Week 46

Mommy & All,

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Albert Einstein

This week was pretty interesting. First off we didn't get to see Adrian at all because of his work and stuff so I don't have any updates on him. Thursday and Friday we were in Perito which means another adventure in "Mini Camping Raul" haha. We actually headed over there to try and teach one of his friends named Javier. Javier is from Comodoro and had been living in Perito for 4 months looking for work. He hadn't seen his family at all and all he brought with him was a bag of clothes. It was kinda sad to see. He told us how he'd missed one of his kids birthdays because he didn't have any money to head back and hitch hiking would've take too long. So we taught him the Restoration and Raul was all over the place. First my comp tells Javier that we are representatives of Jesus Christ and that we do exactly what he did when he was here on earth and that we are here to help him. So then Raul looks at him and says "so do you guys match up men and women like He did also?" We were like what the crap. Then he starts telling us that when Jesus was here he also did a lot of match making. He would only put a pretty girl with a handsome guy, and then they'd make good looking kids and a good race would continue. Then he starts going off about how today all that's going on is pretty girls marrying super ugly guys and that today its all about the money. He told us that if we are really representatives of Jesus Christ we need to get back into the match making business. Then as we continued to teach about Joseph Smith, Raul asked us if Joseph was married or not. We said he got married and had quite a few kids. Raul looked at us and said "oh that's pretty cool because I thought he was gay." Javier just put his hand over his face like who is this guy haha. Raul keeps it really REALLY interesting. Anyways Javier accepted a Book of Mormon and told us he would read it. He told us he had one in his house in Comodoro since he'd been in contact with the missionaries over there as well so that was good. 

I also met another really interesting dude that day in "Mini Camping Raul" named Ross Reid Vitale. He is from Alaska (I don't remember what part) and was down here on a bike exploring the Patagonia. His bake was pretty beat up, so I sat down and talked to him in English for a few min since he didn't speak any Spanish haha. He told me HE BIKED DOWN HERE FROM ALASKA!! I asked him how long that took and he told me 2 YEARS!! Then I asked how he survived because he said he doesn't use money. He told me he is a dumpster diver. When he is hungry, he looks through the garbage for food, cooks it up and eats it. Or he steals the food from the wild dogs that they find in the street and eats that. I didn't believe him till he showed me an onion garbage mix he ate the other day nice and cooked up haha this dude is INSANE. All he carries with him is a few boxes strapped to his bike, a bag of clothes, and his camera. I didn't even think about taking a pic with him. He did take a few with us and said if we wanted to see them just to look up his name. He already knew we were Mormon missionaries because he told me he'd already met some IN USHUAIA! This guy went from ALASKA TO THE END OF THE WORLD ON A BIKE. Perito Moreno is always a good time for us haha.

My Guy Elder Harris headed home this week and it was hard to see him go. Shout Out to him back in New Bern North Carolina (home of the Pepsi) if he's reading this. He said he'd prayed and fasted and just got a really strong feeling he needed to go home and help his parents, especially his Dad who is still not going well at all. A lot of people tried to convince him to stay. I was the last one to talk to him over the phone before he left and I was going to try and do the same, but before I said anything he just told me how horrible everyone made him feel. Like everyone wanted him to feel like he was stabbing Jesus in the back. So then the impression came to mind just to thank him because I owe him everything. Told him he will always be my big bro and whatever happens I'm there for him and that his decision was okay. That he'd always be another son to my parents and that my mom will love him forever because he saved her little boy. I was honestly lost in life. I was spiritually lost before I met Elder Harris. Before I felt his spirit, heard his testimony, heard his life story, saw his desire, and felt the love he has for every individual person and the bond that we have. He pulled me outta the dark. And that's something I can never repay him for. Thank You Dustin if you're reading this.

ALSO: Big Shout out to the Christensen Fam. I heard Great Grandma is really struggling with her health. Just want you guys to know that you are in my prayers every night and that whatever happens, we know it is for the best and is a part of Gods plan for her and us.

