Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good new year! No, wait.. an amazing new year!

Swedish Christmas feast... This was just round ONE!! :)


MORE FOOD!!!


Kalle Anka (Donald Duck) It went on to play parts of the Jungle Book, Snow White, Cars and many others

Hej Familj!!!

Well this time next week it will be 2011!! Can you believe that?! To me that is just crazy and a part of me just doesn't want to accept it. But alas, it is still 2010 and I hope you all had a marvelous Christmas! My Christmas was incredible and one that I truly will never forget. We were with members pretty much all weekend and they treated us to a very authentic Swedish Christmas. We ate sooooo much food! It is actually really funny because right before Äldste Overstreet and I would go into another members house we would promise each other that we would not eat a lot of food... Then the food came and came and came! The members would not let us say no! haha They are the bestest! The food was delicious, the sounds were exciting and the weather was frightening! We have received lots and lots of snow and it just keeps coming! Not too cold yet, but those months will be waiting for us in the new year! OH! At a members house we were able to participate in an awesome Swedish tradition! We were able (and given permission) to watch Kalle Anka! Or, Donald Duck! It was basically a mix of tons of Disney classics in Swedish and it only showed the best parts! It was so exciting to participate in that and have a few good laughs! :) Another exciting part of Christmas was my phone call home! I LOVE YOU ALL!!! It was so amazing to hear all of your voices and talk with you one on one. I must admit that I was a little nervous about calling home. I was worried that it would affect the work or make my emotions go wild, but all in all it pumped me up! I took the love I received and applied it right to the work here! It was fun to talk and have some time for questions, and it was fun to sing to you all! haha I am a little sad that Landon did not show up to say hello, but I know that he will be born soon... if not already, and say hello to all of you! Yay! You all be sure to give that stud a big.. no, a HUGE hug for me! Let him know how much I honestly love him!!!! :) Okay well seeing as though I did not receive an e-mail from you all.. (completely understandable with the call and all) I am going to ask a few things I forgot to ask during the call because my mind was blown by hearing your voices. Number one is for Mom.. What is the recipe for your frosting for those sugar cookies you would make and we all would decorate?? That would be swell to have! Okay, number two is for whoever is looking after this sort of stuff for me.. How is my facebook doing?? Has anyone signed in lately or been to the page? lol that would be good to know since I am not allowed on facebook! haha Number three is for Dad.. NEW CAR?? haha tell me all the details please! I am interested to hear the specs and description! lol Okay, I can't really think of many more... I guess I should just write them down when I think of them.... You'd think I would've learned that by now huh!? :) Well I am going to finish up today's e-mail with a spiritual thought! For the thought I am going to share one of my favorite scriptures. We have been using this as part of our Christmas message during the season. There are many things we receive at Christmas time. We receive presents and gifts. We receive friends into our homes and food to our tables. We receive warm feelings and peace to our hearts. However, there is one thing that is more important, more exciting and more meaningful than all of that. In Alma 7:7 we read, "For behold, I say unto you there be many things to come; and behold, there is one thing which is of more importance than they all—for behold, the time is not far distant that the Redeemer liveth and cometh among his people." How absolutely amazing is that!? The Redeemer, our Savior Jesus Christ, is of more importance than all the things to come or which have already come! It is of interest to note that this is Alma talking. These are the first words that he speaks to his people after having been busy at the judgement seat. Does that not support his words even more?? Does that not just strengthen your testimony of Jesus Christ?! He, Alma, decides to speak of Christ because he knows the importance of the Savior to the world. He knows what he will bring to his people... what he has brought to US! Peace... Warm feelings... Salvation... All of this he has brought to us! We feel it so strongly at Christmas time! I feel that a lot of the time we confuse where there feelings really come from. Because in reality these feelings come from Christ and His infinite Atonement! This has been a BIG focus for me this Christmas season and it has brought me so much joy! I love it! :) I love all of you! I am so thankful I have my loving family and the chance to be a missionary. I am thankful for the opportunity to carry Jesus Christ's name on my badge so close to my heart... because thats what he comforts... that what he protects... and thats what he strengthens. He means everything to me! I hope you all have a fantastic new year and that you enjoy every second of it! Until next week... 2011!!!

Trogen och Stadig, Är Jag Redo!!!!!
Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready!!!!!

Äldste Kundis :) :) :)

Sorry, I almost forgot to add this!

