May 24, 2016 Forgiveness

Its been a nice first week of transfers.

One of the many Lutheran churches in our area,

this is 2 streets from our apartment. 

(Sisar Toomey standing in front of it)

Our dinner picnic on the river by the ships

Sisar Toomey is from California and Draper Utah. She is very much taller than I am, and I always tell her she should be a model (like the wholesome Mormon missionary models) She played tennis and studied at BYU. She is really fun and we find ourselves laughing very often. It has been different and I am definitely going to learn so much from my new companion. She is really a great missionary. There are things-like always-that we have already needed to find a middle ground on, especially after the routines and levels we were at here in Turku last transfer, but I am focusing on always letting love be the first and most important thing with my companion and I believe that Sisar Toomey is also doing that too, which is really helping us to grow and learn and work. For example, we, after a few interesting adapting mornings, figured out a way that we can both get a morning work out that will help us to be more successful throughout the day. (big adjustment going from last transfer waking up at 6.00 am to do 4,5,and 6 mile runs, to now not being able to walk too much outside--Sisar Toomey broke her poor pinky toe 6 weeks ago :( not fun!) But, I am learning patience and how to work these things out in a healthy and happy way which is really amazing to me and I know it will help me immensely in life. We now do bike rides along side me running and its actually quite fun :)

Sisar Toomey really works hard and intends to enjoy her missionary work which is very good. I am enjoying serving alongside her and I know I will learn quite a lot this transfer. While I do have "past companion ikevä" I know that there are lives to be blessed by the current situation. I am grateful to do this work among such dedicated missionaries. 

THE GOOD STUFF: Forgiveness

So this week I studied gold and wanted to share the treasure. Elder Kevin R. Duncan who spoke in General Conference about forgiveness gave such a powerful talk. He shared an experience about how he got a sliver while working with a fence, and it got infected and was sore for a matter or years because he never did anything about it. After a long time of soreness, he decided to put ointment on it and it came out, the infection stopped and he was healed. He likens this unto forgiveness and says "an unforgiving hear harbors so much needless pain". I loved this. We at times in our lives dont forgive--others or ourselves--and it causes us to have "slivers" for years.

When we went to the gardening
Relief Society activity..the three musketeers

 "one key to forvinging others is to try to see them as God sees them. ...Too often we look at the offender the way we would look at an iceberg--we see only the tip and not beneath the surface...The Saviors Atonement is not just for those who need to repent; it is also for those who need to forgive. If you are having trouble forgiving another person, or even yourself, ask God to help you"

After our lesson with Alexandra and Aura

I thought about this and how hard it really can be to forgive, especailly ourselves at times, for things done wrong. But if we remember how fast our Father in Heaven is to forgive us when we truly repent, we will find more hope and determination and happiness to progress. 

The rest of the talk is simply eyeopening and I really hope you all would take just 5 minutes and read it. I studied a bit from it almost every personal study hour this week.

Wow that was an extremely long email. Thanks for enduring reading that.

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Cardon

Have a great week--I know we will!:)

BLAST TO THE PAST

so turns out that sisar Toomey and I actually have a picture together for the couple days we happened to overlap in the MTC!! so funny. We met and had no idea we would ever be serving together!! 

Picture: I am on the far left and she is next to me! so funny!!

May 16, 2016 Transfer calls will be the death of me

When we took our dinner hour in Naanatali and ate on the pier...yes we live in a dream.

We got our calls and yes, the world might be ending because Sisar Jacobsen and I are splitting up. You better believe that we have literally been crying on and off for the past four days. I will be staying in Turku and Sisar Jacobsen is going to Oulu (the furthest north sisters can serve) I am so happy to stay here though, I cant imagine leaving this ward. My companion is just one transfer ahead of me so that will be so nice. I met her once in the MTC and she seemed normal. Thats too bad because I am so not normal! Katsotaan! We are going to do good work, I can feel it.

Our investigators home...he lives on an island...
it's a 1\10 home of one of the oldest styles in Turku.
And yes, he did feed us a meal on fine china
with goblets of pepsi after our lesson. 

With a change coming, I am nervous and excited to see what will come with it. Its amazing though, I have learned so much this change, and recognized more and more all that I learned from passed changes. I think and pray for my past companions ofte. I wish I could have been better, more Christlike, but I can only let that change the future and how I help future companionship.

