About my companion and I!

Just as a side note to a few of you about my new companion and transfer. I got a message from the mission president that he wanted to send me somewhere else but the spirit was very strong in sending me to  Arad, and let me tell you here we have the dream team.  I was really struggling in bacau because I was the most obedient one there(sadly) which really was wearing me down but here the Elders are great and it has really made a difference.  As for my companion, well she is one of those people, actually the only person I have met (not counting family) that I feel I knew in the pre-existence. She is from Quebec Canada and speaks French as her native language. If you remember when I got my setting apart blessing I was told I would be a guidance to my companions from other countries.  I served with Sora Ruiz, I was a big guide for her.. and now serving with Sora Dupont was the last person to the fulfillment of that blessing.

About three years ago I had a dream that has come full circle. I dreamed that I was at my college apartment complex (Campus Plaza) and there is a raging fire behind it on the mountain. At the base of the mountain Dad is sitting there with a garden hose trying to stop the fire and he says to me "I can hold it off for a little while." I see the fire I run and I start knocking on apartment doors to warn them, most people don't believe me that this fire is coming and irritably shut there doors to me. Some look out their window and see it and try to gather their things instead of leaving. Those few who listen to me run out of the complex safe.  The rarest person of all was the person who would listen to me then help me warn others. Then there is a girl who comes up to me to my side and says, "it is easier if you have a companion." We turn and start knocking on doors together trying to get people out, When I told this dream to Sora Dupont one morning, I remembered the girl in the dream, and it was her. I have told all of my companions this dream, because I know why I am here but never had I have the spirit confirm to me that my companion was the girl in that dream. When I told Sora Dupont I felt this girl was her she teared up and she said, "I feel it to." How crazy is that, I dreamed about my companion 3 years ago before any of us knew we were going on a mission. 

I have seen all of these responses in the people I have met here in Romania. But this was just a little confirmation to me that I was in the right place at the right time with the right people. 

-Sora Long

Chipmunks and Family pics!

Happy Mothers Day mom I hope it was a good one.  This week we were privlaged to start teaching an amazing investigator Irina.  She is soo amazing! Sora Soelberg has befriended her and invited her to take the lessons.  As we prayed to prepare for the lesson we felt we should talk about the Plan of Salvation with her.  When we got into the lesson we taught her how we pray and right after the prayer she jumped into it and asked, "Where do people go right after they die?" We told her that when we had prayed to prepare for this lesson we had felt strongly to prepare to answer this question for her.  She was really touched by that.  We went right into it and talked in depth about the plan of Salvation.  She was really interested in everything and understood it really well.  

I have never had someone ask so many questions about the plan of salvation or about anything in a lesson before.  She asked sooooo many questions!! And she shot them at rapid fire and thank the heavens my rusty gift of tongues switch was switched on.  I understood every word she said and even better I was able to answer here questions with amazing clarity.  I remember speaking and hearing the ridiculous grammar principle that I have been studying but can't seem to understand how to use yet, just pop out of my mouth with out a hesitation. It was cool cheese.  She asked if the Celestial kingdom would be on the earth, if we would all by resurrected at the same time or at different times, She asked if someone in the spirit world who didn't get a chance to hear about the gospel could still be saved.  Answer, yes.  The spirit was so strong when we talked about the spirit world. 

 I shared with her my testimony that I have gained through researching my ancestry and she really liked that even though we did not go into full blown temple work. It was a really deep lesson because she was a person that has already been prepared to accept what we say as truth and dig deeper.  It was really cool!! At the end we knelt down together and she said the sweetest prayer, she is just learning how to pray.  I cannot wait to meet with her again.  She is going to be baptized.

We also visited Georgeta a less active member here who is the cutest old lady.  She asked me how much schooling I had and I answered and said I had been at college for 4 years before my mission. She understood that as I only attended 4th grade.  So she then started to educate me about the theory of evolution and the histories behind each world war, the history of Romania, America, anything that she could talk about to try and catch me up to speed. (Literally while I was typing this she called me on the phone, weird!) It was hilarious when I explained that I had been in school for a total of 17 years, not 4:) 

I have some fun pictures from my skype call with my family: 

The Family! They are so beautiful!! 

