Baptisms and Birthdays

Thanks for the update about whats going on at home! I love hearing about it :) I can't believe how many tomatoes you guys are pulling from your garden. It sounds like it's just over-flowing! Also, the description of your Sunday dinner sounds amazing. You're such a good cook! I miss your cooking. Although, the food here is preetttty delicious, too.

So basically, my heart is breaking as I am meeting with people here in Xitun for the last time. No one has officially told me I'll be moving yet, but because my companion will be training a new missionary here, it's pretty much decided. I've been here for 6 months and I love the people here with all my heart. It's going to be really sad to leave. But everyone keeps telling me that I still have lots of amazing people to go meet, and they're right. I'm excited and nervous to go all at the same time.

This week was amazing though! XU JIEMEI GOT BAPTIZED!!! It was probably one of the happiest days of my life! I can't even explain how much I love Xu JM. She gave me a heart attack though. We have been meeting with her every day for the past month or so, and then last week she started being really flaky and blowing us off. We only met with her once, and her baptism was on Saturday. We called the two sets of elders in our district, our zone leaders, and our sister training leaders and asked them all to pray for her. They did. And then she met with us. She expressed some fears and worries and we had a nice good long talk. We then invited her to get a priesthood blessing, which she did. And then Saturday came, and everything worked out perfectly. It amazes me how willing and ready Heavenly Father is to answer our prayers. Whether it is asking something big as rescuing a nervous-close-to-baptism-investigator, or praying for the visual part of a Mormon message to work on the Internet so your investigator can feel the spirit (which also happened this week). Heavenly Father loves us all so much and is just waiting for us to ask for the blessings which He has promised to give us.

I'm also learning how important it is to do my part as I ask for these blessings, though. This whole move call I have been working on being more charitable. I have been studying it, praying for it, learning all I can about it. I have been praying for patience and charity harder than I think I have ever prayed for anything in my life. This week was my companions birthday, so I made her breakfast and put it on her desk with a card while she was in the shower. She was more than thrilled. She made me take several pictures for her, wiping away tears from her eyes between each shot. It was then that I felt the spirit tell me that this whole time I have been praying for charity and patience with my companion, but I hadn't DONE anything to earn that patience or charity. There is nothing more true than when the scriptures and prophets tell us that as we serve others, we learn to love.

Today, Xu JM put together a birthday/going away party for me and Zhu JM. She called some people from the ward and one of our investigators and we all went to an Italian place to eat a bunch of food. It was a lot of fun. Our investigator, Zhuang JM, brought Zhu JM and I flowers. There was even cake and ice cream and they sang happy birthday for us. I can't believe I am blessed enough to be surrounded by such amazing people. Goodness, how did I get so lucky? Heavenly Father loves me a lot :)

Well, that's about all. We are working hard and praying even harder. We see Heavenly Father's hand in our work every single day. We are seeing so many blessings and miracles left and right, and there is no way for me to ever deny that this church is true. I know who my Father is, and I am so thankful He allows me to feel a portion of His love for His children here in Taiwan.

I LOVE YOU MOM!! Tell Dad I love him lots, too. And don't forget cooper ;) Have a good week!