Week 75

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Dear Family,

Well this is it. The last email I will send you as a missionary! Like talk about nutty. We had one program this morning and then we have 2 later today and that will be the end of my missionary work here in Hungary. This is so strange.

Get ready for some sappyness. 

So this week was super hard work wise, well no everything wise. Because it was a holiday everyone left the capital so a lot of our investigators couldn't meet and for some reason finding was not very fruitful this week. It was rough, not going to lie. With trying to keep my thoughts focused on the work and keep from being trunky. At some points I totally felt like a failure of a missionary. so that was rough. But the Lord is so aware of all of us. Throughout the week at random times (in an art musuem on the holiday, a member texting, during language study, during the firework show) He kept giving me confirmations that I served my mission well. That he was proud of me and the work that I was able to accomplish here in Hungary was what he sent me here to do. They were such small, powerful, spiritual moments throughout the week. I am grateful that I got to go through this hard week inorder to obtain those treasured spiritual moments. It was how I always imagined it would be. Getting the confirmation from the Lord that I did what he sent me here to Hungary today. I love my mission. I am so grateful for this year and a half when I have had the oppertunity to serve the Lord with my whole heart, might, mind, and strength. I don't want it to end. You know it is so true. The joy you receive from sharing the gospel and helping to bring Heavenly Father's Children until him is like no other. 

I love you all and of course I am so excited to see you!!!

Don't judge me too hard if I can't carry on a conversation any more. Like I have no idea what normal people talk about when they talk.

See ya on the other side :)

Sister Grigg

Oh yeah church was super good this week.   Barnabás who got baptized last transfer passed the sacrament and spoke in church. It was so neat to see the progression in him. He is also getting a calling on Sunday. The enduring to the end part so totally the best part and sometimes we are priviliged to see it for like month. It is so neat.

The relief society here loves me so they had me bare my testimony and say the closing prayer it was super cute. I have totally gained a testimony of relief society here in Buda. seriously. before my mission wasn't really a fan. I always went but like I thought it was kind of lame. but here i really understand the purpose of it and have seen how it can help. I love my mission. It isn't possible to write it all down. 

ok now I am done.

Week 74

Monday, August 18, 2014

Dear Family, 

no time to write this week. because wednesday is a huge holiday here that is our pday next week and so we can only email and shop today and email time is cut down short. but the point is it was a good week. i love you all. and wish you a happy st. istvan's day!!!

Love you! 

Sister Grigg

We went to Esztergom last week on pday. Behind us is slovakia!!! say what.

it was a beautiful cathedral. 

Week 73

Monday, August 11, 2014

We were led by the spirit to a super cute family this week. so that was awesome. 2 week old baby and they want us to come back again in 2 weeks. everyone is traveling to the balaton right now. nbd. 

ok well sorry for the short email! 

Have a great week everybodayyy!!!

Sister Grigg

what? like how cool is this picture? fine, I am so artsy.

