Monday, December 18, 2017

It is begining to look a lot like Christmas... Still a week to go :o)

What a cute picture of Søster Holbrook and Søster Jone. Great missionaries and awesome friends. They are looking at stars and enjoying the night sky over Copenhagen!



  Before the Haircut Picture

 Having the Haircut and look at cute Søster Jones taking pictures :o) 

 Look at these sweet looking Sister Missionaries.

Short Email from Søster Holbrook:

Hey Everyone!

I had a great week this week. We were on splits for three days in a row, which is always exhausting but also super fun. I love the Sisters I get to serve around!

Not much to update on. F has his baptismal interview this week and D agreed to come to church on the 24th! The work is moving forward here!

I look forward to Christmas. I love the Savior. He truly is the light of the world and He is the light of my world. I pray you all have a great Christmas filled with family and the Savior! 

#LightTheWorld

Søster Holbrook 
 #LightTheWorld and these ladies are for sure doing that... Lighting the world.

WE love the news from the Denmark Copenhagen Mission. Monday is for sure the BEST day of the week! Thanks for making it AWESOME Søster Holbrook.

Monday, December 11, 2017

Christmas party, Lunch with Mormor and Morfar and "My Plan" meeting with the President

What a WONDERFUL for Søster Holbrook. She is busy and looking forward to Christmas. December is the most wonderful month in the year in Denmark.

" My Plan" meeting for going home in 8 week for these missionaries.

Sleepover for my plan meeting.

What a great looking group of missionaries.

Email from Søster Holbrook

Hey Everyone!

Lots of things happened this week! For P-day we had a "missionær jule hygge fest" and played lots of games together. That night I was sick with food poisoning which included me passing out, hitting my head and getting a huge goose egg. It is kind of hilarious actually. I remember thinking "well, at least I don't have to go running tomorrow." haha. We had a couple of eating appointments, one being with Mormor and Morfar! They bought us some new food too so I won't get sick again. They sure do keep me alive over here! :) We also had our "My plan" meeting this week for missionaries that are going home soon. President O'Bryant talked a lot about finishing the mission strong and about making goals for when we come home. He told us that we can never allow ourselves to become so busy that we stop repenting. He said we should always be working on a Christlike attribute and make goals to accomplish it. It was a very insightful meeting. We got to go to the temple afterwards and that was of course incredible. I miss the temple and I look forward to going there often when I come home. We visited three districts this week to do training on positivety and diligence. 


We visited D this week and we are happy to say that he had NO effects of ptsd or anxiety after his church visit (sometimes he has to lay in bed for three days after big events). He also was able to go grocery shopping and not take any breaks! He has bad legs and takes anywhere from 5-10 breaks throughout the entire trip. We told him it is the promised blessings from living the word of wisdom and from the blessing he got a while ago. He is coming closer and closer to the Savior and is preparing to be baptized the 27th of January!

F officially has a baptismal date for the 30th of December! He has his interview scheduled and everything. There is just a couple small things we need to clarify, but other than that he is well on his way to making covenants with God! He has had a very dark childhood and upbringing, so it has been incredible to see him come into the light. He really is looking forward to his baptism because it is something that will help heal him and start a new life.

Don't forget to #LightTheWorld! thanks for all of you who have brought light to my world! 

Søster Holbrook


Lunch with Mormor and Morfar
 
 Sister Grabe and Søster Holbrook

 WARD CHRISTMAS PARTY!!

 Mailboxes looks like this in Denmark so cute and I really miss them.
 
Søster Holbrook is the BEST and we love her to bits. She is getting closer to the end and we are looking forward to having her home. We are grateful for her service and that she can always look back and know she has giving it all to Him.
 
 
 
 

Monday, December 4, 2017

P-day at the Copenhagen Zoo and Light the World on Strøget with Søster Holbrook

Søster Holbrook is working hard and loving the missionary life in Denmark. She is learning so much and that is wonderful for a parent to see.

The craziest animals at the zoo! ... The Mormons!!!

 One HUNGRY Tiger!
 What a CUTE Baby Elephant.

Email from Søster Holbrook:

Hey everyone!

