Monday, March 7, 2011
Dear Family,
I don't know why but I had extra excitement today to read your e-mails! You sound so good and your words were so touching! Usually I don't but today I had to quickly scan through each e-mail that I received just to know how you are doing. Thank you so much for all of the time you give to write. It means everything to me!
So, it has been a fabulous week and I don't even know where to begin! I feel like every wish that I have ever had on my mission is coming true! On Monday after we got finished with our normal p-day activities we got a call from Zuster Navarro and she asked us if we could come and help her move a couple of shelves in her home. That was a miracle! We always want to serve people but nobody dares to ask so when she called I couldn't have been happier! We were able to help for a little while before we went to our dinner appointment with Familie Bidjai. We had a wonderful evening there and then finished off the night with Familie Navarro and Felicia doing a FHE. The lesson went so good! We taught about the Holy Ghost and Felicia gave all of her attention. At the end of the lesson she just asked question after question about the church and baptism and what she needs to do to be baptized and why she needs to be baptized. It was so cool! Sadly enough, she is actually moving tomorrow to an actual center for foster children. She and Angelica went to a fireside with the youth in Amsterdam on Friday and church yesterday. I don't know if we will see her again but I hope that she will remember how she felt and especially that she is a child of our Heavenly Father, he loves her, and she can always go to him in prayer. I love her and will continue to pray for her!
On Wednesday we were able to fast with Victoria, Brother Scherf and Silvester in behalf of Silvester. We had an appointment with him that night and he said that he knows now that he needs to be baptized...now he has got to pick a date! We were able to brake our fast together and that was a very spiritual experience. I hope that this week we can firm up a date with him. I have come to recognize that some people just need more time than others but the salvation of a soul is worth the wait and the patience!
On Saturday we had our first appointment with Anita at Familie Scherf's and it was so good! She is the sweetest girl ever and her desire to really have a testimony of her own is so strong. Marije and Rachelle were at the lesson as well. Marije is one of the young women and Rachelle is one of the leaders. I am so thankful for their help with the lesson. They really brought the spirit with their testimonies and personal experiences! Anita is from Rotterdam so the missionaries in Rotterdam are actually going to go and visit her mom within the next week. Her parents gave permission for her to be baptized so we are thinking about April 9. We will continue to teach her every time that she is here in Den Haag, so for sure every Sunday.
She is super active in the ward already. She also went to the fireside on Friday and to church on Sunday. Every first Sunday the young women are with the Relief Society for opening exercises and Anita gave the thought during opening exercises. She told about how she wants to be baptized and why. Her testimony was so amazing! On Saturday after the lesson we baked cookies with Familie Scherf and Anita because they wanted to learn how. It was a lot of fun! I wasn't able to make cookies yesterday because it was fast Sunday but I am thinking about doing it for this next week...the only problem is that it is Stake Conference so that would mean 1000...don't panic! I don't really think I am going to do it!
Yesterday I had one of my first of many farewell dinners. The members and investigators are so nice! I think this week will be full of emotions but I think it will be great as well! I am looking forward to seeing many more miracles!
I love you so much and I too can't wait to give you a great big hug in just a week and a half! The church is true! The Lord loves us!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Monday, March 7, 2011
Monday, February 28, 2011
THE WEEKS JUST KEEP GETTING BETTER!!!
Monday, February 28, 2011
Dear Family!
I am so happy right now! It is like I have the best of both worlds! The work here is going great and I am so happy about that and then I am so excited to think about seeing all of you soon! I can't wait! Heavenly Father seems to be pouring out many blessings right now and I am so thankful!
Thank you so much for your e-mails! I have to admit...Over the past couple of weeks I have become the worst letter writer ever! My p-days have been a little busy and I just want to give all of my time to serving so I hope that you know that I love you and I am thankful for your letters even if you don't get one in return. I figure by this time I might see you before a letter gets to you!
Dad, I want to put your questions as first priority so here it goes! I am so thankful and excited about the plans that are going down. I just get giddy thinking about being here with you! I think that it would be best to fly in and out of Amsterdam. It is pretty central in the Netherlands and especially to Den Haag, Zwolle, and Groningen. I would love to stay a couple of days in each city if that is at all possible. It's so hard to say...but if we did two days in Zwolle, two in Groningen, four in Den Haag, and then a couple of other free days...maybe 10 to 14 days? But I don't know what you are thinking. 2 weeks would give us a good amount of time to make our way around. But we could also stay up to a month or two...just kidding!
Well, we have seen a countless number of miracles this week! We found 3 super positive new investigators and they are all under the age of 16! I love them so much! I am so thankful that I am finally back to full health and that I was able to work a whole week! It is such a blessing! I had such a wonderful week. I feel like Heavenly Father is blessing Zuster Jeffs and I so much! We got two new investigators on Monday night. Their names are Felicia and Angelica. They are both foster children and Felicia just moved in with Familie Navarro, an active family in the ward. The family invited us to do a FHE with them last Monday and it was so good! We just started out simple with the girls because they are 14 and 16. We did a lesson on prayer and they were so interactive during the lesson. We also baked cookies with them afterwards and they loved that. They came to church last week and Angelica came to church yesterday. We will be going again tonight to do a FHE with them again. I feel like they are just in the best situation to learn about the Restoration. And it turns out that their biological father lives in America and he is a member too!
Our other new investigator is a 14 year old young woman named Anita. She came to the church for the first time a couple of months ago with her grandpa who is the only member in her family. She has been coming consecutively for the past couple of weeks and is really being accepted by the ward and especially the young women. Yesterday we went to a members for lunch and Anita was there. She came up to Zuster Jeffs and I and said, „I really want to get baptized. What do I need to do in order to do that?“We were so excited! We explained the process to her and set up our first appointment to teach her this Saturday at the member’s home. Her parents know about her desire and are very supportive. So cool! We'll be setting a baptismal date on Saturday!
We have decided to give Suleyka a little time to decide what she wants to do. We had a couple of appointments with her this week but she is just not making progress and we feeling like we are just having to pull her along. It is hard to give someone back to the Lord but I know He will make sure that when the time is right, things will work out.
On Tuesday we went to the doctor’s appointment...and I am totally normal! He did say that my iron was a little low but nothing he is worried about. This week I have been feeling a lot better and I contribute that to your prayers. Thank you so much! The doctor just told me that I demand too much of myself and I need to take it easier. Zuster Jeffs started to laugh and said, "Zuster Sharp that is the 50th time you've heard that from 50 different people. Are you finally going to listen?!" I am trying to listen. I am really trying!
Tuesday evening we made dinner for Jolanda and Jeroen to thank them for everything they do for us! We made a rockin’ raspberry bread pudding...I can't wait to make it for you in a couple of weeks! We also had a lesson with Brigitte and she gave me the most amazing African skirt as a going away gift. It is awesome!
The consecrated hour project is going so well! So far we have contacted 350 people, found 10 potential investigators, and 3 new investigators. The faith of the members is working miracles! The ward is fired up about it!
We had a Zone Training on Thursday! I love being with all of the missionaries. It was sad to know that that was my last. I had to give my departing testimony. It was a great opportunity to stand and bear my testimony.
On Friday we had lessons with Silvester and Mary. Silvester is really struggling to make a decision so we are going to fast with him and Victoria and brother Scherf on Wednesday. I hope that he will have a strong confirmation of the truthfulness of these things. Mary is doing about the same. She came to church yesterday!
You might think I am crazy but I couldn't pass up the chance to bake 300 cookies this week for the members after church! I was a little smarter about it and I started on Saturday instead of Sunday. They ended up being a hit again! I also gave a sort of "farewell” talk in church and it was wonderful to be able to express my testimony, love, and gratitude to these wonderful people!
I am so looking forward to this coming week! I hope that you know that I love you! I know the Savior lives and I love Him!
Love, Laur
Dear Family!
I am so happy right now! It is like I have the best of both worlds! The work here is going great and I am so happy about that and then I am so excited to think about seeing all of you soon! I can't wait! Heavenly Father seems to be pouring out many blessings right now and I am so thankful!
Thank you so much for your e-mails! I have to admit...Over the past couple of weeks I have become the worst letter writer ever! My p-days have been a little busy and I just want to give all of my time to serving so I hope that you know that I love you and I am thankful for your letters even if you don't get one in return. I figure by this time I might see you before a letter gets to you!
Dad, I want to put your questions as first priority so here it goes! I am so thankful and excited about the plans that are going down. I just get giddy thinking about being here with you! I think that it would be best to fly in and out of Amsterdam. It is pretty central in the Netherlands and especially to Den Haag, Zwolle, and Groningen. I would love to stay a couple of days in each city if that is at all possible. It's so hard to say...but if we did two days in Zwolle, two in Groningen, four in Den Haag, and then a couple of other free days...maybe 10 to 14 days? But I don't know what you are thinking. 2 weeks would give us a good amount of time to make our way around. But we could also stay up to a month or two...just kidding!
Well, we have seen a countless number of miracles this week! We found 3 super positive new investigators and they are all under the age of 16! I love them so much! I am so thankful that I am finally back to full health and that I was able to work a whole week! It is such a blessing! I had such a wonderful week. I feel like Heavenly Father is blessing Zuster Jeffs and I so much! We got two new investigators on Monday night. Their names are Felicia and Angelica. They are both foster children and Felicia just moved in with Familie Navarro, an active family in the ward. The family invited us to do a FHE with them last Monday and it was so good! We just started out simple with the girls because they are 14 and 16. We did a lesson on prayer and they were so interactive during the lesson. We also baked cookies with them afterwards and they loved that. They came to church last week and Angelica came to church yesterday. We will be going again tonight to do a FHE with them again. I feel like they are just in the best situation to learn about the Restoration. And it turns out that their biological father lives in America and he is a member too!
Our other new investigator is a 14 year old young woman named Anita. She came to the church for the first time a couple of months ago with her grandpa who is the only member in her family. She has been coming consecutively for the past couple of weeks and is really being accepted by the ward and especially the young women. Yesterday we went to a members for lunch and Anita was there. She came up to Zuster Jeffs and I and said, „I really want to get baptized. What do I need to do in order to do that?“We were so excited! We explained the process to her and set up our first appointment to teach her this Saturday at the member’s home. Her parents know about her desire and are very supportive. So cool! We'll be setting a baptismal date on Saturday!
We have decided to give Suleyka a little time to decide what she wants to do. We had a couple of appointments with her this week but she is just not making progress and we feeling like we are just having to pull her along. It is hard to give someone back to the Lord but I know He will make sure that when the time is right, things will work out.
On Tuesday we went to the doctor’s appointment...and I am totally normal! He did say that my iron was a little low but nothing he is worried about. This week I have been feeling a lot better and I contribute that to your prayers. Thank you so much! The doctor just told me that I demand too much of myself and I need to take it easier. Zuster Jeffs started to laugh and said, "Zuster Sharp that is the 50th time you've heard that from 50 different people. Are you finally going to listen?!" I am trying to listen. I am really trying!
Tuesday evening we made dinner for Jolanda and Jeroen to thank them for everything they do for us! We made a rockin’ raspberry bread pudding...I can't wait to make it for you in a couple of weeks! We also had a lesson with Brigitte and she gave me the most amazing African skirt as a going away gift. It is awesome!
The consecrated hour project is going so well! So far we have contacted 350 people, found 10 potential investigators, and 3 new investigators. The faith of the members is working miracles! The ward is fired up about it!
We had a Zone Training on Thursday! I love being with all of the missionaries. It was sad to know that that was my last. I had to give my departing testimony. It was a great opportunity to stand and bear my testimony.
On Friday we had lessons with Silvester and Mary. Silvester is really struggling to make a decision so we are going to fast with him and Victoria and brother Scherf on Wednesday. I hope that he will have a strong confirmation of the truthfulness of these things. Mary is doing about the same. She came to church yesterday!
You might think I am crazy but I couldn't pass up the chance to bake 300 cookies this week for the members after church! I was a little smarter about it and I started on Saturday instead of Sunday. They ended up being a hit again! I also gave a sort of "farewell” talk in church and it was wonderful to be able to express my testimony, love, and gratitude to these wonderful people!
I am so looking forward to this coming week! I hope that you know that I love you! I know the Savior lives and I love Him!
Love, Laur
Monday, February 21, 2011
OH MY GOODNESS! A WEEK OF MIRACLES!!!
Monday, February 21, 2011
Hello Family!
Thank you so much for your e-mails and your prayers in my behalf! You won't believe it but...I was sick another 3 days this week! WHAT?! I know, I was wondering the same thing! But I am now feeling better and even though I was sick we were still able to do so much work and see much success! The Lord poured out his blessings upon us!
By the way, thank you so much for the Valentine's package and cards! LOVED IT! The headband and necklace and earrings are adorable and the chocolate was delish! And your words of love and care meant the world to me. Thanks for always being so thoughtful and taking the time to do little things that just brighten my day! I hope that you had a very special Valentine's Day. We were able to go to the home of a recently divorced mother member and make dinner for her and her 1 year old son. Afterwards we went to Penninah's Bible Study and it was so cool! We sang some awesome African hymns and we had such a wonderful discussion with her and other church members about the Bible. On Thursday we went back and shared a first lesson with Penninah. It was a wonderful teaching situation because she was open to sharing her beliefs and we were open to sharing ours. Although she didn't agree immediately with what we believe in, she committed to pray about the things that we shared. It was so great to bear testimony. And then, she came to church yesterday! We were so excited to have her there. The members did so well at making her feel welcome and building up friendships with her. I believe that all of these small things will have a great impact in her life! I am excited to have another appointment with her this week and continue to share with her the message of the Restored Gospel.
Anyway, back to the beginning of the week a bit. On Tuesday we went to District Meeting in Leiden and on the way back I started to feel really crumby again. I couldn't believe it! But I pushed through and we went to our appointment with Gida with Victoria as our joint-teach. Gida ended up not being home and I think that was a blessing because by that time I was ready to lie down. We went back to our apartment and I crashed and didn't wake up until 5:30! I couldn't believe that I had slept that long but my body needed it. We rushed to our dinner appointment with Familie Peschier and made it through dinner but I was done after that. I slept through the night and tried to get up and start working the next day but I just didn't feel good. The Elders came and gave me a blessing and Sister Brubaker was updated on everything. She wanted me to set up an appointment with a doctor to get checked out because this was the third time that I was sick. Jolanda gave me a recommendation for a doctor and I called up and tried to get an appointment but because I have no Dutch insurance they wouldn't let me. I didn't really want to go to the doctor anyway because I feel like the reason I keep getting sick is not because there is something wrong with me but because my body is just tired! Anyway, by that time it was already 5:00 so it was too late to get a hold of another doctor. Luckily Zuster Jeffs was able to go to a couple of appointments with Victoria and another member, Carla van der Walt, came and stayed with me. The members do so much! On Wednesday night a new senior couple, the Evertons, who had just arrived the day before, came to visit and check on me. Sister Everton is a registered nurse and the sweetest lady ever! They brought beautiful tulips and chicken soup and just brightened our day. The next morning I was debating over whether or not I should try to get another appointment with another doctor. I prayed and told Heavenly Father that only if he arranged it I would go...I am so stubborn! A few minutes later we got a voicemail from Victoria and she told me that I had an appointment with a doctor the next day at 9:15. I couldn't believe it! Heavenly Father really made an appointment for me! I was able to work most of the day on Thursday. We had an appointment with Suleyka and things are going well with her. Friday I went to the doctor with Zuster Jeffs and the Evertons. The doctor couldn't find anything wrong but he sent me to the hospital to get blood drawn. I should find out the results tomorrow morning. I don't think that there is anything wrong...just keep praying for me! By Friday afternoon, after another appointment with Suleyka, I was worn out. We stopped at Zuster Navarro's to drop something off and I crashed again for 2 hours. What is going on with me! I get so embarrassed sometimes but I just have to laugh about it! Saturday we had a busy and full day and found lots of potential investigators! When we got home Saturday evening I got an itch to bake...and between Saturday evening and starting at 3:00 Sunday morning I was able to bake 250 cookies to share with the ward members after church again...CRAZY but so much fun! I love being able to do things like that every once in a while!
