Picture on top of Church of Our Savior; one from below looking up.
Tivoli Gardens
Frederiksborg Slot
Vor Frelsers Kirke Tower
YSA choir at our Musical Fireside
Kære Familie, 25 September 2017
Yes, it’s Monday. We had a busy Sunday and it got too late to write letters. We have the late schedule for church now (12:30-3:30) so we should have time in the morning to get things done. We worked on our institute lesson for a while, but then I had to get ready and leave by 11:15 to get to choir practice. Yesterday, after church, we had to hurry home and cut up fruit, frost two cakes and break our fast before we turned around and headed back to the church for a 5:30 meeting with the YSA committees, followed by a stake music fireside. One of the YSA girls was in charge of the food for the fireside and she asked me to bring cakes and fruit. I enjoy these stake music firesides—each one is so different. There are different choir groups and different soloists. The music is varied—we had beautiful piano solos of “Come Thou Font of Every Blessing” and “How Great Thou Art,” the latter was the pianist’s own arrangement. The missionaries in our area sang a song with words from an H. C. Andersen poem; another number was an Eric Clapton song; and another was our UV choir from Golden Days. I didn’t participate in any of the musical numbers, but I helped with the food. I enjoyed the fireside very much. We didn’t get home until nearly 10:00 when we called and visited with Ariane’s family for a little while. We watched one talk from the Women’s Conference and we were too tired to go on. Such is our day of rest.
We watched the Worldwide Young Adult Devotional last Monday for FHE. We were at the stake center again so all the YSA’s could help put Golden Days decorations/supplies away in storage. After Golden Days on Sunday, we brought all the decorations back to the Stake Center and just unloaded the truck and put everything on the stage. So, they still needed to be put away. It didn’t take long with all the people helping. I made BBQ chicken sandwiches with some left-over chicken breasts and bread for our dinner. I loved Elder Bednar’s talk about welding links. He took his talks from a talk President Hinckley gave a few years back while Elder Bednar was President of Ricks College. Sister Bednar talked about a family she knew in Idaho that had 13 children. Now their family has grown to over 200 descendants which could be seen in a family picture of 4 generations. It was very impressive. She then talked about another family whose link had been broken. She was talking with a non-member friend, when she learned that her friend’s grandmother had been a member of the church. She had no idea that her friend had Mormon roots. It made her wonder where the link in the chain had been broken. It hadn’t taken long (two generations) for the principles of the gospel to become totally absent in the lives of this family. What a contrast to the other family where the links were still strong. Elder Bednar talked about becoming the welding link in our families or becoming the pioneer welding link if we are a first-generation Mormon. It was a great message.
We only had two days of language class this week because we took Friday off to spend with Jared. Some weeks it seems there is less time for homework as various things come up. For example, on Tuesday, we helped Maria Kudeljic—a YSA investigator whom we have befriended. She returned to Copenhagen last week to live and work as a cook in a nice restaurant. But sometime during the week she was here, she changed her mind and decided to go back to Bornholm. We met her at her storage unit to pick up some things she wanted to take back to Bornholm—particularly warm clothing and her bike. We didn’t have room in our car for the bike, so she rode it to our apartment later and dropped it off. The reason for all this was the Halls were arriving later that day from Bornholm. They planned to take back all her stuff, including her bike, when they returned home on Wednesday. Their car is bigger than ours and is equipped with a bike rack. I guess this qualifies for missionary work, but it is probably more service. Maria is still excited to be baptized so we hope that happens later this year. We had dinner that night at the Knudsen’s with the other senior missionaries and temple missionaries; it was wonderful as always. And when we got home, the Halls were there. We visited until late and then I decided to still do my written assignment for our language class, so I stayed up even later.
We enjoyed having Jared here. We tried to free up our schedule as much as possible, but we couldn’t shirk our responsibilities on Thursday night. I did the grocery shopping and made 48 cupcakes on Wednesday. I made 3 large lasagnas on Thursday morning which we dropped off at the center before Jared arrived. Jared took the train from the airport to the main train station, so we picked him up very near our apartment. We took him to Tivoli and we rode one of the rides. Our Tivoli pass get us into the amusement park, but we have to pay to ride the rides. We enjoyed the ride very much—a roller coaster ride through a dark mountain—the thrill is not seeing where you are going! It took our son coming over to visit us before we actually rode a ride in Tivoli!
