July 20, 2015 - Hello All

I hope all is going well. I am a happy man! The baptism happened of Mariana. It was amazing and awesome to see her progress so much! She was so excited to be baptized and the service was great. We had a couple come the woman from Russia and her spouse which was great stuff. We also had some people come that are attending another church but hopefully the spirit touched them as well! It was a great service and the primary sang the song about becoming clean like the earth after rain. Perfect.

Church went well and we had some investigators but the highlight was that a less active family came to church for the first time in maybe 5 or 6 years and the first time here. So great! I was happy to see them come and we have been working with them one time every week. This Tuesday we are going to visit them. We are going to do an activity for my birthday, which is awesome! We are working hard and trying to find new families and people that really want to take the message seriously. But it was a great Sunday. We had an activity for the new converts that evening too which was a success.

My comp E. Rush is 19 yrs old and he is from Mesa Arizona. He has 8 months on the mission. He is a good guy and we get along well. He is the district leader and I am just showing him the ropes. He is fun to be around and knows a lot of Spanish. We are working hard and doing the best we can!

The lesson we had with Tatiana in the week went well. We talked about the Book of Mormon and invited them to read it. Wow super awesome. Very spiritual! I was happy to share that with them and I am excited that she can make the next step!

Like I said we are working with a sister Zulema and her family. They came on Sunday. Our last lesson was a review of the Restoration and it went very well!

Last week I forgot to mention another less active family that has come to church again. The family Mezon. Our family night with them was also super special.

I have really made a lot of friends in this ward and I love it here. I can`t believe how quickly time is flying but I see the Lord blessing us each and everyday. I know he loves us and cares for all of us. I truly see his mercy and grace each day. I know the mission is where I should be. God loves us all and the Savior Jesus Christ is always here for us.

Hmm other notes, well my comp said I look like Captain America so that was funny. Hmm what else...

Oh Happy Birthday to Am! Love you and enjoy your big day! 

Wow Saborio was traded that is crazy. Glad that RSL is winning and it looks like they are trying to make trades to get wins.

Wow can`t believe I'll be 21 tomorrow. I remember when I was a muchacho (WoW, little kid) and now I am all grown up, some what. I have facial hair and my chest hair is starting to grow. Looks like I am really growing up. But I guess that is part of life. One year older and wiser too! Wahoo! Thanks for all the Bday wishes!

Go USA!! Wahoo!

So excited for the trip to the DR with the fam! Can`t wait!

Well I think that is all really! love y'all! Sorry if I missed anything! Next week!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

July 13, 2015 - Hello All!

So as of tomorrow I will officially be in my ¨Golden Transfer¨as they say or the last transfer. I will be receiving a new companion named Elder Rush. He is from the USA. I am sad to see E. Castro go because we had a lot of fun, we worked very hard and it was just an awesome transfer. He is sad to go as well!

Today we played some basketball and my comp packed while I cleaned the house. All is well really. This week some funny and crazy stuff has happened. A couple days ago I was walking when something hit me in the head. I knew right away what it was. Yep you guessed it, pigeon poop. Right in the crown of my head. Yuck! luckily I had a bottle of water and quickly poured it on my head. Then my comp also helped me pour it while I tried to rub it out. And we were far from the house, so I just tried to forget about it and move on til I got home that night to shower ha ha. But here they say that you get rich if that happens to you so eh, maybe its worth it ha ha!

We also saw an awesome miracle this week. We have been working with Mariana. She is 80 yrs old and her daughter is a member. She has been coming to church for a while. She doesn´t know how to read, but her daughter reads with her. She committed to baptism a little while back but we found out last week that she drinks coffee so we talked to her about it. She has done it since she was 5 yrs old. But we explained that in order to be baptized she had to obey the Word of Wisdom (no coffee alcohol drugs tea tobacco). She said that she would live it and we gave her a blessing so she could overcome it. She has started making natural teas in he morning and she says that it is a sacrifice but that she is done with coffee. Her baptismal interview is tomorrow and her baptism should be this Sunday evening! We are so excited, though my comp is sad to be leaving.

Transfers are crazy but all is well really. A lot of the appointments fell through this week and it was a little tough but on Sunday we found some cool families we are going to start to teach. That is the objective of the Gospel, help families be together forever! So great.

I got the package from the Wilkinsons. So great thank you very much. Big shout out! I am doing well and I am happy!

Looks like everyone is getting new jobs nowadays eh? Congrats to all!

