Thursday March 31, 2011

a poor wayfaring man of grief hat often crossed me on my way, who sued so humbly for relief that i could never answer nay. i had not pow'r to ask his name where-to he went, or whence he came; yet there was something in his eye that won my love; i knew not why

once, when my scanty meal was spread, he entered; not a word he spake, just perishing for want of bread i gave him all; he blessed it, brake and ate, but gave me part again. mine was an angel's portion then, for while i fed with eager hast, the crust was manna to my taste.

i spied him where a fountain burst clear from the rock; his strength was gone. the heedless water mocked his thirst; he heard it, saw it hurrying on. i ran and raised the suff'rer up; thrice from the stream he drained my cup, dipped and re-turned it running o'er; i drank and never thirsted more.

'twas night; the floods were out; it blew the winter hurricane aloof. i heard his voice abroad and flew to bid him welcome to my roof. i warmed and clothed and cheered my guest and laid him on my couch to rest; then made the earth my bed, and seemed in Eden's garden while i dreamed.

Stript, wounded beaten night to death, i found him by the highway side. i roused hispulse , brought back his breath, revived his spirit, and supplied wine, oil, refreshment- he was healed. i had my self a wound concealed, but from that hour forgot the smart, and peace bound up my broken heart.

in pris'n i saw him next, condemned to meet a traitor's doom at morn. the tide of lying tongues i stemmed, and honnored him 'mid shame and scorn. my frindship's utmost zeal to try, he asked if i for him would die. the flesh was weak; my blood ran chill, but my free spirit cried, "i will!"

then in a moment to my view the stanger started from disguise. the tokens in his hand i knew; the savior stood before myne eyes. he spake, and my poor name he hamed, "of me thou hast not been ashamed. these deeds shall thy memorial be; fear not, thou didst them unto me."

we sang this song for devotional this week and it has become my new favorite hymn. the last two verses always seem to make me cry. i love this song and i love the saying "I WILL" this can be applied in almost anything we do. i know that everything we do we do it in the name of our savior and redeemer. and we should bear his name with great respect and responsibility.

i was unfortunatly informed that my mission to peru is most likely going to me delayed. they used the words "temporary reassignment" and i have officially decided that, this will be fine. "I WILL" go to this assignment and work as hard as i can to bring about the most good i can. i will "FEAR NOT" because i know that while serving the people (where ever they may be) i will be serving my lord as well.

i am so happy to be hear and yes it is hard but i am positive that i would never trade this expierience and i'm only 6 weeks in. these last 6 weeks have seemed like 2 years already, but as it says in the missionary handbook. or time here is precious and we shouldn't waste a minute.

thank you for your prayers on my behalf. i always have you in my prayers as well. give the kids a kiss as well as gram, grandma, nana, and papa. and just know that wheather it be here in provo, in peru, or somewhere else i will be working harder than i ever have in my entire life.

siempre sus y dios

Elder Landon R. Welch

Thursday March 24, 2011

Hola Familia
my week here has been another fast and furious one. but that is all part of the plan. no visa yet so i guess i will be waithing another week or so. but that is ok. i have 3 other companionships in my district. 3 of the elders are going to Mexico City, and the other 3 are going to Villaermosa Mexico. and you know how hard it is to get mexican visas right now. but to our great supprise yesterday the mexico City elders got called down to the travel office and they are going to the consolate today to sign their VISAS!!!! it is quite a miracle. Hno. Ramirez told us that the last group of mexico missionaries he had were at the MTC for 13 weeks!! so i'm kinda bumbed that it wasn't mine but i'm glad they got their good news.

Hno. Ramirez is from Chiwawa mexico, and he has only known english for 8 months. we are really blessed to have a native speaker for our teacher. Hno. Eraso is from colombia but he has lived in the states for 18 years. so he is a little easier to understand, but he dosen't have the same insight Hno. Ramirez has.

Elder Petersen is from lewiston Idaho, and i can deffinatly tell he is a spud, just by his manerisms. but it is kinda fun it reminds me of all the fun times i had up at Grandmas house as a kid. running around with cats and making mud pies in her stove.

we had a awesome devotional this week. Elder Costa from the 70 came and spoke. but his wife was the one that really struck me. she asked us all to e-mail home and ask each one of our family members to write us a letter. as to what your expectations are for me as a missionary. and i would ask you to write them in a letter so i actually have time to read them :) and i would ask that you include pictures of your awesome kids, because i can't get enough of them. any free moment i have i think of my family especially all my little buddies. each one of them are so precious to me and i love them so much.

i was at dinner yesterday and Elder Jones (a member of my district) came up and said "i saw another elder welch" and i knew jacob had his mission call so i asked where. he pointed and sure enough there he was. it was so good to see him. we hugged and talked for a bit but unfortunatly he was the dinner before us so he had to go but it was fun to see him for a second.

absolutely you can give laurine my address :)

i hope i covered everything but i'm running out of time so i guess until next week, wheather it be in Peru or Provo i will be working harder than i ever have in my entire life. i love you all.

siempre sus y dios

Elder Landon R. Welch

p.s. i wish i had time to email everyone, but i don't just know that the letters are coming.