Much Love,

Elder Christensen

week 45

Mommy & All, 

"When people point fingers at someone else, they should remember that three fingers are pointing back at them." -Unknown

This week was pretty good. We met a really cool guy named Adrian. We knocked on his door one day, introduced the Book of Mormon and said we would come back. Adrian believes in God, but was never baptized in any church. He lives with his girlfriend Joana and his 2 yr old son Leon. They are great. Joana is Catholic but sits and talks and listens to us all the same. Not too long ago, Leon was baptized in the Catholic church as well. Adrian always tells us that he wants his kid to be Christian and doesn't like the Catholic church very much. The first time we met with them, we talked about the Restoration, the line of authority and Priesthood power to be able to teach and baptize and invited Adrian to be baptized and he accepted. We tried to invite Joana as well, but she is a little tougher haha. The only problem is that before we can put an actual baptismal date with him, we need to put a marriage date with them. We went back the second time and talked a ton about marriage. Why its important to God, and all the blessings we can receive from that. It was pretty funny Adrian told us that there was 2 things in life he said he wouldn't do: Have kids and get married. Well he already has the kid, and when we talked about marriage he said it made a lot of sense and said that would be good to do. We were pumped haha. It was even more cool to see Joana because I guess that is something she has been waiting to hear for a long time. So as we continued to talk about baptism ans how its needed to by the proper authority ot be able to have an Eternal Family, i asked Joana what baptism meant to her. She said that for her and her church, they are baptized to eliminate the first sin that we were all born with that they believe we receive from Adam and Eve. I was able to explain to here that we really are born perfect and how babies don't need baptism. I explained it by saying that if we receive sins from our "Parents" Adam and Eve, that would be like if she sinned and her children, in this case Leon, paying for what she did. She jumped back in surprise ans said "noooo of course I would pay for my own sins not my son." And we explained how we are baptized for our own sins exactly like she said. That opened up her mind a little bit. We also invited Adrian to read 3 Nephi 10 where Jesus appears to the Nephites for the first time and mentions baptism 11 times in the first 20 verses I think. We read a little of the beginning with him, and he looked up at us with huge eyes and said he'd had a dream just like this. He'd had a dream where he was among a large group of people in an open space and Jesus came out of the sky and down among them. He told us this described his dream almost perfectly. The craziest part is that he'd never heard of the Book of Mormon before or read anything like he had dreamed. That was really cool. The goal this week is to figure out all the details for them to get legally married. 

This last weekend we went to Perito and that was interesting. We got there Saturday morning and realized no one had made plans on where we were going to have sacrament meeting Sunday so that fell on me. I called the place where we usually do it, but someone was already renting it out. So we kind of just thought we were hosed because we had no clue where else we could do it. So we just prayed we could find a place and headed out. We went to try and visit an investigator as and as we were walking down the street, this guy came out of a store and started walking next to us and talking to us. I thought it was another one of my homeless friends because he kind of looked and dressed like Juan Carlos and was half insane. I don't know why, but I asked him if he knew anywhere we could have a meeting. He said "oh yea!" So we followed him as he turned down the next street and walked up to a guy who I guess was his friend and asked if we could rent his house for a few hours. The guy looked at him like he was crazy, and I thought that too, and how that was the weirdest thing to ask someone, so I was done. After he said no, this guy then turns and walks into this place called "Raul's Mini Camping" and tells us to follow him. At this point we didn't have a thing to lose so we went in. This guy ends up being Raul and shows us that he owns this place where tourists stay when they come through Perito. He has been hosting tourists for 20 yrs and has received people from all around the world. He had a place in the back where we could meet and he gave it to us. So that's where we had church in "Raul's Mini Camping" haha or "Raul's Crazy Smoke House" as I like to call it. This guy smokes more than anyone I've ever seen and is all over the place. He started talking about how we can build our church right next to his camp site so Joseph Smith can come and preach to the people, then he started talking to us in Hebrew and telling poems and songs he wrote. Come to find out that he is actually really famous in Perito and is considered the town Crazy. But I've now made another friend. Its kinda stressful juggling all the stuff in Las Heras and Perito Moreno. But things like this keep it interesting.

