Monday, April 28, 2014

Letter #40 - Die zeit vergeht im Fluge (the time flies by)...

WELL FOLKS we are at another week's end, and its just flying by. This week, I LOVED. I also learned a lot.  Let's start (for people who know German, that's pretty clever eh?) :)

Montag:
Since it was basically Easter here and everything was closed, we had to move our p-day to Tuesday. So, that is what we did instead. So, we had Distrikt Meeting, and then we had a meeting with our Ward Mission Leader. Then game night! I was with Elder Cole for the day, and I love my ginger buddy. :)

Dienstag:
So this was suppose to be a p-day, but it ended up being different. :) Ha. We met with Lilia, and we just LOVE her. We did set a baptismal date. But, then she said she wanted to know a little more before she commits, which is okay. She is so prepared, and we'll talk about her later. So after we met with her, Elder Givens and I went shopping. He needed some clothes for his upcoming semester at BYU. So basically, I was his personal stylist for the day. We found some good stuff. :)

Mittwoch:
Ah, what a jam packed day. It was appointment after appointment, which is one feeling I haven't had. But, I loved it. We went to the familie Detmers, and had a barbecue (again :)). They again had a couple friends come over, which was awesome. We then visited Brüder Auras in our ward. He is the oldest member of the ward. So, we call him Papa Auras. He is a great old man. It was great to hear his testimony of Christ. We then went to Institut and met Lilia. We had a great lesson about receiving revelation through the Buch Mormon. We stayed at the Zone Leader's apartment afterwards, because we were splitting the next day. I love Elder Ward and Allen. :) We had a great time. :)

Donnerstag:
I had a great time with my Aussie boi Elder Ward. We went to their District Meeting, and then went to his foot appointment. He has some NASTY ingrown toenails. Nasty I tell you. But luckily, they are healing up. We then went to do a street display in Fürth. It was so fun. Three hours. We handed out balloons, Book of Mormons, candy, pamphlets, salvation, you name it. It was a great time. We then splitted back, and Elder Givens and I were back together. :)

Freitag:
Met with Lilia AGAIN. It was great. We talked about the Law of Chastity, and how she couldn't live with her boyfriend anymore. It actually turned out a lot better then we thought. We were worried about it. We watched the talk that Elder Bednar gave about two years ago about it. It really was a powerful talk. She also told us about how she drank coffee at her work, and offered some to one of the members of our church. She said no. Lilia naturally asked why? She said it's because of the Word of Wisdom. And then our member said that she can drink it now. But if she wants to become a member, she is going to have to stop. So she looked at the drink, and threw it away! AH, SHE IS SO AWESOME! So, then we went to a birthday party for a member in our ward. It was a great old time. :)

Samstag:
We helped clean up the party mess at the church for service. So basically, the after party you could call it. Then, we went home to do weekly planning. But, then the Pobanz's called us, and invited us to come over and have a barbecue! It was a great time, and I love the Pobanz's. They really are a wonderful family. They are full of love. I am so glad that they are so nice to us. I especially love my homie Adam. He reminds me of myself, ironically. Ha. That was a great day, and nice to have some burgers. :)

Sonntag:
Lilia came to church, and I didn't even notice at first. She looked exactly like a member when she was there. This woman is something fantastic. This day was rough for me though. I have been fighting a cold the entire week. This week was just BOOM, an atomic bomb landing. It was a great time at church, and then we met with the Molnar familie. We watched videos of all the boys on a fishing trip in Italy. :) It was great. :)

This week was a rough one. As for me personally, I just struggled, a little bit, on feeling good about myself, and having confidence. I just didn't really want anyone to help me the way they were helping me. But, then I did want help. Makes sense right? I decided to read in my journals about previous experiences, and I prayed.

I realized, when reviewing my past experiences, that I had totally disregarded them. Even though those experiences show that I can do it, I just was dwelling on the negative. I think that is why it's so important to REMEMBER. Remember who you are. Remember your relationship with your Heavenly Father. Remember the people that have told you how great you really are: family, parents, friends, etc. Remember that you have made it through these hard times before. You can do it again. Remember, that the Atonement is for EVERYONE. We can use that power to make us strong. This I know, and I give my promise. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.


LOVE YOU ALL!!! MACHT'S GUT!! :)

Elder Adam Mayne



















Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Letter #39 - FROHE OSTEREN!!!!!!!

