Hamburg Week 3

This week was fantastic!

Things here in Hamburg are really starting pick up the pace. We have a fantastic relationship with our branch and because of that we are starting to see a lot of progress with member missionary work, which is the most effective kind of missionary work.

We also have some awesome investigators that we are teaching,and they are all making a lot of progress and really have a desire to learn. It is always nice to have people that want to meet and learn, which hasn't always been the case for me on my mission. So every opportunity that we have to teach and to testify are some of my favorite moments! Because a teaching missionary is a happy Missionary! :)

Thank you so much for your prayers and your emails. 

Love 

Elder Schmalz

Proof of life picture after all of the scary things happening in Germany. And my snazzy new haircut!

Another week in Hamburg

This week was pretty good. On my first day in Bergedorf a woman came up to us at the train station and asked us why we are wearing name tags and we had the opportunity to meet with her this last week. She is Italian and has apparently been praying her whole life for a church that is true. She was raised Catholic but doesn't believe in half of the things that they do. She freaked out when we told her about the restoration and she came to church yesterday and absolutely loved it! (according to my companion, I had the responsibility of distracting her 4 year old daughter so that our investigator could actually listen to the talks in sacrament).... she seems like she is golden!

This week was also my companions birthday so I made him breakfast and we went and ate lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe in Hamburg, so that was pretty cool. Sadly we weren't able to take any pictures:/ but we will take some this week.

Here are my two cents on testimony. (To share with the young women at camp) I think that it is just important to remember that a testimony is built on millions of small moments and experiences. And that we don't need to see an angel or to have heard the voice of God to have a testimony. Sometimes its just the small things, the little feelings, the sparks of inspiration. those little things, along with our small but hugely influential deeds (prayer, scripture study, having a good attitude, and simply smiling) that will slowly build up into a steady and bright testimony that wont be put out by the storms of life.

I already know that if someone asked me to tell them a miracle that happened on my mission I don't think one moment would pop into my head. The miracles and the testimony building things that I have experienced have been small and have really built up to make my entire mission into a miracle :) and it is the same with my testimony. Yes I have had some big experiences, but the older/wiser I get, the more I realize how grateful I am for just the little things that have made my testimony grow so much.

Hamburg!

So I made it to Hamburg, and I have settled in quite nicely!

Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany...so missionary work is a little different here than it was in Forst.

My companion is Elder Matis from Draper, Utah and he is a Stud. We get along great and I am excited to be able to serve with him.

As far as my medical problems go, they seem to be gone, so lets hope that they do not come back while I am here in Germany.

I only have 12 weeks left as a missionary and that is starting to freak me out. But hey, twelve weeks is a lot of time to get a lot of work done so I can keep my mind occupied haha no worries.

Thank you for the support.

Love, Elder Schmalz

District picture

Finally feeling up to a P-day picnic

This week...

has been unlike any week that I have experienced on my mission or in my life for that matter.

This week marked the first time I have ever had to stay the night at the hospital! That's right ladies and gentleman, Elder Schmalz is in fact not indestructible! (although I really hoped that I was)

I was admitted into the hospital on Thursday due to an appendicitis scare. luckily for me, none of my organs exploded and I am safe back in my own apartment. Unlucky for me, I'm still feeling a lot of discomfort and they (the doctors) do not have an exact diagnoses for what is happening.

So this coming week will be filled with;

Facing some of my absolute worst fears

Needles

Doctors

CT scans

Further medical tests

Studying the Gospel

Trying to teach the nurses and doctors

Coming closer to my Savior

So i'm not having the greatest time of my life, but i'm trying to make the best of it.

Thank you so much for the prayers on my behalf, especially in the last week.

Thank you for the emails and the words of love and support!

I hope you have a great week.

Love Elder Schmalz

Yeah I'm not so good...

This week has not been the best of weeks. On Thursday I went to the
hospital with some abdominal pain thinking it might be my appendix.
Ended up staying 2 nights. Getting poked about 40 times with needles
and being completely alone.
Tomorrow I have a CT scan and I might be getting a colonoscopy on
Tuesday if they don't find anything tomorrow.
I'm freaking out! Please pray for me. I'm really not a happy camper right now.

The reason you didn't hear anything is because I was In the crappiest hospital ever. So absolutely no internet. They did an ultrasound, they saw something that seemed solid right of my navel, they have no idea what it is. Hence the ct scan and possible colonoscopy. But I am now out of the hospital and I will go back tomorrow for my tests. 

Re: Yeah I'm not so goo

P-day

We played football with the Hamburg Zone today and it was awesome fun!

I had the opportunity to return to Dresden, one of my very favorite cities in all of Germany, and tried to recreate to the best of my ability the very first picture I sent you on my very first P-day here in Germany!

Hallo!

Hallo!

This week was my first week in Forst, my new and potentially last area on my mission.....

Forst is a.....interesting place. It is extremely small but with a surprisingly big ward. The Forst ward is actually the biggest ward I have had on my mission with about 70-80 active members.

