7 Baptisms in 5 Weeks....

Hello Family

I hope things are going good for you all there and having a great time!!!  I also want to say that if you are having a good time keep it up and ill join you in 12 days hahaha just kidding!!!  This week has been pretty good and I have enjoyed a lot here we had the 2 baptisms and it has been really well with us!!!  The converts are good and doing well here and I am glad for them!!!  It has been pretty good with me and ford here, I have been somewhat surprised here because me and Ford in 5 weeks we have been able to play a part in 7 baptisms here and it has been a great run!!!!!  It was great!!!!  The time is moving fast and I am almost not believing that I leave in 12 days it’s just not something that I have realized yet but it is coming!!!  We are still working pretty good we found a family last week and it seems to have potential to be progressing We are going to see them today at 3 and see what we can help them with there!!!  Other than that we are still trying to help the others we already have!!!!  

Not too many fun things to do though before I come home here but I will find some cool things for me before I come home and for sure I already have a few picked out hahaha!!!  It should be going good though!!  Well Things are going good here and yes there are many things I have left to tell all of you since I have been here and they will get old as I am there but for now as you all know I am pretty Lazy at typing emails and things so it would be better that I tell you in person hahaha!!!  I will talk to you next week though hope you all enjoy the week and have a great time!!!  Love you all!!!!

Elder Welling

 Mission Leadership Conference

Doing Great and Finishing Strong....

Hello Family

Things are going good here in Africa for sure and we are enjoying no problems!!!  I thought for sure that the baptisms and confirmations we just had were going to be the last, but we are working with 2 others that they will be baptized this week which is really awesome and I am excited for it for sure!!!  Me and Elder Ford are trying to get some others on the same path but from the looks of it they won’t be ready till after I am gone but we will continue with them till then!!!  The branch is good and doing well and all is getting better and bigger!!!  We are hoping to find a better building for the branch to meet in sometime this coming week but hopefully it will get there!!!  There is really not a whole lot to tell of this week it was a pretty straight forward week to be honest!!!

We didn’t really do anything today either but all is going well!!!  I didn’t get any pics on this week either but I will take some of the baptisms here and get them sent that side this upcoming Monday!!!  It should be good and ready then!!!!  Other than all of this it looks like the bball schedule is doing well wish I could be there to see all the games and things.  I like to watch those but it has been a while hahaha!!!  It will be good to see those again!!!  Hopefully I can still play it has been a while again so we will see!!!  Anyway I hope all will have a good week and a great Monday and I love you all!!!!!

Elder Welling

Family Baptisms.....

Hello Family

Hope things that side are going good but from the emails and things it seems like they are!!  Anyway things are going good here and me and the comp are enjoying the time that we are having to be together and things!!!  We are excited because we were able to have some 5 baptisms yesterday as I was able to mention and things it went very well!!!  They were 2 families and one from a part member family the branch president daughter who was really excited for it!!!  We had a good time, we are planning to have another one here in the next 2 weeks but it will just be one and it should be set in stone by next week as we are going there to teach him and things like that!!!  Elder Ford is doing well and he is enjoying Lilongwe and things he will be used to it by the time I am out of here!!

The group has now been officially made a branch and things down here so we no longer have to go to the 47 branch there and things like that!!!  We will be able to stay in the area and do the things that we need to!!!  We are hoping for a couple of callings to be given to the branch members there so they will remain active and help to lift the branch!!!!  The mission is changing here for sure, it is looking like a whole different place, there are a lot of new faces coming in and fulfilling spots so it is weird to see them all especially when I traveled to Lusaka and saw them all!!! The Zone is doing well though they are all having a good time and we hope they are enjoying the mission work!!!

As time is coming to a close it is getting weirder and weirder to think about for sure and I can’t even realize that it is so close to the end!!!  People here keep saying it but never really internalized it haha but for sure it is there!!!  It will be difficult to leave all the friends here and things but hopefully things will work out.  I sent a suit case full of stuff to mission home yesterday so they are just waiting for me to come there get it and go!!!  Not too many things went really cool this week since I spent it in meetings but the meetings were good and President sure does have a vison for where the mission should and is going, so it is really good!!!  It sounds like things are good there and everyone is enjoying the time there!!!  I hope all will have a good week and I love you all!!!!

