Vrolijk Moeders Dag!

I hope that all you mothers had a wonderful mothers day, because you all deserve it!
Definitely a huge highlight of the week was Skypeing with my family! I'm so grateful for them and for all that they do for me. I truly couldn't ask for a better family!

We had a really good week this past week and saw a lot of success with the less active members in our area. We really reached out to them and made the effort to get to know them and have spiritual experiences with them to build the trust and it went really well. Lots of them are coming back to church and two families are just doing great. There is the Joeloemsingh family that expressed themselves that they need to come back to church and we had a really spiritual lesson with them about God. Also there is the Dunnan family that is on fire! Especially Brother Dunnan. He's read everything that we've given him to read and he's read more and asked for more to read and is bearing such fervent and sincere testimony about the Book of Mormon and the church. His wife's brother was there in a lesson and he had a concern about the Book of Mormon and before we could say anything, Brother Dunnan just bore such powerful testimony on the Book of Mormon and how it has helped him in his life and how he came to know that it was true. It was awesome. Those were definitely some spiritual highlights for the week and the work is going really well! Love it here and I know this is where I'm supposed to be! 

I love you all and hope that you all have a wonderful week filled with many blessings and the love of God. You all deserve it! Love you all!

-

~Elder Burr

 A little bit of our apartment.

The best part is definitely the basketball hoop!

 

Back to the Rain!

Hey everyone! I'm back in Suriname now! It's awesome here and I've experienced this mysterious liquid called rain! It's been raining like crazy here and I've been soaked to the bone almost every day so far! But I love it so it's fine :)

We had a good week here in Kasabaholo (which is right next to Paramaribo and technically still part of the city Paramaribo) and also in Bonaire for the last few days. It was pretty hard saying goodbye to all the members there since I've gotten super close to all of them, but I know that the Lord needs me back in Suriname so I'm excited to be back here. We had a really spiritual last lesson with the Mens family and they said some really nice things so it was great to see them one last time and I hope that I see them again in the future! Here in Kasabaholo, it's been great so far! We have some awesome members in the area and we worked with a lot of less actives this week and quite a few of them came to church this week! I think a highlight of the week was when we went and visited someone who is named Broeder Wekker. He hasn't been to church for a while and we had the opportunity to visit him and he has a prosthetic leg and it's a little too short, so it causes him a lot of pain when he walks. We taught him about the Book of Mormon and he promised to read every day and he asked me to say the closing prayer. I asked him if there was anything specific that he wanted me to pray for and he asked me to pray that his leg would feel better. As I was praying the words that came out were really guided by the Spirit and I can't even remember what I said, but he was almost in tears at the end of it and told me that it was a powerful prayer. I know that God listens to prayers and does answer them and it is so important to pray with the Spirit. A spiritual experience for me this past week was at church listening to the testimonies and having the opportunity to bear my testimony myself. The testimonies borne by the members talked a lot about forgiveness, repentance and missionary work and I felt the Spirit so strongly the entire time. Way cool experience and I'm super excited to work with the members here! Elder Ruegger is pretty cool and we've worked together well so far. His father is a big Dodgers fan so that's a plus as well ;)

Also, I heard this week that the Ivaldo Holwijn, the mini missionary that I served with twice for a total of about 6 weeks, passed away this past week. That was super hard to hear since I literally served with him and was with him for such a long time. He got super sick and passed away in the hospital. He was a wonderful person, planning on serving a mission and a true friend of mine. I will miss him a lot, but I know that we will see each other again some day. No one is ever truly gone and I know that he's not hurting anymore. Love him a lot and I will miss him but I know he's in a better place.

But thank you all for everything that you do for me. I really appreciate all of you and your support. You all help me to become stronger. Love you all and I hope you have a wonderful week and that all the mothers have a wonderful Mother's day! You all deserve it!

-- 

~Elder Burr

 My new hat that President DePalm gave me!

 Elder Rios, Elder Burr, Elder Sarmiento

Me,  Elder Geigenmiller, Rios & Sarmiento 

The Mens Family

Curacao Craziness!

Hey everyone! Happy May! Hope that you all are having a great time and make the most of every day because time is sure flying by!

So my transfer call is that I am leaving Bonaire and going back to Suriname to serve in Kasabaholo with Elder Ruegger! But who knows, I could get a call in a few minutes telling me something else ;) You never know but I will be going back to Suriname to serve there. I'm excited to go back to Suriname, but also really sad to be leaving Bonaire. Bonaire has become my home here on my mission and I will miss all of the wonderful members here and all of the incredible spiritual experiences. I know it's the Lord's will though and I'm excited to see a new area!

