New Area, New Companion, New Challenges

I made it to my new area! This week was super busy. We had P-day, service, transfers, district day (I don't know how I feel about that yet), English class, a lot of meals/practice lessons, and church.

Right before it was time to leave to my new area, I was ready! I had packed all my things, I knew this is what needed to happen and I said my goodbyes. However, after getting to my new area I started to feel homesick for Incheon. I missed the people, my companion, and the big city like feeling. My new area is more country like, but like my last area houses still don't exist. Even though I have those feelings, I love this area, the people, and my new companion.

 

My new companion is Sister Holmes. She is from Danville, Pennsylvania. She is fun and we talk a lot. It is really hard to get us to stop talking. I know now that I needed Sister Kelly as my trainer, and right now I need Sister Holmes as my companion. 

It has been hard to change everything I was used to. The routines, the house, the environment, the companion, the district, etc. But it is teaching me one important lesson. "Life Begins at the End of Your Comfort Zone." -Neale Donald Walsch. 

I'm not sure what other missions do this, but in my mission we decorate our planners so they aren't boring. Since I was leaving, Sister Kelly decorated mine. She put the quote stated above on it. This transfer my goal is to get outside my comfort zone. Even though I thought I knew what it was like to be a missionary, I have learned I only knew the half of it. 

Nothing about being a missionary is comfortable, but that's why I'm learning so much. In Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin's talk Come What May and Love It, he expresses this very idea. He said, 

"Learning to endure times of disappointment, suffering, and sorrow is part of our on-the-job training. These experiences, while often difficult to bear at the time, are precisely the kinds of experiences that stretch our understanding, build our character, and increase our compassion for others." 

Although this transfer hasn't been easy so far, I know it will make me stronger. Even though I miss my old area and companion, I'm so excited to work in Shinpoong and work with the people here. It may be uncomfortable, but I know through Christ I can do all things (Alma 26:12). I'm looking forward to all the disappointment, because all that does is give me the opportunity to learn. 

Sister Mustain

Sister Holmes

 



Transfers!!

Guess what?!?! I'm done with training, and I'm being transferred to 신풍 Shinpoong. It's so exciting! All last week I was worried about it because I didn't want to move. I wasn't ready to leave, but as the week went on I felt comfort from the events that took place. I told my companion I'm ready to leave. I'm ready to be on my own and step out of my comfort zone.

This week I want to talk about the eternal perspective because I'm experiencing so much change. There is a wonderful talk by Elder Rafael E. Pino in the most recent General Conference titled "The Eternal Perspective of the Gospel." It says, "The eternal perspective of the gospel leads us to understand the place that we occupy in God’s plan, to accept difficulties and progress through them, to make decisions, and to center our lives on our divine potential." This has helped me this week with transfer calls and the end of my training to realize this is only the beginning. This mission will change me if I focus on the my purpose eternally rather than my purpose to get through this day or that lesson. 

I'm so blessed to be a missionary. This week was so hard, but I'm so grateful for it. On Tuesday we walked all day from one appointment to another in the heat of the summer. Even though I was tired and sweaty, it gave me the chance to step out of my comfort zone and talk to people. I had a lot of these experiences throughout the week and each time it made talking to people a little bit easier.

This week we got a new investigator, 한재회. We met with her on Tuesday and got to know her. Then we met with her again on Saturday. It was supposed to be 30 minutes English 30 minutes gospel. She was curious about our religion and asked to just talk about the gospel in English. We ended up teaching her the entire Restoration, and left her with the Book of Mormon to read. We texted her today about it. She has already read a little bit of it and said it is similar to the Bible. She is amazing, and so kind and loving. I believe she is ready to receive the gospel. I'm excited to meet with her one more time before I transfer. This helped me to see God is preparing people to receive the gospel. Even though I'm transferring I'm still happy for the missionaries who get to help this woman draw closer to Christ and our Heavenly Father.

I'm so blessed for this week.  I'm starting to understand why I needed to serve a mission. At the end of the talk I mentioned, he states, "The Lord knows what He wants to accomplish with each one of us. He knows the kind of reform He wants to achieve in our lives, and we do not have the right to counsel Him. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts." 

I know God is working on each of us. Although change is hard, it is how God helps us reach our full potential. 

Mustain 자매

                                                                                                         

 

 

Just Keep on Trying

Since Sister Kelly is Sister Training Leader we went on exchanges again this week. Sister Kelly went to the other sisters area and I stayed in ours. This meant I became senior companion for 24 hours. I had to use more Korean than I'm used to!

In a way this was a blessing. I have been learning a lot of Korea, and I can speak it. However, I've been lacking the confidence to speak it. Being the senior companion, I had to start conversations at our appointments and let them know we had to go. It was hard, but I'm so grateful I had the chance to struggle. I even learned to text in Korean. 

I had other chances to test my Korean throughout the week. On Saturday our district did a proselyting activity in which we all went out and talked to people in the same area and met back up for lunch with our ward mission leader. Through this I got a lot of practice talking to people because Sister Kelly pushed me to talk. She gave me the boost of confidence I needed. It didn't lead to anything, but it helped me realize how much I really know. 

On Sunday we did phone calls, and guess who started them? That's right, me. Sister Kelly wrote down what I needed to say, I practiced the sentences, and then we called. I was super nervous, but it turned out just fine. The worst thing that happened was they hung up. It wasn't as scary as I thought and I'm starting to become more comfortable at being a missionary, because frankly being a missionary is awkward. 

