Week 57 - A Mighty Change of Heart

And that was Christmas. I feel like Christmas has this huge buildup towards it and then all of the sudden....it's all done. Sad.  I did enjoy having second Christmas.  Maybe we should start that tradition at home : )  It was nice seeing you all on Christmas!  Well....almost of you haha.  I feel like sometimes I begin to forget what it is like at home but being able to hear your voices and see you, helps me to remember the joy that you guys bring to me.  Not to sounds cheezy or anything.  It's hard to imagine that so much has changed.  I never knew so much could have changed in one short year!  You guys looked amazing.

This week was a special Christmas for myself.  It was my first Christmas away from family.  Every Christmas I have spent with family.  This was a new experience to go through.  This Christmas helped me to remember the things I love, treasure and find most important in my life and also to help me remember that I have all of these because of a child whose birth we remember during the Christmas season.  The greatest gift of all.  Our Saviour and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.  

I got to reflect a lot on this event.  I had the opportunity to focus a lot of thought and time on His life.  What he did, His purpose, His goals and His example.  Everything he did, he did out of love.  Everything he did, he did out of love for you and me, and for his Father in Heaven.  He did everything to benefit God the Eternal Father and for everyone on this earth who accepts him.  

As I was reading my scriptures this week, I became captivated in Alma chapter 5.  Particularly with the topic Alma 5 : 13 ''...and a mighty change was also wrought in their hearts....'' A mighty change of heart.  This is a process that I feel can easily be forgotten about.  

Me being me, I like seeing results that occur right away. Like in football when I would catch an interception.  The momentum of the game was immediately changed and we went from defense to offense just like that. I saw the result from my actions in a blink of an eye.  It's easy to forget the training that was done to help me become the player that would be able to keep up with the receivers and learn how to anticipate a pass coming my way.  There was a process that helped me become that defensive back that was blessed to see the success that he did.

A mighty change in heart is indeed a process that takes time and patience.  We don't always see or recognize the changes we make as we work with our Saviour to experience, ''...a mighty change in heart...''.  I don't really have a good answer for you as to how one can gauge their progress in a mighty change in heart.  haha.  I am also learning how one could do such a thing.  Life is a great journey of faith and that is the greatest measurement of progression that I have found.  It is to continue in faith as I do all I can to apply the teachings from the scriptures, praying and speaking with my Heavenly Father about my day in the best of detail I can.  As I continue to exercise my faith in the words of my Heavenly Father and Saviour by applying their words through the words of the prophets, I can rely on my Heavenly Father that he will help change my motives and become more Christ-like.  Maybe trying to find our changes is not the best thing that we could do.  Maybe it's like finding a specific answer to a prayer. As we look for specifics, we blind ourselves from seeing the real answers/progress.  

Relax and trust, that as we prayerfully feast upon the words of Christ and become more aware with our Saviour's character, these things will become more a part of our life.  It is most likely different for all of us but I know that we all need the same thing to experience a mighty change of heart.  We need the direction and help from our Heavenly Father.  We will need to be thinking from in to out.  

''When you choose to follow Christ, you choose to be changed...

''The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from outside in. The world would take people out of the slums.  Christ takes the slums out of the people, and they take themselves out of the slums.  The world would mold men by changing their environment.  Christ changes men, who then change their environment.  The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature...

''Yes.  Christ changes men, and changed men can change the world.

''Not only would they die for the Lord, but more important they want to live for Him.

''They have Christ on their minds, as they look unto Him in every thought...

This Christmas helped me to focus my mind to be more on Christ.  He works with us to change and we will experience a mighty change in heart as we choose to follow Him.  It’s nice to follow Christ.  I can't tell you what exactly has changed in my life, but I can tell you that Christ changes our hearts as we follow Him and His teachings. He lives and He is with us all the way.  Let’s work with Him more and more.  Let's get in the groove of speaking to Him regularly and becoming more acquainted in following His guidance. He loves us all.  He showed that by suffering and sacrificing His own life for us.  As we follow this example and ''sacrifice'' ourselves for others...with the teachings and truths of our Saviour, we will come to see Him more in our life.

Love you all and I hope you have an awesome New Year!  Let’s start it off in a positive note!

Love,
Elder Holt

Week 56 - Too Busy to Write

Shooot.  I honestly haven't even been taking a ton of photos these past few weeks.  I'll make it a goal to make some photos this week so I can send some next week.  So we didn't really have a P-day today. haha just like in Hengelo,  we ended up helping a friend who was recently baptized clean her house and now we are going to deliver cookies and what-not to people!  Good times.  Meaning that we didn't have our full time to email.  Luckily we're going to be able to skype soon.  So I don't remember your guys Skype Address....and I don't really know how to use skype.   I don't know what’s going to go down but hopefully it will all work out.  I will be skyping around 6:30 pm Nederland time.  So that'll be like 10:30 - 11:30 or so your time.  I don't know where you guys will be or if you guys will all be together.  You better be!  I'm stoked to see you all and I will talk to you soon!  Tot Christmas day!  Love you guys and safe travels!

Love,

Elder Holt

Week 55 - The Lord is good. He lives and that, my friends, is the truth.

That video was soooo cool!  haha shoot.  My little sisters have become my younger sisters and no more my little sisters.  Too bad they didn't have solos.  Man.  They are so different than from a year ago.  I thought it was really cool how they are showing the courage and love by inviting those they know to come to church or to give the Book of Mormon.  Shoot.  haha It makes me smile.  I love and miss you guys.  Turns out we'll be skyping at like 6-7ish pm here in Nederland so that'll be a little earlier than dinner for you guys.  I think it's an 8 hour difference.  I can't really say anymore but at least now you can figure out where you will be and get a plan ready just in case people would like to say hi.  Can't believe it's almost Christmas already.

It's fun serving with a previous companion.  Elder Krebs has been in Rotterdam for a long...4.5 months now so we are pretty sure that he will be transferred in 6 weeks and end his mission in the next city he goes to.  Hard to believe that he'll be going home in 5 months or so.  When we were companions he wasn't even on his year mark.  He hit it in the middle of the transfer we served together.  Now his sister missionaries just went home and he's looking at his last 3 transfers.  Weird.  It was sad leaving my trainer, who was my zone leader in the Apeldoorn Zone.  It was a lot of fun seeing him so often.  The whole mission is changing and it's taking some time to get used to.  