Tuesday - p.151 ch.3 - p.157 ch.5
Wednesday - p.157 ch.5 - p.162 ch.8
Thursday - p.162 ch.8 - p.166 ch.10
Friday - p.166 ch.10 - p.170 ch.12
Saturday - p.170 ch.12 - p.174 ch.14
Sunday - p.174 ch.14 - p.178 ch.16
Monday (next) - p.178 ch.16 - p.183 ch.19

Just a phone call away!!

My home ward loves me so much!! Thank you to all!!!


Thank you Mom for the decorations!! (one of many!)


A very Swedish Christmas decoration! You see them in every window!

Our "Christmas tree" pre-missionary touch..

Our "Christmas tree" post-missionary touch!! Yeah!!!!

Hej Familj!!!

Well, it is that time of year when missionaries around the world are able to call home and listen to the voices of the ones they love! I must say, I am REALLY EXCITED! lol It will be great to take some time on Christmas to see how everyone is doing! Everything will work out with the call and we are still good to call at 5 PM our time, 9 AM your time! Anyway, thats all for the call aspect of the e-mail.. :) Now on to other things! This week has been pretty crazy! We are continuing to receive lots and lots of snow! (It is snowing very hard as I am writing!) The beginning of the week was pure fun! We were in Göteborg most of the time playing snow football on Monday, and of course Zone Conference on Tuesday. (Yes Mom, I received all of the packages!! Thank You!!) Zone Conference was just amazing! The main focus was on the Savior and they had prepared well. The message given by the Zone Leaders was something I will never forget. The Spirit was so strong and moving... I felt.. at peace. Wonderful!! On Wednesday it was back to work! We had a very successful day with our finding efforts. We tracted into a Muslim lady who was not interested at all, but after asking her if there was anyone else she knew that would be interested she told us to try the lady the floor below her. So, we went right away and knocked on the door. The woman was not interested.. at first. After talking with her for a little while she started to warm up. We asked her where she came from and then told her we were from America. Her face lit up! haha She loves America, and her 15 year old daughter REALLY likes America. The Mom started yelling for her daughter after she found out. They immediately let us in and started asking lots and lots of questions about the church. We taught them the Restoration lesson and they were really interested. We asked for a return appointment and visited them again on Saturday. When we were there the second time the family was just as nice! They fed us some chocolate coconut balls and juice as we watched the Testaments movie together. They thought the movie was just incredible! Especially the Mom. She had to leave the room a couple of times because she was crying so hard. It really was amazing! We thought they were going to make it to church yesterday, but they were not able to come. We are heading back tomorrow and will teach them again! Yay! Okay, now a funny story... The other day we were tracting a very tall apartment building. Not a single person was interested and we were getting kind of down. We knocked on a door, very much like the others and awaited an answer. When the door opened what stood behind the door shocked me. It was a man in his 80's wearing nothing but a "fish-net" tank top and men's bikini style underwear. As I started to utter my first line of dialogue I burst into laughter, but was trying so hard to remain calm, cool and collected. My efforts were in vain! Äldste Overstreet burst into laughter as well, and we both just started laughing together as this old man was staring at us. He told us he was not interested in God and closed the door. We were crying out eyes out in laughter. We ran to the elevator and jumped in so we could gain some sort of composure. It was absolutely hilarious! One of the funniest moments I have had on my mission, and I fear the imagery will be forever engraved in my mind. hahahahahaha Anyway, I better get to the e-mails for this week... However, I will be talking to most of you on Saturday... So, this will be short! My dear, sweet father!!! I love you Dad!! Thank you very much for the recitation of the Charlie Brown Christmas. I like how you focused a big part of your e-mail on the true meaning of Christmas. That