Mom eating an Oreo in front of my face, rude, but whateve it is her day she can do what she wants:)

And a little squirrel checking out some new sheets, this was prompted by the joke that I authored and shared with my family.  Ready for it?

Q:  What happened to the little Chipmunk when he was sitting on the lawn? 

A: He got Moldova!!! 

HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAAHHAHAAHHA!!!! 

That was Sora Long from the Romania/Moldova Mission

Signing out! 

-Sora Long

Promise fulfilled in Bacau!

So first off a scripture I read at the beginning of my mission that is coming to pass here in the little city of Bacau, Romania.  D&C 33:9

 9 Yea, open your mouths and spare not, and you shall be laden with sheaves‍ upon your backs, for lo, I am with you.

Looking back on this transfer I am amazed!!! We have so many investigators that we are working with who I believed will be baptized. Including the Elders friends in this branch we have the potential of 10 baptisms.  We are pretty busy here in this city.These people are solid and have all shared about the peace that they feel when they come into the church.

This week we visited one of our new investigators. Elena and her family.  When we showed up at her house, it was filled with people!!! Some of her neighbors and family where over having a gathering.  We did not get to teach her a lesson, but we got to meet everyone their at her house.  She introduced us to everyone saying, "These are my sisters, they visit me every week and talk to me about God and Jesus Christ." Her family was pretty wary with us.  Her husband walked in and asked her quietly, "What do you think you are doing?" So we just introduced ourselves and became the best of friends with everyone there.  They absolutely came to love and understand what we were doing as missionaries.  We only stayed for 10 minutes or so, but by the end everyone was telling us that they couldn't wait to see us again. While we were leaving I commented on what an amazing family that she had and she said she could wait to introduce us to every member of her large family.  I am so excited to continue teaching her and to meet the whole family.  It is really miraculous that we have been let into her home and that she listens and love the message we have to share. In total at that house there were 6  packed into that house with 5 kids which listened to what our purpose was as missionaries.  It was a pretty cool experience.

We are also starting to teach a woman this week who Sora Soelberg has been working with.  She has attended sacrament meeting several times and stayed for all of church.  She told Sora Soelberg and us that she is searching for the truth.  And has been really involved in the lessons at church. I am so grateful that Sora Soelberg is here in Bacau, she really relates better than any other missionary.

This week I taught Sunday school about the sacrament.  And I wanted to share a really cool scripture from the Joseph Smith translation.  So I asked what the JST was, the answers were very varied and very crazy.  I found myself in a difficult spot because I knew what the JST of the bible was but I didn't know how to explain it in Romanian.  I opened my Romanian triple combination and literally the page I opened to was in the Guide in the back and had the definition of the JST in perfect Romanian.  Tender mercies.  I am sure I could have found it but the miracle that I opened it right up first thing, so cool!! Sunday School here usually consists of just reading the chapter together from the gospel Principles manual. So I tried to incorporate some fun object lessons and discussions so there wasn't so much reading.  It went so well!!! And people were laughing, which doesn't happen to often in the Sunday school weekly reading. But at the end one woman said, "We didn't read the whole chapter together so if you need to take a manual home and read it so that we are all caught up." It was hilarious!!  

First off apologies are needed!!! I am so sorry!!! I did not write on Monday due to a Zone conference.

We had so many fun lessons this week.  One was with a woman who has been attending the church for quite some time, since 2003 but has not been baptized.  When we went to her house she offered us food which I refused, but she insisted and brought us each out frozen chunks of Cozagnac.  It is a bread with chocolate and Turkish delight made for holidays.  This was what was left over from Easter.  We could not eat the bread because it was frozen so we stuffed most of it in our purses, leaving one small slice for us to chomp on. Then she brought us visignete which I had never heard of before but as she was explaining that she made it her self, I suspected alcohol so I asked her, she said, of course it doesn't have alcohol!!! She explained she wasn't even allowed to drink it because her doctor told her it was bad for her health.  So I took the cup that she poured of her Cherry juice, (which she had canned in an old beer bottle) and took a sip.  Defiantly alcoholic, like the most powerful I have ever tasted, it burned my whole mouth. (Later we discovered by talking with Andreea, that this stuff is like 50% alcohol) I turned to my companion to tell her not to drink it but it was to late, she had already swallowed a mouthful! The lady insisted that we drink it, and I said, no, it tastes like alcohol, it smells like alcohol, we can't drink it.  By the time I explained that, she had already downed her share and had forgotten that she had even given us anything to drink.  

