Hi Mom, Dad, and everyone!
Happy late Mother's day! I really enjoyed talking to Mom, Dad, Chelsea, and Christopher on Sunday. It was great! Thank you so much for staying up to talk to me!
Today was a really good P-day! Sister Yoon and I went to the Bangojin area with the other sisters (Sisters Hadden and Culver), the Bangojin elders (Bocchino & Moore), Shinjeong elders (Jung Gi-hon & Wells), and the Hogye elders (Chae Jong-sok & Murray). In Bangojin, we took a bus out to an old elementary school that has been converted into a school museum/ reptile zoo. It was a lot of fun! We spent a couple hours playing with all the reptiles there. Get this- I let them put a huge python around my neck! We felt like we were little kids again- and I held and played with countless snakes, lizards, and turtles. Can you believe it? Conquering little fears- one at a time!
On Tuesday, Sister Yoon and I were excited to meet with Lee Jee-yae again- she is a less-active member in the Bangojin branch who has started coming to English class every Tuesday and now studies the gospel with Sister Yoon and I afterwards. She wants to study the Book of Mormon together from the beginning. We always have a really good time with her! This week we talked about Joseph Smith's testimony of the Book of Mormon and how the Lord helped him to prepare the way for the restoration of the Church. *If you haven't read it in a while, you should read Joseph Smith's testimony at the very beginning of the Book of Mormon (before 1 Nephi)- It's amazing! It really helps investigators and new members understand how exactly we got the Book of Mormon in the first place. We wanted to watch the Restoration video with Lee Jee-yae but ran out of time. Well, at least we have next week! We're really grateful that we have a standing appointment with her. She is so ready and willing to learn. It's the best!
On Wednesday, we had interviews with President Jennings, had a big lunch, and district meeting afterwards. It was a full day! Interviews went well- Sister Yoon is nervous because she probably has to go senior next transfer and she is just in her 2nd transfer right now! We don't want her to go- she and I just got here! But we'll see what happens in a couple of weeks. I really enjoyed talking to Sister Jennings and the other missionaries while President held interviews. She is funny and really intelligent- I always have to make a list about the books she talks about so I can read the later (she was a librarian).
Anyway, I have to go, but tell Brooke and Christopher congratulations on the ballet competition (Brooke) and Wizard of Oz callbacks (Christopher). That's awesome! I'm happy to hear that you and Dad went to a genealogy class at church. I want to work on genealogy when I get home and put the things I learned from my BYU genealogy class to use.
(uh...so long ago! Freshman year!) I talked to Kim Jung-jae, a sister in the Bangojin branch who is the Family History consultant for the Ulsan district. She told me that most Koreans have their family history dating back several generations (which is incredible!). The catch is that the history is recorded in hanja (Chinese characters), plus it's in cursive, so many people can't actually read their family histories. That's where people like Sister Kim Jung-jae come in! I thought that was interesting. Family is such an important part of Korean culture- and it's also the central part of our message as missionaries! It's perfect! I am so grateful to know that families can live together forever with Heavenly Father through temple ordinances. Now that I'm on my mission, I realize now that the family really is at the center of Heavenly Father's plan for us. We weren't sent to Earth alone- we were given parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents, all kinds of support for life-- that can extend into the eternities. So yes- I'm actually really excited about getting into genealogy with you when I get back, Mom! It will be fun!
I love you all so much!
Love,
Alyssa
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Hi Mom!
We all got together today to watch Young Women's conference together at the mission home and get to spend P-day together. It's been fun! I got to go to a Buddhist temple nearby (sorry I can't remember the name right now) with Sister Hadden, Sister Olgolvie, and three greenie sisters that just came in this transfer. They are so nice! We had a lot of fun and now we're getting ready to watch Young Women's conference all together and have pizza. It will be good! I was also really excited to see Sister Jung, my companion from Jeju-do. She said her new area in Busan- Goejong/Daeshin/Yeongdo branches (the area that I had to close for sisters when we went to Jeju) is going great! I was excited to talk about the members there with her.
And no, Korea does not celebrate Cinco de Mayo, but May 5th happens to be a big holiday- Children's Day! Everyone gets work off and goes on picnics or just in general spends time with their families. Last year, we spent the day in the country with the whole stake! This year, we went to a village between Kyongju and Ulsan and had lunch, painted pottery, and played games with the Hogye branch. It was a lot of fun! Sister Yoon and I were excited to get to know the members better and meet a potential investigator. (She is 10 years old, comes to church every Sunday with a relative or something, and hasn't been baptized...plus we met her mom, who is definitely ALSO a potential investigator!) That night, we went to visit a less-active member that the elders said we should focus on, Sister Choi Yoo-jin- and it went great! We got to sit down and talk, with her whole family (her, husband, two young daughters). She is REALLY kind and loved talking about her experience in different wards in the area. She talked about how she knew she needed to act to really have faith, and that right now she just had the belief. We said "yes, that's like a scripture!" And she finished our sentence "in Alma- chapter 32!". So were really excited because she obviously has remembered a lot from the scriptures.