We thought we would have some better weather for our outing on Friday, but it never warmed up and actually clouded over midday with a few sprinkles. It was not the best day to take a canal tour of the city, but the canal tour is the best way to learn a lot about the city. Our guide gave his presentation in three languages—Danish, English, and German. He switched languages without skipping a beat. We have been on this tour 3 different times and each time we learn something different. We have never walked up the 400 steps to the top of the steeple of The Church of Our Savior. The last hundred steps are on the outside so it is a bit scary. There is no platform at the top to rest and take in the sights of the city. But there is a sturdy railing where you can just stop on a stair and look around. The stairs on the inside of the church were very steep in some places and were probably more dangerous than the ones on the outside. But we can say that we did it. Jared treated us to a cup of hot chocolate after that—and we needed it just to warm up.
We had two meetings with the YSA counsel this week—one on Wednesday with just the 3 stake YSA leaders and the high counselor, stake presidency counselor and us, and the other on Sunday with the YSA leaders and the committee chairmen. Both meetings were very productive. I appreciate the guidance from the counselor in the stake presidency—he has some inspired ideas and gives wise counsel. We discussed the theme for next month which is Temple Power and Sexual Purity. Our monthly fireside usually addresses this topic and we discussed getting the right person for the fireside and how bold we should be in our discussion. The stake presidency counselor felt strongly that we need to teach that safety and happiness is found in living the law of chastity. We don’t need to take the approach that breaking the law of chastity is bad; we need to be positive and talk about the blessings from honoring covenants and obeying the commandments. We are going to invite a couple to be the speakers and have most of the fireside together, but afterwards split into boys and girls so some more specific things can be addressed. All the men who attended the Golden Days Priesthood Meeting felt that it was one of the best parts of Golden Days because of their frank discussion.
It was obvious during our second meeting, that the YSA leadership had met since our meeting on Wednesday and talked about the counsel given. We are the only non-YSA’s in this meeting and just sit back in an advisory capacity. The YSA conduct the meeting. They followed an agenda, made assignments and asked for follow-up. They also asked the committee members to give ideas and opinions. The only unfortunate thing was that there were some committee chairmen who were missing. I appreciated the way they set expectations and asked for follow-up. They asked that the chairmen delegate more to their committees. This is not just to take the burden off the chairmen, but to give the committee members some responsibility which they need in order to feel like they are contributing in some way. The leadership had also identified five YSA which will be the focus for the next month. FPF (Fokus på fem) means praying specifically for these YSA and reaching out to them through invitations to activities or just as friends. We think this is a great idea. We had some discussion around putting a sign on the window of our institute center which tells who we are and our meeting times. One girl was reluctant and worried if we put a picture of Christ on the window, we may get some unwelcomed responses. But we learned this morning that someone came to the Århus institute who was just walking by and decided to see what was going on. You never know what might come of it, so I think it is worth a try. I really admire these young people and see their capabilities to lead now and in the future.
I am excited for conference this week-end. We will finish the women’s conference today. It may sound silly, but it warms my heart to know that you are also gathering with your families to hear the words of our latter-day leaders. I saw something on an LDS website about preparing for conference by writing down questions you want answered during the meetings. I think if we go into conference with heartful yearnings, the Holy Ghost will help us hear the answers that we need. I pray that will be true for each of you. I have learned long ago that we don’t always get answers to fix our problems, but we do get answers about what we must do to strengthen our testimonies, be humble and teachable, find joy in our difficulties, and have the hope to carry on. These things help to make our burdens lighter. May you find peace in your soul as you listen to the words of our prophet and other general authorities.
