We were able to work with returning members

May 13, 2019

Jó Reggelt! (Good Morning!)

I don't have a lot of time to write today because we are in Győr and only have 45 minutes of free computer usage in the library. I don't think we are doing anything too interesting today. It is raining, and we have exchanges here Tuesday, so we came up early and then we don't have to be alone on our p-day. We will probably play card games or something. 

This past week we were able to do more work with returning members. They all have their reasons for not coming to church ranging from it is too hard to get up, being the only member in the family with a desire to attend, and devoting time to other activities on Sunday. We visited a family with the elders quorum president and that went good. As of now the mom is really the only one interested in returning, and we plan on visiting every so often so we can teach the 5 lessons. We will continue to try and work with these returning members. 

The lesson we were suppose to teach after our Google hangout didn't work out because the family wasn't home. We will have to go back later this week. This past week we tracted into a man that is about 50 years old.  He is also a musician/artist and we spoke to him about the restoration and the Book of Mormon. He was excited to come to church, but then we were disappointed when he didn't come. But we are hopeful, and we will see what happens.

Your mother's day dinner sounded good. I can't wait to come home and have food like steak again.  That will be good. That is it for this week. Have a good week.

Sok szeretettel,

   

-Elder Udy

In Pápa there is a Calvinist theology where people go who want to become ministers

May 6, 2019

Sziasztok, (Hello)

The past two days it has gotten a lot colder and it has been raining here almost non stop. We had a few people who promised they would come to church, but the rain gave them an excuse not to come. We are still meeting with our investigator that has been investigating the church for years, and earlier was planning on getting baptized in June. But he says his plan now is to get baptized next summer. It is hard to change his mind about this. He said that before he gets baptized he wants to understand the scriptures more and better keep the commandments. We will go over the commandments with him, and hopefully he will see that he is ready.

Since our p-day was on Tuesday last week, we were able to go to 2 of the 3 places you can sightsee in Pápa because they are always closed on Mondays. We went to a blue dye museum that is in Pápa. It shows how to dye fabric with all of the old machinery of the 1800s. We also visited a church/museum that is run by the Református (Calvinism) Church. They had an Egyptian exhibit that included a mummy which was cool, and then they also took us on a little tour.

In Pápa there is a Református (Calvinist) theology where people go who want to become ministers. Every once in a while we will run into some of the students that go there, and it is usually an interesting conversation. Whenever we try and talk about new revelation and the Book of Mormon, they always shut it down on the basis that the Bible contains everything that one needs. To which we respond that If the Bible contains everything that one needs, then why is it that so many churches exist and why does each church interpret the Bible in a different way? They respond that it is the "work of mankind" which is exactly what our message is about-- that Christ's true church has been restored by the work of God not man. But it saddens us because even after this, they still refuse to learn more.

The Message of the Restoration

I have been really bad with pictures. I can probably google hangout Sunday, but when is good for you since you have church? Would 4 or 5 pm my time work which would be 7 or 8 am your time? About the smartphones, I have heard that those of us leaving in August won't need to buy the smartphones, that the end of August is the real cut off date, but I don't know for sure.  We will have to wait and see.

Sok szeretettel, (Lots of love)

Udy Elder

The church owns a lot in Budatétény that could be the temple site

April 30, 2019

Szervusztok,

Today we got our transfer calls and we will both be staying here in Pápa for one more transfer. Not too much exciting happened this past week. We tracted into this older woman whom we taught twice last week, and she ended up coming to church which was great.

This week our English class will start.  We made a bunch of flyers last week and distributed them to people and businesses. We even ran into a couple of high school English teachers and gave them a bunch of flyers to hand out to their students, so hopefully we can get a decent showing at our English class.

There is a place in Budapest called Budatétény where the church owns a lot that could potentially be the temple site, but nothing official has been said. It is right next to a mall that has a really cool aquarium that I went to, so I was able to recognize the place. Apparently last week they started to cut down the trees at the lot with permission, but then the local people started to get mad that the trees were going away, and then the local government said all construction/ demolition has to stop until a resolution is made. It was in the news and the church members were talking about it this past week. 