AHHH...I am out of time! I am feeling better now! I love this work and I am so excited for all that is taking place! I am also excited to see you in 3 weeks! I love you so much! I love Zuster Jeffs too...you asked about her! She is the most amazing companion ever! and of course, I love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ! Have a great week!
Love, Laur
Hello Family!
Thank you so much for your e-mails and your prayers in my behalf! You won't believe it but...I was sick another 3 days this week! WHAT?! I know, I was wondering the same thing! But I am now feeling better and even though I was sick we were still able to do so much work and see much success! The Lord poured out his blessings upon us!
By the way, thank you so much for the Valentine's package and cards! LOVED IT! The headband and necklace and earrings are adorable and the chocolate was delish! And your words of love and care meant the world to me. Thanks for always being so thoughtful and taking the time to do little things that just brighten my day! I hope that you had a very special Valentine's Day. We were able to go to the home of a recently divorced mother member and make dinner for her and her 1 year old son. Afterwards we went to Penninah's Bible Study and it was so cool! We sang some awesome African hymns and we had such a wonderful discussion with her and other church members about the Bible. On Thursday we went back and shared a first lesson with Penninah. It was a wonderful teaching situation because she was open to sharing her beliefs and we were open to sharing ours. Although she didn't agree immediately with what we believe in, she committed to pray about the things that we shared. It was so great to bear testimony. And then, she came to church yesterday! We were so excited to have her there. The members did so well at making her feel welcome and building up friendships with her. I believe that all of these small things will have a great impact in her life! I am excited to have another appointment with her this week and continue to share with her the message of the Restored Gospel.
Anyway, back to the beginning of the week a bit. On Tuesday we went to District Meeting in Leiden and on the way back I started to feel really crumby again. I couldn't believe it! But I pushed through and we went to our appointment with Gida with Victoria as our joint-teach. Gida ended up not being home and I think that was a blessing because by that time I was ready to lie down. We went back to our apartment and I crashed and didn't wake up until 5:30! I couldn't believe that I had slept that long but my body needed it. We rushed to our dinner appointment with Familie Peschier and made it through dinner but I was done after that. I slept through the night and tried to get up and start working the next day but I just didn't feel good. The Elders came and gave me a blessing and Sister Brubaker was updated on everything. She wanted me to set up an appointment with a doctor to get checked out because this was the third time that I was sick. Jolanda gave me a recommendation for a doctor and I called up and tried to get an appointment but because I have no Dutch insurance they wouldn't let me. I didn't really want to go to the doctor anyway because I feel like the reason I keep getting sick is not because there is something wrong with me but because my body is just tired! Anyway, by that time it was already 5:00 so it was too late to get a hold of another doctor. Luckily Zuster Jeffs was able to go to a couple of appointments with Victoria and another member, Carla van der Walt, came and stayed with me. The members do so much! On Wednesday night a new senior couple, the Evertons, who had just arrived the day before, came to visit and check on me. Sister Everton is a registered nurse and the sweetest lady ever! They brought beautiful tulips and chicken soup and just brightened our day. The next morning I was debating over whether or not I should try to get another appointment with another doctor. I prayed and told Heavenly Father that only if he arranged it I would go...I am so stubborn! A few minutes later we got a voicemail from Victoria and she told me that I had an appointment with a doctor the next day at 9:15. I couldn't believe it! Heavenly Father really made an appointment for me! I was able to work most of the day on Thursday. We had an appointment with Suleyka and things are going well with her. Friday I went to the doctor with Zuster Jeffs and the Evertons. The doctor couldn't find anything wrong but he sent me to the hospital to get blood drawn. I should find out the results tomorrow morning. I don't think that there is anything wrong...just keep praying for me! By Friday afternoon, after another appointment with Suleyka, I was worn out. We stopped at Zuster Navarro's to drop something off and I crashed again for 2 hours. What is going on with me! I get so embarrassed sometimes but I just have to laugh about it! Saturday we had a busy and full day and found lots of potential investigators! When we got home Saturday evening I got an itch to bake...and between Saturday evening and starting at 3:00 Sunday morning I was able to bake 250 cookies to share with the ward members after church again...CRAZY but so much fun! I love being able to do things like that every once in a while!
AHHH...I am out of time! I am feeling better now! I love this work and I am so excited for all that is taking place! I am also excited to see you in 3 weeks! I love you so much! I love Zuster Jeffs too...you asked about her! She is the most amazing companion ever! and of course, I love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ! Have a great week!
Love, Laur
Monday, February 14, 2011
Happy Valentine's Day!!!
Monday, February 14, 2011
Dear Family,
Oh, how I love you! I hope that you have a fabulous Valentine's Day and that you get to do something special to show the ones that you care about that you love them. Just know that I love you so much and I am so thankful for all that you do for me out of love! Jordan and Kristin, thanks so much for the cute little package! I loved everything and that was such a pleasant surprise, especially when I was sick! Brandt and Kelly, CONGRATULATIONS!!! I am so excited for baby number 4...and even more so because I know that I will be home for the delivery! YAY! Britt and Marianne, thanks so much for the e-mail and the cute picture with the chocolate letters...love it! Car, thanks for the pic of the chain...man, it is getting short! I am excited too :) And thank you all for the wonderful e-mails...you made my Valentine's Day extra special!
Well, I was sick for a little longer than I had expected! It was just about the same as last time! I wasn't able to work a full day until Friday so the week didn't quite go as planned but I learned a lot (hopefully I finally learned my lesson from being sick...I don't want it to happen a third time)! But the members helped us so much again and I just can't thank them enough. On Monday night we were supposed to make dinner for Jolanda and Jeroen because it was Jolanda's birthday but because I was sick they actually came and picked us up, made dinner for Zuster Jeffs while I slept on their couch, and then brought us back home. On Tuesday I stayed with Zuster Navarro while Zuster Jeffs went with the Elders to Leiden for a District Meeting. I had high hopes that when she got back I would feel well enough to go to all of our appointments that day but it was quite the opposite. We ended up staying at the Navarro's until 8 that night. Then when we left to catch the tram to get back home I started to feel really weak and woozy, so we went back in and waited until Zuster Peschier could come with her car to give us a ride back. It was so sweet of her! By Wednesday I had enough strength to go out to two appointments but that did me in. On Thursday I did a little more and by Friday I was able to do a whole day! I was just about going crazy lying in bed for those couple of days so I am so thankful that I can finally work again! Thanks for all of your prayers in my behalf!
Despite being sick the whole week, we have seen quite the miracles! We found a new investigator, Gida, and she is amazing! She is from Angola and she has 3 little children and a husband. We have already taught her twice and we are going again tomorrow! We can hardly wait. She has such a sincere desire and hunger to know that truth. I really think that she will progress. We also had an appointment with Silvester and he told us that he knows that Joseph Smith was a prophet who restored the church and that the Book of Mormon is true! I am so thankful that he was looking down at his Book of Mormon when he said that because I think I would have scared him with the look of excitement on my face. My jaw dropped and I was speechless! He knows the truth! Now he is praying to know if he should be baptized on March 5th! WAHOO!!! We didn't get to teach Suleýka's boyfriend because I was sick but that will hopefully happen this week.
Yesterday was pretty much one of the best days of my whole mission! We went to church and Mary and Suleyka attended as well. Afterwards we had lunch with Familie Gaster, the cutest little Dutch elderly couple in the world. Then we went to do a consecrated hour in the Lobelialaan, a street that Zuster Akkerman had chosen for our ward project. It was amazing! We knocked on a door and a young woman from Rowanda answered. She welcomed us right in and we had a most amazing 40 minute conversation about faith. The Spirit was so strong and there was a very immediate and special bond between us. We tried to share a scripture from the Book of Mormon with her but she was a little hesitant about it and asked if we wouldn't mind sharing one from the Bible instead. We were a tleast able to explain what the Book of Mormon is and what it means to us and then show her that we also believe in the Bible. At the end she invited us to come to a Bible study that she and her friends from her church have every week. We are going tonight and we are so excited! I know that Heavenly Father will bless us to know how we can share the message of the restored gospel in this situation! After our consecrated hour we went to dinner with the Elders at Jolanda and Jeroen's. We then finished the night with a sisters fireside at Familie Navarro's for all sister investigators and new members. Zuster Jeffs and I were in charge of the fireside and minutes before we still didn't really know what we were going to do but felt like we had done our best to prepare the whole week. The Spirit surely stepped in to help us and it was one of the sweetest experiences that I have ever had! It was one of those moments you never want to end! I loved it!
I am out of time! I love you and hope you can feel my excitement! The church is true!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Dear Family,
Oh, how I love you! I hope that you have a fabulous Valentine's Day and that you get to do something special to show the ones that you care about that you love them. Just know that I love you so much and I am so thankful for all that you do for me out of love! Jordan and Kristin, thanks so much for the cute little package! I loved everything and that was such a pleasant surprise, especially when I was sick! Brandt and Kelly, CONGRATULATIONS!!! I am so excited for baby number 4...and even more so because I know that I will be home for the delivery! YAY! Britt and Marianne, thanks so much for the e-mail and the cute picture with the chocolate letters...love it! Car, thanks for the pic of the chain...man, it is getting short! I am excited too :) And thank you all for the wonderful e-mails...you made my Valentine's Day extra special!
Well, I was sick for a little longer than I had expected! It was just about the same as last time! I wasn't able to work a full day until Friday so the week didn't quite go as planned but I learned a lot (hopefully I finally learned my lesson from being sick...I don't want it to happen a third time)! But the members helped us so much again and I just can't thank them enough. On Monday night we were supposed to make dinner for Jolanda and Jeroen because it was Jolanda's birthday but because I was sick they actually came and picked us up, made dinner for Zuster Jeffs while I slept on their couch, and then brought us back home. On Tuesday I stayed with Zuster Navarro while Zuster Jeffs went with the Elders to Leiden for a District Meeting. I had high hopes that when she got back I would feel well enough to go to all of our appointments that day but it was quite the opposite. We ended up staying at the Navarro's until 8 that night. Then when we left to catch the tram to get back home I started to feel really weak and woozy, so we went back in and waited until Zuster Peschier could come with her car to give us a ride back. It was so sweet of her! By Wednesday I had enough strength to go out to two appointments but that did me in. On Thursday I did a little more and by Friday I was able to do a whole day! I was just about going crazy lying in bed for those couple of days so I am so thankful that I can finally work again! Thanks for all of your prayers in my behalf!
Despite being sick the whole week, we have seen quite the miracles! We found a new investigator, Gida, and she is amazing! She is from Angola and she has 3 little children and a husband. We have already taught her twice and we are going again tomorrow! We can hardly wait. She has such a sincere desire and hunger to know that truth. I really think that she will progress. We also had an appointment with Silvester and he told us that he knows that Joseph Smith was a prophet who restored the church and that the Book of Mormon is true! I am so thankful that he was looking down at his Book of Mormon when he said that because I think I would have scared him with the look of excitement on my face. My jaw dropped and I was speechless! He knows the truth! Now he is praying to know if he should be baptized on March 5th! WAHOO!!! We didn't get to teach Suleýka's boyfriend because I was sick but that will hopefully happen this week.
Yesterday was pretty much one of the best days of my whole mission! We went to church and Mary and Suleyka attended as well. Afterwards we had lunch with Familie Gaster, the cutest little Dutch elderly couple in the world. Then we went to do a consecrated hour in the Lobelialaan, a street that Zuster Akkerman had chosen for our ward project. It was amazing! We knocked on a door and a young woman from Rowanda answered. She welcomed us right in and we had a most amazing 40 minute conversation about faith. The Spirit was so strong and there was a very immediate and special bond between us. We tried to share a scripture from the Book of Mormon with her but she was a little hesitant about it and asked if we wouldn't mind sharing one from the Bible instead. We were a tleast able to explain what the Book of Mormon is and what it means to us and then show her that we also believe in the Bible. At the end she invited us to come to a Bible study that she and her friends from her church have every week. We are going tonight and we are so excited! I know that Heavenly Father will bless us to know how we can share the message of the restored gospel in this situation! After our consecrated hour we went to dinner with the Elders at Jolanda and Jeroen's. We then finished the night with a sisters fireside at Familie Navarro's for all sister investigators and new members. Zuster Jeffs and I were in charge of the fireside and minutes before we still didn't really know what we were going to do but felt like we had done our best to prepare the whole week. The Spirit surely stepped in to help us and it was one of the sweetest experiences that I have ever had! It was one of those moments you never want to end! I loved it!
I am out of time! I love you and hope you can feel my excitement! The church is true!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Friday, February 11, 2011
Ik heb mijn toetje gekregen!=My dessert has been served!
Monday, February 7, 2011
Dear Family!
How are you doing?! Time is just flying by! I am almost already a week into my last transfer and it's just going faster and faster every second! I LOVE MY NEW COMPANION!!! Her name is Zuster Jeffs and she is from Arizona! She is my little blessing sent straight from Heavenly Father to make my last 6 weeks the best ever! I picked her up on Wednesday at the train station and we just clicked from the moment that we met. It is like a breath of fresh air! She loves to be obedient and she loves the Netherlands and she loves the people and she loves missionary work...and I love her! We have been workin’ our little hearts out since the minute she got here and we have seen so many miracles! She can already speak amazing Dutch and we are teaching as a team. I know that she will be so prepared in 6 weeks to take over Den Haag and I put my full confidence and trust in her!
Well, on the down side, I have been hit with the flu again! I feel like I am reliving what happened 6 weeks ago when Zuster Hill arrived and I just can't believe it! On Friday and Saturday I started to not feel really well-really weak and shaky. Then yesterday morning I woke up quite nauseated and with a fever but I didn't want Zuster Jeffs to miss her first Sunday like Zuster Hill did so I just pushed through. I made it through RS and then I taught the lesson for sharing time in the second hour but by the time Sacrament Meeting was starting I was done. We stayed for the sacrament and then we snuck out and went backto our apartment. I climbed into bed and didn't come out for the rest of the night. We had a couple of appointments that we had to cancel but there was one dinner appointment with an inactive family that I didn't want to call off because it was our first one with this family and we really feel good about working with them. I began to say a prayer in my heart that we would be able to find some members to help us out if that was the will of the Lord. I texted one of the Jovo's and asked her if she had time to go to the appointment with Zuster Jeffs and she replied quickly with a resounding yes. I then texted Jolanda and asked if she could stay with me and she also quickly responded. I am so thankful for the willingness of the members here! Zuster Jeffs said that the appointment went really well! Since today is just our p-day I stayed in bed until 7, took a shower, and then climbed back into bed. Zuster Brubaker just wants me to take it easy today, and that is exactly what I am going to do. She counseled us to stay in tonight, which is hard, but if it will give me the energy I need for the rest of the week then it is worth it! Keep me in your prayers that I won't be in bed for 5 days like last time!
Like I said, with Zuster Jeffs, miracles are taking place! We started the member consecrated finding activity on Tuesday, the first of February, and it is AMAZING! We have already found 2 new investigators during our hours and we have many potential investigators! I feel like Heavenly Father is just opening the windows of heaven and pouring blessings out! I am so thankful for the faith and the prayers of the members. We keep receiving more and more cards in the mail...I think we have about 45 now and I think they'll just keep coming! Our investigators are doing okay. Silvester ended up cancelling our appointment this week because of work which was a bummer! Suleyka came to the JOVO Centrum on Thursday with her boyfriend and another friend. She is doing some awesome missionary work! Her boyfriend came up to us at the end and said that he wants to receive the lessons from us. MIRACLE! We are going to teach him at Suleyka's on Tuesday night. We also taught Mary on Friday with Shaila and she came to church on Sunday. We are being extremely blessed!
