There and Back Again: a Missionary´s Tale (Please read all)

Today I want to talk about the principle of receiving a calling from God.

God loves us, and He wants as many of His children to succeed as possible. Because of this, He asks some of us (any who are willing, able, and worthy) to look out for our brothers and sisters. Sometimes, He even calls us to do specific jobs and tasks, knowing that we are the best for what is required. Often times, we know the general outline of His plan for us, but more often than not we are blind to the specifics until we are experiencing them. For this I have always said that I will never be ready, but I will always be prepared- because God will not give us something that we can´t handle, even if it is so startlingly different that we get lost thinking about the implications.

Every once in a while, we receive a little bit of guidance in terms of our own paths and callings that help us to see ahead and prepare for what is next. That does not always mean that we will be ready for what happens- to the contrary, God gives us the warning because He knows that we will not be ready when the time comes. Such has been the case with my mission. Allow me to share the story from the beginning, that there may be no question in anyone´s mind as to why what is next for me is exactly what needs to be.

While I was living on my own, and for a few years before that, I had slowly given up the principles and guidance of the Church to "figure things out for myself". I made many choices that were unwise, that have affected many lives- and ultimately I put the potential of a mission in near-Jeopardy. Fortunately, God continued to guide and direct my paths through the people around me, and eventually I started to figure it out. I cleaned up my life, and had the goal of making it back to the temple and then leaving on a mission. I had almost achieved that when I became outrageously sick with a virus that took over my body, wasting my immune system and eating my muscles.

After 8 months of being basically confined to bed, pain meds, and a cane, I was preparing to receive the Melchezidekal Priesthood, with the understanding that the doctors would not allow me to serve a mission with the state that I was in. As I was studying one day  just before my interviews with the Bishop and Stake President, I received the distinct feeling that I was to ask about getting my papers started to apply for my mission. I was still in bed 5 days a week, and on a cane and meds when I wasn´t there, but I decided after reflection that I was to act on what I had received, as it was from God. As I entered my interviews we began talking pleasantly (as you always do before the interview proper) when suddenly they stopped and asked, "Have you thought about putting in your papers?" Had this only happened once it would have been strange enough, but in two separate and uncoordinated interviews the same experience passed and so I was set on the path in which I had been directed to act.

As I struggled to prepare my papers and get my affairs in order, my health continued to decline and problems continued to happen. Finally, three days before my final doctor´s appointment, I woke up and miraculously felt none of the pain that had been plaguing my body for almost a year. After being hardly able to walk for such a long time I got up and ran 2 miles. A real, Christ´s-Ministry style miracle had occurred, and as I visited with the doctor and the tests were run they returned beyond healthy- as if I had never been sick in my life. The Lord had opened a way through my obedience and the prayers of those who loved me.

I prepared for my mission, getting out of $6000 dollars of medical debt and through many more small miracles was ready shortly before I was to enter the MTC (I will pass all of these in my personal record, but for brevity of the email today I must cut them out.. sorry.). During this time I received various priesthood blessings of counsel and comfort, and an interesting pattern that had emerged inside of my patriarchal blessing began to be noticed- that I was not going to be serving a full-time mission in Chile. This was an impression that I had felt from the time I was 5, but I pushed forward all the same, knowing that God doesn´t make mistakes, and that He has a plan for me and what I am to do. This was reaffirmed quite plainly in the MTC where I was told that I would be able to perform miracles in Chile- I received even some details on the people that I have met- but that my time was to be limited and that then I was to move on to another, greater calling. Where and what that is was not specified, but the time has come.

Over the last few months my health has steadily started declining. It started with problems sleeping in the MTC, progressed to a combination of insomnia and exhaustion in Lo Prado, plus nausea, head- and muscle-aches, various skin problems, anxiety, a flare-up in my Bi-polar disorder, and a slew of other problems that I do not wish to bring up as part of this general email. We have worked with 4 doctors here to try to treat things the best that we can, but after some more severe drops and poor reactions to medicines (the most severe of which put me in the hospital for a night) I will be being released honorably for medical reasons from my mission here in Chile. I will be under treatment and observations for a number of months, and if my health is sufficient and the Lord calls me back to another mission I will be allowed to reapply for a part-time or full-time service mission.

I am extremely grateful for all that you have done for me- your prayers, love, support, and faith. Please know that this is one more step on the path that God has prepared for me, and that I do not fear what comes next. I am promised that the calling that I go to is greater than that from which I come, and that the blessings that are prepared are so great that I will not be able to receive them. Know that I love you all.

If you desire to find out more information or see what you can do to help, you may either email me directly or (preferred) contact my Father, Troy Wheelhouse, at troy.wheelhouse@gmail.com to be in contact with us. If I may serve you or your families/associates in any way, PLEASE do not hesitate to ask. I love you all, and I will be going to my next calling with gladness and joy, grateful for the time that I have had here and ready to serve in the capacity that the Lord has prepared for me.

I love you all.

Les Amo.

¡Nos Vemos!

-EW


--
-Elder Wheelhouse

Night in the Hospital

To all those who don't know, Elder Wheelhouse was very sick this week.  The mission president, President Essig, is making a decision this week whether to keep him in Santiago, send him home to recuperate, or send him to a stateside mission after a period of recuperation.  Please keep Alton and President Essig in your thoughts and prayers.  Alton would love to stay and serve.

Pumpkin cookies... I forgot how much I love pumpkin chocolate chip cookies...

Hello all!

First, I want to give a huge thank you and shout out to the Eaglecrest 1st Ward for the AWESOME care package that I received the other day. I am savoring (along with my companions) the various peanut butter bars, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies, and overall goodness of that package. We will also be playing a game of trouble as part of our p-day today. ¡Muchísimas Gracias!

On that same note, there doesn´t appear to be rhyme nor reason to the amount of time it takes mail to get to or from here.. I received one package that was postmarked the 18th of November, then 2 days later one that was postmarked the 25th, then a letter that was marked the 17th. I really have no clue.. But thank you all!

The biggest thing that happened this week were some various things happening in the office.. We had some major injuries happen in the mission this week, and so I´ve been back and forth from the hospital a good 10 or 15 times, plus midnight pain med runs, plus tranquilizing alternatively doctors and concerned companions.. It´s been fun. I also went out with Elder Durrant and talked to a cell phone company that has continued charging us for a full year and 2 months after we terminated the contract. It was very exciting, because it opened up some money to purchase new equipment within the mission. Finally the week culminated in a four-day crunchfest of reports that nobody knew were coming until they were here, including moving up the end of the year report 3 weeks. We´ve mixed in a few visitas here and there, but unfortunately I have been in the sector a total of 3 hours this week. The good news is that we´ve had a steady supply of sick and/or injured elders coming into the office, so I´ve been able to plug away at the sudden influx of end-of-the-year paperwork. I suppose it´s not good that the elders are getting sick, but we´ve not had anything super super serious. What doesn´t kill you makes you stronger, eh?

For those of you that saw the bonus email this morning, I encourage you to turn your minds back to that subject as I talk about one more cosa chiquitita. For those of you that did not read it or are joining the emails for the first time, you can check it out at elderwheelhouse.blogspot.com <http://elderwheelhouse.blogspot.com>  .

In brief summary, we talked about noticing the presence of God in the world around you. I would submit one more step to that. The whole purpose of us even coming here was to gain experience and become like He Is, to expand our intelligence and capability so that one day we can return to live with Him and receive our own glory and dominion. He has given us various tools to be able to do that, one of the greatest of which is the Holy Ghost, in it´s many forms of Divine Inspiration.

The awesome thing is that as we seek to feel, receive, and follow the Spirit in our lives, we slowly are changed. Our thoughts become more in line with where they should be, our actions become more like we want them to be, and we receive greater light and knowledge. One of the beautiful things about this process is that as we progress, God gives us more ability and opportunity to excercise our agency and choose for ourselves. We have the opportunity to begin to come to where He is in this life- and while we may or may not rise to the same level of glory or perfection that He has attained while we are here, we can begin to rise to the levels of perfection within our own spheres, and excercise that ability to decide righteously for ourselves. As we strive to seek and follow the will of God, slowly our will turns to be more and more in line with His. This is the great Plan- not because of a controlling God, but rather that of a loving Father who knows what can bring His children the most happiness because of His own experience.

This is the testimony which I wish to give today- that as we seek to become like Him, He will guide us further and further until we are receiving the blessings that He has for us without restricción. Les amo, y ¡le vayan super bien todos!

Mucho Amor,

-Elder Wheelhouse

P.S. for those of you that know, 42.

Woohoo! Pre-letter Bonus letter!

Hello all!

So, according to the clocks in Utah it should be about 3 in the morning right now, but it´s 7:07 here and I just finished an all-nighter number crunching party! ¡Que Divertido!

I figured that I´d tell the story really quickly before I crash for a few hours. Then on to P-Day proper, and the regular letter like normal.

At any rate, I´ve been staying late in the office preparing a whole bunch of numbers and reports, including an end-of-year report that I originally thought was due in 3 weeks. Well, last night I got a call at 11 at night from the President. He, very embarrassed, informed me that he had forgotten about a meeting that he is having on Sunday with four of the Seventies and all of the Stake Presidents and general priesthood leadership of the mission to discuss the year´s numbers. We were already on a late night run to save another Elder who was having some medical issues (he had a seizure and hurt his shoulder and back pretty badly), and so we came back to the office and I sat and crunched numbers to my heart´s content.

Now hold on, I can´t let you get away without some sort of spiritual thought- and what do you know, I learned something from this experience!

Primarily, let´s establish the obvious. No one of us is perfect- we do our best, and many of us are most definitely admirable, but no one is perfect. God knew that before hand, and He decided to create a system for us to receive direct help from someone who knows. Many people know it by names such as "inner knowing" or "gut feeling", but we know it to be the Holy Ghost.

