10: Hace Diez Años

Dear All,

I apologize in advance for any typos. This keyboard likes to stick. But I want to start off by saying: Thanks for all the letters! I got a ton of hand-written letters last week from the Smith family reunion. It was great to hear from everyone. Especially Matt, Luke, Logan, and Timmy. I also wanted to start off by saying: Ten years ago yesterday was a day that I'll never forget. I've thought a lot about September 11, 2001 the last few days. As always, my thoughts and prayers go out to the people that were affected by that tragedy.

It was a great week. I'm staying focused. I've done a lot of thinking and pondering these last few weeks, and I've already decided what I want to do in the coming months and years. But the rest of my mission comes before all of that, and so--like I said last week--I just want to finish strong. I feel really good when I go out and give the Lord all I have. A few days ago (Saturday), we had a miraculous day. I don't know how it happened, but we taught eight lessons despite having 2-3 lessons fall through. It was amazing. It was proof to me that the Lord's hand is in His work! And remember Alejandro from last week? Well, he attended church yesterday, and he loved it! 

Yesterday was also an emotional one for me because Francisco and Cristofer (my converts) passed the sacrament. It was a special moment. At first, we were planning on just having Cristofer pass with Elder Larsen so that he could learn. And then I was going to teach Francisco next week. But when Francisco showed up to church and when I told him the news, he kind of looked at me and said, "No way! I'm passing the sacrament today! I already know how to do it." At first I was a little hesitant, but then something told me to trust in both of them. They both passed together for the first time, and they did it almost flawlessly! It was great. The members LOVED seeing two young men passing. It's been years since they last saw two young men passing. :)

In regards to finishing strong: I remember one of the Sisters in the MTC (Sister Nelson; the wife of one of our councellors) once told us something along the lines of, "I want ALL of you to work so hard so that when you get on that plane to go home, you'll be SO exhausted that you'll sleep the whole way home." I like that. That's how I want to end. I'm exhausted. But not quite THAT exhuasted. But I promise I'll get even more exhausted in the coming weeks. :)

I have had so many days in my mission (heck, in my life) where I don't feel good enough to do what is asked of me. I've learned that a lot of us feel that way and that it's a normal feeling. But I am grateful for a tool that we have as members of the church. That tool is The Book of Mormon. When I was with Elder Gasik, I learned something very important about The Book of Mormon; and this week I was reminded of what I learned a few months ago. What I've learned about The Book of Mormon is this: The Book of Mormon helps us become better persons!

For example, I will always love Nephi and be grateful for him because as a kid and as a teenager, Nephi taught me to obey. He taught me to obey my parents. He taught me to obey the Lord and His commandments. I will always love Ammon, Alma, Amulek, and many other great missionaries from The Book of Mormon because each and every one of them have taught me how to be a better missionary. I am not a parent nor a husband (yet), but I imagine that I'll be very grateful for prophets such as Lehi, Mormon, and Alma and for their great examples of parenthood. I testify that The Book of Mormon contains the fullness of the Gospel! And it can help each and every one of us become better--no matter our age or our responsabilities. So, if you feel like you aren't good enough like I have many times before, I invite you to read The Book of Mormon. I promise you all that as you read that powerful scripture, you will be guided in regard to the worries and the inadequecy that you perhaps may feel in your journey here on Earth.

I love you all. Until next week!

Con Amor,

Elder Nelson IV

11: A Great First Week

Dear All,

That was a great first week of a new change. It was exactly what I needed. We had a lot of success, and it's a great time to be a missionary. I love going out every day to give it all I have. As I work diligently, I am always rewarded with a rich amount of joy and happiness. We'll have another great week.

I'm looking forward to working with Elder Larsen. He's from Provo, Utah, and it's been great thus far. We have a lot in common; he's a big BYU fan. (Go BYU! They won on Saturday.) And we both love the work. So we have a lot of unity. :) And having unity in a companionship is the key to success. 

