Zone Konference! Alt er stille og rolig!

 Hello everyone!

This week has been very good! We have been having a lot of activities through service and a few lessons that we are trying to plan. We had the opportunity to go up to Copenhagen for Zone Conference! We had some effective trainings and went on some Blitz Splits-- which just means we went out in the city to find some people and get to be with some different missionaries to learn and practice! Sadly everybody was getting sick a couple of days before so our time there was weird as we weren't allowed to shake anybody's hands. Overall it was fun and we had a great time with the missionaries there!

On Wednesdays we had an eating appointment in the evening and did a lot of outdoor contacting. We have had some really big success in a lot of ways and it just honestly testifies that we are being put in the right places at the right time! God provides a plan and a place for the work that He has called. The eating appointment that night was also fun and we got to eat some traditional Italian food! It was absolutely delicious!

The next two days were spent going out and finding in a variety of places  and also had service and language study with a member. It's so good to keep learning more and more Danish!! The days went by fast as we really were out for a good portion of the day!

On Saturday we took the train up to Lundby and had a good time trying to find some people there. We were able to talk to with good people and probably will have some new plans shortly as a result. The train ride there was awesome--such a beautiful part of Denmark. Truly, Denmark is really beautiful. 

Sunday was a great time as we got to go out with a member and contact some people. Even though no one was interested or home it was still so fun to talk and get to be out with him. We had an amazing time that night knocking some doors but because of the Coronation of the King not many people were interested! (Yes, Denmark has a new King!) 

Today has been amazing! We have been able to take it very slow and for our work hours we had a really exciting thing happen! We asked our friend Lena to be baptized and she said "Yes"! We talked about planning and if she had any other questions and then prayed and I just felt the strength of the spirit connecting the dots between everything! It was a really powerful, meaningful and memorable experience for me.

All in all, this week has been really good and I am very happy to have had such a blessed week! This time is flying by. This week marks 8 months of my mission. 1/3 of the way done. It has been a great decision to be here and I continue to feel blessings from above.  Thank you everyone for your prayers and your support to our work wherever you are. Vi ses! 

Love,

Elder Lines

Et nytår og Mormons Bog

Hello Everyone,

This week has been amazing and I am really thankful that I get to be here in the year of 2024 to do the Lord's work. 

This last week we have been trying to do more missionary work. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were spent doing the most normal missionary work and just planning for some future activities like service and possibly a fun board game night with the branch we are in! Much of the community was still in holiday mode so it's been slowish. Thursday was a bit of a bigger day as we went to Vordingborg to follow up with some people we have talked with before and also do some street contacting in the city. That was also the day we did our weekly planning and really put a lot of useful and important information into our area book! The work goes on in that sense and it has been super fun to get to see some big changes in those we meet with!

Friday and Saturday were absolutely amazing as we had a lot of lessons planned and got to go through with a lot of them! Meaning, there were no cancellations. We taught some members that had been inactive and did some good service to some potential friends! All in all those days were great and a good reminder that we are put in the right place at the right time as we found somebody on our way back from finding one night. We asked some questions and after some time we invited her to church and to read a Book of Mormon in Ukrainian! It was an insane experience and just really gave us a boost in our work!

Sunday was fast Sunday, and the finding that day was short, the lesson we had didn't happen but we did get to go to an eating appointment with some members and talked about the Book of Mormon reading as part of Come Follow Me! 

Today we have been able to go to Copenhagen and have some fun in the busy city! The weather has been cold, snowy and rainy so often it is freezing but through the power of layers we have been able to stay warm! We rode the subway and visited the city center, and I bought a new, very waterproof backpack since my original one wasn't as good. It's the little things!

The Book of Mormon has been a focus of my mission. I've loved reading this book. My testimony has increased as I know that Christ loves all of us enough....and like we read in 3rd Nephi, He loves all the people of the world. His appearance to the people of the Book of Mormon is really powerful. In this new year, we have the opportunity to read the Book of Mormon and to go deeper than we ever have before. I hope that we all take the opportunity to search for Christ in all the verses we read as I know that as we do that, our lives will change. 

Thank you everyone for your prayers! Prayer this week has been strong for us as we pray everyday that our friends will feel the same spirit that we do, in their own unique way. We get to see some miracles when we honestly and sincerely pray to our Heavenly Father! I am thankful for that truth that has been prevalent in my time on my mission thus far. I'm looking forward to zone conference this week in Copenhagen. 

Love,

Elder Lines

Here are some pictures of our trip in Copenhagen next to a statue, some art work, and some other scenery we have seen throughout the week! 

Vi ses!

Hav et godt nytår!

