Hola From Chile –Email 9/9/13

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

Numbers Truly Don’t Matter- Email 9/2/13

Well hey there my amazing family! Thanks for all your letters. Its been a really, really interesting week and i wish i could explain it all adequately. I've learned so much about myself and about why i am here, and its just been hard. Anyway. I wont talk about my investigators at all because not anything has changed, its still the same as it was last week. Familia Sanchez is a probable for this week but we still got some work to do there! 

Anyway, biggest thing. I've gotten so frustrated with myself. As i have gotten further along in the mission I've just realized that there are certain things that missionaries start to get lazy about. Like because we are always so unbelievably busy trying to get stuff done with the zone, i started to get kind of lazy about time rules and getting to bed on time. Its not things where its like obvious points of disobedience but it just kind of the general idea. and i got really disappointed in myself this week because thats not who i am. Like i was genuinely sad when i realized what had been happening. As i got further along in the mission and i had started to rely on my own teaching skills more and my experience, and had forgot that the success of a missionary is his obedience. I remember graham Bullick said that to me once and that has always stuck with me. Here in victoria we are having so much success. Its a HUGE blessing. And i just began to think, how much more would we have if i was diligently being obedient and seeking for the spirit like i was before? we were here at "return and report" for the new missionaries being trained (thats in a second,just wait) and i realized when i was new i was honestly a more successful missionary, because i learned that i was NOTHING if i didn't have the lord at my side. I knew that i couldn't do anything and that if i wasn't being 100% obedient i wouldn't have the spirit and no one would get baptized because my spanish was too awful to convince anyone. So it was just a weird moment. I think thats something i really needed though. The first part was when i had all the obedience, and none of the success, in Arauco. And here we are having all the success, and I'm struggling with some tiny things because I'm so stressed about bigger things. but its those little things that the lord has commanded us to do and to focus on. Today as i was reading the scriptures i realized that as christ was being baptized, it talks about "testifying" to the father so many times. And as i contemplated it, it wasn't that he was just fulfilling the commandment because he knew he had to complete it, its because he was genuinely 100% consecrated to his father, and being obedient to the little things was what his DESIRES had become. he was testifying through his actions that thats who he had become. Thats what i want. I want to come back different, not with a bunch of baptisms. I admire Mary so much because she has changed SO much and hasn't had that success that i have had number-wise. But thats just that...thats  because success as a missionary isn't that. SO I'm just so touched to be able to refocus this week and honestly humble myself before the lord and recognize that I'm still nothing. that i have been lying to myself, trying to excuse my lack of humility on the fact that i had stuff to do for the zone, and that i didn't need to do the little things. but thats just crap and it made me so sad to realize that. I hope that now with the experience and time the lord has given me, i can combine that with the humility the lord needs to work miracles and send his spirit. because if numbers are possible with this level of consecration, what is possible if i give more of my will? every last thing? thats what he really wants.

Anyway, i love you all so much. This week one of my best friends in the mission had to go home for some stuff that happened in his family and it absolutely destroyed us. I am now training with elder rico- a new Elder Mundell, and i just love the kid. it makes me want to train again so bad but i think that time of my mission is up haha. So until next week when cambios happen we are in a trio and loving it. But it just broke my heart seeing one of my best friends have to go home for a bit and it honestly made me so sad for when that day comes. I truly love being out here and don't know what the heck I'm going to do when I'm not. But good thing I'm still a baby missionary and still have a ton of time!!!! Anyway...we are in a trio now and I'm loving it. Victoria is on fire.

I love you all. I really love the work, and i really love the lord. Its not easy being a missionary but its one of the few things that gives me a true purpose and makes me happy. anyway, I love you all so much and thank you for everything. 

Ill try and think of funny stories to send soon because I'm boring now. sorry I'm so boring. I just am so stressed haha!

