vanhinkoch

[vanhinkoch]

Pictures from touching down in Finland 🇫🇮

[vanhinkoch]

AHH! I’m in Finland! 1.1 (#9)

AHHH!! This has been the most anticipated week of my life, and I am not even exaggerating!!! Oh man I don't have nearly as much time to email as I did in the field which is so tragic because now things are happening!!! I could write 10 pages about this past week, but I only have an hour to write! This is probably going to be all over the place, but I'll just my best x)

The Travel

It was so exhilarating to be on buses, trains, and airplanes, all for the purpose of arriving at my destination in Helsinki, Finland!!! Oh I was freaking out when we arrived in London, being back in Europe again was so nostalgic, what an magical place it is. It was also really neat because I was able to talk with one of the stewardesses on the flight, who was from Finland, in Finnish! Also got to talk to a Chinese exchange student who is studying in England, and it was really nice simply talking to him. I'm exciting for this life ahead of me, where my the fulfilling of my purpose will require me to be constantly meeting and talking to new people every day; what stark contrast this is to the previous life I lived before my mission! It's just amazing, but I've recently learned how difficult talking to people can be when speaking Finnish x)

The Arrival

The Mission President and Sisar Aura met us at the Helsinki airport, and wow they are just some of the most incredible people in the world. Got to know them a lot more when we stayed at the mission home that night and the following morning as they cared for us. Here's my impression of them during this time:

Ilkka "Lähetysjohtaja" Aura

One of the most genuine and loving people I'm met, and this was was very evident in our interview and initial time spent together

Is a native Finn, but speaks excellent English as most do. Very helpful and supportive of us learning Finnish, however he doesn't force it or make us feel uncomfortable.

I absolutely believe he is an inspired mission president, judging by the assignments he made of all of us new missionaries, and how perfect they are for each of us!!

Overall Boss and Legend (Haha, I still need to get to know him better, but I was the first impression was excellent)

Paula "Sisar" Aura

I love Sisar Aura so muuuch!!! She is so Finnish, as well as very excitable!!! She made us some wonderful food that reminded me how different European food is to American!

She is so helpful for practicing speaking Finnish, she speaks Finnish more than President Aura, and she's just really fun to talk to in general

You can feel the energy radiating from out of her, she's like the sunshine of the mission home

It's pretty obvious how much of a beast she is, she gets things done and smiles while doing it.

We got our assignments of where we would be serving, and with whom, and head out for the areas!

My Area - Vaasa, Finland

Yes! My first area of service is Vaasa!!! This is special for many reasons: Vaasa has had two recent baptisms, and the work is faring well overall, it lies on the western coast, it is a university town, and most notably Sister Bingham (from Ramstein 1st ward) has ancestors in Vaasa that I am now on a quest to find! I arrived in Vaasa 5 hours or so after leaving the mission home in Helsinki. Oh my goodness it's so gorgeous. So European (if I haven't fanboyed enough about Europe already), but also really unique. Apparently the architecture is Swedish, and that would be because Vaasa is town with a notable Swedish population! I would love to look up more about the history, but I don't have the means nor free time to do such things. Lol. But yes it is gorgeous, and apparently Finland has had one of its hottest summers in history! It has already cooled down to early autumn temperatures just within this week I've been here though. I wonder how severe the winter really is!

My companion/trainer is also really awesome, he's been setting a great example and breaking me in well. Crazy how much Finnish he knows, I'm excited for my one year mark so I can start feeling more comfortable! We're actually really similar in our backgrounds, so we've been getting along and managing well.

The Work

Wow the work is so engaging! It keeps you so busy all the time! We're either studying, talking to people on the street, biking around, knocking doors, calling people, teaching lessons, or studying! Oh I love mealtimes, it's one of the rare moments we get to just sit down, chill for a bit, and eat. I'm still too slow at cooking and eating though to keep up with this new lifestyle, but I'm sure I'll adjust. I think the craziest part is realizing that I am in the world, not in a sheltered training center surrounded by hundreds of other me's, no I am in the regular public world! And I have a name tag, white shirt and tie, and a bike helmet on. I look pretty darn silly! Haha that is something I will also have to keep used to, realizing how I am in the world but not of the world for these next couple years. It's been so much, this first week. So much new information, so much to learning, so much to experience, I've hardly scratched the surface of everything I will ever experience on my mission, but I have a but a taste of what is to come. But I'm really excited to learn more, it's been so invigorating to shift my life towards this lifestyle of learning.

This is all I really have time to write about for now, but there was so much this first week! Hopefully I can provide more experiences and deeper thoughts next week. I hope you all are doing well, I will write about next Tuesday then :) Have a nice week!

- Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

Week 8: The Best Two Months

Hello Family and Friends!

It's unreal. The time has come where each passing day is the last of its kind here in the United States for the next couple years of my life. I was always really good at taking long breaks from America, I've flown over the Atlantic more times than I can remember (thanks dad!). But this time it's for the most special purpose. I've found it to be the greatest privilege to represent Jesus Christ and His restored gospel here in these latter-days. How easy it is to gloss over all that has been given. Being here at the MTC has been a truly humbling experience. I've come to the realization that some opportunities are only as great as I allow them to be. It can be really easy to go through the motions, be content with not understanding, and let the time slip like grains of sand in between my fingers. I'd like to share how glorious of a week it has been for me, and perhaps you too will come to see the patterns that enabled it to be.

It began with the Sabbath day. It dawned on me that this next week would be my last, that this exposition to my missionary story would be coming to a close. In this moment, I decided that I needed to rely completely on the Lord if I was to be sufficiently prepared to enter Finland. I dedicated this Sunday to praying and directing my thoughts towards Christ and His love and atonement for me. I refrained from studying flashcards, and instead spent every spare moment praying and pondering. It was difficult, to be honest. Sometimes it feels like anything other than studying or practicing Finnish is an inefficient use of time, but I tried extra hard today to keep the Sabbath day centered on Holy things. I asked for the God to show his hand in my life, on the basis that I would exercise faith and trust in Him. The following 4 days proved to be wonderful.

I'll use some quotes to give the in-the-moment perspective.

July 30th, Monday night at 22:00 I wrote:

"Wonderful Monday today!! Felt the blessings of the gift of tongues for sure...I am so excited to be fluent!! The joy of missionary work will be fully realized when I can confidently speak. Time to study!"

July 31st, Tuesday night at 22:15 I wrote:

"Wonderful day today, can really feel the blessings in my life since I prayed for this week last Sunday. Language study went very well, class, lessons; everything went well. The devotional was really inspiring today, particularly because of choir. We sang "Hurrah for Israel", and the conductor, Brother Eggett, gave some very inspiring and amazing lessons about the value of the message of this restored gospel of Jesus Christ, and the value of missionary work".

August 1st, Wednesday night at 22:00 I wrote:

"Happy August! Today was definitely a bipolar day. Started off really exciting because we got to host new missionaries!..But first class was a bit rough for me because I embarrassed myself during our lesson, but I was able to recover well later that day. The old Finnish Mission President, President Watson, talked to us, and it was so cool! Really enjoyed hearing all about Finland. Second class went very well, funny how the days always end well :)"

August 2nd, Thursday at 14:08 my thoughts and feelings are as follows:

Having been closed all of July, today was the first time in a month the Provo Temple has been open, and what a gift it was to be able to attend the temple one last time before leaving for the field. I felt a special peace today. I pondered questions and gave sincere and personal prayer to my Heavenly Father and felt the love and care of my God encircle me like a ring of fire. I was able to receive a special witness through the power of the Holy Ghost that my Father in Heaven knows me, knows what I've been through and what I need to do to be the best person he needs me to be. It seems so clear and simple to me, I can truly testify from my own personal experience that God answers the prayers of the meek and sincere. It is for this reason that I am filled with gratitude towards my opportunity to give up Stephen for but a little while, to fortify and strengthen my testimony through Vanhin Koch by the bearing of it to others, hoping to gather them into the fold of Christ, that they too may know that these things are true. Why can't everyone feel the same way I do? What holds people back from softening their hearts to come feel of God's love? Surely, there is nothing in the world that offers the same joy, comfort, and peace, that comes from submitting to the love of our Savior. What a privilege and honor it is to share these glad tidings with those who are both willing, and not willing to receive them.

Overall, I am doing very well. I am so beyond excited to go to Finland, I love it so much already and I'm not even there!! Haha, my MTC experience has been incredible. There is an analogy in preach my gospel that likens the glory of the restoration of the gospel from the period of unbelief beforehand known as the apostasy to a diamond on black velvet. I think this same analogy can be likened into my life, the glory I feel being here on my mission is comparable to the diamond, and the 9 arduous months prior to my arrival is as the black velvet. It goes to show how trials can be a great blessing in our lives, because sorrow is what enables the savor of joy. All of 2 Nephi explains this concept very well, but I will share verses 14 and 15:

14 And now, my sons, I speak unto you these things for your profit and learning; for there is a God, and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are, both things to act and things to be acted upon

15 And to bring about his eternal purposes in the end of man, after he had created our first parents, and the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and in fine, all things which are created, it must needs be that there was an opposition; even the forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life; the one being sweet and the other bitter.

