Bolivian Thanksgiving, Baptism of the Familia Alvarado

 Baptism of Isabelle and Nathan

Hello friends and Family!

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! What a great time of the year that we have to reflect on all that the Lord has given us, and take a moment to be thankful for it all. We didn’t have much planned to celebrate, but at the end of the day, we got together as a District and went and got some dinner together and shared some of the things we are thankful for. Among the things shared, some were their Companions, Families, but one of the most common things shared was for Jesus Christ and his Atonement. God be thanked for the matchless gift of His Son! It was a great way to begin to remember the Savior and His birth at the beginning of this Christmas season.

So, this week was very much centered on the Familia Alvarado, whose baptism was this Saturday. On Tuesday, in preparation for their baptismal interviews, we did a practice interview, accompanied by our Ward mission leader, the young men's president, and one of the counselors in the Relief Society presidency along with the secretary of the Relief Society as well. As we sometimes say here in Bolivia, "Trajimos todo el ejercito", or, "We brought the whole army". As we reviewed each one of the questions, each one of the leaders of our ward shared their personal testimonies of the blessings that each principle of the Gospel gives us. Really spiritual lesson, and it prepared them perfectly for their interviews, which they passed with flying colors on Friday, the day before their baptism.

On Saturday, we began the preparations for the service, we went in the morning to clean the chapel a little, prepare the chairs, and fill up the baptismal font. The font filled up about halfway, and then (I guess Satan didn’t want us to have a baptism this week) the water pressure just completely shut off and the font stopped filling up. Well, each day brings its own trial, but we just have to find a way to overcome it. We got two buckets out, and found one of the faucets that still had pressure, and spent the next few hours filling up the rest of the font with only two buckets and a small faucet with next to no water pressure. But we got everything all ready on time!

We had a great baptismal service. Isabel and Nathan were both so prepared to take this step, we as missionaries just had to find them. They progressed so quickly, and there was a tender spirit felt as each of them entered into the waters of baptism, accepting Christ's atoning sacrifice in their lives, and again on Sunday as they were confirmed members of the Restored Church of Jesus Christ and received the gift of the Holy Ghost. I’m so very grateful for the blessing the Lord has given me, the opportunity to be here in Cortez, this brand new ward here in Santa Cruz, and help amazing people like Isabel and Nathan find the truth. The members here are super super excited, Isabel and Nathan are the first convert baptisms in the history of the ward, and I am excited to see that energy keep moving forward to help the work keep advancing here in Cortez!

What a great week, and the icing on the cake, getting on my email today, and finding out that the streak continues, Go Utes!

I hope you all have a great week! Give these scriptures a look :)

Mosiah 8:18
Micah 7:7
Deuteronomy 18:13
John 6:20

Love you all tons! Thanks for the continued prayers and support!

Love, Elder Newman

Dad, wow, talk about a comeback!! and what an amazing experience to know that Callie was getting baptized the very same time that the Familia Alvarado was! What a great week :) Love you Dad!!

Mom, What a great week, full of family for thanksgiving, time with Emma, Callie's baptism, and the Jazz game!  Love you Mom, hope you have a great week!!!

Sarah, I bet it was nice to only have a couple of days of school. What a cool experience to and have third row seats. You are right, #itsgreattobe8 Go utes!! Love you Bear!!

Callie, Awesome that you got baptized this week! I’m so happy for you Callie :) Chapter 8, that’s awesome, you are reading super fast! We'll have to read together when I get home :) Love you Callie, so so proud of you :)

Mom’s Questions:
1. You mentioned that you will have your mini missionary until Nov. 28th. Do you know who your new comp will be? Will he be another mini missionary and how long will you have him?

I don’t think its another mini missionary, but I have no idea for how long it will be.

2. How was the baptism? How many from the family were baptized? 

It was fantastic :) 2 of them were baptized.

3. What are you learning from your different comps you have had this transfer? How is it helping you to be a better leader? 

What I have learned is that there is no one set way to do missionary work, and you have to accept all approaches! Also with being with new missionaries and mini missionaries, I have to do a lot of teaching, so its helped me perfect some of the techniques of teaching.

4. Who in your ward is helpful in missionary work? 

Our Bishop and Ward Mission leader, relief society as well, pretty much everyone is pretty excited and involved right now!!