This week was a hectic one.  We've been busy setting up for a lot of things.  Like, a lot.  Fortunately we've had time to teach and find and help people.  Rotterdam is a very diverse city.  There are a lot of different cultures that live here.  It's been fun to see the different cultures and to get to experience this place.  It’s a very new city when you look at the rest of Nederland due to what happened to Rotterdam in the World War...2 I think it may have been.  I don't really remember.  Much of the city consists of new buildings because the older ones were bombed and destroyed in the war. I got to meet the ward yesterday.  It’s fun as you start to serve all over the mission and you meet people that know people that know you and have given them a ''warning'' haha about you.  You feel right at home when people say that so-n-so said you were coming and said how cool you were.  Saturday night we got a text from a member of our ward asking if I would give a talk to the ward.  haha.  I've done this 3/5 of my cities so it was nothing new.  I was a little stressed because of the things we have coming up and the preparation we should do but the Lord is always with you if you know that he is.  I found some time at 10 pm Saturday night to do some studying and to feel what it was that the Lord would have me say to the people of my new home.  I felt like I had found it and the Lord was happy with it and I got to sleep in peace.  I woke up and then had a little bit more time to do some touch ups and to prepare a little more.  When I got to the pulpit...I seemed to have been guided to speak of another topic.  I hit a lot of points that I had prepared to share but I guess the people in the ward were in need of other things.  It took me not to think about why my thoughts were leading somewhere to follow these promptings but I'm glad I did.  It was very quiet as I would pause and listen to the thoughts, words and experiences that came to mind.  Not even the kids or babies were making noises.  It was peaceful and quiet.  The Lord will always help us know what to say or do.  

5 Therefore, verily I say unto you, lift up your voices unto this people; speak the thoughts that I shall put into your hearts, and you shall not be confounded before men;

 6 For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say.

 7 But a commandment I give unto you, that ye shall declare whatsoever thing ye declare in my name, in solemnity of heart, in the spirit of meekness, in all things.

 8 And I give unto you this promise, that inasmuch as ye do this the Holy Ghost shall be shed forth in bearing record unto all things whatsoever ye shall say.

This promise is true.  I know it is.  I promise you that as you study up truth in your mind and heart and take the initiative of preparing, the Lord will place into our hearts the things that we should say; that He will give unto us in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what we shall say; hat as we declare the truths we have come to know in His name, in a serious and dignified manner, in the spirit of meekness, in all things, that the Holy Ghost will shed forth and bear record unto all things whatsoever we shall say.  We treasure up truths as we learn of them in the scripture.  As we constantly apply them to our lives and minds.  The Lord is good. He lives and that, my friends, is the truth.  

Love you all and I will talk to you next week.

Love, 

Elder Holt  

Week 54 - Where The Lord Would Have You Go is the Best Place to Be

A few weeks and we are skyping!  How cool is that?  I know that we'll be skyping on December 25th here in Nederland but I can't tell you a time yet.  Plans have changed here in Hengelo. One of my favourite memories is when the family would all meet up on Christmas Day and just hang out.  I remember playing hockey during the day and then going to Van Bruggens at night for family Christmas dinner.  Heck. I remember when Jeff Sutton called while he was on his mission and Uncle Steve talking to him on the phone in the computer room.  That must have been a ton of fun to get to spend time with your older sister and then a surprise from Alena and Dan and their baby.  Man.....how cool.  Christmas is awesome!  It's another excuse to hang out with family and friends and to enjoy all the good things we have been blessed with.  Hard to think that I'm now looking at ''the lasts'' of my mission.  For example, this'll be my last Christmas in Europe as a missionary, I just had my last Sinter Klaus, I'm about to begin my last winter.....Dang.  Last year I remember being in the MTC enjoying the festivities and now....it's all happening.  Sinter Klaus was awesome.  It was so fun to experience a Sinter Klaus in the home land whereas last year our teachers were celebrating it and trying to tell us about it but it's different hearing about it than experiencing it.  The world has so many cool experiences just waiting for us.  haha that would have been so cool to have seen the photos of the kids shoes filled up with goodies!  Did they get chocolate letters and peperknotjes? It's such a fun holiday!  I can't wait to celebrate it at home.  We learned some Sinter Klaus Liedjes got surprises in our shoe, and bags just given to us.  It was fun and it's nice to start seeing the Christmas trees and Christmas lights come up. 

This week was, yet again, a blur.  So much to do and so much done it's hard to separate the days.  On Monday, we had our P-Day; ended up doing service so it was also a tad postponed for the next day, then ate at a members house who treated us to a Sinter Klaus Experience. Tuesday we had a really good district meeting, we talked about becoming persons of experience, we finished P-Day and then got to enjoy an evening with a recent convert family and then went on exchanges.  Wednesday I got to serve with a Canadian Elder in Eschede.....we ended up working on a project with our Ward Missionary Leader to help us create missionary plans for the ward members and then got to spend the evening with a really cool member.  This man has class in what he collects.  Man.  Seeing his collection really makes me think what it is that I want to collect as I grow up.  Thursday I got to go on exchanges in Deventer where we lost the phone...looked for the phone...turns out we left it on a bus...had to wait for the bus to arrive at the station.....and then got to go and plant a less-active member’s garden!  We were given permission to design her tulip garden however we wanted : )  Man...we probably designed the coolest garden in Nederland...Keukenhof is now number 2.  I can't wait to see what it will turn into. After the service we went to eat at a member’s house in Apeldoorn.  This man is a really smart man. He is a self-learned man.  He noticed that there was no book written concerning the history of the Church in Nederland....so he wrote one. haha.  I heard about the book and had seen it in some missionary apartments...I asked if I could get one and his wife said that they were all gone.  I was devastated.  Gelukkig, he said that he had found one as he was going through stuff so I got to buy his last one for super cheap!  He even signed it for me!  We exchanged back that night and my companion and I finally got a day to serve in Hengelo with each other.  Friday we ended cleaning our apartment a little, doing some weekly planning and then took a bus for a long time in order to see a couple in the ward.  They are so cool.  They treated us to a delicious meal and a Sinter Klaus surprise. Afterwards we traveled back home and that was our day.  We started traveling at 4pm and got home at 9pm!  Crazy.  Saturday gave us time to go out and about serving the people in Overijsel.  We had a fulfilling day.  I had read a text wrong and got the days mixed up with a friend who we are teaching.  They weren't too happy because they are busy so we brought them some cookies as a peace offering.  They loved them and we ended up teaching them.  We saw 3 members/families and then taught a really cool couple that we are teaching.  To top it all off...we got a surprise cadeautje in our bags from Zwarte Piet and we had 2 of our friends come to church on Sunday.  It was a nice week and a good way to end off my time in Overijsel.

