JUN 23 - JUN 29 SEMANA 62 EN EL CAMPO MISIONAL CONCEPCION

¡Buena semana nueva, familia mía!

It was a fun and revealing second week in Hualpen!

After a very new start in my first week in the sector, Elder Holt and I learned much, came to know many, and this week went out visiting with members every day! Neither of us had had much time in Hualpen, but in this last week we have been able to come to know so many of the families of the barrio Bío-Bío. 

We were able to commit a number of less-active members to church, as well as a number of recent-converts and their families. 158 came to church on Sunday, including Cristina, the sister of Carla - a recent-convert of some months - who herself has decided to be baptized! We have seen great blessings in our short time here, and are looking forward to continue working with Cristina and others in the coming week.

On Sunday, after church, Huaquín, an 8-year-old, was baptized in the ward. It was incredible to find that a part of his family lives in my first sector Lorenzo Arenas, and his tía came to his baptism! I was able to talk to Hermana Maldonado after having, months ago, made pajaritos and alfajores in her home for el 18. ¡Que chico el mundo!

We in the mission have been given permission to watch the partidos of Chile in la Copa América, and so watched one game one evening last week with a particially less-active family and will do so again tonight with another family. ¡Bakan! ¿cierto? ¡Vamos Chile!

Ok, family, ¡me toca irme ahora! Gracias a todos por todo lo que me hacen. ¡MUCHAS GRACIAS, momma y my dad, por el paquete! And to Aunt Dee and Grannie and Papa for their many, many cards which I absolutely love!

¡Les amo, a todos!

Mucho amor de su misionero,

Elder Trent Sellers

¡CHI CHI CHI! ¡LE LE LE! ¡VIVA CHILE!

JUN 16 - JUN 22 SEMANA 61 EN EL CAMPO MISIONAL CONCEPCION, CHILE

¡Buena semana, familia mía!

¡Saludos de Concepción, otra vez!

After being away in the campo for nearly nine months, I've made my way back to the city!

I do miss Coihueco and the many incredible friends there, but the cambio has made for an exciting first week in Hualpen! What an experience!

Elder Holt is a very humble, funny missionary from Nebraska with now seven weeks in Chile, and we had a fun week coming to know the sector together - a sector which neither of us yet know entirely well! We spent much of the last week passing by the houses of members to get to know many of the strong, active families of this ward Bío-Bío. We knocked many doors of many families not too-well-known by my companion nor I, and came to know them and their many children! There are many big families in the ward! A great number of them have grandparents who came to know the Church a long time ago in their early lives, and grandchildren who fill the Primary with short yet strong testimonies of the Gospel - something that we saw when Elder Jensen and I taught a Primary class on Sunday!

On Sunday there were 140 in the chapel - a huge change and some 100 more than what I had been used to seeing!

The work, or rather, missionary fun, is different here, but it is going to be mucho!

¡Les amo! 

¡Que tengan una semana buenísima!

¡Mucho amor!

Elder Trent Sellers :)

JUN 9 - JUN 15 SEMANA 60 EN EL CAMPO MISIONAL CONCEPCION, CHILE

¡Buenos cambios, mis queridos!

¡Qué semana! y ¡qué semana ésta será!

The call of cambios came this morning and with it news that I will be leaving Coihueco and heading to my fourth sector in the mission! 

Oh my gosh, it did strike me as a surprise!

Today I will be packing my bags and tomorrow leave for Talcahuano. I am going to Barrio Bío-Bío en la Zona Talcahuano Sur! I will be working with Elder Holt, an elder who just completed his first six weeks in the mission field. I will be finishing his training (which in total is twelve weeks), and can't wait to meet him! He'll be my third American companion in the mission field (Elder Moore is Canadian), and with him I will yet be working as a district leader. I am super excited to get to know Talcahuano!

It is, though, a very bittersweet cambio. Although I am excited for the new opportunity and coming experience, I will miss all the many Coihuecanos who I have come to love these past four to five months. I really do love Coihueco, and this evening will be a tender time as I say goodbye to the many that I have shared with oh-so-frequently. I have been blessed to be able to do so much in this small but very strong branch, and I will always feel a love for the families here.

There's a lot more I could say - this last week was busy with two mini cambios between Coihueco and 18 de Septiembre and a trip to do an entrevista de apoyo in Agronomia - but that shall suffice for now. I have a LOT of packing to do! That is always the other hard part.

