Week 30: We Need to Build on the Doctrine of Christ

Dear Family and Friends,

Wow....the change is over!!! I've just finished by 4th change in the mission field, wow, the time is going by so very quick... :) Haha! My companion Elder Kern is also half way done with his training program as well! Things went really well and really quick this week. Here are some of the highlights and everything:

Ever since the start of October we have been teaching D, O's older brother. He has been progressing so very well. He understands the endure to the end and all of the aspects of the Doctrine of Jesus Christ. He understands that going to church is essential. Last week he went to Stake Conference all by himself. We waited at the church and he had to walk for 20-25 minutes in order to get there but he came and we were so very excited. He has a baptismal date for the 17 of November and we are really, really excited for him! He is reading everything we leave for him, he understands the Plan of Salvation and the other day we showed him the video of John Rowe Moyle and afterwards he prayed that he would be able to keep going and endure to the end through his trials... He ended the prayer with some subtle tears which really let us know that he was sincere. We are dedicating these last two weeks to teaching the commandments and helping him know more members of the ward.

B's girlfriend, O, has been quite good. She came to church yesterday and participated very, very actively in the Principles of the Gospel class (which I had to teach yesterday on the spot). She agreed to be baptized when she finds out that the Book of Mormon is true...but, she wants to read the whole BofM beforehand....that'll take a while. It's a really awesome goal and we are encouraging her to do it, but this next lesson we have with here will primarily be about taking the leap of faith in order to follow Christ's example. She is progressing very nicely :)

Halloween was quite boring here. We heard so much about how it is just as big as the states and how they do all these different things...well, P.S., it was a bust. Totally lame! Everyone dressed up as scary/morbid stuff and I missed how our family focuses on the uplifting costumes :) Anyways, we were actually able to get a lot done that night, which was my biggest worry...that we wouldn't be able to have ANY lessons!  

Congrats to Andrew Horsley on the call, that is sooooooo awesome :) I'm so excited for him! Also, Jordan Paskett is home?!?! WOW, that was SOOOOOOO quick... Haha! 

Elder Kern is doing good. He thinks he's not progressing and I tell him all the time he is. Starting today he gets the cell phone but he is concerned about it...which I completely understand, I did the same thing because I was scared I wouldn't understand anything...but, being the good companion Elder Frost was, he stuck to it and I learned. I'm trying to do the same thing with Elder Kern.

One of my gospel thoughts comes from 3 Nephi 11:40...we need to build on the Doctrine of Christ if we want to be saved...so that reminded me of Helaman 5:12...It's interesting that all of troubles and all that we pass through in life can be dealt with through the help of the Atonement and the 5 simple principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A few days later I read in 3 Nephi 18:12-13 and noticed that he talks about a sandy foundation and a rock again...then, I noticed that he talked about that RIGHT after talking about the Sacrament. The way we are going to endure through these last days is if we are rooted in His doctrine and if we renew our baptismal covenants regularly, preparing for the TEMPLE :D

So the last few little Christmas things: cookie mixes!!! (me and Elder Kern just want the cookie dough :), and some Christmas cards! :D

That's pretty much all for this week, haha! :) Things are going great! In just two and a half weeks Elder Lee and I will mark 8 months....wow.... I guarantee that when the new year comes around it will be surreal at how FAST the time has flown. :D Haha, I'm really excited to Skype you all! Make sure Cole and Eden are there when we do it! I can't send any photos this week but I will have TONS this coming MONDAY :) FOR SURE! :)

LOVE YOU ALL!

Elder Bushman

 

"Missionary work is a work of love and trust, and it has to be done on that basis." - Gordon B. Hinckley

Week 29: It was a Miracle

Dear Family and Friends,

Wow, this week has just FLOWN by! I remember September 23rd when I got my companion and started to train. It feels like that was just yesterday but now we have one more week until the end of the change and to enter into November! It is just CRAZY! :D I'm having a blast out here and a lot has happened this week but before I get to that, here's some answers to some questions:

I got my package from my family and boy was it AMAZING. I loved all of the candy and the photos and the little presents from my family :) Haha! I was on splits with my Zone Leader, Elder Schwartz, when I got the package and boy was that fun! He asked me if he could have one of the Christmas cards you sent, mom, and I said, "Sure." But on opening the box, we found out that it contained the crayons that you sent, haha!! :) That was really really funny! I haven't gotten Aunt Susie's package yet so we are still waiting on that one.

Congrats to my friends Evan Peterson and Hannah Ashby on their mission farewells! They will both be going into the MTC soon so I wish them the best of luck from down here in Chile! :) "ÉXITO!"

