New companion same area

Ich reite einen Elch, that's I love you for eternity in German.

So Elder Ehigiamusoe is being transferred to Schweinfurt, and Elder Leppert who will be district leader will be joining me in Krefeld.

So remember last weeks gummy lassos? I won't say anyone got welts but....this is Elder Pfluemmer:)

We had a street display on Saturday and it was a nice day, sunny all morning, perfect for a street display! then what happens? out of nowhere a hailstorm and freezing winds! so that was fun. 

​ 

Something that came to my mind was how miracles are different in each mission. some places people have visions or are brought back to life or baptize 30 people a week, And because these miricales are very obvious the tendency to only see the big miracles becomes prominent. By doing so however we miss out on the little miracles around us. The work is dead here in krefeld, or at least from an outward perspective, no one listens and any investigators we do get drop us immediately. I think if I was able to stop and look for God's hand though I could find it. It may not be a flash of lightning or rolling thunders, but it may be found in the small whispering of the spirit, or in someone finding a job, or simply a stubborn person's attitude change to be a little more humble.

  Here's a picture taken by a siter missionary, Sister Kaylie Madsen at a transfer meeting

Gaining experience in Krefeld

Krefeld has been a new challenge for Elder Brande. He has been super busy the last few Pdays so this is a combination of his last few letters:

We are going down to sollingen today and need to catch a train pretty soon. I love you so much. Things are going better (as much as they can), the best way to improve a situation is to improve yourself, I've been studying chapt. 6 of Preach My Gospel and taking it to heart.

Our apartment is on the top ( fifth story) so it's a struggle to go home at the end of a long day. This apartment is not much warmer than the last. I think I just need to get used to the cold

 I'm pretty sure the internet is slower in the eastern hemisphere. It takes way more time than I have to download pictures. The work is slow but it's six day until transfer calls so things might get better. I'm almost a year out. At the year mark people burn a shirt, but open flames are illegal in Germany so I'll probably just do nothing. It's  carnival or Kaneval time right now. Kaneval is so crazy! It's so different. Everyone dresses up and not always modestly :P we can still go out but we have to be careful (it'S like Mardi gras but X10) 

Well it's the last week before transfer calls so we'll see what happens. This has easily been the longest/hardest transfer of my mission so far :P but hopefully that means it will be the transfer that changes me the most. I've already learned what kind of leader I don't want to become and what can be inspiring.  So if I ever get to a position of leadership I now know something not to do :) Something I started to do (and something I wish I had done sooner) this week is keeping a study journal. It's something people in the MTC suggested and PMG talks about keeping one, but I blew it off because who wants to write more? So as the past few days I've had this little journal next to me as I study the scriptures and I'll write down impressions that come to me, and It has become already a spiritual treasure to me. I never realized that I would recieve all this inspiration, and then forget it, but know I receive Inspiration and I can look back on it and remember the impressions I've had. I strongly suggest it :)

Last week we went to a Haribo factory in Solingen and of course my district leader and me bought the largest thing we could find. These are a large gummy lasso. Here's me and Elder Melanson

Here's some crazy candy. I just wonder what this is and why?

Here's our group in Solingen

Me dressed up as Capt. America 

Picture of the district 

Left to right: Sister Wood (she was in my district in when I was in Bitburg), Sis Jackson, Elder Nelson (He ripped his pants this day and stapled it shut, thus me pointing to his leg, He's also my ZL), Elder Pfleumer (Pfloy-mare, He's swiss and a real cool guy, he also serves in Krefeld), Me (also super cool), Elder Bennet (the other ZL), and Elder Melanson (my District leader)

Adjusting to a new area

Things are good, I'm just trying to readjust to Germany all over again. Krefeld is a bigger city and I  prefer the country over the city any day.My companions name is Elder Ehigiamusoe, and I'm the junior companion still. (Elder Anderson was his trainer) I love Elder anderson, he was so fun and everyone here in the mission knows him and loves him,he's actually training again. My german is still rough. the hardest part about leaving Bitburg is that it's just different and having to adjust to my new area

As far as What I've learned goes, it's just learning (for me at least) that it's all about the simple things; pray, read the scriptures, and going to church, and doing all of that with real intent. there is a talk on Lds.org 

https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/article/worldwide-devotionals/2015/01/living-with-purpose-the-importance-of-real-intent?cid=HPSU011115617&lang=eng

That explains real intent real well (at least that's what I got out of it)

Love 

Elder Brande

Here is a picture of he and his new companion. His companion was born in Vienna and grew up in London. 