A few days ago, I began to sit down and do a project that was dealing with a lot of the numbers in terms of proselyting. I noticed that the numbers that I was using had correlations to many other of the processes that I was using, but merely could not be used interchangeably because of some small formatting errors. Something within me said to pull up all of the other databases of information, and suddenly inspiration struck- and I saw a way to unify all of that information into a central database with an easier interface (have you noticed the similar trends in this thought process? Start thinking!). I happened upon a function that I had never seen inside of Excel before that allowed me to create database interfaces, and coincidentally enough I discovered that the main internet database with which we report to Salt Lake has an Excel output. Luckily there was already a partial process for working with the raw information, and by good fortune I had already stumbled upon it a few weeks earlier during a happenstance sweep of the networks, which I had felt impressed to clean (have you seen it yet? I´m almost to the climax, here!). I connected the information with the powerpoint that I had felt I should start a week ago, and magically it all came together. What a miracle, to have so many things go right in a row!

Ok, here is the pattern- and absolutely everything that I said above is true. Did you notice the following words?
"I noticed that", "Something within me said", "Suddenly inspiration struck", "I happened upon", "Coincidentally enough", "Luckily", "By good fortune", "I had felt impressed", "I had felt that I should", "Magically", "It all came together", "What a miracle", "So many things [went] right".

All of these things are phrases and little parts of our day that we often use without thinking- but they all are SO much more interconnected than we realize. There are too many wonderful things that happen in life for it to be simple coincidence, and yet we constantly run into unexpected blessings and inspirations that lead us to happier places. How often do we push it off on circumstance or good judgement, and forget the Lord who sent those blessings to begin with?

I submit as my testimony to you this fine Santaguinian morning that God does know us and guide the little things in our lives that make us happy! I know that if we will look for the little miracles that pass, our lives will be SO much more enjoyable. What an awesome blessing to be known and loved by One who has created all things. I promise that if you will look for Him, you will find Him.

Talk to you all in a few hours!

-Elder Wheelhouse

Bonus Letter! (Kind of...)

Hello all!

Once again, sorry for the confusion last week. I had a few other letters to write that ended up taking more time than I thought, but it was important to finish my thoughts from last week (if you have not read it yet, go ahead and read it, I´ll wait!)

At any rate, kind of a crazy week this week. Not much to say, actually- my health took another dive and I wasn't able to get out all week. Most of my energy was spent in the office generating reports and trying to update our cell phone system- mostly excel spreadsheets and occasional moments of exasperation where I was just tempted to chuck the keyboard out the window- but it was good fun all in all.

One exciting adventure happened yesterday. Here in the office we have a van for use when we need to move missionaries and things like that, and it´s started throwing fits lately. It´s near the end of it´s replacement period anyway (the church has very specific policies on Vehicles), but suddenly everything started giving out within 48 hours. It started with a dead battery, which we replaced easily enough- but then it started having problems with the electrical systems, including occasionally throwing on the Anti-lock Braking System in the middle of the Freeway. Finally last night it culminated in having a tire fly completely off in the middle of Vespucio Norté, one of the main Tollways here. Elder Metcalf and Elder Durrant (my new companions) were bringing a sick Elder home from the doctor´s while I was with another Elder who is spending a few days with us (a Latino from Mexico, who doesn´t speak any English at all) when I suddenly received a phone call from them telling me what happened. The great news is that Vespucio Norté has a wonderful traffic control and response team, who by divine intervention was about 60 feet behind them in the next lane when their tire flew off. No one was hurt, and we´re going to be getting a new van soon!

Hemos sido muy bendecido por Dios recién. We are seeing a lot of miracles happening within the mission and even within the ward here.  One of the zones had set a monthly baptismal goal of ten last month and it turned out 17, and another zone passed their goal by 11. Plus, I encountered about 60 unentered references the other day, so they´re all going to be contacted within the week here. I was checking up on Lorena (my first baptism from Lo Prado), and she is still staying faithful to everything that she committed. I even received a letter from her the other day, unsolicited, and what a blessing to hear from her! Her son is beginning to investigate, and we hope that her entire family will be returning soon. We had a lesson with the familia Huaman the other day that was fantastic, and they are asking for permission to be baptized next Sunday or the following. Pray for them!

Thank you all for your support and prayers, and know that I love you all. It´s interesting to think about the little blessings that we see every day- sometimes it could even be something as little as a child smiling and waving at you. Know that all of those little things come from a loving Heavenly Father that knows exactly when we need Him most- and sometimes we need to be the one who smiles for someone else!

Another short one, but more next week!

Nos Vemos-

-Elder Wheelhouse

Feliz Dia de Acción de Gracias!!! (or, "Oh Palvo, How I love thee..")

(I began this message last week and then ran out of time, but I wanted to make sure that I said what I needed to- so enjoy two letters this week!) -EW

--------------------------

(Palvo=Turkey)

¡Hola, todos!

What a week! I have not seen my sector much, but I did teach an awesome lesson yesterday and gave some blessings earlier in the week. Hopefully I´ll get out tonight, but it doesn´t look likely. I discovered a ton of back paperwork that never got done by the last Historian, as well as another completely different kind of paperwork that never got done by the last Pensionista, but is now my responsibility. Hence, I´m serving in a different way for now!

Some awesome things did happen this week though.. Primarily, last Sunday our companionship brought 8 Investigators to church, plus three reactivated families. all of them but one of the investigator families were people that I contacted personally, and so I felt awesome to watch the Capilla fill up for a special fast and testimony meeting. Two of the most exciting parts were when Hagapito(ah-gah-PEE-toe), the father of the familia Huaman (Luis is his son, to whom I have been giving piano lessons) walked in (we haven´t seen him at all in two and a half months and we´re waiting for his permission to baptize his family), and when a new dear friend of mine, Nicolas, stood up and bore his testimony. I´ll go ahead and tell you a little more about him.

Nicolas is a wonderful man of 19 years of age who was baptized when he was 8. Within a few years, he had inactivated and fallen away from the church. He investigated many other religions, but none of them seemed to be right as all of them taught that each man has his own way to heaven, as long as he believes in and "comes to" Christ(NOT true, by the way, those are only the first two steps). We had been following up on some instructions from the Bishop to go and visit one of the older men who had become less active, when Nicolas and his girlfriend showed up. Nicolas, now 11 years older and about 7 years completely away from the church, came in covered in piercings and began to talk with us on his Grandmother´s insistence, occasionally cursing and talking about all of his bad experiences with the church. We taught about the restoration of the gospel and bore testimony of the divinity of this work. He asked if he could ask a question, and I answered it. I would like to share that conversation with you as my spiritual thought today.

The question that he asked was, "If all churches bring me to Christ, why should I choose to be with a church when I already believe in Him?"

This is a very real question, and one that I thought a lot about and struggled with for a long time- and I was so glad that Heavenly Father guided me through my struggles to be able to understand it as it is. The question I´d like to pose as a response to you is, "What next?". I of course, answered him much more bluntly- and I will show you the answer too- but to really understand it, you have to start at the beginning.

God is our Heavenly Father- our creator and the person whom we chose to follow before this life even started. He loves us, and He wants us to attain the same level that He has- Immortal and Glorified. We agreed that in order to become like Him, we needed to have our own experience and opportunity to choose- to the end that we would know for ourselves how to act and what would bring us the most happiness. This is what we call "Salvation"; it is the manner of life that will bring us the most happiness, or save us from the most grief. Unfortunately, we are not perfect. We knew that we would make mistakes, but we also knew that nothing impure could return to His presence and obtain this higher level of existence. Our Father knew this too- and as any good father would, He created a way for us to overcome these small weaknesses and begin to obtain that Happiness in this life.

This was and is the purpose of Jesus Christ- to provide a way that we can make our own mistakes and still return through our work to overcome them. He led the Prophets of the old testament and taught them standards of living that would allow them to be the happiest they could in this life, and obtain that unending happiness, or Eternal Life, after their time of probation was over. Moreover, Christ gave them two things- Power and Authority. He gave them Power to do the things that He would do- to heal, to bless, to create, and to perform every variety of miracle imaginable- and He gave them the Authority to act in His name- to be leaders, teachers, revelators, and to help others gain a remission of their sins and errors. Unfortunately the weakness of humanity is such that while these prophets did many wonderful things, after a time they would be rejected, and a new prophet would need to be called after a period of darkness. Ultimately Christ Himself came to the earth and established His church on two continents- but even He and His disciples were rejected after a time, and the precious truths and teachings that He had given were changed to the whims of the people or rulers, lost, or forgotten. Thus, the world plunged into a time of spiritual darkness we know as the Dark Ages, where even professors of Christianity warred one against another without the Power and Authority of Christ to guide them.

Much time passed, and eventually the preachers of Christianity began to realize and call for a restoration of the original truths of the gospel. People began searching for the truth, and for the same wonderful blessings that were found in the Church of old. Finally, in 1820 God the Father and Jesus Christ Himself appeared to a boy named Joseph Smith and announced that He was to be the Prophet of this restoration. Over the next few years, the teachings that Christ originally taught and the Power and Authority that He originally bestowed were brought back- and God once again spoke through a Prophet on Earth! Through this restoration we finally received the fullness of His Plan for us- that not only are we to be happy, but that He wants us to live with our families forever; that He wants us to gain the power that He has; and that each of us has a specific role to play in helping all return to Him. This is why we needed (and need) a restoration. This is why we need the church and priesthood of Christ on the Earth. I know for myself that many churches are good churches, and teach true principles. I know that many of them teach us to believe in Christ, and many more in God- but the question is, "What next?". When we believe in Him what are we bound to do, and what do we really know? This is a question that can be answered only through Him, and in the manner that He has used since the beginning of time.

