Jord's Adventures in Norway: “BECAUSE I HAVE BEEN GIVEN MUCH, I TOO MUST GIVE”

Wow!! This week was very humbling for Søster Bender and I......

This hymn explains perfectly how I feel after this week!

Hymn #219

Because I have been given much

I too must give

Because of thy great bounty Lord
Each day I live
shall divide gifts from thee
With every brother that see
Who has the need of help from me

Because I have been sheltered, fed

By thy good care
I cannot see another’s lack and I not share
My glowing fire, my loaf of bread,
my roof saved shelter overhead
That he to me be comforted

Because I have been blessed by

thy great love dear Lord
I’ll share thy love again
According to thy word
I shall give love to those in need
I’ll show that love by word and deed
Thus shall my thanks be thanks in deed

Sister Bender and I are teaching a way awesome guy.. Ramy!! I have talked about him before! He is just so good and wants to learn and find the truth so bad! He is the best ever!! After meeting with him one day this week, my life will forever be changed. Like I said before English isn't his first language and we are beginning to teach him English as well and he decided that he wanted to tell us his life story and why he is in Norway, etc..... Oh my gosh.... His story broke my heart. After he told us everything Søster Bender and I just sat there and were speechless with tears in our eyes. Ramy asked if I would say the closing prayer and through tears doing my best to keep it together until he had left, I said the prayer. Sister Bender and I literally sat down and sobbed.... like ugly cried and everything!! I have never in my life been so humbled or felt that way before. It was an experience I will never forget. We truly don't realize how good we have it. I have taken so many things for granted even just the simple things of being able to email my family every week and of living in America, a free land and of being a member of the same exact Church that Christ had when he was on the Earth and to know that His Church has been restored again today!

It made me think of a talk from Conference called “Is It Still Wonderful to You?”

To see the Whole talk go to this website!!

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/is-it-still-wonderful-to-you?lang=eng

**“A sister missionary told the story of three men she met during a district conference in Africa. They came from an isolated village far away in the bush where the Church had not yet been organized but where there were 15 faithful members and almost 20 investigators. For over two weeks these men had walked on foot, traveling more than 300 miles (480 km) over paths rendered muddy by the rainy season, so they could attend the conference and bring the tithes from the members of their group. They planned to stay for an entire week so they could enjoy the privilege of partaking of the sacrament‍ the following Sunday and then hoped to set out on the return trip carrying boxes filled with copies of the Book of Mormon on their heads to give to the people of their village.

The missionary testified how touched she was by the sense of wonder these brethren displayed and by their wholehearted sacrifices to obtain things that for her had always been readily available.

She wondered: “If I got up one Sunday morning in Arizona and found that my car wasn’t working, would I walk to my church only a few blocks away from home? Or would I just stay home because it was too far or because it was raining?” These are good questions for all of us to consider.”**

I love this!! It really made me think! We have a member (Zardasht) who walks an hour and a half to come to church, so he can't come every week, but he walks to the church and home. He won't accept a ride or money for the bus. He is a great example to me! He loves this gospel so much that he is willing to walk an hour and a half when all I have to do is literally walk right across the street!

På grunn av (because of) Ramy and Zardasht I really stop and think about things before I complain or things are hard because most of the time in reality they aren't that big of a deal or that hard compared to other people's problems in the world today. I am so grateful for the gospel in my life, for my family, and for how blessed I have been and am. I have really thought about and see life in a whole new meaning and perspective and these two people blessed and changed my life more than they will ever know!

I would like to invite all of you to stop and think and write down all of your blessings big and small! I have done it and when you look back at it, you really have a lot to be grateful for! Even if it is just the fact that the sun is shining!

We met with another one of our favorite investigators this week Jackson!! We had Dingaan on the teach and woah..... DINGAAN IS AWESOME!! He bore solid testimony to Jackson and shared his conversion story and was able to relate and talk to Jackson about what Jackson is going through. He basically taught the whole lesson and it was so powerful!! The spirit was so strong and he was literally glowing!!! Seriously Dingaan needs to go on a mission!! He would be the best missionary ever!! When he talks you can tell how much he loves the gospel and the Church and it is so cool because just 2 months ago he had no idea about the Church and to see how far and fast he has come is so amazing! We are giving him subtle hints before we talk about how real a mission could be for him. We asked him where he sees himself in 10 years and he said as a bishop!! It was super funny and we had a good laugh. He wasn't kidding. Seeing how much happiness the true gospel brings to his life brings so much happiness to me and makes being a missionary so worth it!!!