What a gift it is to struggle, to feel sorrow, that we may learn and grow as Heavenly Father's plan for us desires us to do so.

I also want to share a video entitled "The Music of the Gospel" that is truly inspiring and heart-warming. It explains how we must "hear the music of the gospel if we are to feel the joy of dancing".

> https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2017-01-005-the-music-of-the-gospel?cid=HP_FR-27-7-2018_dPTH_fMLIB_xLIDyL1-A_&lang=eng

I made this email a bit longer and more spiritually focused because this is my last opportunity to send an email of this magnitude, because my allotted time to email will be much shorter when I arrive in the field this Tuesday. I hope that perhaps one of you will find inspiration in my testimony, and that this person will desire to act on any inspiration he or she received by giving sincere prayer to God our Eternal Father.

I would like to bear my testimony on the joy of missions, and of missionary work. I am not yet even in my mission field yet, however I already know for myself that missions are the greatest opportunity to grow closer to the God. The experiences I've had here within these first 8 weeks alone have already developed me better than anything else ever could have. I am eager to take on the challenges that lie ahead in the field, and excited to write all about them to share with all of you!! Now I may seem a bit overwhelmingly positive, and this isn't to say that disappointments and discouragements never come. The reason that I am so positive is because it is through the disappointment and discouragements that I have been built up. The beautiful thing about missions too, is that God has a special watch over all of us. Even through all of my struggles, embarrassments, and doubts, I am always saved in the Spirit prior to retiring to bed; as if it is reminding me that today was a good day, and that thine trials will be but for a season. I have learned that there are no coincidences, but God's merciful hand.

I bear my testimony to all of you that God is real, and he desires to have a personal relationship with all of us so that He may pour out blessing more abundantly into our lives. I know that a relationship with God is founded upon a sincere desire to seek out His truth. Testimonies are not given to us, unlike a vast majority of our blessings.Testimonies require a conscious effort to seek after spiritual experiences. Sincere prayer, exercising faith, following commandments, reading scriptures, and deciding for yourself what is true; for truth is not confirmed merely on the basis of the words of others, but in experiencing for yourself what truth is. I have been taught Joseph Smith was a prophet since I was a child, however it wasn't until recently when I began to study scriptures and find that the desire Joseph Smith had to know of God was the same as mine is now. There is great joy in having a perfect brightness of hope in the gospel and in the prophets. What joy comes from doubting? What joy comes from pride? Is there satisfaction in doubt? I think not. I believe, and have felt and experiences, that true happiness comes through successfully seeking out spiritual experiences with God. What a difficult thing this is to do in the modern world of requiring a constant demand to be entertained, distracted, or busy. Oh how great it is then, to be serving a mission during these times where I would likely be idle in the comfort of my previous mind/spiritual-numbing lifestyle.

Family and friends, there is great joy in the service of the Lord. I was fearful previous to my arrival here that these two years would drag on, that it would be a grind until I could get onto college and other things that I desired after; however this mission has proved to be no chore. Having completed my preparatory phase of my mission, I will soon be embarking in the true service to the people of Finland, and I cannot express how grateful and excited I am for this opportunity. What a personal blessing it is that I was called to Finland.

This is a portion of my testimony I leave with you all in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen

- Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

Pictures from weeks 3-7, featuring 4tg of July and fixing his chipped tooth!

[vanhinkoch]

Week 7: Learning, Joy, and Craziness

Hello Family and Friends!

Is it already P-day again?? That's so crazy, it felt like just yesterday I was frantically writing emails before I visited the outside world in a dental clinic. I've learned there are two things in this world that are an Enigma: The inner machinations of my mind, and time. I hope all of you have been watching your Sponge-bob so you understand that first part x). But no, speaking of the dental clinic, I must return and report my experience!

It was easily the coolest and most adventurous thing I've done since arriving here at the MTC!! The MTC is wonderful, but it truly is a place dedicated to learning. Vanhin Tracy was mentioning earlier this week how one thing he really misses is a sense of adventure, and after doing the same things here for a little under 2 months now, I can definitely relate. But I was gifted with getting my face crushed, so we got to go on a field trip!!! It was Elder Tracy and me, and it was so thrilling to step out those MTC doors and get into a car, and be driven and dropped off at this place in the middle of the open world! The perspective on the world is so different after so many weeks at the MTC!! The most enjoyable part was without a doubt talking to real every-day people! We were able to chat with the really nice receptionist, and this lady in the lobby who was from Michigan (I asked her if she knew South Haven, but she wasn't familiar with it, sorry Grandpa!). IT WAS SO COOL!! I actually felt special being a missionary xD you don't feel so different in the MTC, but it's the complete opposite when you're outside! I also enjoyed speaking and bantering around in English, though I fear it may be one of my last opportunities to ever have that xD. The dentist was really cool too, but since we were in Utah just about everyone were members of Christ's LDS church, so it wasn't too scary being a missionary here. Being in Finland is going to rock my world though, I know personally how different life is in Europe, and I'm sooooooo excited to see what it is like in Finland!! So many amazing and unique experiences await me.

That's another thing that has been on my mind as of late, just how personal and perfect my mission call is to me. Having lived in Germany for four and half years, I was so very keen on returning to the continent to serve my mission. I just love and appreciate all my experiences I've been so blessed to have, and it's an even greater blessing to have been called to return and serve in an area I've never visited. I MEAN FINLAND?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? THAT'S SICK!!! xDD Alright back to "mature elder" mode. To me, it just shows two things: the revelation and inspiration from God is still in effect today, and that God cares for me personally and knows what is best for me. To be honest if I could've chosen my top missions, it would've been Switzerland/Germany/Austria, Japan, Czech Rep, or Hawaii; but I didn't even consider Finland, save any of the Nordic countries (with the exception of Norway at the last second). But man Finland just feels so perfect for me. It's funny, I've heard a couple people say now that Finland/Finnish is just so "niche", and I completely agree. And it is I who's purpose it is to fulfill that niche! Haha, I guess what my point is I testify that God knows each of me personally, and he loves me and knows what is best for me in my life. I am so grateful that I am in agreement with his plan for me. My intention is not at all to "brag" about my mission call, I certainly don't want to give off that notion. I am just so grateful for the incredible opportunity, and I only wish to express my joy and determination to serve this mission with all my might, mind, and strength.

While on the topic of Finland, the language is still so cool. Recently we received the revelation as to what makes learning Finnish more difficult as opposed to other languages. The written language (kirjakieli) is rather different from the actually colloquial language (puhekieli). Just a couple of simple examples that we've learned so far:

Kirjoitti kieli Puhe kieli Merkitys (meaning)

Minä olen Mä oon. I am.

Saitko sinä? Saiksä? Did you receive?

Heille oli tuo Heill oli toi They had that.

Just a couple of short examples here, but apparently spoken language is always used, and written language is only spoken to indicate either emphasis or reverence. This spoken language also applies to several declensions, conjugations, and participles, so it will be fun to figure out what people are saying once I arrive in Finland! But overall I am happy with my progression in this language thus far. We've covered a large portion of the somewhat daunting grammar, now it's just a matter of remembering and actually applying the rules in conversations. I've tried my best to build a recent foundation of Finnish vocabulary in preparation to enter the country, and it's crazy how much there is to learn! It's fun though, sometimes it just feels like I'm just jamming words into my head, and it's so frustrating when you need to use a word that you've already studied, but you just can't remember it! Haha, but after just 7 weeks, I'm actually really proud of what our district and teachers have been able to achieve. It feels like the best way we can all progress now is just diving right into the country and learning how the Finns really speak. Just a little bit more Finnish that I've been able to use lately before I move onto the next topic, I got to invite two of our "investigators" to go to baptism, and I did so by saying:

Noudatatko Jeesuksen Kristuksen esimerkkiä, ottamalla kasteen sellaisen henkilön toimittamana, jolla on Jumalan pappeuden valtuus? Me Järjestämme kastetilaisuuden Elokuullan nelja. Valmistaudutko ottamaan kasteen tuona päivänä? English: "Will you follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized by an individual who holds God's priesthood authority? We will be holding a baptismal service on August 4th, will you prepare to be baptized on this day?" Direct Translation: "(Will) Follow you Jesus Christ's example, by taking baptism by such individual (toimittaa = to delver, but need to study the endings more to find a meaning), who has God's priesthood authority? We (will) organize baptism opportunity on August 4th. (will) Prepare you to take baptism this day?