Oh yes, I just remembered... before we went to the country for Children's Day, there was a baptism at the Hogye branch for a girl, Choo Ha-eun (it was her birthday)! The cool thing is her parents asked us to teach her all the lessons before she got baptized, so we taught her all the 4 lessons in 2 days! Her dad is a member of the district presidency, but he fooled us into believing that he was less active the first time we met him!
O yes, Happy late birthday (May 5) Sheri!!!! I love you!
Thanks! I love you so much! Have a great week and Happy early Mother's Day!!
We all got together today to watch Young Women's conference together at the mission home and get to spend P-day together. It's been fun! I got to go to a Buddhist temple nearby (sorry I can't remember the name right now) with Sister Hadden, Sister Olgolvie, and three greenie sisters that just came in this transfer. They are so nice! We had a lot of fun and now we're getting ready to watch Young Women's conference all together and have pizza. It will be good! I was also really excited to see Sister Jung, my companion from Jeju-do. She said her new area in Busan- Goejong/Daeshin/Yeongdo branches (the area that I had to close for sisters when we went to Jeju) is going great! I was excited to talk about the members there with her.
And no, Korea does not celebrate Cinco de Mayo, but May 5th happens to be a big holiday- Children's Day! Everyone gets work off and goes on picnics or just in general spends time with their families. Last year, we spent the day in the country with the whole stake! This year, we went to a village between Kyongju and Ulsan and had lunch, painted pottery, and played games with the Hogye branch. It was a lot of fun! Sister Yoon and I were excited to get to know the members better and meet a potential investigator. (She is 10 years old, comes to church every Sunday with a relative or something, and hasn't been baptized...plus we met her mom, who is definitely ALSO a potential investigator!) That night, we went to visit a less-active member that the elders said we should focus on, Sister Choi Yoo-jin- and it went great! We got to sit down and talk, with her whole family (her, husband, two young daughters). She is REALLY kind and loved talking about her experience in different wards in the area. She talked about how she knew she needed to act to really have faith, and that right now she just had the belief. We said "yes, that's like a scripture!" And she finished our sentence "in Alma- chapter 32!". So were really excited because she obviously has remembered a lot from the scriptures.
Oh yes, I just remembered... before we went to the country for Children's Day, there was a baptism at the Hogye branch for a girl, Choo Ha-eun (it was her birthday)! The cool thing is her parents asked us to teach her all the lessons before she got baptized, so we taught her all the 4 lessons in 2 days! Her dad is a member of the district presidency, but he fooled us into believing that he was less active the first time we met him!
O yes, Happy late birthday (May 5) Sheri!!!! I love you!
Thanks! I love you so much! Have a great week and Happy early Mother's Day!!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Hi Mom and Dad!
This past week went by really fast! Last Friday, Sister Yoon and I spent an hour of quality time with our Hogye branch mission leader proselyting on the street after our missionary coordination meeting. It was an interesting threesome- Sister Yoon, me, and our former AP,a very confident ward mission leader Brother Jon (Something-something). Needless to say, I was a little intimidated. I learned a lot from about street proselyting!
On Saturday, Sister Yoon and I had the privilege to help a sister in the Bangojin branch make jello for the precise reason that I am American and thus must be pre-disposed to the art of jello-making. I warned her that I had never actually made jello (got me!), but we helped her anyway. And thus I discovered that yes, it is actually ridiculously easy to make jello. And it went over REALLY well at the baptismal service we had that night for a boy in the ward! Everyone was especially fond of the fruit-filled jello (haha!).
On Sunday we were excited to see three really important less-active members come to church in the Bangojin branch. Okay, so one of them already came every other Sunday, but the other two sisters hadn't been in a long time. We were happy to see Lee Ji-yae, a college student who hasn't been coming to church because the sister missionaries haven't been a presence in the branch for a while. Well, Sister Yoon and I are changing THAT! It's hard because we have two areas here and it's hard to split, so we can't be completely supportive of less active members in either branch. I feel bad for Ji-yae because there aren't really other singles in the branch, but Sister Hadden, who serves in a larger branch in the district, wants to get her involved with the district singles. YAY!
On Monday we had Zone Conference in Daegu! It was great- it had been nine months since I was in my greenie area! I was excited because I hadn't been to a Zone Conference in 5 months (that's what happens when you're on an ISLAND with only 5 other missionaries!). We were happy to see other missionaries serving in/around Daegu and Ulsan. We had a really good conference about helping the new "To the Rescue" program work in the branches where we serve. "To the Rescue" is a program introduced by President Monson to help less active members come back to church and find people to teach for the missionaries. We were excited to learn how to work with the leaders to make the program a success.
After the conference, I stayed in Daegu on splits! I had a really good experience working with Sister Crowther
who is serving in the Daemyong/Sangin wards! On Monday, after the conference, a Daemyong bishopric counselor and the elders went shopping with Sister Crowther and I for food for the missionaries. I thought that was so generous of the families in the ward who wanted to give the missionaries food. I am always impressed at how generous the people of Korea are. The missionaries feel bad accepting their tremendous generosity. We are humbled when we think WE are the missionaries and they are the members.
