Training Elder Ormsby from Australia!

Dear All,

MY WEEK HAS BEEN AMAZING. Training is the funniest, coolest, most spiritual experience I've ever had! It's such a blast. I love getting a chance to be a part of this missionary's first mission experience. He's amazing. His name is elder Ormsby, from Australia!

Elder Ormsby!

We actually just got some snow last night! It was Elder Ormsby's first snow ever! We were super excited and all day he just walked off he path in the snow because it felt cool.

I'm glad you all are getting together for Christmas! It warms ma heart. And it sounds like Gracie and Skylar are quite the sensation! I loved the recording I got of them singing! I love it love it love it! They're getting so good.

Oh man i can't believe Jacob is getting ready to leave!! Agh! It'll be so cool being on a mission the same time as him.

I'll give you the whole story.  So on Monday, we went to Schönenbrunn! That big castle in the pictures I sent. We toured around there and had some good lunch. It was a good day.

On Tuesday we were SO BUSY. We had to get to Wien for our district meeting and then get back in time for a dinner appointment we had with the McLennans! They're a part member part American family in our ward. We had a good time with them as Elder Kaufusi prepared to leave and say goodbye. We shared with them a spiritual thought about how we can stay connected to the Spirit. We talked about how the spirit is always trying to speak to us, but sometimes we aren't listening. So we talked about ways we can listen. Reading Scriptures, praying daily and trying to keep a prayer in our hearts throughout the day. And going to church so we can partake of the Sacrament and grow as a ward. It went really well, and the Spirit was strong. After that we went home so Elder Kaufusi could pack!

Wednesday was TRANSFER DAY! We got to Wien around 8:30 and I said goodbye to Elder Kaufusi. We had a really good time together and I was sad to see him go. I didn't even
really get to say goodbye because his train was leaving and he had to hop on D: but I'm sure he's doing great. After that I stuck with a pretty new missionary (Elder Duker)  and one of our zone Leaders, Elder Mateer. We had a really solid day of studying, and then going out and doing what we do best. Talking to people! Woooo! It was actually a blast, and I got 3 phone numbers from interested people! That day was a testimony to me of how much I've grown. I realized I was no longer a scared new missionary who freaked out when we had to go talk to people. Lately I've been trying to really see the people i meet for who they could become. See them as our Heavenly Father sees them. When I approach it this way, it is not so scary anymore, and it makes me feel so much closer to the Lord. After this we went and got to teach a man who's getting baptized soon. We were trying to help him give up alcohol, because he was having a pretty hard time giving it up. He spoke Englisch only, so it was really nice getting the chance to bear my testimony to him in Englisch. At around 5:30 we went to the station to pick up MY SON. He is the coolest coolest guy!! I bet I got the best new missionary in the mission.

Jetlag.

 

Let me tell you about this guy. His name is Elder Ormsby, and he's from Australia! :D he is so cool! He was so excited to get here and we had an awesome train ride home. Turns out we're very very similar, and we get along super well! He's also always ready to get out and work, which is amazing. He's very strong and brave, and tries really hard to speak good German. I've had lots of fun so far helping him along with it. Training is the coolest most fun mission experience ever. His enthusiasm is amazingly helpful, and it's super easy to feel the spirit super strong with him. He cares so deeply about the people we teach, and he has so many great ideas and insight to help these people. I love working with him, and so far we are best buds. I love it!

On Thursday we had a service project with a less active member, trying to help him cut up some wood and stuff for his fireplace. It was very interesting to talk to his man. I had a good 20 minutes to chat with him while we worked and hear his story. It was kinda sad. He had served a mission as well, and a very successful one. He seems to be a really good guy and he was married with his wife in the temple. But even after all of this, he still managed to fall away. Listening to his story helped me understand how.... He believed very strongly in the church. He spent two years of his life helping people find it. But after a long time, he started reading some anti Mormon stuff on the
internet and feeling uncomfortable. But instead of praying about it, or reading the scriptures, he kept researching on the Internet. When he had questions, instead of turning to the Lord, he turned to the
craftiness of the world and eventually gave in. He stopped reading and stopped praying and even tried bringing others away with him. It's still hard for me to fathom it. Someone who felt so strongly About the church, who went on a mission. I think about the things I've seen and felt and experienced and think there's no way I could fall away. But that's how Satan gets you I think. A false sense of security. It says in the scriptures that even the elect shall be deceived in the last days.
And now I've witnessed just what that means. It's so important that we build our faith on the Lord Jesus Christ, nothing else. When you do that, Satan will never be strong enough to beat you, because you will never give him the power to do so.
But yeah, it was cool hearing about his mission. He still holds the experience very close to his heart :) after that we went and met with Hans again! He enjoyed meeting the new missionary and we had a really strong lesson on why it is we have to read and pray and go to church of we want to progress and come closer to God. Please keep him in your prayers. He wants to change so many things so bad but can never find the will to start. After that we taught German class at the church and it was lots of fun! I learned a lot as well. Our students are making lots of progress!

