peace amidst stress and trials

 Ey que más!

This week was good! Tons of super sick stuff

Pday we had sushi! It was some pretty yummy stuff 😋🤓

This week I've been SUPER busy because it was the beginning of a new transfer, so I was figuring out a bunch of broken phones that all the missionaries magically got in the last three days...😵‍💫 We also picked up some new missionaries from the airport and gave them a little presentation on the mish

We went to a Latino area- where only Latinos are allowed cuz of safety reasons- because my comp had to audit like 20 houses. Wednesday through Fridaywas straight traveling 😮‍💨 it was cool seeing it all though! I used the bus trips to edit videos for a general conference invite and music video

Friday night we got back and had just enough time to contact a couple inactive members who are SWEET! They had this dog that literally looked like a balloon. Like no joke it didn't have a tail and it's body was a cylinder. It was like 17 years old and it's 18 year old blind dog-friend named precious... pretty sure it was a stuffed animal....

Yesterday was the anniversary of our mission President and his wife! They asked if I could take pictures for them and they talked to us about stories during their 30 years on Sunday. I'm grateful to be able to know them more recently and I've found how humble and forgiving they are.

Saturday and Sunday were AWESOME because of general conference! I loved Elder Eyrings talk about how peace is a gift from God. Life's really hard, but thats ok! God is watching over us because we're his children, and he wants us to become something better than we can imagine! This week I was able to find peace amidst stress and trials because I could feel God's love for me through prayer.

Pics:

Sushi 🍥

That one Latino area- that white guy is me

Some Peruvians from the new group of missionaries 

Our mission facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/VenirACristoEnLaCostaCaribe?mibextid=ZbWKwL

follow it porfa 

spiritual experience he had the previous night!

 Hey guys this week was good! I've  been working on a couple videos, got alfredo baptized and we got transfer news yesterday

During this last week we were preparing a guy named alfredo for baptism,  but he didn't feel ready. We thought he eventually wouldn't accept, but the day before his baptism he accepted because of a spiritual experience he had the previous night! It was pretty awesome to see!

The american Elders leaving tomorrow so it's just me and Elder Hernandez now! This upcoming week I'll be traveling a lot to audit houses with my comp. We're gonna eventually hit up every house in the mission 

Pics:

Elder hernandez and my $2 watch 🤑🤑🤑

She makes good popcorn 😋😋🍿 

Our good friend alfredo and some members 🤗👍

Lastly we became a branch officially!!!

 

Uh sorry It's been a while but here's my email for the last like 2 1/2 months 👍

Honestly so much has happened I'll touch on some main stuff that happened pretty recently

December in Colombia is the hottest month there is because it doesn't rain during that time... basically there's two seasons: hot with rain, or REALLY hot without rain. Luckily they sell little bags of water for like 1/5 of a penny so those were life savers.

During December we celebrated Christmas, met the first lady of Colombia, found the phone I lost in the last email, we were strangely happy to find out someone wasn't married, I got a violin, transfer news said I'm gonna be in my baby area for 7 months, we saw a bull fight, our area 70 spoke to us, and WE'RE A BRANCH NOW BABY

🤠I found the phone I lost like 3 months ago on a bus when some dude (he was like 5 feet tall) walked up to us and said he had it! That was a nice miracle because we would've had to pay for it... I think that's the first time anyone has ever gotten a lost phone back in Colombia🤩 

The first lady actually pretty nice! We represented the church at some event because tons of supplies were donated to people that had pretty much nothing. We went with some members from the big city and it was super fun! 

I bought a violin because it's fun 🎻 I need more ideas for songs like if you got any 👍

A member family in our area is working on getting baptized so the guy can be worthy of tye priesthood and his wife can be baptized- but like every other fetching person in Colombia- they're not married 😀 the guy said he had a previous marriage and they went to check the legal documents and they never got legally married - only in the catholic church. Basically this means they don't have to get divorced which is SO much easier. Love seeing the Lord progress the work and lifting burdens!

There was a cool "bull fight" were a bunch of guys hop in a stadium and chase around a bull that's trying to stab em 🦬 fortunately no one died this time but some dudes did find bull horn where it shouldn't be

Our area 70,- Elder Becerra- and his wife spoke to us and it was incredible!! I truly felt the spirit so strongly and he gave awesome thoughts on Jacob's ladder in Genesis and the temple covenants- and how the baptism and marriage (first and last covenants made in the temple) have the Son, The Father, and the Holy Ghost. 

Lastly we became a branch officially!!! We've been a family group for someone's and the application to be a branch was submitted- meaning we'll get a bigger meeting place and some leadership! Super excited to stay for 7 months and see the progress!!

Shout-outs:

mom for teaching me about Jacob's ladder and being the scriptorian she is

My comp Elder Silva for not getting too trunky on his last transfer💀💀

bleach for being invented

Elder Zavaleta and Rendon for leaving on the iron for three days 🤦

Pics:

We killed a tarantula and told an elder it's a toy - I didn't feel that bad until he realized it...

Nap-time on the bus!

Iguana eggs: taste weird but the iguana tasted like BBQ chicken 🐔 🦎

Church! 

