Sick Companion!!!

Hello Mother and Family!

First, I want to address the Lincoln living person with her question about preparing for Korea. Well, I would say that out of everything to prepare for, short term be ready for lots of change really fast. And then, just as solid of a base with the language as possible. Honestly, the language takes so long to learn that there isn't really any magic short quick preparation that will help her. I would recommend just learning Hangul (the alphabet) and how to read. I would say it would be less specific preparation and more with the general lots of change really fast preparation. Dad taught me best. Don't fight it, just accept it, and then eventually you will enjoy it. 

Ok....this week went by well, although my companion got sick from Monday through Friday, so we did not have a real big opportunity to talk to a whole lot of people.

We did have the opportunity to teach the English investigator. He is a hard one. He doesn't like the idea of commitments and really doesn't feel like he has the time to keep them. So, we talked to him and tried to help him understand why he needs to keep the commitments. He is mainly interested in English, so his desire isn't quite there...yet. On the other hand we learned that he had a near death experience on a motorcycle that has definitely caused him to believe that there is a God because of what he experienced. We also found out that his mother is deceased and that he loves her a lot. Hopefully we can help him see that he really can speak to his mother again and that that opportunity far outweighs any possible result that he could get through speaking English. He's a tough one though. 

The high school students haven't responded to our calls. We will continue to try for a short time and then move on.

We had to reschedule with Waterman because Elder Wager was sick and so we did not have an opportunity to meet him this week. 

The person we met on the bus has also stopped answering our calls which is unfortunate. Hopefully we can get in contact and continue to help him come unto Christ.

So, after this week we will be building from the ground up again. We have some likely potentials that we have met in the past few days, so hopefully we help the people of GongJu experience the blessings of the Gospel!

On the other hand, one of the investigators that Elder Tolman and I taught in Gwangju got baptized on Sunday!!! He is the best. He called and was so happy to tell me that he got baptized. He also was so excited that the next week he would receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost! I am so happy for him! He is one of God's precious children who has come to know God and that is wonderful. 

This week has been rather reflective for me. I read a talk that President Hinckley gave in 1999 about Member missionary work and realized that his talk was just preparing people for what is happening now. I also realized that his talk is mentioned all over the place in Preach My Gospel and in the white handbook. It's called Feed my Lambs, Find my sheep, or something along those lines. It is a great talk that really helped me to grasp the member-missionary unity that together can accomplish the work of the Lord. (Read it! it's amazing. Remember that once you read it you're accountable :) 

   On Sunday we had an Area 70 visit the ward and talk to us in sacrament meeting. It was very good. One point that he mentioned is that missionary work is a work of revelation. The Holy Ghost is vital to the work of missionary work. Because it is God's work, and not ours, we must do it in His way and according to His timing. If we don't then we will not get very far. That is so important. When we do things by the Spirit, that is when we are made instruments in the hands of God to do His work. 

Thank you for your thought. That is so true. There are so many that are for us, even when in the world it seems that every one is against us. I love the Savior's words in John. "Say not ye, there are yet four months, and then cometh the harvest? Behold, I say unto you, lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal; that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together." (4:35) Christ said it. It's true. Don't say that the fields will be white, because they are white. You just have to look through the eye of faith. I am so excited to thrust in the sickle and reap with my might!

I love you all so much! You are THE BEST! 

Christmas in Gong Ju

Hello Mother and Family!

This week was a little bit laggish with a crazy schedule and the Christmas Party on Friday, but we still managed to teach some and find some!

 

Waterman was unable to meet last week, so we will meet with him on Wednesday of this week.

 

Ahhh, the high school students. We called them and they agreed to meet with us on Tuesday! We are excited to teach them more--especially about the Plan of Salvation and what Heavenly Father really wants for us, and how we can qualify to receive it!

 

The bus contact is amazing! He didn't come to church which was a little bit of a disappointment, but when we called him during the week he talked about how he had read a little bit of the Book of Mormon and had prayed a little bit. He also said that he wanted to learn more! So, we are excited to work with him and help him to come to know God and Jesus Christ in his life. Right now he has been pretty busy, so hopefully he will have a break from school so that we can meet with him more. He seems really receptive to the spirit which is really great!