Elder Tengberg

Victoria Victoria- Email 8/26/13

WELL hello there! sorry its going to be a short letter because i was reading all your letters and the dumb 45 minutes flies by so fast. Im glad to hear you are all doing well! I love to hear about the fun things that happen back in Poway and provo and all those shenanigans. but things are going great here in victoria. Elder Rico and I are still cruising together and thats been fun. i found out this week that ill probably be here for 5 cambios which means ill be here in victoria until december! its not like fijo yet but its very probably. elder rico goes home in a month and a half so ill probably just stay to receive the new one that comes in after him. so I'm stoked about that because i really like it here and we just have people that are so genuinely excited to be apart of the church. this week...wow. its just like any other. crazy and filled with so many things to talk about!

bruno and kathy got married. Im going to write extra short today so i can attach all the pictures and just talk about those. but the pictures of her in the pink dress are the wedding! I was the equivalent of the best man. i mean thats got to be some cool achievement on the mission, right? I was the best man at a wedding of 10 people on a tuesday morning. Score.  but they are the best couple. Also that giant chilean flag? Apparently its some really special flag that i wasn't supposed to touch and they got really mad at me for touching....so i deleted the photo. The first one of the two that i took. Ahem :) i mean what would a really really nice old chilean flag be doing in a  government building! it certainly couldn't be special. But anyway the wedding was awesome. Im actually going to make a little wedding present for them soon using the photos of the baptism and the wedding, and then a big picture of the santiago temple. ill send you all a picture of it when I get it done! but they are so happy. they are a super quiet and humble people but they just love the gospel. Bruno was like "Man i really do feel lighter! this is crazy!" and was just so excited haha. Ramiro,a  recent convert of 2 months, baptized bruno and then president henriquez baptized Kathy. The other girl int he other photos is Elizabeth, the elders from victoria 1 were working with, and a joven from the rama baptized her. So we had 3 here in victoria this weekend! Anyway, that was really exciting. So thats that! Thats all that happened here in victoria this weekend. The photo of them with their daughters is Maite (the baby) and Monse the older one. Aren't they so precious? I sure love them. Elder Girsberger got to come back for saturday because he leaves tomorrow for his house and it was great because he got to be there for their baptism too!

Other things...family Sanchez! THey are doing great. THe little daughter Reinata is literally attached to me. haha she wouldn't sit still this week unless she was in my arms. I held her during the ENTIRE baptism, during all of sacrament meeting, during our lessons. like she is the most precious little thing ever and i love her so much. But this family is so special. They are still going to church and doing everything, and they are really trying hard to prepare. They have some word of wisdom problems but its just like drinking wine when they have big barbecues and stuff like that. Its easy to tell someone who is addicted to something that that needs to change, but when its just casual behavior....its almost harder. Thats the way the gospel works though, we cant even let the slightest things inhibit our ability to feel the spirit and feel clean! So they are doing great and we are still shooting for 7th of september for the baptism. we actually have a goal for 7 on the 7th, so pray for us! We have one other lady patricia who is so sweet, a mom of a recent convert, who is locked down for the 7th and then we also have eric,a  husband of a member, who we are trying really hard with too for the 7th. and then we just need a miracle for the other! But the lord has just prepared victoria so much.

FAMILIA MEDINA!!! Haha you're not going to believe this. We go over to teach wednesday and marcelo takes us to the back room and says "look at this." and pulls out a RING. we hadn't even TAUGHT the law of chastity, but he has already read the entire principles of the gospel book and he himself decided that he wanted to live it and get married. so he proposed to her on friday for her birthday in front of all their friends. the date still isn't planned so we will probably try and encourage it for september or october. i mean its all about me right? thats all this is about? but they are doing so well. The other son, matias, is so cool. I am like a brother to marcelo but matias was a little bit harder to get to. but turns out that he LOVES neff headwear. His snowboard, his clothes, his computer, his hats. Everything is NEFF or has neff stickers on it. hahaha so we talked about that forever and i said i would try to work some strings. i had no idea neff was down here in chile but isn't that so cool? so there you go hawkes family, Brother Neff is helping out the whole mission here in Victoria. Thanks guys. I owe you one! So they are doing great. Progressing, reading, loving church. Haha its so amazing. We don't do everything and they are just going solo. 