We had a miracle happen a few days ago. Los Vilos isn't the easiest area to find new people to teach, but Elder Larsen and I went out one day, and we were talking to the people in the streets, at the park, etc. No one wanted to listen to our message, and so we kept walking down the street. And as we were walking, a young man on a bike stops and approaches us. He greeted us and introduced himself as Alejandro. He told us that he had lived in Utah for a few years, and that he had the oportunity to learn about the church and about the Book of Mormon. I asked him if he had been baptized. He told us that he hand't, but that he wanted to meet with us and to attend church! We met with him the next day, and we had a great first lesson with him in the church, and I gave him an English copy of the Book of Mormon. He's awesome! He wasn't able to attend. But he has all the desires to learn and to receive an answer from God about the truthfulness of our message. I know the Lord put him in our path!

Speaking of church: Fernanda continues to progress. She's great. She should be baptized at the end of this month. :) We're just waiting to see when her husband has work off so that he can baptize her. We're excited about that. More great news: Francisco and Cristofer received the Priesthood yesterday!! It was the greatest! The branch is absolutely thrilled about it. We now have two young men in the branch to prepare and pass the sacrament. Francisco was so excited afterwards. He came up to me and asked, "So, Elder Nelson, what are my duties now?" Francisco and Cristofer, I think, have helped me so much these last few weeks. They are great converts, and they are like little brothers to me. Francisco really does remind me of Logan at times. It makes me laugh.

We're working hard. I won't allow myself to slack off too much. In my interview a few weeks ago with President Gillespie, he told me that I shouldn't WORRY about my life after the mission; but he did tell me that I could THINK about it. And so I have thought a lot about what I'm going to do, and I'm not too worried anymore. I'm working on my 5-year plan for after the mission, and it feels good to think about it and plan it all out. Because now I can work even harder and stay focused because I'm not all that worried anymore. :)

I want to be a missionary like Alma. After serving for all those years, he just could not stop preaching the Gospel. In Alma 43:1-2, it says:

1 And now it came to pass that the sons of Alma did go forth among the people, to declare the word unto them. And Alma, also, himself, could not rest, and he also went forth.

2 Now we shall say no more concerning their preaching, except that they preached the word, and the truth, according to the spirit of prophecy and revelation; and they preached after the holy order of God by which they were called.I love you all. Until next week! :)

Con Mucho Amor,

Elder Nelson IV

12: The Fifteenth Change

Dear All,

And another change/transfer ends. My fifteenth change begins today, and it's a little strange to realize that I am now part of the second-oldest group of the mission.

Elder Monzón left for Viña del Mar yesterday, and will be flying home in the next few days. Since he left, I have been spending time with an Elder named Elder Naylor; he's my temporary replacement until my new companion (Elder Larsen) gets here tomorrow. Elder Naylor's also from Las Vegas, and we've been enjoying our time together these last 24 hours or so. We had a funny moment in the morning on the way to Illapel for the Zone meeting. We bought our tickets at the terminal for the 9:30 bus. At 9:30, a bus arrived and it said, "Los Vilos-Illapel-Coquimbo." And so we thought, "This is it!" And we hopped on. We were on our way when I noticed that the bus didn't take the normal turn. I thought perhaps he was just taking a different route. But we got a good laugh when the bus attendant came up to check our ticket, and he told us, "Um, sorry, but this bus isn't going to Illapel!" Long story short: We got kicked off the bus, and another bus took us all the way back to Los Vilos where we had to buy another ticket to come here to Illapel. We lost $6, but we just laughed and enjoyed the mistake that we had made. :)

It was a great week. It was tough because my companion was in his last week, and he wasn't all that focused; he was really nervous to go home. But the good news is that we had our two baptisms!

