Dear Family,
So that was super sweet to be able to talk to you all. You all look great!! I can not believe how big our family is. It was super motivating to talk to you all! It gave me the desire to just go crazy working!!!
So things here are going super good!! We have a family preparing to be bapised in January and also the 18 year old who is going to be baptised here soon!! Its really hard to get everything done in our own area when we have so much other stuff to do like for instance this week we have been traveling the island doing training and we will only have like 2 days in our area and we have to still get all our goals!! It will be crazy! The president told us to keep all of the 31st free, I guess he has something planned.
i'm really glad you got to go to Micheals homecoming. He is a great missionary. I heard he didnt really get to talk that much but I'm sure he did great! The last two days we have been in Mayaguez and Ponce. Those are the farthest away zones but we have been going on splits and practicing teaching and everything!! It is so awesome! I have had some great experiences. It is cool because I can go like to a lot of different areas and still know a lot of people. When we were going around to all the stake conferences, i got to see all the people that I got to know while I was serving in all the different areas. its super sweet. While I was on a trade off with some of the missionaries they ran out of things to do and didnt plan very well so I just decided to go to teach someone that we had been teaching more than a year ago. Come to find out we found the old investigators 23 year old son who was in the army when we were visiting them. The missionaries had lived right next to these people for a super long time but they had never invited him to the church and he is interested!! So we invited him to church and taught him and i really think they are going to see some success from it!! The spirit is so strong here! Well not much else has happened since Saturday.
I love this work and I love the Lord!! I love what he has blessed us with!! We have been blessed with one of the few united families!! I love you all and am so happy to be part of such a great family!! I hope you all have a great week and we will talk to you next week!! Please pray for the Mercano family and Josue.
Love elder Knudsen
Thursday, December 30, 2010
11/3/10-12/15/10
12/15/10
Dear Family,
Well another crazy week!! I have just a little more time today. I read your email from the presidents Iphone and then the rest of it from his IPad because we were on the road and now I'm using his daughters laptop to right ha ha. Pretty much just squeezing it in wherever. It sounds like everyone has a lot going on as well. From Recitals to choir performances all over.
My week has been super crazy but extremely fun. First off we learned the haka (the dance that BYU does before there games) and we all performed it at an activity we had at one ward. To be honest we learned it in like one hour because we have no time to sit and learn something like that but the president wanted us to and so we did and it was awesome!! I messed up a lot but it was jsut super sweet to be screeming and hitting yourself and almost feeling polonysian. Then the next day they invited us to sing in a stake Christmas conference. We did alright but my voice was kinda gone because of the haka and then yesterday we were invited to a Mall to go sing at the mall. So we one of the zones together and went and sang in the middle of this huge mall. Again my voice was still horse but we did alright. I'll try and send some pictures. Just so you know the president was there for all of these activities so they were all good no worries.
Also this week we had four people decide they want to be baptised so we are working with a family and a soon to be missionary!! Its going awesome!! Please Keep praying for us and the family Mercano and Josue. Next week I probably will have very very little time to email but just to let you know the Christmas call is going to be a little different. We have to call from a members home so I will probably call you with their numbert and have you call me back. Or I could by a calling card. I just dont really know what is the best idea. Let me know if there is something specific I should do but what I do know is that it will be saturday around like 6 ish our time ( 3 your time )and it will be from a members house. So Just write me a quick email and tell me what time if that doesn't work. I love you all so much and thank you so much for the Christmas package and the Money. I really apreciate it all you are all so good to me. The chruch is true and talk to you soon.
Love Elder Knudsen
12/8/10
Dear family,
So transferes were today and they were super crazy but we had to work super hard to make sure it went well. Basically what I'm saying is I really dont have very much time. Thankyou for those encouraging letters they were awesome. This attribute this week on knowledge is awesome!! I have so much room to improve!! I love this gospel I love you all and hope your all enjoying Christmas as much as me!! Please pray for the family ramos and that we can find more families in our area, Less active/ partmember or investigators. I love you all have a great week.
12/1/10
Dear Family,
How is everyone doing?! Mom and Dad you are on a cruz!! What in the world ha ha I'm glad you are enjoying it!! It sounds awesome. Everyone was around for thanksgiving?! Thats awesome! Thanksgiving is so great. The President had us over to his house to celebrate with him!! It was pretty cool!! We had to help an elder out on thanksgiving so we were super busy. It was nice to just sit down and eat!! I feel like i dont do that too much anymore haha We have so much to do and this work is super important that I just feel like eating is a pain now. Its good because I'm starting to get back to my skinner self haha.
I hope everyone is enjoying the Christ like attributes!!! I LOVE THEM!! Right now is virtue and it says that what you do when nobody is around and you believe nobody is watching is a strong messure of your virtue!! What do we do when nobody is around and nobody is watching?! It is a great question for all of us to think about!! We have also been talking about how important it is to make sure you have control over your mind. Such as how a lot of missionaries or people think they cant do things so obviously they dont. We are trying to figure out how missionaries can better control their minds not to just be more virtuous but also to have more success and faith. I couldnt help but think about the book that Clint gave me for one of my Birthdays, "As a man thinkinth" and also the poem that Dad always says. "if you think your beat then you are. If you'd like to win but think you may not its almost a sinch you wont......"
The mission is awesome and right now we are looking for a HUGE change in Puerto Rico and my companion and I and the President are the ones who have to make it happen. We need to figure out the Lords will and put everything on the line to follow his will. Please pray for this mission!! It is doing awesome right now but still not to the point where we can have a temple here and there are SO many people here that need a temple!! I love you all so much!! Thanks so much for your examples! Thanks Mom and Dad and Grandma and Grandpa for Always writing me. you all are super Great!! I hope you have a great week and I'll talk to you soon!!
Love Elder Knudsen
11/24/10
Dear family,
Uh oh I think i beat you to the email this week ha ha. Anyway how is everything going? Is everyone preparing for thanksgiving? I totally almos forgot ha ha Everyone here is already preparing for Christmas!!! we took a stand. We're not singing Christmas songs until december 1. But today we're making sure to play a Turkey bowl!! Our president is super funny about P-day. Even if we have a billion things to do he makes sure that we have a good P-day and enjoy it. He just makes sure we have fun as we work. Like last night Sister Alvarado invited us to come and eat with them for thanksgiving dinner but I expalined to president that that is like a perfect time to find families and he said just wake up early go and work and them como enjoy dinner with us. He really take care of us.
So this week was AWESOME!!!!! Wednesday or thursday president told us he needs a report and powerpoint to Present to Elder Martinez of the 70 by saturday. The report had to be about thinks going on in the mission and how we're following the vision of the first presidency and the area presedency. we had to have all types of specifics and everything so we were up to our necks getting that done and as well making sure the family Ramos is ready for baptism. We were able to balance it enough to the point were we could work in our area and on the report and we finished just before his presentation. It ended up amazing. We werent there but elder Martinez Loved it and said that everyone should be doing reports like that and now all the stake Presidents are using it and everything. It was a huge Relief.
The real news is that the familia Ramos all got baptised!! All 4 of them and it was amazing. I dont have loads of time so I'm just going to have to copy and paste from my letter to presidente. You might have to have chris and Justin and stacey help you translate sorry. (sorry for the bad spanish too)
Primero el obispo bautizo a la mama. Cuando ella estaba entrando en el agua ella tenia mucho asthma y el agua frio no la ayudo pero ella nos explico despues que nada iba a pararla de entrar en el agua!! Ella ha querido ser bautizada hace como un mes ya. Despues el papa se bautizo por Hno Nelson Vasquez. cuando el salio de la agua yo pense que algo mal paso porque el subio y se quedo alli con sus hombros levantados y por fin se viro para salir de la pila. Al ver esto yo fui al bano para segurar que todo estaba bien y el estaba alli sonriendo mirando sus hijos ser bautizados. Despues que los ninos salieron de las aguas, el papa los coloco y les abrazo, los dos, a la vec y les dio un besito en la cabeza con lagrimas en sus ojos. Yo estaba alli entonces despues que el Miembro les junto en esta abrazo yo tambien les abraze. El papa miro a el miembro y le dio un abrazo diciendo gracious.
Al hablar con El papa despues, yo lo pregunte si habia mucho frio y el me dijo a lo contario. Hacia un calor emenso. El compartio eso con Los miembros despues como su testimonio. Fue una experiencia marvillosa.
We're being blessed to find more families too!! Please pray for the families to progress and to find us. Also if you could pray for my spanish still.
How is the studying of the Christ Like Attribute going? The Charity and Love section. I love it!! Its awesome!! Charity makes you feel SO good!! We were totally ment to serve other people. That is how we found the Ramos familia. They were cleaning there Patio and we asked if we could help but they said no so we just did it anyway and now they are all super happy in the chruch. They showed up on sunday with all white shirts and ties and the father and the oldest son recieved the Preisthood!!
Anyway I love you all so much and pray for you about a billion times a day!! I hope you all have a great week.
Love elder Knudsen
11/17/10
Dear Family,
So it sounds like everyone is battling with all the kids and everything ha ha sounds fun. Thats what the church is about is families. I have learned that these last few days as we have studied the restoration. I'm glad to hear everything ended up okay with Patrice. They just keep getting unlucky!! Dont worry I'll pray extra hard for ya haha oh yeah and it sounds like BYU is back on track. Is Mendenhal the defensive cordinator as well still?
This week has been crazy!! We have been around the whole Island. We had to go do zone confrences but luckily we only have five zones right now. Still Elder Zenger and I have been driving this huge 15 passanger van all around. Its awesome!! We had about 2 and a half days to get all our goals in our own area this last week and the Lord really blessed us, We were able to do it and then some. The Zone confrences were on the Restoration and they were awesome!! I got the chance to talk at them and I'm super thankful that Joseph Smith Sacraficed so much so that we can all be together forever! We watched "Joseph Smith: the Prophet of the Restoration" and it was awesome!!
These coming weeks before Christmas We're doing and activity as a mission and I want to invite you all to do it too. Its about becoming more like Christ and studying the Christ like attributes. Here in Puerto Rico the Christmas season doesnt stop until like the 16th but this is what we're doing:
Nov.15-21 Hope
Nov.22-28 Charity and Love
Nov.19- Dec.5 Virtue
Dec.6-12 Knowledge
Dec.13-19 Patience
Dec.20-26 Humiliy
Dec.27-Jan 2 Diligence
Jan 3-9 Obedience
Jan 10-16 Faith in Jesus Christ
In Chapter 6 of Preach My Gospel you can find all these and in that same chapter it has a section on the best way to study each attribute with a bullet list. We are going to study each atrtribute doing all the bullets so we can become more like our Savior. So anyone who wants to do it with me is totally invited! 3 Nephi 27:27 "What manner of men ought ye to be? verily I say unto you, even as I am."
But that was basically my week!! It has been super busy with SO much stuff to do.
I love you all and want you to know that I know this is the True chruc, I know that Joseph Smith saw our heavenly father and his son and if we study it we can see that so many events in history lead up to that point when the father and the son finally appeared. I know that familys are the basic unit of Gods plan. I put my testimony along side Darwin Knudsens when he quoted that faith is a hope for things that are unseen but that are ture, and then said I hope and long for an eternal family and this is the only gospel that makes that possible for me.
Love
11/10/10
Dear Family,
Sounds like the cougars are back to there old selves. what do they have to do now... win seven straight? Anyway about the baptism this week. We have been out of our area a lot and haven't had the time to teach the Family a bunch and so we have had to move it to later on. keep Praying for the Family Ramos!!
This week was pretty crazy. My companion had to go get to know the Islands with another missionary who knows them so I went on a trade off with a brand new missionary! It was awesome!! We had to get like there whole week goals in just 2 days because they had some troubles at the beginning of the week but the Lord really blessed us after a lot of fasting and prayer. This missionary is from England and keeps saying things like boot for trunk and flat for apartment and trousers for pants. Its so Funny!! He lives like 20-30 minutes south of Londan.
It was really cool because neither one of us could be in our own ward on sunday but the members stepped up and took charge of being with our investigators.
This week we're going everywhere!! It is zone confrence week and so we will be around the whole island by the next time I talk to you. It is really cool because we are watching "Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Restouracion" movie and it is so powerful. This church is so true!! I know it!!
Sorry I really dont have too much time but I love you all. I hope the baby boom isn't killing anyone!! I pray for you every night ha ha
P.S. Patrice and Clint I think there is a missionary here from your ward. Elder Curtis is his name. He says he knows you two!!
11/3/10
Dear Family!!!
How is everyone doing?! It sounds like everyone is doing good!!! Especially Craig who is getting married tommorrow!!!!! Thats so crazy!! I love hearing about the missionary work that your all doing!! Its SO COOL RIGHT!!
This week we had a lot going on! Missionaries leaving and Elder Zenger and I had to direct some senior couple this weekend and the familia Ramos and the zone leaders council and everything else!! It has been a crazy week. I cant even begin to say all the things we did. Anyway the zone leader councel was awesome because right in the middle President just stopped and was like okay who wants to take some of their P-day today? And I tried explaining that we had somethings to do and all that but then he got my companion and I and two other missionaries to go play basketball with him and some of the senior couples. I was still a little reluctant but he just said Elder Knudsen you have done a lot this week and men are that they might have joy.. Its your decision. So we went and played against all these older missionaires and it was awesome! !! One of the guys was 72 and would move so slow but he could still beat me!! It was super humbling! They were all really tall but were like the all stars when they were young. Anyway they beat us twice and we beat them twice and then the third game we decided that its hard for them to bend down hahaha so we beat them with the strategy of keeping the ball low. Anyway it was a good time but even better than that was when Nelson (the father of the family) came to us and said I think My wife and I and the kids will be ready for the 13 of november to be baptised!! it was so cool he has really been thinking about it hard. Please pray for them to get ready. We also want to find another family if not today than at least this week but we'll see because we have some more things to do this weekend! I love this work family!! It is awesome. I go the biggest fire today just to go out and do it all when I was studying but I understand that we all have to lift where we stand and its not where you serve but how. Family the Book of mormon is true!! pray about it everytime you ready and meditate what you are reading and then remember that it was translated by a young man! I love you all so much and am so grateful for your great examples!! I have to go and not worry about anything except the people here and binging them unto Christ by whatever means I can. I love you all so much and have a great week!
Love elder Knudsen
Dear Family,
Well another crazy week!! I have just a little more time today. I read your email from the presidents Iphone and then the rest of it from his IPad because we were on the road and now I'm using his daughters laptop to right ha ha. Pretty much just squeezing it in wherever. It sounds like everyone has a lot going on as well. From Recitals to choir performances all over.
My week has been super crazy but extremely fun. First off we learned the haka (the dance that BYU does before there games) and we all performed it at an activity we had at one ward. To be honest we learned it in like one hour because we have no time to sit and learn something like that but the president wanted us to and so we did and it was awesome!! I messed up a lot but it was jsut super sweet to be screeming and hitting yourself and almost feeling polonysian. Then the next day they invited us to sing in a stake Christmas conference. We did alright but my voice was kinda gone because of the haka and then yesterday we were invited to a Mall to go sing at the mall. So we one of the zones together and went and sang in the middle of this huge mall. Again my voice was still horse but we did alright. I'll try and send some pictures. Just so you know the president was there for all of these activities so they were all good no worries.
Also this week we had four people decide they want to be baptised so we are working with a family and a soon to be missionary!! Its going awesome!! Please Keep praying for us and the family Mercano and Josue. Next week I probably will have very very little time to email but just to let you know the Christmas call is going to be a little different. We have to call from a members home so I will probably call you with their numbert and have you call me back. Or I could by a calling card. I just dont really know what is the best idea. Let me know if there is something specific I should do but what I do know is that it will be saturday around like 6 ish our time ( 3 your time )and it will be from a members house. So Just write me a quick email and tell me what time if that doesn't work. I love you all so much and thank you so much for the Christmas package and the Money. I really apreciate it all you are all so good to me. The chruch is true and talk to you soon.
Love Elder Knudsen
12/8/10
Dear family,
So transferes were today and they were super crazy but we had to work super hard to make sure it went well. Basically what I'm saying is I really dont have very much time. Thankyou for those encouraging letters they were awesome. This attribute this week on knowledge is awesome!! I have so much room to improve!! I love this gospel I love you all and hope your all enjoying Christmas as much as me!! Please pray for the family ramos and that we can find more families in our area, Less active/ partmember or investigators. I love you all have a great week.
12/1/10
Dear Family,
How is everyone doing?! Mom and Dad you are on a cruz!! What in the world ha ha I'm glad you are enjoying it!! It sounds awesome. Everyone was around for thanksgiving?! Thats awesome! Thanksgiving is so great. The President had us over to his house to celebrate with him!! It was pretty cool!! We had to help an elder out on thanksgiving so we were super busy. It was nice to just sit down and eat!! I feel like i dont do that too much anymore haha We have so much to do and this work is super important that I just feel like eating is a pain now. Its good because I'm starting to get back to my skinner self haha.
