Mannheim STINKS

November 9th, 2015

On Wednesday of last week, my old Ward Mission Leader from Saarbrücken called me up and asked how the air smelled over here. Apparently, Mannheim is known for its unpleasant smell. It either smells like sour beer or burnt chocolate depending on what part of town you are in. It is the strangest thing. Every time this last week when I caught a whiff of the smell and gagged, Sister Roderer would laugh and say, "Herzlich Willkommen zu Mannheim!" (Welcome to Mannheim). Fortunately, I got over the smell and we had a killer week!

To start it off, last P-day I got my scissors out again and cut off Sister Roderer's hair. She was feeling adventurous and I was able to participate in cutting off a solid foot before the Hairstylist made it look good. (Pictures below). Fun fact about German culture: I love how blunt Germans are. For those who are Color Code fans, Germany is a perfect example of the Red color. They are INCREDIBLY honest, which is sometimes a stark contrast to the American culture of telling people what they want to hear. All of the German members and investigators who know Sister Roderer told her straight up what they thought of her hair. She got the "no! Why did you cut away your long hair! What were you thinking?!" To "that looks so great on you, it fits your face" etc. etc. I think it looks great but I would never be brave enough to cut away my hair like that. In fact, I haven't had a haircut in well over ten months. 

Anyway, side tangents... This week we worked! We are slowly getting the ball rolling again in Mannheim. (That English idiom does not work translated into German...tried it this week, got an awkward stare from an old man. Language is fun, isn't it?) 

As usual, there is no way I can possibly summarize a week of events, appointments, etc. etc. in a General Email. So here are two highlights:

Sandra...oh my goodness. Have you ever had those moments where you feel so humbled that you want to cry? This was one of those moments. X10. We came into this lesson having zero time to prepare, because we were flooded with appointments beforehand. So we definitely had a rocky, and kind of awkward start to the lesson. Fortunately, God prepares a way to smooth out our rough edges and work through our mistakes. This was quite possibly the most spiritual lesson I have ever been apart of!

Sandra became a new investigator this week, but her investigation of the Church rooted from her boyfriend who is a strong member. She had attended Church several times with him already and has read about 75 pages into the Book of Mormon. She grew up very religious in another Church but said that she never felt a strong relationship or connection to God. It wasn't until she started reading in the Book of Mormon and attending Church that something triggered inside of her. 

At one point during the lesson, I began emphasizing the importance of asking God if any of this is true. It makes no sense for anyone to listen to us as Missionaries - to take our word for Truth. We should always go to the source of truth - namely, our Heavenly Father. As we talked about this principle, Sandra looked at us and with the sweetest reply said, "When I read from the Book of Mormon, it rings true to me. I feel it and I don't doubt that it isn't true. I can definitely still pray about it if you want me to, but I already know the answer." As she said this, she started to cry. And then her boyfriend started to cry as he put his arm around her supporting her. She wants to make a step of faith and be baptized, but she feels an overwhelming loyalty to her family and the generations of activity in their Church. She worries about their rejection of her faith and she knows she has to prepare them for it. 

I believe that both Sandra and her boyfriend started crying because the Spirit testified to them right then and there how serious this was. Sandra is preparing to change her entire life. These kind of changes are a lot bigger than any one person - they affect families. I am a witness of that as I was baptized into a faith not shared by my family. I feel privileged to be able to continue meeting with Sandra and helping her prepare for these life changes that bring the ultimate happiness in life. And I am excited for the day when this young couple get married - because they are basically the most adorable people I have ever met. You could feel the love that they had for each other in that room. It was incredible.  

Man, Now I have no time for the other big highlight of the week! Doreen. We found a new investigator and had a miracle lesson with her. Ended up setting a baptismal date for the 19th of December with her, but because she lives in Worms, we will be having a hand-over lesson with the Elders there who will then continue teaching her. Super excited for Doreen! 

I am loving my time in Mannheim. And I am especially grateful for Sister Roderer. She is the best companion I could have ever asked for. I feel limitless working with her because we both have the same desires to work hard and exercise the faith to find the people prepared to accept the Gospel. In the last week, Mannheim has seen more success than it has in the last year. It is incredible what God has been able to do. 

I have you all love! :) 

Sister Kristyn Helmick

Funny moment of the week: Right after we stopped a man on the Street who immediately and impolitely rejected us, we walked past a thick piece of German chocolate on the cement. It was unwrapped. Sister Roderer turned to me and cried out in sadness. I then said, "Sister Roderer, it is pretty pathetic that both of us are probably more upset about that piece of chocolate going to waste than that man who just rejected us." ...her silence then followed by laughter confirmed the irony! 

That happened this morning. Had to thaw out our tiny refrigerator.

Cutting Sister Roderer's Hair.

A member we visit is a crazy origami artist. So cool!

Missionaries in Mannheim.

Some sceneries here. :)

Bringing Sonnenschein Into Mannheim

November 2nd, 2015

My entrance into Mannheim has been one of the more unexpected experiences that I have had so far. At the Bahnhof (train station) in Frankfurt where all of the Missionaries meet for transfers, I learned that two new Elders were also entering Mannheim. Brand new. That normally doesn't happen.

Sister Roderer also met us and later that evening we went out for Thai food and had an extensive correlation meeting regarding the Missionary Work in Mannheim. Due to many personal circumstances with previous Missionaries, this area has been dead in a lot of ways as far as progress in the work. We currently have no progressing investigators, with a lot of work laid out in front of us.

On Saturday morning we met with our Bishop and Ward Mission Leader. They had a really serious meeting with us all as we discussed how we can move this work forward. The Spirit was so strong during this meeting. They need us to work harder than we have ever worked before and to earn the trust of the members again. In a lot of ways, I feel like I am opening an area. Starting completely from ground zero. And I have never felt more motivated my entire mission! 

