Elder Thomas James Nielsen: Week of Miracles

Hello everyone,

This week has been a good week full of miracles. I think that the biggest couple of things that happened this week was we got in with an old investigator and started teaching a new one. We also visited some less active families. But to receive these miracles, we did lots of walking, praying, and discussing as to how we could help this area grow and how we could help the work to start to pick up.

The biggest thing I think that happened this week is we went to visit some less actives. The first one we went to is a part member family where the wife is the only member. She has the biggest desire to go to the Temple and to be sealed to her parents. So we are working with her to return to full activity and to work towards going to the Temple. After we visited with her we then went and visited her married daughter who also is not very active along with her husband. They have three little girls. So when we started to talk to them they also expressed the desire to go the Temple and to be sealed to one another. What a great goal! Neither the mother or daughter know the others goal but it is so cool to see the Lord work with them in the same way. Elder Davis and I were talking about it and it is just amazing.

We have been working really hard to find some new people to teach and it was suggested that we start with the part member families. And the cool thing is that we are now teaching them the Gospel. The Lord has seen our hard work over the past couple of weeks and He is starting to bless us for it. England is a really interesting country though. In the States, everyone is friendly and open. Here in England people are more closed and reserved until you get to know them. Except for the members that are active are really strong in the Gospel just because there are so few of them. But I like it here, I just need to get use to the culture. The members in this part of the world are so nice and have such a strong desire to live the Gospel to the best of there abilities. The thing about people in England though is that they take a long time to make a choice as to join or not to join the Church. Most of them investigate for six months to a year. Once they have made that commitment though they are stuck for life.

I have a funny story. So as I have mentioned before, we go on companion exchanges once a week because Elder Davis, my companion, is the District Leader for our Area. So we went on one last week and I have been out for about a month so I was the more senior companion and the Elder that I was on exchanges with which has only been out for almost a week. So we went around trying our best to find investigators but it felt like the blind was leading the blind. Ha Ha. In the end everything worked out and we had a pretty good day. The members we visited that night were a little concerned to say the least. But we worked hard and to the best that we knew how.

We had a Missionary meeting on the fourth of July. The Senior Couple in this area is from Florida. So we arranged to have a little fourth of July party after the meeting. It was so much fun! We also have a couple who are not from the States so they where a little confused about our celebration. We had hot dogs, potato salad, cookies, fruit, chips, and apple pie! The Senior couple found an apple pie at Costco and brought it so we could have a good old 4th celebration. Even though the food here in England is pretty bland, it still tasted good to have some old favorites.

The Mission Home is about a forty minute car ride or about two hours by public transport from our flat. I have included some pictures of our flat and the view from our flat window. We catch a train from Kidderminster to Birmingham New Street Station, then get on a tram and that puts us about a mile to mile and a half from the home. Then we walk the rest. Our weather has been abnormally hot. Or so I'm told. It has been in the eighties to nineties this week and isn't supposed to cool down until Wednesday. We started our Fast Saturday after lunch this past week then we worked the rest of the night. I had to break my fast early and drink some water because I had sweated the rest of the day and was feeling a little light headed. But Elder Davis made it and drank pretty much a gallon on water. But in the end we had a good fast Sunday.

I am excited to be here in Kidderminster, England. It is the hardest thing that I have done in my life as well as a big shock and change. The hardest part is that we get some really nasty things yelled at us. So we try to overcome these comments and just try to focus on the Work and not what's being said or done. It has taken me a while to have a little more thick skin to being rejected and stuff like that. I don't think a Missionary ever really comes to terms with it. But it doesn't affect you as much in the end as time goes by.

But hope all is well. I love this Gospel and the message that I get to share. I have come to love it with each and every passing day. The Book of Mormon has a special place in my heart with all the things I learn and read. It is true and I love it.

Elder Nielsen