"I Believe In Christ, So Come What May." Straight Up.

June 29, 2015

10 MONTHS GONE BY. 8 to gooooooo.

This has been a cool week. Said goodbye to sister Murdock on Tuesday,

Saying goodbye to Sis Murdock in Leipzig

That was a bittersweet experience. It was weird, as I did the same thing in February. Time fliiiies. I'll miss her dearly. So that afternoon I picked up.... SISTER REED.  

Madison & Sis Reed in Leipzig

We came to Germany together. She is cool! She is from Austin, Texas. AW YEAH.  I'm stoked for a good transfer. Taking over this place after 5 weeks has

been an adventure.

But it's goin.

The Kosak’s are leaving this week. I love them and will never ever, ever, ever forget what they mean to me and my Mission. I love them so much!

They will go on to do goooood things because they are good.

We have had sooooo many good conversations in the past few days. I love when that happens. Speaking German with Germans is like a dream come true. Sounds cliché but it's the straight up truth. I love being here. So many interesting times too. We talked to this rabbi yesterday, and he was getting apprehensive. " So many Mormons keep trying to convert me!" So I asked, "why do you think that is?" Then he said " well I guess they think they have the truth and therefore have the authority to try and share it with the world." And I was like " ....." But on the inside I was like STRAIGHT UP. We didn't want to push it, though, so we left it there.

Lou is doing well! We met with her and another Chinese guy from the ward, talked about the gospel of Christ. It went well. (I secretly want them to get married, just throwin that out there) we just have to make sure she is down to coming to church for all three hours! Man I love her.  She is doing so well. It's like she has the faith of a child, but she knows it's there, and she wants that to develop.  Helping her and experiencing this with her is so cool. What a life!

Yes, momma, we did sing yesterday. (Madison sung a duet with another sister and Elder Clarke played the piano)  That was the best and maybe the most challenging thing, let me tell you. As you know, I DON’T like to sing in front people. When elder Clarke originally suggested it to me, I thought it wouldn't go down. I sang that one time in Braunschweig, and then at Schwester Devers' baptism, and that was hard enough.  But in Sacrament Meeting? No way. Naja. That's something I've been trying to work on. I can sing well, and it bothers me that I hate singing in front of people. I'll sing at appointments, but even that is pushing it. So we found another former opera singer from the ward to sing with me. Haha. And Sister Reed can play violin, so all of a sudden it turned into a full on darbietung. I was sooooo nervous!

I'd been praying that my fear wouldn't get in the way of inviting the spirit. Because, dang it, I just wanted people to feel the spirit and not have it to do with me. I was shaking in my boots, not going to lie. But we went up AND IT WAS FINE. Sigh of relief. That was my little but huge miracle this week.

Wellllll I was thinking about how long I've been out now. 10 months is a long time. But then again, it's nothing. Sometimes I don't know how

I'll survive. But then sometimes I don't see how I could ever leave.

Right now is a hard and wild time for me. I can really see how the things I'm going through are refining me. It just has to happen. Every day I can choose to enjoy it, or suffer. It will happen anyway. But if I want to change my nature, then I have to react, not just let it happen. Maaan I don't know how much I've changed already, but I think my perspective has changed for sure.  My motto right now is from a hymn. " I believe in Christ, so come what may." Straight up. When things get hard, I'm learning to just get over it. Haha. LIFE IS GOOD.

LIEBE GRÜßE

Sister Madison Mittleman

Sis Murdock & Madison in Leipzig