A Baptism!!!

Elder Bosco and Elder Lee (taken off of the Belgium/Netherlands Mission blog)

Fam!

 I have bad news and good news this week. Bad news is that Simon didn't get his visa so he has to go back to China on Thursday...

 GOOD NEWS IS THAT WE BAPTIZED HIM!!!! It was so awesome! I'll send pictures later (We are at a library so we can't send pictures but I have some good ones :)

I need mom to send a lot of pictures of me in a letter or something on a flash drive we are having an open house and they want the missionaries to do a slideshow and show them that we are normal people! send it in a letter or something! Thank you :)

We had a pretty crazy week. We were in Leiden for two days and they had all the transfers but we still had a successful week!

 Netherlands killed it in the speed skating but they ain't got nothing on the US baby :) haha

 I cant believe Wes is getting his call soon. its so crazy!

We still have a great teaching pool and I am super excited about this transfer with elder lee. He is not scared to speak dutch! My dutch is coming along. Its amazing how much the Lord helps us speak a different language. The coolest thing to me is that even if I speak crappy dutch the Spirit can still testify of truth no matter how capable I am to do something cause It's not my work anyway.

 I have learned so much on my mission. There are missionaries I meet that change my life. That's what even more special about a mission. The missionaries that have helped me change don't even know and it will have an effect on me for the rest of my life. I love missionary work. Yeah its frustrating sometimes when people don't want to listen but at the end of the day we have someone that will always listen. That is what I love about our Heavenly Father. He is always there. There are times when I wish I could talk to a family member but obviously I can't. But He is there and He will ALWAYS listen. And also Jesus Christ. He did what he did to be able to help us. To know what we need to be comforted. Its a beautiful knowledge we have :)

I love you all so much!

Love Elder Bosco

Here is a video that a youth in the ward filmed of the Apeldoorn District on a P-Day. Dallin is just in the beginning part and at the very end- but it's fun to see him and how they give discussions in Dutch. Too bad Dallin doesn't do a lot of the talking..... haha.

4 people at church!

What an awesome week. We had 4 people in church with us :) Simon, Ruben, Vincent, and their friend Ian!

 Simon was so funny to one of the members he said," in a few weeks I be baptized and I will be your brother " so sick!!

 We haven't been able to do a lot of walking around because Elder Lee tore a muscle in his foot but they had to send him because his visa expired two days after he got here.  We barely got him legal :)

 Not too much happened this week it went by so fast cause we had to travel a lot to get Lee legal and we visited a lot of members and taught some good lessons.

 The weather has been really good and warm! I think we skipped winter this year :)

We studied Humility again since we had zone conference and didn't talk about. It was super cool. Yesterday in church there was someone from Salt Lake that played football and basketball for Utah. then an Elder asked if he knew dad and of course he did. And then the guy said you have a lot to live up to my boy. Yes I know :) haha But I really got thinking about that. And all I could think about was dad when we talked about humility and how whenever grandma Bosco says that's my son that won the national championship he is so humble about it. Someone else when I was home said to me if I didn't know who your dad was I would have never thought that he was such a star and won a national championship because he is so humble about it and that's something I've kept close to my heart. Then I got to thinking it in a spiritual way. I have a lot to live up to with my earthly dad. How much more I have to live up to my heavenly father! And I've thought of when I mess up how dad was always there to pick me up. And how he lets me struggle but is always there for me. And that is exactly how Heavenly Father is. He isn't mad when we fall as long as we get back to where we were. And then he lifts us a notch higher and strengthens us. And that's something I just learned. How the gospel changes people. Heavenly Father knows that we won't be perfect. He loves us :)

I love you all :)

Love Elder Bosco

An awesome 8 lesson week!

Fam!

 Awesome week. We taught 8 lessons this week which doesn't sound like a lot but that's double of what we have ever taught which is sweet!

 Simon got sick so he couldn't come to church so we have to wait for his baptism :( But I have some exciting news that shocked me...

