Hello Family!!
I hope everyone is doing well! Thank you again for your letters and emails!! I love you all so much!!
Mission life is good! I'm learning ALOT this transfer. A lot about communication. My companion and I bother eachother sometimes have to commicate with eachother about it. I like my companion and she's a good person and we have fun, which makes it easier to talk about things when we need to clear things up. It's been such a good growing experience. We're growing together as a companionship and things are going so well. This week we've done ALOT of teaching (instead a lot of aimless tracting) than last week, which is sooooo nice. We taught SO much!!
I think the major thing that I learned this week, is that you can work your rear off and not have any success, but then Heavenly Father comes in a blesses you like crazy. I think He waits for us to see the LACK of success, just so that we KNOW where the success really came from. It didn't come from us, but from the Lord helping us. We had so many miracles this week. We did "Taibei Temple Square tours" on Saturday and got 24 referrals! The Spirit was really there in our tours. Our companionship is also starting to teach in unity and we're seeing some good things happen in lessons. It all comes from Heavenly Father because it's nothing really different we are doing. AT ALL. It just fell into our laps.
This Wednesday was the "Moon Festival" and everyone was out of town. People were barbecueing on little grills outside their doors and it smelled SOOOO GOOD. No one would set up with us so we spent the whole day riding around delivering cards and tracting. It was murder to smell such deliciousness ALL day then have to eat cabbage and peanuts. Haha. OH!! So guess what?? I THINK I might be allergic to EGGS! I started eating eggs alot last transfer and that's when I started getting the gross gooey rash on my hands and inner elbows that I did as a kid. But I stopped eating eggs this week and the rash is slowly fading away! And since my diet consists of peanuts as well, maybe I have a problem with those too...ba?
We have a baptism coming up in a week! A member's mother, "Tang Mama". Time is up! gotta run!
Coley
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Service and a Typhoon
Hey Family!!
This week has been interesting...we've worked pretty hard...I've knocked on more doors and talked to more people on the streets than I have my whole mission. Unfortunately, it came with little to no success. This week was our lowest weeks as far as numbers go. SOOO low. But that's okay. We had some doors slammed in our faces and some Jehovah's Witnesses say that didn't want to hear our about our Mormon Book, but for the most part, people are really really nice, even if they reject you. We mostly always get a little message in and testify. The Spirit is really strong and I know these people will have another chance someday.
On Friday, our mission went to some big "protect the environment" thingy in Taibei and we volunteered to pick up cigarette butts and scrape gum and betelnut off the streets. So gross, but it was cool. Then we walked by the street we just cleaned and saw people chuck their cigarettes on the ground and I was soooo bugged. Haha. Grrr.
Sunday we had a typhoon! I was so excited to see it...and it wasn't that cool. I would actually say some of Sandy's wind storms are comparable in strength to that typhoon. But we were told to stay inside the whole day, which was nice. We got to do some stuff that really needed to be done. We called all of our Former Investigators and people we'd contacted on the street and got 7 people set up for this week, which was pretty cool! Not bad! We also get a few hours of studying Chinese and writing to investigators and converts.
Anyway, I'm already out of internet time. But I just want to say that I love this gospel. It's so wonderful and it's so good to see it change people's lives. You can truly tell if a person has been reading the book of mormon that week. They are more happy and peaceful. I love it. Keep praying! Go to Church and love it!! :)
Love you all!
Coley
This week has been interesting...we've worked pretty hard...I've knocked on more doors and talked to more people on the streets than I have my whole mission. Unfortunately, it came with little to no success. This week was our lowest weeks as far as numbers go. SOOO low. But that's okay. We had some doors slammed in our faces and some Jehovah's Witnesses say that didn't want to hear our about our Mormon Book, but for the most part, people are really really nice, even if they reject you. We mostly always get a little message in and testify. The Spirit is really strong and I know these people will have another chance someday.
On Friday, our mission went to some big "protect the environment" thingy in Taibei and we volunteered to pick up cigarette butts and scrape gum and betelnut off the streets. So gross, but it was cool. Then we walked by the street we just cleaned and saw people chuck their cigarettes on the ground and I was soooo bugged. Haha. Grrr.
Sunday we had a typhoon! I was so excited to see it...and it wasn't that cool. I would actually say some of Sandy's wind storms are comparable in strength to that typhoon. But we were told to stay inside the whole day, which was nice. We got to do some stuff that really needed to be done. We called all of our Former Investigators and people we'd contacted on the street and got 7 people set up for this week, which was pretty cool! Not bad! We also get a few hours of studying Chinese and writing to investigators and converts.
