Elder Tim Seljaas

Halloween

11/2/15

So this week was a super up and down week. From Monday to Saturday it was maybe the hardest week of my mission. Almost everyone rejected us. One investigator called us and straight up told us that he didn’t want to listen to us anymore. The members weren’t available all week either so we knocked a lot of doors. On Saturday night we had three appointments and every single one of them fell through. It was 8:30 at night and we were about to have a whole day without a single lesson. In that moment a name of a former investigator came into my mind which was weird because I still hadn’t known him yet. The missionaries talked to him about 6-8 months ago. I had already tried to contact him, but he didn’t accept us. Also it was late and the house was a little far from our room, but we decided to go anyway. When we got there he was outside sweeping and we started to talk to him. Then he invited us in and told us that he has been wondering what church to get baptized in. I realized that if the appointments hadn’t fallen through we would have never found him. I can see the will of God in the work.

Also on Sunday we had a similar experience. We had two appointments at night. One of them was a guy that we had found knocking doors earlier in the week. He wasn’t home but his grand daughter answered the door and talked to us. She said that she had gone to our church before and she wants to come back. Then she asked us what she needs to do to join our church. We told her to get baptized and she said ok jaja. After the other appointment also fell through so we went to another former investigator from about a year ago. He let us in and told us that he wants to change his life and prepare to be baptized. I went home last night happier than I have ever been in my entire mission. Great way to end maybe the hardest, most discouraging and stressful week of my mission. Its amazing how the Lord tries us and then in the last moment he blesses us if we endure. 

                             Look who I found (Elder Risco my old comp)

That is awesome that Bishop Stirling is now actually a bishop jaja. I was so happy when I saw that in the email. I am not sure who Jake Viegel is but Brother Barlow is awesome also. Tell everyone that I am doing awesome. Especially recently and these have been some of the coolest experiences I have had in my life. Let me know how Halloween went and how everyone at home is doing. Also when does Kirsten get baptized??? Tell Josh to gain confidence and tell Kyle and Christina hi.

Love you and have a good week!!

Elder Seljaas

Elder Seljaas 9/21/15

• Alma 26:12

  12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

• Psalms 28:8

  8 The Lord is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed.
  (Just a few scriptures to go with Tim's weak arms…hehehe)
  This week was pretty good. It was a little more slow. First on tuesday we had a training with Elder Godoy from the first quorum of the seventy and it was awesome. He said that the goal on the mission is to grow into the calling that we have. He said that we have to be constantly improving on the mission. He also gave us a ton of ways to improve in our areas. General Authorities are awesome jaja. Well the only downside to that was that my companion got super sick. So me and him went to sit in the very back so that he could rest a little. Then we went back and he was still super sick. Luckily hes better now though jaja. So that is what happened tuesday. Also it was the independence day of Chile this week and my companion is from there so the pension made us Chilean food and it was amazing. Also not sure if you all heard, but there was a huge earthquake in Chile and it was right next to my companions house. Everything was fine though jaja.
  
  
  As far as the work here right now it was a little difficult. We had about twenty appointments fall through jaja. The investigators we have are still doing pretty well, but they dont come to church. But with patience we can help them. There is a little progress with one who still wants to get baptized. He goes to institutes every week with his girlfriend and he is studying Dotrine and Covenants. So we will help him out so that he will be able to get baptized. The other investigators that I talked about last week fell through this week. We will try to help them out and get them to come to church.
  
  
  Also there is one investigador that is progressing a little more. He hasnt gotten baptized because he has to get married. His son is on the mission and the rest of his family are members. He has come to church every week with a suit for the past 2 years. Just recently he progressed a little bit in his papers to get married. So little by little he is on his way to be baptized. He is awesome.
  
  
  So thats what has happened in this past week. I know there are good and bad weeks in the mission and hopefully we can turn everything around this week. We have scheduled a few family nights to get the members involved a little more and hopefully we can get a few results from that. My area is super rich and different from the rest of the mission, even my area in Vista Alegre, so we have to find a different way to have success here. We need to be creative in the way to find people.
  
  
  Well thanks Mom for your email it really was an answer to a lot of my prayers recently. I have been trying to develop more love for those I teach. Good luck this week and hope all goes well. I heard the Eagles got killed on sunday so I will give up on them and focus on my mission jaja. Hope all is well and tell everyone I say hi. Tell Kyle and Josh to read their scriptures jaja. Love you!!!
  