On Tuesday, she and I met with Kim Hyeon-a and her sister Kim Hyeon-ju for lunch. They're both converts from last year in the Sangin ward and I got to teach Hyeon-a before she was baptized! It had been FOREVER since we had seen each other. I really enjoyed seeing them and seeing how they had become a stronger family in the gospel. Everyone in their family was baptized in the past year (one by one), and now their uncle is an investigator! Hyeon-ju is really sweet. They're both so kind! I love and miss working with their family. Their brother, Dae-hyeon, is now a student at BYU!
Then, Sister Crowther and I had Sangin ward mission coordination meeting with the Sangin elders (Elder Ballam and Elder Kemmerer) and the really funny ward mission leader (Brother Jon Jung-shin)- otherwise known as (oori saranghanin songyochekimja- our beloved ward misison leader)- that's the nickname I gave him when I served here as a greenie! He is devoted to missionary work in the ward an is a big help (he used to be the Daegu stake president!). Then, Sister Crowther and I visited Jung Ok-nam, a convert of a few years ago with the Sangin elders. She is really kind to the missionaries and is so cute when she prays! When I served with Sister Young Lee-bin here last year, we used to visit her every week, so I wanted to see her again. She is so cute! She got really excited when I showed her a picture of Sangin ward members from a fireside last year and she got out her magnifying glass so she could see everyone's faces. When she saw herself, she got excited and said, "Harmoni eeda!" (It's Grandmother!). She really wants the elders to be able to teach her sons, so we prayed that they would have the opportunity to teach him.
After that, Sister Crowther and I went to the Daemyong ward area and had dinner with the Daemyong elders (Elder Lee Chan-joon and Elder Matsuura) and a cute family with a baby girl. She has grown a LOT since last year! I am really worried about seeing how big Ruby is when I get back!
Today, we had another sisters' P-day out and went to the Kyung-ju National museum. It is really interesting to see the artifcats they have here that are hundreds of years old! I am especially intrigued by the Buddhas that are here. (Oh yes, I'm still here- we're using the museum's public access computers). Korea has an amazing, rich, LONG cultural history. I can see why the Korean people have so much pride for their country. We've introduced ourselves to LOTS of people here- there's a ship of foreigners that landed for the day at Ulsan, so we got to meet lots of elderly Americans and Europeans. Plus, there are a ton of kids here on field trips! Sister Hadden and I enjoyed talking to an elderly man from America who was familiar with the church in Polynesia. He said his ship docked there once on a Sunday and they couldn't do anything because all the Mormons were resting! Haha! I thought that was pretty funny :)
I can't say enough how grateful I am to be serving here in Korea. I am SO grateful for my amazing companion, Sister Yoon. She is only in her second transfer but you wouldn't know that from talking to her! She has an AMAZING testimony of the gospel and wants to share it with everyone! I also know this gospel is true. I am so thankful for our loving Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. I know that Joseph Smith is indeed a prophet and that he translated the Book of Mormon through the power of God. bear testimony that as we apply the teachings of the Book of Mormon, we will become so much happier. Most importantly, I know the gospel allows us to progress, to learn, to stretch, to do better each day. We are not perfect- but we come closer to Christ as we TRY to grow each day. I bear testimony that we do need to TRY EACH DAY! Our testimony needs continaual nourishment. How can we nourish it? Through study, prayer, and sharing it with others!
Sister Yoon and I are committed to working hard and FINDING INVESTIGATORS for our area! I know if we work diligently everyday, the Lord will bless us. We saw how he blessed our work with less-active members on Sunday!
I just started reading the Book of Mormon again and I love 1 Nephi 9:6. The Lord will HELP us accomplish His work. He has promised us that! It CAN be done!
Oh yes, tell Jocelyn and Jason congratulations on getting married! That's AWESOME!
Oh yes, and I did get Chelsea's email last week. I think that's amazing that she wants to go to the Jerusalem center! Sorry I didn't write back Chelsea- and I just wrote a ridiculously long email so I'll write you back next week!
I love you! Have a great week!
Love,
Alyssa
This past week went by really fast! Last Friday, Sister Yoon and I spent an hour of quality time with our Hogye branch mission leader proselyting on the street after our missionary coordination meeting. It was an interesting threesome- Sister Yoon, me, and our former AP,a very confident ward mission leader Brother Jon (Something-something). Needless to say, I was a little intimidated. I learned a lot from about street proselyting!
On Saturday, Sister Yoon and I had the privilege to help a sister in the Bangojin branch make jello for the precise reason that I am American and thus must be pre-disposed to the art of jello-making. I warned her that I had never actually made jello (got me!), but we helped her anyway. And thus I discovered that yes, it is actually ridiculously easy to make jello. And it went over REALLY well at the baptismal service we had that night for a boy in the ward! Everyone was especially fond of the fruit-filled jello (haha!).
