Monday, November 22, 2010

Din Danske missionær 11-22-10

Hej Alle Min Familie og venner!

Det er so viderundelig at blive en missionær i Danmark! Jeg er so taknemlig for det og ikke kan vent at tale med jer om min uge.

So this week has been... whats the word... slow! I cant even begin to tell you how much things have slowed down. I have managed to stay busy in other ways, but in short teaching appointments or anything with an investigator has been very minimal. I

So to begin we have an appointment,well multiple appointments with our investigator named Nicole. She came to church on Sunday and things seem to be on track for November 25th! We sent her programs in to be printed, got instructions on how to fill the baptismal font, and got approval from the Bishop. So things are on track with her and I am proud of the changes she has made to be ready for this date. She has really worked hard and has had to deal with ton in her life to get to this point. So shes excited and texts me constantly how exited she is! She was with a member today getting things worked out with her baptismal dress and that just got her all happy. So things are on track and I look forward to Thursday. I will let you know how it goes next week. However this week we continued our lesson on Christlike attributes with her. We taught patience and being humble. Those are 2 things I think we all, ALWAYS need to work on. She laughed when I told her what they were as these were 2 things she has struggled with for a long time. haha. The lesson went well and again she has taken what she has learned and began to apply it. I have already seen a big improvement in her.

We also met with our investigator named Tobias! He is doing alright. He is struggling to see the importance of the church. He thinks its great and interesting but I don't think he is 100 percent committed. So were working on finding a way to make church more interesting. However he is still way cool and constantly feeds us! haha. He also bought one of the new iphones and he showed it to me. I wanted to cry because it was so beautiful. We then showed him the Book of Mormon application and told him to download it.... it just laughed... I don't think he realized I was serious. :) We taught him the 2000 stripling warrior story. We told him that God can give one strength to face the challenges one needs in life. We told how the Laminites relied on their own strength and that's why they failed. We taught that when one truly relys on the Lord, he cannot fall. He found it interesting so we will see what the future brings! Way cool guy though!

We also this week went shopping with my mission leader and bought a new oven for the apartment. It was fun. He managed to talk to the guy at the store and get the oven for 1000 crowns off! WOW! That's a score in Denmark. So we ended up paying only 3200 kronor for the thing (so around 600 dollars). Not bad for Denmark. It was fun and it was a good deal. I am now cooking wonderfully and making good food. Our last oven broke so I have not really been cooking much... we have been eating sandwiches and so soup. We were pretty limited on our choices. But now I am eating well and cooking! I love the new stove. Now watch me get transferred next transfers haha, after putting all the work in to getting a new oven. :) The joys of missionary life.

I also this week got the chance to go to Copenhagen. My companion Elder Warner got permission to see an investigator he prevously taught get baptized. So we had to wake up early, catch a 4 hour train ride to get there. As we were on the train it began to snow! That was kind of crazy! It was actually sticking! Because of that a lot of trains were delayed and it caused a mess. Luckily mine had no problems and we arrived safely in Copenhagen. Then we saw the baptism and it was a great service. The spirit is always so strong and amazing during those. Except the missionaries there in Copenhagen made the water too hot... so they had to quickly run some cold water through it too cool it down. So that was kind of funny. Its a good thing God has a since of humor right? Then after the baptism we hung our for a few hours with the missionaries there. It was good to seem them as one was in my MTC group. Then me and Elder Warner again got back on the train and went back to Århus. However almost every train to Jylland (The main part of Denmark thats connected to Germany) was cancelled. Yikes! I was getting a little worried. We managed to find a train that took us to the middle island called Fyn. This is the island that is between jylland and sjælland. However it left a little later. So we grabbed some McDonalds, ahah, yes McDonalds, and waited for the train. Well we caught it and finally made it to Århus. It was not as smooth of a trip as it was getting to Copenhagen! :) Long day of traveling, but it was nice and fun to get to see Copenhagen for a few hours. I know Elder Warner was very grateful to get the oppertunity to go!

I also this week have gotten one step closer to getting ready to do my church tour idea. I will give your more details later, but I am getting some posters and flyers I created approved and then printed. Then were going to send out announcements and get this idea rocking. I am excited to see if any results come from it. I will keep you updated on the status of my project! The Bishop is excited and I am working very closly with the members to get this idea a reality.