is what were are in full swing of doing right now. Honestly at times I feel as though I am an elf running around the North Pole of Sweden sharing the true meaning of JUL! One of my favorite scriptures is Alma 7:7 because it puts things into perspective. Check it out! :) Thank you for the calling card information! I am sure with both of us working at it, it will all work out! :) I am so excited to hear your voice and be able to talk with you. It will be something special! It feels rather strange to finally be on the other side of one of these calls. lol, weird! Anyway, I love you Dad, and I will talk with you Saturday! Okay now on to Matt!! I love you Matt! You must be having an awesome time on your Christmas break.. I remember those days all too well! I can also tell that you are stoked for the trip to Utah! As you should be! You will have an awesome time there because time spent with family is more valuable than anything! Not to mention you will be able to see Landon! How excited are you Matt?!?! I am losing my mind!! haha How exciting! Stay safe and have tons of fun in Utah. When we talk later you can tell me all of whats happening! I thought your experience with the foreign exchange student from Sweden was hilarious! How cool is that?! Did you like the Swedish language?? Because I love it! haha Well, I can't wait to hear your big grown up voice and all of the stories I have missed out on! I love you Matt!! Okay now it is Mom's turn! I love you Mom!!! First off, thank you so much for all that you have done for me this Christmas. You are so kind and just amazing! This Christmas is going to be one that I will never forget, and a big part of that is because of you! OH, one thing I wanted to ask you... You have sent lots of decorations and calendars and what not.. Is it okay if that stuff graces the apartment for the next elders there at Christmas time?? Of course I will not leave the sentimental things, but I just wanted to get it cleared up before hand! haha I am sure it is all good, but you let me know if there is something you would like me to take or send home! I am glad to hear Molly will be taken care of while you are on your trip to Utah. Whew! lol :) I can't wait to talk to you Mom!! It will be amazing to hear your voice! This phone call is going to be lots of tears.. I can already feel it! I will just be so glad to hear the voices of those I love and miss with my whole heart... :) I love you Mom! Until Saturday!!!! Alright everyone, here is the Spiritual Thought for the week. With Christmas time coming fast I thought it would be a great opportunity for me to bear you all my testimony about the Savior... I KNOW that Jesus Christ lives. I know that he loves me and watches out for me. As I ponder all that he has done for me an uncontrollable feeling of gratitude flows over me and warms me. If only I could have been there to express my gratitude as he hung and suffered on the cross. If only I could have been there to see him suffer in the garden and somehow try to ease the pain. If only I could give him a hug and thank him for the opportunity to live with my Father in Heaven again. The gift of being able to return to heaven and live with my loving family again is something I hold near and dear to my heart. I love Jesus Christ. He is my best friend... He knows me and comforts me daily. Through my Savior I have the opportunity to be better, to have a second chance. Words can't come close to express how I feel.. This is all so real.. As I pray I can feel the Spirit. As I read the Book of Mormon, I know the Spirit is there. As I think about my Redeemer and Savior the Spirit fills me to the point of tears... Tears of joy! Tears of happiness! Tears of thankfulness... I am so thankful for this time of year. I am thankful for the decorations, the foods, the sounds and the gifts. However, I am most thankful for the gift of Christ. I am thankful for Him and His willingness to atone for me. I love Him. I love all of you. I hope you all have an amazing Christmas and remember the Savior. Here is another really good video.. Short, but gets the point across.. http://lds.org/topic/christmas/ look for the video called "The Greatest Gift" :) I am excited for Saturday and I hope you all are too! Until then...