I hope you, my family, have a great coming week! I will, I know, coming to know this new sector! Have a wonderful trip, mis papás, and drive safely!

Mucho amor a todos,

Elder Trent Sellers :)

JUN 2 - JUN 8 SEMANA 59 EN EL CAMPO MISIONAL CONCEPCION, CHILE

¡Buen día, mi familia!

¡Fuimos a la nieve!

Today, as a zone, we took a trip up to Las Termas de Chillan and played in the snow! It was about a two-hour trip, and we left from here in Chillan at 6:30 in the morning after having stayed the night in the house of the others of Barrio 18 de Septiembre. Our bus climbed the mountain up to the hot springs and before we knew it we were surrounded by snow! It was incredible just how much it snowed in our time there! We played in it, had snowball fights, and made snow angels, and a number of the elders and sisters made snowmen! It was white, powdery, Christmas-like snow, falling on the edge of the Andes. We had a great time, even after a nearly three-hour delay waiting for our bus to receive and put on the right snow-chains! We got back to Chillan a little bit late, but more than a little bit damp!

It was an amazing start to the last week of this cambio. The past week was busy as we did nearly all that we could to pass by the investigators who we have been teaching, Luis and Yeison, and la Lisette, and as we had three Noches de Hogar with active families to strengthen them and in one to invite non-member friends to listen to the message of the Gospel. We, this week, have a lot ahead. We will be having two mini cambios, an entrevista de apoyo (interview of support), and the last district class of the cambio, and we will be preparing to do a special musical number on Sunday with Yeison, Hermano Lorenzo's son who is a great friend and not yet a member. 

We will be working hard as we prepare to begin a new cambio! I am really not sure what will happen, but, as I do love Coihueco, I will look forward to a new opportunity if it presents itself and work to do more with what I have learned if I stay.

I'm not the only one away from home, of course! I hope you, momma and my dad, have a wonderful week of travels and have a safe trip and great experiences! Have a great week, Travis, and Mitchieton, I'm so proud of you and love you, cousin. I know the Gospel blesses families, and I know that even more now than before. :)

¡Que tengan una buena semana!

Amor de su misionero,

Elder Trent Sellers

MAY 26 - JUN 1 SEMANA 58 EN EL CAMPO MISIONAL CONCEPCION, CHILE

¡Buenas, familia mía!

This was an interesting week!

The week began with a number of small complications, but it ended well! I caught a cold, and I have since gotten much better. Our electric shower died, and we were able to buy and install a new one. Our water froze in the bathroom, and then thawed itself, while we were later blessed with a gas heater for the house. I left my notebook in Chillan, and was able to recover it on Saturday. Toilet problems were also resolved.

Haha, it was a fun week! It was amazing to see the blessings, during and at the end of it, so that every problem was resolved and found a solution. Heavenly Father really does listen to our prayers, and he does help us find solutions. We were able to work hard, just as well, and did a lot to work with members and bring as many to church as possible. The attendance in church these last two weeks has gone down, probably a result of the cold (even though that shouldn't be a factor!), but while many stayed in their homes we went out to try to get them to the church! Nobody we passed by Sunday morning was home, but we called many and arranged plans so that a less-active sister, Hermana Nelly, could make it to the Sacrament meeting.

It was a good end to the week on Sunday, even to just see a small number of people we had invited there in el salón sacramental.

The church is true, and there is no better place to be on Sunday than in it. Heavenly Father loves us, and makes it possible for us to be there. He finds solutions.

I should mention the wonderful visit we had from the Moores this week, of course! It was incredible to see my compañero anterior, Brady, now he's called, and his parents! THANK YOU, la familia Moore, for everything!

Ok, I love you, my family. I wish you a wonderful week ahead, and a fantastic start, mom and dad, to the trip! 

Que estén bien, y protegidos por El Señor en su camino esta semana. :)

Mucho amor,

su Elder Trent Sellers

VISIT FROM MY FORMER COMPANION BRADY AKA ELDER MOORE

RESTOCKED FRIDGE, THANKS BRO AND SIS MOORE AND BRADY!

JUST LIKE OLD TIMES!

THANKS FOR THE GREAT VISIT BRO/ SIS MOORE AND BRADY!