Med kærlighed, Mom
Kaere Familie Monday, September 25, 2017
Pernilla was baptized on Saturday. She is the one I interviewed a couple of weeks ago I from the Amager Branch. It was so nice to know she continued her commitments and prepared herself for baptism. I assume she accepted the changes to the Word of Wisdom she needed to make and received a testimony of tithing. President said she did not need to be interviewed again and that the sisters could proceed when they felt she had made adequate progress. She bore her testimony at the end of the service and I understand she did again in Fast & Testimony meeting yesterday. She seemed really happy and I know that she was looking forward to her baptism as an end to her life-time of problems and a new, fresh start. There is one sad, scary thing that happened with this. We had a stake music fireside last night. Pernilla was on the program which was a surprise, that she is involved so soon. It seemed to be a great sign that she is integrating well. She was the 9th number out of 10 and sang an Eric Clapton piece that was a bit more modern and different but still nice and she sang very well. It was called Heavenly Father (I think the original title is Holy Mother and she changed the words.) She has been involved with Gospel Choirs for a good part of her life and so the song is kind of that way. As the last number was just getting under way, she suddenly got up and left the chapel. Within moments, Sister Dietch (missionary who has taught her) followed her out, and then a minute later, I could see her accompanist (male member from the branch) talk quickly to his wife and then hurry out as well. From discussion afterwards, it seems like Pernilla was upset and no one is quite sure why. She may not have been happy with the way she sang or it may be something entirely different. We heard that she had a hard day and expected it to be different with the Holy Ghost in her life. She got in a car accident and maybe a traffic ticket as well during the day. Hopefully, this will not be a set back to her progression and the branch members and her missionaries will rally around her.
For our FHE activity, we watched the World-wide devotional by Elder Bednar. The Wielding Link. I always recommend these devotionals to everyone because they are always so inspirational. Somehow, they come across to me like “new doctrine” targeted to the audience, even though the principles and maybe even the words have been presented before. Elder Bednar showed a portion of a talk by President Hinckley, so that is not new doctrine. He emphasized that we cannot be a broken or weak link in the chain stretching back to our ancestors and going forward through our children and grandchildren. Mom has talked about this as well, so reference the rest of the story in her letter. I was thinking about our new converts during the talk as he also emphasized the importance of their role in starting a new chain in the church within their families. It has to start somewhere and they are the beginning of the future generation and the link through family history and temple work to the generations that preceded them. I think that is a powerful thought. Elder Bednar also made mention of a question Elder Packer often used to ask in Quorum meetings; therefore what? Meaning, what difference will this policy or decision have on members of the church throughout the world? So, Elder Bednar asked this worldwide audience, “What is the therefore what from this fireside? How can I become a strong wielding link for my family?” That is something I am thinking about and we each need to consider. Am a I strong link and am I doing all I can to pass on a faithful heritage in the gospel to my children and grandchildren? Let me know how I can do better!?!
Thursday night we had the training for Ward YSA Committees that we have been planning for a couple of months. Each ward was supposed to send one representative, who would then take the information back to their ward. I was really pleased that we had 6 of 8 wards present. 5 were bishopric counselors and 1 was a YSA mom. They got a plate of mom’s Lasagna dinner and then we started the meeting while they ate. We had 45 minutes and then they were invited to stay and observe the Institute lesson. None of them did that so it shows that all over the world we are busy with our lives and often just do the necessities. Thomas Ringheim, our High Councilor, conducted the meeting and made some introductory comments and then turned the training over to me. My emphasis was to get them discussing 5 key questions around the effectiveness of their YSA committee meetings: what they focus on, their challenges and successes and approach to activation. Only one ward is currently holding a regular YSA committee meeting. So, there is a lot of work to do despite the training we have given in some of these wards in the past year. Again, it is no different than Houston. We could never get the wards there to hold these meetings either. Of course, the purpose of the training was not to get them to hold a monthly meeting but rather to shepherd and rescue the YSA’s. The meeting is just the Lord’s way to organize and direct the actual work that needs to be done. We had some good discussion and it seemed like the meeting was helpful to them as they consider how they can be more proactive in shepherding and blessing their young adults.
