Monday September 29, 2014

Pictures!! Outdoor Zone Conference:

We also had district conference this past weekend, we had EIGHT extra sisters staying with us.  There was the three companionships from Taidong, one from Yuli, as well as the the two companionships living in our apartment.  So I had to get a picture of at least a small part of what our apartment looked like Saturday night.  It was quite the adventure:) We found a place for everyone to sleep keeping all the white handbook rules!! (which is in the same room as your companion, but not in the same bed)

Monday September 22, 2014

Monday September 22, 2014

Dear Family,

I’m doing well! This past week we had an outdoor zone conference that was SO fun! We have a couple of investigators who are really progressing towards baptism, so that's really nice.

I can't believe you asked about Andrea! It's just so ironic that you asked this week, considering we had a chance meeting with her on Saturday. We were at the night market on Saturday evening eating/meeting with an investigator.  Andrea had fallen off the face of the earth because of opposition from her mom.  On Saturday night  Andrea and her mom approached US, tapped me on the shoulder and said hello!  At church on Sunday two members separately asked me about Andrea. God is involved in her life.  THANK YOU so much for your prayers for her. I keep praying for her as well. I put her name in the temple when I went a few weeks ago too. 

David keeps being miraculous! Our peike, out of the blue, brought up the Word of Wisdom during our last lesson. We ended up teaching that lesson and David accepted it with no problems!  And he came to church!

The Li's are doing OK. They are TOTALLY feeling the Spirit! But they are still having a hard time recognizing it. We’re done visit them super often, but we are still trying to work with them. They really are SO good. They just need a little more faith and action. But I think they will make it in their own time.

Last week we had no luck knocking on doors. After a while we decided to change locations. We started to bike somewhere new, and saw this girl walking into a hair salon. We stopped and asked her if we could give her a tract. Less than fifteen minutes later she had a baptismal date for  October 25.  So cool. All that time knocking with NO success, so that we could be in the right place and the right time to find this other girl. God is doing his work.

We survived another Typhoon and an earthquake this week! (Yes, we did make s'mores over the stove during the Typhoon :))

I love you!

Sister Rachel Caroline Edwards

Monday September 15, 2014

On Monday September 8, 2014 Rachel told us that Zheng 4 (Allen) got baptized.  I believe that this is his baptismal picture.

Monday September 15, 2014

Dear Family,

Lin2 came to church on his own last week, and said he felt something. He's been to other churches before and for a time studied the Bible a lot, but something is different this time. He was actually contacted and taught by Elder Squires in Tao Yuan around Chinese New Year! But he was too busy then to keep meeting with missionaries or progress. He moved to Hualian a couple of weeks ago, and is so PREPARED now! It is so cool to see him feeling the spirit and desiring more.

On Sunday a new member, just baptized in GaoXiong two weeks ago, came to church. She's coming back to school and will be in our branch. As we talked to her, she told us that she was first contacted by missionaries in Hualian . . . in June . . . right in front of Mos Burger . . . which was in our area. Neither she nor I could remember clearly that I had been in on the original contact. Unless we were on exchanges that day, my companion and I were the missionaries that contacted this girl and sent her info to Gaoxiong! It was SO incredible to me to recognize the impact of one simple lesson on the street. A lesson that I couldn't even remember giving. NO EFFORT IS WASTED!

Love Sister Edwards

The following are pictures of the Autumn festival that Rachel talked about last week: I believe that there are two sets of Sisters in Rachel's apartment.  Obviously learning to make the food for Autumn Festival.

A day at the beach with a loved Sister.  Maybe Angel???

Monday August 8, 2014

Monday September 8, 2014

Dear Family,

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!! Perhaps my favorite holiday in Taiwan, because it involves two of my favorite foods: Moon cakes and You4zi (Someone told me it’s Pomello in English?).  Today we had a member who came and taught us how to make moon cakes!! As well as Taiwanese pineapple cake (very different from American). It was so fun and they were GOOD. I took a lot of pictures, but the place we're emailing at today won't read my flash drive. Next week. And speaking of cameras, we were cleaning things out today, and I decided that since I'm just going to throw my old broken camera away anyway, I might as well try using some really hard force and see if I can't force the lens to close. And what do you know. My camera works!! I was really excited because it's way better than the new one I bought, but now I'm not entirely sure what to do with the new one . . .

