Member Missionary Work

Hej mine damer og herrer (Dansk)

Quote of the Week: “Nothing like running the streets of Stockholm, with a crazy Iranian in trash bags!”

We had a lesson with our good friend from Iran, and as we were about to leave, it was just pouring rain. So we were ready to just run about a mile in the rain to our car, but then she busted out some black garbage bags and made us some nice little ponchos! Still got soaked… but hey we tried. (See Pictures.)

This week was fantastic! It was like the week of “Member Missionary Work.” I throughout my mission have had the hardest time getting the members to get involved in the missionary work. People are too busy or have had bad experiences or just simple don’t feel like it! But this week we had I believe almost in every lesson with our investigators a member was there, or we taught at a member’s home. It was fantastic to see how much of a difference it can make, that when we all work together how much better things go! It also feels like our companionship got just a little bigger, now it’s not just Elder Mangum and I. Now it’s Elder Mangum, Täby ward, and I. It’s been so phenomenal.

Had a wonderful experience last Friday, which not too many people get to be a part of especially here in Sweden. Lennart Nyblom he was a man that I had the privilege to teach and baptize when I was in Jakobsberg, and I was able to go with him to the temple for him to go through for his first time. Not only that I got to be with Elder Allsop and Faylor. They had been taking care of him and really made it possible for him to be ready for this. I owe them a lot for that.

But it was just so cool to see him and it was like my mission flashed before my eyes. I remember the first time knocking his door and teaching him for the first time. Then when he came to church for the first time with his jeans and a flannel shirt on. Going through all the lessons, and commandments help him to stop drinking coffee and then to see him in White, the day of his baptism. Lastly getting to sit next to him in the temple, there is nothing that can describe the joy I felt. It simply doesn’t get much better than that!

Had another cool experience as well, we were teaching one of our investigators that has a baptismal date, he has a small family of 4 with 2 sons. No one else except for the dad has been interested, until last week. We would always go in and chat with the kids and then when we would start to teach they would go into the other room. But not on Wednesday. We watched “Finding Faith in Chirst,” in Chinese with them and after as we started to teach the father. The older son just asked us, “Can you speak in Swedish so I can understand the way of God too?” (In Swedish.)

 So at that point we were able to start teaching him as well. He came to church and we had a member who could speak Chinese there and he helped translate and teach. After it all the 17 year old boy just looked at us and said, “I believe everything that you said, it is all true.” We will be working on him and his father for baptism in the next month or so.

(Funny side note: The kids’ names are ridiculously hard, so I gave them nicknames Bruce (Lee maybe racist) and Kobe (Bryant he likes basketball).)

Love you all and take care! Hope to get many packages and letters from you all this week! (hint hint)

Elder Haddon