Much Love,

Elder Christensen

Week 44

Mommy and All,

"I wish I could stand on a busy corner, hat in hand, and beg people to throw me all their wasted hours." -Bernard Berensen

Well, its been a pretty uneventful 2 days. But I do have my new companion. His name is Elder Vega and he is y 8th comp in 9 months haha. He is 20 yrs old and lives in Buenos Aires. Since he is coming straight from the MTC and is brand new, of course he has a ton of energy to teach and do everything they taught him in the MTC which is great. He is just a really good guy and has a TON  of potential to be a GREAT missionary in the mission. These past couple of days we have taught a few lessons and we have practiced a lot of contacting for him. We are still getting used to each other for sure since teaching with him isn't like with Elder Soto, and I'm not like his comp form the MTC haha. But its really cool just to see him and how he is already gaining confidence when he talks and teaches. I'm actually learning a lot form him. I'm just here to help him when he has a question, encourage him, and of course guide him around the area. I think we are going to do good things together. Right now the biggest thing is just finding new investigators. Rosios baptism got postponed for I have no clue when. It will happen but I might not be here for it. I also haven't been to Perito in almost 2 week so it will be good to see how everyone is doing out there hopefully this weekend.

Much Love,

Elder Christensen 

Week 43

Mommy and All,

"To be able, at any moment, to sacrifice what you are...for what you will become!" -Unknown

Last week was good but pretty tiring. So we were waiting to get that call from Nahuel to tell us what his final decision was on baptism was for last weekend. We had a "barbecue" (Asado) Tuesday and so we decided to call him up and see how he was because if the baptism was gonna happen, we needed to know early because it was a lot of planning. Elder Soto called him and he said he had been thinking a lot more and that we should plan everything for Saturday! We were both so pumped because for us it was kind of a now or never situation with him. So after that we spent the rest of the week planning it out and it was a little hard. There isn't a baptismal font in Perito yet so we had to find a body of water. Luckily about 15 min outside Perito, there is a HUGE lake named Buenos Aires. The other problem was it was a really nice day Saturday so they were expecting a lot of people to be at the lake so we had to find a spot where people wouldn't stare haha. But it was amazing. The lake water comes from a glacier wayyyy down south so the water is really cold but the lake is beautiful with amazing blue water. Then you look across the lake and you see a little mountain range. That is Chile. We were about 31 miles from the Chilean border. Elder Soto got to baptize him and it was really cool to watch and looked really cold haha. But of course the best thing is seeing just the little changes he made one by one to get to that point. Also just seeing how happy his wife was. They are already counting down the days until they can go to the temple and be sealed as a family for Eternity. Presidente Salerno always tells us that is our true goal as missionaries. He tells us that we need to stand in the baptismal font (or the lake) looking towards the temple. Figuratively speaking of course. We don't literally position ourselves to face a temple haha. Nahuel is the first baptism in the history of Perito Moreno.

So transfers happend and of course Elder Soto is heading back to his house in Peru since he finished his mission. It was a little hard to see him go. In the 3 1/2 year history of this mission, I don't think there has been a better teacher than Elder Soto, and he is easily one of the most successful to come through in this time. He's one of the best to ever do it down here on the Patagonia. I also got called to train now. My new comp is Elder Vega from Buenos Aires. He is 20 years old and reallyyy cool. I'll talk more about him next week since we are still getting to know each other. Its already been a long week with all this traveling haha. 

Much Love,

Elder Christensen

Week 42

Mommy and All,

"Fear is that little darkroom where negatives are developed." -Michael Pritchard

This week was pretty good. All this traveling back and forth to Perito Moreno and back can ware you down haha my comp and I have both been pretty tired. But the work is going pretty good on both sides. We are really hoping and preying for 2 more baptisms this week with Rosio and Nahuel.

