Bok bok!
(That means hi hi in Croatian)
RAIN PRODUCES MIRACLES!!!!!! Ok, I will be honest, when I go to sleep and it is pouring rain, and I wake up and it has not lessened at all, and then continues for days, it doesn't exactly make me excited to go out and talk to people. But this week we literally witnessed so many hearts softened, the gospel becoming alive in people, and we really felt the joy of missionary work throughout. I would consider this the single most successful week so far on my mission. I am so pleased with how God led the work in Osijek this week.
One major success...Our investigator passed his interview! He will be baptized this week. I can hardly wait to see it. His story has been the most precious thing to be a part of. God knew that someone here could understand my Slovene and my broken Croatian. Teaching him has built my faith in ways I can’t even express. We have watched the gospel take on a whole new meaning in his life. I love him. I am so excited for his baptism.
Another huge success or miracle: SEMINARY!!!! We had our first meeting with the youth. We had 6 show up and 4 others sign up. THAT IS A HUGE THING! 3 of those are members. My companion and I could have cried. Our efforts paid off. They all loved it. I felt the Spirit help us start a seminary program so much! We were led in every single decision we had to make. I can’t even express how big of a thing that is. So I am an official seminary teacher. I am excited about it! I love studying the lessons and teaching the Old Testament haha. This is the coolest thing to ever happen to me. I LOVE SEMINARY!
I don’t know what it is about Osijek but I feel the Spirit here in a way I have never felt in my whole life. I seriously count down the days until I can be in our little church teaching Sunday school or seminary feeling the Spirit. I have grown SOOOO much since I got here.
A lot of you are wondering how I am doing in my new country with a new language.... it has been an adjustment. I hate going shopping and seeing them use a different currency because I can’t do the math yet in my head so I think everything costs so much more than it actually is. I used to use Euro. Now I am using Kuna.... like 7 Kuna = 1 dollar? So when my oranges cost 14 Kuna I get frustrated because I think I am spending 15 Euros haha. It’s been an adjustment. The physical appearance is different which has also taken some getting used to. The biggest change is obviously the language. I love Croatian. It exhausts my jaw because of the amount of “J’s” in it. But I am getting the hang of it. I memorized the first vision one day this week and it is so fun to lay down in bed and say it in Slovene and then in Croatian. I am working on Serbian next. Croatian is coming much faster than Slovene. Probably because I now know what it takes to learn a new language and I know how I learned the last one. I know what works for me. The experience with learning a past language is blessing me with this one so much. My cute companion is learning so fast. Since she has to be the main speaker, she has really improved sooo quickly. Just in our few weeks together I have seen her grow so much in the language. She is so confident in it. Probably the most frustrating thing is that I can understand about 85% of everything. I really understand just fine. I love that. The frustrating thing is that my speaking is not up to speed with my understanding haha. So I understand perfectly and then go to respond and it’s just Slovene haha. But I am getting the hang of it. It helps that Sister R. gets so excited when something Croatian comes out of my mouth, so I try to make that happen as much as I can because she is so proud of me haha (she accidentally spoke Slovene in a lesson this week... our investigator was so confused why she was speaking Slovene too haha oops). I am loving the challenge of a new language and the joy of leaning the gospel in still another language... I am in heaven.
This week I taught the psalm of Nephi for Sunday school. It was the most powerful thing for me to study and then teach. I loved every second. When Nephi says that he knows in whom he has trusted... I realize that is the exact situation I am in. I trusted in God once when I put in my mission papers... and again when I received the call to this mission, again when I learned Slovene (obviously 10000 times in between) and now I am showing Him that I trust Him still. "I used to love to choose and see my path but now... LEAD THOU ME ON!" I could never have chosen so well. I am so thankful my life is not mine. I am loving His plan for me. It is so so so hard but the greatest. I know in whom I have trusted, and I will continue to trust Him.
It was just a really good week. I feel like I personally overcame so many things. Even better, I watched others do the same. I love being a missionary in Croatia. My companion is perfect. Things really could not get better! I love you all! Have a good week!
