Zagreb, Croatia

These past two weeks have been spirit filled! Last week our friend Prince got baptized. Then this week our friend Zoran got baptized. 

Prince's baptism was wonderful, he shared his testimony about how he felt lonely. He testified that he now felt the opposite. He is already an amazing missionary. He brought multiple of his friends to church this last Sunday and has participated in multiple lessons helping other missionaries. He wants this work to go forth! This Sunday we also were able to ordain him to the office of a priest! 

Zoran's baptism was this weekend and I have never seen him so happy. He has experienced so much trial in his life. When I first met him he was quiet and awkward. Now he is one of the happiest people on the planet. He often comments about how this church and this community has brought him more joy than he has ever experienced. He wants to get to the temple!

Please pray for Zoran, Prince, Tadiwa, Doris, Mujhim, Ali, Rauf, Otto, Marina and for the Adriatic North Mission. 

This week I led a district Council about how we might better study to prepare and get the most we can out of the upcoming conference. 

D&C 18:34 

34 These words are not of men nor of man, but of me; wherefore, you shall testify they are of me and not of man; 

I shared a story to express the importance of knowing how to study. When I was in high-school I remember I was driving with my father I believe to a basketball tournament. We were discussing what I had recently learned in my studies with my Grandad. My father made a comment which I have never forgotten. “The most important thing that your Grandad is teaching you is not just what you study but more so how to study.” 

How we study determines what we get out of it. As we prepare for the general conference we should prepare to make sure that we are studying in the most spirit filled manner possible. If you want general conference to be great you need to prepare and improve your studies greatly. Not necessarily more studying. Not more time, but refocusing and asking yourself how I can improve how I internalize the word of God.

D&C 6:7

7 Seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich.

Love you all! I hope you have a good week! I would love to hear from you! 

george.mcconkie@missionary.org

Zagreb, Croatia

This last Sunday I was teaching one of our friends Ali. When I first met Ali he said he did not want anything to do with religion. I asked him if he had heard of the book of Mormon. This peaked his interest and he began to meet with us. He is one of the smartest men I have ever met and as we have met with him it has been amazing to see how the gospel has answered his questions and helped him with concerns. Today he said “I have been an atheist for a really long time now, but I want to try to believe again. I want to believe in this.” He said “I am going to try an experiment of having faith.”

I immediately opened to Alma 32:21-28 and we just read. We spoke about how we love this idea and then we testified that if he plants this seed and then nourishes it will grow. At the end he looked at me and said “it is as if God knows what I am thinking and has written something just for me. “

Recently we have been meeting with our friends Prince who is from India and Zoran who is from here in Croatia. They are both on Baptismal date. Pray for them and Ali and if you go to the temple put their names on the prayer role please!

Two Sundays ago a man came to church who had been disturbing and touching the sister missionaries. One of the other Elders told him that he was making them feel uncomfortable. This made him get very loud and angry. He began to get physical and push my fellow Elder. I took the initiative of taking him outside and essentially told him to fix it or stay away. He did not like that but because like Nephi I am “large in stature” he chose to leave.

We have been playing basketball every monday for P-day. It has been so much fun.

Those are a couple things from the past two weeks. I love you all!

Elder McConkie
george.mcconkie@missionary.org

Zagreb, Croatia

Hello everyone! From Zagreb, Croatia! I just got transferred to this country so I’m finally speaking the language I learned in the MTC.  It’s similar to Bosnian and Serbian, but a different dialect so it will be ok!  

I apologize for not writing an email sooner.  I’m making a personal goal to do better! 

Since my last email, I served as zone leader for the countries of Bosnia and Montenegro and was blessed to be able to go on exchanges and see those two countries.  After my time in Sarajevo, Bosnia, I was transferred to Novi Sad, Serbia.  Sarajevo and Novy Sad were filled with my favorite memories of my mission. I loved them because of the missionaries I served with, and the people I was able to meet, not just the natives of those three countries but people from other countries who have immigrated there.  