 I get a call from the AP's on Wednesday while I'm with our Zone leader Elder Muse. and they tell me that Claf and I are getting a new companion next Tuesday. And he is from Singapore and speaks Chinese. Transfers aren't for another week  but he has been in the MTC for a month extra cause of visa... Then he says and when transfers come............... your training him. I thought I heard wrong! I seriously was so nervous! I still kind of am! I'm only going to be on my fifth transfer with a language that I'm not solid at! I was talking to my Zone Leader about it and he said if you don't think you can do you you're basically telling God you don't trust him. That hit me like a ton of bricks and now I'm fine. But I'm still going to be training which is super cool! And there are a lot of Chinese people in Apeldoorn and Deventer so it's going to be awesome having a companion that speaks Chinese.  I still can't believe that I will be training. Crazy!

 The Book of Mormon feast we are doing is awesome! I read things that I have never known before and it's super cool! We studied humility this week and that in the BvM sometimes, the pride people have and then they humble themselves and come to God and rely on Him. That's something that's not always easy. But that's how we get the job done :) Confidence in the Lord and His work. Sorry this letter isn't very long. We are going to play soccer and I want to email everyone :)
I love you all so much!!

Love Elder Bosco

Working hard and loving it!

Fam!

 What an exhausting week! We were dying! haha Monday we went running with Amaro one of the members that was baptized a year ago. Super awesome guy! But the next day I was so sore... it was unbelievable! haha

 Then we have been doing a lot of service 2 with less active members and one with a non member family. The non member family we helped move out of their old house and into there new house in 5 hours. We went HAM! haha we did more than the actual movers who were getting paid did! Then we put a floor down for a less active girl who is really awesome! but every morning we got up and almost couldn't get out of bed. I haven't done physical labor like that in a LONG time. with the knee and everything and its super hard to move dutch houses. The stairs are narrow and steep and a little twisted... It was awesome!! :)

 So Ruben and Vincent wont be getting baptized on the 15th and either will media but we are working on them. Sometime in the near future but we have a lot to do to help them but they are doing awesome. Still haven't been to church yet but this next week they will. 

Guess who is back on the map with another baptismal date?? SIMON!!! and we made the date for the 22nd of Feb. He came to church and loved it! it was so awesome! A member brought him to church that doesn't speak English. Miracle with Simon this week is we were going to teach him in the Jovo centrum apartment but we forgot the keys so we went into the library and talked to him and this is the first time we have seen him in like 2 months. that's a long time as a missionary! haha but we asked him if he wanted to come to church and we told him a member would come pick him up and the member doesn't know this yet haha :) As we walk out of the library the member is standing right there!!! So cool!! it was great! and they we worked everything out and Simon came to church!

 Remember the bell up 63 last week? so that's Franklin and we taught him this week and he said he will come to church next week! he was super awesome and open to listen.

 Then we met this Armesian guy this week and we are going to go teach him on Wed! Super excited!

 This week was awesome and Sunday was super awesome! The Sacrament is amazing. I'm starting to understand it more and more. I'm a long ways but I can feel my Saviors love and that is what was so special to me this week.

 Studying the BvM [Book of Mormon]is amazing. I never realized how it was put together but it is inspired I always thought it was in order but that's not true. That was super cool to me this week and I just love the BvM. its the most amazing book ever! We also studied Faith while reading and that's always amazing. I've used amazing a lot but amazing doesn't even begin to describe it! I also learned a very valuable lesson from my district leader Elder Alston from South Jordan. He talked about how the Lord owes us nothing. It says it in the scriptures multiple times. We are unprofitable servants. He doesn't want us to fail but he doesn't owe us anything. So when we are judged we are judged by works not results. That hit me pretty hard. I may not baptize as many people here in the Netherlands as someone somewhere else but that doesn't mean that He won't say to me "well done thou good and faithful servant." As long as we strive to be our best and put our best efforts than the Lord accepts us with what we are giving him.

 I love you all so much!

 

Love Elder Bosco