January 21, 2019 You Never Know

Riding Spark

First off, I apologize for not sending an email last week. We had some members take us out to ride a "spark" on a frozen lake, so I wasn't left with much time. Riding a "spark" is a legitimate mode of transportation here in Northern Sweden, so we got it approved by our mission president to go with them :) It was quite possibly the coolest thing I've done.


This week we had transfers, and Elder Ellis and I are staying together! Elder Olson in Skellefteå (an hour and a half north of Umeå) was getting a new companion, but had to drive down to Umeå to meet

Picking Elder Fuller up 

from the airport at midnight

him at the Umeå airport when he came. Unfortunately his plane got cancelled due to bad weather, and then his next plane got cancelled, and then about three planes later he finally made it up to Umeå and we picked him up at midnight. Elder Olson had been planning on being in Umeå for about 2 hours and stayed a total of 42 hours with us. We enjoyed having an extra companion for that time!


We have had a fantastic week filled with miracles. We've been doing a lot of finding recently, and this week we felt the guidance of the Lord and saw his hand at work. We actually had two experiences that highlight the importance of talking to everyone and having faith that no effort is wasted.


The first experience began with a girl that checked us out at a store on P-day. While she was helping us, we began talking to her and told her about our work as missionaries here in Sweden. About a week later, we were contacting in Stan and stopped to talk with a girl who was smoking. When we walked up to her and began talking, we recognized her as the girl who had helped us in the store, and were able to bear our witness of the power of the Book of Mormon and invite her to learn more. She was eager to learn more about how it can help her personally, and we now have contact over Facebook messenger to find a time to meet.


The second experience was with a guy who requested a Book of Mormon from Mormon.org. A few weeks ago we delivered the Book, but he wasn't home, so we talked with his mom at the door. We've had contact with him on Facebook Messenger, but wanted to meet him in person, so this week we decided to swing by in person. Nobody answered the door, so we continued knocking doors in the area. We were in a neighboring apartment building knocking doors about 45 minutes later when we heard the door at the bottom open, and could hear people carrying something heavy sounding in. We hurried down to the bottom of the stairs to offer our help, and it was none other than the guy's mother and another man carrying in wind-sailing equipment (apparently they decided it was finally time to winterize?). We offered our help, and they responded that they were okay without it, but they didn't sound too decided against our help, so we said we were going to help anyway. We helped them carry the equipment into the storage in the basement, and they thanked us profusely for the help. We then got to share the gospel with them as they asked why we do such service and we taught them about the example of Jesus Christ. Later that night, we got a text from her son explaining that he had heard from his mother that we had helped, allowing for further contact with him. Tracting in that area was not our original plan, but through the guidance of the spirit over the course of several encounters, we were able to offer genuine service in behalf of the Lord. There is no effort wasted, and there are no coincidences. The Lord will guide us as we diligently follow the spirit in our labors, and this promise is not reserved for full-time missionaries. As you seek to share the gospel with others around you, seek the guidance of the spirit and you will be led in all your efforts, even if you don't see an immediate result.

Äldste Sirrine

Our P-day adventure. That's the Baltic Sea we're standing on. 

With temperatures the past week of -25C to -18C (-13F to 0F), 

it's been plenty cold to keep it frozen :)

The biggest bridge in Umeå

January 7, 2019 Gott Nytt År

Elder Ellis and I

The beauty of winter :)

We had a great New Years and were able to have dinner at the Iguarans house. They come from Columbia, and the dad had just gotten back from a visit there, so he brought a bunch of food back and we had genuine Columbian food for dinner! Feliz Año Nuevo :)

This week we witnessed a cool miracle, and of course it was the last door we knocked on for the night ;) When the mom approached the door, we recognized her as the woman with whom we had talked to in Backens Kyrka on Christmas morning where we attended Julotta with two families in the ward. The members we were with had just started talking to her, and she seemed like a really nice lady, but I hadn't thought of her since. We were both surprised to see each other when we knocked on her door, and we had a really good conversation with her. We mentioned that the Karlssons lived in the apartment building just 40 meters away from her home, which totally surprised her as she has never met them before or since Julotta. In the end she told us that she wasn't interested in learning any more, but she accepted a Book of Mormon and a card. We hope to return back soon and see if she's had a chance to read any.

