Justin will be spending the next two years serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. He will be serving in the Chile, Osorno mission and teaching the people of Osorno the gospel. He will spend two months in Mexico City at the Missionary Training Center learning Spanish and being trained as a missionary. In mid August he will leave Mexico and head to Chile. We will be using this blog to post weekly emails and pictures from Justin and to keep you all updated on Justin's adventures in Chile!

Monday, August 31, 2015

EMAIL FROM JUSTIN YAYAYAYAYA

This week was good! It hasnt stopped rainning since I last talked to yall (except for today the sun is out) but its so good! The rain here literally pours! like We sometimes gotta dig a little deeper and push through the rain and wind, which the wind is way strong here haha! Hahah it pretty funny sometimes, I love it!
I forgot what day it was but someday this week all of our citas got cancelled and we didnt get into 1 house! Not one!!!! Everyone we talked to and every door we knocked all said it was too cold and rainy outside and it was rainning too hard to talk!
That was a lot of water that day, it just straight up poured non stop! (Im sending pic of me and elder cleverly just sitting in the puring rain) what i realized is theres no such thing as something being waterproof, cause its just not true. Come here and you will see! We put all of our stuff in bags and then put them in our bacpacks! that same day where we were walking down the street and it was pouring rain, I just started laughing cause i was just thinking, Dang this is it right here!, but we never got upset or down and we kept working hard! Next couple of days were way good, we found a couple new investigators, two were old investigators in the area book from like 2010, but theyre named Jose and Carmen! and the other day we went and stopped by and the read a little of the Book of Mormon and and the plan of salvation pamphelet! and they said it is true and the believe i! so now we just gotta get them to church! That is the biggest thing here, getting people to church, it is difficult because everyone is working like 7 to 9 hereª plus when it is really bad weather here it is tough to get to church for people cause no one has cars so everyone is just walking!
Sunday we had stake conference and so a 70 came and spoke which was way good! our mission president and his wife came down and spoke to and its really good! hahh sometimes i have this moment and i am sitting there listening to the person talk and i am just like wow!......This is a different language. Still learning spanish everyday here! I hve a long way to go but it is good! i learn more each day!
also this week we knocked this one door and this ldy answered and she was kinda laughing and about to slam the door and she told us she was apart of a different faith, then we just asked...... Hey would you like to be with your family for eternity! and she sat there for like a minute and didnt say anything and then asked us if it was possible....... then we talked on her doorstep about the plan of salvation for like 15 min! it was so cool, the spirit works and i saw it there in that instance! now we have a return appointment! 
The weeks here are just a day i feel like, so much happens in one day its tough to remmeber it all (Dont worry mommy im writing in my journal everyday) but it is so awesome!
Everything is great here! im learning a lot and having fun! We work realy hard and are obdeient and we are blessed for that, sure there are some tough days but thats life! The great thing about life and the mission is tomorrow theres always a chance to do better!
i love you all and hope you are all doing well and are everyone is into the swing of things with school starting back up! I love you all!!!!! 
Love Elder Wertner

