July 19, 2010

Hello!! Boy has this last week been fun! Last Wednesday my companion went to a big training with half the missionaries at the Mission Home, and Elder Lacayo who just got here to Japan came to Kiryu for 3 days. We worked together and that was way fun. Then Elder King came back on Saturday night, and we had our Baptism that night too! Iwashita Maki Shimai got baptized. Sakurai Shimai`s younger sister. (I Apologize. Shimai is Sister in Japanese) Then Saturday she got confirmed in Sacrament meeting! And this Sunday, the two Matsuzawa kids, Juria and Haruki will be confirmed as well.
Well this last week we also got a few new investigators! At church, the Sakurais brought this 12 year old kid. Jun. His dad is a member, and lives in America, and his mom is not a member and lives here in Japan. So he has not really come to church in a few years, and its quite a complicated story. He actually lives with his Step-mother at the moment, but yea. Hes had a hard life so far. But anyways, he came to church, and seemed really cool. I said he thought church was good, and that he believes in Christ. Then yesterday i called the Sakurais, and they asked me about him. They asked how many lessons until he can be baptized. I told them four, and they then asked, well how soon can he be baptized? They said they want to get him baptized as soon as possible, maybe even on the first. Its a really complicated story, but I guess his dad wants him in America, but hes having a hard time. His dad wants him Baptized as well. So we`re trying to work with that. We`re gonna try and get him baptized soon.
Another investigator is Shady, and hes from China! Spencer I wish you were here to teach these Chinese! Hes way cool. He says he believes in Christ and wants to follow him. I asked him if he wanted to be baptized, and he just said it was a little fast. So I think he may be getting baptized in the near future. Him and Jun are probably the next ones to baptism, although there are some others.
On Monday we went to Kichijoji were we did splits with these two missionaries who are going home this transfer. They`re called the traveling APs. They`re just going around with missionaries in the mission teaching them how to street, and work effectively. It was way cool! We went to this park, and there were so many people! It was anything but Kiryu! Kiryu is so Inaka!! Its so rural! There is no one! It was way cool working in a popular place. Its was more finding who to talk to rather then someone to talk to. But everyone was just giving us food, and were way excited to talk to two gaijins. Honestly it was a huge humbling experience. I was with Elder Petersen, and he is way good! His Japanese is so much farther than mine! Like I was thinking mine was ok, like I could get along, but after that, I felt like my Japanese was still not even anything! Like I still had not even started learning yet! It was way sad, and cool. Cool to see him talking like that in Japanese! Sad to see how far my Japanese is from that. I talked to him about that after, and he asked, well have you been praying for the gift of tongues? And like I have. Usually casually in my prayers. Then he told me that in Preach My Gospel it says that the gift of tongues is the most effective thing for learning a language. The most needed thing. Then I realized. I spend hours a day in Japanese. Studying, talking with people, etc, which is all good. But I maybe spend a minute or less asking for the gift of tongues. It really hit me. I have really been doing it the hard way. I have been doing relying on my ability alone. I think a lot of times we do that. In life we try to do things ourselves, but if we were to just step back and see the whole picture, we would find an easier solution. Its maybe like us trying to hammer a nail in with a fork. We`re working so hard, but hardly seeing any progress. Little do we know, God is standing right behind with a hammer. Waiting for us to ask for help. Its a no brainer right? I really think God helps us, but only as much as we`ll let him. So why don`t we let him? I know this church is true. I know that the people here of Japan are sons and Daughters of God. I bear witness of that, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

スチュワート長老