 

The English investigator is slowly slowly progressing. He shared with his friend that he was going to the churchee to learn Englishee, so we asked him to continue to share the Gospel and introduce his friends to us. He is really slow in learning because he wants to learn everything in English as well as in Korean, which we will discuss with him the next meeting that we have with him. He is great!

 

The other potential investigator didn't have any real sincere desire, more just a little curious and wondering about things and we haven't been able to contact him for some time, which is unfortunate, but is how things go sometimes.

 

Also, I had a really good conversation with Eric at church and he said that he wanted to introduce us to 2 or 3 of his friends at school to teach them about the Gospel. He also asked us some really good questions about how to share the Gospel and how to deal with certain situations. He's amazing. He's feeling the desire to serve a mission and it is so inexpressibly precious and wonderful to have the opportunity to see him and to talk with him. The Lord has Eric in His sight, as well as each and every one of us individuals.

 

Also, at the Christmas Party I had a good talk with my last companion about my previous investigators! They are doing very well and at least one of them, if he is able to make it to church will hopefully be baptized this coming Sunday. I don't know if he came or not, but I am so excited for him! (He is the breakdancer that hadn't been to church in awhile and wanted to come to church again).

   The other investigator that we met for every day solid who was older is also doing well. He said that he should get baptized as well! I am so excited for them! They are the best!

 

Ahhh....Buddhism. Yep, it's not super common in America, but here in Korea, especially in the conservative areas, I would say about 30-40% of people are Buddhist (that is not a calculated percentage, but a mere estimate). Buddhism is a very philosophical religion. Some Buddhists believe in God and others do not. They believe in cycles and reincarnation. Specifically, they have Buddhist temples where the people go to worship. At the Temple the receive some sort of a new name and then they bow before the Buddha in the front, some scripture from the Buddhist text is read and then they use a hammer like thing on a bell or something that makes a musical ticking. People that I talk to that are Buddhist say that they are very peaceful when the go to the temple and they worship. However, most Buddhists that I talk to mention that the peace doesn't really follow them into the outside world. When they go to the temple they are peaceful, but when they leave it normally leaves as well. That's about all that I know. 

 

This week at the Christmas party we watched Home Alone and then had a Christmas Program (which was really good). We also watched Elder Nelson's talk from the Christmas Broadcast from the First Presidency. Elder Nelson taught about the peace that comes from Jesus Christ. Peace that can always be with us, in all our stages in life and in everything that we do and in our daily lives (of course within worthy places and living). I felt that peace that day throughout the program and have felt in so many times in the past 6 months that I can say that there is nothing that can counterfeit that true and continuing peace. There is nothing that can defeat it, except our own choices and our own neglect. Elder Cook gave a talk in the Conference before I left (April 2013) about personal peace. It very good! Peace comes through centering our lives around the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. He has shown us the way and through obeying Him we can receive that peace that transcends all else.

 

Merry Christmas! Ps. in the package is a scripture chain that you can read as a family. Just be warned that it will take probably half an hour...so choose when you want to read it. I was assigned the topic of keeping a Godly Perspective on missionary work and made the chain for that purpose! I hope you enjoy the gifts!!!! I love you so much!

3rd week in Gong Ju

Hello Mother and Family--

Well it sounds like I went to Korea...but this Minnesota place sounds way stranger than anything here...sounds like a completely different place than good old Oregon! New adventures and new things! And a white Christmas!

This week we worked really hard and the Lord blessed us with some of His children to teach.

First, we found a person named Waterman who teaches at an English 학원 (a mini-school where you learn one subject) and had first come into contact with missionaries in 1958 in the Phillipines. He thought that of all the religions that he studied, our religion was the best. He was very prepared so we taught him why he needs to be baptized and committed him to be baptized. He said that he would think about the commitment and give his decision this Wednesday. The Spirit was really strong in the lesson. We tried to help him see the eternal value of following Jesus Christ versus the temporary value of enjoying things of less eternal value.