Last thing....I'm really happy. I really am. This week was super hard because of some problems we had in our companionship and stuff like that, but then we fixed it all and once again the work soared. Its just crazy to see how much the lord is willing to bless us when we get our pride out of the way. I sure love it down here in chile. I was realizing today that in about a week or two ill complete a year in chile....so crazy. Its gone by so fast and i cant believe how much the lord has blessed me. I don't feel any different, in fact I'm LESS mature than i was a year ago, but i genuinely love the gospel and love this work. Being a missionary is just cool. Haha but anyway, thanks for your support and heres the pictures to enjoy too! You guys are al the best.

Les quiero mucho

Elder Tengberg

A Little Faith and a Lot of Miracles- Email 8/19/13

I wish i could just describe all this week enough but i wont be able to do it justice. 

First off we had a baptism! Nicole got baptized on saturday. We asked her on..saturday. 4 hours before the baptism. Haha we FINALLY found her after 2 weeks and we went by again on saturday morning with a member and it was SO amazing. like i really haven't seen faith like that in so long. But it was really cool because we just started talking to her about how these trials are hard for her and she said "before i met missionaries, i would have doubted god and said he has abandoned me. But i can understand now that believing in all this helps me understand that these are just trials that i can overcome." haha umm...okay! Yeah thats more faith than i have. Her grandpa is super mal en el hospital and she has been going there every day. in and out of a coma, one day better and the next day worse. But saturday we went by and i shared about the holy ghost and the role that it plays in comforting us. We told her that the lord really loved her....and that he loved her so much that he wanted to give her even MORE of his spirit, but he couldn't do it unless she took that step thats baptism. She looked down for a second, then looked up with a big smile, and said "What do i need to bring?" We were like...what? because we had told her that the other branch, tolhuaca where the other hermanas are, were having another miracle baptism that night at 8, and we thought she meant to COME. but she said "What do i need to bring? a towel? I'm getting baptized. Im tired of waiting." Haha well OKAy i guess we will take that. So we got a service together and watched this amazing faith take place and get baptized. It was so special. I really feel like that kind of faith is what the lord needs to always have miracles take place. ANd by the way, her grandpa got out of the hospital sunday after her confirmation.

Thats just one. Bruno and Kathy are more than ready. They were finally able to go to church this weekend because his mom stayed with the sick little babies, and they also got MARRIED. haha like WHAT is going on?? why do these people just want to be so faithful? it seems like that was forever ago but that was only last tuesday. It was a super simple ceremony inside of the civil center because they don't have a ton of money, but we took some great photos that we are going to give to them along with a photo of the santiago temple for their house. Anyway, they´re married and getting baptized this saturday. They are so funny. he is such a goofball and is always making random comments that we are just like "Bruno were you paying attention?" and he is like "yeah I'm not going to lie, i don't know what you jus said" and kathy just laughs at him and tells him to pay attention. Haha but they are so amazing and their daughters are everything to them. Like when we ask why they want to do this, its just because they want an eternal family. the only reason. So well....i guess thats amazing. The branch loves them.

Familia Sanchez. Doing even more amazing. The daughters love church, hermana Lourdes is WAY better than i thought. In the beginning she was so incredulous and didn't quite want to believe it all, and now everything has changed. She is so excited. The daughters are adorable and the branch loves the fact that this FAMILY is coming to church. The best part is that our own converts are the ones that are helping them so much. Like Carolina who got baptized a MONTH ago is the one who is taking the daughters in and taking care of them, and making sure they stay all the classes. Ramiro (who was actually de elder girsberger but got baptized two months ago) is helping out Bernardo. Everything is just going well. I seriously love that family so so so much. We are going again tonight and we are going to see how everything is going. But i really feel good about them: Bernardo came to church again in his white shirt and tie, and it just makes me thrilled. All the members talk to them and are so great. I think that really is the success to a branch....the missionaries can do whatever but these people come and sometimes no one talks to them, but this branch here just takes them COMPLETELY under their wing, calls them for us, invites them to FHE without telling us....like its such a blessing. So keep praying for familia Sanchez :) they're my golden ones.

