Week 98...Día de Acción de Gracias

November 21, 2016

Día de Acción de Gracias

Cómo Estáis mis queridos? 

I have now received the emails from Presidente Woodward that I need to start making plans and setting goals for what I’m going to do with my life when I get back home. Needless to say, the trunkiness is trying to set in and I just keep fighting it. The good news is that we have a baptism this weekend and it very well may be one of the best baptisms I've had on the mission. Her name is Tamara and she's 19 years old. We found her contacting, but it turns out that the missionaries passed by her house earlier this year and then they never came back. It's a shame that they never came back because she is WAY prepared. I've never seen an investigator so prepared in my entire mission. I know I keep saying this, but it never ceases to amaze me the miracles I see everyday! She’s a Chilena that has no issues with anything and is obedient in everything we ask her to do and more. She reads the church website everyday and she loves reading the Book of Mormon. She is already in Mosiah after only 2 weeks of teaching her. It’s amazing how God has just perfectly prepared her to be baptized and she is way excited for this Saturday! I keep praying that this isn’t my last baptism in the mission! 

My companion keeps saying that I need to just enjoy this last part of my mission. He’s not exactly here to keep me motivated and inspired. I just want to keep working like crazy up until the very end and live without regret. I pray every single day that I can live every day without regret! I know that the only way that I'll be happy in this life is by keeping strong in the gospel, continuing to serve and loving everyone, and giving it my all every single day. I've seen a lot of miracles on my mission, but the biggest miracle is the change that I've made in myself. I don't want to come back being the same Connor Weaver. I hope that the good attributes that I had before my mission are even better now and I hope that my weaknesses have become strengths. I see life with a whole new perspective, and I honestly just wish the mission would never end. I've come to realize though that it's not going to end. It's going to be hard to take off the missionary name tag, but I know that I can still help a ton of people when I come home and I know that I can keep growing and progressing even more in the real world. In the meantime I plan of magnifying my calling and inviting everyone I see to come unto Christ and be baptized by someone who has the authority to do it!

We had a pretty awesome zone conference this week. A lot of the missionaries cried with a motivational video that I showed them. We talked a lot about the power of our callings and I had a Gringo missionary, Brasilero missionary, and a Latino read their mission calls in their native language and then give their testimonies about how they felt when they first received their callings. The room was silent and the spirit was so strong. It reminded me of when I opened my calling that night that I got back from Canada after competing in my last World Championship triathlon and reading Chile Santiago Oeste! I've come a long, long, long way since that night and I honestly had no idea what I was really getting myself into. It's been an amazing ride and the best part is that it’s still not over! I’ve still got time to make a difference in the life of a Chileno! 

I’m running everyday with Elder Villota at 6 it’s basically a fartlek every single day, as I sprint and then turn around to keep him in my sights. It will be quite a change not having a person on my back every second of every day when I get home! Elder Villota is basically dying and I've never seen a missionary sleep so many times in lessons in my whole mission. It's pretty funny how worn out he is after exercise! He sleeps during personal study, comp study, language study, and then he sleeps in almost every lesson during the day. It's unreal. He's a funny, funny dude! 

The gospel is true. The book is blue. Saquen la mugre no más! 

Les amo! Que tengan una buena semana! 3 Domingos más! 

Elder Weaver 

Week 96...Yo Pudiera Ser tu Héroe

November 7, 2016

Yo Pudiera Ser Tu Héroe

Yo what up, 

So this week was amazing! We had another baptism with my main man Enrique Iglesias! Okay, so maybe he's not Enrique Iglesias he's definitely much cooler than him! The baptism was pretty solid. We didn't have any issues with the font or with the bishop getting there to preside and there was little to no drama! I felt uncomfortable, because things just went way too smoothly. We even started on time at 7 which never happens... 7 in Chilean time is usually 7:45-7:50 but this time the service started exactly at 7! I am no longer stricken with the Grizzweaver curse and it honestly just makes me feel weird. I'm sure all with go back to normal when I see you guys again... what are we at now? 20 more weeks right? Ha-ha nah, I know I have 5 more Sundays left... how do I know that? Because I need to know how many more chances I have to baptize and confirm people! I confirmed Enrique and I felt a strong impression to guarantee him that if he keeps faithful in his covenants that he'll regain his ability to speak clearly. He can't speak very well after a stroke he had about 6 months ago, but I know that by not drinking and living a better life that he'll regain that ability! The gospel is amazing people! More amazing than the time I helped Vista win 2 state championships... QUE PASA CON VISTA NATION! It's all-good though a 4 peat is pretty impressive. I'm looking forward to going out on a run with Paxton Smith when I get back. Love that kid!

