Dear Family,
Dad! That looks awesome!! Seriously so cool! You are so talented and thoughtful. I'm glad to hear that Grandma is taking
care of you or making sure that you are taken care of :) Mom, I hope you
had a wonderful birthday! I love
the pictures. It looks warm.
The
first part of our week was
warm, and then it got rainy. Last
P-day we went and played on the beach at the Elbe with our district and
later
the rest of the zone came and we played soccer and American football.
It was a lot of fun. I sent pictures from it. Ha, Sister Dunlap
doesn't like
sand. She was very content sitting
on a rock taking pictures and I just wanted to run and roll barefoot in
the
sand. We are very different, but
we love each other and work very well with each other.
Unfortunately
I was not able to see
very much of conference. I'm
hoping I'll be able to see it later, or I will get to read it next month
when
we get the Liahona. But what I did
get to see was amazing!! Saturday we watched the Women’s broadcast at a
member’s
home in English. The Internet
crashed and we were not able to finish it. We got to finish it in
German at the stake center in Wartenau
and then watched the Saturday morning sessions live. Then had to run
home to be back on time. We did have an investigator come that
night. We talked to him about what
we watched. We have taught him
everything. In his head he
believes the Book of Mormon is true. Logically he believes that Thomson
S Monson is a prophet of
God. But he won't pray to know
it's true because ''it just makes sense.'' He believes the church is
true, but he isn't willing to do
more than read in the scriptures and occasionally come to church. How
do we help him desire to do
something; to take the steps to follow Christ, repent and be baptized?
We brought Carlos to watch General
Conference on Sunday. We wanted
him to be able to understand so we watched it in Italian. 2 hours of talks was not his favorite
thing for a 12 year old, but he learned a lot and remembered the stories he
heard. Speaking of Carlos, this
Sunday he is going to be baptized!! We are so excited!!
Earlier this week I was on Tausch
(exchange) with Sis Jardine in Bergedorf. First, I love exchanges, not to get away from my comp,
because my comp is great, but because I love getting to work with other
sisters. I love our STLs!! This tausch taught me that Heavenly
Father loves me, and He understands my struggles. He gave me loving guidance and reminders to be better.
Tausch
miracle: we met two men that
were interested in getting a Book of Mormon and coming to church. They
were a little concerned because the
church in Bergedorf is a little far away. We asked where they live and
turns out that they live in my
area! Haha, I had to go to
Bergedorf to find some people in our area interested in the Gospel.
Every time I have been in Bergedorf we
have found people who live in Altona. Sister Jardine said that only
happens when I am there. So cool! It is another testimony for me that
Heavenly Father is completely
aware of where I am and what I am doing, even if I am in another area
for just
24 hours. ''Heavenly Father, I am
grateful you are always there.''
Sister
Jardine used to run cross-country
at Cedar High so we went running together. I loved it! Their apartment
is quite a ways out of the city and there are
a lot of big trees. I felt like I
was in the mountains, without the mountains. We got to go running on
some of those trails. It was great and very needed for both of
us.
Sometimes
I have moments where I
suddenly realize that I am in Germany, like when Sister Jardine and I
had our
tausch pow wow/evaluation while eating ice cream by a pond and a castle.
I am so blessed. So blessed that I get to live here for
18 months and help others come to Christ! Sometimes I forget how cool
that is and how important this
calling is. I am honored to be
here working with so many blessed daughters and sons of our Heavenly
Father.
This
week I have thought a lot
about Laman & Lemuel and Nephi. God asked them all to do hard and
discouraging things. Laman and Lemuel complained ''because
they knew not the dealings of God who created them.'' They didn't
understand, so what they
were asked to do didn't make sense. It was hard. But Nephi trusted and
then sincerely prayed to
understand. He exercised his faith
and the Lord enlarged his perspective and understanding. He trusted,
believed and he was blessed.
The
Lord asks us to do hard things.
When we try to do it alone it will
be hard and likely impossible, but with God, all things are possible. I
am grateful for this Gospel. I know that President Monson has been
called of God and I know that as we faithfully follow the commandments
of God
we will be guided and blessed with peace and joy in this life and in the
life
to come. Pray for and believe in
miracles!
Thank you so much for your love and
support. I can feel your prayers
strengthen me. I hope you have a
wonderful week!
All my love
-Sister Turner