Sestra Higgins
(That means hi hi in Croatian)
RAIN PRODUCES MIRACLES!!!!!! Ok, I will be honest, when I go to sleep and it is pouring rain, and I wake up and it has not lessened at all, and then continues for days, it doesn't exactly make me excited to go out and talk to people. But this week we literally witnessed so many hearts softened, the gospel becoming alive in people, and we really felt the joy of missionary work throughout. I would consider this the single most successful week so far on my mission. I am so pleased with how God led the work in Osijek this week.
One major success...Our investigator passed his interview! He will be baptized this week. I can hardly wait to see it. His story has been the most precious thing to be a part of. God knew that someone here could understand my Slovene and my broken Croatian. Teaching him has built my faith in ways I can’t even express. We have watched the gospel take on a whole new meaning in his life. I love him. I am so excited for his baptism.
Another huge success or miracle: SEMINARY!!!! We had our first meeting with the youth. We had 6 show up and 4 others sign up. THAT IS A HUGE THING! 3 of those are members. My companion and I could have cried. Our efforts paid off. They all loved it. I felt the Spirit help us start a seminary program so much! We were led in every single decision we had to make. I can’t even express how big of a thing that is. So I am an official seminary teacher. I am excited about it! I love studying the lessons and teaching the Old Testament haha. This is the coolest thing to ever happen to me. I LOVE SEMINARY!
I don’t know what it is about Osijek but I feel the Spirit here in a way I have never felt in my whole life. I seriously count down the days until I can be in our little church teaching Sunday school or seminary feeling the Spirit. I have grown SOOOO much since I got here.
A lot of you are wondering how I am doing in my new country with a new language.... it has been an adjustment. I hate going shopping and seeing them use a different currency because I can’t do the math yet in my head so I think everything costs so much more than it actually is. I used to use Euro. Now I am using Kuna.... like 7 Kuna = 1 dollar? So when my oranges cost 14 Kuna I get frustrated because I think I am spending 15 Euros haha. It’s been an adjustment. The physical appearance is different which has also taken some getting used to. The biggest change is obviously the language. I love Croatian. It exhausts my jaw because of the amount of “J’s” in it. But I am getting the hang of it. I memorized the first vision one day this week and it is so fun to lay down in bed and say it in Slovene and then in Croatian. I am working on Serbian next. Croatian is coming much faster than Slovene. Probably because I now know what it takes to learn a new language and I know how I learned the last one. I know what works for me. The experience with learning a past language is blessing me with this one so much. My cute companion is learning so fast. Since she has to be the main speaker, she has really improved sooo quickly. Just in our few weeks together I have seen her grow so much in the language. She is so confident in it. Probably the most frustrating thing is that I can understand about 85% of everything. I really understand just fine. I love that. The frustrating thing is that my speaking is not up to speed with my understanding haha. So I understand perfectly and then go to respond and it’s just Slovene haha. But I am getting the hang of it. It helps that Sister R. gets so excited when something Croatian comes out of my mouth, so I try to make that happen as much as I can because she is so proud of me haha (she accidentally spoke Slovene in a lesson this week... our investigator was so confused why she was speaking Slovene too haha oops). I am loving the challenge of a new language and the joy of leaning the gospel in still another language... I am in heaven.
This week I taught the psalm of Nephi for Sunday school. It was the most powerful thing for me to study and then teach. I loved every second. When Nephi says that he knows in whom he has trusted... I realize that is the exact situation I am in. I trusted in God once when I put in my mission papers... and again when I received the call to this mission, again when I learned Slovene (obviously 10000 times in between) and now I am showing Him that I trust Him still. "I used to love to choose and see my path but now... LEAD THOU ME ON!" I could never have chosen so well. I am so thankful my life is not mine. I am loving His plan for me. It is so so so hard but the greatest. I know in whom I have trusted, and I will continue to trust Him.
It was just a really good week. I feel like I personally overcame so many things. Even better, I watched others do the same. I love being a missionary in Croatia. My companion is perfect. Things really could not get better! I love you all! Have a good week!
Sestra Higgins