Hallo! I hope everyone is doing just freaking fantastic! Thank you for
all the amazing emails and letters, they really give me such a boost out here!
And if you didn’t send me an email, why the heck not? Just kidding :)!!! I
would love to hear about all of your lives though, even just a sentence update!
Whoooo, this week has been CRAZY. So many emotions …Dealing with a companion
who is leaving and struggling with it, SO many appointments, lots of traveling,
and transfer calls. I don’t even know where to begin because I wasn’t even able
to write in my journal this week! But let’s dive in, so much to tell!
So last Monday I was a tad ready for it....crazy. (you are going to hear this
word a lot, consider this your warning!) Because we had plans to go to the temple
on Friday we only had a half P-day. The highlight of Monday was our appointment
with Melanie. Melanie is an investigator I have talked a lot about. She is 18
and had a baptismal date in June, but couldn’t get the guts up to tell her
family so it was cancelled. We haven’t even really brought up baptism since,
because she said she didn’t want any pressure. Well last Monday I fasted to
know what direction to go with her next. I was lead to 2 talks that were given
at a young women’s conference, We read them and they hit her so hard. They were
perfect. The spirit was so strong. It went silent for a while and the familiar
pounding in my heart began. I knew I needed to say something about baptism
again for the first time in months. I looked at her and said, "It's time
isn't it?" She sat there for a few seconds, then a huge smile accompanied
by watery eyes, was preceded by her confirmation, "I'm ready." Oh
man, the joy! I have spent 4 months working with Melanie nearly twice a week.
She is incredible and I am so happy that she is ready to enter the waters of
baptism again!
The rest of the week was SO busy with appointments, which felt so good! It was
just like my first transfer when we were booked out the whole week before the
week even started! We had some incredible appointments! We have some seriously
solid investigators right now. Zerritt is a African student who is as we like
to call on the mission, "Golden"! With school being on break right
now we have been able to meet a lot with the students we have been really
excited about the last few transfers. Zerrit is one of them who is progressing
very quickly and loving everything we are teaching him. Look out for him on the
baptism list very very soon! We also have Barbara who is an older woman. She is incredibly
intelligent when it comes to religion and has spent years studying all
different ones. She is very open to everything we have to teach her and said
that she has really felt the difference with what we are teaching her compared
to everything else she has studied. Plus, she is one of the only people I have
had on my mission where we teach in German! I love it because it helps my
German improve.
Friday I got to go the temple!! It was so crazy amazing!! (I just had to, I
promised it would be used a lot haha) Oh how I love the temple! I am going to
be so sad when I move out of the zone that is able to go. I had a neat
experience in the temple. I was sitting there and the spirit just hit me so
strong. I was able to sit there thinking very clearly of things in an eternal
perspective. I started thinking of my priorities and how adjustments can be
made so that it fits better into the eternal view of things......which is
really the only thing that matters. It was a time of enlightenment that I am
very grateful for. Nothing new was thought up, just an organization of many
thoughts colliding together at the perfect moment to help me gain more
direction. Don’t you just love when that happens? When simple things come
together and give you an ah-ha moment? Oh it is wonderful!
Well Saturday rolled around and I have been waiting for this day for 6 weeks!
TRANSFER CALLS! My district all got together and did a big breakfast and called
in to the big conference call all together. We had about an hour all together
before the conference call started. We all talked about our predictions
and how our district was going to change. Everyone was talking about who would
be the lucky sister to come join me in Dresden. We all knew that there was
going to be a sisters city closed down because one of the sisters couldn’t hack
it in the MTC and went home early, which put us with two few of sisters. That
also meant there was going to be what we call here in Germany, a dritt (3
sisters that are serving as companions together). So lots of different scenarios
were discussed. The excitement and anxiety grew in the room the more we talked
about it and the closer the time came to the call. I felt pretty relaxed and at
ease. I was confident in my predictions and I was about to find out who my new
amazing comp was. Calls started and they got to my zone….then to my district.
They listed the Zone leaders. One of the elders I was with got transferred to
Berlin and was stoked. Then to the elders, they stayed the same. The Meissen
sisters stayed the same and are training a new missionary. We all were jumping
up and down together when we heard this; so excited that there would be 5
sisters in one district. But......Dresden sisters were never read. I
immediately felt sick. I dropped the notebook I was holding and said, "They
closed us! They freaking closed Dresden!!!" Everyone in the room
objected to this saying they would never close the sisters in Dresden, he just
will read it later! The room was silent. We waiting as another 40 names were
read to finish our zone......nothing. I felt like I had been punched. Everyone
was so confused and saying he just forgot, it happens when he has to read over
200 names, don’t worry. But I knew. Finally at the very end of the phone call,
the last names to be read......"Rostock sisters!! Sister Nielson and
Sister Linford!" It was all too true. Dresden sisters were closed. I was
horrified. President knew I would be, and called me right after the conference
call to give me further instruction. He said that this was the hardest thing he
has been faced with yet. He was so frustrated and had no idea what to do. He
said that he only found out that the sister wouldn’t be coming recently. The
plan is that Meissen sisters will split their time between Dresden and Meissen.
