October 13th

(Hermana B almost wrote her entire email in Spanish - so I left it that way and used google translate to help me translate it for us)

Well, a week of ups and downs. But more ups than downs. Lots of learning, we have had a little trouble contacting all of our investigators this week, for work, time, etc. etc... Y como siempre, el desafío de que ellos progresan. Igual, podemos decir que algunos están progresando y que están leyendo el Libro de Mormón. Tenemos una investigadora se llama V_____ y cuando vamos, enseñamos a ella y su hijito Benjamín. El le gusta cantar los himnos y participa en las lecciones. Está leyendo el Libro de Mormón y es el niño mas capo que yo había conocido. 

And as always, the challenge they progress. Still, we can say that some are progressing and they are reading the Book of Mormon. We have a researcher called V____ and when we go, we taught her and her son Benjamin. He likes to sing hymns and participate in the lessons. You are reading the Book of Mormon is the most child hood I had known.
 

Estamos luchando con el D____. Más que J_____ porque D_____ tiene más interés con el Libro de Mormón. Un proceso lento.

 

We are struggling with D_____. More than J____ because D____ is more interested with the Book of Mormon. A slow process.

 

No estoy segura si he mencionado antes de P_____, pero él también está leyendo. También quiere bautizarse, así que ore por el para que tome la decisión hacerlo. Y a los de mas eran difíciles de encontrar.. Pero bueno, esperamos que nuestras investigadores vengan a la capilla! Aparte de eso, no ha pasado mucho. O quizás si, y no puedo pensar en mucho mas. 

 

I'm not sure if I mentioned before P_____, but he is also reading. He also wants to be baptized, so pray for to take the decision to do so. And the more they were hard to find .. But hey, we expect our researchers to come to the chapel! Other than that, not much has happened. Or maybe, and I can not think of much more.

 

Aparte de eso, esta semana me reflexioné mucho en el plan de Salvación y le Expiación. Con todo lo que pasó por parte de ustedes y el barrio y también aquí, me siento muy agradecido saber estas cosas y también enseñarles. Encontramos muchas cosas en la vida de cada uno, pero es cierto lo que dice José Smith de que la Expiación es el centro de lo que creemos y las otras doctrinas son extras. Pero sea necesario entender la Expiación porque nos da la razón "porque"

Other than that, this week I reflected much in the plan of Salvation and the Atonement. With everything that happened on your part and the neighborhood and here, I am grateful to know these things and teach. We found many things in the life of everyone, but it is true that Joseph Smith said that the Atonement is the center of what we believe and the other doctrines are extras. But it is necessary to understand the Atonement because it gives us the reason "why"

 

Yo recibí un paquete para la conferencia genial (GENIAL) porque fue maravillosa. Pero, no se me alcanzó a tiempo :( gracias igual por las dulces, chicle, marcadores, y notas. Para la próxima digo yo. 

 

I received a great package for the conference (GREAT) because it was wonderful. But I will not be achieved on time thanks :( equally by the candy, gum, markers, and notes. For I say next.

 

Me gustan las fotos. especialmente del cocodrilo porque me acuerdo de LA. (y para que sepan recibí noticias cuando voy a regresar :O) Y me alegro que ustedes (dad y k) estén viajando. K, saque muchas fotos. 

 

I like the pictures. Crocodile especially because I remember LA. (And so you know news when I got back: O) And I'm glad that you (dad yk) are traveling. K, take lots of pictures.

 

Y Alex, espero que estés bien! Sé que tiene mucho trabajo. Sigas fuerte hermano!! 

Que tengan una semana maravillosa! Hope you liked the spanish, Jazzed up my letter a little bit. Take care 

 

And Alex, I hope you're right! I know you have a lot of work. Follow stronger brother !!

Have a wonderful week! Hope you liked the spanish, Jazzed up my letter a little bit. Take care

 

 

 

Sister Jasmine Berthelson

Chile Santiago East Mission

September 8th

Hola

There isnt a lot to report this week. It wasn´t as exciting as the week before. It is exhausting when our investigators dont progress. Not a complaint but I tell my companion that if they aren´t progressing, it just means that the Lord wants me to progress even more. For every person that isn't reading their scriptures or praying, I´m doing it for them. We´ve got some great investigators, I just hope they realize their worth as they come to recognize the value of the atonement. 

Wow, I am glad that both Karen and Dad have been there to support the Christensen family. I was just thinking the other day how much everyone in the NC ward pitched in to help Sister Christensen fight it out when she had first found the cancer. The Christensen's are a very special family and so strong. They are still in my prayers. 

