.  There.  Done.  I said it.  Lol.

So not a whole lot else going on, tons of funny stories to share but I can't remember them all but anywho the work is going good, I appreciate the prayers.  Help out your local missionaries and pray and give them people who might be interested.

 

 Love you all

 

Elder Nielson

 

So the first picture is the carnage of our neighbors

Then a Picture of our district, No time for names.

Then Aiden Engeseth and I when he was wearing 10 shirts cause he was supposed to be cleaning... awesome