Turns out that this was my last week serving here in Overijsel. 1 hit wonder.  1 and done....1 and not 2 or 3.  I don't know what else to write and I can see that it's getting pretty cheesy really quick.  Yup...It was a shock when we the call Sunday evening.  Elder Hulet and I figured that we were going to be serving another transfer together.  He got here 3 weeks before me so we were both really new.  While we were spending time with members Sunday evening President Robinson called us and shared the news that the Lord would have me serve in Rotterdam.  We didn't know what to do.  It was sad because I didn't say goodbye to people at church...I was pretty positive that I was staying.  I never thought that I would leave a city after only one transfer but...there is a first for everything.  I'll be riding back over to the other side of Nederland and serving in Rotterdam.  A fun fact...my companion is going to be one of my older companions.  haha Turns out I'll be serving with Elder Krebs again.  haha He was my second companion in Belgium while I was serving in Genk.  haha He joked around saying, ''I guess we didn't do it right the first time.''  It’s going to be fun.  I'm a little nervous and shocked but I know there is a purpose for everything and where the Lord would have you go is the best place to be.  I've experienced His help in accomplishing the things he would have me do and I know that he helps us all when we are in need.  He's good like that. This is why I can't tell you what time we can Skype.  I'll probably let you guys know next week the times available and what-not.

This week I saw a lot of cool things happen from small and simple things.  Like when we brought cookies to our friend to apologize for our mistake, bringing cookies to members to show we appreciate what they do for us, saying hi to people on the street, taking the time to speak to those you feel the Spirit would have you speak with, complimenting someone for the good that you had seen them do; there's a lot but the most important thing I have seen this week was being the one to say sorry and acknowledge your fault.  When we had received a text from our friend saying that we missed our appointment and that they didn't have time to be waiting around for nothing while they have so much other stuff going on....I was upset.  I felt like I was not the one who was wrong.  I was so positive that they were the one who mixed up the date that I allowed myself to get a tad frustrated.  This caused me not to look at the text to see what day we agreed on.  I blinded myself to searching for the truth - usually that would be the first thing one would do, to look at the text but I was so sure - that I allowed my frustration in trying to defend myself to blind me from searching and being open to the truth.  Then after a couple days I cooled up and wanted to know what happened with our miscommunication; turned out...I was the one who was mistaken and I was the one who was at fault.  I felt so bad haha.  I felt bad for missing our appointment and having them wait for nothing, I felt bad because I was frustrated at them and they did nothing, and I knew that it was going to be resolved If I ''rose up and took the fault on me''.  We decided to make soft cookies to soften the hearts of those that we have been asked to serve.  Turns out...we make really good cookies.  We wrote an apology letter.  Stating that we were in the wrong.  We resolved the issue and everything turned out great.  It's so easy to get upset, frustrated, angry, sad, or disappointed towards someone.  Especially when we start feeling a little self-defensive.  It's not a good feeling be responsible for something that went wrong.  Being self-defensive is a dangerous thing and to me, a disguise for another word; the word, ''selfish''.  Selfishness leads to blinding us to reality. I didn't want to see that I was wrong so I didn't search to see if I was wrong.  Sometimes...the lesson we are to learn is to say...''I'm sorry, it was my mistake.'' 

It was a good week and a lot of good experiences here in Overijsel. Next week I'll talk to you all from Rotterdam.  Where are you guys going to be on the 25th of December?  Love you all and until next week!

Elder Holt

Week 53 - Focus On Those That You Are Serving

You seem to get busier and busier as we go through the years.  You would have thought that you would gain more free time! haha  That's going to cool spending time met mijne tante Jo-Anne!  I miss you guys a lot.  Thanks for all the photos!  I love getting photos and it's nice to see pictures from facebook because I can't see what’s going on people’s lives through facebook anymore! I am opening the white package that says Merry Christmas.  I have not received any other boxes so....I hope I don't open up my Christmas dinges.  haha. 

Thanks mom.  It's easy to get down on yourself.  Especially when you expect more of yourself than is possible or are expecting instant results; makes it easy to not see the good things you do or have done.

I got a picture this week of my friends in Belgium who got to go to the Temple for their first time!  Man...they look so dang happy!  I've been noticing a pattern of when I feel the happiest or at least the times I remember feeling happy. All my happiest memories involve seeing the joy of others.  To see the smile or the laugh of another.  The times when I got to be a part in helping one be happy are the memories that I find I have treasured up the most in the limited memory bank my brain has. Isn't it nice to have the memory of the person who needed help and you went and served them?  The time where your friend or neighbour asked for help and you were repaid through a face of gratitude and a grateful thank you.  What about the time someone you love was having a hard day and you got to help them laugh and smile?  I can't help but smile as I recall such events. It helps me understand why our Heavenly Fathers purpose is, ''For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.''  I had a question I wrote as I was studying a while go.  The question was, ''why is this the purpose of our Heavenly Father?  Why does he want this for us? What's in it for him?  haha....I was totally missing a part of His character. Now I sit here and ask myself...why do I treasure the memories of seeing people smile?  Why did I have the desire to help my friends attend the temple?  For me, as I sit here, it’s because I love seeing them smile and be happy. I love seeing them experience happiness and joy.  Is that not the same thing our Heavenly Father wishes for us?  I got the chance to read Mosiah 15-16 today.  How cool is that there was someone who loves us so much...that he died and went through a bunch of rejection and sad feelings for all those that rejected him, have rejected him and will reject him in this life.  I can't help but feel loved as I think about Christ and what he did for me:

''…The Son....suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people.'' ''...filled with compassion towards all men...'' ''...having broken the bands of death....'' ''...and thus the Lord bringeth about the restoration of these, and they...have eternal life, being redeemed by the Lord.'' 

