Mid-transfer surprise for Søster Holbrook and Søster Whitlock. Søster Holbrook is staying in Vejle.

Yep, it is true and you can see the whole story in Søster Holbrook's email for the week :o)

 These sisters do a LOT of biking every day and that is good because the food is SO good in Denmark.

Getting a little more scripture study in and killing some time while biking :o)

AND they do a LOT of Knocking on doors too. Fun for them Danes often have a mirror by the front door and then we get these awesome pictures !!

 SWEET friends :o)

Email from Søster Holbrook:

Hey everyone!

I will cut right to the good details. We had mid-transfer transfer!!!! Søster Whitlock LEFT ME to go to Roskilde. Which, by the way, Roskilde has stolen three of my companions from me. What is up with that? The reason is because President doesn't want to white wash a bunch of areas so he did a mid transfer to prep people for the new missionaries coming in. We are having a huge turnover right now! By next transfer, there will be 4 sister companionships that won't be training, and three of those are STL's! So everyone is basically training right now. The craziest part is that Sister Baird is now my new companion. AGAIN! I was really bummed to say goodbye to Søster Whitlock. She has helped me become a better missionary and has taught me so many things. I am humbled that I got to serve with her. That being said, I am excited to be with Søster Baird again. It is pretty sweet that we get a round 2 together!

Other interesting news from this week: 

We met with Mathias and taught him about missionary work. He told us again that he would consider going on a mission, but first he has to "learn a little more about this book." He really liked the idea of member missionary work and is going to ask his mom to meet with the missionaries! She has already come to church once and really liked it so we think good things will happen there. At one point in the lesson Mathias told us, "I am not just going to go up to random people on the street and talk about the Book of Mormon. I think they would be more weird out rather than interested." I asked him, "Was that your experience when Søster Whitlock and Jex knocked on your door?" To which he replied, "No. All I could think was 'Give me that book!'" Ha-ha-ha-ha. He got the priesthood this week and is super excited for our temple trip this Friday! Mathias is so awesome!!!

On Saturday while knocking we stopped by this person who lives in an apartment with a buzz box. We had buzzed it a few days before and they said we could try a different time. So we buzz and ask them if they would like to learn more about the Book of Mormon and the guy is like "My dad is Muslim and my mom is Catholic so I'm not interested." But we offered him a free copy anyway and he goes, "Wait, did you say free? I'll be right down." So he comes to the door with a friend and after talking for a little we walked away with 2 new investigators! Ha-ha buzz boxing works! Sometimes...

Y came to church this week! She said "I don't know why but I always cry in church!" It's called feeling the spirit! She also said, when saying goodbye to Søster Whitlock, "when I get baptized I will call you so you can come." 

We got a mini quote book from Y this week and there was this quote in there. I thought it was definitely something worth sharing. "When you eat fruit, think of the person that planted the tree." Ha-ha have a great week everyone!

Søster Holbrook

 Two BEAUTIES !!

 Service is always fun ;o)

 Training and fun splits.

Søster Holbrook had yet another wonderful week in Vejle. She loves it there and she is getting to know many new people. What a treat it is to see her grown and become an even better person and servant of the Lord.

Zone training and teaching lots of lessons.

Another week has come and gone for Søster Holbrook and it was a great one.

 The field is white ....

 

 AND ready for harvest !!

 Danish Birthday for a sweet friend is always great.

  Still not too old for a fun time with a great friend on the tidier-toddler.

 So BEAUTIFUL.. We LOVE her!!

 

 Always be ready to preach the gospel in any situation :o).

 These two Sister Missionaries are so cute and fun together!

This is the email from Søster Holbrook

Hey everyone!

It was another great week full of success and good experiences! We had one nice and warm day and then it has been pretty rainy and cold the other days. But we love it and don't let it slow us down!

We went and visited this lady in our ward on Wednesday. Like we visited her at the mental hospital where they had to check our bags before they let us in crazy. Well first think she does after hugging us and telling us she loves us is says, "I have a question for you guys", then she proceeds to take off her sock to reveal some not very pretty toenails and asks, "will you guys help me with these?" Unfortunately we didn't have toenail clippers on us and neither did she. Bummer:/ But we said we would next time. If Jesus can wash his disciples feet, I can clip her toenails. 