We also went on exchanges this week, and I got to be in Örnsköldsvik (yeah, the pronunciation on

Örnsköldsvik

that one is pretty fun.... something like earn-sholds-veek) and I got to be with Elder Udeji! He originally comes from Nigeria, but he's also lived in Spain for five years and Sweden for five years, so he's about the closest thing we have to a native Swedish missionary (we actually have one other native Swede in the mission). He also speaks fluent Swedish, English, Spanish, an african tribal language, and he's learning French. So regardless of who he meets on the street, he's pretty covered.

Swedes really like to celebrate around Christmas time (despite being one of the most atheist countries in the world...they just like an excuse to celebrate) and New Years, so proselyting was less effective. Because of this, our mission president challenged us to read as many scriptures in the TG under the 57 subheadings of Jesus Christ as possible, and he gave us 3 hours a day to do so. I only made it about 3/4 of the way through, so I'm still working on it a bit at a time, but it was an amazing experience that completely changed my perspective and understanding of Christ. I find it incredible that he is the one that created both the heavens and the earth, calmed the storm by his word, and walked on water, yet it is with those same hands with which he performed miracles that he promises to lift us and comfort us. I have certainly felt him lift and strengthen me beyond my own strength, and I have heard his calming voice comfort me. I know He lives, and he stands there beckoning to each of us to come unto Him.


Äldste Sirrine 

This is called a spark. It's a type of sled used 

by people here as a mode of transportation 

when all the streets and paths get covered by 

snow. Older people especially like to use it 

in replacement of their walkers.

Dec 31, 2018 Christmas is good. Christmas as a missionary is better.

Glimpses of winter in Umeå

Our Christmas here in Umeå was fantastic! We spent Christmas Eve with a member, Daniel, who somehow knows everything about Swedish traditions and was more than willing to share with us :) Most people have traditions, but they've become such a normal part of life that it's difficult for them to describe exactly what they are or what makes them different but Daniel explained them in a detailed way that helped us understand them a lot better. We had the traditional Swedish Christmas foods (called Julbord) and had permission from our mission president to watch Kalle Anka. Kalle Anka is Donald Duck, and for some reason that even Daniel doesn't know, every single household in Sweden tunes in at exactly 3 PM on Christmas Eve to watch it every year.

Outside of the Swedish church for Julotta

On Christmas day, we were invited by an older couple in our ward, the Karlssons, to go to Julotta

The Karlssons. 

They're basically my Swedish grandparents :)

with them. Julotta is the Swedish Church's Christmas program they hold at 8 AM Christmas morning with lots of music. We got there early to get a good seat, and when I looked behind me I realized two things. First, the place was completely packed. Second, I'm really young. I'm pretty sure that we were the only people in the entire church under the age of 65... Apparently kids aren't too excited about going to church early Christmas Morning. The program was really neat, and we then had breakfast with the Karlssons and spent the morning with them.


Christmas evening was spent at the Lövgrens house with lots of food and games along with a break to skype our families :)

The Lövgrens

The day after Christmas was really neat as well! We got with a member family to a nursing home where we sang Christmas songs in different locations of the facility for about an hour and a half. The people there really enjoyed it, but I don't think they could have enjoyed it more than I did.

