Transfer Week......I am staying in Elizabethtown

Hey All,

How's it going?! It sounds like you all had quite the week. I'm sure it was hard and weird to be released from being a Bishop and all of that. It will be quite the change. But the new bishopric will be very good. All humble men.

Well we did get transfer news yesterday! I found out that I am staying in Elizabethtown, and Elder Dixon is going to Fredrick Maryland to be in a YSA! Haha so that will be new for him. I also found out that my new companion is from New Zealand! His name is Elder Moleni. So we will see how it goes. I am super excited to get going on this new transfer.

I got to go to Lancaster earlier this week again on a Spanish exchange with some elders in my district. I went With Elder White to Lancaster. Elder White actually goes home this Wednesday! He has been out for 24 months! Anyways the exchange was awesome. We talked to a lot of Spanish people! Haha once again I understood none of it so I stood there nodding my head and smiling. Haha Spanish people give you so much food though! Haha I got fed 3 different times in one day by 3 different families! They just keep handing you food. The best one of the night though was the Dominican food... So amazing. Haha I loved it and told Elder White that I am switching over to Spanish work now. Haha

We had Interviews with President Mutumbo this week and it was great as always to talk with him. He is an inspired man called by God. He has a new vison for our mission and he will take our mission leaps and bounds. There is a man that served as a mission president over in Africa named Brother Von Stetson. He knew President Mutumbo before he came here to America. And he told me that I would have to "Run to keep up with President Mutumbo" and boy.. That's is the truth. Haha

At the beginning of the transfer Elder Dixon told me that sometimes in middle of the night, without even knowing he does so, will scream. So he sleep screams.. Haha well the whole transfer he hadn’t done it yet. But then 2 weeks before the transfer ends, there I am, lying in bed fast asleep, and then I was awakened by the scariest scream I have ever heard in my life!! It scared me so bad that I was frozen stiff as a board! I had no idea what had just happened! I look over and Elder Dixon and he is still fast asleep! Haha it scared the heck out of me.

Well this coming week will be a busy one so I will have lots to report on next week! Thanks for the email! I love and miss you! Have a great week! Love ya!

Love, Elder Welling!

Crazy Great Week

Hello All,

How is it going over there in all the smoke? Haha I hear it is pretty wild and crazy over there?

Life as a missionary over here this week has been great. Nothing but great. It's been a hard week. But a great week. This week has ZOOMED by. And it's weird. The weeks are flying by but the days seem longer than the weeks. I'm not sure how that works.. But it's true! The days are long and the weeks are short! Haha don't ask me how it happens, but I'm sure every missionary will tell you that it does.

We had a great week full of hard times and great times. Like I have said before we share the car with the Sisters in our area. They get the car half the week and we get it the other half. Well.. While it was our turn to be on bikes it had been a looooong day of biking. So we biked back to our Apartment for our dinner hour. I fixed something fast to eat and I had about 50 minutes left until 6pm which is when we are suppose to be out the door again. So I layed down for a nap because I was exhausted.. Haha well.. I accidentally sleep till about 6:30.. So we quickly hopped on our bikes and got riding. About 100 yards down the road I feel a pop and my back tire kinda starts sliding. Yes.. The back tire popped. And it wasn't just like a little piece of glass that went through it. There was a thick wire weaved in and out of my tire.. I have no idea how it happened and what happened. But my testimony of the Lord having a sense oh humor grew that day.. Because we had to take our bikes 100 yards back to the house and then walk about an hour and a half into E-Town... I took it as a sign from the Lord not to sleep past 6 again. Haha

We also went to a place called Columbia Pennsylvania! It is a place In our area and it sits right on the banks of the Susquehanna River. The Susquehanna River is beautiful and this city gets the privilege of living right on it. It's a huge river and it has a huge bridge connecting to the other side. You can look across the river to the other side and you can of course see all trees, but you can see the houses and the coolest thing is you can see the church steeples Coming out from the top of the trees and right on the banks of the river. The churches and houses kind of live up on a hill which descends down to the river bottom. I wish pictures Could capture the view.. But it's like something you would see in a movie.. Haha

We were knocking doors down there 3 days In a row this week! And it's a WILD city. Haha people in E-Town call Columbia people "River Rats" and I thought that was weird... Till I got there. We knocked and knocked and knocked and then one man opened up. His name was James and he told us that his family was all members down in Baltimore. He told us that he had been to the DC temple and walked the grounds and that he used to go to church with them all the time! So we are going back to teach him this Wednesday!