We also had a great finding experience when we contacted and set up an appointment with a high school student. When the student came to the appointment, he brought 3 friends along with him. So, we taught all four of them the first lesson and the member that we contacted came in at the last half and really did a good job in helping them feel the benefit of the Gospel. It was a great experience. Since then they have had a test and have not been able to meet; however, we will continue to contact them and try to teach them.

We had one other finding miracle that was great. On the way home from the Taejon Zone Conference Elder Wager met someone on the bus that we were able to set up an appointment with. This is an interesting story. We were leaving Zone Conference and we had an appointment that we were rushing back to get to. Well, the bus that we take comes every half hour. We rode the subway and when we got to the crosswalk across from the bus stop, we saw...the bus. So, we watched it go by. Then, the stoplight it was at turned red, so we crossed and then sprinted as fast as we could to the bus. Right when we got to the bus, the light changed and the bus took off. We walked back to the bus stop a little disappointed, but knowing that the Lord doesn't role dice. We then waited for the next bus talking to everyone that was at the bus stop with no luck. It was on this second bus that we met this wonderful student. We met him on Sunday and taught him. He committed to being baptized (although we have not set a date yet). He is a wonderful person that seems very responsive to the Spirit. The Lord works in very mysterious ways. Although we missed an appointment with one person, we met someone who I think will have great potential in the future.

The English interest person is...interested in English. The hardest part is that he really does have a very genuine desire to learn the Gospel and to learn it well. We were teaching him the first lesson and he really really wanted to understand the principles such as the Priesthood. He is very slow and fairly difficult to teach, but I see him progressing ever so slightly every time that we meet.

Other than that, we met one more person last Monday who seemed to want to talk more about God. He doesn't believe that God exists because of the difference in the rich and the poor. We helped him see the eternal perspective and the importance of Prophets of God that can reveal to us things that we could never discover on our own. We told him that he can know for himself if what we taught him is true. We then got his contact information (that he withheld the first time we met him on the street) and will hopefully be able to meet with him the coming week (he was busy).

So, the Lord continues to bless us with people to find and to teach and to help into the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

This week I really had the message of patience again built more into my character. Results don't come without time and without effort. Sometimes, they don't come until after a lot of time and a lot of effort. Sometimes, you don't get to see them. But, that's where trusting the Lord comes in. Trusting that sometime, somewhere, the time and the effort put into the work will come to fruition, if not for you, for someone else, and ultimately for the building of the kingdom of God. You just do your work and trust the Lord. The Lord knows His vineyard and He will take care of it. Don't forget about Elder Ballard's Christmas challenge! Introduce someone to the missionaries! If there's one thing that I've learned on my mission it is that everyone has a deep desire to know about God. To really know whether He exists or not. Even out here in what President called the most conservative and cultural city in Korea where 3 out of 4 people talked to are Buddhist, they still have questions about the Infinite. Your friends and acquaintances all have the same questions...even if they aren't consciously thinking about it. That is when you can help them to consciously think about it :) Just ask them simple questions like "do you believe God exists?" "Why do you think that way?" "How do you think that a belief in God can help you?" "Do you think God can help you at school or at work, in your family?" There are also questions that those in who have a Christian belief need help answering, such as: "If there is one God and He taught one Gospel, then why are there so many differently teaching churches?" and then "How can you know for yourself?" "Do you know how you can know?" Help people see why they are doing what they are doing. Most people down at their core know that working or going to school for money is not going to make them happy. This helps people realize that their might actually be a purpose to life--a reason for living beyond what gets blocked and bogged down in the daily routines of life. Ask them who they want to be, where they find happiness, what's hard, what's easy, what they like, etc. Find their motivations and then help them see how God can help them in what they want and what they desire. And of course go by the Spirit. You will know what questions to ask and how bold to be...boldness has received a completely new definition on my mission. Love them, care for them enough to help them in the eternal way!

ERIC SUNG!!!

