Mountains to Climb

Okay, so I am really sorry that I wasn't able to send you guys an email yesterday. I wasn't on the ball enough to realize that this week we were going to change our p day to today, because we went to tour the Freia Chocolate Factory. It was really awesome, I bought way too much chocolate, we made our own chocolate, and we learned about the origins of chocolate and how it is made. We had to wear hairnets and lab coats, and I felt exactly like an oompa loompa from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. But it was a lot of fun, probably the best p day I have had yet. And the best part was, the tour started early in the morning, so we finished and still had all day left to do pday things! Today has been a good day.

Other than that, it has been a pretty normal week. But it has been a good week. We found a new investigator from the Ivory Coast named Michel, who is pretty interested, and is going to introduce us to his fiancee on Thursday. Hopefully things will go well with him. We also met a man named Christian who really turned his life around because of Christ, and is really interested in talking to us. We will be teaching him tonight, and I am really excited because we are good friends as well. I really feel like things are starting to turn around here, and I truly believe that we can do anything here with the Lord's help. So the work is exciting. The mission has a lot of momentum right now, and we are going to keep it rolling into the new year. We have had 12 baptisms already this month, which is a great number for Norway, so things are going really well.

But, I have some news. After the meeting, President Evans interviewed everyone, and during my interview, he told me that I am going to be the new district leader in Oslo. I was really taken aback when he told me that, because I wasn't expecting it at all. I am still really young in the mission, and Oslo district has a lot of problems, but I am ready to rely on the Lord and let Him help me through this next phase of my life. I am excited to see the things that He has in store for me. But, that means that I will be here in Oslo until at least February, and maybe even longer. By the time I am finished here, my mission will be at least a quarter of the way over! I can't believe it, but I am happy, because Oslo is my home now. I am happy here. 

Yesterday in our zone leader training meeting, President and Sister Evans talked with us about climbing Mount Everest and the things that people have to do to get up that crazy mountain, and related it to the things that we have to do as missionaries, especially now when it is so difficult here in Oslo for us. The meeting did two things for me: gave me all kinds of faith that the Lord is going to help us to overcome this challenge, and made me want to climb Mount Everest. I want to get to the top of the world and see what it is like. I feel like I need to do something to prove to myself that my self discipline can overcome everything else :) It just sounds exciting to me.

I know that, although we all have our own different mountains to climb in our lives, the Lord is always there, helping us each step of the way. Our challenges will always be different, and we can never know what to expect- sometimes we are asked to walk the icy path, sometimes we must cross a gaping chasm in the road, and other times we are faced with sheer cliffs in our way. Regardless of the obstacle, if we show our diligence, determination, and our faith in the Lord's promise to deliver us, we will always come out stronger on the other side. I have experienced this on my mission and throughout my life, and I know that the Lord is there for us. I am so grateful that He died for our sins so that He could help us be stronger. I love Him, and my mission is to align my life with His.

I love you all, and I hope that as we spend this week preparing for Christmas, that we will all be able to remember what it really is that matters- the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Have a great week!