So, my feet are hanging in there! They hurt from time to time but they are getting better I believe! :) I felt kinda sick last Monday when writing my family but I've been very healthy during the week! For Christmas, hmmm.... I would love some more music for my iPod, especially the soundtrack of 17 Miracles. Also, some music from like Vocal Point, Voice Male, some EFY stuff, anything really :) I think the best way to do it would be to throw it on a thumbdrive...ask dad if we could do that and if it would work to throw it on the iPod or not...

So some really awesome things happened this week! We boosted our investigator pool by like 4 people this week! :) We've gotten to teach lots of people and now have about 9 people we are teaching. We still need to find more but we're working on it. Our investigator F. hasn't been progressing as much as we would like him to due to his work. He's been having to look for a lot of work to pay off a debt he has. Anyways, we have been praying he'd find a job...well, he found one that will pay off all of his debt! He is so relieved and we asked him if he thought it was a miracle and he responded right away and said yes! :) We're so excited to work with him some more :) 

So we've met with B's girlfriend two times now and she is really excited to learn about the BofM and the church. We taught her some awesome things and she was very surprised that we don't believe that any other religion has all of the truths necessary for salvation. We told her she can know this through the BofM. I talked with her last night on the phone and we set up and appointment for Wednesday and she asked us if she could bring her cousin, who really wanted to listen! :) We're really excited for this lesson :)

So the funniest thing happened yesterday in Stake Conference. A guy from my old ward, Hermano B., was sitting behind me and as the choir began to sing some prelude, he began to sing too. He sang for about 10 seconds and we all started to look back at him and then he FINALLY realized that it was just the choir singing, his eyes got all wide and he quickly covered his mouth and said, "I thought we were supposed to sing." We all busted up laughing, me, and three other missionaries and his whole family! :) Haha, boy that was RICH! 

Well, that's about all for this week! Let me know if you want some more INFO :)

Love,

Elder Adam Bushman

 

"The Elders who are going abroad should deal out kindness to those they are sent to watch over, and your smiles will be far better than your cursings could be."  - Brigham Young

Week 28: Observations of Life in Chile

Dear Friends and Family,

Hey everybody, glad to hear from my family, my mom, dad, and sister. It's always so delightful to hear from them!  :)  So, this week has some interesting things in it. First, in two days it will mark one month with my companion, five months in this sector, and 17 months left in my mission. Anyways, it feels like in the moment things are just going slow as molasses but in reality, I look back and time has just FLOWN!

So I've been hearing a lot that people want to know more about what it is like down here in Chile...well, I'll tell ya. So first off, down here, there is no air conditioning nor central heating. They have it in other parts of Chile, but here in the capital, it's apparently TOO expensive. Anyways, so they have cement blocks with mortar as the walls...nothing else. So, it can either be really cold or really warm when you wake up. Neither is that great, haha! :) Also, everyone has to buy gas to cook, there aren't gas lines that are fed into the houses and into their appliances. So, everyone has to buy gas tanks and hook them up to their appliances (much like a BBQ). There are always gas trucks rolling around with a loud speaker saying "Gasco! Gasco, Gasco! Gasco en cinco, once, quince, cuarenta y cinco kilos." It's quite annoying. Some other things that are real typical down here, are people's homes. You see a house and you think, OH, that's quite large for being in Latino America...then, you figure out it's two, three, four, or sometimes even five different little houses that comprise just one big building. Anyways, it's quite interesting. People have lots of stuff here and cleaning isn't really a big issue or concern of people. As long as their clothes are clean, they are fine. Haha, people like nice TV's, cars, clothes, phones, headphones, etc. They just don't have nice houses...but FAR from it! So that's a little bit of what everyday life is here and some of my observations of life in Chile.

So as for the people we are teaching, the FHE with B's girlfriend fell through so we are doing it tonight. She came to church yesterday and was very receptive when we invited her to the FHE. I'm excited to do it, she could be a fantastic investigator I'm pretty sure! :) Also with F, things are stalling with him right now because he has a problem with tithing. Hopefully he can get over that and we can continue on. O's mom cannot really progress for various reasons. Anyways, glad to hear that everyone is well! :) Take care and know that I am praying for you all!

