We had a wonderful conference getting to know our new mission president and his family.
President Kohler is a younger man with his wife and two teenage kids along. Each bore their testimony and shared what a challenge it is to make such a huge transition for the next three years. Sister Kohler explained that they had known for a year that her husband was on a short list to be called to a German speaking mission.
He has made a career with the church as a director of the Provo MTC curriculum. He majored in German, having originally served in the Frankfurt Mission. The family was told to keep it a secret from extended family and friends. So while their sixteen year old son was looking forward to his senior year in high school, he knew that would not happen. He had to listen to his friends making plans and saying nothing. Their daughter would have started high school this Fall. Sister Kohler decided it would be prudent for her to take German 101 at BYU. They are such a talented and spiritual family.
When they spoke to us, they had been here just 10 days and reeling from all the changes. As I listened to her describe her efforts at shopping, getting lost, and weeping a lot I remembered back to our first week. There is a saying in German "Aller Anfang ist schwer ". Which means all beginnings are hard. But as those who have a firm foundation in the Gospel, you rely on Heavenly Father, gird up your loins, and even with tears in your eyes persevere forward.
It was sad to see the Miles leave. It is sad to see favorite missionaries leave ( I know, we are not supposed to have favorites) and know that you will most likely never see them again. Your heart goes out to their bittersweet feelings of leaving behind the best experience of their lives so far.
We made contact with the Millers (Spokane Stake) serving in Slovakia on a humanitarian mission. It's fun to reach out to other members of our stake serving. We have different challenges, but the commitment and love for the Lord is the same. There is a shared understanding of our purpose and concerns. We are very fortunate to have three other couples serving in our zone.
We have a couple in Salzburg, Innsbruck, and Klagenfurt. We love seeing each other at zone conference and at our weekly Zoom meetings with our Institute director. Yeah for technology!
We continue to enjoy amazing teaching experiences, success with the YSA group, and making contacts that endure. There are currently five investigators in the Linz ward that are making wonderful progress. I have been working with a YSA young lady on a quilt. It's wonderful to get into a creative mode as a service. The big challenge is that there are very few selections of quilting fabric. Wow! Had I had a crystal ball, I could have brought the dresser full of fabrics I left at home.
Last week we taught Mohammed (we used another young Iranian investigator who speaks perfect English to translate) the Word of Wisdom. After listening, he pulled out his cigarette pack and lighter and handed them to the sister missionaries. He has not smoked since, after 15 years of smoking. His faith is enormous and totally sincere! We love this humble man!
Bis später...
Elder and Sister Didenhover
ps:
After our monthly zone meeting in which we had to prepare a 30 minute discussion, we celebrated by eating at favorite restaurant in Salzburg. We shared a meal for 2 which served us four. We splurged with dessert as you can see. My huge bowl in the picture is mostly fresh berries and fruit with some ice cream at the bottom and whipped cream on top. Very Fancy decorations! John opted for the decadent chocolate delight, of course.
President Kohler is a younger man with his wife and two teenage kids along. Each bore their testimony and shared what a challenge it is to make such a huge transition for the next three years. Sister Kohler explained that they had known for a year that her husband was on a short list to be called to a German speaking mission.
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| President D. Brian Kohler and his wife, Cheri C. Kohler |
He has made a career with the church as a director of the Provo MTC curriculum. He majored in German, having originally served in the Frankfurt Mission. The family was told to keep it a secret from extended family and friends. So while their sixteen year old son was looking forward to his senior year in high school, he knew that would not happen. He had to listen to his friends making plans and saying nothing. Their daughter would have started high school this Fall. Sister Kohler decided it would be prudent for her to take German 101 at BYU. They are such a talented and spiritual family.
When they spoke to us, they had been here just 10 days and reeling from all the changes. As I listened to her describe her efforts at shopping, getting lost, and weeping a lot I remembered back to our first week. There is a saying in German "Aller Anfang ist schwer ". Which means all beginnings are hard. But as those who have a firm foundation in the Gospel, you rely on Heavenly Father, gird up your loins, and even with tears in your eyes persevere forward.
It was sad to see the Miles leave. It is sad to see favorite missionaries leave ( I know, we are not supposed to have favorites) and know that you will most likely never see them again. Your heart goes out to their bittersweet feelings of leaving behind the best experience of their lives so far.
We made contact with the Millers (Spokane Stake) serving in Slovakia on a humanitarian mission. It's fun to reach out to other members of our stake serving. We have different challenges, but the commitment and love for the Lord is the same. There is a shared understanding of our purpose and concerns. We are very fortunate to have three other couples serving in our zone.
We have a couple in Salzburg, Innsbruck, and Klagenfurt. We love seeing each other at zone conference and at our weekly Zoom meetings with our Institute director. Yeah for technology!
We continue to enjoy amazing teaching experiences, success with the YSA group, and making contacts that endure. There are currently five investigators in the Linz ward that are making wonderful progress. I have been working with a YSA young lady on a quilt. It's wonderful to get into a creative mode as a service. The big challenge is that there are very few selections of quilting fabric. Wow! Had I had a crystal ball, I could have brought the dresser full of fabrics I left at home.
Last week we taught Mohammed (we used another young Iranian investigator who speaks perfect English to translate) the Word of Wisdom. After listening, he pulled out his cigarette pack and lighter and handed them to the sister missionaries. He has not smoked since, after 15 years of smoking. His faith is enormous and totally sincere! We love this humble man!
Bis später...
Elder and Sister Didenhover
ps:
After our monthly zone meeting in which we had to prepare a 30 minute discussion, we celebrated by eating at favorite restaurant in Salzburg. We shared a meal for 2 which served us four. We splurged with dessert as you can see. My huge bowl in the picture is mostly fresh berries and fruit with some ice cream at the bottom and whipped cream on top. Very Fancy decorations! John opted for the decadent chocolate delight, of course.
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| Great day! |