I LOVE Sister Roderer. We challenge each other to be better in every phase of the work. I have never felt more "fitted" to a companion! We have been going, going, going the last few days together and we have plans to simply not stop. This area needs a lot of work, and we are ready to do it. 

Sister Roderer is 24, (her birthday is next week! A week before mine!) she is an AMAZING musician, and she is half Swiss so she grew up speaking German. Her accent is so cool! She plays the flute and has a Bachelor and Masters in Flute Performance (she was homeschooled and started college early). She is so much fun, so personable, and we connect so well. Ahh, I just love her. :) 

I am so grateful that we work so well together because I have already seen some of the miracles from it. Here are two successes from the week: 

1. After brainstorming with the Elders, we came up with the finding idea of carrying around big whiteboards with the question "Sind Sie heute Glücklich?" (Are you happy today?) around the university campus. Underneath the question, we had a section for people on the street to check "Ja", "Jein", and "Nein". (Yes, yes-no, No). It was a major success and it was so much fun! For about 3 hours we went throughout the campus and neighboring streets asking people about what makes them happy and sharing the message of the Gospel that we want to share with everyone. It was so cool to see people on buses, bikes and in cars waving and honking their horns with big thumbs up - indicating that they were happy that day. It was a huge success as we found a lot of people who genuinely wanted to learn more about the message we are sharing. And it was simply exciting to go throughout the streets holding that big sign with smiles on our faces. :) 

2. It was approximately 9pm on Friday night. Sister Roderer and I had literally spent an entire day of finding. Literally a whole 9 hours. And it was awesome! But we were both so exhausted. I have never worked so hard in my life. We decided to head back home and on the way, we decided to stop one last person on the street. Best decision ever.

The man we stopped is named Raphael and he has a very strong belief in Jesus Christ. He was so engaged in our conversation and was so surprised to see how happy we were. He made the comment that he knows we are called of God because there is something different about us. You look up on the streets and see frowns, disconnected people, and generally a lack of enthusiasm. But he told us that when we approached him at night, we looked so genuinely happy that it ignited a curiosity in him to hear what we had to say! 

After we had talked to him for about 5 minutes or so, a friend of Raphael's walked passed us and waved. Raphael then yelled at him and said, "Henry! Die sind Christ!" And then Henry rushed over to join our conversation. 

There have been moments on my mission where I have literally felt an unbelievable power fill me as I testify. This experience with Raphael and Henry was one of those. Sister Roderer and I testified of the divinity of Jesus Christ and the role he played. His organization of His Church and the eventual lost of priesthood power to lead and guide it. God's hand and pattern all throughout time of calling prophets - including in our day. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. As we came to teach about the Book of Mormon and how it acts as a second witness of Jesus Christ, just as the Bible does, an excitement came over us all.

Henry looked at me and said, "you don't understand. I have been looking for answers for so long. And I am never in town at this time. I have another commitment on Friday nights but the last two weeks I have felt that I needed to not go. And then I met you both!" As he was talking, I had the impression to ask him what his first language was. Even though they had great German, I could tell it wasn't their first language.

After he answered saying "Französisch," I literally jumped up and down in excitement as I opened up my purse and pulled out the French copy of the Book of Mormon I felt impressed to bring with me that morning. Man! The look on Henry's face was priceless!

We had such a cool experience with them, that Sister Roderer and I took a selfie with them on the Street. (Attached below) They should be coming to Church this Sunday! 

Lieber Familie und Freunde, I feel so incredibly happy right now! I know how limited my time is as a Missionary. This is the only time in my life where I will be able to stop people on the Street and talk about the teachings of Jesus Christ and the happiness they bring when we follow. Okay, I guess I could do that not as a Missionary...but the name-tag helps. Haha. 

Ich habe euch ganz Lieb! Remember to choose to be happy this week and wear your smiles for others to see. 

Sister Kristyn Helmick

P.S. Funny story of the week: during our finding activity, Sister Roderer and I stopped a man on the street who was tall, and wore glasses. Sister Roderer may or may not have a thing for men in glasses. After asking this guy if he was happy that day, he asked why we were doing this fun activity. We talked about how we are missionaries for the Church and then Sister Roderer talked about what we do as Missionaries. She said that we give up a lot to do this work, including being with family and friends and with completely avoiding his eyes she said, "wir haben keine Betziehungen mit Männer." (We have no relationships with men). He blushed and then giggled. When we walked away I couldn't contain myself and started laughing - all the while Sister Roderer was sooo embarrassed! 

Sonnenschein in German means Sunshine in English. :)

Day 1 in Mannheim. 3 new missionaries.

Our white boarding contact pic.

Raphael and Henry selfie on Friday night.

Leaving Herne pictures. I am really going to miss these people. I guess this makes up for me never sending pictures home from Herne.

 

We Aren't Made For Goodbyes

October 26th, 2015

I mentioned in my last email that this last transfer has been very
challenging for me. This week I finally got an answer to my many
prayers. Part of it came from my mission president, and most recently
was yesterday as I was taking the Sacrament.

I emailed President Stoddard about a few of my concerns last week and
on Tuesday I read his response. Something he said to me particularly
stuck out and I want to share it with you all: "Because I come from a
medical background, I am going to be straight forward with you. Ups
and downs are good. You don't want a flat line."

I thought a lot about that this last week. Trials are meant to shape
and refine us, especially when we don't understand them. They teach us
to rely on Him. So that's what I did. I kept praying and did what was
in my power to make the best out of my situation and work through
questions. And things started to get better. We were working really
hard and saw some great successes throughout the week. I am my
happiest when I am simply working and not holding anything back. That
led me to some pondering during my personal studies throughout the
week.