D came to church and cried throughout most of the sacrament meeting! He had a great time and it is honestly such a HUGE miracle because of his ptsd and phobias...

F wants to be baptized!! He talks about his baptism more and more! He is not quite ready yet, but he is making good progress. He also enjoyed church this week and had some pretty good answers in guest class! We also went over the baptismal questions and when we asked him "What does repentance mean to you?" he said "It means everything to me! It has meant everything to me these past 10 years."


This week we went to Strøget with wrapped Book of Mormons to #LightTheWorld. We handed over 130 books and already have people calling us to learn more!

I love the work. I love this season. I love my Jesus!

Keep on keeping on!
Søster Holbrook


 LOOK at this ... SO GOOD.
 
 LIGHT THE WORLD
Giving out the Book of Mormon to people.

Great week for Søster Holbrook in Denmark. She is serving hard and LOVING it! We are looking forward to talking her in a few weeks on Skype!

Monday, November 27, 2017

Interviews with President ,a leadership training, a HUGE thanksgiving party it has been a busy week for Søster Holbrook

It was a very busy week for Søster Holbrook in Denmark.

 It says Merry Christmas in Danish here. VERY SWEET!

 The AP's got us a Christmas tree during their trip to Jylland! SO EXCITED FOR CHRISTMAS.

 Anna-Lena! one of my favorite members over here! 

Email from Søster Holbrookthis week:

Hey Everyone!

This week was great!  Søster Jones and I had a great p-day filled with lots of adventures, Miranda took us to a great Thai restaurant, we got to watch the Face to Face with Elder Oaks and Elder Ballard, we had lunch with Mormor and Morfar, interviews with President, a couple of eating appointments, a leadership training, a HUGE thanksgiving party with a half American family, we had great lessons with Dan and Frank, we brought Frank to a baptism and we had the primary program!

Some updates on our friends:
F- He is a man with a pretty dark background, but really has been wanting to change his life around for a while. He is preparing for baptism and so we went through the baptismal questions with him and he is basically all the way ready! He just needs to know a couple of details. When we asked him what repentance means to him, he said "It means everything to me." He met the bishop in his office this week, and walked out smiling and happy. And he also smiled the ENTIRE time at church and didn't fall asleep once! :)

D- He is a Jehova's Witness that began doubting his faith, and then the missionaries knocked on his door. This week he taught us what the world "atheist" means. He said an atheist is "a denier of god." He said we often think an atheist is someone who denies the existence of a God with a capital G. But he says that it is the little g god that TRUE atheists deny. Then he said that according to that definition, there is not such thing as an actual atheist because we all believe in something, be it God with a captal G, fortune, or ourselves. We all believe in something. I thought that was a very interesting thought. 

Thanksgiving was awesome! We actually didn't really do anything on Thanksgiving day (well we ate a kebab if that counts), but Friday we had the big party so it all worked out in the end. It was nice to celebrate an American holiday. It also means that Christmas is in ONE MONTH and I am just WAY too excited. I love Christmas.

Speaking of Christmas, check out the Christmas initiative this year! It is awesome.

Love,
Søster Holbrook
 
 At the queen's castle in Copenhagen.

 Guard at the queen's castle pretty neat!.

 Nyhavn - classic street/tourist place very know in Copenhagen.
 
Søster Holbrook  saw a lot of fun and neat things this week in Denmark. She is for sure having a wonderful time over-there!
 

Monday, November 20, 2017

Another weeek for Søster Holbrook in Denmark has passed and she is doing GREAT!


Email from Søster Holbrook this week was short and NOT many pictures either. SAD week :o(

 Puzzles are a FAVORITE in the mission field but Søster Holbrook has always loved them even at home.

NICE sayings!!!


Hey Everyone!

Life is great! Not too much to update here.

The missionaries on a small island called Bornholm (6 hour ferry ride from Copenhagen) called us this week and told us that they got a new investigator because she had heard us on the radio and that opened her up! 

