You Gotta Fight, for your Right, to Proselyte

Hey! How is everything going? I hope all is well. 

This week we did a lot of work with the members. We are starting to practice teaching them the lessons and having them give us feedback and also having them read the Rededication of the Land of Sweden by President Monson. I feel a lot closer to them as we have been doing that, and I can see their desire to share the gospel grow as we teach them the lessons. On the way to Sister Näslund's house we drove across a frozen river! It was really scary but super fun! I don't think I will go back on the ice anymore because it's been pretty warm here. We also went over to the Newells and it was SO fun. We had pie because two days ago was pie day. Those little girls are just adorable, I could spend all day with them. 

We had a crazy experience this week, too. We had a security guard come up to us while we were teaching at the University and take our information and kick us out, because of our Book of Mormon that he saw. It was straight religious discrimination. He took the information of our investigator too, who was SO upset. Afterwards, he handed us our Book of Mormon and said he was done meeting with us. We were devastated and I just went home and cried. The next morning in personal study I read "The Cost and Blessings of Discipleship" by Elder Holland and it was all that got me through the week. 

Surely the angels of heaven wept as they recorded this cost of discipleship in a world that is often hostile to the commandments of God. The Savior Himself shed His own tears over those who for hundreds of years had been rejected and slain in His service. And now He was being rejected and about to be slain.

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,” Jesus cried, “thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

“Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.”⁵

And therein lies a message for every young man and young woman in this Church. You may wonder if it is worth it to take a courageous moral stand in high school or to go on a mission only to have your most cherished beliefs reviled or to strive against much in society that sometimes ridicules a life of religious devotion. Yes, it is worth it, because the alternative is to have our “houses” left unto us “desolate”—desolate individuals, desolate families, desolate neighborhoods, and desolate nations. 

It is worth it, although sometimes it feels like we aren't doing any good. President Newell had us go in and talk to the information desk about what happened, and hopefully it'll all get sorted out. 

Investigators: We got two new investigators this week and some promising potential investigators, so that has been really fun to work with some new people. We have been doing a lot of work in a younger area of town and it's been a lot more successful, I feel. Either that, or just the weather being nicer has helped a lot. Henrik was really frustrating this week. We tried everything, so this week we tried showing him a conference talk. We felt the spirit SO strong and he just looked at us and said he felt nothing, and he's never felt anything. John is our most progressing investigator. We taught him about the Book of Mormon and he was excited to read about it. He has come to church two Sundays now and he just loves it. We love John!

So we are going to Kiruna on Wednesday and Sister Modersitzki is coming up! It's going to be so fun. It is SO northern, you'll have to look at a map. We are going to see the Ice Hotel and I guess some other touristy things that the Tolleys, a senior couple, have in mind. I am so excited, especially because I probably will be leaving Luleå soon. So Wednesday will be our "PDay this week". 

Ok, I love you all! Have a great week! Miss you tons!

Love, 

Syster Stetler

Mission Tour

Tjena! How's it going? I can't believe my 6 months is creeping up on me. It's going SO fast. And my swedish isn't coming as fast as the time is going. But it's been cool to be in this area for so long and have people tell me how much they've seen my progress and see the gift of tongues working! It's seriously the most frustrating thing in the world to try to learn the language that you don't use more than an hour or two per day. We made Henrik speak Swedish with us and we are trying to convince all of our investigators to let us speak swedish. "You just are so much more sincere in English." It seems like a blessing, but it makes it super hard to learn and to practice. Everyone just wants to practice their english with us haha.

This week went slow haha. But it's 40 degrees and I am not wearing tights or my coat! So that's really exciting. It's light from like 7-6 and it's blue skies most days. My mood is so much better, and so are the moods of the Swedes haha. The work is really picking up, and so are the referrals! That's been really fun. So the highlight of the week was MISSION TOUR!!!!!!! We flew to Stockholm on Monday night and we went to one of our Elder's favorite investigators house's and they were really fun. Then we went to stay with the STLs, and it turns out one of them is from Spokane and we talked about Kyle for like 30 minutes haha. 