Rosio was introduced to us by a member here in Las Heras and we've been working with her along with the Hermanas. She moved down here from Buenos Aires about 8 months ago and all her friends here happen to be Mormon including the Branch President. When she got here, she didn't wanna hear one thing from the missionaries because all she had heard was bad stuff. But one day she opened up one time and now we are prepping for her baptism this weekend. Its amazing how when people truly wanna change and begin to open up their heart, that the spirit can enter and help with that change that much quicker. 

Nahuel is a big story. He is the husband of the "Bishop" out in Perito Moreno haha. His wife Natalia was the only member in Perito for quite a while and drove the 2 hrs every Sunday here to Las Heras to go to church before the other 2 families down there arrived. She does everything out there and its amazing to watch. She finds the buildings to meet in each Sunday, brings the stuff for the sacrament, and really if it wasn't for her, there wouldn't be missionaries in Perito. She is waiting so anxiously for her husband to get baptized so they can wait the year then go to the temple and get sealed with their really really cute little 1 1/2 yr old daughter. Nahuel is definitely ready for baptism. He lives the life of a Mormon, he just isn't baptized. He even told us last week that he received an answer to his prayers. The only thing now is that he is scared of all the responsibility he is going to receive after baptism and doesn't know if he can handle all that. So we went and played all our best cards, talking about eternal families and our own lives and how we just have to try our best we don't have to be perfect and gave our best lesson. So he told us he is going to pray one more time and that he would call us before Friday this week and let us know the final result. So we are waiting anxiously for that. Also if we baptize him, he will be the first person ever baptized in Perito Moreno so that would be cool too!

Side Note: With Elder Soto leaving this Sunday, I will most likely be on the move as well since I cant just sit here by myself. So it could happen, but don't plan on me writing next Monday because I have no clue where I will be, and I might be on a bus to Comodoro so I wouldn't be able to. But we will see!

Much Love,

Elder Christensen

Picture notes...The picture above was taken when he traveled to Comodoro to again try to get his Argentine paperwork and get his visa stuff taken care of.  He is with his mission president and several office elders.  

The three pictures below were taken at one conference in Caleta Olivia.

The last two are with a random car they found on the side of the road.  He was not driving or in it.  

  

Week 41

Mommy and All,

"There is no music in hell, for all good music belongs to heaven." -Brigham Young

First wanna give a Big birthday shoutout to my Big Little Bro Elder Colton Durrant out there in the DR. Happy birthday my brotha and prayers up to him and his family. Also happy Valentines Day to all as well. 

I'm honestly not sure what to write this week. I didn't run into any drunk guys or dogs. None of our investigators got possessed by demons. And I didn't fall into a sewage hole. This must be the most boring week of my mission thus far haha. 

We went to Perito Moreno quite a bit this week. Wednesday I had to go to Comodoro to do a bunch of paperwork and sign stuff so they can finally start working on my Argentine ID and visa because I guess we messed up the first time I did all that. So while I was there my comp took the rest of the District out to Perito. We also went back Thursday and spent Saturday and Sunday there as well. We are finding quite a few new people out there like we are in Las Heras.

We met this one kid named Augstin who we had heard about from the other missionaries. His whole family is Catholic but his uncle who is Mormon and the Branch President in Pico Truncado about 3 hrs away. I guess they had his baptism all planned and were literally about on the bus to go to Pico so his uncle could baptize him. The one tiny problem was that he forgot to tell his parents. So when they found out they pulled the plug on that really quick. So right now we are working on softening the hearts of his parents to let that happen. We talked with his mom who told us their family was having pretty big financial problems and her "husband" and her aren't married but they live together and have 3 kids but they were having relationship problems as well. So they were about to fall apart right around they time Augustin was going to get baptized. When his mom asked him why he wanted to get baptized he told her for the family. She said that hit her pretty hard and opened her eyes a bit. Her brother is the one who is the Branch President and so she has now even started reading the Book of Mormon. Its great because she says whenever she has a question about anything she reads, she can just pick up the phone and call her brother which I guess she does a lot so she is reading with real intent. 

