PSYCHE!!!!!!!!!! and 中秋節快樂！

So.... last tuesday. as nervous as we  were for transfers..... we get a text from the zone leaders saying, transfers have been pushed back a week!!!! WHAT?! and now we get another week to just relax and work hard! and work hard we did! we saw so many miracles, i know that transfers getting pushed back was not an accident..... no way. it was all in God's plan. 

So. transfers are this week, and now we are in that nervous anticipation again. and they are on a thursday not a friday! wow. changing everything up!

ALSO YESTERDAY WAS 中秋節! (ZhongQiuJie) Mid Autumn Festival. I am started to repeat holidays. you know when you are an old missionary. when this starts to happen. haha. this year totally made up for last year. (i don't know if yall remembered but we didn't get invited to kao rou.... BBQ...... but this year we got to go to 3!!) yum. i am so full. these people know how to eat. i will tell you that. haha

 #1. marshmallows!!!!

and this #2. Oysters!!! (Yum!!!)

and this is #3. a family(they are investigators)! and shrimp!

we saw so many miracles this week and worked so hard. and while at the end some things didn't work out and people used their agency not to come to church. it wasn't a waste of time. this whole transfer wasn't a waste of anyones time or effort. 

the church is as true as ever. our members are the best. and BBQ tastes good. 

keep on keeping everyone!!! 

LOVE SISTER WALKER (:

and oh yay, sorry i thought i told yall, because we ended up being in a rush to get home we didn't do that testimonies... woooh. saved for the next time haha  (: we didn't get home until 10:30 and because our house is so far away we ended up just staying at the other sister's apartment closer. and then we rode home in the morning for exercise. (:

oh yes!! our people!!! i love them!!!!! it was so happy to see!!! also. this week i heard about another miracle.... when i was with sister giles we met this lin jm..... and we gave her an english tract and gave her number to the other sisters..... and well, she is getting baptized on 10/10!!! wow.... so happy! she was like, if i didn't meet you... i would have been here... i wouldn't have been happy. and that was the best thing i ever heard. wow. 

primary programs really are the best! they do them in taiwan too! i can't wait until it is primary program time again (:(: and you are right! we should share primary songs with our investigators.. because i realize they are simple. and easy to understand. that is how we try to teach (: thanks!

wow!!! we got the cool experience of going visiting teaching with some of our sisters to visit this new member... and they shared that message. it was so perfect because we are helping her to get to the temple! she is excited but we still need to help her a lot. (: haha she is ready to learn and work though, so we are going to do all we can too (:(:

LOVE YOU !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (: 

sister walker

i cut my companion's hair. haha! (: she needed some layers...... after her $3 hair cut. it all worked out ok (: (: haha

THE WEATHER IS CHANGING. literally it is almost fall.

WOW!!!! another week!!!!! THINGS ARE JUST FLYING BY!!!!!!!!!!!

and our friends are doing good. we have our lovely Brother Xu (: ah! let me tell you a story about him.... ok, so we had set up that we were going to go over and visit him, and he called us and said that he was so tired tonight because he just got off work.... he said we could come over on friday and we said we couldn't because we already had a plan to go take the train to a really far away area..... and then i just asked him, Xu DiXiong, what do you do for work? still confused. but i asked him when he had work off, he said that he gets 4 days off a month. what? and they are all just random times. then he said that actually he has 2 jobs. and that job is the same way.. only 4 days off per month. and it is not guaranteed that those days line up. i really have no idea how he lives. and guess what, his wife works all day... and doesn't get home until about 9 pm and then when she has work off she goes to gaoxiong for classes. what? what is this life? but guess. what. something melted my heart. i asked if he got a chance to pray. and he said yes! i prayed before i ate my food. what? wow! how amazing that is. that not even at a time that he needed God's help. or to ask for anything that he waited to eat food to pray to God. wow.

we had stake conference on sunday. so many emotions!!!! I seriously almost felt like it was like the celestial kingdom. i got to see all the members from hualian again.... all the way back a whole year ago..... wow!!!!! it was the best thing ever. also. got to meet with my investigator that got baptized after i left...... Sister Yang, she isn't doing so good. but i hope that it rekindled a fire that I know is still burning in there. so amazing to see the progress of a whole year!!! WE ARE A STAKE!!!!!!!!!!! wow. amazing. 

