Vecka 58, Injuries, Workovers in Boden, Russian Story of Alma 37:6

Beauty of Norrland 

Hej Hej!

This week has been a rollercoaster but it has been a good one! I first have to tell you all I have injured myself like 4 different times so for your enjoyment:
1. We had a service project with a member named Kaarina who is an amazing Finnish woman but afterwards we were going to the car and right by her house there is a fence that is like 3 feet high and I thought I would jump over it and I tripped right before but decided to jump anyways and it was a lame attempt.. I hit my shin and flipped and landed on my face on the concrete... she was turned around though so my dignity was kept.
2. We have an attic appartment so the ceiling slants down. I grabbed something and came up and just slammed my face on the ceiling of our apartment.. I still have a bump on my head haha.
3. I went to dunk a basketball on a hoop and after I dunked it I punched the pole and took off the skin on three of them.. and it was on my handshaking hand so I had to bandage my hand before anyone would give me a handshake #missionaryproblems.

Anyways, just thought you would want to know and dont feel bad about laughing about it my companion is definitely getting a kick out of it. In missionary work I hope that everyone is still reading the Book of Mormon because we are definitely seeing the miracles here in Umeå from using the Book of Mormon! It really does give us the answers we need and the extra we need to get through the day with the Lord´s help. One example that we have seen is with an investigator that we just taught with one of the members in the ward. Both of them are in wheelchairs and are some of the coolest people that I have ever met! But she has begun to read the Book of Mormon and she told the member friend that she believes in the book and that it has brought her closer to God than anything else that she has ever read or thought about or done. It is amazing to see how the Book of Mormon has helped us become better missionaries and also help everyone around us, our investigators, missionaries, and the members of the church here in Umeå.

Jouko, a friend of a member that we teach English invited us to lunch!!

We had a special story told to us by Kaarina actually while we were there. During the cold war years she went to Russia just to visit the church there and to see how they were doing becuase she heard from someone that they were having a rough time. She came back and got one other member to begin finding people to make donations of clothes and food that they could fill up a van with and bring to the saints there. When they left and came back someone in another charity organization asked her why she would do that, and if she realized that it was the equivalent to a drop of the water in the ocean and she asked him "what do you think the ocean is made of?" Later another member found out about this and got a ton of people together and ended up getting 19 tons of clothes and relief to help these people in Russia. She is a living example of Alma 37:6 "By small and simple things are great things brought to pass." I want you all to know that I know that is true, it is the small things that we do, the 5 minutes we give to someone else, the extra compliment, the extra mile that mean the world and make the difference. So never think that anything is ever too small because the Lord will magnify the things that we CAN do. :)

We had Julianna, an investigator who has the super cute child. She has agreed to take the steps necessary to be baptized!! It is absolutely amazing to see the people that are willing to  make these steps and to commit their lives to the newfound faith that they have recieved. I know how much it will mean to them and its amazing just to be able to extend that invitation. We taught her about the plan of salvation and as we were teaching I felt the spirit confirming to me again that the plan that he has for us is real and that it is something that we can accomplish. He made the plan so that each of us may live with Him again and as long as we follow him we will make it there. My testimony is simple but I know that God has given us a way back and I hope to never take for granted the things that God has given me.

We also went on workovers in Boden and I was with Äldste Svensson who is the swedish missionary that recieved his call in Örebro almost exactly a year ago when I was there. It was amazing to be able to work with him (his swedish is better than mine) and I learned so much from the things that he does up there. We went to go and "swing by" some people and try to talk to as many people that we could along the way. It is amazing to see the Lords hand in it. We went to this one ladies apartment but we felt prompted to walk a different way first to go and talk to a couple of guys and after we talked with them we went back and a lady was standing outside and it happened to be another person that the Elders were trying to get in contact with for awhile! She is super positive they have just never been able to swing by when she was home so they will be teaching her soon. We also set up a lesson with a blind lady who wanted to learn more, so we had to schedule a time with a translator for the next week, they have to et a video translator for that... super cool!

On Sunday we had an investigator and her baby come to church that we had just met the day before!! It was absolutely amazing to see that. She is from Eritrea and doesnt really have any family here in Sweden but she loves God and wants to come closer to him and her and her baby stayed for the entire three hours and the ward took such good care of her it was fantastic. I love to see the little miracles that the Lord allows us to see it makes everything worth it when we can see the Lord work in other peoples lives.

The work is amazing here in Umeå and if I were to say one thing that I have learned in the past little while its that I dont do anything! The only reason we see any success at all is because of the hand of the Lord in the peoples lives that we teach. I have absolutely seen that over and over and He is always there to help them and to put the right circumstances in their lives it is absolutely incredible. I know that is the same with all of us. I promise that your Heavenly Father is there in every aspect of our lives as long as we do what He has said. So if you have questions if something is actually from God like the Book of Mormon or a commandment or a part of the Plan of Salvation then ask questions, pray, read the scriptures, search... I think that Nike says it best "Just Do It" and you will find the truthfullness of the message as well :)

Älskar er!! Ha en fantastisk bra vecka!!

Äldste Israelsen
pic1 Jouko, a friend of a member that we teach English invited us to lunch!!
2 and 3 Just the beauty of Norrland