 
I hope yall have a great week. I look forward to the weekly fotos and emails from everyone. 

Sorry there isnt much to this email. The computer that I was at before died and I am out of time.. so I added a few pictures of some of the things we do when we´ve got time to do something fun. Fun fact- the chileans love flying kites. We tried it today and I´m a natural :)

I love you all so much!

 

 

April 7th

Hola Family

I don't have a lot of time to write this week. I LOVED conference. It is that much more special as a missionary and listening to the talks and thinking of how some pertain to the people we are teaching. It was a blessing to hear our Prophent speak to us. An ongoing topic from what I heard was the theme of the love of Jesus Christ. There is never an end of learning or knowing more about our Savior and our Relationship to Him. There is not an end to knowing what the Atonement is and how to apply it. And I am taking on the challenge of studying it and applying it more. I am so grateful to know that I am a daughter of Heavenly Father. And that as a missionary, I can testify of this truth. 

This might be the shortest of all of my emails, but I hope you continue on this week and ponder on the truths we´ve heard from the servants of the Lord. I love you all and am grateful for your examples of faith. Faith is an incredible divine attribute. 

pics- A___, P____, V_____ (holding her cousin____) F____, her friend and C______

baby shower for A____

pic with my comp after conference

Please keep in prayers also the people in Northern Chile. very terrible earthquake. Don't worry about us here. We are safe. We do get some cool temblores though :)

December 9th

Hola Familia

There really wasn´t much going on this week. That´s a horrible way to start an email, I know. It has been a little difficult this week on account of lessons, our ward, ect. But dong the work of the Lord Right? We had a few pretty good contacts! Our investigator, R____ is progressing. We are still hoping for a date that we can put for her baptism. She still feels like she is not ready which is difficult. We are really doing all that we can with her. She works too, and it is hard to get a hold of her.

......

I am glad that you were able to attend the temple so much this year, K! That and all of the missionaries and I hope I will get to go at the end of this month, a few days after Christmas. I am also glad to hear that Elder B is not hurt, maybe his bike, but not the Elder haha. I got to scan over your email, Al. I apologize for not writing very much this week. I do want you to know that I love you and this is a wonderful time of the year. It is a special time to remember our Savior and everything that he means to us. He loves us so much and knows us inside and out. 

Being on a mission helps me better understand who the Savior is every day and how the Atonement works. I am truely, truely grateful for the Atonement, and that our Heavenly Father loved us so much to send His only Begotten Son to pay a price that He knew we couldn´t pay ourselves. I don´t think we will ever truely understand His love for us while we are here on this Earth, but I pray I can take every challenge as an opportunity to understand the Atonement and my Savior, Jesus Christ. 

I have been blessed to have been here in Chile sharing this message of love with my brothers and sisters here. Hope all is well this week! I love you so much. 

By the way, this is a photo from a few weeks ago. M____, G_____, and their family with a member, D____. (far left)

Mark 2:17, October 21

We have been very fortunate this week to have been able to see miracles. There was a menos activo family on our ward roster, the T_____ family. We have had bad luck these last few transfers trying to get a hold of this family, but about a month ago, we had a lesson with the mom. She showed absolutely no interest in coming back to church, and for the most part, kind of astounded Hermana Salazar and I with the things she said. She bluntly told us that she did not want to come back to church. Here was a family with the parents being converts and sealed in the temple with their children. We asked why she has separated herself and her family from the church, and for the most part they were petty problems. So we hadn´t been back to visit in her home since. Once in a while we saw the youngest in the family in the street and would say hi to him and ask how he was doing, but other than that, not much contact with the family. When we had divisions the last time, Hermana Salazar and Hermana Zunñiga were able to get into the house again and contact the whole family and put a time that we could visit them for FHE. 
On Thursday we were able to have a lesson with the family. The parents and three of their five kids the oldest being 17 and the youngest about 12. Our FHE lesson was about the importance of the family. We asked Hermana y Hno T_____ first who Jesus Christ was to them and they gave an answer. After, we asked the kids who had no idea how to answer. I think that really surprised the mom that her kids didn´t know who the Savior was. It was a really spiritual experience for them because I don´t think they gathered together as a family very often. Hermana Salazar and I were able to share our testimonies about the importance of the family and the mom told us that that is what they had been lacking and they wanted to establish family home evening. It was so cool! That has to be the highlight of the week!