The oxymorons of my Mission are becoming more and more apparent to me.
I have been becoming increasingly aware of myself - my strengths,
weaknesses, accomplishments and sins. But at the same time, I feel
like God has been trying to drill a few principles into my head for a
while now. 1. This Mission experience is not about me: Get over
yourself, stop complaining, stop comparing yourself to others, stop
being a martyr, stop seeking for your own glory and honor. And 2.
Trust fully in me, I love you and I know what I am doing.

I can't really describe how I felt yesterday as I took a few quiet
moments to pray during the Sacrament. I felt an overwhelming amount of
love from my Heavenly Father as well as a strong feeling that I need
to repent. I know that he asks us to repent because he loves us and he
sees our uttermost potential.

Today is day 1 of my seventh transfer in Germany. Last Saturday
morning we had our Transfer Calls and everyone was shocked to find out
that I am being transferred. Normally Missionaries stay in an area for
longer. On Thursday I will be heading back down to the southern part
of the mission - I will be serving in Mannheim with Sister Roderer!
She is also from my same MTC group, and she happened to be companions
with my current companion, Sister Carroll. The mission world continues
to get smaller and smaller!

While I am very excited to start a new adventure in Mannheim, I am
also sad to be leaving again. There is comfort in staying in an area
because you are able to develop such deep relationships. I strongly
dislike saying goodbye.

As I was studying this morning about goodbyes, I read one of my
favorite talks. It has helped me so many times on my Mission so far
and it continues to carry me through when I am struggling.

"In light of what we know about our eternal destiny, is it any wonder
that whenever we face the bitter endings of life, they seem
unacceptable to us? There seems to be something inside of us that
resists endings.

Why is this? Because we are made of the stuff of eternity. We are
eternal beings, children of the Almighty God, whose name is Endless
and who promises eternal blessings without number. Endings are not our
destiny.

The more we learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ, the more we
realize that endings here in mortality are not endings at all. They
are merely interruptions--temporary pauses that one day will seem
small compared to the eternal joy awaiting the faithful." (Grateful in
Any Circumstances - President Uchtdorf).

Goodbyes are so hard because they go against our very core of who we
are. We aren't made for goodbyes. I was explaining this to Adela - who
I am probably most close to in Herne. She broke down when I told her I
was leaving and all I could do was think about what President Uchtdorf
said. And quite frankly, it is a privilege to be able to love someone
so much that it hurts to say goodbye.

Thank you for all who have been keeping me in their thoughts and
prayers. I love you more than I can express.
Sister Helmick

Sister Doering's Birthday Party Pictures.

My Young Women and I. :)

Clevis on his baptism day on Saturday.

Journal Entry: Donnerstag 15 Oktober 2015

October 19th, 2015

 

 

Each week I log on to do my emails and I stare at this blank screen not really knowing where to start and how to describe my experiences. Plus we are running way late on our email time because we just got back from Gelsenkirchen with the District - we played the best game of capture the flag in my life! And Man, this week was simply one of those weeks where we were SO busy and we saw so many miracles that I don't know how to begin...so instead I am going to copy and paste an entry from my journal this week. I think Thursday was one of the best days so here we go:

BEST DAY EVER. But it didn't start out that way. This morning we had our usual studies + lunch (attempted to make a homemade pizza and it turned into a casserole... Note to self: don't put hot homemade pizza sauce on raw dough before you put it in the oven). After lunch we traveled to the Bochum Rathaus and scheduled two Street Displays for the next two weeks in a row. Man, it was intense finding that place - Sister Carroll had never before organized a Street Display so it was mostly on me to figure it out. Anyway, super excited to have those coming up...

Afterwards, we went by a member who wasn't home and we did about a half an hour of doors but no one was interested. So ist das Leben manchmal. From there we went to our volunteering at Lebens Hilfe - but for some reason it was closed! So, as we were walking back to the U-Bahn (underground station) I decided to call Jaina. She is a 12 year old girl who speaks good English and German but her family only speaks Arabic. We had met with them several times before but had lost contact for a few weeks. Jaina is our source of communication as she translates the lessons for us. 

Anyway, as I called her she sounded very sad. She started speaking in Arabic to her Mom and then switched back to Danglisch while talking with me. (danglisch is my favorite language). She explained that her parents do not want us coming over anymore, as the father is a pastor in his Church. Immediately Jaina began to apologize and she told me how much she loved it when we came over and the good feelings she felt. She said that she has been reading in the Book of Mormon and wishes so badly that her parents would let us continue meeting because she wants to learn more. It broke my heart to hear her say that. She may only be twelve, but she has lived through a lot coming from Iraq. She is so beyond her years. On the phone all I could do was encourage her and bear her my testimony of the truthfulness of the Gospel. I gave her contact information at Mormon.org to learn more and contact Missionaries when she is older. I also gave her my email address and asked her to stay in touch. I hope and pray that Jaina doesn't forget the Spirit that she felt as we met with them. 

So, at this point both Sister Carroll and I were both pretty sad. We decided to go to the apartment and make some dinner before our appointment with Adela. Our "making dinner" consisted of me listening to a Church Podcast while drinking water and falling asleep on our couch. Don't worry though, only a half hour nap. 

Then we headed out to meet Adela and her sister Xena. They finally got keys to their new apartment and we were able to travel with them to it. When we got there, Adela explained that she was planning on spending the rest of the night cleaning it on her own before they moved the furniture in the next day. Heck no - we didn't let her do that alone! Sister Carroll and I rolled up our sleeves and got to work. About an hour and a half later we were finished. At this point it was 19:45. We still had an hour and 15 minutes before 21:00 when we were supposed to be home. For some reason though, Sister Carroll and I both felt stress free about it. We both just knew that the Lord would give us something to do - and He sure did! 