Anyways the city of Columbia reminds me of downtown Cumberland.. Haha it has the same feel. One of the days we were down there we got Hazed so much! People were yelling out of Cars at us, one guy asked what we were doing on his block and said he had told us to stay off his block and all kinds of stuff! My favorite one is when they yell "Hail Satan!" which they do thinking it will bother us I guess. But there loss right? Haha the best one this week was when we were knocking doors and an old lady came to the door and barely opened. When she saw who we were she gave the door quite a slam. Then a voice from the apartment building across the street yells from an upper window "Well that didnt work!" we couldn't see him but it was so funny! Haha

Then walking around later that night still in Columbia.. We saw an older man with a long Grey beard. We approached him and asked if we could help Him with anything at all. He said no. We got into a conversation and eventually he told us that he was Jewish and then proceeded to say "And nothing you two say will change my mind. It's pretty hard to walk away from what I've been a part of for 5000 years." When he said 5000 years I was confused at what that meant and so I asked! Apparently this man had been there the day Moses had gotten the plates of the 10 Commandments.. He stood there with Moses. I guess. Haha so he was pretty set in his ways. We tried to share with him but he wasn't having it. I mean.. I guess I would be pretty set in my ways as well if Moses has spoken to me 5000 years ago. ;)

There were so many weird and great experiences that I had this week that are written in my journals.. You will just have to wait 11 months to hear them. There are too many to email! Haha

Anyways thanks For all that you have done for me and I hope you have a Great week!

Love, Elder Welling!

Meeting an Apostle

Hello All,

This week has been so busy and so amazing at the same time. To start off we have had a ton of rainy weather mixed with blazing hot humidity weather.  So we have had a good mix. Some days this week we had to wear sweaters and rain coats because it was so cold. And other days we had to wear short sleeves shirts because it was so hot!

Well. . . We had the amazing opportunity to meet with an Apostle, Elder D. Todd Christofferson this past week. And yes.. I looked him in the eye for a solid 3 seconds and even shook his hand and I heard him say my name. Hahahaha it was insane! But our whole mission was able to meet with him in our own separate meeting. It was very cool and a great opportunity. When we all got there we all were loud and getting ready for a picture and everyone was laughing and messing around and the gym was pounding with noise! Then without announcement Elder Christofferson just walks in and the whole room just went completely silent.. You could have heard a pin drop... Haha it was crazy. But the feeling and spirit he brought with him confirmed to me a million times that day that he truly was a chosen and called man to be an Apostle of The Lord Jesus Christ. We did a question and answer thing for 2 hours with him and that was so legit. Then at the very end he left apostolic blessings on us and then bore his witness of the Living Christ to all of us. We all felt the power when he said he knew that Jesus Christ lives and that He has a physical, resurrected body of flesh and bones. It was so good.

When we were driving back, Elder Barney who is one of the assistants was driving all 12 missionaries from the District to Fredrick Maryland to meet Elder Christofferson. Then on the way back.. His GPS got all messed up and we ended up almost all the way in Harrisburg PA which is wayyyyyyyyyy outside our mission.. It was super awkward. We got back into our mission real fast. Haha

Also this past week President Mutumbo called Elder Dixon and said to call him when we got home. So we did so and President told Elder Dixon to call his parents they needed to talk to him. So he did so and found out this week that his grandmother passed away earlier that day. His family who has been less active his entire growing up life, took it very hard. So I felt pretty bad for him and his family.

Other than that we have just been biking around and trying to talk to all the people we can! One thing that everyone should think about when doing Member missionary work is this: Elder Christofferson said in the meeting he had with us, That "if you are looking for Scattered Israel then you need to know where to find them." Then he says "Scattered Israel hangs around Gathered Israel."
I thought that was pretty dang cool!

Anyways sorry this week was so short. I'm having trouble thinking of all we did this week.. But thanks for the package and tell everyone thank you for the huge sign you all sent from the reunion. Knowing that you all are praying for me means the world. Thank you all so much. I love you all! I hope you have a great week!

Love, Elder Welling!