Zapadores and a Baptism‏

So my mother dearest and a few other people asked that I describe a little bit about where I am at! And since I don´t really do it all that often I decided that this time would be a good idea.

My new area is in a fairly poor part of Santiago but it´s not terrible. We are a little bit out of the way and they aren´t much buildings. Yes, there are some sketchy parts where we are at but nothing has happened to us so there is nothing to worry about! The thing that is most rampant here though are the drugs. It is so sad to see. There are quite a few people who get addicted to drugs that it becomes more than just something fun to do or something to do with friends while they are all hanging out and what not. It literally eats away their conscience and over powers them. They become slaves to the drug. I see people but it´s almost as if they were just shells. Their eyes are just blank... They don´t think or act they just do. And the worst part is they can never get enough of the drug. They always need more. It is just so sad to see so many people like that. I mean I´m not saying that out of 10 people 9 are like that because it isn´t like that at all! But I have never seen such a high quantity in my life. It´s very sad and we try to talk to tell them we can help but the majority of the people here know the missionaries and they just kind of avoid us. 

That was the negative part! We also have some incredibly and truly wonderful people in our ward that are always so willing to help and do anything that we need. I do love the ward! It is small and a little unorganized but I can´t complain. We are finding new people to teach and that is great. I think the hardest part here is to find new people because so many people have ideas about who we are or what we do and they just shut us down right from the start but there are other people that give us one chance and learn that we aren´t like they thought and then end up loving us and inviting us to eat and start going to church and everything and that is fantastic because then they tell all their friends and hopefully introduce us and it just works out great! But that is the hardest part so far.

We had a beautiful baptism this last Sunday! There were quite a few road blocks but Rosa really wanted to get baptized and was able to accomplish that goal this last week! It was a very good experience for all who were there and quite a few members stayed after to help. She is such a sweet person and will be a light to her family and hopefully bring them back to Heavenly Father. She has a very long and hard story but is loved and cared for by a few sisters in the ward.

We are already ending February so make it a good week!

Cuídense

Elder Gunnell

 Nobody is going to be getting in to our apartment with this gate and all the spikes on the walls.

Keeping it short.

So I really loved the lesson last Sunday from Howard W. Hunter. I loved the example that was given about rowing a boat. And how the same resistence that pushes them away from their goal is the same resistence that is used to propel the boat forward with their paddles. Or in other words, resistence is needed to move forward. That´s just how it is in our lives! We can´t progress without having trials or problems or difficulties! They are all necessary so that we can move forward! That´s why we have hard times. I know that Heavenly Father doesn´t ever give us something that is too hard for us. We can always count on him to help us.

To tell you a little bit about our ward.... Haha.... Saturday night the 2nd counselor in the Bishopric called us and said that three of the four missionaries were going to have to speak in church the next day. Then at church we blessed and passed the sacrament, my comp taught the Gospel Principles class and while we were in that class they came and told us that the teacher for Priesthood wasn´t there and asked me to teach. So that was how fun our Sunday was:) I will have all sorts of opportunities to teach and participate in this ward! Haha

That´s all for this week! Have a marvelous week!!

Out preaching el evangelio,

Elder Gunnell

A pic of all the zone leaders and sister leaders at our monthly meeting with Pres!

New Sector, Companion, and Assignment!‏

First Happy anniversary to my dearest most fabulous parents!!!!! 

So I got transferred! Once again I returned to a zone/stake where I have already served, Zapadores. But I am in a different ward! I am in Recoleta Oriente with Elder Souza (from Brazil) and we are the now the Zone Leaders here! President called last Thursday saying that I would be transferred and that I would be a new zone leader so that was a pretty exciting phone call! I am really excited about it and I am sure that it is going to be a blast! I have a whole ton of things to learn and I`m sure it`s going to be adventure.

This is Elder Souza`s last transfer so he is peacing out in six weeks. I am thinking/hoping that I stay here until the rest of my mission. Haha I don`t want to pack up all my junk again before going home! Elder Souza is awesome. He is hilarious and I know we are going to be able to do good things here. He is a very good missionary and wants to work! It will be wonderful!! Next week I will have some more excited things to say since I just got here yesterday morning.

It was honestly soo hard to say goodbye to Simón Bolívar. I loved that ward and those people so much. They will forever have a place in my heart. But now it is time to move on and get to know more poeple so I´ll be alright:)

I would like to share a funny experience I had the other day. We went to the African family`s house (they went to church by the way and absolutely loved it!!) and they had moved their tv to paint a room. I see the tv and I notice there is a problem. I had thought they had broken it! So I told them something like hey I think your tv is broke. They look at me all funny like what are you talking about? And I was like well look at it! It is all curved!! That is not normal! It´s broke. I am really sorry but it´s broke... They are still looking at me all funny like umm.. no it´s not. We bought it like that. I ask, you bought it like that? You bought a broken tv? Why? They all laugh and tell me that there are televisions that are CURVED!!!!!!!!! What?! Since when has that existed?! A curved tv??? If that existed before my mission I had no idea. What`s it like to live in a world of technology? I wonder what other kinds of things have come out and I am just terribly out of the loop. haha

Peace and blesssing,

Elder Gluegun (a nickname I was once given)

This kid has transfers...

