Merry Almost Christmas

This week was good, Elder Carter had changes, now I´m in a trio, with an Elder Morales, who is from Honduras, and he´s a zone leader with me too and then Elder Valles from El Salvador is our 3rd comp. They´re both pretty cool! So, we´re excited to keep working hard. I also was able to see the Christmas devotional but with bad connection so it kept jumping around, but some nice members invited us over to watch it! I truly loved the music, and felt a sweet, Christmas Spirit as I thought of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I´m sure many of you have seen the new church videos, #HaNacidounSalvador, or in English I think it´s like #ASaviorisborn. I know that that message is true. Jesus Christ is the Savior of us all. All who chose to follow Him, can be led back to the presence of our Heavenly Father and receive eternal life. As we go through this Christmas season, think of His importance in your life.  If necessary, make Him important in your life. He is the gift. Porque de tal manera amó Dios al mundo que ha dado a su hijo unigénito para que no se pierdan, mas tengan la vida eterna. (Juan 3:16) 

Love,

Elder Lohberg

Aaron: Hey mom! That quote´s in Preach my Gospel. 
I´m in a trio, with Elder Morales and Elder Valles . Elder Morales is the zone leader with me and Elder Valles is with us for the time being... Morales is from Honduras and Valles is from El Salvador.. he´s kind of like Elder Toledo, almost the same situation but he has only been a member for 3 years and apparently before the mission he was with the gangs there so he´s got a funnier way of talking haha 

Mom: HEY!! I'm here!! wow! So - Who is Elder Morales? Where did he come from serving? Was he the elder who was with Elder Henry? And Elder Valles? - where did he come from?  How is it going being in a threesome?

Aaron: He was with Elder Henry yeah, Elder Valles was in Los santos in San Jose, a small hole in the mountains. It´s cool because we can do divisions quickly, but the house is super small for 3 people and it makes food a little more tricky.

Mom: ahh - I thought Elder Morales sounded familiar!  I have seen pictures of him from Elder Henry's blog - he seemed nice

So - how DID you do food?  Did you buy food WITH your companions in the past and then share it or do you always buy your own food and do your own thing? ya I get it! Your apartment was pretty small for 2 and now you add in another so that could be interesting.  I was in a trio on my mission - once - I had a senior sister with me and then another sister (who was pretty interesting).  The senior sister (Sister Ertzberger) was my favorite! I really enjoyed serving with her.

So tell me about your week!!  

Aaron: it went well, not sure. not much to say. we found a young guy who wants to get baptized this week and we´d already announced another baptism, the sister of the young man who had got baptized a week ago, we maybe we´ll have two baptisms this week so we´ll see. The only time I bought food alone was with my kid for a bit.. other than that I´ve bought with my comp almost always. so we´ll do it again.. because there´s no space in the fridge for everyone to do there own thing, because we have half a fridge. soo we do it all together 

Mom: what do you mean there's not much to say!?! You have someone who randomly wants to be baptized and that's a problem or no big deal? :p

How did you find this kid?

How are things going in the ward? How did the meeting go with the Stake President? Was that this last weekend or is that this upcoming week?

Didn't you say you had leadership meeting as well last Friday? or was that changed? Does your trio guy go to that as well (if he isn't a zl)?

Aaron: Well.. we´ll see what happens! =) haha. He´s been going for like 4 years.. but like usually just to mutual not to church, but we invited him and he started showing up.. so now we gunna baptize him.. he already knew everything in the interview except for the commandments. The wards.. like.. idk.. getting better. The meeting with the stake president is going to be this week. tomorrow will be the leadership meeting. He wont go, we´ll prob throw him with other elders for the day, because they wont want to buy him food too. so they usually put him with other missionaries.

Mom: oh I get that! I saw your kitchen! haha!  How much do you have to cook for yourselves? Your cook moved right? So now you have to do it all? Or is the ward feeding you? Since your fridge is so small you must have to go "shopping" often eh?  what is that like there? the stores I mean - are they large like Fred Meyer or Albertsons or are they more IGA size?

The Christmas devotional was great last night!  I love listening to President Uchtdorf!  Actually I really enjoyed all the talks - and the music was amazing as well!  I love the carol of the bells - which was the second to the last song I think - the one before Pres. Uchtdorf sang for sure.

