Gratitude

In an earlier blog we predicted that when we were released as seminary teachers and were asked to become the next zone leaders, we would be moving from being very busy to being much more busy. Well, that prediction could not have been more true. Now, not only are we busy in the evenings and weekends taking care of zone issues, but much of that has crept into our time at the office, when we should be working on our ATS (area Technology Specialist) assignment.

Since we have become zone leaders, we have dealt with

• water contamination in the apartment complex where most of the missionaries live.
• a government agency informing us of three apartments in our complex had devices that emit non-compliant frequency signals.  Each of those apartments were occupied by missionary couples.

These two issues have been talked about in previous blogs. None have been definitively resolved, but enough time has transpired that we know (assume?) that everything is alright now.

Then we have had to deal with some policy changes and other issues where we felt we would get some negative feed back.

• We decided in consultation with the housing people that when there is overlap between missionaries coming and those leaving, it will be the departing missionaries who will have to go to temporary housing instead of the newly arriving couple.
• We asked all missionaries to inform us when and where they are traveling, whether for business or pleasure.
• Fleet asked us to inform the senior missionaries that black boxes will be installed in their cars.  The black boxes would report traffic violations and GPS locations to fleet managers.
• Just yesterday there was a temporary power outage at the apartment building - meaning no elevator to the 11th floor or anywhere in between.  Fortunately that lasted less than two hours.

When we accepted this assignment as zone leaders, we were told that we needed to wear thick skins and that senior missionaries will do what they want and will not always comply and that they are not shy to express their opinions. However, we are seeing just the opposite.

As for the policy issues, we did our best to explain to the missionaries in emails why there would be changes and waited for the feedback. We were surprisingly happy over the responses. There were a number of missionaries who questioned how the change would directly apply to them. They weren't complaint, but concerns. We addressed each one privately. Then came comments of support and recognition that these changes made a lot of sense and gratitude that we were implementing them. Even one of the missionaries who express a concern earlier, later wrote and told us that they supported us and that the change made sense.

Senior missionaries are a wonderful breed of saints. They really have a heart and a desire to serve. That really makes them special. We feel so grateful to be able to rub shoulders with them.

We would love to tell you all the exciting things going on with our technology group pilot program. Not only have we seen the hand of the Lord involved, but it is overwhelmingly exciting to see and hear the responses of those participating in the pilot. They are truly grateful for what we are doing.Unfortunately, it is too early to tell you any of the details. Hopefully, in a couple of months, we will be able to report our experiences in one of our blogs.

Can't publish a blog without a picture! 

Sister van Hoff on an early morning walk 

in the Hauptfriedhof (Main Cemetery).

We love you all and miss you dearly. May God continue to bless you and watch over you.

A Normal but Tasty Week

This past week was pretty much a normal week; trying to keep up with email and still being swamped with responsibilities of being Zone Leaders.

Being tech people, we did something that we've not heard done before. We met some of the senior missionary couples who will be arriving soon. We arranged a time to video conference with them. They seemed to be appreciative to see us, so that they will recognize someone when they arrive. They also had a lot of questions that we were able to answer.

During our early morning walks during the week we managed to pick a kilo of blackberries. This morning, Saturday, we picked another kilo and later in the morning I made blackberry jam.  In Germany they have Gelierzucker (sugar/pectin combo) made for putting up jams. You just need to know if it is a 2-to-1 or 1-to-1 ratio on the bag of sugar.

Here is a picture showing the amount of jam I was able to make. With the Gelierzucker, it's a lot simpler to make than in the States. The jam also has cinnamon and vanilla in it.

The zucchini was given to us by Sister Enger. Yes, it is huge. We meet each week during the summer at her Kleingarten for our German Culture Class.  I will be making, and sharing with her, a chocolate zucchini cake.

Jam on peanut butter on rice cake.

By lunch time the jam was cool enough to taste.  Ohhh, yeahhhhh!!!! Pretty good.

Next week we are meeting with our newest pilot group from Hungary and Romania. We are so excited about how the Lord has blessed us in this effort.

Timing

It has been an interesting couple of weeks.  We told you in the last blog that we were asked to be the new Zone Leaders and on the very day we officially functioned as such, we had a report of Legionelle bacteria found in the apartment complex we and most of the other missionary couples live in.

