For those of you who are keeping track, today makes 89 days in the mish. Think its a coincidence that number 89 happens to fall on the best day of the week? I don't! (Brandon's football uniform number was #89) Only a couple more days and I will have been in Bolivia for a month! Finally I will get to stop telling people I've been here for "x" amount of weeks, and start using months!
Well it was a pretty good week this week! It's a good thing we live on the second floor of our house, otherwise I would have been worried yesterday, it rained forever! It started at about 2 in the afternoon, and when we went to bed at 10 30 it was still raining. The intensity was off and on, sometimes just dumping buckets, other times just a super light drizzle, but needless to say this place was a wreck haha. The streets were similar to rivers, just water rushing down the entire road. And the parts where the road forms kind of a bowl had like a foot of water in it! We had to take the long way to our house because we literally could not cross that part of the street. And this whole time we were proselyting. Granted we were in houses for lessons, but in between lessons we were sprinting! We were running as close to the walls as possible for a little bit of shelter, but by the time got to our appointment we were drenched, and I was in my suit haha. So that was pretty sweet. Who needs dry cleaning? But no worries, we did not get washed away, and we live to tell the tale!
We had our baptism with Jhoni on Saturday which went really well. And guess what? I got to baptize him! So that was really cool, first performed baptism of the mission. I guess the gringos here get to baptize a lot more than the Latinos, solely because the people get to choose who baptizes them, and they are more fascinated by the gringos. I'm not complaining haha.
We had a special mini zone conference on Thursday which was pretty cool. It was just the missionaries in Tarija and Bermejo, so there were probably about 16 companionships in total, there's not a whole lot of us down here! But it was really good, a bunch of missionaries were chosen to give little talks and presentations about things like teaching with the Spirit and Christlike attributes. Then President Dyer talked to us too about the importance of our missions, it was kinda like a rally cry, which was pretty cool. I think that the numbers in Tarija have been pretty low over the past couple months compared to the rest of the mission, so this was like an extra training mixed with a little bit of a pep talk haha. It was four hours long, so it was a little difficult to sit through, but the messages and training was really good.
So we have this inactive member in our ward, named Mariela, and she hasn't gone to church in over five years. We've met were here and stopped by probably about 5 or so times over the past couple weeks, just trying to get her to come to church. But every time we invited she was super adamant that she would not be going. But on Saturday we stopped by again and talked, had a little lesson, and invited her to church. Again, she firmly stated that she was not going to go. We were a little more firm and direct about the need to go to church than we had been in the past, but it was definitely needed. So we leave her house, disappointed that she won't change her mind. In all honesty I had basically written her off, I know, bad missionary. But we get to church yesterday morning and Mariela is sitting right there in the chapel! We were shocked. It seriously was a miracle. I don't know what happened overnight or after our visit, but she was changed, and it definitely wasn't us, all we did was urge her to go. We were definitely not the ones who changed her heart. We met with her after church and she said she wanted to be active again, and that she was scared she would start to go to church, and then become inactive again. It really was incredible to see the change in her, she was like a different person! So I learned my lesson, there are no lost causes in this world, and especially in this work. The Lord numbers all his sheep, and no one is lost. So that was a good positive learning experience!
That's it for this week! I hope you are all doing well! Talk to you next week!
Love you guys!
Elder Sehestedt
Pics next week out of time, sorry!
Funny side note: Here's Brandon's reaction to my email about the NFL Playoffs this week.... Heck ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That just made my day! I was so worried they (the Broncos) were going to go all the way. What do you mean? (I said, "Please don't let the Patriots go to the Superbowl again") Put Tom Brady in the Super Bowl again!! He needs another ring! :) It will be New England vs the Falcons. Brady will take it.
Well it was a pretty good week this week! It's a good thing we live on the second floor of our house, otherwise I would have been worried yesterday, it rained forever! It started at about 2 in the afternoon, and when we went to bed at 10 30 it was still raining. The intensity was off and on, sometimes just dumping buckets, other times just a super light drizzle, but needless to say this place was a wreck haha. The streets were similar to rivers, just water rushing down the entire road. And the parts where the road forms kind of a bowl had like a foot of water in it! We had to take the long way to our house because we literally could not cross that part of the street. And this whole time we were proselyting. Granted we were in houses for lessons, but in between lessons we were sprinting! We were running as close to the walls as possible for a little bit of shelter, but by the time got to our appointment we were drenched, and I was in my suit haha. So that was pretty sweet. Who needs dry cleaning? But no worries, we did not get washed away, and we live to tell the tale!
We had our baptism with Jhoni on Saturday which went really well. And guess what? I got to baptize him! So that was really cool, first performed baptism of the mission. I guess the gringos here get to baptize a lot more than the Latinos, solely because the people get to choose who baptizes them, and they are more fascinated by the gringos. I'm not complaining haha.
We had a special mini zone conference on Thursday which was pretty cool. It was just the missionaries in Tarija and Bermejo, so there were probably about 16 companionships in total, there's not a whole lot of us down here! But it was really good, a bunch of missionaries were chosen to give little talks and presentations about things like teaching with the Spirit and Christlike attributes. Then President Dyer talked to us too about the importance of our missions, it was kinda like a rally cry, which was pretty cool. I think that the numbers in Tarija have been pretty low over the past couple months compared to the rest of the mission, so this was like an extra training mixed with a little bit of a pep talk haha. It was four hours long, so it was a little difficult to sit through, but the messages and training was really good.
So we have this inactive member in our ward, named Mariela, and she hasn't gone to church in over five years. We've met were here and stopped by probably about 5 or so times over the past couple weeks, just trying to get her to come to church. But every time we invited she was super adamant that she would not be going. But on Saturday we stopped by again and talked, had a little lesson, and invited her to church. Again, she firmly stated that she was not going to go. We were a little more firm and direct about the need to go to church than we had been in the past, but it was definitely needed. So we leave her house, disappointed that she won't change her mind. In all honesty I had basically written her off, I know, bad missionary. But we get to church yesterday morning and Mariela is sitting right there in the chapel! We were shocked. It seriously was a miracle. I don't know what happened overnight or after our visit, but she was changed, and it definitely wasn't us, all we did was urge her to go. We were definitely not the ones who changed her heart. We met with her after church and she said she wanted to be active again, and that she was scared she would start to go to church, and then become inactive again. It really was incredible to see the change in her, she was like a different person! So I learned my lesson, there are no lost causes in this world, and especially in this work. The Lord numbers all his sheep, and no one is lost. So that was a good positive learning experience!
That's it for this week! I hope you are all doing well! Talk to you next week!
Love you guys!
Elder Sehestedt
Pics next week out of time, sorry!
Funny side note: Here's Brandon's reaction to my email about the NFL Playoffs this week.... Heck ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That just made my day! I was so worried they (the Broncos) were going to go all the way. What do you mean? (I said, "Please don't let the Patriots go to the Superbowl again") Put Tom Brady in the Super Bowl again!! He needs another ring! :) It will be New England vs the Falcons. Brady will take it.
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