We had some doctors come to the Bacau branch at the end of a humanitarian project.  It was so weird to be talking to a bunch of Utah Mormons! One of them was so incredibly kind and when I told her that we were not able to find any of the famous Romanian painted eggs at all in Bacau, she went out to the van and came back with two beautifully painted eggs for my companion and I.  They were so kind!! When they attended sacrament meeting we had another record showing of members at 31.  It was amazing! The group of 3 doctors had tears in their eyes as they felt the spirit from our small little gathering of people.  The church is the same everywhere.

I love you all! 

-Sora Long

 

Random small church by the local "Walmart" Kaufland

 

Elevator Selfie, happens a lot

 

Sunt Bacauana!

This week we were really trying to find a lot of members on the less active list.  When we headed to one home of an Elderly woman she was home!! That in and of it self is rare as most inactive members here in Romanian are just plain missing or moved to another part of the European Union, usually Italy. When we knocked on the door she didn't recognize who we were because she had never seen sister missionaries before in her life.  We were there with the senior couple and she had also never met a senior couple in her life.  but when she recognized us as the missionaries she welcomed us into her home and we sat and had a lovley talk with her. Her name is Georgetta and I love this woman!! She is confinded to the house due to some back problems and to be honest I think she was one of the people who feel in between the cracks and was lost for years. She had not seen a missionary in her home since 2011 and had restored back to the Orthodox church because the priest from that church will come and bless the sacrament in her home if she pays for it.  As we talked with her about the Book of Mormon and the doctrines of the church she started to remember what she felt when she first heard about it and she asked us, "Why are you bringing these feelings and questions about my beliefs back into my heart again?" It was really interesting to see her reaction to feeling the spirit from us. She told us as we left that we had brought the same spirit with us that the Elders had so many years before.  I am really excited to work with her and bring her back to the love and light of the gospel.  She is going to let us do some service in her Garden.  When I told her we could help she scoffed at Sora Draper and I and said, "But you are so delicate!" Haha!!! I quickly explained that I grew up 'La Tara' in the country as a good hardworking farm girl.

This week we also tried to meet up with another kind family that I have taught before whoa re currently inactive.  I have called them several times over the past few transfers ad they haven't been calling back also we decided to give it one more go. This time when I called she answered!!!! But she didn't say a word.  It was kind of creepy to know she was breathing on the other side of the phone while I introduced myself and waited for a response. It was kinda creepy.   I really hope and pray for this family to have a soft heart and the courage to come back to church.

This Sunday was an amazing experience! Seriously, amazing.  I had been studying in Ether 12 about faith these verses:

 15 Behold, it was the faith of Ammon‍ and his brethren which wrought‍ so great a miracle among the Lamanites.
 16 Yea, and even all they who wrought miracles‍ wrought them by faith, even those who were before Christ and also those who were after.
 18 And neither at any time hath any wrought miracles until after their faith; wherefore they first believed in the Son of God.
And the idea just smacked me in the face with a rail road tie that in order to be like Ammon and bring miracles among the people here in Bacau I really needed to show my faith more.  So I went into the other room and knelt down and I prayed with as much faith as I could muster to help bring the miracle here in Bacau. Then I went about my week and worked hard.