I hope everyone is enjoying the Christ like attributes!!! I LOVE THEM!! Right now is virtue and it says that what you do when nobody is around and you believe nobody is watching is a strong messure of your virtue!! What do we do when nobody is around and nobody is watching?! It is a great question for all of us to think about!! We have also been talking about how important it is to make sure you have control over your mind. Such as how a lot of missionaries or people think they cant do things so obviously they dont. We are trying to figure out how missionaries can better control their minds not to just be more virtuous but also to have more success and faith. I couldnt help but think about the book that Clint gave me for one of my Birthdays, "As a man thinkinth" and also the poem that Dad always says. "if you think your beat then you are. If you'd like to win but think you may not its almost a sinch you wont......"
The mission is awesome and right now we are looking for a HUGE change in Puerto Rico and my companion and I and the President are the ones who have to make it happen. We need to figure out the Lords will and put everything on the line to follow his will. Please pray for this mission!! It is doing awesome right now but still not to the point where we can have a temple here and there are SO many people here that need a temple!! I love you all so much!! Thanks so much for your examples! Thanks Mom and Dad and Grandma and Grandpa for Always writing me. you all are super Great!! I hope you have a great week and I'll talk to you soon!!
Love Elder Knudsen
11/24/10
Dear family,
Uh oh I think i beat you to the email this week ha ha. Anyway how is everything going? Is everyone preparing for thanksgiving? I totally almos forgot ha ha Everyone here is already preparing for Christmas!!! we took a stand. We're not singing Christmas songs until december 1. But today we're making sure to play a Turkey bowl!! Our president is super funny about P-day. Even if we have a billion things to do he makes sure that we have a good P-day and enjoy it. He just makes sure we have fun as we work. Like last night Sister Alvarado invited us to come and eat with them for thanksgiving dinner but I expalined to president that that is like a perfect time to find families and he said just wake up early go and work and them como enjoy dinner with us. He really take care of us.
So this week was AWESOME!!!!! Wednesday or thursday president told us he needs a report and powerpoint to Present to Elder Martinez of the 70 by saturday. The report had to be about thinks going on in the mission and how we're following the vision of the first presidency and the area presedency. we had to have all types of specifics and everything so we were up to our necks getting that done and as well making sure the family Ramos is ready for baptism. We were able to balance it enough to the point were we could work in our area and on the report and we finished just before his presentation. It ended up amazing. We werent there but elder Martinez Loved it and said that everyone should be doing reports like that and now all the stake Presidents are using it and everything. It was a huge Relief.
The real news is that the familia Ramos all got baptised!! All 4 of them and it was amazing. I dont have loads of time so I'm just going to have to copy and paste from my letter to presidente. You might have to have chris and Justin and stacey help you translate sorry. (sorry for the bad spanish too)
Primero el obispo bautizo a la mama. Cuando ella estaba entrando en el agua ella tenia mucho asthma y el agua frio no la ayudo pero ella nos explico despues que nada iba a pararla de entrar en el agua!! Ella ha querido ser bautizada hace como un mes ya. Despues el papa se bautizo por Hno Nelson Vasquez. cuando el salio de la agua yo pense que algo mal paso porque el subio y se quedo alli con sus hombros levantados y por fin se viro para salir de la pila. Al ver esto yo fui al bano para segurar que todo estaba bien y el estaba alli sonriendo mirando sus hijos ser bautizados. Despues que los ninos salieron de las aguas, el papa los coloco y les abrazo, los dos, a la vec y les dio un besito en la cabeza con lagrimas en sus ojos. Yo estaba alli entonces despues que el Miembro les junto en esta abrazo yo tambien les abraze. El papa miro a el miembro y le dio un abrazo diciendo gracious.
Al hablar con El papa despues, yo lo pregunte si habia mucho frio y el me dijo a lo contario. Hacia un calor emenso. El compartio eso con Los miembros despues como su testimonio. Fue una experiencia marvillosa.
We're being blessed to find more families too!! Please pray for the families to progress and to find us. Also if you could pray for my spanish still.
How is the studying of the Christ Like Attribute going? The Charity and Love section. I love it!! Its awesome!! Charity makes you feel SO good!! We were totally ment to serve other people. That is how we found the Ramos familia. They were cleaning there Patio and we asked if we could help but they said no so we just did it anyway and now they are all super happy in the chruch. They showed up on sunday with all white shirts and ties and the father and the oldest son recieved the Preisthood!!
Anyway I love you all so much and pray for you about a billion times a day!! I hope you all have a great week.
Love elder Knudsen
11/17/10
Dear Family,
So it sounds like everyone is battling with all the kids and everything ha ha sounds fun. Thats what the church is about is families. I have learned that these last few days as we have studied the restoration. I'm glad to hear everything ended up okay with Patrice. They just keep getting unlucky!! Dont worry I'll pray extra hard for ya haha oh yeah and it sounds like BYU is back on track. Is Mendenhal the defensive cordinator as well still?
This week has been crazy!! We have been around the whole Island. We had to go do zone confrences but luckily we only have five zones right now. Still Elder Zenger and I have been driving this huge 15 passanger van all around. Its awesome!! We had about 2 and a half days to get all our goals in our own area this last week and the Lord really blessed us, We were able to do it and then some. The Zone confrences were on the Restoration and they were awesome!! I got the chance to talk at them and I'm super thankful that Joseph Smith Sacraficed so much so that we can all be together forever! We watched "Joseph Smith: the Prophet of the Restoration" and it was awesome!!
These coming weeks before Christmas We're doing and activity as a mission and I want to invite you all to do it too. Its about becoming more like Christ and studying the Christ like attributes. Here in Puerto Rico the Christmas season doesnt stop until like the 16th but this is what we're doing:
Nov.15-21 Hope
Nov.22-28 Charity and Love
Nov.19- Dec.5 Virtue
Dec.6-12 Knowledge
Dec.13-19 Patience
Dec.20-26 Humiliy
Dec.27-Jan 2 Diligence
Jan 3-9 Obedience
Jan 10-16 Faith in Jesus Christ
In Chapter 6 of Preach My Gospel you can find all these and in that same chapter it has a section on the best way to study each attribute with a bullet list. We are going to study each atrtribute doing all the bullets so we can become more like our Savior. So anyone who wants to do it with me is totally invited! 3 Nephi 27:27 "What manner of men ought ye to be? verily I say unto you, even as I am."
But that was basically my week!! It has been super busy with SO much stuff to do.
I love you all and want you to know that I know this is the True chruc, I know that Joseph Smith saw our heavenly father and his son and if we study it we can see that so many events in history lead up to that point when the father and the son finally appeared. I know that familys are the basic unit of Gods plan. I put my testimony along side Darwin Knudsens when he quoted that faith is a hope for things that are unseen but that are ture, and then said I hope and long for an eternal family and this is the only gospel that makes that possible for me.
Love
11/10/10
Dear Family,
Sounds like the cougars are back to there old selves. what do they have to do now... win seven straight? Anyway about the baptism this week. We have been out of our area a lot and haven't had the time to teach the Family a bunch and so we have had to move it to later on. keep Praying for the Family Ramos!!
This week was pretty crazy. My companion had to go get to know the Islands with another missionary who knows them so I went on a trade off with a brand new missionary! It was awesome!! We had to get like there whole week goals in just 2 days because they had some troubles at the beginning of the week but the Lord really blessed us after a lot of fasting and prayer. This missionary is from England and keeps saying things like boot for trunk and flat for apartment and trousers for pants. Its so Funny!! He lives like 20-30 minutes south of Londan.
It was really cool because neither one of us could be in our own ward on sunday but the members stepped up and took charge of being with our investigators.
This week we're going everywhere!! It is zone confrence week and so we will be around the whole island by the next time I talk to you. It is really cool because we are watching "Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Restouracion" movie and it is so powerful. This church is so true!! I know it!!
Sorry I really dont have too much time but I love you all. I hope the baby boom isn't killing anyone!! I pray for you every night ha ha
P.S. Patrice and Clint I think there is a missionary here from your ward. Elder Curtis is his name. He says he knows you two!!
11/3/10
Dear Family!!!
How is everyone doing?! It sounds like everyone is doing good!!! Especially Craig who is getting married tommorrow!!!!! Thats so crazy!! I love hearing about the missionary work that your all doing!! Its SO COOL RIGHT!!
This week we had a lot going on! Missionaries leaving and Elder Zenger and I had to direct some senior couple this weekend and the familia Ramos and the zone leaders council and everything else!! It has been a crazy week. I cant even begin to say all the things we did. Anyway the zone leader councel was awesome because right in the middle President just stopped and was like okay who wants to take some of their P-day today? And I tried explaining that we had somethings to do and all that but then he got my companion and I and two other missionaries to go play basketball with him and some of the senior couples. I was still a little reluctant but he just said Elder Knudsen you have done a lot this week and men are that they might have joy.. Its your decision. So we went and played against all these older missionaires and it was awesome! !! One of the guys was 72 and would move so slow but he could still beat me!! It was super humbling! They were all really tall but were like the all stars when they were young. Anyway they beat us twice and we beat them twice and then the third game we decided that its hard for them to bend down hahaha so we beat them with the strategy of keeping the ball low. Anyway it was a good time but even better than that was when Nelson (the father of the family) came to us and said I think My wife and I and the kids will be ready for the 13 of november to be baptised!! it was so cool he has really been thinking about it hard. Please pray for them to get ready. We also want to find another family if not today than at least this week but we'll see because we have some more things to do this weekend! I love this work family!! It is awesome. I go the biggest fire today just to go out and do it all when I was studying but I understand that we all have to lift where we stand and its not where you serve but how. Family the Book of mormon is true!! pray about it everytime you ready and meditate what you are reading and then remember that it was translated by a young man! I love you all so much and am so grateful for your great examples!! I have to go and not worry about anything except the people here and binging them unto Christ by whatever means I can. I love you all so much and have a great week!
Love elder Knudsen
Thursday, September 16, 2010
7/7/10-10/27/10
10/27/10
Dear family,
WOW THIS WEEK WAS SO AWESOME I WISH I COULD DO BACKFLIPS TO SHOW MY EMOTION!!!!! okay so I'll answer your questions first. Elder Zenger and I are still together and I think we will be together for a long time. Maybe for christams again!! All the Necies and Nephews look so awesome!!
So at saturday the familia Ramos (the ones who were teaching) came to an activity with their kids and everything and even participated in bringing things. They are getting along with the ward very well. Then on Sunday the whole family showed up. Actually a lot of people showed up it was hard taking care of all of them again but we had a lot of help from the ward! Anyway as I looked around they were like so put together in the church with there arms around eachother and listening revently and everything. Anyway after church sunday the mom went up to my companion and said I found where I want to be and I want to be baptised with my husband and two kids so start focusing on my husband!!!! Its a good thing I didnt here that right there in the church because I would have probably done a backflip!!! It was so cool!! Sadly we havent had time to see them this week yet. We have been stuck in the mission office helping some elders out and in meetings and stuff all week!! Its been really tough but it was totally worth it when the new elders arrived on tuesday and we had the chance to all take out on and go work!! They are so awesome and so humble!! They want to share the gospel so bad that they try and try and try to comunicate with the people and they are so innocent and humble the people cant deny them.
I love this Church. It is true! I know the book of mormon is the word of God and I know that Jospeh smith is a Prophet. I challenge all of you to read and pray about the book of mormon frequently!! I have had countless answers and they all just keep strenghtening me!! I love you family and hope you have a great week!
Love Elder Knudsen.
10/20/10
Dear family,
Wow it sounds like a lot is happening!! 3 new babies in 2 months!! Thats crazy!! Make sure you keep sending me pictures of them! Also Justin and Lindsey just up and going to New York and having like the best "New York" trip ever! And all the trips for that matter to St. George and to Las Vegas. Wow it sounds like a lot is going on!! Its funny on the mission I feel just Kinda numb. Ha ha I'm sure you all can relate to it. Like a lot is happening but its almost like its not really happening. I dont know it is weird.
This week has been super cool! I love it when you at church and your running everywhere to try and make sure all the people there know what is going on and feel good. It is super stressful but honestly I wouldn't have it any other way!! The family came to Church this week. They didn't bring there kids though but I think after they saw all the other kids screaming and running around and throwing toys and stuff they decided its okay to bring the kids. They Loved the Church! They Said it just filled them up!! They are really progressing. The wife more than the husband I believe it is becuase she is probably reading and praying when he doesn't really have time to do it. But we will help him more, his name is Nelson if you could pray for him and the kids as well to participate, they are Angel and Jose. Also a few other people came to church, A less active and a investigator that we taught a while ago showed up and I guess he has been going to Seminary!! he loves it too. We are also teaching a part member family. The non member is Jose as well.
It has been a super sweet week. A lot of work and trying to follow the spirit in everything. yesterday we were pretty guided. We were going to go find some people and we didnt know where so we said a prayer and looked at the map then decided on an area and as we were pulling into the area we saw a member there helping his recently married son (nonmember) move. So we jumped in and helped them and after helping them they said "I'm going to go to chruch this week because you helped us" haha I am really glad they are willing to give it another chance because the first time they didnt like it. Then later in the night we were guided to a house where one of our investigators was!! It was super sweet.
We are starting to have succes among the poorer people. Not the super poor but the lower class! it is awesome because they are always outside and they are with there families and we just go up and talk to them and usually teach them right there! they are more accepting.
I have to get going but i love you all family!! even the ones I dont know yet Carter Audrie and Dane and I miss ya but I know the Lord wants me here and This is were I want to be right now. I cant believe how much I have grown. There are so many amazing example around me and the Lord is blessing me! 2 nephi 2:26 is awesome how it explains that we need to choose to act!! Have a great week!! Love you all.
Elder Knudsen
10/13/10
So Family how are you all doing?! It sounds like things are going crazy there at home.. Well at least a lot is happening. It sounds like Stacey has a lot of pressure to have the baby soon because everyone is going to seem them this week! I'm glad that everything is going good for Audrey Lynn and Britt. Its good that I finally know her name so I can pray for her ha ha. Justin and Lindsey are in New York?! What?! That came out of nowhere ha ha I guess there are more Puerto Ricans that live in New York then here in Puerto Rico so I hope they enjoy being there with my people ha ha. Wait wait wait I heard that BYU lost to Utah STATE?! Uh oh. But then they are doing better now? I hope so!
Anyway things in the mission are awesome! The Family didnt make it to church this sunday... That killed me but I'm sure they will come next week! They are awesome and the mother even barrowed a dress from someone so that she could come! We are still looking for a lot of families. President Alvarado said that we should baptised 5 families this month..(He gets really excited sometimes) but I know he is called of God and we can get it if we work hard!
This past week we went with the President to the other side of the island (where I have been basically all my mission except this transfere) to help him out with teaching a few missionaries. It was cool the place where I went and worked was super flooded and people were trying to take things out of there house and everything so we just decided to do some service and eventhough nobody would let us we showed them we were serious by just walking down into this dirty muddy water with our white shirts and ties and everything on!! It was fun.
It was super cool to be able to be with him and his family and to scripture study with them and everything. Because I am the youngest I never got to see things from the perspective I was seeing President Alvarados' family. It was really cool. But then we got a ride home from a senior missionary and didnt get home till super late but its funny How much respect I have for these senior couple out here giving all there time and effort and how patient they are with the missionaires and the good actitudes they have and everything!
Anyway I think I'm just mumbling while I wait for the other missionaries to finish but I have to get going. I love you all so much family. Thank you for all that you do for me. Amo esta Iglesia, Amo esta familia, amo el Libro De Mormon y tengo confianza al saber que puedo ser limpio por medio de la expiacion de mi Salvador. Esta es la Iglesia verdadera. Dios nos conoce y nos ama a cada uno especifica.
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. Thanks for the new white shirts and the halloween candy.
10/6/10
Dear Familia,
Wow the weeks are flying. Thanks so much for your prayers! They are really helping out here. CONGRATULATIONS CHRIS AND BRIT!!!! That is awesome. I am glad to hear that everything went well on the birth. What is her name?!? Hang in ther stac! ha ha It sounds like you are all doing great. Mom what is this about going on a feild trip with your grandson.. Is that even allowed? haha
Thanks for sending the shirts, I havent gotten them but the other ones I gave to some missionaries who really needed them.
This week was awesome!! The confrence was sweet! We got to go to all of the sessions because we made the goals we had set! It was really really good. I felt the main focuses were faith, preparing your family, following the prophet and staying away from any temptation. I really really enjoyed the talk by Brother Kearon ( I think that was his name). Basically all of priesthood session was really good.
We were running everywhere this weekend. Between all the conferences we had to go teach as many people as we could! The Lord really blessed us for doing it too. A less active showed up to conference with his daughter after we visited him and as well we invited the parents of 2 to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptised on the 30 of october and they said they would prepare for that date!!!! There names are Milagros and Jose. Their kids are a little special but we came up with some sweet lessons to help them out too.
Elder Zenger and I are loving our time together as usual and have hopes to still be together at Christmas!! Ha ha we'll see.