It was a miracle. The day before the baptism, Francisco and Cristofer's mom and step-dad had a big arguement, and we were really worried that it was going to affect their baptism. But we visited them and read Mosiah 24 with them; it is a great chapter that talks about how the people of Alma were comforted by the Lord in their afflictions. We promised them blessings, and in the end, all was well, and they were baptized! :)

What made the baptism more special was that the church ran out of gas, and so we had to baptize in ice-cold water. And I'll never forget it. Because as soon as we ended the ordinance, the coldness went away, and the Spirit warmed each and every one of us. I lie not; I don't think I've ever been in water so cold! But I will never forget the warmth that felt as I got out of the font with Francisco.

Being admist Francisco and Cristofer has really helped me out; they're great. A few days ago, I was thinking about the trials they were going through as a family, and it made me think of my own life. I thought about my own conversion story, and by thinking about it, I realized just how grateful I am for trials and challenges.

I am grateful for them because I can honestly say that I have been converted to the Gospel thanks to every single trial and challenge that I have had in my life. I look back on my life's challenges, and I--like everyone--have had moments where I have two choices: be angry with God or draw myself closer to Him.

Today I can say that I am grateful that I chose to draw myself closer to Him. By doing so, I have felt His love, and I have seen His blessings. I know He loves us, His children. I know these things are true because I chose to follow Jesus Christ every single time that I was faced with a new challenge or trial.

My heart is full, and I am grateful for the examples in my life that taught me to do so--my parents, my siblings, my friends, my leaders. To each and every one of you: Thank you for teaching me to trust in God and to follow Christ. I promise each of you that I am going to keep on preaching His Gospel, and I am going to keep on teaching the people here to trust in God, too, so that they can experience the joy that I have felt as a converted diciple of Christ.

I love you all.

Con Amor,

Elder Nelson IV

13: ¡El Perseverar Hasta El Fin!

Dear All,

I'm grateful for my mission. I've seen and experienced a lot of things that I will never forget. I've met a lot of people that have made a great impact on my life. But more than anything, I've learned to forgive, I've learned to love, I've learned to understand, etc. For example, I look back on my three changes/transfers with Elder Gasik. And despite never having a baptism with him, I learned so much about diligence, obedience, charity, and unity. I miss those days of my mission! But I know the Lord wants me to learn from my experiences here in Los Vilos, too.

We were happy to see Fernanda get married last week! It was interesting attending the ceremonies and what not. There was a lot of good food, and it was fun. However, when we were eating lunch, Fernanda asked us if we could post-pone her baptism. Her husband had his interview with the branch president (so he could baptize her), but he doesn't feel ready to do so yet. And naturally, she really wants her husband to baptize her. :) So we have to be patient and give her a few more weeks so that her husband can baptize her. The good news: They're married now, and they are progressing!

We're really excited for this Saturday because Francisco and Cristofer will be baptized! I'm really excited because they have been waiting for SO long to be baptized. They're funny because yesterday they gave us a list of people to invite to their baptism. I laughed when I saw names such as "branch president and wife" and "lady who directs music." The one that made me laugh the most, though, was "Elders." :) It gave me a good laugh that they wanted us to invite ourselves to their baptism. They're great kids. They'll go down in history as two of the greatest people that I have met and taught here in my mission. I love them both.

I've always liked the hymn "Master The Tempest Is Raging." As a young lad, I enjoyed it for it's cool music more than anything. Like a lot of hymns, I never really paid attention to the words of the hymn before my mission. And a few days ago, I was reading in Jesus The Christ, and I learned--after all this time--what the words from "Master The Tempest Is Raging" mean and where they come from. In Mark 4:36-41, it says:

36 And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships.
37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

Why are we so fearful? How is it that we have no faith? We live in a time full of fierce storms and tempests; we are faced with them every day! But Christ teaches us that we must not fear; rather, we must have faith in Him. And if we do so, He will calm the storms. I know He will because I've seen and experienced many calms of such storms and tempests. So let's put our trust in Him by keeping His commandments, and He will save us! We'll never be perfect in this life; we can't control that. But we can be happy; and we can control that. And the path to happiness is His path and His example.

