From Mom 1/24/2008
Dear Family,
This morning Dad and I walked to our first two appointments. It was so nice. Dad actually took off his coat for part of the time. That has to say something about the weather here right now. It’s quite a contrast from the weather in Idaho. I’m glad there are still a few weeks for things to warm up before we get there.
We’ve had a good week----a very busy week and that’s what makes it good. Monday was our district meeting. Sister Meng and I take turns bringing treats for district meeting but Sunday night when our district leader called, he said not to worry about fixing anything because the Elders had something special for us. So when the meeting ended, they said to just stay where we were and enjoy visiting and they went to the kitchen. Pretty soon things started smelling really good. They came in and put silverware and glasses on the table and then each of them carried two filled plates of food. They had fixed schnitzel, potatoes and kraut and it was really good! We were stuffed. They said it was there way of saying thanks for the treats we had brought and for the times we had paid for their meals when we’ve all gone out together. We had a feeling that a couple of them might be transferred this week and sure enough, it happened. My very favorite elder, Elder Zern is now in Austria. Elder Weixler, from Schweinfurt also went to Austria. He was a brand new missionary when he first came to our district and he really struggled. He’s very small and he was very homesick and would have done anything to go back home. But he stuck it out and has developed into a good missionary. A few weeks ago he bore his testimony and told of having such a feeling of love for the people they were teaching. Of course, he had never met them before but as he got to know them he really started developing some close feeling for them. He said when he felt these feelings, he felt he was finally getting some of the feelings a missionary should have------not so much just caring about how he was doing but really starting to care about other people. Ever since that time we’ve seen a real change in him. It’s wonderful to work with these young missionaries and feel of their spirit and their dedication to this work.
We had our meeting with the Petersons and Martina’s Jehovah Witness friend. I should say “friends”. This young woman that Martina, (Ron’s angry wife), has been studying with brought a man with her who is the Elder of the church in the congregation here. He announced right up front that we were not here to argue but to share beliefs. Dad did a wonderful job. All his studying the past two weeks paid off. Their beliefs are so different. They think that all the trouble and things wrong in the world are because Adam and Eve partook of the fruit. We tried to talk to them about what would have happened had they not partaken but it was useless to try. When you ask what they believe about where we were before we were born they have no idea and they believe that when you die, that’s it. And when you die all your sins are taken away regardless of what you’ve done and that there is nothing more, but in the same breath they talk about the thousand years after you die that you will have to learn the gospel. The Bible is their one and only source of scripture and anything in addition to it is not from God. How thankful I am for the scriptures we have that explain so many things so clearly. It was an interesting visit----exhausting but interesting. Martina went off on us a couple of times but both of her friends told her to calm down and not be so critical. She didn’t have to believe what we believed but she should at least be respectful to us. That was nice. She gets pretty excited and says some pretty ugly things. My personal prayer before we left to see them was that I would be able to control my feelings and keep my mouth shut! And I did a pretty good job. As I said, Dad really knows his scriptures and did a great job explaining things. When we were driving home we both commented that the young woman who was there just seemed like she would have liked to know more about what we believe. Maybe a seed was planted. That remains to be seen. I wouldn’t mind if we didn’t have another meeting like that one! It will be interesting to talk to Ron and see what was said when we left.
We visited with Alicia Antivo on Tuesday. She is married to a non-member. We taught him one time but he hasn’t been there the last couple of times we’ve gone. He’s trying to find a job and was gone on job interviews both times we have been there. We had a really nice visit with Alicia. She hasn’t been active for a long time so we started from the first and talked about the first vision and what Joseph Smith learned about the Godhead and about God and Jesus Christ. She had a lot of questions-------not that she questioned what we were teaching but just a lot of basic questions about the church that she had just forgotten. When we were ready to leave she commented that she wish we could stay with her for half a day because she loved the feelings she had when we talk with her about the gospel. She is such a neat lady. How we hope she will want to get active in the church again. And her husband is just a super nice guy too. He had worked as a manager for a cleaning company for several years and one day they announced that they were selling the company and he was out of a job.
Three of the inactive people we’ve been working with have said they would be in church on Sunday. We’ll see what happens. We’re really concerned about what is going to happen to this ward when all the American military people are gone. There just won’t be many left. We need to get these inactive members active again!! We have been told that some of the German people really resented the Americans. Hopefully when the Americans are gone some of those will want to come back. It’s a slow, discouraging job. There are so many wonderful people but they just aren’t that interested in church. As we talked to the other couples at the conference last week, they all said pretty much the same thing---that people have so much and just don’t feel a need for religion in their lives. It kind of frightens me to think what might have to happen to get their attention.
President Rakow said that a German couple would be coming to this mission near the end of February and right now he is thinking that he will have them come here to replace us. He said he hasn’t talked to them yet and doesn’t know much about them but that is what he is thinking right now. That would be so good for this ward.
It has been a short week since I wrote on Sunday and told you all about the couple’s conference so I don’t have a lot more to say. Just know how much we love you and how much we are looking forward to being with all of you again. The gospel is true. We should be so very thankful for it and work every day to keep our testimonies strong. That is what is going to get us through whatever this life throws at us.
