February 19, 2017*

This week flew by and it will be a very short email.  

So the Childs have been in Turkey for the last week, which means we have been able to do normal volunteer work for a week!  It has been really fun and we have really enjoyed going on exchanges with other volunteers in order to facilitate training and find out what things can be worked on in the mission.  We also had 2 meetings with people whom I met on transport, which was really cool!  As the church has become more familiar with how the law is interpreted in court here in Russia, we have been a little more free to talk to people and meet with those that are interested.  

The meetings went really well with those people, and it was so cool to met a young 19 year old (I at first wrote 189 year old...whoops) who just had one question that was eating at him.  It was "What is my purpose in life?"  It was so incredible for me to see that, this 19 year old kid, who was so sincere, was asking one of the questions that we know the Gospel answers.  When we shared Alma 34:32 with him, he thought about it for a while, and said "That is a far more simple answer than I was expecting, but I guess that truth should be simple."  I am very excited to work with this young man.  I know that the Gospel answers our questions and helps us find answers to some of the deepest questions that we might have, I know this because I have found those answers to mine.  

This email doesn't do justice to everything that happened, but I am honestly pulling a blank.  This coming week is transfers which will be really exciting and this weekend we are going to Petrozavodsk which is the northernmost city where there are volunteers currently.  One day I will make it to Murmansk :).

We also went on a tour of the city this week with a member and an investigator and a couple of other people, which was really, really cool.  I'll send pictures next week when I get them from the person who had the camera :).  This city is full of such a rich history, and learning about it more has really increased my love for the people.  

I love you all, have a great week!

Elder Belnap