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