happy Monday!

Hello everyone! Its a wonderful Monday morning here in central america and i hope you guys are all happy and healthy.  I received a bunch of pictures of the family this week and of Navy's baby blessing!! That's so crazy she looks so big and the whole family looks great. i wish i could have been there and was there in spirit. Congratulations to the Bell family you guys are awesome! Also congrats to Kevin for Graduating! Awesome things happening in the big AZ. Over here in the little ES (El Salvador?) the work moves on. This week we had the oportunidad to go into San Salvador to the temple. Unfortunately we didn't have the chance to go into the temple, but was something almost just as special. We have been inviting for about a month now investigators and recent conversos to come with us. In our ward we have nearly 40 people come between the two sets of missionaries here. Lots of success! At the temple the went on a learning tour thing where we had presentacions of all aspects of the Gospel. Things like the Book of mormon, los convenios, family history, and what we do in the temple! And i had to give a prayer in front of 300 or so people... Not going to lie i was a bit nervous. Lots of people loved it and afterwards we had more people that were asking us to come and teach them more. 

Anyways this week we have four baptisms planned! 3 of these baptisms we have been working on for a very long time and we are praying they all go through because there are still some parts that need to fall into place. One of our investigators Jose that is going to be baptized, at first told us he had no interest in any religion, and wanted to enjoy his life without "restrictions". Now he has a testimony stronger than almost any member in the ward, and constantly want to help us do missionary work! He is awesome and one of our good friends. Its amazing to see what a change this gospel can make in the lives of the people it touches. Including my own life, the Gospel and this church is the most powerful way to bring happiness joy and blessings in every aspect of the life.  I dream that everyone will be able to enjoy these blessings as well.  I think a lot of the picture of the Savior standing at the door knocking and all we have to do is open it and receive him. All that anyone could possible need is here, we just have to open the door and let him into our lives. 

Also as a continuación of my experiences of joy of living in the El Salvador, this week I woke up in the middle of the night to use the restroom. My friend Mr. Bat had a friend , and Mrs. Rat  was waiting for me. Yes, I screamed. It was bigger than my head. That was my near death experience of the week. Stay tuned for more to come.

Love you all and am so thankful for all that you guys do for me! I miss you guys so much but there is a time for everything, and right now my time is here in San Miguel with these people. I am happy to be in the service of my Lord and Savior. Till next week!

Elder Nelson

Elder Nelson with companions Elder Burgos y Elder Perdomo

Pictures from Temple Trip

Hermanos y Hermanas

Hello! Another Monday is here, I feel like it was just P day. The time flies by, I feel like I am so new in the mission still (and I still am) but I am starting to put some time under my belt. I realized that Elder McCook, Elder Hunter, and Elder Farnsworth all should be over a year now! That's really awesome, its cool to see people spending time of their lives to better the lives of other people as well.

Anyways news news news... Oh yeah... I am right now currently in a trio! Wednesday I got a call from the asistentes and they told me I'm going to be training! Its a little weird because we are right in the middle of a change, but late Wednesday night I received Elder Burgos! He is from Honduros and I'm honored to be his trainer. Its weird to be in a group of three and we have to get used to teaching in that way but we working through it. SO we dont know for sure yet but since I'm his trainer I feel like Ill be here in this area for a couple more months until I finish his training. Its bittersweet, I love this ward and area but always want to get to know other parts of the mission. But, we are having success in the area, and who would want to leave that?

This week we had a cool experience. We had the opportunity to fast and we are really praying that these bautismal that we have planned in the next couple weeks will all go through. We were really worried about Flor, who we had to change her date a couple times. Saturday night we passed by and she told us that she has a firm desire to be baptized on the 16 of Agosto and has the support of her family to do so. We are very excited and grateful for the answer to prayers! Also another of our investigators Jose is progressing and loves the church so much that we are going to move his bautismal to the 15 of Agosto. Awesome things coming up for us!

Anyways that's most of the news coming from San Miguel. Its awesome to see the protection that is given to missionaries here in the mission. Its no secret that this place can be dangerous but many times the people here recognize who we are and what we are doing and let us do the Lords work with little or no problems. Such a blessing! I love the work, even through its really really hot. Supposed to be over 100 all this week and humid! I love to share my testimony, and i know that Christ is my savior. Through his and his atonement, we can feel the burdens of our mistakes take away from us completely. Through him, we can have all the joys and happiness that we should experience in life, and only through Him and his gospel we have true happiness. The Book of Mormon is the key to this, as it is a testament to him and answers all the questions we are looking for in life. Love you all and am thankful for everything!

Oh I forgot to say this week we have a temple trip this Thursday but for the investigadores! I was assigned to give the opening prayer in front of everyone! Im kinda nervous

Elder Nelson

IT'S MONDAY + Pictures!!