We ended up deciding to contact a Turkish potential who wanted a Book of Mormon in Turkish. We walked over to his Döner Laden and had a very unexpected twist to our evening. (Side tangent: Döners are the best thing ever created. Turkish dish but very popular in Germany. Cooked fresh bread, seasoned blazed chicken, fresh veggies and sauces. I have probably had a Döner once a week since being in Germany. Addicted.) 

Anyway, zurück to topic. As we walked into the Laden, a family of three were sitting down waiting for their order to be finished. The husband started obviously starring at our name tags so we asked him if he had ever heard of the Church before. He shook his head no and asked what kind of Church we belonged to. After explaining that we are a Christian Church, we shared with him the Book of Mormon. He then began flipping through the pages and asking question after question. His wife knew a little English, so she asked us questions in English and asked a lot about America.

After playing this question game back and forth for a little while, Sister Carroll and I had to divide and conquer. She started talking to the Döner Laden guy, while I talked to the family of three. Before I could suggest making out an appointment to answer more of their questions, they invited us to get some drinks at the Italian place directly across from us. So we finished talking with the Döner Laden guy (and made a return appointment for this week!) and walked over.

We had a great appointment with them - and Sister Carroll and I were bold! We had to be - this family is so energetic and so full of questions. It was a little chaotic. But before we knew it we had to get going and they invited us over to their home to continue discussing. We asked if we could say the closing prayer together and at this point, we were all bowing our heads about to pray when the Italian restaurant owner yelled out, "Hallo! Was macht ihr?" We explained that we were praying and then he ran over to join us! Before we could pray he gave us a ten minute speech about how much he loves God and finally let us pray. He also wants us to come by and meet with him to explain what we do.

Sister Carroll gave the sweetest and shortest prayer I have ever heard. And then we booked it to the bus!! And alas, we missed it by a solid two minutes. But it was sooo worth it. 

---- 

I think this gives you a good insight into the ups and downs of this experience. The hardest thing for me has been to see people so close to the Gospel and then reject it or choosing to not give something up to live it. And then the greatest joys have come in seeing the light that fills their eyes when they recognize truth. 

I am not going to lie, this last transfer has been one of the hardest emotional and mental transfers for me. I have questions and concerns that I am trying to work through, and at times I feel incredibly inadequate. But I know that Heavenly Father has a plan for me and I know that I am supposed to be here. Prayer has taken so much more of a role in my life and what keeps me going is the unexplainable feeling of comfort...almost like someone lifting me up, every time I need it and every time I think I can't do this. I know that He is there for us and I know that He loves us. 

I love all of you and I pray for you daily.

Sister Kristyn Helmick

Today after our capture the flag game.

Last P-Day: Hiking.

My companion knows me well.

We decided Christmas needed to start early. #ChristmasLights

Midlife Crisis

October 12th, 2015

Lieber Family and Friends,

Wow. Simply wow. This week may have been the most up and down week I
have ever had. There were tears, there were awkward moments and funny
stories, there was excitement and happiness - and there was simply
joy. Folks, it's official. I am at my halfway point in my Mission.
Kind of facing a midlife crisis right now. But I am loving every
second of being here, even the ones that face challenges.

I don't really know where to start...I think maybe with the hard
things. I have learned that it is so, so so very important to build
strong relationships with your Companions. Sister Carroll and I had a
talk that we both really needed. It was a huge building moment in our
relationship - and it has impacted our work for the better. Before
that talk, I was feeling incredible alone in my thoughts and feelings.
It brought me to my knees in tears. The very next day my prayer was
answered and my faith was strengthened.

Can I just take a moment and say how weird a Mission is? You send out
your papers requesting to "enlist" (My father's word for my Mormon
Bootcamp) in the service of the Lord - and you go out to a random
country (or your own) not having chosen where. Speaking a language you
may never have anticipated learning (cough*cough* Deutsch), and on top
of all of that you are paired with a RANDOM STRANGER that you have
most likely never before met and are expected to work and live
together 24/7. Those are just a few of the crazy building blocks of a
Mission.

As crazy as it sounds, it works. Because the Lord is in charge. I
testify that if this work was not true, it would not work. In the
Bible, the Lords people are sometimes referred to as a "Peculiar
people" and that we are! Haha.

A few highlights of the week:
We found a new family to teach! They are from Syria but all of the
children were born in Germany, therefore their German is perfect. We
are teaching a divorced father with his four daughters - ages 13, two
15 year olds, and a 19 year old. Oh, and their little dog Casie. Who
barks at the most inconvenient times during our lessons, haha.

We also had a really great lesson with one of our investigators,
Adela. We taught her the Plan of Salvation (which is a game changer
for people) and the Spirit filled the Chapel. I love teaching lessons
at the Church. Adela is such a wonderful woman. I feel such a close
connection to her and I want the best for her.

Also, speaking German is so strange. There are moments where you feel
like you are just coasting and not making any noticeable progress in
the language. It is so hard to measure. I remember hitting a big
moment where everything clicked. It was like a switch in my brain was
turned on and I could suddenly understand and communicate at a higher
comprehension. Well, this last week I felt like it went up a notch. I
can't really explain it. I love German! I still have a lot of work to
do in my language abilities. But the progression is so wonderful to
see and notice. My Mission President complimented me specifically on
the growth that I have made in the language during my interview with
him on Thursday. It felt really good. :)

Family and friends, focus on the good things. There is so much good to
be seen, noticed and appreciated. If you go looking for the bad I can
promise you that you will find it. But this life is not meant to be
miserable. It is meant to be refining. I know that Heavenly Father's
goal is that we "might have joy" and one day return to live with him
again. Trust in God, for -"Behold, all things have been done in the
wisdom of him who knoweth all things." (2 Nephi 2:24). I am grateful
that our Father - the God of the entire universe, is a lot wiser than
any of us. Aren't you?