They will live in Dresden and take al of our investigator until next transfer
where more sisters are coming in and we will be able to re-open Dresden
Sisters. Holy Moses, this whole thing was a blind hit. I was told so many
times, you are for sure staying in Dresden because your companion is going
home. It sounds so silly that it was such a big deal to me, but it completely
caught me off guard. I love Dresden with all of my heart. This is my first city
and having to try and say goodbye to all the people that I have given all my
time for the last 4 months has been more difficult than I ever thought. It has
also been INCREDIBLY stressful to get every single one of our contacts and
investigators ready to explain to the Meissen sisters in a 2 hour meeting we
have later tonight. Yep, 4 months of work has to be explained in a few hours. I
have gone through and put a posted notes explaining each person on over 40
information papers. We have planned the next lesson to all of our investigators
since they have no idea who they are or where they are at. I ache out of fear
that these people I love will fall through the cracks. I never in a million
years thought that Dresden, one of the busiest and biggest cities in our
mission would get what we call "White Washed". It is just for a
transfer though. I have to keep reminding myself of that. There is a chance
that I will get sent back her after a transfer as well to help re-open the area
since I know it best.
I don’t want anyone to think I am bummed about Rostock. I am just worried for
my investigators is all. I am also nervous to leave Dresden. Everything of what
I know of a mission, rests here in this beautiful city. However, I am STOKED
for Rostock. It will be such a big change! I am going from a ward with well
over 100 people to a branch of just 15 people :). Whooo, this will be an
adjustment! Rostock is right on the cost at the Northern part of Germany. It
helps ease the pain of leaving Dresden knowing that I am going to a place full
of beaches! It is a big tourist area apparently, so there are lots of fun things
to do. PLus, I am serving with Sister Nielson!! SO STOKED! She is amazing! All
of her companions absolutely love her! She is from New York and went to UVU
before her mission. She only has two transfers left, so I may be sending her
home as well. She is SUPER sweet and loves to laugh :). We got along extremely
well the times that we have had together so far. I cant wait to really work
hard with her in Rostock. I get on a 7 hour train ride tomorrow morning to see
my new place of residence!
Yesterday was amazing. The love I have received from all the members and the
people I have taught is unreals. It almost brings tears to my eyes. Sometimes
you dont know if what you are doing is really making a difference or not, but
its times where people going out of their way to express gratitude towards you
that your heart is touched. I even have two investigators that called in sick
to work today to come say good bye to me :). Oh man, its going to be hard to
leave this place! I am excited to spread roots like this in other parts of
Germany too. Rostock will be in my heart just like Dresen if I allow it to. I
know that if I serve with all of my heart like I have here, I will see just as
many miracles.
This letter has been crazy and all over the place, just like this past week of
mine has been! I cant wait to share all of my new experiences with you next
week!
Spiritual thought: I honestly have had zero time to get anything together for
this today. So I am just going to share quotes! "We need not become
paralyzed with fear of Satan's power. He can hve no power over us unless we
permit it. He is really a coward. And if we stand firm- he will
retreat."-Pres. Faust. That also lead me to another quote, "All the
water in the world no matter how it tried could never sink the smallest ship
unless it got inside. All the evil of the world and every kind of sin could
never damn a human soul unless we let it in."-unknown. We truly are at war
with Satan, and have been since the war in heaven. Satan is mad when you do the
will of the lord. Satan knows how to push each one of our buttons, recognize
that. Don’t let him in! Heavenly has given us the tools to win this war. We
just need to use them! Pray often, go to church, and read those scriptures. It’s
a recipe of success in this life. Dont let discouragement, or negativity seep
in to your life.....they are Satan’s greatest tools to weaken us. Go forward in
faith courageously!
Well Love you all so much! Your prayers are with me, I can with them :), Thanks
for all the love and support! I am so blessed to be here in Germany. Man I love
that this is my life!! So much joy in this work.....I feel so lucky. Keep the
faith!
Sister Linford
NEW ADDRESS!!!
Kirche Jesu Christi
Sister Jessica Linford
Friedrich Str. 14
18057 Rostock
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