New Beginning

Elder Nielson and I at Schloss Solitude

In front of a church, pretty common when you walk the streets of Germany:)

*Kaleen writes:

Yesterday, we went to Lindon to the Homecoming talk of Elder Moon who just arrived home the day before.  He served with Jason for the last 5 months as Zone Leader in Stuttgart.  When some of the missionaries there heard Jason was being transferred to Vienna and working with a missionary from Spain, they knew his name was Elder Gomez.  This got Roger to thinking about an Elder Gomez who was his District Leader in Spain, 40 years ago.  He remembered him being tall and a very enthusiastic missionary from the Canary Islands (just off Spain). So he asked Jason today in his letter if his new companion had any connection to the Canary Islands.  This is his reply.  

"You won't ever believe it!! I have just talked with Elder Gomez Torio (my companion) and we have figured out that the Elder Gomez who you served with is his Dad!!! He is tall and has green eyes, He grew up in the Canary Islands and was converted when he was 17 or 18 and at 19 went on his mission. So we are pretty sure it is him!  We will have to double check and you can too but how neat is that! 40 years later, both of the sons are now working together in Austria!!!  If this really is true, this connection, how neat it is! We are serving together and we hope to do as you two have done in the past. How neat it is to think on that and it will gives us motivation and we know we will receive help and see many miracles with our time together. 

I love you and thanks so much for your love and support. Oh man, we are so excited for this next week, how neat it would be if this is true!! :)"  

Elder Jason Jerman

 I sure loved Stuttgart!! 

June 23, 2014

New Beginning

Family!!

So great to here from you today! What a beautiful day, its good to be alive and living another day! I have made it safely to Vienna and excited to be here and starting anew. It will be a change in many ways but I am grateful for this time right now on my mission to recommit myself, set new goals and visions. There is still much to accomplish and I am grateful that I am here serving the Lord. There is nothing better I could be doing.

So I will first go over the last days in Stuttgart and then move on to the adventure I have already had here in Vienna. On Monday night we had an appointment which fell out so we had our back up plan to go by on a less active in the area and it was quite the night trying to contact on the street as hardly no one was out. They were all watching the game, but I must say it was a neat atmosphere to experience on every corner people watching the game and cheering on their team. Its neat something like that can bring a nation together. We did actually have an unexpected opportunity to serve come up. There was people from another religion carrying bags of clothes and such to load up to deliver and we asked to help out. So neat that the Lord gives us unexpected opportunities to serve, we must be humble enough to recognize them and act upon it. My last day got to have one last appointment with Lilliana and her family. It went really well and it was neat to see the progress she has made in the last little while. She is well into the Book of Mormon and is starting to understand the doctrine really well. As we read one passage, she explained to us how she is convinced that it is true and knows it is the right way. I am excited for her and her future, I know all will be well along with all the others. Its sad saying goodbyes and as you look back on the time and those you had the opportunity to serve and teach, its neat to see what actually they taught you and how my testimony was strengthen from them.

On Thursday, zipped up the bags and was off for almost a full day of travel across our mission to Vienna. It was fun being able to go through Rosenheim and having memories come back into mind. We got into Vienna that night and it all began. I will be serving in 3rd ward in Vienna. There has just been two elders here and they are now spilt up (but both still here) and we have now 4 Elders. I am serving with Elder Gomez Torio from Toledo Spain. We talked, but we will have to double check but we believe that our dads served together in Spain!! What a miracle and small world if it is true! To be together now at this time and to do just as those in the past have done, share the gospel to Gods child whoever they may be and bring them back to their loving Heavenly Father.

We have had some really great last few days. I am so grateful to work with him and learn from his example. This weekend for our ward, they celebrated 40 years of being a ward and 30 years in the ward building. What a special time to have them come together and celebrate it. We had a celebration activity on Saturday where members came and also brought friends. Great to speak with them and get to know them both. Then Sunday was also a special meeting and there was one who came back from the Saturday party. His name is Orlando and we actually have grown a good relationship with him, so after church we went with him to the family who invited him. We discussed with him and he had questions and it was neat to have the members answer and bare their testimonies to him. There is no better way to do missionary work. How great it is to have the members be the big part of it and feel the joy missionary work brings. I know this time here will be great as we keep working hand it hand with them. Gods work is one and as we all work together to do our part we will experience that great joy and blessings that are in store for us and our loved ones.

Have a wonderful week and I love you all so very much!

Alles gute,

Elder Jerman

Transfer Day for Elder Jerman.  He is off on the train for Vienna, Austria!   Sister Winter (same district for 6 months) stays in Stuttgart to wish the departing missionaries Good-bye.