Haha, Finnish is really fun, but also a bit complicated at times. I speak so slow right now, hopefully I will become fluent in time. It's fun to dissect phrases to figure out their meanings, but sometimes that can be really tough. I'll give one more example.

Word: Kirkas Bright

Stem: Kirkkaa- (harden when finding stem for words ending in -as)

comparitive: Kirkkaampi

comp. stem: Kirkkaamma-

Accusative ending: Kirkkaamman

Example of usage: Aurinkoa Kirkkaamman - Above the bright(ness) of the sun.

I think that's enough Finnish for now, but you can definitely see how it can be a little complex! It's fun when you can understand what "how" and "whys" of it all, which I'm just now starting to come into at an ever slow pace.

Sometime I definitely want to talk about are the people. We've been here for 7 weeks now, and it's getting to the point where you see very strange things happen, and it literally doesn't even phase you. I'm not talking about miracles in this case, but just really... weird things xD. Our residence/tenet building is such a fiesta come nighttime and the tags come off. If I may paint a picture for you, this is exactly my experience last night:

I had just returned to the foot our dearly beloved Dan "The Man" Jones R8 building following one of the best class periods I've yet experienced here at the Missionary Training Center. I was reminiscing with my fellow companions how glorious the night had turned out to be, and the emotions were further amplified owing the fact the on the morrow was our preparation day. It was a perfect evening - the air felt crisp, and the orange hues of the sunset were fading into a deep blue. I grab my key-card, and swipe it with a fierce determination to get it right on the first try, as to not bring disgrace to my name's veneration attributing to the superiority time and experience in this setting has endowed upon me. I succeed. I enter, along with my most trusted (and perhaps only) companions, and it was in this very moment where it was beheld. Apes. Apes everywhere.

No but seriously, I went to the lower-most floor where all the vending machines are because I had a mighty thirsty, which also happened to be seeded in Russian territory (our Saturday soccer rivals, whom we mutually respect), and I just watch the most peculiar of events take place without batting an eye. We've got a ring of elders encircling a pair in the middle who are playing this game where you slap each other for fun, there's a German who is screaming and banging things on the ironing board, and then there's this elder carrying another elder piggyback style down the hall - both of them have stone-faced expressions. I just wanted to get a drink and maybe some pizza rolls if I was feeling extra spicy. But I didn't realize it until after the fact, I didn't treat this like anything out of the ordinary. I just went on my way and went back up to my room. There are some hilarious and crazy things that happen in our room too, trust me, but those Russians are something else x). They too have been here just as long as we have, and I have dubbed this phenomenon of going crazy at the MTC "The Week 6 effect". It's hilarious and crazy the kinds of things that happen in the dorm, but I'm just embracing it for now. I don't think I'll ever have another opportunity to witness the effects of putting a bunch of men, all deprived of technology and women, all together in the same room from 9:00-10:30.

Anyways that was really long and I got kind of carried away with that portion of this email! But once I'm in the field I'll have much less time to email, so why not just make things extra creative now before it goes away ;)

But being here at the MTC is such a unique once in a lifetime experience I am so grateful for. I still feel the spirit every day, it hasn't stopped since I've been here. It's such an amazing thing to be set apart from the world and focus on giving all your time to the Lord. This week has been great. I've been getting along a lot better with my companions now, and I found the key as to why. When I chipped my tooth, I was filled with so many terrible negative emotions. I felt completely justified in being in a bad mood, because I felt really awful. But I realized that when the bad feelings come, it is a conscious choice that I get to make as to how I am going to react to these feelings. It's been really great to be surrounded by messages and pictures of Christ here at the MTC, because Jesus Christ truly is the perfect and greatest example for us. The character of Christ is that Christ turns outwards to others, when the natural instinct in all of us as people is to turn inwards. Something I'm going to work on, in my effort to become more Christ-like, is to turn outwards when ever negative emotions fill me. Ever since making this change in mindset, I've been getting along really well with my companions, even when one of them maybe does something that would be annoying, I realize that the only thing I can truly control is myself and how I react to others. It's been a great for me so far, and I hope it's something I can consistently maintain for the whole of my life. The mission is truly the greatest refinement process for young adults such as I. So many great lessons to be learned, so many great experiences to be had, so many sorrows and challenges to endure and overcome, and we have Christ as the center having shown us the way - showing us to love one another as we love Him. It's certainly not easy, but if it was easy everyone would be doing it. I said it in previous emails, but every single hard thing is worth doing, and this is the apex of all of them. So eager for all that awaits me on the horizon, and I'm also really excited to write all about it :)

Congratulations on making it this far! You must be my mother, Hi mom! Welcome everybody else who is joining us here at the last paragraph, all 2 of you. Hahaha, I hope you all have a wonderful week. I apologize for any typos by the way, these take a while to read and I lack the will to proofread them x). I would love to hear about any cool experiences or spiritual insights that any of you have had. I love you all, next week should be my last P-day here at the MTC. Isn't it crazy? You all will here from me then. Hei Hei!

- Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

Week 6: Two-Thirds Through!

Hello Family and Friends!

Unfortunately I only have an hour to email today, and the reason why is pretty crazy!! It's a pretty long story but I'll summarize it best I can:

So we exercise most everyday, and typically we're encourage to keep on our garments while we exercise (basically a set of white underclothes that help us remember the covenants we've made with God and focus on living righteously). I've worn my garments every single day since being a missionary, but I was on my last pair yesterday and I didn't want to wear sweaty underwear for the rest of the day, so I didn't wear them. Now there's kind of a running joke in our residence from the old mongols, because one of the Elders tore his ACL the day he didn't wear his garments, but it seemed like just a joke right? Well the one day i didn't wear my garments, I eat a soccer ball to the face and chip my bottom tooth. Now, I have a little bit of soccer experience under my belt, playing since i was a toddler through high school, so I typically don't do stupid things. Well for some reason, yesterday I went to chest the ball that was coming in my direction with some pace on it; but for some reason I just went complete deer in the headlights, and instead of chesting the ball, I let it smack into my face and crack my bottom tooth. It was probably the most majestic and idiotic thing I've ever done all at the some time. Just picture this: One guy kicks the ball hard in the air, another guy just straight jumps in the air with this determination to settle it with his chest and score...but instead he just kinda goes limp in mid-air and lets the ball crush his face. Yeah I was that second guy.

Needless to say, that morning was probably THE most frustrated and moody I've ever been in a long time. I hate being in a bad mood, it just feels so bad, and I really struggle to just snap out of it and just let things go. It feels like the adversary extra hates me, and whenever something happens that gives me negative emotions, he just seizes the weakness within me and exacerbates my condition. Crazy thing is though, by the end of the day, I taught two lessons and ending up laughing so much in the residence that night. It was such a bipolar day, and it seems like those kind of things happen every single day!!! Something happens that gets me a little down, then I feel the spirit later in the day and end up going to bed happy. I think it's also worth mentioning that it's hard to call my tooth getting chipped as mere coincidence. They say there are no such things are coincidences in the gospel, and it seems so true to me. Yesterday, there was on opportunity for God to break my down the one day where I didn't have my garments on my entire MTC stay, and then later that day I was able to soften my heart and recognize His hand in my life. Further more, the volunteer dentist here at the MTC only comes every Thursday, which happened to be a single day after chipping my tooth AND my Preparation Day! And now I leave for an appointment with a dentist in about an hour and a half to go get it fixed up. It's as though God planned out every single step of this experience I would have for my benefit, that I would be brought to a really low point, humbled, and then have everything work out perfectly to be fixed the very next day having learned the lesson he needed me to learn. It kind of felt like a really personal experience I had, where it seemed it though God was focusing solely on me. I think that several lessons can only be learned by going through hardships, and yesterday was a great demonstration for me to recognize that God is aware of me and wants to refine me so that I can reach my full potential as an individual. I'm not going to have an angel sent to me, that just isn't how God works with me, but it doesn't mean I don't recognize the things he does to show that he is mindful of me. Sounds kind of silly, but I thought it was a really cool experience and I learned a lot from it.