cool story: on tuesday we had outdoor zone conference. guess what. the same time and place as last year!!!! feeling so trippy! haha, nostalgic. and we were walking along and i remembered that i had sent a referral to the hualian elders a few weeks ago and we never heard about them..... and they were so cool! anyway... so i find the elders and i am like... we gave you that referral the other day, remember and how are they? and he was just like, oh they are awesome, they are getting baptized next week! what?!?! the happiest moment ever. that made that whole day like 100X better than it already was!!! wow!!! i have never gotten that response before!!! so awesome (: so happy!!!!

and at stake conference we got to see them again!!! the mom wasn't there, she is really busy on the weekends, but the two boys and the grandma are getting baptized next week!!! wow!!!! we found them, and everyone was saying, wow, i am so grateful because now they get to be in our ward. they were so happy! they love it there. the grandma was going to come back to taidong... but then if she had... then there wouldn't be anyone to take the sons to church so she decided to stay. wow. so amazing.

here is from the outdoor zone conference!!!! TAROKO GORGE!!! one of the most beautiful places in the world!!!! haha, this everyone was just coming up to me and just being like, wow, you are dressed so taiwanese... that even taiwanese people don't even dress that taiwanese. haha, mostly the pants. haha (: thank you thank you. 

also. i love my companion,.sister komatsu is the best thing ever. and she is perfect hugging size! haha

wow!!! it is becoming fall. you can totally feel it... we were riding back the other day at night and it was raining a little bit and it was cold! weird! i totally forgot how that felt! haha, not to the point where we need to break out the cardigans yet... but soon. weird. i wonder if it won't be as cold in taidong. i really hope i don't move.... this week is transfers. i am a little nervous. at outdoor zone conference i was walking next to president, and i was just like, so do you know whats going on for transfers that you'd like to share? and he was just like, i don't know yet sister walker.... haha and then later he realized that elder michaelis and i were at the same outdoor conference last year. the only ones! and he was like wow, that is amazing, and i was like, you are so right.... its like i was here at the beginning... and now almost to the end, huh? huh? haha, he just laughed. i love our mission president! haha, he is so great, his talk in stake conference was like the best too!!!

it was about sharing the gospel. him and his family had this goal to give out book of mormons and share the gospel. and so he did it. but he needed some encouragement from his sons on a business trip... such a funny story. haha, everyone was laughing so hard. but i really liked at the end he explained that there is only 3 things that we need to do to share the gospel. 1. share our personal experience 2. bear testimony 3. introduce the missionaries. the missionaries will help. and it is so true! if only we could do this better as members.

he was so proud of us. we just feel like his kids too (:

i have too much to say and no more time!!!! just know that God is in charge. of everything. no need to worry. To be humble means to be confident in Him.

love sister walker (:

train ride home from hualian!

we met some cute friends.... (:(: we talked to them for about 2 hours haha (:

and i opened my package!!! thanks so much!!!!!!

 i am soooo excited! you are all the best!!!!!

love!

EVERY DAY, I FEEL LIKE MARIO!!

hello everyone. happy monday/sunday. 

i am doing great down here in the promised land.... 

FIRST. i would like to explain my title, so let me explain a missionary life. or our life recently. we having been doing a lot of finding to fill up our teaching pool. and this means. talking to everyone. i mean we do that no matter what. but really. we are talking to everyone we see. with the hope that this person will be the person to accept an invitation to learn more. So we go along.... and we find a person willing to talk with us for a bit, and then we pray with them, and everyone likes that. i haven't met a person yet who doesn't like prayer..... and then we teach them a principle that they need, usually about the book of mormon, or families, or God's love, etc. etc. or all of them. and then we talk about baptism, etc. etc. etc. finally we invite them to say a prayer. and then we give them a book of mormon, set up a time to meet again and get their info and say goodbye to go do it again! and as we say goodbye and walk away i always want to skip and put my fist up in the air like mario... to get the gold coin... right? i am pretty sure i am not making this up... anyway.... yes, and when i go up to hit it, we get a coin and they get one too...and that is the little bit of happiness and joy from hope. it is very exciting.

SECOND. sister komatsu and i were talking the other day about what motivates us. and i sat there, and i was like, where do i begin? i think everything motivates me......

1. hope. hope that this will be the person, hope that i can overcome my weaknesses, hope that comes through faith and christ, and that i can be more like Him. 

2. people we meet, people we say hi too, people we teach, investigators, less actives, new members, other members, and all that we are learning and changing together.

3. missionaries in the taiwan taipei mission, and all over the world

4. family, praying for me and supporting me from back home, and my cousin in the other mission.

5. friends, from home, on the mission, from the wards here, from the ward back home, from school, for the future

6. my future life and family. i know that i am learning so much here that will change the rest of my life and everyone i meet.