 I am sorry that I have to end this Email early.  We are heading out to help a member and are going to finish our PDay tomorrow.  I'll write you guys tomorrow with more!  Take care and have fun with alles!  Love you and until tomorrow!

Elder Holt

Sorry about that.  We got to the library a little late.  I mentioned it before but thank you for the Facebook photo's!  Those were awesome.  So much can change in such a short amount of time.  Turns out the white package was my Christmas present I am pretty sure.  I got a letter from Christina and Grandma and Grandpa Holt...thanks guys!  The white package I got was a big mailing packet that had ''calendar'' written on the items section for the mailing and above the address it said ''Merry Christmas''.  This made me think it was a Christmas present and I didn't open it but when you said to open I did....or at least from what I understand open it.....I read wrong....but don't worry...mom and dad taught me to Always read the card first and after I read it I figured it was a Christmas gift....it's still unopened and sitting under our Christmas tree.  Can't say the same for the card though.  Whooops.  It's pretty hard not to open it but it’s going to stay closed for a couple more weeks.  Sister missionaries are interesting people haha.  Really good missionaries and just so different from Elders....at least that's what I thought.  I'm pretty sure my companion’s sister served with Emily.  Sister Hulet.  We're waiting to see if this is fact or false. 

This week was a busy week in a different way.  We had P-Day Monday, we had service Tuesday during the day and then travelled to Rotterdam for zone conference at night.  Wednesday we had zone conference with Elder Moreira who is an Area Seventy and super funny guy.  By the time we got back to Overijssel the day was done.  Thursday we did more service for our members and then had appointments at night with members. Friday we did service again and then the same story.  Saturday we had a meeting in Zwolle but got a few hours to put in some work in an area that is pretty far away from Hengelo.  It felt sooooo good to be knocking doors and talking to people. We walked through the centrum and there were a bunch of Zwarte Piets! They were everywhere and it was sooo cool to experience Sinter Klaus in Nederland. After we came back to Hengelo and decided to go and visit a less-active who just became a parent with his girlfriend having a baby.  We bought them a pink baby shirt thing....I don't remember what it's called and we got them a card.  They loved it and asked us if we had time to eat pancakes with them!  We had time so we ate pancakes and then our friend came to church the next day.   Sunday we sang in our ward conference ... brave ward.  Our friend stayed the full 3 hours and had a really good time.  My favourite part was seeing the ward members congratulate him and ask if they could come by sometime and congratulate his girlfriend.  haha that reminded me.  Saturday night as he was teaching us how to make pancakes he asked what the ward thought when we announced that he and his girlfriend had a baby.  We said that they were happy for him and his girlfriend and were excited to hear more.  This is my favourite part.  He looked at us and said, ''yeah.....but.....i broke the law of chastity....weren't they mad?'' haha.  What a funny dude.  We laughed and told him that the book of Mormon teaches us to leave the judging to Christ and to love the sinner and not the sin.  I love the little short teachings we can all give throughout the day. 

At zone conference we were addressed by one of the funniest dudes ever.  Elder Moreira. He was so funny and so real and so inspiring at the same time.  It's been different these past 5 weeks.  Being asked to oversee a certain area and the missionaries there in has been a learning process.  I was focusing so much on how MY area was doing and how many people we were finding to teach and teaching.  Seems like in 5 weeks for the most part, we have stayed in the same spot in our missionary work.  The same with the district.  Elder Moreira touched on an experience where he learned that his happiness came from the success of others.  He spoke about a lot more things and eventually, all his messages hit me.  I was focusing too much on working my area to become better and not on helping the district members change their areas.  It's kind like fishing for someone but not teaching them how to fish.  You can only help them so much until they will one day do it on their own.  I was becoming unhappy with my work and getting down about not being the example for lessons and finding new people and I started to forget to think about how to help the missionaries in the district.  After our conference I feel like the Spirit helped me to increase my awareness and desire to seek the best for those that I am serving...the missionaries.  I went to the conference with the question what ''would you have me do to help the area you have asked me to serve in flourish?'' I thought my answer was going to be....speak to more people, work through a member....talk to be in this sort of way...something like that.  I had no idea that my answer was going to be ''Focus on those that you are serving''. 

This past Sunday evening as we were calling our missionary friends to hear about their week....it made me so happy to hear about the positive experiences they had.  The pressure of the past weeks was starting to be lifted.  I very strongly feel that as we repent and work to change our attitude to be about those we serve, we will feel a lot of the burdens be lifted form our shoulders and our joy will become more full.  It must be kind of being like a parent.  I can only think of Mom and Dad and remember them being happy after my team won a soccer tournament or a game and the sorrow they had if I lost.  However....they were Always there to pull me up when I was down. We read this same thing in the Scriptures.  Christ is Always trying to pull us up but we gotta let him.  I've found him pulling me up as I study his words through the prophets as I read the scriptures.  There is a certain personal power of love and joy as you read the scriptures.  Your questions are answered.  You can find more answers than you can think of if you seek for them through the scriptures.  I think we're really Lucky to live in a time where we have so many resources and great people are serving to bring us up.  We have the restored gospel with a perfect organized church. Remember we are all imperfect and the flaws you see are not of Christ's organized church but the people who are not perfect and not supposed to be perfect.  Christ's church is not for those who are perfect but to help imperfect people become perfected through the atonement of Christ.  We have a Prophet, Apostles and other leaders who serve us pull us up. 