Anyway, we have another baptism all set and ready to go for this weekend. Antonella is a 10-year-old girl that is apart of an inactive family and her Mom has been endowed in the temple. It's amazing because we've basically reactivated the family and now Antonella is getting baptized! The members are calling us miracle workers! It's pretty amazing to see all the miracles taking place as I finish this last part of my mission. God is good... not to sound hippy or anything, but it is pretty awe-inspiring here in San Antonio! To the point where I just don't even want to go home. 

The zone is improving. We had a leadership meeting in Maipu on Friday and there was an earthquake and the Woodward’s just laughed because it started to shake pretty hard and we just kept talking and participating like normal. President Woodward was like, "Now I know that you guys are Chilenos because the earthquakes don't even cause you stop doing what you're doing." My comp always says that I'm "demasiado chileno." Because, I've picked up a few of their customs. It'll be funny to see when I come home if I crave some of the things I've grown to love in chile. 

I got to see Nacho Gonzalez be set apart as a full-time missionary on Monday.  He is head off to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Let me just tell ya that the Latinos basically have the whole ward present to see a missionary get set apart. It's like a party and everything! It’s cool to think when this kid gets out of the MTC... I'll be on my flight home. The work never stops or takes a break!

We have a ton of baptisms coming up and I just hope that President doesn't take me out of this sector to finish my last 5 weeks in some other zone! Pray that I stay here to finish! We have changes this Sunday! 

Love all of you guys. Keep it fresh. It's aright if ya'll feel trunky, but I ain't feelin it!

Love,

Elder Weaver 

Week 94...Get Up, Get Up, and Get Down...Jump, Jump, Jump Around

October 24, 2016

Get Up, Get Up, and Get Down... Jump Jump Jump Around

What be good,

Another week has flown by here in San Antonio. We had an amazing baptism with Barotlo this weekend. There was a solid turnout at the baptism and we're happy that we've been completing with the vision that President Woodward has for us. We are having the members baptize our investigators so that the retention will improve in the wards. Bartolo definitely has a ton of friends in the ward and is solid. I honestly am blown away by every baptism I've had on the mission. This baptism was no exception. Just 5 weeks ago we found Bartolo after he had been drunk for a solid week. Since that time he hasn't drank a single beer and he actually no longer feels the desire to drink. But he's changed his life completely and he's actually going to move into a new home in 2 weeks. He has a job now and everyone in the ward has done a great job of just loving him. We really focused on having a lot of family home evenings with him and just helping him recognize all is not lost and to see the spirit witness this to him was amazing. He's going to be receiving the priesthood next week! I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me, and all of us! The mission is amazing. 

We also did a little service project with a member in our ward that is going through a really tough time with her kids. They're completely lost in the world and they're only 13 and 14 years old. She's super amazing and she has a son on a mission, but her other kids are really bringing her down. We decided to cut her grass... or her jungle in the backyard to aliviar su carga. The project will last until I go home cause there's a ton to do and we only have 90 minutes every Tuesday morning to do it. It's fun work though. 

Elder Villota and I pretty much just pass the time laughing and loving the work. I honestly don’t even think about coming home because I'm always so busy. I've just love the work and I can't think about going back to real life. I'm trying to think about things that I love back home, but honestly I just want to see you guys and then just go back to Chile to share the gospel. This work is amazing. I expressed a little bit of my feelings in a talk that I gave yesterday. I talked about charity and how I didn't always have it as a self-centered tri-athlete punk before the mission, and how the mission has literally taught me to have more charity. I know that Jesus Christ is our perfect example of how to live happy and I know that I'm no where close to being perfect, but I'm so grateful to be apart of his true church and to be his representative. The experience of the mission is something I can't even put into words; it's simply been life changing.  

I'm glad everyone's happy and healthy. I'm sad that BYU football continues to lose, but I'm glad that BYU XC is killing it. GO VISTA NATION! WIN STATE! Love all ya'll and love the support. 