I believe that when we put our faith in God and strive to live worthy of representing Him, the blessings are poured out into our lives for us to discover. It's been the greatest gift to be a missionary, to be able to receive these blessings and witnesses at a much greater accelerated pace. It really helps in my personal conversion, and for my desire to live righteous throughout all of my life, and not just during these 2 years, but to represent the name of Christ in every point in time so long as I am worthy to do so. I'm really happy that I chose to follow God's plan and live with sorrow, that I may know joy. It's made me appreciate this mission to a much greater degree, and while it feels awful to be upset and under the influence of the adversary, it feels that much more glorious to feel the Holy Spirit and love of God. Serving the Lord is truly the best thing thing here on the earth, though certainly not the easiest. However in almost every case, there isn't a hard thing that wasn't worth doing/enduring. The joy that lies on the other side is so much sweeter. It's like having finished running several miles in 100 degree heat while the sun in beating down on you, and going inside your cool air-conditioned house and drinking a glass of ice water. The most delicious thing in that moment, because of all the struggle you went through beforehand; but without the struggle, the ice water becomes less appreciated and loses its value. I suppose what I have learned is that I am grateful for every struggle that has happened to me, because it's all part of a refining process. It's our entire purpose here for being on earth!!! By growing, learning, developing, improving, preparing/ kasvaen, oppein, kehittäen, parataen, valmistaen (not sure which of the 5 verb infinitives is correct, so let's role with these), we receive joy in this life, and in the life that follows.

I have to go get my teeth fixed now, but I hope all of you have a wonderful week! 2/3rds of the way done with the MTC, and I am soooo pumped for Finland!!! Definitely okay with learning more before I leave though, but we're just getting started as Vanhin Koch!!! If any of you all have cool experiences where you've recognized God's hand in your life, I would love to hear about these experiences! Love you all, hope you have a great week!

- Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

Week 5, Far From Finished

It feels pretty darn good to see the time pass with every weekly email I send, not going to lie. Today is week 5! We're really starting to get into the thicc of things now. The honeymoon phase has long passed, and now it feels like the reality of being a missionary is becoming real. I have a lot of thoughts, and a lot of time, so I'm excited to write all about it! Also if anybody reading this is thinking to themselves "Oh my goodness Elder Koch, you missed out on the perfect opportunity to add another n to the word finished in your title, it would've been so hilarious!!", I have 2 things to say. 1: I don't really understand the joke, so if someone could send me an emailing detailing the wit of this joke, I would really appreciate it, and 2: No, it would not have been x). Anyways, moving onto the tootsie roll center of my email.

My thoughts and feelings

Life as a missionary is amazing for several reasons, but the main ones that stick out to me are:

1. The spirit is felt most every day to some degree, whether it be subtle during prayer, or feeling as though you're encircled by fire while bearing testimony.

2. Being surrounded by others who share the same beliefs in Christ and have the same desire to serve Him.

3. The work that is done here is some of the most worth/satisfying forms of work that can be done on this Earth. Flopping into bed at night feels so strangely good after frying your brain with Finnish.all day.

4. This one is more personal, but it gives life a sense a purpose. Our purpose is literally spelled out: Invite others to come unto Christ/go out there and save souls.

5. Growth is seen and felt every single day here. Finnish grows everyday, gospel knowledge grows everyday, testimony grows everyday. It's pretty obvious why missions are reserved for those who are just coming out of high school, or those preparing to transition into adult life. It's for the growth of the individuals, to prepare them for the rest of their lives, while fulfilling the Gathering of Israel. It's a win-win-win situation for everybody.

These are some of my favorite things about being Vanhin Koch right now; but growth couldn't exist without struggle, and missionary life here at the MTC has its fair share of struggles. I will share with you what's been difficult for me thus far:

1. I wonder what you thought would make my number 1 spot (not that these are ranked greatest to least). But I'm sure you're thinking exactly what I'm thinking. Yup, that's right, it's how flipping long it takes to get dressed in the morning every single day. Oh man, what a struggle. I'm kidding, we all know it's Finnish. Oh Finnish. How I so dearly want to love you. But with all these cases, you could open a business selling luggage (While the mission may change me, I will never cease to tell awful jokes). But no really lemme just talk about the Finnish language for a bit. If I may attempt to reference princess bride,

People who created Finnish: Let me put it this way. You know those people who made languages with prepositions? Articles? Future tense? Simple Grammar?

Missionaries: Yeah?

People who created Finnish: Morons.

xD Hope you enjoyed that little skit, it took surprisingly long to format that. But yeah! While Finnish isn't the hardest language to learn to speak, it's definitely up there. But I proudly reserve the privilege to learn this language. I can liken learning Finnish to learning how to play the piano. Err, actually, let's make that an organ. This is especially true for me, because I started learning how to play piano from scratch a little under a year ago. In the beginning, I had no idea what I was doing. Merely placing my hands on the keys felt unusual. But I had a sincere desire to learn, so I began to practice almost every day. In the beginning, I played very simple tunes, such as ode to joy and french minuet; and I even got creative enough to figure out how to play Old McDonald. But I made soooo many mistakes. But every time I did make a mistake, I was one step closer to playing it right the next time. I think speaking Finnish from scratch is a lot like this. I make so many mistakes, It's almost impossible to form a single perfectly formulated phrase; but every time I open my mouth and try, I can feel myself improving. I feel like I'm still in the "Old McDonald" phase of learning Finnish, but that's ok. I'm trying not to get demoralized by realizing I'll hardly ever get every sentence right, but it can be hard to be wrong all the time. I wish all of you could be learning Finnish too, it's really fun to learn vocabulary, it's just the grammar that can be a bit of a headache.

2. Honestly it's been hard to shut out women from my life xDD It's funny because I've already been devoid of females for the past 9 months before my mission, and now that I'm finally in an environment where there are beautiful sisters everywhere, it's been a real challenge to fight off the pitter-patters. Kind of funny, but it's true. This one time I was having a pretty rough day, and then I had the chance to have a really meaningful conversation with a couple of the sisters in our zone that I sat next to during dinner; and my day was immediately brightened. It's hard because I feel I connect way better with some of the sisters than a lot of the elders here, but it's just so discouraged here at the MTC that elders and sisters interact. Somehow, the days keep on passing. I can almost imagine Jesus Christ saying to me "Lovest thou these more than me? *Points to the world cup and women" And of course I love Jesus more than those, so I have to feed his sheep. Doesn't mean it won't be difficult though x) I'm only sharing this because I think some of you may get a chuckle out of this 😛 But yeah, Elder Stephen "The Bachelor" Koch continues to press forward in his service.

Overall, 5 weeks into my mission and I'm still super glad that I made the choice to give my time in service to the Lord. Honestly I'm so glad that I finally made it, it would've been a Tragedy if I hadn't gone. The time is really starting to add up! it's cool to see it all go by. Even just looking back on my first day, I can almost picture who I am now saying to that brand new Elder Koch "Welcome to the MTC. It's gonna be a hard, but you're going to love it so much; I'm so glad you took this first step". I can only imagine what me two years from now would say to that brand new Elder Koch. Fun to think about, but also really far away!

The good news is that I don't think i'll ever been idle again. Being on the mission really trains you to make use of every single second. I think that this is especially emphasized for those learning new languages. You just can't afford to take off days!! There are people out there who are prepared to receive the restored gospel, and if you aren't ready to preach to them, it's just gonna sting so bad. So the days are always full of study. It's been kind of difficult to study the gospel though, truth be told. It almost feels inefficient to read a couple chapters out of the scriptures if you're not going to be teaching a lesson over it, because there's so much language to learn. I know that blessings will come through studying the gospel as well as language, but sometimes it's tough because you get so embarrassed from making mistakes or missing words during class/lessons, all you want to do is study language so you don't embarrass yourself again! I'll try to be better at focusing more on the gospel too though, I know that blessings will come.

Sorry my thoughts are not super well organized in this email, I'm kinda just letting whatever comes to my mind manifest itself on the computer. I hope today I can email some people more personally, so I'm just going to close here. If you read this within the next hour maybe you could write me and I could respond during that time. But if not that's fine too 😉 I hope that all of you have a wonderful week, if you have any specific questions for me, just hit me up with an email and I'll write you next week!

- Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

Week 4

Vahnin Koch Week 4:

Hello again friends and family 🙂

Is it already preparation day? It's a crazy phenomenon here at the Missionary Training Center, how the days can seem to drag on forever, but the weeks feel as those they are flying by. Has it really been a month since my report date? It's honestly sort of surreal to be 1/24th, or 4.16% complete with my mission. I feel as though I've been here forever, but also as though the time has passed so quickly without my realization. It's kind of crazy, I can easily imagine myself feeling this way as I'm flying home from having completed all 2 years of my mission, just wondering how that all happened so fast. I was worried before I came out here that 2 years would drag, and I had a hard time completely believing others' words when they said it flies by; but now that I'm experiencing it for myself, it's all happening so fast. However, the first part of my title still remains true. When you're studying Finnish in class for 6 hours a day, sometimes it can be a grind; however it's still a gift and privilege to learn Finnish. It's kind of hard to organize all my thoughts, and just pour them out into this email spontaneously, but I'll try my best to say everything as smooth as I can.\

More thoughts on the MTC

I've been in the MTC a fair while longer than all of the English speaking missions, and honestly I really enjoy being here. I have a lot of gratitude for everything here at the Provo MTC still - The staff and admin, the teachers and volunteers, the immense resources for learning, the way they take care of us by providing excellent residency and food service, our scheduling and opportunities to grow our testimonies, choir and devotions, our branch presidency, the high standards for cleanliness, the beautiful paintings and spiritual decorations, the opportunity to go the temple (and clean the temple this July month while it is closed), the gorgeous nature within the grounds; there is just so much to be grateful for. I don't understand why anyone would ever desire to leave or talk poorly about the MTC itself. I think that the rules are something that certainly take some getting used to, but it's what we all signed up for, right? Haha, there was this experience I had where I was looking up world cup scorelines in the computer lab before class, and this one random elder sits next to me and chastises me and tells me to x it out immediately. I found I am also grateful for two more things; Matthew 7:1-5, and the Atonement 🙂. Haha, but anyways, I could easily spend another 5 weeks here. I think some of the other elders want to get out of here, but I personally want to soak up as much as I can before I begin my adventures in Finland.