5. What was your favorite scripture this week? 

John 6:20

Sonless Father.

 Me and Elder Lewis before he went home

Hello Friends and Family!!!!

Well, unfortunately this past week Elder Lewis returned home to continue recovering from his operation. He was a huge example to me of pressing forward in the midst of difficulties. Even though he was going through so many challenges, he pressed on doing what he could. I admire him a lot for doing everything he could, and I wish him the best in his recovery and return to missionary work when he has recovered.

This coming week, we have the baptism of the Familia Alvarado! In help of their preparation, we went to the baptism of Hermano Cruz's (my mini missionary) sister so they could see what baptism was like. They loved it, and yesterday we had a great appointment with them, setting up all times for their interviews and baptismal service this coming week! I’m very excited for this family, they are so excited for this weekend and to receive the promised blessings from our Heavenly Father for entering into this covenant with him. I know the Lord puts prepared people in our path as we search them out!

So my new companion is Hermano Cruz, he is a recent convert, he was baptized about 5 months ago, and he will be with me until November 28th. We are going to take advantage of the time we have together until I receive my FOURTH companion of the transfer. I can’t believe how this transfer has gone, it’s been super crazy, but it’s definitely been an adventure!

Hope you have all had a great week! We are going to keep working hard, but hope you all have an excellent week this coming week! Enjoy Thanksgiving!!

Love, Elder Christian Newman

Mom, sounds like a very eventful week! Keep going strong on your Pathways classes!! The Primary Program sure sounds like it went really well! Have a great Thanksgiving, and Callie's Baptism this weekend! Love you Mom :)

Dad, wow, busy week with the trip in London, tithing settlements and THE UTES GOING TO THE PAC 12 CHAMPIONSHIP!!! I’m a happy man right now, haha. Have a great week this week, Love you Dad!!

Jackson, sounds like you had a fantastic and productive week!! Have a great Thanksgiving break! Good luck on your midterms!! Love you Bro!!

Emma, ok whoa, that’s crazy how time has flown... Sounds like a great week Emma, full of ups and downs, but that’s how life is. Love you sis, have a great week!!

Sarah, sounds like a great week!! Good job on the win, and good luck in your Ballroom competition! That’s super cool that you are getting your braces off! Love you sis!!

Callie! hope you had a great time at Disney on Ice!! That’s so cool that you got your scriptures and other super cool presents!! Love you Sis, have a great week,especially in your baptism this Saturday!!:)


Mom’s Questions:

1. Did Elder Lewis make it off ok and who is your new companion? 

Elder Lewis made it off good, and my new companion is Hermano Cruz

2. Is your new companion a native missionary and how long has he served? 

He is a mini missionary. He is super cool, he was baptized 5 months ago, so it’s super cool that he is out here!

3. How was church? What was your favorite part of church this week? 

We had a great Gospel Principles class, I got to teach about Christ, our chosen leader and redeemer, which was really fun.

4. How are your investigators coming along? 

Familia Alvarado is going great! Baptism this coming weekend:)

5. What was the hardest thing you did this week? 

Say goodbye to Elder Lewis

"Glory to God"

 Elder Lewis and Elder Newman

Hello friends and Family!!

Hope you all had a great week!! It was kind of a long week for me, but we still had some good successes! We'll get right to it!

So, with Elder Lewis still getting recovered from his surgery, we haven’t been able to get out and work nearly as much as I would have like to. I’ve been really appreciative of him putting in as effort as much as he could this week. We have gotten out to a couple of appointments with some of our progressing investigators which was really good!

We had a really good cita with the Familia Alvarado, we taught them about the Plan of Salvation, and they understood it really well. When we finished up, we asked if they had any questions. They asked us about what happened to the people who weren’t baptized, if they would be able to return to the presence of God and Jesus Christ in the Celestial Kingdom. We smiled, and explained that though God is a just being and holds us accountable for our actions, but that He is also perfectly merciful to those who don’t have the chance to accept the Gospel and be baptized during their earthly life. We talked about how the Lord ministered in the Spirit World and that the people there are receiving the Gospel, and that here in holy places called Temples we have the opportunity to perform baptisms for them. We asked them if they had family members that had died without the opportunity to receive the Gospel, to which they responded that their Mom had recently passed away. We testified that she is receiving the Gospel right now, and that after Isabel is baptized, she will be able to go to the Temple and be baptized for her mother. She smiled and simply said, "Gloria a Dios", or, "Glory to God".

