Tender Mercies!

Liebe Familie,

We got a surprise call from Frankie this week! We suddenly lost all contact with him just before his baptismal date at the change of the transfer (about 5 weeks ago). He suddenly called this week and told us he had been out of town and will see us at church and wants to meet. GOLDEN! We met after church and invited him to be baptized. It was powerful. We sat in the Baptismal Font room (also the Priesthood Meeting room) and opened up the font and turned on the beautiful lights and had him face the font. We talked about Tithes and Offerings (he had some questions after some discussions in Priesthood....) and every gospel discussion leads to baptism, so this is where we ended. One of the members with us, Bailey, read Mosia 18:8-10 saying "Frankie" instead of each "ye". What have ye against being baptized? Nothing. He said he knew the Church is the true Church of God since his first visit. He will be baptized on Sarah June's birthday, 18 June 2011. He is ready to be baptized and to accept all that the Lord has for him.

So, transfer calls came to most of the zone the morning before Zone Conference and for those to whom it did not come, their names were read aloud by President Condie, just as in General Conference times past. :) We knew beforehand. Sister Hecht leaves Wednesday morning to Richterswil AND St. Gallen, Switzerland areas to work with two companions. Look up the distance between the two. It will be quite a task. Sister Lind, who was with Sister Hecht in Ulm, Germany just before she came to me will join me in the ward. BOTH of the Elders in Wien 4 are being transferred out and Elder Adams, one of our Assistants to the President has been asked to extend his mission (he is supposed to go home on Thursday) and train a new missionary in Wien 4. I worked with Elder Adams in Wien 2 and München 2 for longer than any of my companions. He is a good missionary. This is the transfer where our beloved President and Sister Condie will leave and President and Sister Miles will take over. I love the Condies and will do all I can to help the Miles' know they are loved and welcome. I feel so honored to have been able to serve with the Condies and to get to know them. I will visit them after my mission.

Miracles happening all over but time is cut short and I we have to go. I love you all!!!!!!! The gospel is true.

--
Sister Carla June Carroll

April 26

Liebe Familie,

Another great week! Being a missionary is just the best. I have been out for a while now, but I am still unsure each week of what I could best put in this general update to uplift and edify those who might read it. We are still meeting with the wonderful people God has helped us to find. Liang was really stressed this week and did not meet with us the first two times in the week so we dropped by his apartment (which is a pretty big deal since we are still uncertain if girls are even allowed in this building--it's a studentenheim for only guys). He wasn't home so we left a little note to tell him we care and that we hope everything is okay. He came to our next appointment and told us he really appreciated the note, then he came to church for the first time! Yay!! He liked it and had a few questions after Priesthood Meeting with the topic of the Lord's Law of Health. We talked about that with him last night. Actually last night was really interesting because we invited anyone that wanted to join us at the Institute Center for a joint teach and had 4 people join us. All bore wonderful testimony and I think all were really edified. It was a great experience. I am so grateful I get to know Liang.

We met with Faith this week and watched the Restoration DVD. We weren't even sure if she was paying attention because she was busy with the baby, but at the end we asked what she had felt and she basically recited the whole story to us. She realized what the Restoration meant and that light went on that every missionary loves to see. She got it. She asked for a DVD of her own so she can share this with her friends and then let us teach them. We are excited.

We were able to witness the baptism of Cara Vincent, granddaughter of Dr. Vincent, head of BYU's Opera department. Dr. Vincent visited and we discovered that we had many connections! His sister, Linda Vincent is from my home ward in Colorado and I already knew him because Sister Downs, one of my previous companions is very close to their family from studying opera at BYU. They have made a point to be at every single baptism of their grandchildren, even if they are living in Vienna (they lived here for 10 years and he was the Bishop of this ward, so it felt like coming home to them). The baptism was beautiful and Joe and Yankuba came! It was a beautiful way to celebrate Easter. Baptism is so truly symbolic of the Resurrection.

I am so truly grateful for the Restoration of the Gospel and the accessibility of it in my every day life. I am uplifted and strengthened daily as I read in the scriptures and pray often. I know who I am--I am a daughter of my Heavenly Father who loves me. I know this life has purpose in it and that purpose can bring me peace in this life and eternal happiness in the life to come. Most of all, I am so grateful to know that I have a Redeemer who can help me through all things (Alma 7:11-13). I truly know that I can turn to Him and He will help me through every struggle. He suffered so that He could help me. I truly know that through this Atonement of Jesus Christ I can become a happier and confident person. I know this because I have done it. I am not perfect, in fact I have a long ways to go, but I have made so much progress that surely only I can see and sometimes only progress that God knows. He wants to work with us to help us become all that we can become. Ezra Taft Benson said "Nothing is going to startle us more when we pass through the veil to the other side than to realize how well we know our Father and how familiar his face is to us" (Ensign July 1975). We can truly come to know him. That way is by receiving and acting upon Revelation through prayer, scripture study and attending church and the temple. This is truly available to everyone and the joy entailed therein is without measure. I know this gospel is true. We must all continue to search it every day and deepen our anchor of faith or else we will truly be blown about like a wave of the sea (James 1:6).

Thank you for all that you do. I love you all. I am so grateful that I am able to be here as a missionary. I am grateful to have spent 6 months here in Vienna and I just love the people here. It is so wonderful to be a missionary.

--
Sister Carla June Carroll