The Final Stretch

Rakkaat ystävät, 


Naturally, I've been thinking a lot about what has happened over the course of my mission, and it amazes me how much can happen in a year and a half.  It's funny, I never really imagined my mission ending. When you're in the middle of it all, the thought of ever not being in Finland just doesn't feel real. I still haven't quite grasped the fact that in less that 72 hours I will no longer be wearing a tag or a skirt (every day, that is) or the call of a full-time missionary.  

There are really no words that could do justice to what I have experienced. No carefully crafted sentence could explain the way I feel. All I know to say is that I have been changed. I feel like a better person. I want things now that I didn't want before. I've become a stronger and more dedicated disciple of Jesus Christ. 

The Prophet Joseph Smith spoke of the glorious news of the gospel, and then offered these words that sum it all up perfectly: 


"Now, what do we hear in the gospel which we have received? A voice of gladness! A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of truth out of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the living and the dead; glad tidings of great joy... 


"Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren; and on, on to the victory!" 


I testify for the last time as an emissary of Jesus Christ that this is His true church, the only true Church that has ever been on the earth. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself leads His Church through men that we sustain as prophets, seers, and revelators - the same organization of leadership that the Savior established anciently. This is the Kingdom of God on the earth. I know that it is through the Priesthood authority of God and through the ordinances made possible by this sacred authority that we can return to live with our Heavenly Father. He loves us. He sent His Only Begotten Son to save us. Jesus Christ is my personal Savior, and he is yours. He is my friend, and I know that whenever I call on Him, be it in hardship or happiness, He will run to me. He will weep with me and He will rejoice with me, and He will always, always love me. This is our message to the world - that Jesus is the Christ, and we are called to serve Him at all times and in all things and in all places. Shall we not go on in so great a cause? 

Stay shiny, and I'll see you on the other side.  


Rakkaudella, 


Sisar Hillebrant 

We're both leaving Tampere!!  I'm going home and Sisar Johnston is opening a new STL area.  This is us gathering up wardrobe items to donate to charity.

Enjoying a pynikki munkit in Helsinki

The burgers we made to celebrate July 4th

I'm too old to think of clever titles

Sent June 30th 2015

Rakkaat ystävät,

Great week. First of all, it has been GORGEOUS. Second of all, our week was filled with fun and miracles. 

On the fun spectrum, we went to Särkeenniemi (on P-day), which is a free admittance theme park. We got ice cream, tried mustamakkara ("black sausage" made our of rye and cow blood, or so I've heard), and went up the Näsineula (Näsi needle, a giant tower).

Panorama shot taken from the Näsineula

Mustamakkara - yum?

We did service with P and she taught us how to wash mats. The Finns have places around town where you can go to clean them. There's a setup with big wash basins, and you use heavy-duty scrub brushes and lots of soap, then roll them through this big ringer-outer thing and hang them to dry. It was super fun and the next best thing to swimming as a missionary. 

Don't tell the President - this is as much fun as swimming!

We went to Mission Leadership Conference. I love being in the mission home, and I'm going to miss being around so many missionaries. Things like this are too fun. We also did an endowment session at the temple. The best part was that our full MTC group (well almost full - Elder Parker wasn't there) was in the meeting, so we finally got photos together in front of the temple that didn't happen 16 months ago because our flights were delayed.

Cruising with the Sisaret to Leadership Conference

On our way to the Temple

At the Temple with my MTC Disrict (almost - we miss you Vahnin Parker!)

On the miracle side (I don't have time for more than one, sorry), we had a lesson with P and rescheduled her baptismal date - she messed up last week, but she knows it and is still moving forward. The biggest miracle was that she got a full time job which will start next week. Quick story about this. When I was still new in Tampere, we were really struggling to know what to do with P. We were talking with Elder J, an Area Seventy who happens to be a member in our ward, and he said that we really needed to pray and fast in faith for P. So we did. We fasted and prayed that a miracle of some kind would happen and that she would be able to stay strong against this temptation. Well, we've been seeing miracles. The thought of getting a job had never even crossed P's mind until recently, and she got in within about 3 weeks. What an answer to prayer! Now she'll be out of the house and away from her drunk husband and she will have a reason to stay sober so that she can keep her job. We're so proud of her and she is just itching to get baptized on July 25th. 

We also met a really cool guy at the door last night. I wish I could adequately describe what happened, but suffice it to say that we talked to him at the door for about 40 minutes, and never have I experienced such an intense, Spirit-filled contact. Ever. It was incredible. We're bringing him a Book of Mormon on Friday.

I'm so grateful for the Spirit in this work. Last night when we were teaching that man at his door, there were many points where all I wanted to do was whip out something sharp and bash, but I found myself testifying more powerfully than I've ever testified before and as we did so, we watched this man's countenance completely change as he went from snarky to actually interested. I felt, more than ever before, the Spirit speak through me and touch this man's heart. I know that the Lord is in this work and I know He knows who is ready, even if they may not know themselves. He loves all His children and He will show that love to them through us as we follow the Spirit. 

Be awesome and stay shiny!

Rakkaudella, 

Sisar Hillebrant

Shoes I made for my "daughter" Sisar Lafferty