I dont have much of a spiritual message for today. I am been very busy and just have not had much time to think about it. All I guess I want to say is remember the Lord is always watching our for you and taking care of you. I was a little worried about the whole train situation when coming home from Copenhagen. However I had the faith that the Lord is there and that he loves me and that he will get me where I need to go. So just remember that though life can get crazy and messed up, remember somebody is in control and that if you call upon his help and have the faith he can help, all things are possible!

I wish you the very best week! HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I hope you guys all eat some extra food for me as the traditional thanksgiving food is hard to find in Denmark! haha. Love you all!

Din Danske Missionær
Med Kærlig Hilsen,
Ældste Skyler Hardy

Monday, November 15, 2010

Din Danske Missionær 11-15-10

Hej Alle Min Familie og Venner!

Det er så dejligt at skriver til jer i day! Det betylder rigtig meget til mig og jeg ser meget frem til det hver uge! Her er min uge, og jeg håber du kan nyde denne brev!

So once again I have had a great week but it was been a little slower. I am afraid the slow weeks are going to start being a normal thing, as the Christmas comes closer and closer. I am so excited for the holidays, but not excited for the effect the Holidays have on missionary work.

So to begin we had a good start to the week. We met with our investigator Nicole. She is on track for her baptism on November 25th. She met with the mission president this week and is cleared for her baptism! So we have begun to create her program and do other things to prepare for that day. She is doing much better and has really changed. She is learning more and More and applying the stuff she is learning to her own life. She is attending institute and other young adult acitivies in other wards. She is enjoying those a lot! She also purchased new scriptures and has gained a stronger desire to study lately. she is doing better! I hope and pray the best for her! I will keep you updated as the date gets closer and closer! :) Lots of stuff can happen as the baptism day arrives.

Then on Tuesday we had our apartment repairman come to fix some things. I was hard to explain things in danish to him, but luckily we had our mission leader with us to help us. I was quite fun to practice my danish. I am really fixing up this apartment. Then on Friday I heard from the mission president that we are having a "Cleanest apartment contest" haha. I am determined to win! So I told my mission leader and he also got way excited! So me and my companion and my mission leader our going out to buy some new paint, and new carpet (As the apt really does need it... we have approval from mission office) and all kinds of things to spruce up my apartment! lol! Whats great is it was all Flemmings (My mission leaders) idea! Hes making it so fun, and were really enjoying this project! I am telling you, my apartment is going to rock, and I am so going to win! haha. Flemming and I have come up with design ideas and all kidns of plans to win this contest. He even wants to bring some of his furniture over to our apartment, just so it looks good when we send the picture in for the contest! :) He is also determined to win! GO ÅRHUS ELDERS! :)

Then on Friday we had a specialized training in Århus. Its kind of like a Zone conference except that only our mission president instructs us. It was really good and it was basically talking out making commitments with people. Things like committing baptism sooner then later, introducing Book of Mormon more in our lessons, etc. It was a great instruction and I learned a lot to improve my missionary work. That lasted all day and it was a lot of fun to visit with all the other missionaries in my Zone!

The on Saturday our Ward had a baptism of an 8 year old! Let me tell you the ward was just all excited about it! What was even greater about it, was this family invited every non member friend they had! It was amazing how many non-members were in that building! I talked to many of them and they seemed scared when they saw my badge but after I talked they calmed down as they realized I am not scary! I mean seriously, who couldn't resist my charming smile? haha. Just kidding. I met this American actually at that baptism that is friends with the mother of the daughter that was baptized. I had a great chat with her and I guess she is somewhat interested in the church. It was great to talk to her and introduce me as a missionary to her. Now she knows were nice people and not pushy or weird. So I hope with time and prayer maybe I could teach her. The baptism turned out wonderfully and this little girl was so excited to show the church to all her non-member friends. Before the baptism she was giving them all tours and showing them where she has class and primary, etc. She was a good little missionary to her friends. It was cute. All her friends were so supportive and sweet. Its a shame we cant be the same way as adults. We tend to judge to quickly as we get older. Kids just have a great way do love and respect people.

