This week was way full of miracles! Its a great time to be a missionary! First, and probably most excitingly is Kiyomi-san! Gosh! We had a lesson with her on Wednesday and it went so great! She even shared a scripture with us in 2 Nephi that she found when she was reading and she said when she read it she felt like it was written for her! Then she told us she knows for sure she wants to get baptized! And then she said something that like 1% of missionaries, in Japan anyway, have ever heard..... she told us she wants to get baptized sooner! We were shocked! But it was so exciting! We tried for November 29th, mostly for selfish reasons (it's the last weekend that me and Iwasa shimai will be companions) but Kiyomi’s sister couldn’t fly back from Tokyo for that weekend. So she’s now getting baptized on December 13! 2 weeks earlier than her first date! So we are meeting with her twice a week now! Gosh, she is so awesome! It has been so incredible to see the change in her. Her heart has changed so much. Just a month ago she told us that she didn’t want to get baptized and now she’s like hurry up! haha. It’s amazing. This gospel is real and it really does change people. The only little obstacle we have to overcome is her talking to her husband. She can’t get baptized unless her husband is okay with it. She is way scared to talk to him, but she knows she has to and she said she’s going to this week. I think it will be fine. Gosh! and the best part is there is like a 99% chance I will be here for her baptism! And Iwasa shimai is gonna come back, she only lives a 3 hour train ride away! :)
Okay, this is a way great miracle and it was a huge lesson for me. So on Tuesday Iwasa shimai and I took the train out to Hikari no Mori, we think we were probably the first missionaries out there because its so far away. We had an amazing time! We talked to a lot of people and almost everyone was nice! We taught 7 totsuzen lesson (just lessons like on the street) and gave away 4 Book of Mormons, but we found no new investigators. We worked so hard that day! And we came home and I was feeling way disappointed and a little frustrated because I felt like we worked so hard and that we deserved a new investigator. Well then that night our elders called us and gave us a referral. I was humbled and felt way bad for complaining. God didn’t forget us. He blessed us for our hard work. Just not really in the way I was expecting. We haven’t got to meet with the referral yet, but hopefully it turns into something great! Even if nothing comes out of it, I feel like that experience was a great learning experience for me.
Okay, our third miracle, well there were a lot of little ones, but the third big one! Last night we were housing, we decided to stay close to the apartment because we wanted to go try and talk to one of our Eikaiwa students, Ken Ichiro. He is the greatest! And we really want him to hear the gospel. Anyways, we did some detective work and found out where he lives... it’s not weird! We knew he lives way close to us because we see him all the time. But we found his exact address on his Eikaiwa registration form. Anyways, we were kind of hanging out around our apartment and housing a bunch waiting for Kenichiro to get home. We checked back like 3 or 4 times but he wasn’t there. And it was getting late. so we decided to give up and just go talk to people on the street. Well then we get this phone call from Hirata-san. Iwasa shimai and her previous companion actually contacted her back in June. Hirata-san has severe depression and was so excited to learn about the gospel because she felt like it could help her. But I guess it got really bad and she called them and cancelled her appointment and told them she would call them when she was ready. Well I guess she was ready last night! She called and set up an appointment for Tuesday. We were in shock! Well about 15 minutes later, about 8 at night, she called us and was like can you meet right now? I really need to talk to someone. So we met her at the church and had a lesson. It was amazing. She has a baptismal date now! December 27th! So exciting. She just really wants to know if God is there. She also really wants to know why God made her the way she is. Like she wants to know why she’s sick. She told us that she has just been feeling like she wants to die and she has thought about suicide so much in the past few months. The gospel is already changing her. I think she really felt Gods love for her last night. We texted her a scripture to read last night and she called us this morning and told us how much comfort she felt when she read it. and then she told us that she slept with the Book of Mormon by her pillow because it made her feel safe. She also said she has spent so much time praying since we talked last night because she just feels so much peace and comfort when she prays. I feel like God gave us this opportunity to literally save this person’s life. It’s kind of scary that He is trusting us to do this. But I know we are not alone.
I’m so grateful to be a missionary. It’s crazy to see just how involved God is in my life. He is literally helping us every step of the way and I am so grateful. This is definitely the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life and sometimes it takes all the energy and faith I have to get out of bed in the morning or just go out the door and talk to people when I’m so exhausted. But somehow I always find the strength to accomplish the things He wants me too. I’m so grateful. The church is true everyone! It’s the best thing we could ever share with anyone and I’m so grateful that I get to do it full time. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be. Aishiteimasu yo! (I love you!)
Okay, this is a way great miracle and it was a huge lesson for me. So on Tuesday Iwasa shimai and I took the train out to Hikari no Mori, we think we were probably the first missionaries out there because its so far away. We had an amazing time! We talked to a lot of people and almost everyone was nice! We taught 7 totsuzen lesson (just lessons like on the street) and gave away 4 Book of Mormons, but we found no new investigators. We worked so hard that day! And we came home and I was feeling way disappointed and a little frustrated because I felt like we worked so hard and that we deserved a new investigator. Well then that night our elders called us and gave us a referral. I was humbled and felt way bad for complaining. God didn’t forget us. He blessed us for our hard work. Just not really in the way I was expecting. We haven’t got to meet with the referral yet, but hopefully it turns into something great! Even if nothing comes out of it, I feel like that experience was a great learning experience for me.
Okay, our third miracle, well there were a lot of little ones, but the third big one! Last night we were housing, we decided to stay close to the apartment because we wanted to go try and talk to one of our Eikaiwa students, Ken Ichiro. He is the greatest! And we really want him to hear the gospel. Anyways, we did some detective work and found out where he lives... it’s not weird! We knew he lives way close to us because we see him all the time. But we found his exact address on his Eikaiwa registration form. Anyways, we were kind of hanging out around our apartment and housing a bunch waiting for Kenichiro to get home. We checked back like 3 or 4 times but he wasn’t there. And it was getting late. so we decided to give up and just go talk to people on the street. Well then we get this phone call from Hirata-san. Iwasa shimai and her previous companion actually contacted her back in June. Hirata-san has severe depression and was so excited to learn about the gospel because she felt like it could help her. But I guess it got really bad and she called them and cancelled her appointment and told them she would call them when she was ready. Well I guess she was ready last night! She called and set up an appointment for Tuesday. We were in shock! Well about 15 minutes later, about 8 at night, she called us and was like can you meet right now? I really need to talk to someone. So we met her at the church and had a lesson. It was amazing. She has a baptismal date now! December 27th! So exciting. She just really wants to know if God is there. She also really wants to know why God made her the way she is. Like she wants to know why she’s sick. She told us that she has just been feeling like she wants to die and she has thought about suicide so much in the past few months. The gospel is already changing her. I think she really felt Gods love for her last night. We texted her a scripture to read last night and she called us this morning and told us how much comfort she felt when she read it. and then she told us that she slept with the Book of Mormon by her pillow because it made her feel safe. She also said she has spent so much time praying since we talked last night because she just feels so much peace and comfort when she prays. I feel like God gave us this opportunity to literally save this person’s life. It’s kind of scary that He is trusting us to do this. But I know we are not alone.
I’m so grateful to be a missionary. It’s crazy to see just how involved God is in my life. He is literally helping us every step of the way and I am so grateful. This is definitely the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life and sometimes it takes all the energy and faith I have to get out of bed in the morning or just go out the door and talk to people when I’m so exhausted. But somehow I always find the strength to accomplish the things He wants me too. I’m so grateful. The church is true everyone! It’s the best thing we could ever share with anyone and I’m so grateful that I get to do it full time. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be. Aishiteimasu yo! (I love you!)