I hope that you are doing well and feel the love of the Savior as you go throughout your week! I love you so much! I love this work! I am so thankful for this extra time that I get to serve! I feel like there are some trials that are coming up (being sick) that I wasn't expecting, but that is always a time to grow and come closer to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Thanks for everything!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Dear Family!
How are you doing?! Time is just flying by! I am almost already a week into my last transfer and it's just going faster and faster every second! I LOVE MY NEW COMPANION!!! Her name is Zuster Jeffs and she is from Arizona! She is my little blessing sent straight from Heavenly Father to make my last 6 weeks the best ever! I picked her up on Wednesday at the train station and we just clicked from the moment that we met. It is like a breath of fresh air! She loves to be obedient and she loves the Netherlands and she loves the people and she loves missionary work...and I love her! We have been workin’ our little hearts out since the minute she got here and we have seen so many miracles! She can already speak amazing Dutch and we are teaching as a team. I know that she will be so prepared in 6 weeks to take over Den Haag and I put my full confidence and trust in her!
Well, on the down side, I have been hit with the flu again! I feel like I am reliving what happened 6 weeks ago when Zuster Hill arrived and I just can't believe it! On Friday and Saturday I started to not feel really well-really weak and shaky. Then yesterday morning I woke up quite nauseated and with a fever but I didn't want Zuster Jeffs to miss her first Sunday like Zuster Hill did so I just pushed through. I made it through RS and then I taught the lesson for sharing time in the second hour but by the time Sacrament Meeting was starting I was done. We stayed for the sacrament and then we snuck out and went backto our apartment. I climbed into bed and didn't come out for the rest of the night. We had a couple of appointments that we had to cancel but there was one dinner appointment with an inactive family that I didn't want to call off because it was our first one with this family and we really feel good about working with them. I began to say a prayer in my heart that we would be able to find some members to help us out if that was the will of the Lord. I texted one of the Jovo's and asked her if she had time to go to the appointment with Zuster Jeffs and she replied quickly with a resounding yes. I then texted Jolanda and asked if she could stay with me and she also quickly responded. I am so thankful for the willingness of the members here! Zuster Jeffs said that the appointment went really well! Since today is just our p-day I stayed in bed until 7, took a shower, and then climbed back into bed. Zuster Brubaker just wants me to take it easy today, and that is exactly what I am going to do. She counseled us to stay in tonight, which is hard, but if it will give me the energy I need for the rest of the week then it is worth it! Keep me in your prayers that I won't be in bed for 5 days like last time!
Like I said, with Zuster Jeffs, miracles are taking place! We started the member consecrated finding activity on Tuesday, the first of February, and it is AMAZING! We have already found 2 new investigators during our hours and we have many potential investigators! I feel like Heavenly Father is just opening the windows of heaven and pouring blessings out! I am so thankful for the faith and the prayers of the members. We keep receiving more and more cards in the mail...I think we have about 45 now and I think they'll just keep coming! Our investigators are doing okay. Silvester ended up cancelling our appointment this week because of work which was a bummer! Suleyka came to the JOVO Centrum on Thursday with her boyfriend and another friend. She is doing some awesome missionary work! Her boyfriend came up to us at the end and said that he wants to receive the lessons from us. MIRACLE! We are going to teach him at Suleyka's on Tuesday night. We also taught Mary on Friday with Shaila and she came to church on Sunday. We are being extremely blessed!
I hope that you are doing well and feel the love of the Savior as you go throughout your week! I love you so much! I love this work! I am so thankful for this extra time that I get to serve! I feel like there are some trials that are coming up (being sick) that I wasn't expecting, but that is always a time to grow and come closer to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Thanks for everything!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Monday, January 31, 2011
The Lord is so merciful!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Dear Family,
I received a call from President Brubaker last night and found out that I am staying in Den Haag for my last transfer!!! WAHOO!!! I was so nervous about transfers because I have already been here so long and I was so relieved when I found out that my time on my mission will end here. I was quite shocked when President asked me to train again too! Actually, the past couple of days I had a lot of thoughts that I might be training again, and as I was talking to President it became clear that this is what Heavenly Father really wants. President said that he has had very distinct impressions over the past two days that I need to train this sister. He then expressed to me that he and the Lord have complete and full confidence that I can do it. It was a very humbling experience. I am up for the challenge! Zuster Hill has been the best thing for me over the past 6 weeks to keep me working and doing my best because I wanted to make the beginning of her mission the very best for her. I know that the new sister who will be coming on Wednesday will do the same. I am excited to see what the next 6 weeks will bring!
Silvester came to church yesterday!!!! That was the greatest miracle of the whole week! Since we started teaching him back in October we have been trying to get him to church and he just kept finding reasons not to come. On Saturday night I sent him a text, like I do every week, to remind him once again (in case he forgot) that church begins at 10:00 and he is ALWAYS welcome to come. He replied and said that he was coming! I was jumping up and down and Zuster Hill couldn't figure out what had gotten into me! Once she found out, she gave the same reaction. We actually went to his house Sunday morning and rode with him to church. He loved it! I really think that he is getting closer and closer to baptism! Suleyka is doing okay...still really finding it difficult to put the gospel as one of her top priorities. But it will come! A couple other highlights of the week include a consecrated hour where we taught 6 lessons (that never happens...but it did this week), making dinner for Familie Nwankor (an inactive family), and receiving lots and lots of cards from the members for the consecrated hour project. We are starting that this week!
I just want you to know that I love you and that I know this gospel is true. Have a great week. I love you!
Love, Laur
Dear Family,
I received a call from President Brubaker last night and found out that I am staying in Den Haag for my last transfer!!! WAHOO!!! I was so nervous about transfers because I have already been here so long and I was so relieved when I found out that my time on my mission will end here. I was quite shocked when President asked me to train again too! Actually, the past couple of days I had a lot of thoughts that I might be training again, and as I was talking to President it became clear that this is what Heavenly Father really wants. President said that he has had very distinct impressions over the past two days that I need to train this sister. He then expressed to me that he and the Lord have complete and full confidence that I can do it. It was a very humbling experience. I am up for the challenge! Zuster Hill has been the best thing for me over the past 6 weeks to keep me working and doing my best because I wanted to make the beginning of her mission the very best for her. I know that the new sister who will be coming on Wednesday will do the same. I am excited to see what the next 6 weeks will bring!
Silvester came to church yesterday!!!! That was the greatest miracle of the whole week! Since we started teaching him back in October we have been trying to get him to church and he just kept finding reasons not to come. On Saturday night I sent him a text, like I do every week, to remind him once again (in case he forgot) that church begins at 10:00 and he is ALWAYS welcome to come. He replied and said that he was coming! I was jumping up and down and Zuster Hill couldn't figure out what had gotten into me! Once she found out, she gave the same reaction. We actually went to his house Sunday morning and rode with him to church. He loved it! I really think that he is getting closer and closer to baptism! Suleyka is doing okay...still really finding it difficult to put the gospel as one of her top priorities. But it will come! A couple other highlights of the week include a consecrated hour where we taught 6 lessons (that never happens...but it did this week), making dinner for Familie Nwankor (an inactive family), and receiving lots and lots of cards from the members for the consecrated hour project. We are starting that this week!
I just want you to know that I love you and that I know this gospel is true. Have a great week. I love you!
Love, Laur
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Count your many blessings!
Monday, January 24, 2011
Dear Mom and Dad,
How are you doing?! From skimming over your e-mails before printing them I can tell that you have had a great time in Oregon! I am so happy that you have been able to spend some good quality time with Grandma and the other Oregonians! I am praying that you will have a safe trip home and a wonderful week!
Things here are going great! We got all of our cards sent out for the consecrated hour activity (we sent 100 of them) and it is already producing so much enthusiasm about missionary work! Yesterday at church everyone was talking about it and it was actually mentioned in every lesson and talk given! The members can't wait to see the miracles that come from it and we can't wait either! We still are struggling with our investigators and we just can't seem to find any new ones. We are hoping that this activity is the key to really getting a big boost. No matter what happens, I know that Heavenly Father is aware of the efforts the members and we are making to spread the gospel and that all things are in his hands!
I love you so much and I hope that you have a great week! You are always in my prayers! Tell the fam I say hello!
Love, Laur
Dear Mom and Dad,
How are you doing?! From skimming over your e-mails before printing them I can tell that you have had a great time in Oregon! I am so happy that you have been able to spend some good quality time with Grandma and the other Oregonians! I am praying that you will have a safe trip home and a wonderful week!
Things here are going great! We got all of our cards sent out for the consecrated hour activity (we sent 100 of them) and it is already producing so much enthusiasm about missionary work! Yesterday at church everyone was talking about it and it was actually mentioned in every lesson and talk given! The members can't wait to see the miracles that come from it and we can't wait either! We still are struggling with our investigators and we just can't seem to find any new ones. We are hoping that this activity is the key to really getting a big boost. No matter what happens, I know that Heavenly Father is aware of the efforts the members and we are making to spread the gospel and that all things are in his hands!
I love you so much and I hope that you have a great week! You are always in my prayers! Tell the fam I say hello!
Love, Laur
These are going to be the best 2 months of my life!
Monday, January 17, 2011
Dear Family!!!
How are you all doing!? Thanks so much for the inbox full of e-mails this morning! I am so excited to go back and really read them to know what is going on at home right now. Thanks for all of your love and prayers and support. I really felt it this week unlike any other time in my mission and I am so grateful for that. Prayer really works!
Well, this has been another great week! I don't think I have ever had a bad week but they just keep getting better and better! Investigators are doing okay. I don't know why but we are just struggling to find those who really are ready and prepared to take the necessary steps to baptism. But we will find them! And we are still trying to help Suleyka, Mary, and Silvester take those steps! Suleyka is still doing really well and is still positive that she will be baptized but we still haven't been able to arrange an appointment with her and the Bishop to talk about tithing. We hope that we can arrange that soon! We know that Satan is really throwing things in her path to stop her from coming closer to Christ through the Restored Gospel. She just got hired for a job with which she has to work most Sundays. She also just started dating someone really seriously. It's not that either of the things are bad, it is just that she has to make choices as to what takes first priority in her life. I hope that she'll stay strong and choose to come closer to her Heavenly Father! We met with Mary on Friday night and it was a really good appointment. She is just difficult to meet with regularly because she is a mother of two, with a job, going to school, and having relationship problems. I hope that we can also continue to help her and we are really relying on Heavenly Father to know how. Silvester is doing great but we just CANNOT get him to come to church! We are thinking that we might let him rest for a little bit of time and see if that will kind of re-boot him and get him excited again about the gospel. We are also pouring our hearts out to Heavenly Father that we will be able to find new investigators! We can't wait to see what this week will bring!
On Thursday we had a Zone Conference in Breda and that was really great! It always is! We talked about being more effective with finding and how we can find new investigators. That is what we are struggling with as a mission right now. Well, President started something new to get us more enthusiastic about talking to people. He added a key indicator where we have to report the number of people we contacted that week. I am so excited about the new addition to the key indicators! We started counting on Friday and within 3 days we had contacted a total of 166 people! It was really cool because every time I felt satisfied with the number of people I had talked to during our consecrated finding I would think about a video clip that President had shared at Zone Conference. It was from some football movie that came out when I was already on my mission. There was one of the players that the coach wanted to do the death crawl to the 50yard line blindfolded with a teammate on his back. He didn't think that he could do it but with the encouragement of the coach and mostly through his own will power he made it to the end zone. That really touched me and motivated me. I would begin to ask myself if I had really done my best and given all that I had to give. Well, every time I was able to push myself above what I thought I was capable of. On Friday during our consecrated hour we contacted 30 people and I was pleased with that. On Saturday I wanted to push myself a little harder and we were able to contact 34 people. Yesterday, because we had to do a double consecrated hour, I had a goal to contact atleast70 people. But when I realized at the end of our first hour we had contacted 62, I decided to move my goal to 100. We ended up contacting 102! I was so excited and had a fire to keep talking to people. I am excited to see how many we contact this week!
Zone Conference really got me fired up about being creative with missionary work! I have had an idea in my head to get the whole ward here involved in missionary work by getting all of them to help us missionaries pick consecrated hours (special hours when we go contacting) and pray for us as we go finding. Well my idea is finally coming into action! We have 100 families or members who are active or positive towards the church. We have decided to send a letter out to each of them with an assigned date and invite them to pick a street, neighborhood, or area where we can go finding every day in the month of February. We are going to have a ward fast on that fast Sunday that we will see miracles. Between the three sets of missionaries here in Den Haag we hope to do a total of 100 hours of consecrated finding. I am so excited about it and I know that the Lord will assist us! I will let you know how the plan comes along! We'll be sending the letters to the members this week!
I love you with all of my heart! I love this work! I fall in love with it more and more every day as I meet more and more of God's children and come to understand a little more God's plan for us! You are in my prayers always!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Dear Family!!!
How are you all doing!? Thanks so much for the inbox full of e-mails this morning! I am so excited to go back and really read them to know what is going on at home right now. Thanks for all of your love and prayers and support. I really felt it this week unlike any other time in my mission and I am so grateful for that. Prayer really works!
Well, this has been another great week! I don't think I have ever had a bad week but they just keep getting better and better! Investigators are doing okay. I don't know why but we are just struggling to find those who really are ready and prepared to take the necessary steps to baptism. But we will find them! And we are still trying to help Suleyka, Mary, and Silvester take those steps! Suleyka is still doing really well and is still positive that she will be baptized but we still haven't been able to arrange an appointment with her and the Bishop to talk about tithing. We hope that we can arrange that soon! We know that Satan is really throwing things in her path to stop her from coming closer to Christ through the Restored Gospel. She just got hired for a job with which she has to work most Sundays. She also just started dating someone really seriously. It's not that either of the things are bad, it is just that she has to make choices as to what takes first priority in her life. I hope that she'll stay strong and choose to come closer to her Heavenly Father! We met with Mary on Friday night and it was a really good appointment. She is just difficult to meet with regularly because she is a mother of two, with a job, going to school, and having relationship problems. I hope that we can also continue to help her and we are really relying on Heavenly Father to know how. Silvester is doing great but we just CANNOT get him to come to church! We are thinking that we might let him rest for a little bit of time and see if that will kind of re-boot him and get him excited again about the gospel. We are also pouring our hearts out to Heavenly Father that we will be able to find new investigators! We can't wait to see what this week will bring!
On Thursday we had a Zone Conference in Breda and that was really great! It always is! We talked about being more effective with finding and how we can find new investigators. That is what we are struggling with as a mission right now. Well, President started something new to get us more enthusiastic about talking to people. He added a key indicator where we have to report the number of people we contacted that week. I am so excited about the new addition to the key indicators! We started counting on Friday and within 3 days we had contacted a total of 166 people! It was really cool because every time I felt satisfied with the number of people I had talked to during our consecrated finding I would think about a video clip that President had shared at Zone Conference. It was from some football movie that came out when I was already on my mission. There was one of the players that the coach wanted to do the death crawl to the 50yard line blindfolded with a teammate on his back. He didn't think that he could do it but with the encouragement of the coach and mostly through his own will power he made it to the end zone. That really touched me and motivated me. I would begin to ask myself if I had really done my best and given all that I had to give. Well, every time I was able to push myself above what I thought I was capable of. On Friday during our consecrated hour we contacted 30 people and I was pleased with that. On Saturday I wanted to push myself a little harder and we were able to contact 34 people. Yesterday, because we had to do a double consecrated hour, I had a goal to contact atleast70 people. But when I realized at the end of our first hour we had contacted 62, I decided to move my goal to 100. We ended up contacting 102! I was so excited and had a fire to keep talking to people. I am excited to see how many we contact this week!