On Sunday we were excited to see three really important less-active members come to church in the Bangojin branch. Okay, so one of them already came every other Sunday, but the other two sisters hadn't been in a long time. We were happy to see Lee Ji-yae, a college student who hasn't been coming to church because the sister missionaries haven't been a presence in the branch for a while. Well, Sister Yoon and I are changing THAT! It's hard because we have two areas here and it's hard to split, so we can't be completely supportive of less active members in either branch. I feel bad for Ji-yae because there aren't really other singles in the branch, but Sister Hadden, who serves in a larger branch in the district, wants to get her involved with the district singles. YAY!
On Monday we had Zone Conference in Daegu! It was great- it had been nine months since I was in my greenie area! I was excited because I hadn't been to a Zone Conference in 5 months (that's what happens when you're on an ISLAND with only 5 other missionaries!). We were happy to see other missionaries serving in/around Daegu and Ulsan. We had a really good conference about helping the new "To the Rescue" program work in the branches where we serve. "To the Rescue" is a program introduced by President Monson to help less active members come back to church and find people to teach for the missionaries. We were excited to learn how to work with the leaders to make the program a success.
After the conference, I stayed in Daegu on splits! I had a really good experience working with Sister Crowther
who is serving in the Daemyong/Sangin wards! On Monday, after the conference, a Daemyong bishopric counselor and the elders went shopping with Sister Crowther and I for food for the missionaries. I thought that was so generous of the families in the ward who wanted to give the missionaries food. I am always impressed at how generous the people of Korea are. The missionaries feel bad accepting their tremendous generosity. We are humbled when we think WE are the missionaries and they are the members.
On Tuesday, she and I met with Kim Hyeon-a and her sister Kim Hyeon-ju for lunch. They're both converts from last year in the Sangin ward and I got to teach Hyeon-a before she was baptized! It had been FOREVER since we had seen each other. I really enjoyed seeing them and seeing how they had become a stronger family in the gospel. Everyone in their family was baptized in the past year (one by one), and now their uncle is an investigator! Hyeon-ju is really sweet. They're both so kind! I love and miss working with their family. Their brother, Dae-hyeon, is now a student at BYU!
Then, Sister Crowther and I had Sangin ward mission coordination meeting with the Sangin elders (Elder Ballam and Elder Kemmerer) and the really funny ward mission leader (Brother Jon Jung-shin)- otherwise known as (oori saranghanin songyochekimja- our beloved ward misison leader)- that's the nickname I gave him when I served here as a greenie! He is devoted to missionary work in the ward an is a big help (he used to be the Daegu stake president!). Then, Sister Crowther and I visited Jung Ok-nam, a convert of a few years ago with the Sangin elders. She is really kind to the missionaries and is so cute when she prays! When I served with Sister Young Lee-bin here last year, we used to visit her every week, so I wanted to see her again. She is so cute! She got really excited when I showed her a picture of Sangin ward members from a fireside last year and she got out her magnifying glass so she could see everyone's faces. When she saw herself, she got excited and said, "Harmoni eeda!" (It's Grandmother!). She really wants the elders to be able to teach her sons, so we prayed that they would have the opportunity to teach him.
After that, Sister Crowther and I went to the Daemyong ward area and had dinner with the Daemyong elders (Elder Lee Chan-joon and Elder Matsuura) and a cute family with a baby girl. She has grown a LOT since last year! I am really worried about seeing how big Ruby is when I get back!
Today, we had another sisters' P-day out and went to the Kyung-ju National museum. It is really interesting to see the artifcats they have here that are hundreds of years old! I am especially intrigued by the Buddhas that are here. (Oh yes, I'm still here- we're using the museum's public access computers). Korea has an amazing, rich, LONG cultural history. I can see why the Korean people have so much pride for their country. We've introduced ourselves to LOTS of people here- there's a ship of foreigners that landed for the day at Ulsan, so we got to meet lots of elderly Americans and Europeans. Plus, there are a ton of kids here on field trips! Sister Hadden and I enjoyed talking to an elderly man from America who was familiar with the church in Polynesia. He said his ship docked there once on a Sunday and they couldn't do anything because all the Mormons were resting! Haha! I thought that was pretty funny :)
I can't say enough how grateful I am to be serving here in Korea. I am SO grateful for my amazing companion, Sister Yoon. She is only in her second transfer but you wouldn't know that from talking to her! She has an AMAZING testimony of the gospel and wants to share it with everyone! I also know this gospel is true. I am so thankful for our loving Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. I know that Joseph Smith is indeed a prophet and that he translated the Book of Mormon through the power of God. bear testimony that as we apply the teachings of the Book of Mormon, we will become so much happier. Most importantly, I know the gospel allows us to progress, to learn, to stretch, to do better each day. We are not perfect- but we come closer to Christ as we TRY to grow each day. I bear testimony that we do need to TRY EACH DAY! Our testimony needs continaual nourishment. How can we nourish it? Through study, prayer, and sharing it with others!
Sister Yoon and I are committed to working hard and FINDING INVESTIGATORS for our area! I know if we work diligently everyday, the Lord will bless us. We saw how he blessed our work with less-active members on Sunday!
