Pictures from July 2012

Here are some pictures Sis. Miles recently posted.  They are from District Meetings and Zone Leader Meetings held in July 2012.

                          

October 8, 2012

Well let me tell you about this week.....
                                1st for anyone that missed it, the prophet, the only man on the world authorized to use all Priesthood keys that we have at this time, spoke to us. As well as the apostles. And it was awesome! You asked what my favorite talk was? Well we weren`t able to see the Sunday afternoon session because it starts at 10 pm here, and Elder Bednar and Elder Scott talked in that session, and they are normally two of my favorites, so I reserve the right to change my vote once I have heard those talks, but here is my review of general conference.
                First clearly Elder Holland is really very good at giving great talks. Definitely one of his spiritual gifts. But the talks that I liked the most were actually both of Pres. Eyring’s talks. I don`t know what exactly it is, but when I look at Pres. Eyring the one word that comes into my mind is humility. I can literally feel it emanating from him. His talk in priesthood session was amazing, about seeing the potential of those we lead and serve. And then his talk about submitting to the will of the Lord was probably my favorite talk of all of conference. Pres. Eyring is an amazing example to me of the principles he taught. 
                My next favorite were both of the talks by Pres Monson that I heard, so the Priesthood session and Sunday morning session. His talk at priesthood session seemed to be like an extension of Pres. Eyring’s talk, talking about how we need to see the people around us. I have been studying a lot about that recently, about how willing and able God and Jesus Christ are to forgive us, to trust us, and to believe in us. NEVER EVER EVER do they say, "that is too hard for you. or you can`t repent, you can`t change" but they ALWAYS seem to be saying "you can do this!" Like Elder Holland mentioned, Christ committed the priesthood keys, the earthly leadership of his church, into the hands of a man who had the week before denied him 3 times. Talk about trust, talk about forgiveness. Christ clearly had a vision of what Peter could become. 
                I also liked that talk about "selling your soul for 25 cents?" as well as the talk about "temple quality". They both really taught me the importance of personal integrity and complete and full repentance. Like the temple workers, I must replace any flaws in myself that I or someone else (that is way harder) discovers. Regardless of how small or unnoticeable, or how costly it might be. I must do it, because repentance is the only way to happiness. 
                Anyways, the rest of the week was really cool as well. We went to the temple on Friday, so that was a good general conference preparation. Also on Friday was transfers calls, and I am staying here and so is Elder Nielson, no big surprise. 
                As for your question about walking in the rain. Like you said, we have a car, and we live in Switzerland, which has the best public transport in the world. We really only walk in the rain if we want to. Otherwise I would dare suggest that we can get within 400 to 500 meters on any appointments with buses and trains.
                Cool experience of the week. We visited some members in Lichtenstein this week. So now I have officially been a missionary in 4 countries. Our investigators are doing good. We had a good appointment with Yuri this week, so he is doing good, and hopefully we will find some really cool prepared people this week. Don`t forget that I love you a lot!

liebe
Elder Terry

October 1, 2012

Dear Mom,

                Well, thanks for the stories from the missionaries. (The full-time missionaries spoke in our ward yesterday and both are converts.  One had an amazing and sad life story) It truly is amazing to realize what some people had to sacrifice in order to accept the gospel, and then I feel almost ashamed for how easy it was for me. But the bottom line is that the church is true, and regardless of who we are or where we come from, the gospel has the answers to our questions and our problems.
                This week was an interesting week. It went by really fast. like I can`t really remember what happened, I swear I was writing you just yesterday. But I will try to give an accounting of my days, for progenitors sake :)
                Well we are working hard with an investigator named Yuri. He is a super cool guy from Chile, Catholic/Frei Christ (sorry I can`t remember what kind of a religion that is in English. Pretty much a "we are saved by grace not works" idea crossed with a rock concert?) but he reads daily in the Book of Mormon, and he knows that it is true, but refuses to believe that there is only one true church. "God has many evidences of his love" is what he loves to tell us. We had an appointment this week with him and our branch president, and we talked about the priesthood, and it went really well. He understood the concept, but somehow the application still isn`t there. Hopefully we will be able to really help him to feel and follow the spirit. 
                Other than that things are going really well. We have a lot of investigators, and hopefully we will be able to help them come closer to God. Wow, good summary of missionary work, I know. But I really can`t think of anything else to write about. 
                Anyways, sorry this weeks letter is on the lame side, but hey, if Enos and Jarom and Omni had written more then there wouldn`t have been any room for Alma, and if they can summarize an entire lifetime in a few pages, then one week in only a few paragraphs isn`t so bad, right? 
                Don`t forget that I love you, or that Jesus is the Christ. All I can say is that I love Him with all of my heart, mind and strength, and I hope that I can follow the counsel Mormon gave his son, "may Christ lift thee up, and may his sufferings and death, and the showing his body unto our fathers, and his mercy and long-suffering, and the hope of his glory and of eternal life, rest in your mind forever." That is both my goal and my testimony.

