January 26, 2014

Hey everyone!  

This week has been super cool.  So last week for p-day a bunch of people wanted to go shopping for suits and stuff, and so we went to the place where you do that.  I'm really burnt out on the buying suits thing now, so I just kind of stood around while everyone else did their things.  Afterwards my companion bought a side bag that is pretty similar to mine (you're kind of not supposed to wear back-packs anymore so that's a thing...) and that makes him the third companion of mine that has gotten a similar bag to mine while we were companions.  Well the first one at least did it at the same time so we were both to blame, but the next two...  grrr

After that we went bowling again, and I bowled my first game over 100!  How sick is that?!?!?!  I'm really bad at bowling, but I got a super sick strike that I may send a video of at some point in the not too distant future.  legit.

Tuesday was crazy!  So we started the day with 3 appointments which only like one and a half of them turned out...  So this guy we met first was... fun?  He met us and then was about to take us to another area/zone of the mission which isn't okay, but we dodged that bullet fortunately.  He took us to get lunch at this chinese restaurant which was tasty but during the duration of it his mood totally changed.  He went from happy and goofy to quite and kind of sullen.  After he took us to get hot cocoa and made it super weird by like interrogating us about our intentions.  He was worried we were going to teach him about the gospel.  Man, what a concept, missionaries teaching you about the gospel, that's foreign-_-

We calmed it down a bit, and he decided he would just let us practice Korean by letting us teach him in Korean.  I wasn't there when they met him on thursday though, which was apparently frustrating cause all he did was just correct my companion whenever he talked.  No chance at feeling the spirit when you can't even get a full sentence of doctrine.

While we got hot cocoa I was reminded of another investigator that we had met a couple times so after that meeting I gave him a call and he said we could meet later that night, so we did!  It was awesome.  The guy is super nice and told these people at the cafe that we met at to be really nice to us cause we're good people.  Still not too sure why this guy isn't baptized, but we'll figure out in not too long.

That afternoon we met with our American less-active phd friend, who is way too smart.  He has this logic about growing a bunch and compares it to being on an olympic running squad, but doesn't take the time to realize that there is indeed a lot of growth that he is mission out on.  Super nice guy though!  would never speak an ill word of just about anything!

Last on Tuesday we met with our recent convert who has been struggling a lot recently and he was really distraught.  He couldn't focus long enough to get just about anything of a thought together, and me and my companion were pretty much just at a loss.  I swear I had like 3 of 4 thoughts come into my head that I swear were the spirit but just kinda bounced off of him like nothing.  Then finally the thought came to have him serve people.  He had the priesthood but had yet to pass the sacrament.  He said he didn't want to come to church, but I asked him to give it one more chance, and come to pass the sacrament on sunday.  He agreed.  Fast forward to sunday, he passed the sacrament and was the most consistently happy I have seen him in a very long time.  Super awesome.

Wednesday was crazy.  The sisters in our area were sick so they couldn't come to district meeting or english class.  District meeting was good.  It ended up how I wanted with just everybody talking to each other about how to use the Book of Mormon better and it was awesome.  English class however.  There were like 14 people there, more than ever before and only 2 teachers.  That was hard to handle.  I swear that nobody could get their due.  It was tough, but cool.  Lot's of cool people came and there's still potential for growth!

Thursday we went on exchanges which was kind of tough.  We did good work and then we met with some of the Seocho elder's investigators and it was kind of disheartening.  They were such nice and awesome people, but didn't seem to notice how the gospel could help them.  Newlyweds trying to start a family, and are too busy to make it too church.  They really are super awesome and would make awesome members of the church.  But don't see why sacrifices would help them come closer to christ and be happier in general.

Friday was awesome!!!  So I had forgotten but the Relief Society Ward Missionary Coordinate (tell me that's not a mouthful) had invited both the Elders and the sisters for lunch, and i forgot about it until like 10 that day.  We scrambled to get people to come, and ended up getting our American friend to meet us there.  He speaks little Korean and she speaks NO english.  The food was good but that's not what was cool.  Our friend ended up asking about her conversion story after some discussion, and she shared it, and I translated.  It was really awesome.  In that story was the answer to like everything that he has thought about with regard to the church.  If he denied what she shared that day, it would just be pure stubbornness and there's no way to deny that it was inspired.  There was no way we could have planned it, and even if we could, it couldn't possibly have been better.  That member is amazing.

Saturday was cool.  Kind of all over the place again with appointments and such and then english class which was fun.  

