SALT

Hallooo! Wie geht es Ihnen!?

How is everyone out in the real world? Sam wrote to me and helped me realize this is like the pre-mortal life just preparing me to out out into the world again, I never knew what a different world this was!! It really is its own country, seriously a different life. I love it though. I am constantly counting my blessings and pinching myself. Ben wrote me too about the missionary mode where missionaries fluctuate between "honeymoon mode" and "hostile mode" . . . honeymoon phase being you're in LOVE WITH EVERYTHING! From the people, to the work, to the food, to even the ground...haha, and its true! I honestly adore my zone, especially my district...yes Dad, God has favorites and its the Germany mission...actually not only the Germany mission, but the Germany BERLIN mission, dead serious the coolest people are serving in Germany, i'm so lucky to have been thrown in with the bunch.

Its been an odd week emotionally though....the two sisters that welcomed us here, Sister Allan and Sister Jensen (they had been here 6 weeks when we got here) They left at 5am on Tuesday. WAAAAAAaaah....how could I get so emotionally attatched to someone I just met 3 weeks ago!? I'm not sure, but I did and I pray I can serve with one of them when I'm out in the field, they were so great, and I took some pictures so you can see them...then YESTERDAY (Wednesday) we had 4 new sisters come (with 13 other Elders) but they're serving in the Alpine mission. They were so shell shocked and like couldnt function, we wrote them a cute lil note and gave them all hugs and I swear they were just born yesterday, I dont think I was like that, but who knows now, I feel like i've lived here 8 months already. Haha, and I've been here 3.5 weeks, and no i'm not sick of the food, still fantastic. Haha. So....those are the not really that important things. Onto the good stuff....

We have "Large Group Meetings" (creative name huh) anyway they are SO motivating, and so inspirational. This last meeting we learned about feeling/recognizing/and following the spirit. We heard the analogy of our testimonies and car batteries. Just like the alternator charges up ourcar batteries, we need to charge up our spiritual batteries DAILY. Just like if you dont drive a car for a year, it wont start, the batterie drains, EVEN If you dont use it. Luckily we know that we can drive our cars everyday and spritually uplife ourselves, if we just go a week or two weeks with just living life and not charging our batteries, eventually we'll die out....our testimony is in constant fluctuation, its either charging or dying, and you haveto constantly be chargin it. LIFE DRAINS OUR BATTERIES! Even missionary life, apparently the zeone meetings in the field are recharging and missionaries dont even realizee they are lozing life until they get rechargeed, I liked that analogy and hope we can all implement it.

We were SO lucky to see Elder Oaks again!! His daughter came and talked/played for us! She is so fantastic, I recommend her music, Nurp, will you put her music on my ipod bitte? Ps i dont need that til like August 10th/15th, so danke! So she played the most inspirational music, my favorite hymns, nearer my god to thee,and some kurt Bestor song dsomething like "believe me...charms...something" and I would life that song bitte :) um...sorry this comp keeps freezing.

Another awesome story I heard i'll try to retell to you and hopefully it ca touch some of you as it did mme....

So Elder Ballard sat on a plane and of course started bearing his testimony to the man next to him- as he was stating his knowledge of the truthes of the Gospel and of Jesus Christ, the man interruped him mid sentance saying

"WOAH woah, you say you KNOW these things, but you cant KNOW them, no one can, you believe but you cant KNOW."

Elder Ballard then said: "yes I do KNOW them to be true."

The man said"Tell me then HOW do you KNOW?"

Elder Ballardasked the man, "have you ever tasted SALT?"

"yes"

"Explain to me what salt tastes like."

"well it's....not bitter....but well...its SALTY?"

"Can you explain to to me?:

"no"

"Well , then you dont know what Salt tastes like."

Basically I got out of this story, you cant explain to someone the felling and knowldege of the truth ,they have to taste it themselves, and we're born as natural men, which are enemies to God, 1 Cor 2:14.... so my comp keeps freezing and I just keep typing so I cant always see whats being said, so forgive me.....

I wanted to quote our prophet too....We must first prepare tiime for him in our lives and room for him in out hearts.....in these busy days ther are many who have time for golf, time for shopping, time for work, and time for play, but no time for Christ. We have rroms for eating, roomes for sleeping playrooms sewing rooms, tv rooms but no room for Christ....lets change that. Yeah? Okay i'll tyry too as well. Welp I cant see the screen and i'm almost out of time, so KNow that I love you, and i'm so grateful for your support and love. THANKS FAMILY FOR THE PACKAGES and pictures, i'll work on the tape, I GET TO GO CLEAN THE TEMPLE! TSCHUESSSSSSSSS!