Training....

Man the computer connection that I'm on is horrible, I have written
two e-mails that wouldn't send and then finally deleted. Frustrating
cause now I'm nearly out of time.
Well its seems like Kenny had an amazing birthday. It sounds like it
all went well. If I could I would have called and sang to him ha-ha.
Well I'm happy that he had a great birthday.
I want to write something for him in his book since I didn't get a
chance to do it but since you still haven't given it to him I will write
now. I can't do it today because I'm now out of time.
Well this last week was a good but hard one. I felt once again that
a lot of trust is put on me, because I'm training and in control of the sector.
But it's good, I feel that's it's good for me that I'm training. I'm enjoying
it a lot and my companion and I are getting along really well. He is
from Panama and he is a cross between a black guy from the states
and Tongan. He is awesome and tough and I'm teaching him a lot and we
worked pretty hard this past week. Since we didn't have any teaching appts.
we knocked and knocked until my comp. got used to it. He was a
bit scared to do it but he says has learning a lot and I'm also trying
to be really obedient to start off the tune of his mission right and I
want to have great experiences with him but we obviously have to teach
to be able to do that and so thank you for your prayers. The ward
seems to really like us and we are trying to gain their confidence
and fast and I think we have done that cause we have received a bunch or
references this past week and so we will see the fruits of our labors
this next week. I think it will all go well and we will find more
people to teach.
So is Kenny going to college? Is it too late for him to
get in or can he still make it? Let me know when I get accepted. I'm
actually kind of nervous.

Well sorry for the short letter.
Love you
Elder Pedersen

Be happy and Enjoy LIFE!!

Thank you mom and dad for informing me on everything that is going on back at home, it seems to me that as doing so it's not only you guys that realize all the blessings that we have as a family but it helps me to recognize them too. I have realized also by being in this country how much the lord truly has blessed us in our lives because we are striving to be faithful and strong in keeping his commandments.

Well I can't believe that Kenny is turning 18 years old! Its ridicules and yes mom I will go on what you told me to do. I was realizing the other day how Kenny will be turning 18 this next week. Seriously sometimes time fly's by on the wings of lightning. Let's work every day towards who we want to be. WE may not be perfect but we can try perfectly, (and that's all God asks).

Well moving on to what has happened to me this week. I spent the week getting to know a little more of the sector and to find out that it's going to be tough to find people to teach. But they are undoubtedly out there and I know there are things for me to learn here. Well we got the call for changes yesterday and found out that my companion is leaving which we were kind of disappointed about because we got along so great and we had a lot of funny and fun moments in the past 2 weeks of getting to know each other. We just hit off and got along great cause he actually looks a little like Devin and acts a little like Skyler but a little more respectful ha-ha (but don't tell him that). So he was pretty sad about leaving but when I got to changes they told me I was training! Again! I was shocked but I'm kind of excited because I'm going to train a Latin and I'm glad cause I like being with Latin comps., but can you believe that?! We had a little meeting with president and he really drilled it into our brains that whatever we do will determine who they will be as missionaries for the rest of their lives and he told us to be on our best level of obedience and that he wanted us to imagine that we will be making a mile marker in the lives of future leaders in the church all around the world. Cool huh?

Well afterwards President and Sister Laycock talked to the entire mission and it was one of the best reunions that I have been to. All the meetings that we have with President are amazing but the spirit was so strong when he speaks and I have always had the conviction that President is called of God and God speaks to him to have his work carried out effectively but today for some reason I felt the spirit even stronger if that is possible, testifying to me that he was called of God and I really felt that some words that he said came directly from Christ himself. He taught us, showed his love to us, corrected us, testified to us and our calling and showed us how to be bold. I wouldn't even be able to explain to you how I felt even if I wanted to but I know president Laycock is called of God to carry this work out here and is doing it in a marvelous way. I respect him and his wife so much for all they do and will never forget the things they have taught me. Man I love coming out of meetings feeling like that!

Well so there you have it I'm training and I'm excited but nervous but it gives me comfort to know like president said to us that we have been handpicked by the lord because he trusts us and so does the Lord. So wish me luck! I want to do better as a trainer this time, not saying that I didn't do a good job but I want to be better and obey even more. I'm in the last six months of my mission and I want to really put into practice what I have learned and learn more. It's my time to shine!

I would love to explain more of what president taught and told us but it would take a while to write it all.

I can't believe that Kenny is not going to go to college in the fall, that's pretty lame because I was excited to go and room with him but I guess I will have to wait till after the mission to be able to do that, and that is if I'm not married. Well I hope he knows that I would have loved to. We will just have to hang out a lot when I get home!

