Answers to prayers!

Hey guys! Another week done with. After the announcement of iPads the days have been going very very slow! There are even rumors of us getting missionary facebooks, which would be so so cool.  This weekI had some pretty rough days, but I also had a few really good experiences I want to share.

We had gotten an online referral a few weeks ago, but because the guy lived so out there, we couldn’t go most days. Time and time again we tried to make the bus, but it just never showed up where it was supposed to! Finally we just decided we would bike the 10km round trip. I am so glad we did. I got to enjoy the scenery so much. This country is just so beautiful, and taking a good hour to ride through it on my bike was way better than a 15-minute bus ride. I would have missed everything! And it really did me good too. It lowered my stress. I guess the Lord knew I could use a good bike ride to settle down. To make things better though, we showed up to this farm where the referral was supposed to be. Problem is, he wasn’t there. Oh it was his house all right! But, we talked to an old man, and he told us the guy we were looking for would be in jail for the next 6 months! Haha! I have no idea how we got a referral from him, because the guy that answered certainly didn’t want to be bothered. It was a really fun journey, and an even funnier story at the end. 

On Wednesday or Thursday we had a pretty white day, or a missionaries way of saying we have a day with nothing solid planned. We got thrown around doing all sorts of small things that kind of annoyed us. I mean having a plan beforehand is so much better! Anyway, we helped a less active and as we were about to go do a go-by, we got called to do something else at the church right as we were passing. We went and did it, and then afterwards we did our go-by. They were not home, so we sat down to right them a note and drop it in their mailbox. Halfway or so through, they walked up! They were happy and surprised to see us, but we were able to set up a time to come by the next week and make it to the next bus fast enough to catch a ride home in enough time to get one last thing done. The Lords timing is sweet! 

At the conclusion of one day, I was writing in my journal as usual and kept hearing this thudding noise outside. I looked around the corner and could barely see a firework show. For those of you that have been reading since December, you know I missed the Köln new years fireworks because I was trapped in an elevator. Really excited, I grabbed Elder Andrus and went outside to get a better view. Not only was the show now over, but we had also forgotten our keys. We were locked out. My third time on my mission! Haha, you would think I would have learned something by now! With it being about 10, we really started to panic. We forgot our phone inside too, making our chances of getting to sleep in an apartment even slimmer. Normally your leaders will come down and help you out. Having no way to get in contact with anyone, we prayed. We were totally helpless. After a very worried and sincere prayer, Elder Andrus continued looking for a key, and I grabbed a wire to fish through the keyhole since it is pretty big. Twisting and turning having no idea what was happening on the other side, it finally jammed and wouldn’t move any more. Frustrated I tugged the wire, and to my surprise I heard a click from inside. With a little hesitation I pushed open the door and walked back in to see the wire. It had wrapped around in such a way that when I pulled, it pulled the handle down. I knew it was nothing short of a miracle and an answer to our prayers. I later tried to do it again out of fun, and couldn’t get it, which furthered my belief that it was God watching out for us. It was a useful lesson that when we really pray hard for something and then do all we can to make it happen, God will help us reach that goal and do what we can’t. My bed that night felt extra soft compared to the hard cold floor I would have had to sleep on.

Finally we came to Sunday! Church was really good and I won’t lie I got a little trunky for kids. The Bishops little girls made me their jungle gym and started laughing and screaming as I lifted them with one arm. Gosh I miss kids! Later on we met with our friend Erick, and talked about doing his genealogy. After explaining in depth why we do it, he finally understood, and no longer saw it as a chore. He got really excited, and started calling his family in America while we were there. It was awesome to see someone get excited about the things we do.

This week really had its ups and downs, but at the core it was really good, just like every week has the potential to be. I hope you all had a wonderful week and are enjoying the spring weather! Love from Germany,

Kevin