Elder Welling

Baptisms and Traveling this week....

Hello Family

Hope things are going good for you all this week!!  It has been good here too!!!  The snow that side sounds awesome wish I could be there to see it!!!!  I am hoping to be able to see it here in a bit for sure!!!  I miss that white stuff for sure!!!  It has been long without it and it seems like without it the seasons are not even changing at all!!!  I know I have been climatized a bit to the weather down here but I am ready to reclimatize to the snow and cold!!!  It sounds like the bball games there are going good and everyone is enjoying there other than the traveling in the weather!!  I am sorry to hear about what happened to the house and the flooding it is really sad that it happened.  Things are going good though and I am sure things will be fine as time goes on!!!  

Here things are great and doing well haha we are working on and getting two families prepared for baptism and they both have been interviewed and will be baptized next week Sunday which is awesome!!!  There are 5 in total and it is awesome to be a part of!!!  I think these will most likely be the last ones I get on mission but it has been a good run for sure!!!  The branch is doing great and is growing in number every week that goes by it should be becoming a branch this month but things are moving very slowly for the meeting house to be found!!!  All things will run smoothly though!!  Me and Ford are enjoying the time that we are having but the time is moving very fast and even more than I have anticipated for sure!!!  We will be going to Lusaka this week for a meeting with the mission president so it will be fun I am looking forward to it!!!  I hear that it is a lot of fun to be there in these things when they happen!!!  So we will see how that goes and I will most likely be getting all the travel things down and ready to go there before they send me back down here to prepare to go back up hahaha!!!  Anyway I will let you know how that will go!!!  

The Zone is doing good and they are getting the work done in all the areas that they should so it is very nice!!!  People here are doing good and I have a lot of friends in this Zone for sure!!  Oh and something that is really cool is Elder Bakari the first missionary I trained that went to Uganda is the Zone leader that side and he has Elder Gangire the other missionary that I trained in his Zone which is really cool!!!!

They are doing well though I am keeping in contact with them as well as I can!!  Also Joseph and the other branch missionaries are doing well there in the MTC and in the field which is awesome never thought I would get to see all the branch missionaries from Kalambo branch here go on missions with me being able to put them all on the plane!!!  It has been awesome!!  Anyway hope all will have a good week and I love you all!!!

Elder Welling

Families Progressing....

Hello family!!

 This week has been pretty good and all things are going great here!!!  As you already know I have a new comp and he and I are doing well getting along and trying to do the work as best we can!!!  It is getting rough trying to get started again after getting people moved around and things but it is all doing well and going good!!!!  We are teaching family right now actually 2 and it is good they are on date for the 7th of February and it is really awesome to see them get there!!!  We are also trying to keep the Zone going good and helping them to go and do the things they are supposed to!!!!   The group is supposed to be becoming a branch here soon so that will be nice and all that we are not crowded every Sunday into a really tiny house struggling for air and wind and cold haha most of the time it is the white missionaries that have a problem with the heat hahaha!!

Well today we went and played soccer with some guys at a field and it was pretty awesome we won 10 to 2.  I had four of those goals and my friend that was playing striker with me had 3 and then the others it was pretty sweet!!!  I like to play that game and it has helped to relieve a lot of stress and things so I enjoyed very much!!!   Anyway other than that me and Ford will be going to Lusaka this next week to meet with the rest of the leadership of the mission and to convene with president which will be awesome and a little bit of a break from the work but all is well!!!

I want to say thank you for the package and the things that were in there and yes mom I have finished at least one the first 24 hours it was there and I am sure when I start the other one I will be eating it pretty fast too, it is a pound of chocolate but I sure can put it down in a short period of time!!!  Its a good thing they only come once a year hahaha!!!  I am doing good and having a great time, it is flying and coming very fast to a close it will be hard but the cold weather is calling my name I am tired of sweating just sitting at a computer while emailing!!!  I know some people want warm weather but I speak on behalf of all of you there,  no you don’t I would rather be cold than sit in a pool of my own sweat just for typing emails and reading!!! hahahaha 

Anyway have a good week to all and a great day Love you all!!!

Elder Welling

Last Transfers and A New Branch....