This week was a blast. We were TIRED. But that is when missionary work is the most fun. This week we had an incredible miracle. Zheng4 (Allen) got baptized!!!!! Sister Steed and I met with him for FOREVER and he had SO much potential, but after coming back to the same questions over and over, and not being willing to take action, we stopped meeting with him. And he started progressing. When we were teaching him, he would never come to church. After we dropped him, he started coming almost every week. These past few weeks the Elders felt that they needed to start meeting with him. They met with him once or twice, Allen realized that he was ready for baptism, and Saturday night he was baptized. It was SO neat. And it was reassuring to see how Heavenly Father worked with him. He's been an Eternal investigator for a long time now (way before me), and a lot of different people have helped him along his path. It was exciting to see how happy he was, dressed up for the first time in a suit. He brought his sister and mom to the baptism as well. His sister gave us her information so she can meet with missionaries in Taipei.  After his confirmation on Sunday, Allen bore his testimony in Sacrament meeting. It was such a sweet moment to see how the Lord works in His way and in His time. Allen's prayers were answered, but not in the way or time that perhaps he, or Sister Steed or I wanted.

Lately we've been having a hard time with finding. We have been praying so hard to find the PREPARED. Not those who are willing to chat for a second, but those who are PREPARED. So one day this past week we were out looking, and no one was accepting. We were rejected time and time again.  We contacted one man as he was getting on his scooter. He continued to pull out after having accepted our tract, we gave a last-ditch invite: "I know you're busy right now, but do you think we could meet with you at another time and share more?" And he said yes. I was a little taken aback to be honest. We met with him the next day, and it turns out he almost got baptized a while ago, and has great desires to be baptized. He is prepared. Heavenly Father answers our prayers when our prayers our truly in the name of Christ, which means they are according to the will of the Father and the Son.

My study of the Old Testament continues! This morning I read one of my favorite descriptions of the Holy Spirit.  Elijah 19:11-12 "And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice." And it was in the still small voice that Elijah found the Lord. This is usually how I feel the voice of the Lord in my life. It is small, it is quite, and it speaks peace to the soul. Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance"

I love you! 

Sister Rachel Caroline Edwards

Monday September 1, 2014

Monday September 1, 2014

Dear Family,

This past week we had the opportunity to attend a memorial service for Elder Thredgold and Elder Xiong. It is a rare opportunity for the entire mission to be together (the only other time was when Elder Holland came), and it was a neat experience. It was so good to hear more about them from those who knew them. When I walked in I realized that I recognized Elder Xiong's picture. I never worked with him personally, but I've seen him around lots. It was a nice service. Keep praying for President and Sister Day.

Our cute little Li family is having spiritual experiences in the BOM! They still don't fully recognize the spirit, but I do. As I listened to Li DX talk about what he learned reading II Nephi 2, I had the Spirit confirm to me that he had learned that through the Spirit. It was so apparent. And it was so neat. I really feel that they have this window of opportunity right now, and Heavenly Father led us to them at this moment to catch them in this moment of opportunity.

Reading the Old Testament this morning I had some thoughts about trials of faith. The children of Israel receive the Lord's blessing to fight against the tribe of Benjamin (this is in Judges somewhere). They head out, fight, and lose. So they go cry to the Lord, he tells them to go again, they go again in the same manner as before, and they lose again. They cry a third time to the Lord and ask if they should go again. He tells them to go again in the same manner, and they will have success. They go again, and they win. I thought it was so interesting. If I had been one of those Israelites, I would not have wanted to head out that third time. Why didn't the Lord lead them to success the first time? Why did they have to suffer? I'm not the Lord, so I don't know that I can really say, but it seems to me that He had a greater purpose in mind. To allow them to go through a trial, to see if they would stay true to what they knew. It gave them an opportunity to use their faith. I think that the same is true now. Everyone’s battles are different, but earth life is meant to give us a chance to exercise our faith. We HAVE to come across hardship, or else life would be meaningless. But when we place our trust in the Lord, there will be a way. A way that will lead to lasting peace and happiness.

I love you and I hope you have a great week!

