Amazing news!

Fang JM was baptized!

It's happened!  Sister Fang! (The miracle Sister I mentioned in my last email) has been baptized!!!  I wasn't able to go, but she sent me pictures and I am just so happy!  And then my previous companion says an investigator we were meeting with together is getting baptized the Friday! So good!  

More miracles?  of course!  We have had a number of people walk into the church asking if they can know more about the gospel and every time we happened to be in the church in a lesson with an investigator when a member comes in and tells us there is someone in the foyer wanting to meet with missionaries.  So cool.  Heavenly Father really is the one who prepares people.  We missionaries just have to make sure we are worthy to represent the Lord in teaching the gospel to God's prepared children.

Fun stuff?  I was able to go on an exchange with the Sister Training Leaders.  I went to their area in Sanmin.  I think Heavenly Father must really love me because I had been thinking about a few people from my last area (Sanmin uses the same church building as my last area) and lo and behold the day we exchanged also had me there to help with the Stake Family History Expo, so I was able to see everyone I had been thinking about while there!  It really was wonderful and amazing.

FHE Power!

Last night we attended the Young Single Family Home Evening with our investigator.  It was tons of fun and learned how to make cards with water-color-pencils.  They are super cool.  Although my drawing skills are near to none, I was still able to make a fairly cute card.

Okay, Well, Until next time!

Sister Hsu

Apparently our building has been here in this part of GaoXiong that we are marked on their city maps... with a cross and "church" (I also saw it marked on the big maps in the subway station. Cool or what.)

Awesome First Week!

Sister Olson and I had an amazing first week together!  We were able to see many miracles in contacting, lessons and finding.  I would tell you all the details, but I don't have much tme left today.  :(  But!  Believe me when I say that I definitely felt the Lord showering blessings all over the place this past week.

 

I'm loving the new ward and area.  GaoXiong is a super awesome place.  Had a great first Sunday, we had four investigators come to church!  Yay!  And the Taipei Temple President also gave us a fireside last night.  I learned so much more about the temple!  He shared with us a video about the temple and it was super clear and informative.  I can see if I can find it.  :)  Okay well that's all this time folks!  Sorry!

 

Sister Hsu

MOVED!

Xiang Xiang (Giselle) drew me! She is super talented. :)

Hello all.  I'm moved again! Had a good move-call in Yuanshan with Sister Chang, but change has come once again.  I am now in ShiZhong with Sister Olson!  (ShiZhong is super close to my last area... maybe like less than 20 minutes by car. Hahah.  I can see one of our more special buildings in Yuanshan from my new apartment.)   She is from Idaho, and is behind me just 2 move-calls.  I can already tell she is a pretty awesome missionary.  Excited to start another move-call.  

But!  recently I've had things weighing on my mind.  As of late Sister that I actually know are finishing their missions or are just about done.  This made me realize that my time is very quickly also coming to an end.  It scared me to that think that in a few days I will hit my year mark since entering the MTC.  I really started to ponder about what I've been doing in this time as a missionary.  Have I been doing my very best?  Or have I gotten too comfortable with life and have become complacent?  Have I been doing all the things that the Lord had wanted me to do or have I been too wrapped up in what I know and what I want to do?  I've begun to evaluate and see what I can do to make sure I am doing all that I should be.  

But, I feel that what I'm thinking now can also be applied to those not on a mission as well.  Our lives are a time a learning, growth and preparation.  Are you doing all you can and should doing in order to come to the end of this life, and face the Lord and know that you really did your very best up until the end of your mortal life?  The time for re-evaluation and change is now!  Don't have regrets.

Awesome members of the Yuanshan Ward! (And little Melody, who is not in my ward, but had the privilege of meeting)

Okay, back on topic, I moved!  I didn't think that it would still be a bit hard to move from an area after only being there for one move-call.  It's at the end of a move-call that I really can say that I'm used to it and have got my bearings.  But, I really did love the members there.  And we had some really good investigators that I just loved teaching.  Luckily I didn't move to far so the chances of seeing them is higher and if my previous investigators get baptized I'll be able to go back and see it.  Yay!

Some of the members of the amazing Wang Family. Tina, Xiang Xiang, and Sister Wang. Sister Wang also has another daughter and a son. Love them!

The wonderful Sister Wang agreed to help me move all my stuff to my new area.  I was able to get my bike and two fairly large suitcases into her van and then we were off.  She really is amazing and so is her vans ability to keep putting things into it.  After some surprises, we also had to unexpectedly fit another bike and Sister into the van.  But!  It all worked out alright.  I don't know how to express how much I just love Sister Wang and her kids they are just too amazing for words.

That's all for now!

Love ya'll!

Sister Hsu

Mission Conference!