Hello Family,

Well things are going good this week just having a good time here these last weeks and trying to get as many things done as I can!!  So the main thing that has happened this week is the transfers and things I am not moving but the comp is and for sure I will be getting a new comp haha Elder Ford is the one I am getting and I am super excited for it, it has been a while since I have seen him and been around him so we will see!!  This week though we have been preparing the families here for baptism on the 7th of Feb so it should be nice to get them there and things like that!!!  We are working on two other families to but they are not progressing as well as this other one so it is good !!!  We are trying to keep everyone going we are getting some new missionaries into the Zone and so we will see how that goes but we are also having a lot of people who are leaving so it should be good!!! 

The branch will be becoming an official branch here in the future in like 2 weeks so that will be good.  I am excited to get these people a branch instead of a house and a better place to keep things going!!  the group is weird because they only meet for about 2 hours, so I will be happy to see it go back to a 3 hour block and things!!!  It should be good as well to see if they will find a few more callings for more people there as soon as it is made a branch!!!  I am sad to see the current companion going but it is all good the new one and I will also have some fun!!!  I am looking forward to it!!!  I think Elder Ford will be the last comp before I go home!!!! 

There is not much else going on here other than these things and the work!!  We are enjoying for sure and seeing the Lords hand in his work all the time!!  It is pretty evident that the Lord knows what he is doing and it is also cool to be able to recognize those things as we are out in the area and things doing the work!!  It will continue to be good and it will go on for sure!!  The missionaries in this Zone are awesome and I am glad that I will be with them as I finish the mission I have made a lot of great friends in this Zone so it is really nice!!!  Have a good week to all and a great Monday Hope everyone enjoys Love you all!!!

Elder Welling

Work is Progressing....

Hello Family 

So this week things have been pretty good we have a great time and we are doing really well!!  We had that confirmation for the boy who got baptized and we are working on 6 people now hopefully 4 make it before I go home it would be nice!!  We are trying to get these 4 there and doing what we can to help them!!  It has been great in this area though, I am really liking it and the people that are helping us to work here!!  Me and the comp are doing really well too!!  We have some great branch missionaries and some good branch members here!!! the group should be made into a branch sometime in the near future like 4 weeks or so, so it will be awesome to see that finally happen!!!  The Zone we are in is doing well and progressing for sure and we are all working pretty hard down here which is also really good!! 

Joseph has gone out on mission now and it is good to finally know that he is there and doing well!!!  I didn’t get an email from him yet but I am looking forward to getting one from him this week!!!  It will be good I put some pics on the site for you all!!!  They are of Joseph and New Years and things hope they are good!!!  I am working on getting some photos from some other people and then I will upload them to the computer!!  Hopefully I can get all of them before I go home!!! Other than this I have not received the package yet but I am hoping to find it somewhere there in Lusaka and see if it is possible to get some things down here to all of us!!!  

We have interviews with president tomorrow and it will be the last one I have with him before the one before I get on the plane so it should be good!!  I am looking forward to the interview though so we will see how things go that way!!  Also I am not sure what day it is exactly that I am on the way there but it is not far distant.  Time is flying and it is kind of sad to think I only have about 7 weeks left it will soon be over and for sure I will not be too happy but we will see what happens!!!  Anyway hope all will have fun this week there and a great day Love you all!!!

Elder Welling 

 Elder Welling & Joseph

 Joseph

 Elder Welling & Carlos

Baptism, New Year's and Fireworks.....

Hello Family

Hope things are going well that side and everyone is enjoying their time and the holidays that side it is too bad that I missed them though!!!  This week was pretty awesome and we are enjoying for sure with the work this side!!!  We are happy because we had a baptism last week and we are doing well!!!  I was the one who baptized the candidate and he is 11 years old and is very intelligent with what he says and does!!!  His name is Carlos will be very powerful as he continues to grow!!!!  The week was also fun because of the New Year parties and things that went on i enjoyed them a lot!!!  We are trying to keep up with the things of the Zone leaders as well as be able to continue to do the missionary work and things like that!!!  Church is doing great and the group we are at will be made a branch very soon which is awesome!!!!