Hola como estamos?! i loved hearing about your trip to Idaho.  It sounds like a bunch of fun! And congratulations to Bree and Rimo for graduating from BYUI! Thats awesome, I cant believe thats already here. Its crazy how fast time flies. Before I know it Navy is going to be 2 years old and Ill be coming home! ... Okay yeah thats still a ways off but this is my one day a week to think about home so let me enjoy it okay? anyways Im happy everyone is doing well and being safe. Everyone looked so good in the pictures mom sent me and i already feel like you have all changed a lot. Funny story throughout El Salvador I am known as the missionary from Alemania... which is funny because no matter how many times I tell them I lived in the USA all the latinos love to call me it. It doesn't bother me though, its different than the usual "GRINGO" call that I receive in the streets... and almost every investigator we receive thinks I am from Germany. That's what I get for being a blonde hair blue eyed white boy in Central America I guess.

Anyways, life goes on here in San Miguel! These past couple weeks Ive been close to some other missionaries from Arizona that are ending their missions. Their names are Elder Hazelgreene, Elder Smart, and Elder Jones (in case any of you guys already know them). Its sad to see them leave. But anyways this week we had 6 new investigators at the church so we were pretty excited about that! Its always a struggle to get people to come to church. Unfortunately our baptism this week has to be postponed until the 15 of agosto, which was kinda sad but we are praying hard for her! Right now we have 5 baptisms scheduled for the 15 of agosto and we are hoping and working hard to make sure they all go through. 

This past PDAY was BEACH DAY! we got to go down to La Union and see the beach. I'll attach some pictures. It was fun and nice to escape from the normal routine of being a missionary. I also got got to know some other missionaries; there are some really awesome guys working down here in the Lords work! Anyways other than leveling up to a level 6 washing-clothes-by-hand merit badge, life goes on. Its hot, really hot actually, and this week I was more tired than usual. I used to think that when you are a missionary you somehow have amazing amounts of energy that you feel like you could fly, but the reality is actually that some days you are dead tired and exhausted but as you work and pray for strength God ALWAYS gives you what is needed to do the work you are called to do. It has been a great blessing in my life.

Anyways, to end I just want to share my testimony of this Gospel. I know with all my heart it is true and want nothing more than to live within the bounds of this Gospel the rest of my life. There is no greater joy than serving the Lord and I have felt that so abundantly. I wish you could partake of it as well. I love every aspect of the Evangelio, especially about the Family. Not a day goes by that I am not grateful for my family, especially my parents. I am so grateful for everything that they do for me and have taught me. I know that all of who I am today is because of what they have taught and showed me through their loving actions every day. Love you guys!! 

Okay that's all I have for today, i know I am missing something I wanted to write about but that's the fun part about being timed while you write. Love you all and thanks for all the blessings and prayers!

Elder Nelson

Buenas Días!

Buenas Días! Glad to hear from everyone this morning. I am very happy to hear everyone back home is doing great and is being healthy and all that good stuff. I am very happy always to have the love and support of my family and friends back home. I want everybody to know i dont take that for granted. I already know many Elders who get little or no support from back home, and I can see how difficult it can be for them at times. But it strengthens my testimony to see these Elders work more hard than all the rest because they know their purpose. As a missionary you are called to the service and have to sacrifice a lot.. and some missionaries understand this principle. I strive to understand it better every day. 

This week has been a good one! Me and Elder Perdomo worked hard, and we are starting to see the results. Right now we have many investigators who are progresando. One of them is Flor, who is a girl with the age of about 18 and lives with less actives. We have recently gotten her to start coming to church and other activities and right now she is planning on getting baptized the first week of Agosto. We are praying everyday she keeps strong and keeps having the desire to make this wonderful decision. Also, we got a call from Pablo, un old investigator. He has a desire to quit drinking now and to marry Ercelia so right now we are praying for them everyday and giving him the support he needs to get over this addiction and get baptized. There is a lot to work to do but we are hopeful they will get baptized by the end of this change.

Life here is good. The showers are still cold, the days sweaty and hot. Good old El Salvador. Today we are going out to La Union, the hottest place in central america but also one of the most beautiful. Ill try to send pictures next week. But besides the occasional getting attacked by drunk people and bats flying into your bathroom while you are in there (never felt more helpless in my life than in that moment) and occasional sudden rain storm that gets you drenched, all is well. Love the experiences and the country. Als I encourage all of you if you havent seen "Meet the Mormons"... GO SEE IT! We as missionaries have been able to use it and it brings a spirit and knowledge of who we are as people that is really affective. Love you all! Especially you mom! Couldn't be more grateful for all you have done for me.

