Week 17 &18: Extra cool email: Thanksgiving!

Me and my zone on the top of Koko head

 

Aloha kākou! Super sorry I was not able to write a weekly last week. But it was worth it because now I have one email to fit a whole two weeks worth of people, places, and miracles!! Thanks for tuning in

So last p-day was pretty weird . We did a hike called Manoa falls and I was so excited to go on a hike finally in this area that of course I brought my camera. However, shortly into the hike it started pouring rain and the bag I kept my camera in isn't waterproof . I basically hid it under my shirt the whole time. Beautiful view though! We passed by an area where they were setting up plants for shooting Aquaman 2. Didn't see Jason Mamoa though. Oh well.

Have I talked about Barry before? Well Barry is one of our investigators. He's really nice and very interested in the gospel. He was originally on date to be baptized but was pushed back because of some issues with the word of wisdom. And he has a friend named Randall. Now Randall is a bit of a trouble maker. He's nice too, but he can sometimes make it difficult to teach lessons simply because he's attending quite a few churches and has different ideas of what things mean. Recently we've taught Barry about keeping the commandments and how the Book of Mormon blesses our lives and guides us. Randall wasn't there for that lesson. BUT, Randall was present during the last lesson of which we discussed temples and family history. He had a lot of questions and turned it into more of a debate. We tried our best to explain the best we could and eventually the lesson got across to both. It will just be interesting to see how it goes from there .

Thanksgiving was the BEST! And I thought Halloween was fun! We had dinner at a Tongan family's house. They are relatives of Brother and Sister Uyema in our ward. The food was sooooo goood! It was the perfect blend of traditional Thanksgiving food while also some Hawaiian favorites! Kalua pig, baked Mac n cheese, stuffing, turkey, Lau Lau(pork in some green cabaggy stuff) and TONS of desert. Getting hungry yet? After the food, me, Elder Thompson, and the AP's Elder Anderson and Elder Horsely gave a message about being grateful. It was really cool and really invited the spirit. But that's not all. Not even close. We did Karaoke! Everyone at the tables were telling the AP's to sing a song but they got scared. So before we left I sang the classic hit "Everybody Talks" by Neon Trees. Oh the applause was deafening! Just kidding but it brought a lot of laughs .

So in the last two weeks there's been quite a few baptisms in our stake! Me and Elder Thompson had the cool opportunity to give the missionary moment for two of the baptisms. We did this for a woman named Connie and a bro named Len. It was awesome because it gave us the opportunity to share the Restoration lesson and it ALWAYS brings the spirit. You have no idea how touching it is to see people being baptized as a missionary. It's so motivating for me and really inspires me. I'm so proud of them!

Another cool thing that happened was that I was able to speak in church yesterday. I was asked to speak on missionary work and I talked about how faith and works helps the work move forward. It was a great opportunity for me to ask myself how we as missionaries use our faith to push us forward. I mentioned the story in Joshua about how the Israelites carried the Ark of the covenant across the Jordan River. They were promised that the river would part, but it didn't part until they stepped into the water. This story is a good reminder that as much faith as we have, we can bless ourselves and others as we act on our faith. 

Oh and did I mention that President and Sister Walker were in church today?  I definitely wasn't expecting that.

Well that's pretty much my week(s). I want you to know that I'm grateful for you. I can see specifically who receives these emails and I love and miss every single one of you. This mission would be a lot harder to do if it weren't for your love and support. 

Have a great week! Aloha!

Yours, Elder Nielsen

Pictures: These ones wouldn't load

1-2. Last week's hike to Manoa falls

7. Me singing  Don't judge too harshly.

 Can't remember why, but I really wanted to take this picture. Maybe for posterity.

This is a cat. Can't remember where it was.

Tongan Thanksgiving!

The view from Koko head!

 

Week 16: Video making and Elder Bednar!

Me, Elder Clapper (right), and Elder Kunz his new companion and my missionary brother(left)

 Aloha kākou!

We made some pretty cool videos this week! They've been received well a day some people are putting in pretty awesome comments. Thanks for supporting our Hawaii page it's been introducing a lot of people to the gospel and hearing more about Jesus Christ.

Me and Elder Thompson got moved to a new pad since ours was so gross. By the 

way, we didn't ask to be moved but everyone from the office was looking for a new place for a while. We are moving in with two other Elders that I actually came in the mission with. Elder Hull and Elder Heath. We love our new pad and they are both really cool!