Thursday March 17, 2011

Hola Familia,

Como fue su semina?

mine was fast and furious as usual. but TRC this week was amazing. E. Petersen and i tought our entire lession in spanish!!! and talking to the investigador afterwords he thought we had been here for 7 weeks when really we have only been here for 4. so i guess the spanish is coming along great. and to make it even better the investigador (which is fake he is already a member) was from peru, unfortunatly his name was Alex not Edward :)

in response to your question dad, we do get general authorities to come here alot. every tuesday and sunday we have devotionals where a usually a member of the 70 come. but he have had Elder Holland Come and the rumor is next tuesday we have elder Perry coming. and i can tell you now if we could have Elder Holland Come every week i could almost guarantee that no missionary wouldn't go home.

He layed in to us!!!! "don't you dare ever leave this mission, don't live with the regret. because i can tell you that this mission is the greatest gift god can give a 19 year old child. i'm sorry to say it but you are children, and until you come to accept the fact that there are people praying for the gospel, and buck up and take it to them you will always be children."

it was harsh but i can tell you that there wasn't a single person sleeping in that devo. and i know that it confermed alot of things in my mind. i do have that testimony of this work and i have never been so sure of it until now. i have that desire to take this message. and apparently during TRC i proved that i have the capacity to do it as well.

Bro. Bancroft layed into us this week as well. we have been playing a game with are District (El Nativo) where we all draw a paper out of a hat and one of them has El Nativo writen on it. an that person could speak nothing but spanish the entire day. i personally didn't like it because we are not all on the same level of learning and so it was hard to do. But Bro Bancroft asked about it and we explained it. and then came the thrashing. "Do not ever compare yourself to other missionaries. don't put that extra stress on yoursleves. work for you. and don't ever rationalize the use of a game, to "Motivate" yourself to do that which the lord has asked you to do....

so this week has been a week of thrashings but they were all very well needed. i'm pretty sure we all have a new resolve to focus our efforts on that which we know to be important.

i love you all and i hope you have a great week. so until next week whether it be in Peru or Provo know i will be working and praying harder than ever before in my life.

Sus y Dios

Elder Landon R. Welch

P.S. i got news that i'm expected to leave next wednesday so keep Elder Petersens and my visas in your prayers. I love ya

Thursday March 10, 2011

Hola Familia!

I have had a rather disappointing week. first my visa didn't come, second i butched my TRC and last my visa didn't come. but all is well. i figure something down there isn't ready for me yet.

it was really nice that i got to call home on wednesday. i wish i could have called all of you but it was especially nice to talk to my best friend for about 12 minutes :) i love you all so much. i'm not really sure what to expect for the next weeks, i suspect i'll just get back into my usual rythem, wake up, eat, study, eat, study, eat, suffer from the eating, and sleep. man what i would give for a home cooked meal that doesn't kill me after words. i'm trying to stay busy but i'm finding that i am running out of stuff to study. Chiste! how can you run out of the scriptures. in the 3 weeks i have been here i have read from first nefi to words of mormon and only have 25 more chapters to go. i think i'll start over, but add in a new testimant study plan too.

thanks for the packages and letters. i'm sorry i havn't been able to respond to them all yet, but i'm working on it i hope to send off 8 ish letters today, and hopefully i will be caught up.

thanks for keeping me updated on the kids. i miss all of them alot and their nuttyness (yes thats a word i'd say it in spanish but there isn't a translation for it) and their smiles amy i do have to tell you i was a little worried when i got your package and realized you sent me all your kids candy. but it all made sence after i read the notes. i love them too, but i didn't get the one form colt!!! what's with that you must have forgot to put it in the envelope.

my days a DL are over, (mostly because i was supposed to leave on wednesday) but i figure it is all for the better now someone else can have the chance to experience the pleasure of that job (yes i was being sarcastic) it was fun but it was alot of late nights and early mornings, and you all know how much i love my sleep.

i'm leaving you all in charge of keeping me updated on whats going on with everyone, but until i hear from you again just know i love you, and that i love this gospel too. and even though it is hard i know that this is what i need to do and what all those people in Peru need me to do. i miss you, i love you