What a week, what a week. Many miracles and lots of candy. I am trying to work on my intros, to make them more interesting or at least transition better into the week. Because I am just the creative type. But, we all can't find all the eggs.... :) Ha. My humor is off today too. On to this wonderful Easter week:

DIENSTAG:
Oh what a day. As Distrikt Frau (the Distrikt Leader's companion), I have come to (well it's a work in progress) love splits. We had one today after Distrikt Meeting and I went with Elder Brown! He is from my MTC group, and we get a long really well. I was excited to be with him. We went to a lesson with Lilia, and it was AMAZING! We taught about the Plan of Salvation. A member, that taught with us, had a visual Plan that used The Simpsons on it. It was hilarious. It was so great. I asked her to be baptized when she finds out that it is true, and she was like: "Auf jeden fall. Bis stimmt!" Ha. Which means like, no doubt and of course. Ha. So, it was soooo cool. I was worried about the lesson, because it was a bad day for German. But, it went wonderfully. :) We were then going to go to basketball. But apparently, there was badminton instead. So, we talked to some Chinese people and had some good discussions. :)

Mittwoch:
Elder Brown and I were still together and met with the Dettmer Familie, to do some service. Ha. Elder Brown is a great guy. He is from Payson. He wrestles and was in the Air Force. So, suffice it to say, he is a solid guy. And I love him. :) At the Dettmers, we chopped SOO much wood with a tiny little hatchet and a rusty wood cutter. I felt like Paul Bunyan. I decided that I could never become a lumber jack because I had some sick bruises on my hands afterwards. :) We then had a barbecue with them. They invited non-member friends, and we got to just say who we were and what we were doing. Ah, IT WAS SO COOL. I love Brüder Dettmer. He is like six foot five and 300 pounds. But, he is a big teddy bear. Ha. It's great to get hugs from him. :) It was a great time. :)

Donnerstag:
AH, I LOVE THE POBANZ FAMILIE. They are the only American family in our ward. They are from Utah. They have lived in Germany for 12 years. The dad works at Puma. Being with them, I realized how much I missed Americans and their humor. Haha. It was a great time. We talked, had dinner, made Easter eggs, and shared the video "Because of Him." It was a great time. I just absolutely love this crazy familie. :) Sure I was a little trunky. But, I loved the hospitality that the family gave us, and how they are so willing to love us.

FREITAG:
So today, is called Stille Freitag, and its where the church bells don't ring. It really is to just remember the Savior and what not. We were recommended to not go door-to-door or on the streets today. So, we went to Nürnberg and finished General Conference instead. It was a great time, and we received a lot of insight. Elder Givens then worked on his "mission history" which is funky, because he is almost done with his mission! But I am so grateful for him, and for the great example he is.

Samstag:
Haha. A FAIL of a day. We did weekly planning and then we were planning on handing out a little Easter treat to some of the members in the ward. But, we couldn't find molasses anywhere to make brown sugar, so we just used the brown sugar that they put in coffee and what not... Ha ya, fail. The cookies were just... well let's just say, we fed them to the ducks that are on our way to the church. Hopefully they are ok. :) But it's the thought that counts right??

Sonntag:
One of the most interesting Easters I have ever had. It was such a hard day. We went to Church and it was a great time. But some things happened that drove the spirit away. It was just hard, when we were all trying to think of Christ and what not. We then met with the Websters. It was an ok lesson. I did not feel very confident at all, and felt bad afterwards. Satan was just really working on me, and doing a swell job of making me feel inadequate. Then, when we were walking home, there was some guys yelling from the balcony, and flipping us off. I was just... mad. I was just like, why do I have to feel this way? Its Easter! I am trying to think of Christ and just help people be happy. Why does this happen to me? Then a thought came into my head that I hadn't thought of before: "Because I suffered all these things too." I just started crying. I know that I can and will never compare my little mission to Christ's, what he had to do, and what he had to suffer. But, I felt the tiniest little part of what he had to go through. I could barely handle it. This made me appreciate the Savior even more. How much does he love us? Why did he go through all those things for us? Why was he resurrected? Because of Him, we will live again. We WILL be resurrected, and we will return to be with our ultimate loving Heavenly Father. I cannot explain or express my deepest love for Him. But as I serve and act as a representative of Him, I know how much joy and love He felt, for all of his Children. He loved us first, and that is why I love Him. I love my Savior Jesus Christ. And I know that He is risen. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.


