His Will = Our Will (week 44)

Heeeeeey you guys!!!

I had suuuuuch a good week!!! I had lots of really cool spiritual experiences and a little bit of success (okay we had 26 new investigators NBD!)

But during a family night that we had with Benitez family last Monday we were talking about OBEDIENCE (ugh I can't spell English anymore :() (he spelled all of that right though? hahaha) but anyways they were talking about how much more obedient we are compared to LITERALLY all of the other elders that were here before!! And I kept on thinking "you are RIGHT WERE YOU NEED TO BE.....you need to be here to be an example to them" that was an interesting experience!!

Later on that night during my nightly prayers I was feeling good!! I am really feeling that if I continue to be obedient I won't have too many more problems with my hearing aid, sooo that's good!!!!

We also had some really cool experiences with Hermana Francia...she was telling us all about how she got to know the missionaries and how rough their lives were before...and they didn't have any money to buy food....but the missionaries came and cooked for them and helped her son....she literally made me cry...you never know what kind of influence you can have to someone!!

We also have been talking a lot with Olga (a recent convert and the niece of Hermana Francia) she's only 15 and we were teaching and she asked us "why does god give us hard trials?" She was able to talk to us a little bit about what has been going on with her friends and it's hard to stand up for her beliefs. I am proud of her though, she is currently planning on serving a mission. So yeah we were able to talk to her and hopefully help her....the family is having lots of issues so we have been trying our best to help them...I think little by little it's working.

I don't have too much time to write!! But I believe for 100% that I am exactly where I need to be now....it's hard for me to have transfers and to be constantly leaving people I love buuut I constantly find new people to love....and I love that!! When we submit our will to the will of our Heavenly Father we gain new opportunities....BETTER opportunities. My challenge for you guys is to really think about that...write about it your challenge notebook. I truly believe that there are blessings that we can only see as they are BEHIND us....we just need to walk forward with faith...I know that's true.

I love you guys so much, thank you for all the love and support!

Elder Olsen

 Elder Chacon and I during study (it gets cold in the mornings)

 A great view (I don't wanna say that the building with the 2 windows is a very important place.....buuuuut it's an important place ;)

(That's his house!)

 Random photos of the area

The water pipe that Elder Guitierez broke today xD

Elder Carey trying to make it flood less

 Our house

annnnnd more of our house

Golden Missionaries (week 43)

Heeeeey you guys!

I decided to hand write my letter today (typed by Aubrey) while Elder Chacon writes his family to save some time and be able to send some of my last pictures from Pasto. 

But all is well here in Popayan, it's been a big stress for me this last week trying to learn and open the area. Our area book is sooo awful! I'm lucky that I have Elder Chacon. He's been really good with memorizing the area and finding directions...all the things that I am bad at! He's really obedient too. I really just don't like the weather here, it's either hot or really rainy and when it rains in Popayan...IT RAINS IN POPAYAN. I've been really worried about my hearing aid...it's not going to do well here :(

Our house is terrible. It's really dirty and gross and the neighbors below us are constantly BLASTING their music and smoking weed so that has not been a fund thing to deal with. The missionaries actually haven't lived in this apartment for very long, maybe three weeks! They had to change the apartment because the last one had a pool and a ton of disobedience went down...the area has actually had lots of problems with the missionaries and now we get to deal with it. Literally every two seconds "do you muchachos want breakfast tomorrow?" and then we have to kindly explain the rules and then they get all offended because all the other missionaries ate with the members...me molesta mucho. 

We have a really good pensionista named Francia. She actually is not a member of the church, she wants to be but she lives with her husband and they are not married. They want to be married but she has to be divorced from her first husband and they that's not the easiest process here in Colombia. 

While the other missionaries were awful about filling the arca book we have been able to find some really great people to teach. The Benitez family is a part-member family that are really great. Christen is a member but his wife Fernanda and their two kids are not (well one of them is five years old sooo...). However, she has a desire to be baptized but she's worried that she'll regret her decision. I'm not worried about her, the fact that she is worried means that she understands how important it is, so we'll be working hard to help her.

The Burbano family is also the family of Fernanda, all of her sisters and her mom. The problem is that they listen to all the missionaries of all different kinds of churches. The Jehovah's Witnesses are always leaving as we get there. Those girls have their agency and they don't wanna use it to learn and gain a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel, they only wanna ask us questions about who Jehova is and when we give them scriptures to answer their questions they don't read it :( it's frustrating but I have faith that we can help them.