Zone Conference really got me fired up about being creative with missionary work! I have had an idea in my head to get the whole ward here involved in missionary work by getting all of them to help us missionaries pick consecrated hours (special hours when we go contacting) and pray for us as we go finding. Well my idea is finally coming into action! We have 100 families or members who are active or positive towards the church. We have decided to send a letter out to each of them with an assigned date and invite them to pick a street, neighborhood, or area where we can go finding every day in the month of February. We are going to have a ward fast on that fast Sunday that we will see miracles. Between the three sets of missionaries here in Den Haag we hope to do a total of 100 hours of consecrated finding. I am so excited about it and I know that the Lord will assist us! I will let you know how the plan comes along! We'll be sending the letters to the members this week!
I love you with all of my heart! I love this work! I fall in love with it more and more every day as I meet more and more of God's children and come to understand a little more God's plan for us! You are in my prayers always!
Love, Zuster Sharp
This is the Refiner's Fire!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Hey Mom and Dad,
How are you doing?! I hope that you have had a wonderful week! As I was glancing over your e-mails before printing them I can see that things are going pretty well...YAY! I love hearing that you are happy and healthy! I am praying for Grandma and Grandpa and I hope that Grandma gets feeling better and gets to come home from the hospital soon! All of you are always in my thoughts and prayers!
This week of missionary work has been awesome! We had 2 appointments with Suleyka and she came to church on Sunday. She is really getting so well received by the members and she says that she is feeling so much at home. She is changing so much and she said this week that she knows that she will be getting baptized in 2011 but she doesn't quite know when. I hope sooner than later but I know that Heavenly Father has a time for everything. She is going to be having an appointment with the Bishop this next week so that he can help her resolve her concerns about tithing. I think that will be really good for her! We also had 2 appointments with Silvester and he is going with us to Victoria's tonight to watch "The Testaments". He also says that he imagines himself getting baptized and he also brought up the baptismal interview. There is only one little problem...he has never come to church! We have done everything we can think of to help him but we just don't know what to do now. We are just trying to help him develop a desire within himself. Florence came with us to the Jovo Centrum on Thursday and she couldn't be happier and more excited about the gospel! It is difficult to set steady appointments with her (Africans are difficult to make appointments with) but we know that as long as we keep trying, it will come! Sophie is a sad story! We went there on Tuesday with a member, Nadeline, who speaks Spanish. Well, Sophie had invited two of her friends over to listen too and it just ended up bad! The two friends said that we were a sect and that Joseph Smith was not a prophet and it was getting pretty heated, but it was all in Spanish! We didn't know what to do but Nadeline took care of it and although she left in tears all of our testimonies were strengthened from it. I hope that one day Sophie will come to know that truth for herself! We also had many members that came on joint-teach this week for the first time! That is always so exciting! The work here in Den Haag is amazing and the Lord is pouring out his blessings upon us!
I love you so much and I pray for you. I know that God lives and that we are His children. I know that He loves us! Have a great week!
Love, Laur
Hey Mom and Dad,
How are you doing?! I hope that you have had a wonderful week! As I was glancing over your e-mails before printing them I can see that things are going pretty well...YAY! I love hearing that you are happy and healthy! I am praying for Grandma and Grandpa and I hope that Grandma gets feeling better and gets to come home from the hospital soon! All of you are always in my thoughts and prayers!
This week of missionary work has been awesome! We had 2 appointments with Suleyka and she came to church on Sunday. She is really getting so well received by the members and she says that she is feeling so much at home. She is changing so much and she said this week that she knows that she will be getting baptized in 2011 but she doesn't quite know when. I hope sooner than later but I know that Heavenly Father has a time for everything. She is going to be having an appointment with the Bishop this next week so that he can help her resolve her concerns about tithing. I think that will be really good for her! We also had 2 appointments with Silvester and he is going with us to Victoria's tonight to watch "The Testaments". He also says that he imagines himself getting baptized and he also brought up the baptismal interview. There is only one little problem...he has never come to church! We have done everything we can think of to help him but we just don't know what to do now. We are just trying to help him develop a desire within himself. Florence came with us to the Jovo Centrum on Thursday and she couldn't be happier and more excited about the gospel! It is difficult to set steady appointments with her (Africans are difficult to make appointments with) but we know that as long as we keep trying, it will come! Sophie is a sad story! We went there on Tuesday with a member, Nadeline, who speaks Spanish. Well, Sophie had invited two of her friends over to listen too and it just ended up bad! The two friends said that we were a sect and that Joseph Smith was not a prophet and it was getting pretty heated, but it was all in Spanish! We didn't know what to do but Nadeline took care of it and although she left in tears all of our testimonies were strengthened from it. I hope that one day Sophie will come to know that truth for herself! We also had many members that came on joint-teach this week for the first time! That is always so exciting! The work here in Den Haag is amazing and the Lord is pouring out his blessings upon us!
I love you so much and I pray for you. I know that God lives and that we are His children. I know that He loves us! Have a great week!
Love, Laur
Monday, January 10, 2011
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! IT IS 2011!
Monday, January 3, 2011
Dear Family and Friends! Happy New Year! I hope that you had a wonderful time welcoming in 2011 and Mom; I hope you had an especially great day! Happy Birthday to you! New Year's here is crazy! They do TONS of fireworks...it sounds like a war zone and it can be almost as dangerous as a war zone! Because of that, we had to be in our apartment at 4pm on New Year's Eve. We were well taken care of by the members, Familie Jongejan, who so kindly made an "after 4 pm" survival kit for us with alcohol free drinks and oliebollen (the traditional Dutch New Year's treat)! Zuster Hill and I enjoyed dinner together, used some of the time to set some goals and do some planning, and I ended up baking 234 chocolate chip cookies (I don't really know what I was thinking...I guess we're stocked for the year :)! All in all it was a good night and we enjoyed the millions of fireworks from our window!
I just have to take a minute to thank all of you! Thanks so much for the e-mails and the cards and the gifts and the packages for the holidays! They sure made my holiday season so bright! I can't wait until I get home and I can do something really special to serve all of you...it's gonna be great!
Well, I have to be honest; this was one of the greatest preparation days of my life! I know, you're probably thinking that I went to a great museum or I saw a really cool monument or something....no! I folded laundry, did the dishes, and vacuumed the floor! I don't know what it is but I just miss doing those little things for other people. So, last night as I was biking and thinking I had the idea to call up Zuster Broekman and ask her if I could come and to a few things to help her out while Zuster Hill wrote letters. I knew that Zuster Broekman had been sick all of the last week and that her 4 little ones
were going back to school today and I just figured that she could maybe use some help getting her house back in order after the holidays. When I called her up she declined at first but after I told her that it was something that I really wanted to do and that it would actually be more of a service for me, she approved! I loved it! It was so fun to be able to serve someone again in that way! So save up all of your laundry, dishes, deep cleaning cause I am coming home to help you with all of it! I am such a nut!
I hate to tell you this again but missionary work was kind of on hold once again this last week! The holidays just put a stop to almost everything! But we had quite the miracle yesterday! We went to lookup a potential investigator yesterday who we had met on Christmas Eve during our consecrated hour. We had given her a copy of “Joy to the World” then and she gave us her address. Well when we went by yesterday she was so excited to see us and she welcomed us right in. She comes from the Dominican Republic, her name is Sophie, and she has two young daughters (9 and 11 years old). She believes in God and attends church every week but mentioned that she still has a hunger for more. She wants to continue learning more from God's word and she wants to come closer to him. She was divorced a few years ago, just after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is very humble and at a point where she is open for the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. Zuster Hill and I had such a good feeling about her. We told her that God had placed us in her path to share His love with her. We asked her if we could come back 2 or 3 times in the week and teach her more. She then asked us if she could come to church with her 2 girls next Sunday! We are really looking forward to our appointment on Tuesday!
We also had another new investigator in Sacrament Meeting yesterday. We found him on the bus and he gave us his phone number and address. We texted him on Sunday morning just to let him know about church and he actually came! His name is Ramanapaul. We have an appointment with him, Silvester (who we thought was Cevesta), Suleyka, and Mary this week! Oh, and we also had an awesome appointment with Florence! We finally were able to have an appointment with her on Friday and she had read the whole Plan of Salvation pamphlet. We brought little cutouts of the Plan of Salvation to help her understand it a little better and she just took all of the pieces and laid it right out in
order. She is moving along so great!
We had another baptism here on Tuesday. Barbara was baptized! The Elders did most of the teaching but we had gone by a couple of times to share a lesson. It was so great to see the change that has taken
place in her life since she has received the gospel and to see how happy she is. That is why this work is the greatest work ever!
Well, I hope that you know that I love you but just in case you ever wonder I'll tell you one more time...I LOVE YOU! I love this gospel too! I know that the church was restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. I know that Christ lives! I know that the Book of Mormon is true! I know that 2011 is going to be a wonderful year and I look forward to all of the experiences that it will bring! Have a great week and enjoy January!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Dear Family and Friends! Happy New Year! I hope that you had a wonderful time welcoming in 2011 and Mom; I hope you had an especially great day! Happy Birthday to you! New Year's here is crazy! They do TONS of fireworks...it sounds like a war zone and it can be almost as dangerous as a war zone! Because of that, we had to be in our apartment at 4pm on New Year's Eve. We were well taken care of by the members, Familie Jongejan, who so kindly made an "after 4 pm" survival kit for us with alcohol free drinks and oliebollen (the traditional Dutch New Year's treat)! Zuster Hill and I enjoyed dinner together, used some of the time to set some goals and do some planning, and I ended up baking 234 chocolate chip cookies (I don't really know what I was thinking...I guess we're stocked for the year :)! All in all it was a good night and we enjoyed the millions of fireworks from our window!
I just have to take a minute to thank all of you! Thanks so much for the e-mails and the cards and the gifts and the packages for the holidays! They sure made my holiday season so bright! I can't wait until I get home and I can do something really special to serve all of you...it's gonna be great!
Well, I have to be honest; this was one of the greatest preparation days of my life! I know, you're probably thinking that I went to a great museum or I saw a really cool monument or something....no! I folded laundry, did the dishes, and vacuumed the floor! I don't know what it is but I just miss doing those little things for other people. So, last night as I was biking and thinking I had the idea to call up Zuster Broekman and ask her if I could come and to a few things to help her out while Zuster Hill wrote letters. I knew that Zuster Broekman had been sick all of the last week and that her 4 little ones
were going back to school today and I just figured that she could maybe use some help getting her house back in order after the holidays. When I called her up she declined at first but after I told her that it was something that I really wanted to do and that it would actually be more of a service for me, she approved! I loved it! It was so fun to be able to serve someone again in that way! So save up all of your laundry, dishes, deep cleaning cause I am coming home to help you with all of it! I am such a nut!
I hate to tell you this again but missionary work was kind of on hold once again this last week! The holidays just put a stop to almost everything! But we had quite the miracle yesterday! We went to lookup a potential investigator yesterday who we had met on Christmas Eve during our consecrated hour. We had given her a copy of “Joy to the World” then and she gave us her address. Well when we went by yesterday she was so excited to see us and she welcomed us right in. She comes from the Dominican Republic, her name is Sophie, and she has two young daughters (9 and 11 years old). She believes in God and attends church every week but mentioned that she still has a hunger for more. She wants to continue learning more from God's word and she wants to come closer to him. She was divorced a few years ago, just after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is very humble and at a point where she is open for the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. Zuster Hill and I had such a good feeling about her. We told her that God had placed us in her path to share His love with her. We asked her if we could come back 2 or 3 times in the week and teach her more. She then asked us if she could come to church with her 2 girls next Sunday! We are really looking forward to our appointment on Tuesday!
We also had another new investigator in Sacrament Meeting yesterday. We found him on the bus and he gave us his phone number and address. We texted him on Sunday morning just to let him know about church and he actually came! His name is Ramanapaul. We have an appointment with him, Silvester (who we thought was Cevesta), Suleyka, and Mary this week! Oh, and we also had an awesome appointment with Florence! We finally were able to have an appointment with her on Friday and she had read the whole Plan of Salvation pamphlet. We brought little cutouts of the Plan of Salvation to help her understand it a little better and she just took all of the pieces and laid it right out in
order. She is moving along so great!
We had another baptism here on Tuesday. Barbara was baptized! The Elders did most of the teaching but we had gone by a couple of times to share a lesson. It was so great to see the change that has taken
place in her life since she has received the gospel and to see how happy she is. That is why this work is the greatest work ever!
Well, I hope that you know that I love you but just in case you ever wonder I'll tell you one more time...I LOVE YOU! I love this gospel too! I know that the church was restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. I know that Christ lives! I know that the Book of Mormon is true! I know that 2011 is going to be a wonderful year and I look forward to all of the experiences that it will bring! Have a great week and enjoy January!
Love, Zuster Sharp
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Monday, December 27, 2010
Hey Family! It was FABULOUS to be able to talk to you! I really don't think that it could have been better! After I got off of the phone with you I felt so uplifted and happy and pleased with our time that we had to converse with one another. Thank you for always making it such an awesome and special experience! And thank you for all taking the time to come together on the busy Christmas day so that I can talk to each one of you. I am so thankful for that! I think that is was definitely easier to hang up this time (and with a lot less tears:)) because I know that I will be seeing you in a short 12 weeks. Then I will have all of the time in the world to talk...I am so looking forward to that! But until then let's make the next two and a half months of 2011 the best ever!
I just have to thank all of you for the wonderful Christmas cards and presents and money and support that you gave. You made Christmas so special for me and I could feel of your love! I hope that Sinter Klaas will make a stop to West Jordan soon with a special delivery for you all!
I had a great 2nd Christmas in the Netherlands! Yesterday, for the2nd Christmas Day (yes, the Dutch people are genius to have two official Christmas days...just more time to celebrate and be together)we had a full and busy day! We started out with a breakfast with the four other elders at Familie Scherf's. We had food galore and we really enjoyed our time together. There was definitely a special Christmas spirit there. We read the Christmas story together and then sang Christmas hymns around the piano. At 10:30 we headed out the door to church and we just had a Sacrament Meeting/Christmas Service. It was wonderful to be together with all of the members, especially on Christmas and especially after missing church last week. Suleyka came to the service so that was really great! After church all 6 of us missionaries and Quincy (a member who was baptized in June) went caroling. I had wanted to do it the whole month and I finally talked all of the other missionaries into it. We started at Familie Scherf's and then went next door to the Navarro's. We got spoiled by the Navarro's-they let us in and gave us turkey sandwiches, Christmas bread, and warm hot chocolate! They then gave us a referral-they sent us to sing for one of their neighbors around the corner. When we showed up, he invited us to come in and sing for all of the family and their guests, and then they referred us to someone else and it just went on and on for 3 hours. It was awesome and some of my favorite finding ever! Because of the Christmas season people are more open and we were able to share the Christmas spirit! At about 5 we went to a dinner appointment (yes, our third eating appointment in one day...I don't ever want to eat again!) with Carla van der Walt, a member who was baptized about a year ago. She treated us like royalty and we enjoyed every minute with her! We sure were spoiled this Christmas and no matter how much we tried to serve other people, we ended up receiving so much more in return!
Investigators are doing pretty good. We have had contact with all of them over the past week but still because of the holidays things are a little crazy. We already have a few appointments for this next week with them. I am looking forward to it and I will keep you posted on their progress. Thanks for your prayers in their behalf!
Well, I don't have too much info from Zuster Fritz and Zuster Pierson but I'll give you what I've got:
Zuster Jillian Fritz
South Jordan
Zuster Emily Pierson
1974 West 8660 South
West Jordan, UT 84088
I hope that you can get in contact with them. I know that they would love it!
I want you to know that I LOVE YOU! You are the best family ever and you are always in my prayers! I hope that you have a very happy new year and a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! Thank you for your love and support!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Hey Family! It was FABULOUS to be able to talk to you! I really don't think that it could have been better! After I got off of the phone with you I felt so uplifted and happy and pleased with our time that we had to converse with one another. Thank you for always making it such an awesome and special experience! And thank you for all taking the time to come together on the busy Christmas day so that I can talk to each one of you. I am so thankful for that! I think that is was definitely easier to hang up this time (and with a lot less tears:)) because I know that I will be seeing you in a short 12 weeks. Then I will have all of the time in the world to talk...I am so looking forward to that! But until then let's make the next two and a half months of 2011 the best ever!
