Bahn

This was the weirdest week so far! There were so many miracles and funny things that happened I don't have enough time to write it all. But I've decided it's easier to break it up
People
So there were several instances of great people we met this week and also interesting things that we witnessed.  So on Montag we were on a bahn and Sister T thought that we should move to a four seater next to a college-aged guy. So we moved and started talking to him about the Church which he knew a little bit about from South Park...so we went off of that and talked about the Book of Mormon and then another man across the aisle, leaned in and asked if he could join the conversation. Hahaha we said sure! And he comes and sits, shakes the other guys hand and our hands and we all introduce ourselves then start talking about the Book of Mormon again. Too bad we had to leave the bahn before we could talk more, but we gave them each one and they were so surprised to get a free book!

We saw a woman get hit by a van. So ya. I mean the van was on the sidewalk(cars park there) and was backing super slowly and this woman was facing us as we were walking up the hill and the van slowly hits her, knocks her over, and thud she's on the ground.....we didn't really fully process the situation until like 5 sec after and we hurried to help her. She was fine, but wow, weird.

So there are some interesting men here. One man winked at me as the bahn left and that was cool I guess. But the weirdest thing ever was when I sat down next to this girl and was talking to her about the Church, by myself! Auf Deutsch! But as I'm talking I feel something on my arm, I thought it was my hair, but I look and the man next to me is stroking my arm, I was so engaged in this conversation that I brushed his hand off and kept talking to this girl about the church and find out she's already met with the missionaries! So I give her a card and get up, grab Sister T and leave real fast and tell her what happened. So it was 8:30 at night, the man was old and drunk and ya hahah I didn't really process what happened until we left and ya gross.

Miracles
So in other news Sis T and I had a cool experience during companionship study. We were talking about one of our investigators that we wanted to invite to baptism and were trying to decided what day. Well we prayed and I said October 8 was what I felt was the right date but Sister T said October 15 so we decided to pray again. This time we prayed more intently and I prayed specifically for the right date to invite our investigator to be baptized. The 22nd came up and we hadn't talked about it but I felt like it was right, so when Sister T and I came back together we decided to write our dates on the sticky notes and counted to three and showed them. WE BOTH GOT THE 22nd AS THE DATE! Wow overwhelmed with happiness and joy! The coolest experience ever with personal revelation! God hears your prayers when you have intent and have a desire to listen to what He says!
I handled a German phone call all by myself! I set a date with a member to meet and everything! It was 5 min long at least! Whoop whoop!
We taught two 11th grade classes on Tuesday and the teenagers here are so respectful! We made it through both and I said maybe two sentences but it was super cool because one of the teachers was interested in what we were saying. But what was even crazier was the next day Sis T and I were in the Church bahn planning and I look out the window and I saw the teacher ride his bike through the church parking lot and look at the church and ride back out again. HE CAME TO THE CHURCH! What!!?? So cool! Haven't heard from him since but wow he's definitely thinking about the Church.



Food
I ate something gross this week, I don't even know what it was but ya I gagged. It was meant to be this dessert thing. White and clumpy with chips of chocolate and the worst was that there was a lot of it.....hahaha but I ate it all!
But I also ate the best Nutella crepe ever!!! Heaven in my mouth. No joke.
Chocolate continues to impress me everyday and I will never get sick of it!

Okay that is all for this week! Deutschland is awesome and grateful every day to be here! Ich weiss Gott uns hören. Ich weiss dass we wenn wir zu Gott beten, wir werden ein besser tag haben.

Lieb,
Sister Farner

PS  Word of the month: Komisch meaning weird because ya that creepy guy for sure

We went to the BVB stadium today unfortunately tours weren't going on so we chilled around the team store for preparation day with the other elders and sisters from Duisburg

Lecker

Tomorrow is my 2 month mark on the mission! Crazy how fast it has gone and a little bit sad too, it keeps going by quicker and quicker each week! Definitely learning lots each day and getting more and more confident with my German! I even spoke on the intercom things they have on apartment building 3 times in a row and sure they all said something mean, but I could understand it!

We had a lot of lessons with investigators fall out again so that meant we had more opportunities to go out to other places and share the Gospel. We were visiting this one less-active who happened to not be home, and as we were walking back we stopped a man and started talking to him about the Book of Mormon and he accepted one from us and said he'd read it!

 

FOOD

So the word of the week is Lecker which means delicious!

One of our Investigators gave us a duck to cook and we decided to make it....never have cooked a duck or even eaten one so that was quite the adventure, smelled like Thanksgiving in the apartment, but ya so duck is pretty good! Tastes like turkey, but I recommend not eating it at 10pm at night...