Oh and on another note we all about died at the party haha it was fun!!!  Anyway we went to the party to cook meats and watch the firewroks for the new year it was cool!!!  We had a great time and we all had a lot of laughs but anyway we all went outside and if you have ever seen those war movies where there comes a rocket propelled grenade at the men and they all scatter and hit the dirt!!!  Well kind of like that twice it happened!!!  Anyway the big fireworks that go way up and make big boom and are big in the sky!!!  Well one tipped over from the neighbor and came right for me and another elder as well as the rest of them I saw it coming and we tried to get out of the way we were diving and running and it hit the gate behind us and blew up some of the blast hit me and another elder but we are all good!!!

hahaha it was a fun night!!!

There are a lot of elders going home i the next few months and it is pretty cool the only part that is bad is I get all their travel plans and things haha so it is kind of weird seeing all the friends leaving and things like that!!!!  I put elder hinkley on a plane today so we will see what happens and the things he will be doing when he gets home!!!  He is a great friend but I doubt anyone will go from the states since he is a Canadian man!!  Other than this it sounds like you guys are all having a fun time and thing keep it up!!!  Have a great week to everyone and a great Monday Love you all!!!

Elder Welling

All is well....

Hello Family,

Hope things are going alright for everyone and they enjoyed the week in what they were doing there!!!  Things have been pretty good here and we are doing well here and enjoying.  There is not much to say here considering we talked three days ago!!!  I thank all who have been helpful and for the support that I have received from everyone!!!  It has been great I enjoyed talking to the family and seeing all their faces!!!  The time is moving and time is running out but it will be coming to a close before I know it will be!!!  I hope everyone has a great week and that they all had a great Christmas!!!  Happy New Years to all and Love you all talk next week!!!

Elder Welling

Christmas Week in the Field....

Hey Family 

Things are going good here and all is well!!  I am not going to really write an email because we are going to be talking here in 4 days so I will save everything for that and things!!!   There is not much to say though, Joseph says hi and is enjoying gearing up for his mission and things which is in a few weeks which will be good!!!  Other than this nothing is going on besides busy schedules and teaching appts and things hahahaha!!!!  Anyway hope you have fun for the holidays and the festivities and things and have a great 4 days till we talk Love you all!!! Not sure what time it will be but it could be anywhere from 8 to 10 I’ll give you a warning call on the phone the night before and let you know the time!!!!

Elder Welling 

Keeping the Work Going Forward....

Hello Family,

Things this week have been pretty good and we are enjoying all the time that we are receiving here in this area!!  Me and the comp are doing well and teaching many people and getting them to be progressing towards the truth and things like that!!!!  I am doing well other than being really tired all the time we are going great!!!  The area is picking up and we are having a lot of fun for the Christmas season down here so it is quite awesome!!!  We are looking forward to

Christmas and things like that as it gets closer as well as the new year!!  It is coming very fast but it is also meaning that the time is winding down very fast!!!

Anyway we have a great Zone and some great missionaries there inside of it for sure so I am excited for it to continue to grow and get better!!!  We are striving to keep things going and doing certain things to keep up the momentum going into the Christmas season and things so we will see what happens as the time is progressing!!!  Parker is coming home in I think three weeks or so, so it should be pretty awesome and things to see him come home!!!  Then Jemini will be pretty close behind him and then me which is interesting!!!  It is also interesting because there are so many new faces here in the mission it is hard for me to understand that most of these other guys are home already because I am now at the old stages of the missionaries!!!

Other than this the skyping will be possible for sure it will be in the morning time there for you but I do not know the exact time either that it will happen or things like that but we will see what happens!!!  I’m hoping that all things will work out that way!!  I get an hour and a half,  Or because I only have 10 weeks left maybe I just don’t call at all and we will talk when I get home hahahahahaha Joking mom!!!  Anyway hope you all have a great week love you all!!!

Elder Welling

Still teaching and doing well...

Hello Family

I hope things are going good for all of you as it is for me here!!!  I am enjoying and having a great time here as well as the other missionaries and things so it has been good!!!  The rainy season and the air conditioning has been good as well it has been nice to have them in the flatte and in the truck!!!  We are doing a lot of teaching and as always a lot of running around the place taking care of problems and things which is always good!!!  The comp is good and we are enjoying for sure in the companionship!!!!   We have a lot in common and we get along pretty well and it is good although I have gotten along with a lot of my companions so it isn’t too hard!!!

