Sick Week

Well it has been a slow week. Sort of. The week started out pretty normal. We had dinner with our new member Erik on Monday. That was fun.

Tuesday we had district meeting. 

On Wednesday we had splits in Slagelse. That was pretty fun. I was with Elder Saviano. He is a pretty new missionary, but he is a good one too. I learned a lot from him and we had a lot of fun.

Wednesday night is where it got pretty weird. Elder Iversen woke me up at 3 in the morning and told me Elder Peel was shaking and shivering and couldn't stop. He was feeling pretty sick the evening before. We called the mission President and he told us to take Elder Peel to the ER, so we drove over there, but by then he had stopped shaking. They said we would have to call a docor and set up an appointment. We got him in an appointment the next day. It turns out he just had a really bad fever and a bacterial infection. The rest of the week he was pretty sick so we were inside for like 4 days. The only exceptions were that we went to a baptism that was in Slagelse and we went to church on Sunday. It was a long week, but I got a lot of practice on the guitar.

Well, something I read this week was a talk about the Book of Mormon. It was by Tad R. Callister and he talked about whether the book is true or not. At the end of the talk he came to the conclusion that it has nothing to do with theories and history and geology. It has to do with what we feel and what the Spirit tells us. It is through the convincing power of the Spirit that we learn the truth of spiritual things. I would challenge you all to remember that when you have doubts or when you need answers. Search for a spiritual confirmation that your faith is true. I know that you will get an answer.

I love you all. Have a great week and stay happy even though summer is coming to an end.

Love, Elder Smith

Hey dad, 

Haha I'm sorry you have been too busy to get some things done. 

I'm glad you have been getting workouts in. I guess that is a good use of time. I hope all goes well with your race. I will pray that you don't pull your butt muscle.

I'm glad you had the missionaries over. I will tell his parents. 

I also wish I was better at having faith and hope. It makes the hard times much easier. When things are hard and I remember and trust in the Lord I instantly feel more peace and calm.

Something that can always help with missionary work is always looking for the people who need it. Look for the people who have had a recent death in the family, or a birth, or recently moved in. These are the kinds of people who need the gospel and are open to hear about those kinds of things. Just be aware of changes in peoples lives that might prepare them. 

I'm sorry I have to cut this email shorter than I wanted. I was going to write a good long one. I was just talking with a lady that sat next to me in the library. She thought we were workers because of our white shirts and ties. I told her we were missionaries and we had a good little conversation. Then some guy walked up and started saying weird stuff and asking if we have convinced anyone to be mormon yet. I wish those people would just go away. He told me my Danish wasn't very good. Then the lady said I had really good Danish. Then it was kind of awkward so I said I wouldn't use more of her time. I think I will try to give her a Book of Mormon before we leave. Just kidding she just left. :( Hopefully we will see her again. I love you dad. Have a good week. good luck at your race!

Love, Elder Smith

Dearest Mother Dear

It is sad how fast summer goes. It is nice to enjoy the sun and warmth. 

I like the pics from your trip. That looks so beautiful and fun. I miss mountains sooooooooooooooo much. And the lakes tucked in the trees. I'm glad you got to go on a backpacking trip. I can't wait to go with you someday!

Haha I'm sorry about the dinner with the elders. It may be that he thought they were too spicy. They don't eat very many spicy things here. I'm sure that the Elder from Brazil is a bit more accustommed to spicy things. I\m glad they gave you some challenges and that you are going to give them a try. I wish you would have gotten a picture of you with the missionaries. You will have to have them over again and give them some more mellow food haha.

I have been eating pretty healthy. Mostly just chicken and vegatables. But we have random meals that aren't as healthy. I am really trying to stay away from treats, but it is super hard. I need a scale or something so I can see if I am making any improvements.

That is cool that TJ Batty offered you a job. He is a nice guy. That would be cool. But it would be sad to stop doing all the other things. You could just work 4 jobs haha. I guess whatever you do make sure you pray about it :)

We drive a little hyundai. Elder Peel drives. It is usually whoever has been in the area longer who drives.

The members here are good and we don't have a lot. I wish they gave us referals. If you have any friends who even might say yes to meeting with the missionaries you should ask them.

I guess it is good to play it safe and give the missionaries lasagna or something haha. I'm sure elder Johansen would like potatoes meat and gravy haha. I am not very picky so I am fine with whatever people feed me.

I'm sure you testify in a lot of different ways. I guess just having uplifting conversations and taking advantage of times where you can talk about a church activity or something.

I love you mom. Thanks for being so awesome. Have a good week.

Love, Elder Smith