I just have to thank all of you for the wonderful Christmas cards and presents and money and support that you gave. You made Christmas so special for me and I could feel of your love! I hope that Sinter Klaas will make a stop to West Jordan soon with a special delivery for you all!
I had a great 2nd Christmas in the Netherlands! Yesterday, for the2nd Christmas Day (yes, the Dutch people are genius to have two official Christmas days...just more time to celebrate and be together)we had a full and busy day! We started out with a breakfast with the four other elders at Familie Scherf's. We had food galore and we really enjoyed our time together. There was definitely a special Christmas spirit there. We read the Christmas story together and then sang Christmas hymns around the piano. At 10:30 we headed out the door to church and we just had a Sacrament Meeting/Christmas Service. It was wonderful to be together with all of the members, especially on Christmas and especially after missing church last week. Suleyka came to the service so that was really great! After church all 6 of us missionaries and Quincy (a member who was baptized in June) went caroling. I had wanted to do it the whole month and I finally talked all of the other missionaries into it. We started at Familie Scherf's and then went next door to the Navarro's. We got spoiled by the Navarro's-they let us in and gave us turkey sandwiches, Christmas bread, and warm hot chocolate! They then gave us a referral-they sent us to sing for one of their neighbors around the corner. When we showed up, he invited us to come in and sing for all of the family and their guests, and then they referred us to someone else and it just went on and on for 3 hours. It was awesome and some of my favorite finding ever! Because of the Christmas season people are more open and we were able to share the Christmas spirit! At about 5 we went to a dinner appointment (yes, our third eating appointment in one day...I don't ever want to eat again!) with Carla van der Walt, a member who was baptized about a year ago. She treated us like royalty and we enjoyed every minute with her! We sure were spoiled this Christmas and no matter how much we tried to serve other people, we ended up receiving so much more in return!
Investigators are doing pretty good. We have had contact with all of them over the past week but still because of the holidays things are a little crazy. We already have a few appointments for this next week with them. I am looking forward to it and I will keep you posted on their progress. Thanks for your prayers in their behalf!
Well, I don't have too much info from Zuster Fritz and Zuster Pierson but I'll give you what I've got:
Zuster Jillian Fritz
South Jordan
Zuster Emily Pierson
1974 West 8660 South
West Jordan, UT 84088
I hope that you can get in contact with them. I know that they would love it!
I want you to know that I LOVE YOU! You are the best family ever and you are always in my prayers! I hope that you have a very happy new year and a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! Thank you for your love and support!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Monday, December 20, 2010
It was not quite the week I was planning on...this one has GOT to be better!
Monday, December 20, 2010
Hello Family! Time is ticking and getting closer and closer to Christmas...and that means that we get to talk to each other! I am so looking forward to hearing all of your voices and feeling the love! We have a pretty crazy Christmas day schedule so I was wondering if you want to call at 12:30 Utah time, 8:30 here. I am getting giddy just thinking about it! I look forward to it!
Well this week was a week like none other that I have experienced! It was pretty emotional from the minute that Zuster Pierson had it confirmed that she was going to be going home on Saturday. The members were really great and made sure that she had a really special week before going home. Our family home evening was fabulous with Familie Broekman and we really enjoyed the last little bit of our time together. Well, just before our last appointment together, I got hit hard with something! I had a sore throat, fever, ear pain; aches and chills and that put me in bed! I remained there the whole night on Thursday and was just praying that I would be ready to go on Friday to take Zuster Pierson to the station and pick up my greenie. Friday morning I was not feeling any better but I had no choice to stay home so me and Zuster Pierson headed out at 5:30 in the morning to be where we needed to be on time. There was a huge snow storm so getting around was almost impossible! After sending Zuster Pierson off at11:30, I just couldn't stand at the station any longer, so two of the Elders escorted me to Zuster Navarro's, the RS president here. She was so sweet and took such good care of me! I actually ended up lying on her couch until 9:00 that night because the greenies all got stranded in Brussels at the mission home because of the big storm. Zuster Garvin made it up to Den Haag from Rotterdam and stayed the night with me in my apartment. Saturday wasn't any better and I stayed in bed the whole day again. My greenie showed up at about 1:30and she is so sweet! I wasn't very chipper but tried to give her a warm welcome! Her name is Zuster Hill and she is from Portland, Oregon. I really love her!!! The Elders gave me a blessing and I was really grateful for that. Poor Zuster Hill stayed in the whole day but I just felt so guilty about it so I arranged that she would get picked up by Familie Peschier that night to go to the baptism and I would go and stay with Familie Navarro again. Members were so good and we got showered with everything I could possibly need to get feeling better. On Sunday I got up and took a shower but just had no strength to get ready and make it to church...so we spent another whole day inside! Concetta and Jessie, two of the Jovos here, showed up at 4:30 and went on splits with Zuster Hill so that she could do something. I was finally able to eat something last night, a little bowl of chicken broth and a half of a banana. I still haven't eaten or had anything to drink today. I actually stepped on the scale this morning and saw that I've lost 9 pounds in the last 4 days. I think that I really am getting better though and now I am just working on getting my strength back. I just wanted you so bad Mom! I am just so thankful for prayer and that Heavenly Father was always close by me. I think that physically and emotionally I was just worn out! I think that Zuster Pierson going home really played a bigger role on me than I had imagined. But I am excited to start a new week, especially the week of Christmas, and have it go better! I feel really blessed and I am so thankful for all of your prayers and the prayers of the members here. You don't ever have to worry about me because they take such good care of me!
So I have no information about the work here...we weren't able to do any! I will keep you posted on the investigators next week!
I wish you all the Merriest Christmas ever! I can't wait to talk to you! I love you so much!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Hello Family! Time is ticking and getting closer and closer to Christmas...and that means that we get to talk to each other! I am so looking forward to hearing all of your voices and feeling the love! We have a pretty crazy Christmas day schedule so I was wondering if you want to call at 12:30 Utah time, 8:30 here. I am getting giddy just thinking about it! I look forward to it!
Well this week was a week like none other that I have experienced! It was pretty emotional from the minute that Zuster Pierson had it confirmed that she was going to be going home on Saturday. The members were really great and made sure that she had a really special week before going home. Our family home evening was fabulous with Familie Broekman and we really enjoyed the last little bit of our time together. Well, just before our last appointment together, I got hit hard with something! I had a sore throat, fever, ear pain; aches and chills and that put me in bed! I remained there the whole night on Thursday and was just praying that I would be ready to go on Friday to take Zuster Pierson to the station and pick up my greenie. Friday morning I was not feeling any better but I had no choice to stay home so me and Zuster Pierson headed out at 5:30 in the morning to be where we needed to be on time. There was a huge snow storm so getting around was almost impossible! After sending Zuster Pierson off at11:30, I just couldn't stand at the station any longer, so two of the Elders escorted me to Zuster Navarro's, the RS president here. She was so sweet and took such good care of me! I actually ended up lying on her couch until 9:00 that night because the greenies all got stranded in Brussels at the mission home because of the big storm. Zuster Garvin made it up to Den Haag from Rotterdam and stayed the night with me in my apartment. Saturday wasn't any better and I stayed in bed the whole day again. My greenie showed up at about 1:30and she is so sweet! I wasn't very chipper but tried to give her a warm welcome! Her name is Zuster Hill and she is from Portland, Oregon. I really love her!!! The Elders gave me a blessing and I was really grateful for that. Poor Zuster Hill stayed in the whole day but I just felt so guilty about it so I arranged that she would get picked up by Familie Peschier that night to go to the baptism and I would go and stay with Familie Navarro again. Members were so good and we got showered with everything I could possibly need to get feeling better. On Sunday I got up and took a shower but just had no strength to get ready and make it to church...so we spent another whole day inside! Concetta and Jessie, two of the Jovos here, showed up at 4:30 and went on splits with Zuster Hill so that she could do something. I was finally able to eat something last night, a little bowl of chicken broth and a half of a banana. I still haven't eaten or had anything to drink today. I actually stepped on the scale this morning and saw that I've lost 9 pounds in the last 4 days. I think that I really am getting better though and now I am just working on getting my strength back. I just wanted you so bad Mom! I am just so thankful for prayer and that Heavenly Father was always close by me. I think that physically and emotionally I was just worn out! I think that Zuster Pierson going home really played a bigger role on me than I had imagined. But I am excited to start a new week, especially the week of Christmas, and have it go better! I feel really blessed and I am so thankful for all of your prayers and the prayers of the members here. You don't ever have to worry about me because they take such good care of me!
So I have no information about the work here...we weren't able to do any! I will keep you posted on the investigators next week!
I wish you all the Merriest Christmas ever! I can't wait to talk to you! I love you so much!
Love, Zuster Sharp
It's the most wonderful time of the year!
Monday, December 13, 2010
Hey Family! I hope that you have had a great week and are enjoying the countdown until Christmas! I received e-mails from you except I don't think that the one got sent from your iPad Mom. I didn't get too many details about Grandma and Grandpa but enough to know that they aren't doing too well. They are in my prayers as well as all of you. It's hard to know that you have all had a rocky week but I hope that this week is better. I know that Heavenly Father is aware of all of us and that brings so much peace.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD (on the 15th)! I hope that you have a special day and get to do something memorable together!
This week has been quite an emotional one...kind of a roller coaster! There have been both the ups and the downs but overall I am thankful for all that has taken place. The Zone Conference and Christmas Concert were absolutely fabulous! We had about 200 guests(members and nonmembers) show up for the concert and the spirit of Christmas was so strong! It was a lot of fun to come together as missionaries and, through singing, bear testimony of the Savior. The Brubakers made the day really special by providing us with a Brubaker tradition fondue lunch. It was delicious! The whole day was one that I will never forget!
On Saturday we actually found out that Zuster Pierson will be leaving her mission this Friday due to health problems. I could just cry! It's been quite emotional over the past couple of days but she really feels like it is what Heavenly Father wants, although it is not what she would want. It's hard to know that she is going home when I should be and I am staying. But I am thankful that I chose to stay a couple more transfers because if I didn't they would have to close one of the sister cities. So with transfers this week I am almost positive that I will be staying in Den Haag a 5th transfer (Wahoo!) and President let me know at the Zone Conference that I will be getting a greenie and training again. President will be calling tonight about transfers so I will know for sure but I think I will be in Den Haag for Christmas...that's a blessing! It's a little bittersweet! I am definitely excited to be training but I just wish that Zuster Pierson wasn't ending this transfer the way she will be. I am just so thankful that we have been able to serve together for the past 4 1/2months and I really look forward to ending this transfer with a bang with her!
Investigators and members are doing great! Suleyka is still praying about tithing but tea is no more a problem. Florence came to the centrum again and she is now an official investigator. We had 2 lessons with her and she is reading in the Book of Mormon! She is really doing great! And Mary is also doing well, and Cevesta, and Eric. We are just really being blessed! We have had a lot of great Christmas-based lessons with the members this past week but I am pretty sure that tonight will be my favorite! We are going to Familie Broekman's tonight and we are going to act the nativity out with them and make sugar cookies! A Sharp family special taking place here in the Netherlands! Zuster Pierson spent all of last night gathering things for the costumes and I think it will be a hit! I will take lots of pictures so that you can see how it goes. And the member chain is going great! Yesterday at church many members shared their experiences with us of the miracles they have seen happen since they began doing the chain. It is really uniting us!
Thank you so much for your prayers in behalf of OUR investigators! I love you so much and I hope that you have a great Christmas filled week! You are always in my thoughts and prayers!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Hey Family! I hope that you have had a great week and are enjoying the countdown until Christmas! I received e-mails from you except I don't think that the one got sent from your iPad Mom. I didn't get too many details about Grandma and Grandpa but enough to know that they aren't doing too well. They are in my prayers as well as all of you. It's hard to know that you have all had a rocky week but I hope that this week is better. I know that Heavenly Father is aware of all of us and that brings so much peace.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD (on the 15th)! I hope that you have a special day and get to do something memorable together!
This week has been quite an emotional one...kind of a roller coaster! There have been both the ups and the downs but overall I am thankful for all that has taken place. The Zone Conference and Christmas Concert were absolutely fabulous! We had about 200 guests(members and nonmembers) show up for the concert and the spirit of Christmas was so strong! It was a lot of fun to come together as missionaries and, through singing, bear testimony of the Savior. The Brubakers made the day really special by providing us with a Brubaker tradition fondue lunch. It was delicious! The whole day was one that I will never forget!
On Saturday we actually found out that Zuster Pierson will be leaving her mission this Friday due to health problems. I could just cry! It's been quite emotional over the past couple of days but she really feels like it is what Heavenly Father wants, although it is not what she would want. It's hard to know that she is going home when I should be and I am staying. But I am thankful that I chose to stay a couple more transfers because if I didn't they would have to close one of the sister cities. So with transfers this week I am almost positive that I will be staying in Den Haag a 5th transfer (Wahoo!) and President let me know at the Zone Conference that I will be getting a greenie and training again. President will be calling tonight about transfers so I will know for sure but I think I will be in Den Haag for Christmas...that's a blessing! It's a little bittersweet! I am definitely excited to be training but I just wish that Zuster Pierson wasn't ending this transfer the way she will be. I am just so thankful that we have been able to serve together for the past 4 1/2months and I really look forward to ending this transfer with a bang with her!
Investigators and members are doing great! Suleyka is still praying about tithing but tea is no more a problem. Florence came to the centrum again and she is now an official investigator. We had 2 lessons with her and she is reading in the Book of Mormon! She is really doing great! And Mary is also doing well, and Cevesta, and Eric. We are just really being blessed! We have had a lot of great Christmas-based lessons with the members this past week but I am pretty sure that tonight will be my favorite! We are going to Familie Broekman's tonight and we are going to act the nativity out with them and make sugar cookies! A Sharp family special taking place here in the Netherlands! Zuster Pierson spent all of last night gathering things for the costumes and I think it will be a hit! I will take lots of pictures so that you can see how it goes. And the member chain is going great! Yesterday at church many members shared their experiences with us of the miracles they have seen happen since they began doing the chain. It is really uniting us!
Thank you so much for your prayers in behalf of OUR investigators! I love you so much and I hope that you have a great Christmas filled week! You are always in my thoughts and prayers!
Love, Zuster Sharp
It'll be a white Christmas!
Monday, December 6, 2010
Hello Family! How are you doing?! I hope that you are enjoying every moment of this Christmas season! We have sure got the Christmas weather here in the Netherlands! We got hit with quite a bit of snow this past week and have experienced a couple days of extreme cold weather but my heart is warm with the joy of the reason of the season...Jesus Christ!
I just want to apologize now for not being so good at letter writing as I would like to be! We haven't had a normal preparation day for the past month with the church move and preparing for the missionary Christmas concert we will be putting on this week and so I have been so behind on replying to your love and motivation filled letters! I just want you to know that I appreciate them and I will be sending a letter back as soon as possible. Just know that I am thinking of you and praying for you and that you will get a letter soon!
We have seen so many miracles this week! We were asked by the Relief Society President to come up with some kind of Christmas/missionary activity for the ward to do during the month of December and present yesterday at church. Knowing that members are very busy, especially in December, we wanted to come up with something that was achievable but also motivating. After much prayer and consideration we decided to do a Christmas countdown chain (a little tacky, I know!). We spent most of the day on Saturday making 100 chains for every household in the ward. On each chain link there is a small assignment with a relating scripture (ex:read the Christmas story in the Bible, Luke 2,etc.). Some of the assignments are a little more difficult than others, such as giving a Book of Mormon away as a Christmas gift, but will really encourage missionary miracles to happen. As we passed the chains out yesterday, the members were so excited and really committed to do it! I can't wait to be able to see the small results that come from all of the members doing these small and simple things...because they are the things that produce great miracles!
