Everything is Great... Thanks for the Help...

Hello Family,

Well things are going pretty good this week and all things are going well haha!!!  So this week we were mainly getting people ready for baptism and things so it has been pretty awesome I will try to get one or two photos up, the computer is really weird these days!!!  Anyway we baptized four people yesterday and it was really awesome two of them are a husband and a wife and they have a small boy so basically the family has been brought to the truth it is great!!!  We also baptized two other girls’ one a part member and the other was just a contact who is solid!!!  It has been great and the other cool thing is we have another baptism next Sunday again so it is getting awesome down here in this branch!!!!  The branch is doing well and good and things are getting better with how things are being run!!!! 

The branch president is starting to get things down and things are running more smoothly I hope they will keep it up as time is going on!!!  The district is doing well and thriving there are only 4 of us but we are working pretty hard down here and we may be receiving a few more elders in the next couple of weeks so we will see!!!!  The comp is still doing well and I am enjoying all the things that are going on here!!!!  We also were able to play soccer again this week which was awesome and I also enjoyed it we were two on 3 and were doing pretty good!!!!  Also you mentioned about this boy that Katie brought that is good that he can play wrestling and football and pole vault but I can guarantee he won’t beat me in soccer or bball haha hahaha it’s a joke but I am being serious if he is there when I get home we will see!!!! 

The boy’s name is Joseph, The one that needed something and he is a great guy my favorite friend in the entire mission!!!  So this is awesome!!!!  I also want to thank everybody that has contributed money for this boy here (Brad and Chris, Wayne Lee, Brian W, Curtis and Diane, Grandma and grandpa Hatch, Chevy and Brittany, Jean and Dave, Jill and Jim) I know I may not have spelled everything right either but thank you for this I know that this will be able to help and bless him as he is preparing for mission and helping the full time missionaries!!!!  I will be sure to take some photos so that you will know who he is and be able to see him!!!!!  If I didn’t mention somebody I am sorry I thank you as well for this and all that will be done!!!  I hope that everyone will enjoy the family reunion and things will be going well have a good week!!!!  Love you all!!!!

Elder Welling

Enjoying Every Second of the Mission...

Hello Family,

Things are going good here and I am enjoying every second of the mission!!!  This week there wasn’t a lot going on but there are a lot of people that we are teaching!!!  The good thing is we were able to confirm our last week’s baptism and it was cool!!!  We also have coming up this next week two baptisms and it will also be cool to see!!!  There are a lot of people here that are waiting for the gospel and things and it is interesting to see how the Lord is gathering his elect!!!!  People are excepting the Gospel right and left despite a few challenges here and there!!!  So it should be pretty fun!!!!  I am pretty sure though that this next transfer the comp will be moved but it will be all good and things will work out!!!

We have interviews coming up this week with president so it should be a pretty interesting thing that happens here!!!! I am excited for it though!!!  There have been many things happening in the branch though so I am hoping that they will all be sorted out very nicely in the upcoming weeks!!!!  We were also able to play a little soccer again this week and it was awesome we did really well and I always enjoy playing!!!!  Hopefully it will continue until I reach the end here!!!!  These branch missionaries are really good and it is surprising because we pulled in some of the younger kids this time and they played as if they have been playing for years so it was pretty cool to see!!!

It sounds like all things are going good that side!!!!  I can’t think of anything else I want in that package I forgot though to bring the address again so i will make sure that I bring it next time for sure!!!!  Hope all is well though and things going good that side!!!!  The summer is closing fast there and pretty soon it will be back to the cold weather I would like some of that by the way!!!!  So if you could get some of that and send it this side i would much appreciate it hahaha!!!  Thanks to all the family and I love you all so much enjoy the weeks!!!  Oh yeah and sorry dad about the pic thing I did put 100 pics downloading and then the power quit to the entire country so it disrupted!!  This week we are in the ghetto emailing shop so no pics this week but I will try and get them to you next week!!!!

Love Elder Welling  

Baptisms, Pictures and time is flying by......

Hello Family

I hope all is going well that side from the pics and emails I would say it is even though all the exhaustion is there!!!  Anyway this week was really good we taught very many lessons and have a lot of people ready for baptism in the upcoming weeks!!!  We have two to four people that will be baptized on the 26th possibly as well as the one we baptized this last Sunday and then we should even have one on the 2nd of august as well so it is good and the Lords work is moving along very nicely!!!  The guy we baptized is a pretty sweet guy and very down to earth!!!  He was taught once before but denied it and then he found the church in our area and found us the missionaries and asked us if we could teach him!!!  Well he progressed and then he entered the waters of Mormon yesterday!!! haha  It was good he was very happy and ready for it!!  So it was a good day for everybody!!!  All things are going well though and the branch is doing better!!! 