Love,
Sister Kristyn Helmick

Sister Carroll and I. :)

She likes to take pictures without me knowing. Exhibit A (sleeping on a streetcar after our third appointment that day- Plus Church. Ya I was tired._

That was a hard day, simply said.

Two Experiences

October 5th, 2015

Lieber everyone,

Here are two experiences from this week:

Journal, Mittwoch 30 Sept:
"We were traveling to visit Alena this evening when I ended up
misreading the directions on our DeutscheBahn traveling app. We ended
up getting off at five stops too late and had to retrace our steps
backward in order to find the bus stop that went the other direction.
It took us half an hour of walking to find the next bus stop. As we
looked at the times, it showed that the Bus was to arrive every hour
at the :36. It was the :42 at this point. Sister Carroll and I figured
that we missed it, so we decided to walk to the next bus stop and move
forward. So we walked down the big hill, tired and dehydrated. And
GUESS WHAT. The bus turns the corner and starts to make its way back
to yesterday stop! It was late! I turned and looked at Sister Carroll,
picked up my purse to my chest, and sprinted up that hill.

You know those sprints that leave your chest aching and your throat
ridiculously sore? I have NEVER ran that fast. And up a hill too! I
made it right up to the corner, literally two seconds away from the
bus and I frantically yelled "WARTE! Bitte, WARTE!" Only to see my
efforts wasted as the bus took off right in front of my face. As you
can image, I was pretty frustrated. At that point, we had to cancel
our appointment with Alena and make our way back to Herne.
I had a pretty negative attitude with that experience. But I am
grateful for my companion, Sister Carroll. She is so fun, positive and
happy. She is such a great example of those traits. They are all
traits I need to work on. We choose to be happy and be grateful in
whatever circumstances we may be in. Even after we run up a steep hill
at the end of a long day and miss the Bus. What a silly little
experience, why waste the energy to frown and be upset, when I could
laugh and enjoy the moment? I can promise you, I ended up laughing
with Sister Carroll tonight!"

Experience #2:
I got home from my split in Duisburg on Tuesday night, to hear some
exciting news from Sister Carroll. Apparently she made out a few
appointments with some potentials. One of which, was a man we had
never met before who randomly called us up and requested that we meet
him at the church for an appointment.

On Friday, we walked up to the church to see a middle-aged man in his
car. Once he saw us, he came out and we shook his hand and introduced
ourselves. His names is Jurgens and he grew up in this area. We
welcomed him into the Church and gave him a Church tour. There were
already some members at the Church for our German class and they were
all very friendly and nice to him.

As we were getting to know him, he told us that he had observed us on
the bus and the street and had seen our name-tags. He ended up
researching the Church and had started reading the Book of Mormon
online from Lds.org! Wow! That does not happen everyday. He grew up
very religious and active in His Church, but has noticed things that
he does not approve of in his Church. He has been searching to see if
a Church exists that is modeled like Christ's Church in the Bible.
Wow! He is searching!

We met with him and taught him about the message of the Restoration of
the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Chapel. I have never had a more
powerful lesson than what We had with Jurgens. I felt the Spirit
working through us as we testified of the reality of God. How he is
the same yesterday, today and forever. How he continues to speak to us
just as in times of old through his chosen prophets and how Christ's
Church has been restored again.

As we came to a close of our lesson, I asked Jurgens if he came to
know if all of this was true, if he would be baptized. He paused for a
long moment and then looked me in the eyes and said, "I can't answer
that question just yet. But what I can say is that I am incredibly
impressed with you both, this Church and all that I have seen and read
of it. This is a deep faith." We committed Jurgens to watch General
Conference and to pray to know the truth. We will be meeting with him
weekly!

What I love about the German people is just how loyal, dedicated and
sincere they are. When they make a huge decision like joining a Church
- they are serious about it. If Jurgens one day joins the Church - and
I feel so strongly that he will, he will never leave it. Once a German
has become your friend, they never forget you and they never stop
loving you.

I am grateful to be serving in this wonderful country with some of the
strongest people I have ever met.

Love,
Sister Kristyn Helmick

Late Night Pajamas and Rejecting Marriage Proposals

September 28th, 2015

Too many good things happened this week, so I am just going to jump into it. :)

On Monday evening last week, we ended up taking it a little easy
because the Mission Nurse wanted me to rest until Tuesday. But, as we
were getting into our pjs and settling down, the Elders called us.
They ended up running into a woman from Africa who just moved to
Germany and had lost contact with the Church for a few months. The
Elders wanted to give her a Church tour and to introduce her to us.
Sooo, Sister Carroll and I went on a little Abend Sport adventure -
still in our pjs. We met with Tafadzwa at the Church and I instantly
loved her! She is so sweet and fun. We met with her for Stake
Conference this weekend and I ended up translating all of the meetings
for her.

On Tuesday we met with a less-active member. We had a really, really,
REALLY good appointment with her. She has been inactive for quite some
time and had met with Missionaries on and off over the years. We
finally got to the root of her concerns and were able to address them
and make goals together. We are arranging a ride for her to come to
Church in a couple weeks - which will be the first time she has
attended in...I don't know how long. I really have a love for
less-active member work. I know that God cares for all of his Children
and he wants those who have lost their way to find it again.

Later in the week we met with one of investigators, Loridane. She is
12 years old and her parents and one of her sisters are currently in
Romania. They are coming back this next week and the mother and Father
are working on getting married so that they can be baptized and sealed
in the Temple together one day. One of the daughters has heard all
about the Church but has not ever met with Missionaries. So once they
come back, we will start meeting with them again and teaching them all
of the lessons so that they can prepare for Baptism. So exciting!

