Monday, February 27, 2017

BROKEN PHONES AND DOP KLÄDER




Hallå allihopa!

And the craziness continues...... beautiful trip to beautiful Stockholm with my lovely companion. Funny side note: she was craving Mexican food the whole day.  Girl just wanted a taco.  I said, "okay, we can try to find you a taco, but I don't know what the likelihood of it is...we are, after all, in Sweden." 
We walk down the streets of Stockholm and look down this side street...big letters: "TACO BAR."  My companion was in heaven--so we quickly captured the moment and made a sharp right to fulfill some dreams.

This has also been a week full of splits craziness!  Örebro Systrarna kom på tisdag--6 sisters in one apartment.  The dynamics were a little fun there!  No more work-overs here.  It was all good though--not too much of a struggle! 
I was with the sister who is being trained, and it apparently was a scary experience for her. Okay, not really but you'll see why. 

So, this day was for some reason the day all of the Book of Mormon bashers wanted to come out.  Now, what I have found since being on my mission is that I have definitely gained a backbone when it comes to defending the Book of Mormon.  If trash is spoken, things get fun.  Well, it's all done lovingly, of course!  
But all these people were bashing, and I'm just here to give them a reason or two not to do so!  9 out of 10 times, things end quite splendidly.  Let's just say I ended up sharing part of 2 Nephi 29 with one of these guys--if you're not familiar with it, give it a go!  It was done completely respectfully, but it does give them a reason to start to listen. 

The sister I was on splits with was apparently quite impressed, and went back to tell her District Leader about it--and when we called him later that night, he said, "So, I hear sister Campbell lays down the law!"  Haha!  I just don't deal with crap.  That's what I've come to find.
 Next day, splits in Eskilstuna.  That went fairly swell.  I spent a total of 4 hours in quite possibly the coldest weather I have ever been in.  Honestly, I have never been so thoroughly numb in my whole life.  And it was a sunny day in Eskilstuna.  

As we were walking back to the church for lunch, the only thing we could relate the feeling of numbness that we were feeling to, was as if we were walking in those air-walk shoes--you know the ones that have way more tread and cushion than ever needed?  Well, kind of like walking on clouds.  So, despite the throbbing pain everywhere else, that actually felt pretty cool!
Next day we had District meeting in Eskilstuna, and basically had a great meeting--but afterwards, we realized that our phone locked us out.  We had our tickets on there, and we had no way of getting home!  Lots of calls later and bothering our poor Office Elders, they said they would meet us at our chapel to fix it.  

Now, to get back to the church was the problem.  So, we had to get a ride from the Elders, got to the church, and just about passed out from hunger and tiredness from being on splits the past 72 hours.  So, we were just waiting there for the Office Elders, and then our Elders gave us a call, and and said that "their Mark and his minions" (their investigator and his friends/followers) were on their way to the church for a lesson, but they already had a different lesson planned, so they needed us to take over.  He was just having his last lesson before baptism, and needed to pick out his clothes and all that stuff, so we said, "Yeah! We would love to!"  We glanced at each other--and a couple of pep talks later, they all show up.
So the POE's  (proselyting office elders) take our phone, and we were left looking for all the clothes we don't know he even needed.  Lots of fun stuff later, the Elders finally show up just in time to help pick out the underwear.  Perfect timing.

Well, he got baptized the next day, and that was great--a big guy being baptized by a little guy--but it actually went a lot better than we all thought!  Help from the other side is so very real.
 As for lessons this week, we had this one guy that I met on the train while on splits and we met him in our chapel the next day and we started teaching him the Restoration--and after every 5 to 10 minutes he would turn to Syster Christensen and say, "I just love Syster Campbell.  She's like an angel.  Since I first met her, just so sweet,"  and said all kinds of things in partial Arabic and English and Swedish.  Once he left,  Syster Christensen turns to me and says, "Well, where was my date?"  Haha!  Awkward circumstances......
 
But yesterday we had this really great lesson--we taught this guy from Syria.  We taught Frälsningsplannen, or The Plan of Salvation and Jesu Kristi Evangelium, The Gospel of Jesus Christ in 30 minutes without him speaking any Swedish or English.  I think that might be a record or something!  

Great converstaions were had via Google Translate which really didn't pull through. Absolutely nothing he typed made sense, but we didn't have the heart to tell him, so we just smiled and nodded in agreement and told him to come back for a lesson with the Arabic-speaking Elders on Skype!  So, hoping things will go well!
I typically would say it's been a pretty normal week--but it really hasn't.  And next week will be even more so not so normal--always adventures to be had.  But thankfully, I've got a companion to laugh through it all with, so--things to be grateful for!

