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!

MAY 19 - MAY 25 SEMANA 57 EN EL CAMPO MISIONAL CONCEPCION, CHILE

¡Buena semana, familia!

¡Hace frío!

It's gotten cold here in Coihueco! It froze over night, and we left the house this morning to find the ground covered in frost. We are bundled up, with coats and scarfs. And to think of the difference between Coihueco and Orlando!

Elder Hartvigsen and I are having fun, though, and we are making the best of it, putting ideas together to stay warm this winter, working hard, and visiting as many as possible. We are visiting many less-active members yet, and on Sunday a few who hadn't come in a few weeks were able to make their way to the chapel. That includes Hermana Dina, an hermana in her 50s who rides a bike that she calls her Porsche haha.

Mid-week, Ariel, a good friend and 20-year-old recent convert took us out to visit the outside parts of the comuna Coihueco, and we were able to see parts that we had never touched - even spaces of large fields on the side of the foothills leading into the Andes. In the latter part of the week, we had interviews with President Arrington, and then had a mini cambio with the elders of another sector in the zona, Agronomia.

This coming week is going to be yet another one as the last. We are going to do another mini cambio with another sector, and the branch is preparing for a Noche de Talento that the Obra Misional is putting together on Saturday. ¡Que semana!

Sending my love and condolences to the Stokes family, after hearing the sad news of the passing of Sister Stokes. What an example she is to me, and practically another grandma. I know Heavenly Father is taking good care of her now.

I love you, my family. I hope you each have a great week, and enjoy the warmer and sunny weather!

¡Saludos de Coihueco!

Mucho amor,

su Elder Trent Sellers

We made pancakes for the Seminary students - two times now! ;)

At the entrance to Talquipen (a small community outside of Coihueco) with the big Indian man

At a small local de comida called El Carrito Rojo. The completos and churrascos are incredible!

¡Escarcha!

Frost!

MAY 12 - MAY 18 SEMANA 56 EN EL CAMPO MISIONAL CONCEPCION, CHILE

¡Buena semana nueva, familia mía!

I'm happy to be able to say everything is well in Coihueco, and that Elder Hartvigsen and I have had our work cut out for us!

We were able to see a number of less-active members come to Church after a long time on Sunday - namely, la hermana Nelly, who recently lossed her husband after a sudden medical problem. We were able to arrange plans for her and another less-active family to come to church, and Elder Hartvigsen and I actually went on divisions with Ariel, a 20 year old recent convert of a year, and Francisco, who just got back from his mission in Puerto Alegre, Brasil, and who is our ward mission leader, to look for a number of people and bring them to the chapel. It was great to be able to do our part to bring la gente to church in this small branch. :)

The entire week saw a lot of success in itself, and we were able to follow up with Luis, the single father, and his son Yeison, as well as Lisette, the 9 year old daughter of a member returning to be active who has wanted to be baptized. We are working hard to help them, and will do all that we can this week to bring them closer to the Savior.

I'm very grateful for these recent weeks in Coihueco, and for the blessing to see progress in the branch after much time here. After more than 3 months, I feel like I know almost the entire pueblo here!

I really do come to love the people.

Of course, I do think about my own beloved family all the time. :)

I hope you all have a great coming week, and use the time as wisely as a missionary!

Mucho amor,

Elder Trent Sellers

SNACK TIME, YUM!