Elder Müller in the Belgium/Netherlands Mission: Week 11: A New Adventure Begins!

"Tripanionship" of Destiny Reunited at Zone Conference!

(I am going explain some of the things Elder Muller will be talking about in his email so that as you read it, you won't find all of my "blue translations" throughout his letter!)

Missions are made up of transfers. Every six weeks is a transfer period. This means that throughout the entire mission, some missionaries will be reassigned to different areas, companionships will be changed and it requires missionaries to be ready to adapt to new situations! Part of the growing process of a mission. These young men and women pack up their belongings and head for their new area by public transportation. Elder Muller will meet his new companion on Wednesday. For me, it is hard to believe that Elder Muller will be getting a new trainer only half way through his 12 weeks of training in the field! The first 12 weeks in the mission field are considered your training period...learning the ropes of the actual mission field. But this type of transfer appears to be a normal occurrence in his mission. This means Bryan will have to be showing his new trainer the area and bringing him up to speed on what is going on in his area. That will be a big responsibility for Bryan.

He also speaks about some of the Sister missionaries that came into the mission field with him six weeks ago...some of them are already going to be training new missionaries arriving in the land this week!! That is crazy!!! But the Lord has a plan for all that He does, and these young men and women are up to the task....Who the Lord calls, He Qualifies.

In missionary speak, your trainer is called your "Dad" for Elders, and your "Mom" for Sisters. That is why Elder Muller is referring to his new companion as his "Step-Dad"! So many fun terms used by missionaries! Elder Muller is still technically a "Greenie" since he is so new in the mission field!

Here is Elder Muller......

So... my first transfer is done! Hard to believe! It's going to be a fun week.

Today we are giving a tour of Brugge to a bunch of other missionaries, daarom (therefore) we are emailing so early... sorry. We might split it in half.

So Elder Childs is getting transfered! I'm getting a new step-dad, Elder Hunt. Elder Childs is just too awesome, so he's been assigned as a district leader up in Groningen, the complete opposite side of the mission. They call it the Groningen jump haha.

Brings joy to a mother's heart! Fun at a bus stop!

More bus stop fun!

Elders Childs and Muller waiting for a bus!

There are a bunch of new missionaries coming in as well, and a ton of Zusters (Sisters) going home. Because of that, at least one of the Zusters in my group is training. Zuster Mashburn. It's crazy!

Anyhow, more on Zone Conference from last week. Here are some of my notes:

He (Elder Moreirra) talked about a bunch of things, but here are some quotes to help you get an idea:

Have the courage to follow the promptings of the Spirit.

Decide today to serve the Lord the best you can.

Make the gospel personal. Personal for you, and your investigators.

Nothing belongs to you. When you go home, go to the Temple, and while in the Celestial Room, pray and offer up your mission as an offering to the Lord. You should be living your mission in a way that you can be satisfied with what you are offering.

The Church needs more Peters.

Have boldness enough to do something different.

We preach the gospel to bring comfort to uncomfortable people, and make comfortable people feel uncomfortable. -Elder Holland.

Yes, it was a good Conference.

So this week wasn't anything too special. Elder Childs wasn't feeling well for most of the week, so that was tough.

On Zaterdag (Saturday) it was gorgeous! It was perfect weather, and there were SO MANY TOURISTS! It was insane! Good weather, Sinterklaas day, and the first 'shopping day' of the Christmas season makes for a busy day in Brugge. We actually got stuck for about five minutes in a spot because there were so many people.

Christmas time in Brugge, Belgium

Well, I don't have much more time, but yeah, stay strong and remember who you are. I'm excited for this next transfer, it's going to be great! I'll be able to Skype with you all, so be ready for that!

Tot Volgende Keer!

(Until Next Time)

Elder Muller

(Here is some additional news Elder Muller shared in another email later on Monday.)

I can't remember if I told the story or not, but we went to the Carrefour (grocery store) last week, and right outside we saw a lady walking. I
decided I wanted to contact her, so I did. Something like, 'Pardon Mevrouw, even vraagje, waar vind u geluk in u leven?' (Pardon me, Ma'am, I have a question I would like to ask, "Where do you find happiness in your life?" She responded and talked about her family, and how they make her happy. We were able to testify about how our families make us happy, and how the Gospel of Jesus Christ helps people find happiness in their families.
She was super positive and gave us her address so that we can give her
a Book of Mormon. Hopefully she becomes an onderzoeker (someone who will let the missionaries teach them about the Restored Gospel).

(I am so happy I still can understand enough Flemish to be able to translate Elder Muller's few smatterings of Flemish!! Tender Mercy from Heavenly Father!)

We also got two referrals (someone interested in learning more about the Restored Gospel.) this week. One of them is for a guy who was
living in Brussels but moved to Brugge. He was being taught by the missionaries in Brussels. Apparently he wants to get baptized. That would be
super cool. This area really needs another baptism. The Branch needs
it. They haven't had a new member in a long time. Our Branch

President is super cool though. He'll go knocking doors by himself
every weekend and give us any people he finds.

A lot of Sisters are going home (completing their mission) this transfer, so three Sisters from our group are training. Sisters Mashburn and Maughaun from my
district, and Sister Johansson from the other one. I know Sisters Mashburn and
Maughaun will do great. I saw Sisters Mashburn and Hansen today which was
cool. Sister Mashburn is in Lokeren and Sister Hansen is being transferred up to Dodrecht. A bunch if missionaries came down for P-Day today, and we gave them a tour of the city.

I'm excited for this next transfer. Christmas is going to be awesome. If you haven't already, I invite you to #ShareTheGift. http://www.mormon.org/christmas Elder Hunt (Elder Muller's soon to be new trainer) seems cool, I've heard good things about him. Don't worry about me, I'm doing just fine. In fact I'm having the time of my life. I wouldn't trade this for anything.

Talk to you soon!

Elder Muller