Transfer Calls and Bible Prophesies

Friends,

TAUSCH: So every transfer the sisters exchange or tausch (Auf deutsch) with the Sister Training Leaders (STL's) to see how other missionaries work and do things and for the STL'S to see how each companionship is working. So I tausched (not a German word) with Sister Von Hacht, a native German from Hamburg. Pictures are included of course ha ha. It was fun to see some new people and to talk to her about German and she looked at my 100 phrases page and corrected it for me!!!! It was fun!!
I feel like tausching (definitely made that word up) gives you the chance to take a break from the daily routine and reevaluate your goals and how you are working with your companion. I know that it gave me a new perspective. I realized that many of my problems were me and that they often revolved around food. Yes I do not do well if I am hungry and Sister Whiting now realizes that so if we ever disagree we first decide if I am hungry and then we feed me. Most of our contention comes from that. So yup mom you were right! My mission Mom agrees with you, I just always need to have food in me. 

TRANSFER: So this topic has a few things
* Bible Prophesies * Transfer calls * District call
So first bible prophesy—it sounds apostate I know, but it’s all good intentions I promise ha ha. Okay so we do a group phone call with our district and then you have someone do your prophesy for you and through a series of narrowing down the Old Testament you get 3 verses and then they read it and prophesy. My verses were Leviticus 16:21-23 and Elder Lingen said I would be pink washing (where sisters replace elders) or in some kind of leadership like district leader (not possible because only Elders are DL's here, that I would be going to München or Switzerland with a "fit man" and be an excellent missionary.
     Second— the zone leaders call you to tell you where you are going unless you are going into a leadership position then Präsident calls. So if the phone says President Kohler you freak out. Anyway they call at 7ish and usually the longer they wait to call the higher the chance it is that President will call you. It's 7:15 and the Zone Leaders call, Sister Whiting and I are one of the few that are staying the same in the whole zone!!!
     Third—shortly after, Ellwangen (our District leader's area) calls on a group call, Elder Donald, our DL, is going to München to be a Zone leader (prophesied that—kind of just saying) and Elder Lingen is going to be in the Buro, which is exciting because then when I have questions I can know who I am talking too! (I think he will be a tablet Elder too, which means he can help me with my tablet)

VISA: I have officially submitted my VISA papers after much trouble and multiple pictures taken because they are very picky here about size and clearness. My VISA should arrive in a couple of weeks just in time too!

SERVICE: Our branch president heats with wood, so we went over and we're helping him and his wife stack wood, which made me just think about Elder Collyer, and the Jardines, and Grandma the entire time because I was thinking they would do this and that and this ha ha. It was fun! I am getting better at practicing my German at times like that klein oder groß? eins mehr?

INSPIRATIONAL SCRIPTURE: So Sister Whiting and I have quite a few people we are working with who we would like to share a daily inspiration scripture with, if you know of any please send them to me we are making a list and would love your ideas!!

MOTIVATION STORY: So the other night before bed we're talking (as always, we talk so much. Can you imagine?) and I said tomorrow at church everyone is going to come to church and then I said and guess what the biggest surprise is going to be? She said what I said B*** is going to come (He is the husband of member but is not a member himself. His son was just baptized, but he seems kind of against church, so it would be a shock if he showed up). Anyway that was just to dream big and be positive then at church he actually came!!!!!! With his whole family and stayed for all of church and the branch stepped up and fellowshipped him. Sister Whiting and I were in shock, I was glowing I was so happy!!!!!! HE CAME TO CHURCH!!!

DIRNDLS: On Sunday I also got to wear a traditional Dirndl, because Sister Whiting wanted to wear them, but I haven't bought one yet, so she let me borrow one of hers and it's authentic!! Isn't it cute!?!?!? I want to buy one but they are expensive so I am waiting until I find one I really like!!

