Thanksgiving and Charity

November 26, 2012

 

Happy late Thanksgiving to you all! I'm sorry I didn't mention it last week. I first want to tell each and every one of you that I am so grateful I have such a wonderful family. I thank Heavenly Father every day I was able to be adopted into such a loving and welcoming environment where I could learn the gospel and gain a testimony of the reality of the Savior's atonement and His love for each and every one of us. I am grateful I can continuously read the Book of Mormon and find answers to life's problems or be comforted in times of need. I am so grateful I have a mom and dad who care about me and show their love in countless ways. I'm grateful each and every one of my siblings and their spouses are all so kind to me. I'm grateful I could have dozens of adorable nieces and nephews that I love SOOOO much! I'm thankful for our ward and the great help they have also been to me. I'm just really grateful for the wonderful life I've been able to live. Words cannot express how grateful I am to be in Taiwan serving the Lord. Each and every one of us are truly blessed!

 

Okay, here's some fun stuff from last week! We were able to meet with Xie JM and her 3 adorable kids. She is really having a hard time accepting that God really exists, so we are just trying to help her understand the basics and are moving really slow with her. We also met with Wu JM and Chen JM and they both came to church again yesterday. Both of their faith is so strong and I love getting to watch them learn and grow. We also met with Megan, Lin JM, and a few other folks, and it was really nice. One thing I really love about Sister King is how different each one of our lessons is. Now that my chinese is getting a little bit better, we are able to REALLY focus on their needs. Since every person is different, so is every single lesson. No lesson is ever the same which keeps things interesting and helps each person feel how the gospel could specifically improve their life.

 

We have a District Training Meeting every Tuesday at 1:00 and this last week's was on Charity. It was one of the best DTM's ever! Lin ZL (zhanglao, elder) is our District leader and shared with us about the importance of charity. I feel like I sometimes forget what it truly means to represent Jesus Christ and follow His example. Christ served EVERYONE, talked to EVERYONE, helped and blessed EVERYONE. He put their needs above His own. He cared for the lonely, comforted the depressed, and felt empathy for those who had made wrong choices that put them in a bad situation. It is not our place to judge who deserves charity and who does not. Each and every person we see is someone who needs the peace and happiness the gospel can bring, and, out of love and charity, we need to talk with everyone. However, we are not here to glorify ourselves and just "get baptisms." We are here to help people come unto Christ and return as brothers and sisters back to His presence. I understand fully that the first step is baptism, but that doesn't mean we need to push and shove them the whole way. It needs to be their desire. A few years ago, many missionaries baptized several several people who were not ready and who have now left the church. We are in the process of helping those people come back and helping them gain a testimony themselves.

 

The importance of this all has been on my mind for quite some time, but really came out as we visited several members this week and got to know their conversion stories. Some of the strongest members were investigators for years. They had good friends in the church, took the time they needed to learn, and decided to be baptized when they felt it was right. Of course, there are exceptions and that is absolutely wonderful, but the bulk of people need time. Especially here when many don't even know who Jesus Christ is. I love meeting with members like that, because it helps remind us that no work we do is wasted. Maybe our investigators will not be baptized next week, but we are still doing what the Savior wants us to do. We continue to develop charity and set an example for those we come in contact with. Well, I'll just hop off my little soap box now hahahah. Charity really is important! And just as Moroni 7:48 says, we need to pray with all the energy of heart to develop that love. I meet so many people filled with that charity, both in and out of the church and am grateful for their examples to me.

 

I taught about thanksgiving at English on Wednesday, and it was so funny... nobody knew what Thanksgiving was. We talked about all the really great food, why we celebrate it, and spent a lot of time talking about what we are all thankful for. It was really great! On actual Thanksgiving we didn't do anything special for it, but Saturday a American from our ward cooked all the missionaries a huge thanksgiving dinner! Pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, gravy (a few people put it in a bowl thinking it was soup hahaha) chicken, olives (yes yes, I remember the story with olives many many years ago hahaha) deviled eggs, stuffing, sweet potatoes, the whole bit! It was really good and reminded me of all the good food we eat on Thanksgiving. I missed being there with you all, but hope you had a fun day!!! We were able to bring Wen JM who was baptized a few months ago, and she brought  her friend Zhang JM who is interested in learning more about our church. It was really fun! We helped him clean up, thanked him, and he sent us home with a ton of leftovers. We have eaten like kings the last 2 days :)

 

Well this week was great, we worked hard, we had fun, and are excited for the next few weeks. Sister King goes home the 17th of next month... so I will have a new companion in 3 weeks. Crazy! Time has flown by so fast. Christmas is almost here and I'm so excited. While I miss you all so much and will miss the fun christmas atmosphere with each and every one of you, I feel really blessed that I can be here serving my Savior who was born that night so many years ago. I love you all!!!

 

Love, Ally