We stopped by a member's home to share a spiritual thought and they always have these little pastries and cakes out for us to eat, well there was one that tasted like the bear claws you can get at Costco with the other strudels, but it was the real thing so 10x better, another was lemon filled, and the last thing had plums on top. Let's just say they let us eat as much as we wanted and I ate 10 pieces....I don't know why I did or how I did and the Schwester said I could be in the Guiness book of world records. So first impressions are fun. I couldn't say much in German to let her know that I'm usually not this way..but I kind of am so I guess it's good I didn't say anything.

I had my first Eis(Ice Cream)too! We did a district finding activity in Grevel and took a break and ate the most heavenly thing ever. It was made to look like spaghetti actually so I was hesitant to eat it, but oh boy so good!

 

TEMPLE DEDICATION/Cultural Celebration

                                             Friday was the Culture Celebration for the Frieburg temple which had the youth of several countries come together and perform and sing. We got to see a lot of German dances and hear the History of the church starting in Germany. It was so amazing to see how strong in the faith members were back in the 1940s and how they pressed through the war and the religious persecution and were able to have a Temple built nearby them. Seeing and hearing about of that was a really testament to me that there are Germans here waiting for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and we just need to find them. I don't like when people tell me that no German will be baptize, only the rogues, because I have gotten to know so many German people here that are truly amazing and will one day know how the Church will make their lives happier!

The temple was dedicated on Saturday which got all of the missionaries in our Zone to the church to see it broadcasted. It was so cool to hear it in German, President Uchtdorf and Elder Bednar spoke in Deutsch and wow the Spirit was so strong. I'm grateful that I was able to live by a Temple and go to it often and feel closer to my Heavenly Father in it. I'm grateful that the people of Germany get to experience the temple more now too.

 

Ich habe  für Ihnen lieben und ich hofe alles es gut in ihre leben.

Sister Farner

Döner

Hallo!

So I read my last post over and wow it was depressing. So sorry that was what I described as my first week in Deutschland! It was so much better I promise. I thought I'd send you a little more about my first week before this week.

Basically my first week here was trying to comprehend that I was actually here. I had a lot of fun trying to speak to people on bahns and buses and Sister Thurgood was a champ and had my back every single time

My first lesson was the first night I was in Dortmund. We were teaching a man from Russia who also speaks German and I only said a sentence in that whole lesson but it was awesome! I think the reason I have such a hard time understanding people is that everyone has their own version of German. We have people from Vietnam, Turkey, Syria, Russia, and Germany that all speak with an accent of their own mother language. So that's always a party.

My first Sunday I went up to bear my testimony and I felt like that was the first time I knew that Dortmund was the right area for me to be in. All the people are so nice and understanding and say my German is good even though it isn't but the confidence boost is well appreciated. There happened to be a baptism after Church so we stayed and we had two investigators with us to see what they will hopefully be doing soon. One investigator spoke to me during all of church and helped me improve my German which was much appreciated because many people give up and talk to my companion the whole time.

My first prep day was a blast! I had my first Döner, it's a sandwich thingy that you have to eat here. It's a tradition apparently. But it was sooooooo Good!

I was with my district and 4 other Elders from our area. We played ultimate frisbee after in this sketchy cobble stoned soccer field thing with a fence around it and stinging nettle was growing through the fence. Of course every time I went to score the frisbee went right by the stinging nettle so I got a ton of rashes on my legs and arms...

Okay now this week.

We have 10 investigators that we met with this week and it's seriously my favorite thing. Although there was one of our investigators that said he wanted to save Sister Thurgood from the darkness when we talked to him on the phone.....we ended up having him be taught by the Elders.

Miracles exist for sure. Our District Leader gives us daily goals that we try to meet each day. On one particular day we were supposed to get two referrals (have someone tell us of other people who would want to hear about the Gospel) and Sister Thurgood and I had lessons the whole day so we had maybe 10 minutes to get two referrals. We got led up to one woman's apartment who yelled us for being late and said some other things I didn't understand (thank goodness) and slammed her door. We walked out a little discouraged and we had the choice to go to the bahn station or try for more people. We thought for a second and we said, hey we are here to spread the truth there's no reason to turn back now. So the next man we talked to said he wasn't interested but his neighbors could be. It so happens that two different families lived there and we were able to talk to both. Not only did we reach our goal, but we were able to pass out cards to both to look at our video and call us if they were interested. I'm continually amazed on how God answers my prayers and how they are answered if I put all my effort and desire into what I am asking for.

