LETTER #15 - SCHWARZENBERG/ANNABERG-BUCHHOLZ

Hi Family!
This last week is one I will never forget. The week went good with teaching and finding people. We had quite a bit of appointments get cancelled but the ones that worked out were really good. On Wednesday I went to Freiberg for a split with Elder Taylor. It was fun working in Freiberg and with Elder Taylor. Then Thursday came back to Schwarzenberg with Elder Killpack.

The whole week was building up to Saturday and Sunday when we would be able to hear President Uchtdorf speak. On Saturday morning we were up and on the road to Berlin by 5am. We met in the Tiergarten ward building in the middle of Berlin. This was the first time in about 2 years when the whole mission was going to be together. I attached a picture we took a little before Pres. Uchtdorf got there.

Elder Killpack and I went in, got our seats, studied and waited for the meeting to start. An hour or so later President Pimentel came in and said he just got off the phone and that President Uchtdorf would be there in a couple minutes. All the missionaries got really quiet and everyone just waited. We heard the doors open and in the foyer you could see Elder Teixeira, President Kopischke, and then President Uchtdorf. They all came in and the whole room filled with the spirit it was such an amazing feeling. President Uchtdorf went up to the mic and said He wanted to shake all of our hands, so we went row by row and shook all of their hands. It was a really cool feeling. Then the meeting got started. 

Elder Teixeira talked to us, then President Kopischke, and then President Uchtdorf. It was a two hour meeting and President Uchtdorf spoke to us for the last hour or so. I learned so much in that hour, I'm really grateful we were able to have that meeting with them. After that meeting Elder Killpack and I took the Freiberg Elders with us and headed back home. On the way back we stopped at a place outside of Dresden called the Weihungs Ort. It’s a place on the top of this hill that looks out over the valley, Dresden, and the Elbe River. President Monson concecrated Eastern Germany for the preaching of the Gospel there in 1975.

On Sunday there was Stake Conference, which was why President Uchtdorf was in Berlin in the first place. It was a multi stake conference though. It was all the stakes in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. So everyone in those three countries watched the broadcast coming from the Tiergarten ward building. President Uchtdorf also spoke at the end of that meeting for about an hour too. One of my favorite parts of his talk on Sunday was right in the middle. He was telling us a story then he said. There are only 2 possibilities; either the Church is true, or it is not. There is nothing in between. Then he was silent for a little just looking out, tears came into his eyes and the spirit flared up like a fire. Then he said, “It is true”. You could see in his countenance that he knows without a doubt that this Church is true. It was so amazing. He then continued with his talk. He told us that earlier that morning, when the sun was coming up, he and other Priesthood holders gathered together to consecrate the land once again. He said he did it under the direction of President Monson and that it was a very spiritual experience. He talked about when President Monson did it in 1975 in Dresden. He even said President Monson wanted to come back and do it himself. Then he told us that President Monson chose last year, that Feb 21 would be the day when Germany would be consecrated again for the spreading of the Gospel. I thought that was really cool. I don't know why, but President Monson set that as the date for when they would consecrate the land. This weekend was full of spiritual experiences that I will never forget.

Things are going really good. There is still quite a bit of snow, still pretty cold. All in all though, everything is really good. I love being here and I love being a missionary. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ is the true church. And that the only way we can find true happiness and inner peace, is through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am grateful for the examples I've had throughout my life that have helped me build my testimony. I love being able to go and share this message of peace and joy with everyone every day. I hope everyone is doing good, thanks everyone for everything. I love you all so much. Have a good week, be happy!
Elder Puriri

He forgot to tell me some stuff in his first email so he sent another quick one.  It ended like this...

This weekend really was so amazing. The spirit was so strong hearing from President uchtdorf. He was like right in front of me, it felt like he was just talking to me. Such a cool experience. K gotta go, I love you! tell everyone I love them!