Hello everyone! Once again, it is that time of week where I forget everything that happened as I try to cram a weeks worth of stuff into one letter! Let's go!
One very exciting thing that is going down is transfers! I can't believe it, but another transfer has ended, and now another begins! I'm going to be staying in Atsugi, but the companionships are getting
shaken up a little bit. I'm being moved into the other Elders area and becoming District Leader. My new companion is Elder Siqueira, who has already been working with me in Atsugi, just in a different area. He's way awesome, he's from Saou Palo (I don't know how to spell anything anymore), and he's a way fun guy. I really look forward to working with him and being able to learn a lot from him. Elder Ayala is also staying in Atsugi, but he is getting a new companion named Elder Powell.
This week was Zone Meeting and it was very good. I learned a lot, but one of my favorite part was a training we received on Mosiah 2-4. I've read those chapters before, but this time was different. The Elders giving the training shared some very good insights on just how much the Savior of mankind has given for all of us, and what that sacrifice should mean for us personally. The Atonement of Jesus Christ is the single most important event in everyone's lives, and the more I learn about it, the more love I feel toward Christ and our Heavenly Father. I know that they each love all of us so personally, and want nothing more than to bless each and every one of us in our lives. I want to challenge you to go and read those chapters, but don't just read them through quickly and expect immediate enlightenment. Take the time, ponder the scriptures, let the words "sink deep into your heart". I promise as you do that, Heavenly Father will speak to you through His Holy Spirit, and you will receive the answers to your prayers.
Love you all! Have another fantastic week!
Elder Nelson
PS Japan's dollar stores are way awesome. I bought three little racks to hang towels on, and I broke two of them in a matter of seconds while putting them up. Yay.
PPS But really, Japan has awesome dollar stores.
PPPS Like, there are some way nice gloves and earmuffs that are way cheap.
PPPPS And, I bought some things called Cream Pãn. I put the little ã because it means bread, and the Japanese just took the Spanish word for bread.
PPPPPS Oh yeah, so I got a six-pack of cream pãn at the dollar store. Cream pãn is very good, it's just rolls filled with pudding. They are very good!
Monday, January 25, 2016
Monday, January 18, 2016
Snow!
This week has been crazy busy! Such a great week! And something amazing happened this morning, I woke up to it snowing! I barely stuck, but it was awesome while it lasted!
In our zone, every other week, we hold a Spanish sacrament meeting and Sunday school. Since Elder Ayala speaks Spanish, I got to sit in, so I was lucky enough to to go two Sacrament meetings this week! I was very good, even though I understood practically nothing of what was happening in the Spanish/ Portuguese session. It was a very good experience, it is so cool to me that the Lord is gathering His people everywhere, even a group of Spanish speakers in Japan.
In sacrament meeting (the Japanese one) I had the great opportunity to give a talk. It just also happened to be the week that the Mission President, President Wada, was coming to visit. So, I had the wonderful opportunity to speak to the ward and also to the president. Not nerve wracking at all! (⌒-⌒; ) But, it was still a very good experience. I spoke about something that has been on my mind a lot recently, from when I was reading from the Book of Mormon, Ether 12. This chapter is one of the most loaded chapters in the Book of Mormon, and I spoke on verses 8-9 and verse 6. Christ has prepared the way for all of us to be partakers of the Heavenly Gift, through our faithfulness in Him. Only after our faith is tried, however, do we receive of this gift, this witness from God. However, the cool thing about having to teach this in Japanese is the word choice that is used. In English, it says you receive a "witness." In Japanese, it says you receive a testimony. You receive no testimony until after the trial of your faith. Oftentimes we wish we had strong testimonies, we say, "Wow, I wish I could believe like him (referring to someone awesome, like Elder Holland). He really knows what's up." But, more and more of what I'm learning is that to receive that powerful, unshakeable testimony, we have to pay the price. The price being our continued faithfulness and obedience to God's commandments, even when things are difficult. Especially when things are difficult. Only after the trial of our faith do we receive the reward of the trial. If you don't think you have strong faith, just keep trying. Keep pressing on, believing in the word of God, pray to Him, study His words, and I
promise that He will make it manifest to you, in your mind and in your heart.