Singing at the retirement home with the Carlssons

Here's a cool miracle that happened this week!A couple days ago we got a referral from Elder Francis of a man by the name of Gerald. Elder Francis had met him up in Boden a year ago, and the man was interested in meeting the missionaries, but he forgot to do send the referral despite meaning and wanting to. He was recently reading in his journal from a year ago, and realized he had never referred him, so he decided he would give it a shot. We got the referral and went to his house, hoping he would still be interested in learning more about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Despite being over a year since he had been contacted on the street, the man was happy to see us and didn't seem to think the long time gap was weird at all. He then explained to us that they actually live in Denmark, but come to visit for a week for Christmas. We mentioned that we could help him get in contact with the missionaries in Denmark, and he was eager to exchange the needed information to do so. We also gave him a Book of Mormon and referred him to the church's website. Talk about God's timing! The missionaries found him up in Boden while he was only visiting for a couple of days, and then a year later happen to remember the occasion through reading a journal entry and then we visit them during the few short days they are actually here in Sweden.

I've also been loving the winter wonderland here! We've had a bunch of snow recently with temperatures of -6 degrees Fahrenheit to keep it around :) Also, fun fact, the sun rises here at 9:30 am and sets at 1:45 pm (yep, I've pretty much forgotten what the sun looks like because we hardly ever see it...), so we have lots of time to admire the Christmas lights!!

Äldste Sirrine

December 25, 2018 photo of Christmas Chat

Loved hearing from our Elder Sirrine.  We were able to have all his siblings on screen also.  Sarah, Mary, Leigh & Matt, and Johnny & Amelia at our house.  Danai & Jared in Arizona, Rebecca & Nathan  in southern Utah.

December 17, 2018 Christmas is Coming!

Us and the Sisters with Elder Carlsson in Stocholm

On Monday we flew down to Stockholm for MLC, and it just so happened that one of the young men in the ward, who had just been set apart as Elder Carlsson, was heading to the MTC (he'll be serving in Russia) at the same time. We got to escort him down to the mission home in Stockholm where he spent the night and then went on to Salt Lake. Half the branch showed up at the airport in Umeå to say goodbye, and I have to say, it was really cool to be a missionary and yet see a missionary off like that and help him on the first leg of his journey.

On Thursday we got to visit a Santa Lucia, a Swedish Holiday, performance in another church. It's

Santa Lucia

essentially a choir that sings traditional songs to Lucia, as well as Christmas songs, with lots and lots of candles.

On Saturday we had our branch Christmas party! We had placed a heavy emphasis on inviting everybody we could, and we ended up with a great turn out. We had a few people we're teaching show up, and one of them, Ann, brought a friend along. They both asked a lot of questions during dinner, and her friend, Annette, was impressed by our commitment to come to Sweden for two years to share the gospel. We shared with her how the gospel has blessed us in our lives, which ended up in us teaching her the restoration right then and there and giving her a Book of Mormon. She said she would like to meet us again to learn more, but will be busy until the New Year. We'll be keeping her in our prayers, and can't wait to teach her more :)

Well, we're heading down to Stockholm again tonight. We will be on exchanges tomorrow, and then we have zone conference combined with the Stockholm Zone one Wednesday. On Thursday I will

The branch Christmas party

then be heading up to Skellefteå, an hour and a half north of Umeå, so it will be quite the week travelling all over Sweden! I won't be emailing next week, as Christmas here is actually celebrated on Christmas Eve, so I hope you all have a Merry Christmas!!


Äldste Sirrine

December 10, 2018 You never know how much good you do

Elder Ellis in the middle of town.

Before all the snow came.

This week we had transfers, and Elder Simmons transferred to Gotland. He will be serving as the first counselor in the branch presidency there, and to make it all better, he's going to be with my son, Elder Bills! I'm so excited for the two of them to be together, and I'm excited to now be with Elder Ellis! Elder Ellis is from Seattle, Washington, and so far we've had an absolute blast together. I can't wait to see what happens this transfer.

We got a bunch of snow this week, and fun fact about Sweden, they don't really plow the roads. It's made driving pretty fun and interesting! There are roundabouts everywhere, so if I wasn't a

missionary I would probably sharpen up my drifting skills. Thankfully our car handles the snow surprisingly well, so we haven't had any problems. Unfortunately it was raining today, so most of it has now melted...