Aaron: No.. our cooks still here but she´s considering leaving.. they´re waiting on some stuff this Friday we´ll know if they have to go or no. the ward gives us food always on Sundays for lunch and then during the week every once and a while we get lucky=) they´re like Bartel Drugs basically, prices and everything. Uchtdorf was good but now i don't remember what he said. Pres. Uchtdorf sang????

Mom: haha NO - I must have done a typo! haha - I meant the one before he SPOKE! not sang! old age Aaron old age it sucks! haha

He spoke about LIGHT!

 buy him food" - you mean at the leadership meeting?  Where do they hold those?

Aaron: Yeah. in the office in zapote

Mom: how big is the office in Zapote?  I always pictured it being smallish - our "office" in our mission wasn't much to speak of - but it looks like you guys meet in a large room when I see pictures of your meetings.

What kind of food do they normally serve at these things?  Do they have a "mission cook" who does the food for the zone meetings, leadership meetings still? or was that just with Pres. Wilkinson?  Does the mission president pay for all of that stuff then?

The mission home looks really nice!  

You'll have to keep me posted on the kid then and tell me what happens next week for sure - one baptism or two!  Whats going on with the "investigator" who took you to the volcano? Any progression there?

Aaron: the office is an old church building.. so it´s the size of a medium sized church building.. they´re smalled here than the states though . They have a cook but last meeting they bought pizza.. they change it up. yeah the mission pays for it. We´re trying to teach him.. but we´ll see what happens. Haven't been able to teach him much.. but we´re going to see if we can today .

Mom: nothing on your package I sent yet eh? I was curious cause you said your other comp (Carter) had gotten a package and that you were going to retrieve it last week - but then also had said they were holding packages until the 21st - so just wondered.

Any other plans for a "fun" day?  to see something fun out there?

So - will you be a trio just for a little bit? a whole transfer or?  Where did Carter go to? Is he still a zl?

What happened with the AP's?  Did the one guy get released? or is he still there? you said he only had 3 more transfers and was going to train - so maybe next transfer? Do you know when that is?

Aaron: No i haven't gotten it yet.. I forgot to look today, but tomorrow I´ll come back here to the office so I can check and see. We need to get 20 progressing first, maybe more towards Christmas day we´ll see what we can find. A trio for this change. Carter went to Zona Sur, to Puerto Jimenez  he wanted to go there. So he´s in Elder Henry´s zone now. He´s been to ALL the pretty places of Costa Rica. Lucky butt. The APS are the same.. no difference. Next change I think. 

Mom: you went to the office today? You're on so early already - wow!!

What do you have planned for the rest of the day?  so is he a zl still or under Spencer?

Maybe you will get changes next time and will get to go see something cool! That is what we are praying for - for you! I hope that you get 2 more changes so you can see 2 additional areas before you leave.  Plus you said pres told you you'd train before you came home right? so maybe 3? that might be pushing it - but we can hope :) how did you find out that you had to sign for the last one?  Just wondered if they will hold this one as well - it was small so hopefully not!

Aaron: under Spencer. I´m thinking I´ll have 1 more area then I go. No, because training is 3 months.. so I´m thinking once I finish this area with 6 months.. 3 months more of training and I go home. I think I´ll have 1 more area. 

This PDAY today ends at 2.. because we have a service project on Saturday as a zone..so we have shorted pday because of the project. I just found out my package is there, Sister Burt told me, she said she wants 1 of what I got.. but i don't know what it is.. Apparently I have to wait until the 21st to open it. 

Mom: argh!! I had a phone call so I couldn't type!! I LOVE YOU!! 

I wish I had more time to say something more!! have a great week!!

well - I sent a few things - one package in the mail (your card) and then I found out someone was coming to the mission so I met up with them while in Utah and sent something else with them - not sure what exactly they will keep - or if everything I sent made it - I didn't have much "room" to send stuff - so we shall see.

Aaron: Pues, I need to go now Mom, I love you! Until next Monday we´ll write some more! =) Tell dad I love him too and Kara-Jessie

Mom: Hope you have a wonderful week! love you so much Aaron!!  We Skype soon!! yippie!!!!