AUF DEUTSCH? BITTE I also gave my testimony of General Conference (it was more of a talk) on Sunday in my Dirndl as well and spoke to the Primary about missionary work all Auf Deutsch!!!! (My talk was totally written out and read from but hey I wrote it myself without outside help!!! So)

DISTRIKT P-DAY: We went to Geislingen, this cute little town that is on both our cards and Göppingen's, so Ellwangen were the only ones that had to pay out of pocket. We climbed in and around a castle and bought chocolate and gummy stuff. I approved!

CHRISTMAS: I already have a place to go for Christmas. Our branch President offered already and said the early bird gets the worm, he loves English idioms, ha ha. So as long as I am here I will have somewhere to be on Christmas Day!

GENERAL CONFERENCE: DON'T FORGET TO WATCH IT!!! Here because of the time difference we watch it like all day Sunday. We watch the Woman's Session Saturday then, the two Saturday sessions on Sunday, and the morning Sunday session we watch live!!! Then we have to find time to watch the Sunday afternoon session later on, on our own time.

Helaman 5:49 "And there were about three hundred souls who saw and heard these things; and they were bidden to go forth and marvel not, neither should they doubt." Doubt your doubt before your faith. Sometimes in the midst of a trial that is the hardest thing to do, but think of Peter as if you were walking on water, do that get-scared look to the Savior and all will be made clear in due time. Sister Whiting helped me realize that this week when I tried to invite someone to be baptized and all my German ran out if my head. It was because I was scared.  NEITHER SHOULD THEY DOUBT!!!

Liebe Sister Anderson
Alpenländische Mission

 

 

Hot Chocolate and Spaghetti Eis

Freunde,

HOT CHOCOLATE: They have a hot chocolate place where they bring out hot foaming milk and a chocolate bar and you drop the chocolate bar in and use a stirrer to mix it together.

SPAGHETTI EIS: (picture below) It's literally ice cream that looks like spaghetti, it comes in lots of flavors though it's just the type of ice cream scoop they have.

CREPES: I chose to eat crepes instead because they looked really good! All the Nutella.  I have learned to love Nutella more and more on my mission!!

NEW YORK: They love New York. They have a store called the New Yorker and people are constantly wearing new York stuff or American stuff in general. It's easier to find American merchandise here than German merchandise. Also in Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof they have signs of Bahnhof's all over the world, so I naturally took a picture next to Grand Central Station.

ZONE CONFERENCE: So we had Zone Conference this past week so I that was the coolest thing ever!!! Our mission is so big geographically and covers so many countries that for zone conference it is our Zone and half of a Swiss Zone  (the half that is actually in Germany) and so I got to see some friends I haven't seen in forever!!! Like Sister Rasmussen!!!  Also it was really cool to get together with other missionaries and the Mission President and his Wife to reevaluate where we are. It was interesting President said "What is our problem as a mission? Some missions it's obedience, but what is ours?" And I was thinking motivation, but I also thought "you don't know you have only been here for 4 weeks" and then another older missionary said motivation too, and everyone agreed. It was interesting to see the Spirit work through us like that. I have come to realize that is my biggest problem as well – Motivation!! I follow the rules and do everything I am supposed to, but am I being productive all of the time or am I doing them for the right reasons? Am I motivated to please my Savior and bring others unto Him! I have really had to think about that this week!

We watched this really cool videos about when we don't put limits on ourselves we can suddenly do so much more than we think we can! That is what I am working on is putting less limits on myself both consciously and subconsciously. It was about this football team and how the quarterback didn't have faith in his team and then he had to do a dead man crawl to the 50-yard line with a teammate on his back blindfolded. And he started and he asked if he was at the 20-yard line, and his teammates were mocking him and then as he kept going his teammates were silenced and they started reverently walking over. He went the whole length of the field, and the coach said, “Look, you are in the end zone, Brock! With a 140-lb man!” And the teammate said, “Um Coach, I weigh 160!” So motivating!

Don't put limits on yourself. Put the blinders on and just go until you can't. The Lord will bless you for your efforts. Whatever is your best is good enough, but are you doing your best?