I just started reading the Book of Mormon again and I love 1 Nephi 9:6. The Lord will HELP us accomplish His work. He has promised us that! It CAN be done!
Oh yes, tell Jocelyn and Jason congratulations on getting married! That's AWESOME!
Oh yes, and I did get Chelsea's email last week. I think that's amazing that she wants to go to the Jerusalem center! Sorry I didn't write back Chelsea- and I just wrote a ridiculously long email so I'll write you back next week!
I love you! Have a great week!
Love,
Alyssa
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Hi everyone!
This week we were excited to have lunch with the elders and Nelson Watson, a less active member in the ward from Hawaii, and his wife Stella (Korean) and daughter Alicia (6 yrs old). Stella isn't a member but she came to church once with Alicia. She said when she is available she'll come to church as long as Alicia wants to come. We bore testimony about Family Home Evening and how family prayer can strengthen our families. Mom and Dad, I'm so thankful we always had FHE and family prayer at home, because now I can testify about that experience to the people we teach! I took it for granted growing up, but now I see how much that can strengthen children and families!
After the Watson family, we visited Cher-Anne, a less active Filipino member in the ward. She was so excited to be able to renew her Liahona and Ensign with Elder Ryu's help and said she'll do her best to come to church! She loves the missionaries and has a strong testimony of the gospel. We felt the Spirit as we met with her and shared our testimonies- especially when Sister Jung shared her testimony- in ENGLISH! She was really nervous about it, but we practiced before and she was great! She said she felt like a greenie because we were talking in English and I had to cue her in for
the testimony. Haha- A little bit of role reversing!
On Monday and Tuesday this week, we were excited to meet with a couple of less active women and get to know them a little bit. Hopefully we'll be able to meet them again soon!
Things are going slowly right now...we don't have investigators, but we're searching, and doing a lot with less active members. But
tomorrow we're meeting with a referral from a girl in Young Women's in the ward. We're excited to meet her and hopefully be able to teach her.
I really appreciate the scripture Dad shared with me this week:
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest"
I know the Lord guides His work and that when we put our faith and trust in Him, we will be able to accomplish what He desires of us. Thank you so much for your love and prayers! I love you and love the people here in Jeju-do. I am so grateful for the gospel and all the blessings we receive because of it. I pray that we as missionaries can share those blessings with the people of Jeju-do!
Love,
Alyssa
This week we were excited to have lunch with the elders and Nelson Watson, a less active member in the ward from Hawaii, and his wife Stella (Korean) and daughter Alicia (6 yrs old). Stella isn't a member but she came to church once with Alicia. She said when she is available she'll come to church as long as Alicia wants to come. We bore testimony about Family Home Evening and how family prayer can strengthen our families. Mom and Dad, I'm so thankful we always had FHE and family prayer at home, because now I can testify about that experience to the people we teach! I took it for granted growing up, but now I see how much that can strengthen children and families!
After the Watson family, we visited Cher-Anne, a less active Filipino member in the ward. She was so excited to be able to renew her Liahona and Ensign with Elder Ryu's help and said she'll do her best to come to church! She loves the missionaries and has a strong testimony of the gospel. We felt the Spirit as we met with her and shared our testimonies- especially when Sister Jung shared her testimony- in ENGLISH! She was really nervous about it, but we practiced before and she was great! She said she felt like a greenie because we were talking in English and I had to cue her in for
the testimony. Haha- A little bit of role reversing!
On Monday and Tuesday this week, we were excited to meet with a couple of less active women and get to know them a little bit. Hopefully we'll be able to meet them again soon!
Things are going slowly right now...we don't have investigators, but we're searching, and doing a lot with less active members. But
tomorrow we're meeting with a referral from a girl in Young Women's in the ward. We're excited to meet her and hopefully be able to teach her.
I really appreciate the scripture Dad shared with me this week:
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest"
I know the Lord guides His work and that when we put our faith and trust in Him, we will be able to accomplish what He desires of us. Thank you so much for your love and prayers! I love you and love the people here in Jeju-do. I am so grateful for the gospel and all the blessings we receive because of it. I pray that we as missionaries can share those blessings with the people of Jeju-do!
Love,
Alyssa
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Hi everyone!
Sorry, I'm short on time, so this will be a quick email!
This week, we had a fun family home evening group at the church where several boys from young men's showed up. They had fun playing cops and robbers, running around the outside of the church. I stayed warm inside and chatted with Gook Hyung-mi, whose sons Kim Song-su and Kim Myung-joon were playing with the others. Kim Myung-joon, by the way, is the boy who was in the hospital. He's fine now! It must have been a 24 hour flu kind of a thing.
Last night Sister Jung and I met with a less-active high school student who got baptized in elementary school. We hope to keep meeting her every week- she is really nice!
We also had the opportunity to meet the friend of a junior high girl in the ward on Saturday and spend some time with them. She said she'd like to meet with us again! We ALMOST got her to come to the young men's/young women's activity with us, but then she had to go home. Oh well- at least we can still see her!