Marcelo, Andrea, Marcelo and Matias. Marcelo is actually Ramiro´s boss (they are both in the army and Marcelo is 4th in command in all of the south or something crazy like that. like super high up there). Marcelo is a stud though. We haven't even like TAUGHT them anything and he has already read over half the principles de evangelio book, which is basics of the gospel? Something like that. He volunteered to take care of ALL the games and activities for the huge september 18th party we are planning as a branch. Haha i don't know whats going on but he has already gone to church 3 times, he brought his girlfriend (they live together and we will have to get them married but they are so grossly in love its disgusting. always holding hands. or maybe I'm just a weird missionary and any contact seems gross) to church and she loved it. Marcelo the 14 year old who is my little brother went to seminary every day this week. Haha I just love victoria so much. I love you all.

Last story...Alfonso CHIFFERLY. You know those stories that missionaries tell ALWAYS after they get home? like the classic funny stories? thats Alfonso chifferly. i wont tell this one til i get back, but i really cannot believe this man. He is 87, has said "I'm smarter than the doctors" about 100 times to us, sells herbal medication out of his house, and is just a riot. I love him so much. I think we will probably drop him because even though he accepted a fecha he kind of went back on it. We told him to pray about church and he said that he saw the risen savior in his house, in person, but that the fact that he was IN the house means that he has no need to go to church. So close chifferly, so close. Best part his? He kicked us out of his house 2 days earlier because my companion was really really rude and then when we went back he didn't remember we had passed by. Like the movie groundhog day. Hahaha i cant wait to describe this man to you...

Well, thats all i have time for. I love you all so much. Thanks for your prayers, your thoughts. I really REALLY love the mission and even though its flying by, I'm enjoying every minute. Thanks for all your support!

Les quiero mucho

Elder Tengberg

i would send photos but it appears that my new memory card has a virus on it too, so ill have to find a way around it next week. freaking chilean cyber cafes.

My Golden Family- Email 8/12/13

WOW. such a crazy week. I'm just going to get straight to it because there was way more success this week than i knew was possible! We have 7 people with baptismal dates right now, and one of those is the familia Sanchez!!!! the best little family ever. 

This week, we had the whole week of activities because we had the idea that before conferencia de branch we would do a thing every single day. so we did. monday was FHE with games and everything, tuesday was yoga night as a branch led by P90x (I'm still so fat, I'm 197 pounds. like can any of you imagine me that fat? i was 180 max all of high school and college....like thats really fat. its passed the point where its funny and now its just sad. but the bread here IS JUST SO GOOD I CANT STOP. i feel like chris Farley when he says "lay off me, I'm starving". so yeah, yoga doesn't help. I'm just flexible and fat now). wednesday was a devotional that so many investigators came to, and thursday was noche de sports where we had a whole bunch of things going and a futbol game of like 40 people including women and little children. friday was a night of sopaipillas (like little scones that you put aji and pebre on. thats like salsa stuff and theres no way to translate it. or you put mayo on it....what, doesn't sound good? fried bread with mayo? c'mon guys its delicious! its probably super healthy too. but for real i had like 10 they are so delicious) with mensajes mormones, and then saturday was movie night with popcorn and everything. Friday night i ended up convincing one of our investigators to come and make the sopaipillas, and he ended up making like 200. and wow they were so good. and then on saturday night we had Major Medina come and he brought his personal popcorn MACHINE. if that just isn't the coolest thing ever. our investigator supplied ALL the popcorn and people were just thrilled. he is progressing like crazy but that will come in a second. so that was the week of activities, then Presidente Martinez came down yesterday and spoke and met all of them and it was fantastic. 