More thoughts on the people

So I've gotten to know the district and zone a lot better since I've been here, and I've met a lot of personalities. I can definitely understand what people mean by how difficult it can be to love those who are hard to love. There are a plethora of wonderful people here, but there are the ones who I would certainly struggle to have as my companion. Unfortunately, one of these elders is my companion (Not Vanhin Tracy), Hahaha. It's just a matter of our personalities not blending well together whatsoever. We're different in just about every way, and it's very difficult to have a deep/meaningful conversation with the elder. I wonder what kind of companions I'll have while I'm in the field, while teaching real people. I bet it's going to be much more crucial that we put aside any differences/pride so that we can prepare a meaningful lesson worthy of inviting the spirit. On the bright side, all the other elders in my district I could see myself getting along very well with as companions, and we would easily teach well together. I'm realizing this challenging part of missionary service becoming more apparent as people start to let their true colors be revealed. But overall, I still absolutely love our district, and our zone. We've received some new Dutchees (is what we call them), and they're a really awesome district! The devotional reviews as a zone have been amazing, and it's great to be surrounded by all these people. Our zone missions now include Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, Suriname, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, and Slovenia. I think that's all of them, but everyone is really cool 🙂

Lisää ajatuksen Suomesta

Anta Anteeksi minua, jos tuo kuullui salaperainen. Hopefully that said "More thoughts about Finnish" and "Forgive me if that sounded weird", I try not to cheat and look up words and put things in google translate, so that may translate weird xD I will slowly learn, Sister Hannonen! But my Finnish has been noticeably progressing! I've been spending a lot of my study time learning vocabulary, and it's helped a lot during lessons and conversations. I'm not very good at memorizing passages in Finnish, or completely understanding the grammar, but I'm working on it. One thing that has been crazy is how much my German has suffered as a result of learning so much Finnish! I can hardly try to speak german without inserting Finnish conjunctions or pronouns! It's quite humorous, but also concerning, because I wan't to retain as much German as possible; it wouldn't be good to have lived in Germany for 4 1/2 years and not remember any german! But for now, Finnish takes my upmost priority. It's been so amazing to learn so much in this short amount of time. 4 weeks doesn't seem like a whole lot of time, but there must be some miracles happening for us all to have progressed this much! Finnish is such a cool and pretty language too, I love to say prayers in Finnish during devotionals and other activities so that I can demonstrate what an awesome sounding language it is. I'm super excited that I have another 5 weeks to learn as much as I can! I used to feel so inadequate and scared because I couldn't see myself understanding Finnish well enough to teach or talk to the people, but now It's starting to seem more possible every day. So glad I am serving in this mission, in this language. Wouldn't have it any other way, 100% confident in that.

Conclusion

Unfortunately I don't have as much time to email today, so I will just close this week's email by expressing my joy to be here as a missionary representing Jesus Christ. This week while I was teaching in the activity called TRC, which is basically where we teach members a lesson in our mission language, but this week we had the opportunity to teach in english and finnish. Both of those lessons went incredibly well. The testimony I was able to bear in connection with the theme of the lesson, "The Important of Living Worthy of the Gift of the Holy Ghost", a very powerful testimony, with a limit to vocabulary and grammar in English. I also felt the gift of tongues manifest itself as we taught a return finnish missionary who spoke very quickly, but I was able to understand a lot of what he said, and reply without hesitation. It was so amazing. When teaching lessons and bearing powerful and sincere spirit, that is when the True Spirit burns inside. This True, or Greater Holy Spirit, I believe is describe in 3rd Nephi 19:13-14 which reads:

13 And it came to pass when they were all baptized and had come up out of the water, the Holy Ghost did fall upon them, and they were filled with the Holy Ghost and with fire.

14 And behold, they were encircled about as if it were by fire; and it came down from heaven, and the multitude did witness it, and did bear record;

I have had the wonderful of feeling this, feeling as though I was encircled about by fire, for so strong was the holy influence of the spirit. This truly is a gospel of feeling the truth, not knowing the truth. You know the truth because you feel the truth. I don't know the truth because of historical records, or logic; I know because of the undeniable and surreal confirmation the Holy Ghost has given me, that the words I speak are true, and are for the benefit of all who listen and desire to come unto Christ. The restored gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of peace, love, and joy; all coming from living worthy and humbly, that the Gift of the Holy Ghost may be allowed to influence our lives. I know that these words are true, and that God will deny nobody who comes before Him with a humble heart, having a sincere desire to know the truth and receive forgiveness and salvation. I glory in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and I am grateful most of all for being blessed with the opportunity to partake of the joy of knowing that there is a loving Father in Heaven, and that we can receive eternal life through the Atonement of His son, Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for the Holy Ghost and for the spirit of truth it confers upon all the willing and humble hearts of the world. I am so grateful for this opportunity to give my time to the Lord, that I bring this message to the people of Finland.

I hope you all have a wonderful week, and I would enjoy hearing about what is going on out there in the world 🙂 Love you all!

- Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

Week 3

Dear my wonderful family and friends,

Yesterday marked my 3rd week at the MTC, Haha, man there is so much happening everyday. I want to say everything, but I'll try my best to be succinct and focus on the important points, My close friends will know how bad I am at that.

Overall, I'm doing very well. Being here is the best possible thing that I could be doing. Vanhin Tracy will occasionally ask us "What would we be doing right now if we weren't at the MTC? i'd probably be doing some useless stuff like hoopin' or sleeping".

I know far too well what it's like to do a bunch of "useless stuff", but being a missionary forces me to make use of every single minute of the day. I know people say missions are really hard, but honestly, there's nothing more fulfilling nor satisfying than

collapsing onto bed at night, knowing that today I worked hard. Would I call what I've been doing for the past 3 weeks hard? Waking up 6:00-6:30 everyday, spending 6 hours in class learning Finnish while trying to speak it as often as possible outside of

class, teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in Finnish in role-plays and to mock investigators every other day - are all these things defined as "hard"? Personally, I don't believe so. i believe that hard is something like being completely alone, not getting

the job when you deserved it, or watching your crush fall in love with someone else other than you. Those are all things that would make me hit the pillow at night with a bitter taste in my mouth; I believe that what I'm doing right now is better defined as

glorious. Yes, it feels terrible to be teaching an investigator and you have so many good thoughts but can't say them because I don't speak Finnish well; but when I sleep at night, I can't help but feel the comfort of the Lord, and a great satisfaction come

from feeling worthy of representing Him. I try not to think of the things I'm doing now as hard, but instead think of this work as glorious. Finnish is difficult, I certainly won't deny this; however I've been provided with all the tools I need to learn and teach

with power. I'm trying my best to be completely optimistic in my service, and fortunately, it's made much easier when the Holy Spirit is with me every step of the way.

Not every day is perfect here at the MTC, believe it or not. In fact I had one day where the adversary had almost complete dominion over my spirit, and I was just filled with impatience, irritation, and hate. It was last Sunday, and it was the day that

we were to hear a general authority speak. I struggle to remember what allowed the adversary to amplify my negative emotions, but something very little allowed him to have his influence over me. Most all day, I was annoying with everybody, desired to

be alone, and also said some really terrible things about myself and others in my mind. At one point, one of my companions said a bit of a snarky joke at me, and lets just say if 100 was me punching him, I was at a 99 in that moment. Thank goodness I

didn't because that would've put a real damper on the relationship. But I made it to the devotional, still filled with hate, but there. We began singing the opening hymns, and one of them was "Did you think to pray". I carefully analyzed the lyrics as they

appeared on the large screens, and realized how applicable this was to me right now.

"When your heart was filled with anger,

Did you think to pray?

Did you plead for grace, my brother,

That you might forgive another

Who had crossed your way?

Oh, how praying rests the weary!

Prayer will change the night to day.

