안녕하세요!

Well, hello there!

It has been a while since I actually sent an email to just everyone like I was doing in the MTC so ya! I figured now would be as good a time as any to start the tradition back up (Mom/Dad, don't worry I will still answer your emails!)

So ya this week was RIDICULOUS! Oh my goodness we worked hard and we were totally blessed for it! I had a rough last week but if we keep working like this I don't see how we aren't going to see success. It will be fantastic! Anywho let's get started with my week:

Monday was pretty average (Good in that it was P-Day but like missionary work wise, I did get a hair cut though!). We taught our good old proffessor (I don't know how to spell) 교수님 and he straight up told us that because he had been so "busy" he hadn't been trying to actually get an answer (thank you 교수님 [professor] that is what we guessed you were doing). So anywho we read with him out of Alma 32 the end of the chapter where Alma gives his whole discourse (that's a good word right there) on faith. We talked about it with him and we successfully "likened the scripture unto him." Told him that he needed to "experiment on the word" 시험하라고. He was more or less receptive to that but then told us that we couldn't meet till next week (this week) on Thursday. SO we are hopefully going to have a good meeting with him and considering that 반학 [Banhak] is coming up he has no more excuses to not read like we've been asking him to.

Monday night during planning was when the real magic kicked in. We planned and BOY OH BOY did we plan. We actually made some concrete decisions and decided to "fuel the pipeline" or start building our missionary work from the Key-Indicators (stats) and so that is what we did.

Tuesday: We bailed after individual study for District meeting in 충장 [Chungjang] and had a pretty good meeting. Our whole district was kinda in a slump so we talked about how to get out of said slump and set some good goals for the week on how we can improve!

Then we hopped on a bus (with like 150 people on it) and headed home. We then met with one of the 이전 구도자's [previous investigators] who we had been meeting off and on for a while and basically just laid everything on the table. He has been telling us for a while he wants to change so we told him how (this is the guy who said he got baptized and all but he DIDN'T)! So yes, we got him a baptismal date (the 18th but he didn't come to church so we are moving it to the 25th) and are trying to build that 변화하고 싶은 마음 [desire to change]. Then we went and 전도'ed for an hour, came back to the church and met with one of our newer investigators who is pure GOLD. He is a engineer at a dental implants company and he is so cool. We met him with one of the members from our ward and it was just straight up legit! Taught a really good part of the second lesson and bore some good testimony of that! Then we went our and 전도'ed some more for the day and that was that. Had another boss planning session and got Wednesday all set up!

Wednesday: We went out about midafternoon and just visited some less actives/recent converts. One of them was home and he is way cool! He is actually going to BYU-I which is cool (there are actually quite a few up here going to BYU-I I am pretty surprised. I actually had one of them look up Victoria because she is nervous about going to an American school so I figured it might be nice for her to have a friend that she at least thinks is cool!) So anywho ya, we met with that son of the mom and son combination and had a boss lesson! We met with the guy that referred them and it was just awesome. Afterwards we went out and got expensive Chinese food and it was DELICIOUS. Then we went to English class that we teach on Wednesday nights and had this CRAZY guy who is like a veteran and everything meet with us and then a less active. Had a good class went home and that was the day!

Thursday: Ohhh man, so we just did all of our studies and stuff and then it was off to the LC Tower (formally known as the ONLY place in our area where we can effectively 전도). So we 전도'ed for a while (talked to like 34 people it was pretty cool) then we went to the church to meet with the crazy veteran guy. He apparently like served in Vietnam and stuff and was telling us a bunch of his war stories for a while. It was crazy, we did leave him with a good lesson and got him the pamphlets to the gospel (because he likes the Gospel Principles book I figured the more fundamental literature he has about our church the better). Then we met with one of the investigators that I found through 전도 (which is kinda cool because he is the first one we've found through 전도 here in 첨단). We taught him the 1st lesson and gave him a baptismal date. Then immediately (바로) we went and met with the guy who we met on Tuesday who is gold. Now let me explain a little bit WHY he is gold :). He is a father of 2 and WAY focused on his family. So as we taught him the 2nd lesson (same member came) and we talked eternal life. The member gave a really REALLY awesome explanation about sealing and stuff like that in the temple and how we can get eternal life. We gave him a soft baptismal commitment but were unable to set up a date with him. He was so excited, though, when we were talking about families being together forever. GAH it was awesome!

Friday: Again another busy day of 전도 worked HARD. Talked to a bunch of people and then ya. We went and ate and then it was afternoon and time to meet with the kid I met through 전도 again (We meet him twice a week). Taught him the whole 2nd lesson but our member wasn't the supportive at all (he's an awesome kid, I love him a ton but he doesn't focus when we teach with him) so ya. We taught him and went home. We just worked hard all day.

Saturday: Long story short we just worked ALL DAY. We did meet with a member family that Elder Dodd knew back in one of his other areas. They absolutely loved him so they came to 광주 to visit, we talked to them then went and taught an investigator who has to go to the 군대 [army] on the 17th. THen we just 전도'ed We had an appointment at 6:40 but it fell through so we couldn't really do a whole lot. We just busted our butts trying to contact people and ya that was that!

Sunday: Good church meeting. The investigator we met on Saturday came as well as the kid I met through 전도. It was way cool. I taught about eternal families in English gospel principles class and it was just awesome. We had a Filipino man there with us who spoke in sacrament. He has been in Korea for 4 years and decided early that week to go back and be with his family. So we had a really tender gospel principles class and it was awesome. Then we went to ward council. We were there for like 2.5 hours and I did not understand A THING. They speak to fast hahah. So ya, got some language work to do still. I did actually understand a little bit. The members have this goal that next week (the 18th) if they get like 1000 people out to church then they can get a temple down in 광주 [Gwangju] and it would be the second here in Korea. So they are working WAY HARD to try and achieve that goal. Goodness gracious they are working hard. So ya, we went and put up some of our English Fliers (광고's) and then we just came home and that was the day. It was just a straight up BOSS week. I loved it completely. I died every night haha. But it was totally and completely worth it.

So that was my week, it has been a good hard working week and I have been amazed what I can do with the Lord's help if I just put my head down and work. It was awesome. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Loving it out here, this gospel is true. I know it :). I can't even begin to tell you how hard I was asking for help this week. Thank you for your prayers and I hope this next week will be just as good! Love you all!

크라우더 장로 (also formally known as Josh Crowther but I haven't been called that in so long It's gonna be wack when I actually hear that again)