Elder Mayne



I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!! I hope all is well. Ah, you mean all so much to me. :) Love you all so much. :) Have a great week.

The Pobanzs

My friend that I made, Jim the squirrel.


Monday, April 14, 2014

Letter #38 - What a week :)

I LOVE MISSIONARY WORK?!?! Wanna know why? Well, lemme tell ya...

Montag:
P-days. Love them. Went to the outlets that they have here in Erlangen. Felt like I was back at home. Bought a Scottie Pippen Olympic jersey for only 15 euro. :) Pretty proud about it. :) Ha. So, successful P-day gehabt.

Dienstag:
Ah, I love our Distrikt. We had a wonderful Distrikt Meeting and set some good goals that will get our Distrikt pumpin' and pushin'. It was great. In the Distrikt are my buddies Elder Cole, Elder Ellis, and Elder Brown, who were all in the MTC with me. We also have Elder Wichtermann, my old comp. :) So, its going to be quite the fun time. :) After the meeting, we met with our new investigator, that our member referred us to, Lili! And she is AWESOME. We taught the first lesson and she just ate it up. Her parents were baptist and she wasn't, because she felt like something was missing. Then, she kept going to other churches, but really couldn't find the right one. Ah, it was an amazing miracle and we had a great time with her.

Mittwoch:
Had a great day, and a good lesson with Bruder Steinbrecker. :) I love him. We had a member dabei (there). We could tell how much he missed the ward, and how he does want to come back. He is going through some hard temptations and struggles. We are trying to help him get through them. I had the impression to give him a hug at the end of the lesson, and he really appreciated it. I think that this guy will make the progress he needs to in order to be baptized again and come back to church. I am thankful for the Lord's ever forgiving atonement and mercy.

Donnerstag:
Zone Training! Such a good time. I can testify, when we just prepare ourselves for church or General Conference or when we just have a question, like Joseph Smith, we will receive answers. I loved Zone Training and I just love everyone in our Zone. I then went on a split (ya Distrikt Frau!) and went to Bayreuth with Elder Warr, who is from Saint George and a really cool guy. :) But the best part was when we went and did some student doors. We found 2 new investigators for them!!! They are the first investigators that they have had since last year. It really was a miracle. It was an awesome experience.

Fritag:
We split back after some adventure time in Bayreuth. I pulled my calves (both of them) because I didn't stretch after jogging the other day. So, for 3 days I looked like I had a really bad swag when I walked. :) It was interesting when we talked to people in Bayreuth. Every person we talked to knew perfekt English and wanted to talk in that. Which meant a couple were from the states. Three people (women) called me cute. One rubbed my arm, and I almost ran away crying. Ya, it was an interesting time. :) It was good to see Elder Givens back in Erlangen. :) Then, we had coordination meeting with the other Elders for our street displays. Then had a good solid sandwich for dinner. :)

Samstag:
WEEKLY PLANNING. Ha. It takes SO much time, but luckily one of the attributes I have developed is persistence, diligence, and eating banana bread to keep us going during it. :) This up coming week is going to be AWESOME. So, I am stoked.


I just want to say, I am doing GREAT. I love it absolutely, so incredibly, indescribably. I can't even write anymore in English. That is how much I love my mission!! My wonderful, for the eternities, Young Men's leader Brother Bird said it this way:
"Compare yourself as a man now to what you were then. Are you better prepared for life? Is your faith stronger? Is your testimony more alive?  If you can answer yes to any of those questions (hopefully all of them, to boot!) then you are being a successful missionary."

I know that I am called of God. This week I studied being a disciple of Christ and what that truly means. It seemed as though it was one of the main topics at General Conference. One of the main things that stuck out to me, was living your faith, which is in Christ, all of the time. We never "check our religion out the door" as Elder Holland said. But I know with all my heart, that even though we are disciples of Christ, hard trials will come our way. Some may wonder, why should I follow the commandments, if I am just going to receive trials anyway? Well let me say this, Christ suffered truly the hardest things that we cannot even comprehend, even though he was perfektly obedient to God's commands. We are not better than Him. So, why should we expect to be treated better then Him? I know that if Christ had not Atoned for us, the ultimate example of Love, our harder times would be a lot harder. We would have to deal with them alone. But, I am happy to say we are NEVER alone. Every tear we shed and every hard ache we have, will be returned a hundred fold. As long as we put our trust in Him, and endure to the end. Of this I testify, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.


