New Things

Rakas ystäviä,

Well, well, the week of changes actually transpired and Sisar Ross is here with me in Turku, safe and sound, and I gotta say I'm loving it! We had a really good week, if a little stressful because I'm still used to relying a lot on my trainer, so it was strange actually needing to remember to do things like call people! But Sisar Ross and I are figuring things out and getting along really well.

She came in by train Tuesday evening, and by that time Sisar Howell was almost all packed and ready to go, so she went and stayed with Sisar Owen in their apartment to catch the train in the morning. It was weird saying goodbye to her because we've been together for 4 months and you just kind of work up a routine, and then it changes suddenly. I was sad to see her go, but was also ready for a change and to not feel like I was still in training.

Summer Finally Arrived in Turku!

The week was good. Most of it involved getting Sisar Ross used to the area, but one thing that happened was helping a family move (the whole thing was arranged by one of the Elders' investigators - it was a family that lived in his building). The family was from a small country somewhere near Turkey, and they were an older couple probably in their 50s with one young daughter, like 2 years old. The daughter has some very strange, uncommon disabilities, so it was very difficult for the family to do much by themselves because the daughter needs to be monitored pretty closely. At first is was stressful and frustrating that nothing was going smoothly with the move, but as I observed the mother with her daughter, it wasn't frustrating to me anymore. That woman was the biggest example of Christlike love. She was so gentle and loving and caring and clearly could see past this child's physical imperfections to her pure spirit. As I watched, this young girl became in my eyes one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Her human body was sick and undeveloped, but her soul was clean and when she looked at me I could just feel Heavenly Father's love so strongly for this perfect young girl. It was one of the most powerful things I've ever experienced.  

Another thing that happened this week was the Renaissance market in the old town square. Medieval fairs seem to be a really big deal here in Finland for some reason, but I don't care why because I loved it! There were so many people in costume, actors, and the wares were all hand-made and so pretty and fun to look at. There were all sorts of different types of handicrafts being made on the spot too. There were paint-makers and spinners, many many food merchants (including a full pig on a spit) and even a makeshift forge! And, I may or may not have purchased an ocarina and the Evenstar. We had a great afternoon!

On Sunday evening we had some blank time, so we went out to an area and ended up spending some time with a really lovely woman who is a former investigator. She had some friends over and they were all sharing prayers and songs from their various religions. When we knocked on the door, she invited us right in and said she had actually wanted to invite us but it had slipped her mind, and it must have been the will of God that we came!  It really was such a miracle to see how the Spirit directed us there by giving us blank time, directing us to people in the area that would take us closer to her house, then giving us the idea that we should drop by even though it wasn't our original plan. We came in and joined them for a while and she pulled down her copy of the Book of Mormon for us to share out of if we wanted to. I was able to share Ether 12:4 which says, "Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God." They all really loved that passage and were very grateful we had shared it. Even though we all came from different religious backgrounds, we were able to bring all the good things we share and our faith. And while we didn't teach them out of Preach My Gospel and none of them became new investigators, we were able to touch their hearts with the truths of the Book of Mormon.

No time for sleeping!  We've got work to do!

I would love to hear about you guys! What kinds of things are you learning from the scriptures? What missionary experiences have you had recently?

I hope you are all having wonderful weeks and that all goes well for you. Stay shiny!

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Hillebrant