Week 72

Monday, August 4, 2014

So the nuttiest thing ever happened this week. Tuesday it was pouring rain. Our programs for that day had either dogged or cancelled so we had 3 hours of finding to do after dinner. We walked out of our apartment and it started down pouring. so we said a prayer asking were we should go tracting. we all felt like we should go this one way. so we went. had terrible luck. no one was letting us in even into the building. we kept going up the hill tracting the buildings we felt prompted too. It was approaching the time when it wouldn't be ok to keep ringing doorbells and on the comps goes lets do this last building. no luck. right across the street was a pretty yellow one so I said last one and then we go streeting. and this young guy answers and we told me we were doing a survey could we ask him a few questions and he said sure. (and we have permission to go into a guys home the first time if we get let in while tracting) he asks to switch to english because it turns out he goes to college in LA. he said we had perfect timing because he just wrote an essay about our religion. I was like Mormons? because most people in Hungary have no idea. He asked how we knew to come and I told him that we had prayed about where we should go and the Lord led us here. He goes oh know why it is because my dad is mormon. I said I had no idea. So we talk to the kid for awhile and then his dad (who is less active) comes home and we introduce our selves asked who sent us. I said God. We prayed asking were we should go and got lead here. He says nothing and walks into the kitchen. I was like oh he is going to kill us. Turns out he is a world reknown spine surgeon and they had a beautiful home. He comes back with super classy beverages and then sits down and we all start talking. It turns out he was the first branch president in Hungary. He was the only church member in the country when Hungary was dedicated for missionary work so he was with Elder Nelson when he dedicated Hungary and they are still good friends. 2 months before he had dinner with the Mission president and Stake president and their wives. His son had no idea about any of this. We had no idea about any of this. He tells us his whole story that his son had never heard before. Turns out his wife was the first person baptized in Hungary after WWII. the son had no idea. He told us why he is inactive. He did so much for the church here in the beginning it is so sad he is less active. The spirit was so strong while he was telling his story. It was such a blessing to be there. I know that it wasn't by chance that we knocked on his door and that the Lord led us there. Gave him that oppertunity to bare his testimony to his son. It was amazing. I know I still have 3 weeks left here, but it was like the Lord's way of telling me that I did what he wanted me to do here in Hungary. I love the feeling of following the spirit. Because of that I really feel like I have been a successful instrament in the Lord's hands here in Hungary. Obviously I am excited for the last 3 weeks!!! 

Have a good one!
Sister Grigg

gellert hegy
 just missing one set of elders and that is all of us in the buda ward

Here's the new companions. I know that you all have been dying for a picture! 

Sister Cox (the greenie) me and Sister Magda

Last pday we went to Gellert hegy, which is the place where Hungary was dedicated for missionary work. In the mountain there is also a church cave. So we took a tour of that. It was really cool.

These were our favorite elders last transfer out of the tons that are here in the city. And then this is one of their investigators that is getting baptised this Saturday. How cool right?

Week 71

Monday, July 28, 2014

Dear Family, 

This week was really good. Transfers were nutty. We helped the assisstants take the new missionaries out streeting, with Sister Fowers leaving, and other meetings it was all nutty. It was a neat experience to help them out streeting their first time though. 

My new missionaries name is Sister Cox. She is from a tiny little town in Southern Utah. She is great. Wants to work hard and is eager to get a hang on being a missionary here. Sister Magda and I picked up from where we left off even though it has been like 10 months since we served together last. nutty. and we were in a tricompanionship then too. 

The transfer has started off pretty well. We met with a few people that Sister Fowers and I had found the previous week, and two of them are already progressing so well! It was really neat to see. One woman told us about how she has been having nightmares and since we gave her the Book Of Mormon she has been reading every single night and hasn't had any since then. How cool is that? The Book Of Mormon helps in all kinds of ways! 

Sad day. Our most progressing investigator that came to church last week for the first time absolutely hate church and then this week when we meet with her told us that she is done with all of this. So sad. 

An area seventy spoke in the Buda ward this week (perks of serving here :)), and it was so neat. He talked about what the Hungarian saints need to do to be preparing for a temple here in Hungary. 

Love you all! and Have a great week! 

Sister Grigg 

Week 70

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Dear Family,

We had a good week! Sister Fowers is leaving me for America. I can't believe she is going home. These past 9 weeks have been some of the best 9 weeks of my mission!! I love her so much, but in 6 weeks we will be reunited at BYU so it is fine. 

I staying Sister Training Leader here in Buda, but it is going to be soo different. I don't have a companionship who is also a sister training leader. Instead I am getting a new missionary. So I will be training again. And then I am getting another companion. so back to the tricompanionship days. President doesn't know how it is going to work yet with splits and things like that. 

We had an investigator come to church right for the first time, and she was our most progressing investigator right now.. Accepted a bap date this week, but she absolutely hated church so we will see what happens. So interesting that some people feel the spirit so strongly in church and yet someone else who listens to the same talks absolutely hated it. 

