Thursday, December 12, 2013

ein wunderschöne woche (Dec 9)

Meine Familie,
This week has been wonderful.

It was very stressful but very wonderful. Last Pday, we ran up to meet the Bruck elders on the castle, haha that sounds like a `no big deal sentence´, kinda cool I can do that. It was beautiful, I will definitely send some pictures.

This week, we had very few appointments. But they were good ones. One was with a young member- she is having a hard time. She is away from home, having problems with the language, making friends, and things that go with that. Well, as missionaries, it's not hard to relate. We were able to meet with her, form a plan, and try everything we could to help her. A miracle with her happened this week. She was able to connect with another young adult experiencing the same problems. They have really been able to help each other and they can support each other in activity. It was really a blessing what happened, helping both of them to move forward. For that, I am so grateful!

Another lesson we had was with a new convert. We taught her about the pioneers. Being something that I am very passionate about, I was very excited. We got permission to watch 17 miracles. It was an interesting experience for me as well as the new convert. Being brand new in the church and not from America, she didn't know much. In the beginning of the movie, a miracle happened, she was questioning it. However, by the end, she, let's be honest, all of us, were weeping. The miracles that these people saw were truly because of their faith. I can't believe how great they were. These members went through a lot, I couldn't even imagine. But they truly relied on God, even when family members were returning to their Father. It made me so grateful for my circumstances and my family. Also, I am going to be a really funny, romantic movie watcher when I get home... haha.

The day before we left to Munchen, was a mad rush to prepare. However, we did have time to bring by some Regnier Valentine Cookies to a couple members. :) Well, first, we stopped by a woman I sat next to in church. I didn't know much about her, but Sister Judd and I are determined to get to know these members, no matter how many! Well, she very excitingly klingeled (rang) us in. When we got up there. She was asking us to stay to whip together dinner. It was amazing how sweet she was. We didn't have time to stay. But before we left, she pointed out that bringing a treat by is something very foreign in Austria. But she appreciated the thought and was able to tell us a little bit about herself. She too served a mission in SLC Temple Square! How cool! She was also able to serve in Sister Judd's hometown! I really appreciate the fact we got to know this member better and that we were inspired to stop by her. I am glad we were able to stop by some people in the ward.

The next morning, we woke up early and left and 7 am and rode the train all the way to München. We then had a wonderful Leadership council. Well, let me tell you, it was AMAZING. We were able to talk about the mission vision and goals for next year. It was really a cool experience to be a part of. We had many discussions. Hands down, my favorite was about repentance. We talked about the people in the scriptures. When I hear of someone calling someone to repentance, it doesn't really seem very loving. But really, these prophets were trying to open the people’s eyes. No matter how rude people were, they still tried because they knew the Lord's hand is stretched out to all. Repentance is something I probably will never fully comprehend, but it's amazing. We are so lucky to have such a great blessing and continually strive to become better. I was a little nervous for the rule aspect of the conference, I have heard horror stories, but it was actually pretty great. Some people have interesting opinions, but I am grateful I can see the process and get the words from the horses, President Miles, mouth. :) I enjoyed wonderful pancakes, pulled pork sandwiches and root bear floats. Living like an American king :) One of the things I enjoyed was spending time with Sister Garrett (she happens to be the Sister Training Leader for Salzburg). Mensch, I love her. It was good to catch up and discuss what is going on in our old area now :) Well, then we boarded a train and we were home 10:45 at night the next day. What an experience.

The best part of the week happened on the ride home from München.
I need to give some background so you can fully understand the miracle. So, last week our district leader asked us to tell a miracle story at the next district meeting. We prayed to give out a BOM everyday. We did find one person that wanted one, which was great, however, that didn't end up being our story. The miracle we shared Tuesday was about ourselves and how our eyes were opened. Well, we continued shooting for a miracle story, and on Friday, it happened. On the way home, someone came up to us, a big group of missionaries traveling back to Austria. Well, at that moment, the rest of the missionaries were departing the train. Sister Judd and I stayed as we continued to travel to the wonderful city of Graz which is where he was heading too. Well, we had a wonderful conversation with this guy for two hours. And yes, we gave a BOM out. It was wonderful. The conversation was the best one I have had on my mission. It enriched my scripture study drastically for the next couple days. I thought of questions I had never thought about. Some I knew, but not the reasoning for the answer. For example, was the Holy Ghost on the earth during the apostasy? And other questions, I had honestly just never thought about. It was really great. Because I was able to bear testimony of what I know. He asked us for our conversion stories. Overall, it was just AMAZING! I am really grateful I had the opportunity to talk to him. I know Heavenly Father blessed us with this experience because we kept our devotion and were diligent with our goal.

This week went very quickly, however, I learned a lot. I learned a lot about myself, the gospel, and I felt HF love for me a lot. I am so grateful for this week! I am also excited and grateful for this next week. We made a lot of appointments, and we have a tausch (exchage) and Zone training ( wow, its going to be weird helping run the show! instead of just sit back and enjoy it haha).

I am also so grateful for my experienced companion who I am learning a lot from. She is very charitable and a really great, dedicated missionary.

We are ready to help make a difference in this beautiful town :)
I hope you have a great week! I sure did!

Liebe Gruße

Sister Regnier











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