Love One Another

Dear Family and Friends,

It has been another exciting and wonderful week in Sweden. Fall is coming. It is starting to cool down...thank goodness because the Swedish women are starting to have a little more clothing on them...some of the time. Stockholm is beautiful still. We have been commuting back and forth between Stockholm and Södertälje this week, and all has gone well with the load we have of both of the areas we are working in. I am happy, healthy and ready for another week of work.

There have been a couple of really awesome experiences I have had this week that I will tell all of you about. The first awesome thing was Tuesday...or Wednesday. We had met a man and were meeting with him at the church for our second teach with him. He has been to many different churches and really wants to know what we believe and how we do everything in our church. Well, the first time we had met with him, we gave him The Book of Mormon to read. As we sat down with him at our second lesson, we asked him if he had time to read at all in the B of M. He proceeded to tell us that he had read 160 pages of it already. "Really?" We all said to him after that. It was awesome. He wants to read the whole book, but it was just really awesome that he is serious enough to know if it is true that he actually read in the B of M. We had a wonderful teach with him and will meet him again this week. His name is Faical by the way.

The other really cool experience we had was on our way to the church in Södertälje on Friday. We ended up leaving an hour earlier than we had planned to get to Södertälje on time. As we were on the bus with a couple of Elders who were with us, one of the Elders...Elder Ahola who is actually Finnish....started talking to a young man on the bus. Then, as we got off the bus, I contacted a man who said he would be interested to learn more and gave us his number...as well as Sis. Pierce and Sis. Swenson talked to another lady who said she would like to meet and gave them her number. I would have never guessed that there were so many prepared people on the same bus. It is so true that the Lord leads us to the people who are prepared...even when we don't know it. It was totally awesome to have that happen.

We also have a new investigator in Stockholm named James. He is totally awesome. He has sort of crazy scientist hair and he is Swedish....we really don't teach very many "Swedes." We met him one day and have met with him two other times already. He is super open and accepting of the gospel. He has read in Book of Mormon, and we are going to invite him to be baptized when we meet him again...today!!! I'm so excited for that teach. There is a really awesome newly returned missionary from Sweden who just got home from Greece who is coming to all of the teaches with James, and it makes such a huge difference!! I'm so grateful for the members and all they do to help us.

As for everything else this week....all 3 of our investigators who are going to be baptized in 3 weeks in Södertälje are doing really well. Jallah, Moses, and Dilly are all progressing, and doing very well. They are accepting of the Gospel, and they are commited to be baptized and live the gospel throughout their lives. We went to church down there yesterday and the ward in Södertälje is awesome also. They really reach out to the investigators and help the missionaries however they can. It's awesome!

I feel like this email is a little scatter-brained. I have so many things I'm thinking about, and so much going on that it's hard to write everything down, and explain it in a comprehensible way. I think the most important point of this email is to let you all know that the work of the Lord is still going forward here in Stockholm/Södertälje. We are busy again this week, and I am always trying to be a better missionary. I have so much to learn to be all the Lord wants me to be. I am grateful for the opportunity he has given me to come out here and be his tool here in Sweden...even with all of my shortcomings.

Our threesome is doing well. I love both Sister Pierce and Sister Swenson. We are enjoying teaching together and we have a lot of fun together as well. We all three love to sing...and we sound pretty good as a trio. Tonight we are teaching Family Home Evening at the Institute and we have decided to teach the Restoration of the Gospel through music. It's going to be awesome. We sing everywhere we go, and I feel so blessed to have two VERY talented companions around me all the time.

I really do enjoy the work, and I look forward to the things that are still ahead of me on my mission. I hope all of you are doing well. I hope that for all in school...that school has started well, and that you remember the Lord...even in your studies. I hope that the weather has been nice...wherever you are. I hope you know I think of all of you often, and pray that the Lord will help you all in everything. Remember to pray, and know that the Lord is aware of all we do, and will do whatever He can to help us. I look forward to hearing from all of you every week. Thanks for the support and love!

Love,

Sister Suzanne Wood

P. S. This week's Swedish word of the week is provided by Sister Pierce...it is....TUNGOMÅLSGÅVAN.....that would be THE GIFT OF TONGUES. I think it's her favorite because we all know that we have been given that gift to communicate with the people here. Oh, by the way, I'm pretty good with Swedish now. I still have a lot to learn, but I understand a lot, and can say....a lot....just like in English....poor Swedes....with talkative Sis. Wood...what will they do???