Well time is up and flying. I love you all. Until next week I`m over and out! 

Love,

Elder Chez Green

July 6, 2015 - Happy late 4th of July!

Go America! Wahoo it was a good day on the 4th. I ate some Venezuelan food and a recent convert also made us some Italian food. He is from Italy as well. I didn`t eat anything American sadly but it was a good day. I also ate some ice cream to celebrate the day! The only problem, Sunday morning we woke up sick to our stomachs, but we kept working though not as effectively. Such is life. All is well here and I am a happy man! The food was good, though the stomach pain isn`t. That is what we get for eating different foods than the normal!

Anyways it has been a good week! We are still working with the families, but we are trying to strengthen their testimonies first, so they will have the desire to get married and then baptized. It is all going well though. We are doing family nights and whatever we can to get the whole family involved as our message is one for families!

We have a Russian woman who is an investigator. Her name is Tatiana and she seems very interested in the gospel. We are excited for her to keep advancing! We have also found other new people, but we are waiting to see progress!

The 4th was good, though we didn´t see any fireworks but that´s alright. I taught an English class this week and it went pretty well. It is weird talking English though. I feel like it is my second language sometimes now.

This week I talked with Pres. Corbitt a little bit and that was very edifying and enjoyable. I also got my suit out of the offices. I haven´t used it since in the MTC! The pants are way too big now. I weigh 174 pounds. I don´t remember how much I weighed when I left but I think I have lost 15 to 20 lbs! I´m a little more slim and stylish! I am getting my pants re tailored by a member for about 300 pesos which is about 8 dollars. He is also making me two new pairs of pants that I hope you all will like, so I can use them at home. Pictures when they are finished!

I got McDonald's from the offices as well! Lucky me. All is well and we are working hard. We did another exchange this week. Time is flying. Another Pday has come and gone and now we are almost to the end of the transfer. Today I cleaned then we went to the Duarte where I bought the pant material and I also looked at prices for some souvenirs. I am doing well. We just keep working.

Hmm all is well really! WoW is cajón which means drawer here. I always have a hard time with that one!

Sad that Pres Packer passed away, but like it usually happens deaths come in twos and threes. Same with births usually too, at least in our ward anyways!

Wow Kevin is home! so crazy! What's up Kev bot!

Go USA woman. Awesome win for them! Wahoo!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Joe Barlow! Love you tons!

Love you all tons. until next week, Elder Green reporting live from the DR..

Love,

Elder Chez Green

June 29, 2015 - Happy 4th of July this weekend and Happy Father´s Day last weekend!

Hi Family,

First happy late Father´s day to Dad. Sorry I totally forgot. It isn`t a holiday here and time just keeps flying. But I love you tons Dad! And this week is our Independence day! (Great movie). I hope everyone enjoys it all!

A big thanks to my family for the package. I got it this Thursday. So a huge shout out as well to the MORTIMER Family! I love you guys. Thanks for the package, with Thai food and Hawaiian haystack supplies. I made Green Curry this week and it was way good. Perfect to hold me over for Thai food in a couple months. I really appreciate it Mortimer fam! Love you all, especially Jay!

Wow Kevin is home in 10 days. Crazy stuff! And Clint comes home in like 4 weeks. Time is flying by. I feel like time has passed very quickly!

The picture has a special shout out to Jeff Lynch. I am stealing his Sunday Swag or Style of basketball shorts and a white shirt! And rocking my new haircut. it is very nice! I feel like a new man! And the side view as well!

Awesome news that the tickets are booked for the DR trip in October! So excited! I hope JJ and Whitney will be able to make it!

We played basketball today, washed cleaned and just relaxed. I am happy and feeling good! We played with some of the youth of the ward.

So our ward activity went great! We got references and we shared our message. About 5 people took Books of Mormon and a lot of pamphlets and other give aways. Then we watched the movie ¨Meet the Mormon´s¨. Wow so good. I loved it and I plan to buy it when I get back. I want to watch it again, but this time in English. super good though and approved by the mission because it has the church logo!

I heard on Sunday about gay marriage being legal in all 50 states now. Is that for real? Wow how the world and the US has changed in less than two years. I am very surprised but such is life. We must be examples and testify of the truth we know at all times and in all places and be converted each and everyday. We also have the Priesthood to help protect our families and we have good values to keep us safe!