Mission tour was incredible. Elder Donaldson came and the whole thing was about the Holy Ghost. I learned so much. The AP´s taught really well, they did a role play that I learned so much from. Elder Donaldson talked about how people feel the spirit very differently, and the way you describe it to them and the questions you ask will be crucial in helping them recognize it and get an answer of the truthfulness of the gospel. He talked about experiences he had, where because he followed the spirit, his investigators knew the gospel was true. He then had an Elder come up and share the most powerful spiritual experience he had ever had, and it happened to be Elder Johnson from my MTC group, who shared the experience of when he gave me a blessing in the MTC. I don't know if you remember that, but I was having a really hard time in the MTC and asked for a blessing and he quoted my patriarchal blessing, answered questions I had, and I had never felt the spirit so strong in my life, and I just told him how inspired it was, and he couldn't even remember what he had said. After he shared the experience, Elder Donaldson looked at me, and asked me to come up and share my version of the story. So I did, and after I got done and all those memories had came back he asked me, "If you were an investigator, and that experience happened to you, would you accept the invitation to be baptized?" and I said "Absolutely." 

It really made me think, it's our responsibility to give people that opportunity. They have the choice to accept, but the more in tune with the spirit we are, the better chance they have at truly knowing the gospel is true. The same thing goes for the members. If the members are in tune with the spirit, the investigators can have the experience they need to have at church to know the church is true. Hard work, service, and the spirit. I feel like those are the three things that set apart a decent missionary from incredible missionaries. So that's what I am working on right now, is trying to be clean enough to be able to REALLY be led by the spirit. And I will invite you to do the same :)

I got to see almost all of my MTC group and that was just so fun for me. I love them. There is a special bond between everyone's MTC group. There should be, you spent 6 straight weeks together haha. I got to see Syster Modersitzki and that was really fun too! She is doing great in Uppsala.

We had trouble meeting with our investigators this week. We are also struggling to get people to church consistently. They all come so sporadically. We have so many people who really want to know if it's true, and they have amazing experiences, and we are just helping them realize those experiences as God's love and the Holy Ghost testifying of truth. One of our chinese investigators read the chapter we assigned her and asked wonderful, wonderful questions and that was probably the highlight of the week. "How do I feel the spirit? How do I get that?" Best. Question. Ever. Hopefully we can meet with everyone this week!

Ok, I love you all so much! I hope you know that. I hope you have a really wonderful week!

Love, 

Syster Stetler

Syster Stetler with her trainer, sledding on the frozen ocean! 

Syster Stetler reunited with her MTC District

New Opportunities

Hey!! I am emailing early because I am going to Stockholm this afternoon for mission tour, a seventy is coming. I am excited for that, and to see some friends I haven't seen for a while! (But even for things like this, they have to do two because our mission is so big.)

This week was a roller coaster! A lot of good, a lot of bad. Right after we emailed one of our investigators dropped us and I was heartbroken. I still am. I've been so stressed about planning the days and being in charge of so much more. Another investigator has been argumentative this week, even in church to the gospel principles teacher. It felt like his motives were to prove the church wrong this week. We had 5 investigators say they would come to church and 2 came.   But tender mercies in church: We had an investigator come who sat there in testimony meeting and cried and cried and loved it and wanted to learn more and keep coming back. And also in testimony meeting, Brother Vinberg, a member, stood up and said something like, "The sister missionaries teach Andy at our house and they surprised my nonmember daughter by how much Swedish they knew for being here for such a short time, and since that experience she has been more open to hearing the gospel." It made me feel so good, because sometimes I really just don't feel like I am doing any good here.