I was thinking back, during one of the talks during conference talks, to the teachers that have made a huge difference in my life (aside from mom and dad and all the family) and I was just thinking how thankful I am for all of them. Obviously right now as a missionary I am focusing on becoming a good teacher but it is something that the whole church needs and if we dont have it the church will weaken. Have you ever noticed how the Lord calls people who are great teachers to be with the youngmen and young women and primary. Its because if we can teach simply so people understand and are interested the people we teach will stay strong in the church. I just want to invite all of you to study chapter 10 of preach my gospel with me so we can all keep building the church together. (as well as that talk from confrence) Thankyou for everything you all do for me. I pray for you all, all the time. Please keep praying for my companion Elder Zenger and I that we can become better teachers and master spanish. I love you all and have a great week!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/29/10
Dear Family,
So this week is good just like all the other ones!! Our ward is the stake center of the biggest stake in Puerto Rico so it is super cool!! The members here are really ready to help us out in the work as well!! We were both put here new so we just need to find some people to work with so we can involve the ward but I think you all must have been praying for me because this week we found like 6 families we can teach. We had another 2 day training but our area is close enough to the mission office that we got to work in our area and we had some extra misisonaries work here too!!
So Monday night after the meeting I got the chance to work with Elder Oden, my Hawaiian companion from the MTC in the Dominican Republic. It was awesome because we knew we were going to get the chance to work together eventually. Anyway we just went out to work and we worked hard. the president said we cant go in for the night until we teach 2 families (I think it was a joke) but we went out and taught 3 families and one of them had like 13 people in the family!! It was so awesome!! We sang really good and them taught them and they all loved it and want us to come back and teach with them, the lady asked me if you could put there rebellious son on the prayer role his name is Adrian Jose. I told her you would for sure. The days are going so fast lately! I get to P-day and think back on my week and cant remember where it all went but I think that's a good thing because I know I am working super hard and the Lord will bless us. If you could all just pray for the families that we have found and for the ones that are still out there that need to find us. Please keep praying for my spanish too haha.
I want you all to know that I love the Book of Mormon. The book testifies of families! Everyone wants to find peace and happiness in this life and I know that my peace and happiness is with all of you. I love the book of mormon because it has blessed our family so much! From the first verse that says I nephi having been born of goodly parents and then later when nephi explains why we talk of Christ and rejoice in Christ and Preach of Christ and Prophecy of Christ, Its so our kids can know of him. When Jesus Christ was here in the Americas He told us to Pray Always in your families so your wives and children can be blessed. I love you all and thank you so much for all you do for me!! Have a Great week and we will talk to you next week!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/22/10
Dear Family,
It sounds like everyone is doing good there! I got the baby blessing announcement and it was awesome!! I also got the shirts!! Thanks so much!! ... they are actually a little big... ha ha I'm a 15 1/2 It also sounds like Chris Loves doing his scouting!! And Jared's seminary class is awesome! That is so cool that he is a seminary teacher!!
This week has been good. It is crazy because this is the second time in a row that I have been put into an area where we are both new to the area so we have to find eveything out ourselves. Its going good though. Elder Zenger and I are doing really good. and working hard. The ward we are in is awesome and I can't believe the size of the Church here. It is a little rough because we are living outside of our area so we have to travel a bit to get there everyday but Elder and Sister Pietz are helping us find an apartment as you heard. We have been really blessed here! We have been praying loads and fasting to find a family. When we were together the last time we found a family right at the end of the transfere. We think that the family is going to come from a reference from the members so we have been working a lot with them. President Alvarado also said that his house is open to us and the family we find to teach with them when we find them. We have been visiting the bishop the stake president the Elders quorum president and all sorts of other leaders to find this family. If you could please pray to help us be where we need to so the family can find us.
At church this sunday an 18 year old guy showed up and I began to talk to him and found our he is not a member but just comes because he likes it at Church!! So we set up a cita with him last night and it was awesome!! We shared a very powerful lesson about the Restouration and invited him to read and pray about the Book of Mormon. He understood like everything and really had some great questions and HE HUMBILY, SINCERELY WANTED TO KNOW THE TRUTH AT AGE 18. Then we got into our car and looked at the map and found out... He doesn't live in our area!!!!!!! I was so sad that we cant keep helping him on his way but there are good Elders and Sisters in his area that will do awesome.
Thank you so much for everything you do for me family. I hope everything is still going good. I love you all so much and I love this work!! I felt the spirit so strong when I was teaching about the restoration and I know that we all need to be continuosly studying and strengthening our knowledge about the gospel. Remember that active members in the chruch isn't just coming to church every week it is members who are willing to work and are continually growing in their understanding. Thanks for being such great examples for me. I pray for you ALL the time! have a great week and talk to you next week. Good luck in the stake choir. Is dad directing that?
Love Elder Knudsen
9/15/10
Dear family,
What a week!! We just got transfered and guess what... My best friend is my companion again, Elder Zenger!! And we're not zone leaders!! They are giving us an opportunity to just work an focus on our area. I am so excited!!
So this week was pretty crazy. We had the chance to help start training a senior couple. We felt the spirit so strong when we were all learning together! While we were practicing teaching their branch presidente about family prayer we found out that his son isn't really praying that much and so I started directing the lesson at him and just before we left I looked him in the eye and made sure that he really promised me he would pray that night and he said he would. On the way home we got a call from the brach president saying his kid wants a way to stay in contacto with us and so we just set up a cita for the next day where we taught about scripture study. The spirit was there so strong and he felt it!! We are going to help him get on a mission!! He admitted to us that he felt the spirit and that he prayed and he got teary eyed when he talked about it. I ve faith that this kid will serve a mission!!
Also on our way out of my area a couple called us that we had been working with. They are a less active couple that were married in the temple and he served a mission. Anyway they called and said they went to church and took the sacrament together (we didn't know becuase we were invited to a stake confrence in ponce where Elder Coleman of the area presidency was speaking) and that they are moving to Texas and are going to the temple agian together. They called to thank us for rescuing them. It was all the Spirit. It just flooded their home when we would talk about families and they felt it and changed. I can not explain how happy I am for them.
I have some other experiences but I really don't have time. Elder Zenger and I have to go find an appartment and figure out where our area is, We are both new in the area called Trujillo Alto. We just want to go work. Thank you for everything family. Thankyou SO much for the scriptures and the case they are AWESOME!!! and yeah keep sending things to the same mission address. I love you all and keep strengthening your foundation in Christ with me!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/8/10
Dear Family,
Wow, what a week!! So last week after I wrote you we had to run to Bayamon for a ZL council which was suppose to only last one day but we didn't get back to our area until Saturday really early in the morning! It was really cool though because my companion an I were asked to make some plans for the future of our zone and how we can help certain Elders develop leadership skills for the mission and later for their country as well as plans for how we can make a really big movement in the islands that are in our mission. Thursday night President Alvarado had us come over to his house and his wife cooked for us while we finished planning. He lives in a cando in San Juan that is super nice. I figured it our when we parked next to a ferrari before we went up the Elevator. Then we went and stayed at the mission office and prepared for the next day talking about the islands. I was with Elder Oden as well. he was my companion in the MTC in the Dominican Republic. It was nice to get to spend time with him again. Finally we got home saturday super early in the morning and we worked SO hard do get the goals we had planned for our area in the two days that we had left. Honestly it was a miracle that we made it. We had to get these goals so we could invite our zone to do it as well and we did it!! It is crazy to see the change in the zone for having been the example. Everyone is doing better now.
We have been doing something interesting lately, I dont know if I have already told you about it or not. We go up to people and talk with them a little and then just say well you have a beautiful family.. I'm sure you have heard of "family night" and the people are usually like ummm no... and so we go into explain it and how it helps the family and then we invite to have a family night with them sometime this week and believe it or not we are having a lot of success with it!! We found two families in like an hour that we are going to have family nights with!!
I have been focusing a lot in establishing my testimony on the rock of our savior and this morning I read The Proclamation "The living Christ" and I felt the spirit so strong!! It was awesome!! I know this Church is true and that the Book of Mormon is true!! I know that we as a family can be together forever!! I love you all so much and am extremely excited that we can be together after this life!! Have a great week!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/1/10
Dear family,
This week was awesome but there was a sad moment. My english Book of Mormon got ruiened in the rain!!! All my markings and revelation and everything just gone!!! I have dried it out and am still using it but it just looks like I dont respect the scriptures. Maybe if you can find that Leather book of mormon case that Chris brought back from argentina for me and send it to me that would help ha ha I think eventually I will have to get a new one.
Anyway the work is going good! We had the chance to go on some tradeoffs this week and help some other elders and it was awesome!! I got the opportunity to go to work with 2 missionaries that came out into the feild with me and they are so cool Probably the up coming leaders. The president gave us some special opportunities to plan some changes in the mission coming up and it was super cool to see how we make the planes the best we can and then present them to the president who presentes them to the Lord and then the changes are made so they are in accordance with his will. It is so awesome how in the end it al works out to be the way the Lord wants.
They cut church short this week for the hurricane and so it was pretty crazy and we had to make sure all the missionaries were in early but we were all prepared with water and food. The morning of the hurricane my companion got out these 2 machetes and started sharpening them and then when they were sharp he wrapped them up and put them in the car and I was like what are you doing and he just said, just in case we have to do service. I was just like okay whatever. Come to find out on our way to a cita we found that a driveway blocked my fallen down bamboo and so we jumped out of the car and started going crazy with these machetes on these HUGE branches of bamboo!! they were like 40 foot bamboo trees and we just went out with our shirts and ties and machetes and cleared the way for the cars!! It was awesome!!
To explain a little the ward I am in hasn't had the best missionaires in awhile and so we have been focusing on gaining the trust of all the members lately but FINALLY they gave us a chance. This sunday they gave us a chance to share a class for the first hour and the members LOVED it. We talked all about families and that we all should have a temple recommend, do family night, ready pray and go to chruch as a family to strengthen the families. We had lots of particapation and ran it in a way that was like "we dont have our own kids or wifes yet but we have studied the family proclamation a lot with leaders of the chruch and with the help of you all who have your own families we can com to a lot of great conclusions" It was so good.
I hear there are a few more hurricanes comeing but dont worry about anything they take really good care of us out here and i would love to get more opportunities to serve!
Would you all pray for Joel and Joann they are a couple who are investigating the church and seem super interested. They would strengthen the Ward SO much here. Also if you could pray for me to get my spanish down I would really Appreciated it. thanks for everything family and let me know if there is anything I can do for you all.
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. that is awesome about BYU!!!!!!!!! Raise and shout the cougars are out!!!!!!!!!! nah nah nah naaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh nnnnnnnaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh nnnnnnnnnaaaaaaaahhhh naaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh nah.
8/25/10
Dear Family,
Well this week was great!!! So saturday and sunday we had stake confrence and Elder Andersen of the area presidency came and also the president came. It was super good I really enjoyed it. Just before the first congrence session our car died like a football feild away from pepboys and when we asked if they could check it out they said we would have to call a tow truck to tow it to the garage because they have tried pushing it and it is way too hard. So we ended up getting super sweaty en our suits pushing this car accross a parking lot right before the confrence. I Usually love pushing cars but usually its not our car ha ha but it was good preparation because yesterday it rained loads. I guess a lot like it did there in Utah but the streets were flooded and it was like crazy. The semi's were just cruzing through these lakes and sending like huge wakes going everywhere and people just stared going into the oncoming traffic to get through. Anyway when we were driving by this big lake in the freeway there was a car stuck in the middle and these semis were just covering this car with water as they went by. We qucikly found a place to park and ran over to see if we could help and come to find out this lady had gotten really scared and was going crazy in the car so we just jumped in the water and pushed her out. It was awesome! We just got soaked that day from head to toe!!! But I loved it. the area presidency came out with a letter that said that the missionaries need to be at a level that they have never experienced. They said that we need to work very very hard and give a BONE WEARYING effort to this work. We are focusing on getting people in church weather they are investigators or they are less actives our number one goal is the attendence at chruch. We are also focusing on finding younng successful men that can strengthen the chruch here. I love it and I loved watch a family that we are teaching return to chruch this week! Elder Andersen said that if we get a family to return to chruch and take the sacrament they are returning to Christ and being baptised again. he said that people returning to the church is just as important as baptisms. I love it!!
The Lord has really blessed us to find some young families this week that we can work with so I will let you know how things go with that. We also had the chance to put up mormon.org in our city. Our president told us to go get a can of spray paint and paint the town with mormon.org. He said I dont know how your going to do it without getting in trouble... Anyway I think he was kidding but he does want it up and people seeing it because it is a great cite. so we found a really noticalbe fence and used cups to spell out mormon.org in it. It was fun.
I love this work it is awesome. Today when I was ironing my shirt I was thinking about the family and how I dont believe that you all understand how big of example you are to me. Thanks so much. I know that we need to establish our testimony on Christ Like it expains in Helaman 5. And if we do we will never fall. Have a great week family and I'll talk to you next week.
8/18/10
Dear Family,
Hey hey I hope everything is going good. It sounds like it is getting hot there!! I'm not really sure what hot is but I know when it is like 80 or something I get cold. This week has been pretty crazy. We had our zone confrence with Elder Vines, Our area president and that went good and then the next day he invited all the zone leaders to a meeting with him to talk about the struggles in the mission. It was so cool except for the fact that we decided we were going to try and take public transportation to bayamon (like a hour and a half car drive) And we got packed into this big van with like a huge subwoofer going in my ear for like four hours. The driver was pretty crazy and we stopped half way to get lunch and have a bathroom break and we were just picking up random people wherever they untill there were people sitting where the lugage went. I soon realized when I was on the bus that I couldn't feel the spirit. Someone once told me that being on a mission is like being in a bubble. You just always have the spirit.. Obviously stronger sometimes than others but it is always there with you. So I put my head down on the seat in front of me and just started praying. I still couldn't feel the spirit. It was probably the first time I had to experience that in a long time and i did not like it. We ended up getting to the Appointment late and being very embarassed but it really showed me the importance of always living a life where you can feel the spirit weather it be make sure your house and car are clean and organized to listening to music that invites the spirit. It is something that I am going to work on in my life.
We also were invited to the high councel meeting with all the stake leaders and all the bishoprics and wow it was awesome. We were really privleged to be there and see all these organized, powerful men that are leading our stake. It was very cool to be in a council with them.
We have been doing some work here in the university trying to have some success with the students here and also working with some less active families and we have had some really cool experiences. We are teaching and testifying about the family. We shoot for bringing the spirit really strong and then leaving them with that. It is usually about 15 minutes long and then we hit the road to work more. the members are really gaining respect for us (the missionaries before didnt leave on a great note) and now we just need to earn their trust. Sometimes it is hard to really testify and bring the spirit super strong super fast but you are all helping with your thoughts and testimonies of the family a proclamation to the world. Thanks so much!! You are all helping. But I love the mission and I love this family. Thankyou for everything you do for me and all your prayers. I will continue to pray for you all the time but let me know if there is anything else i can do.
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. Mom I got your letter, Thank you so much I really enjoyed it. Oh yeah I also played the piano again for church and.... It was bad ha ha I couldnt hear the singing really and I could barely see the director and i guess i was just playing super fast and didnt realize it and there was a time when I skipped a chord and I got lost so I just stopped and I looked at the director (my companion) and he was lost to so he tried just jumping in where he thought we were and his voice squeeked and he was the only one singing because basically everyone stopped... It was humbling ha ha but hopefully I do better next week
7/28/10
Dear Family,
So yeah this week and a half have been pretty crazy. Monday after I wrote you all we just took off to bayamon to start our training and it takes like 2 hours to drive there so it was like a little road trip. All of the leadership in the mission was there basically for 4 days. We learned a lor of things. Basically things that are already in Preach my gospel but things that we arent using in the best way we can. But wow it was a lot and it was very spiritual!! After I talked to the president because one of the District leaders in our zone was told not to come and the president just said to me you have 48 hours to teach him everything that he needs to teach to his district so on the way home from our 4 day trip I just got dropped of with this district leader and re went over everything!!! It was really good and fun. I loved teaching him! However I was tired because we have been having to get up at like 5 for the training and we usually didnt get to bed untill later because we stayed with the assistents and they always had a lot of things to do. But to be honest with you.. I love getting up early in the moring and reading the scriptures or exercising!
When I finally got back in my area I found out that the family that we found. The younger ones are awesome!! They are so cool and I feel so good when we teach them and after the lesson as well. Also we have 3 return appointments with other families!!! Thank you so much for your prayers!! speacking of prayers this week I read about when the sons of mosiah and alma the younger were visited by the angel because they were trying to destroy the church and I was reminded of a really cool experience that I had befor the mission. In that chapter it talks about how Alma's father had been praying hard for his son who went wayword and the angel said because of his fathers prayers (verse 14) he visited him. Before the mission I was talking to my student ward bishop once and he basically asked me why I didnt give in to the sins that are so easy to fall into at college and I said I'm not sure... I have gotten close and he said what stopped you and i said again I dont know and then he testified to me that it is because my mother is praying for me... (I'm sure you were too dad) I am SO thankful the the prayers of our parents because they are said with love and humbly and with the heart. We have all enoyed these blessings before and we should never forget to pray for each other. I personally am very thankfull for all of your prayers!! You are all awesome!!
Anyway things are going good!! We just need to keep working hard and to be honest that envelope that dad sent me is awesome!!! It has so much motivational stuff in it!! I read through it a lot and it just gets me so pumped to go out and work and forget about how hot it is or how hungry I am or all the swet in my eyes ha ha I love this work. I know I will totally be able to teach these families better when you all send me those testimonies or stories or whatever so when you get a chance please send them.
