March 5, 2018 The Stairway to Heaven

The stairway

(maybe not quite to heaven...

though that would be nice)

This week was incredibly cold, and I had many Swedes assure me that this was the coldest it's been in Göteborg for many years... I don't know if that's supposed to make me feel better or worse, but at least it should only get warmer from here!

On Sunday we were invited over to a members house for dinner, and they live right in the middle of town. As we were trying to find their house, we came upon the longest staircase I have seen in Sweden. I'm not entirely sure what the Stairway to Heaven really looks like, but this gave me a pretty good idea. Unfortunately we got to the top of the staircase just to find out that we had to go down a different staircase (just as long) to reach the members house. It was fast Sunday, so I'm not sure if the stairs were harder before we had eaten, or after the members had fed us an unbelievable amount of food...

This week we had an awesome lesson with a man named Omar. As we began to teach him the plan of salvation, he told us that he had read about us on the internet, and really likes our beliefs on the family. His family is incredibly important to him, and he's noticed that the family no longer carries the same importance within society, so he's intrigued by the emphasis we place on them, and the belief that we can be with our family for eternity. It was incredible to teach him about God's plan for him, and the truths that have been restored through the power of God. He wants to be baptized, so we look forward to helping him take the necessary steps to get there.

We also had the opportunity to teach a man by the name of Victor, who's from Nigeria. We had an awesome lesson about the commandments with him and read a chapter from the Book of Mormon together. We had just planned to read that chapter, but when we finished, he asked, "Can we keep reading?". We did just that, and Victor accepted the invitation to be baptized as well. Unfortunately

Exchanges with Elder Hansen

Victor was unable to come to church this week because he was in Denmark for a meeting that was coordinating efforts to help refugees from Africa. As far as excuses for not going to church go, I have to say that his was pretty good. As he explained the meeting to us, he said nothing in the world makes him happier than helping these refugees and seeing them receive clothes and shelter that they wouldn't have otherwise. As he said this, I couldn't help but think that that right there is a true disciple of Christ. Anyone who feels that way, and finds such great joy in serving others, will come to know their Savior and will recognize that this is indeed His church restored to earth.

One of the scriptures that had the greatest impact on me this week was John Ch 13. We were looking for a way to teach members to love and serve others, and I feel that there is no better chapter to do so. In John 13, Jesus washes the feet of his apostles. It amazes me that Christ, the highest of all, was willing to do such a lowly task. I think of how gross my feet have become on the mission with all the walking we do, and I can only imagine how nasty their feet must have been after walking such great distances everyday through the desert, in sandals. Despite being the lowliest of tasks, Christ was willing to wash the feet of ALL the apostles (including Judas, who would later betray Him). I am grateful that He gave us an example of what it looks like to love and serve one another, which leaves no room for doubt regarding what we must do to obey his command to love and serve one another.

Äldste Sirrine

Michael, one of my all time favorite members

The streets of Göteborg