Awkward story moment of the week: (I should start putting these in my
general emails) Sister Carroll and I are becoming master finders! I
love that she is actively involved in finding. We have been splitting
up on buses, trains and streetcars so that we can talk to twice as
many people. On Friday night, Sister Carroll and I decided to spend a
half an hour on the füß... Sorry, don't know that word in
English...like the mall streets I guess? Anyway, We separated enough
so that we could talk to more people but still see each other. Sort of
like at Street Displays. I like to contact in a variety of ways to
keep things from getting too repetitive, so I chose to do a Survey
that night. I was asking people on the street what sort of faith they
have, how it has influenced them in their lives, and if they believed
in a life after death.

I approached a group of three men, they were all probably a little
older then me. After they agreed to take the Survey, another man
joined their group. And then another man.and another three. And
another one. Before I knew it, I found myself surrounded by nine men.
Sister Carroll was talking to a woman right next to us. For a split
second, I saw her see me in my situation. Later she told me, "yeah I
saw you. But I figured you could handle it!" Haha.

Sooo, I awkwardly went through the Survey went them and long story
short, left with a few marriage proposals and probably some
inappropriate German jokes that I didn't understand. (They don't teach
me that kind of German in my study books!) thank goodness.

But, that night did end successfully. Sister Carroll and I ended up
finding a few new potential investigators and we ended up laughing
about our crazy experiences together.

I can't imagine not having decided to serve a Mission. The people that
I have met and the friendships that I have made are priceless to me.
It really is the best decision anyone can make. I know that I give a
lot as a Missionary, but I feel like Heavenly Father needed ME to meet
these people. Maybe that is a selfish mentality... It is hard to
express my feelings about this. All I can say is that being here has
taught me more and more about what kind of woman I want to be more
than anything else. I am loving and cherishing each day.

Ich habe euch Lieb!!
Sister Helmick

P.S. I promise to send some pictures next week! My computer is having some problems right now.

My Week Inside the Apartment

September 21st, 2015

Dear family and friends,

It has been quite the week...inside my apartment. Oh my goodness,
remember my email last week where I mentioned that I was sick for a
day or so? Well, turns out I never got better. I only got worse. On
Monday evening I had some of the worst sinus and head pain that I have
ever had. Sister Taylor stayed up with me until about midnight as I
stood over a pot of boiling water and drank hot fruit tea. The
pressure in my head was horrible.

After talking to the nurse, she had me meet with a doctor who informed
me that I have yet another severe sinus infection. She put me on some
strong antibiotics and I stayed inside and rested during the entire
week.

On top of that, Sister Taylor went home! I don't think she expected to
spend her last few days on her mission inside the apartment... But she
was a champ and took great care of me. And now, I am with Sister
Carroll. Who also probably didn't anticipate starting this transfer
out in the apartment with a sleeping and drowsy companion. Haha.

But alas! I have received permission to leave the apartment from the
mission nurse! I am still on my Medicine and am not yet back to my
100%, but I feel significantly better. It has been the longest week of
my mission.

I have learned that time really flies on a Mission because you are
really busy! Haha. It has felt like eternity since I had a Pday,
because I did not do much other than resting this week. But on
Saturday I finally left the apartment and we met with several
investigators which was good.

Sister Carroll and I are doing okay. We already knew each other from
the MTC. She started her mission in Bonn and absolutely loved it
there! In fact, she told me that the Germany Frankfurt Mission was the
mission that she wanted to serve in before she sent her papers
in...and Bonn was the one area she also wanted to serve in - and she
ended up having it as her first area! What a lucky duck! She also
loved her last companion.

I am a little worried that I won't be able to compete with that I
guess. I just hope that I can be a good companion to her and that she
will like Herne.

I hope this entry doesn't sound too depressing. Missions are a
rollercoaster of experiences. I am really learning to trust completely
in God with my needs and concerns. I have felt his love for me as a
Missionary and it keeps me going. I love my Heavenly Father and my
Savior. I know that I can do everything that they have called me to
do, and that gives me a lot of peace.

Have a wonderful week my friends! Hoping to have more exciting news to
write about next week.
Love,
Sister Helmick

Short Update

 

September 14th, 2015

 

Dear family and friends,

Transfer Calls finally came around! I will be seeing Sister Taylor off in two days. We will be having a Sister sleepover party in Dortmund on Wednesday night with two other companionships. Then, early on Thursday morning, Sister Taylor will hop on a bus and make her way out to Frankfurt, and then eventually back to Oregon.

Goodbyes are a part of the mission experience, but I am really grateful for each of my companions that I have had thus far. I have been paired with Sister Carrol! We are from the same MTC group, so we already know each other. She is a very down-to-earth person and is very kind. I remember her leaving notes of encouragement to all of the sisters in the MTC while she was a Sister Training Leader.

My guess is that we will be working together for along time since I have only been in Herne for 1 transfer. So I am excited. :)

I don't have too much to report this week. Sister Taylor was really sick on Tuesday and Wednesday, and then I caught what she had. On Friday we spent the entire day inside. Sister Taylor worked on packing her bags and I was on sleep-duty, according to our Mission Nurse.

I slept for about 24 hours. It was fantastic! Haha. But I am ready to get back to Missionary Work. Still a little under the weather, but manageable.

Leben ist gut. I hit my 8 month mark today - according to Elder Jensen (from my MTC group and in my District) and my lovely Grandmother who counts the days that I have left and emails me each week. :) I am trying to enjoy the time that I still have out here in Germany. Time is a scarce resource, and I am grateful for every day.

Love,

Sister Helmick

 

 

Elder Heiner, Bruder Gollnick and Sister Taylor were teaching me to play the piano this week! My goal is to be able to play a simple hymn as a musical number before I leave Germany!

