와.......진짜 어떻게...그냥..​...글쎄요....​.ㅋㅋ... 그것.... 좀......

This is just another blur of a week to add to my mission. HOLY COW, it went by really really fast. With the coming of Elder Driggs and with everything that is going on this week we were PLENTY busy.

We have been meeting with that referral from 정은주 quite frequently. He currently is progressing towards baptism and things are going well. He unfortunately wasn't able to make it out to church on Sunday but he is still doing well and things are going really well with him. Love working with him a lot. He knows it's true. That's the best part.

Anywho, let's see what all did I do this week..... We worked..... a lot..... really really hard. Gah I don't know quite what all we did, it just kinda all blurs together. But then again this week blurs into last and last into last month and last month into the month before and so on. It is crazy.

It has been a fun week with Elder Driggs. We saw quite a lot of really cool miracles this week and it made me really happy haha. We worked hard, we were running between appointments because we had so many things going on some days. I'm discovering exactly how out of shape I really am Coach Watabe would whip my butt into shape but like I can't even run like 2 blocks before I'm completely out of breath and just dying.... dang....

As far as everything else goes though this week was just good. We are working on having a really good relationship with this ward. Of late I have come to think that I may possibly be in my last area.... I don't know God may have other plans but I think this could be my last one.... Kinda a sobering thought but it makes me really want to have these members trust. Really work with them and see miracles. We have been doing that of late and it is truly a blessing.

I didn't tell you what happened to me a couple weeks back did I? I don't know. But I have really been called to think about the importance of members. I was reading chapter 9 (back when I really was like killing myself to 전도 to people) and all of sudden I read the thing where President Hinkley was like: "Some of us may think about Missionary work as merely tracting. But everyone who is familiar with this work knows there is a better way. That is through the members of the church..." That has been so firmly impressed in my mind and I am just trying to help to strengthen these members and to help to bring their friends in the gospel. That is one of the things that I love about all these members. They ALL have friends. They all (if I am working well with them) can be helped to share the gospel. This week we saw some examples of that and it has just been so important.

I really have loved the mission so far. I was watching in the District a while back and one of the Elders says: "The last 3/4's of your mission is your time to shine." I hope that I have shined my entire mission but especially now, God has a work for me to do here. I pray to have the spirit and to be able to do it. Because I know for a fact that God loves the people here just as much as He loves people anywhere. He truly guides us.

He is just waiting for us to (again as PMG says): Say in word and deed "Speak Lord for thy servant listeneth". God guides us. If you don't believe me take a day and look back at all of the good that happened in your life. You will come to see, as I have, that God guides us every day. Sometimes through little things. But he truly does.

I love the Lord, I love the gospel. I love the people here. I love ya'll; my family. Love my friends, just ya. Hope ya'll know that :)

Happy Birthday to Jenna (I sent her an email separate) ㅋㅋ 생일 축하!!!! ㅋㅋ

Take care and have an awesome week. Thanks for the package btw mom :) I love the EmergenC. I ain't gonna get sick if it kills me....? haha

LOVE YA!!!

 

Josh (크라우더 장로)

P.S. this is us in the back of an ambulance on our way to a dinner apt with our investigator who was referred :) he's next to me!!

Well this was what I would like to call 기적의 기간 [Week of Miracles]

SO ya this was an intense week like I have gotta say. Like....ya... it was intense. I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

 

First off this week started on Thursday basically. I got a new companion! His name is Elder Driggs (I'll attach a picture) but ya. He's taller than I am and he is a Music major. It is intense. Like our companionship study always starts with a song and all (that is normal, you can ask Chase) but ours is especially loud and impressive (I thoroughly enjoy it).

 

We have had a fun time these first couple of days and he is SUCH a hard worker. Like it's nuts. It's good though because I thought I was already working hard, but he helped me to really think about how I can improve how I work!

 

This transfer (and hopefully for the rest of my mission) I really want to focus on Member missionary work. I got a referral last week that I told you about and ya. He is progressing so GOOD!!! He is planning on being baptized on the 17th of February and came out to church this week. He had an amazing experience with the Spirit at church where he truly did feel the Spirit and recognized it. We were able to sit down and explain to him what the Spirit does and just ya!

 

The member work in our ward is starting to pick up. We are starting to try and really make sure that our members are involved in our work and it is exciting. It is hard for sure but I have really been blessed with the help that we need. We have been able to see a lot of progression this week and it was just GAH! It was the best. I can't even explain.

 

We also got a chance to meet with one of our former investigators again this week and we picked him back up and are meeting again! It is the best. Things are really picking up here and I wanna see our investigators get baptized out of it! We are working hard so I don't see any reason why that won't happen.

 

I am so grateful for the opportunity to be out on a mission. I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father for the opportunity to be a servant in His hands. It is the best. I am truly seeing miracles out here in the lives of these people! I just wanna let you all know, that the church is true. God lives, He loves us. He wants to guide us and if we pray and do what He asks, He will send the spirit. It will touch our hearts and help us to know that this is true!

