Prepared people: Wetzlar Week 11

October 19, 2015

Subject: Prepared people

Hallo Familie,

Solid update. Austin, Way to go with Soccer out there. Did you play keeper a bit out there too? The family mission plan looks great! Our mini missionary comes to us next week. Unfortunately Mr S did not make it, last minute call and he had changed his mind. The baptism was awesome though, Titze Family. Sister Titze is originally from Ohio, speaks amazing German and English her husband also speaks English.

Reading Austin´s quote from my email that he used in a talk, [DadN: Austin gave a talk in Church last week on Christ like attributes and he focused on Service and quoted one of Hayden’s past letters] I realize how much less exciting my emails sound right now than they probably did when I started or closer to when I started my mission. I love my ward here in Wetzlar too, the area, the people we teach, companions I´ve had. I´m still loving my mission, excited about the work, happy, enjoying German, eating too much with members, and all of those good things.

In this past week we had two more fun splits with Hanau missionaries [DN: Split is where Missionaries from different areas switch Companions for a day or “split” up and each goes out with another person. Ie split up the companionship], had a zone training and did some finding on our own. Cool story (hoping it continues to get cooler and I may have already told part of it) Elder Domine and I talked with a man walking down the street, I complimented his dog (Austin, the German people have such well taken care of, beautiful dogs, it´s great) and started a conversation about the gospel. One thing led to another, he wasn´t really interested but he invited us into his drink store and gave us some free drinks and we gave him a Book of Mormon. A few weeks later one of my Zone leaders [DN: Mission areas organized geographically – Mission whole area, Zone subsection of Mission, District subsection of Zone, Companionship area subsection of district – Each area has Leadership at that level] and I went back on a split to check on him and he´d read a bit. We scheduled an appointment (which semi fell through, his coworker didn´t show up to cover him at work but we had a chat at the register, and have since visited him two more times. He´s read the restoration pamphlet twice and is loves it. He is understanding how loving God is and how important the family is. We haven´t even had a sit down lesson to really share things and invite but he is already doing so much! When people come to know God and his truth, repentance- a change of heart leading to a change of behavior because of, through, and with Jesus Christ, occurs naturally. So exciting. We´re visiting him tonight :)

Those are some good things going on. And it´s really cold, but I have a coat now so it´s all good.

Till next week! Love,

Hayden

reminder that I´ve been sending the mission address wrong. President said to send letters packages and stuff in General only through the office.

Elder Hayden Blanchard

Kirche Jesu Christ 

Corneliusstrasse 18
60325 Frankfurt am Main
Germany/Deutschland

phone calls are hard: Wetzlar Week 10

October 12, 2015

Subject: phone calls are hard

Hallo Familie!!

Thanks for the update! Also, what did you do for Dad´s birthday? And Happy Birthday Dad!! How is it being ##? Whoa. You´re ## and I´m almost 20. Not a teenager anymore, how do you feel? Thank you for the letter with the family picture and awesome picture from Cannon [note a cousin], I hung them both up :) It arrived on Monday afternoon last week.

It would be great to get some more of those fiber supplements from costco, the natural psyllium ones like what I took, I´ve almost finished both bottles. They´re great, especially when I eat way too much heavy food or just lots and lots with members. I think that´s it. I´ll probably buy a coat or some more sweaters- things like that- soon, so just a heads up there. Plus souvenirs at Christmas markets when that starts to happen. Fun to hear about people getting married at home too, carry on, friends.

As far as the week went, it was really solid. It flew as usual. I can´t believe that we´re going into week 5 of this transfer. Craziness. 2 splits a week lately really makes things seem fast, always fun to learn from and teach other missionaries. Fun to understand myself better as well, my leadership style and teaching as well. Elder Regehr and I found out on this last week that we will be hosting a mini misisonary from Hanau for a week, not this week or next week, but the week after. Bald werden wir ein Drit! [Translation: Soon we will be a threesome!]

Other noteworthy events of the week and of late... I love finding now, so fun to talk to people on the street. Teaching is good but it can be hard to find people who have the time and desire to consistently meet. Baptizing. Tonight an 8 year old girl in our ward is being baptized and we´re hoping that our friend from Ethiopia can make it. I just called him but he´s hard to understand. I was praying the whole time I was on the phone that I could understand what he said to me. All of a sudden his voice became even blurrier. As if a rain drop fell on the speaker or something. We figured it out, he´ll wait on the bridge by his house at 4:20. The Holy Spirit let me understand what I needed to on that phone call to make it work.

Love you all! Till next week!