Quick update. I found a Haitiano that lived in Connecticut for 20 years and he talks and looks just like Biggy. I'll take pictures this week. IF YA DON'T KNOW, NOW YA KNOW! He totally sang rap songs with me as well. 

Pray for Mayra, William, Marta, Enrique, and Antonella and Carlitos! They're our fechas! 

ELDER WEAVER 

SIGNING OUT! COLORADO HIGH! 

Week 93...Hey, Hey, Hey

October 17, 2016

HEY HEY HEY, 

First and foremost I'd like to give a huge shout out to my amazing family for putting together the birthday video & package! I almost cried, but I held the tears back because I’m a man! It's insane to see how much everyone has changed. I can't get over how Preston has pretty much just converted into the next Michael Jackson. I imagine that he's got 99 problems but a girl ain't 1. Dad's gotten a little chunky, Mom is as beautiful as ever, Adin is a stud, and Mia is amazingly beautiful as well. Not to mention my grandparents who look great and my cousins who are all amazingly good looking! Ethan is WAY DIFFERENT! WHAT THE FREAK! I come from a very attractive family... what happened to me in the process of everything? 

So other than the video, the week was just splendid. We have 4 baptismal dates set up and things are looking amazing for this weekend. Bartolo and Carlitos want to get baptized this weekend. Things got a little complicated with Carlitos this week and he backed out of his baptismal interview after we taught him the law of chastity. He's a 13 year-old boy, but he just wants to feel super sure with everything before he takes this step. So, we continued to teach him the principle of chastity and why it is so important, and after a few more lessons, he is good to go. The coolest part is that I found him contacting with Elder Montero on my birthday in the night and I said to Elder Montero "una puerta más!" That happened to be Carlitos and his family who let us in. 

Bartolo is the guy we found the week before general conference and he's just rocking it. It's amazing to see how much the atonement really works. He has been really struggling for 9 years and has lost everything... his wife, his kids, his job, everything due to alcohol. We really have just been loving him and helping him and he hasn't drank since we found him before general conference. He's pumped for his baptism! What a miracle! 

William is our other fecha and he's a Haitiano that Elder Villota and I found and I've just been saying the basics of what I know in Creol to help him. Thank goodness that Elder Villota speaks fluently! 

The other fecha is Mayra and she's the cousin of our convert Kamila! Pray for her and her family.

Nothing super funny happened this week. Just watching Dad biff it on the mountain bike made me laugh like crazy.

I Love all of you more than I love Chile, and that's saying something. I'm one lucky guy to have the family that I have. I love my Savior Jesus Christ and I know that this is His work! We so blessed to be a part of it!  The gospel is true, The book is blue.

Elder Weaver 

Week 92...Get Up, Get Up, and Get Down

October 11, 2016

Get Up, Get Up, and Get Down

Let's get to it,

We're just rocking and rolling here in San Antonio! Elder Villota is a trip. We get along just great and he entertains the heck out of me. Unfortunately that means that my time in the mission is just going to fly by even faster! The other bonus is that Elder Villota is fluent in Creole and we found some Haitians here in San Antonio and 1 of them has a fecha to get baptized the 22nd! He came to church and loved it even though he didn't understand a stinking thing. Elder Villota also has Principios del Evangelio and the book of Mormon in Creole so we're all set. The other good thing is that once one Haitian gets baptized the whole Haitian hut is going to get baptized which means that we're going to be wet for a solid month I think. What a blessing that he learned Creole while he was in Estacion Central for 10 months of his mission! 

The zone is doing alright. We've had 4 baptisms in the zone up until now and it looks like we'll finish with about 10. The good news is that all the sectors are working now! 