Transfer time

To give his letter a little context, to be funny, I often put in the subject line for his emails something silly. This week I went with a little Cockney Allo Guvna! Also Michael and I have been asked to speak in church in a few weeks and the topic is parenting. I was asking for his advice and feelings about how we could have been better about encouraging testimonies in the home. Here's the latest:

That's a funny title, mostly because my new companion is from London (but he was born in Austria). I can't spell his last name for the life of me so he is called Elder E. I'm also going to a new area called Krefeld (pronounced Cray-failed) so I am way nervous about going to a German area again, (he has been in a military English only area for about 6 months)I totally am lacking in the language! Thankfully though, I am kept humble by hard and trying times. 

I'm still in Bitburg until Thursday. [they speak] Platt Deutsch in Krefeld  [which] is super hard to understand, a few people in Aachen spoke it and it sounds to me  like a completely different language, it sounds like French! 

I'm sure you guys will do fine with your talks, I'm pretty sure no one is a professional parent. My testimony didn't even begin to start growing until after I finished High school. My testimony is strong now and it has only come through reading my scriptures and praying. All of us need to get down on our knees constantly and ask God if his church is true, if Joseph Smith was a prophet, if the Book of Mormon is true, etc... If you don't have a testimony it's easier to want to hang out with the "in" crowd and do "cool" stuff, because you don't know what  Heavenly Father wants for you. Parents can ask their children if they have prayed with a sincere desire, if they read the scriptures.  Also do the things you need to be doing; read your scriptures, pray, go to the temple often and regularly. That's what all faithful saints need to do. The power of example is more forceful than a heavy hand. I'm no parent, That's just how we help others here come closer to Christ. 

Love Elder Brande

Here's a map of the city he is going to. He's been in a rural area for a while and this looks much more urban. It borders the Netherlands and looks like it gets a lot of rain. I checked the weather for next week and it looks like it will rain and snow every  day of the week but one. He'll love that! Not!

Source:Wikipedia 

Catching up

It's been a while since an update. We had a wonderful Christmas phone call with Elder Brande. He is focused on the work and loves the area he is in. He said the members in the area are so helpful and always working so hard to help the missionaries. He says he is very well fed. He is in an American area and focused only on serving the military base in the area. His only sadness is that he isn't able to use much German. He and his companion are only to teach the Americans and other Elders are assigned to Germans in the area. He most misses the sun and being warm. I asked him if he missed home and he said that he didn't want me to feel bad but he was focused on his mission and that was really all he could think about. He said it's almost as if life before his mission was a dream and the future seems unreal. All he can see and focus on is his mission. He says that he and his companion are working very hard and he's never been so tired but it was a good tired. He looked so good and happy it was the best Christmas gift a mom could ask for. Here are some excerpts from recent letters:

01/01

It was really cool to see you all and see how different everyone looks. Elder Cole is still sick, the problem is that in Germany medicine is pretty bad, The really potent pain medication they give out is baby Tylenol. I've managed to stay pretty healthy trotzdem but today I started to get a little cold. Yeah the Leach's are pretty awesome. (The Leach's we're their hosts for Christmas and we're kind enough to let him Skype is from their house - so grateful for their care of our son)

Haha Sugar does not look happy at all. (I sent him a picture of our cat in a Santa hat) That skateboard is huge! (Lucas got a ham board for Christmas and it's basically a big land surfboard) I didn't even realize what it was at first, I thought it was a wake board, That thing is almost as big as Luke! Dad looks almost younger with a beard, ya get what i mean?

So I was reading in 1 John 5 today and I thought it was really good, even though it was a little confusing and took me a couple read-throughs to get it all

I love you mom and I hope you have a great new year

Love 

Elder Brande 

12/22

It's strange to think that Christmas is just around the corner, it feels like not to long ago I was with you guys getting ready for Christmas. so on Thursday  I'll be skyping from the Leach's house (the recent convert) our appointment begins at 1800 (local time) but we'll be going one at a time so we're not sure when we will begin skyping or who's going first so maybe I'll call you guys. What skype name will I be calling?  

I'm glad that you were able to have such a wonderful experience with serving with the Temple lights. I miss being able to see all the christmas lights, They don't do that kind of stuff in germany. Christmas is so foreign here and it just doesn't feel like home. But I guess I'm not home :) 

Here's a picture a brother Calder sent us of Elder Brande & Cole. I am so grateful for all those over in Germany who are feeding and taking care of my son. I don't need to worry because I know that they are watching out for Him.