Christmas Week

Wow, it was so good to hear from you guys. That made my whole Christmas! It’s a lot more different here in Germany but I had a lot of fun, even though I missed you all dearly. But I am so glad to hear that you guys enjoyed it as much as I did. I know it did get emotional but that’s just because I love and miss you guys. I am doing awesome though. This week was a little bit slower week because we weren’t as busy but it still was a great and a little bit more relaxing week.

I will just start from Christmas Eve and talk about the week. Christmas Eve here in Germany is their Christmas. So we went over to the Warncke Family. Such a cool family and they fed us Roclette. It was so good and I ate so much. Another cool thing is President was okay that Elder Bruneel and I slept over at the other Elders home. So Christmas Eve we watched some Christmas Church shows. Then on Christmas morning we were able to open our packages from home together. It was such a fun morning. The Elders we have here in Darmstadt are all so cool. I have been blessed to work with some cool people. That was a good morning. Christmas day we went over to the Wiese's house and ate even more food. We enjoyed the day and played some board games and hung out. Then that night I was able to Skype with you guys. I absolutely loved it. I am so happy that you guys are doing so well. That makes me happy and I am able to not worry as much. I am so happy to hear that you are all healthy and enjoying life.

After Christmas and talking with you guys we went over to another member’s house on Thursday and ate sooo much again. I think I gained like 5 pounds this Christmas. Germans have 3 holy days which are the 24th, 25th, and 26th. So we got plenty of food and we enjoyed Thursday night and played a game called "Big Booty" that was a lot of fun. I loved the Christmas here in Darmstadt. This area is such a great area. The people here in Darmstadt are such strong members. It’s weird because we have like 12 Deacons in this ward.. Which it feels like our home ward a little bit. Just everything is awesome here in Darmstadt. Elder Bruneel and I are still working hard on the University. We try new ideas every day and getting creative. So that is something good.

So Saturday and Friday we spent pretty much both days finding. We had this box that we had set out and talked to people about what they were grateful for and if they could give something back to Jesus Christ what would it be. We had them write it down and put it in the box. It was a lot of fun. Those days are always a bit longer though because you are outside in the cold talking to people. I have noticed it has been a lot easier contacting and talking with people here in Darmstadt than it was in Bad Homburg. People seem so much nicer here. I don’t know if that was because of Christmas or what but it’s been so much fun. By just talking to people is where I learn the language the most.

I hope you all enjoy your New Year's. Remember to not forget to write down your New Year Goals down. I love you all so very much. I loved talking to you on the phone. I know that I am supposed to be out here on a mission for a reason. I love this work. If you all have any questions just ask them. Have a great week.

Elder Emery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Great Week!

This was such a fast week and it’s so weird that it is already done. But it was one of the coolest weeks on my mission for sure. We got a lot done and it was so humbling. I learned a lot in this past week and I have a lot to tell.

First off, I was able to attend the baptism of Shirley and all I can say is that it was amazing! Normally missionaries aren’t able to go back to their area if there is a baptism. But I talked with President about it and he let me go back if we would go to the temple too. On Saturday it took us about 2 hours overall to travel there and we went to the temple. After that we headed over to the church. I walked in and Shirley turned around and just started bawling. It was so cool and I gave Thomas the biggest hug. What was really cool is that Elder Lindsey was also there. We both got to go back to see them. It was such a humbling experience and the spirit was so strong during the meeting. What the coolest part is seeing Thomas baptize her. The spirit was so strong and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to go back and enjoy the time there. It’s so cool because you build eternal friendships with people. They were both so excited and now Shirley is a member of the church. 

This week we had a ton of appointments. One cool appointment was with a kid named Ammon. He is 18 years old and has had these really bad head aches and so he can’t do anything. But apparently he is incredible at soccer and would be playing for a professional soccer team here but his headaches have been so bad. Everyone has been forcing him to serve a mission and asking him that every day and it’s really getting to him because he wants to do it because he knows it is right. Not because everyone is saying it. It was really cool because Elder Bruneel and I both play sports and it is the exact same situation as we were in. We told him the story about before the mission. Then I began to explain my story and how coming out on a mission has saved my life spiritually. It was such a cool experience seeing how much his face lit up and how strong we could feel the spirit. I loved that lesson and it brought me back to the old days a little bit and how it is important to hang out with the right people. My mission has changed and saved me. We are meeting again with Ammon this week and he is such a cool kid. I believe he will serve just needs to figure that out for himself.