On Sunday we had President Ivory the mission president come down to Bacau for the first time since he has been here.  We usually have about 13-14 people at church and this Sunday we had THIRTY-SIX (36) people at church!!! 5 of whom were investigators of Sora Draper and I, I have never had so many investigators at church before. It was incredible.  We didn't have enough chairs or room to fit everyone into our very small chapel.  I was so happy:) And as we were sitting there in this squishy little room listening to President Ivory speak I felt the spirit bring back to memory my prayer and I head the response, "here is the beginning of the Bacau miracle."  Tears came to my eyes and I turned to the only deacon in our branch, 13 year old Catalin who reminds me of Dalan and I said smiling, "Look!! I am crying!!" He looked at me all confused and said, "Why?" The gospel here cannot be stopped.  This branch is going to grow very fast in the next little while here.  I am so grateful to have been a part of serving here.  I have loved every part of it.  Well family I love you!! sorry I didn't send out an e-mail last week... here is a big one to make up for it.

-Sora Long

In the park with Andreea!

Andreea and Alexandra, some of my favorite people.

Midnight Slujba!

This week was the Orthodox Easter and man what a blast!!! I had so much fun talking to people on the streets and at their door steps this week.  All of them would ask if I believed Christ had been resurrected and I responded by saying,  "Sigur ca da!"

I had the opportunity to attend the Easter midnight mass here at the Orthodox Cathedral which is the biggest Cathedral in all of Romania.  We waited outside of the church and at midnight the bells tolled and priest came out from the two churches that we were sandwiched in between, singing "Hristos a Înviat," and the whole crowd would reply, "Adevarat a Înviat." The Priest were carrying huge torches and lit candles as they passed.  The flame from the torches was passed through the crowd candle by candle.  They say the flame traveled all the way from Jerusalem, but I doubt the authenticity of that claim.  But it is cool to think the flame came all the way from the church in Jerusalem which is believed to have been built on the place where Chirst was crucified.  I had this little candle lit in my hand by my friendly neighborhood Romanian and I listen to the priest read from the New Testament about the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Every now and then he would inject a , "Hristos a Inviat" And we would all reply, "Adevarat a Inviat." I have some really cool videos and pictures from the ceremony, but it will have to wait until I come home:) I have soo many pictures from my mission it is ridiculous!!! Be excited.  Anyways, I love you all! Until next week.

-Sora Long

 

Easter is special in Romania!!!

Walking through the grave yard near an Orthodox Church.

So as you all know this past week was Easter. But here in Romania they have 2 Easters.  One for the Catholic church and one for the Orthodox church.  Catholic was yesterday and Orthodox will be next week.  This holiday here is as big as Christmas at home. Last Sunday was the Catholic Palm Sunday.  Celebrating the day that Christ came into the town of Jerusalem on a donkey and the people greeted him and laid palm leaves on his path so he would not half to walk on the ground. The Catholics had a gigantic procession down the center of town that we watched from our apartment. The lead was a few men bearing a giant cross and holding torches.  Then followed the priest who were saying prayers and singing over speakers.  Then the people marched behind them and sang their responses to the priests.  It was quite something.

 

I am super excited for this weekends Easter holiday. Hopefully we will get to attend a Orthodox service.  I will tell you more about what they do for traditions next week.

 

We had one member, who I love to death!! Sora Dragomir introduced us to one of her long life time friends.  Sora Dragomir was the first member in Bacau and it is amazing that she decided to introduce the missionaries to her friend.  We got their for the lesson and it went really well.  I am really excited to be teaching this new investigator:) There were not enough chairs to sit in her house so she sat on the floor which obviously caused her a lot of pain, so I offered to sit on the floor instead and as I started to squat she literally screamed, high pitched loud and long NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! :) Apparently sitting down on the floor at someone's house is a big no-no.

 

I have not been able to watch all of General Conference yet. Only the Relief Society and the Priesthood and the Saturday morning. The rest of it I watched either in Romanian or haven't seen it yet.  We will probably finish that up tonight. But I feel like I have been watching conference for a day and a half straight!! I am so excited 3 new temples!!! WOOOTOTOOTOT!!!! It is also Dalan's Birthday this week!!! I love my little brother!! It is crazy to think I have been out on my mission so long I have officially missed being present at every one of my immediate families birthdays.... Almost a year out!! Love you Dal Bear!

-Sora Long

 

My district has swag