I love hearing about Brody and Mark If you get a chance try and send me one of their letters or something ha ha And wow nelsons mission is going to be a HARD mission but dont tell him that ha ha We tried a lot of dutch people but only got taught like two people. The language is kinda cool though but tough as well. He will totally rock there though!! The Lord knows what he is doing!!
Anyway I love you all and hope everything is going good!! I love the mission and most of all our savior Jesus Christ. Have a great week family and I think I will talk to you next wednesday!!
Love Elder Knudsen
7/14/10
Dear Family,
This week was so good. We are really working hard to find people!! We just need to be patient. We have spent a few days now with just straight finding for like 3 or 4 hours. The members are helping us find as well. They are praying and looking for families for us. We sent knocking doors the other day in straight pouring rain!!! We were soaked inside and out from head to toe but we basically just wanted to see if we could get anyone to let us in and it felt a lot better than the sun!! We did see a little success out of it too.
On one of our trade offs the elder that came to our area had hear that the best Pineapples in puerto rico are in our area so when we saw a guy selling them we stopped and picked on up but this thing was HUGE!!! Like 10 lbs And just loaded with juice!!
We also ran out of miles on the car so we dusted off the bikes and went out into the mountains!! Our area is beautiful!! It is just green hill after green hill!!!! But to say the least Elder Zenger is 6 foot 4 and he hasnt been on a bike for three transferes so it got a little crazy!! He caught his knee on his handle bar on our way down a hill and could barely walk after!! ha ha He is okay just has a really brused knee.
I love you family and wish I had more time to write but I dont. But Things are going good. We are really really working hard. Please keep praying for us to find a family and for my spanish!! I love this work!! I love the Savior and I know that he really suffered for me and I am so thankful that because of that I can be here right now. Stay strong family!!
Love Elder Knudsen
7/7/10
Dear Family,
Another sobrino!!!!!! That is awesome!!! Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope things have settled down a little bit and everything is being handled. It sounds like everyone is doing good and moving forward!!
My week was crazy!! Our new mission president is awesome!! All of Puerto Rico ended up getting together friday morning to meet him. We had to get up at like 4:30 to get to the meeting in time. But I got to see all my friends from the east mission and it was so cool!! A lot of them are the same and some are in the islands but it was still cool to see them. The spirit in that meeting was SO strong!! He talked a lot about love and building up the families here in Puerto Rico so they can get a temple here. I was very impressed by our president. He is very smart!! When I went and talked to him for the first time I said I think you talked to my Grandparents in the MTC and he said Yes I did and they told me to take good care of you... Where are you at? What is your Responsibility and are you baptising. He is really straight forward and SO many things are changing. it is actually pretty intense to be a zone leader right now because he hasn't given us any like set directions just to study the DOCTRINE of Christ in 2 Nephi 31 and teach it. My whole mission has changed and I love where it is going!! I am so excited!! It is really cool to be with Elder Zenger too. we talked to President Marineau right before he left and he gave us some very good complements about the way we work together!! But things are going good and a lot of things are changing!!
We will always have P-day on wednesday now too. But Family if you could pray to help us find a family!! We are looking really hard for families!!! We can only receive exaltation if we have an eternal family!!
I was reading a talk today and came across a section that was really interesting. It talked about an old canadian coach who said that so many people in and out of athletics are "hold outs" and what he was trying to say is so many times we don't put all of ourselves into the things we are doing. We go into things to just to do them and finish when we could be so so so much better if you just put everything into everything we do. We SHOULD NEVER BE HOLD OUTS on God. We should always magnify our callings!! We would do ANYTHING for our mortal life. If we had to we would give anything we have for one more week of mortal life. IT is the most important thing for us. Now if Mortal life is that important then think how important Eternal life is and if we dont magnify our callings we will be held responsible for taking the eternal life of the people we could have saved if we would have magnified our calling!! I know that God loves us and wants the best for us. He loves us like our fathers love us and is just waiting for us to ask him for help when we need it. We also have shared a lot about the family. I want to invite all of you to read through the family proclamation to the world with your families and to put in practice family pray and scripture study (daily) and family nights!! It will bless your family and you can establish your families on the rock of our Savior. And if you do your family will not fall. Read Helamen 5:12 and put your family in the verse!! I love you all and pray for you all the time!! Have a great week!!!
Love elder Knudsen
Dear family,
WOW THIS WEEK WAS SO AWESOME I WISH I COULD DO BACKFLIPS TO SHOW MY EMOTION!!!!! okay so I'll answer your questions first. Elder Zenger and I are still together and I think we will be together for a long time. Maybe for christams again!! All the Necies and Nephews look so awesome!!
So at saturday the familia Ramos (the ones who were teaching) came to an activity with their kids and everything and even participated in bringing things. They are getting along with the ward very well. Then on Sunday the whole family showed up. Actually a lot of people showed up it was hard taking care of all of them again but we had a lot of help from the ward! Anyway as I looked around they were like so put together in the church with there arms around eachother and listening revently and everything. Anyway after church sunday the mom went up to my companion and said I found where I want to be and I want to be baptised with my husband and two kids so start focusing on my husband!!!! Its a good thing I didnt here that right there in the church because I would have probably done a backflip!!! It was so cool!! Sadly we havent had time to see them this week yet. We have been stuck in the mission office helping some elders out and in meetings and stuff all week!! Its been really tough but it was totally worth it when the new elders arrived on tuesday and we had the chance to all take out on and go work!! They are so awesome and so humble!! They want to share the gospel so bad that they try and try and try to comunicate with the people and they are so innocent and humble the people cant deny them.
I love this Church. It is true! I know the book of mormon is the word of God and I know that Jospeh smith is a Prophet. I challenge all of you to read and pray about the book of mormon frequently!! I have had countless answers and they all just keep strenghtening me!! I love you family and hope you have a great week!
Love Elder Knudsen.
10/20/10
Dear family,
Wow it sounds like a lot is happening!! 3 new babies in 2 months!! Thats crazy!! Make sure you keep sending me pictures of them! Also Justin and Lindsey just up and going to New York and having like the best "New York" trip ever! And all the trips for that matter to St. George and to Las Vegas. Wow it sounds like a lot is going on!! Its funny on the mission I feel just Kinda numb. Ha ha I'm sure you all can relate to it. Like a lot is happening but its almost like its not really happening. I dont know it is weird.
This week has been super cool! I love it when you at church and your running everywhere to try and make sure all the people there know what is going on and feel good. It is super stressful but honestly I wouldn't have it any other way!! The family came to Church this week. They didn't bring there kids though but I think after they saw all the other kids screaming and running around and throwing toys and stuff they decided its okay to bring the kids. They Loved the Church! They Said it just filled them up!! They are really progressing. The wife more than the husband I believe it is becuase she is probably reading and praying when he doesn't really have time to do it. But we will help him more, his name is Nelson if you could pray for him and the kids as well to participate, they are Angel and Jose. Also a few other people came to church, A less active and a investigator that we taught a while ago showed up and I guess he has been going to Seminary!! he loves it too. We are also teaching a part member family. The non member is Jose as well.
It has been a super sweet week. A lot of work and trying to follow the spirit in everything. yesterday we were pretty guided. We were going to go find some people and we didnt know where so we said a prayer and looked at the map then decided on an area and as we were pulling into the area we saw a member there helping his recently married son (nonmember) move. So we jumped in and helped them and after helping them they said "I'm going to go to chruch this week because you helped us" haha I am really glad they are willing to give it another chance because the first time they didnt like it. Then later in the night we were guided to a house where one of our investigators was!! It was super sweet.
We are starting to have succes among the poorer people. Not the super poor but the lower class! it is awesome because they are always outside and they are with there families and we just go up and talk to them and usually teach them right there! they are more accepting.
I have to get going but i love you all family!! even the ones I dont know yet Carter Audrie and Dane and I miss ya but I know the Lord wants me here and This is were I want to be right now. I cant believe how much I have grown. There are so many amazing example around me and the Lord is blessing me! 2 nephi 2:26 is awesome how it explains that we need to choose to act!! Have a great week!! Love you all.
Elder Knudsen
10/13/10
So Family how are you all doing?! It sounds like things are going crazy there at home.. Well at least a lot is happening. It sounds like Stacey has a lot of pressure to have the baby soon because everyone is going to seem them this week! I'm glad that everything is going good for Audrey Lynn and Britt. Its good that I finally know her name so I can pray for her ha ha. Justin and Lindsey are in New York?! What?! That came out of nowhere ha ha I guess there are more Puerto Ricans that live in New York then here in Puerto Rico so I hope they enjoy being there with my people ha ha. Wait wait wait I heard that BYU lost to Utah STATE?! Uh oh. But then they are doing better now? I hope so!
Anyway things in the mission are awesome! The Family didnt make it to church this sunday... That killed me but I'm sure they will come next week! They are awesome and the mother even barrowed a dress from someone so that she could come! We are still looking for a lot of families. President Alvarado said that we should baptised 5 families this month..(He gets really excited sometimes) but I know he is called of God and we can get it if we work hard!
This past week we went with the President to the other side of the island (where I have been basically all my mission except this transfere) to help him out with teaching a few missionaries. It was cool the place where I went and worked was super flooded and people were trying to take things out of there house and everything so we just decided to do some service and eventhough nobody would let us we showed them we were serious by just walking down into this dirty muddy water with our white shirts and ties and everything on!! It was fun.
It was super cool to be able to be with him and his family and to scripture study with them and everything. Because I am the youngest I never got to see things from the perspective I was seeing President Alvarados' family. It was really cool. But then we got a ride home from a senior missionary and didnt get home till super late but its funny How much respect I have for these senior couple out here giving all there time and effort and how patient they are with the missionaires and the good actitudes they have and everything!
Anyway I think I'm just mumbling while I wait for the other missionaries to finish but I have to get going. I love you all so much family. Thank you for all that you do for me. Amo esta Iglesia, Amo esta familia, amo el Libro De Mormon y tengo confianza al saber que puedo ser limpio por medio de la expiacion de mi Salvador. Esta es la Iglesia verdadera. Dios nos conoce y nos ama a cada uno especifica.
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. Thanks for the new white shirts and the halloween candy.
10/6/10
Dear Familia,
Wow the weeks are flying. Thanks so much for your prayers! They are really helping out here. CONGRATULATIONS CHRIS AND BRIT!!!! That is awesome. I am glad to hear that everything went well on the birth. What is her name?!? Hang in ther stac! ha ha It sounds like you are all doing great. Mom what is this about going on a feild trip with your grandson.. Is that even allowed? haha
Thanks for sending the shirts, I havent gotten them but the other ones I gave to some missionaries who really needed them.
This week was awesome!! The confrence was sweet! We got to go to all of the sessions because we made the goals we had set! It was really really good. I felt the main focuses were faith, preparing your family, following the prophet and staying away from any temptation. I really really enjoyed the talk by Brother Kearon ( I think that was his name). Basically all of priesthood session was really good.
We were running everywhere this weekend. Between all the conferences we had to go teach as many people as we could! The Lord really blessed us for doing it too. A less active showed up to conference with his daughter after we visited him and as well we invited the parents of 2 to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptised on the 30 of october and they said they would prepare for that date!!!! There names are Milagros and Jose. Their kids are a little special but we came up with some sweet lessons to help them out too.
Elder Zenger and I are loving our time together as usual and have hopes to still be together at Christmas!! Ha ha we'll see.
I was thinking back, during one of the talks during conference talks, to the teachers that have made a huge difference in my life (aside from mom and dad and all the family) and I was just thinking how thankful I am for all of them. Obviously right now as a missionary I am focusing on becoming a good teacher but it is something that the whole church needs and if we dont have it the church will weaken. Have you ever noticed how the Lord calls people who are great teachers to be with the youngmen and young women and primary. Its because if we can teach simply so people understand and are interested the people we teach will stay strong in the church. I just want to invite all of you to study chapter 10 of preach my gospel with me so we can all keep building the church together. (as well as that talk from confrence) Thankyou for everything you all do for me. I pray for you all, all the time. Please keep praying for my companion Elder Zenger and I that we can become better teachers and master spanish. I love you all and have a great week!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/29/10
Dear Family,
So this week is good just like all the other ones!! Our ward is the stake center of the biggest stake in Puerto Rico so it is super cool!! The members here are really ready to help us out in the work as well!! We were both put here new so we just need to find some people to work with so we can involve the ward but I think you all must have been praying for me because this week we found like 6 families we can teach. We had another 2 day training but our area is close enough to the mission office that we got to work in our area and we had some extra misisonaries work here too!!
So Monday night after the meeting I got the chance to work with Elder Oden, my Hawaiian companion from the MTC in the Dominican Republic. It was awesome because we knew we were going to get the chance to work together eventually. Anyway we just went out to work and we worked hard. the president said we cant go in for the night until we teach 2 families (I think it was a joke) but we went out and taught 3 families and one of them had like 13 people in the family!! It was so awesome!! We sang really good and them taught them and they all loved it and want us to come back and teach with them, the lady asked me if you could put there rebellious son on the prayer role his name is Adrian Jose. I told her you would for sure. The days are going so fast lately! I get to P-day and think back on my week and cant remember where it all went but I think that's a good thing because I know I am working super hard and the Lord will bless us. If you could all just pray for the families that we have found and for the ones that are still out there that need to find us. Please keep praying for my spanish too haha.
I want you all to know that I love the Book of Mormon. The book testifies of families! Everyone wants to find peace and happiness in this life and I know that my peace and happiness is with all of you. I love the book of mormon because it has blessed our family so much! From the first verse that says I nephi having been born of goodly parents and then later when nephi explains why we talk of Christ and rejoice in Christ and Preach of Christ and Prophecy of Christ, Its so our kids can know of him. When Jesus Christ was here in the Americas He told us to Pray Always in your families so your wives and children can be blessed. I love you all and thank you so much for all you do for me!! Have a Great week and we will talk to you next week!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/22/10
Dear Family,
It sounds like everyone is doing good there! I got the baby blessing announcement and it was awesome!! I also got the shirts!! Thanks so much!! ... they are actually a little big... ha ha I'm a 15 1/2 It also sounds like Chris Loves doing his scouting!! And Jared's seminary class is awesome! That is so cool that he is a seminary teacher!!
This week has been good. It is crazy because this is the second time in a row that I have been put into an area where we are both new to the area so we have to find eveything out ourselves. Its going good though. Elder Zenger and I are doing really good. and working hard. The ward we are in is awesome and I can't believe the size of the Church here. It is a little rough because we are living outside of our area so we have to travel a bit to get there everyday but Elder and Sister Pietz are helping us find an apartment as you heard. We have been really blessed here! We have been praying loads and fasting to find a family. When we were together the last time we found a family right at the end of the transfere. We think that the family is going to come from a reference from the members so we have been working a lot with them. President Alvarado also said that his house is open to us and the family we find to teach with them when we find them. We have been visiting the bishop the stake president the Elders quorum president and all sorts of other leaders to find this family. If you could please pray to help us be where we need to so the family can find us.
At church this sunday an 18 year old guy showed up and I began to talk to him and found our he is not a member but just comes because he likes it at Church!! So we set up a cita with him last night and it was awesome!! We shared a very powerful lesson about the Restouration and invited him to read and pray about the Book of Mormon. He understood like everything and really had some great questions and HE HUMBILY, SINCERELY WANTED TO KNOW THE TRUTH AT AGE 18. Then we got into our car and looked at the map and found out... He doesn't live in our area!!!!!!! I was so sad that we cant keep helping him on his way but there are good Elders and Sisters in his area that will do awesome.
Thank you so much for everything you do for me family. I hope everything is still going good. I love you all so much and I love this work!! I felt the spirit so strong when I was teaching about the restoration and I know that we all need to be continuosly studying and strengthening our knowledge about the gospel. Remember that active members in the chruch isn't just coming to church every week it is members who are willing to work and are continually growing in their understanding. Thanks for being such great examples for me. I pray for you ALL the time! have a great week and talk to you next week. Good luck in the stake choir. Is dad directing that?
Love Elder Knudsen
9/15/10
Dear family,
What a week!! We just got transfered and guess what... My best friend is my companion again, Elder Zenger!! And we're not zone leaders!! They are giving us an opportunity to just work an focus on our area. I am so excited!!
So this week was pretty crazy. We had the chance to help start training a senior couple. We felt the spirit so strong when we were all learning together! While we were practicing teaching their branch presidente about family prayer we found out that his son isn't really praying that much and so I started directing the lesson at him and just before we left I looked him in the eye and made sure that he really promised me he would pray that night and he said he would. On the way home we got a call from the brach president saying his kid wants a way to stay in contacto with us and so we just set up a cita for the next day where we taught about scripture study. The spirit was there so strong and he felt it!! We are going to help him get on a mission!! He admitted to us that he felt the spirit and that he prayed and he got teary eyed when he talked about it. I ve faith that this kid will serve a mission!!