I´ve attatched a photo of a woman who is 89 years old. She is absolutely incredible. She has a son who is mentally handicapped and has been taking care of him since he was born. He is 54 years old and has never walked in his life. We visited her all this week and had the priesthood come to give them a blessing. They were planning on building L___ (son) a ramp so he could easily get in and out of his house. It was so great to have two priesthood members to come to give them a blessing. Unfortunately, she and L____ are leaving to go South for three months with her daughter. So we said goodbye for the last time. We got her information so that the missionaries down south can contact her again.

We have finally gotten one of our investigators to come to church! One of our menos activos brought her friend and we have a lesson with her this week. Also, L____ (Peruvian family we were teaching a long time ago) came to an activity. It has been really hard to get in contact with their family. But she absolutely loved it and made friends instantly. Wasn´t able to come to church this week but hopefully next week.

We also have something called a CVC that we are doing in the month of November.November 16th we will be doing an "open house" to help both the members and ourselves obtain references. We are super excited and we know that the members need something like this to get the obra misional moving along.  

Transfers are on the 3rd of Nov. If you are worried about Hermana Salazar getting her things, dont worry and you can send them directly to me and If we are separated, I will be able to send her things still. I don´t need anything, but thank you! we have the temple next door to us too! 

Like I mentioned before, it has been hard to get investigators to come to church. We are constantly explaining, having lessons, fasting, asking members to come to lessons to try and help them remember the importance of taking the sacrament, resting from our labors, etc etc. Menos Activos as well. I have heard a few people say this now- that the church is a hospital for the sick. That has bugged me for the past few weeks. I attached a scripture that I found the other day. We are all sick in a sense. We need to go to church to remember the covenants we made with our Heavenly Father at baptism, or to remember our Savior Jesus Christ. There is no need for a Savior if we are perfect, and there is no need to go to church if we are perfect, but we are not. So yes, the church is a hospital that we all need and the Sacrament can help us remember that we can once again feel the healing Power of the Atonement that our spirits need. And there is not one of us who doesn´t need the mercy and grace of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Looks like everyone is doing well! It looks like you had some fun this week! Love the pictures. i attached a few... Hermana Perez, Hermana Ekins, me and Hermana Salazar in our apt. The one of Hermana salazar, me and S____. Me in Santa Lucia with flowers, and Contacting on the street. D____ who lives in el campo and sells "tierra" dirt on the street where we predicar y trabajar. (preach and work) Love yall!

Chao po

September 16

It has been a fun week though (and by that I mean we have been working hard) first, the weather started out great.. until it turned freezing. Again, I am always cold, but all part of the mission experience haha-ç

We have been working with a list of potential investigators. Our little Peruvian family of three wasnt there this week and We didn´t get to visit with them Overall, it has been a week of ups and downs. We have been finding new people to teach, but at the same time, our progressing investigators have been out of town, busy, etc etc... Becuase of 18, everyone is out of town or leaving. Chile has a full week of no school, no work. Entonces, we have been outside a lot trying to contact. And so, this week will definitly be the same, if not worse.

We do have a part-member family and I don´t know if I have mentioned them or not, But their names are J___, E____ and A___. They are awesome! I think I mentioned them in one of my emails from last week or the week before, but we are trying to teach them and do service for them. They are absolutely a wonderful family. It is different here in chile because no one wants to get married.. so The grandparents are not married, their son (J___) and his polola (gf) are not married they have another son who lives with them and his polola who are not married. Basically a whole family who are not married who are all living in the same house. It´s a little funny, but just the lifestyle. So it is a challenge but they LOVE the missionaries. A few nights ago, we went over and they made us sushi (suchi in cast/esp) It was great because we had a lesson with the grandparents who would never sit in and listen to the Elders before. Blessings blessings blessings!

 

What more... I was called out to give a talk in Sacrament meeting yestereday. It was un poco chistoso porque el obispo recibó "the little kid step" so people could see me over the pulpit. I was prepared though, becuase I had my notebook with my personal study notes. I also used my basketball analogy again haha. But it was good from what people told me. I explained the importance of perservering now. How we "practiced and prepared" before we came to Earth, and how we need to live what we believe and use the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I can´t emphasize it enough. We need to use the atonement EVERY DAY! 

I try to live a little bit better than the day before. I am really learning .. well the past 2 months, that I lacked a lot of patience and love and I am trying my hardest to change. But I think that everyone can do a little better. The atonement is real!

 

 

We had a stake celebration the other day. Cueca, emenadas, muchas personas.. the guy in the blue is our Bishop LLancoñanco btw. the dancers are a lady in my ward n her daughter. also a pic of Hermana Salazar and me making sushi