We are in the Szombathely District, so we didn't get to go to the Budapest Stake Conference. They have District conference twice a year, but it was the week right before we arrived in Pápa, so I won't be able to go. It was the first stake conference that I've missed. I have been to 3 already because I have always served within the Budapest Stake boundaries up to this point. "R" didn't come to church this past week. We are still meeting with her and hoping she will be able to come. Graduation looked like it was fun. That is all for this week.

Sok szeretettel,

Udy Elder

It was a special experience and I'm glad I was able to be a part of it

April 23, 2019

Jó reggelt kívánok!  (Good morning)

This past week we were gone a lot from our area because we went to a new missionary training in Budapest and we also had exchanges in Győr.

Gyõr, Hungary

In Győr I was with Elder Spencer, and we had a very special experience. They day before the exchange Elder Spencer and his companion met with a woman that was scared to go into her apartment because she told him there was an evil spirit that dwelt there. Then she agreed for them to visit her in her apartment the next day. We went to her apartment that is on the top floor of a tall apartment building. There was a strange feeling in the apartment. She showed us around, and wouldn't even go into the living room because she was so scared. After we checked the apartment out for a bit, we talked with her and her 2 kids in the bedroom. She said that for about 50 days they have heard the doors slam shut and open, strange sounds coming from the room, something rubbing the carpet, and other stuff. After speaking with her, we were able to use our priesthood to cast out any evil spirit that was in the apartment, and afterwards we said a prayer to dedicate the home. The spirit of the apartment felt a lot better afterwards. Then a bunch of her family members came, who had also witnessed the same sort of stuff in the apartment.  Previously they had obtained holy water from a Catholic priest and had put it around the apartment. But it didn’t stop the strange occurrences. We were able to teach them all about priesthood authority and the restoration of the gospel. 6 of the people from that family came to church on Sunday in Győr, and they said they hadn't had any problems in the apartment since we were there. It was a special experience, and I am glad I was able to be a part of it.

What is the Priesthood? Click here

An experience of a young man who used his Priesthood power 

Next week we will be starting an English class in Pápa. It is called English Connect, a program the church created to make English classes more structured. It seems really good, and it teaches people conversational English. After the 24-week program, the participants will receive a certificate of completion from LDS Business College. The class will be 90 minutes long --60 minutes devoted to English learning and then 30 minutes devoted to teaching self-reliance principles. We printed out a bunch of flyers and hopefully we can get a lot of people there next week. 

We also have been teaching a lot of people this past week about Christ’s atonement and resurrection, by using scriptures form the Bible and Book of Mormon. It was a great way to introduce the Book of Mormon to people as we talked about the atonement and resurrection. 

Yesterday we watched a lot of church history films on our little DVD player since it was a holiday, everything was closed, and there was nothing else to do. Since this will be the last week of the transfer, p-day will be on Tuesday next week. We don't know when we will be getting our new smart phones exactly, but we were told that during zone conference next transfer we will get a lot more information. 

-Elder Udy

This past week was great!

April 15, 2019

Jó Reggelt!

Elders Udy and Bridges at the Györ zoo

This past week was great! We had two investigators in Church.  One of our investigators is a man from Mongolia. He first came to church in Pápa a few weeks ago and we were finally able to meet with him a couple of times last week. He is about 50 years old, and he has a wife and kids in Mongolia. He knows the church very well. He has attended church and met with missionaries in both Mongolia and Budapest. He moved to Pápa about a month ago with a group of Mongolians that work in a factory, and he is the interpreter for them since he speaks fluent Hungarian.  He is fluent because he lived in Hungary during his youth. We set a baptismal date for later this month. He is a really cool guy, and we are excited for him to get baptized.

We had Zone Conference and Interviews this past week.

Elders Gardner and Udy waiting for interviews

A member in the Budapest Stake Presidency was in our zone conference for a Q&A about how to do missionary work with the church members in Hungary. It was very insightful, and he stressed the importance of being excited about the work when around members so the same excitement can spread. 

Members here are very excited about the temple. It took everyone by surprise except President Hettinger. He shared with us an experience-- Ever since the Friday before general conference, he knew that there was going to be a temple announced in Budapest during general conference because he received a spiritual impression and on Sunday when they announced the temple, it was a spiritual confirmation to him. I have heard that the Church bought a sight for the temple a few years ago, and it is in a very noticeable and accessible location in Budapest. But we don't know where it is, not even the Budapest Stake President knows where the temple sight is.

