Week 15

Dear Family, We are heading back down to Helsinki for the week. So my email is pushed up a day. We leave on a night train tonight at 6. Jordan would love the Night Train. But the Bathroom is a little different. Reminds me of Star Wars as it slides open. All you need is the beeping sound and Han Solo poster.

Fun experience yesterday. Testimony builder for me. We went to teach a new investigator. He is a Full Time Missionary for Wym and has been Preaching form the age of 15. I think. Not positive. But He loves the Bible and knows it like the back side of his arm. If you have a question about the bible you ask him. Because he can tell you about it for hours. Any way. We went to teach him about the Plan of Salvation. He has had a hard time reading the Book of Mormon because he needs time to study his scriptures and pray to Jesus. As we began to teach him, we read through all of Alma luku 40. He had Had a question about life after death and the time between death and judgment. So we Read this luku and began to draw out the circles and lines to represent the plan. When we told him we lived with God before this life. He stopped us right there. "I can not believe that, Where is it written in the Bible?" We tried to share that it was in both books. Alma had asked and inquired about this same thing. But he wanted to know why Samuel was called back from the dead by some witch in the bible.

I asked him about the Breathe of Life and how the body was just a glove for our spirits. Things started to get a little heated because in past and present lessons he has told  us that what we believe can not possibly be true. he has had other questions about Angles appearing to Prophets and if it is not Gabriel then it cant be right.

But we ended our lesson after countless attempts to simply and gently show him what we believe. Challenged him to read the book of Mormon. And left. We were so close to Bible bash. It was not good. I got to a point that I had to stop talking. The spirit was leaving the lesson and I knew that things were not going anywhere. Our friend would contradict himself over and over. But the best part is that I have been trying to understand my own conversion and testimony. And After our lesson after cooling down a bit. I had a sweet realization. Why was I so mad and frustrated? Because I was defending what I knew to be right and true. The Holy Ghost in just the short time that it was in our lesson what baring witness to me. It was beautiful to notice after.

Don't get me wrong. We love our friend and investigator. He really is great. But there are times that you want to just throw that book as some people so they can really feel the power it holds. obviously we would not really do that. because that would not be nice and disrespectful to the Book of Mormon. BUt I have had the thought every once and a while.

Side notes. Jeff

Jeff, Do you know the song about being" forsaken for a little while"? more of the lyrics are " And the hills shall be removed and the Mountains shall depart. and The Valley shall be lost beneath the sea, but know my child, my kindness shall not depart from thee."

'some thing like that. It is from the CD Praise to the Man, number Seven.

Thank you family for all you do. I love you very much. How are the married couples? Jon and Kai. Kim and Beej, Justin and Kezia? I love you. I hope your week is great! I pray for you!

Be safe and Strong.

love, Vanhin Sandberg

Week 14

Hello Family, 

First question answers first... if that makes sense. My week has been great! unpredictable as always. But it has been great. many miracles are given to us. Our Branch is about 25-30 active members. Our meeting house is a rented out floor of a building. We live just three buildings away from it, which is really nice. That is also where we email from, It is the Seminary/ Institute room. We actually get our Mini-missionary tomorrow. We thought he would be coming last week, but we guessed wrong. Sounds like Life is great back home. It is always wonderful to hear the fun stories from home. And to see how Heavenly Father is taking care of you. Dmitry is also doing great. He is in Helsinki visiting the Temple at the moment. He is a solid member. He helps we all the time with the Language. And I help Him with his english. Two way street as we say in America. 

The Language is coming. every week i am able to see the improvements, but during the week it can be a little harder to see. And Jeff might like this, but almost everyday I am asked if I am from Sweden. The Name helps with that a lot. But then I am able to talk a little bit about our Family. How did we come from Sweden exactly? 

When Jeff and I come back to visit Sweden and Finland we will have both Languages down. We could live up here ;) 

I tease my companion that I will buy a swedish to Finnish sanakirja before i completely know Finnish because it has happened a couple times that someone will speak to me in Swedish and I will just answer them in Finnish. I cant quite understand the difference yet. But I did understand which is the funny part. So, maybe someday I will learn Swedish. 

The story about Vanhin Speirs in the Hole. We found a different way to tract. We dress in our P-day clothes and we tract. We call it service tracting  because we go and ask anyone if they need help. If we see someone in there yard then we hop off our bikes and ask. It is a good way for others to see that we are normal people. and that our service is not always spiritual. We do hope that it can lead to that, but this kind of tracting has shown to have a different effect on people. We really like it. 

But the story behind it is we went tracting and found ourselves in the area of one of our members so we popped by and said " we are ready to work. Put us to work." 

iT ended up being a blessing because our member we digging a compost hole and had hurt his back. So we showed up ready to finish the job. It was probable ten feet deep. Miracles happen everyday. 

