What up what up my good friends and random followers in the US, Brazil, North Korea, and Democratic Republic of the Kongo. This was another soul ripping, heart pounding week here in the sinfully beautifully city of Trondheim.
Warning
I thought I'd throw out a warning because lately I have been thinking about my reading audience. I have great respect for all faiths, heck I talked to a guy who believed in the flying spaghetti monster, so don't ever take offense to what these letters include. I am a 19 year old kid who is growing more and more passionate about the truthfulness of the message I share. The only time I ever hope you take the message way personally is if it will inspire you to change for the better. Anyways, just remember, I respect all religions, beliefs, and faiths.
Our Break Dancing Buddy
So our break dancing buddy is turning out to be quite the adventure to teach. He is a great kid who has the utmost faith in Jesus Christ. Our current problem is that he is a Pentecostal christian and we have no idea what that entails. Having been sheltered Mormon children our whole lives, we are entirely unaware of what to expect. We debated going to a service but after seeing some Google pictures we decided against it. You can imagine the struggle I have when we begin to discuss speaking in tongues, and the 7 seals, in the Norwegian language. He is a fun heartfelt kid who has so far been the only person in Trondheim who consistently responds to 100% of our texts (The Norwegians are obsessed with using smiley faces in texts, its weird, like wayyyyy overused haha). So we continue to work with him and try to help him understand. Wish us luck.
Another Religion
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| Eldste Shanklin |
So this week we had a couple weird experiences regarding another religion. They are nice people but man, we had some weird experiences. First one was the weirdest. We were sitting on a bench offering a prayer when suddenly some guy comes up to us and wants a copy of the Book of Mormon study aid manual. "Dude, 90% of the members of the church don't even know that exists, how do you?" So after a talk and an appointment we arranged to get him one. We met him at his apartment and we talked a while, discussed some doctrine. Once again, no offense, but their doctrine is so...interesting. The dude was so nice and we got like 4 free books about Jesus but man, I was so lost. The whole time I just kept thinking, "Why does this 65 year old single man have a Jonas Brothers lunch box on his counter". So we got out of there but he told us his friend on the first floor may be interested. Well we headed there but as soon as we got to the first floor the peace and spirit just left. As we walked to this other guys door it was covered in communist articles and posters and pictures of Chinese people. There was also a sign that read (in Norwegian) "Only allies are welcome beyond this point". Yeah, we went home. Fun times.
Language Barriers
So here in Norway you could seriously run into any language. So many immigrants come here so it is very common to find people that are running around like chickens with their heads cut off in regards to their language skills. I am amazed people can survive with 0 Norwegian and a 3 year old level of English speaking. Oh the Norwegian people also speak incredible English. Its crazy how good they are. Its really awesome because you get lots of opportunities to get help with the language because they can help you understand in both languages. As of now though I have given out Book of Mormons in Norwegian, English, French, Spanish, Persian, Portuguese, Turkish, and Polish. It is absolutely crazy. Gotta love the adventures though.
General Conference
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| The Land of Norway |
So actually this week went by really fast because we watched General Conference for most of Saturday and all of Sunday. Oh man, It was incredible. I was more exhausted on Sunday night than on any other day in my mission. Being on a mission and having conference is seriously the best. You get so much strength from listening to these men called of God. I will go as far to say that anybody with an open heart who listens to these men speak would instantly feel that they come from God. Jeffery R. Holland, mind blowing. Anyways, I hope everyone sensed the same urgency I did. The world is speedily falling into ideas that make it seem like doing wrong is right. I would reiterate the message shared, that mans laws cannot make moral what Gods laws have made immoral. What a blessed opportunity to hear from these God given disciples of Christ every six months.
added from our letter: General Conference: It was really fun and inspiring. The thoughts I found insightful for you to share with the family are as follows: The world is slowly separating itself from the church. The statistics presented by Elder Oaks are very alarming and show that the importance of the family is slowly being diminished. The family is the most essential unit in the church and should never be brought down. How do we strengthen our families? We serve others. Through missionary work as many speakers brought up and through home teaching as our wonderful prophet spoke on, we can show our dedication to the lord. Serving others as a family can bring the spirit stronger into our homes and better show the Lord our love and respect for him. Never sacrifice your standards for that of the worlds. As President Uchtdorf said "Rise up", this is not the time where the Lord needs people to cower in fear or worry about the mistakes they have made, shake off the dust and get up. The atonement makes it possible for us to change and become better. We cannot let the world change who we are and what we stand for. Those who challenge the prophet Joseph Smith and the divinity of the Savior Jesus Christ will one day have to stand trial before the judgement bar of Christ. Conference was wonderful, and the testimonies of each of those men brightened my spirits. And yes we had a pretty good laugh at the BYU Quarterback Gifford Nielsons (watch here) enthusiasm. Elder N's notes said..."Missionary work...EXCLAMATION POINT"
Well it has been another good week in Trondheim and I hope all is going well for my friends everywhere. I feel like sometimes I forget to say things that are important but oh well. My fan mail is on the downward slope currently so don't forget to write your local hometown hero of a missionary ( you can email him at braydon.shanklin@myldsmail.net). Kidding. Anyways, I love the work and continue to feel the blessings of putting my trust in the Lord. This is his work, and it is impossible to deny the truthfulness and reality of his divine existence and love. Keep the faith and work harder today for a better tomorrow. Clear eyes, full hearts.
Eldste Shanklin
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