Sus y Dios

Elder Landon R. Welch

Thursday March 3, 2011

Hola Familia!!!
the second week is just as fast as the first, but i think i'm starting to get the hang of it.... ha ha who am i kiding as soon as i get a rythem down the send me to peru. it has been a very busy week trying to get spanish down well enough that i can actually find my way around peru when i get there.
i found out that the Peru MTC (CCM) is alot different than the provo one. i guess it consists of 4 buildings and only one of those is a living quarter. at the Provo one, on tuesdays we have something called a TRC, which is basically were we teach a lesson and have people evaluate us so we know what we need to work on. but in the Peru CCM we actually go street contacting for our TRC.
every P-day we have the opportunity to go to the Provo temple and do sealings, endowments, or washing and anointing. last week we did washing and anointing but i think to day we are going to do a session. i got the letter but i only have one of the packages, and the shoes which are amazing i might add.
spanish is coming along fine and i can really put sentences together now. but during one of our sacrament meetings i was asked to speak on repentance. and if you didn't know, our sacrament meetings are all in spanish. so i prepared a talk but instead of using the work pacados - which meens sins, i used the word pascados - which means fish. so i definatly had a impactful talk as i told the elders and hermanas to repent of their fishes. it just goes to show that even though we are still here on the lords errand, he still has a sence of humor.
i did see luke but he is in a different zone than i am so i usually only see him for a few minutes here and there. i haven't seen brodie poll yet though so i'll keep my eyes open for him.
i am really nervous to actually leave the USA, i thought for sure it would just be a big adventure. but i'm slowly realizing that it really will be a life adjustment and than everything will be different when i actually get there. even the toilets will be different :)
i love you all so much thank you for your continuous prayers
sus y dios
Elder Landon R. Welch
p.s. i can't print the emails out, :( so i just try to savor them, but i only have about 25 minutes to do it.

p.s. i think that every two months you should send me some updated pictures of the kids.... just a idea :) love you

Thursday February 24, 2010

Hola mi familia!

lo siento it has taken me so long to write you. my first week has been fast and furious and today is actually the first p-day i have actually gotten. For mom : i didn't recieve my shoes, the package or the letter. so i don't know what to expect. maybe they are on their way i don't really know. and i can only send emails to one address so i'm sending it to you so you can send it to everyone else in the family including buckners jan grant and megan. my address is:

Elder Landon Welch

MTC mailbox # 334

PER-LIMW 0419

2005 n. 900 e

provo UT 84604-1793

so i hope you have the right one.

so my companions name is elder Petersen and it is kinda ironic because he reminds me alot of daniel we have become fast friends and he is also going to Lima peru west so i look forward to getting to know him over the next few weeks. By the way my expected departure date is march 9th so mark it on your calanders.

i have also been made my districts first DL and i'm not really sure about what to think about that. i had to go to a meeting with all the spanish instuctors and being "Spanish" insturctors they spoke completely in spanish, and i understood absolutely nothing. And at one point one of the Hermanas looked at me and asked me a question and as she did the whole room went quiet and all eyes were on elder welch. All i could do was smile and nod, i was so embarassed as the room erupted with laughter. but since then i have been studying really hard and my spanish knowledge has tripled in the last week.

The food is delicious but it is very devistating to some of the elders here. it makes class interesting but we definatly need a air freshener for our class/room :)

We had a member of our branch presidency spoke to us on sunday, and he talkes about the importance of music. and i can tell you that there is nothing more amazing than +2000 misssionaries singing i believe in christ. and armies of heleman.

and on tuesday we had elder Kearon from the 70 come and speak and he really touched my heart. i had been really home sick and all he said was that god cheers on every runner. i really appreciated it it was exactly what i needed to hear.

One of my teachers , hermano Ramirez, is amazing. . . i went to a meeting with the branch presidency and after i really just wanted to be alone, so i went to my class to pray and read my scriptures. but guess who was there, HNO ramirez, and i guess he could tell i had been crying a little bit because he asked me to come in and talk. i told him how home sick i was and how stressed i was with everything that has been thrown at me. and all he said was "god has to tear us down before he can build us up." at first i was kinda angry that that was all he had to say. But the more i think about it i realize how true it is. god has to humble me before he can train me. and he has to train me before i can be the missionary he needs.

at the end of the devotional on suday we closed by singing god be with you til we meet again and i almost lost it. i miss you all so much but i know i'm where he needs me to be and where i need to be so ... god be with you til we meet again and just know you will be in my heart and in my mind. I LOVE YOU!!! kiss those kids for me and tell them i love them.

Sus y Dios

Elder Welch

Tuesday February 15, 2011

Set apart as an Elder for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

President Petersen, Elder Welch, Bishop Workman

Mom & Dad

Papa & Nana Welch

____, Carrie, Bishop Workman, Papa Welch, Elder Welch, Kirsten (Malachi)
Nana Welch, Crystal, Mom, Dad, Jeremy

Hard to believe baby Malachi will be TWO when I come home
(loved the little hug)

Elder Welch set and ready to go!