Hej Familj!
Well, as you can see from the title of this e-mail (I think I say that a lot lol) I received your letter in the mail. So, you are moving? Let me just start by saying.. WOW What a shock! I must be honest, I almost fell out of my chair when I read the letter from Matt and Dad. We received tons and tons of mail that day and in my haste I forgot to look at the actual addresses! (Matt put the new one on his envelope). I opened Matt's letter first and during it I was smiling and laughing and crying haha. Then I came to a part that said, "As I hope you know, we are moving up to Skyline Drive...".... I read that line about a million times. I was immediately afraid of opening Dad's letter! lol Sure enough when I opened it, that was the subject of the letter. Allow me express my feelings to you... At first I was not believing any of it. Then I felt strange, tons of emotions were running around in my heart. One thing that is very comforting though, is that I never felt bad about the decision. I am not angry or displeased, but rather excited and nervous! I would be a big liar if I did not say however, that I will miss that house with all of my heart................ But it is just that, a house. My home will forever be where my loving family is! :) I did as Dad directed me to do, and that was to, "Soak it all in, pray about it, and then, get back to those fine people in Sweden". That prayer was sincerely from the heart. I prayed to know that the decision you have made is a good one, and I also prayed the hardest for the Lord to take care and protect you all. Some good tears, to relieve my stress, a quick splash of water on the face, and I was back out there on the streets! The Lord assured me that the decision you have made is a good one! Everything is going to work out! I know it! Now... it is my turn to ask lots and lots of questions! First off, what happened with meeting the stake president? Can you stay in the Two Rivers Ward, or will you be attending the 4th Ward? Any ideas for what will happen when I get home? Will I be coming to Montana, or stopping in SLC?? How is the new house? Pictures?? Any idea where in Utah you want to end up? lol :) haha Soo many more questions, but my brain is frazzled! So, please share all of the news about the move! I want to hear it! If anything, not being informed is the worst... It leaves me with lots of unanswered questions and my mind goes bananas! :) Well, that is enough about THAT!! haha I really don't have alot of time today, so I need to move on! Lets just get straight to the e-mails! First off we have Matt!! I love you soo much Matt! Thank you for the letter! Haha I loved the name above the address, "Dr. Matthew Kundis" lol :) I will for sure write you back and send it today if I have time and if not, tomorrow! Woo! The worlds most interesting man quotes were hilarious! haha I loved them! You want something funny that I have learned to do... okay, whenever you are looking for a good laugh and with a group of friends, pick up a random object. It could be a basketball or a food item, and just hold it carefully up to your ear. Look around the room a bit as though you are listening to the object whisper something and say, "I can hear the ocean!" haha The key is to do it at a very random time, and in a very serious way. It is a riot! :) lol Sorry, I just had to share that! So, you are having a rough time with the school work huh?? Don't stress too much about it! It is very important that you do well and that you get good grades, but stress is no good man! I am glad that you want to get accepted at BYU in Provo... use that as your motivation in all things! When the work gets tough, just say to yourself, "BYU, BYU" It will be a positive thing! Just remember, that whatever happens with that, the Lord will take care of you if YOU are also taking care of YOU!! :) haha It sounds like you are taking this Medical thing quite seriously! That is good! Having a goal is important! You joined HOSA huh? I believe that stands for Health Occupation Students of America, but I could be wrong! Who is in charge of that stuff now? Is it still Mrs. Virts?? I think that was her name.. I dunno! Hey, tell some people at CMR "hi" for me! Is Tom still there?!?! lol You know what to do! Just make sure and say hi to people for me! Teachers, friends.. you know! I love you Matt!! The stratus had a wiring problem?? what?? lol Hows Molly??? and my Truck?? haha :) I love you and can't wait to hear from you again! :) Okay, next is DAD!!! Hello my wonderful loving father that I love! You certainly do talk about letters from the mission home a lot! haha Yes I still receive letters through them. I don't think that I have received one FROM the mission home... Should I be expecting one??? lol Anyway, at the lesson that I taught there were like six people there.. It was pretty crazy! haha You liked my Anniversary card I wrote?!?! Good! A missionary always has time to write a card to his parents! Don't worry, my clothes are clean and well... my cupboards are kind of empty, lol but we go shopping in a bit! Woo! Matt is sleeping in the Living room? At the new house? Is this because his room is not set up yet? haha here come the questions again.. I can feel them!! Lol, i will hold the off! Dad... thank you for writing that letter. It was well put together, and that helped to keep me calm. Your advice was perfect! You are being led by the Spirit, and the Lord is going to take care of you all no matter what! He has promised me that! :) I love you so much Dad! You are such an inspiration! Feel free to ask me whatever question you want to know! I have always liked the line you wrote in your long DearElder you sent me as I was about to leave the MTC. You said that wherever I go you will be there, and that we will share this experience together! So, father... what do you want to know! haha :) I love you!!!!! Okay, now on to my wonderful mother! Hi MOM!!!! haha I love you! You are welcome for the card!! I wish I could have done a lot more, but when I am thousands of miles away, my resources are limited! haha I want you to know that I am also thankful for the Priesthood in our lives. I have had the opportunity to use it a lot out here on my mission. Mostly for blessings of comfort and healing.. I loved the fathers blessings we would get from Dad before school started! They were always so comforting! One thing that was really amazing was the fathers blessing I received from Dad right before I came on my mission. He comforted me so much, and I look back on that now, and still, to this day, receive strength from it! The Priesthood is an amazing thing! So, you are already asking about Birthday wishes?!?! Wow! You know what, I really have no idea! What would Josh and Kevin ask for while they were out?? I have most of everything I need! :) Haha, sorry if it makes things hard when I give that answer! :/ lol So, I am sad to say that Morris was not able to come to church. You see... he plays soccer on Sunday nights with a club he has signed with. That means that if he waits to take the bus back to Lenhovda, he will miss the game. So, we arranged a ride for him to get back to Växjö after church. The man in the branch said it would cost 100 kronor for the gas, but that he would only ask for 50 kronor. (about the price of a Happy Meal?? lol) Morris was not able to come up with the money... :( So, he is going to try and come up with the funds and come next week!! Sad.. I know.. Anyway, I love you very much Mom! You brighten my day! Okay everyone, now a cool story fast! While going to visit Somayeh at the university two girls came up to us and asked us if we were the same missionaries they talked to just two days earlier. Äldste Bracken replied yes, and I was confused. We were on work overs with the Zone Leaders, and while Äldste Bracken was with one of the ZL's they found two American girls from Utah here doing a study abroad! Crazy! So, they talked to us for a while, and they wanted to know where the Chapel was and what buses to take to get there! So we helped them out and they were in church on Sunday.... plus, they brought an investigator with them! haha Crazy! It was a "breath of fresh air", as Äldste Bracken put it, to talk to real Utah Mormons again! haha :) They will be here for four months and we will translate for them on Sundays. It was so funny this last Sunday! There were people talking and others translating, so there was a lot of noise! haha :) Okay, I really have to go! I love you all... The spiritual moment today is going to be this scripture.. 3 Nephi 1:8-14... LOOK it up!! haha It is great! I love the first part of 13, "Lift up your heads and be of good cheer" :) :) Sorry for how short this was, and not expounding on the thought! I love you all so much! Keep the faith and press forward!
Trogen och Stadig, Är Jag Redo!!!!!
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready!!!!!
Äldste Kundis :) :) :)
Monday, August 30, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
CeLeBrAtE gOoD tImEs.. CoMe On!!! Wooo!!
Hej Familj!
