Vreme se spreminja - Sept. 28th, 2015

Dobro Jutro Family!

We officially hear about transfers this week and I am a little nervous for what could happen. 6 months in Maribor...so we will see what happens. Sister Christensen and I are really excited to work hard this last week of transfers. The weather has officially turned to fall. It has been really wet and getting out the coats again. As far as this week...we had another exchange and I went to Kranj with Sister Duffy. It is her first transfer and she has a lot of energy for missionary work and it was great to work with her. She also was a voice major at byu and sings like an angel. So....it was really great to have some fun singin time together during dinner times. We also saw some miracles over exchanges. I have only been to Kranj and worked there once before, but Heavenly Father led us right to a girl who I met last time I was there. They had lost contact with her because she went on vacation and we were going in for lunch when we decided to go talk to two more people who we had passed. SHE WAS ONE OF THEM! IT was amazing to see how the Lord led us to her and she is still willing to get together.

We also went tracting and sat down with this old man and his daughter and about half way through the lesson he goes to a back room and gets a giant box (about printer size) and shows us what was inside.... an ancient Slovene bible, the size of 4 quads stacked ontop of eachother and the length of a cookie sheet. The slovene was also old and he can barely read it because it is in its 'original' form. It was CRAZY! He let us take a picture too, I will send it next week. I felt like I was in an ancient Slovene museum.

Also last week on transfers tracting, we coaxed a run away dog back into its fence with a bag of beef jerky. (The first and only time I have ever had that on hand while trackting...Sister Nydeggar got it in a package that very day.) Pretty inspired purpose.

We also had a super sweet member feed us a delicious meal after our english/slovene lesson with her. She is the kindest woman with a testimony of stone and I always love seeing her. There are not many members in maribor, about 6 that come to church, but they sure are amazing people.

We also had a really great sacrament meeting yesterday and after studying the sacrament this week I was amazing to feel the truth that we can truly enjoy and feel the saviors love during the sacrament if we have been preparing throughout the week. Let us all prepare for conference as well!! I am so pumped! Go tell random people that God has called a prophet, every day and you will be amazed at how excited you are to hear from them!!! haha. :)

Have an amazing week! I love and pray for you all!

xoxo

Sestra Rhodes

Ljubljana and Back! Sept. 21st, 2015

Zdravo spet!

Čas leti!! Time is flying over here. We find out about transfers in just over a week and I am a little nervous. I have been in Maribor for 6 months! Crazy. I love this place and I fear if I ever have to move I will not understand the different dialects. But, come what may and love it. :)

This last week was great. We had zone conference in Ljubljana, then switched companions for exchanges and Sister Nydegger came to Maribor with me for a day and a half, then we went back to Ljubljana for District Conference. So exchanges first: We went out to tract in that outside city again and had a lesson with a family out there! It was pretty dark and we were about to head home, but we decided to go back to this one house (who had previously invited us to come back) and we had about 15 minutes with them. We got to know them a little and prayed with them and though it wasnt the best of lessons...the best part...they said we could come back to share more! This family actually just moved into the area about a month ago, and the original family we were teaching moved out. The Lord works in mysterious ways, but I am really hoping for these guys! They were super awesome and I cant wait to go back this weekend!

District Conference was also awesome. It is all the members in Slovenia (who can afford to come) come to Ljubljana and President Grant comes and we heard some amazing talks, felt the spirit together, snacked together, and praised in song together! I love being around the members. They are pioneers and they make my faith stronger just by seeing their faithfulness despite the low numbers of members around them. It was a really great meeting and we had a push for missionary work via the internet. It is interesting to see how missionary work is changing because of the capablities of sharing the gospel through the internet!

So one more exchange with the sisters in Kranj this week and a lot of work to do here in Maribor. Here is to another good week wherever you are in the world right now! I love you all!

Sestra Rhodes

ps, we have been studying and practicing teaching people how to pray lately and I am constantly reminded how important it is and how we can always be giving it a better effort. The book 'Every Member a Missionary' has a great chapter on teaching prayer and I invite all of you to read it and think about how your prayers are going! IT has helped me a TON! xoxo

Sestra Nydegger and me rockin the florals. 

Stumbled upon this while tracting! 