We also have some good things in store for this coming week, some new people to meet with and some referrals to contact. I am excited for that! We also went to Umeå for zone training and it was SO GOOD, as always. My favorite thing I learned from that was, "We refer to people as our brothers and sisters because we truly are. Think of how much you love your siblings and what you would do to serve them and help them on their life's journey back to God and try to remember these people are your brothers and sisters as well." 

I am trying to think of something funny or a fun experience we had or something, but I just can't think of anything right now. I'll send another if I think of anything =) I love you guys so much! Have the best week ever. 

Love,

Syster Stetler

Lead me, Guide me

Heeeejjjjj! How's it going??? It sounds like you guys had a good week! I never loved America so much until I came here haha. Don't get me wrong, I love Sweden! But I appreciate home a lot more now. So it's totally warming up! I am so glad, Feb. has been really enjoyable so far. My body has adjusted so much that I don't even get cold until it's below 0. 

Ok, so I hated saying goodbye to Syster Modersitzki. I definitely fought tears when I had to say goodbye to her as she flew to Stockholm and I was by myself for an hour. She has been so great and taught me so much, I know we will always be friends!!! =) BUT my new companion's name is Syster Savage and I aaaaaaaaaaaaabsolutely adore her! She is hilarious and we have been working so hard. It's seriously been the best. She is only a transfer older than me, so we still have to guess with a lot of swedish, but we get by just fine! She is from Mapleton, Utah and she is incredible at singing. The girl is gonna lead the motab (Mormon Tabernacle Choir) in a few years, so watch out.

We got to go on the frozen ocean! Oh, it was so fun!! They have sparks, like scooter sleds? I don't think they have them in the states. But you can get going so fast and there are sleds behind them so people can push you! You also can just run and slide. The ice is thick enough they have tractors on it. And you can see the bubbles frozen under the ice. #northerncountries #arehashtagsevenstillathing So Sister Modersitzki said goodbye to everyone, and it made me really sad for whenever I leave! People have a hard time when the missionaries leave.

Investigators: Henry is doing about the same. We really think he has been receiving answers but we are still helping him recognize that and trying to help him have the courage to trust God. We have not been able to meet with Terry, we have an appointment set up with her tonight! We had a good lesson with Andy this week. too. We did a lot of finding work and we had a really cool experience:

So we went tracting in an area where a lot of younger people live, by the University here. (You get paid to go to school here, did I tell you that?) And I was literally just talking about how I always prayed and strived to be worthy of the guidance of the spirit, but I didn't really know if I was being guided or not. So we go and we are talking to this guy and his friend comes in and wants to know who we are and what we are doing. He said he had seen our nametags before when he was in an orphanage and they came and prayed with and for him, he said he felt like that prayer changed his life. He said he was just thinking that he wanted to join a church because he wanted to give back for all the good fortune he had had in his life, and we showed up. "It was you that came, no one else, you're the ones that came." I could feel the spirit so strong as he was talking and just how truly sincere he was. We set up a lesson that night and he accepted everything we taught, and wanted to learn more and more. I can't wait for the next lesson with him, and I was grateful that Heavenly Father confirmed to me that he really is guiding us, and answering all our prayers to lead us to those who are prepared and excited to hear the gospel. It's His work, not ours. 

Also, a spiritual thought. We were teaching this couple and they listened, but told us they just didn't think it could possibly be true. And it hurt to hear that. I really felt like I did my best, to find them, to teach them, to be in line with the spirit, to share my testimony. I was thinking about how Christ must feel with us, because we have our agency. I think I got a taste of what he meant when he said, "What could have been done more to my vineyard that I have not done in it?" That's the question that crossed my mind, but in my own words, "What did I do wrong? What should I have done differently?" Obviously I am not perfect, but Christ is. He did and does everything possible for us and we still go astray. 

