First off, I
won't write next week because next week is a national holiday- the 18 de
septiembre!!!!
Wooo! Honestly i am so excited. The whole place is just on fire
with chilean pride. SO many empanadas, mote con huesillo, chilean flags, cueca,
huasos, I'm just in my element. Haha and I'm staying in victoria! We have
cambios this week, and elder rico is already going. Kind of surprising because
he goes home in 6 weeks but I'm staying here in victoria and he is heading to
another sector. So that means I'll have at least 6 months in victoria in total,
and i couldn't be happier. Hopefully it will be more! but honestly i am so
happy to be here. This week was just awesome. Sunday night i sat in my bed and
just started to reflect on the changes in my personal life this past 4 months
and all the blessing that are coming right now and i just broke down because i
am so so so blessed. I have everything i could ever imagine. I have never felt
so genuinely happy on my mission as i have these past couple days. We are so
close to absolutely making this branch a great ward and its about to happen, i
swear. We are so so so blessed.
So anyway, the
biggest thing first. This week was amazing with the familia Sanchez. They are
doing so so so well. They are just the cutest little family ever i swear. On
friday i talked to Josefina, the 12 year old girl, and we gave her her birthday
present and everything. She was so grateful, and told us, "Hey, do you
want to know what i want for my birthday? I want my mom and dad to get baptized
with me." It just tore my heart in two, seriously. Isn't that so perfect?
I literally couldn't take it haha. And saturday we had such an amazing lesson
with Lourdes where she opened up a ton more and just kind of let us know that
she wants to do it really bad but thought she had to know everything perfectly
to get baptized. So a member helped her out a ton with her own testimony and
sunday when we passed by, she said "well elders. we are getting baptized
this saturday. who is baptizing who?" hahah we about died. Honestly never
felt a joy so complete than hearing that this family of 4 is going to be
baptized this weekend. SO expect those pictures this saturday. I kind of feel
like thats why i was here in victoria and thats why a lot of things have
happened. I love them so dang much and i swear I'm bringing reinata home with
me. She wont leave my arms anyway so its no problem. So yes...they are FINALLY
getting baptized! we are awfully proud.
Other things.
I had an interesting experience this week about letting the lord work. So many
times in our lives we just say no to things because we think that our human
capacities wont let us have the time or skills to complete. Sunday at 9:30, i
heard that i had to teach sunday school for the youth so i prepared that really
fast, and then at 9:50 the branch president asks me to speak because the
speaker didn't show up. Without hesitating and saying "HEY PRESI you
literally JUST asked me to teach a class that i have had a whole 3 seconds to
prepare, i think no" I just said "Yeah id love to" with a huge
smile on my face. And literally went up to the pulpit with not a SINGLE thing
prepared. nothing. And the second i got up there things just started coming to
my mind. The spirit is so real and i was shocked. as i sat down, so many people
told me that it was one of the best talks they have heard in a long time, and
that it really touched them. One lady told me it answered one of her deep
personal prayers. Haha i was like...uhh....okay cool! The spirit is just so
awesome. And also i threw in a bike example. Im such a tengberg aren't i?
Pretty sure the Tengberg rule is that you cant speak in church without relating
to cycling, right? anyway i talked about diligence and how when you hit the
wall biking, its really easy to quit. For example, when you get to that wall in
the tucson bike race, its like well dang this sucks. But then you realize, i
didn't come here to stop halfway through. it doesn't matter HOW much this
hurts, i made the decision a long time ago that i was going to finish. THe
object was never to finish perfect and unbruised, but just get there. The same
is with getting to eternal life. We decide (or should decide now) that we
will get there. The great thing about the gospel is it takes away the doubt. It
takes away the "will i go to the celestial kingdom?" because its NOT
a secret. we know EXACTLY what to do to have a family eternal. All we have to
do is make the decision that we get there. Its hard here because if it rains,
or its cold, people say "oh i wont go to church today". But thats not
at all what the lord wants. Its not like we can decide, we already DECIDED that
we would be obedient! there isn't an option! We just have to keep pedaling,
because unless we want to quit halfway we cant just not go or just not obey the
commandments. Anyway i hope i said it more eloquently in my discourse because
that made no sense, so hopefully the spirit mad it better in spanish. Anyway, i
am just so lucky and it made me realize, i will never ever again turn down an
opportunity to serve or do something in the church. if i had said no, i would
never have had that experience. The lord cant work miracles unless we cant do
it on our own. if we can do it on our own, theres no room for him. So when
there isn't the ability or the time, its a recipe for miracles!
OH! mom you
are the best, seriously. Haha that package was AMAZING. i love the pants and
ties so much. I have been rocking them all week and they look great. Everyone
keep making fun of my pitillos (skinny pants) and saying i look like one
direction...they don't know about slim fit from macys? Half off? c'mon chile
get with the program. but mom i seriously love them so much and they fit me
perfectly. You're the best!
And i hit my
year mark in chile wednesday. Crazy stuff. How fast a year has gone by! and by
the way my new companion is Elder Dominguez from mexico! 4 companions in 4
cambios here in victoria....crazy stuff. and get this...elder mundell will now
be being trained by elder OVERSON! My BABY BOY! Haha so apparently i am now a
grandpa on the maternal side because elder overson is the mommy of elder
mundell? Anyway we will all be in the same house and I'm stoked.
Anyway, keep
victoria in your prayers. Good things are happening. Its just on fire here and
we try to keep up. Thanks for all you do and your examples. you're the best.
les quiero
mucho
Elder Tengberg
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