It is the time to celebrate in this family!!! First off, today is a very special day for one very awesome brother of mine!! Happy Birthday Matt!!! Woo!! 17!! I love you! Next celebration will be for tomorrow!! Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!! Woo!! 26!! I love you!!! That is so awesome! I have a bright smile on my face! I am sure you can tell!!!!! I love you all so much! Family is the bestest of best things best!! BEST! I have just been so caught up on how much I truly love every one of you! Lately my phrase has been, "Patience Deepens Joy" How true is that! I know that I have been out for a while, but your faces, laughs, actions and everything about you continue to be treasured up in my mind.. I can only dream of how incredible the joy will be when we are able to finish this bridge of patience and "connect the two sides". Can you tell that I have been thinking about you all lately. My prayers have been full of family and I love it! Don't miss-interpret this though. I am not trunky, just very very happy to have such an awesome family. I look at pictures and tell stories and instead of making me depressed and sad, I receive strength to move on, to press forward and to persevere! THANK YOU for all that you are and for your prayers! It makes a world of a difference... Okay, well this p-day is pretty ordinary. We are on the ball and we are going to make he most of it! Letter writing, laundry, e-mail, cleaning, games.. haha It will be good! Lets start with a fun story today! Hmmm.. soooo many to choose from! Oh!! Well yesterday I gave my very first Priesthood lesson all by myself! It was quite the stepping stone! I was stressing about it a lot but the Lord helped me! I was able to give a 40 minute lesson and not mess up too much! haha they all helped me through it! They are just awesome like that. My topic was out of the Liahona. The talk was by Äldste Andersen entitled, "Vår Återlösares Klippa" or in English, "The Rock of Our Redeemer". Look that one up... Its really good! Anyway, here is another fun story! So, the other day we were just done with a teach and we started off for the bus stop to head out to Teleborg to tract an teach Julia. On our way to the bus stop I contacted two older ladys that were talking with each other. They were interested and things were going well. I later found out that one of the ladies was a member but very in-active. We continued our discussion when all of the sudden an old woman comes screaming up to us on her bike... almost falling off. When I say "screaming" I really mean screaming.. like yelling! haha She was calling us devils and calling our church a devil church, and was very angry. We stood there and corrected her allegations, but she was just not interested in hearing the correct answers. During the course of what felt like a court room situation we found out that the woman standing there yelling at us was in fact Sister Rönndahl's Grandmother!!!!!! Do you remember Sister Rönndahl? She was my teacher in the MTC!!! She was amazing! Lots of Spirit and tears and laughter shared during that short time in the MTC. I just started laughing! Which was not good, and I quickly corrected myself and became serious again. But the entire time she was talking I could not stop smiling! I told her that I knew her granddaughter and that I knew her family down in Lund. She smiled a little, but she has a hardened heart against the church. Her son, is the bishop in Lund and she hates how he pays 10% tithing. She kept freaking out on us. Calling us names and saying mean things about the church.. haha it was interesting some of the things she said.. However, that is more of a journal entry than an e-mail! :) Either way, we ended things on a good note! We talked to her about things other than the church for a while and got her to calm down and realize that she was not going to accomplish anything by her screaming! Turns out, she is a very, very nice lady.. Just a little confused about the church! She left on her bike and it was a friendly situation! We then started talking to the two other women about the church again, but they were not really interested. The in-active said she would try to come to church, but sadly, was not there on Sunday.. Anyway! It was a fun experience to meet Sister Rönndahl's grandmother! So, let me get to the e-mail now! First up we have Matt!! This is new! Matt first!? Wow!! Sweet! I love you Matt! Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear MATT!! Happy birthday to you!! And many more!! :) I truly hope you are having an awesome birthday today and have fun things planned! Yes, I do remember what it was like being 17! I freaked out when you asked me that question! I was all like, "oh my, I am going to be 20 in a couple of months.. what happened to 17?!?!?" haha Junior year was fun fun fun. Lots of changes for me! I know that it will be the same for you! This is going to sound corny, but, be what you wanna be Matt!! School starts on Wednesday and I am soooo excited for you! Make school a priority and also, make a mission a priority! I want you at BYU with me and I want to e-mail you on your mission! It will be great! :) So, you are getting a new room huh?! That was always fun! A little change of environment is a very good thing.. New clothes in Billings! Wow I wish I could have been there for that! My mind goes back to the Basketball tournament in Billings when we walked around the mall like 5 times! That was... interesting! I can just imagine you walking around that mall with the Giles' and buying up a storm! Let me guess.. Champs, foot locker, scheels... haha I am not sure I remember what they have there, but I am sure you went to those places! Well, I love you Matt! Thank you for your e-mail, and I look forward to your letter! Thank you for writing me!!!!!!! :) Okay, now it is Dad's turn! Oh boy Dad.. you are in trouble!! You are just TOO amazing! No 100 degree temps yet?!? Thats crazy! Oh well, I don't think we had one either.. well, maybe. I have been told that it has been one of the hottest summers in Sweden.. EVER! :) So, the Sorhus' Grandfather served in Sweden?? How awesome is that! Three years?! Lucky ducky! haha I bet he had some fun things to say! I love hearing about people who served here a long time ago! There used to be hundreds of missionaries here, but now, sadly, there are only about 80 at any one time. :( Few in number, strong in Spirit!!! :) Let me answer some of your questions fast... No, I haven't purchased a new umbrella yet.. haha. Next, yes, we have called Anticimex and they will be coming over some time soon to do another round on the bed bugs! OH!! About the bed bugs. Apparently they have invaded Sweden!! They are a huge problem all over right now! President Anderson and his wife are coming to ME for advice!! haha imagine that! I am pretty much an expert on the topic.. :( haha I wish I didn't have to be! :) Anyway! Don't worry about Björn!! He is just a crazy guy. We won't be contacting him... Funny though.. Last night as we were saying our personal prayers we heard a loud boom again... We both started to laugh like crazy, but still tried to finish our prayers. I immediately prayed for Björn's protection! haha It was amusing! But I am safe and loving life! So no worries there! Hakunna Matata! :) Thank you for sharing that story from Brother Sheldon's talk in Church! Sounds like it was very spiritual and that he did an excellent job! I love you so much Dad! Have an awesome anniversary tomorrow! I hope you two have something very fun planned! :) Okay, now on to Mom!! You are also in trouble!! haha you are also just TOO amazing!! I love you! To start, Zone Conference was... amazing. Completely what I needed! Spiritual beyond belief and just plain FUN!! :) It was fun to be with all of the Elders and Sisters again and to be with the Andersons! The church has come out with a new curriculum! It is based on eight principles that they would like the missionaries to focus on! It is not a BIG DEAL, but it is really cool and is going to change the way we do missionary work! Sadly, no, your box was not there, but I will for sure get it at sharpening! You asked what sharpening is.. Is basically the exact same thing as Zone Conference! haha sorry to disappoint! lol Yup yup, so your box will be right in time for my six month mark! oh my... six months.. la la la di dah! I didn't say that! :) Anyway, that picture is a good one! In that picture, my hair was NOT cut yet.. I believe dad said something about it. Haha, just to clear that up! It looks more missionary now! :) You got a letter from Elder Harper huh? I love that man! haha Yeah, you have figured us out.. I am not sure that we are writing multiple letters to each others families, but we are definitely writing them once! I am sure it will evolve into a fun little experiment though.. I am glad you like it! Like I said to Dad, don't worry about Björn! Just laugh! It was funny! :) I am safe Mom.. I am in the Lord's hands! :) About Morris, yes, he is still really positive! He was not able to come to church because he is really sick right now, but we are going over tomorrow and Wednesday to see and teach him! This man really wants to come to church. However, the bus is terrible on Sundays and he has no money to ride it! So, we arranged for him to ride in Saturday night, stay the night at a members apartment, and come to church the next morning. (this is all for next week) He really wants to come bad, and he said he would love to come stay the night so he can attend church! Woo hoo for Morris! I will keep you updated! As for Ann Kristin, she has disappeared. We can't get a hold of her. :( Anyway, we will see! I will be sure to pass your love on to the Relief Society sisters here. They will love hearing that! I am being taken care of Mom! It amazes me how well I am doing with all of this! The Lord truly is blessing me! To answer your question, the air mattresses are still working just fine, and the bugs are gone! (for now... we will see) Well, I love you Mom!! Have an awesome anniversary with Dad! I am soo glad that you two are so in love! What a blessing! I love you Mom!! Okay Well, I don't have tooo much time left, but lets get a little Spirit in here!! Woo! I want to share part of a talk I have been studying by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland.
"Anyone who does any kind of missionary work will have occasion to ask, Why is this so hard? Why can’t our success be more rapid? Why aren’t there more people joining the Church? Why isn’t the only risk in missionary work that of pneumonia from being soaking wet all day and all night in the baptismal font?
I have thought about this a great deal. I offer this as my personal feeling. I am convinced that missionary work is not easy because salvation is not a cheap experience. Salvation never was easy. We are The Church of Jesus Christ, this is the truth, and He is our Great Eternal Head. How could we believe it would be easy for us when it was never, ever easy for Him? It seems to me that missionaries and mission leaders have to spend at least a few moments in Gethsemane. Missionaries and mission leaders have to take at least a step or two toward the summit of Calvary.
Now, please don’t misunderstand. I’m not talking about anything anywhere near what Christ experienced. That would be presumptuous and sacrilegious. But I believe that missionaries and investigators, to come to the truth, to come to salvation, to know something of this price that has been paid, will have to pay a token of that same price.
For that reason I don’t believe missionary work has ever been easy, nor that conversion is, nor that retention is, nor that continued faithfulness is. I believe it is supposed to require some effort, something from the depths of our soul."
Wow, right? I love Elder Holland! I want to focus on what he said towards the end there. "continued faithfulness" I am starting to understand the Missionary aspect, but this topic will be more beneficial for everyone else! I love when Elder Holland says, "salvation is not a cheep experience". This is so true! We often wonder why life is so hard, and why this or that is happening to me, but if we truly look at the bigger picture we will see that it is true, salvation is NOT a cheep experience. I am convinced of myself that salvation is glorious, and will be glorious! Beyond any earthly description! So, in turn, life is going to be tough! Thats just the way it is! Deal with it! haha But don't do it by yourself! That would be a bad idea! Look to the Savior, to our Heavenly Father, to your FAMILY!!! These give us strength to make it through these trials... to make it to eternal salvation! I love this topic so much! The strength this gives me is incredible! I know that all of us, if we look towards the end goal, will realize that life is good. We can press on! ! ! Just keep swimming, just keep swimming!! (lol... Finding Nemo) I love you all so much, and hope that all is well back in the States! Do me a favor and SMILE! There it is! :) Its fun huh?!? hehe I love you all...