We lost contact with Suleyka most of the week and we were really worried about her. After fasting with her last week we thought things were going really well but then we couldn't reach her. We were just devastated! Last night we had a little extra time so we texted her to ask if we could drop by. She explained in her text back that she would love it if we would come and that she was sorry for the lost contact throughout the week....she was out of town visiting her aunt and her phone had died and she didn't have her charger with her. We couldn't have been more relieved! We went by and it was the most amazing appointment! She has changed so much. She explained different situations she had throughout last week with prayer and reading and then she dropped the best surprise on us of all..."I really would like to be baptized. Do you feel like I am ready?" We were speechless! An overwhelming feeling of love flooded over me and Zuster Pierson and we both felt like we received a small glimpse of the love Heavenly Father has for her. We assured her that she is ready. She still has a few concerns with tithing and tea...she's not unwilling to pay tithing but she just needs the faith to do it. We are going to take her some tea tonight that she can drink and we are going to pray and decide with her if she will be baptized on the 18thor 30th of December. It is so exciting and such a blessing! Thanks for your prayers in her behalf!
We also are teaching Florence and Eric now, two amazing and promising investigators! Florence is the niece of Isatu, one of the members that was baptized in June. She just moved here to live with Isatu and when we were there last week teaching Isatu and her children we invited Florence, who is now 17, to come to the JOVO Centrum with us. She agreed! She came on Thursday night and loved it and asked if she could attend every Monday and Thursday! Of course! She also came to church yesterday and she is just the cutest thing ever! We feel really good about her, especially because she is in the perfect environment right now to learn about the Restored Gospel. Eric is a 50 year old man that we met a couple of weeks ago and we taught for the first time yesterday. He accepted a baptismal date for the 30thof December! We had an amazing joint-teach with us and he is really what I would call "Golden". Mary and Cevesta and Rose are also doing well. Thanks for your faith and prayers for all of them!
I want you to know that I love you and I am so excited to talk to you in 20 days! It's a little harder than I thought, knowing that I could be going home in a week and a half but I have faith and trust in the Lord and I absolutely love the work! God lives, Christ is His son, and this is His gospel! I love you!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Hello Family! How are you doing?! I hope that you are enjoying every moment of this Christmas season! We have sure got the Christmas weather here in the Netherlands! We got hit with quite a bit of snow this past week and have experienced a couple days of extreme cold weather but my heart is warm with the joy of the reason of the season...Jesus Christ!
I just want to apologize now for not being so good at letter writing as I would like to be! We haven't had a normal preparation day for the past month with the church move and preparing for the missionary Christmas concert we will be putting on this week and so I have been so behind on replying to your love and motivation filled letters! I just want you to know that I appreciate them and I will be sending a letter back as soon as possible. Just know that I am thinking of you and praying for you and that you will get a letter soon!
We have seen so many miracles this week! We were asked by the Relief Society President to come up with some kind of Christmas/missionary activity for the ward to do during the month of December and present yesterday at church. Knowing that members are very busy, especially in December, we wanted to come up with something that was achievable but also motivating. After much prayer and consideration we decided to do a Christmas countdown chain (a little tacky, I know!). We spent most of the day on Saturday making 100 chains for every household in the ward. On each chain link there is a small assignment with a relating scripture (ex:read the Christmas story in the Bible, Luke 2,etc.). Some of the assignments are a little more difficult than others, such as giving a Book of Mormon away as a Christmas gift, but will really encourage missionary miracles to happen. As we passed the chains out yesterday, the members were so excited and really committed to do it! I can't wait to be able to see the small results that come from all of the members doing these small and simple things...because they are the things that produce great miracles!
We lost contact with Suleyka most of the week and we were really worried about her. After fasting with her last week we thought things were going really well but then we couldn't reach her. We were just devastated! Last night we had a little extra time so we texted her to ask if we could drop by. She explained in her text back that she would love it if we would come and that she was sorry for the lost contact throughout the week....she was out of town visiting her aunt and her phone had died and she didn't have her charger with her. We couldn't have been more relieved! We went by and it was the most amazing appointment! She has changed so much. She explained different situations she had throughout last week with prayer and reading and then she dropped the best surprise on us of all..."I really would like to be baptized. Do you feel like I am ready?" We were speechless! An overwhelming feeling of love flooded over me and Zuster Pierson and we both felt like we received a small glimpse of the love Heavenly Father has for her. We assured her that she is ready. She still has a few concerns with tithing and tea...she's not unwilling to pay tithing but she just needs the faith to do it. We are going to take her some tea tonight that she can drink and we are going to pray and decide with her if she will be baptized on the 18thor 30th of December. It is so exciting and such a blessing! Thanks for your prayers in her behalf!
We also are teaching Florence and Eric now, two amazing and promising investigators! Florence is the niece of Isatu, one of the members that was baptized in June. She just moved here to live with Isatu and when we were there last week teaching Isatu and her children we invited Florence, who is now 17, to come to the JOVO Centrum with us. She agreed! She came on Thursday night and loved it and asked if she could attend every Monday and Thursday! Of course! She also came to church yesterday and she is just the cutest thing ever! We feel really good about her, especially because she is in the perfect environment right now to learn about the Restored Gospel. Eric is a 50 year old man that we met a couple of weeks ago and we taught for the first time yesterday. He accepted a baptismal date for the 30thof December! We had an amazing joint-teach with us and he is really what I would call "Golden". Mary and Cevesta and Rose are also doing well. Thanks for your faith and prayers for all of them!
I want you to know that I love you and I am so excited to talk to you in 20 days! It's a little harder than I thought, knowing that I could be going home in a week and a half but I have faith and trust in the Lord and I absolutely love the work! God lives, Christ is His son, and this is His gospel! I love you!
Love, Zuster Sharp
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Happy Sinter Klaas on December 5!!!
Monday, Nov. 29, 2010
Hey Family! How was your Thanksgiving?! I have been thinking about you and how thankful I am for you all week! I had a FABULOUS Thanksgiving! I started the day out bright and early (3:50 to be exact) by putting the pumpkin in the oven. Yeah, I had another one of my crazy ideas! I decided on Wednesday night that I just couldn't go another Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie! The only problem is that in the Netherlands you cannot buy pumpkin in a can. We have a pretty great "Better Homes and Gardens" recipe book in our apartment and it tells how to use a real pumpkin for making pies and different pumpkin desserts. So Wednesday night I got started by cleaning the pumpkin out and cutting it into bakeable pieces and then I finished it off onThursday morning. We went over to the church at 9 on Thursday and we took our pumpkin pie and other Thanksgiving treats with. We went there to help the Primary presidency clean up and pack up all of their materials in preparation for the church renovation. After a few hours of working, we surprised the presidency with fresh pumpkin pie and whipped cream, along with a vegetable and cracker platter with ranch dip. We had a fun little pre-Thanksgiving feast for lunch! Afterwards we did some finding and had a few appointments before going to Familie Koot's for the real feast. They had everything you could imagine! The whole table was filled and their home was filled with warmth and love. Along with us and the Elders being there, another young couple and little girl from the ward came and another young couple who are not members plus Br. and Sis. Koot and their 4 little kids. I think that it was the closest I could get to really feeling at home for the holiday and it was wonderful! We were stuffed by the time we left there to go to institute at the church and then we had to stop by one more member on the way home because she had made us something special for Thanksgiving. We were treated like royalty! I haven't wanted to eat for the past couple of days because I have been so stuffed! But I will never forget the wonderful memories of this last Thanksgiving of my mission!
This week was a week of member work! We spent a lot of our time serving and helping those in need in the ward and it has really helped me to feel the spirit of this Christmas season! On Saturday we went to Jolanda and Jeroen's house because Jeroen (a non member) wanted to teach us how to make Speculaas and Kruidennoten, two of the most famous treats baked for Sinter Klaas. It was so great to be able to learn from him! He is not investigating yet but I feel like every time we see him he gets closer and closer to Christ. After we baked many cookies we packaged them up to give to investigators this week. It will be fun to share something with them for this holiday season! And as we were headed from Jolanda's and Jeroen's we even found a surprise stuffed in our shoes from "Sinter Klaas"! The members make sure that we are taken care of!
We taught Iteke this week and she had read the pamphlet about the Plan of Salvation and she began with the Book of Mormon. She really is worried about changing her beliefs but she feels the spirit as she reads and I know that God is aware of her and will help her. We didn't have any appointments with Cevesta this week which is just too bad! He was just really busy. Suleyka is doing awesome! We had a few appointments, she came to institute and dinner with a member, she came to church, and she fasted with us yesterday to know if she should be baptized on December 18! She is really progressing! She'll be coming with us to a couple more members this week so it will be really good! Rose and her two grandchildren came to church yesterday too! We hope to teach them tonight!
Thank you so much for your love and support! I love this season that we have to celebrate the birth of Christ. Even though we will be far apart for the holidays, my thoughts and prayers are always with you! I can feel your warmth and love all of the way over here in the Netherlands! I love you!
Love,Laur
Hey Family! How was your Thanksgiving?! I have been thinking about you and how thankful I am for you all week! I had a FABULOUS Thanksgiving! I started the day out bright and early (3:50 to be exact) by putting the pumpkin in the oven. Yeah, I had another one of my crazy ideas! I decided on Wednesday night that I just couldn't go another Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie! The only problem is that in the Netherlands you cannot buy pumpkin in a can. We have a pretty great "Better Homes and Gardens" recipe book in our apartment and it tells how to use a real pumpkin for making pies and different pumpkin desserts. So Wednesday night I got started by cleaning the pumpkin out and cutting it into bakeable pieces and then I finished it off onThursday morning. We went over to the church at 9 on Thursday and we took our pumpkin pie and other Thanksgiving treats with. We went there to help the Primary presidency clean up and pack up all of their materials in preparation for the church renovation. After a few hours of working, we surprised the presidency with fresh pumpkin pie and whipped cream, along with a vegetable and cracker platter with ranch dip. We had a fun little pre-Thanksgiving feast for lunch! Afterwards we did some finding and had a few appointments before going to Familie Koot's for the real feast. They had everything you could imagine! The whole table was filled and their home was filled with warmth and love. Along with us and the Elders being there, another young couple and little girl from the ward came and another young couple who are not members plus Br. and Sis. Koot and their 4 little kids. I think that it was the closest I could get to really feeling at home for the holiday and it was wonderful! We were stuffed by the time we left there to go to institute at the church and then we had to stop by one more member on the way home because she had made us something special for Thanksgiving. We were treated like royalty! I haven't wanted to eat for the past couple of days because I have been so stuffed! But I will never forget the wonderful memories of this last Thanksgiving of my mission!
This week was a week of member work! We spent a lot of our time serving and helping those in need in the ward and it has really helped me to feel the spirit of this Christmas season! On Saturday we went to Jolanda and Jeroen's house because Jeroen (a non member) wanted to teach us how to make Speculaas and Kruidennoten, two of the most famous treats baked for Sinter Klaas. It was so great to be able to learn from him! He is not investigating yet but I feel like every time we see him he gets closer and closer to Christ. After we baked many cookies we packaged them up to give to investigators this week. It will be fun to share something with them for this holiday season! And as we were headed from Jolanda's and Jeroen's we even found a surprise stuffed in our shoes from "Sinter Klaas"! The members make sure that we are taken care of!
We taught Iteke this week and she had read the pamphlet about the Plan of Salvation and she began with the Book of Mormon. She really is worried about changing her beliefs but she feels the spirit as she reads and I know that God is aware of her and will help her. We didn't have any appointments with Cevesta this week which is just too bad! He was just really busy. Suleyka is doing awesome! We had a few appointments, she came to institute and dinner with a member, she came to church, and she fasted with us yesterday to know if she should be baptized on December 18! She is really progressing! She'll be coming with us to a couple more members this week so it will be really good! Rose and her two grandchildren came to church yesterday too! We hope to teach them tonight!
Thank you so much for your love and support! I love this season that we have to celebrate the birth of Christ. Even though we will be far apart for the holidays, my thoughts and prayers are always with you! I can feel your warmth and love all of the way over here in the Netherlands! I love you!
Love,Laur
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Hey Family! I can't believe that you have had so much snow in the past couple of days! The winter season has finally hit! It is pretty chilly here but at least we have no snow...yet! Are you getting excited about all of the holidays coming up? I just can't believe that Thanksgiving is this week! We were invited to go to a Thanksgiving with Familie Koot and the four elders here in Den Haag which I am sure will be a lot of fun! Sister Koot's mom is from America so she knows how to make a real Thanksgiving dinner with all of the fixins’ so I am sure that we will be spoiled! I will be thinking of you and especially how THANKFUL I am for all of you! I hope that you have a very Happy Thanksgiving full of love and gratitude!
We had a week of miracles again...I don't think I will ever not have one on my mission! Our teaching pool has been filled and we are busier than ever! Cevesta still has a baptismal date for the 18th of December and he is working towards that. He is keeping his commitments to read and he really hungers for the truth as we teach him. We are hoping to give him a church tour this week! Mary is also getting so much more interested in the gospel and what the Restoration means to her personally. She came to church yesterday and the ward members are receiving her very well. She is planning on attending allof the holiday festivities with the ward and we can see that her desires and testimony are growing and changing. Suleyka, an investigator that the elders were teaching that they passed to us, is on the verge of having a baptismal date too! She is 22 and so amazing! She has been taught all of the lessons but now needs to develop a testimony and receive a confirmation that the things that we are teaching are true. She's coming right along! Rose came to a church tour on Saturday with her 2 grandchildren! We were so excited that she actually showed up! You know, I think I let myself get so casual with the church buildings that we have and that we are blessed to be able to use but during the church tour I was reminded that the church buildings are dedicated buildings and that the Spirit is present there. I could feel it as we walked with Rose through the building! When we entered the chapel there was a special peace and warmth that flooded over all of us. She committed to come to church this next Sunday! And do you remember Kimberly? The one who never wanted to come to the church again? Well, every once in a while we get a feeling that we need to just call her up. I got that feeling on Friday and after the conversation on the phone I knew exactly why! She made an appointment to meet with us the next day, Saturday, and we had an excellent appointment! She has been reading in the Book of Mormon on her own and she said that she would come to the YSA center this coming Thursday and that she will definitely come back to church! I have such a special and deep love for her and I know that Heavenly Father's love for her is even stronger. I know that she feels the Spirit but all of the changes that would come with becoming a member of the church seem so overwhelming to her. Her family is really active in their Methodist faith and I think that she is scared with how they would react to her joining another church. I hope that she'll have the strength and faith to do it! We also have a new woman that we are teaching, Iteke Blauwer. She is 61 and her husband passed away from cancer 2 years ago. When we knocked on her door she told us that she had a Book of Mormon sitting on her shelf in her living room. She invited us in and sure enough she had one there! It was one of the older versions that her husband had received when he had investigated over 20 years ago. It is really wonderful because she is open to the gospel because it was something important to her husband. She wants to learn more about the Plan of Salvation, especially life after this life, and we can't wait to teach her this week!
We also had a Zone Training Meeting this week and we talked about extending commitments to people as well as ways we can reach our goal of 150 baptisms for the year 2010! We have already had 111 so we are really close! Please pray that we can reach our goal!
Thanks so much for all of your love and support and prayers! I am so thankful for all of you and for my Savior Jesus Christ. I am so thankful for the plan that Heavenly Father created for us that brings us so much joy, happiness and hope! Have a great week! I love you!!!!