BUT. The update on the actual people!

Nicole is kind of lost this week because her grandpa still continues in a coma, so he is kind of bad. so we haven't been able to teach her but the girl just wants to get baptized. she has to travel every day to see him so as soon as this all calms down.

Bruno and kati are getting married tuesday! they are doing as good as ever. they couldn't go sunday to church because not one but BOTH of their daughters were in the hospital with severe bronchitis, like on oxygen and everything. so sad. but we got to give them both blessings and they are doing  ton better, so we hope that the 24th they'll be able to complete with their baptism and everything.

Familia Sanchez. on wednesday, i got to go buy with a joven from the church, Esteban who got baptized a month ago. anyway we taught the gospel of jesus christ VERY simply because we were on divisions and he obviously doesn't know how to teach super well because he is 15 and been baptize for a month, but WOW it was amazing. we gave them the challenge for the 7th of september and they accepted! they went to the activities all week, and the girls are so so so happy. Bernardo was just saying how even THIS week he has already felt like a better man. less angry, less temper-ish, everything. the mom was saying " i don't feel like i have  an answer yet but i feel genuinely happy and for the first time in my life i feel like I'm doing the right thing." YEAH okay thats good enough. they went to church and loved it. it took me awhile to explain why we raise our hands to sustain people but beyond that, it was so simple. They just get it and love it. So we are so happy for them because they are a FAMILY who already wants to go to the temple and the daughters just want to be little mujeres jovenes and everything. like its adorable. Im just so grateful to heavenly father for preparing them for us. they really are so special and i know that we have done NOTHING to deserve success like this. but heck we will take it and we are working them in with the members so much. the great thing about victoria is the members. They are SO loving. like they have just taken this family under their wing and some key families are not letting them go. its so relieving to have HELP as a missionary because we know we don't do this on our own. I am just so thrilled. They are a golden family and i truly do love them. I feel like an older brother to the little girls and i just love being with them. the picture is of me with Bernardo and Josefina, the daughter of 11! the other three were eating popcorn and didn't want to get up.....

And Marcelo. The best joven EVER. We found him contacting, invited him to play football, and he hasn't let go of us since. he is seriously like a brother to me. he is 14 and his dad is a major in the military here, like way high up there. everyone knows him. and he is also the most deseoso investigator I've ever had. like all they want to do is know more. Marcelo sang in the CHOIR with us yesterday. they came to every activity. his dad, who is also named marcelo, is the one who brought the popcorn machine. and its just been amazing to see how much they love the gospel already. marcelo's dad passed through a divorce about 5 years ago and is now with another lady name andrea who is with me in the foto, and they are so special. he said all he realized through all of that is that his kids needed HIM a lot more than they needed money or things. like isn't that amazing? he talked more than anyone in sunday school yesterday which president martinez was teaching, and has told me things like "The book of mormon is just so joyful to read. it makes me so peaceful." "Hey can i borrow that principles of the gospel book? i would like to learn everything about the gospel" "Whats the atonement? I want to learn more about it because it seems really important?" umm.....really? this dad is the best, and says that if marcelo jr wants to go on a  mission he would support him 100%. We actually haven't even TAUGHT them yet because we found them last saturday, they came to church the next day, came to all the activities, came to church AGAIN yesterday. so its super backwards because they are doing everything and we haven't even taught. So we just love this family. They have 2 14 year old boys who are studs and are going to strengthen the church so much. And president martinez said "Marcelo...he is incredible. How did you find him?" well president...this really crazy tactic called playing futbol. Cool, right?

Anyway, I'm thrilled. I truly love victoria. I love these people, every convert and every member, i get sad when i don't see them every couple days, i genuinely care about their kids and relatives. i just love being a missionary so much and I'm so genuinely happy. This place is amazing. Anyway, thanks for all your support, its helping a ton out here. I love you all so much.

Keep them all in your prayers please! We need miracles. and more, the lord needs these children to come to him. 

besitos,

Elder Tengberg