Thursday we had the opportunity to go to a gym and to work out with a less active.. And wow, am I out of shape!!!! I ran for 10 minutes and then started lifting a little bit and was just done after that. It felt good to work out again. But felt the soreness the next 2 days. That was cool because this less active apparently wouldn’t meet the missionaries before. So it was cool going to work out with him and doing something new. 

Also, something that is really cool that I found out about Darmstadt is this is the home ward of President Uchtdorf. All the members know and love him. We were down in his hometown on Saturday night. That is something really cool and some of his best friends apparently are in this ward. So we have heard lots of stories and it has been so cool to hear about. This place is so beautiful too and I love working here. Yesterday, we had a missionary fireside about Christmas traditions. That was really cool then we had the opportunity to watch the Christmas devotional. Such a spiritual and fun night to be around the members and to hang out a little bit. I am so thankful to be serving here in Darmstadt. It really is such a great ward and has been so humbling and loving during this Christmas holiday. I am changed man. I am starting to write my goals down for the next year. I challenge you all to do that. Start early. Anyways, I love you all. 1 week and I get to see you all with Skype! I am super excited about that. Have a great week.

Elder Emery

Busy Week!

Family and friends, this week’s letters made me really happy. I am glad Grandma Carol was able to move into somewhere that makes her happy. I know there are so many memories in that house and it’s sometimes hard to leave a house that you have lived in for so long but I am happy for her and know that she is doing well. It sounds like the whole family is doing well and I am super happy about that.

This week consisted of a lot of planning and a lot of meetings for us; which was really hard because I absolutely don’t like just sitting and doing nothing. We were in Heidelberg for a Zone Training so that was really cool. I know this will take time being called as the University Elders. It has been hard but super worth it because I have learned so much. You get a new companion because there is always something Heavenly Father wants you to learn. This area is such a great area and I am really enjoying it. The ward here is incredible. It consists of about 200 members and they are all very strong members as well. They are all so kind and nice so it’s been a fun week for us to get to know new people. It is always hard because there are so many names and you try to get to know people and you can’t remember their names. One thing that I have seen that has been really cool is my German has become a ton better. I don’t know what it is about the first area you are in but sometimes it is harder to speak because you think the members don’t think you can speak. Ever since I have come here it has been a lot more relaxed and I have really been enjoying it and so much happier.

One really cool thing that happened this week was on Saturday we had this big street display right in the middle of Louisen Platz here in Darmstadt. I will send some pictures but it was really cool. We tried to make it as professional as we could. We had a big T.V. with Joy to The World playing. (The Christmas film). It was really cool because we also had about 70 different language Book of Mormons on the table with every different language. And so people would be watching the video and we would go up and talk to them. It was really such a great experience and gave us an extra boost of Hope. At the end of the day we ended up passing out 60 Book of Mormons and about 30 DVD’s. It was such a cool experience and I am so grateful for Christmas. It is different here in Germany but it still has that feeling. It has been snowing a little bit but not enough to stick. And I love the Old German look when it snows. It is sooo pretty. So that was such a fun day!

For something that Elder Bruneel and I started this week.. We read this talk, "The Verge of Success". It talks about how we can purify ourselves and how we can turn our hearts over to the Lord. It was really cool because it talks about a 40 day fast from something that you know you need to change to become better. Maybe its attitude, learn to love people, learn to serve out of love, etc.. It was really cool because we started that and you start to realize everything you need to take a step back and really think about. I have loved it and I know the Lord will purify me as I take the things out of my life that I don’t need in there. 

This week was a good one. I received both my Christmas packages and in there was a bunch of pictures with music on there and had a bunch of pictures of my family. I just sat there and thought about how much I love my family. My family means everything to me in my life. I know it will be hard during this Christmas time but I have these pictures to realize how thankful I am for my family. That is one thing I am SO grateful for.