I am not so sure if you sent a package yet but hopefully if you have it will be here when the mission president comes!!!!  I also know that now that I am in Malawi if you send things direct to the Malawi post I can get them faster letters take ten days and packages a month!!!  I will get that address and things for you but I left the planner at home so next week I’ll get it!!!  but it will be there for the email next week!!!  Man that camp is a reminder of the woods there at the hunting camp for sure I miss that place and funny enough that is also coming up here in 3 months or so haha!!!  Something I also realized is school starts for those ones there here in about 5 weeks the summer
is flying by!!!!

I am uploading I think about a hundred photos to the dropbox today so I hope they all go through and I will get some more for you next Monday when I come and email!!!  I don’t have too much info on the Stones but before I go or they go I will get the info from them so you could go, that would be awesome although I do know that this is their third mission that they have been on so it is pretty cool to be able to see all of those things!!!!  We did play soccer again this week which was really fun and exciting as always!!!  There are a lot of friends here in this branch though more than in any of the other branches here!!!  So it will be pretty hard to leave this branch when I get transferred!!  All things are going well though and we are doing good!!!  Something funny though that I will add in here, Me and the comp we were teaching a lesson this week and it was a pretty spiritual lesson to start out with!!  Well we reached a certain point in the lesson and my companion turns to the investigator with all seriousness and says "what is the name of Jesus Christ?" I thought about that question for a moment and then started laughing pretty bad!!!  Because of the question asked, My comp looked at me puzzled and he said what’s wrong and I said "you asked a really inspired question there!!!" more laughing until he finally caught it and by this time the whole room was laughing!!!  It was pretty good!!!  Anyway Have a good week to everyone and Love you all!!!

Love Elder Welling

Question: Do the Africans wear a lot of strange jewelry?

Answer: Yes and they wear them everywhere, also there is a crazy tribe down here called the Goulie-Wan Coulou, they are a crazy people and run around the areas with spears and machetes, sorry no photos, don’t want to get too close to these guys!!

Two Letters this Week...

Hey Family!!!

All things are going good here and things are well!!  This week has flown by well actually since I hit Malawi it seems as if time is speeding and it is really weird!!!  I mean it will be nice to be home but I am going to miss this place a lot!!!  We taught a lot of people this week and we had 9 investigators at church which was awesome!!!  We will be also having a baptism this next week for a guy here who is really powerful!!!!  All things will be good for him!!!  I was also able to play soccer again this week which I am really enjoying, these natives are really good and I am getting better!!!  I also played one on one with the branch missionary I won haha 5 to 1 He didn’t think I could play so I challenged him to play me!!!  All went well this week though!!!

Oh and Dad the people here do that to friends and cousins and older people they call them dad, mom, uncle, aunt it makes things personal and better for them even me, I call older people now here mom and dad because it is the culture here and that is how the people like it!!!  Yes I paid pretty close attention to things when I was young and I am using that knowledge to help but I have also used the hand book of instruction to assist as well!!!  So all things will be going good here they just have to get use to all the things that they have to do!!!  There is a really nice senior couple here called the Stones they stay in vernal a very nice people yes Vernal Utah they come home in December and things I will get you the ward and time so you could visit them when they come home they are a really nice couple and just like the Skidmores!!!  That would be cool!!!!

Haha it sounds very funny that those boys threw it away because they spilled beans in there hahaha what were they thinking lol I should have been there because I would have been laughing the whole time!!!!  I will work on the pic thing but it is difficult on these computers and also for the network to get those things downloaded but I’ll work on it!!!  I hope all will be going well there this week though and people will enjoy.  I hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend and all went well!!  Also to my Only Sister have a happy birthday this week hope it is a good one!!!!  Hi to all the family as well have a good week and a great Monday Love you all!!!!

Elder Welling

Hey Mom,

So thought I would write you here and answer some of the questions this week so I don’t forget them when I write the other one!!!  Anyway that first question I am doing just fine thank you for asking but don’t worry about me the Lord takes better care of me on a mission than anywhere else!!!  Also being a Boy Scout and things has taught me many things in leadership and how to survive no matter where I am and what the environment is!!!!  Also from hunting and figuring out landscapes and things anyway!!!  I don’t have to worry even if we get stranded I know what to do and who to turn too!!!  Just the other day me and the comp were walking and we had walked for quite some time well the comp is from Africa and he said well which way do we go and I was able to point out exactly where we could find home where to find church where we could find town and the best possible route to take to each location!!!  Tying knots and certain things to hold things together and things like that.  We Build fires here because sometime the power goes out and we have to cook on coal or fire so it has helped and I am not afraid of anywhere that I go because I can survive!!!  I am glad the 4th was typically good like it always is haha.  But yes most likely I will finish the mission herein Malawi!!!!  Elder Cook also told us something interesting when he was here as well!!!  He said to have progressing investigators and members and branches you have to be progressing missionaries!!!  Which hit us all hard in order for us to progress others we ourselves need to be progressing every day and time!!!  I thought it was a way cool insight!!!  Things come line upon line and precept upon precept not all at once!!!  Time is for sure running fast and I can’t believe how fast it is going for sure!!!  It will be gone shortly but all will be for the good here!!!  Have a good week Mom Love you!!!!