YSA/MS(Young Single Adults/Married Student Wards): 

1) This past week, nothing new happened in our area. We won't be seeing Ar Lon until this Wednesday, and all the new students recently just moved on campus for the beginning of the new semester. Yesterday church was packed! With students and some of their families haha. 

2) We probably won't get a chance to really know the students until they all have their church records moved in, and receive callings at church. There are a few non-member girls but we don't just want to show up unexpected like "heeeeey!" so awkward haha. So...we have to figure out how to meet them without being so random...

VC/Online:

1) I got this member referral in the beginning of July online, and sent the missionaries, and silly me, totally forgot to call Corey, until last week. And he had a super amazing experience as he read the Book of Mormon and got baptized onJuly 10! (less than 2 weeks since missionaries contacted him). This was my first baptism from online! Not everyone experiences that confirmation the same way, but God answers prayers :) I love seeing how happy people after they're baptized. 

2) Miracle! Ilya, who wanted a free Bible a while back, actually returned my phone call after like a month. I dropped him as a contact because I assumed he wasn't interested...He read the BOM before about 7 months ago, stopped for a while, and wants to feel that warmth again when he reads the scriptures(the missionaries dropped it off when he wasn't home so he didn't really get to learn). I just think it's a miracle he had that desire and actually called back, he had a back surgery so that's what caused the delay, but still! Such a struggle at first because I wasn't sure who he was... 

3) Kailey is an investigator in Windsor, and she loves studying the Book of Mormon! She's probably the only person that ever asked me to explain what the chapters are talking about, but she is excited to go to church this Sunday :)

4) On a side note, my phone calling doesn't work...so it's been kind of lame only being able to text or email, but Sister Leng has kindly called for me and added me to the conversation #strugglesofonlinework

VCT(visitors center trainer) stuff: 

We're going to be having mini exchanges at the VC and doing tram tour evaluations for all the companionships so we can improve the quality of our tram tours :) So fun! This morning for VCTM, Sister Leng and I introduced a little review game to make sure everyone knew where to be for the 6:20 and 6:40 tram tours (it gets a little crazy then because so many people are there)

We are trying to use "Preach My Gospel" more in our missionary work, and as we were discussing all the principles that could help us to be a more effective vessel for the Spirit to work with us, I realized that I want to promise people blessings more often. It's sooo easy to just give an educational tour, but that isn't our focus at all. I've gotten stuck kind of doing that with the Chinese tours that come in, answering questions, introducing our beliefs, but I often forget to tell them that they can have the same blessings too! 

Scripture of the week: Mosiah 2:41

"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it.

Quote of the week:

Last pday, we went to North Shore Tacos for lunch, and this sweet Brother and his daughter treated all of us! We are so spoiled all the time....but so grateful. She goes to one of the YSA wards we cover! :)

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These are teachers/parents of some Chinese students that came to BYUH for an ESL program. They were super sweet!

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​Sister Leng fell asleep in her praying position hahahaha

Throwback to the first sunrise I saw in Hawaii! It was kind of cloudy, but still beautiful.​

Aloha everyone! This update is pretty brief....

It's good to be back here in YSA On-Campus and Married Student 2nd Ward! I haven't met many people yet, but it's nice to see familiar faces. We haven't been able to visit much either just because our schedule has been hectic and we're assigned to spend more online time on Saturdays. On the bright side, we get to interact with more people, and follow-up with our contacts online. John from Toronto met with the elders and said he would check out church on Sunday! It's so fun to teach someone from back home haha. Another girl named Kailey from Windsor wants to learn more about our church, and it was such a sweet conversation as we talked more about how this religion has helped me in my life, and what she should expect at church, etc. And one Persian woman came with her mom, and took back a Farsi Book of Mormon. Miracles happening every day! Sometimes when we spend time online, it's so crazy, because I'm always multi-tasking and it's kind of hard to keep track of everyone, and if I need to call them or not. But I'm getting more organized thanks to Excel hahaha. 

On our first week together, Sister Leng and I met some great people. The weather has been crazy too, lots of rain and wind, and Hurricane Darby passed by Hawaii too, but seems like didn't do any harm (major). Yesterday, everyone took precautions so homes wouldn't be flooded, and it was raining alllll day. But despite the rain, Chinese buses came! So grateful everyone is safe. 