I went on an exchange this week that was cool We put a baptismal date with a sister named Mariana (about 65) who has been visiting the church for a while now. She doesn´t know how to read but her daughter (about 30 yrs old) is a member and they are reading together. We are working for the 18th of July! I also heard that a sister in Villa Liberación may be getting baptized that day as well! And I am sending a pic of a sister in Villa Lib that got baptized last week too!

Oh so this week I met a Russian who lives here. She is very open to the gospel. She has lived here for 25 years about but was born in Uzbekistan and her parents in Russia. She is very nice and we are looking forward to teaching her more!

Go USA Women's and RSL! I hope all is well!

We taught some awesome lessons about the temple to some of our investigators. We didn´t have a lot of contact with the Reyes Family this week because of work and what not, but we are working to get them to keep progressing. The other investigators are doing alight, though it is kind of a stand still. But we will keep working hard. I love you all! Enjoy the week. Happy fourth!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

June 22, 2015 - Hello All

I know the news has been back and forth crazy but this week we finally got settled in and we were very blessed for that! We had 17 investigators at church and the awesome part is a full family came for the first time. They are very interested as well. They also have a car which makes it easier to come to church as well!! The family is the Reyes Family. It is the father and his spouse and his two daughters. The mom is pregnant as well. They were a reference from Carlos` first son, named Jean Carlos who lives with his Mom and two other sisters here in the ward. They are great and we are going to teach them about the Book of Mormon this week. They participated in the classes and said they enjoyed it. A lot of other people brought their nieces, nephews and cousins which was cool.

Rafael will not be baptized this week but hopefully soon!

There is another family, the Marte family who is progressing. The father has his left side of his body partial paralyzed because of a stroke and brain problems. We are working for them to make a sacrifice so they can get married, and then we will see how else we can help them. Good stuff though.

The ward is working more with us and we are doing the best we can. This week we went to Sambil. A big mall. I ate caramel popcorn and a slushy, I also ate Krispy Kreme doughnuts! I checked out the movie billboards and we visited the sports store, the Oakley store and walked around the shops. It was enjoyable. Then up at the food court we ate Johnny Rockets! Ah a nice burger that tastes a little like home. I felt like I was back in the states there wow! It was enjoyable!

So this week I have been reading a lot in the bible about the Savior and especially his Atonement or sacrifice for us. Wow that is powerful! I know the Atonement is real and it is so powerful. The Lord has paid for our sins, worries and problems and he loves us. It is like he has paid for our plane ticket home, all we have to do is choose to be humble, repentant, willing to obey him and we can get on the plane and stay there. I know he loves us and is willing to forgive us and help us improve everyday!

I know that through the temple and the Priesthood of God it is possible to have a family sealed together forever. So I invite everyone to prepare now! I love you all!

So I was thinking about as an extended family we could all sing the song ¨Savior, Redeemer¨ at my homecoming. I love that song so much and it is inspiring. Please look it up and see if it´s possible that Steven plays a great medley of it and we can all sing as the family choir. I love the song. Let me know!

Hmm what else... Wow huge news. I am so happy for Dad and his new car! So awesome! Congrats dad. A huge shout out to Ron Green. My awesome and amazing uncle. Thanks for watching over my family while I`m gone! I really appreciate it. I love you Ron. Thank you!

Great that the US women are winning!

WoW is adios cause I am out of here. Love you all tons!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

June 15, 2015 - Surprise, I'm staying

Yep that is the big news. Tuesday afternoon when I had just started to pack, they called and said there was a change of plans. My companion and I will be staying. The other two missionaries (the zone leaders) would be changing areas. And that is what happened. Ah that was kind of nice to hear though I had come to grips with the change. But I am happy to keep working here in the area. Kind of interesting but good in the end.

The week has been hectic. On Tuesday morning I had to go to immigration in order to take out a certain citizenship card so I won`t (or the Church won`t) have to pay a tax when I leave the country. That is good. We also had interviews with President Corbitt and they went well. I enjoyed talking with him and receiving counsel from him as well. Then we had things like ward council, appointments falling through, a crazy rain storm that flooded all the streets, my comp had to do a baptismal interview and to top it off, today we got special permission to check out a national park that is popular here, called Los Tres Hojos. They are underground lakes. You will see the pictures shortly!