This coming Sunday we have the chance to fast and give fast offerings in order to help those who are in need.  There is a special promise if we live the law of fast to the fullest.  In Isaiah 53 Verses 5-11 we can study the blessings that come from living the law of the fast to it's fullest.  I'm going to study it more and prepare to help my Heavenly Father help me by paying my fast offering and Fasting with a purpose and to be cheerful about it.  I didn't really realize that paying our fast offerings was a part of the law of the fast.  I feel really bad because I have been Fasting every month but I have allowed the different difficulties get in my way to give my fast offerings back to the Lord so that I could help those who are in need of being pulled back up.  We get so much from our Heavenly Father.  I love him more than any way I can write and I thank him daily for teaching me how to serve those around me and to pull them up.  I thank him teh lesson that comes from tryin to help others fish.  

I love you all and will talk to you next week!  PS....WE"RE SKYPING SOON!

About coming here.....I think it would be really cool for you guys to come and see the mission.  I would love showing you around and having you meet some of the people I am serving! 

Love,
Elder Holt 

Week 52 - Skate Contacting

That would have been fun to hear the Dutch names!  That's really cool that you got to go to the temple with the youth and the new member to the ward!  A member in San Diego who served in the High Council shared his thoughts about new members attending the temple.  He noticed that a high percentage of the members that didn't  go to the temple within 3 months of being baptized who were converts became less-active compared to the members those that did.  He encouraged us to get all of our friends to the temple as soon as possible so that they could experience the importance of constantly learning and experiencing the fullness of the gospel and to help them keep progressing.  I think that's super cool that she got to go!  Good Job!  Leaving at 4 in the morning though does not sound like the best.....maybe a little later is a better/safer idea.  Man....I can't imagine 25 youth in a ward anymore!  I remember in Ottawa when we had more than that.  It's so different being here...there are not a lot of youth.  We have been pretty blessed with the wards we grew up in.  Super blessed. 

Dang....those landscapes would be soooo nice.  Especially along those rest points or whatever they are called.  A lot of the Nederlands people loooove Canada for its beautiful scenery.  It's hard to remember what home is like now-a-days.  A member told us that there are some parts in North America that are buried in snow!  So weird to think about shoveling driveways!  San Diego last winter...no snow yet here or even weather for snow to happen.  Crossing fingers that we'll get some snow just before Christmas.  It would be nice to have a white Christmas.  But maybe only for Christmas seeing how it would really suck if we lost the possibility of using our bikes.....we kind of need those in our area.  If we didn't have them our work would be waaaaay slow. 

This week was a blur.  I feel like I say that every week.  I guess this week I just let the numbers that we share with the zone leaders get to me so last night I was just feeling overwhelmed and trying to figure out what the heck the problem was.  It's nice to know that we can go somewhere private and speak to our Father Heaven.  I find a lot of assurance having some experience recognizing answers and know that He hears our prayers and will help us.  I guess I allowed things to weigh me down to the point where I just needed to have a good long chat with my Heavenly Father.  The feelings and thoughts that come to our minds as we take the time to pray....and then pause to listen......really help clear and rekindle(I wanted to use reguvinate but I don't know how to spell it so I went with rekindle)your mind, your feelings and your spirit. A sister missionary once shared what someone had once told her about listening while praying.  This person said....Imagine someone tells you how they are doing, what's going good, what’s going bad and all the feelings that they are going through, asking for you advice and help but they never stop, giving you no chance to reply leaving you unable to actually help them.  I feel like whenever things start going good I will forget the little things such as allowing my Father in Heaven to try and help me or putting my trust in Him.  Sometimes I get so caught up in life and what’s going on where I forget something that I have been learning all my life like, ''trusting my Heavenly Father in all things.''  Heck, I share this with people very regularly.  Man I suck at spelling.  Curses Dutch spell-check.  People wonder why good things happen to bad people.  We may feel like we are doing so good as we do our best in following the steps of our Savior and then booom.......we walk into a wall.  We get spiritually hit.  I can speak for myself that if I didn't go through things like this....and it's sad to say...I would forget my Heavenly Father. 

Mosiah 1 :17 ''Therefore, as they were unfaithful they did not prosper nor progress in their journey, but were driven back, and incurred the displeasure of God upon them; and therefore they were smitten with famine and sore afflictions, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty.'' 

 haha I hope you all don't think that I am going apostate or being disobedient by me sharing this scripture. I like it because to me it explains that we all may have the thought to do something like to go and speak to someone, or to go and visit or call someone.  Heck it could the most simplest of things but sometimes, and it could be soooo good, but we shrug it off.  Everyone does it.  If you don't....I'm sorry...you gotta quit pulling the wool over your eyes: )  We ALL do this...it's ok.  haha that's how we learn.  When I shrug off an impression, to me, I am being unfaithful.  Last night we were biking and I saw the other side of the road and just had this feeling and desire that I wanted to bike on the other side of the road.  I didn't do it.  I kept biking on the normal path we take, contacted a dude....didn't go as one would intend....and then saw these 2 other people on the other side of the road.  All I could think in my head was, ''shooot.....that's why I was supposed to go to that side of the road.''  I guess I had many experiences this week where I felt that I knew what it was that I was being guided to do....but I was trying to.....rationalize....or justify...haha there's a word I really want to use but I can't dig it out of my brain.  Ok.  That dude that we contacted.  I felt the impression to bike on the other side of the street.  I didn't because I saw a dude walking towards us and no one on the other side. Because I saw this dude...I brushed aside the impression.  I guess the word could be reasoning.  I'm pretty sure reasoning was the word I couldn’t dig out of my brain.  Man I do that a lot.  I feel like this week was a week of ''reasoning'' for Elder Holt.  Dang that's a tricky thing not to do eh?  I was forgetting to trust in my Father in Heaven.  I forgot that these impressions, if they be good, come from God.  That they come for a reason.  I feel that because I shrugged these impressions that I did not progress as much in my journey of life and was being driven bac, (referring back to Mosiah 1 : 17). I was slowly becoming the person that was forgetting to include my God.  I started to feel the weight of feelings, responsibilities and all that become heavier and heavier.  How grateful I am to have been given the wake up call to remember my God. Sometimes we feel that they are unfair but what a gift it is to find answers to the why of things through the words of our Prophets of old and of today. I didn't fully understand why these feelings of overwhelment were coming from.  I was doing what I should, I was doing my best to be obedient...I didn't fully understand why these feelings came.  But now I have learned and experienced another lesson why God said we are giving afflictions ''...to stir them up in remembrance of their duty.'' We need these moments to help us remember things we may have forgotten.  I can promise you that if you are honest with yourself and do not try and sugar coat things with the intent of making yourself feel better....there will be a lesson that will bless not only your life, but to all those your Father in Heaven has put into your life. 