Round 2 with the oatmeal cookies. So dang tasty!

 Saying a very difficult goodbye... I love this family. Thomas, Luisa, Fran, and Mane

 Saying chao to the good `ol ward Simon Bolivar.

A quick invitation!‏

I don´t know if any of you have seen the Mormon Message that´s named Reflections. If you haven´t my invitation is that set aside four minutes of your day, click on the link below, watch the video and really focus, then ask yourself what your learned and how you can apply it in your life, then DO IT.

https://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/series/mormon-messages/reflections

Love always,

Elder Gunnell :)

Just a quick one

I´ve got very few minutes but I´ll give a short run down on this week.

Last Monday there was a fire in our apartment building. We live on the 10th floor and it was on the 5th but below us. Luckily no one was in the house but that made it a little complicated to put out. By the time it was finally put out, by the neighbors and other people near by, just about everything was destroyed which is so sad. The firefighters got there but a little, or I guess too, late because with all the fire houses that we had lowered down from all of our floors they basically were able to put it out. The family is okay, a little shaken, but okay and living with the grandma until they can get everything figured out so keep them in your prayers!

Last week was a very slow and long week but there were positive things that happened too! One of the good things was that we found a family from Africa! They are from Kenya. They are sooo welcoming, so loving and so humble. Their fifteen year-old daughter got here about two months ago and is learning spanish. The parents have been here for about eight years and speak spanish very well. But I taught the lesson in English so that the daughter could understand. They offered us food the very instant they invited us in. I have never been invited into a house so quickly in my mission. We had a wonderful lesson and were able to give them a Book of Mormon in spanish. We were also able to help them download the Gospel Library app on their phones so that they could read it in one of the many languages they speak. Thank goodness for technology and a big thumbs up for that amazing application that I hope everyone is using DAILY!:)

I had an idea to make a ton of cookies and going around and giving them to the members and people that always give us food or do things for us so that we could thank them and ask if they knew anyone that we could visit or help out. The cookies which were oatmeal raisin (my favorites) and oatmeal chocolate chip turned out incredible but the idea flopped. It didn´t go as well as I had hoped. We didn´t get any references or names of people to visit. But that´s okay. It was worth a shot. I guess not everyone is as alive in the work as I would have hoped.

I pray for you all and hope that you have a fabulous week!

Over and out,

Elder Gunnell

Piano

First things first, I played the piano yesterday in Sacrament Meeting. For the first time in my life. Haha it went.. Well to be honest it was kind of a disaster haha but I think it was better than nothing! I mean I kind of figured I wasn`t going to play perfectly or anything and I was okay with that! Next time I play, which I think will be in two weeks, I am hoping that it goes a little bit better:) It is way different playing the piano alone and with the accompanement of people. So props to all those who can do it well! I definitely don`t have that talent! Well at least not yet, maybe one day I can develope it... We`ll see! But it was an adventure and it was something I had never done before so I feel good about it!

This week was a really successful week until Sunday. We found quite a few new people to teach which hadn`t happened in this sector for a long long time. The bummer of the week is that we were going to bring two families with us to church. One of the children of one of the families was sick so they decided not to go (the are from Haiti and are sooooooo cooooooool. I wish I could be Haitian.). They other family had some serious problems with the dad at like 3 in the morning... Which was really sad to be honest... The poor kids. We will go see how they are doing later this week and I hope that nothing worse has happened. I guess it`s not right to say that the week was a bad week just because it went bad on Sunday. In reality it was a good week. We could help a lot of people, get to know new people, and do service! I love doing service.

All in all I am doing well!

I would like to share something from a letter from a former companion of mine.

¨I really like this concept: I like to think of learning as a tool box. When we're born our tool box is empty; not a single tool in there. As we grow our parents work their very hardest to start putting together our tool box. They give us a screw driver here and a hammer there. They teach us to talk. That's a very useful tool because it allows us to ask for things we don't have or communicate to others that we're in a dangerous situation and that we need help. They teach us to use the potty which allows us to not be societal outcasts. Etc. Etc. In this point in our lives we should expand our tool kits to do valuable things. Knowing how to work with computers is valuable to a company. Knowing how to get people to buy things is valuable to a company. Knowing how to drive and successfully bring pizza to someone's door is seven-dollars-and-twenty-five-cents-per-hour-plus-tips valuable to Pizza Hut. [Our grand responsibility and great purpose is] to pack as many skills, talents, abilities, and knowledge into [our] toolbox[es] as possible. Think of this: The Lord has the complete tool kit. He knows how to do everything, and He probably uses His whole tool kit to bring to pass His plan. This life is a time to make our tool boxes look like His so that we can use our tool boxes like He uses His. And He gives us trials and weaknesses so that we can add even more tools to the box. He does it because He loves us!¨

So there is some of the profound doctrine of a good friend of mine and just a little something to think about! 

Thank you for all you are doing for me! It means more than you know.

Have a wonderful week!

Over and out, 

Elder Gunnell