For the first ten months of my mission, I didn’t see a single baptism from my service.  But in the span of six weeks, with the end of my time in Sarajevo and the beginning of my time in Novy Sad, my companions and I saw 3 baptisms in the span of six weeks.  This has been a common trend for many missionaries in this mission. The Lord is hastening His work and it is undeniable.  

The past year of my mission, I have had more trials and more tests and more difficult days than the rest of my life combined.  There have been many days and weeks, sometimes months, where it feels like I am struggling, incredibly.  And when I was with Elder Albright in Sarajevo, I came to learn a couple of truths. 

I learned that if we continue with faith, even when everything else tells you you should not believe, miracles will happen.  I have learned that there is no gratification in striving for the recognition of men.  

The most difficult days of my mission have been spent in Sarajevo, Bosnia.  But guaranteed the happiest days of my mission, the days that I learned the most and grew from my experiences, were as well, in Sarajevo, Bosnia! Very often, we struggle, we try our best to endure.  And we often are too worried about trying to be someone that we are not supposed to be.  One thing that I learned in my time in Bosnia and in Novy Sad, Serbia was focusing not on how can I be like this or that missionary, but how can George McConkie be the best disciple of Jesus Christ that George McConkie can be.  I look at my time in Bosnia and Novy Sad, Serbia and at the beginning, I was just a believer.  But now, I feel I’ve become a knower.  I feel that I have gained a greater surety that my Redeemer liveth.  I have seen miracles that feel like they are on this side of the veil as well as the other side. In moments of need, I have felt personal tutoring and guidance from my ancestors and my Father in Heaven.   

Thank you for all of your love and support.  I love hearing from you so if you want, send me an email.  Love, Elder McConkie

george.mcconkie@missionary.org

 

Zdravo! - Sarajevo, Bosnia

 Zdravo!

Hello from Bosnia! I apologize for not writing sooner. I would love to hear from y'all even if it is really short.

I have been in Sarajevo for the past 6 weeks. I am a district leader and the second counselor in the branch presidency. I am also training and with my trainee we are opening a new area. The past 6 weeks have been very hectic.

I said goodbye to Elder Nieves and the other members in Belgrade and then came here to Bosnia.

The branch here is Amazing and I love it so much. We meet in a little side alley near downtown. The branch is very small but has some members with incredible stories. My favorite member is named Ljubica. (Her photo is below-the lady wearing sunglasses) During the war there was fighting in her town of Mostar. One day a mailman just appeared with a package. During the war nobody would receive mail. It was a Book of Mormon from her daughter in Spain. She gained such a strong testimony that she would only feel safe going outside if she had the book of Mormon in her hands. She would hear bombs and gun shots in the background but it did not matter as long she had her Book of Mormon. I want to have a testimony of the Book Of Mormon like that.

It is currently Ramadan here in Sarajevo. Since Sarajevo is majority Muslim this holiday is taken very seriously. Restaurants are empty during the day but at night after it is dark they are packed.

Currently Bosnia is going through a political crisis. The northern part of Bosnia is a zone called the republic of Srbska. They have their own individual president and he has recently been convicted to a year in prison. He will not go to prison and is trying to split from the rest of the country. We are currently not allowed to go to the northern part of the country or to the eastern part of Sarajevo because they are to dangerous until the political situation is resolved. Some of our friends have been leaving to America or other nearby countries. People Are scared that fighting and other issues will start again. They are scared for another war. I think we will be completely safe.

Our branch president works at the U.S embassy and he has a son who is 14 and he loves basketball. Every Saturday morning I have been going to the U.S embassy with him and his mom for an hour. I have been teaching him some drills and playing with him a little bit. He has been bringing some friends recently so it was like I was running a camp the other day. It was so much fun!

I went to Zagreb to find out who I am training this last week. His name is Elder Albright and he is from Gilbert Arizona. I love him so much. He is a hard worker and loves being a missionary.

That's all I can think of. Love you all!

-Elder Mcconkie
george.mcconkie@missionary.org

Christmas in January - Belgrade, Serbia

 Здраво everyone!