We went to Brussels last week to get our drivers licences.  Got to eat Belgian Friets and waffles.  I didn't get a Belgian waffle.  I ended up giving my money to a lady...I am sometimes a weak hearted kid.  There was a dude who was 25 skateboarding at our meeting and I really had the impression to go and skate with him. He came to grind the stairs where we were and he screwed up...giving me the opportunity to say hi and start a conversation with him.  We talked about skating....life...growing up skating.  It was awesome.  Well, Elder Holt wanted to skate so he asked his friend Lucas, (who was the skateboarder) if he could use his board.  Lucas replied to me with the comment...''in those shoes?''  haha We laughed and I asked if we could switch shoes so I could skate.  This dude was so cool that we switched shoes. I did a few things.  He challenged me to grind on the stairs and luckily it ended in success. It was nice to share a common joy that we found in life through skateboarding.  Turns out he quit drinking liquor because it cost too much, he didn't feel good after drinking and he found more joy in developing his talent in skating.  Talking to this dude and getting to know him, the Spirit helped me see how the Lord was preparing this young man to receive the Gospel.  While I was skating another missionary contacted him and kind of did the regular normal missionary contact; leaving me feeling like it would be weird to add what I felt the Spirit was helping me to say.  Sad to say that I allowed myself to ''reason'' myself out of it.  I really hope to learn to reason but at the same time trust in answers I know the Lord is giving me and try my faith and just go with it. 

Love you all and I miss you,

Elder Holt

Week 51-Zwarte Piet arrives!

On... Friday I think it was when Sinter Klaus and Zwarte Piet showed up in the boat to Nederland!  They had parades with a bunch of Zwarte Piets and Sinter Klaus haha.  Little Kids were dressed up as Zwarte Piet...it was really funny.  I feel sad over how people think it is discriminatory. I feel like Zwarte Piet is more loved by the people here than Sinter Klaus and this is a tradition that's been going on for a long, long time.  I learned that Zwarte Piet doesn't represent a person coming from Africa but one that goes down the chimney for Sinter Klaus...something like that.  Anyways....I am not a fan of people trying to change Zwarte Piet.  We didn't have time to go and see the parade...just the kids and families going to the parade/festival.  We went and helped a member cut vegetables and stuff to help her prepare for her birthday party she was having and then after that we had to go to Zwolle for the evening.  Sometimes you just don't have time to see the cool things as a missionary. In fact...even our pdays have been short this transfer and today they will be even shorter as we serve the members of our wards.  It's all good though.  Sacrifices are a good thing. 

This week for my year mark I'll be heading to Brussels, Belgium!  We figured that since we have had short pdays and we would be losing even more than usual today, that for my year mark we would go do something cool...something like a cool restaurant or museum or castle or w.e....turns out we'll be going to Brussels in order to get our drivers licences that day.  It'll be nice going back to Belgium and really nice to see Brussels again! It's a whole new world there.  Way more French than Dutch or Flemmish.  It's kind of crazy thinking that almost a year ago I was getting ready to be set apart, and then heading to the MTC.  It trips me out every transfer when new missionaries come in.  I remember when I first came in... remember the mission leaders... realize that they are either home now or almost home... and realize that the new missionaries are going to start looking up to the me as I looked up to my mission leaders.  So weird.  I was reading a talk by Elder Dube this morning as I was doing some bathroom reading.  He talks about how he was working on a plant field with his Mom or something and he looked back and said to his Mom, ''look at how much we did!'' she didn’t reply so he figured she didn't hear. He repeated what he said then she told him to not look back at what you’ve done but to look forward at what you are still to do.  Something like that.  That kind of hit me.  I've done a lot of looking back at what I've done.  It makes me feel like I have accomplished things. Time to start looking at what tasks are in front of me and looking to accomplish them.  I guess if we always look back at what we have accomplished...we'll be missing some pretty important lessons and experiences as we work to succeed the tasks at hand.  I'll have to think about that more.  Three cheers for scripture studies!

Earlier this week we went to visit a friend of the church who had joined the church about four years ago.  They met with the missionaries for three years or something like that.  They are now in-active. Sucks but it happens. We got to see them finally, after trying to set something up for the past two weeks.  We had a really good time.  The choices that they have made in life have left them with becoming a parent.  It's really cool for them.  They asked what we wanted to talk about with them.  After thinking about it, the Spirit just informed us to ask them what they wanted to talk about.  Boy....did they have some questions.  The first was about baptism for babies.  They knew that baptism was required to go into Heaven and they wanted to know if the baby needed to be baptized.  I love situations like this.  So many times I have learned that if I put in a really good scripture study and I treasure up the words of Christ, that I will truly be given the words of what to say when they are needed.  We ended up reading Moroni chapter 8 with them.  After the Sprit testified to our friend the truths of this, they moved to the next question.  Again, the words of guidance were given.  Sad to say that I also experienced that people will only hear what it is that they want to hear and if they are not willing to accept or listen to the truth, they will not understand it.  I wanted to dig deeper into the question that he posed to us.  I realized that I could know more about the question than I did.  So...for the next day I worked on becoming more acquainted with the truth of the question and where to find it.  Had a lot of cool experiences this week with my studies and not only studies, but diligently studying and using all of the books of scriptures to find the truths.  I have experienced the power that comes from seeking the truths from the Bible, Book of Mormon and D&C.  What a good feeling it is to have these testimonies. To have the words of truth in such a magnitude that if we seek to obtain and understand the gospel of Jesus Christ, that we will not be left with questions in the end. 