I am excited for this week- this past week Sister Jung and I had a day where everyone we wanted to meet with canceled, and we got dropped by an investigator. It was really hard, but we realized that as long as we do everything we can on our part, the Lord will help us find people who are ready to receive the gospel.
I love you all so much! I'm so thankful for this gospel. I love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and am so thankful for the wonderful examples of others. I hope I can become more like them! (companion, church leaders, FAMILY, mission president, prophet!)
Have a great week! I love you!
Love,
Alyssa
Sorry, I'm short on time, so this will be a quick email!
This week, we had a fun family home evening group at the church where several boys from young men's showed up. They had fun playing cops and robbers, running around the outside of the church. I stayed warm inside and chatted with Gook Hyung-mi, whose sons Kim Song-su and Kim Myung-joon were playing with the others. Kim Myung-joon, by the way, is the boy who was in the hospital. He's fine now! It must have been a 24 hour flu kind of a thing.
Last night Sister Jung and I met with a less-active high school student who got baptized in elementary school. We hope to keep meeting her every week- she is really nice!
We also had the opportunity to meet the friend of a junior high girl in the ward on Saturday and spend some time with them. She said she'd like to meet with us again! We ALMOST got her to come to the young men's/young women's activity with us, but then she had to go home. Oh well- at least we can still see her!
I am excited for this week- this past week Sister Jung and I had a day where everyone we wanted to meet with canceled, and we got dropped by an investigator. It was really hard, but we realized that as long as we do everything we can on our part, the Lord will help us find people who are ready to receive the gospel.
I love you all so much! I'm so thankful for this gospel. I love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and am so thankful for the wonderful examples of others. I hope I can become more like them! (companion, church leaders, FAMILY, mission president, prophet!)
Have a great week! I love you!
Love,
Alyssa
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Hi everyone!
Well, it's been another great week! On New Year's Eve, we had a fun branch meeting/party that turned out great! I found out that it was the first time they have done it, but I'm sure it will happen again next year! There was karaoke, which also turned up at the Christmas party. I loved seeing the members in the ward get into the "classic" Korean music of 20-30 years ago. It was really funny! That night, Sister Jung and I went home- and you guessed it! We went to bed at 10:30 pm as usual. But the next morning, we got up early to see the sunrise from a beautiful spot with the branch and what seemed like HALF of the city of Jeju! Seeing the sunrise on January 1st is a Korean tradition. After we saw the sunrise (Kind of- it peeked through the clouds), the branch members found a quiet spot to say a prayer for the new year together. It was a wonderful experience! Later, we celebrated New Year's/ our ward mission leader's birthday with the same "family" group that was together for Christmas: us, the elders, our ward missionary Jung-ee Kim, and the mission leader Hyung-tae Moon. On Saturday, we stopped by the restaurant of Jo Soon-shim and Kim Gi-wan, a couple whose three school-aged daughters joined the church earlier this year. They are so kind! The problem is they are busy working at their restaurant everyday to make money for their family. But they love what the church has done for their daughters- I hope we can get to know them better! On Fast Sunday, we got up early again for a special Fast Sunday prayer in a quiet, wooded area with the branch president, the Jeju-do district president and wife, the mission leader, Kim Jung-ee (the branch missionary), us, and the elders. I found out they do that every Fast Sunday! I was excited about getting up early, but it was a special experience. I could feel how much the leadership of the branch cared for its members.
Today, we had an amazing P-day! We went to Sogwiepo, at the south end of the island with the elders, Lee Hyun-jung, our investigator, and her son Pak Joon-hyung(a member). We walked along the coast on a special trail with AMAZING VIEWS of the ocean. It was gorgeous! I'll definitely send you pictures. We got to explore on the rocks a little bit and had a lot of fun. We were excited to have our second Jeju-do adventure (the first being the teddy bear museum!) and enjoyed spending time with Lee Hyun-jung and Pak Joon-hyung.
It was a great week!Thank you Mom and Dad, the family, Cheryl, Grandmas and Grandpas, Brandon and Jenn, for all your Christmas greetings! I was so excited to see the Christmas cards. Everyone looks great!
I love you all so much!
Love,Alyssa
Well, it's been another great week! On New Year's Eve, we had a fun branch meeting/party that turned out great! I found out that it was the first time they have done it, but I'm sure it will happen again next year! There was karaoke, which also turned up at the Christmas party. I loved seeing the members in the ward get into the "classic" Korean music of 20-30 years ago. It was really funny! That night, Sister Jung and I went home- and you guessed it! We went to bed at 10:30 pm as usual. But the next morning, we got up early to see the sunrise from a beautiful spot with the branch and what seemed like HALF of the city of Jeju! Seeing the sunrise on January 1st is a Korean tradition. After we saw the sunrise (Kind of- it peeked through the clouds), the branch members found a quiet spot to say a prayer for the new year together. It was a wonderful experience! Later, we celebrated New Year's/ our ward mission leader's birthday with the same "family" group that was together for Christmas: us, the elders, our ward missionary Jung-ee Kim, and the mission leader Hyung-tae Moon. On Saturday, we stopped by the restaurant of Jo Soon-shim and Kim Gi-wan, a couple whose three school-aged daughters joined the church earlier this year. They are so kind! The problem is they are busy working at their restaurant everyday to make money for their family. But they love what the church has done for their daughters- I hope we can get to know them better! On Fast Sunday, we got up early again for a special Fast Sunday prayer in a quiet, wooded area with the branch president, the Jeju-do district president and wife, the mission leader, Kim Jung-ee (the branch missionary), us, and the elders. I found out they do that every Fast Sunday! I was excited about getting up early, but it was a special experience. I could feel how much the leadership of the branch cared for its members.