Liebe Sister Anderson
Alpenländische Mission

 

 

 

The Lord knows what you need before you do

Freunde,

PRIESTHOOD BLESSINGS: So this week was District meeting!! My companion and I have been struggling this past week, so we asked the Elders to give us a blessing. She got a comfort blessing and I got a healing blessing, but they both ended up being comfort blessings! It is amazing how we didn't really give them much information on why we needed a blessing, and yet they said the words we needed. The Spirit in the room was almost tangible! My companion and I talked about it afterwards and literally the blessing said what we needed to hear! I am so thankful to live in a time when the Priesthood is on the earth! 
https://www.lds.org/youth/ article/importance-of- priesthood-blessings?lang=eng

FRENCH INVESTIGATOR: So one of our investigators is from a French speaking part of Africa so he speaks French and German. So we teach in German, but all of the materials we give him are in French. We showed him the Restoration film in French and it was as really cool to me. I don't know why but it affirmed to me that the work is truly pressing forward and that it must be taught to people in their own tongue. That is the way Heavenly Father has it planned!  (D&C 90:11) 

STAKE CONFERENCE: Twice a year we have Stake Conference and this past weekend was Stake Conference. It was exhausting physically, intellectually, socially and spiritually. We left our apartment in the early afternoon on Saturday and then stayed with the Sister Training Leaders (STL's) that night and didn't get home until yesterday. So it was a long day and the other sisters also stayed there, so there were a lot of sisters! Then everything was in German, which was good but also difficult but somehow I learned so much. I don't know what anyone was saying – except Sister K when she spoke – but somehow I learned through the spirit. I don't think I learned what they were talking about but the Lord taught me what I needed to know, He answered some questions that had been on my mind!!! 

FAST FOOD: So they have a bunch of fast food restaurants here, like American fast food restaurants--like Subway and McDonald’s and it makes me laugh so hard. We stopped and got Subway and it made my whole day because anyone that knows me knows I love Subway. A member bought us some McDonald's and they said that the American fries were probably more like what we are used to. We tried to say that regular McDonald fries are American fries, but they didn't believe us so we got "American" fries. One thing here is they have so many "American" things, some of them really are American like American bread is white bread back home but American fries and Salad dressing are not. Ha ha.

 

Liebe Sister Anderson
Alpenländische Mission

 

I Can Speak Good English

Freunde,
DISTRIKT MEETING!: We had our first Distrikt meeting this week and it was so much fun! For those of you who don't know our mission is divided up into zones, and then districts, and then areas. So our District has 2 other sets of Elders and then our area. It's fun because half our District is new and the other half is almost done with their mission. I am a golden and my trainer is at month 10! Then we have Elder Z. who is a second transfer golden and his trainer goes home with my trainer and then the Distrikt leader is greenie busting (his companion was a golden last transfer, so basically you are a golden for 2 transfers and then you get greenie busted for 2 transfers typically and then you have been out on your mission for 6 months and you don't get a cool name) and he has 6 months left. So that was fun! Our Distrikt seems really nice!

FIRST POTENTIAL!!!!: So we had an appointment after district meeting with a less active who actually goes to another ward, but lives in our area so we did a joint lesson with the Elders and that was fun! But I was really lost because the only one who was maybe on the same page as me as far as German goes was Elder Z. And he at least has one transfer ahead of me. But it was fun and it motivated me to learn more. We were walking home and I had the urge to just keep learning the language, so I pulled out my keys and asked what they were called. We didn't know how to pluralize it so I asked a random lady (FYI der Schlüssel, die Schlüssel who knew?), and she walked with us all the way home (well we were careful not to tell her where we live), and she asked for our number!!!!!! We had another appointment with her at the end of the week!!

