Week Fifty-Four: 9/23/2014 to 9/29/2014--Rock. Paper. Scissors.

Hello Everyone! 

The list of people I send these to is getting pretty long as I add all my missionary friends along the way. I hope no one is getting sick of them because I'm sure not! But seriously, this week was pretty nuts. Probably the most stressful week of my mission. I went on exchanges not once but twice, I told tall tales and translated until my voice sounded like John Lennon's on Twist and Shout, I said good-bye to Elder Zhao, I had a lot of funny things said to me, but most of all, I grew a ton and I'm stoked for this next movecall with Elder...(drum roll, please)....Efros!! He's a good guy. He's from California, but he lives in Arizona. It's complicated. Suffice it to say, he has a very interesting background and he's experienced many different cultures and ideas. I think it's going to be a big asset in our companionship. Here he is:

So first, the exchanges. Elder Nin(my district leader from New Zealand) took me over to his area on Tuesday so that was fun. I got to see what West Tainan is like. It was pretty much the same as North Tainan, but there were some things that spiced it up like cucumber ice cream, and lots of bridges, and an investigator with a camaro. What I really noticed about him is that he is in love with being a missionary. I like being a missionary a lot. It's one of my favorite things, but he inspires me to like it even more! Elder Surdu(the Zone leader I'm pretty tight with) came over to North Tainan with me and we had a blast. He gave me a lot of good advice and he's one of my favorite people. He served in Yongkang while I was there in the other ward. I can't really describe him. You'll just have to meet him someday. But he's hilarious. 

Second, the English party(which included tall tales). So basically, we did a Wild West theme. I don't know if anyone saw the picture I posted on Facebook. It was super fun. There were lots of games going on including a stick pull, Monopoly deal, spoons, rubber-band shooting range, and a donggua cha(wintermelon tea) bar. In the center of the room, however, we were just telling tall tales the whole time and they were HILARIOUS! At the end of it, we played "Come Thou Fount" together(recording attached) and shared the Joseph Smith story. It went really well and Elder Zhao discovered a cowboy accent he didn't even know he had. Great growth, indeed. :)

Speaking of Elder Zhao, he's gone. :( He's about an hour drive north of here in a place called Xinying. He'll do great! I'm grateful for the time I had with him and I learned a lot. This last transfer wasn't the most easy-going transfer I've ever had, but it was certainly the most fulfilling transfer of my mission. I've loved being Elder Zhao's companion! 

Last, two great things that people said to me. First, from an LA we're working with. He asked me, "If you faced God in rock, paper, scissors, do you think you could win?" to which I replied, "I don't think so. I mean, he knows everything." Then he said something that blew my mind. He said, "Yeah you could. Just pray and tell him you want to win." Think about that for a sec. I don't know. I thought it was really cool. His faith is so simple. He just needs to come to church:(. The other thing was said by the Bishop's daughter. She asked me, "Have you been lying to people?" to which I replied,"No way! I'm a missionary!" to which she said,"then why is your nose so long?" If you don't get it, please see your nearest Asian's nose, then see your nearest American's nose. Yep. I died laughing and it was in the middle of Sacrament meeting. Oops. 

All in all, I'm loving it out here! I'm developing close relationships with the members, and we're slowly but surely helping our brothers and sisters to come unto Christ. Pray for them, pray for me! Until next week...

-Elder Smith

P.S. In case you didn't see it: 

​Yes, that is a random bamboo stick we found in our apartment.

Week Fifty-Three: 9/16/2014 to 9/22/2014--Sick Again, but this week was pretty sweet, so that's ok:)

Greetings, everyone back on the homefront!

There were some pretty cool things that happened this week, and also some things that were not so cool. I also got an unprecedented amount of world news from members this last week. I found out Scotland almost declared independence from England(that was hilarious) and there's this really crazy new terrorist group named ISIS. No more of that, please. I'm safe in Taiwan. I'll worry about all that when I get back to the states(yikes!). 

 I made scones from the Trader Joes mix my mom sent. They were pretty tasty.

