Miami Lakes South Area 4-28-14

I saw a dinosaur!

FAMILIA!
Sounds you guys are keeping busy as usual! Little sissies I'm excited to hear how your dance recital goes! Keep up the good work with that! I can't believe I have already been out almost 6 months. That straight blows my mind! That's crazy that we will be skypeing as well on Dad's birthday! Dad, thank you for the sports updates as well. I"m not to worried about the Spurs, I've been talking to some kids down here and everybody thinks it's gonna be a rematch between spurs and heat again so we will see!

Fun fact the temple cultural celebration is this Saturday and we are actually going to be in it! It is also going to be the first that you can watch live. So if you feel like watching it go for it!

I feel like I have learned a ton in this past week. I'm super grateful to be companions with Elder Page because he is a boss. We worked super hard, but didn't see too many results. Mainly, people just choosing to use their agency the wrong way! Flipping stinks when that happens but there's not much we can do about it!

We do have one legit person named Carmen though! She's way cool, sadly she wasn't able to come to church because her 2 year old daughter shoved a crayon up her nose and they weren't able to get it out so they took her to the hospital! yeah I know, a joke but she still wants to be baptized on the 18th so that's chill! We've got some good things coming this week I can feel it! We're just gonna keep working hard, and leave the rest in the hands of the Lord! That's all we can do anyways!
A cool miracle happened as well.  On Saturday night, we were harvesting because all of our appointment had fallen through and we knocked into a guy named Allen. At first he came busting out of the door looking like he wanted to hurt us, but as soon as we introduced ourselves he immediately let us pray with him. After the prayer we asked him if he believed God had sent us to him, and he said something like, "Yes, I needed that prayer and I can't remember the last time I felt like this!" We then told him as well that God sent us to invite him to be baptized and he said, Of course! He told us he was going to be gone on Sunday but we have a return appointment tonight and we are super pumped for that!

This week really strengthened testimony. With all the junk going on with people making dumb decisions, and whatever else I still know with a surety that this is God's church! I love this mission and am so grateful to be here. We've seen so many miracles with everything that is going on down here in South Florida and It's just an amazing time to be here. I love you all and appreciate all you have done for me! Keep going hard in the paint, and keep looking for opportunities to serve others!
Elder Nielsen

Miami Lakes South area 4-21-14 New Companion Elder Page

New companion- Elder Page

FAMILIA!!
Feliz dia de pascua! Good to hear that you all had a great day celebrating the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! We had a great Easter yesterday as well here in the new area of Miami Lakes South! whooop whoop new area! Alright yes Mom, let me clear up all your confusion. So how transfers work is on monday night the whole zone has a conference call, and the zone leaders just go down the list of the whole zone and all they say is your name, and whether you are transferring or staying. That's all. So then on tuesday it's P-day so that everybody who is transferring can get all their junk together. Then on wednesday we have a big transfer meeting and they read out all the areas and who is going where and who your companion is. Make sense now?? So yes on tuesday when I wrote you guys I still had no idea where I was going just that I would be transferring.

But all is well now and you've already seen a new pic of my new companion Elder Page! We are in Miami Lakes South. He's a boss so our time here is gonna be legendary. So quit worrying about me momma I am chill!! haha just kidding I really do appreciate all the prayers and feel the support from you guys! I got the package as well so thank you for that!

Leaving Fountainebleau certainly wasn't easy but I am excited to be here in Miami Lakes! It's comforting to know that all our recent converts in Fountainebleau are gonna be taken care of because the ward there is so boss. I haven't got to meet hardly anyone from our ward yet, because yesterday we had stake conference with Bishop Gary E. Stevenson. As well we had a mission conference with Quentin L. Cook. Such an incredible experience. I learned a ton, and the spirit during the conference was amazing!

I really don't know what to say about my new area. We've got 2 legit investigators, one of which came to church yesterday and should be baptized this sunday so that's good news! Our area is pure spanish as well so I was pumped about that! Other than our 2 cool peeps we've got like no one though. So I'm feeling lot's of door knockin this week! whoop whoop! I wanna share one super cool miracle we saw this week though, with this lady named Nancy who Elder Page had found just before I got here.  She had been taught once before I arrived here about the restoration. She loved it, but wouldn't commit to baptism, but said she would read pray and come to church. The first time I met her was on Thursday. She has some health problems so she had been stuck on the couch all day. After I had met her we started to talk more about her reading and her prayers and she told us this amazing experience. She said she had been praying the night before asking God what she needs to do to grow closer to him. Then she said she had a little dream or vision I'm not exactly sure, but she said that all she saw was my companion, Elder Page standing in front of her, and a voice telling her, "Listen to him." It was an amazing experience that she shared with us, and we both were just grinning with joy! Nonetheless, she is committed to doing everything we say as well as be baptized! So we are super excited to keep working with her!

That's about it for the week, I'll send some pics right after as well. I just want to say that I know that Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. I know that He lives, and that because of Him all of us will as well! I'm so grateful for this gospel because I know it is the only way to find true joy and happiness! I love you all so much and miss you as well! Keep up the good work back in O-town!
Elder Nielsen

Last letter from Fountainebleau area 4-15-14

The new Ft. Lauderdale Temple

FAMILIA!
Man, you guys sound like you had a stellar week! I loved hearing all the stories about the rat, and the hikes, and just the overall vacation! haha I was dying, while I was reading that story of the rat just chomping through maddies sleeping bag! Dad, I'm not gonna lie it sounds like you're going pretty hard in the paint! 22 miles?? What!? haha I'm not gonna lie the mish is taking a toll on me staying in shape. We just get fed so much grub here! It was good to hear as well that Marla, and Tammy had their babies! You guys are definitely gonna have to go out there! Send me some pics por favor? Gracias!

