Reaping the Rewards

October 21, 2013

Well, I don`t know about over there, but it sure is getting pretty chilly over here. It feels good. I like it. :) I know I never would have said this 2 years ago, but I actually like being in the cold. More than the hot that is. Crazy how missions change you. 

(Granted, it hasn`t been THAT cold....so ask me in a month if I still like the cold. ;) ) 

Wow. This week the Lord has just opened up the windows of heaven to us and just handed us some pretty great miracles. So BLESSED!! 

So on Tuesday we went to visit a previous investigator from before we were in the area.  Reira. She is Filipina and seemed really nice on her record. 

Well we visited her and she let us in. We started talking with her for a little bit and we met her older sister, Johna.  Reira has lived in Japan for 7 years, is married to a Nihonjin and can speak a decent amount of Japanese. Johna has only been here for 3 months and doesn`t speak Japanese or English, but we asked if they wanted to listen to our message and they agreed.  

We taught them and they both had lots of good questions. They are both pretty devout Catholic, but their mom was a Mormon at some point. So they said they saw the missionaries a lot growing up. They wanted to know why we are different from other Christian churches and all sorts of other things. Well they agreed to meet with us again and we are meeting with them tomorrow. So excited!!! 

Wednesday we had just a little bit of finding time before Eikaiwa. Just like 15 minutes. But that`s all the Lord needs. We decided to just go out in front of the church and start inviting people to Eikaiwa. 

Well the second girl we talked to was the winner. Her name is Arisa Chan and she is so cute! She is a freshman at college studying to be a Preschool teacher. She said she lived close and always walked past the church. We invited her for a tour and a little message. She agreed and we showed her the church. We got to teach her a little bit and set up an appointment for a couple of days. 

Well she came back on Saturday and we got to teach her a real lesson. She said that she goes to  a Christian college and has really become interested in Christianity lately. She said when we talked to her on the street she felt like it was a chance she needed to take. 

The Lord really does just lead those who are ready to receive Him straight to us. He is just so amazing! 

Another interesting/cool miracle happened this week as well. 

One day as we were studying at the church the phone at the church rang. That doesn`t normally happen. But Murayama Shimai went to answer it. She started talking for a minute and she then said there was someone on the phone who wanted to talk to the Gaijin missionaries, and handed the phone to me. I got on the phone and at first the lady said, `no. the AMERICAN missionaries.` `I am American!` I responded. `Oh, hello. I want to come to church this week, can I come?` `YES!! OF COURSE!!` (The whole conversation was in Japanese.) 

She said had previously met us and her name was Fukushima San. Well about a month ago me and Crofts Shimai met a Fukushima. We even taught her a lesson and she was so excited. But then 3 days after our lesson she called us and said she didn`t want to meet us again. 

Well we thought it was the same lady and we were so thrilled, awed the Lord was showing forth His power. 

Sunday morning comes and we get to church a little early. There is only one lady sitting down in the chapel. We go and start talking with her. She said her name is Fukushima San and that she wanted to go to church today. We realized that this was not the Fukushima San we were anticipating, but giddy none the less that she actually still came to church. 

We got to teach her a lesson, and although she seems to have some anxiety, she said she loved the lesson and church and is coming back next week. 

One last cool story.  So...Yamauchi Kyodai. We feel like he wasn`t progressing, and no matter what we did, he wouldn`t change. So we decided to not drop him officially but just to not try contacting him for 2 weeks. We hadn`t heard from him for a while. 

Well, even though Sunday it was raining cats and dogs, guess who walks in to church right after sacrament meeting! That`s right. The beloved Yamauchi Kyodai. What? I was sitting up on the stand, playing the organ when I saw him walk in. It was all I could do to keep my mouth from dropping. It was SO unexpected!! After sacrament he wouldn`t meet with us or go to Sunday school. He was going to ride his bike back the 45 minute ride to his home, in the pouring rain. 

I can`t figure this man out. He is a total enigma! But I love him and want to help him more than anything!!! 

Well that was basically my week. We are so excited that the work in our area is finally starting to pick back up again. 

I feel like the Lord was just trying our patience to see if we would still be faithful, even if we weren`t seeing success. I guess we passed the test, because He sure is being generous! :) 

Oh. The Moroccan man couldn`t make it to our lesson last week. His work went late, but we should be able to meet him this week. :) 

I love you all lots and lots!! 

Love, 

Dobson Shimai 

I Love Japan

PreSchool Kids Out On a Walk

Moroccan Miracle!

October 14, 2013

Hello Hello. 

I know that this is all a week late for you, but I just got to watch General Conference. 

Ah. Sooo GOOD! 

Of course, being a missionary, I loved every minute of the Saturday Sessions. I felt like all of it was about missionary work. And even though my mission is coming to an end, it helped me realize that I never have to stop being a missionary. :) 

Sunday was also so good. I felt like an overarching theme was enduring to the end and being in the world but not of it.

Nobody sugar coated anything, but they were real and talked about the challenges in life that we face. Then I felt like they all just testified how through the atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ, we can be strengthened to bear our burdens and change our circumstances. 

Even though I totally don`t understand how it works, I am so grateful for my Savior and His sacrifice in my behalf. 

Yesterday I went back a year in my journal to see what I was doing. Wow. I`ve really changed...a lot. I hope it is for the better. 

I know that those changes could not have happened if not for the cleansing and enabling power of the Atonement. 

This week we met the greatest new investigator!  Wow, he is amazing. His name is Hassan. He is from Morocco. We called him from the area book and asked if he wanted to meet with the missionaries again. He agreed and we set up an appointment. 

Well we met him and he is just the most humble, sweetest man you could ever meet. We gave him a tour of the church and he was so excited about all of the different rooms. He talked about how important it is for us as humans to always continue learning. 