I LOVE YOU ALL!!!! HAVE AN AWESOME WEEK! I DONT KNOW HOW MANY MILES (OR KILOMETERS) I AM AWAY FROM YOU ALL BUT I STILL LOVE YOU NO MATTER WHAT!!

Elder Mayne :)


So.. sick jacket I found is the first one. Such nice suits.
Ha, read the thing behind us. :)

This was during zone training. Elder Wichtermann in a bunny suit and Elder Ward in his elephant.


My ukelele case

 I MISS JORDANS!!! SO wanted to buy these. Ha.

 Zone Training. I was an example of a basketball player for a theme.



Monday, April 7, 2014

Letter #37 - The week of the beloved Conference :)

Well, this week was a blast. So many great things happened this week. I was a little kid waiting for Christmas, a.k.a. General Conference, this week and I couldn't wait for it. :) But, a few things that happened before:

Dienstag:
April fools!! Ha. We had a great time with the familie Meisner. They invited us over on a beautiful day to have a barbecue with them in their garden. Ahhh, did I eat a lot of meat. :) The Meisners are super great, and I love them. We then went to basketball, got to meet some more people, and had a good talk to Lukas again. Still praying for opportunities!!

Mittwoch:
Ah, a good day. We had to say goodbye to our good buddy Elder Stout. He got transferred to Mannheim. He is a great guy, and super funny. He has an amazing voice, and I am glad that I got to meet this great soldier in the Lord's army. :) To say goodbye to him, we made a tent, and played some games with him (after planning of course). It was super fun, and the tent was needed because that's the tradition. We make a tent every Conference. :) Before that, we went to institute. One of our members brought a friend, and she wants to meet with us!! Her name is Lili. She is super awesome, and super prepared. We have a meeting on Dienstag, so we are excited for that. Ah, such a blessing.

Donnerstag:
I love baking. :) We bought some baking stuff, went and visited less actives and members, and gave them something sweet (choco muffins). I must say, they tasted fantastic. :) It was super awesome to see the brightness in the people's faces when we suprised them. :)

Fritag:
Conference Eve. :) Good day. We did weekly planning, and then we went to sport. We met our buddy Adam, and had a good time at sport. Elder Cole is our Zone now, and he was in my MTC group. I love the guy, so it's going to be fun all working together. We then met with our investigator Brüder Steinbrecher, and it was pretty good. He needs some prayers. He pushed back his date to go to church. But, we still have hope for him.

Samstag:
General Conference!! So, so, good. It was a fun day though. Ha. Elder Givens and an Elder from Bamberg, Elder Wojahn, had to get there leavers interview today (had :)). So, we did a split and I went with Elder King (from Brigham, in his Golden busted transfer) to Erlangen. We did some good contacting, got a Qaran auf Duetsch, and then went to Nürnberg. We went a little early, due to trains, and ended up watching Sister's Conference as well. Haha. Interesting experience. :) But, it was really good, and I learned even more. So, now women are AWESOME! :) Gosh, General Conference was so good. So good.

Sunday:
Even BETTER. Eight straight hours of General Conference. Ha. It was a little long, but I was glued to the TV the entire time. I loved every minute of it. I had a lot of questions that I needed answered, and I got them all answered. I received even more answers that I didn't even think about before. :)

My thoughts from Conference were really about the re-occurring theme, the entire time during Conference, of building your testimony in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We need to trust in Him, believe in Him, and make those covenants that will bring us closer to Him. Times are changing in the world. The world is an ever spiraling circle downhill. We are going to have to plant our tree, and plant it firm. We need to do the things that will defend ourselves. I know that we need to be courageous, and do the things that will bring us closer to Christ. We need to occupy our lives with loving Him, and learning more about His life. Not only learning, but also living.

BE a disciple of Christ. I recommend reading the talks again, watching them, and then living the teachings. I could talk about what I learned for hours. The thing that I would want to leave with you, is that I know Christ is my Savior. He atoned for the Sins of the world. He can not, and he WILL not, leave us alone. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

With Lots of love from Germany,

Elder Mayne