Later that day we went to visit our friend Lene. The one from last week that lives out in the middle of nowhere. She asked if we'd like to stay for dinner. We said "OF COURSE!" Maybe not the best idea... 4 hours later we were finally able to leave and only on the excuse that we had to pick up some other missionaries who were coming to stay with us. She was like "Next time you guys will have to come when you have more time." More time?! We had already been there FOUR HOURS. Hahaha. That's what we call in our mission a "hygge-monster."

On Thursday we had zone conference and Søster Whitlock and I gave a training on having more effective studies. Søster Whitlock and I didn't have too much time to prepare for it (we had a lot of lessons this week and didn't want to give up our already limited finding time) so we prepared most of it on a 30 minute train ride! Our ideas were just flowing and we came up with a super solid outline no problem! The Lord really did bless us. I know we were able to do a good training because we are trying our best to be the most effective missionaries and prioritizing our time! Although sometimes things just don't go as planned... Like with Lene. ha! President always talks about how we are "agents of Christ" so we taught them that if they want to have better studies they should follow the CIA formula. Study about Christ. Study for your Investigator. and Apply what you learned (aka repent!). We thought we were pretty clever.

So sad news. R and G (our cute little family) dropped us. We had texted them about finding a new time to meet and they said they said they don't want to meet anymore because they can't live the "rules" that are required. So sad day. I know those "rules" are commandments from a loving God. They maybe weren't ready now but hopefully they will be in the future!

I found a scripture that has given me courage and strength the past few weeks. It is 2 Timothy 4:17- "The Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known." I know the Lord stands by Søster Whitlock and I and continues to bless us.

I love you all and have a great week!!! 

Love, 

Søster Holbrook

 

 Zone Training is always great!!

 Burning time on the train to Zone Training.

 Søster Ludlow is a "Good Sport" and having fun with her trainee Søster Holbrook.

 Søster Holbrook and Søster Whitlock doing some of the training at the conference. 

 The Jylland Zone at the training. What a GREAT looking group of missionaries.

She has done it again and it has been another great week for Søster Holbrook. She is loving life and the time she is spending with the people in Denmark.

Baptism and Mission Leadership Council for Søster Holbrook this week.

This week was also a busy one for Søster Holbrook but that is a missionaries life and it is good for them :o) She has another investigator get baptized this week and what a joyous day it was for her and Søster Whitlock.

Søster Whitlock, Mathias and Søster Holbrook

BEST day in your life when you join the church and follow the Lord.

Email from Søster Holbrook this week:

Hey everyone!

Wow. It was an amazing week. I think we had an interesting, funny, or cool story from each day. Here's the run down-

Monday: We had our first appointment with a man that we contacted a long time ago on the street named F. He showed up with a friend! So we were obviously thinking, "score!". After doing a little get to know you chatting, we start with some how to begin teaching and talking about Christ and the friends goes "wait what? What's that on your shirt?" (pointing to my tag). So we're like "Oh, it's our name tag; we are missionaries. Did F tell you anything about us?" he responds, "no..." and F is like "I wanted it to be a surprise!" Haha poor guy probably thought he was just meeting some girls at the library but he got roped into meeting Mormon missionaries and talking about Jesus. Hahaha. He was actually was into it though. 

Tuesday: We had an appointment with a lady named L that we found in the area book. Turns out she lives in the middle of nowhere. We took a 30 minute train and then a 30 minute walk, just to find out that the address we had didn't exist. Luckily, we found house with a nice family willing to help us. We googled L and found the right place, not too far from where we were. They guy showed us to her house. We get there and he knocks on the door, normal right? This guy doesn't know Lene at all. But then right after knocking he takes off his shoes and WALKS IN. Oh my, we were horrified. He just keeps walking until he's out of sight from where we were standing at the door step. He's yelling, "L? L!" Then we here someone answer, "yes?" He goes, "Are you L?" "Ya, that's me." "I have two missionaries out here looking for you." They come out from around the corner and SHE'S NOT WEARING PANTS. But they're both just so chill about this situation. Oh my, Denmark. 

Wednesday: We had an appointment with a guy named S. Turns out he lives in a place for alcoholics and homeless people. He had a friend with that asked us "Who is God? Who is he?" at least 25 times. It was a decent lesson, but it got cut short because S stood up and said "I have to go right now." and left. His friend said he was... thirsty. We also had an appointment with R and G! We brought them cookies and G took a small bite and chewed with a thoughtful look while inspecting the cookie. He then told us "this cookie has lots of butter in it.." and his wife is like "oh yes, what else do you taste?" and he responds, concentrating harder, "...and brown sugar." ...Yes G. ALL chocolate chip cookies have butter and brown sugar in them.

