SUN!

      Hello! The sun has finally shined in Germany!!! Oh my heavens, it has been SOOO long since I have seen the sun and it has been 3 days in a row! It just makes everything happy again :). The mullet for all of you who is wondering, is starting to look better, thank goodness!! Maybe its the sunshine haha.
      Anywho, this week has been a busy one! We have been back and forth from Berlin again, getting ready to move apartments, and of course meeting with peeps! This town is small, like real small but the members as I have said before are awesome. It is so fun to get to know them and hear their stories. We have a few part member families here that we have been trying to focus on. It has been awesome to see what has come of it!
      We can start with one of our investigators, Bianca. Bianca has been taught for over 2.5 yrs and acts like a member. She has a son that is 15 and got baptized a few years ago all by himself. She has 2 other children, one of which wants to be baptized too, but wants to wait and do it with her mother. Bianca, wants to be baptized but needs to get married to her boyfriend first for her to be able to do so. This week was a big week, she finally set a wedding date!! This is big time progress for her! Plus, her boyfriend, who wants nothing to do with the lessons came in on a lesson and CRIED!! Oh my heck, this is huge! Bianca was soooo happy to see him listening and feeling the spirit. I know this family can make it!
      Another story, is Schwester Sharf. We decided we would make out an appointment and try and choose a topic that would interest her nonmember husband. We decided on a talk by President Packer about the atonement. We get there and the table of tea (a german must!) was set for just the missionaries and Schwester Sharf. Her husband was sitting in his chair by the tv across the room. As we started reading the talk together, the tv turned off. Slowly, his lazy boy turned more and more until it was finally facing us. He just sat and stared. He listened to every word so intently. This was also a big deal! at church yesterday Schwester Sharf started crying as she thanked us. He apparently said he loved the talk and ask if we were coming by to visit her again soon. Awesome things are happening!
      The best part of my week came on Thursday evening! Every thursday evening we have the chance to go to Berlin for instiute. As if being able to be in a the city of Berlin isnt already great enough, someone very special was there this week! I remembered that Anna from Rostock was on vacation from school and her family lives in Berlin. I thought I would give it a shot and invite her to come. She accepted the offer and gladly attended on thursday! It was SOOOO amazing to see her! She is someone that means so much to me from Rostock. She gave me a big hug and we talked like no time had passed. She loved institute and hopefully we will be able to see her again this week there!
      English class continues to go really well! We are setting up the restaurant situation this week and the people could not be more excited! They make me pronounce everything like 5 times because they want to learn "real American English"! haha they are so cute! We also teach a mission prep class to a way awesome girl that is going to France on a mission in May. She is fluent in German and English, and is going to my dream place to speak french! Lucky Duck! It is so fun to try and teach someone else all the things that you wish you would have known before you left. For this weeks lesson she asked me how I teach Chastity. Haha thank you sorority program for helping me prepare for this one! It went really well!
      This week we also cleaned our new apartment! We officially move in on Wednesday. It is tiny!!! Oh my heck I don't even know if we will have room for a couch......this means I may be downgraded to sleeping on the floor :/. Good thing, there is only 2 more weeks of this two companion bidness! The place is really nice though! Well there are many other stories, but not enough time!
      Spiritual Thought: Why adversity? It has been said that into every life a little rain must fall, but why does it sometimes seem to pour? Why do we often face times that are unpleasant and challenging; times that may bring pain, sorrow, or heartache? Well lets first answer what are some of the causes of adversity. Some result from our own actions; others result from conditions of mortality or from causes of unseen or not yet understood. There is in fact, no effective way to comprehend or cope with all the difficulties of this life without faith in a loving Heavenly Father and without understanding of the Plan of Salvation. Perhaps the simplest way to look at difficult events in our lives is to separate them into two categories: those that occur because of our personal choices and actions and those that come from all the other events that impact our lives. We are responsible for the first.
      Afflictions have divine purposes. The Lord explained, "All those who will not endure chastening, but deny me, cannot be sanctified:" We have a choice when the Lord chastens us. We can be among those who, when faced with consequences of our actions, spurn our responsibility and turn from God and His chastening love. Or we can be like those who patiently submit, learn, and grow in righteousness. The apostle Paul taught, "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth..." That is a painful process!! ...."Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. How we deal with our challenges helps to define who we are and what we MAY become. Heavenly Father will never allow any trial to afflict our lives that will not be to our eternal good if it is properly dealt with. The Lord knows our trials. He has suffered far worse and can understand and help us through our adversities and sorrows. Our afflictions can be for our good.........if we make that choice.
      Thanks for everything!! I wish you all a fantastic week!
Sister Linford

NEW ADDRESS!!!!!!!!!
 Kirche Jesu Christi
Sister Jessica Linford
Glashütten Str. 1
15890 Eisenhüttenstadt
Germany