Hmm the week really has been crazy and not super productive with everything going on, but we are hoping that this next week will start being normal! We have a couple named Juan and Olga. They are really nice people. Juan had a stroke and some other things happen a couple months ago so the left side of his body is very weak and he is in a lot of pain sometimes but they make the sacrifice to come to church. They came yesterday. We are working to help them get married (working with the ward to help with the money side of things) and then getting them baptized. The wife believes the church is true but the husband still has doubts but we are working with them to get a testimony. We were working for the end of June but it looks like the beginning of July is more probable.

I talked to Hno Marino (family Pimentel) and they are looking to get married soon and baptized the 1st of August. I hope it all comes through. It was good to finally talk to him! Pres. Corbitt had a family night with them at the temple and he is working with them as well which is awesome! When I talked to Marino he said that Pres Corbitt asked him why he liked the church and Marino responded because it is the true one! He said that Pres Corbitt just gave him a big hug! Ah I can`t wait!

We have some other investigators but we are really working with the members so they can get involved with the work. Our area is big and we only have us 2 in the whole ward now! But we have plans in place! Hmm that is really most of the info for now!

We are focusing on finding families and helping those that only part of them are members so they can all come to church. This way we can help them have eternal families. We really want the families to be together forever, even after death. I know it is possible and in the end Family is most important!

Oh so a lot of people say that I have a Columbian accent from how I talk. I guess they would know because they watch so many novelas here. (WOW Novela is a Spanish soap opera) But that was interesting. They say it is because of how clear and precise I talk. Good enough for me I guess haha.

Hmm ya that is it really. We have started running to see if I can get back in shape. Hey any ideas on how to eat healthy and easy? I am cutting back on sugars lately and working to do more exercise but please any easy recipes with like tuna or chicken and especially what are good healthy snacks that are filling?

I am going to try and visit some other places as well in the coming weeks like the Aquarium and what not. I also have permission to visit my old areas on Pday if I would like. That would be awesome. I will have to plan that though. Time is getting short here on the mission. I am hoping we can find a lot of success here soon.

The 27th of June we are hoping to have a baptism of a young guy named Rafael. He is 18. We will also have a big ward activity that day. We are working and praying for success!

The Finals sound awesome. And go USA women's! Wow USA Mens team sounds good! keep it up Jurgen Klinsmen I want a world cup in 2018 or 2022! haha

Hmm well I think that is all! love you guys tons! Be safe and be converted to the gospel and Jesus Christ everyday. I know he lives and loves us. I know that we can be together forever!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

June 8, 2015 - Hi Fam

Hello all. I am well. I have loved the first 6 days here in my new area. My comp is great and the area is fun. The house is awesome as well. We really are working to the maximum. But bad and sad news. Apparently we will be changing wards and areas tomorrow. It is really frustrating, disappointing and ah I don`t know what to say. I have no idea why. But I guess I have to live with it. It really is going to be hard because I feel like I haven´t been able to work so hard at the beginning of a transfer before but all is well. Who knows why but there must be some reason. So we grin and bare it for now.

Hmm we have 2 baptismal dates. Some investigators that want to get baptized. We contacted an 18 yr old and he came to church for the first time. The ward is fun. The bishop is really young.We have got to know a lot of new members and what not. But ya that is the news really! I will hopefully see them another time.

I believe we will have to move tomorrow. Ah what a hassle. I just unpacked on Saturday... And I think we will be living with 4 missionaries, which sometimes is good and other times not so we shall see. But who am I to complain. In the end I just gotta smile! :)

Um the zone we are in is really small. I am not sure why it is called Oriental. That is a good question.

My comp is from Lima Peru. He has learned a lot of English in the mission. He likes playing guitar and music in general. He also plays the piano.

Tough season for RSL it sounds like but keep on keepin on!

Sounds like the Finals are fun to watch. We walked by a TV playing it yesterday. It was fun to see a glimpse. In this area, they love basketball! We played some basketball today. Just shooting around and what not. The weather is getting hotter now!

The mom and daughter in Villa Liberaciòn were confirmed by members of the Bishopric! It was hard saying goodbye to everyone in Villa Liberaciòn.

My old comp E Peña did stay. He said that Raymundo was baptized and another should be baptized on the 20th!

Congrats on graduation Shantaye! Love you!

That is great you will have the missionaries over for dinner! Tell them Hi from me! haha

Hmm well I love the General Conference messages. We have interviews with President Corbitt this week as well!

Well I love you all. Be safe please. Pray for me and as always I will keep you all in my prayers! Thanks for everything!

Love,

Elder Chez Green