The work of the lord goes on!

The work of the Lord is Advancing, its not stopping!

This week we had a goal to find 4 new friends, although some how we were given 4 great new friends! Ive been learning this week (yet again) that this is his work, we can do all we can to benefit the work yet if its not his will its not gonna happen. Ive been learning too that there are 100s if not 1,000s of people in our area who is ready and willing to recieve the gospel in its fullest. Its no longer how about how do I convince this person its true... its, which of these people have humbled themselves enough to be ready for the Gospel. We are still going to do ALL we can do bring everyone, thats the point of the imperfectly perfect harvest, harvesting ready crop and planting many sturdy seeds a long the way!

In our area we have struggled with member present lessons, i dont like make excuses and we know what we need to do,no; its just time to do it like my pops always would say: "if I wanted an excuse I would have asked for one!"; I love the way it goes it spanish: 

"Si quisiera que me diera una excusa, te la pediría."

Yesterday sunday was great! We had 6 or 7 non members come to church! It was awesome! The best part too was that they all enjoyed it and were edified by the spirit. We sat with our two friends: Andy and his cousin in sacrement meeting we opened the hymn book and began to sing, they sang along too it was glorious! It made me so happy to see that they enjoyed it and felt the peace that church brings. Peace is such an interesting thing, Elder Zapata and I were talking about this the other day: the adversary can recreate and force any feeling or emotion but the only one he cannot recreate... is peace, Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ are the gatekeepers of peace they are the only ones who can do it.

Susanna is planning to be baptised this saturday at 10:30 AM we are gonna need a lot of prayers for her!

Our other friend was found through the english class ads we put up on the faecbook page. He was found then put on baptism date 1 week later... he will be baptised febuary 10! Absolute miracle!

This is the best most true work there is i bear my testimony that the Book of mormon is true, i exhort you to follow moroni's exhorting. Read it,.study, and pray, and I promise you will feel and know its true. Its blessed my life so very much es la diferencia de día y noche! Ive seen it bless so many others lives and i promise it can bless your's too.

More pictures next week i promise, weve been setting lots of big goals and one is to take more. bomb pictures!

Any way: be happy dont worry, all will be well, remember! Frowning is bummy so dont be bummy be cool! Also... being mean is lame, try to show kindness in all that you do

Ok love ya!

Mucho amor

Vamanos Hermano

This week was awesome! At the last minute on sunday we made our new friends goal and our member present lesson goal! It was about 8:30 on sunday and our lesson fell through, during daily planning we felt inspired to visit a potential as a backup, we knocked her door and she was just so ready to listen. She was mad at God because she lost her son. We couldnt tell her why that happened, although we taught about the divine mission of Jesus Christ, we shared mosiah 3:7 we testified and promised her that God had a plan for her and her son. She began to weep and we wept with her.

Our friend daniel ive mentioned the past few weeks!... HE CAME TO CHURCH!. Hes 15 and showed up in an awesome suit! With his BOM and Bible. It surprised me and I was impressed with his faith, most of the people we meet throw us so many excuses as to why they cant meet, come to church, or whatever it may be... but Daniel, he felt and knew that the Church is a place he needed to be.

Yesterday we had a member present lesson at 2:30 through zoom, but right before that we set another at 3! So right as the 2:30 finished we asked the brother if he would join us for the next one, he said: "VAMANOS HERMANO!" It was so amazing, he was so ready to drop his nets and do the lords work, he bore a strong testimony about Jesus Christ that truly impacted are two new friends.

Ive grown a Love for sharing the gospel. Its something ive learned about my whole life but ive never truly understood it until now, it has been such a blessing to help so many people learn about the good tidings of great Joy. There is also a difference of hearing it and Understanding it.

The office has been fun! Its new, we switched up the roles so im learning new things. Ive truly enjoyed it! Its been tough but theres no growth in the comfort zone,

An awesome miracle: everytime we are at a red light we talk to the cars next to us. Its awkward but awesome! We talked to brian (the car next to us), invited him to church, he pulled over!!! Exchanged #s and boom new person to teach!.its really amazing to see how much the Gospel truly blesses our life as long as we look at it with the right perspective

Im loving it! Today marks 17 months. Tomorrow we are giving a training to the whole mission at Zone Conference, very exciting! Today we hiked to the Hollywood sign, we love LA!

I love you all! Have the best day, best week! How can you make this week, the best week of your life yet?

Lifes not fun when your frowning. Feel the JOY that president nelson talks about :))

("Big heart") Elder Reric Sandberg

The Sistrict

January 8, 2024

Transfers came! 

Elder Zapata and I are staying together! Woohoo! He is such a great friend and companion!

We are still social media leaders! Im still District leader and our new district... is ... 2x4+1+ me= 8 sisters plus Elder Zapata and I o sea, the sistrict. Very excited am I! we are gonna see some awesome miracles and get good work done!