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready.....
Äldste Kundis :) :) :)
It is the time to celebrate in this family!!! First off, today is a very special day for one very awesome brother of mine!! Happy Birthday Matt!!! Woo!! 17!! I love you! Next celebration will be for tomorrow!! Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!! Woo!! 26!! I love you!!! That is so awesome! I have a bright smile on my face! I am sure you can tell!!!!! I love you all so much! Family is the bestest of best things best!! BEST! I have just been so caught up on how much I truly love every one of you! Lately my phrase has been, "Patience Deepens Joy" How true is that! I know that I have been out for a while, but your faces, laughs, actions and everything about you continue to be treasured up in my mind.. I can only dream of how incredible the joy will be when we are able to finish this bridge of patience and "connect the two sides". Can you tell that I have been thinking about you all lately. My prayers have been full of family and I love it! Don't miss-interpret this though. I am not trunky, just very very happy to have such an awesome family. I look at pictures and tell stories and instead of making me depressed and sad, I receive strength to move on, to press forward and to persevere! THANK YOU for all that you are and for your prayers! It makes a world of a difference... Okay, well this p-day is pretty ordinary. We are on the ball and we are going to make he most of it! Letter writing, laundry, e-mail, cleaning, games.. haha It will be good! Lets start with a fun story today! Hmmm.. soooo many to choose from! Oh!! Well yesterday I gave my very first Priesthood lesson all by myself! It was quite the stepping stone! I was stressing about it a lot but the Lord helped me! I was able to give a 40 minute lesson and not mess up too much! haha they all helped me through it! They are just awesome like that. My topic was out of the Liahona. The talk was by Äldste Andersen entitled, "Vår Återlösares Klippa" or in English, "The Rock of Our Redeemer". Look that one up... Its really good! Anyway, here is another fun story! So, the other day we were just done with a teach and we started off for the bus stop to head out to Teleborg to tract an teach Julia. On our way to the bus stop I contacted two older ladys that were talking with each other. They were interested and things were going well. I later found out that one of the ladies was a member but very in-active. We continued our discussion when all of the sudden an old woman comes screaming up to us on her bike... almost falling off. When I say "screaming" I really mean screaming.. like yelling! haha She was calling us devils and calling our church a devil church, and was very angry. We stood there and corrected her allegations, but she was just not interested in hearing the correct answers. During the course of what felt like a court room situation we found out that the woman standing there yelling at us was in fact Sister Rönndahl's Grandmother!!!!!! Do you remember Sister Rönndahl? She was my teacher in the MTC!!! She was amazing! Lots of Spirit and tears and laughter shared during that short time in the MTC. I just started laughing! Which was not good, and I quickly corrected myself and became serious again. But the entire time she was talking I could not stop smiling! I told her that I knew her granddaughter and that I knew her family down in Lund. She smiled a little, but she has a hardened heart against the church. Her son, is the bishop in Lund and she hates how he pays 10% tithing. She kept freaking out on us. Calling us names and saying mean things about the church.. haha it was interesting some of the things she said.. However, that is more of a journal entry than an e-mail! :) Either way, we ended things on a good note! We talked to her about things other than the church for a while and got her to calm down and realize that she was not going to accomplish anything by her screaming! Turns out, she is a very, very nice lady.. Just a little confused about the church! She left on her bike and it was a friendly situation! We then started talking to the two other women about the church again, but they were not really interested. The in-active said she would try to come to church, but sadly, was not there on Sunday.. Anyway! It was a fun experience to meet Sister Rönndahl's grandmother! So, let me get to the e-mail now! First up we have Matt!! This is new! Matt first!? Wow!! Sweet! I love you Matt! Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear MATT!! Happy birthday to you!! And many more!! :) I truly hope you are having an awesome birthday today and have fun things planned! Yes, I do remember what it was like being 17! I freaked out when you asked me that question! I was all like, "oh my, I am going to be 20 in a couple of months.. what happened to 17?!?!?" haha Junior year was fun fun fun. Lots of changes for me! I know that it will be the same for you! This is going to sound corny, but, be what you wanna be Matt!! School starts on Wednesday and I am soooo excited for you! Make school a priority and also, make a mission a priority! I want you at BYU with me and I want to e-mail you on your mission! It will be great! :) So, you are getting a new room huh?! That was always fun! A little change of environment is a very good thing.. New clothes in Billings! Wow I wish I could have been there for that! My mind goes back to the Basketball tournament in Billings when we walked around the mall like 5 times! That was... interesting! I can just imagine you walking around that mall with the Giles' and buying up a storm! Let me guess.. Champs, foot locker, scheels... haha I am not sure I remember what they have there, but I am sure you went to those places! Well, I love you Matt! Thank you for your e-mail, and I look forward to your letter! Thank you for writing me!!!!!!! :) Okay, now it is Dad's turn! Oh boy Dad.. you are in trouble!! You are just TOO amazing! No 100 degree temps yet?!? Thats crazy! Oh well, I don't think we had one either.. well, maybe. I have been told that it has been one of the hottest summers in Sweden.. EVER! :) So, the Sorhus' Grandfather served in Sweden?? How awesome is that! Three years?! Lucky ducky! haha I bet he had some fun things to say! I love hearing about people who served here a long time ago! There used to be hundreds of missionaries here, but now, sadly, there are only about 80 at any one time. :( Few in number, strong in Spirit!!! :) Let me answer some of your questions fast... No, I haven't purchased a new umbrella yet.. haha. Next, yes, we have called Anticimex and they will be coming over some time soon to do another round on the bed bugs! OH!! About the bed bugs. Apparently they have invaded Sweden!! They are a huge problem all over right now! President Anderson and his wife are coming to ME for advice!! haha imagine that! I am pretty much an expert on the topic.. :( haha I wish I didn't have to be! :) Anyway! Don't worry about Björn!! He is just a crazy guy. We won't be contacting him... Funny though.. Last night as we were saying our personal prayers we heard a loud boom again... We both started to laugh like crazy, but still tried to finish our prayers. I immediately prayed for Björn's protection! haha It was amusing! But I am safe and loving life! So no worries there! Hakunna Matata! :) Thank you for sharing that story from Brother Sheldon's talk in Church! Sounds like it was very spiritual and that he did an excellent job! I love you so much Dad! Have an awesome anniversary tomorrow! I hope you two have something very fun planned! :) Okay, now on to Mom!! You are also in trouble!! haha you are also just TOO amazing!! I love you! To start, Zone Conference was... amazing. Completely what I needed! Spiritual beyond belief and just plain FUN!! :) It was fun to be with all of the Elders and Sisters again and to be with the Andersons! The church has come out with a new curriculum! It is based on eight principles that they would like the missionaries to focus on! It is not a BIG DEAL, but it is really cool and is going to change the way we do missionary work! Sadly, no, your box was not there, but I will for sure get it at sharpening! You asked what sharpening is.. Is basically the exact same thing as Zone Conference! haha sorry to disappoint! lol Yup yup, so your box will be right in time for my six month mark! oh my... six months.. la la la di dah! I didn't say that! :) Anyway, that picture is a good one! In that picture, my hair was NOT cut yet.. I believe dad said something about it. Haha, just to clear that up! It looks more missionary now! :) You got a letter from Elder Harper huh? I love that man! haha Yeah, you have figured us out.. I am not sure that we are writing multiple letters to each others families, but we are definitely writing them once! I am sure it will evolve into a fun little experiment though.. I am glad you like it! Like I said to Dad, don't worry about Björn! Just laugh! It was funny! :) I am safe Mom.. I am in the Lord's hands! :) About Morris, yes, he is still really positive! He was not able to come to church because he is really sick right now, but we are going over tomorrow and Wednesday to see and teach him! This man really wants to come to church. However, the bus is terrible on Sundays and he has no money to ride it! So, we arranged for him to ride in Saturday night, stay the night at a members apartment, and come to church the next morning. (this is all for next week) He really wants to come bad, and he said he would love to come stay the night so he can attend church! Woo hoo for Morris! I will keep you updated! As for Ann Kristin, she has disappeared. We can't get a hold of her. :( Anyway, we will see! I will be sure to pass your love on to the Relief Society sisters here. They will love hearing that! I am being taken care of Mom! It amazes me how well I am doing with all of this! The Lord truly is blessing me! To answer your question, the air mattresses are still working just fine, and the bugs are gone! (for now... we will see) Well, I love you Mom!! Have an awesome anniversary with Dad! I am soo glad that you two are so in love! What a blessing! I love you Mom!! Okay Well, I don't have tooo much time left, but lets get a little Spirit in here!! Woo! I want to share part of a talk I have been studying by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland.