I also spoke on the phone to someone in German and they understood me!!! Yay

Funny thing from this week...

So we were walking up to our bus and it inched forward and stopped so we ran up to it. The driver was very impatient. But we got on and on our way to the church we got up to stand by the door knowing that the driver wouldn't stop for very long...well we were at a stop light and the bus started to go and then stopped abruptly and Sister Thurgood fell over and I smacked into the side of the bus. We got out after that completely dazed and realized how much that driver hated us. My arm immediately bruised and Sister Thurgood was super embarrassed. We laughed for a long time after and still are laughing about it.

I've come to realize German people are so nice and don't yell at you in German ever. I've gotten to know so many people and the more I talk to others, the more I love it here. You get to hear so many people's stories and learn so much from all of them. I'm grateful that I get to share with them the message of Jesus Christ and his doctrine and bring them happiness!

Word of the week: Schwitzen- To sweat because it was 35 degrees Celsius this week.

Love you all and have a fantabulous week!

Sister Farner

Yeden tag

DEUTSCHLAND!

I made it through the hardest week of my life. Never been more tired, confused, angry, excited, happy, and all other emotions combined. Definitely got hit with culture shock and jet lag and wow. The language is definitely not what I learned in the MTC, so that was interesting. But even though it's difficult, it's a great learning experience and tries my faith yeden tag. So when we got here it was 8am Deutschland time and they had us stay up the whole day. Hahaha funniest  thing ever. We went street contacting and that was so fun. I passed out 5 das Busches Mormon and I got a potential investigator (I got his phone number and address) I was so hyped from no sleep. After that we watched videos and I had to stand to not sleep. 

My trainer is Sister Thurgood! She's from Tenessee and she's only been out 12 weeks and yet her German is so good! Such a great example to me! My area is Dortmund!

But I have no time because my ipad didn't work and stuff but more to come next week!

Love you All!

Sister Farner

Deutschland

Family Farner,

We are pleased to announce that Sister Farner arrived safely in the Germany Frankfurt Mission. She is doing great and is excited to begin this new adventure here in Germany. We know that the Lord will protect her in her service and you and your family will blessed for her service. 

Sincerely 
President and Sister Stoddard

Huete

WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW

I leave in 2 days to Germany!! We head out at 6am from the MTC! Everyone here has definitely lost their focus and their minds, no joke! But being here for so long is understandable. It's funny though because I think my companion and I have had the best focus this week compared to the other ones! I also found out that all the German words I spell out usually are spelled wrong so I apologize to anyone that knows German and is offended by my inability to spell a word correctly. For instance Hoyta (today) is actually spelled heute. Or ser is actually sehr. Or that Deusch is actually Deutsch. hahah whoops!

Thanks again to everyone who sent me packages! I seriously have been throwing food at people because I have so much! But thank you! Arkell family those cookies were so great! Made my day:)

So Elder Neil L. Anderson came on Tuesday, our 2nd apostle since we've been here. It was a broadcast to all the other MTCs in the world and I was in the choir on the camera! We really have lucked out! He spoke about how Missionary work is not complex, but it's not easy. Which I can totally relate to. The Gospel is simple but trying to help others understand that is hard. He shared the scripture Jeremiah 16:16 :

 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord,and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them  from every mountain,and from  every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.

and compared it to missionary work. Sometimes people with come up to you looking for the gospel (like fish do to nets) and other times you need to really search for them (hunters). Europe is definitely a hunting mission. But Elder Anderson said that there will always be people there waiting to here the Gospel and that you shouldn't ever give up because God has prepared certain people for you. I have never doubted that I would find people, but it was a good reassurance of my beliefs.

Sad thing, we had our last exercise day on Fritag and parting from Volleyball was one of the hardest things ever.  I hope I will be able to play in Germany! Also really sad on Fritag, we said goodbye to our teacher. He moves to Ohio today and we all started crying. He really helped us out with learning German and most importantly understanding what we can do to better help others strengthen their relationship with Gott. We were his last district. He's been here for 4 years. Which is crazy! He also gave us the whole history of the Book of Mormon lesson, as seen in the picture of the chalkboard and it was so cool to see how the Bible and the Book of Mormon work hand in hand. 

