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 :) :)

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