Liebe
Elder Terry

September 24, 2012

      Well first of all thanks for the birthday card for elder Nielsen. We got it today and he loved it. 2nd I found elder Chapman in München bahnhof. (train station) When I went to Munich to pick up elder Nielsen he was also there because it was transfer day. 3rd, well I filled out all of the papers and such for a swiss license, now I am just waiting for it to arrive in the mail. It should come this week. and yes I withdrew the money, but it was only 200 franken. crazy translation fees. I needed personal money to send you the voice recorder back, and I thought I needed it for a swiss license, but they didn't ask for any money, so we will see if they send me a bill, and I figured I would withdraw more money because sometime soon I will buy more souvenirs and I need to send a lot of stuff home, so be prepared. One day soon you will receive a huge package in the mail. :)

              

  Well, this week has been really amazing. Mostly because we had 4.6 investigators at church yesterday! Kebrom, Kurt, Bernard, and Yuri with his 2 kids (they are the .6) It was great! And it really just showed me that God is leading this work, and he knows what we need and how to do his work. Another cool experience yesterday helped me learn that as well.

                So when we went to München to pick up our new companions, Pres Miles met with all of the trainers and he talked with us about the importance of studies. He told us to never miss personal, companionship or German study. Even on Sundays. That was hard for me, because in the past with all of my companions we counted church as our studies and with the training program which includes 2 hours of comp study, our Sundays would then be shot. Church from 10 to 12 (church is only two hours in Chur (Did I tell you that?) then talk with members, walk home, get home at 13, eat lunch til 14, then comp study for 2 hours and German study for 1 hour. Now it’s already 5 o’clock. Day is over. I didn't like it, but hey, Pres. Miles is the guy with inspiration, so what could we do? We had to obey. So yesterday was a day like that. We even had ward council after church, so we didn`t get on the street until 6 o’clock. But the very first person we talked with was a lady from Germany, and she told us she is searching for the truth, and wants to meet next week. Then the next person we talked to was a man from Pakistan, and he and a friend both wanted to learn more, and then we finally got to the guy we wanted to go by on, and we couldn`t find the right door, so I just knocked at a random door, and it was an old lady and her son, both from Eretria, and they let us in and wanted to learn more. Within 15 minutes we had found 5 people who wanted to learn more about the gospel. It was both amazing and humbling. It really showed me that I know absolutely nothing. All of my skills, all of the experience I have, all of my knowledge, it all surmounts to nothing, if I don`t have the spirit. I have knocked doors and streeted for 9 hours without a break and haven`t found 5 interested people. Yet the Lord can send them all to us, one after another, all because we (mostly I) humbled ourselves and followed the counsel of the Lord. I testify that this principle holds true in all aspects of our lives.

                The Lord can do more with 15 minutes then we can do alone in an eternity. The Lord can do more with 9/10 of our income then we can do with all of the money in the world by ourselves. The Lord can do more with 6 days in a week, than we can do alone with 7. But the natural man doesn't see it that way. So often we only see what lacks or how little we have. Like the widow and Elijah, sometimes it seems like the Lord asks us to offer up everything, when in reality He is trying to give us everything. I testify that if we will give what is required of us by the Lord and our priesthood leaders, then like the widow our oil and our flour WILL NOT FAIL. "For with God is nothing impossible." That is my testimony, and I know it is true. Thanks again for all you do, you are the best mom ever!

Liebe
Elder Terry

More Random Pictures

Here are some more pictures from Sister Miles's blog.  These were taken in June I think, when he was still with Elder Sanderson.