Also on our way out of my area a couple called us that we had been working with. They are a less active couple that were married in the temple and he served a mission. Anyway they called and said they went to church and took the sacrament together (we didn't know becuase we were invited to a stake confrence in ponce where Elder Coleman of the area presidency was speaking) and that they are moving to Texas and are going to the temple agian together. They called to thank us for rescuing them. It was all the Spirit. It just flooded their home when we would talk about families and they felt it and changed. I can not explain how happy I am for them.
I have some other experiences but I really don't have time. Elder Zenger and I have to go find an appartment and figure out where our area is, We are both new in the area called Trujillo Alto. We just want to go work. Thank you for everything family. Thankyou SO much for the scriptures and the case they are AWESOME!!! and yeah keep sending things to the same mission address. I love you all and keep strengthening your foundation in Christ with me!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/8/10
Dear Family,
Wow, what a week!! So last week after I wrote you we had to run to Bayamon for a ZL council which was suppose to only last one day but we didn't get back to our area until Saturday really early in the morning! It was really cool though because my companion an I were asked to make some plans for the future of our zone and how we can help certain Elders develop leadership skills for the mission and later for their country as well as plans for how we can make a really big movement in the islands that are in our mission. Thursday night President Alvarado had us come over to his house and his wife cooked for us while we finished planning. He lives in a cando in San Juan that is super nice. I figured it our when we parked next to a ferrari before we went up the Elevator. Then we went and stayed at the mission office and prepared for the next day talking about the islands. I was with Elder Oden as well. he was my companion in the MTC in the Dominican Republic. It was nice to get to spend time with him again. Finally we got home saturday super early in the morning and we worked SO hard do get the goals we had planned for our area in the two days that we had left. Honestly it was a miracle that we made it. We had to get these goals so we could invite our zone to do it as well and we did it!! It is crazy to see the change in the zone for having been the example. Everyone is doing better now.
We have been doing something interesting lately, I dont know if I have already told you about it or not. We go up to people and talk with them a little and then just say well you have a beautiful family.. I'm sure you have heard of "family night" and the people are usually like ummm no... and so we go into explain it and how it helps the family and then we invite to have a family night with them sometime this week and believe it or not we are having a lot of success with it!! We found two families in like an hour that we are going to have family nights with!!
I have been focusing a lot in establishing my testimony on the rock of our savior and this morning I read The Proclamation "The living Christ" and I felt the spirit so strong!! It was awesome!! I know this Church is true and that the Book of Mormon is true!! I know that we as a family can be together forever!! I love you all so much and am extremely excited that we can be together after this life!! Have a great week!
Love Elder Knudsen
9/1/10
Dear family,
This week was awesome but there was a sad moment. My english Book of Mormon got ruiened in the rain!!! All my markings and revelation and everything just gone!!! I have dried it out and am still using it but it just looks like I dont respect the scriptures. Maybe if you can find that Leather book of mormon case that Chris brought back from argentina for me and send it to me that would help ha ha I think eventually I will have to get a new one.
Anyway the work is going good! We had the chance to go on some tradeoffs this week and help some other elders and it was awesome!! I got the opportunity to go to work with 2 missionaries that came out into the feild with me and they are so cool Probably the up coming leaders. The president gave us some special opportunities to plan some changes in the mission coming up and it was super cool to see how we make the planes the best we can and then present them to the president who presentes them to the Lord and then the changes are made so they are in accordance with his will. It is so awesome how in the end it al works out to be the way the Lord wants.
They cut church short this week for the hurricane and so it was pretty crazy and we had to make sure all the missionaries were in early but we were all prepared with water and food. The morning of the hurricane my companion got out these 2 machetes and started sharpening them and then when they were sharp he wrapped them up and put them in the car and I was like what are you doing and he just said, just in case we have to do service. I was just like okay whatever. Come to find out on our way to a cita we found that a driveway blocked my fallen down bamboo and so we jumped out of the car and started going crazy with these machetes on these HUGE branches of bamboo!! they were like 40 foot bamboo trees and we just went out with our shirts and ties and machetes and cleared the way for the cars!! It was awesome!!
To explain a little the ward I am in hasn't had the best missionaires in awhile and so we have been focusing on gaining the trust of all the members lately but FINALLY they gave us a chance. This sunday they gave us a chance to share a class for the first hour and the members LOVED it. We talked all about families and that we all should have a temple recommend, do family night, ready pray and go to chruch as a family to strengthen the families. We had lots of particapation and ran it in a way that was like "we dont have our own kids or wifes yet but we have studied the family proclamation a lot with leaders of the chruch and with the help of you all who have your own families we can com to a lot of great conclusions" It was so good.
I hear there are a few more hurricanes comeing but dont worry about anything they take really good care of us out here and i would love to get more opportunities to serve!
Would you all pray for Joel and Joann they are a couple who are investigating the church and seem super interested. They would strengthen the Ward SO much here. Also if you could pray for me to get my spanish down I would really Appreciated it. thanks for everything family and let me know if there is anything I can do for you all.
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. that is awesome about BYU!!!!!!!!! Raise and shout the cougars are out!!!!!!!!!! nah nah nah naaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh nnnnnnnaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh nnnnnnnnnaaaaaaaahhhh naaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh nah.
8/25/10
Dear Family,
Well this week was great!!! So saturday and sunday we had stake confrence and Elder Andersen of the area presidency came and also the president came. It was super good I really enjoyed it. Just before the first congrence session our car died like a football feild away from pepboys and when we asked if they could check it out they said we would have to call a tow truck to tow it to the garage because they have tried pushing it and it is way too hard. So we ended up getting super sweaty en our suits pushing this car accross a parking lot right before the confrence. I Usually love pushing cars but usually its not our car ha ha but it was good preparation because yesterday it rained loads. I guess a lot like it did there in Utah but the streets were flooded and it was like crazy. The semi's were just cruzing through these lakes and sending like huge wakes going everywhere and people just stared going into the oncoming traffic to get through. Anyway when we were driving by this big lake in the freeway there was a car stuck in the middle and these semis were just covering this car with water as they went by. We qucikly found a place to park and ran over to see if we could help and come to find out this lady had gotten really scared and was going crazy in the car so we just jumped in the water and pushed her out. It was awesome! We just got soaked that day from head to toe!!! But I loved it. the area presidency came out with a letter that said that the missionaries need to be at a level that they have never experienced. They said that we need to work very very hard and give a BONE WEARYING effort to this work. We are focusing on getting people in church weather they are investigators or they are less actives our number one goal is the attendence at chruch. We are also focusing on finding younng successful men that can strengthen the chruch here. I love it and I loved watch a family that we are teaching return to chruch this week! Elder Andersen said that if we get a family to return to chruch and take the sacrament they are returning to Christ and being baptised again. he said that people returning to the church is just as important as baptisms. I love it!!
The Lord has really blessed us to find some young families this week that we can work with so I will let you know how things go with that. We also had the chance to put up mormon.org in our city. Our president told us to go get a can of spray paint and paint the town with mormon.org. He said I dont know how your going to do it without getting in trouble... Anyway I think he was kidding but he does want it up and people seeing it because it is a great cite. so we found a really noticalbe fence and used cups to spell out mormon.org in it. It was fun.
I love this work it is awesome. Today when I was ironing my shirt I was thinking about the family and how I dont believe that you all understand how big of example you are to me. Thanks so much. I know that we need to establish our testimony on Christ Like it expains in Helaman 5. And if we do we will never fall. Have a great week family and I'll talk to you next week.
8/18/10
Dear Family,
Hey hey I hope everything is going good. It sounds like it is getting hot there!! I'm not really sure what hot is but I know when it is like 80 or something I get cold. This week has been pretty crazy. We had our zone confrence with Elder Vines, Our area president and that went good and then the next day he invited all the zone leaders to a meeting with him to talk about the struggles in the mission. It was so cool except for the fact that we decided we were going to try and take public transportation to bayamon (like a hour and a half car drive) And we got packed into this big van with like a huge subwoofer going in my ear for like four hours. The driver was pretty crazy and we stopped half way to get lunch and have a bathroom break and we were just picking up random people wherever they untill there were people sitting where the lugage went. I soon realized when I was on the bus that I couldn't feel the spirit. Someone once told me that being on a mission is like being in a bubble. You just always have the spirit.. Obviously stronger sometimes than others but it is always there with you. So I put my head down on the seat in front of me and just started praying. I still couldn't feel the spirit. It was probably the first time I had to experience that in a long time and i did not like it. We ended up getting to the Appointment late and being very embarassed but it really showed me the importance of always living a life where you can feel the spirit weather it be make sure your house and car are clean and organized to listening to music that invites the spirit. It is something that I am going to work on in my life.
We also were invited to the high councel meeting with all the stake leaders and all the bishoprics and wow it was awesome. We were really privleged to be there and see all these organized, powerful men that are leading our stake. It was very cool to be in a council with them.
We have been doing some work here in the university trying to have some success with the students here and also working with some less active families and we have had some really cool experiences. We are teaching and testifying about the family. We shoot for bringing the spirit really strong and then leaving them with that. It is usually about 15 minutes long and then we hit the road to work more. the members are really gaining respect for us (the missionaries before didnt leave on a great note) and now we just need to earn their trust. Sometimes it is hard to really testify and bring the spirit super strong super fast but you are all helping with your thoughts and testimonies of the family a proclamation to the world. Thanks so much!! You are all helping. But I love the mission and I love this family. Thankyou for everything you do for me and all your prayers. I will continue to pray for you all the time but let me know if there is anything else i can do.
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. Mom I got your letter, Thank you so much I really enjoyed it. Oh yeah I also played the piano again for church and.... It was bad ha ha I couldnt hear the singing really and I could barely see the director and i guess i was just playing super fast and didnt realize it and there was a time when I skipped a chord and I got lost so I just stopped and I looked at the director (my companion) and he was lost to so he tried just jumping in where he thought we were and his voice squeeked and he was the only one singing because basically everyone stopped... It was humbling ha ha but hopefully I do better next week
7/28/10
Dear Family,
So yeah this week and a half have been pretty crazy. Monday after I wrote you all we just took off to bayamon to start our training and it takes like 2 hours to drive there so it was like a little road trip. All of the leadership in the mission was there basically for 4 days. We learned a lor of things. Basically things that are already in Preach my gospel but things that we arent using in the best way we can. But wow it was a lot and it was very spiritual!! After I talked to the president because one of the District leaders in our zone was told not to come and the president just said to me you have 48 hours to teach him everything that he needs to teach to his district so on the way home from our 4 day trip I just got dropped of with this district leader and re went over everything!!! It was really good and fun. I loved teaching him! However I was tired because we have been having to get up at like 5 for the training and we usually didnt get to bed untill later because we stayed with the assistents and they always had a lot of things to do. But to be honest with you.. I love getting up early in the moring and reading the scriptures or exercising!
When I finally got back in my area I found out that the family that we found. The younger ones are awesome!! They are so cool and I feel so good when we teach them and after the lesson as well. Also we have 3 return appointments with other families!!! Thank you so much for your prayers!! speacking of prayers this week I read about when the sons of mosiah and alma the younger were visited by the angel because they were trying to destroy the church and I was reminded of a really cool experience that I had befor the mission. In that chapter it talks about how Alma's father had been praying hard for his son who went wayword and the angel said because of his fathers prayers (verse 14) he visited him. Before the mission I was talking to my student ward bishop once and he basically asked me why I didnt give in to the sins that are so easy to fall into at college and I said I'm not sure... I have gotten close and he said what stopped you and i said again I dont know and then he testified to me that it is because my mother is praying for me... (I'm sure you were too dad) I am SO thankful the the prayers of our parents because they are said with love and humbly and with the heart. We have all enoyed these blessings before and we should never forget to pray for each other. I personally am very thankfull for all of your prayers!! You are all awesome!!
Anyway things are going good!! We just need to keep working hard and to be honest that envelope that dad sent me is awesome!!! It has so much motivational stuff in it!! I read through it a lot and it just gets me so pumped to go out and work and forget about how hot it is or how hungry I am or all the swet in my eyes ha ha I love this work. I know I will totally be able to teach these families better when you all send me those testimonies or stories or whatever so when you get a chance please send them.
I love hearing about Brody and Mark If you get a chance try and send me one of their letters or something ha ha And wow nelsons mission is going to be a HARD mission but dont tell him that ha ha We tried a lot of dutch people but only got taught like two people. The language is kinda cool though but tough as well. He will totally rock there though!! The Lord knows what he is doing!!
Anyway I love you all and hope everything is going good!! I love the mission and most of all our savior Jesus Christ. Have a great week family and I think I will talk to you next wednesday!!
Love Elder Knudsen
7/14/10
Dear Family,
This week was so good. We are really working hard to find people!! We just need to be patient. We have spent a few days now with just straight finding for like 3 or 4 hours. The members are helping us find as well. They are praying and looking for families for us. We sent knocking doors the other day in straight pouring rain!!! We were soaked inside and out from head to toe but we basically just wanted to see if we could get anyone to let us in and it felt a lot better than the sun!! We did see a little success out of it too.
On one of our trade offs the elder that came to our area had hear that the best Pineapples in puerto rico are in our area so when we saw a guy selling them we stopped and picked on up but this thing was HUGE!!! Like 10 lbs And just loaded with juice!!
We also ran out of miles on the car so we dusted off the bikes and went out into the mountains!! Our area is beautiful!! It is just green hill after green hill!!!! But to say the least Elder Zenger is 6 foot 4 and he hasnt been on a bike for three transferes so it got a little crazy!! He caught his knee on his handle bar on our way down a hill and could barely walk after!! ha ha He is okay just has a really brused knee.
I love you family and wish I had more time to write but I dont. But Things are going good. We are really really working hard. Please keep praying for us to find a family and for my spanish!! I love this work!! I love the Savior and I know that he really suffered for me and I am so thankful that because of that I can be here right now. Stay strong family!!
Love Elder Knudsen
7/7/10
Dear Family,
Another sobrino!!!!!! That is awesome!!! Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope things have settled down a little bit and everything is being handled. It sounds like everyone is doing good and moving forward!!
My week was crazy!! Our new mission president is awesome!! All of Puerto Rico ended up getting together friday morning to meet him. We had to get up at like 4:30 to get to the meeting in time. But I got to see all my friends from the east mission and it was so cool!! A lot of them are the same and some are in the islands but it was still cool to see them. The spirit in that meeting was SO strong!! He talked a lot about love and building up the families here in Puerto Rico so they can get a temple here. I was very impressed by our president. He is very smart!! When I went and talked to him for the first time I said I think you talked to my Grandparents in the MTC and he said Yes I did and they told me to take good care of you... Where are you at? What is your Responsibility and are you baptising. He is really straight forward and SO many things are changing. it is actually pretty intense to be a zone leader right now because he hasn't given us any like set directions just to study the DOCTRINE of Christ in 2 Nephi 31 and teach it. My whole mission has changed and I love where it is going!! I am so excited!! It is really cool to be with Elder Zenger too. we talked to President Marineau right before he left and he gave us some very good complements about the way we work together!! But things are going good and a lot of things are changing!!
We will always have P-day on wednesday now too. But Family if you could pray to help us find a family!! We are looking really hard for families!!! We can only receive exaltation if we have an eternal family!!
I was reading a talk today and came across a section that was really interesting. It talked about an old canadian coach who said that so many people in and out of athletics are "hold outs" and what he was trying to say is so many times we don't put all of ourselves into the things we are doing. We go into things to just to do them and finish when we could be so so so much better if you just put everything into everything we do. We SHOULD NEVER BE HOLD OUTS on God. We should always magnify our callings!! We would do ANYTHING for our mortal life. If we had to we would give anything we have for one more week of mortal life. IT is the most important thing for us. Now if Mortal life is that important then think how important Eternal life is and if we dont magnify our callings we will be held responsible for taking the eternal life of the people we could have saved if we would have magnified our calling!! I know that God loves us and wants the best for us. He loves us like our fathers love us and is just waiting for us to ask him for help when we need it. We also have shared a lot about the family. I want to invite all of you to read through the family proclamation to the world with your families and to put in practice family pray and scripture study (daily) and family nights!! It will bless your family and you can establish your families on the rock of our Savior. And if you do your family will not fall. Read Helamen 5:12 and put your family in the verse!! I love you all and pray for you all the time!! Have a great week!!!
Love elder Knudsen
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
Brother Nestor
I got a really cute e-mail from Elder Knudsen in which he told me about a really close friend he has made, Brother Nestor. He said he has treated him like a son, and is always so willing to help in any way possible. I'm so grateful for people like him, who watch out for our family members when they are away from us!!
Monday, June 28, 2010
(6/28/10)
Dear Family,
Wow that is crazy about Patrice!! I am glad that everything is going well now. Its good that all of you are supporting and helping with the kids and everything!! Thats what a family is for!! So five more weeks... Thats pretty long!!! ha ha
So yeah I Have my new companion and it is ELDER ZENGER AGAIN!!!! If you don't remember he is like my best friend out here and he was in the MTC with me. I am still a district leader but I'm also a zone leader!!! So Elder Zenger and I are learning together how to be zone leaders!! But my new area is actually really cool! There is a lot of younger people who are excited to help. The other day we took out 3 young men at the same time to help us with the work and these young men are so strong in the church!! I love it. Oh yeah and we have a CAR!!! So much for not getting fat!!! ha ha The area we are in is in the mountains!! It is so confusing to get around up here!! There is very few main roads. The roads are basically just winding through the jungle!! We even have a rough time finding service for your cell phone!! It is still hot here thought!! But even though we are out in the mountains the houses are like the nicest that I have seen here in Puerto Rico.
