“Jeg er glad I dere.”

Dear Sisters

One of the highlights of my mission (and I know I speak for Sister Evans), was receiving the Seventeen Miracles.  What a blessing you have been to this Mission and to Norway.  I remember your arrival like yesterday, and now most of you are preparing to leave.  Where did the time go?

Even though all of your bags arrived with you, we did not start out auspiciously.   One of you locked yourself in our bathroom at home, and then a day later we lost Sister Hodgkiss at the train station in Larvik.  There have been ups and downs since, but from my vantage point they have mostly been “ups.”  You have consistently found, taught, baptized, and strengthened the members where you have served.  How blessed we have been to have you.

I honestly wish that you were staying until June so that we could go home together.  Your departure will put a real gap in the Mission.  But we will look forward to being together in a year at our first reunion.

In Norwegian, we say, “Jeg er glad I dere.” and I am.  In America, we say I love you.  And I do!

Sincerely

President Evans

Hellos and Goodbyes

How grateful I am to my Heavenly Father that in His plan there are no true endings, only everlasting beginnings. -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Tonje was baptized!!!

In July I went on splits with the sisters in Oslo and they surprised me by scheduling a meeting with Tonje-- it was the first time she had met with missionaries in a while.

Right before we met with her we planned to read Moroni 7 (sort of random, but we knew she liked to read and knew it is a good chapter).  She came, and ended up wanting to talk about how you could know the difference between good and evil.

Moroni 7:19 says, 19 Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren, that ye should search diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a child of Christ

We talked about how you become a child of Christ through knowing the difference between good and evil and deliberately making a choice to choose the good and follow Him by obeying His commandments.

Tonje started changing.

Something happened and she began to understand how she could choose good over evil and receive protection, strength, and ultimately happiness from fully keeping the commandments.  She started reading 2 chapters from the Book of Mormon every day and she read more carefully. 

I would talk with her on the phone as she continued to meet with the sisters in Oslo and prepare for baptism.  One night she said, I feel good. I feel softer and we talked about how that was because she was doing what God wanted her to do.  A few nights before the end of my mission, she said, I'm ready.

Tonje got baptized the last day of my mission, and I was able to be there with my family and all the missionaries that had taught her.

After she was baptized and stepped out of the font, she stayed wrapped in her towel for a few minutes just crying happy tears because finally she had applied her heart to understanding and felt pure happiness that comes from keeping God's commandments.

Because she decided to prioritize God in her life she was never happier or had more strength.  Remember-- Tonje had never experienced happiness like this until she decided to obey the commandments full heartedly-- and that was the difference for her.