I know for myself- not because of anyone else, but by my own studies and my own personal petition to and answer from God Himself- that His power is on the Earth, and that it is found in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. If I sound like a religious fanatic, so be it- but I KNOW for myself, and you can too. You are God´s Child, and He knows you. When he ceases to be Heavenly Father because of where He is and becomes Heavenly Father because of who He Is is when we can begin to attain His glory in this life. Ask Him if what I have said is true, with the intention to act upon the answer you receive- and when you know, act. I promise you that you will not be forsaken nor ashamed. You Will Know.

I love you all. Sorry for the delay. It was important that I finished this.

-Elder Wheelhouse

In mil quatrocientos noventa y dos, Columbus sailed the ocean... gross? (some things just don´t translate)

¡Aló!

For those of you that are still scratching your head at the subject line, I have been officially called to be in the office as the mission Historian. According to the records (which, coincidentally, I have now) that makes me the youngest Elder ever in the office, in terms of mission weeks. Basically I am in charge of all of the records of the mission, including inputting all of the convert records and generating reports and powerpoints, cell phones, Computer and Software support, Weekly letters from the office, and being the general record-keeper/type monkey. It looks to be a pretty fun job, and because of all of my previous experience we are already automating a lot of it. I´ll also be in charge of taking over the brunt of the responsibilities of the Pensionist (we´re reducing the office size) and a gigantic end-of-the-year mission journal record that is kept in the granite vault at Headquarters as a general Journal of the mission. Finally, I´m also keeping all of my jobs as ECM (Especialista en Cuidado de Misioneros) and whatever random projects the President throws in. All in all, I´m excited to take something new on, and it´s a blessing to be able to continue working with the ward here as we´re moving forward with various things.

As for the work here, we are working with a whole bunch of really fun people. Right now it´s mostly members as we´re trying to get this ward functioning, but we still have various investigators with whom I am really having many wonderful experiences. Primariamente, tenemos Hector. El es un hombre de 80 años con quien estamos compartiendo. He learns kind of slowly, but he is attending church and knows that it is the only true church on the earth (he told us without us needing to prompt him, so that´s bakan..) so we are working with him to prepare him for his baptism. I love him so much for his effort- it really is inspirational for me to work with him, and SO easy to bring the spirit into his home.

I also received a letter from my dear hermana Lorena, from mi primero sector. She is still doing really well and staying really strong, and after talking with the elders from Lo Prado the other day I really feel good about her and about all that she has done and is doing to stay strong. She even said that her son is becoming more and more interested in the Gospel- and quite a few of the contacts that I made in my last week there are progressing towards baptism these next few weeks. I am so blessed to have been a part of something that big. If you have not experienced the thrill of watching somebody´s life change for the better, get out and serve- because there is nothing better.

The other day we were out proselyting when a rock flew past my head and hit a wall. Suddenly it was followed by another and another, and as we came to the top of the stairs we saw two teenagers with their faces covered chucking rocks at us. I felt like Samuel the Lamanite as rocks whizzed past, and I felt no fear as I began walking towards them. Even though my companion and I were getting closer and closer, the rocks would always miss us- and finally the two kids got scared and ran away. It was one of the coolest physical protections I´ve been part of so far- and upon further reflection, as always, I have some thoughts to share.

Samuel the Lamanite was a prophet of the Book of Mormon who was sent by God to prophecy to the Nephites about the impending birth of the Savior on the other side of the world. He began to teach once and was thrown out of the city, but God told him to go back. He climbed the city wall and stood to prophecy as the people shot arrows and threw stones to try to kill him. He stood his ground until he was finished with the work he had been directed to do, and all of the stones and arrows miraculously missed. When he was done, he left to continue on his way, and we do not hear more of him.

In my case the other day, it was a literal manifestation of this same miracle- however, we are also afforded another protection by applying the same principle. Samuel prepared himself, and then received the will of the Lord and acted on it immediately. We must do the same. Many times we feel fear because of the things that appear to be coming our way- the fiery darts of Satan have never been easy to resist if we are doing what is right- however we have the assurance of protection from the Lord. Each of us can experience this same miraculous protection physically, emotionally, and spiritually if we act in the same way, with perfect faith and the intention to endure to the end regardless of the cost. I can promise, as do the scriptures and the prophets of our day, that as we do what is right we will receive and be witness to that protection.

I know it sounds like I´m lecturing you all or writing a book, but this is really how I think when I write- and it doesn´t make it any less true!

Go Fight Win Take State!

Vaya Con Dios-

-Elder Wheelhouse

Side note- I also solved a rubik´s cube for the first time the other day- I feel really good about life right now. :P

Just a short one again...

Hey everyone!

Don´t have much to talk about this week, and I´ve got to go soon anyway, but here is the weekly letter for this week!

I´ve been helping out in the office, especially with automating a lot of processes that have to happen here. My work with the Office suite has come in handy, and I´m glad to be able to do the work. Elder Prunty and Elder Foster (My companions) are both awesome, and it´s great to have such good friends. I expect that Elder Foster and I will be friends for many years to come, in particular.

We´ve been working with various families inside the ward to try to help them get stronger, and we´ve seen a lot of success through that work. We have started receiving references (a HUGE help to a missionary, btw) and we are contacting them as they come in.

I am also teaching piano lessons to one of our investigators. What a blessing to be able to teach again! They are waiting on the permission of their Father to be baptized, as he is the only one who is not set on baptism, but we are hoping to meet and play futbol with him later this week on our next P-day. We hope to baptize them next Sunday, if we can get permission.

Health is still up and down, mostly up, and I´m glad to be surrounded by good people who take care of me.

As always, I want to take the largest space in my letter to share something spiritual. I hope that at least one or two of you enjoy it, and I hope that it makes all of you think a little bit more when you read my letters. I hope that God will guide me to say the things that can bless you all the most.

We all pass for difficult times. We are human, separated physically from the presence of God, and part of a giant network of human souls- some of which are bad, but the majority of which I believe are good. Often times in our lives, things unexpected happen- death, destruction, financial hardship, weakness to temptation (meaning sin), pain, separation from family and friends, sickness, and every imaginable opposition that could be thrown at us. During these experiences we are buffeted and tossed like a small ship amongst the waves, and at times we may feel helpless and afraid. This is natural, and even expected- however, we ALWAYS have a glimmer of hope that, if we build upon it, cannot be taken away and secures safe passage. That hope is Christ.

The atonement of Christ was and is an infinite atonement- a sacrifice of such great magnitude as to save EVERY soul that clings to it. There is no obstacle too great to overcome, nor is there any distance too great that He would not cover it in a heartbeat if we would just cry out. Even though many times in our lives we will experience things that may not be a result of our personal actions (directly or indirectly), we have the promise that if we are following the Great Master, even Jesus Christ, WE CAN NOT FAIL.

It is the nature of the times that we live in, and the paths that we hopefully have all chosen (that is, to follow Him) that we will be targeted by the forces of the adversary to be literally dragged away from the presence of God. We are in the last days of this earth, and we know by the mouth of God Himself that this is a time to be tested. That being said, any man who says that this path to perfection is impossible and that therefore we should take our own path, asking God to save us, does not understand his own divine birthright. We have the covenant with God, the creator of all the universe, that if we will but do our part the best that we can He will provide a way for us to return to live and prosper with Him. This is a covenant that was in place before this world was even created- "and though the heavens and the earth will pass away, [His] words shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled." Our God is not a God of Lies.

I testify that this moment is but a small moment. The storm will subside, the waves will calm, and we will witness the fulfillment of the promises of God. "Do your duty: that is best. Leave to God the rest." No tempest can swallow the heart bound to the Master of all things! As always, I share this in His name, Jesus Christ.

-Elder Wheelhouse

The Secret to Life, the Universe, and Everything. (Not 42.)

¡Buenas Tardes, todos!

What an interesting week! Working in the office has been a blast, and getting to know the ward and the area has been even more interesting. I gave my first talk in Chile on Sunday, with about 5 minutes of warning. What a blessing to have the Spirit and the gift of tongues! Without a formal assignment, I said a quick prayer and opened to the first scripture that came to mind (my mission scripture, coincidentally, which I hadn´t thought of in at least two months). The spirit bore witness that that was the one I needed to read, along with another scripture referenced underneath, and so I trusted and kept praying while listening to the sister just before me give a short talk. What do you know, the Spirit was right on- and the topic that she talked about led perfectly into what I wanted to read. I still had no clue what to say, but when I stood up to speak words suddenly started to flow into my mind, and I was able to be vessel to a powerful lesson and testimony about the blessings that we can begin to experience now as we choose to work in faith instead of waiting. I can still bear testimony to that principle, and I invite you all to work with those spiritual promptings to bless your lives.

The following day we set up an appointment to go and meet the Bishop of our ward. The ward we are in is full of good people, many of whom have been strong in the church for many years, but for various reasons the attendance has dropped over the last 3-4 years and we have had to work much harder to maintain within the ward, much less bring new members in. We met with him and talked about his vision for the ward and for us, and what his goals were to achieve it. Elder Prunty and I bore testimony of the value of righteous leadership, and as touched by the Spirit we were able to ask some very key questions that have lead us to begin to see progress and feel a change within the Bishop and certain key members within the ward.

One of the very strong impressions that I had received when I first arrived here in the office was that we needed to work with the ward to strengthen the members and use that as our focus first before we focus on bringing new members into the ward. That is something that is very radical for a mission that has traditionally been one of the top missions in terms of baptisms in the world, and especially to some of the older, more experienced missionaries. Nevertheless, one of the other Elders felt the same way and we backed each other up, and today we got to have a special meeting with Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve who backed up what we had expressed exactly. He talked to us about certain areas in how we as missionaries need to change, including the focus in baptisms. The key, he said, was not to focus on baptisms so much as blessing lives and strengthening the church. It was a blessing to see that faith rewarded, and to watch as eyes were opened to the greater purpose of missionary work.