I feel so grateful for the opportunity that I have to testify of God's great plan that He has for each and every one of us! There are so many people that dont have the knowledge of what God has prepared for us, and seeing that light in their eyes, how their countenance just changes when they recognize these truths that they learned in the pre-mortal life and are now remembering again. I love being a missionary!!!!!

We are going to keep doing what we can this week, I hope Elder Lewis starts to feel better so we can get out and work a little bit more this week. As he has been resting, I’ve had lots of down time to study the scriptures and Jesus the Christ. Here are some of my favorites from this week!! :)

Hebrews 5:8-9
1 John 5:5
and Ephesians 5:8

Go give them a look!

Love you all tons! Have a great week!!!

Love Elder Newman

Dad, wow! That’s awesome that Jenna is heading out to the mission field! She’s going to be an excellent missionary! What an awesome list of things you are grateful for. :) Love you tons dad!!

Mom, that’s so awesome that you got to spend some time with the girls at the football game and celebrate Callie's birthday eating some Sonic. ;) Love you Mom, have a great week!!

Jackson, have a great blind date dude, and have an excellent week my dude! That’s a really cool perspective that you heard! I’ll be sure to look that up in my studies this week! Love you Jackson!!

Emma, That makes me so happy that you were able to go to the game and spend some time with your team! Enjoy seminary with Brother Siebert, that will be super awesome!! Love you Emma!!

Sarah, lots of practices!! That's awesome! 2 and a half hours of soccer is a lot!! Love you Sarah, have a great week!

Callie! Hope you had a great Birthday, sounds like some cool presents!! Good luck in your primary program!! Love you Callie!!

Mom’s Questions:
1. You said you are on the outskirts of Santa Cruz. How far are you from the mission offices?

 about 30 minutes.

2. Is your comp starting to feel better? Are you able to go out and find investigators? 

We were able to go and teach some of the set appointments, but not alot more.

3. What is your comp’s personality like? Is he reserved, funny, or what? 

Really funny and outgoing, we get along really well.

4. Do you have a pensionista in your new area? Does she cook and do laundry? Or are you still washing clothes by hand? 

She just cooks for us, but there is another member that washes my clothes, so bless up, Im not washing my clothes by hand right now.

5. What is your apartment like? 

Its big, and no AC, so it gets really hot in there, haha.

Mud and Mosquitos

 Last pics from Tarija

Hello Friends and Family!!!

Before I get into the update of this week, I wanted to take a quick second and wish a very Happy Birthday to my little sister Callie!!!! This Thursday, she turns eight years old, I cant believe how much she has grown, and I’m very excited to hear about her baptism here in a couple weeks!:)

Well, while Elder Lewis (my new companion) was recovering from his operation, he was with the Office elders for the week, and I was working a mini missionary named Hermano Olortegui. He is preparing to serve a mission, so he was very excited to have the chance to get out and work and serve as a missionary :). We worked really hard this week, finding lots of new people to teach, and teaching and preaching and working like missionaries do.

One of the families that we found this past week really got me excited! They are the Familia Alvarado, their names are Isabel, Nathan, Gisel, and Jorlyn. We found them on Wednesday, and the very next day, they accepted a baptismal date!! They told us, "Don’t worry Elder, we want to be baptized!" I don’t think there is anything better in the world for a missionary than those very words!! They even came to church on Sunday!

This past week, I finished the Book of Mormon again :) Everytime I finish, my testimony is strengthened of the divinity of that sacred book. I know it to be the word of God, and that as we apply its principles, doctrines and commandments, we will be blessed, and we will have the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and all the blessings the Father has prepared for us.

Have a great week everyone! Love you all, keep the faith!!!!

Love, Elder Christian Newman

Dad, That’s so awesome that the PG is headed to the Semis!! and super awesome that Barts team won the superbowl again! Love you Dad, have a great week!!

Mom, well, now that you have your candy all finished up, you guys can get back to normal haha! What a great study mom, I’ve just started studying Jesus the Christ again, so I’ll be sure to share my studies with you:) Love you Mom!!