I love you all! Have a great week!
Elder Nelson
PS Elder Ayala and I went biking out somewhere further out in our area, missed a turn, and ended up climbing two extra mountains. Fun stuff.
PPS We were lame with our shopping last week, so we survived this week on eating pancakes for several meals in a row. Yum!
In our zone, every other week, we hold a Spanish sacrament meeting and Sunday school. Since Elder Ayala speaks Spanish, I got to sit in, so I was lucky enough to to go two Sacrament meetings this week! I was very good, even though I understood practically nothing of what was happening in the Spanish/ Portuguese session. It was a very good experience, it is so cool to me that the Lord is gathering His people everywhere, even a group of Spanish speakers in Japan.
In sacrament meeting (the Japanese one) I had the great opportunity to give a talk. It just also happened to be the week that the Mission President, President Wada, was coming to visit. So, I had the wonderful opportunity to speak to the ward and also to the president. Not nerve wracking at all! (⌒-⌒; ) But, it was still a very good experience. I spoke about something that has been on my mind a lot recently, from when I was reading from the Book of Mormon, Ether 12. This chapter is one of the most loaded chapters in the Book of Mormon, and I spoke on verses 8-9 and verse 6. Christ has prepared the way for all of us to be partakers of the Heavenly Gift, through our faithfulness in Him. Only after our faith is tried, however, do we receive of this gift, this witness from God. However, the cool thing about having to teach this in Japanese is the word choice that is used. In English, it says you receive a "witness." In Japanese, it says you receive a testimony. You receive no testimony until after the trial of your faith. Oftentimes we wish we had strong testimonies, we say, "Wow, I wish I could believe like him (referring to someone awesome, like Elder Holland). He really knows what's up." But, more and more of what I'm learning is that to receive that powerful, unshakeable testimony, we have to pay the price. The price being our continued faithfulness and obedience to God's commandments, even when things are difficult. Especially when things are difficult. Only after the trial of our faith do we receive the reward of the trial. If you don't think you have strong faith, just keep trying. Keep pressing on, believing in the word of God, pray to Him, study His words, and I
promise that He will make it manifest to you, in your mind and in your heart.
I love you all! Have a great week!
Elder Nelson
PS Elder Ayala and I went biking out somewhere further out in our area, missed a turn, and ended up climbing two extra mountains. Fun stuff.
PPS We were lame with our shopping last week, so we survived this week on eating pancakes for several meals in a row. Yum!
a quick shot of my desk
Monday, January 11, 2016
Title.
Man, other week has past, and we're already a good way into the January! Where has time gone!
So, the Atsugi area is quite different than Fuchu for one big reason, there are hills. Fuchu was just a flat city sprawl, but now Atsugi is a city sprawl that decided that it wanted to do the wave. And by do
the wave, I mean it decided to be like 10 mountains in a row, so you always seem to be going up or down. Actually, the area by the apartment is very flat, but a place we biked up to last night was
insane. It was way awesome! I had a great time, and look forward to getting legs the size of tree trunks!
So, like I've said, Atsugi has a lot of people that speak a language other than English. The missionaries in our district and a neighboring area put together a family home evening event for Spanish/ Portuguese speakers on Saturday. It was way good, but it I couldn't understand all that much. It was just like being in the MTC again! But, despite not being able to understand almost any of the Portuguese, I could still feel the Spirit that was being shared as the lesson was taught. Just another example to me of how powerful a person's testimony can be; the words don't matter, being a good speaker doesn't have any impact, any amount of eloquence won't change anything. If you testify
from your heart, the Spirit will always bear witness. I know that is true.