Yesterday I had one of the greatest experiences of my mission.

A couple months ago, I let a missionary back in the Stockholm area borrow my pair of white pants for a baptism, and I just realized a few weeks ago I had never gotten them back. President Youngberg came to our branch yesterday to visit, so I asked if I could call the area and coordinate the return of my pants. I had thought about doing so many times before, but for some reason it wasn't until yesterday that I actually called. When the elder in that area answered the phone, he informed me that he had just interviewed Henrik, who I had found in taught in Stockholm, for baptism. He asked if I would like to talk to him, and before I could say anything, the phone was put on speaker and I heard Henrik say, "Hey, Sirrine!"

I had absolutely no idea his baptismal interview was yesterday, in fact, I had sent him an email last Monday encouraging him to keep pressing forward, but had received no response, so I wondering how it was all going. I got to talk with Henrik for a few minutes, and Henrik reported that his baptismal interview had gone well, and I was able to congratulate him (and request that pictures from the baptismal service be sent my way). I was grateful that the Lord worked out the timing so I could share that special moment with him. Henrik is one of my closest friends here in Sweden, and knowing that he's doing so well filled me with indescribable joy. We truly have no idea just how much good we do, but every once and a while the Lord will give us a glimpse.

Äldste Sirrine

 

Waiting in the airport for the 

arrival of Elder Ellis. 

There was nobody there.

Delivering cookies and Christmas party

 invitations to people we're teaching

December 3, 2018 Fencing with Gardar

Fencing

On Thursday we got to try fencing! Now I've done a lot of fencing before, that is, building and repairing fences, but this was the kind with swords and masks. The sisters are teaching a man named Gardar, who's a fencing instructor, so he offered to host an activity for the young adults in the branch. Gardar is absolutely amazing, he comes to church every week and is even in the branch choir. To be honest, I thought he was a member for my first two weeks here in Umeå... Fencing was one of the coolest things I've ever done, but while I did okay against the other missionaries, I stood no chance when it came to fencing with Gardar. I had no idea a 50 year old man could move that fast...

Speaking of cool guys, we have a senior couple who just returned from the temple in Stockholm, and they're spiritual powerhouses! They came with us on a lesson this week, and the testimony they shared was incredible. On top of that, his name is Torbjörn (prounounced Tor-byearn), which is quite possibly the coolest name ever. Tor=Thor and Björn=Bear.

On Saturday we got to kick off Light the World by participating in the world-wide day of service! A member has a cousin who was moving across town, so we were able to help them together with several members and a few investigators! We were glad to have something to do, because it's pretty difficult to find service projects in Sweden. People here are really helpful, so they don't like to accept help, and the state takes care of pretty much everything else, so it's tough to find ways to serve in the community. They're also suspicious of church groups, so if you do find service, it is just as a "good group of friends". It was awesome to have a service project on Saturday, and it definitely helped usher in the Christmas spirit!

As we've been sharing Light the World with the people here in Umeå, I've had some time to reflect on the life of service the Savior lived. Even in the most difficult of circumstances, he reached out to serve and lift others. As Matthew described, "he cast out the [evil] spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses." (Matthew 8:16-17) Each sickness and infirmity He healed then, and continues to heal today, were borne personally by Him. I am humbled to know that a God, the very creator of the world, would allow himself to be born in the most humble of circumstances and subject himself to the wickedness of the world. Yet despite all this, He did it for "the joy that was set before him" (Hebrews 12:2). He finds great joy, perfect joy, in helping us and promises the same if we will head his call to follow him. I encourage all to do so this Christmas season by participating in Light the World (lighttheworld.org) and giving has he gave. I add my witness that we will be filled with the joy of Christ and come closer to Him as we do so.

Äldste Sirrine

Dinner with Shahin, Shoku, and Artin. 

We had carrot juice for dessert :)