This beginning of the transfer has been fun. My companion, Elder
Steenblik, and I both got bikes so we can bike around the city of Eindhoven and
get to speak to more people. We also enjoy being able to be out and about
IN the city. It´s not the same driving around the city in a car.
You don´t get to experience the city like you do when you adventure into it
without a window or a metal frame blocking your freedom and view. It´s so
nice. Yesterday we were biking around as we looked people up. For some
reason I was biking like a maniac and going really fast. When we came
across a guy walking in a park, I rolled on over to him and tried striking up a
conversation with him. I was so out of breath that he started to
laugh. I then realized that I needed to pace myself more. I guess I
got too excited to be biking around a bunch of people again I just wanted to go
fast! I´m happy too because that means that I can start getting into
better shape! We met a family from Canada this past week! We´re
going to be going back this week. They didn´t really know why we were at
their door....there kids were still eating dinner and it was bedtime in 10
minutes so we offered to come back another day and I would bring photos of Home
and they agreed. I haven´t worked with Canadians in a long time...so it will be
interesting to see what ´´we´´ believe in. We being Canadians.
As my companion and I prepared for the coming transfer, our main focus
turned into helping missionaries get the members involved in their missionary
work. Now, if we rewind about 16 months back...I was sitting in San Diego -
love and miss that place - there, we heard from a man, Clayton Christenson.
He wrote a book, ´´The Power of Everyday Missionaries´´ and this book was released...I
think just before I got to San Diego or while I was there. Anyways...he
came and spoke to the mission as a whole. That was my first Mission
Conference. It was awesome. He spoke to us about an experience he
had when he was a newly-wed. He used this experience to help teach us
what role missionaries play in missionary work for wards. Dang it was
good but I guess you might be wondering why I´m babbling on about this.
It´s because the Lord sees things with the perspective that we don´t have.
I remember getting my re-assignment papers to San Diego. I was set
back, disappointed and sad. But worked things out with myself
through a lot of thinking and pondering, that eventually helped me to leave for
San Diego with a positive perspective. I learned a lot of things, met
some incredible people, and loved every single minute of my time there.
The reason I brought up the previous paragraph about Clayton Christenson is
that the things that he had helped bring to my attention are what I felt would
be good to share with the missionaries here and If I didn´t go to San Diego I
would have never been able to share the things he taught there, to the
missionaries here.
I´ve come to see that these ´´set-backs´´ aren´t set-backs. In
fact…they’re the total opposite and they´re going to turn out how we make them
to be. In due time...we will remember things learned, things experienced
and be able to use them in the future for the benefit of those around us.
The thing that we need to do is find, within ourselves, what makes these
´´set-backs´´ a blessing in order to be content with the task at hand.
Taking a minute, relaxing and pondering has really helped me to find the
contentment that I need to find the feelings of peace, comfort and happiness I
am looking for in ´´set-backs´´. Pondering can be a powerful thing and I
feel a step that can be easily skipped between living and praying. As we
ponder on situations, we will be taught from on high. Have trust in the
thoughts you receive and remember that all good things come from
God.
Glad to hear that Brynn and Bo will be on schedule and that there´s a
Bishop G-Unit in town. So happy for everyone at home. Miss you guys
and don´t take this in a bad way...but I am looking forward to be spending my
summer with my fellow Dutchies.
We´ll hang out next summer.
Love,
Elder Holt
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