This week I had a way cool experience with trying to follow the Spirit. Elder Ayala and I were heading back to the apartment, but we felt like we should bike his different way home. We went, and I could tell the Spirit wanted us to go there, but I had no idea where there was. We passed our apartment and kept going, and just kept looking around for what the Spirit was leading us to. Well, we found a way nice guy who talked with us for a while, and we shared our message with him. It was a very powerful witness that Heavenly Father will guide us in our efforts to follow the Spirit, and as we strive to fulfill our duties, He will light the way for us. Reach out, do your best to serve those around you as the Spirit directs, and watch as the Lord performs miracles through you.
I love you all! Have a fantastic week!
Elder Nelson
PS I have a feeling today I haven't felt in a long time. The roof of my mouth is burned from eating a slice of pizza that was too hot. It feels just like home.
PPS In case you were wondering, McDonalds, Walmart, and Costco are all exactly the same all over the world. Except our McDonald's has fish burgers. Haha! #winning
So, the Atsugi area is quite different than Fuchu for one big reason, there are hills. Fuchu was just a flat city sprawl, but now Atsugi is a city sprawl that decided that it wanted to do the wave. And by do
the wave, I mean it decided to be like 10 mountains in a row, so you always seem to be going up or down. Actually, the area by the apartment is very flat, but a place we biked up to last night was
insane. It was way awesome! I had a great time, and look forward to getting legs the size of tree trunks!
So, like I've said, Atsugi has a lot of people that speak a language other than English. The missionaries in our district and a neighboring area put together a family home evening event for Spanish/ Portuguese speakers on Saturday. It was way good, but it I couldn't understand all that much. It was just like being in the MTC again! But, despite not being able to understand almost any of the Portuguese, I could still feel the Spirit that was being shared as the lesson was taught. Just another example to me of how powerful a person's testimony can be; the words don't matter, being a good speaker doesn't have any impact, any amount of eloquence won't change anything. If you testify
from your heart, the Spirit will always bear witness. I know that is true.
This week I had a way cool experience with trying to follow the Spirit. Elder Ayala and I were heading back to the apartment, but we felt like we should bike his different way home. We went, and I could tell the Spirit wanted us to go there, but I had no idea where there was. We passed our apartment and kept going, and just kept looking around for what the Spirit was leading us to. Well, we found a way nice guy who talked with us for a while, and we shared our message with him. It was a very powerful witness that Heavenly Father will guide us in our efforts to follow the Spirit, and as we strive to fulfill our duties, He will light the way for us. Reach out, do your best to serve those around you as the Spirit directs, and watch as the Lord performs miracles through you.
I love you all! Have a fantastic week!
Elder Nelson
PS I have a feeling today I haven't felt in a long time. The roof of my mouth is burned from eating a slice of pizza that was too hot. It feels just like home.
PPS In case you were wondering, McDonalds, Walmart, and Costco are all exactly the same all over the world. Except our McDonald's has fish burgers. Haha! #winning
The FHE, with Elder Nelson caught mid blink
Monday, January 4, 2016
Because I can't think of a title: Banana hats
This week has been way awesome! Just like always, it's been way busy, but I wouldn't have it any other way!
First things first, being in this new area, Atsugi, is way different than being in Fuchu for one huge reason. There are so many Spanish and English speakers. Like, it's ridiculous! Half of our investigators don't even speak Japanese! It is so much fun! It's a way weird experience trying to teach the gospel in English, it feels a bit foreign on my tongue. But, it is in no way a bad thing. I love being
able to help people come unto Christ is two languages, and sometimes even three! (If we teach a Spanish lesson, I get to sit there just smiling and saying that I know my companions testimony is true 😄) Elder Ayala, my companion, speaks Spanish, an other Elder in my district is from Brazil and he speaks Portuguese, and a Sister in the district also speaks Spanish. In fact, about half of the zone speaks both English and Spanish/Portuguese fluently and is learning Japanese. It's way cool!