I love you all and pray for you everyday. If there is anything i can do for you, just let me know. 

mom, Read Alma luku 26-27 and think of your `boys` Jordan, Kb, and Ethan. I read that yesterday. Thought you might like it. I love you all! 

love Vanhin Sandberg

Start of week 13

We received his e-mail YEA!!!! No worries this time.

Dear Mama,

I am alive. The Londons gave me a call to asking if I had emailed. If you dont ever receive and email and want to get  on and look at my emails that is fine. Sounds like life is crazy back home. I love hearing all that is going on. Is there anything I can do with? Just let me know. Our weeks go by so fast. Our days at times seem to be drawn out but our weeks just fly by. I am going on my fourth week out in the field. Can you believe that? I am having a hard time wrapping my head around it. I feel like i still just got here. My companion likes to joke and say that i will be training on the next change. He had that happen to him. So, if that happens to me then it is all Vanhin Speirs fault. That is great to hear that you had dinner with Annakaisa and George, I hope all it going well with them. 

Love Vanhin Sandberg

Moma, Email has off schedule today so I am now able to finish emailing. It is 17:43 We left Bible study a little early so our branch president could have another priesthood holder here while he help interviews. Our Branch President looks just like Mr Gru from Despicable me. Has anyone seen the new movie yet? My Companion and I see the posters every day and he want to see it. It does look cute. Has anyone seen the Man of Steal? I want to see that one when i get back. 

Is there anything that I can do for the family? It sounds like everyone is doing well. Keep me updated on Beej, Two Kidney stones! That must be awful. 

Next week we get a mini missionary. He will be a native Finn that spends one week with the missionaries.  I dont know a whole lot about them, but we have been chosen to help train one. It will be a wonderful experience. Have you talked to Veli Boyer and Amy yet? 

They are wonderful people. You will love them. 

How are Grandma and Grandpa doing? I know I dont say it a whole lot, but I do miss everyone. May be I do say it a lot. I Do not say it individually. We are very busy on our P days. Our normal schedule is we wake up at 6:30. Exercise until 7. Eat and shower before 8. personal study from 8-9. companion study from 9-10. 10-11 is Language study. 11 we come to email. that takes two hours easily. and then at 2 we had a lesson with Hanna. at three we had lunch. 4-6 is bible study at the lutheran church and then we go get food. It may not seem like a lot, but it really is. Monday is our most busy day. and we only have three hours of missionary work. We still contact every place we go. It is great. 

I love you all. Sorry this came in two separate emails. I pray for you ALL the time. Love ya

Vanhin Sandberg

Returned e-mails

While talking with Kim she mentioned it was too bad I couldn't get into Jeremy's e-mail.  the light bulb then went off.  I had his login.  So I got into his account to see if he had gotten our e-mails and sure enough he had and ours had just come back with an error message.  What an answer to prayers.

As I got back into my e-mail program to look up his login I found this e-mail in answer to one I had finally sent the Mission Office.  So Kind!

Dear Sister Sandberg,

Thank you for your email and certainly your concern for your son.  As luck would have it, or tender mercies, we just saw your son yesterday while visiting many of the missionaries in Finland.  In fact, this morning we are getting ready to head south from Rovaniemi.  Yesterday we stopped by his apartment and visited with him and his companion while we dropped off some supplies and checked on their apartment.  They have a brand new apartment that looks great and they both seem to be doing just wonderful.  They took us on a tour of the new chapel in Rovaniemi and we left an A&W Root Beer with them.

Elder Sanberg talked to us about his Swedish ancestors and his brother's mission to Sweden.  We also talked about their recent baptism in Rovaniemi, which is always a exciting topic of discussion here in the Finnish Mission.

I will give him a call this morning on our way out of town and see how they are doing.  You should have received an email by now as they said yesterday they were on their way to the chapel to email their parents.

He is a wonderful young man and appeared well and happy.

Please let us know if you have any more concerns.  We love all the missionaries as our own sons and daughters, and certainly your concerns are our concerns.

Love,

Elder and Sister London

Dear Perhe,                                                                           July 1, 2013

First. My week was great!

Second. We email from the branch church building.

Third. The sun never goes down. It is kind at an angle all day.

Forth. I have not bought a bike yet. My companion already has two, but one of them is like tempting fate. Or playing dice. So we are buying a new bike today or tomorrow.

Fifth. My companion traveled with me. When we ride the night train we get on the train about 7 at night. We sleep all night and then when we wake up we are still not there. I compare it to driving to Disneyland. About 14 hours i think. 