So my spiritual message goes with my story about the baptism. As we deal with people throughout our day, Mormon or not. Remember to always be respectful and loving to all and everyone. Sometimes we has members get so caught up in judging other religions because we know ours is true. Though we are the only true church, I believe many good things can be learned from the many other churches in this world. As we show our love and respect, just like those kids showed that 8 year old getting baptised, that's when we truly are being Christlike. That's the best way to show others our church, and one day the truth.

Have a great week everyone and thank you again for all your love and support!

Din danske Missionær
Med Kærlig Hilsen,
Ældste Skyler Hardy

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Din Danske Missionær 11/08/2010

Kære Familie og Venner!

Oh the weather outside is frightful,
But the fire is so delightful,
And since we've no place to go,
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Let the winter season begin, officially! It has snowed in Denmark. It did not stick but it was snowing! Is that crazy or what! I cannot believe we are entering the 2nd week of November... its just crazy. Time is flying by and I am getting closer and closer to the end of my mission. Its just incredible how fast time flies. I am doing well and have had a decent week. This week again was more mellow.

To begin We had a rough beginning of the week. However we did meet with our investigator named Nicole. She is doing much, much better. In fact she has changed a lot and is finally making real progress. This week we decided to teach her about Christlike attributes. We began with Faith and Hope, and then continued on to Charity and Love. She really liked them and enjoyed the scriptures we shared with her. She has already begun to apply some of those attributes into her life. Her baptismal date is for November 25 officially now, and things seem to be on track for that. I will keep you updated as the date comes closer and closer.

We also met with Fareed again this week. He just loves having us over. She shared a spiritual message with him that involved the Book of Mormon. We encouraged him to begin reading the scirptures again and to try to make it to church. Other than that he just loves us. I mean I have never met a man so grateful to have missionaries come over. He truly is a good person and is doing his best with the life he has. I am glad I am here to help him to the best of my abilities. Whats also neat is, I am also learning things from him. Good man, good appointment.

We also met with another investigator named THU. This is the girl we teach English. She is doing better and better each week we meet with her. I am very impressed with the progress she is making. The only problem is she is really shy to speak. I understand her pain completely... I struggled and in all reality still struggle, having the confidence to speak danish. So I have been relating to her pretty well, and shes progressing. We teach her a little about the church here and there, but struggles understanding. I hope with time, things can progress farther.

Then on Saturday we had another apartment inspection from the new couple missionaries that serve in a city called Aalborg. They arrived in Denmark about 4 weeks ago. As I began to talk with them I found out they are from ALPINE with names Elder and Sister Jensen! Sweet! A little Alpine reunion. For those who are from Alpine I asked them the good old true alpiner question, "Do you live close to the buffalo?." They laughed and they passed my alpiner test. They are way cool and my companion and I gave them a tour of Århus. It was fun. By the way.... My apartment passed with flying colors.... I bet to most of you that was a shocker.... haha. :)

So Saturday evening came along and we sat down around 9 to plan and we realized how rough of a week it was. We have had very little contact with our investigators and in short never got the chance to invite them to church. So I was quite sad that none of my investigators were coming. So I said a prayer asking Heavenly father to prepare someone, anyone so I can have an investigator at church.

Well Sunday rolled around and I arrived at church. I began greeting the members and being social when in walks the Jensen's. They are the couple missionaries serving in Aalborg. Not only did they come to church but they brought this young girls around 24 years old in. They began to talk to me and said that when they pulled up they saw this girl starring at the church building deciding whether to enter or not. So Elder Jensen went up with a smile to her and invited her in. Well she stayed through sacrament meeting and had a good experience. I got her number and she is interested in learning more. Her name is Lykke and she answered my prayers.

So my spiritual message for the day is, don't EVER forget the power of prayer. This is something that's REAL and AMAZING. I knew my prayer was answered yesterday when the Jensen's brought that girl through the door. I know the power of prayer works. Maybe not always in the way we want it, but it works. In my case he not only got an investigator in church, but he also gave me a new investigator to teach. I love my Heavenly Father and how he continually blesses and helps his children. How grateful I am for his help, love, and patience. May you remember prayer and use it. He wants to talk to us and prayer is how we do it!