My favorite investigator ever dropped us this week. It was soo sad. Through a text message too. We were tracting and no having much luck. Then we got the text and then 2 doors later we got let in by the cutest mom ever with her 9 month old son. So that was really perfect. Such a good program and we are going back in a week. We gave out a few more book of mormons than usually and all the people we so happy and surprised to ge them. They were so grateful so it was such a great feeling to give them out! We focused a lot on the spirit this week in finding and we had a lot less success, but the quality was a lot better. So that was cool.

An area seventy came and did a fireside here and since we serve in the city we got to be invited. It was so cool. Very spiritual uplifting meeting. 

Love you all and have a great week!
Sister Grigg

Week 69

Monday, July 14, 2014

Dear Family,

It was a great week! We went to Győr and gave a training. It was the nuttiest day ever. We went to one train station and missed  train so then went all the way across Budapest to a different station and magically caught a train their that was faster so we only made is 5 minutes late to the Zone Training!! Heavenly Father really is watching over us. 

The Spirit was a big help this week too. One of our investigators we hadn't had contact with in a week and so we decided to go see her. We set aside time but then felt like we should go early but we already had another program scheduled. We cancelled it and went and saw and put her on bap date! It was a good thing that we went when the spirit told us to because she wouldn't have been home at the earlier time. 

We went tracting and it was super rough that day. We kept getting yelled us and so we were trying to find a good building and finally got let in to a building. And we had a short program with an older woman who totally was just being nice and let us in. We were putting english fliers in the mailboxes on the first floor and were going to walk out but then we felt like there was somewhere else in the building. So we went to the elevator (which was suuuuuper sketchy) and went to the top floor, but it wouldn't let us get off so we went the the next one and the first door we knocked on the woman said no, but we kept talking and then she let us in. Turns out her sister is a church member in Romania. And she promised she would come to church in 2 weeks while we were there. It was cool because we really felt like we were an answer to this woman's sister's prayers.

Some other cool things with the spirit happened this week too. but no time!

Love you all and have a great week :)

Sister grigg

Here are 1 pictures from Barnabás's baptism 1 week ago. He was so funny and kept joking around that he was going to jump over the railing into the font and get baptised that way.

Week 68

Monday, July 7, 2014

Happy Birthday America!!! (and to Katie)

We spent 4th of July in Hungary with a Mexican eatting tacos. It's fine. haha

It was such a good week!

Barnabás got baptised! He is literally one of the most prepared people ever! The baptism was so perfect and then his confirmation yesterday was even better! There were such wonderful things in it about his life and the temple and eternal families. It was great. 

We went on splits again this week, and I went with a Hungarain. It was cool to spend the 24 hours with her and just speak in Hungarain. It was really fun. 

We switched our Pdays last week so on Saturday a couple from the ward took us to Skanszen (I have no idea how to spell that) it was the the Hungarian version of Sturbridge villiage. I kid you not. They had taken stuff from all around the country from the 1800s and brought it to this place. There were people in coustume blacksmithing, making bread, and other such things. It was cool. And we went to a a marczpin museum. There was Elvis made out of marczipan. how nutty is that?!

We have another investigator that is progressing nicely too so we are hoping to give her a bap date this week! 

Love you all lots!

Sister Grigg

Week 67

Monday, June 30, 2014

Dear Family,

We moved apartments this week which was a little stressful! We have a baptism on Saturday which is super exciting.

Happy Birthday to Katie and Jenny! 

I am so grateful for commandments this week! For a few different reasons.

We having been teaching an investigator at this members house once a week and on Sunday the member came up to us and told us that we should have soften the commandment of tithing and such. It was so interesting because The commandments do not come from us missionaries. We are just the messengers. The commandments come from God and the scriptures are what he says about them. And I have learned that teaching someone the commandments is a wonderful thing and that they can receive so many blessings in their life from them and that they can be free of guilt as the start repenting and living accordingly. So who are we as missionaries to deny our investigators these wonderful expereience. Sister Fowers and I have been talking a lot about this. 