Hello Everyone,

This week there is a lot to report on! It started out of course with the end of the Christmas season. We got to go to members houses and plan a lot of activities to fill the time. I like being busy. 

For the two days after Monday we got to just do the most normal missionary work we could trying to focus on the people we talked to! We had a lot of great conversations and a lot of great spiritual discussions! All in all not much happened except going out to talk and find people. We did get to go out to dinner this week and the food, as always from Danish restaurants, was delicious! Thank you grandpa & grandma for the Christmas money!!! That was a fun, delicious treat. You know my love language!

After that we got to prepare to head up to Copenhagen on splits! We got our work done doing some service clearing out thorn bushes! That has always been a fun experience! We arrived later in the night to Copenhagen and woke up the next day to do more work.  A fun part of our splits was us getting to go around the great city and contact all we could. I think my favorite thing that happened was the blessing we gave to one of the sister missionaries in the area. She asked us to give her one so after some permission from our mission President we went along with it. We gave her a blessing and the entire time we could all feel the guidance that was being given. It is just another testament to the strength that comes from priesthood blessings. The power of God is manifested!

On Sunday, we were home after a long drive the night before. We got to have a shorter Church for the New Year and spend the evening with some new potential friends talking and playing some games. We got to have a super fun time and really teach some good. 

As of today, Monday, we have been outside doing a district campfire! We enjoyed some tomato soup, smores, and snacks whilst we played some board games. The rainy day with the campfire was definitely one of the most fun things I have done! I am very thankful to be in Denmark during this season and into the coming year.

Although the Danes are sometimes a little hard to teach,  the ones that are members have the strongest testimonies ever! They carry the work here and we are so very thankful for their support!

Thank you so much everyone for your prayers and I wish you a Happy New Year! 

Love,

Elder Lines

Glædelig Jul og et godt nytår!

Hello Everyone,

This week has been very interesting. We have had a lot of different things going on and the most of it has just been preparing for this beautiful new year! We have organized activities and planned a lot of potential work. We had the opportunity to plan out the transfer and what we are going to do! This meant that we wrote each day what we will do for the rest of the transfer which just made me see how short the time we really have is. This work continues and these two years are the least I can give for the sacrifice of Christ that we get to remember during this Christmas time!

As a small challenge for this week we gave cookies to some of our friends! Overall it brought us a lot of joy to be doing something that could just bring joy to those that could use a treat! Giving in any way brings joy to our heart and as a missionary that is even more prevalent!

Before Christmas day we got out a lot to try and find and just do the work. A lot of it wasn't successful but we also find them that are elect and ready to learn! We have had some small miracles with finding some people that were willing to talk and give us their number! We hope to be able to have some success in this area and we pray for guidance as we do it.

As of Christmas Eve, we got to go to a members house after our short sacrament meeting! We spent the entire night at their house playing games and just having a whole lot of fun! We got to dance around the Christmas tree and just have a lot of fun with the Danish family! It felt like home since I have been celebrating Danish Christmas Eve's my entire life. 

For Christmas day (Today) we got to go over and again and have fun with our district and the Johansens (The Danish family). We played board games and ate some very classic Danish food like smoked meal and smoked salmon! Overall the day was very fun and the reminder of us being missionaries still let me remember my purpose to constantly represent Christ. It's really special being a missionary at Christmas time. As this day comes to an end I get to see how thankful I am for the times to come and the times that have been. I loved chatting with my family today, and feel especially grateful for them. 

We , as missionaries, are very thankful for your prayers and we wish everybody A Merry Christmas! 

Love,

Elder Lines

The Week Before Christmas (and a very cold new year)

Hello everyone,

This week has been really good! We have had a lot of things to do that were not in our area. We had some activities for my companion's visa and some meetings with our district! Overall, the experiences this week have been special and have helped me understand the purposes of the work we do. The days are short on light and it's cold, but we are staying warm and turning on our "happy light" each evening.

We got to go and have a district meeting together which included lunch and just having some fun. We talked about the guideings of the spirit and shared some ways for us to focus more on that. We really had a good conversation and just being in person makes it a lot more personal! Our district is small, but we are mighty. 

We went to a place near Copenhagen for Elder Hacking to do a language test! It was fun to spend some time with the Danish Elder in the mission and learn some methods of contacting people! We also got to buy some good food and had an amazing lunch! It was a fun day trip. 

We have had quite a few experiences this week but one of the saddest ones was that we had to stop meeting with one of our friends because of his intentions. We realized it was necessary and made the decision to do it in person. We hope that he can change his heart and try to learn!  On a happier note...we have been able to visit and teach with a sweet lady from Peru. She is such a good person and we hope she can continue to feel the love of Christ in her life. 