Yesterday in church we learned about "The Healing Ointment of Forgiveness" from the last General Conference. I think about what a stubborn person I am, and how in the past it wasn't exactly easy for me to let go of things, but that as I've studied Christ's character, and tried to have patience for myself, it's so much easier. When we have patience, and seek strength through Jesus Christ's Atonement, we can feel so much more free, and happier. Seeing beyond other's imperfections and my own imperfections has been such a huge help on my mission, because this is what life is. We aren't perfect, and we sometimes offend or hurt others, and get hurt ourselves, but because God wants us to be happy, we can choose to forgive others and move on. What a blessing it is to have the Atonement and the peace that comes from applying that in our lives. Happiness isn't a destination, but a decision we make. 

We only have one investigator named Ar Lon in our area. He's from Hong Kong and Sister Ting and I have taught him together once, but Sister Leng and I will continue to meet with him and help him recognize the faith he has. When I put myself in an investigator's shoes, there are literally so many things that could hold someone back from joining the church. But the more we understand God's plan for us, and His will, the easier it is to see that this gospel is meant to help us gain happiness. Focusing on the simple things, like the Spirit we feel, or the faith we have, will help us gain a testimony. Elder Holland's closing talk in the last General Conference reminds us that we get blessed just for trying. 

If any of you are near a Visitors Center(Salt Lake maybe), you should check out the new "Meet the Mormons" stories! And if you haven't watched "Meet the Mormons", you should do that first, it's available on YouTube (in different languages too) and Netflix.

https://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/collection/films/meet-the-mormons-movie

Sister Leng is really good at cooking, so I've loved eating the food she cooks. So thus my food pictures. I've been trying to get to know the more of the sisters and it's interesting to see the new ones and how they're liking missionary work here. 

Scripture of the week: Ether 12:34

"And now I know that this love which thou hast had for the children of men is charity; wherefore, except men shall have charity they cannot inherit that place which thou hast prepared in the mansions of thy Father."

Quote of the week:

"If we put God first, all other things will fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives."

- Ezra Taft Benson (previous President of the Church)

Beef stir fry with tomatoes and cilantro :)

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Relief Society had a cooking activity where we learned how to make Fijian curry and Babakau(Fijian fried bread). It was sooooooo yummy. Now I have the recipe...one day I will attempt this!

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Our companionship :) It's hard not to love a sister who cooks good food to share with me...

Love,

Sister Wu

Transfer news is always exciting! So last Friday night, Elder Swinton(Visitor Center Director) made some interesting announcements:

1) Recently, the VC has found so much success and growth in the number of visitors that come in here, walk-in, and from tram tours, and also Chinese tour buses of course. So the missionary department has increased our complement(the number of sisters necessary to run the VC) from 26 sisters to 38 sisters! (which will slowly happen over time, probably within the next 6-8 months) That's so crazy! Right now we have 27 sisters, 3 new sisters. 

2) The leadership in the VC incldues the coordinating sisters (1 pair, CS, who do a lot of administrative stuff and training) and two pairs of sister training leaders(STLs), who help prepare training in the VC, but from now on the CS will just be called STLs, and we will have two pairs of Visitor Center Trainers(VCTs), who will do mini exchanges in the VC and training.

Saturday morning, Elder Swinton called me and asked if I could accept the calling of a Visitor Center Trainer. And I said yes. I'm a little nervous and scared, but I'm excited to serve. I love all the sisters here, and I'm also excited to serve them. The most fun is getting to know everyone (it's usually difficult to because of our schedules), and I'm sure being in this leadership position will stress me out but challenge me too. I kind of had a feeling I would be called to be something, or a trainer. My new companion will be Sister Leng, and she's from Cambodia.  She previously served with Sister Lee in a trio, and was just companions with Sister Ting (my last companion), and we'll be back in YSA(young single adults) Wards and MS(married student) Ward on campus! Sister Furukawa will be training Sister Dabney, who is American and will arrive tomorrow! 

Updates of the area:

1) Last week wasn't too productive in our area, to be honest. We were really busy at the VC, and didn't have time to visit people. Hua Yi and his family will be back soon, and Sister Furukawa might let us continue to teach him, because her and her new companion don't speak Mandarin. 