Love,

Elder Adam Bushman

"The Elders who are going abroad should deal out kindness to those they are sent to watch over, and your smiles will be far better than your cursings could be." - Brigham Young

Week 27: We are Going to Invite her to Take the Lessons

Dear Family and Friends,

This week was another crazy week, I'll just start right in:

First thing is first, I am no longer in the ward Consistorial...in fact, that ward doesn't even exist anymore and neither does the ward right next to it called Las Viñas. Yesterday, the Stake President announced that the ward limits of both wards would change; the bottom sections of both wards will become a ward and the top sections of each ward will become another one. It was a HUGE shocker! I couldn't believe it! I was expecting an announcement of different limits but not a change this big!... What's going to happen now is that Elder Kern and I, along with a pair of sister missionaries, Hermana Valencia and Hermana Volkert, are going to be in the bottom ward named Violeta Casiño... Elder Pagalo and Elder Lee, along with the remaining sister missionaries, will be in the top ward now called Alvaro Casanova. All the Elders will still live together and so will all of the Sisters; now we just are in different wards. The good thing is that now we have a bigger primary, bigger elders quorum, and more youth...which was SORELY needed! :) Hopefully now with a new bishopric, new relief society presidency, elders quorum presidency, etc., the missionary work will move even quicker and more effectively :D So that's the biggest news up until now...

One cool little experience: there's a family in my ward named the C. family. One of there sons, B. (18 years old) is preparing for a mission but is also dating this girl...a non-member. She began to comment to Hermana C. about her desire to wait for B. when he goes on his mission and then marry him when he gets back. After that, Hermana C told her that if she wanted to continue dating her son she would have to come to church with the family...so she accepted. Yesterday she was at church and she came with my companion and I into the Principles of the Gospel class. She commented, read scriptures, and participated pleasantly. If was fantastic! Turns out she lives a few houses down from the C´s so I asked Hermana C if this girl liked church and she said she liked it a lot and agreed to go next week. So Hermana C and I set up a FHE for this Thursday and we're going to invite this girl. At the FHE, we will show the Restoration video and have a small testimony meeting and at the end we are going to invite her to take the lessons. I'm really, really excited :) 

Right now we are trying to find more investigators so that is tough... But things are going great! We're excited to work in a new ward and she how it turns out! :) Love you all, take care!

Elder Adam Bushman

 

"It will be your privilege to serve two years as a missionary with an eye single to glorify God and build His kingdom. During that time, Christ will refine your spirit. He will mold your character and plant in your heart the principles that will permit you to live in righteousness and joy in this life and for eternity.

You might think that you will sacrifice much to leave your family, your education, and your comfortable life. Others might complain that missionary life is rigorous. The thousands who have served will testify to you that when you count your blessings, sacrifice does not exist." - Carlos H. Amado

Week 26: Elder Jeffrey R. Holland is Coming to Our Mission

Dear Family and Friends,

Wow, what...a...week! :) Haha, it has been absolutely crazy out here; this last week was probably one of the biggest and busiest weeks I've ever had out here in the mission. I got a lot to tell and a short amount of time so let's just get started!!! :)

On Wednesday we had our Zone Class where the whole Zone (my zone La Reina) gets together in one room and the Zone Leaders direct a 3 to 3 1/2 hour class on what the Mission President wants us to know! Anyways, it was fantastic! There were lots and lots and lots of things that I need to work on, which is good because that means there is a lot for me to do and get my focus on! Anyways, one of the biggest announcements is that Elder Jeffrey R. Holland is coming to our mission NEXT MONTH! AHHHHH!!!!! :) I'm so dang excited, haha, he is going to be such an inspiration to us and I'm so excited to hear what he has to say and what we as a mission and missionaries personally can do BETTER :D I'll keep you all updated!

Thursday was Elder Kern and I's first training meeting, where all of the trainers and trainees go to the stake center and meet with the president, his wife, and the assistants. Anyways, it was really awesome! Yet again I learned a lot of cool stuff, lots of really neat things that I can apply personally. One of the coolest things I learned is how important the Area Book we have is. Everything they said I had already heard before but this time I think it meant more because now I am a senior companion, I'm training, and the Spirit really told me that I need to improve in this category! I'm really really stoked to work on this with Elder Kern and get better :) We're going to see miracles! 