Even though we have not yet received notification that the bacteria is all gone, yet another event happened.  Last week, a satellite truck positioned itself in the Europe Area Office's parking lot.  It was trying to find what was causing frequency interference.  They eventually narrowed it down to our apartment complex.  Taking in portable frequency detectors they found three apartments that supposedly have non-compliant devices.

Yep, the three apartments turned out to be three of our missionary couples.

Evidently, some devices built in America that emit a frequency signal interfere with the emergency and telephone signals here in Germany.  We scrambled to notify all missionaries that this government agency might be returning the next day to test again and that, if anything was found, a fine of thousands of euros could be issued.

The devices are typically phone bases for cordless phones, but it could also be things like baby monitors, wireless headphones, and remote control toys.  Interestingly enough, one device that was found had been in the missionaries' apartment before they arrived.  Evidently brought by a missionary who had once served.

A comment was mentioned to us the other day that the Lord waited for us to become Zone Leaders because of our background.  That does make sense.  Who better to understand and handle contaminated water than a wastewater treatment guy?  Who better to understand technology issues than two missionaries who are assigned to work with technology?  Sister van Hoff and I each have organizational skills, although hers is better developed than mine.

We could ask, "Why did the Lord have to put these events on us and especially so quickly in our assignment?" But, instead, we are grateful that the Lord trusted us enough to handle those situations for his missionaries.

For Independence Day, we gathered together as senior missionaries for a cookout.  The senior couple responsible for the event did an outstanding job: patriotic music, games, talks, etc.  A lot of the missionaries remarked how wonderful it was.

The Sisters at the cookout.

The elders at the cookout.  I'm in dress clothes because

 of a video conference scheduled for later that evening.

Yesterday, Elder Skoubye and I took a one-hour bicycle ride.  He showed me a place which was a huge park and some wooded areas.  It was a great ride, but in getting lost coming back the one-hour ride took 2-1/2 hours.  Other than being exhausted all day, I've not seen any ill effects.  Yet!!!

Elder Skoubye under an artistic bridge.

Here is a beautiful landscaped section of river we biked. On our bike ride.
We had an exciting week this week with the events of our pilot program.  I'd share them with you, but I think I'll keep the details until later. (Guess you'll just have to continue to read our blogs to find out.)  I will say this much, we received spiritual direction on forming a third pilot group.  It wasn't until we met with the facilitator for that group that we realized how inspired that spiritual direction was.

Eventful Events

This past week has been flurry of a variety of events.

Starting with Sunday, we went to visit a family we were assigned to minister to. He is German, she is from the Ukraine, and they have little children who speak, Russian, German, and English. We were told that English is used for everyone to understand what is being said. What a wonderful family they are and, guess what? They live within walking distance for us. You can't beat that.

Monday morning being Zone Leaders became a reality. We had a 2-hour orientation from the previous Zone Leaders that took 3 hours. It would have lasted longer and covered more, but after 3 hours we felt overwhelmed with all we need to do.

That afternoon, a senior elder approached us and informed us that there was something posted in the apartment elevators and it had to do with water. It turned out to be a notification that Legionella bacteria was detected at moderate levels when a routine analysis of the water was performed.

Doing some research and informing our Area Medical Advisor (senior missionary) we scurried to inform all those who should know. Not all of the senior couples live in our apartment building and then there are senior couples and young missionaries in the building that are not in our zone. Our Medial Advisor did a great job in not only informing us what the risk factors were but also advised what precautions we needed to take. Evidently the bacteria thrives in warm water and if moisture is breathed in it can cause respiratory illnesses like Legionnaires Disease.

All week, we had to inform others as more information became available. In short, the building owners treated the water later in the week by raising the temperature to extremely hot levels (158 degrees F). Another test was done but the bacteria was still found on the 12th (top) floor. We are sure that we will be still involved with this for a little longer.

Wednesday evening, I got involved with a member service project. A member moving here from Italy needed his rental home painted. Most of the painting was done on previous days. When I got there, only the member and I painted for about an hour until one other person showed. Obviously there weren't enough people to do much talking and it didn't help when the other member showed and they spoke Italian to each other. Still it felt great to be of service and have a change of the normal routine.

Friday evening we held a cottage meeting at our apartment for an investigator. Again, language was a small barrier. He speaks fluent French and Arabic, some German, and less English. However, he seemed to enjoy himself. In fact, I invited him out to the ward cookout that next day.

