July 21, 2014

This week has been really great, lots of trials but great. The weather is weird. In the morning and night it gets wintery cold, but as the sun comes up during the day, I feel like we are in July..ha well I guess we are. But the sun here is so strong that even in the winter it gets hot. So it bounces from really hot to really cold really fast. I think that because of that, I got sick. I’ve been sick lots of this week. I worked anyway, but Saturday I had to rest a bit, but still went to work. It was hard for me, having the desire to work really hard and my body not being able to follow. But overall it was a great week as far as work. We found lots of great people. We have appointments set with lots of new investigators so we will see how it goes. I feel so blessed to have the atonement in my life. It’s really the best feeling knowing that there is always a positive future. I love the Lord and I love this Gospel. This work is what I will invest myself in for the rest of my years.

Elder Nelson

With Elder Larson

The crew, Elder Larson, Elder Montes, Brother Castro and me,
oh and open cupboards shhh ha!

July 14, 2014

I have had a good week. It’s been really crazy with the world cup.  What a great experience to see how things go down here for the world cup. South America loves the world cup, lots more than we do in the good old US of A. Wednesday when they played Holland, nobody was doing much and there was a big Riot type crowd in downtown Cordoba. I saw on the news, there were thousands of people in the street cheering and yelling. Kind of cool. But after the final when they lost, there were only people in the street trying to lift up spirits. It’s a REALLY BIG DEAL here in Argentina. I didn't know how big of a deal it is. My companion is from Córdoba. 

This week has been really fun. Our ward saw a baptism this week for a guy named Lucas. He’s about 25 and he is the security guard for the chapel. He had a wonderful service. As we are seeing the changes in missionary work, I find that it’s a lot harder to knock on a door and enter a house, especially in Cordoba with all the crime. but when members are involved in teaching their friends, then the missionaries have a solid way to teach the people the gospel. A lesson in the home of a member is one of the greatest things for missionary work. As we see this happening more and more in our ward we see stronger and stronger investigators and more and more baptisms. With Lucas, he was taught in the church building, every lesson with members, the spirit that there was strong! and he was able to come to know and understand the gospel in a powerful way. 

Wednesday my comp and I went to the house of a member. Wednesday was 9 de Julio or the 9th of July and it was independence day in Arg. so the members made us a Argentine food called banna ( said like Baña) cauda. It’s really Italian but people eat it here. It’s a white sauce with fish bits. We put it over chicken and veggies. It was way good! The family is named the Sanna family! Way cool family. Well that was my week. I love you all.

Elder Nelson

Jared gave no explanation for this picture but I am thinking
I am safe to assume this is the kind of place he goes
 to use the computer to write to us! 

July 7, 2014

So Elder Michalek (Jared's MTC companion. He says seeing him is like seeing family!) is my zone leader ha. I am always in communication with him because I’m a district leader, so it’s cool to have him close again. The last year he had been in an area far away from me. Elder michalek came into lots of my old areas, we share lots of the same areas and finally he got to my zone ha. I love that elder.

This week we had a rough week as far as numbers, but a good week as far as what I learned and all the potential. I don’t really remember what happened exactly, but I do remember how I felt in the week. Lots of gratitude! I realize more and more how blessed I am to be here. This experience is something so valuable that it’s really a blessing. I give service, but as I give service the Lord serves me 100 times more. It humbles me, and motivates me. I realize that we are given so much in scriptures. All the doctrines and principles for salvation and then the Lord expects us to apply it. The doctrine or vision is always the same, but the application is individual. As I apply more the little things in my life, I see a great difference and more of a power to get things done. When we do things the right way, the Lord give us power to do more. It all depends on doing his will. Just the way I organize my desk, or the way I dress or the way I speak, changes lots. Then the little things like that help me to apply the bigger things, and that is what makes me more like my Savior. I love this work and I am so thankful for everything!

June 30, 2014

This week we worked hard and saw miracles. One day as we were walking down the street, I saw this woman walking beside us and I began to talk with her. We spoke of the church and the gospel, we invited her to come to church, she accepted, then we asked if we could visit her and teach her, also accepted, we began teaching about baptism and the blessing of it, we then invited her to be baptized, she also accepted. So there are people everywhere who are humble to listen to the gospel, we just need to open our mouths in the streets and in every place we are. We can’t pray for missionary moments if we aren't willing to open our mouths and stand as a witness in all times in all things and in all places. I know that each and every missionary is a representative of Christ, and I also know that every member is a missionary, and what we do reflects our understanding of who Christ is, that is why we must KNOW HIM, our master who we serve. I love this work!

Oh yeah transfers..I stay and Elder Barbose to Rio Cuarto. I gave him my coat because its colder there. I may need to buy a new coat! :) My new comp is called a mini missionary. He’s from Cordoba and he’ll be with me until more missionaries come ha. His name is Hno Castro. He’s cool. I just met him. So he’s not an Elder but he’s about to leave for the mission. So all is good!