Friday we woke up at the crack of dawn to go and get my Carnet (or my Chilean ID card for my Visa). Technically without it you're kind of illegal...if a Carabinero (the Chilean police) stopped me and asked me for my card and I didn't have it, I'd probably be held for a while until the mission could prove that I had done all the paper work. Anyways, we woke up way early to go and get it. I had previously put the paper I needed in a book, in my bag the previous night to keep it safe and to make sure I wouldn't forget it the next morning. Well, the next morning I saw my bag and I thought, "I don't need all of this stuff, I'll take some out!" So, without remembering what I did the night before, I took the book out and set it on my desk, skipping off to the Civil Registry...without my precious paper. Well, as I was going into the Civil Registry I realized that I left it. Boy was I upset with myself. I went ALL the way there in vain and now I have to go this Thursday AGAIN to get my Carnet... Man, I need my dear, sweet mother to remind me about this stuff!!! :)

Saturday and Sunday were freaking AMAZING! We went to the church in La Reina, our stake center. It was awesome because in between sessions, we didn't go home because it would take about 45 minutes to get there and then 45 minutes to get back so it didn't make a bit of sense. Anyways, we got all caught up with the After Conference Report (lovve it!) and conference was just spectacular. A few thoughts related to the speakers I liked: Elder Bednar (tithing is essential and if we want the blessings, it is key to pay tithing. To gain a testimony of tithing is to live the law and THEN see the blessings. In Moroni 7, Moroni talks about miracles and how miracles aren't done until the children of men show forth their faith FIRST!), Elder Ballard (the missionary work is more essential from the perspective of the members than from the missionaries themselves. In order to expand the missionary work even further than what has been down by the youth in receiving calls, we as MEMBERS must raise the bar to a higher level)...those were my two favorite talks I believe :) Really neat! We invited a bunch of investigators, none of them came. :( 

The new companion is fantastic, he's just a fireball...a little shaky on the language side of the missionary work but he'll catch on quick as a cat :) He's awesome and he supports me a lot!!!

As for the investigators, I wrote in my journal that I feel a little stuck right now. I'm trying to do everything that I can to help investigators progress towards baptism but they just won't come to church. I finally figured out that what we need to do is just work on FINDING...finding, finding, finding! :) Hopefully it works out!

That's all for this week; love you all!

Elder Adam Bushman

Elder Bushman with his new comp, Elder Kern

Elder Kern

Elder Bushman showing his goofy side with Lois Waves

 “We should always embark in a good cause.”
. . . . . . . . ~ Elder Edward Dube

Week 25: All I Could Have Asked For

Dear Family and Friends,

WOW, what a week. Seriously, it's been nuts but a very good week all things considered. First off, I'm going to talk about my kid and my experience getting him:

So Tuesday morning, I and Elder Pineda (an Elder that I was doing splits with) headed for the mission office to go pick up our kids. We were pretty silent on the way over...we were both pretty thoughtful as to whom we would be training. Anyways, we were the first missionaries there so we waited for the rest of the trainers to come until finally the mission president told us all the trainees had arrived and we were needed to help take all the bags into the church. As we did, I was looking at all the faces trying to determine who would be my kid...didn't work, ha! Fortunately, President Wright assigned us our companions right away so we weren't waiting in anticipation too much. My companion is a gringo named Elder Kern. He is from Provo, Utah, is 18 years old and reminds me a bit of myself when I came into the mission field (I'll explain why a little later). I felt an instant love and connection to him right after our names were read and I am so excited to be able to teach him how to be a missionary, teach him Spanish, and have some success. Anyways, we were trained on a lot of good things and it was neat to see the things that my old companion and I didn't do as well last change that we are going to be better about now. Anyways, we started out for our sector and I noticed some things that reminded me of myself: Elder Kern wants to be very obedient and has been hoping and praying for an obedient companion. As we were riding the bus to the metro, he was flying all over the place with his suitcases! We dropped off his suitcases at home which we left to be unpacked later that day. We went to lunch at the Quezada family's house. E' Frost and I ate there on my first day too and just like me, Elder Kern didn't understand anything that Hermano or Hermana Quezada were saying! It was a little comical because I remember being there 4 months ago and as he told me his struggles and his despairing belief that he would never learn Spanish, I was reminded of myself and how I thought the exact same things!!! :) Haha, his legs hurt from walking all day and he was dead from the whole day's work. Anyways, I love Elder Kern, he's a good missionary, he's working hard, and we're being obedient which is all I could have asked for :)

We're working really hard with an investigator named F. We've taught him the first three lessons and he has agreed to be baptized if God helps him quit smoking. Anyways, we started focusing on that! :) He has a big smoking problem...like a BIG smoking problem! He usually smokes about 30-40 cigarettes a day and he says he can remember smoking like 60 cigarettes in a day before... It is NUTS! So, we created a plan for him to drop cigarettes each day! He agreed to the plan and we told him that the only way he can drop the habit is by reading the BofM each day, praying each day, and going to church every week. We're also calling him every day at 1:00 p.m. to check up on him. So far, Friday he smoked 6 cigarettes, Saturday he smoked 5, and we're still waiting to find out about yesterday. So far he is doing pretty good :) Haha, we're going to ask him about his wife and son and about teaching them. I was a bit nervous about it at the start but then it donned on me that this is the BEST way! Hope it goes well :D