This week was pretty crazy. We said goodbye to the president!! Weird! But it was super cool. We had transfer meeting so I had the chance to see all my old companions and everything. I am so close so so many people here!! So many of the missionaries are so awesome!! I think Thursday Elder Zenger and I will be heading up close to San Juan for a training from the new president and I will get to talk to him about talking to Grandpa and Grandma (Elder and Sister) White!! Also see what kinds of changes he has in mind. I am super excited.
Our president shared some amazing things with us before he left!! He talked about 5 things we need to do for the rest of our lives to keep the same spirit that we have had on our mission!! Honestly being out here is like a different world. Its like a bubble and I want that for the rest of my life!! Anyway one of the things he shared was in 2 nephi 4. Everyone loves this part of the the book of mormon because Nephi is really expressing his feelings!! Anyway he starts off by talking how bad of a person that he is and he all of the sudden changes to how he has confidence in the Lord and it is because he remembered or looked back in the plates he was writing to the experiences he has had and found his testimony again!! He had been preserved in the jungle, on the ocean and getting the plates form Laban and at this time in 2 nephi he is thinking about how he either needs to fight with his brothers who are stronger than him or leave and take the people who will follow him and start over without the help of his brothers who were strong men who knew how to build and everything. He would have to do it all with him and sam and his younger brothers. He was in a rough situation but then he remembered in who he has trusted before and it gave him the motivation and the strength he needed. We should all try and keep a journal and write our spiritual experiences that we have everyday. It will give us strength when we need it. We should also study the scriptures everyday so we can prepare for the day!! I am learning these things now and I know the help us so much in our lives!!! I love this gospel and this mission!! IT is true!! Keep magnifying your callings to the best of your ability!!
Anyway family I love you all and hope you have a good week!! Iwill be praying for you!! I think next week I wont email until wednesday maybe... we'll see. Have a great week!!
Love Elder Knudsen
Family sorry I forgot to ask you to pray for some people. First Luis and Melitza who are going to be married on the 17 and baptised the same day and also for a 13 year old who will be baptised the 10. he is the son of a recent convert. There is also a family that is prodestent but loves our teachings and just is afraid to leave there church. They really need some prayers!!! Thank you so much I know your prayers really bless us out here!! I also really need help with my spanish if you can throw my companion and I in there it would be greatly apreciated!! Thanks so much I love you all!!!
Elder Knudsen
Wow that is crazy about Patrice!! I am glad that everything is going well now. Its good that all of you are supporting and helping with the kids and everything!! Thats what a family is for!! So five more weeks... Thats pretty long!!! ha ha
So yeah I Have my new companion and it is ELDER ZENGER AGAIN!!!! If you don't remember he is like my best friend out here and he was in the MTC with me. I am still a district leader but I'm also a zone leader!!! So Elder Zenger and I are learning together how to be zone leaders!! But my new area is actually really cool! There is a lot of younger people who are excited to help. The other day we took out 3 young men at the same time to help us with the work and these young men are so strong in the church!! I love it. Oh yeah and we have a CAR!!! So much for not getting fat!!! ha ha The area we are in is in the mountains!! It is so confusing to get around up here!! There is very few main roads. The roads are basically just winding through the jungle!! We even have a rough time finding service for your cell phone!! It is still hot here thought!! But even though we are out in the mountains the houses are like the nicest that I have seen here in Puerto Rico.
This week was pretty crazy. We said goodbye to the president!! Weird! But it was super cool. We had transfer meeting so I had the chance to see all my old companions and everything. I am so close so so many people here!! So many of the missionaries are so awesome!! I think Thursday Elder Zenger and I will be heading up close to San Juan for a training from the new president and I will get to talk to him about talking to Grandpa and Grandma (Elder and Sister) White!! Also see what kinds of changes he has in mind. I am super excited.
Our president shared some amazing things with us before he left!! He talked about 5 things we need to do for the rest of our lives to keep the same spirit that we have had on our mission!! Honestly being out here is like a different world. Its like a bubble and I want that for the rest of my life!! Anyway one of the things he shared was in 2 nephi 4. Everyone loves this part of the the book of mormon because Nephi is really expressing his feelings!! Anyway he starts off by talking how bad of a person that he is and he all of the sudden changes to how he has confidence in the Lord and it is because he remembered or looked back in the plates he was writing to the experiences he has had and found his testimony again!! He had been preserved in the jungle, on the ocean and getting the plates form Laban and at this time in 2 nephi he is thinking about how he either needs to fight with his brothers who are stronger than him or leave and take the people who will follow him and start over without the help of his brothers who were strong men who knew how to build and everything. He would have to do it all with him and sam and his younger brothers. He was in a rough situation but then he remembered in who he has trusted before and it gave him the motivation and the strength he needed. We should all try and keep a journal and write our spiritual experiences that we have everyday. It will give us strength when we need it. We should also study the scriptures everyday so we can prepare for the day!! I am learning these things now and I know the help us so much in our lives!!! I love this gospel and this mission!! IT is true!! Keep magnifying your callings to the best of your ability!!
Anyway family I love you all and hope you have a good week!! Iwill be praying for you!! I think next week I wont email until wednesday maybe... we'll see. Have a great week!!
Love Elder Knudsen
Family sorry I forgot to ask you to pray for some people. First Luis and Melitza who are going to be married on the 17 and baptised the same day and also for a 13 year old who will be baptised the 10. he is the son of a recent convert. There is also a family that is prodestent but loves our teachings and just is afraid to leave there church. They really need some prayers!!! Thank you so much I know your prayers really bless us out here!! I also really need help with my spanish if you can throw my companion and I in there it would be greatly apreciated!! Thanks so much I love you all!!!
Elder Knudsen
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
[6/22/10]
Dear Family,
Sorry about last week but everything is going well. And yes I got the new shoes and they are sweet!! Bad thing was the first day I got them we did more walking then I think the whole transfere. But thank you so much they are really nice!! I still have to get used to dry feet when its raining ha ha.
I am getting transferred to a new area. It is rough saying bye to everyone!! Really rough. I think yesterday was one of the hardest days in my mission in some ways. One we ate like 6 different times. and the other just saying by to everyone was way way way hard. I am really glad though that it was so hard because I think that means I'm doing what I'm supposed to but I wasnt expecting it!
This last saturday we had 4 baptisms!!! Thank you so much for the prayers!! Sandra and her son Jose where baptised and also Able and Anival!!! They are all finding shirts and ties to come to church and everything!! Its so cool!! All these young men are like my younger brothers!! I told them I would come back after my mission... So if anyone wants to make a trip with me after ther mission your invited!!!
I am super excited for my next area!! And my new companion. My companion that I have right now and I grew LOADS in unity so it is going to be hard to say bye to him too. But I will go where the Lord wants!!
Chris and Brit got back from visiting my mission huh?! And they havent even written me yet ha ha just kidding. It sounds like everyone is doing great thought. Thanks so much for your examples!! I have been reading through the first General confrence talk that there ever was in Mosiah this past week and it is awesome!! I want to invited all of you to read through the first part of Mosiah when King Benjamin is talking to his town and think of all the principles that he is talking about and how we can all apply them to everything we do. It is awesome!! I love those chapters and I know you all will too!!! I love that last part of basically all the books in the Book of Morman because the people are saying what they think is the most important becuase they understand these are their last words!!
Anyway I love the mission and Know this is were I should be at this time in my life and I am so happy to have all the time all day to help people!! I love you family and hope you have a great week!! Please pray for me in my next area!!
Love elder Knudsen
Monday, June 14, 2010
(6/14/10)
Hey family how are you?!~ I love you all and I had a great week. It went super quick but good. I honestly have like no time because I had to give up all but about 2 hours of my P-day today. But things are going good. Anival and Abel should be baptised this week and Estebon will get the preisthood next week too. he came to church in his white shirt and tie this week it was awesome. he is the brother of Anival. Sandra and Jose should get baptised too but we really need to pray hard for them. If you could help us out with that it would be really appreciated. Anyway I have to go but love you all and hope you have a great week. Thanks for the letters!!
Love Elder Knudsen
Oh by the way i think some changes are coming this next transfere so i would stop sending things to my personal address and send them to the mission home.
Love Elder Knudsen
Oh by the way i think some changes are coming this next transfere so i would stop sending things to my personal address and send them to the mission home.
Monday, June 7, 2010
(6/7/10)
Dear Family,
So this week flew by. I dont even know what happened. A lot of the members were in florida going to the temple and Sunday they returned and it was so awesome!!!!!!!! They were all super happy and I was so glad to see them. One of the recent converts had one of those plaques for little kids that says FUTURE MISSIONARY pinned on his suit jaket and he was wearing it like our plaques ha ha he is awesome and he brought us both ties with matching tie pins ha ha. Its crazy how you love everyone on your mission!! And this ward treats us so good!!!
I havent gotten the shoes yet maybe today. Thanks for sending those i really needed them. Everytime the ground is wet so are my feet haha. And my right foots soul is likes Dads right foot soul. So thanks!!
Its sounds like everyone is pretty busy!! But thats how is should be!! The pictures form the cabin look awesome!!!
Anyway Anival and Abel are doing really good and progressing a bunch. They are reading and everything!! And when they and there family come to church they make up a huge part of the congregation and like all the youth ha ha.
Sandra and Jose are still progressing! They are awesome and really just need to feel a little more comfortable with everything. Its awesome because all of these young men I feel like they are my younger brothers!! They are so cool!!
The Mission is aweomse! I love it!! I was reading in 2Nephi 33 they other day and 2 nephi 4 and just thinking how nobody would say such bold things like "these are the words of Christ" unless they were true!! Nobody could lie like. Nephi KNEW that the things he was writting were from God. And no man would ever be reading and preaching out of a book that they made up right before they were going to pass from this life to meet God unless IT TRUELY WAS THE WORD OF GOD. The book of mormon is true!! I know because the spirit has testified of it to me time and time again. The spirit is the only way we can know, the only way we can really be converted. Like Alma taught in Alma 5 verse 45 or 46 or something around there. He said that he knows that these things are true because of the spirit and HE HIMSELF had seen an Angel!! He didnt say he knew these things were true because of an angel. he said because of the spirit he knows these things are true!! Our time to tell everyone is SHORT!! We are in the last days!! THis is crazy and thats why I love the mission!! I can devote all my time to telling everyone while there is still time!!
Thanks for everything family and I hope you have a fantastic week!! Let me know if you need anything!!!
Love Elder Knudsen
So this week flew by. I dont even know what happened. A lot of the members were in florida going to the temple and Sunday they returned and it was so awesome!!!!!!!! They were all super happy and I was so glad to see them. One of the recent converts had one of those plaques for little kids that says FUTURE MISSIONARY pinned on his suit jaket and he was wearing it like our plaques ha ha he is awesome and he brought us both ties with matching tie pins ha ha. Its crazy how you love everyone on your mission!! And this ward treats us so good!!!
I havent gotten the shoes yet maybe today. Thanks for sending those i really needed them. Everytime the ground is wet so are my feet haha. And my right foots soul is likes Dads right foot soul. So thanks!!
Its sounds like everyone is pretty busy!! But thats how is should be!! The pictures form the cabin look awesome!!!
Anyway Anival and Abel are doing really good and progressing a bunch. They are reading and everything!! And when they and there family come to church they make up a huge part of the congregation and like all the youth ha ha.
Sandra and Jose are still progressing! They are awesome and really just need to feel a little more comfortable with everything. Its awesome because all of these young men I feel like they are my younger brothers!! They are so cool!!
The Mission is aweomse! I love it!! I was reading in 2Nephi 33 they other day and 2 nephi 4 and just thinking how nobody would say such bold things like "these are the words of Christ" unless they were true!! Nobody could lie like. Nephi KNEW that the things he was writting were from God. And no man would ever be reading and preaching out of a book that they made up right before they were going to pass from this life to meet God unless IT TRUELY WAS THE WORD OF GOD. The book of mormon is true!! I know because the spirit has testified of it to me time and time again. The spirit is the only way we can know, the only way we can really be converted. Like Alma taught in Alma 5 verse 45 or 46 or something around there. He said that he knows that these things are true because of the spirit and HE HIMSELF had seen an Angel!! He didnt say he knew these things were true because of an angel. he said because of the spirit he knows these things are true!! Our time to tell everyone is SHORT!! We are in the last days!! THis is crazy and thats why I love the mission!! I can devote all my time to telling everyone while there is still time!!
Thanks for everything family and I hope you have a fantastic week!! Let me know if you need anything!!!
Love Elder Knudsen
(6/1/10)
Dear Family!!
This mission is awesome!!!! the church is true!!! So a quick update with Sandra and her son. They are preparing to be baptised on the 19th but they are not quite exactly sure yet. But they are preparing for that so please pray for them. Anibal and Abel are also preparing for the 19th and they are awesome!! They totally want to be baptised and they know they need the Holy Ghost. They have a lot of temptations in there lives and not too many good examples so pray for them too!!
Breakfast on the creek!!! That is awesome!! I hope you all enjoyed it!! I know grandpa ate an extra serving for me so I guess I will have to do with that!! That is crazy that it has been 4 years since grandpa Knudsen passed away. Sometimes I think of him out here helping me out!! and i dont doubt that he is ha ha He loved missionary work just like the rest of our family. I remember someone talking about how he would stand on corners giving out book of Mormons ha ha.
This week has been awesome!! We have really been looking for opportunities to serve people on our ways too citas and it is awesome!! I Love service!! It makes you feel so good!! The other day my companion and I rode past this Old guy trying to do something with his door. This guys was SUPER old and looked alone and like he hadn't bathed in a while and hadn't washed his clothes for awhile either. Anyway we rode bye and went to our cita and on the way back I noticed he was still working on the door. It looked like he had been there for hours and he had all kinds of levers worked up to get his front door onto the hings. He looked exhausted and it was getting dark but we stopped and decided to try and help. When we first asked if he needed help he just looked at us. Then he kept pushing and pulling with all of his strength and so we tried again and he just kinda pointed at the hings and grunted. Come to find out he was both deaf and mute. So we just kind of looked at the door and he was trying to put it on upside down. So we couldn't really communicate with him and so after trying to tell him we just took his door out of where it was. Which must have taken forever with just him. and flipped it around, put it up and the hinges and then put the pins in and closed the gate. While we were doing this you the old man just got happier and happier and when he finally saw that it fit perfect he just put his hands up to his mouth and hopped up and down and grunted and you could see through his hands that he was smilling and he had tear filled eyes. He couldn't say anything but you could tell that he was SO grateful. I saw him in the street the other day and when we made eye contact I could see the thankfulness he still had in his eyes.
CHARITY IS AWESOME!!! This week has been awesome because of it.
Also this week we taught a recent convert and her friend who is always there but for some reason my comapnion and I were focusing on here and everything we did kept coming back to baptism. So and the end of the lesson we invited her and she said she would love too!! She loves listening. Her name is Lucmaria.
Anyway I have to go but I am glad you are all good and I love you all!! Keep up everything and remember to serve!!
Love Elder Knudsen
This mission is awesome!!!! the church is true!!! So a quick update with Sandra and her son. They are preparing to be baptised on the 19th but they are not quite exactly sure yet. But they are preparing for that so please pray for them. Anibal and Abel are also preparing for the 19th and they are awesome!! They totally want to be baptised and they know they need the Holy Ghost. They have a lot of temptations in there lives and not too many good examples so pray for them too!!
Breakfast on the creek!!! That is awesome!! I hope you all enjoyed it!! I know grandpa ate an extra serving for me so I guess I will have to do with that!! That is crazy that it has been 4 years since grandpa Knudsen passed away. Sometimes I think of him out here helping me out!! and i dont doubt that he is ha ha He loved missionary work just like the rest of our family. I remember someone talking about how he would stand on corners giving out book of Mormons ha ha.
This week has been awesome!! We have really been looking for opportunities to serve people on our ways too citas and it is awesome!! I Love service!! It makes you feel so good!! The other day my companion and I rode past this Old guy trying to do something with his door. This guys was SUPER old and looked alone and like he hadn't bathed in a while and hadn't washed his clothes for awhile either. Anyway we rode bye and went to our cita and on the way back I noticed he was still working on the door. It looked like he had been there for hours and he had all kinds of levers worked up to get his front door onto the hings. He looked exhausted and it was getting dark but we stopped and decided to try and help. When we first asked if he needed help he just looked at us. Then he kept pushing and pulling with all of his strength and so we tried again and he just kinda pointed at the hings and grunted. Come to find out he was both deaf and mute. So we just kind of looked at the door and he was trying to put it on upside down. So we couldn't really communicate with him and so after trying to tell him we just took his door out of where it was. Which must have taken forever with just him. and flipped it around, put it up and the hinges and then put the pins in and closed the gate. While we were doing this you the old man just got happier and happier and when he finally saw that it fit perfect he just put his hands up to his mouth and hopped up and down and grunted and you could see through his hands that he was smilling and he had tear filled eyes. He couldn't say anything but you could tell that he was SO grateful. I saw him in the street the other day and when we made eye contact I could see the thankfulness he still had in his eyes.