We had Mission Conference this week!  It was amazing.  I just love hearing the words of our inspired Mission President, Sister Blickenstaff and President Chen.  I really learned so many new things to help me improve my mission as well as how to become an even better missionary that con go out and find the people the Lord has prepared to hear and make changes for the gospel.  We can only help convert others as far as we ourselves are converted.  Know the gospel!  Learn it!  Study it!  Live it!  :)

Other than Mission Conference, another interesting thing happened.  Church was cancelled because of a typhoon.  It started over here in Gaoxiong, so all school and work were cancelled and closed on Saturday afternoon through Sunday.  A typhoons danger point would have to be the wind.  The bigger the wind, the bigger the chance of be hit in the face by a hunk of something flying around.  But, not to fear!  We had our own little Sunday school and Relief Society lesson at home.  Sister Chang prepared a little Gospel Principles lesson and I prepared something from The Teachings of Joseph Smith book.  It was quite enlightening.  

Well, that's it folks!  Thanks for reading!

Sister Hsu

Pictures:  Some stuff I had posted on Facebook.  :)

So many new friends!

My super awesome raincoat. (My really good, fairly expensive one was lost by the movers, along with everything else that I had in my bike box)

We were able to find 4 new investigators this week!  And they were all just great little miracles.  One of them is a former who met with us for the first time on Tuesday, but in the lesson said that she won't be able to meet until after December because of some stuff.  Needless to say were were a bit devastated, but after feeling and following the promptings of the Spirit, bearing testimony of how the gospel can bless her and giving a few pretty direct invitations, she said she wanted to find the true church and agreed to meet with us every week and that same time.  Miracle!

Our second investigator is a friend we made in English class, we had known her for a while but hadn't gotten around to asking if she wanted to learn the gospel with us.  But, she agreed and we had a good meeting.  But, it turns out that she is in our neighboring district.  But that doesn't matter!  Us missionaries are all here to help others to come unto Christ!

The third was also a former.  We were not too sure of her interest level at first, but we met her on Saturday and she agreed to continue learning and to come to church for the full three hours.  Our wonderful Liu Family invited us, the Elders and our investigators over for dinner.  I think it was a great opportunity for her to feel a bit more comfortable.  (She is the awkward shy type.)

Our fourth is another former investigator, although she is also a bit more special because her mom is a member and she already comes to church every week she can and keeps the commandments.  She has met with missionaries many times before, but always got stumped at the actually deciding to get baptized part.  We are praying to be able to help find out what her concern and need is to help she overcome her worries about baptism.

That's all folks!  Hope you all have been living well and spreading the gospel in your own ways!

Sister Hsu

Random photo of me behind the gate at church.

Lotsa stuff I guess...

What I Eat

We had Stake Conference this past weekend.  It was a great uplifting weekend.  The topic was on "Hastening the Work of Salvation" and "Feed My Sheep."  We learned a lot about how members and missionaries can work together to bring others unto Christ and how we can work as a ward to help members stay strong disciples of Christ, as well as how to uplift and help find those sheep who may have lost their way and gone astray.

This week we were able to meet a pretty golden sounding investigator.  She really is so sweet and great and willing to learn.  She has questions that she has been seeking answers to and we know that the gospel is where she can find them.  Love her!

Jamie

This week is also the last week that we are able to see our beautiful new member Jamie is leaving GaoXiong to go back to college in Hualian.  Gonna miss her!  She is worried about being a new member and having to go to church in a new place, but she is a amazing, she will make it!!

Sister Chang

Recently I've just been really grateful that I have the companion that I do.  We of course are always finding new ways to better our relationship and strengthen our teaching, but I'm happy to know that the Lord always knows exactly what I need.  I Love my companion Sister Chang!!!

Okay, that's about it for this week.  Love you all!

Sister Hsu

LaDiDaaaa....

Jamie was baptized!!!

Jamie!

Who is Jamie you ask? She was a super cute amazing investigator when I first got here.  She already was preparing herself to hit her baptismal goal which was on Saturday.  She is super amazing and although I was only able to meet with her a few times, I will really miss her when she goes back to Hualian for school next week. :(

This past week we also had Sister exchanges.  I went to Sanmin with Sister Johnson.  It was really fun and I learned a lot.  It was also fun to hear how it is that she is able to stay so skinny and fit here in Taiwan.  Turns out a good diet and exercise really go a long way. Haha.

:)

Last but not least, last Monday...  I was able to go to Brother Zhongs shop.  He is a member who is super good at doing hair and does missionaries hair for free as a service opportunity.  Sister Chang went to get her hair cut, but I had just recently gottten my hair cut by him.  He had seen me a few days earlier by chance and immediately said he wanted to perm my hair.  So, on Monday when I went in, that's what he did...  Yup, I got a perm.. sounds scary right?  Hahaha.

Perms weren't as scary as I thought.

Well, I think that's about it.. Oh wait, no, our other investigator Ruby is going to China for a few weeks.  I'm really hoping that when she comes back she was have the time to accept a baptismal goal.  Keep your fingers crossed!

Love you all!

Sister Hsu