We had a consejo de guerra with Presidente Woodward and Hermana Woodward on Friday and something was finally brought up that I thought would never be brought up in all my life here on the mission! President Woodward talked about how pathetic it is that we talk and hype up so much the fact that people "subir" as district leader, trainer, zone leader, or assistant. It was amazing. It was honestly a huge slap in the face for some of the missionaries. They honestly just sat there almost speechless. President Woodward is honestly very different than what I’ve been use to in the past where we had a ton of mission meetings and all got together to learn about and see the progress of the mission. We would see who's where and who's who. It was honestly the perfect setup to make the missionaries aspire to subir as leaders. It worked to get us pumped, but it shouldn't be the reason as to why we work hard. I have yet to have a mission meeting with President Woodward where he publishes the cambios. So nobody knows anything about where other missionaries are or what they're doing. President Woodward basically just said that we need to be the examples and not talk about subir or bajar and we're all equal. He also said that it will be very normal to finish your mission as a trainer now and it's not because you did anything wrong it's just the way he wants to do things. It was really spiritual actually and he even shared that in his mission he wasn't comp mayor until about 14 months and he was zone leader his last 3 months in the mission, but he was never a bad missionary and he has no regrets about anything he did on his mission. He simply stated that the mission changed his life and that if we don't it allow it to change our lives it won't matter jack squat whether you were assistant or not when you get back home. I loved the meeting. I was ask to give my two cents and just said, "si yo hubiera querido la gloria de los hombres, no me hubiese venido a la misión. Me hubiese quedado en mi casa para participar en mis deportes... vine a la misión para participar en la obra de salvación." ("If I had wanted the glory of men I would not have come to my mission. I would have stayed home for my part in sports ... I came to the mission to participate in the work of salvation.") I also shared that the first reunión de cambios that I had in the mish was basically like the NFL draft and everyone just busted up laughing. It's so true though. Needless to say, things have changed here in Santiago Oeste! 

Other than that it was a solid week of work. We have 4 fechas and it looks like we'll be baptizing this weekend! Pray for Carlitos, William, Maira, and Bartolo! 

Miracles happen on the daily here. I love the mission and honestly never want to come home. Hey, enjoy the Fort Collins temple dedication! How cool is it that Grandma and Grandpa were invited to participate in the very first endowment session with a member of the 1st presidency! 

Love ya'll! Read your scriptures and invite someone to church! 

Elder Weaver 

Week 91...What be good?

October 3, 2016

What be good? 

Another week has come and gone here in the most amazing country in the whole wide world... Chile. I find myself here in the Internet cafe starting yet another change in the mission with a new companion who will probably be killing me off. My new companion is Elder Villota from Ecuador, he's a great missionary and I've known him since he started the mission because he started the mission in my second zone in 5 de Abril. It's crazy, but I literally know everyone in the whole mission and I basically know how they are and how they work because the mission is so small and word gets around. Elder Villota is defnitely not the same type of guy as I am, but the good news is that he's obedient and he's excited to be a zone leader now! It'll be fun showing him the ropes and letting him feel the stress and pressure. The zone got a ton of new missionaries and things are looking a little better for this month of October. Elder Villota and I will get along just dandy, at this point in the mission there's nothing I haven't seen and nothing that I can't deal with. One of the first things you learn here in Santiago Oeste is that "Es Bueno Ser Diferent." I know that's true. The other good news is that Elder Carroll is staying in our pension so that means early morning runs are going to continue.

So this week was just a normal week of hard work. Nothing new really happened. We found people to teach, we taught, and we brought people to church and we have 3 fechas with Victor, Carlos, and Nicoloy... so pray for them please. We also brought a new person to conference, his name is Bartolo and when we found him he was in a super bad situation, he's an alcoholic but he wants to give it all up and get baptized. This is the first guy that has issues with alcohol that I've taught that I actually have hope in. He hasn't drank since we met him on Tuesday. The atonement is now in play in his life. He came to conference and loved it, and now we're going to help him get baptized the 22nd this month. 

Speaking of the atonement, I sure loved the focus that the conference had on repentance. I feel like as a missionary I've really seen the importance of this super simple but complex principle. ALL OF US NEED TO REPENT! ESPECIALLY MY STUD BROTHER PRESTON WHO IS GOING AROUND LOOKING LIKE A MODEL TAKING GIRLS TO HOMECOMING AND JUST KILLING THEM WITH HIS GOOD LOOKS. I honestly can't even recognize the kid. Those pics are unreal; he's a lady killa for sure.

Anyways, repentance is so important. I don't have my journal with me, so I don't remember the name of the lady who spoke on Sunday morning but her talk on repentance was powerful. I know that people can and do change with the atonement of Jesus Christ. I know it because I have changed and continue to change and purify myself in Christ. I Know we always need to have that burning desire to change our lives to become more like Christ. The problem is that we don't view small errors as a big deal, but NO UNCLEAN THING CAN ENTER INTO THE PRESENCE OF GOD. This means that constant repentance and weekly sacrament partaking is essential and we should feel a deep desire to partake every single week! 