Today, we had an amazing P-day! We went to Sogwiepo, at the south end of the island with the elders, Lee Hyun-jung, our investigator, and her son Pak Joon-hyung(a member). We walked along the coast on a special trail with AMAZING VIEWS of the ocean. It was gorgeous! I'll definitely send you pictures. We got to explore on the rocks a little bit and had a lot of fun. We were excited to have our second Jeju-do adventure (the first being the teddy bear museum!) and enjoyed spending time with Lee Hyun-jung and Pak Joon-hyung.
It was a great week!Thank you Mom and Dad, the family, Cheryl, Grandmas and Grandpas, Brandon and Jenn, for all your Christmas greetings! I was so excited to see the Christmas cards. Everyone looks great!
I love you all so much!
Love,Alyssa
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Hi Mom, Dad, and everyone!
You might be surprised to be getting an email from me in the middle of the week! Pres. Jennings just changed our P-day from Monday to Thursday, and what better day to start off than New Year's Eve! So from now on, if you could get your emails done before Wed. night that would be great! Anyway, not a ton has happened since I called you on Friday and emailed on Monday! Let's see...we had our Family Home Evening group on Monday night at the church. It was a lot of fun! We played the game where you you get a post-it on your forehead of a person's name from the scriptures, and everyone has to ask questions to figure out who they are! I had done it in the Yeongdo branch and thought we could try it out here. It turned out great! There were just 7 of us that night, the missionaries, Sister Jung-ee Kim, the branch missionary (she's about our age), and two boys from Young Men's, but we still had a lot of fun!
On Tuesday, we met with a former/potential investigator, Song-ja Kang, at the restaurant where she works. She is a really kind single mom who has known the missionaries for a long time, but has her hands full working all the time. I think she likes the church because she has two sons in high school and middle school who need good examples in their lives. I hope we can continue meeting with her! We gave her a booklet on how we can strengthen our families and are going to talk about that with her each week. I had my favorite food there- duejang jigae! Yesterday, we had district meeting down in Soguipo, on the other side of the island. We enjoy district meeting because of the mid-week spiritual boost and it's the only time we ever see the elders serving down in Soguipo! Elder Ryu talked about how we need to speak openly- but always with the Spirit. It was really good. I realized how important it is to recognize the way we are communicating with others and see how we can improve. He said that you should consider others' feelings when you talk and always try to speak through the Spirit. It was a really good lesson that prompted us to consider how we can improve our relations with others as missionaries. Communicating through the Spirit is something we especially need now, but we'll also need it throughout our whole lives too!
After the meeting, Sister Jung and I visited one of the Soguipo elders' investigator with them, Jung-soon Kim. She was busy, so we were only able to talk to her at the door, but she was really kind- my comp hadn't gotten the whole scoop on her and thought she was a member because she was so nice! We live far away so we can only visit her with the elders when we're down in Soguipo every other week, but we were glad we could meet her.
Last night, we had family home evening with Soon-hyung, a recent convert high school student, and his mom Hyun-jung Lee. Sister Jung and I taught about how Christ can help us overcome sin and also the principle of faith. Hyun-jung isn't a member but is really grateful for the church because of how it has changed her son's life. She LOVES the missionaries. She showed us a picture album of all the missionaries that have worked with them in the past year or so- and we were at the end! We really love Hyun-jung and her son and enjoy working with them. Today, we were surprised to wake up to a Winter Wonderland! Kind of. There was a lot of snow coming down, anyway! I guess it's an early start to the new year! Sister Jung and I are excited for the year 2010 and all that has in store. We're having lunch with a member in the ward and her children to celebrate New Year's Eve. Tonight, the branch is having a New Year's meeting/party and tomorrow morning the branch is going hiking at 6:30 to see the sunrise and welcome the new year! It'll be interested. I'm excited right now, but it's not yet the dark, cold, snow-filled morning that it will be when we get up tomorrow!Dad, I read the talk that you sent from Pres. Utchdorf. That's amazing! I loved what he shared about the experience people had when Joseph Smith dedicated the Kirtland temple. I especially liked this part of Pres. Utchdorf's testimony:"indvidual and collective trials may sometimes seem overwhelming.That is when we need, more than ever, to draw near unto the Lord. As we do, we will come to know what it means to have the Lord draw near unto us. As we seek Him ever more diligently, we will surely find Him. We will see clearly that the Lord does not abandon His Church or His faithful Saints. Our eyes will be opened, and we will see Him open the windows of heaven and shower us with more of His light. We will find the spiritual strength to survive even during the darkest night."I am so grateful for continued revelation from our latter-day prophets.I LOVE Pres. Utchdorf. I feel sometimes like we're on the same wavelength of some unseen radio channel.