Anyway, I'm already out of internet time. But I just want to say that I love this gospel. It's so wonderful and it's so good to see it change people's lives. You can truly tell if a person has been reading the book of mormon that week. They are more happy and peaceful. I love it. Keep praying! Go to Church and love it!! :)
Love you all!
Coley
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Weird food and great teaching
Hi Family!!
This week has been really good! We've had a lot of good things happen. I've been really blessed these past couple weeks to finally have the courage to really contact and talk to people. It's been great. But there seems to be a trend, that everyone that stops and listens are all MEN. So frustrating because we personally can't teach men. But it's cool, as long as they get taught, right? We taught a man a first lesson on the street a week ago and now he's meeting with the Elders and has alot of potential. I had a neat experience the other day while doing our morning exercise. We usually run to a huge track stadium (did Taiwan ever host the Olympics...?) and run around and stretch and all that stuff. Well, while I was stretching I met this man who just LOVES English. His name is Nico and when I said my name was Nicole I thought he was going to pass out he was so happy that our names were so similar. He's a little skinny middle aged guy. He was baptized into another Christian church, so I told him about the Restoration as we ran around the track. Then we invited him to church the next day and he came! And he shared his feelings and his hopes in class at church and everything. It's so neat that Heavenly Father just brings people like this to us. We've been having a hard time finding women to teach though...I don't know why!
So we had a couple other neat experiences. We teach this woman who has 3 little girls. She is the sweetest mother and works so hard for her kids. Her husband isn't very supportive and might be a little abusive(?) and doesn't like us missionaries. So when we meet with her we have to teach her in her kids little play room and the husband sulks in his bedroom. He won't let her go to church or be baptized. Grrrr...meany. She has been losing hope and seems so down and stressed. But this week was good! She prayed and read the Book of Mormon and it perfectly answered her questions. She read 2Nephi 2 and said, "I get it! I always wondered WHY God would create the snake in the first place. But it says here, that the snake was the devil and it was the DEVIL'S choice to become evil and the snake. Wow, the Book of Mormon really helps us understand the Bible." It was so neat to see her testimony and hear someone bear their testimony. We taught her about teaching her children truth and gave her a little kid Book of Mormon with pictures and she said, "Oh sisters, I will keep praying, and someday, I will have success [over my husband]!" So awesome.
This week has been good with our companionship. We've been getting used to eachother's way of doing things and personalities so things are really good. We're becoming good pals, which is nice. Haha, so both having been homeschooled, we have had the weirdest conversations. About Civil War reenacting, Shakespe-uh, Classic Literatooore, musicals of the 1950s, and who was the most dishy actor of the black and white era. Haha. We've had the music from "Camelot" stuck in our heads for the past week. "Do you recall the other night when I distinctly said you might sit beside me at the next town fair..."
Eating gluten free has been rough recently. I haven't adjusted to this area's eating choices yet, so I've lost some weight. Which being a girl, I could never complain about...but I'm really getting sick of my diet, which consists of milk peanut soup in a can, Dad's Root Beer, and mandarin orange yogurt. I may occasionally cook french fries in the toaster oven or when we eat out I'll have tomato eggs and cabbage on rice. Yep, that's about it. Sadly, I don't know what is being contaminated though, because that long lost horrible rash I used to get on my hands as a child is coming back.
I went to Church the other day and was having the hardest time staying awake. My head was bobbing like crazy then I didn't find out until the end of the meeting that my mission president had come to our ward and was sitting right behind me! Mortifying.
I'm sure there were other great things that have happened, but my time is up! I love you all so much!!
Coley
This week has been really good! We've had a lot of good things happen. I've been really blessed these past couple weeks to finally have the courage to really contact and talk to people. It's been great. But there seems to be a trend, that everyone that stops and listens are all MEN. So frustrating because we personally can't teach men. But it's cool, as long as they get taught, right? We taught a man a first lesson on the street a week ago and now he's meeting with the Elders and has alot of potential. I had a neat experience the other day while doing our morning exercise. We usually run to a huge track stadium (did Taiwan ever host the Olympics...?) and run around and stretch and all that stuff. Well, while I was stretching I met this man who just LOVES English. His name is Nico and when I said my name was Nicole I thought he was going to pass out he was so happy that our names were so similar. He's a little skinny middle aged guy. He was baptized into another Christian church, so I told him about the Restoration as we ran around the track. Then we invited him to church the next day and he came! And he shared his feelings and his hopes in class at church and everything. It's so neat that Heavenly Father just brings people like this to us. We've been having a hard time finding women to teach though...I don't know why!