As Jared mentioned in his letter, he attended the Institute with us. We only had 1 YM attend who needed an English class so we did not try to teach. There were 31 YSA and we had 2 sets of missionaries and 2 investigators come. It was all in Danish of course, so I felt sorry for Jared fighting jet lag with a foreign language. We were happy to show off our youth and the Center and give him a taste of what we do, plus he had the experience of walking to and from the Center with a little food cart!
We skipped both our language class and the temple Friday and spent the day with Jared. It was really nice to be with him. What a treat to have a visitor from the family with fresh, personal perspectives and news on things. It was truly a breath of fresh air. He has written about our adventures so I won’t cover them any further, but it was a lot of fun.
We drove Jared to the airport at 5:30 on Saturday morning for his 6:40 flight home. At around 2:00, I switched cars with Elder Johnson and 5 of us did a bit of site seeing, with Sister Johnson and the Jensen’s. We drove to the area of the Christine statue on the docks to see a modern version of the Little Mermaid and some interpretations of religious people that were a bit grotesque. We also went over to the Christine statue since Sister Johnson had not seen it yet and it was very close to where we were. The Johnsons have not gotten out to see much site seeing in the 5 months they have been here. Sister Jensen had lined up the things to see based on some reading she had done. We tried to find a street painted pink with black stripes but it was not where it was supposed to be. (I am not sure why that was on anyone’s list of things to see!) Our backup was to visit the Marble Church for Sister Johnson. Unfortunately, there was a wedding there and we were not able to get in. After a couple of days this week of site seeing, we would have preferred to stay home but we do some things for the sociality. It is always nice however to spend some time with the other missionaries. We can talk about home, our families and experiences here and it breaks up the day a bit and gets us out and about. After we dropped the others off back at their apartments, we drove to the Taastrup apartment to drop off 2 door mats and a new toilet seat. It took me about 30 minutes to install it for them.
We are still adjusting to the later schedule for church. It is really nice in the morning to have the extra time to study but the afternoons and evenings can be very short. Yesterday was a good example. Getting out of church at 3:30, we got home around 4:00. We had to be back to the church at 5:30 for our monthly committee meeting. In between, we cut up a fruit plate and mom made frosting for 2 cakes and we had leftovers for dinner. Then we had the Musical Fireside at 7:00 followed by refreshments. We got back home around 9:45, so the night seemed basically over, especially when we Facetimed Ariane and family for a while.
The committee meeting was really good this time. I think the youth like the opportunity to coordinate together. Rebecca suggested that we find another time when we would not be so rushed, as each month we are cutting discussion off so we can start dinner or the next thing coming up. It is hard as very few of them want a meeting where it is not before or after another already scheduled meeting. One especially good thing this time, was they introduced a new idea of Focus on Five. They named 5 of the youth who will be a focus for the next month and asked each of us to pray for them every day and to go out of our way to talk to them, invite them, get with them, etc. I think it will make a big difference. Another thing we talked about was for the committee heads to take more responsibility for their committee members. They should expand their focus to include concerns for their activity, spiritual growth, social involvement, etc. (embrace them, love then, help them, support them). They should also delegate more to them so that they feel like they have a calling and are responsible for it and the committee heads will not be as stressed. We have said before, but these Young Adults are very capable. I stand in awe at times at their planning, thinking, and execution. It is obvious that they receive revelation for their callings and they are prepared to act on it. We are very blessed to be witnesses to their growth and are happy to provide the support that we do. We are the consistent helpers in the background; we feed them temporally and sometimes spiritually and we keep the doors open so that someone else does not need to.
We are excited about general conference again. We will likely watch 2 sessions Saturday night and they have asked if they can come to our apartment. That would be the Saturday morning session, live at 6:00 pm, followed by a dinner and then the afternoon session from 10:00 to midnight. Sunday morning, the HP’s are having a brunch at the bishop’s house at 9:30 and then we will go to the stake center to watch the priesthood session at 11:00. The missionaries have a chili dinner together at 4:00 followed by the Sunday morning session. We will need to see if we attend those as the YSA will get together Sunday as well, but that is not set in stone yet.
Love you all. Enjoy conference and get lots out of it. Dad.
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