Trogen och Stadig, Är Jag Redo!!!!!Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready!!!!!Äldste Kundis :) :) :)

Here are the Book of Mormon Challenge passages for the week...

Tuesday - p.115 ch.32 - p.117 Jacob
Wednesday - p.117 Jacob - p.122 ch.3
Thursday - p.122 ch.3 - p.132 ch.6 (sorry about the length on this one!)
Friday - p.132 ch.6 - p.136 Enos
Saturday - p.136 Enos - p.140 Omni
Sunday - p.140 Omni - p.145 Mosiah
Monday (next) p.145 Mosiah - p.151 ch.3

I love you!

Happy to be inside this WARM church building!

Hej Familj!!!

Welcome to yet another P-Day here in the land of Sweden! It is, needless to say, very cold outside and the once lush green mat that was outside has turned into a cold, dark frozen tundra! The snow continues to fall as does the temperature! We had a couple of "warmer" days that made things very slushy, but then the cold came back in full force and now everything is slick and crunchy! haha I am sure you can understand what I mean! We have been out doing finding work day after day seemingly undistracted by the environment around us. Perhaps it is the fire in both of us truly wanting to find that golden investigator. I will tell you that we have seen the Lord's hand here in this work! It is amazing! During our long sessions of finding work we always happen to come across a less active member, or an old investigator. Most of which turn out very positive! For instance, the other day we tracted into a less active's house and he let us in and talked for a little while. We asked if we could start coming and visiting him and he loved the idea. Just the other day we went by and watched the Joy to the World DVD and gave a spiritual thought. He fed us Julmust and lots of cookies and was just plain... nice! He even gave us both a Christmas card. He is awesome! Anyway, things are going great here in Skövde! I am loving every single second of it! As I should!!! :) Lets see, today we are heading to Göteborg.. Yes, zone conference is not until tomorrow, but we are having a zone p-day today! It will be "snow football" which basically means... football... in the snow. haha It will be an awesome time! So then we will head back here and the very next morning head back again! lol Wooo for trains! Or is that.. whooot whooot?? lol (Sometimes even I don't understand myself...) :) So, Christmas is in full force with us! We have decorated the apartment and things are looking mighty fine! I will try to include some photos! Haha our Christmas tree is probably the funniest thing I have ever seen. We don't have a tree... So, we took a little floor lamp and wrapped some green decorating garland around it. (the stuff you would normally put above a window or on top of an entertainment center) We then adorned the "tree" with lights and ornaments and other things and then completed it by putting a picture of Jesus on the top! haha Perfect! It is rather strange actually... but near and dear to my heart. Just think... year after year searching for the perfect tree and then finally having the opportunity to be in Sweden where the trees are perfect and beautiful and having to settle with a floor lamp and some plastic decorations! hahaha It makes me laugh. :) Anyway, our decorating was helped a lot by a couple of envelopes from Mom!! Can I just say one thing.... I have the best home ward on the face of the planet!!! Opening that package and seeing all of the hand made decorations made me feel so warm and loved! Of course I cried like crazy... haha It really, REALLY meant a lot to me. Not to mention..... JON SCHMIDT!!! I can't believe he made one for me!! How lucky am I!! I was so surprised! I was going through looking at all of them and reading mom's notes and then I got to one that said, "you are really going to like this one..." I pretty much screamed... haha well, yeah, I did. I am so lucky! Thanks Mom! Anyway, anyway, anyway... I am just very happy right now.. It feels great, because this is how I feel everyday! :) I should get to the e-mails because we need to go catch a train! Hello my dear father.. I love you!! I am happy to hear that my letter made it there and that Bishop Jacobsen was able to read it for you all. I bet that was a little hard for Mom. I feel as though I should write another letter and thank them for the wonderful decorations they made for me! haha Oh! about the phone calls... I am pretty sure that it is an 8 hour difference... So double check that one so we can be on the same track! Thank you for taking care of the phone card and be sure to let me know the details next e-mail! We will most likely be calling from the church here. We were thinking that 5 o'clock our time would be best for us and you. That would mean if we called at 5 our time it would be 9:00 AM your time. Let me know if that works with you! I am calling your phone right?? haha Anyway. As for the length of the call.. It is pretty much wide open. We have not received any time limits, but I think it will probably be about as long as when Josh and Kevin would call us on their missions. Anyway, it will all work out and be awesome! Haha I loved your spin on the Gift of Tongues! Very funny! It is true.. my taste buds have changed and it is a good thing! Right in time! As for the reading... its all good! Just keep trying! Remember, this is not supposed to be stressful.. Just relaxing and enjoyable! :) Anyway, I love you very much and can't wait to talk with you on Christmas! Okay next is Matt!! I love you Matt!! It sounds like Christmas break is going to be fun and enjoyable! Work hard these last few days so that you can play hard these next couple of weeks! Who is going to be taking care of Molly while you are gone?!?! haha sorry random question! Yeah Matt, Christmas here is going to be great! Different, yes, but great! The branch here is taking care of us and we are going to have a great time! I would be a liar though, if I did not tell you I am missing home like crazy!! I love the Christmas season... It is a big one for family! :) However, patience deepens joy! :) Wow!! BYU is 18th in the nation?? Well they just keep doing great! That is so good to hear! :) Anyway, have an awesome week Matt! I love you and pray for you every day! Stay Strong! Not just physically.. ;) :) Okay now it is on to Mom!! I love you!!! It definitely sounds like you are excited for this trip to Utah for Christmas! I bet you all are! How fun! Tell everyone hi for me and that I love them!!! :) Especially tell that to Landon when he makes his grand appearance! :D Also, tell Sister Manning thank you for that wonderful gift and that I send my love! It would seem as though you have seen a couple miracles there yourself!! I am so glad that Colin is doing well and that they could all get to Oklahoma safely! Also, I am SOOOOOOO HAPPPPYYYY to hear that Nana is cancer free and in remission!! What amazing news that is! I have been praying and praying for her and I am so glad that she is doing well! I love her! I also received a package and a card from her for Christmas! She loves me too! :) Anyway, thank you for your e-mail Mom! I love you and just like everyone else, can't wait to talk to you soon! Okay well I have zero time this week so my Spiritual Thought is going to a video again!!! Here is the link... http://lds.org/pages/what-shall-we-give?lang=eng trust me.. this one is good!! I love it! If you did not get to watch the Christmas Devotional... you missed out! The music was gorgeous, and the messages were amazing. The Spirit was still there even if it was in Swedish and not the real voices! haha Anyway, I will give you the reading for this week now.