Why do I tell all of these stories? Not to try to put myself up, nor anything like it- rather, I want to encourage you all to see a common theme. God loves us, and He wants us to succeed. Because He wants us to succeed, He has provided a way for us to receive guidance. Whether it be immediate, short term, or long-term He wants to help us be the best that we can and receive the most blessings possible- and so He asks us to do our part to be worthy to have a member of the Godhead with us at all times. When we do our part, He has promised to guide us and care for us in ways that we don´t even comprehend. If we "Take no thought for scrip or purse" and put the laws of God first, He will "be on your right hand and your left" guiding us in EVERY aspect of our lives.

The Spirit of God is a necessary component of our lives. This is something that has taken a lot of time for me to realize, and every day I realize a little bit more how much we deny ourselves if we do not have that divine intervention in our lives. I invite all of you to turn to the scriptures and prayer- MAKE TIME TODAY- to study your lives and prioritize in such a way that the laws of God will always be put first. If you will take that time today, regardless of where you think you are, I promise that you will receive a witness that God is your Father, Heavenly not because of where He is but Who He Is, and that He loves you personally. You will also see that He wants your success, and that He has not asked anything of you that you cannot do. I cannot promise that there won´t be something difficult or two in between where you are and where you know you ought to be, but I can promise that with the Strength and Love of God at your back it can and WILL be overcome.

I love you all. Remember to pray, with real intent.

-Elder Wheelhouse

Dunder Mifflin- The People Person´s Paper People... ¡Olé!

¡Hola!

What a week- the biggest change is that I´m in the office now (hence the subject line, I hope that some of you get it...) and working very hard. I spend most of the day processing papers and phone calls, and generally helping out- then in the evenings we go out and proselyte. The sector that I´m in now is Los Olivos (The Olive Trees), and we are literally right at the foot of a hill called Cerro Blanca (White Hill). We spend most of our walking time climbing or descending stairs (pictures next week, don´t have much time), and it´s a blast to be in a sector that is at once advanced and modern and yet has much of the "traditional" or "antiguo" flavor that you think of when you think South America (again, you´ll understand better with pictures next week).

My health has begun steadily improving with the change of pace, and it´s nice to be finally adjusting to the language. Yesterday I had four Chileans (and one of my companions) note that my accent didn´t sound like a gringo (YESSSSSS!!!!) and I noted that I was using many Chilenismos correctly and naturally. The ward here is very weak, and we´re beginning to work with the various members to strengthen and reinforce the leadership and relationships here. I know that with time it will work out, and I think that I can help out a little bit by helping us get out the door on time to proselyte.

We live on the 15th floor of an apartment building overlooking a little bit of the valley (Mish!) and I am very grateful for a novelty that we have here that we didn´t have in my last apartment- a shower that I can stand up in! I´ll send a picture of that next week too. It´s also fun to have a car to drive around the city in while we´re working in the office, so I´m starting to become more familiar with everything, and where it is geographically.

I know it´s a little short this week, but I´ll send a ton of pictures next week. Thank you all for your prayers and love and support! I sort the mail for the whole mission every day, so send me some and I´ll get it in real time and not on the delay!

Mucho amor,

-Elder Wheelhouse

The first week of the 50th year of a Chilean Mission!

¡Alo!

What an interesting week! I was sick for two more days this week (not much fun, but we work with it), but we have had a lot of good things too.

I forgot to mention in my last letter that we had a celebration for 50 years of the Mision Chilena! There had been missionaries in Chile before that, but it was merely part of another mission. It was very exciting to view the work that has been done in so short a time. A stadium in downtown Chile was filled completely with members and investigators, and after a brief devotional with the area presidency we got to see quite the show! Traditional dances from all over South America, depictions of various scenes from the book of mormon and historical highlights, and a spectacular choir composed of members from all over chile and over 600 missionaries (maybe more, I was in front). Overall, a lot of fun!

We´ve also had two Seventies visit this week, one from the Area Presidency(Elder Zeballos, to talk to the missionaries in our zone) and Elder Richards (for stake conference). We also will be meeting as a mission with another seventy, a member of the presiding bishopric, and an apostle in a meeting on the sixth, which we are all excited and preparing for.

We´ve been working with various families and people this week, and it has been wonderful to watch the growth happen. Much of our hard work paid off when we received a text at 11 at night from a contact/investigator asking what happens to a sinner if they die in their sins. After a brief conversation with her, we have one more person who is progressing towards baptism.

We have also been working very hard with the barrio here to reactivate more members and help them become more effective in their leadership positions. They just called four new ward missionaries to help us (for a total of 8 now!) and we have implemented some new programs with them to train them in how to teach and reactivate members on their own. We will be doing splits more often and assigning specific investigators and tasks to ward missionaries, meaning that we´ll basically have 4 companionships actively working in the ward at any given time. Overall, a wonderful time to be working.

Thank you all so much for your love and prayers. They are greatly appreciated and needed.

Off to a haircut!

-Elder Wheelhouse

Side note: We´ve started teaching some of the Flaite (FLY-tay, the ´gangsters´ of Santiago) various words in English, and they´ve started being a lot more friendly. Useful, when you´re out late and trying to get home on time!

Alma 26:11-16

Work on both sides of the veil

Hello all!

 First, I´ll finish where I left off last week and transition smoothly into current news. Primeramente, last week the Uncle and Aunt of Elder Dearden (who are economists) came to Chile for a conference. They were guests of the Ex-minister of Chile, and they ended up meeting up with him at the Chapel of all places. I, of course, had no clue that he was anyone of supreme importance until one of the youth, a good friend of mine, pulled me aside and started asking how I knew him and if I could "hook him up" (and by this I obviously mean the Chileanismo equivalent). Elder Dearden´s aunt wrote him and said that the Ex-minister´s impressions of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was favorable, and that he was impressed with our dedication and sacrifice as misionaries, and touched by my testimony (conveniently given while I was blissfully ignorant to what was going on, because afterward the stakes obviously changed). So that was exciting.

Lorena´s baptism was excellent. A muy linda event. I hope that the pictures I sent last week got through. If not, let me know. All of her family suddenly showed up in town the week following, unannounced, and her son (non-member) is now living with her. We have begun to train her on how to teach, and we were particularly excited for her confirmation yesterday. We see a very bright future with her.

Also this week, I lost two very dear friends of mine to mission calls on the other side of the veil. One, who I believe I have mentioned, se llamo Emilio, and the other was a Young Man of our barrio, who I was only able to visit once.

The young man whom I visited in the hospital was sick with Lukemia. The bishop heard about my story with my health before my mission, and asked me to come visit him and bear my testimony. He had lost hope in serving a mission when he became hospitalized, and began to retreat from friends, family, and the church. We went and visited him, blessing and administering the sacrament. Only the bishop and I were allowed in the room because of the fragile state of the patients there, but in the little spanish I knew I began to bear a testimony. Suddenly the Spirit took over and I began to bear what I believe to be the strongest, most fluent testimony that I have ever given in Spanish, and our eyes met. We stayed locked for 3 or 5 minutes as I promised him that if he wanted to serve a mission with all his heart, with the desire to serve God more than himself, and if he began to prepare that he would have the opportunity to serve and bless many lives. We saw a change in his eyes, a fire that was not there before, and he has gone on to serve faithfully in his new calling.

Emilio was a blind diabetic with one foot amputated that we found in the street one day, who was inactive in the church for almost a decade. He had come to terms with the cause of his problems, realizing that many of them stemmed from his disobedience to the principles he knew, and had the desire to change his life and rejoin the church. We worked with him for 3 or 4 weeks, and he faithfully attended church and changed his life to what it was supposed to be. He wanted to serve a mission, but was unable to because of his age. The last contact that we had with him before he entered the hospital, we were working on getting him a calling as a ward missionary. He suddenly took sick and died a day later in the hospital, prepared to teach what he had so valiantly regained. The change that we saw in him was ENORMOUS. Where he was sullen and depressed, even angry at life when we met him, when his girlfriend left him two days before our last visit we visited with him and he laughed about it, secure in his knowledge and testimony. He accompanied us to various appointments, learning to bear powerful testimony and lift the lives of other people. He was my friend, and I will miss him dearly.

These two men, frail and sickly and alone in the eyes of the world, are a powerful witness to the divine nature of this gospel. By their faith and through their righteous desires they changed their lives and mine. They will be changing many more in the next world. They took my testimony to the grave- and I would be ungrateful if I did not do the same. I testify that there is a plan. I Promise because I know for myself that this life is more than coincidence and fate, a combination of luck and probability. We are the Sons and Daughters of the Creator of the universe, and if we will do our part and receive the blessings that he offers us, we will receive this witness every day. I mourn the loss of two valiant friends for a time- but I know that I will see them again, in the flesh, and that the infirmities that took them out of this life will be gone forever because of YOUR Savior, Jesus Christ.

I love this work. I love this Gospel. I know that we can be with our families forever, IF we do our part.

I leave this week bearing testimony of these truths as a representative of Christ and in His name.

Changes, all these crazy changes...

Hello, all!

Unfortunately, I have 5 minutes. Today was transfers, so we have less time than normal. I´ll catch up and add more next week. Sorry for those letters and emails that I still haven´t caught up on from last week.. I´ll have a little more done next week.

In Summary:

Lorena was baptized yesterday (Sunday) and it was AMAZING. It is my first baptism, and she asked me to baptize her. WHAT A BLESSING. We (the Elders) sang a special number for her as well. I am looking forward to next week´s confirmation. More next week.

Working with a number of other families, all amazing. More next week.

Survived transfers, but we have a new elder in the house who is Zone Leader 2, and Elder King got moved to become the Asistante 1 al Presidente. Sad, but we´re glad for him.

Other news, we got the ex-minister of Chile to attend part of church with us. I didn´t know that he was the ex-minister until all of the ward members started bugging me about it. More next week.