We taught Bro Tang on Tuesday about reading and praying and how he can get into that habit. He says the problem(which is a problem for pretty much everyone) is that when he meets with us he feels really good and he has all this determination to live the principles we teach him, but when he gets home, it's like he wakes up and he's back in his regular habits. It's a dilemma. Pray for him! He'll be in Japan this week, so we won't be able to contact him except on facebook. Bro Su is pretty good! We met with him last Friday and helped him understand better about priesthood authority. His main concern is that he's been going to another Christian church for quite a while now and the minister there put him in charge of driving a few other members to church every week. He said this last week he was going to go drop them off there, then come to our church, but then our church was cancelled(there was a semi-Typhoon that came in this weekend, so they cancelled. It reminded me a lot of Seattle when we get an inch or two of snow) and he didn't answer his phone, so I'm not sure what happened there. Another investigator we've got high hopes for is Phoebe. This week's lesson was kind of the same as last week's(long and unfocused, and informational). I was also sick this week, so I was having a really hard time focusing. In future we'll meetings, we'll definitely focus the lesson a lot more. 

Speaking of focusing lessons and focusing on our purpose, we had Zone Conference this last Thursday! It was awesome. I got to see Elder Colvin(my MTC companion), Elder Ward(my first companion in Penghu), Elder Sumsion(my trainer), and some other people I hadn't seen in a long time. Most importantly, however, I got to receive inspired training and teachings from President Blickenstaff and others he had assigned. The topic was our purpose. If you'd like details, I'd be glad to tell you, but for sake of time, I'll just say the main thing I took away from it. This work is the Lord's work. As it says in 2 Nephi, He can do his own work. Sometimes as a missionary, you tend to think it's your work and you're asking Heavenly Father to help you with it, but it's not that way at all. It's His work and our role in it is simply that of a tool. That is both humbling and empowering, knowing that all I have to do is become someone whom The Lord can depend on and He will bless me and those around me. 

Well, that's all, folks. Next week is transfers, so who knows what will happen there. They're still having problems with the visas for new missionaries so I'm not sure how that's going to work out. I was hoping to be able to train this next transfer, but that's not looking to likely at the moment. Love you guys! I hope you have weeks full of un-cancelled church and un-Typhoons. 

Sincerely,

Elder Smith

P.S. This week's song is "An Angel From on High."

Week Fifty-Two: 9/9/2014 to 9/15/2014--The Triumphant Tripanionship!

Hello Ladies and Gents, Family and Friends!

This week was interesting as I worked with not one but TWO other missionaries. That was definitely very different. Before I say anything, this is my haircut I got last week:

Yeah, it's pretty short. What if I told you he did it all with scissors? Pretty impressive right? Here he is. Brother Zhong(aka Edward Scissorhands):

His conversion story is really cool, and I guess he's actually a really famous hair designer here in Taiwan. 

So yeah, the tripanionship was good. We had a lot of fun and success. Elder Crook is a man among men. Sadly, I don't have a picture of him:( sorry. On Saturday, we got a new guy in the Batcave. That's the name previous elders gave our apartment because it's this little whole in the wall entrance that opens up to stairs and then the upstairs is huge. I'll have to take pictures. Elder Faddis is from Sandy UT(represent) but we have what seems to be no mutual friends. He's a funny guy though. He LOVES to talk. 

This week, Brother Tang didn't make any progress really. He's still not reading much in the Book of Mormon. He chose to "take a break" from church this week. We're still meeting with him on Tuesday, though. We met with a former from 2005. His surname is Su. He's a really cool guy, but he's terrified of his wife(why are there so many people like that?). He wants to bring his kids to our church. He and his daughter came to the family home evening last night. I'm excited to teach them! We also met with this girl named Phoebe from English class. She found out I like this stuff called Aiyu(some sort of vegetarian gelatin they put in drinks) so she brought some that she made herself to the meeting. She's super chill and I think she'll be really receptive to the gospel as we teach her more. We were only able to share a little at our first meeting because of time and because she was asking a lot of questions which were good, but kind of all over the place. 

We met with an RC named Danny as well this week. He's super active, but he's waiting to do his required 1 year military service, and he doesn't really have anything to do in the meantime so it's kind of hard for him. It made me realize how blessed I was to have so much going on the summer before I left on my mission. I don't feel like I wasted any time. Wheedle put out a record, I had a part-time job, I spent a lot of time with my family. It was really fulfilling and I'm just now realizing what a blessing that was. Use every moment everyone! That's what makes good people successful. The only thing different about them is they know how to use time wisely[insert some Freakanomics-esque book citation here]. 

