November 17, 2014 Updates from 목포!!

November 17, 2014

Updates from 목포!!

Hey Family!!

How was everyone's week?  We had a good one but winter is starting to set in...!!  

This week we had a combined district meeting with our zone focused on becoming one as a companionship, district, zone, mission, members, and with Christ.  It was a super good meeting and also gave missionaries time to open up a bit more and talk about our concerns.  Our zone leaders ended it with a fun activity.  We blew up a billion balloons...well really I just watched since I can't blow up balloons..and then on a balloon we all wrote one thing we are going to do to help our mission become one.  Then we put them on the ground and zone leaders put a table on top of them and then started having missionaries stand on the table.  Then there was a smaller collection of balloons and a table which we called the "Busan Mission", haha!!  and then saw how many people could stand on that!!  We all got a good laugh and it was an example showing us that if we all start improving one thing at a time we can help our whole mission improve.  Which is the same in families, wards, with friends, and others.

Lately we have been teaching our investigator Sister Jung about the word of wisdom, law of chastity, and other commandments.  She is a mother and she really thinks that our standards are really good but she asked us and gave us homework to tell her about how we can live these standards because the world has changed and so our beliefs are so different from the world.  Wow, good question.  Me and my companion thought and talked about it and came back with our answers.  I think the most important thing is our desire and reason for keeping the commandments; if we just keep them because that is what our Mom tells us to do then we have no motivation, but if we keep them because we know it will bless our lives and bring us closer to God then we personally have a desire to keep them. The second thing is, no matter how alone we feel we have our families, friends, wards, and members all over the world who are living the same standards and facing the same opposition.  So, as we stand together we can strengthen each other.  With another investigator we have been studying the story of Esther. (I think Esther has one good name^^)  She had so much courage to do what was right even at the risk of her own life.  We all know what is right and as we stand up for our beliefs and be an example we can have the companionship of the Holy Ghost to help us.  Sorry that was so long, just the things I have been thinking about and learning about this week.

Sunday we went with some members to visit a Phillipino member in our ward.  Her family is having a hard time right now so the sweet members brought them a bunch of food and are trying to help her oldest son find a good job.  It made me grateful for the church and that ward members support each other out of their own free will.  It also made me and my companion so grateful for all we have and for the families we grew up in.

This week one of our investigators introduced us to our friend so we are now studying the Bible in English with both of them.  The friend is very curious about the church so it was a big blessing we could meet her.^^  This week we also get to go with our investigator Sister Jung to  her English class she teaches because her students (moms) want to meet a foreigner.  Should be fun and maybe we can find some new investigators.  She also has a teenage daughter who is quite a handful, but her daughter showed some interest in meeting us so we get to meet her this week.  Hopefully she will feel comfortable with us and we can talk with her a lot.  Our investigator really likes the things we teach her but I think she would be more likely to come to church if her family also had the desire to come.

My companion is most likely going to be going home in December, the same time as me so we are not really sure what is going to happen to our area, we are praying there will still be sisters here.  But the goal is to give it our all this last month and help our investigators progress and learn as much about the Gospel as possible before we leave.  This home stretch is definitely not easy but we are trying to motivate each other and give it our all.

Love you all and hope you have a great week^^

Love,

Sister Jacklin

Pictures:-our zone meeting activity:)

 

November 10, 2014 Updates from the past transfer in Mokpo

November 10, 2014

Updates from the past transfer in Mokpo
 

Hey Family!!

 

I apologize for the lack of letters and updates on what has been going on over here in Mokpo.  Let’s just say it has been a transfer full of ups and downs and some of the weirdest experiences of my mission.  God doesn't want me and my companion to end our missions in a boring way!!

Fun events lately...we had a super great Halloween party last week!!  The missionaries did everything so we were exhausted but it turned out so well!!  Fun games, cute decorations, and the Elders awesome haunted house!  

Today in church was the primary program!!  They all wore traditional Korean clothes and it was so cute.  I have to say my favorite moment was the little boy who shoved about 8 pieces of bread in his mouth during the sacrament and then drank two waters and proudly announced it to the whole ward!!

We also have a new ward mission leader, Brother Lee.  He is a super funny guy and loves the missionaries and making the greenie Elders attempt to speak:)  On our first weekly coordination meeting he brought his flute and played us a song, best ward mission meeting!!

 Two weeks ago on p-day our investigator took us to the famous Wochal Mountain.  It was so beautiful and made me so happy to be out in nature.  Our investigator is in her seventies but she booked it up the mountain like a pro.  There was a bridge between two parts of the mountain.  Terrifying but SO cool!!  Korean hiking involves a lot of stairs.  Also at the top we met a less-active man from my companion's hometown.  He joined when he was in high school but went less-active in college.  It was so crazy to meet him there!!  

 Last Monday we went to Gwangju for a Zone Sister's activity, and we ended up running into a whole other Zone of Sisters so we ended up going to lunch and ice skating together.  Just picture eighteen sister missionaries together for lunch...insanely loud and a big party!!  Thank goodness the restaurant was smart and put us in a sound proof room!

Our area, is still difficult but we are trying to make things happen.  The Elders have an investigator who has been coming out to church for over a month and has a baptismal date for the 30th which is super exciting!!  He is super humble and has accepted everything so well. Mokpo needs a baptism.  Our ward mission leader has convinced his mom, who by the way never opens her door for us, to be baptized in July.  Well me and my companion would like to move that up to December so we are putting together a plan to make it happen, including making homemade kimbap!!  Everybody please pray for Sister Yoon and that she will want to be baptized.  Our other investigators have a lot more English interest than gospel so it has been hard to have real gospel progressing investigators.  We love them and there is still possibility but I am really focusing on finding new investigators right now.  Only six weeks left so I am trying to focus and give it my all.  Mokpo is a special place and there are always crazy things happening so I am sure it will not be a boring last transfer:)

 

This week I have been reading in Alma and was reading about Moroni and the title of liberty.

Alma 46:12

"And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it--In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children--and he fastened it upon the end of a pole."

I love how much passion Moroni has in his beliefs and is determined to protect his people.  We are fighting different kind of war but it is just as serious.  The world has moved so far away from our standards and people may think our standards are outdated but we must be strong and stand up for what we believe.  Just like Moroni I think we can look upon this title of liberty for inspiration to help us stand strong.

I love you all and hope you have a great week:)

 

Love,

Sister Jacklin

 

Pictures:

-me and one of my favorite primary girls:)
-our District last transfer