Here is the translation (fortunately I had most of it done last week, so I only need to add one more sentence).

NM: Hello, How are you?
Chilean: Well, and you? (informal, but understood)
NM: Very well, thank you. We are missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Have you seen us before?
Chilean: Yes, but I like have my religion and like don´t need more. Savvy? (English equivalent, spanish spread out is: "ya, pero tengo mi religion po y no necesita mas po. Cachai?)
Chilean: Oh, you (variation on ancient spanish) are (Chilean tu, sounds like "soy" which is "I am") really white and dumb. I´m going to, like, be more slow for you. I have, like, seen the missionaries before but I, like, already have my religion and, like, don´t need more, especially, like, your saint John Smidt. You´re like, CRAZY! (also the english equivalent, spanish spread out is: "He visto los misioneros po pero ya tengo mi religion po y no necesita mas po, especialmente su santo Jon Smit po. ¡Tu estai loco po!)

Wow, I´m sorry this letter is tiny. I´ll catch up more next week. Please realize that I only have an hour and a half to write the President, report my numbers, write whatever hard letters I have to, read your emails, and reply. I am trying to do better, today is unusual por culpa de Cambios.

Mucho amor, ¡Vaya bien!

A Dios, Con Dios,

Elder Wheelhouse

America Week!

Hola!

What a wonderful week! So many things... Not sure where to start to be honest... Let´s talk about Americanization.

Americanization ("modernization" to Americans) is a force for good and evil here in Chile. On the one hand, I was able to enjoy Subway for lunch today (DIVINE, I might add...), General Conference in English Via Satellite (¡Muy Rico!), and can enjoy the occasional American treat when I have the money (Snickers Bars, Waffles, and Cinamon Life, Oh My!). On the other hand, it means that when we try to teach the concepts of tithing, dia de reposo, and Chastity, we often have to work a lot harder to help our investigators understand and live these standards. We´re working with Lorena still, but she only attended one session of General Conference because she was prepping her business (Saturday, we could blow it off, but Sunday it was slightly more alarming). She has her (hopefully) final interview tonight with President Essig, and we do have a date set with her for the 9th of October. I really hope that it goes through, because I´m probably getting transferred the 10th. Pray for Lorena!

As for the rest of the barrio, things are going fairly well. I think I´ve mentioned before that we have a LOT of work to do in our sector up north, but we are slowly and steadily working through it. I´ve been sick, but we keep working through it and somehow the Lord gives me strength enough to do what I need to do during the day. THANK YOU for your prayers, I know that it is because of the people who pray for us that we can be effective at all.

General Conference was AMAZING. I don´t know if it was more intense for all of you, but for some reason it seemed a lot more intense than usual to me. The English, of course, was wonderful, but everybody seems to talk slower now. This, of course, is caused by the difference in language.

This is one other thing that I discovered this week. There are actually TWO alternate forms of spanish that are used here. One is more international (Vos) and the other is Chilean Tú form. Because they are used interchangeably and occasionally in the same sentence, this makes it much more confusing. Now that I understand the difference though, it is much better. Compare the typical experience of the first day missionary:

NM: Hola, ¿como esta?
Chilean: Bien, ¿y tu?
NM: Muy bien, Gracias. Somos misioneros de la Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días. ¿Ha visto misioneros antes de hoy?
Chilean: Ya, protngomrlgnpoynncsitmaspo. ¿Cachai?
(New missionary looks at companion, companion looks back expectantly)
(New missionary stammers and tries to explain that he can´t speak spanish very well. Words are lost in translation, but message is clearly understood)
Chilean: Oh, vos soi GRINGO... Voy ser mas lento para tupo... Hevistolosmisionerospoperoyotengomireligionpoynonecesitamaspo, especialmentesusantoJonSmidtpo. ¡Tuestailocopo!
(New missionary almost starts crying, trainer mercifully remembers that he doesn´t know chilean spanish and takes over the conversation. New missionary stays up late trying to find out which flight he was actually supposed to take to get to Chile.)

Translation follows next week!

-Elder Wheelhouse

P.S. Sorry to cut short, have to go.

So, I guess I´m 20 now... Thank you for giving me more time to sleep. :P

Alo!

Wow, what a crazy week. Unfortunately, the baptism with Lorena fell through. After we had done the pre-entrevista con ella, she began to feel a little bit of fear. Not a problem. We visited her with President Essig, and she´ll hopefully be getting baptized the 9th.

We´ve also been working with two other investigadores, Emilio y Celinda. Emilio is almost completely blind, and Celinda has elephantism. They both have very poor self image, but want to do the right thing, so we are helping them to progress a little at a time. Emilio is an inactive member whose health problems began occurring after he left the church, and we encountered him lost in the streets. His faith is weak at times, but he wants to come back to the fold and gain forgiveness for his past.

We are also working with a family who has very strong belief in God and the Bible, but has problems with organized religion because so many of the churches have problems. We went to teach them on saturday (my birthday), and in the middle of the lesson the lights went out. The spirit told us to finish the lesson, which went well, and when we left we realized that there was NO light except cars and a few stars. When you´re in a city of 5.5 million and can´t see any light, that´s big. We made our way through the streets as safely and quickly as we could and returned to our apartment. Along the way we could here the radios going, and as the news reports came in we learned first that all of Santiago was out, then that regions 3-8 (nearly the entire country) didn´t have power. I´m not entirely sure what the cause was, so if any of you know more, tell us. :P

At any rate, that meant that we had to return home early, and since the power was out we did what we could to end the day, prepared whatever emergency supplies we had, and went to bed. Extra sleep was a wonderful birthday present.

We´ve been having adventures with intercambios, porque Elder King y Elder Dearden are the Zone Leaders. This means that they have to do the interviews for District Leaders´ Investigators, so Elder Binks and I have had various exchanges this week. There was one day in particular that it worked out that I was with an elder with only one change´s worth( 6 weeks) more experience than me, and an accent like a true texan. This made it fun to teach and work. We spent a lot of the day translating for each other, and relying on the spirit to hope that what came out of our mouths during lessons was somehow related to what the investigator had just asked/said(I´m pretty sure that for the most part, it was).

Overall, we´ve had a wonderful week! Thank you for all of your emails and prayers! We need them.

Les Amamos.

¡A Dios, Con Dios!

-Elder Wheelhouse

Tidbit #1: Fletés y the Voz form

In Chile, we have a huge gang called the Fleté (think FLY-tay). They don´t bother people when they are individual, but when they gather in groups of 3 or more they will harrass women and Gringos (yes, that is a real term here), and if they have more than 5 or 6 then you need to be careful. Once a year, on the 11th of September (the day that Pinochet took over in a coux) they basically take over the city, rioting, burning, and breaking things. If you stick to the main parts of the city and don´t mess with them, they´ll typically leave you alone, but it´s still an adventure, and the missionaries have to be home by nightfall. Typically around 10 or 11 the power gets cut, and the fleté go home. Overall, don´t be alone and don´t mess with them and you won´t have any problems.

Another fun thing about Castellano (note that i´m talking about the Chilean "Castellano" and not true Castellano) is that they have a unique form of speech, caused by their natural isolation and historical way of life. This form is called "Voz". It is not officially recognized as a grammatical form, even in Chile, but everyone uses it. Por ejemplo, the formal ¿Como está? would normally become "¿Como Estas?" in the regular "tu", or familiar, form. However, they use an even less formal "¿Como Estais?", which when you add the accent and the dropped s at the end sounds like "Comb is thai" (english equivalent). This means that unless you are expecting it, you have no hope of understanding what they are saying with experience solely in grammatically correct spanish. Plus they will throw on the word "po" to the end of words and sentences, which in reality means NOTHING whatsoever.  I will write out a typical conversation in the next letter.

Gotta run!

-Elder Wheelhouse

Santiago, Part 2!

¡Hola!
  I don´t have much time today either, so I´ll make it as brief as possible. Thank you all for your prayers and support! I need it.

One piece of important, spiritual-nature type news before we continue: We have our first Baptism on Sunday!

We encountered a Hermana Lorena Ortíz one evening about 3 weeks ago as we were knocking doors. We received feelings to remain on a road at the very outside edge of our sector, and after being rejected (not just the nice Chilean rejection that we normally get, but actual rejections) 5 or 6 times and a series of empty houses, we were invited in even before we said who we were to the house of this Hermana.

She began to regale us with a story about her Father, who had gotten severely sick and had to go to the hospital. He asked for the prayers of many people from many religions, and she promised God that she would "get closer" to the next church that came by. Three months later, we knock on her door (not literally mind you, the system here is different, but we´ll explain that later) and she instantly felt that we were of God.

We began teaching her and she was already familiar with our church, because her parents had been members for a number of years when she was young. They had left the church for various reasons, but the basic standards that the church has were already a key part of her life. Although she fought (and occasionally still fights) us every step of the way, it is only because she wants to know for herself, and after she knew that she wanted to be baptized her first sentiment that she expressed was fear to lose the church like her parents had.

We have been teaching her for 3 weeks now, and on Sunday she will be baptized. What a blessing! God knows us personally, and our struggles. He knows what we need. I can testify, like she can too, that the blessings we receive from the Gospel of Christ are of greater value than anything else we could receive or do in this life.

I don´t have much time, so I´ll have to explain more in little tidbits each email from here out. The two pictures i´ve attached are of the four of us here in Chile at the Stake Activity for the 18th (Dia de Independencia para Chile), and of the Coins (without the 500 peso piece, unfortunately).

Prepare for General Conference! I´m so excited to hear 10 hours of English, and hopefully some jokes that I can understand without asking my companion a half hour later!

The Gospel is True!

I love you all.

A Dios, Con Dios

-Elder Wheelhouse

Another day, another peso

¡Buenas Dias!