I love you all. Until next week!

Con Mucho Amor,
Elder Nelson IV

14: "The Kingdom of God Or Nothing"

Dear All,

President John Taylor said it best: "The Kingdom of God Or Nothing!" It really is the only real, worthwhile choice, isn't it?

I want to explain something that I should have probably explained a long time ago. I want to explain to everyone the purpose of my e-mails home. My purpose in writing these e-mails isn't only to update everyone on how I'm doing and what I'm doing. But rather, my purpose in writing these e-mails is to also do missionary work through my e-mails. My hope is that by reading my e-mails you will feel the Spirit and learn a Gospel principle or two. And so that's why I sometimes go off on random topics.

Last week I received an e-mail from my brother Brent Nelson. He updated me on what is going on in his life by forwarding me blog entries. And one entry that really touched me was an entry when Brent was helping his son Seth pray, and they prayed for "Uncle Ben." It was in that moment that it hit me that I have a big handful of family and friends on the other side of the world that I have been praying for me by name every single day, various times a day since I began my mission 21 months ago. And I'll be honest; I think--over time--I actually forgot that! And it was a great reminder for me that I have a family that loves me. And so to each and every one of you, I say: "Wow. THANK YOU for your prayers."

We had a conference up north in Coquimbo last week. It was a great conference, and it was awesome to learn from President Gillespie and our leaders as always. The exciting news is that the church is giving portable DVD players and Preach My Gospel DVD's to EVERY companionship in the world. We received ours at the conference, and I'm pretty excited because the training videos are really going to help the missionaries all over the world teach better. :)

The highlight for me at the conference was the "dying testimony" of an Elder that will be going home here in a few weeks. He's an Elder that was in my zone when I got to the mission. He was in his 3rd transfer; I was in my first. And now he's going home. And he said something in his testimony that really touched me. He talked about how when he first got to the mission, he honestly didn't like the mission all that much. But he said, "However, every thing changed for me when I taught my first lesson and--in my weak Spanish--testified that I knew Joseph Smith saw God and Christ and was called be a Prophet in these latter days."

As I heard this Elder's testimony, it helped me realize that it was the the same for me. As a new missionary in a foreign country, there's not much you can do except testify. And I remember my first lesson with Elder Birchall when my only words were "Amo el Libro de Mormon. Yo sé que es verdadero." (Translation: I love The Book of Mormon. I know it's true.) And I remember walking out of that lesson feeling SO good for having shared that short testimony. As I shared it, I felt God's love supporting me. And I have felt His love every time that I've opened my mouth to testify of His Gospel. So like that Elder who bore his testimony...I, too, have loved my mission ever since the first day I opened my mouth to share my testimony in my weak, broken Spanish.

We're well here. We're really excited for our baptism this week! And for two more baptisms the week after! I'll keep you posted!

To end, I want to share the inspiring lyrics of the last verse of "The Time Is Far Spent":

Be fixed in your purpose, for Satan will try you;
The weight of your calling he perfectly knows.
Your path may be thorny, but Jesus is nigh you;
His arm is sufficient, tho demons oppose.
His arm is sufficient, tho demons oppose.

I love you all!

Con Mucho Amor,
Elder Nelson IV

15: And The Toughest Challenge Yet

Dear All,

Another week has flown by, and here I am again writing an e-mail home. I'll be honest...It's been a tough three weeks. I might even go as far as to say that these last three weeks have been the hardest times of my mission by far. I'll save all the details for a future date; perhaps when we can talk to each other face to face, and I can explain it all more thoroughly. However, I will say this: the Lord has me here in Los Vilos for a reason. I felt that very strongly this week. And so tough times or not...I'm here to do the Lord's will, and I must obey. I won't accept any other choice.