Love, Lauren
Hey Family! I can't believe that you have had so much snow in the past couple of days! The winter season has finally hit! It is pretty chilly here but at least we have no snow...yet! Are you getting excited about all of the holidays coming up? I just can't believe that Thanksgiving is this week! We were invited to go to a Thanksgiving with Familie Koot and the four elders here in Den Haag which I am sure will be a lot of fun! Sister Koot's mom is from America so she knows how to make a real Thanksgiving dinner with all of the fixins’ so I am sure that we will be spoiled! I will be thinking of you and especially how THANKFUL I am for all of you! I hope that you have a very Happy Thanksgiving full of love and gratitude!
We had a week of miracles again...I don't think I will ever not have one on my mission! Our teaching pool has been filled and we are busier than ever! Cevesta still has a baptismal date for the 18th of December and he is working towards that. He is keeping his commitments to read and he really hungers for the truth as we teach him. We are hoping to give him a church tour this week! Mary is also getting so much more interested in the gospel and what the Restoration means to her personally. She came to church yesterday and the ward members are receiving her very well. She is planning on attending allof the holiday festivities with the ward and we can see that her desires and testimony are growing and changing. Suleyka, an investigator that the elders were teaching that they passed to us, is on the verge of having a baptismal date too! She is 22 and so amazing! She has been taught all of the lessons but now needs to develop a testimony and receive a confirmation that the things that we are teaching are true. She's coming right along! Rose came to a church tour on Saturday with her 2 grandchildren! We were so excited that she actually showed up! You know, I think I let myself get so casual with the church buildings that we have and that we are blessed to be able to use but during the church tour I was reminded that the church buildings are dedicated buildings and that the Spirit is present there. I could feel it as we walked with Rose through the building! When we entered the chapel there was a special peace and warmth that flooded over all of us. She committed to come to church this next Sunday! And do you remember Kimberly? The one who never wanted to come to the church again? Well, every once in a while we get a feeling that we need to just call her up. I got that feeling on Friday and after the conversation on the phone I knew exactly why! She made an appointment to meet with us the next day, Saturday, and we had an excellent appointment! She has been reading in the Book of Mormon on her own and she said that she would come to the YSA center this coming Thursday and that she will definitely come back to church! I have such a special and deep love for her and I know that Heavenly Father's love for her is even stronger. I know that she feels the Spirit but all of the changes that would come with becoming a member of the church seem so overwhelming to her. Her family is really active in their Methodist faith and I think that she is scared with how they would react to her joining another church. I hope that she'll have the strength and faith to do it! We also have a new woman that we are teaching, Iteke Blauwer. She is 61 and her husband passed away from cancer 2 years ago. When we knocked on her door she told us that she had a Book of Mormon sitting on her shelf in her living room. She invited us in and sure enough she had one there! It was one of the older versions that her husband had received when he had investigated over 20 years ago. It is really wonderful because she is open to the gospel because it was something important to her husband. She wants to learn more about the Plan of Salvation, especially life after this life, and we can't wait to teach her this week!
We also had a Zone Training Meeting this week and we talked about extending commitments to people as well as ways we can reach our goal of 150 baptisms for the year 2010! We have already had 111 so we are really close! Please pray that we can reach our goal!
Thanks so much for all of your love and support and prayers! I am so thankful for all of you and for my Savior Jesus Christ. I am so thankful for the plan that Heavenly Father created for us that brings us so much joy, happiness and hope! Have a great week! I love you!!!!
Love, Lauren
Monday, November 8, 2010
I am pullin a 4th transfer in Den Haag with Zuster Pierson!!!
Monday, November 8, 2010
Hey Fam! How was your week?! Can you believe we are already well into the month of November? Crazy, huh! Well, a lot happened this week so I will fill you right in! But before I get started I just wanted to thank you for the AWESOME package! I finally got it on Wednesday and it was like Christmas! Me and Zuster Pierson were both dying about how cute the boots are! And they are so warm too! I also love having my brown boots and the Temple Ensign and the notes! THANKYOU SO MUCH!
Well, Ronald's baptism didn't end up going through. It was a sad couple of days but we definitely had the confirmation that it was the right thing. He was so excited and so set on getting baptized on November 6 and his baptismal interview went well on Tuesday but we had an appointment with him on Wednesday morning and he told us that he had slipped and smoked one time the night before. He didn't want to admit or think that that would stop his baptism from going through and I didn't really know how to address the situation right there in our appointment with our joint-teach member so I just went on with the lesson. Turns out that Zuster Pierson didn't catch the part in Dutch when he said he had smoked so it was a test of my integrity as to whether I was going to call the baptism off or just go through with it and hope that everything worked out. But I knew that I could not lie to my Heavenly Father and I knew that it would be best for Ronald if he wasn't baptized until he was fully living the Word of Wisdom. I called President Brubaker up and explained the situation and he got back to us really quickly. He had one of the Zone Leaders, Elder Wells get in contact with Ronald to try to work things out. It was a little intense and I have never prayed so hard in my life that Ronald's heart would be soft to receive the news. Ronald was pretty persistent and he and Elder Wells finally made an appointment to meet together so they could talk face to face and come to an agreement about what the will of the Lord was. They met together on Friday morning, right before we had an appointment set with Ronald. They prayed together and Ronald said that he still felt really good about it all, but Elder Wells knew it wasn't the right thing. Since Ronald just wouldn't take no for an answer, and our appointment was supposed to be starting, Elder Wells sent him into us and he went out to call President to ask for further advice. That appointment was difficult! I could see that Ronald was not open for the spirit and was not humble to be taught and we all knew that his baptism just couldn't go through. At the end of the appointment Elder Wells pulled him into a separate room to tell him that he could not get baptized on Saturday. I am so thankful that Elder Wells was so willing to do all of that! Ronald was really upset and without saying goodbye he rushed out of the church to work. We didn't know what was going to happen! When we got home we saw that we had missed a call from him so I called him back. He said that he was quite disappointed but that he felt that it was right. We felt such a sense of relief and were so thankful! He said that he was willing to work towards baptism the next week. WAHOO! We went further with our day and when we got out of another appointment we saw that we had a new message from Ronald. When I listened to the message I was in pure shock. He told us that he never wanted to meet with us again and that he would never join the church! I just wanted to cry! I called back and talked to him and he was not open for anything. After that he sent a lot of unkind texts and it ended in such a sad way. I am still hoping and praying, along with all of the ward members here, that he will come back around. He can do it!
So we are pretty much back at square one with missionary work, everyone has dropped us or lost interest. It is great though! The Lord has a plan for us and we continue to see miracles! Thank you for your prayers and support! THEY HELP! I love you all so much and I hope that you have a wonderful week! These are the last days and Satan’s influence is strong but as we continue reading the scriptures and praying we will have the Lord's power to overcome all temptations. I know that is true! I LOVE YOU!
Love, Lauren
Hey Fam! How was your week?! Can you believe we are already well into the month of November? Crazy, huh! Well, a lot happened this week so I will fill you right in! But before I get started I just wanted to thank you for the AWESOME package! I finally got it on Wednesday and it was like Christmas! Me and Zuster Pierson were both dying about how cute the boots are! And they are so warm too! I also love having my brown boots and the Temple Ensign and the notes! THANKYOU SO MUCH!
Well, Ronald's baptism didn't end up going through. It was a sad couple of days but we definitely had the confirmation that it was the right thing. He was so excited and so set on getting baptized on November 6 and his baptismal interview went well on Tuesday but we had an appointment with him on Wednesday morning and he told us that he had slipped and smoked one time the night before. He didn't want to admit or think that that would stop his baptism from going through and I didn't really know how to address the situation right there in our appointment with our joint-teach member so I just went on with the lesson. Turns out that Zuster Pierson didn't catch the part in Dutch when he said he had smoked so it was a test of my integrity as to whether I was going to call the baptism off or just go through with it and hope that everything worked out. But I knew that I could not lie to my Heavenly Father and I knew that it would be best for Ronald if he wasn't baptized until he was fully living the Word of Wisdom. I called President Brubaker up and explained the situation and he got back to us really quickly. He had one of the Zone Leaders, Elder Wells get in contact with Ronald to try to work things out. It was a little intense and I have never prayed so hard in my life that Ronald's heart would be soft to receive the news. Ronald was pretty persistent and he and Elder Wells finally made an appointment to meet together so they could talk face to face and come to an agreement about what the will of the Lord was. They met together on Friday morning, right before we had an appointment set with Ronald. They prayed together and Ronald said that he still felt really good about it all, but Elder Wells knew it wasn't the right thing. Since Ronald just wouldn't take no for an answer, and our appointment was supposed to be starting, Elder Wells sent him into us and he went out to call President to ask for further advice. That appointment was difficult! I could see that Ronald was not open for the spirit and was not humble to be taught and we all knew that his baptism just couldn't go through. At the end of the appointment Elder Wells pulled him into a separate room to tell him that he could not get baptized on Saturday. I am so thankful that Elder Wells was so willing to do all of that! Ronald was really upset and without saying goodbye he rushed out of the church to work. We didn't know what was going to happen! When we got home we saw that we had missed a call from him so I called him back. He said that he was quite disappointed but that he felt that it was right. We felt such a sense of relief and were so thankful! He said that he was willing to work towards baptism the next week. WAHOO! We went further with our day and when we got out of another appointment we saw that we had a new message from Ronald. When I listened to the message I was in pure shock. He told us that he never wanted to meet with us again and that he would never join the church! I just wanted to cry! I called back and talked to him and he was not open for anything. After that he sent a lot of unkind texts and it ended in such a sad way. I am still hoping and praying, along with all of the ward members here, that he will come back around. He can do it!
So we are pretty much back at square one with missionary work, everyone has dropped us or lost interest. It is great though! The Lord has a plan for us and we continue to see miracles! Thank you for your prayers and support! THEY HELP! I love you all so much and I hope that you have a wonderful week! These are the last days and Satan’s influence is strong but as we continue reading the scriptures and praying we will have the Lord's power to overcome all temptations. I know that is true! I LOVE YOU!
Love, Lauren
Ronald is getting baptized this week!!!
Ronald is getting baptized this week!!!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Hey Family! Thanks so much for your words of love and support in your e-mails this week! I have felt your prayers in my behalf and I am so stoked to be able to serve the Lord for an extra 6 weeks. That's not something that very many missionaries get to experience so I consider myself very blessed!!! I think that it is so funny that you thought that it was Glen part 2...with the way that it all happened I don’t blame you! I called President last Monday and he was certainly surprised that I already knew and that you knew too. I think that that e-mail was definitely not supposed to be sent but I figure that the way that it happened was the way it was meant to be! President assured me that it is definitely the will of the Lord that it all happened and that he is grateful that I will be here for another 6 weeks. I am so grateful too! I am just excited to keep serving and trying to fulfill the things that the Lord expects of me.
Going to the temple on Tuesday was a huge blessing to be able to think about things, especially the extension, and get the confirmation again that it is right. Being in the temple two times in one month was absolutely incredible! It was also great to get together for Zone Conference again. By the way, we are having a special sister’s conference today and that is why my e-mail is so late. This is a onetime only thing and all of the sisters in the mission are all here in the mission home right now. We left Den Haag this morning at 7 and we arrived in Brussels at 10. We got to spend a couple of hours together at the Grand Plaza shopping and enjoying a Belgian Waffle. We then went to the mission office for lunch and training from President and Sister Brubaker about the Book of Mormon. It was really powerful! I am so thankful for that book and I know that it is a witness of the divinity of Christ and the evidence that the Church of Jesus Christ was restored. I love it so much! After the training we came to the mission home, had dinner, and now we are e-mailing and having a movie night watching the "Preach My Gospel" DVDs and eating popcorn. We will have a short council after the movie and then hit the hay. In the morning we will get up at 6:30 and then head to Antw erpen for a special outing. It is so great to be in the mission home all together as sisters and we are certainly building each other up! It's a once in a mission moment!
So Ronald is getting so close to his baptism! He has been struggling with the Word of Wisdom but on Friday we called him up and let him know that he had to start living it for good on Saturday to be able to be baptized this Saturday. We were nervous to see what his reaction would be but he was so excited and had full faith that he could do it. I have never prayed so hard for anyone in my life! I know that stopping smoking, drinking, and cocaine is harder than anything that I have done in my life but I know that he can do it! So many members have really gotten involved in his conversion process and they are all praying for him. It is amazing to see how missionary work brings so much unity! Familie Scherf invited us and Ronald to come to their home for dinner on Saturday night. We had a wonderful meal and then Ronald asked Brother Scherf to give him a blessing to help him prepare for baptism. The spirit was so strong as he received a blessing and Heavenly Father's love for him was really apparent. It was awesome! Then, out of so much love, Brother Scherf offered to start fasting at that moment with Ronald that he would have the strength that he needs to overcome his addictions. He went home that night and threw all that he had away and has just been praying and fasting! His faith amazes me. Keep him in your prayers, just like I know you already do! I can't wait to tell you about his baptism next week!
Bisou and Mary are still doing great! And we found two new investigators, Cevesta and Tamara! We are being so blessed. I will know about transfers next week. I would love to stay here in Den Haag but I know that I will be wherever I need to be. It's always exciting with transfers!
Thanks so much for your little Dutch blurb! That was so cute and sweet...how did you do that?! I looooove you and I hope that you have a wonderful week! I never stop praying for you and thinking about you! Thanks for EVERYTHING!!!
Love, Laur
Monday, November 1, 2010
Hey Family! Thanks so much for your words of love and support in your e-mails this week! I have felt your prayers in my behalf and I am so stoked to be able to serve the Lord for an extra 6 weeks. That's not something that very many missionaries get to experience so I consider myself very blessed!!! I think that it is so funny that you thought that it was Glen part 2...with the way that it all happened I don’t blame you! I called President last Monday and he was certainly surprised that I already knew and that you knew too. I think that that e-mail was definitely not supposed to be sent but I figure that the way that it happened was the way it was meant to be! President assured me that it is definitely the will of the Lord that it all happened and that he is grateful that I will be here for another 6 weeks. I am so grateful too! I am just excited to keep serving and trying to fulfill the things that the Lord expects of me.
Going to the temple on Tuesday was a huge blessing to be able to think about things, especially the extension, and get the confirmation again that it is right. Being in the temple two times in one month was absolutely incredible! It was also great to get together for Zone Conference again. By the way, we are having a special sister’s conference today and that is why my e-mail is so late. This is a onetime only thing and all of the sisters in the mission are all here in the mission home right now. We left Den Haag this morning at 7 and we arrived in Brussels at 10. We got to spend a couple of hours together at the Grand Plaza shopping and enjoying a Belgian Waffle. We then went to the mission office for lunch and training from President and Sister Brubaker about the Book of Mormon. It was really powerful! I am so thankful for that book and I know that it is a witness of the divinity of Christ and the evidence that the Church of Jesus Christ was restored. I love it so much! After the training we came to the mission home, had dinner, and now we are e-mailing and having a movie night watching the "Preach My Gospel" DVDs and eating popcorn. We will have a short council after the movie and then hit the hay. In the morning we will get up at 6:30 and then head to Antw erpen for a special outing. It is so great to be in the mission home all together as sisters and we are certainly building each other up! It's a once in a mission moment!
So Ronald is getting so close to his baptism! He has been struggling with the Word of Wisdom but on Friday we called him up and let him know that he had to start living it for good on Saturday to be able to be baptized this Saturday. We were nervous to see what his reaction would be but he was so excited and had full faith that he could do it. I have never prayed so hard for anyone in my life! I know that stopping smoking, drinking, and cocaine is harder than anything that I have done in my life but I know that he can do it! So many members have really gotten involved in his conversion process and they are all praying for him. It is amazing to see how missionary work brings so much unity! Familie Scherf invited us and Ronald to come to their home for dinner on Saturday night. We had a wonderful meal and then Ronald asked Brother Scherf to give him a blessing to help him prepare for baptism. The spirit was so strong as he received a blessing and Heavenly Father's love for him was really apparent. It was awesome! Then, out of so much love, Brother Scherf offered to start fasting at that moment with Ronald that he would have the strength that he needs to overcome his addictions. He went home that night and threw all that he had away and has just been praying and fasting! His faith amazes me. Keep him in your prayers, just like I know you already do! I can't wait to tell you about his baptism next week!