I promise that I do have pictures. I have just not yet sent my card off. I know how you feel Momma about this writing thing. There is so much that goes on during the week. And trying to share it in so little time is hard. I will tell you one thing. We had an experience this week where we taught some monks. We actually went to this Hindi experience sermon. We first met this Monk on the street. He didn't speak Finnish, but he was from Sweden. anyway, he talked to us a little bit about his religion and we gave him the first lesson. He gave us free tickets to this Sermon where their head monk from India would be coming and speaking. The Head Monk is from California, but has lived in India for the past 40 something years. Crazy. But we went to this Sermon. We had permission. And we actually met one of our investigators there, but after all of this Sermon thing The Head Monk was introduced to us. We are the only Mormon Missionaries in Rovaniemi. We talked to him for over an hour. It was fun.

I kinda lost my train of thought, I had to start this email and then come back to it. We have Bible study at the Luthern Church every monday at 4. We count it as a missionary work.

How is everyone doing? I am glad to here that everything is ok with Justin. It is always wonderful to see the hand of the Lord in our daily life.  I know I am able to see it. Slowly at times, but I am able to see it.

I am so sorry that I cant remember what I wanted to tell you before. There is so much to tell and so little time that we get a little scatter brained.

My Greeny Hunger has kicked in. I have started to eat everything. We cook food for four people at least and then I seem to eat for three or two. I dont know how much i weigh now. 65kl i think. I dont know.

I hope you all know I love you. I think of you often. Everyday has a new adventure and I wish you understood the support you provide just as the memories in my mind. I say this often, but you have all helped to get me to this point. You have prepared me for the people that have been prepared for me. Heavenly Father works in the details of our lives. Always remember that. John 16:33. Our Christ has already over come the world. We should be of good cheer. I love you all so much. I am sorry that we are getting the brunt end of this tiem. I let my companion go first so that he had plenty of time to email. We did this all after gettting food and right before bible study. So I have had a little less time. But that is all ok. I will send pictures next week. Remember that you are Remembered! I love you futher then the sun shines. Cant wait to hear from you next. Yours,

Vanhin Sandberg

Hey Perhe,                                                                               July 8, 2013

I dont know why you did not receive my last email. I know that i sent is. Weird. Sorry sorry,

How is everyone doing this week? sounds like Lagoon and the Fmaily part was a success. We have a new investigator. His name is Abel, He is awsome. He has one of the best laughs. I know you want a list of names to pray for. First names are what I can give. I think.

We have Sirpa and Dmitry, They are recent converts, Dmitry was the follow i baptised. You can pray that the finnish peoples hearts will be softened. They love the missionaries, until we come and what to talk to them. They admire what we are doing at such a young age. I told my Companion that they are a form of Hermit people. They like to keep to themselves. Which is not a bad thing. It is very nice at times, but it can be difficult talking to them about this Beautiful Gospel when they dont think they have time for it.

Geoffrey and Silvia also just need prayers to help them in their individual lives.

I dont know if this is bad to say, but if or when you come to Finland, you must come to Rovaniemi. So many people that you have to meet. They are wonderful here. All fo our investigators need prayers too, but those are specifics that i can think of right now.

Momma, I am very sorry that you didnt get my email last week. I is on my account with a picture attatch from our talk with our Monk friend. So You can get that picture and post it on your blog. Which reminds me. Nick and Amy Boyer. I will be sending you and the family some chocolate. I will also be sending them some chocolate too because you have too meet them. You will love them. I just know it.

Could you also send Birthdays schedules to me of everyones birthdays? I feel awful that i cant remember everyones.

How are Jonathan, Jeff, and Beej keeping up their language? That is super important to keep up. says so in PMG.

Do you have a Crapes Recipe that you could send to me? We have bee craving crepes. Sorry i dont know how to spell that. But those really thin pancakes.

another question, Will you ask Leah how she sings the wide vowels? Because in Finnish we have these wide our flat letters. Ä. Ö. Y. They fit different in your mouth and when I sing these are very flat, I noticed this in our branch. I want to be able to fix that in my own singing. Kiitos.

YOu can contact Nick Boyer by his email and cell

(nicholasaboyer@gmail.com)

and 509- 638-7429

Call and or email him and his wife soon, because he is one of my new best friends. he was one of my teachers in the MTC. They just live in provo.

Random request too. Do we have any more of those braces floss. like the needle threaders but for teeth? mine broke...and i dont and any more.

Is there anything i can do for you? Sorry again that my email didnt go through last week. I pray that this one will today. If not i will expect a call from President Rawlings or Sister Rawlings. I love you Family. You are great. Sorry if i did not answer all of your questions. Time is never long enough. I even limited myself. I emailed my Brothern and left plenty of time for my Perhe email. I just love you all so much. Is everyone doing all right? no more scary work experiences like justins? I have not seen a hand written from Kindsey yet ;) she is out dating too much, i bet.

My companion is from Idaho. He has only been in the country three months. And he is training me. We are just that cool. I love Speirs. He and I get along great. I promise to tell you more about him next week. Reminding me would help. I love you again. I pray for you. If you need anything just let me know. I will also pray for anyone that you cant think of that really needs it. Love you!!

Vanhin Sandberg

Pictures July 8, 2013