So some funny things that happened was a dog bit my shoe. We were going around handing out flyers for a relief society activity and we stopped by a house with a door propped open. We knocked once, knocked twice, I heard a weird grunting noise and thought it was the lady coming to answer the door. I turned and there was a medium-small sized dog running at us. I held the door closed and put my foot in the door. It barked at us and started to bite my shoe. Then the sister came out and closed the door looking really annoyed at me. I mean sorry your dog tried to bite my foot off. It was funny trying to introduce myself to an annoyed old woman after her dog bit me. But after we talked for a bit everything got better and she didn't seem annoyed anymore. Elder Thompson laughed because he forgot to tell me about the dog  thanks.

Anyway we got to go meet with Elder Bednar in Laie! The moment he stood up, he told us that he wouldn't be giving any talks. We were just going to discuss and ask questions based on the talks he asked us to read beforehand. He didn't act super chastising or super serious. He was joking around with us and sincerely answered our questions and I even got the mic and talked about faith the missionaries have. He answered a lot of questions that I didn't know I had. That was the main thing that he taught us was that the spirit is with us 24/7 and will help us answer more questions than we ever knew we had. My testimony of missionary work is so much stronger! He testified to us that we were all doing enough as missionaries and we needed to keep doing our best.

After the meeting I got to be reunited with my old Mililani zone. It was so weird and fun. The drive to laie and back was so crazy beautiful! 

An apostle of the Lord testified to us with a fervent testimony that Jesus is the Christ and that he lives. I would like to bear my own testimony that God trusts you and lives you more than you ever will understand. He sent his only begotten to make it possible for us to have eternal salvation.

If you're not a member and you want to know why we as members share what we believe so much I invite you to listen to his talk entitled "Come and See". It's a talk he gave specifically for nonmembers of the church and I highly recommend it.

Well everyone, it's been a great week. Just know that I'm the happiest I've ever been and there's no place I'd rather be! 

Have a great week and love you all! If there's anything I can do for any of you just let me know! Aloha!

Pictures

JURASSIC PARK JEEP IN LAIE!!

Laie is so dang pretty!

Week 15: Honolulu is pretty fun! First Week in New Area

The view in Kahala is pretty nice.

 Aloha kākou! ( That means hello everyone!)

I never thought I'd be serving in the busiest place in the whole mission but here I am! 

I guess I should explain my new assignment and what I'll be doing. So first thing is I still serve in a ward. It's the ward covering the Kahala area. It's actually the ward that covers where the mission president lives. There's a running joke that President and Sister Walker have been so inactive from going to church that we as Elders are going to accomplish the impossible and reactivate them. I mean it's like they think they're too busy or something .

The Kahala ward boundary is a pretty great area to serve in. It's very beautiful and it's right next to the ocean. It's a very part of the island. In fact I think it's the wealthiest part. But so far we've been talking to some pretty cool people and have had lessons with some investigators including a father and a son named Michael and Ben. Ben is 10 years old and was just recently baptized. His dad Michael also listens in on the lessons and believes pretty much all he's being taught and he does want to be baptized. The funny part is that his fiancee is very christian and was baptized in the Jordan River? I mean that's pretty cool. But she wants him to be baptized in the Jordan River too. So he apparently can't be baptized until he gets to Israel basically.

Another cool thing that happened recently was stake conference. It was all held in the tabernacle and it was so awesome! Saturday was an adult session where President and Sister Walker, Elder Clarke from the Quorum of the 70, and other amazing speakers spoke at. It was cool as a missionary to hear the words that were spoken in one of the most unique buildings I've ever been in.

Elder Bednar's big meeting is this Sunday. The AP's told us to read certain talks by him that we can use to prepare for it. They also mentioned that he has a history of calling people up to speak . So I'm definitely going to read up on that so if he calls on me I won't faint.

I'm grateful that I'm able to serve in h-tech because it gives me an opportunity to use some of my talents that my Heavenly Father has given me. He encourages us to use our talents to benefit others.

Matthew 5:16

 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Did you know that using your talents glorifies your Father in heaven!? At times we may think that we don't have a lot of skills or we see others having way more skills than we do. Well I'd like to make a bold promise to you: If you take a second to appreciate all the talents that God has given you, you will feel of Gods love in a way you have never felt before.

This week, use your talents to inspire or serve someone around you and it can be anything! Music, art, speeches, Etc. You can make a difference in someone's life as you use your talents.

Well it's been a crazy week and I look forward to another one!

Thank you all for being an influence in my life! Have a great week!

Aloha!

Pictures!

Me and Elder Clapper

 

Me and Elder Thompson!

The view from my new pad. Rainbow!

 Aaaah! Park visits are my favorite.

This Elder was with my group coming in the mission and the next day he was heading to Brazil. Good luck Elder Olsen!