Before we begin, please note the utter absurdity of the subject line. The Chilean peso is worth approximately 0.0021691973969631236442516268980477 of a dollar, or a fifth of a cent. Add that to the lack of tax, the cost of international shipping, the different value of products caused by a different supply/demand, and a completely different monetary system, and I can evaluate that this time that I´m paying for in the internet café will cost me: some vaguely defined amount of money that I do not understand, but honestly doesn´t really matter that much, dollars(also an approximation).

At any rate, I wanted to continue with my story from last week of the first bit here in Chile. The flight from Salt lake to LA was in the smallest plane I´ve ever been in, followed by the flight to Chile in the biggest plane I´ve ever been in. Along the way we had many opportunities to talk about the gospel in both English and Spanish, and in our group of 41 we were even able to place a few copies of the Book of Mormon and set up a few commitments to meet with missionaries via the international number.

As we landed in Chile, I was watching very intently out the window to see how different everything was. Sure enough, as I watched in the yellow glare of the airway lights, I glimpsed something moving across the Airway. I let out a chuckle as I realized that the first moving thing I saw in Chile was indeed a dog.

There is a rumor in Chile that Santiago has more dogs than people. I don´t know if that is true or not, but it is rare to go more than 10 seconds(literally, that is no exaggeration) on the streets of my mission without seeing a dog. Every house in Santiago has at least one dog, and everyone here walks with their heads down, not because they are mean people (to the contrary, actually), but because you have to watch your step. You never take of your shoes until you go to bed, and you learn very quickly how to identify which dogs will be trouble and how to avoid them. Most motorists don´t even slow down when they see a dog in the road, because the dogs have learned to move, and if not the general consensus is "oh well, it´s not like we´ve got a shortage". Brutal, but the quality of life for these dogs isn´t that great anyway, so it´s really easier that way.

As we exited the airport I noticed something else. It looked, felt, and seemed almost the same as Utah, even with the mountains in the right places, but the smell of the smog was crazy thick. The Valley is like a Giant bowl, with natural barriers on all sides. This means that all of the pollution, which is heavier than the other gasses, stays in the valley. Santiago has specific limitations on cars here, but in a city of 5.5 million, that means very little.

As we´ve proceeded to meet and greet and learn more about the city, I´ve learned that Chileans have a very unique culture. I don´t have much more time, but next week I´ll send the rest of my observations about the city, and I intend to use the rest of my emails to talk about the work alone, so if you have any questions about Santiago, ask them this week!

Thank you for your letters, prayers, and concern. I hope to hear from you soon!

A Dios, Con Dios!

-Elder Wheelhouse

Next week: Fletes, Fereas, Fiestas, and Finger Sculptures!

CCM and Chile!

¡Halo!

Ok, before I go any farther, I have the address for the Mision Home, it is as follows:

Elder Wheelhouse
Santiago Chile North Mission
Sucursal Correo Patronato
Casilla 60
Santiago Chile

I don´t know the address for pouch mail, but the Elders here say that the regular mail is faster and more convenient because you can use multiple pages, whereas in the pouch you can only use one. Just make sure to use Jesus Stickers if you plan on sending anything other than letters, or a particularly thick envelope.

Also, I am soooooooooooooo sorry that I could not get to all of you in phone calls, we ended up having a traveling group of 41 and only 12 payphones in the airport to use in an hour and 45 minutes.

And, tres, we ended up not having time last week to write our weekly letters. ¡Lo siento con todo mi corazon!

At any rate, Chile! ¡Guau! What a thrill! Exiting the airport, other than the international-only processes, was like stepping out into a Utah morning, with the Andes allá and the city allá, fue like coming home. The east side of the City especially is even nicer than some of the nice places in Salt Lake, and the Mission home is BEAUTIFUL! After some rest, an interview, and orientation I met my Companion, Elder Dearden from Boston, who is also one of the Zone Leaders for San Pablo, our zone. I discovered that we had been assigned to open a new sector, called Lo Prado. It is interesting because I technically don´t have a district, only a sector. one of my good friends from the MTC, Elder Binks, is also in the same apartment as us with the other Zone Leader, Elder King. As we started working, it quickly became clear how much work we have ahead of us. Miraculously, the gift of tongues kicked in and I have been able to understand a lot of what has been going on, and even speak and teach some.

I need to go, but I´ll continue next week. I´ll write some about the fun things we have here. Suffice it to say, I feel safer here than in Puerto Rico, so you don´t have to worry. :P

Write Back!

A Dios, Con Dios.

-Elder Wheelhouse

T-MINUS 10 DAYS!!!

¡Hola!

AWESOME WEEK! I am so excited to be leaving to Chile!
Sunday we sang in Priesthood, Monday was District Home Evening(at which we had a lot of fun), Tuesday was devotional and Testimony Meeting, Wednesday was Hosting and new missionary day(Hola to Elder Spencer and Elder Lichtenburg!), Thursday I went into the real world for the first time in two months and spoke perfect spanish, and Today is P-Day, temple, and TRAVEL PLANS!!!

On Sunday, we sung ´Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy' for priesthood meeting. I composed the arrangement as commissioned by our Branch President, President Larsen, and wrote a new fourth verse that brought it all together nicely. We had a wonderful lesson on being the 'lower lights' to the people of the world and guiding them to Christ. I love singing.

On Monday, we had a day full of classes and that night we had district home evening together. We played games and then went to a workshop on improving our lesson plans. Great learning opportunities for the field! I know that I'm gonna miss this district a lot.

On Tuesday, We had a wonderful Devotional by a member of the Seventy(I left my black book at the residence hall or I'd give you names, but I want to say Rasband or some such name), who had changed his talk at the last minute to reflect a meeting that he had with the Quorum of the Twelve. The message from the first presidency is that while this is the Church of Jesus Christ and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that we must remember and Focus on the fact that God is our Father, the Creator of the plan and the grand designer of all things. Therefore, They've asked us to refocus and remember to teach about God's role in all aspects of our lessons. If you want more details, feel free to write and I'll tell you more. Suffice it to say, what a powerful lesson to remember!

On Wednesday, we had the opportunity to host for the first time. It was really, really fun, and a blessing to see how much we've grown in so short a time. After we were done, one of the other Elders pulled out his camera and we looked back at pictures from our first day; I noticed that I've changed, both in countenance and literal physical characteristics. I look different, I feel different, I act different, and I believe that all of it is for the better. I've even gained some muscle(and some weight as a side effect (15 pounds!)).

On Thursday, I ran out into the real world for the first time in two months with my companion. How different! It was almost comical to me to look at State Street. I recognized everything, yet it seemed so foreign to me that I wonder what it will be like when I return. We also ran into some Spanish-speakers from Argentina and Mexico, and I was able to understand 100% and respond just as quickly and naturally as they were speaking. What a miracle! Although they warned me that Chileans speak much faster and less clearly, it still amazes me that I have learned so much, and I know that with the Spirit guiding I will be able to adjust quickly. I am glad that our district has put extra time and effort into learning.


On Friday(Today), I slept in, and it felt wonderful. What a luxury! I didn't intend to, but now I realize that I needed it. We had breakfast and I began writing some letters, then we went to the temple. I am so blessed and so grateful that I have that opportunity. It is a privelege to be able to go to the temple and be instructed in such a direct way. I hope that you all take advantage of that. I promise that it is worth it.

That being said, it's time to talk about travel plans! I'll be leaving the morning of the 29th, and have a 3 hour layover in LA around 11:40 MST to about 2:40 MST. I'll be calling home at that time, so get in contact with my mom if you want to hear directly from me. Then a LONG flight to Chile, directly to Santiago, where I will be arriving about 4:40 MST. Then a morning orientation, and proselyting by that night. ¡GUAU!

It blows my mind to be so close. Every day I feel just a little bit closer to my investigators. I know that there is hard work to be done, but I also know that this sanctification of my time means that God will bless me with the strength that I need. I can testify that God knows me and loves me, and that Christ has been where I have so that I don't have to do this alone. What a wonderful power and presence to have! How marvelous to have the power of God at your back! Shall we not go on in so great a cause?

Thank you for your prayers and concern. Especially thank you to those of you who keep me informed and aware of your lives. Your stories are a great source of strength to me.

A Dios, Con Dios.
To God, With God.

-Elder Wheelhouse

T minus 17 Days and counting...

Buenas Dias!!!

With so many things happening this week I've been constantly busy, even today! Not much to note in particular, but I will start out with the biggest thing:

I've been cleared to continue on to Chile! :D

I know it's not exactly missionary-like or professional to put a smiley in an email, but I am so excited and grateful to be able to continue onward. The doctors have given me some VERY specific instructions on what I can eat, what I can do for Gym, and how I am to take care of myself in the remaining weeks that I'm here. I have also received some specific instructions about what to do if anything begins to happen while I am there, and how to handle it; but nevertheless, I am allowed to go on and serve. THANK YOU for your prayers on my behalf! I know that it played a key part in allowing me to go.

My hand has continued to progress as well, and I am able to use it again. Although I am still not allowed to do hand-sports (basketball, foursquare, goalie for soccer, etc.) I am able to use it again without pain for writing and opening doors, jars, etc. What a blessing! Thank you for your concern.

The heat has really turned up the last few weeks, and this week was no exception. None of us has really had time to do much, and poor Elder Loomis is typing and writing at a feverish pace today to try to respond to as much of his birthday mail as possible (he doesn't expect to get much done before he leaves though). We are trying to speak solely in Español, but it´s difficult sometimes without the vocabulary we normally use. It´s certainly a fun excercise in thinking outside the box and figuring out new ways to express things. Every spare moment is spent studying (typically spanish), and we seem to be losing time (Finally..), almost like some crazy exponential function where the work increases and the available time and resources decrease. It's hard, but I really like it- it's a challenge.

How did everyone's Book of Mormon challenge go? Did anyone try it? If you missed the deadline, try again! I promise, it's worth it.