I am so grateful that we can pray to the Lord and receive strength each day as we strive to do His will. It's hard, but I'm have a testimony that the Lord will help us to overcome the obstacles in our lives. He wants us to succeed and be happy!I love you all and am so excited for the new year. The new year is amazing- it's a new beginning!
Don't forget to make your New Year's resolutions!
Have a great New Year's Eve!
Love,Alyssa
You might be surprised to be getting an email from me in the middle of the week! Pres. Jennings just changed our P-day from Monday to Thursday, and what better day to start off than New Year's Eve! So from now on, if you could get your emails done before Wed. night that would be great! Anyway, not a ton has happened since I called you on Friday and emailed on Monday! Let's see...we had our Family Home Evening group on Monday night at the church. It was a lot of fun! We played the game where you you get a post-it on your forehead of a person's name from the scriptures, and everyone has to ask questions to figure out who they are! I had done it in the Yeongdo branch and thought we could try it out here. It turned out great! There were just 7 of us that night, the missionaries, Sister Jung-ee Kim, the branch missionary (she's about our age), and two boys from Young Men's, but we still had a lot of fun!
On Tuesday, we met with a former/potential investigator, Song-ja Kang, at the restaurant where she works. She is a really kind single mom who has known the missionaries for a long time, but has her hands full working all the time. I think she likes the church because she has two sons in high school and middle school who need good examples in their lives. I hope we can continue meeting with her! We gave her a booklet on how we can strengthen our families and are going to talk about that with her each week. I had my favorite food there- duejang jigae! Yesterday, we had district meeting down in Soguipo, on the other side of the island. We enjoy district meeting because of the mid-week spiritual boost and it's the only time we ever see the elders serving down in Soguipo! Elder Ryu talked about how we need to speak openly- but always with the Spirit. It was really good. I realized how important it is to recognize the way we are communicating with others and see how we can improve. He said that you should consider others' feelings when you talk and always try to speak through the Spirit. It was a really good lesson that prompted us to consider how we can improve our relations with others as missionaries. Communicating through the Spirit is something we especially need now, but we'll also need it throughout our whole lives too!
After the meeting, Sister Jung and I visited one of the Soguipo elders' investigator with them, Jung-soon Kim. She was busy, so we were only able to talk to her at the door, but she was really kind- my comp hadn't gotten the whole scoop on her and thought she was a member because she was so nice! We live far away so we can only visit her with the elders when we're down in Soguipo every other week, but we were glad we could meet her.
Last night, we had family home evening with Soon-hyung, a recent convert high school student, and his mom Hyun-jung Lee. Sister Jung and I taught about how Christ can help us overcome sin and also the principle of faith. Hyun-jung isn't a member but is really grateful for the church because of how it has changed her son's life. She LOVES the missionaries. She showed us a picture album of all the missionaries that have worked with them in the past year or so- and we were at the end! We really love Hyun-jung and her son and enjoy working with them. Today, we were surprised to wake up to a Winter Wonderland! Kind of. There was a lot of snow coming down, anyway! I guess it's an early start to the new year! Sister Jung and I are excited for the year 2010 and all that has in store. We're having lunch with a member in the ward and her children to celebrate New Year's Eve. Tonight, the branch is having a New Year's meeting/party and tomorrow morning the branch is going hiking at 6:30 to see the sunrise and welcome the new year! It'll be interested. I'm excited right now, but it's not yet the dark, cold, snow-filled morning that it will be when we get up tomorrow!Dad, I read the talk that you sent from Pres. Utchdorf. That's amazing! I loved what he shared about the experience people had when Joseph Smith dedicated the Kirtland temple. I especially liked this part of Pres. Utchdorf's testimony:"indvidual and collective trials may sometimes seem overwhelming.That is when we need, more than ever, to draw near unto the Lord. As we do, we will come to know what it means to have the Lord draw near unto us. As we seek Him ever more diligently, we will surely find Him. We will see clearly that the Lord does not abandon His Church or His faithful Saints. Our eyes will be opened, and we will see Him open the windows of heaven and shower us with more of His light. We will find the spiritual strength to survive even during the darkest night."I am so grateful for continued revelation from our latter-day prophets.I LOVE Pres. Utchdorf. I feel sometimes like we're on the same wavelength of some unseen radio channel.
I am so grateful that we can pray to the Lord and receive strength each day as we strive to do His will. It's hard, but I'm have a testimony that the Lord will help us to overcome the obstacles in our lives. He wants us to succeed and be happy!I love you all and am so excited for the new year. The new year is amazing- it's a new beginning!
Don't forget to make your New Year's resolutions!
Have a great New Year's Eve!
Love,Alyssa
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