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November 11, 2013

It`s really weird writing this email. I know in my head that this is the last time I will email all of you. But it still hasn`t hit my heart yet. 

Well, this week was super awesome! We have cool things moving along here. 

First is always A**** Chan. I just LOVE her! She really is progressing super well! She has such a pure and believing heart. If she feels like it is truth, then she just readily accepts it. We even taught her about the atonement very simply, and she really understood it. 

She came to church and everybody just loves her. She fits right in. :) 

Y****  Kyodai

We also had a really cool experience with Y**** Kyodai! Well a few weeks ago he called us and said he wasn`t going to meet us at the church any more. If we wanted to meet him it would have to be at the mall or McDonalds. And we could teach him there. Well, I knew that teaching him at the mall was not going to be conducive to the Spirit, so I just told him that, that wasn`t happening. And if he wanted to come to church anytime he was free to come. 

I think he was kind of angry at us about that. And we didn`t hear from him for a while. But as a mission right now we have really been working on helping our investigators help themselves come unto Christ. And we do that by helping them with their prayers,Book of Mormon reading, and coming to church. 

So me and Crofts Shimai prepared a really good Book of Mormon lesson for him. And then we trusted in the Lord. And He pulled through. Tuesday afternoon we got a call from Y**** Kyodai. It went something along the lines of, `I want to meet at the church. Can you meet on Thursday? Ok. See you then. Bye.` I was super startled at first and not quite sure what had happened, but I was not complaining.

Well we show up to the church on Thursday for our lesson and he pulls out his Book of Mormon, puts it on the table and asks, `how am I supposed to read this?`. Whoa! So cool! When he said that my testimony just shot out of the roof. I knew that because we had prepared, the Lord blessed us and him so that he would be able to start progressing again. So cool!

Well, we obviously taught him about studying the Book of Mormon. Afterwards he said that it was very easy to understand and that he would try it. 

Zinke Kaicho (President Zinke)  is so inspired and I am grateful for him. I am grateful for the Lord who arranged all of this. And I am grateful to be a missionary taking part of this great work. 

We also got to meet with R**** and J****ana this week. Because they are both devout Catholics, they only say specific prayers. So we felt like we needed to simply teach prayer. 

Thank heavens for visual aids, (thanks to my trainer, Anderson Shimai who taught me how to make good visual aids) and the Spirit. Because combined they were able to understand and they both prayed at the end of the lesson. 

After they prayed the Spirit was so strong. They said that they both felt it and that they are going to continue to pray this way. Yay!!! I was so happy! 

Also on Saturday we got special permission to go with Hiromi and Satoru to do a little sight seeing. They are the ones we met in the bike shop forever ago. They have been coming to Eikaiwa every week. Hiromi is a member of the ward next to ours and Satoru is her non member friend. 

We had a great time with them and got to have a really good discussion about God and religion. He still seems a little nervous about religion, but I think he is warming up and is eventually going to be baptized. He really is so great! 

Then Sunday morning before church we were able to meet with F**** San. This lady who randomly came to church a few weeks ago. 

We also taught her about prayer. She seems to have some pretty severe anxiety problems but when she found out she could talk with God she couldn`t stop smiling. She seemed so much happier.

When we asked her what she want to ask God she said that she wants the darkness in our life to go away. When she said that my heart just ached for her. This poor woman is surrounded by darkness and is yearning for light. I bask in light everyday. I am spoiled rotten. Really, there is nothing hard about my life. I am so blessed. 

Well church was a great experience as well. We had 4 investigators come to church. (A****, Y****, F****, and S****) and the other sisters also had 4 people come. 

I think that woke up the members a little bit. They were all looking around at all of these people and getting really excited. 

It`s so cool to see everyone get so excited about missionary work! I was just sitting there soaking up the joy that come from being a missionary. It made me never want to stop. 

But as my wise companion, Crofts Shimai told me when I was complaining that I had to go home, there is a time and season for everything. 

Sometimes, it`s just hard when those times change. 

Well, I love you all so much. 

I love this work so much. I love my Savior Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for my behalf. I know that God and Jesus Christ live. They love us more than we can imagine. And if we just turn to Them, they will lead and guide us safely back to their presence. 

The church is true! It is only through this gospel that we can find the most joy in this life, and eternal joy after this life. I am so grateful for it. 

I am so grateful for you. I love you, see you soon. 

Love, 

Dobson Shimai 

Arisa reminded me of my sister Becca