A way cool experience that happened this week is that on Sunday, in the middle of Sunday School, a member walks into class and whispers into one of the missionaries ears that there is a family of people from the Philippines in the foyer who wants to learn about the church. Turns out that they were looking for a Christian church to come to, and they found ours. So, we took that opportunity to teach them about the Restoration of Gospel of Jesus Christ! It was way awesome, and totally random, but I could see the hand of the Lord in these people's lives, I could see how much He loves them. The work is absolutely amazing!
Something that I've been thinking a lot about recently is how we can always have the Spirit of the Lord in our lives. Like, how can we get to the point where we are always being moved by personal revelation to serve the Lord and help his children? I came across Helaman 10:4-5, where the Lord is telling Nephi that He trusts him. He gives him the power to bind in heaven and on Earth. The way that Nephi received this power from God is found in those verses, but my challenge is for everyone to follow the example of Nephi. Let the Lord know that He can trust you, that when you receive a prompting from the Spirit, any personal revelation, that you will follow it immediately. The more you
show our Heavenly Father that you will follow His instructions He sends, the more you will receive. I know that as you do this, you will find a greater outpouring of the Spirit in your life, and truly become the person that God wants you to become.
I love you all! Thank you all so much for you support! Have a fantastic week!
Elder Nelson
PS Fun news, I now sleep on a futon instead of a bunk bed!
PPS We also had out Christmas conference this week. Here was a short white elephant exchange, and I got hand sanitizer! Yeah!
First things first, being in this new area, Atsugi, is way different than being in Fuchu for one huge reason. There are so many Spanish and English speakers. Like, it's ridiculous! Half of our investigators don't even speak Japanese! It is so much fun! It's a way weird experience trying to teach the gospel in English, it feels a bit foreign on my tongue. But, it is in no way a bad thing. I love being
able to help people come unto Christ is two languages, and sometimes even three! (If we teach a Spanish lesson, I get to sit there just smiling and saying that I know my companions testimony is true 😄) Elder Ayala, my companion, speaks Spanish, an other Elder in my district is from Brazil and he speaks Portuguese, and a Sister in the district also speaks Spanish. In fact, about half of the zone speaks both English and Spanish/Portuguese fluently and is learning Japanese. It's way cool!
A way cool experience that happened this week is that on Sunday, in the middle of Sunday School, a member walks into class and whispers into one of the missionaries ears that there is a family of people from the Philippines in the foyer who wants to learn about the church. Turns out that they were looking for a Christian church to come to, and they found ours. So, we took that opportunity to teach them about the Restoration of Gospel of Jesus Christ! It was way awesome, and totally random, but I could see the hand of the Lord in these people's lives, I could see how much He loves them. The work is absolutely amazing!
Something that I've been thinking a lot about recently is how we can always have the Spirit of the Lord in our lives. Like, how can we get to the point where we are always being moved by personal revelation to serve the Lord and help his children? I came across Helaman 10:4-5, where the Lord is telling Nephi that He trusts him. He gives him the power to bind in heaven and on Earth. The way that Nephi received this power from God is found in those verses, but my challenge is for everyone to follow the example of Nephi. Let the Lord know that He can trust you, that when you receive a prompting from the Spirit, any personal revelation, that you will follow it immediately. The more you
show our Heavenly Father that you will follow His instructions He sends, the more you will receive. I know that as you do this, you will find a greater outpouring of the Spirit in your life, and truly become the person that God wants you to become.
I love you all! Thank you all so much for you support! Have a fantastic week!
Elder Nelson
PS Fun news, I now sleep on a futon instead of a bunk bed!
PPS We also had out Christmas conference this week. Here was a short white elephant exchange, and I got hand sanitizer! Yeah!
I'm wearing a scarf I got at a dollar store today. We had to buy bath mats for the shower, and I saw this, so I thought "Why not?".
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)