Elder Nelson

La Noticia de El Salvador

Buenas Días! I am currently writing on a small run down cyber with a old terrible computer that barely works but the important thing is I get to write home RIGHT?! Anyway news from transfers! I did get a new companion this week! (see attached photo, I realized I didnt have a photo with him yet so I made him take a photo about 8 minutes ago). His name is Elder Perdomo! And yes... he is a Latino. He is from Honduras and although he thinks he can speak English and likes to try he really cant hahah, But he is awesome,. So we've had about 5 or 6 days together but I have learned so much from him and we get a long great. He has been around in the mission about 17 months so he has a lot of tricks he is teaching me! One of them being sign language... For some reason I thought learning a language wasn't hard enough so I decided to tag on another. But its awesome and quite the experience living with somebody from such a different culture and language but I love it. 

One way to describe my companion... a ball of unrelentless energy. Always he is moving and running and talking and working and a I actually love it. We work hard, At times we are running to citas or to make it back on time at the nights. Being exactly obedient is the key. Just be obedient and work hard and you will see miracle in every aspect of your life. Especially the little things. I have a belief that sometimes the little things we have to do in life that don't really make sense is a test of our obedience and willing to serve. When we past the test, and are obedient con exactitud, we will see the miracle. In the last week, minus the two days before the change, We found 30 new investigators... which is a lot. Of these 30 about 10 or 11 committed to go to church the next week and we also found an old investigator that is about ready to get baptized. She has a great testimony and expressed her desire to make this covenant with God. We are really happy and praying for her. I have also learned how the time on the mission can fly by like no other. Yeah, its easy to think... "aaaahh ya tengo 4 meses en mi misión pero falta 20 todavia.. nunca voy a salir este país yo"  but when you are working hard and losing yourself in the work there isn't enough time left and you look back at the end of the week and feel like the last Sunday was 2 days ago but already a week has passed. Work.. there is no substitute.

I realized a few of you, though probably not many, may wonder what life is like here. I forget that you guys don't get to see the normal things I see everyday. My mom asked me about the food here! The members in the area feed us almost everyday. My main diet consists rice and beans and chicken with some type of drink that I have grown to absolutely love. MY favorite se llama Tamarindo and is made of a bean from around here and is super sweet. I have also eaten things I really never want to eat or look at again... but a part of being a missionary is no matter how much it makes you want to gag you just have to eat everything you are served. Don't worry mom, I have been eating my vegetables, but Ill never again complain about the veggies I used to have. My veggies consists of Prunes, radishes, Cucumbers, squash, cauliflower, and 3 or 4 really interesting one I don't even know what is called. I have eaten just about every part of of the chicken you don't want to eat, including organs and strait bone marrow.... which actually isn't that bad. I was fed a giant liver about the size of my head, without exaggerating, covered in sauce. Annnd mushed up stuff I don't even know. But there is lot of great food here.. like the pupusas,, love those. Well thats just a small part of my diet that i can think of in the moment.. Trust me, there is a lot more.

To finally I got PACKAGES. three to be exact... it felt like Christmas and all the other Elder were jealous. Thank you so much I actually has so much candy and peanut butter and all sorts of goodies (well had) as well as more pictures from home and a few cards from friends. I loved it and it brightened my whole month. You guys are awesome.

Well thats all i got today. Love you all and Pray for your safety and well being. Salu de EL SALVADOR!!!

Elder Nelson

New Companion!

Hey everyone! Happy 4th of July Weekend! Its funny... i didn't even really realize it was 4th of July weekend until the day actually came around, hope everyone was safe and enjoyed the amazing USA! Also this week i heard President Packer died. He was very old and this last General Conference i had a feeling it was his last time speaking to us, but still it was sad to hear him going. It wont be the same without him and I am grateful for his testimony, especially on the importance of family. I know that through this gospel families can be together forever and can experience everlasting joy and happiness. It sure will be interesting to see which apostles get called to serve in the upcoming months. 

So I am officially done being trained! I am now a normal missionary and it actually feels good, i hate the feeling of being that new guy. But those days are close to being over. So I am still in San Miguel in the same area.. But my companion got the call last night that he has changes this Wednesday! SO this Wednesday we will be busing into San Salvador where I receive my new companion. i am super excited to see what the future holds... And a part of me feels like I am going to receive a Latino Companion so that will be interesting to live with someone that doesn't speak English. But honestly the Spanish is coming along pretty well and I don't have too many problems communicating with the people here. SO Next week Ill let you know who my new companion is! 

It sounds like all is going well there in the States! I loved hearing about people fourths of July's and wish i could be at the cabin with Mom and Dad! I love those memories but it looks like you guys had a lot of fun and enjoyed the rain. Also it is super cool that Jessie and Kevin and your kids could spend it up in Provo.. I heard that it awesome to be up there in that time and look forward to it! Even though it sounds super hot... welcome to El Salvador life!

Life here goes as normal. We found a lot of people to teach the week and actually committed a lot to baptism but I don't know how many will actually go through with it we will see in the next couple weeks. This next month or so I feel like will be fun because rumor is there is an apostle coming! But I don't know when. Anyways that's all I got for today. Love you all and i am so thankful for the opportunity to serve this mission. Thank you all for the love and support!

Elder Nelson