So we had a couple other neat experiences. We teach this woman who has 3 little girls. She is the sweetest mother and works so hard for her kids. Her husband isn't very supportive and might be a little abusive(?) and doesn't like us missionaries. So when we meet with her we have to teach her in her kids little play room and the husband sulks in his bedroom. He won't let her go to church or be baptized. Grrrr...meany. She has been losing hope and seems so down and stressed. But this week was good! She prayed and read the Book of Mormon and it perfectly answered her questions. She read 2Nephi 2 and said, "I get it! I always wondered WHY God would create the snake in the first place. But it says here, that the snake was the devil and it was the DEVIL'S choice to become evil and the snake. Wow, the Book of Mormon really helps us understand the Bible." It was so neat to see her testimony and hear someone bear their testimony. We taught her about teaching her children truth and gave her a little kid Book of Mormon with pictures and she said, "Oh sisters, I will keep praying, and someday, I will have success [over my husband]!" So awesome.
This week has been good with our companionship. We've been getting used to eachother's way of doing things and personalities so things are really good. We're becoming good pals, which is nice. Haha, so both having been homeschooled, we have had the weirdest conversations. About Civil War reenacting, Shakespe-uh, Classic Literatooore, musicals of the 1950s, and who was the most dishy actor of the black and white era. Haha. We've had the music from "Camelot" stuck in our heads for the past week. "Do you recall the other night when I distinctly said you might sit beside me at the next town fair..."
Eating gluten free has been rough recently. I haven't adjusted to this area's eating choices yet, so I've lost some weight. Which being a girl, I could never complain about...but I'm really getting sick of my diet, which consists of milk peanut soup in a can, Dad's Root Beer, and mandarin orange yogurt. I may occasionally cook french fries in the toaster oven or when we eat out I'll have tomato eggs and cabbage on rice. Yep, that's about it. Sadly, I don't know what is being contaminated though, because that long lost horrible rash I used to get on my hands as a child is coming back.
I went to Church the other day and was having the hardest time staying awake. My head was bobbing like crazy then I didn't find out until the end of the meeting that my mission president had come to our ward and was sitting right behind me! Mortifying.
I'm sure there were other great things that have happened, but my time is up! I love you all so much!!
Coley
Sunday, September 5, 2010
A symbolic dream during a hard week
Hi Family!!
So this week was really good! It was actually REALLY hard. But because of that, I learned alot and have so much to be grateful for. So first off, the night before I left Taoyuan, I had a good little experience while praying. I was REALLY tired so I dozed off during my prayer. I dreamt there was a row of ancient Chinese soldiers, all using different weapons; staff, ax, sword, spear, etc. There was one "enemy" who was using a sword. When the enemy attacked, all the weapons made the same counter-attack. I thought to myself "why would they use the same move? If they wanted to fulfill their potential they would move how they were made to." Then I woke up and pondered for a second and wondered why I had such a little dream. But then I had this thought that it was a lesson from Heavenly Father and that it could be compared to missionaries. As missionaries or people in general, we have all have totally different talents, strengths and personalities, so Heavenly Father will use us the further his work in different ways. In essense, we are all his "secret weapon." We all have our different ways and strengths. It wouldn't make sense for an ax to think, "I'm just not as cool as the sword. Maybe I'll try to do all the moves the sword does" because the ax is NOT the sword. The ax has it's own moves and ways. That little impression and dream has meant ALOT to me this week. I've had to just keep in mind, "I can't be someone else. I can't be just like that super awesome sister so and so because her gifts are different than mine. She's a spear...I'm a staff." I don't know, I hope that makes sense. But it's helped me a lot. When I'm tempted to be stressed because I don't think I'm doing things right, I just have to think, "Heavenly Father brought me HERE, NOW, for a reason, because of my own personal strengths and things I have learned." It's been such a strength.
More than anything, this week has been a major kick to the pride. Every day I've felt like I've been kicked in the booty a million times. My companion is really awesome and amazing and knows the area and the investigators and has had super amazing companions before me and yadda yadda and I know NOTHING. But I had it in my mind that "I'm senior, I shouldn't be the one who is clueless." So I spent a lot of time being angry and frustrated and misunderstanding my companion and being super arrogant or whatever. Every day was a mighty prayer that never ended. But the miracle in all of it, is that my heart has been changing. If it hadn't been for Heavenly Father, I would be a nervous, bitter wreck right now, but Heavenly Father has let me just let go and change my way of seeing things. Things are just getting better and better. I am starting to understand things about leadership and missionary work and humility. I'm still a dodo, but Heavenly Father helped me see how to do better. Our companionship is getting better and working better together and things are going to be really good. Sister Stenquist is soooo good. She understands some things about teaching that I have yet to grasp. Things are going well.