Anyways, I am just rambling on and on. Thanks for all the support. Thanks for all the love. I really appreciate it. Remember during this Christmas time to remember our Lord and Savior. Find out what’s important to you in your life and make sure to put that number 1 on your priority list. I love you all.

Elder Emery

Darmstadt

Hey everyone! This week was quite hectic but everything is finally settled in and I am in my new area now. Darmstadt is such a pretty area and what makes it super cool is there is a Christmas Market here. Darmstadt is a massive city too it feels like. We live right next to TU University and so that is our job as the new elders here in the area.

But first, last week was my last week in Friedrichsdorf and it was super sad to leave. Tuesday we were super busy with everything and also Wednesday. We had one last big Thanksgiving dinner on Wednesday night where a lot of families that I had to say goodbye to were there. It was really cool. Sister Kutchke in the ward set up a little party at the ward house and we were able to eat together and just enjoy the time there. It was a lot more different than the normal Thanksgiving dinner at home. I missed my mom’s home dinner. But it was good enough. At the end of the night it was time to go. I said goodbye to a couple families and then Thomas, Shirley and David were the last. It was soo hard to say goodbye to them. It was hard saying goodbye to them. But I know they will do great and Elder Smith will continue to keep that area going.

Thursday morning is where we all met at the train station in Frankfurt and we met together and met all of our companions. An elder came up to Elder Bruneel and I and gave us a paper and it was a map on Google maps and said, "Well, here’s how to get to your apartment. Good luck." So that made the adventure of finding our apartment fun. Long story short it took a while but we finally found it. It’s a pretty nice apartment too so that’s good. Darmstadt is super pretty. Elder Bruneel and I are called as University elders so we will specifically be working with the Young Single Adults and spend most our time up on the University. We are still coming up with ideas of how we can best work that. But it’s something new. We are brand new elders in the area so it’s a little tough to get around. We get lost a lot of times but that’s part of the fun. People are so friendly here too. The ward has about 200 people and some of the nicest people I have ever met. They were so cool and coming up to ask us when we need appointments and telling us about who they have been teaching. It was a really cool Sunday. Also, what’s really cool is there are 9 missionaries here in Darmstadt. There is a set of "City" Elders here. And then there are 3 sisters and then we have a senior couple. So that makes it a lot of fun. We all work together and it is fun. I really like the other elders too.

My companion is Elder Bruneel. He is full of energy and is super excited about the work. He and I have a lot of similarities. He actually played basketball for some Jr. College up in Washington. It’s been super cool to be working with him. And yes Dad, his brother is the one that plays for Utah Valley University. He is really a cool kid and I know I will learn a lot from him. The Lord sent us here for a reason and I am super excited to find that reason out. But I know we will help each other and stay really busy. This is going to be such a fun time.

Anyways, I think that’s all that happened this week. I hope that everyone is doing well. Thanks for all the emails. I love you all. If you have any questions just let me know.

Elder Emery

Incredible Week

Wow, this week was definitely one of the best weeks on the mission. There is a lot to tell so I will try to write everything in detail. It’s so good to hear from everyone. I am so happy to read all the emails and knowing all my best friends and family are doing well. I know the Lord watches over you guys just as much as he does us as missionaries.

First off, I had an operation on my toe. It was actually one of the coolest things. For the past month my big toe on the left side was really hurting. I had a really bad in grown toe nail and the doctor said if it grew anymore that it would hit the nerve and do some damage. So I called last Monday for an appointment for this past Thursday. I was thinking it was just going to be a little checkup. The doctor comes in and says what he will be doing and just leaves... Elder Smith just sat there wondering what was going to happen. One of the nurses came in and had this needle about 2 inches long.. And as most of you know I absolutely hate needles... She just told me it would be a little prick then it would hurt.. A lot! Ha, I was lying on this bed thing and she went through my toe and went pretty much all the way through... It hurt SOO bad!! That was actually the worst part though. My toe became numb in about 10 min then he came back in. It was the weirdest thing ever. The doctor just cuts right down my nail like its paper and just grabs pliers and just rips it out. I was watching the whole time and I had Elder Smith take some pictures so I will definitely send some home. Anyways, that is all done and no more worries about that. But that was a fun adventure for me at least.