We are teaching many as I have said we are hoping to get three to baptism very soon which will be very nice!!!  These people are awesome and are doing well they know the truth and want to follow it!!!  They have obstacles but so do we all, hope we will be able to get them to overcome those and move forward!!!!  Anyway the branch is good and doing well it isn’t really a branch it is really a group and we meet in a really small house we are hoping it will be made a branch very soon in the future because we want that very much to happen!!!

I don’t have a long time left but it seems that people are doing well there at home and are enjoying the bball and the Christmas that is always nice wish I could be there though Christmas is just not the same without the snow and the lights and the different things that go along with it especially the food and things hahaha!!!!  We have a few things planned here but not sure they are that many to start with but I am also not sure when but I will be skyping and things like that for sure hopefully I will get the time and then it will be good hahaha

Anyway I hope you all have a great week I did put some more photos on there!!!!  Love you all!!!!

Elder Welling

Pictures from October Zone Conference

Still Loving the Work....

Hello Family

So it has been a pretty good week so far but really crazy haha!!!  The week has also gone super fast and most likely it is because I was busy the whole time but I am still loving the work and all the other things we are doing this side!!  It is very hard to explain exactly where I am but I am in the mid center of Lilongwe now but we work on the outskirts of it so it is really funny!!!  Also it has been kind of funny because Tuesday we spent the day literally moving missionaries around for transfers and the same with the next day!!!  Funny thing was because of all the moving we lost our mileage for the month and we didn’t have a truck for four days so we got some great exercise on the bikes my legs feel like jam and it’s because we went a distance for the truck on the bikes plus the hot weather made it ten times worse and things hahaha!!!  It still was awesome though!!!  It will be a little more difficult to baptize now because of the distance but a challenge never bothers me hahaha!!!  The flat we are in is a little smaller and things but it is still awesome!!!  Although we have a pretty sweet Zone after this transfer which is awesome!!  Kapande lives next door to us so I am liking it a lot it should be good!!!

The comp is really awesome though I am liking him and the best part is we have a lot in common already so it should be a pretty fun rest of the mission with him and things like that!!!  The new branch is pretty cool we are liking it, it has a way to go but we will get there in getting it to a branch soon right now it is really a group but growing very fast and they moved two more elders into the area!!!  So we should be good!!  There will be some sort of a Christmas devotional thing that we will be going to here in a few weeks it should be fun we will be going down to Blantyre and things I will enjoy it a lot!!! 

It seems like everyone up there is enjoying the holidays and the family can’t wait to do that again!!! Being here as the ZL is definitely challenging and very busy but it will be good to keep me busy for sure!!!    Hope everyone will have a good week and a great Monday Love you all

Elder Welling 

Transfer and Called as Zone Leader...

Hello Family,

This week has been pretty good and things are going well here!!!  We didn’t have too many events but things are going well and me and the comp are enjoying here for sure!!!  So this last week first of all I have been transferred to a new area so I will be leaving Elder Gangire and going to another area in the same Zone but I have been called to be a Zone Leader of the Zone which should be interesting for sure!!!  It will be different, but I am leaving some very good friends here in the branch behind!!!  Especially Joseph so it is pretty sad for the things that have happened but as I have said and learned it is not my will but the Lords!!!  I am leaving today to go to the new area and the new comp is name is Elder Cunningham he is a white guy from the states and things he is a pretty cool guy likes the outdoors, hunting and country music all the same things I like except on one thing haha he is a wrestler and I play the bball!!! Other than that it has been pretty good here this week!!!

We also were able to have another baptism this week which was great I enjoyed it.  The guy’s name is Patrick great guy too bad I won’t be here for the confirmation but we were still able to do the work to bring him to the knowledge of the truth which is always a good thing!!!  The branch is cool I am just sad to leave it behind and for sure if it is this hard to leave just a branch then on the way home it is going to be even worse feeling not going to be a joke!!  We didn’t get to play soccer this week but I am hoping in the weeks to come it will be available!!!  It is definitely weird to be 21 hahah didn’t think that I would make it to this age haha but it is here and for sure it will continue to climb haha but as it does others are always ahead of me hahaha that is a joke!!!

Anyway Joseph leaves for his mission in 5 weeks so it will be good for him to be going he is ready and for sure he will enjoy he is already very powerful in the Gospel and this experience will make it better!!!  Anyway I hope all will enjoy the holidays and the week and all will be going good for all!!!  I love you all and talk next week!!!!

Elder Welling