the one in kawachinagano

 "Boom, you looking for this?"

Sorry, this is going to be a pretty short email this week... 

Starting with Monday, we had a pretty chill P day. We went and got some really good indo curry, and then we went to a crazy store called Don Quijote. It's basically the dark web on a sketchy website, so it's got a ton of pop-up ads in a store. It's very interesting and we just looked around for anything funny. 🤣

Tuesday-Saturday, we spent lots of time going out and finding! It was really refreshing because I didn't have a ton of time to go finding in my last area. We had a lot of success and it was really good! And on Friday we met up with a friend from hellotalk and ate lunch with her! She was really nice and we are hoping she'll come to our English class or game night! 😁😁

Sunday, we had church, and we are still working to get friends to come, but it was still a good day! The members are super nice, and I love spending time with them and getting to know them more! 😁😁

Spiritual Thought:

2 Nephi 2:6-8

6 Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth. 

7 Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered. 

8 Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise.

Please understand that the way back is not as hard as it seems to you now. Satan wants you to think that it is impossible. That is not true. The Savior gave His life so that you can completely overcome the challenges you face.

—Richard G. Scott

Well, that's all I've got for this week! Sorry, it's a pretty short one! Feel free to email me!

Dog #98

Made some fire chicken Sammys

Streeting with my boy

Service with some members!

the one where he left paradise

 "Boom, you looking for this?"

Starting with Monday, we went down south of our area and looked around for some good hikes that we would maybe want to visit next transfer and found a couple of good spots... We also ate at a really good hole-in-the-wall Ramen shop in a tiny town over there. After that, we headed home and had a sports night with the ward!! 😆😆 It was super great and we played basketball and volleyball with everyone and just had a really good time! 😁😁 The ward members were awesome, and we had 6 new people come to the sports night! 

Tuesday was a bit of a sad day... We took one of our favorite members to the airport because he was going to Provo to start the MTC as a missionary 😆😆😆😆 His name is Tesshi, and he is such an amazing dude. He has gone and got food, gone housing, and visited inactive members with us, and we became so tight with him!😁😁😆 I'm really gonna miss him, and I know that he is going to absolutely kill it on his mission. てっしー、愛してるよー！🥲 After that, we got food with our friend Mari and just spent the night talking and saying goodbye..... I was saying goodbye because I got transfer news and I found out that I am leaving Okayama. 😭😭😭 I kinda knew it was coming, so I really wasn't surprised, but I was still really sad. Okayama has been the best area, with the best comp (love you Wynn長老) , and the best roommate (love you otahara 長老), and the best district, with the best members, and the greatest memories. I was unbelievably lucky to have spent these past 3 transfers here, and I couldn't be more grateful for everything that happened.

Anyways, on Wednesday, we had plans to go to the all you can eat strawberry orchard with a member, but she ended up getting sick and told us we still should go because she made a reservation. So, the district all pulled up, and we POUNDED SO MANY STRAWBERRIES. Before us, the old record of strawberries was like 86 or 87. I decided to take on the challenge, and yours truly ate 151 strawberries. 😏😏 I got lots of flicks on the album, so go and check it out. 😁 After that, we had English class and said more goodbyes to some friends😭😭

Thursday, we had exchanges, and I got to run it back with my boy Campbell 長老 from my time in Osaka😆😆. We had a fire exchange and were able to talk to lots of people and got 7 peoples contact information! 😆 At night, we went to dinner with Jennifer and said goodbye to her aswell 😭😭 Saying goodbye is always the worst part of transferring....

Friday, we had English class again and said goodbye to even more people. After that, we visited our boy from the mafia Sunami for the last time... It was a very rough meeting because he was sad and mad that I was leaving and kinda took it all out on Elder Wynn and told him that he didn't want Elder Wynn to come over or call anymore. 😢😢 I still have hope that things will work out with him but it was sad to leave with that situation 😅😢 After that, we had another English class and at the end of the class, we had a bunch of members pull up and say goodbye since we were transferring. Again, it was sad to say goodbye, but I know that I'm needed in my next area (Kawachinagano, Osaka), so it's alright.

Saturday, I woke up early and left for Osaka! My new area is about an hour south (by train) of my old area in Osaka, so I might be able to meet up with some friends from Osaka! 😆😆😁 I got to the area, and it's so fire! The apartment is crazy nice, it's in a great location, and I love my new comp. 😁 There is one thing that's a little dangerous, though... There's a really fire burger shop about 5 minutes away from the apartment, and I already became really tight with the guy that runs it... I'm gonna be going there A LOT😬😬😆

Sunday was so great! We went to church, and I already love the ward members!! They were so kind and I can't wait to work with them more!! 😁 Apparently, my mission president texted the bishop of the ward and told him that I was coming and that the members need to take advantage of me while I'm here... Its a lot of added pressure for me, but I think it helped spark some more fire in the members, and they really want to work with me, which I am very excited about. 😁😁 I can't wait to have a killer few months here!