2) Royce has been super busy this week too and wasn't able to make it to church :( No worries, he's still pretty reliable.

3) Sister Furukawa's birthday was last Saturday too! She turned 29 yrs old hehe. And I felt like a horrible person because I never even got a chance to write her a card until the day after... it's difficult to do something for your companion when you're together 24/7 haha. But I prepared our dinner! Tomato, cheese, and pesto paninis 

Fun stuff in the VC:

1) Last Saturday, we hit 400 visitors from tram tours! That's a record, so we had a pizza party yesterday hahaha. And yesterday Sister Weygandt and I were tram scouts (we go from 12:30-3 pm just to invite everyone with little info cards, Sister Furukawa wasn't feeling well), and we hit 414 visitors! So many people coming to the temple grounds to feel the special Spirit here. Even if we don't talk to all of them, it's okay. 

2) So many miracles! Yesterday, we were short-staffed at the VC because some sisters had their preparation day, and two sisters weren't feeling so well. So for two hours, I was pretty much the only sister up front. It was so crazy! But kind of a fun challenge and I felt a little spiritually high hahaha. I met the most prepared Chinese young couple from Beijing yesterday! They were really listening to me introduce our church & beliefs, and both took materials to read. I have no doubt they're going to Hong Kong to get baptized one day. I love meeting people who are so prepared to hear the gospel. We may never see the outcome of it because we can't keep in touch, but it's so special to see the Spirit work on them. And the concept of families can be together forever always makes sense to Chinese people. 

3) Just reflection in general, I think this transfer has definitely been the one where I've gotten the most guest cards back (although we don't measure our success by that). I think it's partly due to the fact that I'm so much more comfortable just inviting people to learn more, whether I feel like they'll accept or not. I really have nothing to lose, this is what we do! I love testifying of gospel principles and trying to apply it to the visitors lives too. Every interaction we have is an opportunity for others to feel God's love and His Spirit. "Hate never promotes love, cowardice never gives courage, doubt never inspires faith." - President Thomas S. Monson

4) Saturday morning, we also went to the temple together. Sister Furukawa tries to go to the temple every year on her birthday. So cool. As I pondered in there, I just thought of how grateful I am for the fullness of the gospel. Because it was restored, we can have so many blessings of the temple, of serving missions, of having the proper priesthood authority, which allows us to perform saving ordinances. I love going to the temple; I always feel so much comfort and I'm pretty sure this coming transfer will be hard, but I know Heavenly Father is here to guide us.

5) We had pad inspections week, and I've never loved cleaning more in my life. My dad would be proud haha. I'll be moving to a new pad tomorrow with Sister Leng, and it's been recently renovated so it's the cleanest one! Yay!

6) A man named John from downtown Toronto wanted a Book of Mormon. I was probably too excited for my own good. Haha. The elders are now teaching him! Sister Andrus met a Chinese couple the other day from Vancouver, who knew church members in Toronto, so I'm excited to follow-up with their visit here. Serving here is so awesome because we can literally see how the gospel is being spread all over the world!

7) I promise this is the last one! I met a girl who came in, and she was visiting from New Zealand. She was staring at the Book of Mormon table, and as we started talking, she told me she was less-active,  but wanting to come back. I shared with her one of my favorite scriptures when I face trials, in Mosiah 24:15, and she just started crying. I gave her a big long hug and testified of how much our Heavenly Father loves us. It's so special to understand that as missionaries, we are representing our Savior Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. We're here to say what they would say (although half the time, we're not sure if it's right haha) and to comfort, strengthen, and heal others. I find that when I approach others with genuine care about who they are and inviting them to learn more, that's when I can follow the promptings of the Spirit better. 

Anyways, that's the end of the last week! This 7 week transfer has felt kind of long actually, but the end of every transfer is a little sad. But we move on quick and adjust to our new areas and companions. It's always fun to learn from different sisters. We'll be sad to see Sister Yamamoto and Sister Kim leave here... Sister Kim and Sister Kim have been the best padmates (roomies) and we had some fun times together. 

Scripture of the week: Ether 3:14-15

" 14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters.