The MTC has been a really big help and I'm grateful that I got to be here 6 weeks, even though I almost threw up several times from the food:) But I have come to know even more so than I did before how much Heavenly Father loves me and loves everyone and that sometimes I think I can do things on my own when in reality I can't without His help. I know that Jesus Christ suffered the Atonement for me and that every hard thing I go through, especially out here, He has been through it too. I've needed to rely on Him to lift me up because if I didn't I wouldn't be as confident and reassured that going to Germany was the best thing for me. I know that this Church is true and if I can help at least one person know that, I will be beyond happy. I'm out here on a mission because I want others to know what I know and that is that they can return one day to their Father in Heaven and be able to know the love He and Christ have for them.

Last but not least, Shout out to the newly married KJ and Seattle Harrison! I'm so sad that I couldn't be there for the wedding. But I love you sis,... and KJ.. I guess I can love you too:)

Spaeter!

Ich bin ser begeistert

What a week!!!!!

Our teachers are really hammering us with grammar principles and my mind is going to explode. Adjective endings are doof and I thought my district was either going to pass out or punch a wall. Bruder Garlick took an hour to explain it and there was a two step process with a graph that had 4 columns by 4 columns that made some sense I guess but then my teacher talked about the Oklahoma shape inside the chart and then the red flag words and the whole time I was thinking how the heck do people remember this when they are speaking? I mean if I have time to think for like 4 minutes I can come up with an answer but...I don't so yikes! 

We were in charge of mopping the bathrooms again this week and Sister Yeck and I were on our way to do it and the power went out. Well the emergency lights went on in the halls, but there aren't any in the bathrooms so we found flashlights and mopped them in the dark. Probably one of the more scarier things to happen here. What made it even funnier was that right after we finished, the lights turned back on..... 

So I've been thinking a lot about how that can be compared to the Gospel (yes I did, MTC has me thinking how everything can relate to unser ziel und Das Evangelium) and the scripture I came up with is Ether 12:6 which talks about how you receive no witness until after the trial of your faith. So our trial was being in the dark, we found a way to make it through the trial (the flashlight) and after we made it through our trial the lights turned on (we received a witness). Even though it really wasn't that big of a trial, the principle of it is profound. We can't expect everything in our life to go as planned. We have roadblocks and bumps and as we go forward with faith and try our best to overcome our trials God with be there to lighten the way and to ease our burdens. I've noticed that a lot here. When I've taught unser untersuchers and the lektion doesn't go as planned, it's easy to be down on myself after, but realizing that if I hold onto the faith I have and focus on the things I have been given, it gets better. God wants to help us, but he isn't going to just hand us what we need. We need to make the effort to come unto Him. We aren't perfect and never will be here on the earth and often people take that as a way to stop trying or to give up. But why not work to be the best version of yourself?

Wednesday we got to Skype with someone in Deutschland! She lives in the Alpine mission, but I seriously was so happy to talk to her! Sister Yeck and I didn't want to hang up hahah it took us like funf minuten to. But it got me so hyped to go.

We got our travel plans on Fritag and we fly to Georgia and then to Frankfurt on the 15th! WAAAAAASSSSSSSS??? The problem is now that everyone is starting to lose their focus which is difficult because they then come into our class to distract us. But Sister Yeck and I have been working hard, we've got almost the whole Joseph Smith's first vision memorized in German!!!!

Couple of funny things that happened:

So we found these mexican candies with mango in the center and gave them to the Elders in the classroom next door and later that night we hear some commotion and we leave our room and go into theirs and one of the Elders is throwing up because he ate one of the candies and apparently it wasn't that good.....I felt bad but it was also pretty funny because apparently he was trying to be a man and eat it all even when it was super disgusting so he kind of brought it upon himself...

Elder Harman and Elder Allan always come into our class during study time and bother us. but this week was pretty funny, one day they rapped to Rudolph the Rednose reindeer, the next day they (along with Elder Rothwell) ate a big handful of hot tamales and started to cry because it was too spicy for them, and then yesterday Elder Harman started choking on his water bottle cap and it caused him to make the weirdest noises. So ya there are some pretty cool and bizarre people here...

Packages. Wow so grateful:) My mom sent me this massive one full of candy and little bags and stuff to share with others. So on Pday Sister Johnson and I made up a bunch of little bags of candy with scriptures and handed them out to missionaries around the mtc! It was awesome! I also got tons of cheezits which the Elders were very grateful for! Shout out my Sodalicious work crew for bringing me to tears with all the letters and stuff they sent me. Seriously helps me so much to see little pick me ups. I also got my first Dear Elder letter and that was so cool! Thanks Millie!

 

Well only one more email next week here and then Deutschland!!!!!!!!! Ich bin ser begeistert