Cursed Street

Dear Everybody,

   Once upon a time there was a street in Germany that was cursed. This street fights against any missionaries that try to go there. Not matter when the missionaries go, no matter what the weather may appear to be before hand, it always rains on this street. We have gone to this street twice this week. It has rained both times.

   The first time was not even noticeable. Germany has this weird type of rain that is like the misters at the grocery store that spray the vegetables. It is not even noticeable that it is raining, except for the fact that you slowly start becoming more wet.

   The second time was the fun time. It hailed for a good ten minutes and the rest was heavy rain. This was probably the highlight of my week. You see, there is nothing more enjoyable than knocking on someone's door in the middle of a hail storm with a great big smile on your face. Quite entertaining.

   As missionaries, you learn to laugh at yourself because life is so much more enjoyable that way. There is no worry about being weird or awkward because it is true. We do not have to worry about what we are going to say or what the person is going to say.

   I have also taken to "collecting" answers. It is another way to make it more entertaining. A lot of people give us the same answers, but every so often there is something that is truly unique. I appreciate the creativity of some people.

   See, if we do not enjoy what we do, then there really is not a point. You can try to get yes twenty times and be disappointed or you can try to get no twenty times and be greatly thrilled when you get no fifty times and a couple of ayes.

   Just remember to embrace the awkward. Besides, there is no word for that in German.

sincerely,

Elder Perez 

Hard Rock Cafe

Dear Everybody,

   To celebrate the birthday of our beloved Elder Duff, we went to the Hard Rock Café in Hamburg. As a consequence, we enjoyed delicious food and did not have as much time to finish emails as we would have normally liked. But it was all worth it in the end because of the deliciousness of the American food that is not to easily be found in the land of Germany. 

   I would also like to make a tribute to Elder Duff for his birthday. Elder Duff has the wonderful ability of asking questions. These questions include such things as, "Sister Champenois, if you had the ability to turn wool into Danish butter cookies, would you open a restaurant or would you keep it a secret?" Or, "If you were to choose a third favorite color and it were not red, would you choose blue?" So I pose to you a question in honor of Elder Duff.

   If you had the ability to invite others to have more joy in their life than they had ever imagined possible, would you stop just because they might say no?

sincerely,

Elder Perez 

Missionaries enjoying Hard Rock Cafe

American Hamburger in Germany

Hamburg

Ferry Ride

Holstentor

Church

Crocuses

Speaking in Church

Dear Everybody,

     I spoke in church. (again) This was one of those times where Heavenly Father lets you do everything that you can, then takes care of everything. It is not that your effort was wasted, but it had nothing to do with the end result. Directly that is. I spent a couple hours trying to prepare the talk that would help the members and investigators the most. I prayed for inspiration, felt I should prepare it on a certain topic, then proceeded, periodically asking the advice of our Heavenly Father. I prepared a talk. It was all wonderfully written out so that I could read it and not have too many German mistakes. Then I went up to the pulpit to deliver what I had prepared. I did not read any of it. If I had not taken the time, it would have shown Heavenly Father that I did not care enough to receive His help. But because I gave my best, He made sure that I did better than I could on my own by not revealing my talk to me before I gave it. Less propagated error that way.

    Have a great week. The scripture for this email is Doctrine and Covenants 76:5-6.

Alles Liebe!

Elder Perez

Elder Bingham

Lübeck

Elizabeth Baptism

"Hi Elders"

Dear Everybody,

   Elder Bingham and I were delayed getting out of the apartment on Saturday. We received a surprise phone call, which led to more phone calls, which led to us missing the train that comes once every hour, etc. When we finally got out of the apartment, it was one of the awkward times where there is too much time to simply stand there and wait for the bus, so we went to visit the less active who lives a couple apartment houses down from us. After our visit, we started street contacting. There was a man on a bicycle coming towards us. Then something happened that happens much less often than we would like. The man stopped and started talking to us. We being the very prepared missionaries that we are, were not at all surprised that a man on the street who was riding his bike would stop in order to talk to us. We were not even phased when he said something we had never heard before. "Hi Elders". With the quick reactions of a well-prepared servant of the Lord, Elder Bingham said, "Are you a member?". He said, "No, but I have been to your website. I believe that Joseph Smith is a prophet. I am tired of the problems with drugs and my girlfriend. I want to change my life." We responded with all the eloquence of someone with the gift of tongues. "Uh... Ok...", followed by desperate rummaging for planners. There was a quick exchange of information, a pass along card with the address of the church and our phone number was given, (always kept on hand), and an appointment was made. What is the moral of the story?

   1. You can pray to find prepared people. Or you can pray that they will find you.

   2. The church website is awesome.

   3. If you really want a good laugh, say hi to Elders in English when you are in a place where they do not meet members all the time or speak English.

   4. If the Lord really wants you to find someone, as long as you are prepared, He will make sure that you meet that person. There are a lot of people that are ready for the Gospel that we "find", but when it really matters, the Lord takes care of it personally. We just have to give what we can.

sincerely,

Elder Perez