 15 And never have I showed myself unto man whom I have created, for never has man believed in me as thou hast. Seest thou that ye are created after mine own image? Yea, even all men were created in the beginning after mine own image." (I love knowing that because we're created in His image, with similar physical features, we also have the potential spiritually to become like our Heavenly Father)

Pictures:

​Sneak shot of the sisters at the Swintons' home on the night of the announcements. Candid huh? Everyone's so cute haha. Kind of looks like "Gossip Girls"(it's okay if you don't get that reference...)

Sister Furukawa and I on her birthday! What better way to be happy than going to a temple session? 

 ​We got zone tshirts made, and we took a picture this morning, don't mine our eyes because the sun was literally too bright. 

​At the end of yesterday, I got a great tan line. This is the life. I'm going to buy some sun screen today! I just hate the smell of SPF.

Last week(Saturday), we got to meet our new mission president, President Bekker and his wife Sister Bekker. They're from Salt Lake City, and he was a pediatric dentist. On Saturday, I'm pretty sure we saw them at least five times throughout the day haha. In the morning, Sister Furukawa and I attended a baptism the elders had, which we invited our investigator Stanlyn(8 yrs old) to attend. Sister Furukawa said his Japanese was very good! He served his mission in Japan a long time ago. As he trained us, I could immediately feel how much love he has for all of us, but most importantly, the love both of them have for our Heavenly Father. 

That evening, we had a tram shift (so we took tram tours from the Polynesian Cultural Center) and the Bekkers and the Swintons(the VC director and his wife) came on the tram tour I gave. I thought I would be nervous, but I guess I'm used to doing it now. The 6:20 trams are where Sister Furukawa and I split up to give our own tours. And there's actually construction going on near the PCC so the route was a few minutes longer, so thank goodness I managed to keep the tour going hahaha. At the end, both President Bekker and Sister Bekker said the kindest words to me. They really are the sweetest and I look forward to serving with them!

Updates of our local area(Laie 6th ward):

1) Royce has been doing so awesome at coming to church! 3 times now! And last Sunday, we actually heard he came home at almost 2 am in the morning, but still woke up at 7 am to come to church. We are so happy that he tries his best to follow through with something when he's decided he'll do it. Maybe it was how he was raised, as well as his athletic background. By the way, Kahuku football is one of the best teams in the state, so I think they train pretty hard. Although we had his baptismal date for this week, it'll probably happen in a month. He's prayed about it, and he doesn't feel ready yet. When I think about putting myself in his shoes, it makes a lot of sense. I wasn't here when sisters first taught him, but getting baptized into this church is a really big commitment. And we want to prepare everyone so they feel ready for that. :)

2) Yesterday we were tracting our area (just visiting house to house, our area is literally two blocks full of members), and it was from 1-2 pm when everyone is out working. So thus, pretty unsuccessful. But before we headed to the VC, I told Sister Furukawa, "let's go visit the Kakas!" The TV was on, but it's ok! We talked to Lia, and she recently just started to go to the Young SIngle Adults ward for BYU students living off-campus. Our spiritual thought we prepared was Moroni 10:3-5, and it reads about how we can know the Book of Mormon is true through prayer. We found out that she really wants to start reading her scriptures more regularly, after hearing so many others share their testimony about how the Book of Mormon has guided them. She also said what we shared was really something she needed, and an answer to her prayer. So awesome!!! That's just how the Spirit works on us, to help us strengthen Heavenly Father's children. We don't get cool experiences every single day, but we treasure them when we do have them.

Updates at the VC:

1) On Sunday, we had a musical fireside! We had a dinner appointment with the Kauvaka family in our ward, and the daughter, Ofa, came with some friends. So we thought "oh cool!" As I performed and later watched all the others sisters perform, I'm reminded of how strong of a Spirit music brings, especially at the Christus room. I'm sure everyone else felt it too! And so did Ofa's cousin, who was visiting from California. We actually had our spiritual thought before we ate, and Lizzy joined in when we ate. So turns out she's actually not a member of the church, although many of her extended family members are. 

Coming to the fireside and seeing the temple was the closest she's ever gotten to our church. The anniversary of her younger sister's passing is coming up(she was sick as a baby), so we explained the importance of temples to us, and how families can be sealed forever, and shared our testimonies, she was open to meeting with the missionaries and learning more! I'm so grateful that I've gotten better at starting conversations more naturally hahaha(compared to the beginning of my mission). And it's just amazing to see how everything just fell into place for this whole interaction! Heavenly Father truly helps us to find those who will receive us, and open their hearts to the gospel. 