We went on exchanges with our missionary friends this week. The Elder who I served with for the Day and I had a really good day.  We talked with people but it didn't feel like we were contacting just to contact.  It felt like we were contacting because we really cared for these people.  I made a goal to not just go through the routine of contacting.  Sometimes missionaries can get stuck into a routine to the point where the sincerity of the message is lost.  I wanted to apply what we all learned from each other last district meeting.  That being listening. Everyone has experiences in life that have helped them or are helping them to find the truths.  As we discussed contacting/finding new friends who are seeking the truths, we ended up speaking about listening to what people were saying and discerning how the Lord has been preparing them in order to share with them things that are personally for them. Now was the time to apply what I had learned at district meeting and work to help my missionary friend do the same.  We ended up having really good conversations with some people.  We are seeing a friend, hopefully this week, who we met that day, we ended up giving out 2 Book of Mormons and for the people that declined...we still felt successful because we knew that what we shared was working inside of them and that the experiences that we shared were going to be on their minds.  We felt the Spirit work through us.  We ended up meeting a man who loves Canadians and Canada.  It's nice to be Canadian.  We ended up losing track of time. At 3 oclock we head to an Albert Heijn to buy some snacks.  As we biked to the grocery store we saw an antique shop and decided we wanted to go in the antique shop after we bought our food. We did just that.  There were so many cool things here.....man....clocks from 1700's...guns that pirates probably used  (I have no idea I'm just trying to give you a picture of how old they are), really cool dressers...paintings....things like that.  We found a box of random things...including some mini Dutch Bibles. We found one from 1884.  I asked the dude how much it was (the one Bible for 15 Euros) and the conversation somehow lead to Fryslan clocks.  He showed us around the entire store, taught us some things and we just had a cool time learning about this dude’s hobbies and how he got to where he was with his collection.  The Spirit made us aware of how this man was prepared to hear Gospel.  We shared a little bit about the Book of Mormon in the way that he needed to hear it.  He and no other.  We shared our experiences with it and asked if we could give him one.  I feel like if we didn't make it personal for him and invited him in the way the Spirit had showed us...he would have said no. He is Dutch after all....they are really good at knowing if you are sincere and they like things to be of personal worth.  The way we invited him was so cool.  He ended up giving us 2 Bibles; the one I wanted and another for 10 dollars so that we both left with a Bible.  His words were, ''om uw dienst'' or something like that.  I think that means, ''For your service''.  Super cool day. We taught 2 lessons and learned a big lesson on listening.  To listen to the people, to gain a sense of a love for who they are and to see how they have been prepared to hear the gospel.  To invite and share in a personal way according to how they had been prepared. 

This week we are pretty busy and I hope that we will have time to get all we want to get done, done.  We will be losing a full day which is a bummer but it'll all work out.  Things are going will in Overjissel.  It's a nice place.  The ward is really fun.  I haven't been fed like this since San Diego...we're eating at members’ houses almost every night!  We're building relationships with them and hopefully we will be able to find people who are looking for the Gospel so that we can bring missionary opportunities to the members so that they can catch the fire of sharing the gospel.

I'll do better at making photos this week.  I've been still getting used to things here but I did make a photo today of my companion and I because I knew you would like one!  Love you guys and until next week.

Elder Holt

Week 50 - Perfecting our Faith

This week was pretty good.  It wouldn't look like it if you saw the amount of lessons we taught but it's been important to keep pushing along.  The Lord’s work won't push along if you don't help push it along.  We've had appointments fall through but the Lord has helped us find 2 new friends.  Really nice people.  They had learned a little from missionaries a few years ago but they didn't feel loved by the ward members.  They felt like the ward members just wanted them to get baptized and didn't feel a ''family connection'' with them.  Opened my eyes on how important it is to remember the greatest commandments: 

''...Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.'' Matt 12:30, 31

I've started studying the Epistles of Paul.  I was curious on the lead up to the great apostasy.  What were the saints of Jesus Christ going through?  What events happened?  What were the remaining Apostles guiding the Saints to do?  So many questions filled with curiosity.  There is a ton I wish I could share with you but, lucky for you guys, the limited time on the computer has reduced that amount by drastic measures.

One insight that I had was why we are tried.  This answer gets pretty big and complicated so I won't get into it all.  I want to talk about perfecting our faith.

 ''Night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith''

I hope this doesn't sound crazy or I leave it with too many holes. Reading it now I kind of am confused how I got to my answer from my question.  After I read this verse I was thinking about the trials that the saints were going through.  I thought about the trials that we go through.  I really wanted to know more about why we have trials.  The last part of the sentence, ''might perfect that which is lacking in your faith''  We live two parts of life.  A temporal life and a spiritual life.  This temporal, just may, help us work to perfect our spiritual aspect of life.  In this new area I feel like a lesson I am to learn working towards perfecting my faith.  There is a reason why faith is number one in ''our purpose.''  We live lives where faith is constantly exercised.  Sometimes we do all we can and work so hard…and the outcomes are not what we thought.  We contact people daily.  We do our very best to help them in their own personal way but some days...the fruits of the labour are unseen.  I've been experiencing that perfecting the faith is to keep moving forward with your head up and holding fast to your hopes and goals. We had a really slow week.  Our goals for the week were slowly becoming a downer.  My comp has a really good attitude about everything.  He would always say...''well....we’ve got two more days. Let's keep going.''  We kept going.  If we didn't we wouldn't have found our two new friends.  I've been focusing a lot on ''Perfecting my Faith''. 

Oh how much I care for this Gospel.  How much I care for the men and women that have made it possible for me to have this Gospel.  We have a Heavenly Father that loves us a lot and will help us.  He loves us so much that He will put us into situations that will help us become better people; situations that have the potential to help us, ''Perfect our faith'', as long as we allow our Savior to nourish our faith.  I find great comfort in the Scriptures.  I have particularly enjoyed seeing both sides of the page as I study both Testaments of Christ.  The Lord lives.  We can learn His ways through applying what we learn in the scriptures.  Everything requires faith.  Let us all work towards perfecting our faith: 

“Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus 

Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that‍ there be no divisions‍ among you; but that‍ ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind‍ and 

in the same judgment.” 1 Corinthians 1:10

Let us all be united with our Father in Heaven and not divide ourselves against the ways to achieve all the good things in life.  Let us follow the footsteps of our Redeemer, even Jesus Christ.  We will all stand before Him one day.  Let us prepare by walking in faith in a world that is governed by sight. 

