The harder, the better

Hi all,

 

The past week was much better than the first two weeks! We still haven't found any new investigators but we were more satisfied with the our work as we did put in so much more efforts on it. Sometimes missionary work can really be frustrating especially when people tell you that you are misled by your religion. Well, I still know what I know is true. We are here to offer them the gospel, but they can choose to accept or reject. My companion told me more than once that I'm good at door approach even though I don't like knocking on doors. At first, I was thinking that if I really did well, why didn't them accept our message? Now I understand that for some people, they are just not ready for the gospel. No matter what we say, they still won't accept that. Our responsibility is to talk with EVERYONE we see and to teach those who are ready to listen.

 

And I need to say thank you to those who wrote me letters! I got letters from my previous roommate Julia, Sze Wan (I mean Sister Yeung), and my dear cousin ELDER LEUNG last Wednesday! I got a letter from Jingjing the next day. It isn't hard to imagine my happy face when I saw those letters on the desk. And I have to say that I learned so much from Elder Leung's letter. His letter is always uplifting, spiritual and full of wisdom and encouragement. I love receiving his letters as I can always learn a lot from him. And he makes me want to do better. :) I'm going to try my best to reply all letters today. I promise that I'll reply every single letter that I receive.

 

Last Tuesday, we went to teach Amber and her family that I have mentioned in previous emails. We went with Sister Tyler and her daughter Brooke as she was about the same age as Amber. We had planned to teach the Plan of Salvation as Amber so wanted to know more about God and death. But the night before, my companion and I felt like we should teach them the importance of prayer, scripture study, and keeping the Sabbath day holy. So we decided to act on the inspiration that we were given. The lesson did go pretty well. Sister Tyler was really awesome. And having Brooke there to tell Amber more about the Primary also helped a lot. Sister Tyler and I both agreed that the lesson was GREAT. Yet, my companion didn't think so. She thought that she didn't let me talk much in the lesson. Indeed, I spoke less than her and even Sister Tyler did. But it doesn't matter. I was able to bear my testimony whenever I felt like I should. And we all felt the Spirit. In the MTC we were taught that if we can feel the Spirit in the lesson, it is a good lesson. We don't need to speak the language perfectly to teach a lesson, and sometimes we don't even need to talk a lot. And it was the first lesson that we had members present. it made a huge difference! Sometimes what an investigator needs is to hear the testimony of members.

 

Last Thursday afternoon, we had an interview with President Choi and his wife. I forgot how we got to talk about BYU Hawaii during the interview. But I clearly remember the exciting face of President Choi when he knew that my uncle was in the same ward with him at that time. Then half of the interview was about my uncle. And he told me that he missed the time they served in the ward together and all those memories they had. He also told me my uncle was such a great and faithful person. I have no doubt about it. After talking about my uncle and his family, President Choi asked me questions about how I've been doing on my mission, and I told him the rough weeks we had...... The only thing he told me was "The harder, the better". Its true. I know that I've learned to draw closer to God because of the hard times I had. And life isn't easy doesn't mean that we're not blessed. After meeting President Choi, I had an interview with Sister Choi. When she saw my last name on my profile, she told me that she knew someone from BYU Hawaii that had the same last name but she wasn't sure if we were related. BYU Hawaii again. I then told her that my uncle and aunt studied there also. She didn't remember much about my uncle but she knew my aunt. Again she was so excited. She told me my aunt was an awesome person, and she loved her so much! This world is just so small. :) And it was pretty interesting to see how excited they were when they found out that they knew my family.

 

I'm running out of time. But I want to share a scripture with you all. In Alma 17:11, it says "... yet ye shall be patient in long-suffering and afflictions, that ye may show forth good examples unto them in me, and I will make an instrument of thee in my hands unto the salvation of many souls". Also, I would encourage you all to read the July 2013 Ensign, especially the talk titled "A Time For Faith Not Fear" by Elder Larry W. Gibbons.

 

Love,

Sister Leung

I have just received this picture taken in Salt Lake from Elder Gonzalez