2) Online investigators: 

- Ann loves what she's learned so far from the sister missionaries and is praying about a baptism date! I love keeping in touch with her and sharing my testimony

- I called Yolanda yesterday and she requested a Book of Mormon, and actually was inspired by the documentary "Meet the Mormons" that she watched on Netflix! We had a great conversation about the gospel, and she's now waiting for the local missionaries to call her. So exciting! Yay Netflix!

Random/fun happenings:

1) Last Wednesday, Sister Kim, Sister Kim (yes, there are two), Sister Furukawa and I went to a place called Tita's Grill for lunch. And we started a conversation with two men, and they both work in the movie industry, and film here in Hawaii. We invited them to come visit the temple some time and one said he's always wanted a tour! Neat huh. Hopefully they come one day :) We never know who's been prepared unless we open our mouth!

2) Today, we went on a hike and I got eaten alive by mosquitoes. That sucked, but I was proud of myself for not falling on my butt hahaha. The last few hikes have been super slippery... two hours, lots of sweat, but so so amazing to see the beautiful nature God has created for us. 

Scripture of the week: Proverbs 9:10 (so I didn't actually find this during my reading, but my journal has scriptures on every page, so I thought this one was really cool)

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding"

​Neat panorama picture Elder Egbert took on his camera!

Sister Blackner(who I served with in Kaneohe) came with Sister Lor, and their investigators Wendy and Lila (roomies). It was so neat to see them! Wendy is the sweetest, and so thoughtful.

​I tried cooking thai curry (with coconut milk too). It was a success. Mom, be proud of me! Haha

Love,

Sister Wu

Thank goodness we have planners and journals, or else I literally wouldn't recall what happened in the last week haha. This past Monday was July 4th, and Americans celebrate it as Independence Day! So after our evening shift, all the VC sisters and the senior couples got together and had a BBQ/Potluck.  This was my first time celebrating 4th of July, but we didn't get to see any fireworks. :( At first, only a few sisters signed up to cook dishes, but when dinner time came, we had to get 3 tables to fit what everyone cooked! I love eating culturally diverse foods. And I cooked noodles too. I can testify how heated a kitchen gets when you have two sisters cooking different dishes and utilizing a tiny kitchen... but it all turned out yummy! 

Updates of people in our area(Laie 6th Ward):

1) Hua Yi is getting baptized this Saturday in San Diego! We can't wait to see pictures and continue to review the lessons with him after their family comes back. 

2) Royce is progressing a ton and he's scheduled for baptism next week Saturday! He's attending church regularly, and he has a super awesome childhood friend named Makena that will probably baptize him. How special is that? I loved hearing him say, "I feel like I've come a long way." The Spirit just works wonders, and helps us all to turn to God. When I think about a person's conversion, it takes more than just faith and repentance, but they have to surround themselves with good influences, like friends and family. And those factors make a world of a difference. We really can't do anything without the guidance of Heavenly Father.

3) We've tried to visit more members this week, and I just love hearing their testimonies too. Last Sunday was fast & testimony meeting, and several kids shared their testimony. I love that we can all be edified, no matter what age you are. Sister Furukawa and I went up too :)

Neat happenings at the VC:

1)Yesterday at about 5 Chinese tour buses came to visit the temple grounds, and I was ready! I thought about how scary groups of Chinese people were to me when I began my mission. But now, I know it's important to just share simple doctrine with them, testify, give them an opportunity to learn more, and love them. It also helps when they're nice to me too haha. I learn so much from Sister Lee, and how she talks to them. Our Chinese Simplified Book of Mormons have all been given away now!

2) I also met a couple visiting from Chengdu, and Brother Chen is actually a bishop over there in a church district. He knows Ni Shipeng (Elder Ni), who served in our ward back home. And it was so cool to hear his conversion to the gospel, and see pictures of faithful members there. The church is growing in China!

3) Online: Ann and David both wanted to meet with missionaries because their friends are members of our church. Just one person's example opens the door for many others to receive the blessings Heavenly Father has in store for us. I love sharing my testimony online, and helping them prepare to meet the local missionaries! 