7. obedience because that is one of the 1st laws of heaven.

ultimately i think it comes down to HOPE. which is my greatest Christlike attribute. haha. cool, now i just have to work on the other ones... haha (:

THIRD. We got fang'd a lot this week. like 2-3 times per day. and i think i have explained this before.... but fang'd means that you were stood up, or cancelled last minute, etc. etc. and yesterday, i was saying to sister Komatsu, i am almost sick of getting fangd.... almost. for some reason, i just don't feel upset. 

yes, there is a difference when you have christ's name on a badge on you all the time. (: did i tell you i sleep with my tag on? haha (:

also, for some reason... we go. and go and go. and bike and bike. but i don't really feel that tired. i can still keep doing it. weird. :) AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (: haha

FOURTH. we had like the best combined family home evening the other day in LuYe, and it was the best... and just last minute like, last week they asked the missionaries... us and the elders to do the activity and lesson.... so basically everyone ate together and then they turned the time over to us. and i am sooo sooo sooo happy because it turned out so great. we shared Mosiah 18:17, 21-25 and we did the activity where you make the web with the rope with everyone and it is a team building, unity activity. so fun!!! everyone loved it. and we all received so much revelation. Afterward we talked about it, and invited everyone to participate in our 21 day promise mission plan. did i tell you about that? i can't remember..... but basically you think of some people that need the gospel or need some help and etc. etc. and then pray for them for 21 days and read these scriptures. and then missionaries and leaders work together to help them come to Christ! so good. and yes.

 

We are doing good. this week was good. next week will be good. and forever. will be good. because God is good. the gospel is good. But not only good. ITS THE BEST.

LOVE SISTER WALKER

also random pic of one of the best thing ever taro....... look it up.

oh and also.... this thing that the seven elevens do here.... you spend $75 you get a sticker... and then for the next $35 you get another sticker.... and then you get a collection and at the end you win a free cute cup! yay!! (:(: we won this month! we will get our cup next week (:(: haha

check out this pic... i look like i have a halo because of the fan in the background.... but this shirt is great (: haha

another silence before the MIRACLE>

we are preparing for our Miracles we are going to see this week. It is pretty exciting. MIRACLES ARE ALL AROUND US. We just have had the feeling recently that we don't have like any investigators. It is true. and the elders have been feeling the same way.... but i told everyone at missionary coordination meeting that this means there is a huge miracle coming our way!!! EXCITING HUH?

One thing that has been amazing is that in our zone meeting, someone brought up the project purification that we did a couple months ago... and so sister komatsu and i decided that that is exactly what we need to do. And so we did it! Yesterday we had our fast, and now we are going to become purified for the rest of the transfer. 

We really want to be captained by Christ... we want our dirty water to be turned into pure wine. PLEASE SEE JESUS'S FIRST MIRACLE. We have been feeling that we have been lead by the spirit recently, but we know there are all things that can be improved. We are turning in and asking, Lord, is it I? 

I think at this point on my mission i have been feeling satisfied. and not that that feeling is bad, but i don't want it to hinder the spirit and my desire to keep going! I want to overcome laziness. I know that that fast really reminded me of a few small things i can do to be better. 

Our area is a pretty new area, our members are so great though! And they are really what keeps us going, we are helping them all have a desire to go to the temple. One thing that happened this week that was esp. special. ha. is that we got to attend ward council and talk about the missionary work lately and what are the names, and goals from the ward council so we can better work together to help these people make it to the temple! It is really exciting.

A miracle, amongst the many we saw this week was that we got to go to guanshan..... an area that i have never been too, and not many members even knew the members there, so we took our ward list, and the map and we got to visit everyone that we wanted too. We saw amazing experiences meeting a member, Lu JM, she hadn't been to church in a very long time! and we got to give her an opportunity to pray and give her a book of mormon. Her prayer was so sincere, she really wanted to know from God if this is the way that she needs to turn in her life right now. It was amazing, because we only had about 10 minutes until the train left to go back, but we felt the strong impression we needed to go see her. We biked really fast, and really safely.

this is the cute little place we went!!! basically paradise. we were just riding around and i looked over at sister komatsu... and i was like, where are we? welcome to paradise. a place famous for rice. haha, anyway... another funny story... we go all the way out to guanshan... and we stop at this house in the middle of no where to see the address... and the people come and out, and i say we are a little lost, and ask if they can help..... haha. they are totally americans. and he walks out and is just like, do you speak english? and im like yaaaa......... they are totally from texas. crazy!