This change I learned a lot about what true happiness is. I realized more and more that being a missionary and setting extremely high goals is joy and progression. I hope to continue that with my next companion. I love her already. I meet her tomorrow. 

Our investigators and ward are doing very well here. Our newest member is a power house of the Spirit and it brings me more happiness than I ever thought it would seeing how her testimony has developed, grown, and been refined. She came on a lesson with us and it was one of the most spiritual things to see and hear her testify of the new found faith she has.

I am going to work on more patience and love and charity this next change. There is always room for improvement, even when literally this past transfer there was not even a sliver of contention or unhappiness between us. Does that ever happen in normal life?! 

Its been a great week. Nähdään! 

Sisar Cardon

Our last pictures by the castle
 (oldest castle in Finland from 1200) for the best last pday ever

May 9, 2016 Hyvää Äitienpäivää!!‏ (Happy Mother's Day)

You know when you get to the end of the week and looking back you just cannot believe how much you did? Well, that just about the life of a missionary for ya. 

This week had a couple of eventful things:

We were asked to come to the funeral for our Ward Mission Leaders wifes mother. It was such a traditional Lutheran funeral and it was amazing. In an 800 year old church ("older than America"our WML kept telling us) and it was cool because I actually sang at it with a couple of the womans granddaughters. It was really neat. A LOT of people were coming up to US after that, which doesnt really happen to us missionaries here in Finland. It was a really neat experience. About as movie like as you could get when it comes to funerals. 

Us at the funeral

Our investigators are doing well, one is moving to Canada pretty soon and we are sad she will be gone, but its going to give her a chance to progress in new ways. She is very excited to turn 18 because then she can be baptized. (she gave me specific permission to tell you a bit about her)

Mothers day with the bishops daughters
 (they gave us roses too...#comingmothers...hahaha)

Mothers day: how cool that we have woman to be Christlike figures in our lives. Mom, you looked wayy too beautiful yesterday and I enjoyed seeing everyone. Weird the bubble that you are in as a missioary and then for just a small bit it cracks for a second and you see "the real world". I am SO that weirdo missionary who missed the comfort zone of the mission during that skype hahaha love you all though!

Next pday we will know the fate of this companionship. EVERYONES PRAYERS ARE NEEDED!! Vote for sisar Jacobsen and Cardon. ;)

PICTURES - you know there are way more where these came from!

I went on splits with my trainer this week 

 Us in the sun that I forgot existed for a while there 

mothers day

#SonsofMosiahreunion

A district oatmeal picnic

May 3, 2016 Tiina is a Member!!

Tiina gave me specific permission so that I can share her story with you all :)

This past weekend our great investigator who we met 2 weeks into this transfer was baptized! Tiina is a 46 year old Finnish woman who is married to a Muslim man. Tiina had been online searching, and found a little about the Book of Mormon. She ordered the book and it came two months later (so long--but "coincidence" is that it came on the day of transfer calls... the day that Sisar Jacobsen and i were called together to Turku). The book came, she read a little and then wanted more help understanding it. She literally refereed herself online to the missionaries...she was in the elders area and for some reason the church referral system kept sending it to ours. We called and met with her the very next day! (happened to be my birthday actually--Gods little present to me). When we later found out that she wasnt in our area we had already set a baptismal date and taught a few solid lessons. Our President gave us special permission to teach her because things were going so well (does NOT happen very often). Tiina progressed so fast, did so much studying, asked for the ENTIRE gospel library and "did her homework" like she always told us. She progressed like I have never seen before, even stopping coffee and tea the day we mentioned it (we stopped sugar with her and every night we called each other and cheered each other on). Tiina got a special situation where we was able to be interviewed by our mission president. After the interview he told us that she is a "very well prepared and converted woman" and we said "Presidnet, that wasnt us...it was all her!". Tiinas baptism went so smoothly. She had four of her friends come (she even invited more than that) and after we talked to them there and they werent too interested in learing more she came up to us and whispered "how many books can I have? I want to give them to them later then.." It was awesome. She is already a missionary! 

We sang us two and the elders  Come Follow Me at the baptism and the water was workin. Such a good experience. She is amazing. She has already gone on a member present lesson this week with the elders :) Such a rockstar. 

Heavenly Father really does lead us to the ready people! I feel like we did very little to further Tiinas progression...she did it all herself...with the Spirit.

Moral of the story: Tiina is so rad and we are so blessed to have met her.

It was quite an amazing week:)

Sisar Cardon

9 months left!!:)