A few Zone Conferences ago, President Hsu told us a story which I will now attempt to recount. He included many details which I have forgotten, so I'll have to be a bit general in the interests of accuracy.
Years ago in a European country, a church leader asked all the young men within a certain age group to send him their running shoes. The first three whose shoes he received were the first to be called to serve missions. They had demonstrated their willingness to obey the Lord (and his chosen servants), even when they didn't know the purpose of the instruction.
The other day during personal study, it occurred to my heart that I should begin writing my weekly email for my family only (i.e. not to be shared via blog). I don't know why, although I expect the instruction has some value for its own sake (unlike the sending of the running shoes, which probably weren't of much use to the man who received them). When it comes to things like this, I'm working on being more trusting--I mean, willing to act before I understand. Even if I sometimes misinterpret my feelings, by doing my best to follow the Spirit, at the very least I develop and demonstrate willingness and desire to receive and obey guidance.
I hope the things I've invited Mom and Dad to share have been informative, useful, or inspiring to someone outside of my immediate family. I'm sure over a year of weekly insights from me is probably more than enough for most people anyway. And anything else I could write in the next six months could not possibly be more valuable than the message that striving to follow the Holy Ghost is the only way to get done what we're here to do.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Getting Sweaty
Hello! It's getting ever toastier over here in Taiwan (I still remember one of the first reactions to my mission call from a student in my Game Theory class who had served a mission in Taiwan: "Get ready to get sweaty"). The last week has been full of the usual sort of excitement: Zone Conference, interviews with President Hsu, agonizing over the salvation of souls, etc. Zone Conference was excellent. The emphasis was Preach My Gospel chapter 13, which is all about working in unity with local leaders. In my experience so far, this usually requires a conscious and continuing effort, but one well worth making.
We went to help a member weed her flowers the other day. And if you're picturing a little flower border by the front walk, think again. She's a flower farmer, with hundreds and hundreds of flowers potted in a netted enclosure a fair distance from their house. She also has children, including a 3-month-old baby. Walking into her kitchen felt like a trip back to Mexico, plus running water (anyone who has seen the kitchens where my food was prepared in Mexico will know what I mean by that--unfortunately that group is rather small). The work of weeding wasn't too heavy, but definitely overwhelming to go at alone. I told her I was sure my mother would be pleased to hear I've been weeding (one of your favorite pastimes, right Mom?).
I received a couple of blessings this week that really gave me a boost. One had to do with our investigator, Kivi. It occurred to me a few days ago that we could copy the beginning part of Joseph Smith History and drop it in her mailbox for her to read and ponder on. We did, and when she showed up to her teaching appointment last night she had read it. She said she could understand why we wanted to give it to her, because it helped her understand his experience and our approach to other religious denominations (which is very important to her--she doesn't like hearing churches criticize each other). I realized that I really had no particular motive in giving it to her, except that the thought had popped into my mind. To her, it felt like we understood her needs and how to meet them, and to me, it was another witness of the One who actually knows her needs and will help us meet them if we just do as we're directed.
We went to help a member weed her flowers the other day. And if you're picturing a little flower border by the front walk, think again. She's a flower farmer, with hundreds and hundreds of flowers potted in a netted enclosure a fair distance from their house. She also has children, including a 3-month-old baby. Walking into her kitchen felt like a trip back to Mexico, plus running water (anyone who has seen the kitchens where my food was prepared in Mexico will know what I mean by that--unfortunately that group is rather small). The work of weeding wasn't too heavy, but definitely overwhelming to go at alone. I told her I was sure my mother would be pleased to hear I've been weeding (one of your favorite pastimes, right Mom?).
I received a couple of blessings this week that really gave me a boost. One had to do with our investigator, Kivi. It occurred to me a few days ago that we could copy the beginning part of Joseph Smith History and drop it in her mailbox for her to read and ponder on. We did, and when she showed up to her teaching appointment last night she had read it. She said she could understand why we wanted to give it to her, because it helped her understand his experience and our approach to other religious denominations (which is very important to her--she doesn't like hearing churches criticize each other). I realized that I really had no particular motive in giving it to her, except that the thought had popped into my mind. To her, it felt like we understood her needs and how to meet them, and to me, it was another witness of the One who actually knows her needs and will help us meet them if we just do as we're directed.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Mission Change
Because of a realignment of boundaries among the Taiwan missions, Emily will become part of the Taiwan Taichung Mission on July 1st. Her new mission mailing address is given in the sidebar on the right and should be used for anything sent to her after June 20th.
Li He
Ten days into this move and it feels like only two! Here are some things I've learned this move:
1) Some Taiwanese. Did you know before that Taiwanese is its own language? Oh yes, and now I can say the following things, thanks to Sister Lin:
Hello! (Li he)
How are you? (Li he be)
Where are you going? (Li bei ki dou wi)
I don't know. (Wa m zai)
I know God loves you. (Wa zai xing ai li)
How about we sing some songs? (Wun qiung gua he be)
We sometimes visit and old ama (ama=grandma/old woman) who is a church member, but can't go to church because she's so old and infirm. She likes us to sing hymns to her. Her Taiwanese is better than her Chinese, so last time my companion (who is fluent in Taiwanese) chatted with her for a bit. I'm trying to learn how to say some things so next time we go I can make a little contribution to the conversation (hence the last two phrases).
2) I don't know how to make this one into a quick phrase, so I'll just tell the story that taught it to me. I heard this story in sacrament meeting from our district president, who heard it from an area 70, who heard it from one of the apostles (I know the chain's getting a bit long, but everyone except for me is a pretty strong link, and I'll do my best not to mess it up):
Some apostles were meeting to decide something. They couldn't reach a consensus that felt right. They decided to go study the scriptures and reconvene. Still nothing. They did it again. Same result. The third time, they used unmarked scriptures from the library (i.e. not their own marked up scriptures, but new copies that didn't have any writing/highlighting). They got their answer.
1) Some Taiwanese. Did you know before that Taiwanese is its own language? Oh yes, and now I can say the following things, thanks to Sister Lin:
Hello! (Li he)
How are you? (Li he be)
Where are you going? (Li bei ki dou wi)
I don't know. (Wa m zai)
I know God loves you. (Wa zai xing ai li)
How about we sing some songs? (Wun qiung gua he be)
We sometimes visit and old ama (ama=grandma/old woman) who is a church member, but can't go to church because she's so old and infirm. She likes us to sing hymns to her. Her Taiwanese is better than her Chinese, so last time my companion (who is fluent in Taiwanese) chatted with her for a bit. I'm trying to learn how to say some things so next time we go I can make a little contribution to the conversation (hence the last two phrases).
2) I don't know how to make this one into a quick phrase, so I'll just tell the story that taught it to me. I heard this story in sacrament meeting from our district president, who heard it from an area 70, who heard it from one of the apostles (I know the chain's getting a bit long, but everyone except for me is a pretty strong link, and I'll do my best not to mess it up):
Some apostles were meeting to decide something. They couldn't reach a consensus that felt right. They decided to go study the scriptures and reconvene. Still nothing. They did it again. Same result. The third time, they used unmarked scriptures from the library (i.e. not their own marked up scriptures, but new copies that didn't have any writing/highlighting). They got their answer.
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