  
  Elder Seljaas

Leaving Lima, Lima, Lima….moving to

Chacarilla Peru

Dear Mom and Dad,

Well this week was awesome. I have never been more surprised for a transfer in my life. I got transfered. My companion Elder Hualinga stayed in Central and I am now in an area called Chacarilla. It is right across the street from my area in Vista Alegre. So I have hot water again and it appears that the fleas didn’t follow me. So I have never been more shocked for a transfer in my life. My new companion is Elder Jería and he is awesome. He is from Chile, a part called Viña del Mar. He is an amazing missionary, so I am pretty excited for this transfer and we are going to work hard. 

 

So that is the surprise of the week. The area is pretty hard as far as the people because it is a little more rich. Its even richer than Vista Alegre, actually about the same. I walk past my old area every day so it feels kind of wierd. There are a about 100 people who go to church every week, so the ward is a little stronger than the one in Italia. I am excited to work with the people and the members here. As for the investigators there arent many, but a few of them are ready to progress. We went to a house yesterday and she said she would like to get baptized eventually because she wants to bring her kids to church. She also has a few friends in the ward. So we will help her out. There is also another investigator, I have only met once. She also has a desire to learn more and maybe eventually get baptized. So we will be working with them.

With all that the highlight of the week is when Elder Bednar came. It was awesome and I learned some things that I will never forget and that will help me for the rest of my life. He said that we need to be agents and not objects. It was kind of funny because he said he was sick of people in the church just praying and waiting for things to happen. He said that we need to do it. So it was a great experience and I am excited to apply everything I learned to missionary work and to my life. It was awesome to see an apostle. The training itself was interesting too. It was like nothing I had ever been to. He gave us three talks to study before, then when we got there he asked us what we learned. After that we did questions and answers for over an hour. Everything we talked about was based on what we said. So it was interesting and amazing.

Also in a few weeks we are going to have a training from Elder Godoy in the first quorum of the seventy. We were supposed to have it a couple weeks ago, but it got cancelled. So life here on the mission is amazing and I am having a lot of fun. Sounds like everything at home is going great and that is wierd to see Jackson with all of Auzzys friends jaja. Tell everyone good luck this week and know that everything is going great here for me in the mission. I have gotten to the point where I am really enjoying everything. Im learning a lot. So hopefully you all have a great week!!

 

Elder Seljaas

Elder Tim Seljaas weekly letter 8/16/2015

Matthew 28:19 – “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost”

Life was pretty great this week. We had interviews with the President last week and he told us to start looking for the less actives in our ward. It was awesome because we started looking and we found one guy who was about 40. He hadn’t gone to church in years, but he told us that we came at the perfect time. We then taught him and he told us that he has had a terrible time because he is addicted to alcohol. We said we were there to help him and now we are working with him. After that we kept looking and went another direction and the member wasn’t there, but after we talked to his family his sister asked us, “Can me and my daughter get baptized too? We assured her that she could and now we are going to visit them this week. So that was an awesome experience to know that the president obviously receives revelation from God. It was awesome to see immediate results from that suggestion.

Also this week we had stake conference and it was the best one I’ve ever been to. Including from before my mission. It was awesome. An area 70 named Elder Calderon came to speak and it was amazing. At one part he called me up to the stand and starting asking me a bunch of questions. After he told me to give him a hug and then told everyone how the missionaries are angels. He started lightly slapping my face too jaja. It was hilarious. He was funny in all his talks too and everyone that we took to the conference loved him. They all said that the bishop should be like him jaja. Well also in that conference President Boswell came and told us that Elder Godoy, of the members of the 1st quorum of the 70 is going to visit the mission. So this week we are going to get a visit from a seventy, next week it will be with two seventies, Elder Wadell and Elder Soarez, and an apostle Elder Bednar. So I am super excited for these coming weeks. 

Also the transfer is almost over. It is the last week of the transfer, but probably nothing will change. President Boswell said that he would keep missionaries in their areas for 6 to 8 months so 4 or 5 transfers. I am going to have 2 transfers here and my companion will have 3. So for my whole mission I’ve gotten a new companion every transfer and now I will probably be with one for 3 straight transfers. Jaja that is how it goes though, we are happy and working hard too so everything is great. 

Well that is how everything is going right now. Our convert from a few weeks ago, Julio, is ridiculously excited and helping a ton. EVERY Sunday he takes us in his car to pick up investigators. He wants to start a missionary night and he always gives us referrals. Pretty much all he talks and thinks about is how to help the church. So we are super happy about that. He is exactly what this ward needed. For stake conference he went to every single session and he loved them. So we will work with him a lot and find new people to teach.

So that is how my life is going and I am still loving the mission. Well love you!!

Elder Seljaas