Our week was insane this week and we just weren't ever really in our area. On Tuesday, we left to go to Curacao for zone conference and because of lack of flights, we weren't able to come back until Saturday! But we had a great time in Curacao and were able to do a long exchange with the missionaries there and truly see how the work is going there and find things that we could do to help the missionaries out. Elder Munoz and Elder Tanner are awesome and we had a great time with them! Zone conference was also great and we talked a lot about the Gathering of Israel and about Jacob 5 which talks about it a lot. It was so cool to see our role in the gathering and to learn more about what it actually means. It truly strengthened my testimony on the importance of this work and the importance of working in all diligence until the very end. Great zone conference and super spiritual. The time working with Elder Munoz and Elder Tanner was also great. They were champs. They had 4 extra missionaries with them so we were in two trios in the same area, but they kept both groups busy and it went super well. Two highlights were talking to this Dutch lady that was on some hard drugs and literally insane (she was crazy and walked like a zombie!) and this super cool contact that we had. We felt inspired to stop at this person's house and talk to them and it was a man that had been living in the Netherlands for years and had talked to the missionaries a bunch there and had just come back to Curacao and was wondering if there were missionaries here. I started talking to him in Dutch and he talked about how he has been searching for the true church and we were able to bear testimony that this is the truth and it touched him a lot. Exciting things! The Spanish Elders on Bonaire also had a baptism on Saturday which was awesome. Went super well and it was fun to be on the beach again!

One of the main scriptures that we talked about at zone conference was Jeremiah 16:16: 16 ¶ Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send  for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes  of the rocks.

We are finding those people every day as we continue to talk to everyone that we can. There are people that are prepared and as we open our mouths as member missionaries and share our testimonies with people, they will be able to feel of the Spirit and have a chance to accept the truth! Love you all! Have a wonderful week!

--
~Elder Burr

 The baptism in Curacao!

 Cool tag picture

Wonderen in onze contact gebiedt!

"Miracles in our contact area!" Hey everyone! I hope that you all had a wonderful week! Things are still going great here in Bonaire and we're seeing so many cool miracles!

We had a pretty good week this past week and we had so many appointments scheduled. Sadly, almost all of them fell through, but it's exciting that we have so many people that have said that we could come back! We've never had this many appointments before and it's been great talking to so many people and meeting a bunch of people that are willing to have us come back! We were able to teach someone named Lucia that I talked to on the airplane coming back from Aruba a few weeks ago and it went super well and she wants us to come back so we're super excited about that. Also, on Saturday we talked to two different Dutch people that also set up appointments with us which was such a miracle! Great things are happening here! Church was also great and a bunch of people received callings this past week which was so good! The branch is growing and many miracles are happening here! I love Bonaire! 

Also we were able to do some service for the Saragoza family and caught an igunana and then we did some service for the Albus's which is always a good time! Things are great here and I can't complain! Thanks for all your support and sorry that this is a little shorter this week, but I'm out of time! Have an awesome week and I love you all!

-- 

~Elder Burr

 Sunset!

(Mom comment - I saw this picture of Parker and thought ... man he's gained weight! After seeing another picture I realized that he just has wind blowing through his shirt!)  :)

  Elder Geigenmiller and I in various places and the iguana!

Wat kan je doen?

Hey everyone! Hope that your Easter Sunday was awesome and that you had the opportunity to think more on the Savior and his Atonement!

We had a really good week this past week! We were able to talk to more people than normal that were willing to listen to us and were able to make a bunch of appointments which was awesome! One CRAZY thing that happened is President Albus (from the district presidency) fell off a roof and dislocated his hip and shoulder! He's going to be out for like 8 weeks which is a big blow, but it's been inspiring as well. Even with all the pain that he is in, he came to church on Sunday which was super inspiring. Also, it's been so cool to see the help that the branch is providing for the family. The Mens family is taking care of the kids every day, and the relief society is making a bunch of meals for them which is going to be a huge help. It's just so cool the effort that they are all putting in the effort to help this family in need. This branch is great! So we were able to do some service for the Albus family as well which was fun as well. A spiritual experience that we had this week was in the lesson that we had with Mona. It was the first time that we were able to see her for a month so it had been a while. The lesson that we had with her was awesome and just really guided by the Spirit. She just really listened and we were able to testify about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and she understood it all. So we are excited for her progress and to see where this all goes!

I had a cool experience this week in being able to bear testimony to someone that was doubting a lot and having a crisis of faith. These words can help us all I think. To my friend, and to all who wish to bolster their faith, I give you this promise: as you faithfully live the gospel of Jesus Christ and abide by its teachings, your testimony will be protected and it will grow. Keep the covenants you have made, regardless of the actions of those around you. Be diligent parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends who strengthen loved ones with personal testimony and who share spiritual experiences. Remain faithful and steadfast, even if storms of doubt invade your lives through the actions of others. Seek that which will edify and fortify you spiritually. Avoid counterfeit offerings of so-called “truths” which are so pervasive, and remember to record your feelings of “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, [and] temperance.”8
In the midst of life’s greatest storms, do not forget your divine heritage as a son or daughter of God or your eternal destiny to one day return to live with Him, which will surpass anything the world has to offer. Remember the tender and sweet words of Alma: “Behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?”9

To all who feel the need to have their faith fortified, I plead with you, do not forget! Please do not forget.