Now, a couple of little quotes to leave you with that I just love:

"The Lord did not make it easy but he made it possible."

"Even miracles take a little time." -Fairy Godmother
 "Opposition allows us to grow towards what our Heavenly Father would have us Become." --Äldste Oaks

"Don't let the world change your smile, but rather let your smile change the world."

And one of my favorites to think about while being in this lovely work--
 "If we understood the true meaning and importance of our message, we would be RUNNING to every door."

That's something I definitely need to internalize more but it is something that I have felt on occasion. Now, to just develop that even more.  If only we actually knew what a blessing it is to be a missionary.  If we only knew what it truly meant to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--I don't think any one of us would want to complain about anything.  I don't think we would have any problem opening up our mouths to share the glorious truths with others.  
So, until we get to that point, "It is our duty to be better than we were yesterday and better tomorrow than we were today."- -Joseph Fielding Smith.  Find that conviction and run with it!  The world needs exactly what we have!

So now, choose one of those quotes--which ever you will--and run with it!  Apply it and try and see just how truly blessed you are.
{translates to "Past and Future".  perfect.}
 I love you all with all my heart, and I'm grateful to be on this little voyage figuring out exactly what I have always had....


Syster Campbell:)

Monday, February 20, 2017

FAITH

Well, there is a new fun thing called "ordering travel" on p-days, and we have a lot of fun traveling to do this week--so, guess what took up half of my emailing time?!  At least this week's letter won't be written on a loose sheet of paper I randomly found like last week's!

Well...this week we got to go on work-overs in Jönköping!  The most gorgeous little city that I just fell in love with!  And it was all just really great--but most of what was really fun to us probably wouldn't sound like anything fun to the real world--let's just say missionary humor goes downhill real fast when the only things you joke about are on the level of a 6-year-old! We just learn to find joy in the simple things.  And in the unfortunate things...life is good.
 So yes.  Jönköping is a dream.  If I had more time, I would love to serve there.

Um...this weeks been good, and that's about it!

Okay, but the good stuff now.

Ether 12: 3-6

"...by faith all things are fulfilled-- Wherefore, whoso believeth in God  might with surety hope for a better world... which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast..."

So Ether was prophesying of all of these things but the people just kept saying, well we don´t believe you because no one has shown us a sign! Oh my! Okay, we hear this all too often. Well... Moroni cleans this up quite well,
 vs. 6  "I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen, wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trail of your faith."

vs.12  "For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; wherefore, he showed not himself until after their faith."

Okay.  Bigger Picture:  Ether is out here among all of these wicked people telling them exactly how to get their answer.  Miracles are brought about by FAITH!  It goes on giving all of these amazing examples of faith that we can read throughout the Book of Mormon.  

It's all right there!  I think we just try and complicate things just a little too much, and think that miracles have to have some complex equation that we have to solve before the miracle can happen.  Often we forget that faith is just the start!  It's the initial seed of hope.  If we're willing to act on it, miracles will come!  
It doesn't mean we have to have the strength now to be able to do everything--it just means that soon we will have the opportunity of applying the Atonement to be able to better ourselves in order to help in the process of miracles occurring.

Now that was a burst of thoughts if you ever did see one!  If it made sense, good--if not we'll try again next week.  But for now, just show God that you are willing to grow.  That you are willing to improve--and miracles will happen.  Be willing to pay the small price for eternal investments.  "Our pain will be but a moment."

Love you all so very much!

Kämpa på.....


Syster Campbell

Monday, February 13, 2017

BE BELIEVING


Well, hello!

It's been a good week here!  I'm going to keep this letter pretty simple, though and share a couple of the miracles of the week!

1--Raul.  We met him on the street for just a second.  He gave us his number and told us his name, so I typed it into the phone, and then he wanted to see how I spelled it because he knew I would have spelled it wrong.  Well, he checks and he was SHOCKED that I actually spelled it right!  Growing up in Salinas has paid off! (meaning, being around a lot of people named Raul!)
Anyways, we met with him and had a super good lesson.  We came to the end of the lesson, and we were just so sad because we knew that neither one of us had packed a Spanish Book of Mormon that day.  I just had a thought to look over in this little display case (at the Chapel) that usually just has English, Swedish, Arabic and Persian copies of the Book of Mormon in it...but, guess what?  I look--and there's only one left in the case.  As I looked into the case, all my eyes see is "EL", and I jumped up, ran over and grabbed it!  It was just the coolest thing!  He thought it was pretty cool, too!  So--miracle of the week.  Along with........

