Stephen and Elaine Biddulph

30 MAY - 5 JUNE 2016

Stephen averaged 6-7 calls each day this week with missionaries or mission presidents. Each call is followed by notes written on the missionary's page (a private document known only to the AMHA) and either an email or a phone call to the mission president giving an update on how the missionary is doing with his or her particular challenges. Sometimes, coordination with a medical doctor or the IFR is required. Each phone call typically lasts at least 30 minutes, and some go for 45-60 minutes. He also conducts the Early Release Committee Meeting that is held each Tuesday morning at 10:00 a.m., and includes the three Area Medical Advisors (AMA) and the three Area Mental Health Advisors (AMHA), the Infield Representative (IFR) and spouses. Several mission presidents have called for his assistance this week, but that is par for the course.

On Tuesday evening Stephen and Elder James Galbraith (another senior missionary who is assigned to the Offenbach Branch) drove out to Aschaffenburg (about a 40-45 minute drive from Frankfurt east towards Würtzburg) to visit the Wegner family. Andy and Hannah and three sons are from Ghana. Hannah and her son, Sylvanas, were baptized a few months ago. They also have twin baby boys, Daniel and Joseph. Andy and Hannah were having marital problems and Andy asked if we could come out and counsel with them. They spent two good hours with the parents talking through things and teaching them how to pray and hold family councils together and how to be sensitive to each other's needs. Adjusting from cultural biases to the Lord's way of doing things can be challenging. Hopefully some good things were accomplished.
On Thursday the Director of Temporal Affairs (DTA) for the Europe Area was changed. Brother Craig Hunt retired after several years and brother Stephen Maynes was installed as the new DTA. It was a pretty big deal. The Area Presidency was there, and a member of the Presiding Bishopric, Dean Davies, was present to retire Mike and install Stephen.
Sunday (today) was a special multi-stake conference for the northwest portion of Europe. We don't know how many stakes were involved, but it included a live broadcast from SLC and presided over by Elder Todd Chistofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Speakers included Randall Bennett (Seventy), Elder Kearon (Europe Area President), Gerald Causse (Presiding Bishop), and Bonnie Oscarson (YW general president). Among the points of inspiration that we felt during the meeting were:
1. When we return home we must labor diligently to keep our spiritual routine intact by praying together, reading scriptures together, and serving together.
2. Instead of worrying about what we are going to do or where we are going to go or live, we need to spend our time serving others: finding family and neighbors who need our encouragement or help, doing family history, and other things.
3. Go to the temple often and find and take names of deceased family members to perform their work for salvation.
4. Focus on the family by strengthening and lifting and loving our children and grandchildren.
Often, we speak with missionaries who find the work too hard and they want to quit. Inspiration came today when Elder Christofferson spoke of the Savior's Atonement. The Savior spoke of his pleading in the Garden of Gethsemane, for the bitter cup to be removed. He said, "nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I drank the bitter cup and finished my preparations unto the children of men. He let his will be swallowed up in the will of the Father. Missionaries, and all of us for that matter, can make a similar sacrifice in the similitude of the Savior by allowing our will to be swallowed up in the will of the Savior. The will of the Savior is that messengers proclaim the message of the gospel of salvation. We can sacrifice our will, our fears, our discouragement, and our anxieties and allow them to be swallowed up in the will of the Savior. When we do, we increase in faith and receive the blessings of the Lord. When we fail to do that, we miss an opportunity to grow and be blessed.

Friday, Elaine went with other sisters out to a new refugee camp near Darmstadt. The camp in Limburg was closed last week and the refugees there were moved. To her delight, the Limburg families were there in Darmstadt, and they all excitedly came out to greet them. Even her little jump-rope buddy was there. She has truly fallen in love with these refugee families. This has been a great blessing for her to be involved in this work.