I actually said a prayer the other morning to "get to know Christ better" and then I realized a few hours later that I have been, I just haven't realized it. Some of the thoughts that came to mind is I am getting to know him when I keep going in the coldest winds I have ever felt in my life, when I feel super embarrassed because I said something wrong in Swedish, when I share my dearest thoughts and experiences with people and they reject them. It gave me a lot of hope and peace to know that the work I am doing is good, and even if people don't listen or accept, I am becoming closer to my Savior in the process. 

Syster Stetler with her new companion Syster Savage

Well I think that's about it for the week. I will send a few pictures. I love you guys so much and pray for you daily!

Love,

Syster Stetler

Staying in Lulea!

Hi Friends and Family!

 Will you guys do something for me? Will you watch "His Grace is Sufficient"? It is sooo good, and I love a quote in it that says:

When people ask him [The author of the talk], "You think you are earning heaven?" He says, "No, we are learning heaven."

YES, I am staying in Luleå! And I am so glad. I really didn't want to leave, I don't think I ever will. I am getting Syster Savage who everyone says is adorable so I am really excited, though it'll be hard to say goodbye to Sister Modersitzki! I cannot believe I am done being trained. It has gone SO fast, and I feel like I will have a lot of responsibility now, so that's scary. This week the most exciting thing we did was go to Umeå for a specialized zone training and it was great! I really learned a lot, and it was fun to see the Beckstrands! We watched Meet the Mormons, and it absolutely destroyed me. I thought back to how that was one of the last things we did, and it just trunked me out for like 2 hours. Just seeing the temple, the mountains, Snowbird, and especially Anthony saying goodbye to his family, I just lost it. Syster Beckstrand reminded us how much we are sacrificing and that "Sacrifice really does bring forth the blessings of heaven."

Investigators: We had a lot of good progress with Henry. He told us that he has been reading the Book of Mormon and "something freaky happened", verses were standing out to him and speaking to him. It was so cool to see that God is speaking to him through the scriptures! Terry has been sick, we will meet with her tomorrow. And Drew expressed his concerns about baptism. So Kris and Jen, a 3/4 American couple had us over for dinner (delicious) and then we talked about the Book of Mormon, which he read in a week. And when I say read, I mean READ. He marked everywhere he had questions and compared it to his Bible. He had a LOT of questions and he is really smart, and honestly curious. It was cool to see someone that curious and driven but it was a lot different than our normal teaching experiences about basic doctrines and relationships to God. He is going to read D&C this week so it'll be interesting to see what he thinks!

I think that's it... I wish I had more to say! I love you all and hoppas du har en bra vecka [Have a good week!]

Love,

Syster Stetler

Car Keys

HEY FAMILY! 

 

Ok, this week started out really slow, then ended really well! So since Monday is Pday (Preparation Day), the Elders came into Luleå to email and then lost the car keys to the car we share. So..... since they were lost in Luleå, we had to look for them all of Tuesday. It's a dang good thing we found them because it turns out the mission didn't have a spare. So we spent all day asking everywhere. But I really learned a lot that day. We finally found them at the police station. Swedes are very honest people! I was really nervous after having had my car stolen. In other news, we may or may not have dyed Sister Mod's hair... Uh.. Haha. It didn't go so well. But fortunately she got it fixed today and it looks really, really pretty. The week ended well because on Saturday we went tracting to somewhere we had never been before and got let in 3 times. That's unheard of. And one couple was adorable. He was half American and she was from California, and they let us in and invited us back!

Investigators: Henry is meeting with us consistently again. He says he still wants to work towards baptism and he is praying about the time period that he wants to work towards. He is very determined, and if he sets his mind to it I know he can make it happen! Terry is seriously so cool. She told us she was going to be Mormon for a month and follow all the rules, do the entire thing, and if she feels like it's right, she will join. She has such a desire to find truth and find God that she is willing to try a completely new lifestyle. How cool is that? It was totally her suggestion. Andy, the Russian, says he wants to find out if baptism is right for him, but he just loves church, he comes every Sunday. The Hu's are adorable, they started praying! Which was a pretty new concept to them. We seriously teach people from everywhere here, right now we are teaching people from China, Russia, South America, America, Africa, and of course Sweden. I love learning about other cultures! 