Saturday was a bitter sweet feeling I would have to say. Saturday morning we had transfer calls and I thought Elder Smith and I were staying for sure. We thought we were good. But as it got to our area and they announced that I would be leaving my heart just dropped. Elder Smith and I were just so upset because we wanted to stay together for longer. There were 5 of us in our apartment listening to calls and it seriously was such a sad feeling. It’s hard because you get to know all the members and so close to the new converts and it just seems like your home ward. Now having the idea of leaving was hard. But I am totally fine with it because I know that the Lord wants me down in Darmstadt. What’s really cool is I will be working on the University down there. My new companion down there will be Elder Bruneel. I am really excited but it’s also really hard leaving such an awesome area like Friedrichsdorf. I have loved serving here and being able to meet such wonderful people. It will be hard to leave but I am excited to experience something new. 

On a good note, Thomas’ baptism was Saturday!!!! It was soooo cool. Thomas had asked me to baptize him and I was so worried because the doctor told me not to get the wrap on my toe wet. So that morning I was trying a bunch of different ways to wrap it with bags in every way so that I could still perform the baptism. I wasn’t going to let that hold me back. This is something big in Thomas' life and so I figured a way to wrap my foot. We got dressed and Thomas was just happy as ever. This family is honestly one of the coolest families. We had the first part of the meeting and then it was time for him to get baptized. I was actually super nervous because I just was. haha I showed Thomas how it would work and then we went into the water. The water was freezing! But I was so happy and it was such a good feeling. I said the prayer and then he went under and came up. Coolest feeling just happened and the he just looked at me and gave me the biggest hug and said, "you are my brother," and just wouldn’t let go.. It was such an amazing experience for someone I really care about. I love that family and it will be hard saying goodbye to them and going to another place but I am so grateful for that experience I had being able to baptize one of my good friends. He is already a changed man. Shirleys baptism will be the 14th of December and I won’t be there for it. But I love this family and they have helped me grow so much. That is why I am out here on the mission. These experiences like this just change your life.

This is the Lords work. I am so grateful to be a part of it. Like I have always said, I am so glad I made this decision to come out on a mission and to serve our Lord. I am growing up so much and it has just changed me. I absolutely love serving. I know the Lord has a plan for each one of us. He loves us and knows what will help us in our lives. Just trust in him and most importantly, trust in yourself that our Savior will help you. He is always there. I have seen this Gospel change people’s lives. I know that he is super happy for all of us when we do what is right. Sometimes we take that wrong road but he is so happy when we find the right road again. Trust in the Lord. I love you all and I am doing awesome. I pray for all of you and I know that you guys are being watched over and protected. Say your prayers, go to the temple, and do all you can to serve our Lord.

Alles Klar!

Elder Emery

Thanksgiving

Hey, Hey, Hey

Well, Thanksgiving is just right around the corner! Too bad Germans don’t celebrate this Holiday. But we are headed to a member’s house and eating there. I am super excited for that. I get to eat more and more. I have already gained that 13 pounds so what more can turkey do? No, but I am so happy that everyone is doing well. I am great as ever. I am so happy. And what things happened this week what I will share.

This week on Tuesday we were doing our morning studies. Just enjoying the morning and relaxing. We received a call from Shirley.... December 14th will be her baptism. I was so excited for her and I just knelt down on my knees and thanked Heavenly Father. It was such a cool feeling. And that’s why I am out here on my mission. Elder Smith, Elder Lindsey and I were all just super humbled. Because we have seen the gospel in action in Thomas and Shirley’s lives and it has honestly just changed us. I absolutely love this gospel. They are so much happier and just enjoying everything. This week Thomas will be getting baptized and that is going to be really cool.

