Fire, ata ata, and my Year Mark!!!

Hot Dog Roast in the Apartment

Monday, August 4, 2014

Dear Everyone,

This week has been interesting to say the least. Food wise that is. It all started Monday night when we wanted to have a hot dog roast so we did. There's this little dirty chimney in our house in the back corner that just wasn't being used so we used it. haha We lashed forks onto the ends of sticks and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. It was a pretty awesome night.

Tuesday was normal. We just went to district meeting and worked in the area. Nothing special really happened.

S'Mores

Wednesday we had exchanges. I worked in our area with Elder Naitoko. It was way fun. He's a brand new missionary from Tonga. We had a pretty good day all in all.

Thursday was my year mark! I can't believe I've already been on my mission for a year. It feels like I left yesterday. I don't know it's a strange feeling knowing I have more behind me than I do ahead of me. As far as the actual day went, it was pretty normal until that night when one or our friends had us come over and he fed us ata ata. Ata ata is basically just raw meat and poop juice. :P Literaly they took the tenderloin of a caribou and marinated it in the juices of the small intestine. Masarap! haha It really didn't taste that bad but it was interesting to say the least because it was cold.

Raw Caribou

Friday was a crazy day because we were so busy we just taught a ton of lessons that day. But that's about all that happened.

Saturday and Sunday kinda blurred together because we just worked in our area but nothing really happened. We are having a hard time getting investigators to progress. It's just one of those things. But we'll get back on it. :)

Well that's all for now. Mahal Kita.

Elder Christensen



Questions from a Separate Email

* How is the Doctulero family coming?
Well it's been storm after storm here. He wasn't able to go out to work so they didn't have any money to go to church this week. :( I was way sad but they are doing well all in all.

* Will you tell us about a special teaching experience from this week?
Well the only one that comes to mind is brother Dexter. He is a Seventh Day Adventist but he says he believes in what we are teaching him. I just liked teaching him because the spirit was pretty strong there.


Part of Brian’s Letter to His Mission President

Thank you so much for your letter [see below]. In response [to the question in the letter] I believe that conversion is a process and we will only be finished when we are finished with this life. I believe that to be converted you must show it through your thoughts and actions. A big test for that is what you do when you are alone or what you choose to think about. I feel that we are truly converted when continually strive to be more like Christ every single day, try to be more converted every day. For me I feel that to show my conversion as a "Baguio Philippines missionary" I need to be obedient. I cannot afford to be distracted or lazy here on the mission. I only have now and if I don't take advantage of it I will regret it for the rest of my life. I will always strive to change myself and become a new sanctified missionary.

Pictures from Last Week's Email about the Spider

Letter from President Balledos [It looks like he sent this to all the missionaries]


Dear Elder Christensen ,

What is Conversion?

In the Bible Dictionary it reads: “Conversion denotes changing one’s views, in a conscious acceptance of the will of God (Acts 3:19). If followed by continued faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism in water for the remission of sins, and the reception of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, conversion will become complete and will change a natural man into a sanctified, born again, purified person—a new creature in Christ Jesus (see 2 Cor. 5:17). Complete conversion comes after many trials and much testing (see Luke 22:32; D&C 112:12–13). To labor for the conversion of one’s self and others is a noble task, as in Ps. 51:13; Dan. 12:3; James 5:19–20; Alma 26; D&C 18:15–16.”

President Marion G. Romney, in an October 1963 general conference address, said the following: “It would appear that membership in the Church and conversion are not necessarily synonymous. . . Being converted . . . and having a testimony are not necessarily the same either. A testimony comes when the Holy Ghost gives the earnest seeker a witness of the truth. A moving testimony vitalizes (encourages, invigorates) faith; that is, it induces (brings, persuades) repentance and obedience to the commandments. Conversion, on the other hand, is the fruit of, or the reward for, repentance and obedience.”

How can one knows when he/she is converted?

The Book of Mormon provides descriptions of people who are converted to the Lord: They desire to do good. King Benjamin's people declared, “The Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil [false traditions and belief], but to do good continually” (Mosiah 5:2). Alma spoke of people who “could not look upon sin save it were with abhorrence” (Alma 13:12).

From these revealed truths, what actions should you – a real Baguio Missionary be doing to show and manifest your own individual real conversion? Will you change your natural characteristics and behaviors into a sanctified, born again, purified person—a new creature [real Baguio Missionary] in Christ Jesus (see 2 Cor. 5:17)?

In closing the words from Preach My Gospel “You cannot convert people beyond your own conversion.”

The Savior Jesus Christ expects you and me that we become a sure witness “as sure as the Lord liveth, so sure as many as believed, or as many as were brought to the knowledge of the truth, through the preaching, according to the spirit of revelation and of prophecy, and the power of God working miracles in them—as many of the Lamanites as believed in their preaching, and were converted unto the Lord, never did fall away.” (see Alma 23:6)

Our Father in Heaven will bless you as you diligently labor with ALL your heart, might, mind and strength to be truly converted is my prayers for you, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Ps: Please send your response through your white letter. Avoid hitting the reply button. Thank you.