The Ordonez family is pretty special too! We found them on our "future investigators list" which basically means the Elders contacted them and then never visited them again! (Big surprise!) I think it's because German and his wife aren't married...but that doesn't scare me ;) But we just talked a lot about the restoration and Joseph Smith...we were explaining to German about how we can know the Book of Mormon is true...after that he looked at us with a weird face and said "I don't need to read your book to know it's true" which surprised me. Then he went on to say "it's obvious from a missionary's and pastors expression, their words, the way they present their message that what they are saying is true, orrrr that if they just want money and what you boys are telling me is the truth." That was a very powerful and spiritual experience for me. It's amazing how the spirit can work through us to be able to help other people.

So yeah that's how the area is going...mas o menos. However I know that we have some golden investigators. that can progress, but I'm smart...I know that to be able to help a golden investigator you have to be a golden missionary. You have got to be on it! Praying and thinking about how you can help them. This isn't just a "full time" missionary problem, we should all be praying, finding and having missionary opportunities and not only praying FOR the missionaries, that's chichi! So yeah the challenge is:
A) Pray for missionary activities
B) Recognize them
C) TAKE ACTION
D) Receive the happiness/blessings
E) Write me about it
F) Repeat

God has so many chances and opportunities for other people but we need to help him do his work, we all need to be golden missionaries! And when we are we can receive even more of the blessings he has for us! It's the truth :)

Loooove you honey bunches and oats!
Elder Olsen


These are the only pictures I have from here in Popayan...

Our chapel

The view from outside of our house

His Plan for Me (week 42)

HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY YOU GUYS!!!

Soooo yeah I was transferred and right now I am currently working in Popayan!!

My last week in Pasto waaaas awesome. Hermana Yamile bought us cuy....it was nothing special though. It really tastes the same as chicken....everybody says that the fat is the best part...but I thought it was NAAAAAAAAASTTTTTTY :P We spent a lot of time with the members though our last week...I was not worried much about it though because I thought for 100% I would not be transferred buuuuuuuut here we are.

I am currently serving in a BRANCH called Recuerdo Norte....I don't know much about the area yet so I am sure next week I will have much more to write. I am currently serving as senior companion with Elder Chacon from Peru. We were in Villa Colombia together (that was my zone in Cali) soooo thats cool. I don't know him very well but he seems chill so far, he came from Jamundi and he had 5 baptisms there so he has to know a little bit of what we are doing!! It's gonna be so hard this transfer....I already know it!!! It was so hard to leave Mariluz...when I called Hermana Lidia she was crying and was like "I THOUGHT YOU WERE GONNA STAY!" :( What made it worse was that Elder Galvez was really proud to be staying in Mariluz training. "I am going to baptize this person.....and this person....and I am training a gringo.....and you have to pack your bags and I don't." I don't know I didn't really appreciate that but knowing Elder Galvez I am not really surprised!! Elder Corbett came to Popayan with me and is going to be my ZONE LEADER...gaaaaaaaaaaaah I am very happy about that!

Sooo yeah, I am not sure how I feel about my transfer.....I am a little worried about being senior comp....opening an area (but this will be the 3rd time soooooo) and being in Popayan. The heat and rain here WILL LITERALLY SLAUGHTER my hearing aid :( however, I have lots of faith and I know that I have things to do here. Heavenly Father has plans for me, and who knows maybe I will like it better here buuuuut it all just comes down to attitude and faith!! We get put in certain areas to learn certain things and help specific others do the same!! That's my challenge for you guys write down your blessings everyday this week....review them when things get hard...you got this :)

Love you all TONZO!!

Elder Olsen


Pictures from my last week in Pasto...

 CUY

 Our tree of life activity

With Julian (our ward mission leader)

 On the bus to Popayan with Elder Santos and Elder Chicaiza

MAKE THE EFFORT (week 41)

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHEYYYYY YOU GUYS!!!! Hows it hanging? Espero que todo bieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen :)

This week was pretty good....last Monday we went to a family home evening with Yamilet and the Morales family. At the end Yamilet was like "and we are all here for a very special purpose......ELDER OLSEN'S BIRTHDAY" and I was just "¿QUE?" Sooo yeah we had a pizza party...and then the next day we went to Lidias for lunch and she had streamers and tostis (THE BEST CHIPS NOMMMMM NOM NOM) and cake for me.....and then she was like "with respect to God....and to you and to your companion" I didn't understand the next part but after that she walked up and gave me a kiss on my cheek......cant even xD So yeah my 19th ending with 4 different parties so I guess it was a good birthday....I guess!!