We also found Javier again. We didn't get to talk to him for very long because his family was leaving to go to the festival in town, and all he wanted to tell me was all the stuff that Trump was doing haha so we really didn't get anything in. But as we were leaving he grasped our hands and genuinely thanked us for the small visit and for coming back to see him. We didn't even share anything, but it was like he still felt something. 

Much Love,

Elder Christensen

Week 40

Mommy and All,

"It took me fifteen years to discover I had no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up because by that time I was too famous." -Robert Benchley

This week we had a little miracle happen. He is 20 yr old Victor Angel Ezequiel Esteban Martinez. And I had the opportunity to baptize him on Friday. 

Tuesday we went to see if  the Familia Cyntia who I've mention in a few emails before was back from vacation. We knew they left and they told us if they did, they'd most likely leave and come back soon. So we found them our 2nd day here but haven't seen them for 2 weeks. When we passed by their house, a guy named Victor came out an told us they went way north back home to Salta and wont be home till the beginning of March. Cyntia had told us she had a son, but we had never met him because he was never home. She said he was practicing his swimming to join the marines. Cyntia had never talked to missionaries before us, but she mentioned that she thought her son had talked to them one on one a little. We didn't think much of it since Cyntia wasn't there, but we just started talking to him to see what he knew. It turned out that he was best friends with an Elder who was here like 5-6 months ago, but when he left, the missionaries never came by or had contact with him anymore. He also said he had read almost the whole Book of Mormon and that he had gone to church for 2 straight months with these Elders. We were blown away and were wondering how the heck he got lost in the shuffle. He ended up telling us that the only reason he was there was because he was watching the house for his mom and that he was leaving for Buenos Aires on Saturday to join the Marines and wouldn't be back for 4 years. When he told us that we both just thought oh okay have a good time see ya. Of course he is leaving right when we meet him. But Wednesday morning, the thought crossed our minds that we could actually baptize him if he knows as much as he says he does. So we went and gave him a pre-baptismal interview and he knew everything!! So we called Presidente Salerno and told him his situation and that it was kind of now or never and who knows if after 4 years he will see missionaries again and Presidente Salerno was in the Marines so he gave us permission to baptize him Friday. Victor was pretty nervous but also was excited he could do it. We asked him why they didn't baptize him 6 months ago and he told us they said he wasn't ready. We definitely thought he was ready now. 

So after he passed the baptismal interview Thursday, I got a call saying he wanted me to be the one to baptize him. I was way pumped and just shocked that in 4 days we had already become life long friends. 

Since the church is a literal house, there isn't a baptismal faunt. Its a make shift one you put together like putting together a pool in the backyard haha. Also when we were filling it up, the church ran out of water. So the water came up to about my shins and it was really lucky that he is a head shorter than I am. The first time I baptized him, I had to kind of slam him down all the way on his back, and that still didn't get him all the way in The 2nd time they told him to sit on his butt and for me to get on my knees or we would be there all night haha so that was easier. It was awesome. I asked how he felt after and he looked at me and said "Peaceful, handsome, and clean." I started to laugh haha he is a great guy. He told me after that he knew 100% that it is true. The military is letting him take 2 books and he told us one of those will be the Book of Mormon. He said its also mandatory for them to attend one hour of a church service every Sunday. We looked it up and there is a church 7 min from his base. He told us that his best friend who is a girl and in the military with him just happens to be a Mormon so that works out perfect and they will go together. The last thing he told me was to keep in touch becasue he is going to California in 2018 to train at a base out there and wants to meet up for a sec when he comes haha so that's awesome. He gave me a military backpack to remember him. 

Much Love,

Elder Christensen