Well everyone, Have an amazing week. Everything is beginning to look a lot like Christmas, so enjoy it as it only lasts for a few months. Take care, and I wish the very best for you!

Din Danske Missionær,
Med Kærlig Hilsen,
Ældste Skyler Hardy!

Monday, November 1, 2010

Din Danske Missionær 11/01/2010

Hej alle min Familie og venner!

Oh det er so dejlight at være på computer i dag for at snakke med dig! Jeg håber du alle sammen har haft den bedste dag, eller den bedste Halloween weekend du nogensinde har haft! Min var ok, men Halloween er ikke so stor i Danmark som det er i USA. So for Danmark det var næste den fuldkommen! haha.

OK, haha. I am just having way too much fun writing in danish. Have you been able to understand it? In any case you get to kind of see what it looks like! :) So HAPPY NOVEMBER! I cannot believe the holiday season has already begun! It just amazes me how fast it all happens. Denmark and its stores have already begun to set up for Christmas and almost all the stores have Christmas decorations ready to go! kind of crazy! I love the holidays! My last Christmas in Denmark!

So my week was pretty good. It was actually more on the mellow side, but in any case a good week filled with stuff to do!

On Monday we had a district meeting in Horsens. Horsens is a near-by city that takes about 45 minutes to get too with train. So me and my companion caught a train very early and made our way to Horsens. The meeting was pretty good and I had to give a training on, "How to plan for your investigators" haha. It was kind of an awkward training, but it was fun. I just gave everyone a fake investigator and had them plan for it. Then I gave them hints and tips that are in Preach my gospel and called the training complete. I think everyone enjoyed it and it turned out well. So that was fun. Then we hung out in Horsens the rest of the day and took our p-day. We basically ate out with all the missionaries in our group and had a shopping day. I didn't buy anything, but it was just fun to be with a bunch of missionaries and hang out. It was a fun day.

Then on Tuesday we met with our Investigator named Nicole. We taught her about the Word of Wisdom and Law of chastity. She knew it already but it was a good refresher course. She enjoyed reading out of the scriptures and it was a good appointment. She was a baptismal date for Nov 19. I hope it will hold through. She is much better then she has been, and has really began to change and be better. So one can only hope! haha.

Then we had an appointment with some new investigators named Charolette and Roger. We gave them a church tour and asked us how we ran our meetings. They found it very interesting. Roger was very positive and in fact did some of his own research about our church. He read our website and was amazed with our temples. He thought they were breath taking. So it was a fun giving a tour of the church. We hopefully will have another appointment with them this week, and have a good sit down and teach about Joseph Smith. :) They are good people and I am excited to see what happens! :)

We also met with our less active friend named Fareed! He is such a good guy but just wont come to church! haha. He cracks me up. He tells us every time, he knows he needs to come! However this time he did have good news as he told me that his boss just hired 5 new people. Which means he can get Sunday off of work. That was great news! He said he is going to talk to his boss this week! I am excited to get this man re-activated! That's almost as good as a baptism! haha. Fareed is also a very good cook and just loves cooking for us! He also does all he can to take care of the missionaries! SO good man. His appointments are always a lot of fun.

My other investigators are also doing well, and I have made appointments with them for this week! SO things are going well and I hope to have a baptism for Århus for Christmas! Me and My companion are working hard and doing are best to fulfill our calling! haha.

So I don't really have a spiritual thought for today. But something I really want to express is the concept of patience. One thing I am learning as a missionary is how patient I have to be with people. That could include my companion, my investigators, or even the ward members. The one thing I learned is the more patient I am the better things turn out. If I lose my patience and get mad, or whatever, I end up in a worse situation then I was in. So for this week, remember to have patience. If everyone in this world would do that a little more, I think the world would be a better place. Wow, ok... this message was a little cheesy. Did anybody else think that message was like a response from like the Miss. America pageant?.... oh wait I forgot to add.... "World peace" haha. Oh boy... *Grin*

I wish all of you the very best week! Happy November!

Din Danske Missionær,
Med Kærlig Hilsen,
Ældste Skyler Hardy!