French Keyboards

So we´re at the library which means that we have to use a french keyboard. It´s remarkably slow even though only about 5 or so of the letters are changed, and all of the punctuation: Daarom (therefore) the shortness.

Well, we had a good week this week. We got a referral from a member yesterday, which is always cool. Also, one of our investigators accepted a baptismal date this past weekend! That was really cool. We´re managing to stay pretty busy finding, for the rest, which is good. Some of our investigators are also making really good progress--they've been reading the Book of Mormon, which will help them the most.

The other day during my studies I was reading a talk from Elder Holland and he said some things that I really liked: There is no easy, comfortable, or convenient way to salvation or exaltation. Every righteous, good, worthy effort is almost certain to be opposed. Why? Because if we are to become like God and enjoy the happiness He enjoys we have to pay the price. And because this is so important the price is almost always higher than we at first really want to pay. But because He loves us, He has made it possible to do, with His help, as always.

In a way, life´s a little like french keyboards: sometimes obnoxious without really understanding the reason, but worth it to write your family. And just when you think you know what you´re doing: it turns out thqt qll the letters qre in the zrong (or just different) spot qnyzqy:

This is the work of the Lord! I love you all!

Welcome to Gent!

Gent is beautiful! It's going to be a very good transfer. We've already seen a lot of miracles this week with finding new investigators and everything. On Wednesday evening when I got here we taught a man who was a Facebook referral a long time ago but who then got busy. He's really cool and is definitely looking for answers. Also, on Saturday we taught one of our investigators who was going through a really low point when he met the sisters a few weeks ago. But now he's praying regularly and is reading from the Book of Mormon. And he came to church yesterday! He really seemed to enjoy it and feel the Spirit. It was cool to see the light in his eyes. Also, the friend of a member came to church again this week and this time we were able to set up an appointment and get an address.

I learned a lot from reading Alma 14:14-25 this week during personal study. There is a law in heaven, that when we keep the commandments and do the will of the Lord, that we will receive great blessings--in time. It is a principle of life in order for us to learn that the blessings are at times delayed. We might not always understand why, when we try to be obedient and work hard and do our best that bad things happen--or maybe that nothing happens. But the Lord know better than we do. No effort is wasted--not only for other people, but for ourselves. We change in the process. What we clearly see from every prophet or missionary (or even just person) ever, is that we must learn patience through trial, tribulation, and heartbreak, and we will be rejected. But we will also always be more than compensated. In time.

 

"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation‍ of God, and for his arm to be revealed." Doctrine and Covenants 123:17

I love this gospel and I love being a missionary! And I love you all!

Gij Zijt Mijn Hoogste Goed (I Need Thee Every Hour)

Transfers!

So I'm being transferred to Gent, Belgium. My companion will be Sister H., who was in my MTC group. This´ll be the first time I've had a companion from my group or older since my first transfer. I´m excited! I will miss Dordrecht though.

I have learned a lot about what the Lord wants and expects from me this transfer. He expects us to "whate'er thou art, act well thy part." He expects us to be true disciples, which means that we must lift where we stand, do our very best, and put our whole heart and souls into what we do. I am grateful that I know that every calling in the Church, and every transfer call on a mission, is directly from the Lord.

This week has been fantastic. We met with a JoVo (young single adult) girl who we thought would not be super happy to meet with us because it took so long to schedule an appointment. But she was super cool and we had a really good talk. She was really open with us. We also found and started teaching a man who investigated the the Church a little in Curacao and now is seriously considering baptism.

Because of the Atonement, Christ has already overcome everything. We may have trials and tribulations, but ultimately what we have to do is "endure it well" and accept the Atonement.

Have a great week!

Priceless Heritage of Hope

Aloha!

This week we saw one of our investigators op straat (in the street) totally randomly and got a chance to talk to him. We were a little worried because for about a week and a half after coming to church he hadn't maintained contact the ward member who was emailing. But we gave him a few pamphlets, which apparently he read, because yesterday we heard that he´d emailed again with a few more questions and said that he´d read them. Also, the fireside on Friday and Zone Conference on Saturday were both incredible. An Area 70 who lives in our mission, and his wife, came to speak. It was wonderful that the Spirit was so present. I learned so much and I hope that I can apply it in the coming weeks.

Our other investigator is getting closer to baptism, but isn´t quite there yet. He just needs to be reading more consistently in the Book of Mormon!

This week was hope week, and I actually learned a lot about the power of hope. One of the things that I learned is that even if you don´t have an overwhelming feeling of peace, optimism, and joy, you can still have an enduring hope for the future. Those things are definitely a part of hope, but there are times that things are hard and those feelings are not the first ones on your mind. However, part of hope too is staying positive during opposition, and having "faith that if we act now, the desired blessings will be fulfilled in the future" (PMG 117). While we do not always know what will happen, we do know that the Lord is in control and that He will take care of us. We can have "confidence and assurance that all things will work together for our good" (PMG 117). I´m so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the peace and hope that it brings.

I love you all! Stay strong!

Love,

Zuster Stevens

Voorwaarts, Christenstrijders! (Onward, Christian Soldiers)

Hallo!