So, when life gets dark and dreary,

Don’t forget to pray"

I'll be the first to say that praying is probably the last thing anybody wants to do when they're filled with those awful feelings, which I'm sure works very well in the adversary's favor. Soon after we finished singing, and my heart began to soften, Elder

Quinton L. Cook spoke to us, and delivered a very inspiring talk. He spoke a lot about his mission, and his four key points: Love others, Love your companion, Love your mission president, and Love the Lord. After the devotional, we had a devotional

review with the fellow Finns in my district, and I lead the discussion, being the District Leader at this time. It was another tearfest, hahaha, I shared some words and then Vanhin Tracy began to speak about how my words had touched him and he cried,

then I cried, then Vanhin Hale cried; haha, such a strong spirit was felt in that room. Since then, I've been much happier every day, and really enjoying every day more. I know God desires us to be tested and put through sorrow and hardships, that we

may relish in the joy of returning to feeling His spirit. Reminds of how life felt so natural when I lived in Hawaii while I was 10-11 years old. it wasn't until I left that I realized how amazing it truly was. I just hope that I will be able to keep my armor fortified,

that Satan may have no chink to find his way into my heart; and if and when he does, I will remember hymn 140.

In general, I'm doing really well and loving each and every day here at the MTC. I love my district, and we have some really great people in our zone. The new "Dutchees" came in yesterday, filling the huge gap that was left when the old Dutchees and Mongols

left last Monday, and they're cool. One of them did a year at BYUH, and is a total surfer stereotype. Great elder though, excited to get to know him better. Haha, It's also worth mentioning how there are several attractive females here. I haven't had friends,

save any females, in my life for the past 8-9 months or so; you can imagine the turmoil going on in my heart right now xD sometimes you just see that sweet spirit in the temple and you just get the pitter=patters. That's another thing that I need to work on,

just living in, and enjoying, the moment. Sometimes I think about whether or not I'll get accepted to BYUH, or what my family will be like, and I get super excited; but that's not for another 2 years! Haha, while missionaries are set apart for a higher purpose, to

represent Christ and preach His gospel, we all still have our unique personalities. It's been a little crazy for me actually, because I'm still not entirely sure who I am. Sometimes I just look in the mirror, and I feel confused, like I don't know that much about Vanhin

Koch. That's the great thing about missions though, we can learn a lot about ourselves through this service. I may not be the most funny or charismatic elder, but I try my best to be nice and be a worthy representative of Christ. One thing I am happy about, is that the

spirit is a close companion of mine. I feel its presence everyday, and it is greatly amplified during lessons. I hope to work on being more conversation and interested/interesting. There are so many people, so it can be a little exhausting, but that's the lifestyle I

chose I suppose 😉

This week went much faster, the routine is really nice. I still love my exercise time, I'll most likely miss that the most when I leave the MTC. The Finnish is improving, rather slowly, but improving. Overall I'm really happy with life right now. To be honest, this P-day kind

of snuck up on me, so that's cool. Thanks to every one who sent me emails and packages this week, it makes my day every time I get something like that 🙂 I hope you all have a wonderful week.

- Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

Week two with the district!

[vanhinkoch]

Second Week Report: Getting Acquainted...

Hello Family and Friends!

I don't this email will be nearly as long as the last, because things are starting to get into a routine now. It's been really wonderful though, being here for 15 days now! I still reaffirm that I love being here at the Missionary Training Center so much, I don't understand why some people think of the MTC like a prison that they can't wait to leave! Elder Halverson wants to be in the mission field already; and while I understand being in Finland is going to amazing, I want to relish every moment I can here at the MTC. 1/12th of my mission experience is going to be here in Provo, I'll have the other 22 months to enjoy in Finland. For now, I'll be learning all I can about the gospel and language.

I'll start off by sharing some of the more secular/not gospel related stuff that has happened within these past 7 days.

Two things that I absolutely LOVE about my lifestyle right now: Exercise Time and Food.

Hahaha, it's so true!! My favorite part of the day is exercise time by far. Our zone predominately plays two games, Spikeball and Kill. Spikeball is alright, it's mostly a Utah kind of sport I guess, but nah; it's all about KILL >:D. Most of you already know this game, but the premise is that all the players stand in a circle and attempt to juggle a soccer ball to 3 to 4 times, then catch the ball after the 3rd or 4th hit and nail somebody to get them out. This is where I as an individual can have my talents shine, as I looove soccer, and nobody else in our zone has quite as much experience as I do. Everybody loves to play, and it's always a bundle of laughs. Another reason why I'm in no rush to leave the MTC, I'm going to miss exercise time with our zone and district.

And yes, I personally love how they feed us here at the MTC. I know some people who don't love it, but you have to a special kind of ungrateful to not love the food and effort they put into it. Every single meal is basically a buffet. You can have as much food as you want, there is a huge variety in drink options (I usually drink a glass of water + a glass of chocolate milk/coke for lunch and dinner) as well as meals scheduled, there's a nice salad/fruit bar, as well as the trusty left-over bar. They have a really awesome system here, and it's amazing how much they really care about all the missionaries. Best cafeteria experience I've ever had! Every single day I have a whole fruit, like an apple/orange/pineapple, as well as a salad. Plus the meals they prep everyday are very well rounded! It feels great to be so well nourished and taken care of. But don't worry Grandma and Grandpa, I still appreciate the "Pantry o' Plenty" experience I shared with you all when we lived together prior to this ;).

Now onto the more spiritual side of my week, and there's so much to cover, but I'll try and prioritize best I can.

Last Sunday was super great. It was sooo busy, it's funny how our "day of rest" is the one where we're running around to so many different meeting and workshops, Haha. I taught the lesson in priesthood class, alongside Vanhin Tracy, and we taught over The Creation, The Fall of Adam&Eve, and Agency. We prepared well, and led really good discussion! 1st counselor of our branch presidency commented on how he thought that was one of, if not the, best discussions he's ever witnessed during his 2 years at the MTC. So that's cool! Since I was assigned to be district leader, I led our district meeting, and I have to say I really enjoy doing that. I never thought of myself as a "natural" leader, but if I can be confident over a subject, and receive support from the people I'm with, it inspires me to believe that I am capable of being one. One thing I have certainly noticed is that I am certainly one of the least "knowledgeable" within our district; especially if we're talking about academics. I'm surrounded by a lot of bright and learned souls, sometimes it feels strange to be a "leader" over them.

A lot of my gospel knowledge has come through the Book of Mormon and the witness of the Holy Ghost, but a lot of the other district members are much more knowledgeable on the bible and deeper doctrines/history of our church. However, I have felt my relationship with the Holy Ghost become immensely strengthened since being here. I try to say more of my general prayers in Finnish, and it's the coolest thing feeling the spirit when speaking and thinking in a different language!!! But I've had some very profound experiences through prayer where I offered up the total desires of my heart in English, especially in the temple. Having this close companionship with the Holy Ghost has allowed me to keep up with the other missionaries, and teach with power. It's kind of really nice not being the smartest elder here, more many reasons, but most importantly it forces me to rely on the promptings of the Spirit. If I am to become a successful and effective missionary, I'm going to have to be worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost; I'll never be able to wing it based solely upon my gospel/language knowledge. I've had some fabulous teaching experiences, both in Finnish and English, and I give all the credit to the influence of the Spirit. Blessings come from being meek like unto a child, being humble and submissive, and keeping God's commandments. I can personally testify of this!

Last Tuesday, our devotional speaker was Sharon E. Eubanks, 1st counselor in the general Relief Society. She served her mission in Finland!!! She immediately became the coolest women's general authority ever. One really fascinating experience: She was speaking of how she knew an elder who grew up in Germany, spoke German, and had a German Father. He so badly wanted to serve his mission somewhere he could speak German, but got called to Finland. The Elder was initially livid to be speaking such an insignificant language, and felt that it was his destiny to serve German speaking. However, he ended up loving his mission and everything about Finland after he left the MTC. I'm not even making this up! You could imagine how I felt hearing this, having Sister Eubanks tell a story where it almost felt like I was her protagonist. After she told this story, I felt a surge to answer the next question she would address the missionary audience, which was composed of some 750+ Elders and SIsters! I chickened out on the first one, but I was on the edge of my seat so I could be first to raise my hand. Next question came, and I shot up, standing tall with my hand extended. Another Elder on the opposite side of the room did the same. It was a matter of who would have a mic ran to them first. Unfortunately, the mic runner on the other side of the hall was double stepping it, while my guy was just ambling his way up to me. I lost out, and didn't get to answer her question. She moved onto her next point, and I prayed that one more opportunity could present itself, and that I could share my thoughts and say something that would inspire the congregation. That opportunity never came. Family and friends, let me tell you, when you are denied the opportunity to speak and release the spirit that has so strongly filled your vessel, it is a truly awful feeling. There is a difference between disappointment from excitement, and disappointment from being robbed of sharing spiritually inspired thoughts. This was situation where both of these gauges were maxed out. I felt so terrible after that.