Hello Mother--

Yes! This week I had the opportunity to meet Eric. I went to the new ward and sacrament meeting was about to start and I noticed someone younger sitting by himself that I didn't recognize, so I decided to go sit by him...and it was Eric! Oh my goodness it was so good to see him again. You know he's in a boarding school right now, so he lives there and has very little free time. However, every Sunday that there is no school activity, he comes to church--every single week by himself without any one else there. Also, what didn't surprise me one bit, is that as I sat by him, I noticed what he was doing...the Duty to God program. He is amazing. Two years of coming to church all by himself and sticking to the Book Of Mormon and to what he came to learn and realize in Corvallis. We were both filled with joy. He said that his parents live about 3 hours away (in a different province) so there isn't much hope now of teaching his parents, but if I can get contact information and get assigned to the area, then I can help them also receive the blessings that their son has experienced.

This new area is quite the area. It is country, which means only 130,000 people and it is more spread out than Gwang Ju. There are not as many people walking here and there and so sometimes it is a little bit harder to really use time effectively, but things are picking up. There is a lot of work to do. When I arrived, there were 0 investigators. No one to teach. So, we are finding. We are talking to all the people that God puts in our path and helping others to find the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We did have one contact with someone who was primarily interested in English. In the lesson I asked him what his greatest desire was, and he said that it was to learn English. So, then we talked about what the Gospel can do for him and how he can gain something that is much better than just learning English. He accepted it and at the end he prayed in Korean and accepted to take the lessons. So, we will have the opportunity of meeting him three times a week now.

We also met with a father of an entire family who are members, he is the only non-member. Right now he is having problems with his family. We talked to him, sang hymns with him, and he pretty much does not have the desire to do. He is old and has a ton of excuses about reading the Book of Mormon, but we are determined to help him see the benefit that reading the Book of Mormon can have in his life and help him to realize the blessings that are awaiting him if he will just learn and obey.

Other than that, we met a bunch of potentials on the street and so we will see if we can get the missionary work in Gong Ju going. It will be a slow process, but I think that the field here is extremely white and very ready to harvest. Here in the country people seem to have more time to talk and are a little more willing to talk about their beliefs. That is why I love the Gospel, because it is true. Seeing people come to realize that and to realize that they really can know for themselves the truth of what we teach is an amazing fruit of opening our mouths.

Here are a few things that I have learned about missionary work. First, is three things that can help you to help someone most. First, observe, then listen, and last discern. Through observing, listening, and discerning, you can know what to ask someone and how to help them to receive whatever message that you hope that they will. They will trust you more and you will feel more love for them.

Second, people, as children of God all wonder or are at least a small bit curious about God. People care about God and about thinking about God. Also, people need to realize that they have the ability to find out for themselves the truth of the Gospel. Completely independent of everyone and everything else, people can come by themselves to know that there is a God, that He loves us, and that through the Gospel of Jesus Christ people can find peace in this life and eternal happiness in the next life. Every single person has divine nature.

I can't express my feelings for the work right now. They are too great. I can't imagine doing anything else than what I am doing right now. There is so much work to be done and so little time to do it all!

I love you all soooo much! I hope that you enjoy all of the snow and the wonderful Christmas season (ps. I get to call you then, so we need to set that up!)

I love you!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!

Hey Mother! And family!!!

So transfers mean a pretty big change this time. I am going to Taejon to a smaller city named GongJoo 공주 where I will be companions with Elder Wager. I have no idea what to expect...I just know that I am going and going on Thursday! So excited to help in the Lord's vineyard wherever I am.

This week was so wonderful. 

First of all, we weren't able to meet with Jake this week which was really a downer, but we know that if we are able to meet with him more frequently that he will feel the spirit and want to be baptized.

When we went to the restaurant owners, the wife was there but not the husband, so we didn't have the quality talk that we hoped for...and yes, Tuesday through Friday we have dinner appointments...very fortunate! 

The referrals that we have are all students and so meeting with them is pretty scarce. We did get to meet with one for a little bit, but he had an upcoming test and so wasn't able to meet this past week. We will continue to try to meet with them and to discuss the things which matter most. (the young man and the one looking for the true church)

We continued to teach the college age student and set a baptismal date with him for 12/22 which is really exciting. Because we knew that he had missed church last week because of alcohol we taught him the word of wisdom the next lesson and he had a little bit of a concern with it. However, he is still reading the Book of Mormon and praying, so we know that the Lord will be able to touch and soften his heart to help him realize the truthfulness of the Gospel. I love him so much. He really enjoys the lessons that we have and always jokes that he is going to become a prophet. The good thing is is that he understands what he's doing and where he's going. (Ok, that was a little Konglish as far as grammar) He's great!