"Anyone who does any kind of missionary work will have occasion to ask, Why is this so hard? Why can’t our success be more rapid? Why aren’t there more people joining the Church? Why isn’t the only risk in missionary work that of pneumonia from being soaking wet all day and all night in the baptismal font?
I have thought about this a great deal. I offer this as my personal feeling. I am convinced that missionary work is not easy because salvation is not a cheap experience. Salvation never was easy. We are The Church of Jesus Christ, this is the truth, and He is our Great Eternal Head. How could we believe it would be easy for us when it was never, ever easy for Him? It seems to me that missionaries and mission leaders have to spend at least a few moments in Gethsemane. Missionaries and mission leaders have to take at least a step or two toward the summit of Calvary.
Now, please don’t misunderstand. I’m not talking about anything anywhere near what Christ experienced. That would be presumptuous and sacrilegious. But I believe that missionaries and investigators, to come to the truth, to come to salvation, to know something of this price that has been paid, will have to pay a token of that same price.
For that reason I don’t believe missionary work has ever been easy, nor that conversion is, nor that retention is, nor that continued faithfulness is. I believe it is supposed to require some effort, something from the depths of our soul."
Wow, right? I love Elder Holland! I want to focus on what he said towards the end there. "continued faithfulness" I am starting to understand the Missionary aspect, but this topic will be more beneficial for everyone else! I love when Elder Holland says, "salvation is not a cheep experience". This is so true! We often wonder why life is so hard, and why this or that is happening to me, but if we truly look at the bigger picture we will see that it is true, salvation is NOT a cheep experience. I am convinced of myself that salvation is glorious, and will be glorious! Beyond any earthly description! So, in turn, life is going to be tough! Thats just the way it is! Deal with it! haha But don't do it by yourself! That would be a bad idea! Look to the Savior, to our Heavenly Father, to your FAMILY!!! These give us strength to make it through these trials... to make it to eternal salvation! I love this topic so much! The strength this gives me is incredible! I know that all of us, if we look towards the end goal, will realize that life is good. We can press on! ! ! Just keep swimming, just keep swimming!! (lol... Finding Nemo) I love you all so much, and hope that all is well back in the States! Do me a favor and SMILE! There it is! :) Its fun huh?!? hehe I love you all...
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready.....
Äldste Kundis :) :) :)
Monday, August 16, 2010
That's BJORN!!
Hej Familj!
Haha well things are going great here in the land of green! Sure enough it is raining here and its cloudy... That seems to happen on p-days a lot. Well, I guess not really just on p-days because it just likes raining all the time! :) I love it though! Okay, so today for p-day we were planning on going down to Kristianstad to play basketball with some other elders, but it was cancelled because of rain! Awhhh.. haha! :) It would have been fun, but the extra time has given us the chance to get a lot of things done! Cleaning for one! Other than that, we cut our own hair today. Yeah, I did just say that... CUT OUR OWN HAIR!! ! ! ! It was pretty scary, but Äldste Bracken talked me into it! I think it turned out pretty nice. I was quite nervous doing it all by myself.. but hey, it was fun! So, I should probably explain that subject line... Björn is a man that we met one day on the way to the bus. We stopped and contacted him and it went very well! He gave us his address and his phone number without us even asking for it! Needless to say, we were pretty hopeful for Björn! So, we sat up a date and went over to his apartment. When we got there and knocked, he was not home. :( We were blåsted (bl-o-sted) as the elders in Sweden say. So, we left and called him later. We set up yet another time to teach, and we were pretty sure that he was going to be there this time. So, we invited a member to come along! He came and everything was great... Except the fact that Björn blåsted us AGAIN!! haha so, we apologised to Peter (the member) and went on our way towards tracting/contacting. On our way through a grassy area right behind where we live there is a big hill. All of the sudden a man ran to the top with what looked like a pipe bomb or some other kind of home made explosive. I said, "Äldste, look at that!". Äldste Bracken replied, "No way, thats Björn!!" He lit whatever it was and ran away fast. Us, not knowing exactly what this thing was going to do ran behind a wooden fence and ducked down. As we were peering over the top of the fence it appeared that the explosive did not go off. So, Björn ran back up and started messing with it. He took it back down from the hill, and this is when we swooped in to talk to him. We called out his name and he turned and saw us.. Kinda awkward as you might imagine. We asked him what was going on and he replied.. "bomb". Haha! So, we did what any other missionary would have done, and tried to get a time to see him. We did, and double checked the apartment number. It was correct. So he went to a table with a friend and started messing with the bomb. We looked at each other, (Äldste Bracken and I) and immediately knew that both of us were curious as to what Björn was up to. So, we went and hid behind the same wood fence. While we were waiting I decided to pull out my camera so I could get a video of this thing that was going to explode. As we were waiting for Björn to finish getting whatever it was ready, I started showing Äldste Bracken my videos and pictures. All of the sudden there was a loud boom and a flash of light. It scared me really badly! haha I will not lie and say that it didn't because it was loud. We duck our heads and then immediately looked over the fence. There was a big mushroom cloud and Björn was heading back up the hill to retrieve the remains of whatever the bomb was made of. So, I didn't get my video of it, which i was pretty disappointed about, but it still an experience. We had to stop trying to visit Björn though. He would never be there when he said he was going to be. Its a shame too because he seemed like a really nice guy. Haha.. that is a little weird to say after that story huh... oh well! I stand by the statement! How about another quick story!?? I am full of them! We met a really cool guy named Morris. We received his information through a referral from the Zone Leaders in Malmö. Boy, am I thankful for them! Morris is an amazing person! He originally comes from Liberia, and fled to Sweden because of the war that was happening in his country. This next part is very sad. He lost his mother, father and brother in the conflicts. :( He is so strong though. He has been through a lot but has never lost his faith in God. He continually prays that things will get better in his life. He also expressed that he feels as though there is something missing in his life. Some kind of void that he just can't seem to fill... Hmm... We will see if we can help him with that! We taught him in the library here and it went very well. We taught a powerful first lesson, and the Spirit was very strong! I love it! He wants to come to church and to learn a lot more!!!! Woo!! So anyway, we are praying for him as well as our other investigators. This work is so cool! :) Okay, I better get to the e-mails now! First we have my loving Father!! I love you dad! Let me start by saying I loved what you said about us being, "modern day stripling warriors"!!! :) I am sure not fighting by the sword, but we face satan everyday out here! I put on my armour by studying and praying and lot of other things so that I can be prepared for the day! Its an awesome thing to do! I am glad you shared my pics on the blog and that you thought they were hilarious! haha It was kinda funny.. Anyway, thank you for your guidance and loving words.. They mean a lot to me! :) I love you dad! Okay now to Matt! You opened your Birthday card early?!?! what!!!!??? haha its okay brother! I guess you just didn't remember that your birthday was coming up.. ;) Aww.. You miss me?? Haha.. I miss you too Matt! We are pretty much the best of friends.. only that we are brothers! Woo! Yay for the Kundis bros! You sound like you are living life to it's fullest right now and truly having a good summer. Thats GOOD!! Enjoy it and stay safe! Maddy huh? This must be the same girl from last time. I am glad that you two are spending time and getting to know each other. Any funny stories or things you two have done together? Are you two a "thing" or is it just friends? Anyway, I love you Matt! You are soooo right about Molly! She just wants some loving! And since I am not there you need to pick up the slack! haha jk! Have a great week and keep up the really REALLY fun things like scripture study and prayer! Woo!! Love ya! Ooookay!! Mom!! I love you mom! It sure sounds like you are working hard! Make sure to take care of yourself and have some mommy time! Thats important! I am glad that you like the amount of exclamation points I use!!!!!!!!!! They are fun! You asked again about the bed bugs so let me give you and everyone else that is wondering an update! We got rid of the beds and all other bedding in the entire apartment.(Thus the attached photo) Lets just say that we have amazing members here in Växjö. We have been abundantly blessed! Sandra and her sister Jeanette came over and gave us two big air mattresses, pillows, blankets and sheets! They are so amazing! So, yes, that means we are now sleeping on big air mattresses! I love it!! YAY!! Bug free and I can sleep through the night! Sure, I have seen like two since then, but those were not on my bed! The we other places and had not food (blood) in them at all! Woo!! The were quickly disposed of. Anyway, get this.. As if the new beds were not enough. At church yesterday we were attacked by the Relief Society in the branch and they TOLD us that they were coming over to inspect the apartment. Haha!! Yeah! They are coming over later today to make a list of everything our apartment needs and is missing so they can help us out! Crazy!! I love them! We called the mission office and explained our situation with the Relief Society and the office/president said it was a go ahead! So, we cleaned very well this morning and they will becoming by a little later! There is also the possibility that we move completely to a new apartment. That would be wonderful because the place we have has lots and lots of problems. We have fixed it up and cleaned like crazy, but there are just some things that we can't do! So, the members are going to look around for us and get back to us. They had us ask the mission office how much the church pays each month for our apartment so they can look! Remember that we didn't ask ANYONE to do this! They are just amazing members! :) :) Okay, now let me get back to your e-mail mom! Sorry for the detour! The activity on Friday went very well... except the fact that Ann-Kristin didn't show.. She didn't come to church either. Very sad.... Ugh. Anyway.. moving on! We are still teaching her and things are progressing! I am glad that you received your anniversary card in the mail! (and didn't open it early like Matt!!) haha jkjk. Wow.. mom... you take such good care of me! I look forward to listening to that CD! It sounds like it will sound amazing! Awwww.. the Ripley's are moving?!?!? That is so sad! Who on earth am I going to speak Swedish with when I get home?!?!?! :( I will definitely miss them when I get back. They were always so happy and fun loving! Is there any way to get their new address in Florida?? Just wondering! Okay, thank you so much for your update on the family! Sounds like everything is going well! I love news about them! Jessica is going to have her baby really soon! Wow time is just flying! Crazy! Anyway, I love you so much mom! Thanks for all you do and are! Allllllrrriiigghhhtttyyy then... Lets get to the Spiritual stuff! Today doesn't come from the scriptures or from a book.. It comes from experience and deep thought. haha :) I want to talk about finding commonality in Christ. As a missionary, right when I leave the apartment I am different from everyone else around me! The white shirt, tie and name badge set me apart just by the plain means of an appearance. However, there is something that I can use to find commonality with every single person I come into contact with. That magic tool is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Just as it says in Heleman 5:12.. we can build our sure foundation on Christ. That foundation is really powerful, and a large majority of the world is missing out on it! I have seen numerous times as we are contacting, people turn us down or ignore us just because of our outside differences. But what is really amazing is when.. as they are walking away... we bear testimony of Christ and how he loves them.. They stop and turn around. Something happens inside of them and they change their mind and want to talk and have a conversation. It is amazing! We all have a need for love. When people hear of their Savior they can sense that love and they want it more than anything! We can find our commonality there... In Christ! This not only works for random people that the Lord places in the paths of missionaries, but it also works for companionships, relationships, and even old wooden ships used during the civil war era! Bahaha!!! Sorry.. Anchorman reference.. I couldn't resist! :) ;) But seriously though.. It works! We all have our differences and our little querks, but one thing we can always count on finding commonality in.. is Christ! First we must build our sure foundation and then we can invite people up onto that so they can have peace, strength and love! It is crazy how this is sooo effective! There is a lot of power found in Christ.. He can do anything and everything if we only let him! :) I love you all so much! I am glad that we can share this commonality in Christ and have so much love! You are all a blessing in my life and I love hearing from you. I want you all to know... that I love my Savior, Jesus Christ! I love him with all that I am, was or ever hope to be! He has helped me through a lot, and continues to help me everyday! So, until next week... I love you!
