Monday May 19, 2014

 

On Sunday May 11, 2014 Rachel turned 22!!!

                                                                                    Monday May 19, 2014

Dear family,

This week has been wonderful! The mission just gets better and better.

Shirley, who is Buddhist, a little older, and retired, set a baptismal date with us! From our first visit to the second she had read the Plan of Salvation pamphlet and a little bit from the Book of Mormon.  She was definitely reluctant to move forward because she has had bad experiences in the past with missionaries, going to church and being "thrown into the water" as it were. I don’t think that they were missionaries from our church. That made her step of faith to try all the more exciting!  Especially when I remember her initial reaction to our knock on the door a couple of weeks ago. She said, "I'm Buddhist, I don't need it." But Sister Steed kept talking to her through the intercom, and she let us in. Last time we met she told us that because of her bad experiences, she doesn't let missionaries in. She's not sure why she did this time. But we know. God has prepared her for the gospel!

Another cool miracle was church yesterday!  Close to the end of Sacrament meeting, a member tells us that some of our investigators are sitting in the foyer. What?  So we went to look. Two super cute girls, whom we had never met, were sitting on the couch. It turns out that they were English class students who had come to church ON THEIR OWN. We took them in for the rest of Sacrament Meeting as well as Sunday school. Then they not only set up an appointment with us, but THEY LIVE IN OUR AREA! What goes around comes around. One of the girls told us that last year a missionary had written down her number, told her they were going to call, and then never did! So she has been waiting.

XXX who is a former investigator, brought herself to church last week. Turns out that she has been gone because she had a stroke, but is back now, and wants to get baptized! She had her baptismal interview after church on Sunday and is getting baptized on Saturday!!  I was really nervous about letting her get baptized and really didn't want her to get baptized that fast. After praying about it with Sister Steed I felt a small calm, the Spirit I believe, telling me it was OK.

This morning I was reading from Alma 1, and it made me ponder on the principle of enduring, enduring trials of all kinds. In that chapter it talks about the people of God being afflicted with words. I think this kind of affliction is both the most common and most destructive of all, because it wounds us in ways that can't be fixed by just going to the doctor. I think that is what makes the Atonement that much more precious. Words are powerful. It makes me think as well about the power of the scriptures. That is why I have a testimony which I share with people constantly.  It is because of the words written in the Book of Mormon. I know that as we feast upon the words of Christ as found in the Book of Mormon, we will find a power in our lives, just like President Hinckley said.

I love you!

Sister Rachel Caroline Edwards

This is my companion's description of our first lesson with our LA's son, who has some minor mental handicaps, but we think he can still be baptized . . . we think :)

We actually used this picture book that Sister Edwards has and it was dynamite. He LOVED it, and he loved learning about Jesus. He was confused why all the pictures happened in Israel, why Jesus never took the train, and why the people who killed Jesus were not arrested. And he was very confused as to why people from outside Taiwan have such long noses... I about died laughing in the lesson as he is looking at the pictures and sincerely perplexed by the differences of the length of those noses and his. 

Is this how missionary work is done?

 

The great and mighty.

Now we are ready to begin to work.


Rachel in Hualien

Sisters Edwards and Steed

Monday May 12, 2014

Monday May 12, 2014

Dear Family,

Thank you for the birthday wishes! I might not be able to answer everyone's right now, but I really am grateful for your love.

This past week has been such a blast! It's interesting; we've done so much finding (something that I used to dread) . . . and I've been happy!! There is something interesting about missionary work, and everything really meaningful in life. I often feel lazy and don't want to start whatever I’m supposed to be doing. But as soon as I do, everything rights itself and I feel fulfilled and happy. Running and contacting aren’t exactly the same thing, but just getting out the door and starting for either one is so hard. The feelings after a good run, or a good contact, are unbeatable and always worth the energy exerted! This we've had a lot of contacting time.  It's been fulfilling and fun. We've said more fervent prayers asking for help to find someone, and these prayers have made a huge difference. We've seen a lot of success knocking doors.  This is something I used to feel was kind of a waste of time. But that's a lie! Most of our contacting time is actually spent teaching. Teaching people on the streets!

We were biking down the street yesterday. A guy riding a scooter next to me asked, (while we were both riding) "Are you missionaries?"  "Yes!" I told him. "Oh," he said. Then I asked, “Do you want to talk with missionaries?"  "Keyi." (Sure), he told us.  We pulled over and talked to him for a bit. Turns out he has talked with the missionaries before, and was willing to set up an appointment with us again! Super cool.

One is a Tai girl who is in Taiwan for a couple months learning Chinese. I think the most incredible part of our lesson was teaching it all in English. It was so cool to say, in English, "When you know that the Book of Mormon is true, and that this is the true church, will you follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized by someone holding the Priesthood authority of God?"  And to hear, "I will."

Also this past week we were contacting up a street and skipped one house, because there were a bunch of men meeting inside, a few waiting outside, and it looked like they were busy and perhaps about to leave. As we kept contacting up the street we noticed them looking at us. After a lesson and more contacting up the street, they drove past us and stopped. It turns out that one of them was an investigator from THIRTY YEARS AGO!! HE was talking to US about Joseph Smith and The Plan of Salvation. He set up an appointment with us. We met with him a few days later, and he had his old Momenjing (the really old translation of the Book of Mormon), with all of the tracks that that missionary had given him. He was super interested, and even invited all of his friends to sit in on the lesson too! No effort is wasted. Some missionary forever ago prepared this man for this time now.

I love you!  

Sister Rachel Caroline Edwards

Monday May 5, 2014

                                                                            

Monday May 5, 2014

Dear family,

We met Sister Liao a couple of weeks ago, and she agreed to meet with us again on Wednesday.  We went to our appointment.  As we began to talk with her, she pulled out her Book of Mormon. She had read to 2 NEPHI 2:26!  In less than a week!  It was incredible.  And… she remembered what she had read. As we began to teach the Plan of Salvation, she was stunned and enthralled with the spirit world.  She had never heard about the spirit world before. It was so cool to see her so touched.

Apparently we had stopped a Sister Huang on a scooter, invited her to church, and given her a tract with our names and number on the back. SHE contacted US to tell us she wanted to come to church!!!  That does not happen.  And then, she and her daughter, Sister Zeng, CAME TO CHURCH! They were humble and willing to listen. As she introduced herself in Sunday school, the teacher asked how she happened to be there.  "Du Jiemei talked to me at a stoplight," she told the teacher.  It was one of those moments that you never forget. Perhaps I actually do do some good sometimes:)

I’ve been thinking a lot that I need to have better prayers. I love the Bible Dictionary's definition and description of prayer. I don't have it in front of me right now, but it goes something like "prayer is the method by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence." I love this. When we just pray for all of the selfish things that we "want," we miss the point of prayer. But when we seek the will of the Father, our prayers become much more meaningful. I also love the part that says "prayer is a form of work." And it is! I know when I am saying true and sincere prayers, I don't start falling asleep, because I am truly pouring my heart out to God and crying to Him. When we TRULY cry to the Lord in our prayers, we will find the answers we are searching for. Not in our time or way, but in His. And they do come.

I love you!

Sister Rachel Caroline Edwards/ Du Jiemei