Monday (today) p.78 ch.10 - p.82 ch.13
Tuesday p.82 ch.13 - p.86 ch.16
Wednesday p.86 ch.16 - p.90 ch.20
Thursday p.90 ch.20 - p.95 ch.24
Friday p.95 ch.24 - p.100 ch.26
Saturday p.100 ch.26 - p.104 ch.27
Sunday p.104 ch.27 - p.109 ch.29
Monday (next) p.109 ch.29 - p.115 ch.32

I love you all very much... With all of my heart in fact! Keep praying and loving that Christmas Spirit... Or rather.. The Spirit of Christ! :) Until next week...

Trogen och Stadig, Är Jag Redo!!!!!Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready!!!!!Äldste Kundis :) :) :)

"Called to serve him, heavenly king of glory!!!"

Äldste Kundis to the rescue! Does someone need the Gospel?!

A more refined snap shot... :)

Hahahaha I just couldn't resist!

Me and our humble Thanksgiving.. :) Nice huh??

This is "Glögg" a special hot Christmas drink... SSSOOOOO gooooddd!!! Mmm!

The food at the branch party and a few of the little children in the branch! :D

Hej Familj!!!

Indeed I have been called to serve, and it feels amazing! First things first, Äldste Overstreet is awesome! Transfer times are always scary because you just don't know what to expect, but the Lord has blessed me! A little about Äldste Overstreet.... He hails from the beautiful state of Arizona and resides in Mesa. He has been in Sweden for two months and has excellent Swedish. He is a hard worker and knows exactly why he is here... to Serve the Lord! :) Needless to say, I am very happy that I will be able to spend this long 13 week transfer with him, and Christmas too!! Yes, that IS the official word... This will be a 13 week transfer and it will be incredible! Already, we have seen a big change here in Skövde. We have been tracting non-stop and talking with lots of people! The work is tough, and the weather is COLLLLLDDDDD, but the reward of coming home at night, kneeling down and saying, "Lord, I have done my best.. Rest my body that I may return to the work tomorrow and find the prepared" is so worth it! I love how tired I am, and I love the challenges. They help me grow, and I know the Lord loves me because of them! We are still receiving lots of snow here and the wind continues to blow... But I need to tell you something... Perhaps a little secret... If people think Sweden is beautiful in the Summertime, just wait until they see the Wintertime!! Honestly, flying down a train track through the winding terrain and looking out the window only to see forests covered in white, lakes beginning to freeze and snow falling is something really special. I absolutely, positively, undoubtedly love this place! Helt underbar! So, yes, the Christmas season is coming up, and everyone is getting ready. Seemingly every window here has a little candle thing in it (kind of like a menorah, but definitely not... because they are not Jewish... lol) Also, lights just keep appearing everywhere! More and more!!! Sure, the sun goes down at 3:30 PM, but the town stays lit thanks to all of the lights! Woo!! The members are also getting into the Christmas Spirit! We were invited over to a members house for dinner yesterday, and she had decorations up and it just felt good! Want to know what we ate?!?!? I bet this will alarm almost everyone that knows the kinds of food I like, and those I just can't eat. Well, we had a fish and shrimp bake type thing with vegetables galore!!! Guess what??? I loved it!!! ha ha, my taste buds have definitely changed! I can't believe I have gone this long in life not liking shrimp!!! Was I crazy!? ha ha I surprise myself seemingly everyday! Ya!!! lol :) Anyway, I have rambled on long enough! I better get to the e-mails fast! Okay well to start the e-mails, it is Matt!!! I love you brother! :) Sounds like you had a pretty nasty virus! Did you ever find out how you got it? I hope you didn't lose too much weight.. Thats never good when you are sick! From the pictures of you decorating the Christmas tree it looks like you are doing well again, and that is good to see! Molly still jumps and bites at the snow when you shovel huh?? Some things just never change I guess! I was always fine with it, but then she would start to get in the way, and then it bugged me.. Now I would love nothing more than to see her here in Sweden eating up all the snow as I shovel someones drive or here around the church! Ha ha, I would love it! Oh wow, sounds like BYU is still doing well! That is goooood to hear! You and the family are going down to Utah for Christmas? How cool is that!! Fill me in on all of the details! Where are you staying and who are you spending it with? It should be crazy fun! Speaking of which, snowboarding sounds fun! Be careful though... I like your motto, but your motto is no good when you happen to break