Week 73 - Life В Потсдаме Week 3

Hey, guys! It's been another doozy of a week! Russian is one heck of a language, but I'm loving my time here. There is a great ward, I have a great companion, and I love my district!

We've been finding a bunch without too much success (as far as the actually then having people to teach bit goes), but I really do have the feeling that our efforts are going to good use. God needs us here, and the conversations are serving his purposes one way or another.

In celebration of the much rejection this week, I though I'd share a quick story about the most creative way I've ever been rejected. A lot of the rejection here is quick and done with fairly little interaction, but every now and then someone wants to try to make it sting. This was one of those times, but It's just been hilarious to me ever since.

While I was with Elder Neale, we were dooring on a little island called Rügen. It's way off in the middle of nowhere, between the German and Polish borders way up north. Small to the point, that I don't believe that most of the island can even have internet connections!

A teenage boy answered the door, and after hearing our short introduction, he ran into the house and shouted:

"Will irgendjemand hier eine Kirche beitreten?" (Would anyone here like to join a church?"

We then heard several, "Nein!"s shouted back at us, at which point he came back and said that we weren't needed there and closed the door.

Anyway, aside from the sad bits, this week I have been studying in Alma. In the  31st chapter Alma says a prayer which I think we could all learn from:

"31 O Lord, my heart is exceedingly sorrowful; wilt thou comfort my soul in Christ. O Lord, wilt thou grant unto me that I may have strength, that I may suffer with patience these afflictions which shall come upon me, because of the iniquity of this people.

32 O Lord, wilt thou comfort my soul, and give unto me success, and also my fellow laborers who are with me—yea, Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner, and also Amulek and Zeezrom, and also my two sons—yea, even all these wilt thou comfort, O Lord. Yea, wilt thou comfort their souls in Christ.

33 Wilt thou grant unto them that they may have strength, that they may bear their afflictions which shall come upon them because of the iniquities of this people.

34 O Lord, wilt thou grant unto us that we may have success in bringing them again unto thee in Christ.

35 Behold, O Lord, their souls are precious, and many of them are our brethren; therefore, give unto us, O Lord, power and wisdom that we may bring these, our brethren, again unto thee."

And, in response, this happened:

"38 And the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Now this was according to the prayer of Alma; and this because he prayed in faith."

From this we learn the actuality of God's abilities to answer prayers. I believe that this prayer was answered so clearly due to the amount of effort that Alma put into it. When we pray with real intent, God answers with real intent. Enough said.

I challenge you all to try and apply this in your lives this week. Ask for something that you need, and to the extent that you strive after it, it will be given unto you!

I love you all, and pray that your weeks are wonderful. Keep up the hard work on your ends!

Comp Goals. No further explanation needed.

The view from one of our apartment windows.

I had Austausch with Elder Souza Lima from Brazil this week.
We saw this ad in his city (Brandenburg) and though that It looked like my
last companion mixed with our mission president.

A Gandalf tree.

Vegan toothpaste? What is this world coming to?

I love you very much!

Liebe Grüße,
Elder Austin Spaulding