A Baptism, a Baptismal Date Set, and The Northern Lights

This was a pretty special week here in Alta!  My trainee and I were blessed this week to reach the standards for 'standards of excellence' in our Area.  We worked very hard, we sacrificed, prayed a ton and found a lot of success and potential!  It really was a special week and a week full of growth.  We have many people to work with here, and also a baptismal date for a young woman who was formerly a foreign exchange student in the States.  She met a member of the church in Missouri that brought her to attend church many times.  Now that she is back in Norway, the boy has come to visit her while he is waiting for his mission call.  It came!  He is going to South Korea and she currently has a baptismal date for October!  We are helping her progress in the gospel and I extended an invitation that has served me very well in my life.  I asked her if she would keep a journal and write down thoughts and impressions.  It has been something that has served me very well in my life and she has accepted the commitment and is doing so!

I held my first district meeting the past Tuesday over Skype!  I conducted the whole meeting in Norwegian - it was a little difficult but the language is continuing to come along.  It's a bit difficult because many people like to speak English with the Elders, but here in Alta I have made a ton of progress with my language.  It's coming very well. Our district consists of us in Alta and a 3-some of elders in Tromsø.  It's pretty fun to be part of the North!

Yesterday, there was a baptism in my old area of a man whom we began teaching in Sandnes.  I know he was prepared to hear about the gospel.  He said that he had contemplated commiting suicide before and didn't really know what life was all about.  He was extremely humble and so genuine and sincere.  The week after I left, they got a baptismal date with him. He then kept himself to all of his commitments and was baptised yesterday.  There are definitely special things happening here.  They are not always the easiest to find, but they are found.  It is done through a lot of hardwork, a lot of prayer, fasting, and patience.  I would not want it any other way.

I love the work that we do.  We try to find people whom the Lord has prepared for us.  They are out there.  They are ready to receive all the blessings that our loving Heavenly Father has prepared for them.  We are ready to allow them to receive them as well.  The most special work I have ever been involved in is being here as a missionary.  There are only 20,000 people in this small town but it has so much potential.  We are literally on top of the world.  We work very hard to allow others to make commitments to our Heavenly Father which brings tremendous blessings.  I have been so blessed throughout my life and as I continually dedicate myself to this work it only keeps getting better!

I also have to add.... we saw the Northern Lights for the first time!!