March 12, 2012

Hello all friends and family,


The TaoYuan zone is still on fire!! I'm super happy in this work and I'm so happy to be here in TaoYuan with a zone full of great missionaries, giving it our all, and living worthy of the Lord's help. I don't know why it is, but the Lord is really blessing our zone. This week was a great week for the work in my area. We were able to get 10 people to church this week. The mission's golden standard is 3. It was such an amazing miracle and a personal goal of mine to get 10 people to a Sacrament Meeting on my mission. The most I'd ever had before was 8 in DanShui when the Zhang family were all coming together every week before they were baptized. This week was truly amazing.

Three of our people in church were the Huang family--a mother and her two kids. We met them Monday night and she invited us over for dinner that night. We said we couldn't make it but maybe another day. Then our lesson that night cancelled so we called her up and asked if we could come share a gospel message. She obliged. We went over to find that she had 2 kids and her mother all there. They are great! She said she's been wanting to be a Christian and hasn't been baptized!!! So we shared about how the gospel blesses families and set baptismal dates with all of them. Then we met with them later that week and taught the restoration. They committed to come to church! The Grandma was sick, but the rest of them came for the first hour, then they left to go to another Christian church after our service. I can't wait for them to get answers through the Book of Mormon. They had a good time at church and I'm so excited to continue to share the restored gospel with them and help them prepare for baptism.

Another one was a young Vietnamese factory worked named Fan. Elder Workman and I met him one night and taught him but didn't set up a next time with him and didn't think he had a ton of interest. We went back Saturday to his neighborhood to work and I suggested we give his door a knock. He was super excited to see us, had been praying every day since we last met, and wanted to come to church. He came to church and had a great time. There will be a little barrier with the language there, but we gave him a Vietnamese Book of Mormon, a.k.a. Sach Mac Mon. And we'll be able to show him The Restoration DVD in Vietnamese and help him that way. He's really good.

Brother Tsai asked for work off again and was denied. Then he asked again and told the boss he'd leave if he can't get it off. So his boss took it to a higher boss. We should hear soon. We shared Nephi going to get the plates and how the first tries were good, but they didn't work. So Nephi had to be pushed to the very most extreme of faith and courage before the Lord provided the way. Nephi slayed Laban and thus the Nephites and Lamanites had the writings of the prophets. Those people right there are brother Tsai's ancestors (he is an aboriginal Taiwanese and they are widely accepted as being Lamanite descendants. It's also amazing if you study their culture. It's right in line with some of the traditions talked about in the Book of Mormon. But he said he'd be willing to quit if his boss's boss says no. He's determined. Keep him in your prayers.

Its been a blessing being in an area for 3 consecutive transfers for the first time. Our investigator pool is so strong and solid right now, I can't believe it. There are so many amazing people progressing toward baptism and I feel so blessed that the Lord would trust me with these souls. I'm absolutely lost in their lives. I realized just how lost in them I am yesterday. I can't stop thinking about these people, stressing for their welfare, praying constantly that no matter where they are at any given time they're making the right decisions.

One person I've been continuing to work with here is Ru Pei Yuan, English name: Wilson. He's the less active I found when my name tag jumped off. We had a solid lesson on repentance Tuesday and invited him to call the bishop right then and there. He set up an interview with bishop and set a goal to repent. He was making great progress. Then my recent convert Chen Hao Yun saw Wilson with some friends Saturday at his restaurant and Wilson was smoking. Then he didn't come to church. It's really hard to see. He needs new friends and a complete change. I've gotten really close to him and we're good buddies. Sister Ru wants him to come to America and find me after he graduates from high school. I'd love that. I just want him to make the right choices and start preparing for a mission. I hope that he can CTR.

Speaking of Chen Hao Yun he is doing amazing. He is doing his home teaching, helping us teach lessons, he shared his testimony in district meeting, he teaches me every time I meet with him (I feel like his insights into the scriptures are amazing. He finds stuff I miss). He got another calling. He is inviting others to learn about the gospel and brought his little sister to church Sunday. She is 15 and has read some of the Book of Mormon. She had an amazing time and wants to get baptized. The young women did a great job of fellowshipping her and she loved church. We set a baptism date for 1 month out, and she got excited because it's the day after her birthday. She has an amazing example in her older brother and I'm super thankful for his example. His testimony is so strong, and he is now beginning to think about a mission.

Cai Duo An, my 17 year old secret baptism is also doing great. He blessed the Sacrament for the first time this week. He tries to be "Mr. Cool" all the time, but you could tell he was super nervous. He got through the prayer and then stood up to give the trays out, then looked at me and winked. He is so hilarious. He has a plan to tell his mom about his baptism in 5 months on his birthday. He's a little punk, and I love him for it.

I've been so blessed to be here in TaoYuan and I've been so blessed as a missionary. I'm so thankful. I can't wait to continue pressing forward and serving the Lord. I've given some thought about my coming home dates of either December 18 this year, and January 26 next year. I haven't come to a set answer yet, but I'll continue thinking about it. That doesn't really matter right now. The point is each day that goes by is one day less I have to serve the Lord--kind of scary--but I'm loving every minute of it and I need to make the most of every minute of it. I've heard apostles and other people say that they can trace every good thing that's happened in their life since their mission back to their mission, and I'm beginning to see how that would be. I've loved my mission, and I'm definitely changed because of it. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer.

This last week was great. The best is yet to come. My comp came down with the flu yesterday so I hope that we can get over that quickly and press forward.

I want to include something about zone conference from last transfer about 3 weeks ago, I may have already shared this story, so sorry if I have, but I can't remember. Our TaoYuan zone was assigned to do a musical number. I arranged the music for the number. I know the kids that were in choir and enjoy singing probably weren't thrilled with my arrangement, but it was unlike anything that any other zone has done for a musical number before. We sang "Let Us All Press On" and we didn't do anything but sing it--no parts, no fanfare, nothing. Like grits without brown sugar. Then after the end of the second verse, as we went into the chorus, all 22 missionaries whistled the entire chorus. Everyone was shocked. I heard President Grimley laugh. I know he probably loved it. We finished whistling the chorus and then sang the 3rd verse plain and boring again. It was great and took everyone by surprise. That is what the TaoYuan zone is all about.
 

That's about it for the week. Everyone CTR all the time.

Elder White