Monday, August 24, 2015

Happy Monday

Whats up Everyone!
Another week in Chile has gone bye!!!!!
Ok i feel like i need to explain Chile a little better. The food is way good here, here breakfast isnt really a thing but the lunches are huge and its like a three course meal, its sooooooo good!!1 then dinner is caled "Once" and its just usually a bunch of bread and stuff and sandwhiches. Way good! I didnt talk about fleas much cause they werent really bad, but its starting to not be as cold so the fleas are coming out (Mommmmyyyy dont worry ill be alright) im just itching everywhere, but im kinda use to them from the tennessee bed bugs but these are a litle more intense, but i am fine! Its not like they hurt or anything hahaha! 
Oh i dont know if i said this in the last email but also here we have to cut wood everymorning, there is no such thing as in door heating here, everyone in every house just uses fire to heat up the house. Cutting wood is a pretty good workout though so it is good in the morning, but those mornings where we dont have fire....... We study in our sleeping bags and we can see our breathe! Hahaha its pretty funny, getting out of bed is the worst but once we are out of bed we are wide awake thats forsure. oh als we have bunk beds (reminds me of the good ole days before jake left on his mission and i slept on the top bunk cause thats kinda how it is now) but its good stuff! When it rains here it just straightup poors!!!!! You get all different kinds of rain here, light rain, heavy rain, the rain that hurts, just it all...... It reminds me of forest gump when he is talking about all different kinds of rain, hahahah its so how it is1 But this clutch rain jacket my loving parents got me is awsome!
I dont know if i said this last week but we are in a house with two other elders so its pretty cool, theyre great guys! Friday we gave a lesson to this family and the spirit was so strong, one of the best times i have had (no dahl not as good as priest quroum but close) but it was so awesome, but it didnt workout. I have had doors slammed on me so many times and people actually like run away from us and just get rejected by people. it was sad cause we bore our testimonies and the spirit was so strong its like we could touch it. The point i am getting at is sometimes we just think our life is soooooo tough and we just wish the days away or just think no one can know what we are going through. but i want you to remmeber someone who went through it all, Jesus Christ our savior! He went through a lot more then any of us can ever imagine! I want you all to go look up this video "the Atonement and missionary Work" It is one of the bst videos i have seen! Remember who is always right beside you and can be your best friend, he wont forget about you so dont foget about him!!! and dont say you dont have time to watch the video or youll get to it later, i have heard that excuses a lot and its not true! Make time for the things that really matter!!
Here in chile there is a lot of reactivation to be done, a lot of inactive members to help. We had an awesome lesson last night with one of them and we talked about temples and families forever, the spirit was so strong it was crazy!!! everyone was crying and they made it their goal to come back to church and focus on the temple! I saw them one of my first days here and in 2 weeks they have already come so far it was awesome!! You have no idea how much joy it brought and still brings me! 
The other day on saturday i am pretty sure (The days all become one, time goes bye faster on the mission..... now i know what Jake, and big mike were talking about) But we taught 4 lessons and got 5 new investigators, which is tough to do but the lord blessed us and put those people in our path!
I am on a mission to help and teach the poeple of chile and right now Martinez De Rosas about the restored Gospel of Jesus christ, I am not here to teach those poele who are not ready and just want to argue, We have been called to teach people who are prepared for us. 
Oh also something funny was the school hre starts at like 2 and gets out at like 5 hahahahahahah! so funny! But chile is awesome! i love it, funny becaue here they all listen to mostly american music but i am pretty sure they have no idea what theyre saying hahaa!
i love chile its awesome, the mission is tough but i recieve so much happiness and joy from what i was doing. I wouldnt want to be anywhere else!
I love you all, Keep the faith!!
Love
 Elder Wertner


Monday, August 17, 2015

First Week in Chile!

Hey everyone wow i have so much to tell you! Chile is straight up beautiful! I am going to try and send you all a bunch of pictures so i hope they eventually go through! I am in Valdivia and my sector is Martinez De rosas and that is our ward. My companion is Elder Cleverly, hes awsome and he is from california. We work really hard together and are always just constantly working! We walk about 15-20 miles a day! I am so tired when we get home that when i go to sleep i just wake up because times already up and its already the morning.Also here it is very very very cold and im pretty north too, it is freezing and when it rains it can be pretty bad but it is awesome. At night im so physically and mentally tired but my spirit is stronger and feels awesome! 
Here there is a lot of reactivation that we do, a lot of inactive members and so we are trying to get a lot of them back to church. Our ward is about 35-40 people theyre all really awesome people! Yesterday i went up and bore my testimony and introduced myself! I will tell you guys what, the spanish is different and they talk super fast but i am learning, it is tough but the lord blesses me and i am very thanful for that. 
Also i had a really cool experience, it was one of the best i have had. I had my first baptism invitation!! Her name is Irma and her daughter is named elizabet and is a less active. The spirit was super strong in the lesson and we asked her if she thought the book of mormon are true and joseph smith was a tru prophet and she said yes! Then i asked her if she would be baptized and she said...... YES!!! Wow it was awesome..... Her baptismal date is for the 19th of september! It was so exciting and the spirit was so strong. It was so strong her daughter was crying and stuff it was crazy, the cool thing was i understood most of it and i know that was the gift of tongues and the Lord helping me!! How awesome this work is! We now have two people with baptism dates and hopefully 3 after tonight
HAHA wow there are so many cats and dogs everywhere here all around the streets, just laying around flea infested probably like million no joke! The mission is really ups and downs and i am really starting to see that! Every moment is like a roller coaster ride, it is crazy!! Its so good though! 
It is kind of un real being out here right now, being on a mission and everything its just unreal hahahaha. I know everyone is starting back up school, I think today? but i hope it is awesome! Tear it up yall and have fun! Oh yeah the food is real good here, we had this thing called a completo that is a hot dog with a bunch of meats wow it was so good, it had all these toppings..... DAD you would just love it!!!!! But food is way good here!!!
Chile is awesome and i am having a good time and learning a lot, i am a greeny and there is a lot of work to do, it is definitley really hard at times but then i remmeber all of you and i especially remmeber the savior and his example!!! 
I love you all and miss you like crazy! Treat all the missionaries good wwhenever you see them, just imagineif that was me? Would you let them in? would you offer them something to eat?
I hope you all are well and i know you are doing awesome things!!!
Love you all 
Love Elder Wertner
P.S. If you want to send letters or packages send it to the mission home, i would love some candy:)
Love you ALLLLLL!!!!!!!




Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Elder Wertner has made it to Chile!

Elder Wertner made it to Chile yesterday! He was able to call us for a few minutes during a layover in Santiago on his way from Mexico to Osorno! He sounded so great! He is doing so awesome and kept saying how much he loves the mission and being a missionary! He said he's been praying for everyone and is so happy! We just love our missionary so much!! 
He got to Osorno last night and his mission president gave him and the other elders time to write their families a letter and then his mission president emailed it to us!
We're not sure yet when his new P-Day (preparation) will be! Thanks so much for beings so supportive of Justin!


Thursday, August 6, 2015

Last full week in the MTC

**Justin leaves the MTC this Monday and heads for CHILE!
You can send him a last minute package or letter today or tomorrow and he will get it before he leaves using 
Just click on the upper right link that says Mexico MTC and all you need is his name :)
We've been able to send a couple packages and he's received them all!


Well first off let me just say how much i love my family, I have been truly blessed with a wonderful family and I am just so grateful for them! Me and my sister brookie have always been best friends whether it was playing bball 1 on 1 since i can remember or her being my best and really only friend and taking good care of me when we moved to tennessee and i did not have really any friends! She really is my best friend............ AND NOW SHE IS ENGAGED!!!!!! S/O TO BROOKE AND MICHAEL! I am so excited for you both! I wish i could be there but i know yall are going to have the best time ever and i am just so happy!!!!
Okay so pretty much same old same old here but this will be last time i write you guys from Mexico, because monday at 1030pm i leave for chile!!! its about an 8 1/2 hour flight to santiago and then we have about like a 6 hour layover and then we fly to OPsorno which is about 1 1/2 hours away. So during the layover i dont know if i will be able to call or not but i will try!!! so if i do call it will be like 8 or 9 am chile time, but if i cant dont be sad mommy and dad!!!! but i will try my best so just be ready tuesday morning! I am pretty sure it is 2 hours ahead of yall so probably like 7 amyour time, i will try! not forsure tho! 
This week we watched a live devotional from Russell M. Neilson whos new president of the quorom of the 12! it was very good its so awesome to hear apostles speak!!! I love it! There is a really good quote i heard in one of our devotionals and i have heard it a couple times before..... "You dont recieve your answer for your prayers until after the trial of your faith" I love this quote it is so true, sometimes in life i feel like we just want want want and we think when we pray we should just get the answer right away! But thats not how it works, we are on this earth to be tested, and through prayer heavenly Father helps us but we are here to be tested, he gives us trials that he knows we can overcome and that are necessary for not just yourself but others! We have to remmeber it is isnt about us sometimes but it is about serving others and then after that our testimony will grow and i know that we will become better people in when we are serving others!
Tuesday was our last pizza night and thats sad, hahahahaha but i ate 8 slices so i ended on a good note! We had TRC again and that went really well, everytime we do TRC it just makes me even more excited for being out in chile and everyday i get the opportunity to teach people about something i love so so so much!!! And they have no idea about it! 
Well i have had so much fun here and i have made some good friends and there are some awesome people, The MTC has been good and i feel like i have learned a lot but i still have a lot to learn!!! i am so unbelieveably stoked to be serving the people of chile!!! Next time yall talk to me i will be on a different continent! How crazy is that? I just cant wait!! I love my district and it is kinda sad that elder Asay, Elder Rollins, Hermana barney and Arave are all going to the states so i wont really get to talk to them for like 2 years but i wish they were going to Chile! But its all good, I have been truly blessed and i am thankful for my time here! I love you all and pray for you all everyday!
Yo se que la iglesia es verdad y yo se que mediante jesucristo y la expiacion my familia puede por eturnidad! yo estoy muy agradecido por la oppurnidad servir un mision! yo amor ustedes!!!!
Love you all! keep the faith and never give up!!!!
Love Elder Wertner
Hey this pic was taken about 30 seconds ago so talk about a live update! Yall are all basically here with me;)