Things are coming right along in Dordrecht! It´s starting to get warmer. Enjoy all your dry climates while you can, lucky duckies. On Wednesday we gave a lesson on the door to a cool man. We had given him a Book of Mormon during the original contact and told him to read Moroni 10:3-5. (Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts. And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.) When we went back, he had read it and he said that that was really what he needed to hear that week. We also were able to teach the whole Restoration to him right there and at the end he said that everything we had said seemed in harmony with what he believed and so he was excited to read more out of the Book of Mormon and learn more about our message. He´s a very sincere person and is really involved in helping others and while doing so trying to help them see the importance of Jesus Christ. We´ve got a follow-up appointment with him this week and we´re really excited.

Yesterday was Stake Conference, and we saw the satellite broadcast Stake Conference that they did for Europe. I really learned a lot, particularly from President Uchtdorf´s talk. He talked about testimonies and how we need to be constantly working on building them. We can´t stop at a certain point and think that we´re fine. We are all in danger of losing our testimonies if they´re not constantly growing. It applies to investigators and it applies to us. I´m so grateful for my testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that it changes people. I have seen it´s effects work miracles in my own life and the lives of those around me. It helps us be happier. I am so grateful that I know that I have a Savior who has redeemed me and who is also there to help and strengthen me in my trials. I have felt His help. I am grateful for my testimony that my family can be together forever. I can think of no greater blessing. I am grateful to know that God lives, and that He hears and answers prayers. I have seen the great joy and blessings and freedom that come from obedience. I am so grateful for my testimony.

I love you all and hope you´re doing well!

Love

Zuster Stevens

Kom, Volg Mij Na (Come, Follow Me)

Yesterday we had a super cool miracle. A few months ago this 18-year-old ordered a Book of Mormon and we took it over to him. He´d seen the church online. He set up an appointment with us, but it turns out his parents did not approve, so he called us and told us he couldn't meet, but that he would stay in contact via texting. A little while later he told us that he had some questions but that it would be easiest to email them. So we sent him the email address of one of our members. He apparently got busy with school or something, because we didn't hear anything for a month or so, and then he sent a long list of 7 very good questions about the Church and Church doctrine (we got a copy of them later from the member). The member is a returned missionary of a few years and super excited about missionary work. Then yesterday he came to church, with his mother! And they sat with the member who he had emailed and he said that he might come again! Also, on Tuesday we had a way cool lesson with this lady who just let us right in and is so sincere. She was very willing to set up another appointment with us.

One of the biggest miracles of all this week: one of our investigators has gone a week without coffee! That´s been one of his biggest struggles and it is incredible to see him doing it.

This week I learned a lot about how important it is to not judge others. Why is that so important? Because you hurt yourself spiritually. It´s harder for people to trust you when you are judging other people. Trust is a two-way thing and a lot of times people will trust you more as you trust them. It is so important to remember that we are all children of God, and He loves us very much. We all, every one of us, has sins and weaknesses. We´re all striving to get back to our Heavenly Father. And because God loves us so much, He has given us a Savior so that we can return to live with Him again. He has made it possible for every one of us. And because He loves us so much, repentance is available to all of us, no matter what we´ve done, when we finally decide that we are tired of living below our true potential, humble ourselves, and turn to Him. It is never too late so long as He says there is time. Because He loves us so much, He has promised us eternal happiness, but because that gift is so priceless, He asks a high price of us. He asks us to give up all of our sins for Him. But when we do so, we get more than we could ever imagine in return. It´s not that it´s not hard, because it is and always will be. But what it is most of all is worth it. And it is absolutely worth it. The Lord is intimately involved in the details of our lives. All flesh is in His hands. He knows what we need and when we need it. He loves us perfectly. These things I know.

I love you all! The gospel of Jesus Christ is true!

Wees Stil en Weet dat Ik God Ben (Be Still and Know that I Am God)

Groetjes! (Greetings!)

This whole week was a total miracle. First of all, zone conference was fantastic. It was one of the best zone conferences I have ever been in. I hope that I am able to apply what we learned, especially about raising our expectations. We've already been working hard on it! On Friday and Saturday we found 4 new investigators, bringing our total for the week to 6, which is the highest we've had it since I've come to Dordrecht. It really was a miracle how it all happened. On Monday we were able to schedule another lesson with someone who had met with us before but wanted to wait before setting up a follow-up appointment. Tuesday we taught a man we found 2-2-5ing a few weeks ago who is quite interested now. On Friday we had a lesson with a man that we found during Koningsdag, who we had actually at one point nearly given up on because a few of our appointments with him had already fallen through. And his cousin was also there, so we were able to teach her too and set up a new appointment with both of them. On Saturday one of the appointments we had scheduled fell through when we got there, but the lady's husband answered the door and we were actually able to have a pretty good lesson with him right there. Later he texted us thanking us for coming and for praying with him and said that he believed that we were sent from God. Then later that evening another appointment fell through, so we swung by a different potential who lived in the area and had a lesson with him on the door. We've been really busy, which is probably the best part.

Also, this 18-year-old kid who requested a Book of Mormon a month or two ago but whose parents didn't want us coming over emailed one of our members this week, as arranged, with a list of questions. They were really good questions too! He really is looking and sincere, which is cool.

Also, it's official. I'm extending to mid-October. Thanks for all of your support!

What I learned this week: "Therefore, let your hearts be comforted concerning Zion; for all flesh is in mine hands; be still and know that I am God."--Doctrine and Covenants 101:16

The gospel is true and this is the Lord's work! The Atonement truly can heal us of everything and help us through everything.

I love you all!

Liefs, (Love)

Zuster Stevens