A speaker from stake conference who's actually from Lincoln!

Week 14: I'm moving to the City!

 Elder Clapper and I at the park where we do comp study

 

Aloha kākou!

This week has been crazy!

Jasmine made the decision to be baptized and she is set for November 21st! I am so proud of her! 

On Wednesday we got to go to Pearl Harbor again and did work on the Missouri. We set up chairs for the naval band who played there and they were so good! Actually just as we got on the bus to leave they started playing the Incredibles! I was so mad that I couldn't record all of it! After the Missouri, we did some service for a lady in another ward. She taught us how to fight with sticks in Hawaiian Lua fashion. It was scary cuz I was going first against her. I dropped the stick and ran. I mean *cough* I stood my ground as best I could.

Hey pro tip for anyone going on a mission soon. If you are trying to talk to someone around the same age as you, chances are they will think you're flirting. That happened to me some days ago. Me and Elder Clapper were just trying to set up an appointment and the girl kept giggling at us . Oh well.

Transfer news came on Saturday night! I'm now done with my 12 weeks of training and ,unfortunately, leaving Elder Clapper . My new assignment is serving in the Honolulu zone doing H-Tech! So basically I'm one of the missionaries involved with making videos and handling social media for the entire mission! I'm so excited and I've never lived in a big city before! To be honest I'm not sure where I'm living or where I'm going to be doing the majority of work but I know who my next companion is. His name is Elder Thompson. He actually came up and said hi to me at the first Oahu zone conference. I'm not sure what the Lord's trying to say to me by paring me up with the tallest people that walk this earth but he's like '6''4. 

Halloween was actually pretty great! We went to the Domingos house to help pass out candy for a little bit and then we made plates of food to take home. Then we went to see Mike who isn't a member but had a lot of questions about the church. We taught him the Restoration and that is a church centralized on Jesus Christ. He was really interested! Then we talked about some movie stuff since he's a cinematographer and he told me if I ever wanted to borrow some of his cameras for mission videos I could!

OK one last funny story. So we went to the Domingos house for dinner on Wednesday. We taught a lesson about repentance in the context of baptism to their son who wants to be baptized. He showed us some of his magic tricks and they were pretty good! But for dinner we had Panda Express and they had me try Diet Mtn Dew for the first time. Now let me explain myself. I've never had Mtn Dew. I've had coke plenty of times same with Pepsi and Dr. Pepper. However I'm not sure what chemical catastrophe happened inside me but I could not handle the caffeine . I was bouncing up and down and was twitching the whole time, I was laughing at jokes that weren't funny (my own) and everyone else(including Elder Clapper) were laughing at me the whole time . So moral of the story is don't give mysterious caffeinated beverages to Elder Nielsen.

Last Tuesday we went to the temple! The night before,  our mission president told us to fast. We fasted for about 24 hours which I've never fasted for that long but it was so worth it. I was so much more focused while in the temple and I could feel the spirit so clearly. I went in with the question of what I should do to be a better missionary. I was given the impression that I should study more from the Doctrine and Covenants. It's the scriptures that talk about the revelations given to the key figures of the restoration of the church; primarily Joseph Smith.

After we got out of the temple it was about 10 pm and me and Elder Clapper hightailed it to the nearest McDonald's . I've never enjoyed a quarter pounder more in my life. But the fast brought upon a lot of miracles I never would have imagined.

The reason we're asked to fast monthly is to show devotion to our Heavenly Father and putting aside the needs of our body to pray and ask earnestly what He would have us to learn. Just like Jesus Christ sacrificed his life for us and Heavenly Father, we try to exemplify our Savior by giving up eating or drinking for a short time. In my life, I've seen fasting for family members or friends who have been sick or even during the more serious years of drought in California and it's always helped in some way.

We are promised that the sacrifices we make will bring blessings to us and help us in more ways than we at first think. So if you have a question weighing down on you or you just want something in your life eased; maybe try to fast and thank Heavenly Father for what he's given us.

Well anyway that was my week! Thanks for reading this even though it's a day late. Next time you hear from me I'll be in Honolulu City! Thanks for all your love and support.

Aloha!

Pictures

1. Me and the Fenton family(my first lesson as a missionary)

2. Me, the Durrets, and the Strains

3. Me, Elder Clapper, and the McMillans

4. Me and the Gaileys

10. Picture with the Bishop Miyamotos Family

Elder Clapper and I at the park (crying) where we do comp study.

The U.S.S. Missouri firing guns

Patrick gave me and Elder Clapper free hats!

The Gaily's

The McMillans

The Durrets and Strains

The Fentons

The ward trunk or treat

Bishop Miyamoto and family