Dear Mom and Dad,
Surprise, We need to email on Sunday because Elder Stanley and myself been asked to go to a three day training with the 6 week old missionaries. There was just an odd number of Missionaries and we are close enough Helsinki to travel there so that is why they asked us. But about Niilo, I sure do know him, He was my Branch Mission Leader In Rovaniemi. I knew him right before his was engaged and moved to Helsinki. He is an awesome fellow. Him and Veli Jarvis are some of my looked up too members. Along with the Branch President and the Zone President up there.
This is part of our Fun filled week. We had a miracle week.
Wednesday we received a call from the Vantaa Vanhimmat (Elders) telling us that they had a referral for us. His name was Gino, from Africa and He already has a baptismal date.
Come to find out, Gino used to be a former investigator in Vantaa, but in the past two months he has moved to Keravan area. When Vanhin Batey went through calling some former investigators he came across Gino, and he accepted to meet. Not knowing for sure where he lived they found out that he was now apart of our area, but in the boundry or their HSL cards so they went and met with him and were able to set a baptismal date with him.
That was the First miracle.
The Second was when Tampere Vanhimmat (Elders) called us asking if we could go and teach their investigator. My first thought was that, " We are in Kerava, and Tampere is calling us to teach there investigator....how will this work out, we are not even in the same zone?"
Come to find out their investigator had a surprize trip to Kerava, to visit her soon to be husband (Harri), who also lives in Korso. She (Aija) had originally had an appointment with the Tampere Vanhimmat, but because of her trip she was unable to meet with them, but she still wanted to visit with the Elders. So we were able to visit her and her soon to be husband, who was a referral that we have been trying to get in contact with for three weeks now. When we got a hold of Harri (The soon to be Husband) We had asked if he could meet today, but he told us that he may not be in town so we had planned to meet the following week. But because Aja came to Korso we were able to meet with both of them and receive Harri as a new investigator. Even in our lesson he asked us How well we knew Salt Lake City....Well, I am about 20 minutes from down town...."I stayed in America for three days one year with a Mormon family. I have nothing against your religion. Nothing bad comes from it."
3rd Miracle was being able to meet with a former investigator that was so pleased to have us come back. This Former investigator still remembers Veli Boyer and Hybarger (Both are now teachers at the MTC, Veli Boyer taught me in the MTC.) who originally found him. This family also became new investigators right after our lesson with Harri and Aja.
It was a Tender Mercy filled week.
These are the People you can pray for, Harri and Aija, Nang, and Gino.
I hope this was a Pleasent surprise to find this email waiting for you. I thought it might be better then you not receiving and email. I also forgot to tell you last week. Sorry
I Hope you have a wonderful week Love you tons!
love,
Vanhin Sandberg
This is the article from the April Ensign that I asked Jeremy about.
Conversion and Sacrifice in Finland
By Melissa Zenteno
What is it like to be a faithful young adult in Finland? One young man shares his culture and his faith.
The Church in Finland 4,715 Latter-day Saints
15 wards
15 branches
2 stakes
1 mission
1 temple, dedicated on October 22, 2006
By the Numbers 5,250,000 people (as of January 2012)
187,888 lakes
179,584 islands
2.2 million saunas
Facts Capital: Helsinki
Language: Finnish (Suomi)
A few miles off the coast of Helsinki, Finland, is the sea fortress of Suomenlinna, built in the 18th century to fortify against invaders. Stretching across six islands, this stronghold represents the steadfast determination of the Finnish people.
But Finnish members visit a different building when they travel to their capital. The Helsinki Finland Temple is a physical symbol of their conversion and the protection they receive from living the gospel.
For Niilo Kervinen, a 24-year-old young adult from Rovaniemi, Finland, the 10-hour train ride to Helsinki is a small price to pay for the blessing of serving in the temple.
Before the dedication of the Helsinki Finland Temple in October 2006, Niilo and other members of his ward had to travel to the Stockholm Sweden Temple or to the Copenhagen Denmark Temple. “The trips would usually take a week during the summer vacation,” he remembers. Traveling by bus and sleeping in tents on those trips are some of the best memories he has.
Yet having a temple in his native land is a wonderful blessing. “When they announced the Helsinki Temple, I was so happy,” Niilo says. “The dedicatory prayer still resonates in my heart each time I go inside.”
This love for the temple sets Niilo apart from his friends. “Finns work hard and enjoy being active but leave little time for spiritual things in their life,” he explains. Although Niilo says he has always been blessed with good friends, as he grew older the distinction between how his friends lived and how he was taught to live became clearer. It was this difference that caused Niilo to seek his own testimony when he was 17. “I had to make a decision of where to stand and who to be,” he says. “With the blessings of the Lord and with the guidance of family and good friends, I got a stronger testimony of the Church.”
In speaking of conversion, Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has said, “I promise that as we come to a knowledge of the truth and are converted unto the Lord, we will remain firm and steadfast and never fall away.”1 Although traveling to Helsinki requires time and money, Niilo is committed to being a disciple of Christ. And for Niilo, that is no sacrifice at all.
More about Niilo
What do Finns typically eat?
Some of my favorite dishes include salmon soup and reindeer meat with mashed potatoes. We also eat a lot of rye bread.
What do you do for fun?
I like to snowboard, watch movies, or just enjoy a walk outside. I served my mission in Japan, so I study Japanese when I can.
What is dating like in Finland?
We don’t have a strong culture of dating. People generally ask someone out only after they already have a considerable amount of interest for them. Here, dating isn’t a mechanism to get to know someone. There are faithful young adults here, even if there aren’t many members. Sometimes young adult members travel long distances to go on a date with a person they met at a young single adult dance.