We met a miracle man this week! We met him on Tuesday on the street and he told us that he had a full hour and that we could talk away. So, we taught him a street version of the first lesson (condensed without a visual) and then he wanted to see the church. So we took him to the church and went up to the chapel and talked for a bit, got all of his contact information, sang I am a Child of God and then left.He doesn't have a job right now so he met with us every single day up until Sunday. He has accepted everything that we have taught him and gets it. He told us that he needs to make sure this is the right church because if it is then he will have to come to church every week for the rest of his life. He is so wonderful. He asked if he could be baptized this Sunday. We had to tell him he at least had to wait until the 8th to be baptized. However, he didn't make it to church yesterday so it will probably be the 15th for him. He is so great! So honest and so sincere in searching for the truth.

We met the lady who is looking for the treasures of the world and had a good lesson with a member. We decided that because she cannot meet with her husband that we would refer her to the sisters in our ward. She seems to understand pretty well which is good. She has a lot of potential.

We've been trying very hard to get ahold of the restaurant owners' son, but he has a really busy work schedule. However, I know that once contact is established and he really starts to realize what this is all about, he will eventually convert. The change in his dad is way too obvious for anything else. 

Our intellectual investigator did not meet with us this week again, which is sad, but I will probably have one more meeting with him this Tuesday. I am excited for one last talk with him to see how he is doing and what we can do to really help him feel the spirit and to come to Christ.

Speaking of feeling the Spirit...Elder Tolman and I decided to end every single lesson with a hymn with whatever topic we are talking about. I have recognized a direct correlation with starting that practice and having investigators consistently meet with us. Those that we started doing that with (which is now all of them) haven't missed an appointment. The Spirit that comes from singing hymns is powerful and will help people to feel the spirit. It is amazing to see the difference that something seemingly small can have in the lesson. (*Elder Bednar's talk)

We also had a very touching experience with a less active this week. The less active has been struggling recently with coming to church and with the Word of Wisdom. She is an angel though--so full of light. This time we visited her and we shared with her a message about Jesus Christ. She felt the Spirit sooo strongly. It was amazing to see her change right there and then we closed with one verse of I believe in Christ and it was very powerful. She said the closing prayer and it was amazing to hear the sincerity of her heart as she talked to her Heavenly Father. Such a good experience!

Yep, that was this week, it was great, and unfortunately, now I am leaving. There are so many people here that have so much potential to be baptized and to come into the fold of God. However, the one thing that I have learned is that anyone, it doesn't matter who, through the Atonement of Jesus Christ can change. Anyone. If they read the Book of Mormon, if they pray, come to church and keep their commitments they can and will change. Every single person that I meet on the street is that way. They all have the potential. God has placed those people in our lives--in our associates and in the people that we know. It takes the faith to see things from the perspective of God to realize who and how to help those people. There was a really good talk that I heard at the MTC. The gist of the talk is that the people that we are finding are not the ones lost. God knows all of His Children perfectly and is mindful of every single one. They are not lost, we are. We have to realize how God has worked and prepared them in the past and then align ourselves with His will for them for the future. It is exciting to think of missionary work in this way. Also, I have come to realize that every person that I come in contact with is someone that God has placed in my path that has the opportunity to accept the Gospel. That is very powerful when talking to people. Although some quickly reject or ignore you, it is touching to think that a loving Heavenly Father put them there at that time with you so that they could just catch a glimmer of the spirit and of the joy and happiness that this church really has. The question then comes to...who is it that you know? They are in your associates, I know and promise that there are people that you know that are prepared or who are willing to receive the Gospel. It's such a wonderful thing because the Gospel is true. Everyone that is on earth chose Jesus Christ before this life. Ask, seek, knock, and the door will be opened! I love you all so much!

ps. Thank you for mentioning the Ensign article...I will read it for sure and I think that it will help!

William