CHARITY IS AWESOME!!! This week has been awesome because of it.
Also this week we taught a recent convert and her friend who is always there but for some reason my comapnion and I were focusing on here and everything we did kept coming back to baptism. So and the end of the lesson we invited her and she said she would love too!! She loves listening. Her name is Lucmaria.
Anyway I have to go but I am glad you are all good and I love you all!! Keep up everything and remember to serve!!
Love Elder Knudsen
(5/24/10) - Crazy Week... Still Can't Think Straight
Dear Family,
So this week was awesome. WAY stressful and way crazy but totally worth it. To start off we had 6 baptisms in our ward! 3 from the Hermanas and 3 from our part and 1 members son. I had to do 3 of the interviews and get the zone leaders to do the others!! Then we had to get all the papers done and all the people who where baptised chose a different person to baptise them and another to confirm them. It was a lot of info to get but it strengthened the ward a lot!! The open house was awesome!! and the president ended up coming to the baptisms and the chapel dedication the next day!! It was a wonderful weekend!! During the week were were running from place to place getting everyone ready for baptism and we were still Set on getting our "foundation" (140 contacts 20 lessons and 12 hours of finding and 17 member present lessons) becuase if not we would have to start from ground zero. This foundation is something that my president has asked us to do because everything builds off of it. So to say the least it was hard.
In hte second to the last lesson with two of the people who were going to be baptised they told me they wanted to wait.... I WAS DEVISTATED!!!!!!!!! wow I couldnt even think all night!! But they came to the baptisms and they seem like they will be baptised later on. Sorry this letter is all over the place there is just so much to tell!
Sunday night we were pushing to get this foundtaion done and the last lesson we were teaching to get it done the 2 boys that didnt get baptised out of the 3 who we taught the plan of salvation with chalk said they want to be baptised!!!! I dont think I have ever been happier. So to clear everything up really qucikly Jean paul and jean pier were baptised. They are two brothers and there mother is a less active. Estebon was baptised and he is the son of a recent convert. he has a brother and a cousin who decided not to be baptised named Anibal and Abel. However anibal and abel told us sunday night they want to be baptised!!! And Sandra and her son are the ones that wanted to wait!! Please keep praying for them!! I know you already are because I can tell but keep it up please!!
Now I am confused and I'm not sure what I have written and what I forgot, but family, I LOVE THE MISSION!!!!!!!!!! I'm so happy!!! These people here are making decistions to change there lives and I am lucky enought to be here as an instrument of the Lord to help them!! The problem is when things go bad it kills me aswell but when they are good I love it!!! THank you for your prayers and thoughts!! I know they are helping!!
As for my spanish.. it is getting worse I feel like. I dont know what it is. I got the chance to speack papiamentu the other day and I still think I can speack that better...
The ward here is going to the temple next week!! basically all the leaders!! They assigned us to talk and i dont even know who will preside ha ha I guess we sill see.
So It sounds like you all are doing good!! Chris working in on his Yard. Stacey with here Piano recitals and Justin and Lindsey with there adventures. I love you all and pray for you everynight. Remember to do your scripture study everyday!! No matter how long but everyday without fail!! Those that do will stay on the path!! If anyone hasn't read the book "our search for happiness" I strongly suggest read it. It is an easy read and awesome in everyway!!! My testimony grew so much by reading it and I want to be better too!! Read it!! ha ha But I love you all and have a good week! Talk to you next week!!
Love elder Knudsen
(5/17/10)
Dear family,
This week has been awesome!! It has been raining about everyday and raining and when it rains its HOT however less Hot then normal so its good!! We had an earthquake saturday night but I didn't wake up which suprises me because I believe it was bigger then the one in Aruba that I woke up for. Anyway it was cook. So I have a new companion named Elder Lopez from guatemala and I'm training him! Its super cool!! He speaks awesome spanish but knows english as well!! Anyway we are loving it. I love that he is so excited to be out and work and not waste time!!!
This week should be awesome because the president is coming to our ward and we should have around 9 baptisms on saturday night 5 from us and 3 from the Hermanas and 1 members son. However 3 of ours couldn't make it to church this last sunday so I will have to talk to president to see what he thinks. Also we are dedicating the chapel on sunday and have a huge open house saturday in the morning!! It will be sweet!!
We are really working hard to find new investigators and even harder to make sure the ones we have are prepared for baptism this weekend!! please pray for them. Sandra and her son Jose and then Estebon who is 12 and is a recent converts son and also Jean Pual and Jean Pier who are 11 and 9 and the sons of a Less active member. Anyway I have to get going but please pray for them and for me to help me be the best District leader and Trainer I can!! Thanks so much family for everything and I love you!!
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S.; Thanks so much for the package!! It was awesome!! Se fue la dieta!! but I love giving all the kids the sour gum ha ha they love it too no worries.
This week has been awesome!! It has been raining about everyday and raining and when it rains its HOT however less Hot then normal so its good!! We had an earthquake saturday night but I didn't wake up which suprises me because I believe it was bigger then the one in Aruba that I woke up for. Anyway it was cook. So I have a new companion named Elder Lopez from guatemala and I'm training him! Its super cool!! He speaks awesome spanish but knows english as well!! Anyway we are loving it. I love that he is so excited to be out and work and not waste time!!!
This week should be awesome because the president is coming to our ward and we should have around 9 baptisms on saturday night 5 from us and 3 from the Hermanas and 1 members son. However 3 of ours couldn't make it to church this last sunday so I will have to talk to president to see what he thinks. Also we are dedicating the chapel on sunday and have a huge open house saturday in the morning!! It will be sweet!!
We are really working hard to find new investigators and even harder to make sure the ones we have are prepared for baptism this weekend!! please pray for them. Sandra and her son Jose and then Estebon who is 12 and is a recent converts son and also Jean Pual and Jean Pier who are 11 and 9 and the sons of a Less active member. Anyway I have to get going but please pray for them and for me to help me be the best District leader and Trainer I can!! Thanks so much family for everything and I love you!!
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S.; Thanks so much for the package!! It was awesome!! Se fue la dieta!! but I love giving all the kids the sour gum ha ha they love it too no worries.
(5/11/10)
Dear Family,
So... hmmm... I pretty much told you everything the other day but you all sound awesome and it gave me so much motivation talking to you!! I love our family!! I cant believe how old all the kids are already!! Its crazy!! They were talking to me like normal!!! Anyway thanks so much for the good phone call and the motivation!!
This past week has rained a lot!! Missionary work is hard in the rain because 1 usually nobody will let you in. 2 nobody is outside and 3 you get SO wet that you have to go home and change!! I still love it though.
Before I talked to you all on sunday we had some goals we had to get and one was to talk to 42 more people in an hour and it was pouring!! We found a little tree to hide under but that didn't work so we found some stairs to hide under for a bit and as we were sitting there waiting we assesed the situation and didnt know how we were going to get this goal so we said and pray and after the prayer we both decided to just get soaked and look for anyone!! So we started ridding our bikes and I was loving it flying through the puddles and letting the cars just smother me with waves of water!! I was already soaked so I just enjoyed it untill I realized that the water here fills up the sewers and then the sewers run out onto the streets!!! So the puddles I was flying through and the waves of water weren't very clean to say the least. Anyway the point is we got our goal and that is what matters!! God always provides a way for us to do the things that he commands like Nephi said.
I found out today that tommorrow I get a companion from Guatemala and I am training him!!!!! So pray for me ha ha
But I love you all and thanks so much for everything you do!! Have a good week and dont forget to study the scriptures everyday and to pray together!!!
Love Elder Knudsen
So... hmmm... I pretty much told you everything the other day but you all sound awesome and it gave me so much motivation talking to you!! I love our family!! I cant believe how old all the kids are already!! Its crazy!! They were talking to me like normal!!! Anyway thanks so much for the good phone call and the motivation!!
This past week has rained a lot!! Missionary work is hard in the rain because 1 usually nobody will let you in. 2 nobody is outside and 3 you get SO wet that you have to go home and change!! I still love it though.
Before I talked to you all on sunday we had some goals we had to get and one was to talk to 42 more people in an hour and it was pouring!! We found a little tree to hide under but that didn't work so we found some stairs to hide under for a bit and as we were sitting there waiting we assesed the situation and didnt know how we were going to get this goal so we said and pray and after the prayer we both decided to just get soaked and look for anyone!! So we started ridding our bikes and I was loving it flying through the puddles and letting the cars just smother me with waves of water!! I was already soaked so I just enjoyed it untill I realized that the water here fills up the sewers and then the sewers run out onto the streets!!! So the puddles I was flying through and the waves of water weren't very clean to say the least. Anyway the point is we got our goal and that is what matters!! God always provides a way for us to do the things that he commands like Nephi said.
I found out today that tommorrow I get a companion from Guatemala and I am training him!!!!! So pray for me ha ha
But I love you all and thanks so much for everything you do!! Have a good week and dont forget to study the scriptures everyday and to pray together!!!
Love Elder Knudsen
(5/3/10)
Dear Family,
How are you all?! I'm loving the mission and getting scared at how fast the time is going!! This week was good. We set a baptismal date with 3 of our investigators and they came to chruch too!! The Lord has truely blessed this district with a HUGE opportunity!! We have the possibility to get 10 baptims on the 22 of may. Thats like the equivilent of the waters of mormon here in Puerto Rico ha ha So we have a LOT of work and A LOT MORE PRAYING to do!! The members are really helping out thought its been good!!
I have been trying to think of different ways to get into the houses here because I have been suprised at how hard it is to get in and teach let alone get anyone to come out here!! So I think we might have found the key. When we get someone to come out we ask if we can sing for them and we usually sing I Know that my Redeemer lives and then they usually are a little better to talk to. Everyone says No thankyou I'm catholic so we say well thats why we're here or we say perfect we share a message about Christ etc but if any or you have any good ideas let me know and i'll try them out!! But everything is going good!! I love it here!! Its tough but if it wasnt it wouldn't be worth it!! There are some members that are planning on taking care of me for my birhtday too so it will be fun.
Thanks for everything family and I look forward to talking to you all soon!! Sunday!! I will probably call you and then have you call me back like a day or two before to make sure it works and we can set a time and everything!! Stay strong everyone and keep up the faith!! Talk to you soon!
Love elder Knudsen
How are you all?! I'm loving the mission and getting scared at how fast the time is going!! This week was good. We set a baptismal date with 3 of our investigators and they came to chruch too!! The Lord has truely blessed this district with a HUGE opportunity!! We have the possibility to get 10 baptims on the 22 of may. Thats like the equivilent of the waters of mormon here in Puerto Rico ha ha So we have a LOT of work and A LOT MORE PRAYING to do!! The members are really helping out thought its been good!!
I have been trying to think of different ways to get into the houses here because I have been suprised at how hard it is to get in and teach let alone get anyone to come out here!! So I think we might have found the key. When we get someone to come out we ask if we can sing for them and we usually sing I Know that my Redeemer lives and then they usually are a little better to talk to. Everyone says No thankyou I'm catholic so we say well thats why we're here or we say perfect we share a message about Christ etc but if any or you have any good ideas let me know and i'll try them out!! But everything is going good!! I love it here!! Its tough but if it wasnt it wouldn't be worth it!! There are some members that are planning on taking care of me for my birhtday too so it will be fun.
Thanks for everything family and I look forward to talking to you all soon!! Sunday!! I will probably call you and then have you call me back like a day or two before to make sure it works and we can set a time and everything!! Stay strong everyone and keep up the faith!! Talk to you soon!
Love elder Knudsen
(4/26/10)
Dear Family,
Well before I forget 1) my shoe size is 8 1/2 on the rockports I have but I dont need new shoes yet and 2) Yes I got the packages of the jump rope and the easter one too Thanks so much!!! They were awesome!! I hadn't seen peeps in a long time!! And yeah I am in an apartment right now and untill may like 11th you can send anything there and I will get it within 5 days!! My address is:
Urb. San Ramon
Calle C 29A
San German, PR, 00683
Anyway this week was awesome!! We started teaching 3 younger kids around the age of deacons and it was awesome!! Usually it is hard to get kids like them to pay attention but we have been following the spirit and they have been understanding everything and have been participating in the lessons and answering questions and everything!! This week we had them draw a HUGE plan of Salvation on there Patio with chalk and they walked through it said what happens when they do bad and good things it was amazing!! I couldn't believe how well they understood by the time we were done!!
We have been back to the neighborhood were we played volleyball a few times and they all keep telling us when they play and to come back. We went through with a member they other day and we were in his car and so everyone would stare the car down as we went through but when they saw it was us they're countenance changed and they would start asking us how we are doing and eventually they got the member to stop the car and they talked to us for awhile and told us that the last time we played it was actually a fund raiser and they said we made it for them!!
The work is going good here!! I love it and can see a lot of success in the near future if we can hold on to all the young men we are teaching!! Thanks for keeping those people in your prayers!! they opened up a lot this week. Maria came to church and Sand and her son said they will come next week!! The work is awesome. Re read D&C 31. It is awesome!! It talks a lot about missionary work and the blessings for being in this work!! I love you all and love the verses about the family in there!!
Anyway thankyou for everything and let me know if I can do anything for you!! Those young men are Estebon, Abel, Anebal, Jose, and then also Sandra, Isreal and Maria.
Thank you for your examples and talk to you soon!!
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. My companion noticed my receeding hair line the other day when i was stimulating the hair folicoles
Well before I forget 1) my shoe size is 8 1/2 on the rockports I have but I dont need new shoes yet and 2) Yes I got the packages of the jump rope and the easter one too Thanks so much!!! They were awesome!! I hadn't seen peeps in a long time!! And yeah I am in an apartment right now and untill may like 11th you can send anything there and I will get it within 5 days!! My address is:
Urb. San Ramon
Calle C 29A
San German, PR, 00683
Anyway this week was awesome!! We started teaching 3 younger kids around the age of deacons and it was awesome!! Usually it is hard to get kids like them to pay attention but we have been following the spirit and they have been understanding everything and have been participating in the lessons and answering questions and everything!! This week we had them draw a HUGE plan of Salvation on there Patio with chalk and they walked through it said what happens when they do bad and good things it was amazing!! I couldn't believe how well they understood by the time we were done!!
We have been back to the neighborhood were we played volleyball a few times and they all keep telling us when they play and to come back. We went through with a member they other day and we were in his car and so everyone would stare the car down as we went through but when they saw it was us they're countenance changed and they would start asking us how we are doing and eventually they got the member to stop the car and they talked to us for awhile and told us that the last time we played it was actually a fund raiser and they said we made it for them!!
The work is going good here!! I love it and can see a lot of success in the near future if we can hold on to all the young men we are teaching!! Thanks for keeping those people in your prayers!! they opened up a lot this week. Maria came to church and Sand and her son said they will come next week!! The work is awesome. Re read D&C 31. It is awesome!! It talks a lot about missionary work and the blessings for being in this work!! I love you all and love the verses about the family in there!!
Anyway thankyou for everything and let me know if I can do anything for you!! Those young men are Estebon, Abel, Anebal, Jose, and then also Sandra, Isreal and Maria.
Thank you for your examples and talk to you soon!!
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. My companion noticed my receeding hair line the other day when i was stimulating the hair folicoles
(4/20/10)
Dear Family,
How is everything going!! This week has been awesome and it sounds like yours was too!! We have been working hard here and loving it!! It rains all the time but its all part of the work!! You got a letter from my mission president huh? thats pretty cool.
We had some really cool experiences this week but one of the coolest was last saturday. We were going to a cita out in the jungle and like where a lot of "country ish" people live and on our way out there we there was a volleyball net hung up accross the street where there was about 4 guys playing. They asked us to play but we had to go and so we said maybe another time. These weren't regular volleyball players they were like the thugs of the town. The way they were inviting us was like they were saying come play so we can make fun of you. Anyway we went to our cita and on our way back this little street volleyball game had turned into the whole area around the court watching. There was like 50 or more people!! Anyway when we showed up we had to pass by so they had to stop the game and everything and while we were passing someone said wait they are going to play!! They said they are the players (joking around) and we kind of shrugged them off but then I decided why not. So I put down my bike and the crowd when crazy cheering and yelling for my companion and I so the main guy there kicked out two people and we went in and everyone was stilll going crazy. There was enough people that when I got on the court i started shaking a little because I was nervous (remember these guys werent like the nicest guys in the world) Anyway so I said a quick prayer and then they blew the whisle and we started... after a couple hits the ball went to my companion and he bumped it and again the crowd went crazy because he got it. then a few more hits and it came to me and I just KILLED it!!! Slammed it right down on the other side and EVERYONE was clapping and cheering and the players started saying ellos saben ellos saben (they know they know) the next was the other team slamming it and I dug it up and they crowd went crazy again and then I set one of the guys and he missed it and the crowd started yelling GET OUT GET OUT and the main guy kicked this kid out ha ha I felt bad but wasnt about to get on these guys bad side after a few dives and crazy saves (all in my shirt and tie... ps i might need some new shoes sometime...) The crowd just didnt stop cheering. So after like ten minutes I told them we have to leave and as we were walking off the crowd just yelled and cheered and clapped and alll the thugs were saying we'll see you around and telling us when they play and everything!! To say the least, when we go finding over there I know people will open the doors... unlike the rest of puerto rico! It was sweet!
