The Gift

At one of the main train stations in Vienna, so neat that they have the nativity up! 

Hey Family!! 

Great to hear from you and know that all is well, especially at this wonderful time of year. There is not a better time to be a missionary and I am so grateful to be here serving the Lord every day. I will be a missionary up to the day I get released and I have learned of the importance of diligence work no matter how long or how much experience you have as a missionary. I have the same calling now than I did at the beginning and I have the same goal today as yesterday. Its been to be able to fulfill that goal daily as we diligently work in His vineyard. We had a couple neat experience that showed me the importance of that this week. The first was Thursday when we were in Salzburg for our Zone Christmas Conference, we had finished and arrived back at the train station to head back to Vienna and we had just missed our train going back and the next one wasnt coming for about an hour. So there we were, a bunch of missionaries at the train station and I wanted to do something, we didnt have our hymn books on us to carol, so we went out on the streets of Salzburg to contact. There was lots of missionaries and I worked with Elder Seamons who is in my zone right now. Its was neat to work with him again and talk with those about this special time just coming from a spiritual high, the neat thing was that we found someone who lives in our area back in Vienna! The Lord is preparing many and they are everywhere, its neat to find those and have the Lord put them in our paths or theirs in ours as we work diligently. Another experience was after our Ward Christmas Party, we still had a half an hour that night before coming home, it was cold and dark but we decided to go contacting and on the way we found a great young man who seemed very interested and accepted the Book of Mormon. As we work, we are filled with the Spirit and as we follow the Spirit we are happy as many wonderful miracles happen with the power of God. 

As you can see, we had many activities this week and they were all so good. The day before the conference we had an exchange with the other elders and neat to work with a younger missionary and let him lead in his area for the first time. We are all on the right path, some further than others but neat to be there for one another and help each other further along the path. The Thursday morning we woke up and traveled off to Salzburg and had our conference and then that night traveled back, so it was a full day but the conference was so great. Such an uplifting, spiritual time, being overwhelmed with the Spirit. We had a special surprise as President Kohler talk with us and then said we are going to watch "Meet the Mormons"! So we got to watch that and great to see how the gospel has helped all those individuals and families in their lives. The gospel was the center of what they did, and as they followed the gospel, (mainly following Christ) they were filled with joy as they served others. Something we can all do, our little part counts just like theirs does. Our ward party was also a success as we had many members there as well as a few less actives and investigators that came and got to know the ward better. 

Met with Frau Sulzenbacher and its neat to see her progression increase as she gets more serious into keeping her commitments we give her. She is reading and praying daily and you can tell a difference as she does so, now we just need to keep going and make that next step to church, but step by step we all can grow faith that will lead up to us doing the will of the Lord. 

I want to share something with you at this special time of year, we learned at the conference that the church is making an extra effort to help us all make this Christmas season special in remembering the true meaning of Christmas, namely Jesus Christ. He is the first gift that God gave us all and we are to discover, embrace and share the gift. A goal that I made for this time to help me learn of my Savior and strengthen my relationship with him is that everyday I pick a scripture about Christ and then write my thoughts down about it and then throughout the day I share it with someone we meet or in a lesson and share my testimony of my Savior. Its been a really neat experience, especially to see the Lords help in having me achieve it daily, as I am prompted by the Spirit to share it at times I wouldn't think but then having it work out. I would like to share my scripture for today with you. "And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen." 2 Nehpi 31:21 I know Christ is the way, I know it is through him that we all can return to God, what a marvelous gift that God has given us. Let us all share it with others at this wonderful time of year. I love you and hope you have a wonderful week! 

Liebe Grüße,

Elder Jason Jerman

Fun group, all that served in Stuttgart and now in Austria. At our Christmas conference.