And then, MIRACLES. Do you remember Andrew from Magong who got baptized in Guiren? Well, his little sister got baptized on Saturday and I got to go! Check it out:

​left to right: Sister Blickenstaff, Andrew, Andrew's sister's friend, Andrew's sister, me, Elder Faddis, Elder Crapse, Elder Chen. On the screen is Elder Zhang and Elder Washburn.

As always, a baptism is a blessed and sacred event. I loved it! As my dad said in one of his journal entries, "Baptism are the best part of a mission!"(no changes made. see if you can spot the grammatical error hehe). So yeah, great week! Love you all:) Maybe next week I'll have some more exciting news. 

-Elder Smith  

   

P.S. This week's song is pretty special. It includes a kuzzoo(sp?). Listen to find out where I found a kuzzoo!

Songs, Songs and More Songs!!!

Here are four (count 'em, four!) songs. There was a mix-up for a few weeks, where Brendan was sending the same song. And then I've just been lazy and gotten behind with uploading the songs. I've posted the lyrics. Just click on the title of each song so you can take a listen. My fave is "God Be With You Till We Meet Again."

I Have Work Enough To Do

1. I have work enough to do,
Ere the sun goes down,
For myself and kindred too,
Ere the sun goes down:
Ev'ry idle whisper stilling
With a purpose firm and willing,
All my daily tasks fulfilling,
Ere the sun goes down.

2. I must speak the loving word,
Ere the sun goes down.
I must let my voice be heard,
Ere the sun goes down:
Ev'ry cry of pity heeding,
For the injured interceding,
To the light the lost ones leading,
Ere the sun goes down.

3. As I journey on my way,
Ere the sun goes down,
God's commands I must obey,
Ere the sun goes down.
There are sins that need confessing;
There are wrongs that need redressing
If I would obtain the blessing,
Ere the sun goes down.


God Be With You Till We Meet Again
1. God be with you till we meet again;
By his counsels guide, uphold you;
With his sheep securely fold you.
God be with you till we meet again.
(Chorus)
Till we meet, till we meet,
Till we meet at Jesus' feet,
Till we meet, till we meet,
God be with you till we meet again.

2. God be with you till we meet again;
When life's perils thick confound you,
Put his arms unfailing round you.
God be with you till we meet again.

3. God be with you till we meet again;
Keep love's banner floating o'er you;
Smite death's threat'ning wave before you.
God be with you till we meet again.

Who's On the Lord's Side
1. Who's on the Lord's side? Who?
Now is the time to show.
We ask it fearlessly:
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?
We wage no common war,
Cope with no common foe.
The enemy's awake;
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?

(Chorus)
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?
Now is the time to show.
We ask it fearlessly:
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?

2. We serve the living God,
And want his foes to know
That, if but few, we're great;
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?
We're going on to win;
No fear must blanch the brow.
The Lord of Hosts is ours;
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?

3. The stone cut without hands
To fill the earth must grow.
Who'll help to roll it on?
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?
Our ensign to the world
Is floating proudly now.
No coward bears our flag;
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?

4. The pow'rs of earth and hell
In rage direct the blow
That's aimed to crush the work;
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?
Truth, life, and liberty,
Freedom from death and woe,
Are stakes we're fighting for;
Who's on the Lord's side? Who?

I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go

1. It may not be on the mountain height
Or over the stormy sea,
It may not be at the battle's front
My Lord will have need of me.
But if, by a still, small voice he calls
To paths that I do not know,
I'll answer, dear Lord, with my hand in thine:
I'll go where you want me to go.

(Chorus)
I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord,
Over mountain or plain or sea;
I'll say what you want me to say, dear Lord;
I'll be what you want me to be.

2. Perhaps today there are loving words
Which Jesus would have me speak;
There may be now in the paths of sin
Some wand'rer whom I should seek.
O Savior, if thou wilt be my guide,
Tho dark and rugged the way,
My voice shall echo the message sweet:
I'll say what you want me to say.

3. There's surely somewhere a lowly place
In earth's harvest fields so wide
Where I may labor through life's short day
For Jesus, the Crucified.
So trusting my all to thy tender care,
And knowing thou lovest me,
I'll do thy will with a heart sincere:
I'll be what you want me to be.

Week Fifty-One: 9/2/2014 to 9/8/2014--I Have a Lot to Write About and Very Little Time to do it

Hey Everyone,

It's going to be short this week, but I'm chalk(chock?) full of stuff to talk about. How come that always happens?

