Week 38-39: Stake Dance Probably

I hope it's been a lovely two weeks. Not much has happened here but things are going well. Biweekly email this week. 

Spiritual Thought:  

I like Elder Renlund's talk from the last General Conference. In it, he talks about the parable of the talents. 

He tells the story of Zusya, an 18th-century scholar and teacher who is fearful as he nears death saying, 

 “If God says to me, ‘Zusya, why were you not another Moses?’ I will say, ‘Because you didn’t give me the greatness of soul that you gave Moses.’ And if I stand before God and He says, ‘Zusya, why were you not another Solomon?’ I will say, ‘Because you didn’t give me the wisdom of Solomon.’ But, alas, what will I say if I stand before my Maker and He says, ‘Zusya, why were you not Zusya? Why were you not the man I gave you the capacity to be?’”

Elder Renlund explains “One message of this parable is that God expects us to magnify the abilities we have been given, but He does not want us to compare our abilities to those of others.”

As we grow our talents, we grow as God's children.

We go where he wants us to go.

Say what he wants us to say, and

Be what he wants us to be.

All to bless his children all over the world. 

Short Version of Email: Not much happened. A lot of trying to find new people to teach. Cool concert, street market, Sähly. Cool event with all the youth. 

Finnish Word of the Week:   Olohuone = Living Room but literally translates to “'to be' in room”

Daylight Counter!

Where we started–4 Hours 40 minutes

This week–18 Hours 2 minutes

5 Amazing Things This Week:

1:  We did a “Street Blitz” where all 8 of the missionaries went out and talked to people in the City Square at the same time for a couple of hours. Some were singing, some were walking around, and some were sitting and talking to people. It was fun to be outside in the nice weather. 

2: On Saturday in Tampere there was an event called Superi. All the youth from all over Finland come to Tampere for the day to play games, have classes, and have a fun dance. (Think like FSY mixed with a stake dance) It was fun to be there and meet people from all over the country. 

3:  The highlight of my week was that Sahly was moved outside this week. Now we get to play on a full court for 2 hours instead of on a half-court for 1 hour. Having a bigger court makes the players more spread out which makes the game so much more fun. I even scored 3 goals. 

4:  Two dinner appointments this week with 2 great families made me a very full, very happy Elder. We also visited some older members. Talking to them is a great challenge for my Finnish and it is lovely to get to know them. 

5:  There was a cool international market that was up all this week. It was a good place to talk to people and see food from lots of different cultures. We also went to a concert with our mission coordination leaders which was great. 

Tender Mercy of the Week:

These past two weeks have been really, really hard in terms of trying to find people to teach. Lots of times I overthink and it feels like we aren't in the right place doing the right thing at the right time. When we feel this way we stop what we are doing and say a prayer. There have been lots of occasions where the Spirit has comforted me and let me know we've been doing good work even though sometimes it doesn't seem like it. 

Where I am/Who I'm With: I am serving in Tampere. My companion is Elder Salisbury.

Fun Facts about Elder Salisbury:

-Can solve a Rubix cube faster than you

-Has a cool purple suit

-Can do handstand pushups

Scripture of the Week:  

Doctrine and Covenants 46:6

6 And again I say unto you, concerning your confirmation meetings, that if there be any that are not of the church, that are earnestly seeking after the kingdom, ye shall not cast them out.

My thoughts:  I love what this verse shows me about the character of God. Even more applicable than to just people wanting to come to church I know that God doesn't leave anyone alone who is seeking. Earnest seekers of the Kingdom are always welcome in the Kingdom. 

Talk of the Week:  

“As Long as the World Shall Stand”. David A. Bednar

My Thoughts: This talk shows cool parallels between the pioneers and our day in relation to the temple. Great evidence to me that the work of the Lord continues for “As Long as the World Shall Stand.”

Have the best week ever! 

Send me an email if you like. 
-Elder Balls