“But as it is written, eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.'' 2 Corinthians 2:9-16

Trust in God.  He loves you.

Love you and I hope you all have a sweet week!

Elder Holt

PS.  Sorry about no pictures

Week 49 - What Are We Going to Do to Get Answers?

Goede Middag!

It was sad and a shock about being transferred so quickly but I am really enjoying my first week here in Overijssel. I will have to send you guys a video of where we live.  Ohmygoodness.....I never knew a missionary home could be so sweet. haha.  This is my first time serving in ward here in Nederland.  It's kind of like the size of the ward in St. Albert....we have a tiny make shift church building but are waiting for the go-ahead form the city to build the new church building.  We have really funny members.  I have only met a couple of them on Sunday but the people I met just made me laugh.  Their sense of humor is so dang contagious.  They make you smile. There are two sets of Elders in this ward.  I guess they have had a lot of missionaries from Utah so when they heard that the 2 new missionaries in their ward were from Canada they were pretty happy haha. My new companion’s name is Elder Hulet from Cedar City, Utah.  He's been out on his mission for almost 18 months.  He's a really good dude; a hardworking and fun missionary.  We prayed and figured out what the Lord knows we can accomplish.  I am confident that as we serve, giving it all we got and do so with the Lords help that we are going to succeed our goals.  It is going to be a good transfer.

It has been interesting working without the resources that you have back at home with missionary work.  I never really noticed how much resources and help are given to us back at home until serving all the branches and ward here in Nederland.  The church is in a beginning phase.  We serve covering an entire province without a vehicle so it makes it harder to get around.  Fortunately we have an amazing ward that is ready to take on the responsibility of building up the Lords Kingdom here.  I haven't met all of our friends who are learning the Gospel here yet.  We actually don't have too many.  The entire district and zone seems to be struggling with building up a foundation of finding and teaching those who are ready for the Gospel and are seeking for the truths of the world and life.  I find it funny because my Nederland trainer, Elder Robbins, is now my zone leader.  I know that he is going to work his tail off making his city an example for the zone and I feel as if I am serving in his zone to help my rekindle the feelings and joy that came from the much success in Genk, Belgium.  I am excited to be serving with him on exchanges and to be learning more with more experience under my belt.  It's going to be hard but the Lord is going to help us bring life to our areas as we serve and are accountable.

We have been doing a lot of contacting and knocking doors. Some days I love it....some days not so much.  I don't really fully understand why I don't always have the zin to contact and knock doors but now is the time to search for solutions to always having that desire to invite as many people as possible and as many people as the Spirit prompts me to.  Maybe that is one of the reasons why my trainer is my zone leader haha.  To help me apply what I learned from him. 

A few days ago we were doing some look ups and contacting while riding our bikes around the city.  We came across a lady who was walking her dog.  We began a conversation with her about her dog.  He was a really cool Jack Russell Terrier.  When the conversation changed into seeing where she stood with God it turned out that she had a lot of doubts with the fact that we have a God who is our loving Heavenly Father.  She thought it didn't make sense that children would die, get sick, and become subject to various amounts of different unfortunate things.  She had a legitimate concern.  One that I think every human being ponders about.  At that moment I knew why my life was happier with the Gospel being a part of it.

The Gospel has helped me to learn the answers to the questions and concerns that I had and have.  I have found and continue to find answers to things about life through the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I have received confirmations through the Holy Ghost as he testifies to me the truthfulness of the things I learn and ponder.  I am given feelings of comfort and peace to know that everything is ok and will work out. We all have concerns and questions....but what are we going to do to get answers or find solutions?

This lady that we contacted who shared her dispute or concern....I don’t really know what to call it...was sincere. The only thing that would help her was to comfort her and to thank her for her sincere concern.  We bore our testimony that the world seems unfair.  That not everything is rainbows and sunshine.  We bore our testimonies that we had learned and could show how the children of the world are protected and saved from the dangers of mortality.  We bore testimony about how perfect God’s plan is; that even though we don't fully understand why things happen....that there is a way to find peace, answers and solutions.  We invited her to hear more.  She said yes and we exchanged contact info. 

I often feel like my natural response to people who share their concerns with me is to ''prove'' to them why what I share is true.  I feel like the Lord is helping me see to not ''prove'' that what the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ is true but to share and provide comfort; to help His children experience that what I share, through the restored Gospel is the truth.  The power of comfort, peace and joy. 

''For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.''

Oh how true this principle is.  We learn here a little and there a little. In the end...all these littles transform into a grand architect of truths.  How thankful I am to live a life according to my Heavenly Father, the source of all truths; to experience His teachings as I test my faith by following His called and chosen prophets.  We all have questions and concerns.  haha Sometimes these turn into complaints.  We can sit around and complain all we want but what are we going to do about finding solutions and answers?  It is my prayer that we will all live a life of goodness through the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.  That we may reap the blessings that come from it.  That we may find peace, comfort, happiness and joy as we, day by day, learn the principle of ''here a little, and there a little.' ''Line upon, line, precept upon precept.'' 

Ant hills are pretty dang interesting if you think about it. haha.  These guys take tiny grains of sand and dirt and one by one...build a hill.  They do it grain by grain.  The Lord’s principles are all around us if we are looking for them and seeking for His counsel.  This, my family and friends, is my experience that I share with you.  Know that whatever your concern, question, doubt, problem...heck even your complaint; it can be answered.  Prayer is our first step.  There is a power behind prayer that helps us to find the answers we are searching for.  Go out and find your answers with the help of a loving Heavenly Father, who is the source of all goodness and truths.

I love you all and hope that you all have a great week.  Keep going strong and always look to the right source for everything.  Trust in the wisdom of God, your Eternal Father.

Love,

Elder Holt

Temple Conference