The Only Thing We Have To Give Him Is Our Hearts

September 7th, 2015

Family and friends,

I love each of you! I feel such an outpour of love and support from you as I log in to email on P-day. Thank you. :)

We had several Street Displays over the last few weeks. At one Street display, I noticed an older man in a wheelchair. He was parked right in front of Netto (a grocery store) which happened to be right next to our little display. He had been sitting there for a few minutes, so I decided to walk over and ask how he was doing.

He looked at me with a grin on his face and said, "I know who you are. You're from Utah!" Haha, I love it when people say that. I smiled and told him that I was from Oregon. His grin went away after he realized he guessed wrong and then he looked sad all of a sudden.

I asked him simply how his day was going. He told me that he was waiting for his wife inside of Netto - she was doing their weeks grocery shopping. As we chatted casually, all of a sudden he took me hand and told me, "You know, I was a Nazi in the War." He then went to tell me how he has experienced and witnessed things that he cannot undo or unsee. This old man was deeply troubled.

As I was listening to him, I had the impression to ask about his joys in life. He immediately looked up at me with his smiling eyes and said, "my wife and music." He told me about how he had quite the singing voice back in the day, but in his old age he lost his talent. I then offered to sing for him. (In the past I never would have offered, but just two weeks earlier, the Elders and Sister Taylor and I gave a musical number at church. My first time singing a solo. I was very nervous at first but I came to learn that singing is another way to bear your witness - to share your testimony through your voice.)

So I quickly called Elder Vogl and Sister Taylor over (they both have voices of angels, I swear) and we sang, "Näher, mein Gott, zu dir." That was such a powerful moment. As we sang to him,  his eyes welling up with emotion and he sobbed through all four verses of that hymn. It is amazing to see how God works through us to reach out to His Children.

---

A Mission is full of personal progression and growth. But more than anything, my mission has taught me more and more about who Jesus Christ is, what my relationship to him is, and how I can craft MY personal character into that of my Savior's.

During my personal study this week, I came across a quote from C.S. Lewis, who paraphrases what the Lord says to us: "Give me all. I don't want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work: I want you. All of you. I have not come to torment
or frustrate the natural man. But to kill it. No half-measures will do. I don't want to prune a branch here and another there; rather I want the whole tree out. Hand it all over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them all over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self in my image. Give me yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will, shall become your will. My heart shall become your heart."
(Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis)

As a Missionary, we have the unique oppurtunity to give everything up to God. To give up television, music, our cell-phones, limiting our communication with our family and friends, giving up our time and post-poning our education and dating. Putting a pause on all of these things for 18 months to 2 years. But it is more than that. God gave me all of those things.

The ONLY thing that I have to give to Him - that WE have to give to him, is our hearts. Our intents for making the choices we make. As our hearts become more in line with Christ and His heart, we are transformed. There is happiness unlike any other that comes as we give Christ our hearts.

Out of everything that we give, Heavenly Father and Christ give us more than we can imagine. I have learned that what I once thought of as a sacrifice (i.e. going on a Mission) turned out only to be a priviledge. Because He has blessed me more than I can ever give him.

Ich habe euch Lieb!

Sister Helmick

 

 

Elder Heiner posed as me! Forgot his namebadge.

Tempel!

District dessert after our rainy street display.

Our sad little street display! Umbrellas protecting our few Book of Mormons.

Post-Service BBQ.

Boxing with Tante Inge!

Teaching old women how to box. :)

Stretching

August 30th, 2015

Family and friends,

Wow. What a...last two weeks. I feel like it has been an eternity -
sorry I missed last weeks general email. I have been struggling with
time management, clearly. Haha.

Today Sister Taylor and I woke up at the crack of dawn and drove to
Friedrichsdorf with a member. We are in the Church doing emails on our
IPads (yay for free wifi) and then we will be attending the Temple.
Best Pday!

Here is an insight into what I been up to in Herne:
Every Monday evenings we have a Family Home Evening that several
members have organized, specifically for those who do not a family at
home. We invite and involve a lot of less-active members and we have
several investigators who attend. It is a highlight of the week.
Typically, we, the Elders or a member shares a spiritual thought, we
eat dinner together and then we have some sort of activity.

On Thursdays, we visit a place called Lebens Hilfe for adults with
physical and mental disabilities. We sit and talk with them and we
also sing songs every two weeks with a fabulous member, Sister Farker.
I really enjoy it! It reminds me of my Buddy Club and Special Olympics
days. It is a little different because it is all in German - it is
harder for me to understand them. But I'll get the hang of it.

Every Friday we take part of a free German class held at the Church.
We just organized it when I came to Herne. We have two Native German
YSAs who teach it - but sometimes Sister Taylor and I also teach it.
We have a lot of invesigators and non-members who attend. There are so
many foreigners here in Herne! I am learning different phrases from
Albanian, Arabic, Turkish, Russian, French and Italian. Oh and some
African language as well.

I speak a lot of German here, but I also speak a lot of English and
use a lot of...google translate, Skype, and pictures. It takes
teaching simply to whole different level. For example, this week we
taught two of our investigators with a lovely language twist:
--Izar is from Pakistan and he speaks Urdo. We teach him using his
Urdo Book of Mormon and in English. But his English is very limited.
So we skype with a member in Wiesbaden who is also from Pakistan. We
talk to this member and then he translates to Izar.
--Adela is from Albania. We had our first teaching appointment with
her on Friday! She has been coming to German class and also Family
Home Evening. She speaks 5 languages - English, Albanian, Italian,
Spanish, and another language as well. She met a member Cecilia at
FHE. Cecilia is from Chile and she speaks German Italian and Spanish.
So they spoke in Italian mostly.