Well, yes mother you were right transfers are this week that's why I'm emailing today instead of monday. Transfer calls came last night, and the news is. . . . . . . . . .. . Elder Nielsen . . . . . . . . Transferring. Elder Ward. . . . . . Staying. WHAT!!?? haha I thought I was staying for sure, but nope the Lord has something else in mind! I'm not gonna lie I'm pretty sad. Fountainebleau seriously feels like home here. I know almost the whole ward, I've got the area down like the back of my hand, we've got the coolest recent converts, and then Boom. Just like that, I'm gone. It sucks! I'm pumped to get a new companion and a new area but at the same time just thinking about it, it's like worse than leaving home because I really don't know if I'll ever see some of these people again! So yes mom, don't send a package yet, because I will not be here. You can send it to the mission office though. It usually doesn't take that long for them to get it to our apartment.

Other than transfer calls our week here was really good! Highlight of the week though was definitely going to the temple open house!! Whoop whoop we went twice baby! The temple is straight unreal. Holy cow it really is the biggest blessing ever for our mission right now. Then I just found out as well that we have a mission conference this saturday with Elder Quentin L. Cook. It's gonna be unreal, a straight apostle in our mission! Hopefully he's coming to tell us that Cuba is opening up. . . Opening up the area of Havana. . . . Elder Nielsen, and Elder . . . . Ahh I would weep like a small child if that happened!

Sorry anyway back to the temple, we got to go with 2 amazing families from our ward, and some non-members that they knew. It was an amazing experience just to be there and even though it's not dedicated yet to still be able to feel of the incredibly strong spirit that was there! There have been so many miracles in our mission just from the temple. In our tour group, literally every person except the families that we came with were non members. Just people that showed up and decided to go! Super legit! Hopefully I will be able to go again this week, but I don't know with being in a new area and all.

Well as always I love you and miss you as well! I gotta say bye to all my peeps tonight, so hopefully my eyes don't get too sweaty! Keep up the good work, and I know this church is true!
Elder Nielsen

Fountainebleau (Miami) area 4-7-14

FAMILIA!!
You guys are the best! For real I get pumped just from reading all your hilarious, crazy experiences! Alright momma here you go, all the answers to your questions. Yes I remember Jacob Ahmu and that's comedy gold j beck is training him! My stuff is doing fine. My shirts are fine they just wrinkle real easy but I don't care. I may have ripped a hole in one of my pants, but no worries I got a patch and fixed it. Sadly we don't get to do crud at the open house. The sisters work there 2 a week, so basically it's our job just to get people there. We were supposed to go this last week but the investigator and members we had planned bailed. We're going this week for sure though. Maybe twice. Pumped about that I want to see it so bad. I don't need anything else, and have yet to buy a rain jacket. Our past 4 P-days we have just balled super hard. Our zone leaders always come down, and we just ball all day. I wanna go to the glades but it's impossible to find any members that can take us because they're always working during the day. Alright I believe that is everything!

Now pops first off let me say I am digging your emails. Sorry I never have time to reply personally to them but you're the man! Glad to hear that you didn't have to go solo to priesthood though! Little sissys, don't have to much fun in Goblin Valley without me! I was pumped to hear about everybody getting their calls! It's sounds like a lot of excitement! Get the people going about missionary work!

I don't even know where to start about this week. . . Conference was super stellar though! We watched all the sessions at our chapel here. Yes mom I know it's hard to believe but I was able to sit through 10 hours of conference! haha, maybe I had to go take a break in the kitchen during halftime hymns and pound some grub but other than that I was fine! Learned a flipping ton! Sorry I don't really feel like going into super details about what I learned but it was legendary.

"T"told me to tell you guys not to worry about me here because she's our Madre. She literally calls us her hijos. haha cuban abuelitas man so funny! She cooked for us twice this week as well! All our recent converts came to conference except "A". He's super busy cause basically all his family is here from cuba cause his mom isn't supposed to last too much longer. . . Other than that we were also able to get some investigators to conference as well! our investigator named "A" came. She's an older lady from Nicaragua. Actually that lady who we dumped out her beer! She has the desire to be baptized but just has never been able to come to church. This week we had dropped her, and didn't visit her once. But then in between sessions of conference on saturday we were close to her house so we decided we would go stop by and invite her to come to the next session. We explained to here everything about it, and how we would be hearing from a Prophet of the Lord. She then says to us, "When does it start?" We tell her, "In 15 minutes. Will you come with us?" She says Yes! Just let me go change! She goes and changes and was able to come with the member we were with! She loved conference and were hoping to baptize her next sunday!

I learned this week about how your mission can have some of your most joyful moments as well as some of your most disappointing. In other words agency sucks sometimes. After coming off a huge high from 2 baptisms we were pumped to get back on the streets and keep finding and teaching! We had some really cool people that we had already been teaching that dropped us during the week though. I literally had a guy say to my face this week, "I don't want salvation." It was really sad because we thought he was legit. People have their agency though, it makes me sad when people make decisions like that but at the same time I've realized that there is literally nothing I can do about it.

Anyways sorry I feel like this email is forever long, and my fingers hurt, but on a more joyful note I just want to say that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is real! We are blessed to live in a time with living prophets and apostles! We have the fulness of the gospel in our lives, and The Church of Jesus Christ is here on the earth today! It doesn't get any better than that! I love you all and am so grateful to have such an amazing familia! You guys are the best!
Byecito,
Elder Nielsen

We may have celebrated "B" birthday with a little Blue bell!:)