Originally he said he couldn't make it because he had another appointment, but he wound up coming out. The appointment was changed.

We are the International Ward.  Just in this

picture I see members born in America, China, England, Portugal, and Spain

Master Grillers

We really enjoyed the cookout. Maybe me more than Sister van Hoff. With her eating restrictions it is difficult to find something to eat. I enjoyed the food, but more than that, I enjoyed talking to the members. Having taught seminary and being involved with other members because of missionary work, we have gotten to know a lot of the members of this ward.

We are truly blessed to be here. By the way, I wrote an article for our senior missionary newsletter. It was a message from the Zone Leaders. In essence, I encouraged the missionaries to extend themselves beyond their missionary assignment and create their own missionary experiences. In other words, "Make your own mission."

We have been doing just that and loving it.

Opportunities

We started a Book of Mormon Reading Group with a member who was baptized about a year ago. Some weeks ago we had been talking with him about reading the entire Book of Mormon. We discussed several ways to do it, and decided to start at the beginning and read a chapter a day.  We decided to use Messenger and create a group; him, Sister van Hoff, and me. (He has a friend who had introduced him to the Church who might join us.)  Anyway, we all read the same chapter and each of us comment on something that stands out to us or that we learn from that chapter.

It has been great. We have all come up with comments and thoughts that we probably wouldn't have noticed or recognized before. For me, reading with the understanding that I need to find something in the chapter has opened a new way of understanding.

The 12th of June was an emotional rollercoaster ride. Early that morning, we went to the international school to have our very last seminary class. Most of the students had taken the assessment test, but we still had three more who hadn't. They were nearly finished with their tests when another student walked into the room. She hadn't yet had the opportunity to go over the assessment after it was graded. Her being there was not a surprise, but was welcome. You see, it was emotionally painful for us to realize that our seminary classes and the personal time we had with these kids was coming to an end.

The kids finished their tests and another student who didn't need to be there any longer walked in. It appeared that she came to get some of the students who had finished up and they left the room.  Sister van Hoff and I said our goodbyes as they left, but they didn't seem to hear us.

Five minutes later, they all came back into the room and handed us roses and an envelope. In the envelope was a handmade card. Every student had written little something in it. It was so hard to hold back the tears. They have been our children for a short season. All eight of them. They will be etched on our hearts.

The roses we received.

Our feeling of being free from that extra responsibility was short -lived. That same afternoon we went to our appointment with Elder Sabin, 1st Counselor to the Europe Area Presidency. He was very short and brief because he didn't have much time. He was in the middle of an important meeting and had left it to talk to us. He asked us to be the new Zone Leaders. I'm sure we must have been a funny sight to him when both of our jaws dropped.

I was completely speechless, but Sister van Hoff immediately spoke and told him we are not accustomed to turning down assignments, so we accepted.

This new assignment will drastically change the rest of our mission. There are, right now, 22 senior missionary couples in our zone. Our responsibilities have nearly doubled. We will be responsible for new missionaries coming in; other missionaries going home; assigning the vehicles they are using; apartment issues; any traffic violation, passport, or travel issues; and the list goes on. Since most of the couples are here for 18 months, the turnover is quick. In the year we've been here, 20 couples have either arrived or left. Fortunately, senior missionaries are a unique in that they are self-motivators, hard workers, and carry stronger than normal testimonies. There are many of them who do so much behind the scenes to help out with projects or help each other. Each is so special in their own way.

The Lord has blessed us in calling the Skoubyes as Assistant Zone Leaders. We have been great friends ever since they arrived and I, for one, have looked up to them for their spiritual strength. We had no input in recommending that they be called. Hearing about it was just as much as a surprise as us being asked by Elder Sabin.

The past few days, our department held a seminar in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany. What a beautiful city it is. We stayed in a hotel right in the middle of the old walled section of town .

The time there was well spent. Everyone from our IT department was there, except one who was ill. We even had two representatives from Church headquarters. All the presentations were great and led to meaningful discussions. We, ourselves, gave a presentation on listening.

We all came away with great information and learned of upcoming changes regarding technology that the Church will soon implement. I think the highlight of the seminar for me was the spiritual content of the meeting. In one session, Brother Santos, our department manager, asked that everyone take five minutes each and, using a timeline, tell about important moments in our lives. Times that changed our lives and times that influenced our life decisions. Many talked about their conversions, struggles, and important events in their lives. What a powerful spirit was present in that room. Not only did we learn more about each other, but we could feel the power of each others testimonies.