Bisou and Mary are still doing great! And we found two new investigators, Cevesta and Tamara! We are being so blessed. I will know about transfers next week. I would love to stay here in Den Haag but I know that I will be wherever I need to be. It's always exciting with transfers!
Thanks so much for your little Dutch blurb! That was so cute and sweet...how did you do that?! I looooove you and I hope that you have a wonderful week! I never stop praying for you and thinking about you! Thanks for EVERYTHING!!!
Love, Laur
Monday, October 25, 2010
I am just as shocked as you are!!! I found out from you that I am staying until March 16th!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Dear Mom, Dad, and Family,
My hands are all sweaty and a little shaky from the news that I received from you. As I prepare to print my e-mails I quickly scan through your e-mails to check and see if there is anything that I really need to be aware of before I start e-mailing you. There were a couple of sentences in Dad's e-mail that really caught my eye...like the date March 16th! I just don't know how that all happened but I will share the side of the story with you that I know. I almost want to cry right now...tears of joy and sadness! So a couple of weeks ago one of the sisters, Zuster Garvin, found out that she got an extension to stay for an extra transfer because she came one transfer late due to visa problems. All of the sudden I had something within me start to say, "You should think about asking to stay another transfer." I thought it was ridiculous! I had already gone through the whole process of deciding between coming home in December and February and I didn't want to go through the process again. I already felt blessed that I would be able to stay 12 transfers instead of 11 and I was content with that decision. But the thought stayed with me and I finally turned to Heavenly Father in prayer to ask him to either take the thought away so that I could focus on the work or bless me to know what to do with the thought if it came from him. I finally had the prompting to call President up and share with him my feelings. I told him that it was not something that I really was desiring but that if it was the Lord's will I would be willing to stay. He said that we could continue to think about it and pray about it and that he would make a decision of whether or not he would submit it to the Area Presidency for reviewing. Because it is VERY rare for any missionary to get an extension anymore, especially sisters, he didn't know if it would pass. A couple of weeks went by and at interviews the same prompting returned, "You should think about staying another transfer."But I didn't want to mention it to President again so I tried to push it out of my head. But it stayed in my head until that night when I finally was moved upon to call President one more time. Once again he said that we would pray about it and that he wanted me to explain to him in my next President's letter why I would want to. As I sat down to write the President's letter all I could think to write was, "I had a feeling and so I called you." It wasn't that I was really wishing to stay but I felt that the Spirit was telling me to act. I explained to him that it didn't matter to me what happened but that if it was the will of the Lord, I was willing to stay and serve another 6 weeks. I sent him the letter and received in return that he submitted a request to the Area Presidency to make the decision. I thought that I would hear from President the final decision, but somehow you got it first! I still don't know how I feel about it. It is hard to know that I won't be coming home for another 6 weeks, meaning that I will be on my mission a total of 20 months. But I know that this just must be the will of the Lord or it wouldn't have happened. I am willing to follow His command and plan. I don't know why he wants me here for another 6weeks but I have learned that to everything there is a reason. I really need your prayers and support as I accept this extra little calling from the Lord! I can't imagine what a shock it must have been for you. I don't want you to think that this was a plan that I was not sharing with you. I actually didn't think that anything would come of it and I didn't want to create a big deal out of nothing...but now it really is a big deal! I hope that it doesn't interfere with any plans that you have already made. Thank you for your constant love and support. I think that I will be calling President up in a little bit and asking about how things did end up working out. I can't believe it all. It is going to take some time to settle in. I feel very humbled.
Well, now that I am almost out time, I will share a couple of things from the week! Ronald is doing AWESOME!!! Bisou is also keeping commitments and we are still teaching Mary. I got really sick with a cold on Thursday and Friday and then a member told me that I should ask for a priesthood blessing. I thought that for a cold it wasn't that necessary but realized also that it wouldn't hurt. On Saturday I asked Elder Matthews for one and you wouldn't believe how I am feeling now! It was one of those colds that you know would linger for weeks but I am almost totally better! I am so thankful for the blessings and power of the priesthood. I was also reading in Mark last week about how the Lord performed miracles according to prayer and fasting. The idea came to my head to fast together with Zuster Pierson in behalf of health problems she is having. I called Zuster Brubaker up to ask if we could do that and also invite other sisters to join. She said that she would talk with president and decide if that was a good idea. She called back and she felt really inspired to have a fast with all of the sisters in behalf of all of the sisters. We fasted together yesterday and it was so awesome. And tomorrow is Zone Conference at the temple!
I got to go! I love you soooo much! 6 weeks isn't that much longer (I am trying to convince myself)! I hope you have a great week!
Love, Zuster Sharp
I LOVE YOU! PRAY FOR ME AS I MOVE FORWARD WITH FAITH WITH THIS NEW SITUATION! I AM PRAYING FOR YOU!
Dear Mom, Dad, and Family,
My hands are all sweaty and a little shaky from the news that I received from you. As I prepare to print my e-mails I quickly scan through your e-mails to check and see if there is anything that I really need to be aware of before I start e-mailing you. There were a couple of sentences in Dad's e-mail that really caught my eye...like the date March 16th! I just don't know how that all happened but I will share the side of the story with you that I know. I almost want to cry right now...tears of joy and sadness! So a couple of weeks ago one of the sisters, Zuster Garvin, found out that she got an extension to stay for an extra transfer because she came one transfer late due to visa problems. All of the sudden I had something within me start to say, "You should think about asking to stay another transfer." I thought it was ridiculous! I had already gone through the whole process of deciding between coming home in December and February and I didn't want to go through the process again. I already felt blessed that I would be able to stay 12 transfers instead of 11 and I was content with that decision. But the thought stayed with me and I finally turned to Heavenly Father in prayer to ask him to either take the thought away so that I could focus on the work or bless me to know what to do with the thought if it came from him. I finally had the prompting to call President up and share with him my feelings. I told him that it was not something that I really was desiring but that if it was the Lord's will I would be willing to stay. He said that we could continue to think about it and pray about it and that he would make a decision of whether or not he would submit it to the Area Presidency for reviewing. Because it is VERY rare for any missionary to get an extension anymore, especially sisters, he didn't know if it would pass. A couple of weeks went by and at interviews the same prompting returned, "You should think about staying another transfer."But I didn't want to mention it to President again so I tried to push it out of my head. But it stayed in my head until that night when I finally was moved upon to call President one more time. Once again he said that we would pray about it and that he wanted me to explain to him in my next President's letter why I would want to. As I sat down to write the President's letter all I could think to write was, "I had a feeling and so I called you." It wasn't that I was really wishing to stay but I felt that the Spirit was telling me to act. I explained to him that it didn't matter to me what happened but that if it was the will of the Lord, I was willing to stay and serve another 6 weeks. I sent him the letter and received in return that he submitted a request to the Area Presidency to make the decision. I thought that I would hear from President the final decision, but somehow you got it first! I still don't know how I feel about it. It is hard to know that I won't be coming home for another 6 weeks, meaning that I will be on my mission a total of 20 months. But I know that this just must be the will of the Lord or it wouldn't have happened. I am willing to follow His command and plan. I don't know why he wants me here for another 6weeks but I have learned that to everything there is a reason. I really need your prayers and support as I accept this extra little calling from the Lord! I can't imagine what a shock it must have been for you. I don't want you to think that this was a plan that I was not sharing with you. I actually didn't think that anything would come of it and I didn't want to create a big deal out of nothing...but now it really is a big deal! I hope that it doesn't interfere with any plans that you have already made. Thank you for your constant love and support. I think that I will be calling President up in a little bit and asking about how things did end up working out. I can't believe it all. It is going to take some time to settle in. I feel very humbled.
Well, now that I am almost out time, I will share a couple of things from the week! Ronald is doing AWESOME!!! Bisou is also keeping commitments and we are still teaching Mary. I got really sick with a cold on Thursday and Friday and then a member told me that I should ask for a priesthood blessing. I thought that for a cold it wasn't that necessary but realized also that it wouldn't hurt. On Saturday I asked Elder Matthews for one and you wouldn't believe how I am feeling now! It was one of those colds that you know would linger for weeks but I am almost totally better! I am so thankful for the blessings and power of the priesthood. I was also reading in Mark last week about how the Lord performed miracles according to prayer and fasting. The idea came to my head to fast together with Zuster Pierson in behalf of health problems she is having. I called Zuster Brubaker up to ask if we could do that and also invite other sisters to join. She said that she would talk with president and decide if that was a good idea. She called back and she felt really inspired to have a fast with all of the sisters in behalf of all of the sisters. We fasted together yesterday and it was so awesome. And tomorrow is Zone Conference at the temple!
I got to go! I love you soooo much! 6 weeks isn't that much longer (I am trying to convince myself)! I hope you have a great week!
Love, Zuster Sharp
I LOVE YOU! PRAY FOR ME AS I MOVE FORWARD WITH FAITH WITH THIS NEW SITUATION! I AM PRAYING FOR YOU!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
THE BEST WEEK EVER!!!!
Monday, October 18, 2010
Dear Family,
How are you doing!? I know that my subject heading for my e-mail was a really bold statement but I am pretty sure that this last week was the best week of my whole mission! The Lord has just opened the windows of heaven and poured out blessings upon us here in Den Haag! We are definitely so undeserving of what we have received, but so thankful! Here are a few of the miracles that we saw every second of every day this past week:
On Tuesday we went and taught Ronald the Word of Wisdom. We knew that he had problems with smoking and drinking so we weren't sure what their action would be but it couldn't have gone better! It was amazing to see how the Holy Ghost worked with him during the lesson and let him know that the W of W is a commandment from Heavenly Father to bless us. By the end of the lesson he had a plan to keep that commandment. He is so excited for his baptism on November 6th! On Wednesday night we got a text from him that he had had dinner with one of the members (he had just arranged it himself) and that he had read 2 Nephi 31 and32. He was so excited about the Book of Mormon and could hardly put it down! We also taught him the Gospel of Jesus Christ on Thursday and he was sharing scriptures with us and pretty much ended teaching us out of the Book of Mormon. On Saturday he came to the baptism of an 8 year old boy in the ward. By the end of the baptismal service he pretty much had his own baptismal service planned out. He actually doesn't quite understand who has the priesthood quite yet so after explaining to him that I couldn't be one of the witnesses at his baptism he asked me if I could give him the Holy Ghost. It was hard to keep a straight face as I explained that I also couldn't do that but I directed him to a few people that could! Anyway, Brother Scheltinga will be baptizing him, Brother Oddens will be giving him the Holy Ghost, Elder Robinson and Brother Oddens will be witnesses, and Zuster Scherf and I will be giving talks on baptism and the Holy Ghost. I know that November 6th will be a very special morning! He is so ready! The Lord prepared him to receive the restored gospel. He even called us this morning to ask us how much a triple would be, with the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price, so that he can really study and prepare for the lessons that we have with him and the lessons that will take place in the church on Sunday!
In a normal week in Den Haag we usually have about 5 lessons with a member present but this week members were working with us like crazy! We had a total of 11 member present lessons and we found 5 new investigators! The members are getting so excited and pumped about the work. On Saturday at the baptism one of the members came up to us and asked us if we would have time to come to her house this coming Friday because she wants us to begin teaching her friend! Another member who had us over on Saturday afternoon invited a friend to join the lesson and he is also a new investigator. Every time with thought that it just couldn't get better, it did!
On Friday night we went with Bro. and Sis. Jansen to teach the mother of a young boy who was baptized two years ago at the age of 10. She is not a member but investigated with her son when the missionaries were teaching him. For some reason after the boy was baptized, he and the mom lost contact with the church. The ward council actually asked us to stop by a few weeks ago to check on them. They were not home so I wrote a quick note and threw it in their mailbox. We got a call at the end of last week from the mom, Mary, who had found our note and said she would come to church. She came to church last week and we set up an appointment for Friday. Anyway, when we went on Friday we asked her about her background with the church and what made her decide to call us up and invite us to come and teach her. She said that she hadn't noticed our note until a few days after she had gotten the mail. She was sorting through the mail and the handwriting on the note really caught her attention (I think that it is only because American and European handwriting is so different). She just couldn't throw the note away and she finally decided to give us a call. We are going to start meeting with her weekly! I just was amazed that something so small as a little note would have so much of an impact!
I am out of time but I just want you to know that I know that Jesus is the Christ! I love you and pray for you! Have a great week!
Love, Laur
Dear Family,
How are you doing!? I know that my subject heading for my e-mail was a really bold statement but I am pretty sure that this last week was the best week of my whole mission! The Lord has just opened the windows of heaven and poured out blessings upon us here in Den Haag! We are definitely so undeserving of what we have received, but so thankful! Here are a few of the miracles that we saw every second of every day this past week:
On Tuesday we went and taught Ronald the Word of Wisdom. We knew that he had problems with smoking and drinking so we weren't sure what their action would be but it couldn't have gone better! It was amazing to see how the Holy Ghost worked with him during the lesson and let him know that the W of W is a commandment from Heavenly Father to bless us. By the end of the lesson he had a plan to keep that commandment. He is so excited for his baptism on November 6th! On Wednesday night we got a text from him that he had had dinner with one of the members (he had just arranged it himself) and that he had read 2 Nephi 31 and32. He was so excited about the Book of Mormon and could hardly put it down! We also taught him the Gospel of Jesus Christ on Thursday and he was sharing scriptures with us and pretty much ended teaching us out of the Book of Mormon. On Saturday he came to the baptism of an 8 year old boy in the ward. By the end of the baptismal service he pretty much had his own baptismal service planned out. He actually doesn't quite understand who has the priesthood quite yet so after explaining to him that I couldn't be one of the witnesses at his baptism he asked me if I could give him the Holy Ghost. It was hard to keep a straight face as I explained that I also couldn't do that but I directed him to a few people that could! Anyway, Brother Scheltinga will be baptizing him, Brother Oddens will be giving him the Holy Ghost, Elder Robinson and Brother Oddens will be witnesses, and Zuster Scherf and I will be giving talks on baptism and the Holy Ghost. I know that November 6th will be a very special morning! He is so ready! The Lord prepared him to receive the restored gospel. He even called us this morning to ask us how much a triple would be, with the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price, so that he can really study and prepare for the lessons that we have with him and the lessons that will take place in the church on Sunday!
In a normal week in Den Haag we usually have about 5 lessons with a member present but this week members were working with us like crazy! We had a total of 11 member present lessons and we found 5 new investigators! The members are getting so excited and pumped about the work. On Saturday at the baptism one of the members came up to us and asked us if we would have time to come to her house this coming Friday because she wants us to begin teaching her friend! Another member who had us over on Saturday afternoon invited a friend to join the lesson and he is also a new investigator. Every time with thought that it just couldn't get better, it did!
On Friday night we went with Bro. and Sis. Jansen to teach the mother of a young boy who was baptized two years ago at the age of 10. She is not a member but investigated with her son when the missionaries were teaching him. For some reason after the boy was baptized, he and the mom lost contact with the church. The ward council actually asked us to stop by a few weeks ago to check on them. They were not home so I wrote a quick note and threw it in their mailbox. We got a call at the end of last week from the mom, Mary, who had found our note and said she would come to church. She came to church last week and we set up an appointment for Friday. Anyway, when we went on Friday we asked her about her background with the church and what made her decide to call us up and invite us to come and teach her. She said that she hadn't noticed our note until a few days after she had gotten the mail. She was sorting through the mail and the handwriting on the note really caught her attention (I think that it is only because American and European handwriting is so different). She just couldn't throw the note away and she finally decided to give us a call. We are going to start meeting with her weekly! I just was amazed that something so small as a little note would have so much of an impact!
I am out of time but I just want you to know that I know that Jesus is the Christ! I love you and pray for you! Have a great week!
Love, Laur
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