4) Destine came to the VC from Jamaica in the end of May, and was super touched by the Spirit and peace she felt after she heard the Christus narration. The local missionaries labelled her as a potential investigator for the longest time, and recently, her status changed to "teaching." So I gave her a call and things are going so well! Usually when we make calls, we always remind people who we are, and we're calling from the VC. But she right away knew it was me, because I actually texted her the day before haha. She's thinking of preparing for baptism later this month. And I'm so grateful for the friendship we've built, and the Spirit that the local missionaries help her to feel. Teaching online is actually hectic because there are so many people to follow-up on and different time zones make calling difficult, but it's also so rewarding to help them understand more. The gospel is everything we need to have lasting happiness and can be applied in every aspect of life!

Other news:

1) I noticed that I've gotten much more tanned since I first got here. It's okay though, this is a healthy glow. Hahaha

2) The VC has a musical fireside coming up this Sunday, and all the sisters will be performing! Sister Lee and I will be playing a piano duet of "I Am A Child of God," and I'll be accompanying another piece. I love playing music.

3) The past week, several sisters have gotten sick and aren't feeling well, so we made extra precautions to keep a healthy immune system. Thankfully, Sister Furukawa and I are just doing fine. :)

Quote of the week: 

“Sacrifice is made sweet to us when we treasure the joy it brings to another heart.”

—President Henry B. Eyring

Sister Furukawa made homemade sushi, and I cooked those noodles on the right! Dragon noodles, they're called. But I don't actually know if it's Chinese food or American Chinese food haha

Just two of the tables of yummy food!

Drive back from the mall last preparation day. Hawaii is beautiffullll. 

Sophie with her friend. Sophie was visiting China (forgot where) and took all the materials and a few temple cards too. I asked her why, and she said, "because you said there aren't any temples in China, so I wanted to share these with my friends." How sweet is that!

Some updates on our area:

1) Hua Yi(12) got his baptismal interview done by our district leader, and I was able to translate it for him in Mandarin (so fun!). When I first met and started teaching him back on November, he didn't really know if God was there or loved him. But now, he doesn't hesitate at all when asked if he knows God is our Heavenly Father. I love how the Spirit works with children! His family and his friends at church are also great examples to him too :)

2) Royce(17) is our investigator and he was raised with wonderful parents who taught him what it means to work hard and to have a long-term perspective in life. He's a football player so he's often busy, but makes time for us to come by and share the gospel with him. We were so happy he came to church last Sunday for the first time! And we're praying that he continues to come so he can take the sacrament and feel the Spirit.

Visitors Center:

Usually when I go online, I try to call my contacts, text, or email. But sometimes I like to take chats too. So last Sunday, we took a chat from a person that was argumentative and wasn't really listening to anything we were sharing. Naturally I was stressed out, just because I feel like it was a waste of my time, and I totally prayed in my heart to talk to someone new who would actually listen. Right after, we talked to a young man named Clay, who really wanted to join a religion. And since he had some awesome LDS friends, he figured he wants to learn more from us. As I continued to talk with him about some of our beliefs, everything just made sense to him. I'm so grateful literally every time I come across a bad interaction, we are blessed to come across someone else really nice. I definitely felt the Spirit guide me in my words, and give me charity, especially for others who aren't respectful to us. 

Last Friday, every missionary in our mission fasted to find new investigators here. Our schedules were really busy with the VC and tram, so we didn't have time in our area, but I've definitely seen the miracles in the next few days. 

Just yesterday alone, Sister Furukawa and I met four new people that were willing to learn more in the VC! The one couple I met yesterday was definitely a miracle. We came on shift at 2:30 pm and Chinese tours came non-stop until about 4 pm. Thankfully, both Sister Lee and I were on shift together, so we could team up to talk to everyone. I saw a couple come in, and they were visiting from Lousiana, and I shared more with them about our beliefs, the restoration of the gospel, and the Book of Mormon. Dennis actually is Catholic and his wife Alexandria isn't really religious, but they were just super open to learning more, and even put a referral for his Catholic friend! Amidst the bustle, we had a wonderful tour and I definitely felt the Spirit when I shared the First Vision with them, and one of my favorite scriptures too. I've only ever shared the First Vision maybe less than 5 times on my mission, but it brings such a powerful Spirit that always testifies of the truthfulness of our message. I love love this gospel. I've never really been too bold with guests, but sometimes I have the courage to be. 

