Dear Family and Friends!
This week has been full of learning experiences. I feel like I've grown a lot.
First, we had a baptism!! It was Zheng Baba's son. It was awesome to see that happen. His dad refused to baptize him saying, "you know what? He's getting baptized and that's good enough for me." He(the son) shared a really great testimony and he was so excited. It was awesome. I'm excited to hear about his missionary stories. Also Zheng Baba has a goal to get the higher priesthood, so we are all super stoked for that.
Aside from them, I feel like all of our other investigators are kind of in limbo at the moment. Chen Dixiong is still really busy with work. We were playing phone tag yesterday to set up a time for today and never ended up making contact. I think Andy got kind of freaked out by all the "Mormon rules" and so we haven't been able to get in contact with him either. John's phone was off all day Saturday until the night when he said he was busy and couldn't meet that day, but he'd come to church. He didn't because he was sick, and now we have to wait for finals to be over until we can get back in contact with him(the end of this week). We did meet with a new guy named Lai on Saturday, though. He was super cool. He's a 3rd year college student and he loves sports. We taught him the first lesson and he liked it all. We asked him if he had any questions before he left and he said "yeah, when can I come again?". Super solid. So I have high hopes for him! We also met with a former of 10 years. Our chapel wasn't even built yet when he was an investigator before. We found his apartment and sat with him downstairs on a bench and taught him a first lesson. He also accepted it. However, he works the night shift at his factory so we're not sure if he'll have a lot of time. That was also his problem with the other missionaries. He was a super deep thinker though. And I think he really liked what we had to share with him. I hope we have the chance to meet with him again soon.
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| Brendan participating in a Q & A session in front of members of a local theological seminary in Tainan. The mission president, his wife and other local LDS leaders were asked to speak to the seminary's Freshman class, and afterwards, they included the missionaries in a panel, where they were asked questions such as: how they were called, how they were adjusting to Taiwanese culture, what they planned to do after their missions, etc. |
This week, I finished the "First 12 Weeks" program that they put you through when you first enter the field. Basically, we get an extra hour of companionship study where we focus on different skills and doctrines. This week, like the first week, we talked about the Doctrine of Christ. The most basic and important facet of our church. The part that especially stood out to me was when we talked about the importance of love in missionary work. Not just the passive "oh, love ya man" kind of love, but the love that God has for each of us. The ability to see us all as His children with the great potential to become as He is. I don't know if you all have ever met someone that you haven't clicked with before, but sometimes it's nigh on impossible to love someone to that extent. To love them to the point where you really desire their eternal well-being. You see their potential, and you want to do everything in your power to help them achieve that. I have only had those feelings for a person once on my mission that I can remember. I remember we were doing "English proselyting" where we basically go to an intersection and hand out fliers for our free English class that we do. I remember I went up to this guy on his scooter and said "Hey! We're letting people know about our free English class..." and he cut me off and said the Chinese equivalent of "no thanks." I paused for a second and just asked him how he was doing. I chatted with him for about 30 seconds, then went back to the side of the road. Before the light turned green, he looked over at us and he looked so vulnerable. At that moment, I desired his salvation so much. I wanted him to be happy. And then he rode off and I've never seen him since. I know that he is a child of God just like we all are. I know God wants that guy and all of us to be happy. And because of that, I was able to feel God's love for him. It was a really profound experience for me. I don't know if I did a good job describing it, because I'm sure my words can't impress upon you all the depth of what I felt at that moment. Anyway, the main point is: Strive to love others as God loves them. Maybe you don't like their choices. Maybe they aren't your best friend, but I know that as you all strive to see people for what they can become and not what they have become, you can feel a sense of peace and compassion that is our Father in Heaven telling you that those people are His children and they are precious. Alright I'm going to get off my soapbox now.
As always, I love you all. I appreciate you. Please, if it is your faith, keep praying for me and for Elder Sumsion, and for our investigators that we can all be given opportunities to come closer to our savior and redeemer, Jesus Christ. If it is not your faith, send some good vibes our way, I guess, and if the missionaries talk to you, picture that it's me and give them a chance. Their message can truly bless you more than anything. I know that to be true. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
-Elder Smith
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