your leg or your arm! :) ha ha you know me, just watching out for you! Well, Matt, my brother, enjoy this season, and work hard to finish up your work at school before the break! You can do it! I know you can! Have an awesome day brother! Okay, now it is time for me to reply to Dad!!! I love you so much Dad!!! :) First off, thank you so much for the advice about being a senior companion. It was really helpful! Also, thank you very much for addressing my concerns about becoming a senior. I need all the help I can get right now, and your love and support helps me a ton! Thank you Doctor Dad!!! ha ha Good times! As for the scripture reading, I can understand that it would get a little messed up because of the illnesses that have been going on.. Its all good! :) As for where we are, I will mention that at the end.. I have figured out the pages and chapters and stuff for all of this week! Woo! I am soooooo glad that you and Mom had such a wonderful time at the temple! Your experience brought tears to my eyes as well! Completely amazing! :) Temples are just incredible!!!! What happens there and what we learn when we go with questions is purely amazing. I miss the days of the MTC when we went every single week! But anyway, thank you so very much for your e-mail and all that you do for me! :) Okay, now I will move on to Mom!!! I love you Mom!!! It is so good to hear that you and the family loved the Jeffery R. Holland talk! It is completely amazing, and I love it every time I watch! Really puts the Book of Mormon into perspective huh?! :) Bravo on the Christmas tree! It looks amazing! Did Dad do the lights like he does every year?? I always loved that part of Christmas!! Going out as a family to get the tree, fighting over trees, and then finding the perfect one... Dad always wanting to get a Charlie Brown tree.. ha ha ha ha :) Then we would decorate it as a family and decorate the house!!!! All as a family.. perhaps thats why I loved it all sooooo much! Yup :) I am sure that was it! I love you all!!! :) As for the camera card, I haven't sent it yet. I have been pretty busy and also, I need to figure out which one of the cards to send!! ha ha Perhaps I will mail it off this week.. We will see.. I need to write a summary of the pics because I don't just want to send them and confuse you all! Anyway, I will get that to you! Oh my! That news about Colin made me jump out of my seat! Poor little guy! I am glad that he is doing better now and that all is well. Babies can be so scary at times! Sounds like his baby blessing was great though! :) Be careful out on those roads Mom!! I don't like hearing those kinds of stories!! Tell that driver that rear-ended you to leave you alone! Why did he pick on my Mom?!?! Not cool.. Not cool. lol ;) I am glad to hear you are okay and safe! Bara så du vet.. Just so you know... Zone Conference is on Tuesday the 14th of December. You asked... I responded.. ha ha Anyway, I love you Mom!! Thank you for everything and have an awesome week! Alright everyone today's Spiritual Thought followed by the schedule for the Book of Mormon reading! Today's Spiritual Thought comes from the 18th chapter of 1st Nephi. This is when Nephi finishes the boat the Lord had commanded him to build. He says, in essence in verse four that the ship was "good" and that the workmanship was exceedingly fine. Why was this so??? Was it because Nephi was an amazing ship builder, or was it because of something else? I think it was something else.. If we read verse two of the same chapter we can see why the ship was "good".. Verse two reads, "Now I, Nephi, did not work the timbers after the manner which was learned by men, neither did I build the ship after the manner of men; but I did build it after the manner which the Lord had shown unto me; wherefore, it was not after the manner of men." So, we can see here that the ship was "good" because Nephi followed the way of the Lord. I would like to apply this to our lives today. As we go about life and make decisions we should constantly be praying to the Lord.. (See verse three of the same chapter) He will direct our paths and help us to be happy! ! ! If we are constantly doing what the Lord asks of us and follow his guidance, through the Holy Ghost, our lives will be "good". We will be able to stand back and see that the Lord has truly blessed us. I love my Savior, and I am thankful for all that He has done for me. I also love the ability to be a missionary and to have this time to get to know Christ and to follow him in every way. :) I love my life! I love this Gospel!! Okay, now for all of those who are reading with us... here is something that will help out greatly! It is a list of the reading for every day!