Spiritual Thought:

2 Nephi 9:51

Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy. Hearken diligently unto me, and remember the words which I have spoken; and come unto the Holy One of Israel, and feast upon that which perisheth not, neither can be corrupted, and let your soul delight in fatness.

Now we cannot…discover our failure to keep God’s law except by trying our very hardest (and then failing). Unless we really try, whatever we say there will always be at the back of our minds the idea that if we try harder next time we shall succeed in being completely good. Thus, in one sense, the road back to God is a road of moral effort, of trying harder and harder. But in another sense it is not trying that is ever going to bring us home. All this trying leads up to the vital moment at which you turn to God and say, “You must do this. I can’t.”

—C.S. Lewis

Well, that's all I've got for this week! Feel free to email me! 😁

That's all, folks. 

My 愛する Maki 家族

Last dinner with Mari! 🥺

All you can eat strawberry day...

Last English class together! 😥

#97... running it back to old times with Campbell 😆😆

The boys 😎😎

My boy Ryota... Love this man

More goodbyes...

One of my favorite members, maki兄弟

Saying goodbye to Chika😥

One more flick with one of my favorite families

Love this guy...

My man maeda兄弟

Last flicks of saying goodbye to Okayama and the amazing members

My ベストフレンド、よーちゃん

First burger in Kawachinagano

First day with the new comp🔥🔥

the one with the reward for getting banished

 "Boom, you looking for this?"

Starting with Monday, we went to this sweet island for District P day! We had to take a boat to get the island, and I felt like a pirate, so it was pretty sweet. When we got to the island, we went on a sweet hike and chilled on the beach, and skipped some rocks😁😁

Wednesday, we had exchanges with the APs, and so we went up to Kobe and spent the day finding people in their area! 😁😁 We met a lot of people and found two people who have a lot of potential! 😁😁

Friday, I had some sweet dreams come true... We have a sick inactive member we are trying to reactivate, and we went with him to his business, and he showed us all of his katanas... Yeah, the guy has over 900 swords, and they are all SO COOL😆😆😆😆 I've got lots of flicks on the album, so you'll have to go and check them out... Words don't do it justice.

Saturday, we went over to my Japanese family's house (the Clark's), watched some football, ate some tacos, and then we all went to his son's hockey game together. It was such a fun day, and I love spending time with them... We have transfers coming up, and I am most likely getting transferred, so imma miss them so much 😢😢😭

Sunday we had our friend Mari come to church again!! 😆😆😁 It was so good to have her come again, and I think she is slowly starting to get more interest in the church! 😁😁😆 After church, we had a super fun mission prep class as a ward, and we were able to share our testimonies and cool experiences from our mission. I'll share with you what I shared with them.

Basically, in April of last year, I was in a very countryside area called Uwajima. While I was there, my comp, Elder Perkins, and I tried our best to find, teach, and baptize. But, there were not a lot of people, so it was really hard, and we didn't see a whole lot of reward for the work we were putting in. However, one day, we were outside when Elder Perkins had the prompting to go and talk to this dude who was sitting on a bench by himself. When I looked over at him, he was very clearly homeless, jobless, and maybe even a little crazy. But, my comp felt we should talk to him, so we did. Our new friend Wada was also mostly deaf and we had to shout to talk with him. But, he spoke English and so we invited him to our weekly English class. To our surprise, he instead came to church the next day (we still don't know how he knew when church started). After church, we gave him a Book of Mormon and told him to read it and set up another meeting . Again, to our surprise, he not only read it, but at our next lesson, he was asking really good questions about what he had read. This went on for another 2 or 3 weeks, and then I transferred.

Well, I'm very about to announce that on Sunday, our friend Wada got baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I was able to watch him get baptized on Zoom and even had a short conversation with him, and to my absolute pleasure, he remembered me and the lessons that we taught him so many months ago.

God is real. This is His church, and blessings will always come to those who are patient. In the name of Him, whose name we bear, even Jesus Christ. Amen

Well, that's all I've got for this week. Feel free to email me!

That's all, folks.

Day with my Japanese family

The hockey game😆😆

P day to the Island!

#91 and #92

#93 and 94

The sickest room of all time... 😆😆😆

Wada's testimony after his baptism! 😆😆

Pictures at his baptism! 😁😁