As a good part of this week we also went into the new transfer! We got to see some of the new missionaries and where they were assigned! This mission is growing surely but slowly and I'm happy to see the work progressing in so many ways. We are up past 80 missionaries I think and a whole entire new zone will be opening (my area!!!). 

I feel grateful this Christmas season to be a missionary and share the good news of Jesus Christ. I feel grateful for my amazing mission companion, Elder Hacking, as well. We are a good team and it's good to be serving together. Our small branch takes good care of us and we are very blessed.

On that note everybody I thank you so much for an amazing week and we will see you next week around Christmas Time!

Love,

Elder Lines

These are pictures of the place we visited today (near a Viking graveyard and cool stone structure) along with some pictures of the 108 door we knocked in a day!

Zone Conference and Transfer Calls!

 Hello Everyone,

This week has been filled with a lot of fun and especially a lot of Christmas activities! So here are some of the big events...

The service schedule continues as we have been able to plan and go through with a bunch of different projects. We got to sand some stuff to paint, chop some firewood, and shovel some snow! All in all I have seen the joy that it brings to serve in ways that are more physical. It feels good to help.

This week we had the opportunity to go to Zone Conference! That means that we got to drive up to Copenhagen and spend the day Christmas caroling in the centrum and next to the Kristus Statue!!! It was super pretty and I will include pictures of our time there below. Another part of Zone Conference was the great company of our mission President and all the Denmark Missionaries! I got to see all the missionaries that I was with before and more. I love uniting and being together. I also got a video from home that the mission office collected from missionary families. My siblings and parents all shared qualities I have that help me as a missionary. It made me smile. 

After we arrived home from the conference we got to go to our branch Christmas party! We ate a lot of classic Danish food and partied with the Danes. We played some games and then in the end just had an amazing time! The food was delicious and I most definitely ate too much! It was sooooo good. I did have 7 helpings of the rice pudding in hopes that I would get the almond. I've been doing this tradition for years with my Grandma, so it felt like home. They hide 1-2 almonds in delicious rice pudding, if you get an almond it gives you good luck for the next year (or something along those lines). I did not get an almond. But, it was worth all the delicious rice pudding to try. 

 

An experience that particularly stood out to me was when we sang Silent Night in front of the Kristus Statue! We got to truly feel the spirit in front of an amazing depiction of the loving and embracing arms of the Savior! The moments we shared there were by far one of my favorite memories and a spirit filled experience I have had yet, and really set a wonderful tone for my Christmas season. 

My companion and I are both staying in our area for another transfer. We are both very happy about this. The work continues and we feel grateful. 

Thank you everyone for your prayers and I will see ya next week!

Love,

Elder Lines

Pictures are of Danish food and the Kristus Statue with us!

Det sneede så meget!

 Hello everyone,

This week, as the title implies, has been snowy! We have had a lot of fun getting out in the snow and we've really cracked out the winter gear to prepare for the season! We have had a few snowball fights and overall have thoroughly enjoyed this week!

We have some strong potential learners and are excited to get some work done. One of the many miracles that came with the many doors knocked and people talked to was this one family that comes from Ethiopia! They were so kind!!! The first time we came to them we brought them a Book of Mormon in their own language. We could see the joy that they felt to have a gift. Their kids were kinda crazy but in the end we hope that they can continue to learn. It was fun to be able to give them something in their native language.

We also went on splits with the Elders from Rosekilde! We performed  some service with them by taking out thorn bushes with some weird tools. Overall it worked out great and we loved the chance to serve someone in our community! We also got to go up to Vordingborg also and had a great time teaching a lesson looking out over the harbor! The lesson went great and the person we taught was super happy to receive a copy of the Book of Mormon. We hope that she can read and learn about the gospel. 

As a finishing act for this week we had something called a "Pinseuge". That means that we did nothing but speak Danish to each other the entire week. Even during the hardest times I tried to remind myself the reasons that we were doing these challenges. In the end, it went super well and I feel like my skills in Danish increased so much because of the dedication we showed!

One day this week, we went out and I just felt the spirit guide me to the right places and even though it wasn't much it was a sign to me of the surety of His guidance! It wasn't monumental in missionary success, but it felt monumental to me to feel the promptings that come from the spirit. I know this is great work. Miracles come in all shapes and sizes. Additionally, our branch president talked with us about missions and his experiences serving. It really strengthened us. It's a small branch with a big spirit. I was particularly touched with my scripture studies in Jacob 2 about seeking the kingdom of God before riches and how that adds bounteous blessings to our lives. It's one of the hardest concepts to teach, but one of the easiest things to see and feel the blessings from. 

Well, that is all for this week everybody! I look forward to the opportunity to have fun in the next week and to serve more people! I'll see y'all next time!

Love to all of you,

Elder Lines