After the devotional, we were to have a district discussion over what insights and thoughts we had from the speakers. Me, being the district leader, was in charge of leading this discussion. Hahaha, family and friends, I could hardly look at my fellow elders and sisters without fighting off tears. The branch president was also there, and asked me to share any thoughts I had first. Haha, oh my goodness, I retold them of the experience I had where I was denied the opportunity to share the spirit, and I cried through telling the entire story. My moral of the story was that it isn't about us as missionaries. It isn't about us looking cool, or where we come from, and how we feel; it's about others. We are here to lose ourselves in the service of others, and the service of God. So perhaps God wanted me to realize that through this experience. Funnily enough, there was an immense spirit in the room as I spoke, and perhaps it was wisdom in the Lord that I share my thoughts personally with my district. It would've been so cool to be the German who got called to Finland, where Sister Eubanks served, in front of her and all the other missionaries; but I think that I was denied that opportunity so that I could bear profound testimony to my district. It isn't about me. It is about the people whom I am serving. It is about God and His plan for my progression on Earth. It felt wonderful to release the powerful spiritual feelings built up inside me with my district. Being worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost is so critical for me to have experiences like these. I hope that I am never found unworthy, and never grow content in my knowledge, but continually seek to be guided and led by the promptings of the Spirit of the Lord.

I want to try and make a habit of including Finnish in my emails, so I'll try and recite the Missionary purpose in Finnish (without cheating!).

Meidan Lähetyssarnaaja Tarkoitus:

Kutsua muita Kristuksen luokse autamalla heita ottamaan vastaan Palauttetu Evankeliumi, uskomalla Jeesuksen Kristuksen ja Hänen sovituksensa, tekemällä paranneus, ottamalla vastaan kaste ja Pyhen Hengen lahja, ja kestamalla loppun asti.

Moroni 10:5

"Ja Pyhen Hengen voimalla, sina voit tietää totuuden kaikesta"

I would like to extend a commitment to each of you this week, that you share a scripture that speaks to you with a friend (whether they be a member or not), and bear your testimony on why you like that scripture. I was able to share a scripture of my own, 2 Nephi 31:20, during TRC (basically teach a member fluent in your mission language a lesson), and while my Finnish was very poor, it magnified the spirit as I attempted to bear my testimony. Love and faith means is what pierces hearts, not clever words and logic. I invite each of you to do this and report back to me how it went. I expect 47 emails back ;) so do your part :P xD

I hope that all of you have a wonderful week :) It is always a joy to share my experiences with you all. Perhaps this email wasn't as short as I had originally thought it out to be! I hope to hear back from anybody who enjoyed the things I've shared, it means a lot! Also special shout out to last week's sponsors: Mom for the EUROPEAN FANTA she sent, as well as the Grandma and Grandpa for the huge sheet of delicious brownies!!! Letters from Mom, Dad, Saren/Donnie, and my Grandparents, were also wonderful. Thank you all so much for the overwhelming support! I love you all so much, I'm excited for the adventures of this next week, and to report back to all of you about it.

Until then,

Vanhin Koch

[vanhinkoch]

1- District Elders

2- the (mostly) Europe countries missionary zone!

3- the MTC

[vanhinkoch]

Week 1 Review in the MTC From Start... (#1)

Hello friends and family!!! ( I am going to give fair warning right now that SO MUCH has happened within this past 8 days, and this is going to be a very long email! You don't have to read it all at once, but I want to include vivid detail)  Where do I even begin?? Haha, it has been a little over a week of me being set apart as Vanhin (elder) Koch, and I can say with full confidence that I am so glad I decided to give a small portion of my time here on earth to lose myself in the Lord's work. Every day here at the Missionary Training Center (mtc) in Provo, Utah has been a gift. I have been learning so much everyday, and my life has made a complete 180 degree turn from what it used to be.  To provide a little background knowledge, I received inspiration to serve a mission the day I turned 18 years old, August 4th 2017. I received my call to serve in the Helsinki, Finland mission on December 10th of the same year, however my MTC date was delayed to June 6th 2018. That space of time was the biggest trial of my life. I was struggling with a lot of negative emotions. All of my friends moved on with their own lives after graduating, and I felt left as if my life had been put on pause while I watched every one else's play out. However, through the support of my family (massive thanks to grandpa and grandpa <3), I was able to endure through this testing period of my life. Now enough of the sob story, and onto the good stuff!!! ;)