čivabčiči (cheevabcheechee) - Sept. 14th, 2015

	6:09 AM (2 hours ago)
Pozdravljeni!

Great to hear from you all and how life is going. Life here is still on the move. Slovenia is really picking up and there are quite a few people on date for baptism!! Not in Maribor...yet. But our zone as a whole is really seeing blessings and people are prepared here. Some highlights of this week: Two member meals??? We went and helped a member wash her walls in her apartment (which is about all the people that can fit in there. It is the smallest apartment and hardly any space to live in...yet she gives everything, including a meal to the two sister missionaries.) She is such a sweet member and taller than I! How great is that? There are actually quite a few tall people over here. The second member meal was at our branch mission leaders house. His wife is from Austria and she made a beautiful austrian meal for all the missionaries. So spoiled! I look up to the members so much and cherish the time I get with them! 

We also had a really successful picnic on Saturday! We invited all the members and aaaall our investigators from the time I have been here and before. We had practically an entire Elders quorum there! They played American football and then we all played frisbee together, bbq of Slovenian food (civabcici...which is actually bosnian sausage sendvič things), and great people. The BEST part...there is a teenage kid and his family who live in maribor. Sestra Robertson and I met them right when I got here and we have stayed friends on the street. We see them a lot and we had been praying for their teenage boy who showed some interest. Well, when we went to play in the park...we saw their whole family! He came and played with us and even came back to the bbq site to get some food. THEN (it gets better) he asked if it would be weird if he could come ot church??? Haha. Oh yes. It would probably be weird for you. But we will rejoice!!! AND EVEN BETTER .... HE CAME!!! He is only 15 and a half but such a great kid and the Elders are starting to teach him this week. That whole family is on their way to the temple I tell you. 

We also met a super awesome mom from Brazil who set up to meet with us again and just wants to teach her family how to be strong together and even said she is thinking maybe she has to change in order to teach them the right way...sounds like a dream of a lesson coming up! We get to teach her on Tuesday and I am really excited. 

So that is the quick update. Sister Christensen and I just have a few weeks left of this transfers .... time is FLYING! So we have really got to work hard and see some miracles over here in maribor. Warning: awesome things coming up in next weeks email. 

Love you all and pray that you hold strong to what you know! 

xoxoxo

Sestra Rhodes

If Life Was In Transfers.... Sept. 7th, 2015

Servus družina in ostali!

If life was measured in transfers...our lives would go even faster than they already do. We alre more than half way through this transfer and it is going to be a very busy three and a half weeks. Sister Christensen and I still have to do exchanges with 2 companionships and we have another zone conference in Ljubljana in two weeks...and we just got back from zagreb again. I should really start learnign croatian already.

Shoutout to Baby Will. Welcome to the fam bud. He doesn't know what he signed up for in this fam. ;)

A quick update on life here in Slovenia: Person from person, house to house, and two activities this month. We are searching and finding. There are some really promising people who said we could come back next week that we found outside of Maribor in the areas we already went through, and we got to have a young women's activity! It was great! We made granola bars together (shoutout to Kar) and decorated notebooks for school. We had two sisters come (the only yw in our branch) AND an old investigator! The one who's mother did not want her to investigate anymore! She is so awesome and I was so happy she came! A really great bunch of girls and it was one of the highlights of my weak. We also have a branch picnic this week and are encouraging everyone to invite their friends, so we are praying for good weather and lots of new investigators! It is going to be great and in my favorite park ever. Mestni Park, Maribor. It is giant, and green and very beautiful. Google that. I'll try to send some pics. I secretly never want to leave Maribor . . . not yet anyway.

So it is turning out to be a great this week and we have found a little more energy and drive so I am ready too find these prepared people this week!

One of my favorite parts of this week? We live RIGHT by a school and on the first day of school this week, we were in the middle of companion study about to pray and the loudest, most intense yodeling that I have ever heard would not stop. We wanted to pray multiple times, but then had to laugh because it was sooo loud and random and something that would only happen in Slovenia. The best part? IT was a live event. There was an actual human performing for the first day of school. Really great start to the day. Haha.

I love and pray for you all and hope you have an amazing week!

Love,

Sestra Rhodes

The Arsjenuk sisters and our amazing investigator Vita

Granola bars and binder decorating for YW!