On Friday we went to go meet with the old wizard, Rudolph again! His is a tricky case. A lot of his habits and hobbies don't align with the life of a Latter Day Saint, and that's the reason he's not a member. He says already that he wants to be. But he doesn't believe he has the inner strength to quit a lot of the things he's doing. We discussed it really in depth and talked about different ways to help. In the end, i told him we would go home and think over it and come up with something that will help him find out how to believe. He told me that lots of missionaries have said the same thing before and it hadn't worked. I then told him that I may not be the first missionary to say that, but none of them were me and my companion. I was the first "Me" to try. After that he was actually stumped!! The Wizard!! The spirit was very strong and he said: oh, that is a good point. A very good point. Who knows, maybe I can change. We left on good terms and we have resolved to come up with what he needs this week. Please keep him in your prayers as well. We will be fasting for him on Wednesday and trying to come up with something.

After that we went to the Piñol family again and they fed us some delicious food. It was some kind of chicken sauce over rice. The sister missionaries shared a nice thought about how we can turn unhappy situations into happy ones. After that we went out on the street and talked to people! My companions first time! He was pretty nervous, but was willing to try and the one guy he stopped gave us his information and said we could call!! It was awesome! We gave out lots of cards and had some good conversations. One old guy read my name tag and just started yelling: CULT. CUUUULT! And pointing at us and shuffling away. It was so awkward but me and my companion just laughed. You learn to love things like that. They make your journal interesting. After that we took off for home.

On Saturday we had another service project with a sister in our ward trying to help her move. She tried to give us a couple kilos of little packets of honey... And I'm not sure what I would do with that so we politely refused XD but it went well and we got a lot of furniture packed up and shipped off to her new house! After that we had to come back and let the senior missionaries come inspect our apartment, which also went well! After that we had our ward Christmas party! It was lots of fun and I got to sing O Holy Night in front of like 120 people! It was very fun, and I felt like I did very well :) now I'm singing again in sacrament meeting... xD But I had an amazing experience that night as well. After I sang, a less active member came up to me that I didn't know and told me he had prayed to know if he should come back to church, and my song was the answer to that prayer. We are now meeting with this long time less active family on Friday. I cannot describe to you the spirit I felt as I heard that man say that as he shook my hand. In my patriarchal blessing it touches on the importance of music in my life... and on Saturday I got a taste of what that means. In the most humble way possible, I am so grateful for this gift I have been given. I have learned on my mission that my testimony is best sung instead of told. I have experienced it a fair amount of times already. I am seeking guidance on how I can further use this in our ministry.

moustache.

 

On a lighter note, I made a huge fool of myself as I was talking with my companion, an investigator and the bishop! We were standing and socializing in a circle... as I felt the gentle urge of my dry throat to drink some punch. I gingerly lifted my cup to my lips with upmost precision, and felt the cool liquid begin it's journey over my tongue and down my throat to the stomach. All was well in Zion. Until the bishop told a joke. Tell me if I'm wrong, but there should be a connection in the brain of all fine folks that acts as a fail safe when one hears something humorous in times of liquid consumption. Well mine was apparently not very well maintained because my brain engaged the
laugh cycle while my throat was in mid drink cycle. If you are unfamiliar with this complicated process, these two do not mix. To say it simply, human lungs are not compatible with fruit punch. In
essence: I swallowed wrong. But that's ok! Because our bodies have an even better fail safe in times of crisis such as these. It's called: Explosively Spit everything currently in your mouth all over the
bishop and your investigator. This is what happened. Needless to say, everyone was surprised. But it all ended in laughs and coughs. (The coughs were mine) but I was very embarrassed for about five minutes XD

After that we went home!

Klaus' haus.

Sunday was very good! We had a very spiritual Sunday where my companion got to bear his testimony for the first time and introduce himself! In his very simple words, he expressed his love for the Savior. And it touched everyone's heart, including mine. The spirit was so strong as he was up there doing his best. It was very inspiring and it reminded me that it doesn't matter what you say, all that matters is the witness of the spirit. It was a great start to the week. After that the Piñols had us over again and we ate more lunch! Then we all went caroling to less active members houses! It was so much fun, but the last one was the best. We ended up driving out to this tiny little town in the middle of a misty snowing Austrian valley. This old lady lived in a Beautiful little country house. And when she opened the door to us singing she almost cried. She started singing along and she had the biggest smile. It really touched her heart, and it was great to see something so small make a difference.

That was our week!

It has been almost a year... I cannot believe it. I'm really starting to grasp just how short this mission really is. How much time is already gone and how little time I have to do such a big work. But luckily I still have time to accomplish lots.

Für Skype!!  So I will be skyping you guys at 8 o clock on the 26th here... which is 11 pm on the 25th by you guys... sorry it's so late, but it's the only time that works out both in Australia and at home...

So, for you:  11 pm 25th December.Hopefully that works for y'all. We'll be able to talk for about an hour :)I love you guys very much! I'm getting my Christmas package tomorrow and i got the little packet in the mail :) thank you!

Till Sunday!

Elder Larson