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready.....
Äldste Kundis :) :) :)
Just a fun picture for you to enjoy of some elders in my zone! We were in Helsingborg at a castle after the bowling! This was taken when not everyone was ready.. Hah! Äldste Bracken, my companion, is on the far right in the white! :) Lol I loved Äldste Clarke in this one! Can you guess which one he is?! Yeah.... the one in the white and green shirt! :)
Haha well things are going great here in the land of green! Sure enough it is raining here and its cloudy... That seems to happen on p-days a lot. Well, I guess not really just on p-days because it just likes raining all the time! :) I love it though! Okay, so today for p-day we were planning on going down to Kristianstad to play basketball with some other elders, but it was cancelled because of rain! Awhhh.. haha! :) It would have been fun, but the extra time has given us the chance to get a lot of things done! Cleaning for one! Other than that, we cut our own hair today. Yeah, I did just say that... CUT OUR OWN HAIR!! ! ! ! It was pretty scary, but Äldste Bracken talked me into it! I think it turned out pretty nice. I was quite nervous doing it all by myself.. but hey, it was fun! So, I should probably explain that subject line... Björn is a man that we met one day on the way to the bus. We stopped and contacted him and it went very well! He gave us his address and his phone number without us even asking for it! Needless to say, we were pretty hopeful for Björn! So, we sat up a date and went over to his apartment. When we got there and knocked, he was not home. :( We were blåsted (bl-o-sted) as the elders in Sweden say. So, we left and called him later. We set up yet another time to teach, and we were pretty sure that he was going to be there this time. So, we invited a member to come along! He came and everything was great... Except the fact that Björn blåsted us AGAIN!! haha so, we apologised to Peter (the member) and went on our way towards tracting/contacting. On our way through a grassy area right behind where we live there is a big hill. All of the sudden a man ran to the top with what looked like a pipe bomb or some other kind of home made explosive. I said, "Äldste, look at that!". Äldste Bracken replied, "No way, thats Björn!!" He lit whatever it was and ran away fast. Us, not knowing exactly what this thing was going to do ran behind a wooden fence and ducked down. As we were peering over the top of the fence it appeared that the explosive did not go off. So, Björn ran back up and started messing with it. He took it back down from the hill, and this is when we swooped in to talk to him. We called out his name and he turned and saw us.. Kinda awkward as you might imagine. We asked him what was going on and he replied.. "bomb". Haha! So, we did what any other missionary would have done, and tried to get a time to see him. We did, and double checked the apartment number. It was correct. So he went to a table with a friend and started messing with the bomb. We looked at each other, (Äldste Bracken and I) and immediately knew that both of us were curious as to what Björn was up to. So, we went and hid behind the same wood fence. While we were waiting I decided to pull out my camera so I could get a video of this thing that was going to explode. As we were waiting for Björn to finish getting whatever it was ready, I started showing Äldste Bracken my videos and pictures. All of the sudden there was a loud boom and a flash of light. It scared me really badly! haha I will not lie and say that it didn't because it was loud. We duck our heads and then immediately looked over the fence. There was a big mushroom cloud and Björn was heading back up the hill to retrieve the remains of whatever the bomb was made of. So, I didn't get my video of it, which i was pretty disappointed about, but it still an experience. We had to stop trying to visit Björn though. He would never be there when he said he was going to be. Its a shame too because he seemed like a really nice guy. Haha.. that is a little weird to say after that story huh... oh well! I stand by the statement! How about another quick story!?? I am full of them! We met a really cool guy named Morris. We received his information through a referral from the Zone Leaders in Malmö. Boy, am I thankful for them! Morris is an amazing person! He originally comes from Liberia, and fled to Sweden because of the war that was happening in his country. This next part is very sad. He lost his mother, father and brother in the conflicts. :( He is so strong though. He has been through a lot but has never lost his faith in God. He continually prays that things will get better in his life. He also expressed that he feels as though there is something missing in his life. Some kind of void that he just can't seem to fill... Hmm... We will see if we can help him with that! We taught him in the library here and it went very well. We taught a powerful first lesson, and the Spirit was very strong! I love it! He wants to come to church and to learn a lot more!!!! Woo!! So anyway, we are praying for him as well as our other investigators. This work is so cool! :) Okay, I better get to the e-mails now! First we have my loving Father!! I love you dad! Let me start by saying I loved what you said about us being, "modern day stripling warriors"!!! :) I am sure not fighting by the sword, but we face satan everyday out here! I put on my armour by studying and praying and lot of other things so that I can be prepared for the day! Its an awesome thing to do! I am glad you shared my pics on the blog and that you thought they were hilarious! haha It was kinda funny.. Anyway, thank you for your guidance and loving words.. They mean a lot to me! :) I love you dad! Okay now to Matt! You opened your Birthday card early?!?! what!!!!??? haha its okay brother! I guess you just didn't remember that your birthday was coming up.. ;) Aww.. You miss me?? Haha.. I miss you too Matt! We are pretty much the best of friends.. only that we are brothers! Woo! Yay for the Kundis bros! You sound like you are living life to it's fullest right now and truly having a good summer. Thats GOOD!! Enjoy it and stay safe! Maddy huh? This must be the same girl from last time. I am glad that you two are spending time and getting to know each other. Any funny stories or things you two have done together? Are you two a "thing" or is it just friends? Anyway, I love you Matt! You are soooo right about Molly! She just wants some loving! And since I am not there you need to pick up the slack! haha jk! Have a great week and keep up the really REALLY fun things like scripture study and prayer! Woo!! Love ya! Ooookay!! Mom!! I love you mom! It sure sounds like you are working hard! Make sure to take care of yourself and have some mommy time! Thats important! I am glad that you like the amount of exclamation points I use!!!!!!!!!! They are fun! You asked again about the bed bugs so let me give you and everyone else that is wondering an update! We got rid of the beds and all other bedding in the entire apartment.(Thus the attached photo) Lets just say that we have amazing members here in Växjö. We have been abundantly blessed! Sandra and her sister Jeanette came over and gave us two big air mattresses, pillows, blankets and sheets! They are so amazing! So, yes, that means we are now sleeping on big air mattresses! I love it!! YAY!! Bug free and I can sleep through the night! Sure, I have seen like two since then, but those were not on my bed! The we other places and had not food (blood) in them at all! Woo!! The were quickly disposed of. Anyway, get this.. As if the new beds were not enough. At church yesterday we were attacked by the Relief Society in the branch and they TOLD us that they were coming over to inspect the apartment. Haha!! Yeah! They are coming over later today to make a list of everything our apartment needs and is missing so they can help us out! Crazy!! I love them! We called the mission office and explained our situation with the Relief Society and the office/president said it was a go ahead! So, we cleaned very well this morning and they will becoming by a little later! There is also the possibility that we move completely to a new apartment. That would be wonderful because the place we have has lots and lots of problems. We have fixed it up and cleaned like crazy, but there are just some things that we can't do! So, the members are going to look around for us and get back to us. They had us ask the mission office how much the church pays each month for our apartment so they can look! Remember that we didn't ask ANYONE to do this! They are just amazing members! :) :) Okay, now let me get back to your e-mail mom! Sorry for the detour! The activity on Friday went very well... except the fact that Ann-Kristin didn't show.. She didn't come to church either. Very sad.... Ugh. Anyway.. moving on! We are still teaching her and things are progressing! I am glad that you received your anniversary card in the mail! (and didn't open it early like Matt!!) haha jkjk. Wow.. mom... you take such good care of me! I look forward to listening to that CD! It sounds like it will sound amazing! Awwww.. the Ripley's are moving?!?!? That is so sad! Who on earth am I going to speak Swedish with when I get home?!?!?! :( I will definitely miss them when I get back. They were always so happy and fun loving! Is there any way to get their new address in Florida?? Just wondering! Okay, thank you so much for your update on the family! Sounds like everything is going well! I love news about them! Jessica is going to have her baby really soon! Wow time is just flying! Crazy! Anyway, I love you so much mom! Thanks for all you do and are! Allllllrrriiigghhhtttyyy then... Lets get to the Spiritual stuff! Today doesn't come from the scriptures or from a book.. It comes from experience and deep thought. haha :) I want to talk about finding commonality in Christ. As a missionary, right when I leave the apartment I am different from everyone else around me! The white shirt, tie and name badge set me apart just by the plain means of an appearance. However, there is something that I can use to find commonality with every single person I come into contact with. That magic tool is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Just as it says in Heleman 5:12.. we can build our sure foundation on Christ. That foundation is really powerful, and a large majority of the world is missing out on it! I have seen numerous times as we are contacting, people turn us down or ignore us just because of our outside differences. But what is really amazing is when.. as they are walking away... we bear testimony of Christ and how he loves them.. They stop and turn around. Something happens inside of them and they change their mind and want to talk and have a conversation. It is amazing! We all have a need for love. When people hear of their Savior they can sense that love and they want it more than anything! We can find our commonality there... In Christ! This not only works for random people that the Lord places in the paths of missionaries, but it also works for companionships, relationships, and even old wooden ships used during the civil war era! Bahaha!!! Sorry.. Anchorman reference.. I couldn't resist! :) ;) But seriously though.. It works! We all have our differences and our little querks, but one thing we can always count on finding commonality in.. is Christ! First we must build our sure foundation and then we can invite people up onto that so they can have peace, strength and love! It is crazy how this is sooo effective! There is a lot of power found in Christ.. He can do anything and everything if we only let him! :) I love you all so much! I am glad that we can share this commonality in Christ and have so much love! You are all a blessing in my life and I love hearing from you. I want you all to know... that I love my Savior, Jesus Christ! I love him with all that I am, was or ever hope to be! He has helped me through a lot, and continues to help me everyday! So, until next week... I love you!