Well I love you ALL, be strong and look at your destination and where you want to be with every step you take in life.

President told us that we need to bounce through life in the sense of being happy and enjoy life not at the end of next month or in the case of a missionary at the end of each change, instead work on being happy now and today even in the time of despair.

-Elder Pedersen

Transferred two weeks early...

No there were no missionaries who got sent home, it was just that a couple of missionaries couldn't get along and president had to split them up, and it's funny cause the missionary that I trained was involved. How I got through 2 changes with him? I do not know.

Also I had a interview with president this last week and he said that he was actually going to call you and get the password and talk to you, it appears that he forgot but I will remind him during the week, I will call him so he can do it and I will ask him for permission to write the essay, I just got to think about what I will write in the essay that tells me to write about a problem I have encountered and how I overcame it. Could it be in the mission?

Well my companions name is Elder Ezparsa and he's way cool, we have a feeling that we are going to train for something this next week when they call us and possibly train in the same pension. He is actually from Texas but his parents are Mexicans. Two Mexicans in a row, Viva Mexico!

So this sector is a lot different, it's a little bit harder to find people here but there are people here waiting for this message and I know we will find them through our obedience. I think seriously the mission is so amazing cause it prepares me for everything after the mission and God is helping me be the person that he wants me to be with these changes, I just have to let him through my willingness to obey. It's seriously all about obedience.

Well I met the ward this Sunday and they seem really nice but it's just different from my ward but I just got to get to know them a little more, I think it's just hard because I have to form a relationship with all the members of a new ward again and I guess it will help me grow and get out of my comfort zone so its all good.

When I had interviews with president he asked me if we could still be friends because he knew the work that I did their and that I had baptisms coming up that Saturday and so he felt bad and said he was praying the night before and he knew that I wanted to be there and so he let me go back for the baptism and so I was really happy. I went and it was a really good baptism and Elder Lugo told me that the ward couldn't believe that I was gone and told him that many people said that he and I were the best missionaries in that ward and that the ward had ever seen. And it just stinks because I didn't even get to take pictures with them before I left.

Well love you all, sorry for the short letter,
Elder Pedersen

P.s. I'm sending a DVD of pictures with like only 100 pictures
or so but I know you wanted a cd of pictures so I will
be sending it in the mail.

Blessings from the Lord...

That is so amazing that Chanelle got onto the dance team!! That is amazing and I know it's definitely a blessing from the lord for serving him on the mission. The Lord always blesses those who love and serve him. Six Months, six Months is all I have left and I can't believe it! Four more changes left for me in the mission but don't worry I'm still focused.

Thank you for your prayers because our investigators are progressing tons and I think that we had more investigators in church this last Sunday than any other time that I have been in this sector. Seriously this week has been such an amazing week. On Sunday we were knocking doors and we knocked one door and out came a lady and invited us to come in and she was a black lady from Dominican Republic and she and her husband are awesome and they love when we come over and they have a little kid who loves playing with us who looks like Will Smith as a little kid, Chanelle would love him, ha-ha and they gave us dinner the second time we passed by and she has never been baptized so she told us after talking to her that she wanted to be baptized and it was totally unexpected and after her husband told us that we could come over every day if we wanted to cause he really likes us even though he is atheist but little by little we are teaching and helping him to believe that everything around us testifies of God and so we did a capel tour and she went to the church. But the lame thing that happens a lot in Chile is that a lot of couples live together who are not married but its okay because she has a desire to follow God and I think she will get married.

Then I had a family that I found 5 months ago finally tell us that they would go, and they came to. It's the family that I absolutely love and would stay here for as long as it takes to be able to see them get baptized. SO they came and that basically was like the only thing that I wanted to see before I left this sector. To at least see them at church and they finally came! I was so happy and my companion and I were praying and fasting that the talks would be perfect for our investigators and that everything would go great and the dad was worried that he wasn't going to like it but our prayers were answered and the members were SO great with them and invited them to activities.

Wow, well I just got a call from the assistants that we are having special changes right now and that I have to go to the house and pack. I can't believe it, I'm in shock.
I will let you know what happens.

(A couple days later)

Alright, so they let me write you, since I didn't get any time to write yesterday but when they called I was so sad that I was leaving cause I love my sector so much, it was seriously like my family their and I didn't want to leave I guess I just had to do it without knowing the answer why. But there were like 6 special changes in the mission and I was angry that I was one of them, I'm going to miss so many things that we had planned this next week cause the ward loved me and Elder Lugo and invited us over for many things and this next week also included two baptisms of the two girls that we were about to baptize but I know president will give me permission to go back and see them baptized.