I was able to go to my doctors appointment...my hearing aid is all good!! She didn't have me tested instead she let me pick my own hearing aid settings based on my old ones bajajajajajajajaja not sure that's allowed but i'm not complaining I HAAAAAAAAAATE those tests.

As far as the work goes it didn't really go really great this week. It was a harder week for finding and teaching new investigators and we have a lot of investigators, buuuut it has been a challenge getting them all to progress....algun dia!! Yo tengo fe.....YO TENGO TODA LA FE!!!! The family Santacruz is progressing great going to church and everything.....except for the youngest daughter PERO she told me that I made a REALLY good impression when I talked about everything Japan soooo yeah winning.

Pricilla...well that's complicated, they are never home and when we asked Johanna about it she was like "well you muchachos know that we are never home sooo yeah" soooo yeah that's that!!

Yamilet still is waiting for her husband to accept a date buuuuuut she has been talking to us a lot about having Daniel be baptized....I don't know!! She's the type of investigator that will introduce all her friends to the gospel, give them our pamphlets, tell them all about how shes a Mormon and the church, but she wont accept a date!!! Like I said before FEEEEE YO TENGO TODA LA FE!!!!

This week was really rough for the ward because Jorge Torres had a really big surgery and his head was cut open and he turned purple and yeah lots of things :( I love the Torres family every time we go to their store Hermana Torres is always "muchachos you can have this for free...and this for free....and this for free!" They literally are the best family and everybody is worrying about them :( sooo yeah, everyone including us fasted for them :)

Today was literally the BEST PDAY EVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVER!!! We hiked to the cross!! (Literally every city with mountains in this country has a cross i swear.) Buuuut it was a HARD hike....part of the trail was pure stairs....part of the trail was straight mountain and didn't have a trail....it was rough!! Elder Florez and I were side by side the entire time....and we were the first ones to the top....well the first missionaries in the group anyway...we had a little bit of members with us. On the way down we didn't take the trail we went another way straight down the mountain and it was a blast. Elder Corbett had to catch me a few times hahahaha otherwise I would have died!!! But it was a blast!!!

This week I bought the New Testament storybook and I have been studying the CRAP outta the Bible....I love it sooo much!! I love studying with the storybooks because it doesn't start in the beginning...it starts at the part that the Bible should have started in. It's great, I learned all about Mary and Elizabeth and how they were pregnant together, and how Mary visited Elizabeth for months and months, and about Jesus in his childhood and how they had to take him to Egypt because king Herod was freaking dumb, and how they went back and how they lost Jesus one day but they found him teaching and XY and Z....the point I am trying to make is WHEN YOU REALLY MAKE AN EFFORT to not only learn the scriptures but anything about the gospel....YOU WILL LEARN THE GOSPEL...because I couldn't tell you a bunch of that the other week tbh xD There are way too many people that have this "God isn't real attitude" without trying. We can't learn the mysteries and the things that we need to if we don't put in our effort. That being said CHALLENGE make some goals about your scripture reading...and MAKE THE EFFORT...because if you do you will learn the things you need to know and receive divine revelation...I know that to be true.

LOVE YOU HONEY BUNCHES OF OATS 

ELDER OLSEN

The birthday Party that Hermana Lidia threw for me

 The pizza birthday Party that Hermana Yamilet threw for me

Helping some of the investigators of the leaders move

Hermana Lidia always buys me the bananas that have two in one peel (yes that exists) because she knows that I love them!!!

Fuuuuudge yeah gonna get my bible study onnnnnnn!

Yamilet fixing all of our ties

With Sebastian and Roger

The start of our hike

RUN ELDER CORBETT RUNNNNN

Love these Colombian mountains

PASTO PUES

"It's okay Elder Florez, podemos hacerlo"

The trail

Almost there!! The cross in the distance.

WE DID IT!!

Goofing around!

 

SOY YO

"Okay say gringoooooo!"

Look at that good looking group!

ELLDDDDER CORRRRBETT!!

"WWWWWWWWWWWWHOOOOO"

Sonrisas :)

 Hermano Lucho going down the mountain

Elder Florez got a stick up his butt

With Elder Florez

Elder Leon totally broke his shoe xD

No comment :p

Love these people

Some weird sign in Pasto

MUCHO ELDER GALVEZ

My LZ is a dork!!