Thursday: Not anything too exciting. We had district meeting then traveled to Copenhagen for Mission Leadership Council. 

Friday: We had our last appointment with Mathias as an investigator! He told us three awesome things! 1. Before we knocked on his door, he had prayed to God and asked him if He actually existed. He said meeting us was an answer to his prayer! 2. He wants to go the temple as soon as possible! 3. He asked us about our missions and after a short discussion we asked him, "Would you consider going on one?" and he said YES!

Saturday: MATHIAS WAS BAPTIZED! We took some #dabfordåb pictures with him as a joke and guess what. He actually dabbed after he was baptized! He came out of the water looked, directly at Søster Whitlock and I and straight up dabbed in the font. Oh my gosh we died. I am never going to get over that. He also bore his testimony in front of everyone afterward! It was so sweet. He shared the story about how a little before we knocked on his door he start reading the Bible to find out if God was there and how he prayed for a sign and then we showed up! Then at the end of the day he was like "I wish I could get baptized again." Haha don't worry Mathias, we'll baptize you many times at the temple. Our investigator Y was able to come and she loved it! She thought it was very sweet. She came up to us after and goes, "When I get baptized! Wait, if I get baptized..... When I get baptized," Hahaha. She'll get baptized next  ;) 

It was so amazing to be a part of Mathias' conversion story. I am so grateful I was able to be a tool in God's hands in bringing one of His children into His church! Mathias was so excited for his baptism and so happy! He's going to be a great member. Our next step is the priesthood and a trip the temple on the 4th!

Thanks for the support!

Søster Holbrook

 So cute together and learning much together also.

 THIS is so BEAUTIFUL!! LOVE Denmark and it is so GREEN.

 AND another beauty..... SHE is AMAZING and we LOVE her so MUCH!

 Sister Trainers and the Mission Council Meeting at the Mission home.

 Mission Leaders. Great time to get together and learn more about the Savior.

What a WONDERFUL week for Søster Holbrook. She is seeing the fruits of the labors in the mission and she is loving it. We are grateful that she is serving the Lord and that it is in Denmark.

Transfer week and Søster Holbrook gets to stay with Søster Whitlock !!

YEP... They got to stay together and what a treat that is :o)

Love these two sister missionaries, they are AWESOME and have a great time together!

Sometimes life is a LONG road ahead of you. But if you keep your balance and stick to the Lord, you will make it back to Him in the end.

Email from Søster Holbrook this week:

Transfer news: I GET TO STAY ANOTHER ONE WITH SISTER WHITLOCK!!!! She is so incredible and has changed the course of the mission. I love her so much and am incredibly grateful we get six more weeks together!!! So this week started out great, had a great middle, and ended great! The start:  On Monday we met with one of our investigators A. He's a young 19 year old, super cool guy with stylish clothes and long bangs with braids in them. He looks too-cool-for-school. But not too cool for baptism!!!! He agreed to be baptized on August 19th! So that was way exciting! We had a little time before the end of the day, so even though it was raining buckets we hit the gå gade (this outdoor shopping mall kind of place) to find some people to teach! We stopped a guy and ended up having a great conversation with him! He had this little umbrella and he tried to cover us (but mostly Sister Whitlock because she does NOT have a rain jacket. Crazy I know) but it didn't work all that great. But I think seeing us getting drenched really softened his heart because we were able to talk to him long enough to bear testimony of the restored church of Jesus Christ! He wasn't interested in learning more, but he agreed that if he ever saw us again, that he would stop and listen to our message. He also took pity on us and gave us 100 kroner to go and buy a warm dinner with. We felt so successful because we know that we built his faith! Even if it was just a little bit. The middle:  Mathias passed his baptismal interview!!!!!!!! We look forward to his baptism this Saturday! He is ready to follow the Savior and repent for the rest of his life! In fact, he was SO excited to come to church this week and he straight up ditched us and took an earlier train to church! Our church building is in Fredericia, so it is about a 15 minute train ride away. We normally ride the train with Mathias and then Elder and Sister Yates pick us up from the train station. So imagine our surprise when we show up to the train station and he is not there! We called him and he said "I am already in Fredericia. I am on a bus to the church right now!" It actually ended up working out really great though because then we had room in the car to pick up a recent convert who had also asked for a ride last minute. When we asked Mathias why he didn't wait for us, he just said "It must have been the Holy Ghost. Because then there was room for the last person in the car." So, we were somewhat salty that he burned us, but.... I guess we can't be too grumpy after-all. ;)