Hello from Belgrade, Serbia. Belgrade has recently been going through some very large protests. There have been protests every other day throughout the city. There are many who are critical of the Serbian president right now. Elder Nieves is my new companion and we were walking down the street when we came across while contacting the biggest protest yet. We walked around it and there were tens of thousands of people. The photos and video do not do it justice. Recently we could not get to our lesson because the bridge going across the river had a protest blocking it.

Belgrade is a very old and historic city. It sits in a place that has been wanted by many empires throughout history. Belgrade has been destroyed 50-60 times throughout history. Recently while walking down the street I looked up and saw a massive building with a bombed out hole in the middle of it. There are a couple 12 story buildings that have been bombed out and are unstable. They keep them up as a monument to remember what happened during the 90s and early 2000s. There is a lot of Pro-Russian sentiment, as well as support for Putin.

Eastern Orthodoxy is the predominant religion here in Serbia. For this reason we celebrated Christmas on the 7th of January. They follow the Orthodox calendar and for this reason holidays like Christmas are a little bit after the date the rest of the world uses. Because of this I got to celebrate Christmas twice! It was so much fun. We went caroling l, had activities with some of the members and played a lot of games.

This language has been extremely difficult for me to understand and to learn. As time has gone on it has become super satisfying to understand certain phrases and sentences. Serbian is not an easy language to learn. I have learned Cyrillic which is a different alphabet. Тhese are some of the common characters : ћ ч к ш п ж ђ б ц џ ф д њ љ з г и

Missionary work is not easy but I think that is what makes it so satisfying and worthwhile. The tasks put in front of us are impossible if we try to do them on our own. We have daily miracles. The more we look for miracles the more we find and the more we receive. The more we look for help from God the more we will find it. He won't always make it easier but He will make it better.

The branch and members here are amazing and so kind. Getting to spend Christmas as a full time missionary has been so much fun. Getting to serve and have a Christ centered Christmas is what has made it so much better.

No matter the situation when we turn outward and think about others and about Christ, life will simply just be better. We can take anything we wish to Him and he will give us guidance and comfort. He is the true source of joy. Christmas is the best when we make it about Him. Every day can be as joyful as Christmas if we make each of them about Him. We are here so that we might have joy. Fulfill the reason you are here. Don't waste the opportunity to have joy. Not even for a single day.

 Love you all!

-Elder George McConkie

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1st email! - Belgrade, Serbia

Hello everyone! I am sorry I have not written an email yet. But……

The MTC was so much fun. I made so many friends and learned so much. I am so grateful for everyone I met. I had the greatest MTC district of all time. Getting to spend time with them was so special. I really felt like we all grew together over the course of those nine weeks. Making friends outside of my district was a lot of fun as well. I feel like I have made more friends in the last nine weeks than I have my entire life. 

My favorite part of the MTC was winding down every night and getting to chat with my roommates and the other elders in our dorm and district. Those conversations mean alot to me. They were the foundation for friendships I hope last long after my mission. 

The plane ride was not fun. But getting Cafe rio was a ton of fun. 

When We got to Zagreb we learned that half of our luggage was lost. Not the best start. We met our mission leaders after that. I think we might have the best mission leaders in the world. We met our trainers the following day and found out our areas. I am being trained by elder covington in Belgrade Serbia. Everything here is written in Cyrillic and it might be the capital of cigarette smoke and track suits. I love it. We watched conference the past couple of days and got to see a massive protestant temple and an old Turkish fortress. 

Lastly for a spiritual thought. I was reading in 3 Nephi chapter 11 as you can guess about the doctrine of christ. In verse 14 it says “Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel, and the God of the whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world.” I like this verse because of the imagery but I love it because of its symbolism. Christ's scars symbolize his atonement. Because of this, this verse is also a call to come and partake of his atonement. Many of us do not know the burdens we carry until we let christ take them upon himself. Come unto christ and take the opportunity of his atonement! 

Love george

george.mcconkie@missionary.org

MTC Elders

With President Cordray