We were supposed to watch a movie called 17 miracles with Dingaan and the Crabtrees, but apparently we can't get it on Netflix in Norway... lame!! So we just watched a bunch of other random church movies instead! It was a koselig night! I recommend everyone to see 17 miracles!! It is so touching!!

Fast Sunday this week!! Due to Conferences we have been having we had fast Sunday this past Sunday instead of the normal first Sunday of the month. IT WAS THE BEST!!! Fasting isn't as bad or hard as I thought especially when you have a purpose in mind and are actually fasting for a reason or person(: Testimony Meeting was the best! Dingaan bore his testimony and oh my gosh! The spirit was so strong and he is the best!!! AND a less active we have been working with, John came and bore his testimony!! Seriously was the best meeting ever!!

Dingaan got the priesthood this Sunday and passed the sacrament!!!

We also met with a man this week named Pelle who Sister House and I first contacted on the street our first week here in Tromsø in February! We hadn't been able to get contact with him until now! He is great! He asked a lot of questions and seems very interested to find out more!

Old Man Frank!!! hahaha so there is this old man that Sister House and Bender talked to on the street and we see him all the time!! We ran into him the other day and we started up a conversation and next thing I know we are going to a koselig bakery to have coffee and boller with him hahahah. Of course we didn’t get coffee (Word of Wisdom), but we just went along with it. He told us to pick out some boller (we got skoleboller probably my fav) and then he told us to get a drink! We said water is fine and he said oh no! Money is not an issue I have more money than you realize! So trying to stop him from arguing with us Sister Bender and I got juice. He is just the funniest, cutest old man! He told the cashier that “these two ladies are with me!” hahah than we all sat down and talked and talked about the gospel a bit too!! He was very nice and it was a hyggelig time!

In the words of Sister Bender: (she explains it a lot funnier)

“Sister Peterson and I were walking back to the city from a members house and we ran into old-man Frank!! He is seriously so funny. Another man walked past us on the street while we were talking with Frank and the man kind of stops near us and Frank goes "who is this guy? What is this *bad Muslim name I think* guy doing?!" I started talking to the man because it looked like he knew us. He came to church before so we invited him again and gave him a card (his phone rang or I would have talked to him longer). While this was going on, Frank was talking to Sister Peterson and was like "What is she doing? Does she even know this guy? What the heck is she doing?!" Søster Peterson just said "she likes to talk to people" haha. Anyway, Frank invited us to sit with him for a cup of coffee! We walk to the coffee shop (very slowly because he is way old) and he asked what we wanted and we said we could pay but his response was "I have much more money than you two have put together. Have you seen my house? It is much bigger than any house you will see in the U.S." He doesn't dress like he would be wealthy. Neither do his few teeth show wealth. He was a fisherman/military something. I got a boller and it was so good and all the pastries here are so good and I just want to eat them all day. He told us all about his life and his ex-wife and his money. He wheezes when he laughs.

I forgot to mention that Sister House and I (my last companion) taught Frank a few times but quit meeting with him because he just.... wasn't prepared haha. But we love Frank and we love bollers.”

It's that time again.....Moves Call!! I cannot believe it has already been 6 weeks!! Søster Bender and I are banking on staying here together for at least one more transfer, but we will have to wait til Sunday for the phone call!!

Remember Søster Johannessen and I's investigator in Bergen Truls!?!? Well he is getting baptized!!!! (I think it is next week!) I am so excited and happy for him!! Even though I can't be there, I am so grateful I could be a part of his conversion!

Jordan's Tidbits:

-Grateful for my family and friends. I love hearing from you and getting pictures!!

- When it comes to fasting.... if you can say no to food you can say no to anything!!

- When the adversary goes to bed at night, he checks for Elder Holland under the bed! hahaha thought this was hilarious

- Sister Bender and I are going to be housewife material by the time we come home because of our improving cooking skills! One of our "snacks"...jam, cheese, and wasa!

***Sorry my tidbits have been lame lately........***

-Often the answer to Our prayers does not come while we are on Our knees, but while we are on our feet serving the Lord and those around us - Dieter F Uchtdorf