 

Love ya'll tons. Heard dad is in Germany this week, seeing as how Elder Miller is German I will tell him!

 

Love ya!

Josh (크라우더 장로)

내 사랑하는 가족!! 오늘은 이동날입니다! [My loving family! Today is transfer day!]

Hey to all of you!

It sounds like it was a pretty crazy week for the lot of you! But ya. Just to start off the week I wanted to just give a shout out to the McCloskeys! I heard that Chase is coming home this week. 진짜 말도 안되.... Time can't have gone that fast. That's just ridiculous. It doesn't make sense to me. But ya let him know I love him and that he's an absolute stud!

As far as this week I got my phone call this morning for Transfers...

Oh boy... President is making me be a Zone Leader... Dangit... 이것은  부담이라고 합니다.....

I don't know what I gotta do... dangit.

Anyway, my greenie Elder Miller is going to be staying in the same area but he is trading companions and he will be serving with an Elder 김형우. He's really cool and they already get along great so that should be fun.

My new companion is named Elder Driggs. (Any relation to the Driggs in our ward?) he will be going into his 3rd transfer with me so we will have a lot of fun. I am excited but scared at the same time. Phew.... It is crazy.

This week we are trying to work harder with our members. I am a very hard working missionary but I have never been very good at member missionary work. So we set a goal and we are going to try and do that. Pray for us to know how to do work with the members please!

Anyway I am just plugging away. Days fly by and we are just trying to get as much done as we possibly can. I had a really sweet experience yesterday. I was at the church and I got a call from the Office Elders saying that there was a member from the 첨단 ward who wanted to refer me someone to teach. So I called and got to talk to 정은주 자매님 [Eun - Joo Chung, Sister] who you might remember is my recent convert who, as of tomorrow, has been a member of the church for one year. It is always so good to hear from her and to hear about 황성규 [Hwang, Sung - Kwy]. I love it. They are doing awesome and it is always so sweet to hear about the progress that they are making.

I love the gospel. It is so true, I can still remember that lesson with her and her son about 2-3 days after she got baptized. The spirit was so strong and we both felt the spirit. It was there. It was real. I will never forget that. The church is true, God lives and loves us, Christ is our Savior, if we rely on Him, we can obtain a greater happiness than we have ever experienced before.

Love ya'll tons. It is awesome to hear about the things that are going on. Life sounds pretty hectic but good. Stay strong. Remember the Gospel is true!

Love,

Josh (크라우더 장로)

Well it was miracle week!!! I love 금식일 (Fast Sunday)!

Well, hello there!!! It was a great week we worked hard and saw some success which was awesome!

We got a chance this week to get up to 대전 to go see President Furniss and the Assistants and everyone! It was like a follow up trainers/trainees meeting and it was a lot of fun. We got to go and just talk about our experience with the training and got some ideas on how we can do it better. It was a great experience and I was grateful for the opportunity to get some Ideas on how I am supposed to train.

Our district did SO GOOD this week. I was way excited to work this week and it was just awesome. People really did work on exercising that faith and we were seeing some big time success and help. We have 5 people in our district all preparing for Baptism. It is awesome! Me and Elder Miller are currently teaching two people who are both preparing for a specific date and one of them came to Sacrament Meeting for the first time and said that he had a really good experience! It was Legit. I was so Excited and happy to talk with him and to hear about his experience first coming to church and hearing the testimonies of the Members in our ward.

I did however get asked last week to give a talk in church this Sunday. I will have to talk about D&C 130:20-21 and ya. So ask for some prayers that I will be able to have the spirit and convey that through my talk. It is only 5 mins long which is fun. haha. I did however give the 30 min long teaching in Gospel Doctrine yesterday and I just gotta say I talked for a solid 30 mins. Ya probably not the best way I've ever taught but ya know it went alright.

What else.... just ya know people progressing and feeling the spirit (one of our investigators is feeling it a lot lately and we've tried to help him recognize that that is the spirit but he hasn't made that connection yet) But ya. It's just been good.

As far as everything goes though. All is going well! We are thoroughly enjoying this area and working here and I am loving the experience of being a missionary. I am really excited to hear from all of you and what's going on at home. I really am excited to see all of you! (Not in a trunkie way, just miss my family :))

I hope ya'll know that I love you tons. this gospel is so true. The Book of Mormon is the Word of God and it truly does guide us to Him. If we rely on Jesus Christ I know for a fact that he will help us through all of our trials and give us the strength to be strong in what we believe. I love ya'll tons and I am so glad that we have this gospel that we can live together FOREVER!! It's the best. I wouldn't trade it for anything else :)

Love ya'll tons and tons know that you are always in my prayers!

Josh (크라우더 장로)