The End of Something Great!

Hello everyone! 

This week is the week before I go home! By this day next week I will be packed and done with my mission with only two days left to go! It all seems so surreal. We have had a full fun week and are getting lots done on a random Wednesday P-day. 

This week we started out good with a hard working Tuesday! We had a lot of finding time and got to get a lot done and met many good friends..  The future of this area is looking up! It was the same on Wednesday as we had a lot to do! We ended up not going to institute on Thursday becuase we go to meet with our friend Sali! (more about that in a minute) The next few days included a bunch of appointments and some Soccer with some really cool guys from different wards! The future of Denmark youth is so positive. They are faithful, fun and kind youth. It is great to see the impact that the church has on lives. That is something we will never forget! 

One great moment in this last week was a lesson that we had with our friend (Sali)! It went very well and we had a great conversation about his future in faith. He wants to understand more and needs to take some steps to get there. He has some cool analogies but the entire time I just felt like it was gonna be okay. It was a peaceful to feel that way since we have spent a lot of time talking with him. I could feel his desire to learn and that the frienship that we have really means something! I will miss my friends. 

All in all, the days leading up to now have been filled with appointments and sharing the message of Jesus Christ and his restored Gospel. It really is our job to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. This is something that is attested by the miracles that we see. We must have high expectations and high love in order to succeed! It is an honor to share about Christ and to love others. 

Thank you everyone for the support throughout the week and for all the love that you have shared! See you all soon!

Love,

Elder Lines

Some rain and some busy schedules

Hello everyone! This week has been amazing! We have had some good times and some hard times per usual. The good times have definetely been the focus. Here is a quick update:

This week we got to participate in two service projects with members which is always uplifting! They are some cool people and the work that we did was very helpful. We are happy to serve. That was definitely a theme from conference that we really liked.

Most of the finding we have been doing has been contacting people that have referred themselves through Facebook! That meant that we had a lot of hunting to do in terms of finding where they live and whether or not they are interested.

We still had many lessons as our schedule was a little packed! We taught a lot of the beginning of the Church and, of course, Easter! We loved talking about the resurrection and especially how important we think it is. The best part of the week was definitely getting to see the progress that some of our friends have made and are making. It really is crazy to see how much someone can change in such a short period of time! I love that part of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ,

As the title states it rained a little this week and I thought it was kinda perfect! It rained on Saturday which was the day after Good Friday. Although the world seemed to cry we still had a reason to be happy and have fun! We enjoyed a long day, yet a very fun day/ We ate some good food and organized our lives a little.

One of the best spiritual things this week was definitely Zone Konference! We got to hear some good messages but also feel the power of a simple invitation. There was a cool story of a member who was given an invitation as a young kid to invite a friend to Church. That friend became a lifelong friend and devoted member! We just need to have faith and like president Nelson said in General Konference "Courage"!

For P-day we got to visit Tivoli Gardens. It was beautiful. And, when I return I want to go on one of the roller coasters!

Thank you everyone for your emails and support! We are thankful for everyone's faith throughout the world! See you all next week! 2 P-Days left! 

Love,

Elder Lines

Zone Conference

 

Smukke Blomster and Hard Work

Hello everyone! We have had an amazing week! Something special about the week has definitely been the flowers! They are extremely beautiful and we love all the vibrance that it has brought. This time of year, Denmark is gorgeous.

We had a good week and, as the title of the email states, we have had a lot of work to do! We have been getting a lot of Social Media Referrals which makes it hard to manage all the appointments that we can sometimes get. The best part of the work has definitely been getting to gain some good friends. It often feels like some people are just a little flakey but this week we met some people that are a lot more engaged. Thankfully.

We had two eating appointments this week which was amazing! One of the sisters' friends, Jasmin, who is getting baptized, came to one of them. There really are miracles happening as she referred herself to the church and has been so engaged in everything. The members here have been amazing and so helpful. I hope to be the same!

Another highlight was attending the baptism of a friend of the Elders in our district. Afterward, our friend who attended with us remarked on how quickly it happened and that no one clapped. This observation has prompted me to consider the question: Why didn't we clap? I understand his perspective and feel that clapping would express the happiness we all feel! It took me a second to think about it but my answer was as said,"Sometimes we need to be a little reverent." It sounded like an answer to a child but it is often true that sometimes we just need to be a little reverent and listen to the experience rather than react to it! We have studied a lot about Christlike poise and how we can have that in our own lives! One of the easiest methods is not always to react but to think then act. Give ourselves the second of silence or peace to think about our reaction and then apply it to the moment. We are not insulting our friend for thinking the way he did but rather reflecting on the question and trying to understand it. I just thought that that was a cool thought from the week!

Thank you everyone for your support and for the prayers! I will write again next week! 3 more emails left!  I'm working hard and staying focused. I love being a missionary.

Love,

Elder Lines

A birthday and a week of change

Hello everyone! 

This week has been quite amazing and we have had quite a few cool experiences! 

The beginning of this week started out quite amazing because it was my Birthday! I will take this time to thank all of those that have wished me a Happy Birthday!  Thank you so, so much. It really made my day and I smiled at each message I received. It was indeed an amazing day and we had a really good dinner that I will send some pictures of. Another missionary had a birthday last week as well and his out of the generosity of others, we ate at a Michelin star restraunt on our p-day. It was yummy and amazing and fancy. Places missionaries aren't around often.  We experienced some interesting food and had a good time. We then went to an escape room which was a fun change and a good way to celebrate turning 21!

The rest of this week was filled with a lot of appointment and possibilities which lead to a couple of buys days! We had a lot of new people to teach and some of the friends we are already teaching too. The best part of the week was definitely seeing the faith that these people have. It is quite amazing to see how much faith a person can have right from the first meeting. It is a breath of fresh air here in Denmark to find these people! They exist, but it takes a combination of the right time and the right words and the right person. So, it take's a miracle!

One of the major highlights for this week, other than me getting old, has been the opportunity to watch and prepare for some general conference. We have been able to hear some inspiring messages and although we have not yet heard all of the sessions, we love the messages we have been able to watch. We will watch the rest over the next few days. One of our friends commented on all the stories that are shared and says that he likes it when it is more personal. The real Gospel is not just a bunch of stories but stories that are personable, that relate to us and impact us meaningfully. I will try to always remember that and share my own stories. 

Due to conference and the many appointments that we have had it has been hard to get some finding time in which is why I will again mention the sheer mass of Social Media referrals that are coming our way! We have been receiving and responding to so many referrals that it gets hard to answer and keep in contact with all of them. We will be visiting many of them and hope to get in contact and help them come closer to God! We are praying for this! 

Thank you everyone for the support and prayers! We are looking forward to another week! 

Love, 

Elder Lines