My companions name is Elder Wilkinson and he is from Kingston Upon Hull, a city in Yorkshire England. and let me tell you this has been a culture shock that I was surprisingly prepared for through the hundreds of episodes of "Top Gear" that i binged upon the summer before my mission! So that was a funny miracle that I witnessed this week.

But the highlight of this week was most definitely and without a doubt, seeing President Henry Kosak and his wife Sister Elke Kosak in Cottbus at an area conference broadcast.

He was my mission president for the first half of my mission and one of my heroes. 

So yeah, that was my week! i am doing well! 

Thank you for your emails and for your prayers.

Love 

Elder Schmalz

Not a bad view I've got

Saying goodbye to Pinneberg :(

Yep my time is pinneberg is over. And I feel very uneasy. I'm really
going to miss this place, it is a really good place. I will miss the
cool members and Evelin our cool investigator who is progressing
towards baptism. And I will miss Elder Tischner.

Our week was really good.
We had a zone conference with Elder Adler of the seventy. I absolutely
love that man! He has visited our mission a couple times and every
time he or his wife speaks I learn so much and I feel so uplifted!
Some conferences are also a great time to see old friends and to just
have a good time.

We also had stake conference this week, and there was a brand new
seventy there. He is from Italy and he has been overseeing the
construction of the Rome Italy temple and talked a little bit about
that.  We also taught Evelin this week and we actually taught her about the 

word of wisdom and the law of chastity
(kind of an awkward lesson every time) but it went really well. She
accepted it all and she talks to us about her desire to know if Joseph
Smith was a prophet and if the Book of Mormon is true. It was
fantastic because you could just feel her sincerity and you could see
it in her eyes.
When we first started teaching her she was really shy and just a closed
off person....but she has changed so much, she is smiling and she talks
to everyone at church, it is really just a blessing to have seen
people (even though I have seen very many) let the gospel make a
change in their lives even in small things like smiling more often or
being happy:)

I can not believe that Sophie has graduated high school....I feel like
it was yesterday that I graduated high school....but in reality that
was 2 years ago and I'm actually approaching the ripe age of 21!
I also can't believe that next year Gray could go on a mission!
Sometimes I miss the time when we were all little. But then I remember
that growth and progression are essential in our Heavenly Fathers plan
for us. All I know is that I'm so thankful that he does have a plan
for us and that we aren't just leading a pointless existence on a rock
that is orbiting a star. I'm so grateful for the truths that we know.

Last district meeting in this transfer, and saying goodbye to Elder Horrocks who is indeed not dead, just going home!

After a hard day of missionary work, sometimes you just pass out!

All sorts of service. Makes me happy :)

Hamburg P-day

We live 20 minutes by train from Hamburg and it's technically in our area so we like to go into the big city for P-day sometimes.

Two Years

This week marks the two year mark since I opened my mission call.....

THAT IS CRAZY!

I remember opening that and being filled with excitement but also being really nervous to learn a new language, and to be away from my home for so long, and to teach people to gospel!

But now I've been away from home for quite a long time, and my worries mainly revolve around distinguishing what language I'm actually thinking in, and teaching has become one of my favorite things...... seriously who would have thought?!

As these thoughts have been running through my head this week, I am always reminded of how I couldn't have made it this far with out the power of prayer! I can tell you right now that without prayer I never would have learned German or would have never been comfortable teaching people. Without prayer I wouldn't have been able to be away from home for so long.

During my studies this week I found these two quotes:

"It is better in prayer to have heart without words, than words without heart"- Mahatma Gandhi

and

“I long have been impressed with the truth that meaningful prayer requires both holy communication and consecrated work.  Blessings require some effort on our part before we can obtain them…  We press forward and persevere in the consecrated work of prayer, after we say “amen” by acting upon the things we have expressed to Heavenly Father.” ~Elder David A. Bednar,

I'm so grateful for Prayer. I am so grateful for the opportunities I have had to see prayers in action and to see that our Heavenly Father really does hear and answers prayers. I am also grateful that Heavenly Father doesn't just give me what I ask for, but He instead gives me what He knows is best.

Thank you so much for your prayers on my behalf, and thank you for your emails!

Love Elder Schmalz

Hello My Friends!

Well this week I've had the great opportunity to ponder how fantastic the gospel is!

This period of pondering was not only brought on by being a missionary and  the fantastic Talks that we heard in General Conference, but was also by assisting the Youth here in Pinneberg!

As some of you may know (but most of you don't, due to my inconsistency in keeping you updated)

I was called to serve as the Sunday school teacher for the youth between the ages of 14-18.

This calling has come to be something that I am super grateful for! I am always amazed by how much I learn or am reminded of when I am technically called to be the instructor. I am so grateful for things that I am learning!

Yesterday we received our transfer calls and sadly Elder Partridge's time here in Pinneberg is up. I will be getting a new companion (more about that next week).

But yes, thank you so much for your emails and your prayers!

Love Elder Schmalz

A quick update

I am doing pretty well here in Pinneberg. I'm really enjoying myself, and I love it!

This week I learned how to make dumplings from a Chinese new convert
which made for a lot of fun.

I absolutely loved conference, I haven't been able to watch the Sunday
afternoon session yet but I'm very excited to watch it next Sunday.

