Praying Out Loud
Wow, what a wonderful week it's been!
Here are some of the best highlights. Thanksgiving and Turkey Bowl at the mission home. We made ris krem to take to our Thanksgiving pot luck. We started out by singing the Norwegian national song (they don't have an official anthem) and began the game! Even President Tew joined! On Thanksgiving day, we ate dinner at Elder and Søster Jensen's home, the senior couple in our ward. We had such a good time! Splits with the Kristiansand Sisters. Søster Crossley and Søster Harston came to Asker for splits. It was Søster Crossley's brithday and Thanksgiving. Søster Crossley and I had so much fun doing missionary work together again (we were comps in Haugesund). Scripture Study with Søster Tew. Søster Tew hosted several sisters in the area over for a night of scripture study, decorating the Christmas tree, and dinner. We studied about the parallels of the signs of Christ's birth and the signs of His Second Coming. President and Søster Tew are what I would call gospel scholars. They know their stuff and teach from the scriptures with the Spirit. Filming with Ni Chum. One of the people we're teaching, Ni Chum, asked us if he could film us sharing our message for his YouTube channel. After getting permission from President Tew, we started filming! He asked us some basic questions like "What are the Mormons?" (We used the opportunity to share the correct name of the Church!) and "Why should we believe in God?". We explained simply the Resotration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the prophet Joseph Smith, the Plan of Salvation, and the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel! I am so grateful for such a unique way to bear my testimony! I'll send out the link to the video when it's published online. We also taught him a lesson about the Gospel of Jesus Christ (what Jesus Christ requires of us to live with God again). When we introduced the lesson and read 3 Nephi 27, he said, "This is what I've been interested in all along!" Teaching S. She is a gem! She is originally from Afghanistan, but fled to Norway. She grew up Muslim but wants to be Christian. We taught her a few times this week and taught her how to pray. We taught her the Plan of Salvation, and the concepts of living before we were born was totally new. Most people think about what happens after we die, but no so much about before we came to earth. Her view of God is a just and "grumpy" man. It was so special to testify to her that God loves her! As we taught her how to pray, we "fed" her words she could say. It was like teaching a child to pray. It went something like this: Me: "Dear God..." S: "Dear God..."
Me: "Thank you for today."
S: "Thank you for today."
Me: "Help my sister and her kids..."
S: "Help my sister and her kids..."
Me: "...be safe."
S: "...be safe."
Me: "Help me to understand..."
S: "Help me to understand..."
Me: "...the Bible and Book of Mormon."
S: "...the Bible and Book of Mormon."
Me: "I love you."
S: "I love you."
Me: "In the name of Jesus Christ..."
S: "In the name of Jesus Christ..."
Me: "Amen."
S: "Amen."
It melted my heart to hear her sincerity! Praying out loud for the first time was a big deal. My favorite thing to teach someone, hands down, is how to pray. I think of when I was a child and my parents taught me to pray. I think of how Heavenly Father feels when He hears His children pray to Him. I know He is there! I know He listens. I know He answers.
We go through difficult things too. Getting laughed at on the street or getting kicked out of the library or people not showing up to appointments. Through it all, I still know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true! Jesus Christ restored His gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith. And, I am so grateful to be a missionary!
Love,
Søster Jessica Brimhall
Pictures:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/XMd46VpAjjehnP7D9
Søster Livingstone & I in Arendal, us four at Oplands house (he's the one I sewed the button for!), splits with Søster Crossley and Søster Harston, trying to play the accordian at Ingrid's home in Arendal, and the ris krem we made for Thanksgiving.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/ADMqSkRsMFmshLp4A
Turkey Bowl!