The end: 

The preface to this story- there is a lady named Kat who had been taught by the enders for 5 years. She lives all the commandments, comes to church every Sunday, believes it's true but has never been baptized (that's what we call an interrogator). I think it's something with her family, she grew up a Jehovah Witness. Well this Saturday she woke up from a nap and thought, "I need to get baptized. Tomorrow." There was a lot of scrambling to get things together, and a baptismal interview from the mission president over the phone, but she was baptized yesterday after church! It was so amazing and I am sooooo happy for her.  And it was good because Mathias was able to see a baptism before his own! He really enjoyed the service and was excitedely telling people about his baptism!

To those who actually read my novels, thanks for the support!

Søster Holbrook

 Beautiful daughter of God.

Another beautiful daughter of God.

Another great week for Søster Holbrook in Vejle and Denmark is just beautiful! It is wonderful to see her grow and become more and more every week. She is AMAZING!!

Splits and a trip to Jelling with Mormor and Morfar, where the first Danish king, who became a Christian is buried

What an AWESOME week it has been for Søster Holbrook. She had GREAT times with Splits and training and she got to see Mormor and Morfar this week too.

I LOVE these people.. THEY are the BEST!

 JUST STUNNING and so BEAUTIFUL. 

 Viking King that converted and became Christian.

 

 Viking Stones very old and so awesome.

 Morfar is saying .. The race is this way :o)

These two missionaries are having a great time together.

Hey everyone!!

We had another great week here in Vejle! We had splits this week and the Lord definitely blessed us so much! It was fun being able to get to know other Sisters in the mission a little better. We tried to set a good example for them and OYM (open our mouth) everyone we saw and we ended up finding TWELVE new investigators! 

3 of the new investigators are a family!!!! They have been church hopping for most of their lives and just haven't found the right church. They actually have had a handful of bad experiences and I was shocked to hear about some of the things that the churches did to them! Anyway, we met them on the street and at first the dad was super standoffish but then as we just bore powerful testimony he began to soften up. We ended up doing a quick restoration lesson, placing a Book of Mormon and making a return appointment. When we came back, they warmly welcomed us and we had a great lesson! They agreed that there had been an apostasy and when we told the Joseph Smith story, the son (he is 16) said "That is special." R (the mom) also said that "I have very good instincts and I can tell if something doesn't feel right, and I have just felt good while you have been teaching. I can feel that I have already begun to change since we have met the first time." Anyway when we left R gave us THREE paintings that she had done! One was an original and everything! and then two small postcard ones. They gave it to us because "You paid us by the good word of God." 

This week we had 2 lessons with M. He is doing super well. We only have tithing and fasting left to teach and we scheduled his baptismal interview for this Thursday! I am so excited for him. I'm feeling positive about him making his date on the 15th! He has come along way and it has been a joy to see his Progress.

Mormor and Morfar visiting us this week and took us to Jelling! That is where the first king of Denmark became Christian! so it was super cool coming there and seeing my Family. Best of both Worlds!! Enjoy the Pictures. Thanks for the support everyone!

Søster Holbrook

 

 I LOVE this picture of two WONDERFUL people.. OUR daughter and MY DAD. SO SWEET!!

 

 Søster Holbrook and Søster Whitlock.

 As a Missionary Momma you ALWAYS LOVE the name tag picture and this is a really SWEET one.

 

 The FIRST Christians in Denmark.. NICE.

 We LOVE Søster Holbrook.

 They look like they are BEST friends and they are really enjoying the time they have had together.

 And of course you have to have the funny pictures too. Mormor and Morfar are here ;o)

 

 And one more of the two Sisters of course ;o)

 

 SPLITS and more SPLITS... It looks like they are having a great time together.

ANOTHER great week has come and gone for Søster Holbrook. It was especially good because they had great success and found people that wanted to hear their message and also because she got to see Mormor and Morfar. VERY AWESOME week for her.