Elder Nelson

Sister Delgado and family made us these flags!

Sister Delgado and family made us these flags!

With Elder Barbosa and the Barbosa family
 (Jared didn't say if there is any relation my guess is no because
Elder Barbosa is from Brazil)

June 23, 2014

This week was great. Everyone is loving the world cup here. I never remember it being a big deal in the USA, but maybe it wasn't ever a big deal to me ha, but the next world cup I will for sure watch and follow. We have seen lots of miracles because of the world cup. Our presidente told us that we can watch the games of Argentina because the streets will be dead and everyone will be busy, but only on one condition, that it be a new investigator, so for example, I saw a young man walking in the street with a New York Jets hat. He probably had no idea that it was a football team, but I said I’m from the USA and I like your hat. We then began to talk a bit. Then I asked him if he was to watch the Argentina game against Iran. He said yes and then I asked if we could go by his house and watch with him because we don’t have a TV, he then agreed and said yeah come on by. So the next day we went by and he wasn’t there but his mom and family were and were expecting us to come and pulled us out seats by the TV and offered us food and stuff like that, it was great, and then we spoke a bit about the book of Mormon and we left them with a book and invited them to read, the agreed and we set an appointment to come back. They were a great family, humble and loving. By serving us two missionaries they served the Lord. Then that same day, in another ward in the stake, a man that is 80 years old was baptized. he really had passed through lots of problems for going to this church and for 7 months of going to church didn’t get baptized because he couldn’t believe, but the spirit and his feelings is what kept him going, but finally he made the choice to be baptized and it was glorious. After he was baptized and then came into the meeting room all changed and clean, he said something kind of profound, he said, "now nobody knows me because I’m a new person". he said it to make a joke, but how true and profound those words that after baptisms, it really is like starting over, and becoming new. It’s also how we feel after we worthily take of the sacrament. It’s amazing how this gospel is so wonderful and how we can feel so happy by abiding by its principles. I love this gospel and I know it’s true and I will defend it! :)

Elder Nelson

 Camilla, Veronica Delgado, me, Jonathan Delgado
and Lili Delgado

us crazy in the apartment

me and Manolo, the man who got baptized at 80 years

me in centro Cordoba

June 16, 2014

So this week was great. We had a few memorable experiences. We were able to help Camila get baptized. She had lots of help from her friends and support from the ward, and it was a really great experience for my companion as well being the first baptism of his mission. He loved it, he was able to do the ordinance. Saturday was crazy, we had to get the fount all cleaned and ready. The smoke from the last few times our poor little chapel was burnt left a few black stains in the fount and we had to clean that all up, as well as find a way to turn on the water heater, so we spent lots of time doing that and then we gave a training meeting for the teachers in the ward or those who are assigned to home teach or visit teach. We taught about teaching skills from PMG, after we held the baptism and all went well! yesterday Argentina played their first game in the world cup and won so the whole country was tucked away watching the game, and every time they made a goal, we would hear fireworks or a cannon or something like that. In houses we could hear the people yelling GGGOOOAAALLLLL!!!!! It was great. A fun week with the World Cup and with the baptism. I love this work and I love my Savior.

Elder Nelson

June 10, 2014

This week was really great. we are going to have a baptism on Saturday, Camilla, not sure if I talked about her last week, but she is a friend of members and has been listening to the Elders but now finally has permission from her dad to get baptized. My companion is really excited because it will be his first in his mission! I have been receiving lots of revelation this week too, I am learning so much, and I have never felt so much peace in my life (haha okay the word peace (but spelled different) in Spanish means pee so it always makes me giggle haha).

This last week was great, we had lots of fun. I love the Elders I live with and work with, they are all great elders. We are seeing changes in the ward, when I got here in this area we were seeing the attendance of the ward at 60 something, now we are at 86. It’s been great having so many in church. All of it done by reactivation and a few baptisms. We will have a few in the ward this Saturday, one convert and the other a member. Yesterday I was able to go to a leadership training meeting in the mission home, right next to the temple that is progressing well. It was a treat to listen to stories from my mission president and learn the doctrine from him. I am really convinced that this is the best mission in the world, just like every missionary feels about his mission, but it’s the best for me I guess. After the training meeting we rented a few soccer fields and played with presidente and the other leaders and Elders in the office. It was great. I’m getting better at my soccer skills, almost as good as Messi ha ha. I love this work. Once I head Elder Holland say that ever since the end of his mission he has prayed that this work is never ever over for him. I feel the same way. My time is running out here on the mission but I do pray that even after, it is never ever over for me. I love my savior and I will follow him.


Elder Nelson

Elder Rivera

Ha Elder Barbosa