Monday (today) - p. 41 ch. 18 - p. 46 ch. 20 (This is where you should be)
Tuesday - p. 46 ch. 20 - p. 50 ch. 22
Wednesday - p. 50 ch. 22 - p. 53 2nd Nephi
Thursday - p. 53 2nd Nephi - p. 60 ch. 3
Friday - p. 60 ch. 3 - p. 65 ch. 5
Saturday - p. 65 ch. 5 - p. 69 ch. 7
Sunday - p. 69 ch. 7 - p. 78 ch. 10 (Sorry, just how it worked out.. Plus, its Sunday!)
Monday (next) - p. 78 ch. 10 - p. 82 ch. 13

Okay, so just to clarify... When you are reading... The page you start on, no matter how much text is on that page counts as one page.. Read the four pages and whatever you end on you finish the chapter... make sense?? SO, YES.. even if a new chapter starts anywhere on the fourth page that means you must finish the chapter, meaning that you might read a lot some times. ha ha wow.. complicated! But it needed to be cleared up! Anyway.. I love you all!!! Have an awesome week!

Trogen och Stadig, Är Jag Redo!!!!!

Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready!!!!!

Äldste Kundis :) :) :)

Transfers... Senior WhAt?!?!

Hej Familj!!

Well, sorry about the late e-mail... I forgot to mention that transfers were coming up last week and that Wednesday would be my P-Day again. But anywhooo it looks like you just figured that out yourselves! So, transfers... lol I will be staying here in Skövde and be getting Äldste Overstreet as my companion. Also, if you can't tell from the title of the e-mail, President also made me Senior Companion!! AGghhhhHHHhhhHHH!!!! haha Äldste Overstreet has been in Sweden for two months, so that means I will be doing his follow-up training... Which basically means getting him moved out of the "greenie" stage. I have mixed emotions about all of this.. Let me try to explain! First of all, I am very, VERY excited! This will allow me the opportunity to have more of a say about what goes on, and it will be a huge period of growth for me!!! Don't worry, I absolutely do not intend on being "Mr. Bossy" to Äldste Overstreet.. haha We will learn together and make decisions as a team, rather, as a companionship! :) But really, this transfer is going to be big! I will grow a lot! The language will get better because I no longer have a Senior Companion to rely on......... (gulp), and my growth as a missionary will also increase! I am excited on those aspects... However, I am scared to death right now! Everyone keeps telling me I am ready, but I don't quite feel that way! I have been praying really hard and basically I plan on getting the Lord's help all that I can because I am going to need it! :) Oh! As for Äldste Watts, he is moving BACK to Katrineholm to be the district leader there. (he was there last Christmas time) Oh and get this, he is going to be companions with an Elder that he has been companions with two times already!!! Crazy! Definitely the funniest transfer anyone has ever heard of! lol OOOHHH!!! Also, just so you know, this transfer is going to be a super long transfer.. I think either 12 or 14 weeks long!!! It has something to do with the MTC and new Elders... I am not completely sure.. When I find out for sure, I will be sure to let you know and keep you informed! Okay, well that is the transfer information. We have a little bit of time left to e-mail and then we have to go get on a train and be off. So, I will get to the e-mails before I run out of time! First up we have Dad!!! I love you so much Dad!!! He asked lots of questions about the Book of Mormon challenge so I will answer those... First off he asks if when you are reading if you are supposed to read out loud with each other and go around the room or read silently together... To be completely honest, I think it would be best if you all began with a (kneeling) prayer together.. with whoever you are reading with, (if you choose to read as a family.. etc...) then read silently... Mark what you choose to mark and then end with your OWN PERSONAL (kneeling) prayer... After everyone has finished and prayed... get together and discuss what you felt.. read.. highlighted.. Share your prayers.. Bear testimony even!!!!! Don't think that will get too repetitive, because it is amazing! You read something different every day in the scriptures... Things you can build testimony in, or possibly already have a testimony about. It will be amazing! Maybe make it a weekly thing if it is not working out... I want this to bring us all together, but at the same time, I want it to REALLY be a sincere personal experience. Does that make sense?? I just want the Spirit to be felt!! :) :) Anyway, on