Hayden

Fun Exchange: Wetzlar Week 9

October 5, 2015

Subject: Re: Happy general conference

Hello,

Thoughts on using conference and improving because of it: Similar to Zone trainings or other missionary meetings, or lessons with others, if we don´t make decisions, set goals and do something to make the excitement and spirit of General conference, zone training (or whatever may have inspired us to change and do better) last, then it won´t last. The excitement will be fleeting. The desire and awareness of where we need to change will be temporary and we won´t be much better off because of it. I think what you said is awesome, choosing a few specific points that are most important right now. Prayerfully set goals and make plans. Bring it to Father in Heaven. I loved the talk from Larry R. Lawrence where he spoke a lot about the spirit. The spirit will give us such personal and direct promptings, lovingly inviting us to change and be better, but not overwhelming us.

my address:

Karl-Sack Straße 15

35398  Gießen, Hessen

Germany/Deutschland

Mission office:

"Elder/Sister" "First Name" "Last Name"

Kirche Jesu Christi

Corneliusstraße 18

60325 Frankfurt a. Main

Germany/Deutschland

Hoping to download pictures soon and needing to take more. Nachdenken is to ponder, nachsinnen is like a deeper pondering, maybe contemplate and auswendig lernen is to memorize. Interested now in what sort of word the translator made up, haven´t heard that talk yet. [D-Note: a talk during Conference introduced a made up word “ponderize”. I was wondering how that translated into other languages]

Yep, that´s the red jump drive I was hoping for, I don´t need it for more space for pictures or anything, I think I had some journal entries or something like that typed up on there somewhere. (among lots of other things, school papers and such).

Teaching with the iPad honestly isn´t that different, it´s really helpful to have scriptures in so many languages/more accessible. The biggest two differences in my life though are probably emailing- easier to get done. And not carrying as much on my back, the triple combination together with the bible in German are a lot heavier than an iPad. I usually just carried a triple combination anyways.

Haven´t gotten the package yet, did you send it to the mission office or to my home? Occasionally we have lessons in the morning so I may not be home studying to receive it in the morning. Mission office is safer. You can send me presents early and I can wait to open them until my birthday and Christmas. [Note: it was a manila envelope/letter.  Some items sent may need to be signed for or have unexpected fees on the Germany side of shipping. If sent to the Mission Office, they will sign and take care of unexpected German fees]

I had a wonderful week. Fun Exchange with a zone leader where I really enjoyed finding. Asking people questions on the street and doing our best to connect and get to know them in that short time is fun. 2 New investigators this week, Mr H (from Eretria- probably spelled wrong and it´s a small country by Ethiopia) and Mr N (Persian heritage but grown up here, speaks German and English) it was really cool to watch General conference with Mr N, he turned to me and said, "I feel good and at peace for the first time in so long". Hoping to teach him more, other missionaries taught him a few years ago but not very long. He called to check back in with us, now he´s looking learning more about Christ again. Love it. 

Till next week!

Love you all!

Hayden

General conference, already!? : Wetzlar Week 8

September 28, 2015

Subject: General conference, already!?

Hello Family!

Happy Monday, so fun to hear about all the good things going on over there. Way to go Elder Mann, and way to go Mom. Are you going over the entire personal progress program again [Personal Progress Program booklet]? Dad, having fun with the coaching out there :) [Dad Note: As a stopgap for Austin’s team, long story, I became a certified Cal South Soccer Coach…only one game] Also Book of Mormon and New Testament reading, way to go. I have some study goals to: always study for lessons (of course) something from the Book of Mormon and preach my Gospel every day. I read from `the missionary library` sometimes during meals and I´m working on the Bible and other standard works during language study, reading out loud. I love studies.

Glad to hear that Mom came into contact with Elder Regehr´s mom, that´s fun :) I hope I´m giving him a good start to his mission, he´s such a champion already. I´ve learned and grown so much with him and don´t feel like a `trainer` really. I think that´s how it should be. I figure my job as a trainer is to introduce him to missionary life and help him with things that are new. Share experiences that I´ve had so far and just learn and grow together. Work hard, love and learn together, just like with any other companion.

This week we´ve been teaching a wonderful man from Ghana named Mr Ky (still teaching Mr S and got the Book of Mormon to him in his language, really cool to hear Ahmaric spoken, watch him enjoy that). Mr K  already has such a strong relationship with God and so much faith. We invited him to baptism and he said he needs to know about the Book of Mormon first, good answer, he seems excited about learning more. He´s starting to read the Book of Mormon know and hopefully come to General conference, looking forward to watching him grow even more :)

Life is good, I love you all! Bis nächste Woche!  [Till next week!]

Hayden

Haven´t gotten the picture yet, but I´ll let you know.