THE MTC:  So what happened after my family dropped me off at the MTC on Wednesday June 6th, 2018? Well, Elder Beard was my host and helped me get situated into my building of residence and designated classroom. I can't tell you how much I've Dreamed of this moment - walking around the MTC feeling ecstatic and struck with awe, finally being part of something, being surrounded by other people all united in one purpose; it was euphoric. Funnily enough, the person I shared this moment with (Elder Beard) had to have been one of the dullest people I've ever met x). Fortunately, the rest of the people I met at the MTC would prove to be wonderful people. Anyways, when I put on that name tag that read "Vanhin Koch - Myöhempien Aikojen Pyhien Jeesuksen Kristuksen Kirkko", was such a strangely powerful moment. It was as if in that moment I was truly set apart, and numbered among the messengers of the Lord.  The Missionary Training Center is a magical place. I know it may sound cheesy, but magical is the only way I can describe it. I have felt the comforting spirit and love of God so powerfully every single day here. The gift/companionship of the Holy Ghost is so real, and is exponentially magnified here at MTC. There is so much peace here. There is so much love here. Prayers are Always heard, Heavenly Father truly listens and blesses his faithful servants. The witness of the fire that burns brightly within as I testify of the Savior is a perfect reassurance to me that there is a God who loves all of His children, and blesses the meek and faithful. One extraordinary phenomenon that I've experienced is feeling the comfort of the spirit, even while feeling stress and anxiety. It was the craziest thing!!! I was in class learning Finnish, and I was anxious from feelings of inadequacy, when I felt the familiar comforting spirit begin to mingle within my soul. I have never felt anything like it, and it just bears further witness to me that there is a marvelous work happening here on earth and that I get to be a part of it. There is Magic here at the MTC, and I love it so much.   OUR DISTRICT & ZONE:  Our district, which is a group of elders and sisters, is amazing. We all think of ourselves as the best district, or "Golden district". I am in a tri-panionship/power-trio, which is a triplet of elders instead of a couplet. However, we're so close as Elders we're basically a penta-panionship and go/do everything together. Being put in this district with these people has been such a gift. They are all so wonderful and I love spending time with all of them. I was nervous when everyone speculated I would meet a lot of jerks/tough companions, but everyone here is fabulous. So grateful for this district. Also, I was assigned to be District leader, so that's been a pretty cool opportunity :) Vanhimmat (elders): - Vanhin Tracy: The first person I met in the district, who is really cool and fun guy. One of my companions, graduated high school about a week or so ago from Haraman, and he has a lot of hilarious/juicy stories to share at the dorm xD. He can be very spiritual, but also likes to have fun and laugh. Great guy, great companion, so blessed to have him. - Vanhin Fitzpatrick: Also my companion, he's from So. California and did a year at BYU, and is a really sharp guy overall. Quick learner in Finnish class, especially at memorization, and well educated on the doctrines/teachings. Funny/smart guy who likes to tease, and he's a great part of our district. He'll often stop and talk to his other friends from BYU also here at the MTC, and Vanhin Tracy and I like to joke about that. - Vanhin Halverson: I actually met Vanhin Halverson at a burger joint the same day before heading to the MTC! We aren't companions, but we're in the same district, thank goodness! I love Vanhin Halverson, he's so hilarious and friendly/courteous to everyone. Has probably made me laugh harder and more often than anyone else here at the MTC. He's from Texas, and he's a great elder. - Vanhin Hale: Haha, I love Vanhin Hale. He is the exception. The elder is definitively a genius. He is fluent in every romantic language, even more so in ASL, and his knowledge of German may well surpass my 3 years of immersive study; not to mention he's currently studying Arabic. Oh and he's graduated college with a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science at 19 and has made a goal to be the youngest self-made billionaire. Guy is Beast. But he's also one of the most humble souls you'll ever meet. Such a nice guy, also has a great sense of humor and camaraderie. He Loooves learning Finnish, and as you would expect, is really good at it. I like to call him the tip of the spearhead in our district's endeavor to learn Finnish. His influence on us is very positive, Sisaret (sisters, in a religious sense): - Sisar Christiansen: She is always happy and giggly everywhere she goes. You can tell how in tune she is with the spirit, she bears a powerful testimony. I don't get to interact with her nearly as much as I do with the Elders, but I can tell how great of a person she is based on this week's initial impression. She's also rather fair, but she gets teased quite a bit by the other elders because of it xD I kind of feel bad about it, so I'm trying to be kind and make sure her and her companion dont feel isolated/excluded from the district. - Sisar Bicknell: She did a year at U of U, but I feel bad because the other elders tease her by saying BYU is way better, haha. But I can see how agreeable and nice she is, despite not being able to spend much time with her. Seems like her and Sisar Christiansen are always laughing, which is nice. I'm glad that she is kind, because this is the only sister companionship in our district. Hopefully I'll learn more about her over these next 8 weeks.  The Zone, which is made up of several districts, we are in is also really great. We are all serving in European mission, the Mongols being the exception. We've received a warm welcome since being the new district, and it's been really cool to meet even more fun and cool people. Some of the countries our Zone represents are: Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Finland (However the Finns previously in our zone left for the field yesterday), Netherlands, and Belgium.There are a couple really interesting people in my zone who I'll briefly tell you about. - Elder Demilla: Missionary serving in Norway, similar to Vanhin Hale, he is his own little "exception". He has a very abnormal personality, is highly intelligent, and has several certificates in Message Therapy; which is actually super handy because he will not hesitate to work on you. First time I ever met him I had a headache, to which he replied "I can get rid of that for you", and proceeded to do just that. But he also loves to just...appear. He shows up in our dorm at like 9:45 randomly and suddenly we're all listening to him give us history lesson in WW2 and speculating the possibilities of what would've happened in the USA helped the Germans and whatnot. As you can could imagine, him and Vanhin Hale get along very well, and it is thoroughly entertaining to hear them debate. Sometimes he'll go up to me, grab the back of my neck, say "Tonight, we go to Valhala together", and then imitation headbutt me. He's is very interesting, but I like him. Also I listen to his crazy stories (like how a village shaman tried to adopt him to so he could inherit the title of medicine man at 12 years old) and I gave him one of the cookies grandpa sent me, so he likes me too I think xD - Vanhin Owens: Ahhh Vanhin Owens. He was the only elder to serve in Finland until we came along, and he was a solo missionary for about 8 weeks. He openly admits that he's kind of lost it, and he's a very quirky dude in general. He wears a sheet as a robe around the dorms at night, and spends his free time debating with Elder Demilla about whether or not God is bound by time. He is notorious in the zone for his quirky nature and staying up past lights out. But I feel for him, as he was the only Elder in his district for 8 weeks. That is tough, nobody should ever be alone. Finnish:  Ahhh the Finnish language. I have learned sooo much since starting my time here at the MTC. Then again, starting with 0 knowledge, you kind of have to grow. We study Finnish everyday for about 6 hours in class, along with personal language study, and man it can feel overwhelming. We have 9 weeks here at the MTC to become as fluent as possible for the people we teach in Finland, and that is my biggest motivator; knowing that somewhere in Finland, somebody needs to hear the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ from me, and I need to know the words to say in order to reach their heart in their native tongue. I will say that it has been hard. Some parts of Finnish are nice, such as the phonetics of the alphabet, but other parts are difficult, such as noun/verb conjugation and cases. However I love it, even though the expectations can be very stressful and overwhelming. It is pushing my limits, and I am experiencing growth everyday because of this, which is such a wonderful feeling. I collapse in bed every night exhausted, knowing I gave it my all. One thing that is particularly difficult is comparing myself to others, name Vanhin Hale/Fitzpatrick. However, you all should know that this comparison is not fair at all. Vanhin Hale is gifted in languages and in his mind, and Vanhin Fitz has gone through a year of BYU college. Honestly, considering how much my brain has atrophied since last summer, I should be proud of what I've learned so far. We all have our gifts, I'm trying to fortify my love for others, so that I may be a vessel for the Lord and His spirit, that others may feel of His love for them through me. Haha, starting tearing up a bit there as I typed that. I hope to develop this gift.  I'll bear a short little testimony using what I've learned so far. i won't cheat, haha, I promise! Terve! Minun nimeni on Vanhin Koch, ja minä olen lähetyssarnaaja myöhempien aikojen pyhien Jeesuksen Kristuksen kirkko. Minä tarkoitus on kutsua muita tullamaan Jeesuksen Kristukseen luokse, ja Hänen palauttetu evankeliumi. Minä tiedan että me olemme Jumala laapsia, ja Hän rakastaa meitä. Minä todistan etta Jumala vastataan meidän rukous, minä tiedan Hän kuunellaa meidän. Jeesus Kristus on meidän Herra ja Vapahtaja. Minä rakastaan Jeesuksen Kristuksen palauttetu kirkko. Tästääpäivä minä tuntuan lahja Pyhen Henken, hengen on ihanaa.Minä todistan etta Mormonin Kirja on totta, ja sinä voit luket tiedan. Minä rakastaan lähetyssarnaaja olen. Jeesuksen Kristuksen nimessa, Aamen, That took a while to write, don't be deceived ;). My brain is being worked everyday, and I may not learn or memorize things as fast as some of the elder district members, but I am trying my best, and doing so in the name of Jesus Christ. Other Fun/Cool Things:  Yesterday Vanhin Tracy, Halverson, and I went to San Francisco to get fin(n)ish the last part of our visa application. It was my first time ever being a missionary in public!!! AHHH!! This is real!!! Haha, sorry, got a little excited. But it was so cool, a lot of people came up to us and wished us well. We tried talking to our shuttle bus driver, who was having a really rough day, but unfortunately he was strictly against Joseph Smith. But did love his Savior Jesus Christ, so I am happy for that, and he did show us a lot of respect, so I still think that it was successful in that we did our best to love him by attempting to share with him a piece of what we believe. I know we brightened his day at least. San Fran is such a busy city though! I don't think I personally like busy cities, haha, it's really hard for the spirit to dwell in such a crowded and worldly environment. We had such a fun time though, and it all worked out :)  Sunday was also a fabulous day. Very busy, we were doing something every minute, which kind of felt counter productive to "Day of rest", but the spirit was really strong during the talks and hymns. Our district all went to choir, which was great!! The Chorister was very fun. We sang "Nearer my God to Thee", which we learned is written based off the story of Jacob, son of Isaac. After Jacob was told by his mother Rebekah he must leave immediately before esau kills him, so Jacob flees and wanders in darkness, until eventually falling asleep with his pillow being a rock. Within his dream, he sees the glory of God and how he covenants with his children. The second verse goes "Though like the wanderer, The sun gone down, Darkness be over me, My rest a stone,Yet in my dreams I’d be Nearer, my God, to thee,Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer to thee!". It's so wonderful! Loved this experience :)  This morning our district went to the temple for the first time alongside our zone! We woke up super early and oh my goodness, I felt so tired this morning and didn't want to go, but my goodness it was such an amazing testimony builder. If I feel the Spirit any stronger, my chest may just burst. I gave such earnest prayer to god, and i felt His presence in me. He truly listens if you pray with a sincere heart, with faith, and hope that you shall be heard and not turned away. Feeling detached from the world of turmoil and chaos has brought so much peace to my soul. There is so much more that our limited minds simply cannot comprehend, but every time I pray to Heavenly Father with that same earnest desire that Joseph Smith had, I feel Nearer to God, and my soul relishes in the comfort of the Holy Ghost. Choosing to serve God, to serve my fellow men and women, has proved to be the best decision of my entire life. It has only been one week, and I have felt a plethora of emotions. I have certainly hit a wall or two, and felt overwhelmed and unqualified for this work, however the Lord raises me up. Only through complete faith and trust in the Lord will I ever learn this language and become a powerful teacher. It brings me great joy to say that I am found in the service of my God. I love the temple, and the holy spirit that dwells within. There is great joy in being obedient and submissive to the commandments of God, I have learned that for myself. I will end my report with a simple phrase I heard in a musical piece during one the devotionals:                                                                                                                                                          "When there's no peace on Earth, there is peace in Christ" Misc info:  I appreciate all of the letters I've received, thank you all so much! Just thought you all should know that I can check emails every single day, however I can only reply on our designated preparation day (P-Day), which is Thursday. It's always a treat to hear from family and friends, so if you send me an email, know that I will read it that same day you send it :)  If you've read this far, I commend you! You are very patient, which is one of my favorite Finnish words! Kärsivallisyys, translates to "While in suffering", or something along those lines. I think that is a great definition of patience, and I think my time learning Finnish will be a lot of endurance. However, I am confident the Lord will qualify me for His work. Anyways, not all my Emails will be this long, the first week is just super exciting and I have soo much time today :) I love all of you and hope that at least one of you will find inspiration in some of my words. Thanks again for reading this far x) Moi Moi ;), Vanhin Koch