In the mornings and in the evenings the weather was great and we got to see a lot of the city. We were able to walk nearly all the way around the town on the wall. The first evening we had a city tour guided by a "nightwatchman" from the old days.

As you can tell, the Lord continues to bless us with opportunities. Opportunities to learn and grow, opportunities to see the beauty around us, and opportunities to be spiritually fed.

The following link shows you what it is like entering one of the gates into the city.

https://youtu.be/xTfcu4MZOEk

Below are several pictures of Rothenburg, Germany.

A cute, colorful house near the city wall.

Down a side street.

The inner city wall.  There is also an outer city wall.

Walking on the wall.

A city gate.

Part of the city wall.

Fountain near town square

Along the wall (right) looking outside of town (left) and a section of town. (top)

Blessings, Birthdays, and Happiness

For a long time now we have been privately recognizing some tender mercies the Lord has shown us. They have been increasing exponentially lately. We'd like to share them with you. Some unexpected expenses have put a little stress on us, but the Lord has helped out in small ways to make it more bearable.

Since the beginning of our mission we have been assigned to manage the missionary library in the basement of the office building. A few months in we were asked to also maintain the missionary trading post -- a group of shelves where senior missionaries can place usable items they do not want or want to leave behind when they go home.

Several months ago, I was interested in cutting my own hair instead of having to pay a barber. Within a couple of weeks, a complete hair cutting kit appeared on the shelves. Later on, we discussed how we needed to buy some new dish drying towels. Again with in a couple of weeks, a large set of towels in excellent condition appeared. There are other items we planned to buy that suddenly appeared soon after we discussed them: plant vases, and rollers for them, eye drops for dry eyes, OTC medicine, etc. And there have been unexpected items that we found valuable. One was a heavy mixer. Now that I'm off the gluten-free, sugar-free diet, I'm able to make bread with the mixer.

Lately, the tender mercies have increased in frequency and value. I was noticing that my shoes were probably not going to make it the rest of my mission. Suddenly, there they were, thanks to Elder Orlowski getting ready to go home. Because I have lost so much weight, my suits are looking big. Again, Elder Orlowski left two suits and one fits perfectly.

I've been wanting to ride a bike, but was unsure if my back could handle it. Elder Skoubye approached me the other day. He had bought two bikes and had an extra for me to use. It needs some work and repair, but that cost will be minimal. I've only been out with it twice, but so far my back is holding up fine.

Tons of flour and spices

So, all of this has been going on for months now and just a couple of days ago, we got a call from the sister missionaries. They learned that I had been a baker years ago and asked if we were interested in getting a lot of baking ingredients and spices. They were given them by a member they helped to move. Some of the flours were too old to use, but there was enough for me to have fun and for Diane to spice up our meals.

These have truly been unexpected blessings.

We were invited over to the Fu's for breakfast and to celebrate Elder Larson's birthday. Brother and Sister Fu are recent converts. They have two wonderful little boys. What a beautiful and loving family they are.

This is a lot but more was put on after the photo.

The breakfast was delicious with all sorts of variety of things to choose from. It was impossible to try everything, there was so much. Sister Fu asked if I could bake a birthday cake for Elder Larson and explained that she had never baked a cake before. We found out that most Chinese homes do not have an oven. All their cooking is done on the stovetop. A recent development in China is that of the cake shop where birthday cakes can be purchased. Typically, birthdays are celebrated with noodles for good luck in the coming year.

We so much enjoyed the breakfast and then, from their earlier request, the younger missionaries gave a lesson on what the Book of Mormon is all about. Having taught the Book of Mormon in seminary this year, the stories and lessons from the book are still fresh in our minds and we were able to share some of that information.

During our visit, Sister Fu shared an experience from early in their married life. As a family, they had been looking for a religion that could bring them spiritual strength and enlightenment. She showed us a picture of Brother Fu with a large group of men. He had gone on a retreat to a Buddhist monk temple. In the picture, everyone was dressed in Buddhist robes. I commented that he did not look happy. She then told us that he wasn't supposed to be. They are taught that there is no happiness in this life. It is all a trial to prepare for the next.