I love conference and I love my service as a missionary. I am now in my last full change as a missionary para La Iglesia de Jesucristo de Los Santos de Los Últimos Días. (for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) This time is so sacred and I love this amazing work. Get out and open your mouths and share the gospel! 

Shout out to BYU CROSS COUNTRY!!! NUMBER 1 BABY!!! 

Let it be, love ya'll! Arriba Chile!

Elder Weaver 

Feeling Like Superman!

Week 90...

September 26, 2016

Cabros y Cabras, 

This week was definitely a stressful one. Actually this whole change has been somewhat stressful. I got to the zone and everything looked good and now everything is in the pothole. I'm well aware that I'm a Weaver and by being a Weaver there's a Grizzweaver effect... but man I didn't expect things to go this bad. This past week the Dad of one of the Elders in our zone died and that obviously took a huge toll on him. He was able to go to the temple and hang out with President Woodward for a few days, but that doesn't take the pain away. There was a tender mercy… he's Chileno and his parents live in the south so he saw the funeral via Skype. I felt so bad for him and all we could do is just love him and support him. It's really been an eye opener to see just how much some missionaries go through while they're out on the mission. I've been super blessed that nothing has happened to you guys and I hope it stays that way! The Hermanas in our zone have been sick the whole change as well. It's been rough. There's also an Elder who recently had his parents get divorced and his dad recently tried to kill himself and another Elder has developed some sort of disease in his thyroid... that keeps him from working in his area. You'd think that's enough problems but they just keep on coming. Yet another Elder twisted his ankle playing soccer last p-day and he was in the house for 3 days. Then there's another Elder who has recently developed some depression so he’s having a hard time working. They are trying to help him by providing him with some counseling. We have a total of 4 companionships out of 11 that are actually working normally. You could say that the stress is real. We finished the month of September with just 4 baptisms in the zone! The good news is that Heavenly Father has blessed us a ton and there are 13 baptismal dates lined up for the first 2 weeks of October. I just hope I'm here to see the baptisms! 

All is well in my sector. We have 3 baptismal dates with Victor, Carlos, and Nicolay.

You won’t believe what happened this Sunday, I walked into the chapel with my investigators, and I had the best surprise of my life. Sitting right there was La Familia Cordova Arce! Osvaldo and Katuisca and their family came to see me! I nearly cried! I just hugged Osvaldo and I was so pumped to get to see them. They're going to get their Patriarchal Blessings this week or the next and Osvaldo is going to get the Melchizedek priesthood in November! They said that if everything goes well that they'll be sealed in December! PRAY FOR THEM SO THAT THEY GET SEALED IN DECEMBER BEFORE I LEAVE! It was seriously so awesome to see them! I think that was the best birthday gift that I got! 

My birthday was just a normal day. We had district meetings and the zone sang "Feliz cumpleaños" and then in the night Elder Carroll and Elder Montero surprised me with cupcakes. That was about it! No better way to celebrate than just working like normal! We actually found Carlos and Victor that night on my birthday and they came to church and want to be baptized now! 

We had an awesome zone conference with President Woodward. I think the best thing that I took out of it was really helping our investigators to understand the concept of repentance before baptism so that they remain firm in the church. We've really had some amazing lessons when we talk about repentance and I know that our converts are going to be way more converted with how we're teaching now. Repentance really is the key to having a happy life and having a good experience in the church. We should be constantly looking for ways to improve and always being humble enough to accept advise from others. I am constantly asking Heavenly Father in my prayers "What lack I yet?" I always, always, always receive an answer. 

General Conference is this weekend! I'm way pumped! I'm definitely looking for some answers to my questions this weekend! I invite you guys to really fast and pray and write down questions you want answered as the Lord's servants speak this weekend! His love for us individually is real!

All is well here in the coast. I love this gospel, I love the mission, I love my family, and I love my Savior. I also love mis queridos Chilenos! 

Hasta luego cabros! 

Elder Weaver 

Connor loves his cows and horses… He got Empanada’s from a member for his Birthday…A picture of his sector…