Then we sat down in the chapel to have our first lesson. We sat down, and the Spirit was so strong. I was a little shocked when I realized I wasn`t in the celestial room of the temple. It felt like I was. Truly, the chapel is a sacred place. 

Well as we were sitting in the chapel he just got really quiet and put one hand over his mouth and one over his heart. He was just taking it all in. He would occasionally choke out, `yes, yes. I feel the calm`. I felt like we needed to just sit there and let him soak it all up. We didn`t say anything for 5 minutes. (I think the member was a little confused why we were waiting so long to start, but I think she also started to feel the Spirit.) 

Well as we started the lesson I became even more impressed with this man. His only desire is to serve God. He wants to do all he can to learn about God and to make his life more in line with what God wants. 

In the part of our message where we said that meeting with us is free he stopped us. He said, `But I want to pay money to my God. I want to take the money He has given me and give it to other people. I just don`t know who to give it to. I want to give it to safe hands. I don`t want people taking the money I give them to go do bad things like buy alcohol. But I feel like you are ‘safe hands.` 

Wow! He is so ready even to hear the commandments!!! 

After our lesson with him, Crofts Shimai and I were just elated. This man is so prepared for the gospel and he ate up every word we told him. I can`t wait to meet with him again! He`s GOLDEN!!! 

Sunday I also was so happy. Matsuzaki Kyodai came to General Conference with some members. He had bought a new suit and looked super spiffy. Talking with him in between the sessions just made me elated. He was so filled with light and hope. You could see it in his eyes. The gospel really does change people. He is evidence of that. 

I think the only news other than that is that we have a new ward mission leader. Yes, the Beloved K**** Kyodai was released. I will miss that man. 

 But we have another cute old man as our ward mission leader. After our first real meeting with him on Friday, him and his wife wanted to take us out for dinner. At first there was no objections...Especially when we found out it was going to be a yakuniku. The korean meat bbq. 

But they ordered SOOO MUCH FOOD!  I have honestly never eaten that much food in one sitting in my ENTIRE LIFE!! Oh my goodness. And they just kept ordering more. Bless their hearts they spent AT LEAST 250 dollars on meat. AT LEAST probably more like 300 dollars. 

They wouldn`t eat like hardly any of it, and it`s SUPER rude not to eat the food so we just kept eating and eating. Afterward when all four of us got home we were so full we all were just laying on the ground, we couldn`t move. It hurt to breathe there was so much food in our stomach. 

Haha. Well, that`s it. 

I love you all lots and lots! 

Love, Dobson Shimai

The Sky Was So Beautiful

The Sky Was So Beautiful

BAPTISM!!!

October 7, 2013

Hello family and friends! 

I am so jealous that all of you got to watch conference. Seriously! I can`t wait for this week when I get to watch it!!! 

Things here are going really well. 

The first of the week I was mostly doing Sister Training Leader stuf, training meetings and exchanges. Those are always good but whenever I get back to Mikunigaoka I just feel at home. It feels so good!! I love it here. 

Speaking of being here...TRANSFERS!

Yep. Transfers are this week. But....I am so happy!! No one in our apartment is leaving!!!!!!!

I love all the sisters here and I can`t wait for this next transfer. Poor Crofts Shimai has to put up with me again, but I am excited. :) 

I did have a horrible realization last night. This is my last transfer. Ugh! Where did all of the time go? Crazy fast!

Well the highlight of the week was....M****`s BAPTISM!!!!!!! He did it! He got baptized!! I was seriously so happy! After he was baptized and got the Holy Ghost, he really looked like he was glowing. It`s hard to describe, but he just looked so much brighter. 

This really is the truth. This is the only way that people will be able to be happy in this life and return and live with Heavenly Father in the next.  Aren`t we so blessed?! 

I am so excited for M**** Kyodai. He really is so strong. The members are just so excited about him which is fun to see. After his baptism he bore his testimony about how God`s timing was perfect. And how right when he was trying to find direction in his life we knocked on his door.  He even told everyone how he was the first person that actually answered the door in his apartment complex as we went knocking every door. 

He just said how he knows this isn`t the end, but the beginning. What wonderful words coming from a recent convert! We are so excited for him!!!!!!! 

Then there is Y****

Kyodai...We really don`t know how to help him. We`ve tried everything we can think of, we have tried to receive revelation and teach off of that, but nothing is working with him. We came up with a bunch of inspired questions. Really trying to figure out his desire so that we can connect everything to that. He started opening up a little bit which was exciting.

He really just wants a safe life and world peace. And it actually lead it really nicely to the Holy Ghost. After we testified of the Holy Ghost I asked him if he would like to receive the Holy Ghost. He said that of course he would like that but he doesn`t want the step before the Holy Ghost. hmm....

What he is saying, is that his life is fine the way it is so he doesn`t need baptism. But also he mentioned about how he doesn`t feel worthy even to be baptized. And he said he doesn`t believe there is any way that God could forgive him for the things he has done in the past. When we started talking about repentance he brushed it off and said it doesn`t apply to him. This poor man is hurting so bad, and he could be healed if he just accepted it. But he won`t. But I`m glad I`m not transferring. Hopefully we can keep working with him to soften his heart. 

Funny story from yesterday. Yesterday we were in this neighborhood with the SOO many kids. They were all so cute! And of course they love us gaijin. One girl even said she would listen to our message and that she wanted to learn about God. Unfortunately she is 5 and her mom said no. But she told her mom that she wanted to go to church, maybe one day. :) 

Well I love you so much!!! 

Love, Dobson Shimai

Celebrating with IceCream & Black Thunder Mmmmmm