Sorry that I can't write more today, we're out of time before dinner. I hope to talk to all of you soon! I leave the 29th, so if you'd like to hear my voice (I get to make a phone call at the airport), get in touch with my parents and we'll coordinate a conference call.

Remember that God loves you, and I love you too!

A Dios, Con Dios.

-Elder Wheelhouse

Week Six

¿Qué tal?

What an interesting week. MANY MANY blessings, but some struggles too. We´ll get to those later.

Finally got over being sick at the beginning of the week. Did I talk about that? I don´t remember. When you gather 2600 missionaries into tight classrooms all day and everybody shakes hands, apparently you can catch a cold or the flu easier. Who´da thunk? My companion, myself, two Hermanas and one other Elder pushed through it with us and now we´re better! Thank goodness for the blessings of priesthood power and guidance in our tribulations.

Elder Loomis´birthday is today! We´ve enjoyed a rather wonderful morning, culminating in our trip to the Temple. I am so blessed to feel that peace and hope each week; I testify of the healing power of the temple.

Spanish has been getting better, and what the Lord allows me to say surprises me more and more each day! There are even some times when I slip into Spanish without thinking now because I say things so much.

My hand has started feeling better, and I´m able to do a lot more with it now. The doctor has still advised me not to use it to play sports or do anything other than writing until I leave so that it has sufficient time to be restored and strengthened. I think it´s awesome that the church has such skilled and inspired doctors to look out for us.

We performed ¨Nearer My God To Thee¨in sacrament meeting, and everyone loved it. I felt the presence of angels as we weaved a tapestry of testimony that is so near to my heart, and I have never heard a collection of amateur at best singers come together and be recording worthy. I tried to record us with a tape recorder afterwards, but the quality simply didn´t do it justice, so you´ll just have to imagine Vocal Point and Eclipse mixed, but in a sacrament meeting. BEAUTIFUL.

I got called down to the doctor´s office the other day for a followup on my hand and the doctor who was performing the followup asked me to stay and talk to him afterwards. He noted my medical history and some of the muscle aches that I´d had when I was sick and we talked for 45 minutes about my health. The doctors have decided to re-review my medical history and research specialists in my mission to see if they want to change my assignment.

He noted that my current health seemed to be well enough and that as long as I felt that I´d be able to walk at least 6 miles without complications that it shouldn´t be a problem for me to go out; however, he is concerned about what would happen if something did begin to happen. He said that it is unlikely that I´ll need to be transferred, because Santiago actually has some of the best medical care in the field, but advised me on some procedures if I begin to have problems wherever I end up.

I know that I was called to this mission for a reason. There is no way that the Lord would perform such great miracles in my life for nothing, nor that he would call me to Santiago via revelation unless this was the training that I needed. I will go wherever he wants me to go, and I accept that perhaps I simply needed the experience of the group that I´ve had in the MTC to best prepare me for the field I end up in. However, if this is simply a matter of my faith, willingness to ask Him for it, and humility to accept help from others, I don´t want my inaction to be the stumbling block that qualifies me for a different work.

At this time, I ask that you all pray for me to end up where is best for me, and if it be possible, the Chile Santiago North Mission.

I have turned it over to the Lord now, and I will wait patiently for His answer. I am meeting with the doctors again to make sure that I understand everything correctly and that they understand everything as well; I am also meeting with President Sonne, the President over missionary reviews, to make sure that he knows the desires of my heart and the miracles that have gotten me here. I will continue to work forward with faith, and I know that the Lord will bless me to be where I will be most effective.

Our lives are not without trials. God never intended it to be any other way. He allows trials in our lives, some self-inflicted and some not, because we have the great ability and opportunity to grow and learn from these experiences. It is meet that we should know sadness, so that we can appreciate greater joy. I find such solace in the testimony I have gained from my experiences in getting here; and while it is certainly difficult for me to wonder about this conclusion, I testify that God has never left me. NEVER. I know that these things are a small moment in my life, and that the blessings of my faith and the good desires of my heart will be rewarded a hundred times over. Time and time again, difficult things in my life have always led to a greater joy and a deeper understanding of my purpose; why would this be any different?

I testify of the redeeming and healing power of Christ. It is amazing to me that I can feel such peace and joy in the middle of something that is so hard. I know with all of my heart that this is a part of His plan, and that the blessings that will follow are far greater than any blessing I would receive otherwise. For the first time in my life, I have truly felt a thankfulness for a trial as it is happening. Not for the sake of the trial, but because it is a testimony to me that God knows what He is doing and what is most needed in my life. I do not know the end, but I see the next step- and for the first time, that is enough! What a great blessing to be able to feel my faith and my testimony grow! The Lord would not give me the commandment to go and serve a mission unless he prepared a way to acheive it, and he did. So too is the call to Chile. I do not know how or when or where, but I know that God Himself will allow me to bless those people, whether in person or through someone else.

THANK YOU for your love and support. THANK YOU for your prayers on my behalf. THANK YOU for your sacrifices, your time, your energy, your patience, your respect, and your blessings. God WILL see this through.

A Dios, Con Dios.
TO GOD, WITH GOD.

-Elder Wheelhouse

P.S. After I wrote this all out and began to transfer it over to email, I received an email from my dear Grandma Susan. As a part of her email, she shared a scripture that she felt she should share. It is in Phillipians 4:11-13. Read it.

P.P.S. We'll make this week's challenge relate. What is the situation when Paul wrote this scripture? Tell me the story. The first one to do so receives a picture of my companion and I with our testimonies.

Week 4..5... I don't know anymore.. :P Halfway there at any rate.

¡Buenos Dias!

What a crazy week.. Let´s begin with a story.

A day or two before last p-day, I caught a ball weird in Gym and it hurt my hand. I didn´t think it was a big deal, and other than a little twinge now and again it didn´t really bother me, so I just moved on. Last p-day we ended up leaving the lab and running late, so we hurried to get on to our next scheduled thing. I began to write the letters later that night but, as usual, became distracted and moved on, figuring that I´d finish them the next day in between gym and breakfast(Monday Gym is at 6:30). Sure enough, I screw my hand up at gym and am told that I´m not allowed to use it for anything major. I try to take notes in class, and by the time I get back each night it kills. Then on Tuesday night, our Branch President asks us to turn in the white books to the section on communicating with family, where it says that we are only to respond to letters on p-day. Moral of the story: Putting off things that we have scheduled to do increases the chance that they will not get done.

PLEASE don´t let that mean that I only get letters on P-day; merely realize that I will not be able to respond until Fridays unless we end up having more free time, or until I arrive in the mission field and my new Mission President allows exceptions, whichever occurs first. Therefore, I dub the hours of 3-5:30 PM as my letter responding time, and it is now in my planner. :P

In other news, the Provo Temple is open again! I was able to attend a session for the first time in a month and some days this morning, and I am SO grateful for the blessing that is. I feel so much better when I have the opportunity to attend- and the best advice I can give anyone who needs guidance is to go to the grounds at least once a week, even if you can´t perform ordinance work. The Temple of God is a place set apart from the world for the edification and sanctification of man, and the energy and spirit of the Temple will benefit anyone who goes.

The language is going well. I can now understand easily 90%-97% of every class, depending on the teacher and the subjects we discuss. I have begun reading almost exclusively from the scriptures and PMG in Spanish, with the English versions sitting out for the words I still have to learn. I am able to communicate extremely well with the missionaries from Latin/South America that are here to learn English, as well as the Spanish-speaking workers here on campus. The MTC is also currently remodeling/refinishing two buildings, and there are some construction workers who are from Mexico that speak almost only Spanish that I talk to most days. They help me with a lot of the intricacies of Spanish that are difficult to learn in a book, and little rules of thumb to help.

Had the opportunity to meet an Elder who is going to Philadelphia who is from a ward in my mission; ESTÉ FUE SUPER BACAN! He taught us a lot of the intricacies of speaking Español de Chillenos, and a lot of fun things to look for while we are down there. Another good friend of mine, Elder Nicoll, is staying just a few doors down from me and one of his roomates came back early from a study abroad program in Santiago to leave for his mission, and shared many things as well. Double checking between the two of them and Hmno. Verdugo on the language, It was a very educational and cool experience.

Heard that there was major flooding in North Dakota- We don´t have any access to the internet other than LDS-owned and themed sites, nor any access to news sources, so any information that I get about the world I get through your letters. Please share more information about this and other events, particularly in Chile. I´d love to go in educated on what´s going on.

My hand is starting to hurt again, so I won´t type too much more, but I want to bear testimony once again of the absolute veracity of this Gospel and this Church. I BEG you all to read the Book of Mormon, not because it is my duty to(in fact, not once have I been told here to bear my testimony to you, or try to proselyte in my letters) but because it WILL bless your life immensely. If you have already read it, or if you are just jumping around in it, Begin to read it from the beginning, including the introduction and testimonies. The first missionaries left the presses with just the first sixteen pages of the Book of Mormon because they knew how powerful of a spirit it contains- and I extend a challenge to you, that I will do for myself as well.

Here is my challenge:

I challenge you to read the explanation, introduction, testimonies, and the first 16 pages of the Book of Mormon. Do it in one week or less, following this pattern:

1. Begin each session of reading by praying to God, asking Him to show you if what you read is true and how it can help you, and ending in the name of Jesus Christ.
2. Read slowly and carefully, thinking about each line. Do not rush through it; instead, read to understand and search it out in your mind and in your heart.
3. Close again with prayer, asking Him to help you know what was most important for you and to help you find if it is true.
4. Take 3-5 minutes and write down your thoughts, feelings, and impressions.

Here are a few things that I promise you will happen:
1. You will find out for yourself if the Book of Mormon is true and of God.(Spoiler alert: it is.)
2. I PROMISE that you will find at least one answer to a problem or question that is in your life right now, especially if you ask God to help you find an answer specifically for that need/desire.
3. You will KNOW, without any doubt, that God is there; that He loves you; and that He is very aware of you and your needs and He wants to help you.