Yesterday for Sunday School, the missionaries and the ward mission leader out here taught the ward about how to share the gospel. We taught using the talk: http://www.lds.org/ensign/2005/02/seven-lessons-on-sharing-the-gospel?lang=eng I taught the part about service. Conversion is all about feeling the spirit and recognizing it. Non-members usually don't feel the influence of the spirit because they are around a lot of non-members generally. Service is a way to bring the spirit and when there are a lot of people with the Gift of the Holy Ghost around non-members in an environment that brings the spirit, they're going to feel different...they are going to feel something good, something they want to feel again and they are going to ask members about it and right there is how we can start sharing the gospel. I would encourage you all to take the talk and read it in your families and start planning activities with your non-member friends and begin to share the gospel with them. Then call up the missionaries with a referral and help the missionaries get to know the people and help them through the process. 

Anyways, that's the basic run-down for the week! My companion and I are going to try and rock it like crazy this week! Hope it all goes well! :)

Love you all!

Elder Adam Bushman

Zone Conference: I Spy Elder Bushman....4th row (2nd from the Right)

"The missionary work of the Latter-day Saints is the greatest of all the great works in all the world."
 - Heber J. Grant

Week 24: I Alone Cannot, but with Him I CAN

Dear Family and Friends,

Wow, this week has been CRAZY... Honestly, that's the only way to describe it. It's insane at how fast things change in the mission and how quick you find out that things will be A LOT different from here on out. Anyways, I'm going to start with the most crazy changes and things from this week and just go down the line:

First off, my companion and good friend Elder Frost has been transferred. He just completed a year in the mission and Friday night during a visit we got a call from President Wright. Elder Frost has been moved to a sector called La Florida 3 in the stake La Florida. He is going to be the senior companion to an Elder Deal who has one change less than me in the mission (just six weeks). President has called me to train, so tomorrow I'm going to receive my kid! I'm going to have a SON :) (It's a boy, ha!). Haha, I'm excited but nervous as well. In a few weeks we are going to get our whole posterity together to take a 4 generation photo, here's the family tree so far:ç

Elder Cofré -- Elder Frost -- Elder Bushman -- ??? 

I'll send the photo when we take it :) Also, President said that I will be serving as a district leader in my zone. Wow, that calling has brought even more humility than I had already had... Haha, honestly, I don't understand how I'm supposed to do this... My district is full of Elders who have more than a years worth of experience in the mission and I am their leader. I feel very young and incapable. I do, however, know that this is a calling from God and that He knows I can do this. I alone cannot, but with Him I can. President said, "Elder Bushman, I have a lot of confidence in you." I want to make my Heavenly Father proud of me and I'm going to do the best I can. I hope my companion is a Latino and is from Venezuela! For those of you who don't know, one of my best friends is from that country and I would love to learn more about him through a Venezuelan companion. But, I'll accept the will of God, whatever it may be. :)

So a report on the Zone Conference. The song me and my companion were supposed to do went well. I was SOOO nervous, as was Elder Frost, so we began to pray that we would invite the spirit, plany/sing well, and that people would like the song and be inspired. The song felt a bit choppy, I felt like I didn't sing as well as I could of and Elder Frost thought the same about his playing. We were both a bit down thinking about how we failed but when people started talking about how it sounded good and how we really brought the spirit, I realized that we succeeded :) After that I was content and very happy with the job we did!!

Thank you for sending me the video, unfortunately, I cannot watch any videos that aren't directly related to the Church. Anyways, I'll just wait 18 more months to watch it, it's nothing, honestly :) Thanks so much though!

Yesterday O. was confirmed a member of the church.When visiting his house afterward, his non-member mom said she felt so good during the confirmation and that she opened her eyes to see what looks like swirling light around us and she couldn't believe it. We told her that the feeling she felt was the Holy Ghost and that the light she saw might have been some outward manifestation. Anyways, she is getting a lot more interested in the Church and hopefully she will be an investigator soon. Osvaldo can't wait to turn 12 so he can receive the priesthood and pass the sacrament! :) Everything is looking up really well; I'm so very excited!!!!

Well that's all for this week, everything is good, lots of changes, but what's new, life is full of them :) Love you all, take care!

Love,

Elder Adam Bushman

 

"The servants of God have truth, and nothing but truth, to present to the world, that the world may be sanctified by the truth. The truth needeth no polish to make it lovely and desirable to those who love it." - Brigham Young