September 17, 2012

Dear mom,

            well I am writing you a letter from Chur! In the library, but they have a really weird keyboard, so there will be a lot of spelling mistakes, and my letter might be a little bit short. but there is a lot to tell.  (I corrected the spelling errors, sorry just my little OCD thing. I didn’t correct his grammar though because it’s fun to see how hard it is to think in another language.)
            1st, as we were in Zürich last week to get me a drivers license, a lady stopped us on the street, told us she was a member from Canada, and she has a 9 year old daughter who wants to be baptized. Can you say MIRACLE? The silly driver’s license place was closed because there was a big festival, but somehow this lady found us in the middle of the crowd. And we gave her info to the Zürich elders, and now the 9 year old has a baptismal date! Oh yeah.
            We also met with Elder Nelson this week. It was really cool. Man that guy is smart. I don`t think I have ever met someone who knows so much as he does. He told us a lot of cool stuff, about repentance and how we can give all of our hearts to the Lord. Apparently the Greek word for repentance is metanueo or something like that, and it means that we must have a change of knowledge, change of belief, change of spirit and change of breath. It was really interesting. He said a lot of other good stuff, but this keyboard is not so functional.
            Now, on Thursday we were finally able to work in our area, and man, the Lord had a lot of miracles in store for us. So Thursday we were on the streets, and we talked to a cool guy from the Salvation Army (random facts and questions, did you know they are a church? I always thought they were just a charity organization or something. And remind me sometime to tell you about the origin of the Salvation Army) anyways, we gave him a Book of Mormon and had an appointment last Saturday, and we will meet with him again this week. We also invited a guy on the street to come to church on Sunday, and low and behold he was there! And he liked it and we have an appointment with him this week. We also found a cool guy named K_____ from Eretria, and he has family, and wants to learn more.  All and all it is really good because the work here is starting to move forward. It is just awesome. And our gml is super pumped to do missionary work, and is getting the members excited. Man this work is the best. There is nothing better then working with our Heavenly Father to save the souls of men. This church is true. I testify that the Keys of the Priesthood have been restored, without which there can be no church of God. I testify that through the ordinances of that Priesthood we can access the purifying, redeeming, changing power of the Atonement, which ordinances are requisite to enter the kingdom of God. I encourage everyone to ponder on the power of gospel covenants as we partake of the sacrament weekly. I hope you have a great week, and that you feel better soon :)

Liebe,
Elder Terry

With Elder Chapman

Driving to St. Moritz with Elder Nielson

St. Moritz

September 10, 2012

Dear Mom,

                Well this week was definitely something new. I have to admit, it has been really weird. The whole training, whitewashing, and having a car thing is a lot of changes, but we are starting to get a hold of it. On Monday we got to know our one investigator, Y____. He is from Chile, and is super cool. Unfortunately he had a really great relationship with the elders before us, and was really hurt that it was whitewashed. So at first he didn`t want to meet with us. But our GML and his family invited us to play soccer with them and Y_____, so we got to know him. He has started to like us but it might take awhile. So in the meantime we have just been trying to get know the members and find new investigators. We have found some cool people, but unfortunately we haven`t been able to make out any appointments with them. GR..... oh well, its part of life, and I am learning to be more bold and to explain better our purpose and how we intend to help people.

                Fun experience of the week:  We had to drive 2 hours through the mountains to get to some members. But it was beautiful. They live in near a city called St. Moritz. Supposedly it is famous, but I guess not famous enough that I knew what it was.  But the 1928 and 1948 winter Olympics were there. It is really beautiful. But 2 hours one way in a car is WAY TOO LONG. I was going crazy. Literally. I brought our area book with us and was hoping that I could call some people, but low and behold, not so great reception. Who woulda’ thought?

                But guess what? Leichtenstein is in our area! And we have members who live there. And supposedly it’s against the law to preach the gospel there. We will see :) So if I suddenly withdraw a lot of money it is so that I can bail my way out of jail :) hahahaha jk. Maybe :)

                Okay enough about the area, we really did experience some miracles this week. We were on the streets in Sargans, a cool town, and we met a lady that is from Portugal. We made out an appointment with her, and on the next day we brought her a Portuguese Book of Mormon, and asked if she knew anyone who would want to learn more. And of did. So we made out an appointment for Saturday and she promised to bring her friend. On Saturday we went to the appointment. M______, (the Portuguese lady) wasn`t there, but her friend was :) cool huh? We have the numbers from both of them, but no appointments for this week, but we will set up some appointments. (funny German note. I almost wrote "Make out appointments" because that is what you say in German. I think that all new missionaries find it funny because it is "make out".)
                Another cool story. We visited a less active sister, and she really wants to return to activity. We are visiting her this Wednesday and will set a date for when she wants to go to the temple.

                Well Tomorrow Elder Nelson of the quorum of the twelve comes to Zurich, so we get to meet with him tomorrow and Wednesday. I am so pumped. It is going to be great. Well I hope that you have a great week, I love you!

Liebe

Elder Terry