With that said...I was talking to my companion Elder Monzón a few days ago, and he told me something interesting. He said he heard a few rumors that the zone leaders might be moving to Los Vilos soon. If that's the case...Maybe I WON'T end my mission here like I thought. But I guess the only choice is to wait and see what happens, right? :) But it's interesting. I remember opening my call in July of 2009, and thinking, "WHY do I have to wait until November to leave? I want to go NOW." I remember my Dad explained to me that it was that way because that's the way the Lord needed it to be. And so it's interesting because I'll learn in the next few months WHY the Lord called me in November instead of September or October.

I am excited for the next few weeks. We have an investigator named Fernanda that will be baptized on August 20. It's super weird because a few days ago, I figured out that she's younger than me; she's 19. But she is awesome! She's like a mix between KT and Cynthia. Haha. It makes me laugh every time that we teach her because she's really smart (she basically has the pamphlet's memorized), and she has the same kind of personality that KT and Cynthia have. She has such a powerful testimony, and every time I hear it mine grows, too. She's getting married to a man named Eric (a less active that is reactivating) on August 19, and then he's going to baptize her the next day. :)

And then there's Cristofer and Francisco. Cristofer is 14 and Francisco is 12. They'll be baptized on August 27. I love being around them because they REALLY remind me of my little brothers. They are so funny. They both want to be baptized NOW. Their desires to follow Christ's example is amazing. I mean...They showed up to church yesterday before us! Without their parents! They'lll be a great addition to the branch because we don't have any youth. The branch is SUPER excited to have two youth to pass the sacrament. I'm really looking forward to their baptisms.

A few days ago, we had a branch activity and we watched a seminary video clip from the Doctrine and Covenants called "The Man Without Eloquence." It was about a man who didn't have public speaking skills nor could he speak with powerful words. He was humble, and he bore his testimony sincerely. And thanks to this man (I can't remember his name), Brigham Young felt the Spirit SO strong and was eventually baptized by this man. As we watched this short video clip, I felt the Spirit really strong because I have been in that man's shoes before, and I've seen miracles come out of what I thought were weak, unconvincing words.

I have pondered and studied much this past week. I was pondering on how evil and corrupt the world in today; and it worried me! But as I was studying my scriptures during my personal study, I felt God's love sweep those worries away. And then I received personal revelation from the Spirit; I was taught that "we live in a world today where we cannot afford to not read the scriptures and pray daily." I felt that prompting strongly, and I know it's true. Because if we aren't reading and praying daily, the Holy Ghost cannot and will not be with us. And the companionship of the Holy Ghost is an absolute must in today's world filled with so much immoral decay and temptations. I promise each and every one of you that we are filled with peace and comfort as we study our scriptures daily, as we pray daily, and as we attend church weekly. If you're going through a hard time in your life right now...I know that if you do these things, the Lord will save you. I know these things are true because He saved me. The words of Alma The Younger to his son Helaman will be my second witness of this promise:

16And now, for three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the apains of a damned soul.

 17And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.

 18Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.

 19And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.

 20And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!

 21Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy.

 22Yea, methought I saw, even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and bpraising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there.

 23But behold, my limbs did receive their strength again, and I stood upon my feet, and did manifest unto the people that I had been born of God.

 24Yea, and from that time even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.

 25Yea, and now behold, O my son, the Lord doth give me exceedingly great joy in the fruit of my labors;
I love you all. Until next week!

Con Mucho Amor,
Elder Nelson IV

¡Bienvenidos A Agosto!

Dear All,

All is well here. I literally have no time to write today. And I don't know what to say either. I have way too much on my mind, and I don't know what to tell you and what not to tell you.

But I will say this: Nothing has made me more happy than my mission. It's been the hardest thing that I have done in my life by far. But every tough task and every dificult time has included a reward and a blessing. And I want it absolutely clear that my decision to serve my mission will be a decision that I will never regret taking. If each and every one of you could only feel the way that I feel right now.

Again: All is well here, and we're looking forward to having a few baptisms in the coming weeks. (More on that next week.)

I love you all.

Con Mucho Amor,
Elder Nelson IV