One thing that has been really good about this week, is that I've turned over a new leaf in contacting. We have done more contacting and tracting the past week than probably my whole mission. Which isn't necessarily saying we've spent our time more effectively...tracting doesn't have a lot of results...but I feel like I've been able to finally just talk to people without thinking too much. If you think to much you think yourself out of contacting someone. But it's been going really well. We've contacted alot and it's been really exhilirating.
Anyway, life is good! The Church is true! Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I'm so happy to have this gospel!! Sometimes I just marvel that we have so many wonderful blessings. The Book of Mormon is so awesome, I just can't believe what a miracle it is to be reading it. The temple is beautiful and like a little Celestial Kingdom on earth. How is it that we are blessed so much? Share it with everyone! Members have so much more missionary power then missionaries. Every single person I've helped baptize has been a member referral. Share this gospel! Help everyone have the opportunity to feel that cozy thrill when reading the Conference Ensign. Ah, the Church is so good.
Love you all my wonderful family!!
Coley
So this week was really good! It was actually REALLY hard. But because of that, I learned alot and have so much to be grateful for. So first off, the night before I left Taoyuan, I had a good little experience while praying. I was REALLY tired so I dozed off during my prayer. I dreamt there was a row of ancient Chinese soldiers, all using different weapons; staff, ax, sword, spear, etc. There was one "enemy" who was using a sword. When the enemy attacked, all the weapons made the same counter-attack. I thought to myself "why would they use the same move? If they wanted to fulfill their potential they would move how they were made to." Then I woke up and pondered for a second and wondered why I had such a little dream. But then I had this thought that it was a lesson from Heavenly Father and that it could be compared to missionaries. As missionaries or people in general, we have all have totally different talents, strengths and personalities, so Heavenly Father will use us the further his work in different ways. In essense, we are all his "secret weapon." We all have our different ways and strengths. It wouldn't make sense for an ax to think, "I'm just not as cool as the sword. Maybe I'll try to do all the moves the sword does" because the ax is NOT the sword. The ax has it's own moves and ways. That little impression and dream has meant ALOT to me this week. I've had to just keep in mind, "I can't be someone else. I can't be just like that super awesome sister so and so because her gifts are different than mine. She's a spear...I'm a staff." I don't know, I hope that makes sense. But it's helped me a lot. When I'm tempted to be stressed because I don't think I'm doing things right, I just have to think, "Heavenly Father brought me HERE, NOW, for a reason, because of my own personal strengths and things I have learned." It's been such a strength.
More than anything, this week has been a major kick to the pride. Every day I've felt like I've been kicked in the booty a million times. My companion is really awesome and amazing and knows the area and the investigators and has had super amazing companions before me and yadda yadda and I know NOTHING. But I had it in my mind that "I'm senior, I shouldn't be the one who is clueless." So I spent a lot of time being angry and frustrated and misunderstanding my companion and being super arrogant or whatever. Every day was a mighty prayer that never ended. But the miracle in all of it, is that my heart has been changing. If it hadn't been for Heavenly Father, I would be a nervous, bitter wreck right now, but Heavenly Father has let me just let go and change my way of seeing things. Things are just getting better and better. I am starting to understand things about leadership and missionary work and humility. I'm still a dodo, but Heavenly Father helped me see how to do better. Our companionship is getting better and working better together and things are going to be really good. Sister Stenquist is soooo good. She understands some things about teaching that I have yet to grasp. Things are going well.
One thing that has been really good about this week, is that I've turned over a new leaf in contacting. We have done more contacting and tracting the past week than probably my whole mission. Which isn't necessarily saying we've spent our time more effectively...tracting doesn't have a lot of results...but I feel like I've been able to finally just talk to people without thinking too much. If you think to much you think yourself out of contacting someone. But it's been going really well. We've contacted alot and it's been really exhilirating.
Anyway, life is good! The Church is true! Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I'm so happy to have this gospel!! Sometimes I just marvel that we have so many wonderful blessings. The Book of Mormon is so awesome, I just can't believe what a miracle it is to be reading it. The temple is beautiful and like a little Celestial Kingdom on earth. How is it that we are blessed so much? Share it with everyone! Members have so much more missionary power then missionaries. Every single person I've helped baptize has been a member referral. Share this gospel! Help everyone have the opportunity to feel that cozy thrill when reading the Conference Ensign. Ah, the Church is so good.
Love you all my wonderful family!!
Coley
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