Sister Rachel Caroline Edwards 

Monday August 25, 2014

Monday August 25, 2014

Dear Family,

I've been thinking the past few days about what it means to be redeemed. Specifically to be redeemed from death. This past week two Elders in the mission passed away. Although they still need to verify, it is believed that the cause was carbon monoxide poisoning. When I first heard the news I was a little shocked, and the idea that these two elders were actually dead was a little unreal. Death is so all-encompassing, so final, and so un-redeemable. That was the thought I had as I was riding my bike home. But as soon as that thought entered my mind, another word popped into my mind, the word, "Redeemer." Another name for Jesus Christ is Redeemer. He redeems us from death. Death is not all-encompassing, nor is it final; it is not the last step. Hosea 13:14 "I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction." I believe in the plan God created for us, and so much of that plan only takes place after we step from this world to the next.

On a lighter note, last week we finally made up the cookie dough that you sent us mom! . . . It was heavenly. It's been a long time since I've had cookie dough. We did make an attempt at cookies . . . but in Taiwan people don't really use ovens, and after two cookies we didn't really have the patience for the toaster when the dough is so delicious on its own.

Last week we had this amazing experience on exchanges Sister Keung (from New Zealand) and I had just met up with our member to teach an investigator, when we found out our investigator was going to be 20-30 minutes late. So we decided to take our member, Sister Lai, contacting with us. We said a prayer and began to walk in front of McDonald's. As I looked to my left, I saw a girl sitting down and thought "talk to her." So we did. As we began to talk with her, she told us how she has looked into a lot of Christian religions, but she is confused by the differences and contradictions among them. She believes in God, but she doesn't know what religion is His. We shared with her about Joseph Smith, and promised her that God knows her, is listening to her, and will answer her prayers. She kept saying "Really?? He'll answer??" and she began to cry as we testified that he would. We've been praying to find the prepared, and that is exactly where God led us.

I love you!

Sister Rachel Caroline Edwards

Monday August 18, 2014

To anyone who is still reading Rachel's blog.  My computer is fixed and I'm through traveling.  At least for right now.  I have one question, some how I turned her blog into another language. Can anyone help me know what word to push to turn it back to English.  Thanks and thanks to all who read this blog.  Teresa

Sunday Aug. 17, 2014 

Dear family,

I'm sorry it's taken me a while to get a letter out! But this past week was pretty fun. Saturday we had a fairly busy day lined up, only to have everyone cancel Friday night. Perfect. Lots of finding! Which is what our area needs right now. So we set out with high hopes to this area a little further away that we rarely go to. And it was fun! We got to knock a lot of doors. As we were about ten minutes to the end of the time we'd set aside for straight finding (the hour after that was for finding LA's in the area), we finished knocking all the doors on the street. There was a side street however, and we wondered if we should start up it, or just finish early and head to the LA houses. We prayed and decided to go up it. And I'm so glad. At the very end of that street and around another corner, we knocked into a 黃 (Huang2) Xiang1 Yu3. She has a Book of Mormon and has met missionaries before, but this time was willing to pray herself and set up! Thank you to seed-planting missionaries. And we almost didn't knock up the street.

I also had exchanges this week with Sister Walker! (My "grandbaby," because I trained Sister George, and now she's training Sister Walker) It was so fun. And she is such a good missionary. I also had exchanges with Miao4 Jiemei, the temple sister, and that was really good. We talked about some things I'd been wondering about and it was so good to get another person's perspective. It's so fun to exchange because you always get a new, fresh perspective on missionary work. Everyone has a little bit different style, and you can learn from everyone.

Lately I've been reading the Old Testament, and I'm LOVING it. There is so much more in there than I remember the last time I tried to read it. And so much of it is about temples and covenant making. This morning I was reading and had new insights about the Atonement. The Chapter heading for Leviticus 7 reads "They [Israel] worship by sacrifice--Through sacrifice they gain forgiveness, make vows, consecrate their property, render thanks, and are reconciled to God." The Bible Dictionary says that the word Atonement "describes the setting 'at one' of those who have been estranged, and denotes the reconciliation of man to God." Through their sacrifices, the children of Israel reconciled themselves to God. We are the same now in our day. Sacrifice is still the method in which we access the power of the Atonement. We sacrifice our will for God's; we overcome our natural man for something higher. That is the process of developing faith, repenting, being baptized and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. As I read about the sacrifices of the children of Israel I realized that the outward sacrifices were just methods of helping them to have the inward process just described. The process of putting the will of God before their own will. And when we strive to do that, we find true joy as we are made "at one" with God.

I love you! I hope you have a great week!