Well, we met with Cecilia and Adela together. We spoke with Adela in
English. We spoke to Cecilia in German. They spoke to each other in
Italian AND Spanish, and Adela read from a Church pamphlet in
Albanian. Does your head hurt yet? Because mine does.
---

Okay, time is once again in short supply. I hope that my thoughts come
across clearly. I am very sleep deprived at the moment. Family and
friends, I love being a Missionary. But I won't lie to you, being out
here is hard. There is so much responsibility that the Lord has
entrusted us with. I am preparing to take over Herne in two weeks and
I am a little overwhelmed by it. About half of our investigators are
Muslim or have never before heard of Jesus Christ.

These last two weeks I taught people His name. I have taught
investigators Christ's story - even the simple Easter and Christmas
events that most all Americans grow up with or have heard of. Teaching
who Jesus Christ is and who God is...it is a very special privilege. I
feel very humbled to be here.

Heavenly Father uses weak instruments to bring about His good. I think
that in itself is a testimony to how much he loves us individually.
When Heavenly Father sent Angels to spread the good news of Christ's
birth in Bethlehem, He sent them to the humble Shepherds, not the rich
men. Our worth to Him is the same. As I thought about that this last
week, I thought about my personal worth and value to God as a
Missionary...specifically about taking over Herne. I read in Jacob 4:7
from the Book of Mormon:

“The Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by
his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that
we have power to do these things.”

That gave me a lot of comfort this week. When people ask me how I am
doing, the answer that seems the most honest and the most fitting is:
"Good, just experiencing some stretching pains." I am simply trying to
give my all to Heavenly Father and this work. And that process
requires a lot of stretching pains as He refines me. But I know that
He is magnifying my abilities and it is incredible to experience.

I love each of you dearly,
Liebe Grüße,
Sister Helmick

Pictures!

August 24th, 2015

Splits with Sister Terry!

My favorite!! And root beer!

My bedroom.

Living and study room.

Zumba party last Monday!

The Elders and I... weird window picture.

Sister Doering is a firecracker. She teaches with Sister Taylor and I sometimes and she is just a bold little Grandma!

Even on rainy days where your wallet is missing, your money is stolen, and your socks are wet, God loves you and blesses you.

August 17th, 2015



Family and Friends,

I am behind on email time today. And it has not been the best day ever - Sister Taylor read me the update she typed up and I asked her to send it to me because I don't know if I am capable of coherently gathering my thoughts and providing an update from this last week. So here is an update from Sister Taylor:

(P.S. Please forgive the English grammar and spelling mistakes. German computers seem to have no ABC check! And I speak in German 9am-9pm each day... German is becoming easier... But I feel awkwardly in the middle between the two langauges when it comes to writing...)

Lieber everyone,

Well to be honest, today is not my favorite pday. This morning we cleaned the appartment, which is really nice but I still haven't moped yet. After studies today we were getting our things together to go grocery shopping when sister helmick realized she didn't have have her wallet, ugh. What a bummer, she realized she had left it on the bus the night before. She was up for groceries this week but I will actually be paying for the both of us for the rest of the month for food.she is about to see how cheap I can be. I won't lie, we saw miracles this morning, we were able to travel to the bus bus head quarters where her wallet had been returned. All of her money was stolen but her id and all of her cards were still there, wonderful. The Internet at the cafe wasn't working for her so we left.she is just not having the best of p days. We were sitting on the porch of the church where it was cold and wet when a member showed up and unlocked the door for us because in all the panick this morning sister helmick took her keys out.... Poor kiddo. I won't lie, it is stressful but everything will be okay. So in the midst of of terrible p day the lord still gave us tremendous blessings.

This week has been full of miracles though. When sister helmick came to the area we made the goal to find everyday which we have done so far.

Later in the week, we were going by an investigator and I forgot her specific address, awkward so we decided to just door in the area. There was a beautiful angel voice we went to first and the. We realized we needed to check the bus too because we had an appointment soon. As we were leaving the area, I told sister helmick that's wanted to door a certain house. I told her I didn't know if it was inspiration but if it was and I didn't do anything that would be what we call, bad. As we were walking there, we saw a man carrying things to his appartment and sister helmick asked if we should help him. We decided he would say no and went to the house. As he came back out of e building I had a golem moment where I argued with myself outloud. I told sister helmick that I thought we should offer but it was his choice to say no, entscheidungs freiheit, you know what I'm saying. Well he didn't want our help, I think Germans think girls in skirts aren't strong and are danty. Well we rang one of the klingels and we were let in, they said they didn't have time but sister helmick offered to help them. We spent the next hour an a half with the family rolling some sort of grape leaf and fleisch thing. We talked to the. About God and we made an appoitnment to come back. It really was a miracle. Sister helmick and I are ready to see a lot of miracles. We love it here, we are ready and the lord is showering us with blessings and we are soaked ( you decide if that last part is figurative, cough cough we are literally soaked, it is raining). 

I hope you all have a great week, I am sorry if I don't get to all of you this week, I am sure you see we have very limited time. I love you and I think you are swell. I also want to tell you that even on rainy days where your wallet is missing, your money is stolen, and your socks are wet, God loves you and blesses you.

Also I had a really awkward exit interview on Sunday with the mission president.... More next week.

Liebe Grüße,

Sister Katie taylor

------

As you can tell, My companion is fabulous. I told her after reading her update to me that she made me sound super grumpy and depressed. She told me, "oh no! I just felt bad for you!" Haha... Don't worry though! Tonight, we are having a Family Home Evening with our Ward. Zumba night! I will dance my bad day away. Til next week!

Love,

Sister Helmick

Sister Taylor found Bigfoot (she is a strong believer that he exists...).

THE FOUND WALLET! Right after we got on a bus after we received my wallet.

Mission Conference Picture. I was asked to act as an investigator of the Church... Someone I know "really well" for role plays. I chose myself! Haha. Great day- I always love getting together with my zone.