 On the train ride back we met a Hu DX, he was just sitting there on the train with his leopard print hat looking at his phone.... I remember thinking back to the talk i had read that morning about  a sacred missionary who teaches along the way... meaning on the train, on the road, everywhere. And so we took a deep breath and made the effort. We went over awkwardly and started talking to him. he was the most prepared person ever. he said that he had tried to feel it before.... jesus christ and the holy ghost. He asked, how can we know that Jesus is real and that God loves us? We prayed for him, and he was so excited! He got to say a prayer afterward and in it He said thanks for letting us see a miracle. Because it was. And that is how we feel God's love. We gave him a book of mormon and was even more excited because his train kept going for another 3 hours after we got off. wow. One last experience..... we needed to stop at the 7/11 to get some water and go to the bathroom. I walked in and saw this white guy sitting in one of the chairs in the back..... and so i go to the bathroom, come back out and my amazing companion is talking to that guy. And i walk over, taking some courage and we talk to him, and he is talking about his family, and uncertain about the future etc. I explain that the reason why i am on a mission is that the gospel brings me happiness and my family can be together forever. and he said, really? oh, i don't understand? And we said, can we sit down. And right there in that 7/11 we taught the restoration/plan of salvation in english. for the first time in my life. Afterward, I just felt so charged up. He also got a chance to say the first prayer of his life. Afterward, he was just like, yes, that feels good. WOW! (: The spirit was so there.

Recently I have been thinking that a major thing that has been happening on my mission is this conflict in my mind about spending time to help the investigator that is going a little slower to be golden or do we just move on and find the people that are ready now. and are golden to be baptized really soon. of course it is all based on the spirit and there is no right answer. but i just know that no effort is wasted. And hopefully this week we can be more in tune to know what we need to do to help our vineyard. Our sheepfold. That is our goal, to do better inviting and focusing on baptism. 

At this time in our area, we only really have a few investigators, recently we have been seeing a lot of prepared miracle people, but they don't live in our area.... etc. but i am happy to find those people for others, and i know we will see the blessings (:

I know that we are about to see a huge miracle, we are preparing ourselves. 

LOVE SISTER WALKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

also... its a thing to have peanut butter, banana, and bacon on your burger. try it. its good.

another pic of guanshan

This road says...RESTORATION!  Haha :)

My tan line :)

AMONGST THE WEIRDNESS THERE WAS MIRACLES.

Remember how I said that last week, i was so happy and content, etc. 

Well, lets just say, that the Lord always wants us to grow. Therefore.... this week happened. haha.

t this week might have been the weirdest week of my mission. Just a whole bunch of crazy things happened. But despite all the interesting events, we had an amazing week. We saw miracles every single day. From small to very large. Like new baptismal date investigators!
Sister Komatsu and I have been working really hard and have been learning a lot. We have been seeing so much success from helping our teaching.... specifically trying to do it in unity! We have been focusing on sharing with everyone about the restoration! Our 4 minute power lessons are awesome. One thing that was really cool, we wanted to share lesson 1 with him, but our peike only had approximately 10 minutes. It was amazing to see him afterwards say, oh, i understand. That was a little tender mercy from Heavenly Father.

Basically. 

Weirdness:

-this week everyone has been worshiping the ghosts.

-people are angry from the rain

-it rained everyday

-we are losing investigators left and right

-the road is out in a critical spot, so we have been lost a little

-we have been finding interesting people to talk with

Miracles:

-we found the most prepared family ever that starting crying from talking about baptism

-new baptismal date investigator, someone who we pass by all the time and just so happened to stop by and talk to. she has amazing questions!

-referrals from random people because we keep asking!

-we became the first sisters ever to bike to this one recent converts house

-i have biked the farthest in my mission last week, yet we are still alive

-we contacted prepared referrals

-found this other amazing investigator that was so excited, jumping in and out of her seat about the scriptures!

-so many. i can't even count. but yes. it was amazing. 

I read this talk today called, "Ask the missionaries, they can help you!"

Here are some parts that I liked. 

Preparation for a mission is important. A mission is a voluntary act of service to God and humankind. Missionaries support that privilege with their personal savings. Parents, families, friends, and donors to the General Missionary Fund may also assist. All missionaries, younger and older, serve with the sole hope of making life better for other people.

The decision to serve a mission will shape the spiritual destiny of the missionary, his or her spouse, and their posterity for generations to come. A desire to serve is a natural outcome of one’s conversion, worthiness, and preparation.
You may have previously encountered, or even ignored, our missionaries. My hope is that you will not fear them but learn from them. They can be a heaven-sent resource to you.

see: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2012/10/ask-the-missionaries-they-can-help-you?lang=eng

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

love, sister walker.