Don't forget that God loves you! Have a wonderful week and continue to be awesome and have spiritual experiences! you all are wonderful! Lobi!
--
~Elder Burr

 Bonaire!

Fasting Miracles!

Hey everyone! Hope that you had a wonderful week this week! I´m finally emailing on a Monday again for once and hopefully that will become a habit again but you never know in this mission. But that´s what this mission is: crazy!

I had a pretty good week this week. I went on exchanges with Elder Galke and Elder Polanco and I talked about that a little bit, but they are awesome and we had a great time in Aruba with them. I flew back Thursday and Elder Sarmiento and I contacted some super cool people on the airplane ride back home! Who would´ve known that there would be so many prepared people on airplanes? This italian lady was so awesome though and just so interested in learning more so we are pumped to go teach her! We had some good lessons this week and sat with some cool people as well but I think that the miracle of the week was on Sunday. Elder Geigenmiller and I were fasting for a new investigator and praying every day for one and it was just seeming a little unlikely to ever find one! Then we go to church on Sunday and one of the youth named Richard came over to us and asked if we wanted to go teach his friend after church. We said sure and went with him, not sure how it was going to go. Well we go meet this person named Angelo (but everyone calls him PeeWee) and he was so cool! He´s 19 and hasn´t been to church for 5 years and is searching for a church to go to. We had a really cool lesson about God with him and we are pretty excited to see where he goes! Super sincere and is really looking for the truth! Miracles! Other than that, we´ve contacted some cool people this past week and we are excited to follow up with them and see if they are truly searching! That was our week!

One cool thing that I was studying and that stuck out to me this past week was a scripture in Alma 30:34. 34 And now, if we do not receive anything for our labors in the church, what doth it profit us to labor in the church save it were to declare the truth, that we may have rejoicings in the joy of our brethren?

I was just really thinking about why we do missionary work since we don´t get paid or anything. So why are there so many missionaries in the world? Why am I still on a mission today. And the answer simply is that this work is true. The gospel has brought so much joy into my life and now all that I want to do is share it with others. This work is true and I know that God is guiding the work. As we open our mouths to share the truth, God will put the words into them that will tough the hearts of the people. I know that that is true!

Thanks for being awesome and I hope that you all have a wonderful week! I love you all! Lobi!

--
~Elder Burr

 My invention on how to dry my clothes faster and... me again!

Alles is gek geworden!

Hey everyone!

Emailing late again since the email place has just not been working lately, but as my companion would say, "wat kan je doen?"Or in other words, what can you do?

We had a great week though and have two investigators that have been reading and agreeing to meet with us which has been so cool. Their names are Lourdes and Tecla and we're super excited for them and the progression that they are making. Good things are happening here and I'm just so excited for everything! Bonaire is awesome!

I also got to go on exchanges in Aruba with Elder Galke and Elder Polanco and they are doing awesome and it was super fun to be with them, learn from them and also help them out a little bit. Miracles always happen on exchanges!

Conference was definitely a huge highlight of the week and I loved Henry B Eyring's talk on walking with Christ and here's a quote from it: "Brethren, our ordination to the priesthood is an invitation from the Lord to walk with Him. And what does it mean to walk with the Lord? It means to do what He does, to serve the way He serves. He sacrificed His own comforts to bless those in need, so that’s what we try to do. He seemed to take particular notice of people who were overlooked and even shunned by society, so we should try to do that too. He testified boldly yet lovingly of the true doctrine He received from His Father, even if it was unpopular, and so must we. He said to all, “Come unto me” (Matthew 11:28), and we say to all, “Come unto Him.” As priesthood holders, we are His representatives. We act not for ourselves but for Him. We speak not our words but His. The people we serve come to know Him better because of our service.

As soon as we accept the Lord’s invitation “Walk with me,” the nature of our priesthood service changes. It becomes all at once higher and nobler but also more achievable, because we know that we are not alone. I felt this most powerfully when President Thomas S. Monson laid his hands on my head nine years ago and blessed me as I began my service in my current calling. In that blessing, he recited these words of the Savior: “And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up” (D&C 84:88)."

These things are so true! I know that Thomas S Monson is a prophet of God and that it should be our life goal to walk with Christ. I invite you all to ponder more ways to walk with Christ and to try them out. Great blessings will come from it. Love you all and hope that you have a wonderful week! Lobi!

-- 

~Elder Burr

 Me and the apartment! Sorry I'll try to send better pictures haha!