That is honestly about it. The week was not that exciting! We made Kladdkaka and it was delicious! It's like brownies but better! And transfer calls come this week, so I am really nervous but I know that the calls are inspired and whatever happens is for the best!

I love you all and hope you have a great week! Hej då!

Syster Stetler

Syster Stetler with some children from the Branch

Beautiful Disaster

Hej Familj! 

You wouldn't believe how much "snö" there is here! It has been snowing for DAYS and it doesn't stop! There are snow piles of like 10 feet everywhere and there is probably 5 feet of untouched snow. Even native Norrlanders are amazed and saying this is a ton! It's beautiful, but it makes missionary work a lot harder. The buses are late, we pushed cars out of the parking lot yesterday, and like normal humans, the Swedes are not out during a crazy snow storm. Also, I am developing Norrländska, just how they speak here. There are a few different dialects, and this is, of course, my favorite.

Investigators: There will not be a baptism this week, for Henry. We are just trying to keep meeting with him, and figure out if this is still something that he wants. Terry is Anna Newell's (President Newell's wife) friend. She is like 26 and super cute. She is really searching for the truth and has wonderful, very sincere questions.

So she invited us and the elders over for dinner with some of her friends. We taught her, ate, then went to a hockey game! (Yes, I called the mission president for permission) and it was SO fun. Our lesson went great, dinner was fun, she made some traditional Swedish food (potato pancakes). It was really cool because we didn't even talk about religion, but afterwards that couple was like "you can come over and do your thing anytime." It's cool to see the doors you open by just being yourself. So the hockey game was nuts! They sing/chant the ENTIRE thing. Dad would have loved it, we walked in and they were playing Crazy Train. All the sudden they started chanting "OY OY OY OY.... Cause I'm LULEÅ, I'm dynamite... LULEÅ, and I´ll win the fight!" Hahaha. TNT was replaced with Luleå. It was so fun. But unfortunately, we barely lost in overtime. Also, dad, one of my investigators explained how his life by quoting White Snake. So all that 80's music training is really paying off on the miss. Haha.

The language.... I am starting to get really impatient with what I don't know. I am starting to understand people a lot better, but I just get so nervous to speak. An Elder that got here a month ago is just incredible. His grammar is perfect, pronunciation, and his vocabulary is huge. Everyone asks him if he's from Sweden, and it's so rare that you don't have a heavy American accent, even after being here a really long time. So I am learning that I can't compare myself to people. And that's a hard thing to do.

Something spiritual... We had an awesome district meeting again. I loved it. We talked about desires, our desire to come on a mission, and how to act according to that desire. I really like what Elder Elinkowski said when a missionary asked him for advice on how to be a better missionary and he said "I could give you advice, but it doesn't really matter what I think. My best advice is: Figure out what you want, figure out what God wants for you, and then don't be swayed." I think that really applies in regular life too. Figure out what you want, what you really want, see if it's in line with God's will. Then don't be swayed. In Lehi's dream those who partook of the fruit "heeded them not." It was cool because I have seen that Elder placed in tempting situations and he says something like "No, that's not my style." And I respect that a lot. He knows what he wants and doesn't sway.

Transfers are coming up on the 18th and we are a little worried because I had a bit of trouble breathing when the Zone Leaders came. I love it here. I have never felt so much love as I feel in this branch. I really just want to stay and continue this work here, but I know whatever happens will be for the best. 

Well I love you all and I hope you have a really great week! =)

Love,

Syster Alyssa Stetler

                                                     Syster Stetler and her companion.

                                                                       Lots of snow

                                      Alyssa is the first person from Elko to have visited Jakkmokk

                                                              Alyssa and her district

                                                                       Taking in a hockey game