We were able to teach the single mom I mentioned last week, and we taught her about the restoration of the gospel. She didn't come to church which was sad, but we will be going back to visit her this week so maybe next week she will come. This will be the last week of the transfer so next p-day will be on Tuesday. My guess is that we will both stay here in Pápa.

- Elder Udy  

The big announcement...a temple in Budapest, Hungary!

April 8, 2019

Jó Reggelt! (Good Morning)

This past week we met with some of our investigators to help them prepare for general conference. We had a couple come and watch one session with us and others said they will watch it later.. We watched two of the sessions in Hungarian and the other two in English. We didn't watch the Sunday afternoon session because of the time change, so we didn't hear the big announcement until this morning that the church will build a temple in Budapest, Hungary. I was not expecting that, and I thought a temple in Hungary would be a long way down the road, but the Lord has blessed the people of Hungary and will continue to bless them as they build and receive one of the houses of the Lord on the Earth. Maybe I will come back when it is completed in 5 years or so. It probably will serve the people of Hungary and also the surrounding countries like Romania and all the countries in south eastern Europe. Learn more about temples here
Watch 2 apostles lead a tour of the recently built and dedicated Rome, Italy temple...

Other than that we met with a woman who was taught by missionaries last year. She is a single mother of 5 kids. She works really hard trying to provide for her family and has a lot of faith. She has been to a lot of churches and said that our church or faith is the "purest" that she has come across. Before she gets baptized she wants to learn more. She said she will come to church and bring her 5 kids.

One of the talks I liked from general conference was from Neil A Anderson. He talked about how we can discern truth in a world where we face information overload. He said that "The scriptures, our prayers, our own experiences, modern prophets, and the gift of the Holy Ghost bring us a clear spiritual perspective of truth necessary for our journey here on earth." If we use these things, we can discern eternal truths that can help us in this mortal life.  (You can listen to Elder Anderson's talk below...)

Sok szeretettel,  (Lots of Love)

Udy Elder

We had 2 investigators in church

April 1, 2019

Sziasztok mindenkinek! (Hi everybody!)

This past Sunday we had 2 investigators in church. One of them has a baptismal date, and the other one is a 23 year old female. She was first found by missionaries last year, and we have started to teach her again. She has a testimony of the Book of Mormon and we invited her to be baptized. She said she was already baptized Catholic and doesn't feel the need to be baptized again. So of course we explained what it means to know the Book of Mormon is true. We will continue to work with her and maybe watching general conference will help her realize she must be baptized. We had a handful of lessons with new people and a handful of other planned appointments fall through.  That's just how the work goes sometimes. 

This past week we found a 13 year old boy named M. Last year he was living with his Aunt in Miskolc and the missionaries taught them and M was baptized in March, but later he moved back with his mom to Pápa. We visited his house and met his mother. He is the only member of the church in his immediate family, so he will need a lot of support form the missionaries/branch if he is to return and stay in activity. He actually lives on the same street as the meeting house which is very convenient. He has not yet been to church in Pápa, and he has lived here for a while. We are excited to take him to church to meet the branch members. 

Right outside Pápa there is a NATO airbase and about 400 people are stationed there including 150 American air force men. So we run into Americans every once in a while which is always fun. We ran into the chaplain who is stationed at the Air Base.  He is from Montana, and it was fun to talk to him. We gave him our information so he can tell people at the base about our church services.

I forgot to mention but a couple of weeks ago we did a service project in Pápa as a branch, and we picked up up a bunch of trash along the road.  We filled 14 bags. We got to wear the yellow Mormon helping hands or "Mormon Segítő Kezek" yellow vests which was pretty cool. 

  I haven't seen the church's Easter video yet, but I'm sure it will be in Hungarian. There is a little Easter lesson outline prepared for missionaries that we are supposed to use throughout the month. Easter Sunday is emphasized similar to how Christmas was emphasized last year. We are to try and get as many people as possible to church on Easter, and it is supposed to be centered on Christ. That is crazy that Elder Running and I played together in the Folkman's house.

Sok szeretettel, (Lots of love)

Udy Elder