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready.....
Äldste Kundis :) :) :)
Just a fun picture for you to enjoy of some elders in my zone! We were in Helsingborg at a castle after the bowling! This was taken when not everyone was ready.. Hah! Äldste Bracken, my companion, is on the far right in the white! :) Lol I loved Äldste Clarke in this one! Can you guess which one he is?! Yeah.... the one in the white and green shirt! :)
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Have you noticed the amount of exclamation points I use?!??!!!!!
New Plastic Bag Bed Bug Barriers
Second Line of Defense Sleep Wear
Hej Familj!!
It is so very true!! I use these little exclamation points all the time! If you go back and read my last e-mail again, count the number I use... feel free to let me know because I lost count and time is precious! <--- haha :) There is a very simple answer as to why I use so many exclamation points in my e-mails. Are you ready? Okay here it is... I love you all, and I am sooooo excited when I get to talk to you!!! Anyway! Greetings to all! Welcome back to my e-mails and blog. Sorry about it being a day late. We had an awesome bowling activity in Helsingborg with the zone, and we got back pretty late as far as p-day time goes. So, we received permission to e-mail today! Well lets start things off with a little bed bug update! The company came and put powder around the base boards on the floor and put this liquid stuff on the bottom of our beds. Apparently it is supposed to work, but normally they have to come back at least once. So, the man said that we should call him in a few WEEKS if we are STILL being bitten! haha Yeah right! Äldste Bracken and I devised a better plan that the mission office thought was genius! They are working on getting us new beds at the moment, but we have pretty much conquered them! Want to know how? Well if not, I am still going to tell you, and look!.. You are still reading on! We bought industrial size garbage bags cut them into big huge rectangles and put them all over the beds! haha We took pictures so I will try and attach one so you can see. It worked wonderfully! We got the bags air tight around the bed and sucked most of the air out with our super vacuum cleaner! Woooo!! Haha, so I slept VERY nicely last night! We have not seen a single bug and I am hoping that we will never see one again. Anyway, I have a really cool story today! After this day that I am about to tell you about I said to myself, "yeah, thats going in the e-mail" haha So, we had an awesome day planned! We had four teaches lined up (for växjö, that is amazing!) and we were really excited... NONE of them worked out! Not a single one! One of the teaches was even with a member! lol So, we decided that we needed a better day the next day. We both prayed and prayed that night that the next day would be better. We sat down to plan and prayed together also. Under the direction of the Spirit we were able to plan a very VERY full day for the next day. It also had four teaches, just one problem, they were all over town! Seriously like opposite sides back and forth! Also, we were so tight on time and focused on the work that we forgot to schedule lunch and dinner. We realised that about half way through the planning session and both decided that our teaches were more important and that the Lord would somehow provide for us. So, we next looked at transportation! Buses on Sundays (the day we were planning for) are terrible! They maybe come once every hour or hour and a half.. So our teaches were not going to work. Then we decided that we needed to ask the branch members for help. By this time it was pretty late into the evening and we did not want to call people to set up rides. So, we again decided that we needed to put our faith in the Lord and in the branch members and somehow everything would work out! I want to let you all know, that what happened that day caused my testimony to grow, and my common understanding of time to disappear! We went to church and were able to get a ride to the teach planned right after church ended. Also, the person that gave us the ride volunteered to help us teach our investigator! Crazy! :) Our lack of food was also taken care of, we were fed at the church! One of the members brought tons and tons of little crab apples from her trees for a lesson that day and she had a lot left over. After she heard about our day she made us take like four bags of them! So, throughout the course of the day we ate crab apples to keep our hunger tamed. After the first teach we went back to the church and rode our bicycles (which we had left there about a week ago) to the next teach. We made it there just in time! After that, we rode back to the apartment and ran to a members house to get a ride to the next teach. We made it there just in time again and also, another member came with us to that teach! Finally, we caught a bus which we just barely made and took it to our last teach. We taught and went back home. That alone right there was incredible! However, what was even more incredible was that every single teach went perfectly! The Spirit was sooo strong in every single one of them! One of the teaches we were pretty sure that the young man was not going to show up, but he did! We were so happy to see him! Another teach, one with a member, was amazing! She was eating up the gospel like it was mom's lasagna! haha :) (I love that stuff!) She is excited to come to church and also to come to an activity we are having this Friday! Wooo! We were super stoked at the end of that day! I fell on my bed just in amazement at how well the day had gone! I looked at my apples I had left, and it was nearly all of them. I had only eaten one! I was so focused and just in shock a what was happening around me! The members helped us out incredibly. What maybe seemed like a little favor to them was a huge deal for us! I love the branch here! :) Honestly... I felt as though the Lord had his hand in everything that was happening . Things that were not supposed to happen, just did! The whole day my mind was focused on the Spirit, the Lord, and my investigators. Words can't fully express the way I felt. :) Anyway, that was the fun story I had! Sorry if it is jumbled a bit, I am typing quite fast to get this all in here! I should get to the e-mail now! Lets start with Mom!! I love you, and good for you! Way to take that very well deserved nap! Those are amazing. I have noticed, that before my mission I never fully apprecitated what a pleasure it is just to relax and kick back! haha But not on the Lord's time! Not on my mission! :) Thank you for taking care of me! I hope all works out well with the box! I love you and can't wait to hear from you next week! :) Okay on to Matt!! My little brother that I love with my whole heart! The Swedish is coming along well! I am making progress and that is all that matters! I would like it to be easier and more understandable, but that will all come in time... I just need to work on being patient! Patience is a purifying process! ;) Haha, it is too funny that that girl you are talking about is Tom and Mat Schafer's step sister! lol I love those two guys! Good times there! Anyway! haha We will for sure have a blast when I get back and do all those things you were talking about. Jersey Shore huh?? That was pretty funny that you were relating THAT to MONTANA haha! But I get what you are saying! Enjoy your summer and stay safe brother! I love you very much! Okay, now on to daddy! My wonderful father full of wisdom and knowledge.. :) I love you! It really is like you said with the whole new approach thing to Växjö. The Lord approves, and He has manifest that to us many times! Speaking of the Lord.. What you said about "Jesus the Christ" is also so very true! It is such an inspired book. The details and insight are astounding! Ways of looking at things that I have never even thought of.. I love it! Somayeh is doing well dad! Thank you for the prayers! Okay, I find it quite funny that my truck is working and the stratus is not... haha Sorry, I just NEEDED to point that out! I am sure that someone already has! Maybe? If not, well thats cool too! Don't worry about the stratus though. Everything will work out well! You have a fine mechanic in Matt and yourself for that matter! My prayers are with you! we had some really good times together working on that car, and also my truck! I look back and cherish those! :) :) :) Well, thank you for your e-mail dad! I love you and hope that all is going well with work and life! :) Okay everyone, on to the bestest part of the e-mail! The spiritual insight! Today it is directly related to the story I told earlier! Get your scriptures and look up Proverbs 3:5-6 or click on this handy dandy link http://scriptures.lds.org/en/prov/3 and read the verses! As you can see, I selected this scripture and thought, because I have SEEN the Lord guide and direct my paths! He has been providing for me and helping me in all that I do! Sure, he gives us trials... but we need those! We really do! Thats a MAIN REASON why we are here... To gain experience! So, the challenge/charge for this week is to, "trust in the Lord with all thine heart"!!! I know and testify that as we strive to trust in the Lord and acknowledge him we will receive direction! Our lives will become easier and all of the sudden we will find a deep, deep well of joy and happiness! Okay, well, thats is the e-mail for this week! I sure hope that you enjoyed and gained something! I love you all! I love this work, and I love my Savior! Until next week...
