Saturday, May 27, 2017

Week 11 - Prague

Well elder Carlson and I are wiped out. It has been a great week! Monday was the usual busy getting things ready for MLC, a meeting with president and office meeting. We had a lesson with a recent convert and FHE that night. Tuesday was a little bit crazier. We had missionaries come in for visa work. Elder Carlson went with the one and i went to proselyte with the other. The visa appointment kinda went crazy because we forgot the 100 dollar stamps we were supposed to send. We also had a crazy lesson with a kid. It ended with him kinda leaving in a haste. Pretty interesting!

Wednesday morning started out on the wrong foot when we got a call from the office couple asking where the box was that they had on their desk... That was the box the night before we had sent with president to Slovakia.. They were supposed to get the mail ready and leave it on their desk and we just assumed that that box was the mail for president.. Whoops! We had district meeting, a lesson with Michal and a less active. Then we had one of the best nights. Last week we did a chalk display and i talked to an american guy. He didn't have interest too much  but was pretty nice. He left and then we left. The other elders felt they needed to stay a little bit longer. Turns out that guy came back and asked where Elder Hanis was. He then gave the other elders his number asking for me to give him a call. So we call him and he says he wants us to come over for Dinner with all the missionaries. All 8. So wednesday night we go over and they made Tex mex food for us all! They have an adopted daughter that is like 2 and they are awesome! We shared Because of him with them and they want to come to church and the inspiration nights on Sundays! IT was so cool! They want to have us over weekly!

Then Thursday was kinda a hectic day! We had to go get some things for president, get visa stuff done and prepare for a lot of trainings we have coming up. We then had a super cool first lesson with a YSA girl we found in the metro. She is looking for a place with young people that believe. She's searching for faith and it is so awesome! 

Friday was a long day! We were up at 5 and we drove the polar bear with six sisters to Brno for progression training with the new missionaries. It was a lot of fun to hear about the first week of their mission and the culture shock things. The best was one sister missionary saying. "I was shocked to see so many males peeing outside, not just little kids but everyone. " Sister pohorelicka said welcome to the Czech republic! Its an interesting place for sure! But we had training and came back! Then went and visited a family in the ward and had a great visit before coming back and having to get a lot of things done for today for missionareis. We ended up getting home at 10. Long full day. Today's been a good pday. We visited vysehrad. Visited a recent convert from mexico at the Latin festival and got some good Mexican food! Its been a good day! It'll be another busy week. The first two of our 14 exchanges are this week plus MLC and some visa appointments. It'll be good! Love you!



Saturday, May 20, 2017

Week 10 - Prague

Well like last time the first week of the transfer is pretty busy! Wow! It is crazy. But last Sunday was pretty nuts. So after church we got a text from our investigator from Nigeria that he was sick and wanted us to come pray with him. We gave him a call. It turns out that after coming back from Africa on vacation he had gotten malaria. We went and saw him at the hospital and gave him a blessing. After the blessing he told us. Thanks i have to leave on Tuesday the doctors say i have to stay for another week but now that you've blessed me ill be out on Tuesday. Well fast forward to Tuesday we get a text from him and hes out of the hospital! Pretty cool!

But Monday Elder Carlson got here and we have had a super week. It feels like were picking up right where we left off in Brno. We are already great friends, now how to teach together and working hard. It has been a blast! Tuesday the new missionaries got here and at the airport president saw a guy who looked like one of the missionaries. He says " Lets go talk to him" He ended up being a really cool guy. President is just say a great example and fun to do missionary work with. We spent the day going around Prague tiring out the new missionaries. It was a pretty fun day.  Wednesday we picked them up and had their first meeting where they met their trainers. We survived notary with them and in the afternoon we did a chalk display. I met one American there. Really nice guy but didn't want to meet. After we left he ended up coming back and finding the missionaries saying he wants to have us over for dinner! Another cool miracle. 

That night we had the departing missionary devotional. Elder Bednar who came with me is going home a transfer early because his parents will be mission president and wife. So we were with him and then we were up at about 3:45 to take them to the airport. 

Now that Elder Belshe is gone the Visa work for all the missionares is on us. We made our first mistkae on thursday taking one sister to the wrong place for fingerprints and now has to come back. But we live and learn. We had a few good lessons that night. Found some great people. Friday was also a great day! We had training for the new district leaders in the morning. Found some more awesome people in the afternoon and had a great lesson with Jana. She accepted a date to get baptized on the first of July. She is so cool! Lots of exciting things happening. Hope you are well! Love ya!








Last night with Kofola

a Visit to paris?

Saturday, May 13, 2017

Week 9 - Prague

Like the subject says this has been a highlight week! One of the best weeks of my mission! Besides having a pretty bad cold! Last Saturday we went and looked at a cool monument in Prague before heading to stake conference! It was here at the building and the general authority was visiting from England. He was about 40 and already a 70, had kids, served as a stake president for a while. Really powerful man! He gave a great talk about the atonement and how it is like kids spilling legos. Parents will always help us, and pick most of them up in the end but they try and teach the kids and help them. And that is what Jesus does. Like i said i was not feeling to great. Pretty sure i had a pretty good fever and so we went home but we had 6 extra missionaries staying at our apartment. It was a party!

Sunday we had the main session of conference. We waited at the building at 9 for an investigator. She didn't end up coming but about 30 foreigners came. We were like shepherds. Herding them all to stake conference at the conference center. It was a great conference, so fun to see so many members from all of my areas. We got to have lunch with the YSA and then had the inspirational night.

Monday was a holiday here so we had planned a trip with members and investigators to some really cool rock formations! Its similar to what Narnia looks like! Super cool! Way fun to be with some of the members. Tuesday was my birthday and we celebrated it with a meeting with president, followed by office meeting, followed by district meeting, followed by some finding and then planning our two trainings for this week. Wednesday we had a great service project and then we had culture night. We saw an opera which was alright! It was in the National Theater so it was worth it for the experience. 

Then Thursday up bright and early and off to Brno. We had the first training there. It was a different format than usual. The Zone leaders had us teach the restoration through the different trainings. So the sisters talked about God and who he is. How we can teach people better about our relationship. We gave a really in depth presentation about Christ's Church and how it is organized built and things with a million scriptures. The zone leaders talked about the apostasy and then president did it about Joseph smith. Presidents training was way cool! HE did a role play for the whole thing. And used a power point to teach us about how to teach and good things to do and it was really well done! 

After that training we headed to Trencin in Slovakia. Left our car their and headed with president to Presov. Had great Halusky on the way. Friday morning we had a meeting with president about transfers. Then all the missionaries from Slovakia arrived. We had a big service project in three places across the city and then we had a training there. We gave another training about the history of the church in these two countries, at the end we talked about presov. And how i got here. Its because that's where my ancestors come from and we talked about the gospel. It was a really spiritual meeting. The zone leaders followed it up with a great training about heart might mind and strength. Then president had a presentation with transfers he had each appear on the board until he announced who would get to open the city! It was pretty cool! Then we drove with president back to trencin and talked about every gospel topic you can think of! 

Today we got up and helped get things ready. Today we celebrated the 11th anniversary of Slovakia being dedicated for the preaching of the gospel. At 12 we raced back to Prague and got here at 4:30 because we had a baptism at 5! Kristyna got baptized! We taught her the first half and the sisters here the second! And we have transfers! I am staying here in Prague for my last transfer and I am serving with Elder Carlson. I served with him 3 transfers ago in Brno. Its gonna be a blast! It has been a heck of a week! Hope yours were good too! 

Love you!