Some quick dips in the local pool with white clothing and *real* priesthood authority! 

(Just a baptism don't worry President)

Medical People

 Johnny went with an elder from the other companionship in his apartment to go feed the starving dogs in this elders area. While going Johnny felt prompted to take his journal. While out they saw a crippled man in a wheelchair. They wheeled him up the hill to his home, to find he needed help. They noticed all the filth. His bed was crawling with bugs. They changed his sheets then scrubbed his clothes in a bucket of water. The Man watched them work. He kept saying your medical people. No the elders would respond were elders missionaries for the church of Jesus Christ. How the world will ever have is the truthfulness of the gospel and the greatest healer the world will ever know is Jesus Christ our. The Man watched them work. He kept saying your medical people. No the elders would respond were elders missionaries for the church of Jesus Christ. How true the man’s words were. The greatest medicine in the world will ever have is the truthfulness of the gospel and the greatest healer the world will ever know is Jesus Christ our savior and redeemer .

Very prepared for us

 Hey! It's been awesome here in El Carmen! These last few weeks have felt exciting; we witnessed the Lord's hand SO much, some drunk guy sat on me, we got in some newspaper articles, we impersonated a cop, I lost our phone, and we witnessed a little 3 year-old kill a baby chick. 

We see the Lords hand so much, especially with our members and traveling. A member was remembering when they saw us and he said he felt impressed to walk over and talk to us. He'd been inactive for a while and he is a huge part of our future branch now!

The Lord won't break the "law of the land" but fortunately he has his Colombian disciples to do it for him: On one of our bus rides home, there was a LOT of traffic, so much that we would've gotten home super late. I was getting worried when the bus driver flicked on his red & blue flashing lights with his siren and he started speeding up... we were all laughing at the long line of angry cars we had just passed and we made it home in time!

We met a former mayor of our city who did the local newspaper. He was SO excited to see us and invited us in. He'd been asking for missionaries for a long time and found us. He said we can put anything we want in the newspaper; he's an amazing guy who was very prepared for us. 

One bus ride we were sitting next to some drunk guys, one was asking me what his tequila was called in English so I told him he was drinking weenie juice. They had to throw up so they just sat on me on their way out of the bus...

We're teaching some people that sell chicks after they dye them and as they were roaming around the floor, this little 3 year old accidentally stepped on one and when we showed her its broken foot and neck she started laughing... we're debating between plan of salvation or the "don't murder" commandment for the next lesson haha

There's a long update! Appreciate you all!

after he was baptized he started swimming around..

 Buenas! These last couple weeks have been suuuper sweet! We had some interesting bus rides, I bought a ukelele and we had a baptism!

Last week we were on our daily bus and the police stopped us for an I.D. check- just to limit gang activity between cities. Because I'm new and don't have an I.D.... I just gave them my temple recommend (I have no clue what i expected) and I was kinda worried because we had a busy day that day. The police just saw it and probably thought no way this dumb American's in a gang and just let us go.. super cool blessing!

We had a baptism Saturday!! His name is Sebastian! He's a funny kid that wanted to get baptized so we rented a pool place and after he was baptized he started swimming around.. I'm so glad I was able to help give Seb the amazing gift of the Holy Ghost and I know that the gospel will bless him!! 

Yesterday in sacrament we hit a new record!! We got 22 people and we had current investigadors come!! I'm so glad that the church is growing here and we're on track to be a branch by January!

Pics:

some cool turtle bread

SEBAS

Chruch😎

motocarros are lit

teach him how to write

 Hey! This last week has been super awesome! We traveled a whole bunch this last week... and I'm traveling as a write this right now... 

we will have traveled on the bus for about 14 or 15 hours by the end of this week😎 we were only able to work in our city a few days but we got in a couple dates and did plenty of contacting! We got 9 people in church yesterday and expect 15 or more in a couple weeks! 

We also had our English class and I love it every time! There's a couple people on that class that are super cool- one named Alejandro and the other named Cesar. Alejandro has very good English, and he wants to work in a call center. Hes AMAZING at guitar and we relly look forward to lessons with him because we usually end up listening to him play. Cesar is someone we found online, and we started lessons with him but it felt kinda weird because he NEVER spoke to us. We would ask him stuff and he just smiled, but the next time we asked if he read the Book of Mormón, and he read like 14 ir 15 chapters In a couple days. Super cool dude, I noticed learning englisb was hard for him and then saw that all he knew to write was his name... I'm gonna try to teach him how to write.

When we were in a Barranquilla, it was 5 of us new missionaries trying to get around to the different visa places. By the evening we headed to the bus station and just COULDNT find a taxi anywhere. After a couple hours we found a funny guy. We stacked all of us in the back and it felt like we were in a car chase. This man was swerving in and out of lanes and it was so sweet- once we made it to the bus we got a call to stay in Barranquilla because it was too late... I felt kinda disappointed but that feeling disappeared when we got to the zone leaders house. We had a good night and im so glad I met them before we left! 

Anyways, if you made it thus far then congrats go make yourself a sandwich 👍

-Élder Seffker