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready.....
Äldste Kundis :) :) :) :)
Monday, August 2, 2010
Baby Boy!!! YEAH!! Congrats!!
Hej Familj!
Well, I FINALLY got the news from Josh and Hillary!! Congrats you two! I cried when I opened that e-mail and read, "Landon James Kundis". What an amazing name! This has to be so exciting for the whole family. I know I am going crazy! I crave information like missionaries crave member referrals! haha Thats a lot of crave! Just as a side note to Josh and Hillary... I have a big surprise for you two.. Lets just say that one day you will get it in the mail and freak out. Oh, and all of the elders in my zone LOVE IT!! haha ;) ...... Okay, well I am doing very well right now... very well indeed! I love Äldste Bracken! He is an amazing elder and a fantastic person. We are actually a lot alike. For instance, he loves Jericho Road, loves country music and all music for that matter, loves sports, and loves missionary work! We are getting along very well and the future looks very bright. We are out to change the outlook on Växjö! In most missions there are the areas where elders want to serve in, and the areas that elders would rather not serve in. Växjö just so happens to be the second type of area. We will be changing that! Our motto for this transfer is, "Växjö - Expect the Unexpected". We are doing everything right, and making lots of changes. We cleaned and rearranged the apartment, updated everything, bought tons of new healthy food, and lots of other things. We are turning this place into a wonderful area that everyone will want to serve in! I love it here! Äldste Bracken in very upbeat and positive and has given me a whole new outlook on missionary work as well as the area. So, how about them bed bugs... They are beginning to be less in number... I adapted Moroni's strategy and started building defences in times of peace. (when I am not asleep!) Not to mention we purchased a new super powerful vacuum cleaner! haha The mission office is being very helpful. They called and set up an appointment with a company here in town that is going to come and treat our apartment. So hopefully that will take care of things and i can get my sleep back!! Äldste Bracken is a tough cookie. The bugs don't bother him, and he is keeping a very positive outlook on the situation. So, hopefully the bugs will all be gone next time I e-mail you! Well, this p-day has been full of cleaning and shopping with the Bloombergs. They are a really nice couple in the branch. President Bloomberg is the branch president, and he is a very helpful friendly person. All Swedes are! I love them! By the way... I realized shopping today that the cereals in Sweden go a little something like this... Bran, bran, whole wheat, oats, oats, bran, puffed rice, corn something, blah, blah... haha I just want a box of Cinnamon toast crunch or fruit loops!!... etc... They just plain don't like sugar in cereals! haha Anyway, on to the e-mail! First is my wonderful father! Daddy!!! Hello! No, luckily Äldste Bracken is NOT a ute fan!! haha He wants to go to BYU when he returns! Wooo!! As for the calls about transfers, President Anderson is the bestest EVER!! He calls us because he loves us so very very very much. Not to say that my AP's and ZL's don't, it's just that the mission president feels that the calls must be made by him! :) The beach in Helsingborg was amazing! Extremely clean sand, beautiful water, tons of people there swimming! I can't tell you the temperature because if I could I would be telling you in person because I would have broken a rule! ! ! However, it looked like everyone was enjoying it! You asked me about my studies!! What a great question!! I love those! Okay, for personal study everyday I do a lot of things! One is that I always read from the Book of Mormon (English and Swedish). That is incredible! I love the Book of Mormon with all of my heart. I really do!! We have been promised many many times that the Book of Mormon carries with it a special Spirit, and that if we study its pages and truly desire to learn, we can have that Spirit! Okay, also in Personal Study I read in other scriptures.. Normally the D&C.. But there are sometimes when I venture into the New and Old Testament! Those are wonderful as well! Next I read and write my thoughts in Preach My Gospel! That book is truly inspired! I choose a Christlike attribute and work on that for the day. Next I read in Jesus the Christ or True to the Faith (the two I am working on right now). I learn a lot from those! After that I study for my investigators! I think the night before during planning what I need to prepare and what questions I need to answer. Then I study, study, study! When my studies are centered on my investigators they are extremely effective and uplifting! It is great! You asked how I enjoyed my studies and etc... Let me tell you this.. When there is a day that I miss even a single second of my study time I am extremely saddened. That time is extremely precious to me. I often feel the Saviors presence there sitting by me helping me learn. Especially when I read Jesus the Christ! The council he gives to his apostles a lot of times seems like he is giving it straight to me! I learn so much every morning, and I love it! As for someone that you could pray for... Somayeh would be great!! She just had a break through and the added prayers will do her good! She had a baptismal date, but was just not ready when the time came. However, she has been reading and praying and said that it all just feels right. When she prays she says that she feels good and that she really likes it! Woo!! That is very big for her! Anyway, your prayers for her would be very appreciated! Okay, so thanks for putting that picture up on the blog! I hope everyone likes it! Well dad, thank you for your e-mail! I love you so much!!! You are amazing! Okay now on to the "Mother of the Missionary"!!! Hi mommy! YES I DID GET THE ENVELOPE!! haha haha I am pretty sure I told you that in one of my last e-mails.. If not, I am sorry! I got it a long time ago actually. It was great to get! So, that answers that question. I am very happy that you liked the D&C 6 scripture! I love them! You got a letter from Dallin!? How awesome is that! He is a stud! We had sooooo much fun together and I can't wait to be back at BYU with him! It is going to be a party! It is funny how all of my BYU buds are already out on missions and that we are all writing each other from around the world! I love it! Don't worry about his address, you can send him a quick e-mail to get it! most every missionary has an e-mail address of, firstname.lastname@myldsmail.net. That should work! I am happy that it is fair week! Lots of fun to be had there and good memories! Me and Rhett in the pepper stand sweating buckets!! haha loved it! Well, mom I love you! You are fantastic! Now, on to my wonderful little brother! Matt!! You make me laugh! I can tell that you are having a great time there at the fair and that you are enjoying life. Your story about the drunk lady's car and how you had to help her push it was crazy! Way to serve brotha! Woo! Careful with those fair girls Matt! haha Keep a straight mind and watch out! But always remember to have fun! Thats important! Anyway, love you tons and know that you are doing well! How are your personal prayers doing!? You know, it only takes the effort to get down on your knees! Then, once in the presence of our Heavenly Father, you can pour out your heart! It is wonderful bud! Trust me! haha I love you Matt! You rock my world.. normally with laughter! :) Okay well that was the e-mail for this week! It's crazy to see time flying by! It needs to slow down! haha I am always surprised at how fast Mondays come! Well, for the spiritual part of the e-mail I decided to talk about something I read about in True to the Faith! It is a wonderful book! What I want to discuss is about our conscience. Is a conscience just something that makes you feel bad when you've done something wrong? Or something that you need to keep clear? NO! It is sooooo much more than that! Sure, it helps us notice that we have done wrong, and it's nice to have it clear and free, but there exists a deeper more powerful purpose to our conscience. Our conscience is there to work in harmony with the Spirit! We must constantly be monitoring our conscience and learn to follow it! True to the Faith says, "A sensitive conscience is a sign of a healthy spirit" This is so very true! When we seek to have a good conscience, or in other words, to follow the Spirit.... we develop a more sensitive conscience and are therefore able to have the Spirit more in our lives! A conscience is a gift given to all to know right from wrong and to help them return to live with their Heavenly Father again! :) As a missionary this is everything. I carry the Saviors name with me always... Not just on my name badge but also in my heart, and countenance. When I am constantly seeking after and learning from a good conscience I am becoming more and more like the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. More and more like the person I represent. The person I aspire to be like! So, here comes the charge for this week! Listen and learn from your conscience... Don't ever decide to push it to the side and to hide it away. True to the Faith also says, "...if you ignore your conscience...your conscience will be impaired as if it has been 'seared with a hot iron' (1 Timothy 4:2)" A conscience is a very powerful tool! We just need to develop it and use it! Well, that was it for this week! I hope that all is well, and that life is exciting! If it's not, change it! haha Do something absolutely fun tonight/today! I love you all! My prayers are with you all! :)
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready.....