  So I got back to the pension and hurried and packed and Elder Lugo and I were nervous. I knew I was leaving the sector because I had spent a lot of time their already, but I seriously never thought that changes would ever come especially two weeks early but it's what the Lord wants and he knows better even though me and Elder Lugo were so used to each other and had progressed tons together and had accomplished a lot, we had many investigators in that sector and we were having much success, but like I told you, at least I got to see the family that I found in the church before I left the sector (tender mercy of the Lord).


So the assistants dropped off Elder Lugos companion who is an elder who came with me and he's a good guy but I was seriously jealous of him that he was going to be there and not me. So the assistants came and dropped of my companion too whose name is Elder Ezparsa who has the same time in the mission as Elder Lugo but he knows Spanish and English perfectly cause he lives on the border of Texas and Mexico and so he's pretty chill and he's a convert of two years, but getting to the sector made me miss Puente alto even more because I go from having 19 investigators to 3 or 4 and to a place where it's even harder to find people because its wealthier here and in this ward I have already heard that it's a dysfunctional ward to work with. (exciting huh?) ha-ha I'm actually fine and I'm ready to figure out what the Lord wants me to learn from being here because I trust that he knows what's ahead of me to learn.

   So crazy huh I didn't even get time to say bye to anyone, I was going to wait to say bye and take pictures in two weeks when I knew I was going to leave but Puente alto was my favorite sector that I have been in cause I learned more in that sector than I even thought I would, the Lord gave me test and trials that made me become a better person.

   Well on to other things, I can't believe that Devin already got his call! I thought that he was just getting his papers sent, it was cool to get a video from him opening it up (thank you for taping it) cause I haven't really seen him it seems like in forever! And I won't see him for two more years! I'm supper excited for him and it seems right that he's going to New Hampshire. Well I got to write him and get him excited for the mission because he will love it and he will become different for the better when he gets back for the things he will learn on the mission. He's awesome!

   Also about the college stuff, how long does the essay have to be? I haven't talked to my mission president yet but this Wednesday I have an interview with president and so I will talk to him then and let you know what happens but I will try to write the essay this week.

Work hard and trust God in everything

Con Amor,
Elder Pedersen

Feliz Año Nuevo!‏

Feliz Año Nuevo!‏Happy New Year! I can’t believe I have gotten this far in the mission and that this same year I will be going home. So many things are in store for me and I’m excited to accomplish all that the lord wants me to. And like always, through goals it can all be done.

Thank you for all the pictures!

I can’t believe that Chanelle is not coming home until I get back! That’s crazy and scary because it puts into perspective how much time I really have left as a missionary and to learn all I can while doing it.

Kenny’s dating again? It’s kind of funny that she doesn’t want to date unless the persons from the same religion, that is how he felt, but it will be good for him and he will learn a lot like I did talking about the gospel with friends. It just boggles my mind sometimes to think that people still after many years don’t believe in the same things that Jesus taught. It’s hard to live the gospel for some people but to believe is the easy part, people just like to complicate things but really the gospel of Jesus Christ is so simple and Christ taught it that way, he didn’t leave earth or his doctrine in confusion; he made it so simple so we would understand it. It’s sad sometimes because  people look past the simplicity of the gospel. It’s sad when I see so many people with different beliefs that are huge stumbling blocks for them, for people here it is usually the virgin Mary and it’s hard for the people to get past that and it can even be frustrating at times. But it will be good for Kenny. I am glad he is having these discussions.

This week was a good one for me and my companion cause we were able to finally get a baptismal date for two of our investigators who are awesome and are progressing and are ready for the day to get baptized. We have been praying for them so much and now finally they received and answer and with the help of their grandparents they are ready!

As for the rest of our investigators, they are so close to taking the step to be baptized but they are either scared or some other things but it’s frustrating for example when they promise to go to church and we get super excited to see them and they don’t show up. But I have to have patience with them because I think that that is exactly how Heavenly Father feels when he hopes for us to do something and we don’t do it. Lol. I just have to love them.

Well for Año Nuevo we had dinner with a family who loves us and had dinner with our investigators and they gave us three different kinds of meat which was delicious and at the end I was so stuffed I couldn’t eat any more even if I wanted to. Here are some of the traditions in Chile for the New year; you wear yellow underwear (yeah weird huh?), eat beans for good luck and the morning after walk around with suit cases which means luck during the new year representing going on many vacations. Lol it’s kind of weird too cause it’s almost bigger than Christmas.

Well I got to go but I love you all. Pray for me and my comp. and our investigators that they progress.
Elder Pedersen

P.S. I wrote president about getting started with everything I have
To do for school I hope I can do it all in two weeks since the notice is
a bit late. I will get it done, thank you!