First, our investigators are doing pretty well. Brother Tang is having trouble reading the Book of Mormon, but he came to church on Sunday so we're hoping he can still hit his October 10 date.

Second, I got a hair cut(see the above picture). The man who gave it to me is Brother Zhong. He's pretty sweet. He joined the church about a year ago and before he did, his life was pretty messed up. But now, he's super cool and he's a really famous hair stylist here in Taiwan. He does this thing where he puts on five scissors at the same time and thins out your hair. It's pretty Edward Scissorhands-esque.

Third, it was Mid-Autumn festival this week. Traditionally, all you do during this time is light fireworks, eat moon cakes, and set out lanterns, but because of an advertisement that came out in Taiwan 20+years ago, everybody also sits out in front of their house and has a BBQ. It's pretty sweet. The food isn't nearly as good as it is in the US, but it's a good time for families to get together. We went to 2 members houses yesterday and met a lot of good people who we're set up to meet this week. One of them is a guy from California. He uses really big words and he brought a genuine Spalding American football. I haven't touched one of those things in over a year! Woah!

Fourth, I wasn't the best senior companion this week. There were a couple times where I got kind of impatient. Luckily, I repented pretty quickly, though, and me and Elder Zhao are all reconciled and ready to face the new week with a good amount of fierceness. I'm learning lots for sure:)

Fifth, please pray for a miracle. Due to recent changes in the process for obtaining visas, the missionaries who are supposed to get to the island in 3 weeks will likely be delayed a while. That would be super lame, so we're hoping we can find a way to get them through the system in time.

Last, I love you guys! Thanks for your emails and letters. They always bring a smile to my face. Yep, that's all.
 

-Elder Smith

Week Fifty: 8/25/2014 to 9/1/2014--Week 2 in the Promised Land

Family, Friends,  Acquaintances, 

It's been another great week with Elder Zhao. Also I found France:

That's right, Salmon. I'm coming for you. Just kidding. But this bridge does have a nice Paris feel. I thought they did a good job. But anyway, this week has been alright. Being a senior companion is still a little stressful, especially when you feel like you aren't having tons of success. I feel like we worked pretty hard all week, but then when it got to last night, I looked back and thought about what we actually accomplished this week and it was kind of discouraging. I think most of that is because we haven't quite figured out how to channel our hard work into which activities and at which times. I think I'm also lacking in boldness which is a fatal flaw of any leader, large or small. As far as what we DID accomplish this week, it goes a little like this:

Our main investigators right now are Brother Tang and Brother Lu. Brother Tang is a guy I set up with and met my first day in Tainan. He's awesome, but his work is quite busy  so he hasn't been to church yet. We're praying for next week. He's set to be baptized on the 4th of October. He's met some opposition from his wife(she found some false information about our church online and was kind of bugging him about it), but he's still very determined to find his own answer. He was pretty devout Buddhist before so he's somewhat familiar with the way spiritual things work. That's nice. Elder Lu is a recent convert's husband. They were set to be baptized on the same day, but he backed out last minute. We met with him and the Bishop(who's awesome, by the way) on Friday and Brother Lu shared with us that he still has some doubts. He loves the church and I think he really has a strong testimony of how it can bless him, but he's still a little shaky on whether there really is life after death or whether Joseph Smith really was a prophet or not. It's tough, but I think we're getting closer with him. 

  We also met with a guy named Brother Wang. He's a member, but he lives SUPER far away from the chapel so he hasn't been to church in a while. He was baptized last year, but he said at the time he didn't have any super strong feelings towards it. The way he described it sounded a lot like the plot of that Jim Carrey movie "Yes, Man". He said, "It was 'yes, yes!' everything was always yes!" However, recently he's had some cool experiences with prayer that have helped him realize that this gospel has something to it. We've got high hopes for him to come back to church. That's about it. 

Being in an apartment with 2 other elders is pretty odd, but not too odd. You just get interrupted during studies a lot more and it's more loud all the time. But that's ok. I think I've already described the other elders in my apartment, but in case I haven't, one is Elder Heaton. He looks like the 11th Doctor from Doctor Who, mannerisms and everything. So yeah, that's pretty wild. Elder Crook is from Portland and he's a pretty funny guy. We both share a love for the Northwest and he's a nice guy so we get along real well. 

Love you all!!

-Elder Smith

P.S. This is called the 美的冰 which means "Beautiful Ice". I'm not super clear on what all was inside of it, but it was pretty tasty.