Jackson, I hope you had a great week man! Hope your midterms and homework/college life are going well!! Love you brother!!

Emma, Sounds like there were some pretty awesome Halloween costumes!! That’s awesome that you have someone to quote vines with, and that you got to go spend some time with Mom and Sarah and Callie! Love you Sis!!

Sarah, what an awesome costume!!! That’s so cool that they got the fog machine and went all out! Love you Sarah, nice job in your games!!

Callie, Nice job on the trick or treating!! I loved seeing your costume! Good luck in your Primary program, and happy birthday this coming week!! Love you Sis!!

Mom’s Questions:
1. Tell us three things about your new companion? Is his health improved from the kidney stones? 

He is still getting better, we are going to work and do what we can, but he still recuperating. He is from Gilbert Arizona, and is the second youngest in his family:)

2. What is the ward like? How many members? How was your first Sunday and church meetings?

there are about 100 members, its a very new ward, but it’s looking like they are very suppòrtive!

3. How are you going about finding investigators in this new area? 

Mostly knocking doors, but we are going to offer an English class soon here:)

4. What is city you live in like? Is it Santa Cruz or a smaller city outside of Santa Cruz? 

We live on the very outskirts of Santa Cruz:)

Opening another area!!!

 Saying goodbye to Tarija again!

 Last week's pday hike

Hello friends and family!!

Going to be a quick email, due to the fact that I have been transferred yet again! But I just wanted to start out by saying a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MOM TODAY, and also to my BROTHER JACKSON tomorrow! I hope you have great birthdays today and tomorrow!!

This past week, we had multizone conference, and we were having some great instructions from our mission leadership! We talked about commitments, and the importance of helping our investigators understand doctrine, being clear in our invitations, and promising blessings. And after, President told us that we not only had to invite, but also prepare the way for the people to teach to complete with their commitments. We then did lots of practice demonstrations, in which Elder Archer and I were selected to teach President Rodriguez and his wife the law of Chastity and invite them to be married, and help them find ways to get married and be baptized. It was definitely interesting to teach that in front of a conference of over 50 missionaries, but definitely a story I won’t be forgetting any time soon!! We also had a musical number, where Elder Archer, Elder Jorgensen, myself and Hermana Murdock and Hermana Eyestone did a rendition of "Savior, Redeemer of my soul", which went really well!!

I spent the last half of the week pretty sick, so that was kind of a bummer, with two days unable to leave the house, but thank goodness by Saturday and Sunday I was healthy and able to work! :)

Well, I received the notice that I will be opening another area here in Santa Cruz!! A new ward was created in Zona Abundancia, and I will be one of the first missionaries to set foot in this ward! I’m really excited, we'll see what the Lord has prepared for us!

All the best! Have a great Halloween and keep the faith!!!

Elder Newman

Dad, busy week, BUT that’s super awesome that the PG boys got the W!!!! And way to go for Bart's team! He is a great coach! Love you dad!!!

Mom, wow, what a fun week! Sounds like it was really busy, but a fun uplifting week! Thank you for sharing your studies of the scriptures Mom, I hope you have had a great Birthday! Love you mom!!

Jackson, thank you for your rendition of the game, almost feels like I was there! Sounds like some fun dates as well! Love you Jackson, have a great birthday tomorrow!!

Sarah, Show these suckaz how to play this game!!!! Nice job in your game, and in almost getting a yellow card ;) Love you Bear!!

Callie, That’s so exciting that your birthday is in a week and that you will be eight!! Nachos and water at the football game? excellent choice:) Love you Callie!!

Emma, Maynester!! Umm, thats wild that you are sleep talking, I’ve defs had comps that sleep talk before haha. Enjoy the Newfoundlands!! Love you Emma!!

Mom’s Questions:

1. Is it transfer week? Will you be losing anyone in your district? 


Yeah, myself :)


2. How are the Velasco family doing? Still progressing? 


They are still doing awesome! They were traveling, but should get back soon


3. How are you and your companion similar and different? 


I’m tall, he was short, but we both get along great and love laughing tons!


4. How many investigators do you have right now? 


Right now like 12 (in 4 de Julio) and 0 in Cortez (my new area), We'll be working really hard this transfer!!