WORDS OF THE LIVING PROPHETS: I have come to gain a stronger testimony of the importance of listening to the prophets. So when people send me General Conference talks I download the audio and listen to it in the morning! It is so cool to follow the Spirit and listen to a talk in the morning because then I almost always refer to it either in an actual lesson or just in my mind that day. Personal Study has had the same effect! I just know how important it is for us to keep our tripod of support up (scripture study, prayer and church attendance). We fall with only 1 or 2 of these things.

Temple Dedication: So the temple was rededicated on Sunday so we got to go to the dedication at the stake center. It is amazing to know that the Lord's work is progressing! Now the temple is rededicated to the Lord, and people can go and preform those sacred ordinances again!!!

To explain the subject line of this post – I was trying to practice German, and this African started talking to us and he might of said English is good or English easy but I heard "your English is good" and I was thinking to myself I would hope so.

Pictures:

The stake building (they have English and German wards).

The sunset.

My bunny wants to be like Jesus!

My companion and I.

A memorial we found at a park where we teach some of our investigators in.

Ducks at the same park!

Liebe Sister Anderson
Alpenländische Mission

 

 

You ride in style...

Freunde,

MIDDLE OF NOWHERE: One of the days, we had very little to do as far as appointments went, so we called throughout the potentials list, and one of our potentials made an appointment with us. YEAH!!! Except he lives in the middle of nowhere. Ha ha. So we ride on a bus, just us and one other passenger for forever and then walked for forever. It was hot. My poor companion was dying. I loved it because I got to be outside! And the German countryside is so beautiful Then he wasn't even there.... But we got to walk back down and enjoy it again! The bus driver thought we were weird because we rode so far out for a very short time. We truly are a peculiar people

40 DAY FAST: We had zone training this past week, and they challenged us to a 40 Day Fast (this is not new missionary hazing). It is from this article, which is really good. Basically you fast food for 24 hours, praying to know what you need to give up in your life that is not in complete harmony with your purpose as a missionary, and as those thoughts come to your mind you write them down, and then for the next 40 days you live without those things! It helps you to reconnect, repent, refocus and draw closer to our Savior and the whole reason we are here. I encourage anyone who is struggling to take this challenge, Fast Sunday is coming up, fast for what you need to change and then for 40 days don't do those things. Your list will probably be different than mine because we have a different purpose, but I am excited to see the miracles that come from it!!

AMERICANS EVERYWHERE: So I have quickly learned that although I was called to speak German, I would probably only speak it half of the time, which makes practicing and studying it all the more important. Half of our ward is American and the refugees learned English, so with the refugees we have to speak English and with the members of our ward we kind of speak whatever they want us to speak.

FINDING: This is probably the hardest and most fun thing ever so.... I was really scared to go finding (where we go on the streets or busses or knocking on doors trying to talk to people) and Sister Whiting doesn't like it either so it took us forever to actually go do it and when we did it was hard and I think we both got really frustrated with it, but I was amazed at the faith that we showed. We said a prayer and she focused on where to go and I focused on what message they needed and I was amazed!

REFUGEES: Germany is the only country in our mission that allows refugees, so there are a lot of them. I got the opportunity to go to one of the camps (on the outside) because we are teaching a refugee and it is truly a humbling experience. April General Conference seems more pertinent now than ever before. I just wish I could sit down and hear their story, except that is not my purpose. We also are not allowed to proselyte in their camps, so we can only talk to them if we meet them on the streets.

RM VISIT: A missionary who served in Ulm about 40 years ago came back to visit with his wife and it was really cool, talking to them and they knew an exchange student who is not a member, but lives in Ulm so we were able to eat lunch with them, the exchange student, and some members, and had a really good introduction to the church. We are hoping something will come out of it. (We took the wife's wheel chair on the Straßenbahn with us because they couldn't fit it in their car with the exchange student and her boyfriend, so that is where the wheel chair pictures came in.

QUOTES/SCRIPTURES: If you have any scriptures or quotes that you find inspirational please send them to me, we are making a collection because we have some investigators we are texting daily personal touches. If you know them in German that would be cool, if not English works too.


Liebe Sister Anderson
Alpenländische Mission