Much love,
Mom
This morning Dad and I walked to our first two appointments. It was so nice. Dad actually took off his coat for part of the time. That has to say something about the weather here right now. It’s quite a contrast from the weather in Idaho. I’m glad there are still a few weeks for things to warm up before we get there.
We’ve had a good week----a very busy week and that’s what makes it good. Monday was our district meeting. Sister Meng and I take turns bringing treats for district meeting but Sunday night when our district leader called, he said not to worry about fixing anything because the Elders had something special for us. So when the meeting ended, they said to just stay where we were and enjoy visiting and they went to the kitchen. Pretty soon things started smelling really good. They came in and put silverware and glasses on the table and then each of them carried two filled plates of food. They had fixed schnitzel, potatoes and kraut and it was really good! We were stuffed. They said it was there way of saying thanks for the treats we had brought and for the times we had paid for their meals when we’ve all gone out together. We had a feeling that a couple of them might be transferred this week and sure enough, it happened. My very favorite elder, Elder Zern is now in Austria. Elder Weixler, from Schweinfurt also went to Austria. He was a brand new missionary when he first came to our district and he really struggled. He’s very small and he was very homesick and would have done anything to go back home. But he stuck it out and has developed into a good missionary. A few weeks ago he bore his testimony and told of having such a feeling of love for the people they were teaching. Of course, he had never met them before but as he got to know them he really started developing some close feeling for them. He said when he felt these feelings, he felt he was finally getting some of the feelings a missionary should have------not so much just caring about how he was doing but really starting to care about other people. Ever since that time we’ve seen a real change in him. It’s wonderful to work with these young missionaries and feel of their spirit and their dedication to this work.
We had our meeting with the Petersons and Martina’s Jehovah Witness friend. I should say “friends”. This young woman that Martina, (Ron’s angry wife), has been studying with brought a man with her who is the Elder of the church in the congregation here. He announced right up front that we were not here to argue but to share beliefs. Dad did a wonderful job. All his studying the past two weeks paid off. Their beliefs are so different. They think that all the trouble and things wrong in the world are because Adam and Eve partook of the fruit. We tried to talk to them about what would have happened had they not partaken but it was useless to try. When you ask what they believe about where we were before we were born they have no idea and they believe that when you die, that’s it. And when you die all your sins are taken away regardless of what you’ve done and that there is nothing more, but in the same breath they talk about the thousand years after you die that you will have to learn the gospel. The Bible is their one and only source of scripture and anything in addition to it is not from God. How thankful I am for the scriptures we have that explain so many things so clearly. It was an interesting visit----exhausting but interesting. Martina went off on us a couple of times but both of her friends told her to calm down and not be so critical. She didn’t have to believe what we believed but she should at least be respectful to us. That was nice. She gets pretty excited and says some pretty ugly things. My personal prayer before we left to see them was that I would be able to control my feelings and keep my mouth shut! And I did a pretty good job. As I said, Dad really knows his scriptures and did a great job explaining things. When we were driving home we both commented that the young woman who was there just seemed like she would have liked to know more about what we believe. Maybe a seed was planted. That remains to be seen. I wouldn’t mind if we didn’t have another meeting like that one! It will be interesting to talk to Ron and see what was said when we left.
We visited with Alicia Antivo on Tuesday. She is married to a non-member. We taught him one time but he hasn’t been there the last couple of times we’ve gone. He’s trying to find a job and was gone on job interviews both times we have been there. We had a really nice visit with Alicia. She hasn’t been active for a long time so we started from the first and talked about the first vision and what Joseph Smith learned about the Godhead and about God and Jesus Christ. She had a lot of questions-------not that she questioned what we were teaching but just a lot of basic questions about the church that she had just forgotten. When we were ready to leave she commented that she wish we could stay with her for half a day because she loved the feelings she had when we talk with her about the gospel. She is such a neat lady. How we hope she will want to get active in the church again. And her husband is just a super nice guy too. He had worked as a manager for a cleaning company for several years and one day they announced that they were selling the company and he was out of a job.
Three of the inactive people we’ve been working with have said they would be in church on Sunday. We’ll see what happens. We’re really concerned about what is going to happen to this ward when all the American military people are gone. There just won’t be many left. We need to get these inactive members active again!! We have been told that some of the German people really resented the Americans. Hopefully when the Americans are gone some of those will want to come back. It’s a slow, discouraging job. There are so many wonderful people but they just aren’t that interested in church. As we talked to the other couples at the conference last week, they all said pretty much the same thing---that people have so much and just don’t feel a need for religion in their lives. It kind of frightens me to think what might have to happen to get their attention.
President Rakow said that a German couple would be coming to this mission near the end of February and right now he is thinking that he will have them come here to replace us. He said he hasn’t talked to them yet and doesn’t know much about them but that is what he is thinking right now. That would be so good for this ward.
It has been a short week since I wrote on Sunday and told you all about the couple’s conference so I don’t have a lot more to say. Just know how much we love you and how much we are looking forward to being with all of you again. The gospel is true. We should be so very thankful for it and work every day to keep our testimonies strong. That is what is going to get us through whatever this life throws at us.
Much love,
Mom
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