She told us that she struggled during this time. They already had their one child. If her husband decided to remain there and become a Buddhist monk, they would have to live apart and he could not remain part of the family unit. Families are not considered essential. People become parents as a way to pay back to for what they did to them (now their children) in a previous life.

Her struggle was in that she loved her husband and didn't want to stand in the way of his desire to become a monk. She was willing to support him and allow him to find his spiritual enlightenment. This speaks highly of Sister Fu. She was willing to sacrifice her own happiness for that of her husband's. Fortunately, Brother Fu's love for her and his son was strong, also. He gave up the idea of living a Buddhist monk's life, because he wanted to be with them.

Eventually, they were approached on a German street by the missionaries and introduced to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are so happy to not only have found the truth, but to learn that they can be a family for eternity.

What a wonderful story. Oh, how we wish that more people could come to understand that these and other blessings are all available to them, also. How wonderful it is to know all these truths and to know God and Jesus Christ so personally.

One last comment. I spent yesterday making costumes for our characters for the next Oma and Opa Show. For those unfamiliar with our show, it is an hour long show with a major story, activities, music and other things. We create the show for our grandkids each year. A little hint on this year's show is that we will be using castles in the background of the story. Something that we couldn't do if we were in the States.

We love you all.

Living In Frankfurt, but Involved With International People

The other night we had four missionary elders over for dinner. They were just getting ready to leave when the sister missionaries called. The sisters had an urgent need to help with a discussion they had with a young man. We invited them over to our place.  

The young man was from Iran. He spoke some German and very little English. His main language was Persian.

Here's how the discussion went. The sister missionaries used their tablet to contact an elder from Berlin for a video chat. When the sisters taught, they would say it in English. The elder would translate to Persian. The young man would comment or ask a question and that would be translated back to English.

A few days after the appointment we learned that the Church is now training some missionaries at the MTC to speak two languages. Evidently, this young elder learned German (because he is serving here in Germany) and Persian. That is absolutely amazing. This allows the missionaries to teach people that are from countries where it is prohibited to send missionaries. We're wondering where he was from in the United States, because "y'all" was part of his English vocabulary. 

It was wonderful to see the interest the young man took in the discussion. He commented several times that he felt the Spirit as things were discussed. This is truly one of the more interesting missionary appointments we have experienced.

Elder Skoubye, our good friend and fellow senior missionary, offered me a bicycle. He had purchased a couple of bikes from a missionary couple who have left the field. In the process, he also inherited a third bike. I've been wanting to ride one, but was not sure my back would handle it well. So, now I'm able to try riding and see if I can handle it.  

I've gone riding twice now with Elder Skoubye. I think he is used to riding fast and long. The two things I can't do yet. Riding long ways is not a good way to test this out on my back. As for fast, the bike has 7 gear speeds compared with his about 15 gear speeds. But that is not the only reason for not being able to go fast. Of the 7 gear speeds I have, only one works, and, you guessed it, the only working gear speed is one of the lower gears.

Yesterday, Elder Skoubye and I biked to a local bakery. Now that I'm back to a non-restrictive diet, I thought I'd taste some of this country's cuisine. From the picture you can see that I chomped down on this pastry before I even thought of taking the picture. It was filled in the middle with fig filling.  

The move through the window

You know what this means?  I'm going to have to go bike riding more often with Elder Skoubye.
After returning I went to help out with a member move. I didn't stay until the end, but did stay for close to five hours. It was so enjoyable working side by side with the local members.  

I've done a lot of moves before, but none quite like this.  The windows here in Germany don't typically have screens. Many of the windows are large. So was the case here. Because the land sloped up the side of the apartment house and with having large windows in their living room and being on the 2nd floor, we simply handed down boxes and furniture through the window to those outside.  In this picture, President Dicataldo (Italian), Elder's Quorum President is on the ground and Bro. Allen (UK), Executive Secretary to the Bishop is in the window.

.

It looks like I actually worked

While I was gone Diane attended a baptism in the German Ward. It was a Chinese brother who had been friendshipped by the Fu family.  The Fu family are Chinese also and having been baptized not long ago are actively involved in missionary efforts. They are so excited about the gospel and now there is another Chinese brother who is equally as excited.

We want you to know that we love all of you.  The Lord is blessing us in so many ways and we hope that by sharing some of our experiences, you, too, can partake of the joys of those blessings we have received.

Brother Fu on left and Brother Liming Zhao on right