Äldste Kundis :) :)
Well, I FINALLY got the news from Josh and Hillary!! Congrats you two! I cried when I opened that e-mail and read, "Landon James Kundis". What an amazing name! This has to be so exciting for the whole family. I know I am going crazy! I crave information like missionaries crave member referrals! haha Thats a lot of crave! Just as a side note to Josh and Hillary... I have a big surprise for you two.. Lets just say that one day you will get it in the mail and freak out. Oh, and all of the elders in my zone LOVE IT!! haha ;) ...... Okay, well I am doing very well right now... very well indeed! I love Äldste Bracken! He is an amazing elder and a fantastic person. We are actually a lot alike. For instance, he loves Jericho Road, loves country music and all music for that matter, loves sports, and loves missionary work! We are getting along very well and the future looks very bright. We are out to change the outlook on Växjö! In most missions there are the areas where elders want to serve in, and the areas that elders would rather not serve in. Växjö just so happens to be the second type of area. We will be changing that! Our motto for this transfer is, "Växjö - Expect the Unexpected". We are doing everything right, and making lots of changes. We cleaned and rearranged the apartment, updated everything, bought tons of new healthy food, and lots of other things. We are turning this place into a wonderful area that everyone will want to serve in! I love it here! Äldste Bracken in very upbeat and positive and has given me a whole new outlook on missionary work as well as the area. So, how about them bed bugs... They are beginning to be less in number... I adapted Moroni's strategy and started building defences in times of peace. (when I am not asleep!) Not to mention we purchased a new super powerful vacuum cleaner! haha The mission office is being very helpful. They called and set up an appointment with a company here in town that is going to come and treat our apartment. So hopefully that will take care of things and i can get my sleep back!! Äldste Bracken is a tough cookie. The bugs don't bother him, and he is keeping a very positive outlook on the situation. So, hopefully the bugs will all be gone next time I e-mail you! Well, this p-day has been full of cleaning and shopping with the Bloombergs. They are a really nice couple in the branch. President Bloomberg is the branch president, and he is a very helpful friendly person. All Swedes are! I love them! By the way... I realized shopping today that the cereals in Sweden go a little something like this... Bran, bran, whole wheat, oats, oats, bran, puffed rice, corn something, blah, blah... haha I just want a box of Cinnamon toast crunch or fruit loops!!... etc... They just plain don't like sugar in cereals! haha Anyway, on to the e-mail! First is my wonderful father! Daddy!!! Hello! No, luckily Äldste Bracken is NOT a ute fan!! haha He wants to go to BYU when he returns! Wooo!! As for the calls about transfers, President Anderson is the bestest EVER!! He calls us because he loves us so very very very much. Not to say that my AP's and ZL's don't, it's just that the mission president feels that the calls must be made by him! :) The beach in Helsingborg was amazing! Extremely clean sand, beautiful water, tons of people there swimming! I can't tell you the temperature because if I could I would be telling you in person because I would have broken a rule! ! ! However, it looked like everyone was enjoying it! You asked me about my studies!! What a great question!! I love those! Okay, for personal study everyday I do a lot of things! One is that I always read from the Book of Mormon (English and Swedish). That is incredible! I love the Book of Mormon with all of my heart. I really do!! We have been promised many many times that the Book of Mormon carries with it a special Spirit, and that if we study its pages and truly desire to learn, we can have that Spirit! Okay, also in Personal Study I read in other scriptures.. Normally the D&C.. But there are sometimes when I venture into the New and Old Testament! Those are wonderful as well! Next I read and write my thoughts in Preach My Gospel! That book is truly inspired! I choose a Christlike attribute and work on that for the day. Next I read in Jesus the Christ or True to the Faith (the two I am working on right now). I learn a lot from those! After that I study for my investigators! I think the night before during planning what I need to prepare and what questions I need to answer. Then I study, study, study! When my studies are centered on my investigators they are extremely effective and uplifting! It is great! You asked how I enjoyed my studies and etc... Let me tell you this.. When there is a day that I miss even a single second of my study time I am extremely saddened. That time is extremely precious to me. I often feel the Saviors presence there sitting by me helping me learn. Especially when I read Jesus the Christ! The council he gives to his apostles a lot of times seems like he is giving it straight to me! I learn so much every morning, and I love it! As for someone that you could pray for... Somayeh would be great!! She just had a break through and the added prayers will do her good! She had a baptismal date, but was just not ready when the time came. However, she has been reading and praying and said that it all just feels right. When she prays she says that she feels good and that she really likes it! Woo!! That is very big for her! Anyway, your prayers for her would be very appreciated! Okay, so thanks for putting that picture up on the blog! I hope everyone likes it! Well dad, thank you for your e-mail! I love you so much!!! You are amazing! Okay now on to the "Mother of the Missionary"!!! Hi mommy! YES I DID GET THE ENVELOPE!! haha haha I am pretty sure I told you that in one of my last e-mails.. If not, I am sorry! I got it a long time ago actually. It was great to get! So, that answers that question. I am very happy that you liked the D&C 6 scripture! I love them! You got a letter from Dallin!? How awesome is that! He is a stud! We had sooooo much fun together and I can't wait to be back at BYU with him! It is going to be a party! It is funny how all of my BYU buds are already out on missions and that we are all writing each other from around the world! I love it! Don't worry about his address, you can send him a quick e-mail to get it! most every missionary has an e-mail address of, firstname.lastname@myldsmail.net. That should work! I am happy that it is fair week! Lots of fun to be had there and good memories! Me and Rhett in the pepper stand sweating buckets!! haha loved it! Well, mom I love you! You are fantastic! Now, on to my wonderful little brother! Matt!! You make me laugh! I can tell that you are having a great time there at the fair and that you are enjoying life. Your story about the drunk lady's car and how you had to help her push it was crazy! Way to serve brotha! Woo! Careful with those fair girls Matt! haha Keep a straight mind and watch out! But always remember to have fun! Thats important! Anyway, love you tons and know that you are doing well! How are your personal prayers doing!? You know, it only takes the effort to get down on your knees! Then, once in the presence of our Heavenly Father, you can pour out your heart! It is wonderful bud! Trust me! haha I love you Matt! You rock my world.. normally with laughter! :) Okay well that was the e-mail for this week! It's crazy to see time flying by! It needs to slow down! haha I am always surprised at how fast Mondays come! Well, for the spiritual part of the e-mail I decided to talk about something I read about in True to the Faith! It is a wonderful book! What I want to discuss is about our conscience. Is a conscience just something that makes you feel bad when you've done something wrong? Or something that you need to keep clear? NO! It is sooooo much more than that! Sure, it helps us notice that we have done wrong, and it's nice to have it clear and free, but there exists a deeper more powerful purpose to our conscience. Our conscience is there to work in harmony with the Spirit! We must constantly be monitoring our conscience and learn to follow it! True to the Faith says, "A sensitive conscience is a sign of a healthy spirit" This is so very true! When we seek to have a good conscience, or in other words, to follow the Spirit.... we develop a more sensitive conscience and are therefore able to have the Spirit more in our lives! A conscience is a gift given to all to know right from wrong and to help them return to live with their Heavenly Father again! :) As a missionary this is everything. I carry the Saviors name with me always... Not just on my name badge but also in my heart, and countenance. When I am constantly seeking after and learning from a good conscience I am becoming more and more like the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. More and more like the person I represent. The person I aspire to be like! So, here comes the charge for this week! Listen and learn from your conscience... Don't ever decide to push it to the side and to hide it away. True to the Faith also says, "...if you ignore your conscience...your conscience will be impaired as if it has been 'seared with a hot iron' (1 Timothy 4:2)" A conscience is a very powerful tool! We just need to develop it and use it! Well, that was it for this week! I hope that all is well, and that life is exciting! If it's not, change it! haha Do something absolutely fun tonight/today! I love you all! My prayers are with you all! :)
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready.....
Äldste Kundis :) :)
Sunday, August 1, 2010
June Malmo Zone Conference!
Look who we found? He looks great! We know, it was last month, but hey, we'll take any picture we can find of him!
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