I got the biggest testimony ever of Family History this week. We met with a recent convert and the ward family history consultant, and it was so cool so see her entire her family tree online. The spirit was so strong! Sister Fowers and I made the goal to spend 30minutes every Sunday when we get home doing family history. 

ok well love you all 

sister Grigg

Week 66

Monday, June 23, 2014

Dear Family, 

As with all good weeks they have their hard times. After finding out about Grandma Klein's death. I have been thinking a lot about the Plan of Salvation and the Spirit World since she is wasn't a member. Do you think that they start getting taught the gospel right away? I am so thankful for all the times that I have taught the Plan of Salvation on my mission, and I am thankful that I have a testimony of it and that I know it is true. I hope she accepts the gospel in the spirit world.

Our investigator passed the bap interview obviously. He is so prepared for the gospel. We went to teach tithing, and he goes oh I read about this online. Then in church yesterday the bishops wife talked about family history and those new cute my family packets and he goes oh I am registered on myfamilysearch. I found it yesterday and started looking for my great grandparents and filling in my family tree. Like who does that? How cool is that? He is so prepared. His baptism would have been this week, but his friends weren't going to be able to come so we pushed it back a week so his friends can come. Like how cool is that. 

We had some new people in church was is always exciting because it helps so much in their progression. 

Nutty story. We have this one investigator on bap date and he has meet with the missionaries before several times. He says he really wants to get baptised but hasn't come to church because he said his mom wont let him (he is an adult). So we went over to his house with a member to teach the mom and his mom gave him permission to go. Then we left and he says I don't want to come. I have other stuff to do. We had been thinking about dropping him because we don't necessarily really think he was progressing and so this was the end. We had already explained that he can't get baptized without coming to church. We told him that we couldn't meet anymore. And he was like I am done with the church (he has met with missionaries before) and going on and on. And then Sunday morning he showed up to church! nutty right. so hopefully he comes again next week and starts progression towards his bap date in July.

Love you all! 

Sister Grigg 

Week 65

Monday, June 16, 2014

Happy Father's Day!

This week was super good. We went on splits again withe the Győr sisters this time. It was good. We taught 2 law of chastitys but the went super well. One was with a woman so we brought a woman member there to have her talk about the blessing that she has experience in her life from living the law of chastity. I learned so much! It was so cool. I mean I already knew the obviously blessing some I have already experience and some I will in the future. She is probably in her 40s and she was saying that since she joined the church 2 years ago she hasn't had a relationship last longer than like 3 months. But it is a good then because they wouldn't have worked out anyway but it she hadn't been living the law of chastity then they probably would have dragged out and been like 2 year relationships. So it is saving her time. It was so neat to hear her testimony. I hope I explained that well.

We streeted along the Duna (danube) river this week. It actually went pretty well. It was an impromptu thing. 

We have been getting different members more involved which has been a super good thing and awesome for our investigators. We will have a Baptism in a week and a half. He is one of the most prepared guys ever! It has been the coolest ever teaching him. We like really aren't even teaching him, he is doing it all. He was the other chastity lesson. I gave him a family proclamation and he goes oh I already read this online. Like say what. And he watch some conference online, felt the spirit super strongly. He already invited people to his baptism. We didn't have to ask him too. Like how cool is that? We are finishing teaching him this week and bap interview will be this week too. We are so excited for him.

Ok well sorry for the shorter email this week. Mom was online so we emailed back and forth.

i am a babe. i know. it helps when there is the rockin background.

we went to the hospital in a rock last week. it was super neat. it is underneath Buda Castle so it like really is in a cave. I was a Nazi hospital during world war II and then it was used during the 1956 revolution... just google it.

Bogi and us after the "I am a Mormon" filming (2 weeks ago)

Sister Daniels (remember her? we served together in Szombathely) came up because she is training. She got to spend the day with us today while her new missionary was in new missionary training. It was so fun! We got permission from President to cross the river and go to Parliment. So we went and took a tour of the inside of Parliment. It was so pretty. All the English tours were sold out so we did it in Hungarian.... it was mostly understandable. some fine details like what kind or wood it was were lost on us.