What a great week full of joy, stress, growth and adventure! This whole missionary thing is truly something so unique, there is nothing like it.successes! I feel as though we didnt habe many successes although that is the beauty of missionary work; that the 1-3 successes outway all the 352 challenges, dissapointment, and failures.

I love the scripture that says even if you bring one soul unto you how great will be your joy. We have a big list of "friends" although not many of them are progressing as a mattrr of fact, only 2 or 3... although we have been focusing on finding those who are READY NOW! They're out there some where. This brings me to a follow up on the miracle i mentioned last week! With Laura. If you remember how we found Laura, that was a great miracle, anyway we went to visit her this week. We arrive and there she was on her porch, with her son! Her son comes out and is immedeatly willing to accept and listen! We end up teaching him and his desire to learn and His SEARCH FOR TRUTH is so genuine! It was so cool to see. Taught a fair ammount of doctrine that first day gave him a pamphlet and set a time for sunday, we come back on Sunday. Same deal! He had so many genuine questions he was so sincere! And just ready. He said he read the whole pamphlet which has honestly never happened in my mission...! We continued to teach him, as we taught Elder Zapata and I felt in sync as if we were simply instruments in his hands bring to pass the immortality ans eternal life of man. We gave him a BOM and he kept asking us question after question it was amazing! We heading back friday!

As we have been focusing on "Cosechar" we have seen many miracles, because those who are ready now, will accept the first invitation just as Daniel did. Our other friend who is proggressing is Susanna! I am very proud of susanna, she has been on and off bap date many times, this week we sat down with her, taught her the goal setting process, set the goal of jan 27 and set a solid plan.

Elder Kavapalu is my Zone Leader, we had an excgange this week. He is a powerful missionary, its so cool i learned again that the gospel fita anywhere, anytime in ANY language with anybody! This was a speciak exchange, we accidently had an hour long comp study trying to plan our lessons for the day, and we got out a little late not accomplishing the things we wanted to, although, if we didnt have that hour long comp study we wouldny have met Eric, Eric as soon as we invited him to have a conversation with us he accepted and we ended up making him a friend. Its always a good boost when you make a friend with in the first 5 minutes of leaving the apartament. We traveled to a nearby park, parked the car. He asked me to ask Heavenly Father to bless our labors in prayer. I of course accepted his invitation, right there we prayed. We looked at eachother and there was a silence yet such a boost of confidence, i heard something say "Show time!"

We hopped out of the car, Elder Kavapalu then turned to me and said. Ok, yes Elder, We have the spirit with us. I felt it too! It was such a unique feeling, we were just two young obedient diligent servants of the lord on His fine errand. We then were talking two these two young mates Marchello and Axel, when suddenly and lady come up to us and she seemed pretty worried!

She was playing with her puppy at the park, and she lost her car keys!!! We gladly began to help look! She said she would pay the one who found it, the two one gents bolted off running seaching!

Elder Kavapalu and I stayed back, we decided to say a prayer to help find her keys. Less than 5 minutws later we found them!!! It was a great miracle, she tried so hard to pay us haha, she tries cash, asked if I had venmo, i said: "haha nope" she looked really confused and said somethinf simikar too: do you guys live under a rock or something? It was funny but she was so relieved and was very greatful and I was even more greatful to help.

That was an interesting experience because it suprised me that most of the world needs payment for doing a simple act of kindness, Im not here on the mission to earn money, im here to help people. Im going to do the right thing because its right and not because its easy or fun.

190 its, can't believe it!

December 25, 2023

Merry Christmas! Mis chavitos!

Howdy do? Ive been pondering a lot about humility, pride, and being full of Love. 

Its so interesting to me the idea of being humble and full of love vs. A stiffneck neck and a puffed up heart!

As children of God we are not perfect and in this life we never will be. Thats the beauty of the Atonement. We are here to fail, i have come to love the principle of failure, theres no growth in the comfort zone. It excites me how many times the book of mormon mentions how many sinned and fell to forbidden paths; but as soon as the turned back to god with a broken heart and a contrite spririt the are recieved in his loving arms once again!

Ive seen many times when we humble ourselves and search his help and trust in him! Everything turns out great.

1 nephi 3:7, 1 nephi 4:6.

I love you all merry christmas, i feel so priveliged and blessed to be here with His name on my chest and to be His representative alongsife my righteous, faithul and marvelous companion, to testify of him!

Also, i started my mission weighing about 170ish, im weighing about 190! Ive been running and hitting the weights hard, but at the same moment hitting the dinner table hard! Haha pero bueno!

We are working with some awesome friends: Susanna: she has rough negative pressure from her family, pray for her so she can have strength to be the positive example in her humble family!

Lorenzo is so close! He wants to FEEL IT for himself! We have a few lessons planned this week with him pray for him aswell!

Javier and Karina we met this week, they seem like a beloved son and daughter of God who are close to joining the Kingdom of God.

Merry christmas! Christ lives I know it! Im proud to be His missionary and servant

Love Elder Sandberg