SPIRITUAL FEAST

This week has been a busy one, full of positive experiences. I (Eileen) have felt that we have been drinking deeply out of a spiritual reservoir.   On Monday we had the opportunity to hear Elder Sabin speak at our weekly devotional.  Elder Sabin was called to be a Seventy in our church in April. He started serving in the Europe Area Presidency in August.   I feel somewhat connected to him personally due to an experience I had with him just a couple of months ago. I was sitting in church next to his wife her first Sunday in Germany. I mentioned that I recognized how many health challenges they have been through as three of their children have Cystic Fibrosis. I have a niece with the same disease and I know how difficult it has been for my sister to deal with the challenges it brings. Sister Sabin asked me if perhaps they could talk to my sister about advances that have been made in medicine regarding Cystic Fibrosis. Elder Sabin has been vice-chairman of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and is quite knowledgeable on the subject. Elder and Sister Sabin called my sister and spoke to her for 45 minutes regarding advancements in the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis. I was so impressed that they would take time out of their busy schedule to spend time with someone they did not know.

Elder and Sister Sabin

In Monday’s devotional Elder Sabin gave a marvelous talk.  He talked about some interactions he had previously with President Russell M. Nelson, a former cardiologist and an apostle for our church. Elder Nelson visited the Sabins in their home shortly after their son passed away from Cystic Fibrosis. Their daughter had just had a double lung transplant due to the same disease.  He related a story about Elder Nelson, which was especially interesting to me as a nurse. 

Elder Nelson worked on a team that made medical history: they developed the first machine that performed functions of a patient’s heart and lungs during open-heart surgery.  When Elder Nelson was first called to be a stake president in 1964 he was starting to work with aortic valve replacements.  Elder Nelson said at that time, “Mortality rates were high, and the time commitment to each patient was extremely high - almost one-on-one for many hours, sometimes days.”  When Elder Spencer W. Kimball asked Russell Nelson if he would be willing to be a stake president, he asked him if he had time.  Russell Nelson replied, “I don’t know about that, but I have the faith.” In his blessing Elder Kimball specifically blessed Russell Nelson that the mortality rates with aortic valve surgery would be reduced and that the procedure would no longer be the drain on his time and energy that it had been in the past.  The following year, the time demands of the operation did decrease and Russell Nelson had the necessary time to serve as stake president.  Eight years later this was the very operation, which he did on President Kimball when he had cardiac problems. (LDS.org bio of Russell M. Nelson)

Elder Sabin thoughtfully related this story and said how grateful he was to be in the presence of the very man who was involved with creating the machine, which allowed his own daughter’s life to be saved during her double lung transplant.

Monday evening we were able to attend a family home evening and listen to three senior missionaries bear their testimonies before they complete their mission. Sister Purdy has been one of our Area Mental Health Advisors. She counsels with missionaries who are struggling with mental health issues. Elder and Sister Berkhahn have been serving in the position of Area Executive Secretary for the Area Presidency.  Elder Berkhahn has previously been a mission president and temple president. All of the talks were inspiring.

Each Wednesday we have a weekly Book of Mormon class. We are each assigned a section and a date to teach. This week it was my turn. I taught on Mosiah 27-Alma 1. There were some great comments and discussion among my fellow senior missionaries as a part of this lesson.  This was only my third time teaching in the last five years. I enjoyed the stimulation of preparing and presenting.

After my lesson on Wednesday, Russell came and whispered into my ear, “we have been asked to give a 15 minute presentation tomorrow morning to Elder Sabin on humanitarian work in Europe.”  I was surprised that our manager didn’t give us more time to prepare.  It was a rather stressful Wednesday. I am grateful for Russell and his efforts to prepare a 12 slide PowerPoint presentation on the humanitarian work in our Area.  I helped somewhat by putting the presentation in the requested format. 

Our meeting went well. Elder Sabin listened attentively and at the end asked us “what keeps you awake at night?”  We were not prepared for this question but we both replied with the same answer. We are concerned for the couples we work with in the field.  It can be tremendously lonely to be in a country where you don’t speak the language. In many cases the couples are the only senior missionaries in their respective cities, and sometimes even the country.  I truly appreciated the kindness and concern Elder Sabin demonstrated as he talked with us regarding the challenges the couples face.

In the past week we have been able to talk with two new couples assigned to Cape Verde.  The couples will arrive in Cape Verde in the beginning of February and the end of March.  Even though Cape Verde is off the coast of Africa, it is still within our jurisdiction. Because of both the poverty and the tremendous growth of the church in Cape Verde, this will be the first country within the Europe Area where there will be two humanitarian couples serving. Both couples seem to be a perfect fit for their assignments. One of the sisters is a nurse and will be serving as the mission nurse; the other sister served a mission to Brazil and speaks Portuguese. Both husbands have tremendous talents and will be a great asset to the work in Cape Verde.

This past week we joined a gym near us. We both have gained a lot of weight in the last few years. Our current mission call and prior mission call required a great deal of sitting at a desk.  We have been consistently walking each morning, but it is starting to get quite chilly here in Frankfurt. Now we have a new schedule. We get up early in the mornings, have scripture study and then arrive at the gym and are waiting at the door as the gym opens.  We are on a very tight time schedule to get home and be ready for work by 8:30.  On Saturday, which is our day off, I was able to spend more time at the gym. I spent 3 hours there.  First the treadmill, then badminton with a fellow missionary (don’t laugh, it was fun) and then a good long swim in the pool. It was heavenly.  If nothing else I think it really helps me emotionally to exercise.  Maybe with time it will also help us to be more physically healthy.

One final surprise, which made the week wonderful, was the arrival of a new fridge. We have had challenges with our old fridge since our arrival in Germany. In an effort to fix it the thermostat has been changed; the dials have been moved to all different directions, yet it consistently froze all of our fresh food. I have had my milk, eggs, bread, lunchmeats and fruits and vegetables all freeze. Last week after having my fresh hamburger and ingredients for a Greek salad freeze between the middle of the day when I bought it and dinnertime, I finally appealed to a higher source.  Two days later we had just returned home from the gym when our doorbell rang. I opened the door to see three men with a large fridge.  They apologized for the size of the fridge and the early time of hour. I was ecstatic!  It is about twice the size of our prior fridge, and I can buy food now knowing it wont be spoiled within just a few hours.  I think Russell was amused at how excited I was.  He even mentioned “it doesn’t take much to make this senior missionary happy.”  After months of frustration with my old fridge I am thrilled to have a functioning one.   It has been a great week!