July 16, 2012 Forst

Dear Family,

Wow this week was crazy! So, we had an awesome lesson with one of our investigators. His name was Herr , and we had Jonas, Brother B's son (the man that phoned you on Father’s Day  and the son that is going on his mission this week), come with us for a joint teach. We taught him the 3rd lesson out of Preach My Gospel. We kind of went through the whole lesson but really focused it on Faith in Jesus Christ. He had a lot of good questions and we read 2 Nephi 31 with him. We taught him how to pray, because all he didn't know how, and said he would pray later that night. That was on Tuesday and we set an appointment for Thursday to come by again. We stopped by, but because he has a few health problems he wasn't home.

So, we thought it would be good to check on Herr P. We went to the alcoholic “Heim” and we asked the lady at the front to get him for us so that we could talk to him. We have to ask permission because we're not allowed to go past the entrance. She came back and said that his reply was “Es gibt kein Zweck mehr, weg schicken!” (“There is no more point, send them away!”)That was such a blow, because he was making such good progress and now he wants nothing to do with us. It was pretty hard to deal with that. It sucked. Also the weather here in Forst has been so miserable and rainy every day. But the good thing is that it’s not cold, haha. So if we're soaked, at least we're still warm. It was a tough week for us to work.

On Saturday we had transfer calls! We took the train to Dresden and then waited for an hour for transfer calls on our cellphones. Our district was going to the Temple, so that's why we all gathered together in Dresden. I thought for sure that Elder V would get transferred, but he didn't. I did! I got transferred to serve in Hannover! I had the weirdest emotions run through my body. I was devastated for Elder V, because he's been working so hard and has to stay with a new companion for another 6 weeks. That means he will be spending 6 months of his mission in Forst. And I’ve only been there 3 months and I'm leaving to a city with a population of more than 500,000! I'm so excited to leave though, and I can't wait to meet my new companion. The “Wohnung” (apartment) is a 4 missionary apartment. So it's going to be a lot different. I'm super excited though, and I heard that Hannover is known to have the purest Hoch Deutsch (no dialect) in Germany, so that will definitely help me learn the language even more. I packed all of my stuff last night, and said good-bye and took pictures with some members. I'm going to the B family’s house tonight for FHE and then leaving on the train tomorrow morning at 8:30. I'll be in Hannover at 12:30. We left Dresden and then went to the temple. It was so nice and I stayed in the Celestial room for a while. It was a nice 'Pause' (break) being able to sit in the temple away from everything. We then took the train to Dresden. It ended up having to change tracks because a man tried to kill himself by jumping on the tracks. The train ended up switching rails and headed to Leipzig. We got off there and then hung out at the “Bahnhoff` for 2 hours waiting for our next train, to go to Cottbus. It was a long day. We got up at 530am and got home at 930pm. By the time my light was out after writing in my journal, it was 11pm. Definitely a crazy day.

 Elder V was a bit devastated but I think he's ok now. It was weird too, because on Friday night he asked me where I thought he would be getting transferred to. I joked and said, ``You’re not going anywhere; I’m the one leaving this place!” But then I looked at the map and said ``Nah, you're going to Hannover!” Guess I was right, except with the wrong person. So crazy how things turn out. Definitely did not expect that.

Mom I’m so glad that you made jam with R! She emailed me and said that she had a good time and that you let her keep all the jam you made together, haha. Thanks for doing that.

I can't believe Noah is baptized already! So crazy! I remember when he was born and now he's already 8 years old. Just proof that time keeps moving forward.

 Is J still working at Extra Foods or did he get his buy out? Because I thought he was going to try fighting fires this summer??

 I kind of miss basketball, since Germans don't really play it. But a lot of people here play Ping Pong. They had a tournament in the “Gemeinde” (Ward) and Elder V beat everyone. Haha! It was hilarious! Their best player, Br. G, said that he wanted a rematch with Elder V. So last Monday in the evening, they played again and Elder V won. It was crazy to watch! I even tried playing a couple times, and I’m terrible compared to them, lol.( But good enough to keep the ball on the table haha.)

I'm glad Dallin is finally in Mexico and I bet he's loving it there. I'm glad you were able to visit with his parents and see how they were doing.

It seems like you guys are keeping really busy and I’m surprised at the amount of stuff that you guys seem to be able to pack into your days! Crazy. I hope the weather is good for you guys as you go camping.

Next email let me know how Kass and Scott are doing, or have Kass email me or something haha. I want to know what it’s like to be married. Hmm....or maybe have Scott email me cause he's a dude, and girls perspectives are always different than the guys, haha!

Thank Brother B for me, for making that Plaque. Its way cool, and I forgot to tell him that I loved it and that it’s a really good idea that you're putting all the missionaries and the map on the wall. That's awesome! Oooh, one more thing, tell Sister P that I say, hi, and that I miss her too. I sent her a letter about 9 weeks ago and haven't heard anything back yet...but I guess that’s the mission life, haha. We always check the mail box for “Post” but the only thing we seem to get is post for “Wohnung” bills or something, haha. Naja, emails are always good. I haven't got yours yet, mom, but I'll be on later tonight at the member’s house to print what you send me, if you send me something, that is. Know that I love you all!

Charlene sent me a massive email which was sick! So tell her I say thanks!

I've been memorizing scriptures in German and this one kind of stuck out to me. It’s from the third lesson in Preach My Gospel, John 16:15-19. I'll quote up to 17. This is off by heart so don't worry about the spelling and if its wrong, haha. Verse 15 'Da sagte er zu ihnen: Ihr aber, für wen hältet ihr mich? 16. Simon Petrus antwortete: Du bist der Messiahs der Sohn des Lebendigen Gottes. 18. Jesus sagte zu ihm; Selig bist du Simon Berjon; Denn nicht Fleisch und Blut haben dir das offenbart, sondern mein Vater im Himmel.' I hope I got that right, but yeah, this scripture really stuck out to me because it showed that Simon Peter really found out for himself if Jesus Christ was who he said he was. He prayed about it and received revelation from God that “doch” (yes); he really is the Son of the living God. It's so important that all of our investigators really find out for themselves, and receive revelation for them. That’s why it sucks when they don't keep their commitments. But its way cool when they do.

I hope you guys are doing well, and I’m excited that you get to spend some time at the new Kootenay Lake, haha. Hope it’s still enjoyable with only half the family there. I love you guys and miss you!

Love Elder Luening

P.S.. You might want the new mailing address :

Elder Christopher Luening
Königsworther Str. 15
30167 Hannover
Germany

Oh and by the way, packages have to be sent to the mission home. So the first address you ever had from me:

Elder Christopher Luening
Germany Berlin Mission
Zerbster Str.42
12209 Berlin
Germany

Something about if there is a problem with the border or mailing problems or "irgand  etwas" (something else). Then the mission home can take care of it. So I get packages every time we go to zone conference. I mean if i get one, haha.