2--Jawad.  So, on our way home one day earlier this week, we were hurrying to catch the bus home. We were right on schedule, but then I felt we needed to talk to this person we saw as we were walking by.  So, we stopped him.  After a long conversation, we found out that he is actually a member and had just moved here about a month ago!

He's a fairly recent member and had NO CLUE that there was a chapel here in Söderältje!  So, we got his number and went on our merry, little way.  We missed our bus, so we walked he 40 minutes home--but it was TOTALLY worth it!

It just makes me think of the letter I wrote a few weeks back--when I was reading 3 Nephi 17.  That is the chapter where Jesus is visiting the Nephites after His resurrection--and then after teaching them for hours, He tells them to go home and get some rest, and that He would then return and be with them again the next day.
But, they instead desired to stay a little longer with the Savior--and because they did, Jesus went on to heal the sick, and pray to the Father over all of them.  He blessed their little ones, and then they watched as angels came down from the Heavens to administer unto them.

But, why did all this happen?  Because they desired to STAY LONGER with the Savior.  I have been starting to see how this lesson that they learned that day can so easily be applied into our lives.  As we are willing to give up little things here and there--little conveniences--to help others, we will be blessed.  I have come to find that those blessings tend to come in the form of JOY and SATISFACTION.  Two things that I feel get very easily overlooked.

3--Last one of the day.  So, on Saturday, we got to meet with TWO SWEDES!!!  Now, it may seem like--well, isn't that what you've always been doing?!  But, if you know the Sweden Stockholm Mission, you woud know that on a daily basis, there is a 5-2 ratio of Arabic to Swedish copies of the Book of Mormon in my bag at any given time.  In other words--teaching Swedes is very rare!  But, we had two Swedes in a row that day!  We were pretty happy.  Honestly, I just have to say I LOVE MY MISSION.  I can see how it's just so tailor-made to ME.

And I'll leave you all with a cool, little insight that I got yesterday.

Ether 4:7--

"And in that day that they shall exercise FAITH in me, saith the Lord, even as the Brother of Jared did...then will I manifest unto them the things which the Brother of Jared saw, even to the unfolding unto them all my revelations."
Ether 4:4--

"Behold, I (Moroni) have written upon these plates the very things which the Brother of Jared saw; and there were NEVER GREATER THINGS which were made manifest than unto the Brother of Jared."

WHAT GREATER PROMISE IS THERE?!

To me, the message of verse 7 means that no matter what it is in the Book of Mormon, all of its promises, all of its miracles are applicable to us TODAY.

I have often come across scripture passages that I love, but then have a hard time truly feeling it applied to me, as they usually started out being addressed to a certain person.  THIS promise in verse 7 just really made me realize that if the Lord is commanding Moroni to take account of the most miraculous event and then has him say that anyone can experience the same thing based on their faith--how much knowledge...how many miracles are we stopping from happening in our lives because of our unbelief?  Our lack of faith?

And verse 13:

"Come unto me, and I will show you the GREATER things, which are hid because of your unbelief."

BELIEVE.

With much love,

Syster Campbell


Monday, February 6, 2017

HOLD ON


{the new companionship--Syster Christensen and Syster Campbell}

Well. 

Here is my weekly letter.  After trying to send out my letter on 3 different computers (over a period of about 3 hours!) and each computer losing my letter, I have now decided to throw in the towel and just say I wish you all a lovely week. 
{seeing Syster Anderson off to her new area}
Apparently there has been a pattern of things I have needed to learn today, so I am just going to go sit in a corner and finally eat my banana.  Just know that there was a lot of effort put into those emails today--and that I love you all.
Now, there really is a theme here.  In my attempts at writing my letter, I had shared a part of the talk "Finishers Wanted" by President Monson in 1972.  But now I will just ask you to go read it and enjoy it yourselves! (just click on the title of the talk!)
But, good news for the day I beat all the other Södertälje missionaries--elders and sisters--at a wall sit competition.  After they all fell before 3 minutes I decided to break my own personal record of 10 minutes and went for 11.  

Legs are still shaking--and it looks like it will be a great day.  I am going to push send now before I become too invested into this letter (and lose it)!

So, just know that I love you all and I hope you each have a wonderful week!:)

Syster Campbell