My dear family and friends, I think of you often. I pray for you often as well. The blessings of pure knowledge and eternal life are at your fingertips. Remember who you are, and that you are more than some nebulous being of light- YOU ARE GOD´S CHILD, and an HEIR TO HIS GLORY. I love you all dearly.

Te Amamos-
A Dios, Con Dios.

-Elder Alton D. Wheelhouse
P.S. Please write... Your letters really improve my day. ;)
P.P.S.  I realized that I didn't say what is wrong with my hand. I didn't break it, although we feared that for a while.. after the X-rays got back, we realized that it was just bruised cartilage or something like that, with inflammation caused by repeated abuse around the base of the bones in my hand and up into the middle of the back of my hand. As long as I don't move my fingers a lot, try to grab/hold stuff, bend it backwards, or catch things it doesn't bug me too bad.. So basically I just can't use my right hand(whaddya know, that's what they told me too!  :P)

Long but worth it! Week 4, Day 24

¡Hola!

What a crazy week! It has gone by SO quickly, and there has been so much to do. I wish that I´d been able to write everybody this week, but I´ll be sending out some letters and pictures to those of you that wrote me last week. Gracias por su paciencia.

Had the wonderful opportunity to meet a Sister Garibaldo (har-ee-BALL-dough) from Panama. She has only been speaking English for about three weeks, other than a very small amount that she was able to understand when she arrived here. She leaves tomorrow for the Salt Lake City South mission, and we were able to have an excellent conversation. It was amazing to me how much she had learned, and how much I had learned as well. She complimented my pronunciation, and taught us some new cultural words.

Also prepared an acapella piece with a few of the other Elders (Elders Loomis, Patterson, and Holmes) and auditioned for a fireside. They said that they loved it and were impressed that we were able to produce the sound that we did, but that they wanted me to write a piano part to make our key change more solid and that if we did they would put it into a devotional soon. It was so much fun! I also realized that I forgot two very important things from my previous letters, notably my first letter. First, my official (tentative(but in reality set(as long as I´m healthy and know the language))) date of departure is August 29.

The code immediately following my mission code is my departure date (08/29). I might have put down the wrong date originally. I would love to have mail, as the only day of the week I have e-mail is Friday and I don´t have enough time to respond to everyone; plus, I really love to hear from all of you and what is going on in your lives(again, I´ll finish responding to the 3 letters I received as soon as I´m done writing this).

The other HUGE thing that happened was our initial devotional. It was a musical devotional with the talented concert violinist Jenny Oaks Baker, daughter of Dallin H. Oaks. She brought such a powerful musical testimony to the table, and even expressed those things that I feel most strongly about music, particularly that it is the perfect expression of testimony and a gift to God every time we write or perform.

At any rate, this week´s devotional was awesome. An ex-mission president and his wife came and talked to us, and he sang while she played as part of a special musical number, namely ¨Where Love Is¨in Español. How beautiful of a language! I loved it even more in Spanish than English- and pending me finding the lyrics, I intend to memorize it. She talked about serving cheerfully and he about the role of the Book of Mormon in conversion. What a wonderful Devotional! Afterwards, the MTC Presidency took a panoramic picture of all of the missionaries. I don´t know if it will be published anywhere, but if any of you have a chance to see it, I will be on the right side, 5 railings up next to the aisle.

Two of our Elders, Elder Lund and Elder Stout, left for Guatemala this week. It was sad to see them go, but SO exciting to know that they are on their way. They will be in the Guatemala CCM for 6 weeks, and then going to their mission area. Our new DL is Elder Binks, and it is fun to watch him learning how to lead.

We lost our two progressive investigators, Carlos and Luis. The teachers have decided to only allow us to teach each investigator for 3 lessons, so it is a great encouragement to get them to commit faster. We have one new investigator, Jorgé, and we will be meeting our other new investigator on Sabado. We were able to commit Carlos to baptism and to bring his family to the rest of the discussions, so that was good; however, Luis still struggled to find his testimony. Fortunately, our first meeting with Jorgé was very strong, and I know that he will be able to be converted quickly. We meet with him again on Monday.

There are two questions that I have received via email that I want to address in this general email, both to be entertaining and to be a witness of what I am learning.

The first is the question of, ¨What do I do in my free time?¨ The answer is rather simple: ¨Free time? What is this free time you speak of?¨

Our days at the MTC are VERY structured. Every moment is filled with something that has been pre-scheduled, and when it isn´t there are plenty of housekeeping and homework items to do, such as cleaning the residence hall, shower, eat, use the restroom, drop off mail, go to the store, Gospel study to answer the questions of our investigators, and language study to learn new vocab that we didn´t know and review what we forgot. Essentially in a standard day I have approximately 20-35 minutes total that I can use to write in my journal, reply to letters, de-stress, or practice music; but that time is spread out into 3-5 minute increments, with about 10 or 15 at the end of the night. I also have to coordinate with my companion and my district to make sure that nothing that I need to do conflicts with what my companion needs to do, so that everybody can get done what they need to get done. In essence, that means that some days I give up most of my free time so that everybody can benefit. It is a VERY fulfilling and happy existence. ^_^

The other question that I received is, ¨What is ´Obedience With Exactness´?¨

To me, Obediencia con Exactítud can mean many things; but essentially, it means that when I am given a commandment I do what I am asked to completely, not because I fear retribution or condemnation, but because I want to obey. It also means that I find out why the commandment is what it is, and learn to apply and live that deeper principle.

For example:

Let´s assume that I am asked to enter only through one door into the lunchroom, and exit only through the other door. I come to the exit doors one day and my stomach rumbles as I view the horde of missionaries trying to enter the main doors. At that moment, I am presented with a choice. I can either (a) walk the additional 100 feet to the other doors, that EVERYONE is trying to jam through at once, costing me an additional minute or two, or (b) I can enter the exit only doors, allowing me to skip all of the lines and get to food faster. The fact of the matter is, entering through the Exit doors has no real immediate significance to my salvation. However, the man who understands the principle of Obedience With Exactness also realizes the deeper principles at work. Every person in that line has waited patiently to get in, and it would be unfair to them. Also, if I were to enter through the exit with my bag and scriptures and companion in tow, it creates congestion for those who are trying to leave, who may be in a rush. Thirdly, the workers who are providing the food need to keep track of the number of missionaries in order to be paid appropriately, and to know how much food to order; I may make it harder on them because they won´t be able to account accurately.

Most importantly, however, is the commitment that I have made.

Every Sunday as we take the sacrament we commit to take upon ourselves the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. We also promise that we will remember Him in all things, driving us to be obedient to ALL of God´s commandments, that we may always have the Spirit to guide us. ANY act of disobedience drives the Spirit away, however temporarily and no matter how good our excuse may be. If we are to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, we must be willing to bring honor to that name, and respect His absolute obedience and perfection by striving to be as He is.

Let´s take it one more step.

Every morning, I get out of bed and pray. I ask God to grant me with blessings, some of the most important right now being the Gift of Tongues and the Guidance of the Spirit (When we go out into the world, we are commanded in D&C 42 that ´If [we] have not the Spirit, [we] SHALL NOT TEACH.´). I am also promised that as a worthy representative of Christ, all things that I ask for in His name shall be fulfilled. When I put on my nametag, it is a reminder for me that I have been set apart from the things of this world. I have been called to leave behind every lust, every fruitless desire, everything that is worldly in nature, and to be a LITERAL PROXY REPRESENTATIVE of JESUS, the Savior of this world and the CHRIST. This means that it is as if any sin that I commit, He commits. Christ is perfect, and without blemish. His Atonement is a gift to those of us who are not without blemish, that we may come to Him and be made whole. His Atonement was not for Himself; and HE WHO IS WITHOUT BLEMISH SHOULD NOT HAVE TO DEFEND HIMSELF TO THE FATHER. I act under Christ´s name and in His authority as the Supreme Creator of this world. It does not matter if the commandment that I have been given seems pointless or without profit; I am called to follow, and to teach others the path to perfection.

By no means am I saying that I go through each day perfectly. I often get distracted, and unfortunately sometimes I still do stupid things. However, the beauty of the Atonement of Christ is that it allows us to learn to become Gods through being Human- and as long as I live an Honorable life, going to bed better than I was when I got up and seeking forgiveness for those mistakes, Christ takes care of the rest. So, when those easy choices come into my life, I desire with my whole heart to listen and obey. Through Obedience With Exactness, the miracles and blessings that we read of in the Scriptures become not only possible, but EASY; and as the desires of my heart become more righteous God has promised that ALL THINGS that I desire are mine, when I ask and act in the name of the brother I represent. In essence, Obedience With Exactness is bringing into line the things that I want to match with what God wants, no more, no less.

I want deperately for all of you to know that I love you. I pray for you in EVERY prayer, asking God to bring you the happiness and joy that you all need. I testify of and reaffirm the covenants that you make with Him, especially of His desire for you to be filled with His Spirit and His Love. DO NOT BE ASHAMED of the power that you bear. Use what you have been given to it´s fulness. I promise you in the name of Jesus Christ that as you search for Him in your times of struggle that He will be there and answer you, and that as you obey what He asks you will be blessed beyond what you ask for. I know this from my own life; it is an absolute miracle through the Grace of God that I am even sitting here in the MTC. Without God, I am nothing; BUT WITH HIM, I AM BLESSED BEYOND MEASURE. I pray that you will feel a portion of the love, peace, and joy that I am as I write this. May you be with God, and God with you.

Te amamos.

¡A Dios, Con Dios!

-Elder Alton D. A. Wheelhouse

P.S. Sorry for the length, I had important things to say. :P

P.P.S. I still would like to receive a Chilean flag... Anybody wanna send us one? :)