Lastly! I picked up an in-bound call online, and this guy wanted me to pray for him. As I got to know his background more, I found out that he was an alcoholic that wanted to change his life around, but he has no support, no family or friends, and nobody that believed that he could change. I testified about the power of the Atonement and the love that our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ has for every person, including him, and encouraged him to rely on that power. I got teary when he said how I was the only person in a while to actually believe in him, and positively uplifted him. I can't say what happened after the call, because I'm not sure. But sometimes I am still amazed at the role that we have a missionaries, as servants of our Heavenly Father to reach out to His children, to help them feel of His love, so they can have eternal happiness - they can have hope. I just wanted to cry a little because there are so many people like him, that need to know that there is hope.

I'm always reminded that every interaction we have with others, whether it was bad or good, are all people that need to know this gospel and to hear of our testimonies. People that will understand this is truly what we believe and strive to live by. Sister Furukawa and I have made it a goal to really try and get to know more people in our ward, so we can work together. :)

Scripture of the week: Ether 4:12

"And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good; he that will not believe my words will not believe me—that I am; and he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me. For behold, I am the Father, I am the light, and the life, and the truth of the world."

​Nikki and Brother Keama (less-active) visiting from our ward in Kaneohe.

​Brother Long (ward mission leader from Kaneohe) was kind and packed us bento box lunches!

​Taking down the flags together with our roomies, Sister Kim and Sister Kim!

​Pink sunset outside the VC :)

Happy belated Father's Day! I love this video about Fatherhood. When we think of fathers, we can also think of the love our Heavenly Father has for each one of us. 

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2013-01-002-earthly-father-heavenly-father?lang=eng

Last week we had a Zone Conference with President and Sister Warner training us! It was an emotional day because it was our last conference with them before they are released. We will have the new mission President, President Bekker, arriving soon with his wife. I am soo grateful for the Warners because they are literally our parents here in our mission, and they show so much love for us, and we'd be so lost without their guidance. I've learned so much from their example, and Sister Warner was so involved when we taught Vivian! 

The theme was on obedience, and President Warner shared some really great examples of obedience from the scriptures. Every blessing we receive is predicated on our obedience to Heavenly Father's commandments and the mission rules, and when we do all that we can to have the Spirit with us, then that's when He can perform miracles! Exact obedience is rough sometimes, but we continue to try our best. "A missionary will not rise to a potential in life above that which he carves out for him or herself on their mission." - David O. McKay 

That's why the commitment we show our our mission will continue(hopefully) in the future in everything that we do. We have to challenge ourselves to press forward even when we're tired, discouraged, have no clue what we're doing, in order to reach the potential Heavenly Father sees in us. The training we receive always is exactly what we need to hear. 

Yesterday was kind of a stressful day for Sister Furukawa and I. And we called President Warner and Sister Warner for some guidance with a special situation. Thankfully they saved the day and told us what we needed to do. Hua Yi, the boy that we taught for a while now, is planning to be baptized! It's truly a miracle that we didn't expect would happy soon, but he does! But he'll be getting baptized in California, where his parents have more family. We're sooo happy for them!

One of the struggles I have, especially in the afternoon, is when there are Chinese tour buses coming in, but there's also someone that really needs a tour(Chinese or not). The other day, a Chinese guy named Qiu Feng came, and I started giving him a tour, but then Chinese buses came, so thankfully Sister Lee was able to help with that. But then they wanted to take pictures with us, and poor Qiu Feng was just waiting, and I was afraid he would just leave...but thankfully I got back to him! And he's actually doing Bible Study back in Chicago, and he said he's not really ready to learn more, but I still gave him some pamphlets. The great blessing about serving here, is even without a guided tour, others can feel something special here, and it's because they're on dedicated ground. And feel the Spirit from the temple :)

I met someone from Wuhan the other day! That's close to my hometown in China. Kind of cool :)

We're finally getting a new ward mission leader (he helps us do missionary work with people in the congregation and how we can help them), and he'll be called and set apart this coming Sunday. It's going to help sooo much because although Sister Furukawa has been here for 6 months, there's still a lot we have to do in the area. 

Scripture of the week: John 7:17

"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."

Pictures:

Brother Nihipali's granddaughter's 1st birthday luau! We couldn't stay long, but shared a spiritual thought :) So neat.