Today I went on a harbor tour with Elder Winkel

District pictures

March Zone Training Meeting

Neumünster Zone

Mmmmm, food

Classic German food in the form of pickled Herring. It's called rollmop!

This is why missionaries gain so much weight in Germany. 

The 3.8% milk that the members make you drink!

This was weird...tortilla chip chocolate!

Easter in Pinneberg!

So this week was Great!
Nothing really that exciting actually happened this week, just the normal missionary work that I have learned to love so much!
So that means:
Service
Walking for hours
Teaching about our Savior
Riding buses and trains
Studying
and last but not least,
Church

But yeah, we had a great week!

The Easter holiday is one of my favorite times of year. Almost everything in one way or another points towards Christ and his Atonement. Whether it be flowers blooming or the sun rising, everything gives testimony of that time when the Savior waged war against death and sin and came out victorious. Because he did this amazing thing we may all live again with our families forever and with our Heavenly Father.

I am so grateful for our Savior and his Atonement. I am so grateful that I have been blessed with the knowledge of His existence and accomplishments. I love Him and His gospel. And I love being His servant here in Germany!

Thank you for your prayers and your emails and letters.

Love Elder Schmalz

P.S. make sure to prepare yourselves to hear from the prophets of God this coming weekend!

The service project life...

Das dienst projekt leben!

Renovating houses for refugees!

P-Day Bowling!

Candid Picture of me at Soccer this Week...

Well as you can see by this "super accurate" picture of me...  

I pretty much crushed it at soccer this week... 

In all reality I was still really really bad, but there was some definite improvement from my last week of FAILING! 

  

We also crushed it at missionary work here in Pinneberg this week!

Next week we are going to be soooo busy it isn't even funny! We will be running from appointment to appointment all week, and it is actually the busiest I've been on my mission and for that I am so grateful!

  

I don't have very much time this week to do emails due to our busy schedule but what I can do is recommend these two websites that are super awesome!

https://www.mormon.org/easter/virtual-hallelujah-choir

https://www.mormon.org/easter

Thank you so much for your prayers and your emails!

Have a fantastic week!

Love Elder "Messi" Schmalz

Spring has sprung!

Zone training meeting with my awesome trainer, Elder Bretzing!

Pinneberg Week #1

First and foremost I arrived in Pinneberg after 5 hours of train travel in safety!

My companion here in Pinneberg is Elder Partridge. He has been on his mission for about a year now, and he seems like a great missionary so far, and I am excited to be working with him.

Pinneberg is a really small city, but the ward here is actually one of the bigger wards that I've seen on my mission with a solid 60 members....and let me tell you, they are REALLY good at soccer, and I am not.....so lets just say that both my body and my pride are sore at the moment....but we get to play soccer once a week with the elders quorum so hopefully I will get a little better.

In the investigator department we are seriously lacking. We have no one to teach so we will be doing a lot of finding this week. Hopefully we will find someone who will want to accept the gospel.

We are meeting with quite a few less actives and new converts in the area and helping them, so we do have someone to help right now, but we need to find some new people.

I'm doing pretty good. Just adjusting to a new area and a new companion.

Thank you for the prayers and all the support!

Love, Elder Schmalz 

Goodbye Frankfurt! Hello Pinneberg!

Hallo friends and family! I hope that you had a great week and that so far you're having a good leap day. I have spent the day saying goodbye to people, eating a lot of food, and of course my least favorite thing.....packing! (one thing I will not miss about being a missionary is the frequent need to pack everything you own into two suitcases and then schlep them around all day)

So as you can tell by the activities I have done on this fine P-day, I have been transferred!

That is right, after 6 months in Frankfurt Oder it is finally time to pack up and move on.

And where will I be moving.... good question!

Oberst von Staufenberg 39 strasse

25421 Pinneberg

Germany

So yeah, if you are feeling like shooting a letter my way that is where you can reach me:)

Other than that news I don't really have much to talk about so I will share with you something from my studies this week, that being a poem.

" I met a stranger in the night, whose lamp had ceased to shine,

  I paused and let him light lamp from mine.

  

  A tempest sprang up later on, and shook the world about,

  And when he was gone my lamp was out.

  But back came to me the stranger--His lamp was glowing fine;

  

  He held the precious flame and lighted mine." 

                                                          -Lon Woodrum

This week has had me thinking about how grateful I am for the people in my life who have shared their lights with me. 

Whether it be my family or my friends,

My heart is full as I think of everything that I have been blessed with, In particular for the people who have been placed on my path. 

I would not be who I am right now with out the influence of my parents and my aunts and uncles or the guidance of a young mens leader or a friend.

So yeah you have no idea what you have done for me! Thank you for your support and your friendship.

I hope that you all know that if your light is ever wavering or if you need help, I am only an email or 7 months away. 

But more importantly our Savior is always there for you and for me, and His lamp is significantly more powerful and stronger than my own!

Thank you so much

Love, Elder Schmalz

Some goodbyes are hard

My goodbye present from my sweetest little friend in Germany, Eliza. She cried :(

Maik and Alin. Two of my favorite people!