This week we took the new sisters that arrived out to go contacting for their first time, went on splits with sisters from Amager, held another surprise birthday party, had dinner with an investigator at a member's house, met with lots of recently baptized/less-active members, and did a whole bunch of finding! Pretty much an average week. I think I took a total of 9 pictures. The one I sent is of a member who is moving to Amager. In a lot of ways, she reminds me of Mika. so it is nice seeing her. :)

Keep on Keeping on!
Søster Holbrook
 
 Member who is moving to Amager.
 
Another week in the mission field is gone!! What a treat it is to hear about what Søster Holbrook is doing in Denmark.

Monday, November 13, 2017

Søster Holbrook and Søster Jones gets another transfer together!! Trip to Søster Holbrook's birth palce and seeing Mormor and Morfar!

Wonderful week for Søster Holbrook and she get to stay together with Søster Jones what a treat that is .

Søster Holbrook in Hillerød (my literal birthplace) 

Splits.
 
 Lunch with Mormor and Morfar ;o)

Email from Søster Holbrook this week:

Hey Everyone!

I will cut right to the chase. Sister Jones and I are staying together!!!!!!!!!! :) It came as a huge surprise because she has been here a long time already, but we are both so happy! Sister Jones and I are in the same group so it will be super nice to spend Christmas with her! 

This week we went up to Hillerød (my literal birthplace) on splits. We saw Mormor and Morfar and they spoiled us good like usual. We hit up Strøget (the biggest gågade in denmark) with a bunch of missionaries for a blitz splits. We handed out lots of Book of Mormons! This is also great practice for then the Book of Mormon musical which comes to Denmark this January.

I look forward to this next transfer. Sister Jones and I have planned to focus our efforts on becoming. Job 5:17-18.

Keep on keeping on!
Søster Holbrook
 
 MADS!!!!! He came and taught a lesson with us!!!!
 
 Denmark's national bird is the swan and it is so beautiful!

 Søster Holbrook is the BEST!! So cute.

Great week and another good time for Søster Holbrook. We love her. We miss her and look forward to her safe return in a few months.

Monday, November 6, 2017

Splits, teaching investigators and lunch date with Mormor and Morfar, great week for Søster Holbrook in Denmark.

Time is flying and Søster Holbrook is enjoying Denmark and being a missionary of the Lord. She had a chance to eat a quick lunch with Mormor and Morfar this week and that is always a treat. Not just getting a FREE meal but it being with some of her favorite people is even better.

Carving a pumpkin on halloween. Our first baby (the missionary we trained) was Sister Lanham, so we named our second baby (the pumpkin) Lenny ha-ha.

 Cute danish church. They are in every city - small or big - and they are very beautiful and a huge part of Denmark.

Email from Søster Holbrook this week:

Hey Everyone!

I know I saw this every week, but it has been a GREAT week. Our investigators are doing well and Sister Jones and I are enjoying each other!

We went on splits twice this week. One of the splits we traveled to Roskilde (an old viking town) to go out with Sister Whitlock and Sister Andrizzi again. They happened to have a light festival that night, so we used our dinner to enjoy the festivities. 

Elder Sabin, a general authority, visited our mission this week and held a zone conference and an MLC. He taught us so many incredible things! Some key take-away that I got were: 1. Are we obedient in what we are becoming? 2. Replace "if only" with "Because of." 3. God is satisfied when you just try hard. 4.  You can look down.. or you can look up. This time Elder Sabin was IN Denmark the time before was over satellite so this one was extra special.

I got to see Mads at Stake conference this week! It was so awesome to see him after almost one year. He is doing so well and is still so strong in the gospel! He is in the Young Men's Presidency and does his home teaching every month. Several members from the branch told me that they have never seen a recent convert so strong in the gospel. There is no greater joy than hearing that! Another member emailed me and told me that Mathias bore his testimony in sacrament meeting. All I can say is that my joy is full. :)

Please enjoy the pictures!
Søster Holbrook
 
 Morfar and Mormor- ALWAYS a joy to spend time with them.

 Anette and Brian Reuther, Members in our stake that knew me as a baby! 

Søster Holbrook's mission life just gets better and better. She is coming towards the end of the mission and it has been so good for her and us that she has served the Lord. Denmark and the Danish people will never be the same and neither will she or us.