Sunday was another crazy day.  So we set goals for conversations we have with people on the street.  Our goal for the week was 170 and we had 113 going into that day.  In planning on saturday, I looked at our schedule and we had no appointments so we set our daily goal for contacts at 57.  I've never set it that high since we switched from proselyting gospel contacts to conversations.  A little different of a feel.  After like an hour of "conversationing", we weren't doing too well, and I was a little discouraged, but Elder Thorup picked me up, and by the end of the day after a lot of work, we ended the day with 62.  Super crazy.  We met a ton of really cool people in the process and got like 3 phone numbers.  Missionary work is awesome man.

Transfer calls come on saturday so next monday I'll have news theoretically!

This week is 설날 (seol nal)which is a huge Korean holiday it means lunar new year so happy 설날 everyone!!!

사랑해요!!  (sa rang hae yo)

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January 19, 2013


HEya everybody!!!

This was another good week.  They're all good.  Always will be pretty much.  We had a ton of appointments, but a lot of people decided that they didn't want to meet really, but that's okay, we'll be alright.

Fun story, Tuesday there was this one appointment that we had that I even called the guy the night before and he said he was super down to meet.  We went to the predetermined location 15 minutes early, and he never showed, so we went to eat lunch.  After eating lunch, we were cleaning up and not moving around too fast or anything because we've been somewhat frustrated with the lack of appointments lately, but then I felt like we should go out and talk to people on this one street and go this specific way to get there.  Never in the world would I have called it a spiritual impression, but I bet you could guess where this story is headed.  While we were out trying to talk to people there was this kid I was talking to and Elder Thorup was kind of trying to start some conversations with some other people but no one was biting.  Then we saw this guy that I had talked to a couple times before, walking our way.  He went up to Elder Thorup and was like "Hey Elder!  How you doing?"  He's American by the way.  He was coming from the hospital I guess because his leg had been bothering him, and the first time I saw him he was goofing around on a bike, doing like BMX trials stuff.  We talked to him, and found out he's actually a member of the church or was at least raised one.

His father had in fact served a mission in Korea so he was asking about what we do as missionaries really.  We ended up walking and talking and ended up at this crossroads where it would be super easy to go to the church, and he was like "which way do you want to go?  What way seems RIGHT to you."  I asked if he had been to the church here in Gangnam and he said no, but I'm not sure I believe him because the correct direction to turn to end up at the church would have been right (hence the uppercase letters in the quote)  At the church he wanted to play some ping pong and we ended up hearing his story and he's a super cool guy.  Turns out the guy has a PHD in psychology...  who would have guessed.  The guy I met goofing around on a bike has a PHD.  Super cool guy and has really grown a lot in his life.  There's too much for me to type in one email about this guy, but I just see ways that the gospel could bless him so much.  He's kind of too worried about other people's progression and as my companion put it has a little "third person pride".  That's when someone else points out that other people have flaws and are prideful to some degree, but then being kind of proud of their ability to point that out.  STILL!  One of the coolest dudes I've met.  and really nice.  and good at ping pong.

Wednesday was cool.  We had President Interviews and district meeting.  All week I could not come up with anything to train on and it was really starting to irritate me.  I was trying to work on something with the Book of Mormon cause that is what our mission's focus is supposed to be this month, but nothing was really coming.  President had been really big on having shined shoes lately and I had shined my shoes on Monday, but Elder Thorup didn't know how so he hadn't done it yet.  I wanted to prepare for my training in the morning before study, but I thought I should shine his shoes for him instead.  I felt pretty good afterwards and I still had nothing for my training.  When it came time for district meeting, I had this epiphany that I needed to share about love.  Well maybe not an epiphany, but more like inspiration haha.  It was a pretty good district meeting and I learned a cool lesson about love and service from it too.

We also went to this guys ginseng shop that day (ginseng is HUGE in Korea, also very expensive) and we talked to him a bit.  I guess he had only had one customer that day, and then we came, and he bought us some 김밥 and he 3 customers totaling at over $1600 in sales while we were there...  coincidence? I think not!!!!  Cool experience though.

Thursday we went on exchanges with the other Elders in our house which was fun.  I had some cool experiences with Elder Williamson.  Also I heard some fun things happened in Gangnam while I was in Seocho for the day.  

Saturday I got to eat 보신탕!!!!  I'm not going to tell you what that is.  Hehehehe.  It's pronounced bo-shin-tang though.  Let me know if you figure it out.

Sunday was cool.  We went to church expecting 3 appointments with potential investigators none of which turned out, BUT we put one of them on the progress record, and we didn't get to meet with the PEC or ward counsel, but bishop looked at it, and he knew one of the names on it!!!!  So he called the guy!!!!  And he's coming to church next week!!!!  Super boss.  Our Bishop here in Gangnam ward does work.  Enough Said. 

Well sorry I gotta go, but I love you all!  You're the best!

여러분은  짱 입니당!!!!  (yeo-reo-bun-eun  jjang im-ni-da)

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