to the next question! Where do we start reading?? I started from 1 Nephi 1:1 myself.. That is where you should start, but if you want to read the intro and other parts.. feel free!!! They are just not part of the pages thing.. hehe:) I will let you know what pages and things so we are all on the same page next week because I left my Book of Mormon that I am using at the apartment on accident... Transfers can be tough!! lol For a quick check.. today is Wednesday and I have already done the reading for today. That means I just finished with 1 Nephi 10... Is that where you are?!?! Good! haha Okay well now I am going to continue with Dad's part of the e-mail!! :) Okay, well it is good to hear that you finally got snow up there! Isn't it just lovely?!?! hehe Nice idea for your other highlighting thing! "Revelations for our day..." I really like it! I have to be honest, when I read that was what you had chosen I laughed a little.. only because I said in my mind... (Thats MY DAD!!!!!) :) lol I love ya! As for my thumb, things are back to normal! The bruising did not get bad, and the pain went away a while ago! Nothing to worry about there! I am soooo excited that Mom and you had the opportunity to attend the temple together in Billings! As today is Wednesday I am sure you have been there and it was great! I look forward to hearing about how it all went! :) Well, I love you very much Dad! Stay safe out there on the snow!! My prayers are with you!! :) Okay now on to my brother Matt! I love you Matt!! So, you had an awesome Thanksgiving break huh? Sounds like a fun time! I know how that is to put off all of the homework until the day before you go back though... makes things tough, but thats just a part of learning! I am still trying to figure it all out for myself! So, how are you liking the Book of Mormon challenge?? I hope that you are taking it serious brother... I hope that you can feel the Spirit while reading and understand all that the Book of Mormon means! Keep me informed Bro... It's important to me.. :) :) BYU Basketball sounds like they are doing amazing! I wish I could see them! Sad story about BYU Football though... one point!!! Josh filled me in on the game with Utah in his e-mail. I am glad that I did not get to watch that one! whew! Being on a mission grants you even the strangest of blessings... NEVER in my life did I think of missing a BYU v. Utah game as a "blessing" haha Oh well!! So, it is hard taking care of Molly right now huh??? I hope that can get figured out.. lol I love that pup! :) How long is she left at home for?!?! haha Poor dog! Anyway... Thank you for your e-mail Matt! I love you very much! :) Now I will move on to Mom!! Yay!! I love you Mom!!! I am thankful that the e-mail worked this time! Even though Bresnan was down.. I hope that by sending this to the bresnan address it still gets to you! :/ lol WOW Mom!! It sounds like you sent a lot of stuff to me for Christmas!!! I hope I can get it all back from the Special Christmas Zone Conference!! You really do spoil me! I have not received anything yet, because I am pretty sure they are holding it all until the Conference. I am excited! So, you enjoyed the Book of Mormon Challenge too!! I am glad! It is really cool! I feel the Spirit amazingly strong as I read and pray! I love it! Completely heart warming! :) As for the Wells Fargo stuff.. thank you for letting me know! :) haha Also, like I asked Dad, let me know how the temple was!!! I am excited for you two! :) Thank you for attaching that picture of Hillary and Landon!! She is pretty big! The time is almost here.....!!!!!!.....!!!! Are you as excited as I am?!?! Wooo!!! Anyway, I love you Mom! Thank you for the awesome words of encouragement and for taking such good care of me! I love you! Okay, now on to the Spiritual Thought.. It will be rather short today because I need to run, but here it is! I would like you to go to the new church website and go to the conference talks section. Get to the October 2009 Conference and watch the talk given by Elder Jeffery R. Holland entitled, "Safety for the Soul" I am sure you all remember it, but in light of the Book of Mormon challenge starting I would encourage you to watch this... It brings tears to my eyes every time! Here is a link!!!... http://lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2009/10?lang=eng Well, I love you all very much!!! I need to go!!!! Until next week...
Trogen och Stadig, Är Jag Redo!!!!!Faithful and Steady, I AM Ready!!!!!Äldste Kundis :) :) :)