Anyway everything is going good and way fast!! The district leader thing is awesome I love it except the only people in my district are me my companion and 3 sisters... So I have been learning a lot there. My companion is from Oregon and actually his dad knows a Albert Knudsen that lived there in the 80's or something if you know him. I am in a ward and the members here are amazing!! The islands are supposed to be like legendary with members but here the members are doing just as good. I love it. The guy that was baptised in curacou is going to the salt lake temple I think next month or the next but he speaks english so I gave him your number and told him to call you when he is there and maybe he can stay there a night or so... I doubt he will call but if he does it will be super cool.
We also had a baptism this last week it was really cool!! Anyway I have to get gonig but I love you all and have a great week!!
Love Elder Knudsen
If you could pray for Maria, Sandra and her son and Isreal and also Juan pual and Juan pier it would be awesome!! Thanks family!!
How is everything going!! This week has been awesome and it sounds like yours was too!! We have been working hard here and loving it!! It rains all the time but its all part of the work!! You got a letter from my mission president huh? thats pretty cool.
We had some really cool experiences this week but one of the coolest was last saturday. We were going to a cita out in the jungle and like where a lot of "country ish" people live and on our way out there we there was a volleyball net hung up accross the street where there was about 4 guys playing. They asked us to play but we had to go and so we said maybe another time. These weren't regular volleyball players they were like the thugs of the town. The way they were inviting us was like they were saying come play so we can make fun of you. Anyway we went to our cita and on our way back this little street volleyball game had turned into the whole area around the court watching. There was like 50 or more people!! Anyway when we showed up we had to pass by so they had to stop the game and everything and while we were passing someone said wait they are going to play!! They said they are the players (joking around) and we kind of shrugged them off but then I decided why not. So I put down my bike and the crowd when crazy cheering and yelling for my companion and I so the main guy there kicked out two people and we went in and everyone was stilll going crazy. There was enough people that when I got on the court i started shaking a little because I was nervous (remember these guys werent like the nicest guys in the world) Anyway so I said a quick prayer and then they blew the whisle and we started... after a couple hits the ball went to my companion and he bumped it and again the crowd went crazy because he got it. then a few more hits and it came to me and I just KILLED it!!! Slammed it right down on the other side and EVERYONE was clapping and cheering and the players started saying ellos saben ellos saben (they know they know) the next was the other team slamming it and I dug it up and they crowd went crazy again and then I set one of the guys and he missed it and the crowd started yelling GET OUT GET OUT and the main guy kicked this kid out ha ha I felt bad but wasnt about to get on these guys bad side after a few dives and crazy saves (all in my shirt and tie... ps i might need some new shoes sometime...) The crowd just didnt stop cheering. So after like ten minutes I told them we have to leave and as we were walking off the crowd just yelled and cheered and clapped and alll the thugs were saying we'll see you around and telling us when they play and everything!! To say the least, when we go finding over there I know people will open the doors... unlike the rest of puerto rico! It was sweet!
Anyway everything is going good and way fast!! The district leader thing is awesome I love it except the only people in my district are me my companion and 3 sisters... So I have been learning a lot there. My companion is from Oregon and actually his dad knows a Albert Knudsen that lived there in the 80's or something if you know him. I am in a ward and the members here are amazing!! The islands are supposed to be like legendary with members but here the members are doing just as good. I love it. The guy that was baptised in curacou is going to the salt lake temple I think next month or the next but he speaks english so I gave him your number and told him to call you when he is there and maybe he can stay there a night or so... I doubt he will call but if he does it will be super cool.
We also had a baptism this last week it was really cool!! Anyway I have to get gonig but I love you all and have a great week!!
Love Elder Knudsen
If you could pray for Maria, Sandra and her son and Isreal and also Juan pual and Juan pier it would be awesome!! Thanks family!!
(4/5/10)
Dear Family,
So I'm not sure what Onielio actually said but I'm sure he was just being nice. But yeah he is the chef and wow he cooks amazing. I had 3 fillet minons when I was there!! He also helped out a lot with the missionaries but actually the one that I probably talked about a lot who helped out the missionaries was Miguel Angel. He was also super cool!!!
Anyway I hope you all enjoyed confrence. I loved it!! It seemed really centered on the family and the parents and being ready!! of course I loved Elder Hollands talk like always but also Elder Fosters talk was really really good!
So to give you the 411 on everything that happened. Tuesday We headed our of Aruba and spent all day traveling, first we stopped at Curacou and then saint Martin and then an island called Tortula. It was actually WAY WAY cool to see all these little islands and all the little islands around them. I talked to the people there and they said that basically everyone has a boat and when you want to go to the beach you just go pick and island and a lot of the times you have the island to yourself. When I got off the plain in Puerto Rico and saw all the american Flags I loved it!! I was so happy I started saying the Pledge of Aligence but was sadly stopped when I realized I dont remember it!!! But it was cool. So yeah back to 3 day mail and the US dollar!! By the way I will put my address at the bottom of the email so you can write me directly and maybe i can write back quicker. i will be here for AT LEAST 6 weeks!!
I am now in a area call San German and is is huge but I hear the members are super strong and willing to help out as well. I am with Elder Dennis. He has been out for less then 2 months!! This is his second transfere but he is already awesome and a good missionary. Him and I are set on working way hard and being the best we can be!! He is a lot bigger than me though like a lot of my other companions, he is about 6'4!! They also called me to be the District leader here!! I'm super excited for the opportunity to learn from this!!
So yeah the spanish... is coming. I still have A LOT of work to do but it can be done!!
I love the mission family!! Its awesome!! i have met so many people and created such good relationships that i will never forget. Obvioulsy I miss you all but there is a time and a place for everything and right now my time is here!! But I love you all!! I know this church is true and that we have a God that loves and guides us through Our profet. If you have time read Alma 30:44 and take a step back for some time to look at everything we have like our family and the nature!! Everything that testifys of a living God!!
I love you all and hope you have an awesome week!!
Love Elder Knudsen
Urb. San Ramon
Calle C 29A
San German, PR, 00683
So I'm not sure what Onielio actually said but I'm sure he was just being nice. But yeah he is the chef and wow he cooks amazing. I had 3 fillet minons when I was there!! He also helped out a lot with the missionaries but actually the one that I probably talked about a lot who helped out the missionaries was Miguel Angel. He was also super cool!!!
Anyway I hope you all enjoyed confrence. I loved it!! It seemed really centered on the family and the parents and being ready!! of course I loved Elder Hollands talk like always but also Elder Fosters talk was really really good!
So to give you the 411 on everything that happened. Tuesday We headed our of Aruba and spent all day traveling, first we stopped at Curacou and then saint Martin and then an island called Tortula. It was actually WAY WAY cool to see all these little islands and all the little islands around them. I talked to the people there and they said that basically everyone has a boat and when you want to go to the beach you just go pick and island and a lot of the times you have the island to yourself. When I got off the plain in Puerto Rico and saw all the american Flags I loved it!! I was so happy I started saying the Pledge of Aligence but was sadly stopped when I realized I dont remember it!!! But it was cool. So yeah back to 3 day mail and the US dollar!! By the way I will put my address at the bottom of the email so you can write me directly and maybe i can write back quicker. i will be here for AT LEAST 6 weeks!!
I am now in a area call San German and is is huge but I hear the members are super strong and willing to help out as well. I am with Elder Dennis. He has been out for less then 2 months!! This is his second transfere but he is already awesome and a good missionary. Him and I are set on working way hard and being the best we can be!! He is a lot bigger than me though like a lot of my other companions, he is about 6'4!! They also called me to be the District leader here!! I'm super excited for the opportunity to learn from this!!
So yeah the spanish... is coming. I still have A LOT of work to do but it can be done!!
I love the mission family!! Its awesome!! i have met so many people and created such good relationships that i will never forget. Obvioulsy I miss you all but there is a time and a place for everything and right now my time is here!! But I love you all!! I know this church is true and that we have a God that loves and guides us through Our profet. If you have time read Alma 30:44 and take a step back for some time to look at everything we have like our family and the nature!! Everything that testifys of a living God!!
I love you all and hope you have an awesome week!!
Love Elder Knudsen
Urb. San Ramon
Calle C 29A
San German, PR, 00683
(3/29/10)
Dear Family,
So the big news is I'm going back to Puerto Rico Tomorrow at like 8 in the morning but even bigger news is yesterday Juan baptised his mother!!! It was awesome!! I am super sad about the transferre but I know that it is what the Lord wants. These last 2 transferes have been awesome!! The members here are sweet!! It was hard saying by to them and the recent converts but thats what the mission is about!! Its going to be hard next transfere here because there is only going to be 4 missionaries instead of 14 like before and those 4 have to take care of everyone.
So going back to Puerto Rico will be fun!! I really hope I can pick up the spanish!! I have been doing all my talks and testimonies in papiamentu here. I know that if I pray and work hard the lord will bless me.
This week was pretty cool getting Juans mother Mena ready for baptism and for our exercises we ran up a mountain here and it was sweet!! This island is awesome! Our Investigators are still awesome they just need to be married!! This church is awesome and I love the mission!! Thankyou all for your examples and everything you do for me!! Thanks for the letters this week!! You all are aweosme!! Sorry I dont have too much time this week but I love you all and I wish you a happy easter and enjoy comference!! Its so cool!! We get to listen to a prophet that is living... Think about it and go into watching conference with a question!! Dont forget to HOLD TO THE ROD. Read the scriptures every day and pray. Read 2 nephi 4 starting at verse 15 is awesome!! I love you all and stay strong. Let me know if I can do anything for you.!
Love Elder Knudsen
So the big news is I'm going back to Puerto Rico Tomorrow at like 8 in the morning but even bigger news is yesterday Juan baptised his mother!!! It was awesome!! I am super sad about the transferre but I know that it is what the Lord wants. These last 2 transferes have been awesome!! The members here are sweet!! It was hard saying by to them and the recent converts but thats what the mission is about!! Its going to be hard next transfere here because there is only going to be 4 missionaries instead of 14 like before and those 4 have to take care of everyone.
So going back to Puerto Rico will be fun!! I really hope I can pick up the spanish!! I have been doing all my talks and testimonies in papiamentu here. I know that if I pray and work hard the lord will bless me.
This week was pretty cool getting Juans mother Mena ready for baptism and for our exercises we ran up a mountain here and it was sweet!! This island is awesome! Our Investigators are still awesome they just need to be married!! This church is awesome and I love the mission!! Thankyou all for your examples and everything you do for me!! Thanks for the letters this week!! You all are aweosme!! Sorry I dont have too much time this week but I love you all and I wish you a happy easter and enjoy comference!! Its so cool!! We get to listen to a prophet that is living... Think about it and go into watching conference with a question!! Dont forget to HOLD TO THE ROD. Read the scriptures every day and pray. Read 2 nephi 4 starting at verse 15 is awesome!! I love you all and stay strong. Let me know if I can do anything for you.!
Love Elder Knudsen
(3/22/10)
Dear Family,
So this week rocked!! We have really been focusing on the investigators we have instead of finding a lot of new ones because in one week there might only be two missionaries here in this area and they will have to cover for all six missionaries so we feel it will be better to just strengthen the ones we have now. Good news though is that Juan is going to baptise his mother, maybe even this sunday!! I hope so because I want to see it!!
This week we spent a lot of time with the members teaching people and wow! The work with the members is awesome!! It is amazing how much more success you can have!! A lot of the members here do so much they are a huge example to me!!
So Possibly next week I will go back to Puerto Rico and I will have to try to pick up spanish again!! Its going to be hard especially because I am now comfortable with this language. I can't remember if I told you or not but last week I gave a talk in Papiamentu and it was awesome!!
SO as far as the pianos here, usually its just keyboards but lately we just got a sweet new piano!! Its like electric acoustic. It is a keyboard that has speakers on the back and a computer in it with all the hymns programed in it. As far as playing... I havent really gotten that chance since my first area. There is an Elder here who is amazing at the piano. He was going to BYU for the music program or something but he is super good and i am now motivated again to get super good. I really want to learn Theory so I'm getting the keys down now.
Thats awesome that you guys sing every 3rd sunday. I love singing. I still am not that great but I know the base lines to a lot of the songs now and I will definately keep practicing. I'm glad my food pedal is getting good use!! Good thinkning!
The weather here is always the same. Very Very Very rarely do you ever see any kind of change but its good. Its sunny and windy!! Perfect for sharing the gospel!!
Mom you should look to watch that movie thats called "between heaven and earth" Its all about temples and other religions talking about our temples it would be awesome for you talk. and yeah I got the jump rope thanks so much!! The Ctr rings if you could bigger than mine. I dont know how the sizing works but maybe one, one size bigger and the other 2 sizes bigger or something. I dont know. Speaking of sizes.. I had to buy new pants this week because my bike ate my others and i came to the sad realization that my old pants had rubberbands in them and I so the new pants I bought i had to buy a size bigger!!
Anyway family I'm doing good and I hope you are too!! I love you and I pray for you all the time!! Clint man, I'm glad to hear your doing better and everything is going well stay stong man!!
Elder Knudsen
So this week rocked!! We have really been focusing on the investigators we have instead of finding a lot of new ones because in one week there might only be two missionaries here in this area and they will have to cover for all six missionaries so we feel it will be better to just strengthen the ones we have now. Good news though is that Juan is going to baptise his mother, maybe even this sunday!! I hope so because I want to see it!!
This week we spent a lot of time with the members teaching people and wow! The work with the members is awesome!! It is amazing how much more success you can have!! A lot of the members here do so much they are a huge example to me!!
So Possibly next week I will go back to Puerto Rico and I will have to try to pick up spanish again!! Its going to be hard especially because I am now comfortable with this language. I can't remember if I told you or not but last week I gave a talk in Papiamentu and it was awesome!!
SO as far as the pianos here, usually its just keyboards but lately we just got a sweet new piano!! Its like electric acoustic. It is a keyboard that has speakers on the back and a computer in it with all the hymns programed in it. As far as playing... I havent really gotten that chance since my first area. There is an Elder here who is amazing at the piano. He was going to BYU for the music program or something but he is super good and i am now motivated again to get super good. I really want to learn Theory so I'm getting the keys down now.
Thats awesome that you guys sing every 3rd sunday. I love singing. I still am not that great but I know the base lines to a lot of the songs now and I will definately keep practicing. I'm glad my food pedal is getting good use!! Good thinkning!
The weather here is always the same. Very Very Very rarely do you ever see any kind of change but its good. Its sunny and windy!! Perfect for sharing the gospel!!
Mom you should look to watch that movie thats called "between heaven and earth" Its all about temples and other religions talking about our temples it would be awesome for you talk. and yeah I got the jump rope thanks so much!! The Ctr rings if you could bigger than mine. I dont know how the sizing works but maybe one, one size bigger and the other 2 sizes bigger or something. I dont know. Speaking of sizes.. I had to buy new pants this week because my bike ate my others and i came to the sad realization that my old pants had rubberbands in them and I so the new pants I bought i had to buy a size bigger!!
Anyway family I'm doing good and I hope you are too!! I love you and I pray for you all the time!! Clint man, I'm glad to hear your doing better and everything is going well stay stong man!!
Elder Knudsen
(3/15/10)
Dear Family,
So I am glad to hear that everything is going well. It is a horrible feeling to be away from your family when something like this happens. It has been hard not being there to help out in anyway but I know that if I focus and work hard the Lord will bless Clint!! So thats what I have been doing is working hard and Praying harder. But that was pretty crazy talking to Dad on the phone the other day. I answered the phone and looked down at the screen after and realized that it was Dads Cell ophone and then I didn't know what to do! I thought maybe he called me on accident but then I realized that that is next to impossible so I just answered and said Dad you cant call me (even though I was super excited to talk). But Thankyou for the call and the Good news that Clint is doing better. I am praying for ya clint!!
So this week has been awesome just like every other week of the mission. I totally got in the ocean this week and it was sweet!!! I hope you can open some of those pictures. It was beautiful!! The Lord is really blessing me here and I am going to have a hard time leavin the people, the language and the culture here. I love it!!
Victor is supposed to be baptised this Saturday but we need to make sure he actually meets the requirements in D&C. So that is where he is. We have been teaching a family that is awesome!! Its a mom her Son and.. Her boyfriend but we are going to get them married. They Love the Church and Are realizing that all there friends are already members ha ha and they work at the Marriott so they handle a book of mormon Like everyday because they put one in every room!! They are praying together and everything!! I dont know if any of you know the lesson Senor Juevo but they loved that lesson!! Anyway those are basically the people we are working on.
So Family I love this work and I love being out here to bless peoples lives. I love testifying of the family and the strength we have in the family!! Thankyou so muh for everything you have done for me and have a great week!!
Love Elder Knudsen
P.S. I got the packages and some letters so thank you so much that was awesome of you!! Now I have to see if I can lose some weight. Sorry it was so short I'm going to Curacou in a few hours for zone confrence!!
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