Also, this Saturday are our transfer calls. It’s always a scary time because you get in an area and you just learn and love all the members and people you teach and then you have the opportunity to go somewhere else. I am super nervous because I have been here for 4 transfers already and it’s still my first area. But I know the Lord sends us to these places for a special reason. I know that he watches over and protects us. But I will be super excited if I stay because I absolutely love it here in Friedrichsdorf.

Also, that Kevin kid that we met last week we had the chance to teach him. It was such a cool lesson. We have a member in our ward who actually recovered from drugs through the gospel so we went over to his house to teach him. We taught the power of the Book of Mormon and how that can help him overcome this challenge. He is 14 years old. It’s really sad here in Germany because you can honestly get cigarettes in a vending machine. But we will continue to teach him.

This week we met with a lot of members and less actives. It was a good week. We are staying busy. I am sorry that this letter is shorter. But know everything here in Germany is going great. I love you all.

Elder Emery

 The Robertson family along with Thomas, Shirley, and David.

 At Christian's house eating fondue. It was incredible!!

Germany is super gray. ALL THE TIME!

Great Week!

Hey Everyone,

Another great week here in Friedrichsdorf. It sounds like everyone is doing awesome and just loving life right now. I have changed my whole attitude about everything. This past week was such an awesome week and we stayed super busy. Something really cool happened to Elder Smith and I this week here in Friedrichsdorf. Here is the Story.

We had our ward counsel on Tuesday night here in Friedrichsdorf and the subject was about missionary work. It was our turn to speak and so we started to talk about how we don’t have as many investigators now since Thomas will be getting baptized on the 23rd. He was the only one and we were talking about how the members need to work with us. And then someone in the counsel made a smart aleck comment about how we as Elders don’t have any investigators and that got me a little fired up. I didn’t say anything though. That night as Elder Smith and I were planning we canceled the appointment we had at 5 p.m. so that we would have 6 hours straight of just contacting so we could find more people. We had set a goal that we would find 3 new people and we weren’t giving up till we did that. We prayed to Heavenly Father asking him to give us opportunities to find people and to feel prompted to find someone new. We went to sleep. The next morning we woke up and it was just terribly windy and super rainy... But that didn’t stop us. We did all of our planning and then went out. We had our coats and our umbrellas. But that didn’t help. haha We were still soaked! And needless to say that day we ended up finding those 3 people. It’s pretty incredible and the timing was perfect for all of them.

The first person we found was Kevin. We met him on Kurhaus bus stop here in Bad Homburg. He is 14 years old and has a smoking problem. It was really cool because we wouldn’t have ever met him if Elder Smith wouldn’t have forgotten our questionnaire. It’s a long story but it was so cool meeting him and we met him on Friday and he wants to learn more about the Gospel and how it can help him quit smoking.

The second man.. We were headed back to our apartment and he had just barely gotten off the phone and was walking the same direction as us and we both had the feeling we had to talk to him. He had questions about the Book of Mormon. We gave him one and we made an appointment. That was another cool experience we had that’s a long story to explain but that is so cool.

The third man we met was right before we went into our appointment in Rödheim. We found the first 2 guys in the first 2 hours.. And so we seriously contacted about 50 people in the freezing rain and it was about 3 hours straight of just getting denied. We had to take the train from Bad Homburg to Rödheim and we had about 15 minutes before we had our appointment. We were determined to find that last person. We contacted a couple people and got denied and then we saw this Chinese guy standing there and started talking to him. He was super nice and it was so cool because he was asking about temples and why we have them. We got his contact information and we gave him over to the International Sisters because he lives in Frankfurt.

It was such a cool day and was one of the best days on my mission. I learned a lot from this day and it changed everything. Jackson talked to me about changing my attitude about everything even when times are hard and it has just changed me. I am so much happier. I am sleeping better at nights. And I love it.

Another cool thing that happened was we went to a baptism in Frankfurt with Thomas, Shirley and David. It was such a cool experience because Thomas kept saying. "That will be me in 2 weeks!" I am so excited for him and it will be so exciting. It’s been so cool.

I am glad you are all doing well. I am doing well and staying healthy. Thanks for all the support.

Elder Emery