This morning I was reading in Helaman about Samuel the Lamanite. God told him to go and preach the gospel to the Nephites, but they wouldn't let him into their city. So what did he do? He didn't just leave and say "I'm done. I’m tried." He got up on the wall of the city and began to preach to the people. Helaman 13:4:

“And it came to pass that they would not suffer that he should enter into the city; therefore he went and got upon the wall thereof, and stretched forth his hand and cried with a loud voice, and prophesied unto the people whatsoever things the Lord put into his heart.”

This is not only the kind of missionary I want to be, but it is also the type of person I want to become. Someone who keeps on trying. I know as we strive to become like Samuel and never give up, the Lord will bless us. I'm so grateful for Samuel's example. I'm grateful for this week and the strength it has given me to keep on trying. 

Mustain 자매

                                                                                                                             

Relying on God

This week was super busy. Sister Kelly is now Sister Training Leader so we had Mission Leadership Council, zone training, and exchanges this week. So basically a lot of meetings. They were all really good though! 

So I've been trying to be better about setting goals. This week I set a goal to rely more on the Lord. This goal comes from the Christ like Attribute humility. I've been studying humility this week. It has been amazing to see how important humility is as I've been reading the war chapters in Alma. The Nephites were at war with the Lamanites, a war that seemed to never end. However, the Nephites were continually able to defeat the Lamanites despite the fact their armies were so much smaller than the Lamanites. Alma 58:37, "..We trust God will deliver us, notwithstanding the weakness of our armies, yea, and deliver us out of the hands of our enemies."   The difference was they rely on God to deliver and protect them. 

What stood out to me the most in my studies was the story of the 2,000 Stripling Warriors. Their fathers had made a covenant with God they would never fight a war again, but would die rather than fight with another person. Their sons showed great humility and took the place of their fathers in defending their people and the Nephites. They said in Alma 58:46-47, 

46 For as I had ever called them my sons (for they were all of them very young) even so they said unto me: Father, behold our God is with us, and he will not suffer that we should fall; then let us go forth; we would not slay our brethren if they would let us alone; therefore let us go, lest they should overpower the army of Antipus.

47 Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.

I love this because they truly had learned to rely on the Lord and this is something I've been striving to do. This week we had two instances where I was able to do this. I'll start with the second one. 

On Wednesday Sister Kelly and I went on exchanges, and I had to plan a practice lesson by myself. I was also senior companion, so I had to lead the discussion in Korean. I was able to apply what I learned and trust God would help me. It went great! I was able to be guided by the spirit in what I should say. The Lord was there to lift me up when I struggled. I know as we rely on him, we will feel his love and his guidance. He is just a pray away.

The first instance happened on Monday after grocery shopping. With grocery shopping in Korea, we put the food in a box and carry it back to our apartment. We had to get a pretty big box, and it was too heavy for me to carry. So Sister Kelly, being the best trainer she is carried it. I carried the eggs and the bread. It was fine at first. We made it on the bus, but then we had to transfer to another bus which was about a ten minute walk without a big heavy box. So we began walking to the next bus stop. And you know what happened...The box began to fall apart. I didn't know what to do so I prayed with all my heart someone would help us. Sister Kelly was praying too. So we continued down the longest street in the world with a big heavy box.  And when Sister Kelly was about to give up, the Lord answered us in the form of an old grandmother. At first she offered to carry the box, but we weren't going to let her do that. So instead she offer to carry the eggs so I could help Sister Kelly with the box. God really does hear and answer our prayers. We were able to make it the rest of the way. The box became so disfigured that we were able to stick the eggs in there and carry the box the rest of the way together. 

I'm so grateful to God and for him teaching me to rely on him. Have a wonderful week and remember he is always there! 

Sister Mustain

 

These are the groceries!

 

 

 

Prayer Works

So much happened this week which made me so tired. But hey, that made going to bed easier. This week I learned two very important lessons: always update the records, and don't forget to pray.  

On Monday we had a dinner appointment and we left with plenty of time to get there. When we got there we found out the record was wrong and ended up being  an hour late to our appointment. So always make sure to update the records because it may not affect you, but it will affect future missionaries.  

Then on Thursday, we got to our appointment earlier only to realize she wanted to meet us at her work not at her house. It was crunch time because she could only meet for an hour. So we had to take a taxi, except one problem, there wasn't one in sight. So I said a prayer while Sister Kelly was trying to figure out what to do. And guess what... a taxi came and we were only ten minutes late to our appointment, and everything worked out. It was with a member and she was super sweet and understanding. God hears and answers our prayers and he knows us. He wants to help us, all we have to do is ask. How amazing is that?!? 

This week I learned as I pray I can learn to rely on him. I was struggling with who I want to be as a missionary and as a person this week. So I had been praying to know. On Friday we had a combine mission conference with the Seoul Mission. It was amazing! Even though I didn't pray to receive an answer at the conference, I got my answer. God answered my prayer and he will answer yours. I know that is true with all my heart. 

Last week I talked about how I was going to try and be more bold this week. And so far it is going well. I'm trying hard to speak up and it is starting to get easier to talk to people. I still struggle and I'm far from perfect, but God is helping me to perform the tasks he has asked of me. On Tuesday our appointment fell through so we had time to walk around and proselyte. We walked by a park and there was a Mom sitting on a bench watching her kids. When I saw her I thought, Ok here's your chance. So when Sister Kelly asked if I wanted to talk to her I didn't hesitate.  I started the conversation and we ended up talking to her for a half hour. Nothing has come of it yet, but I know it gave me the confidence I needed to talk to people.  I'm so grateful for this week and the incredible people I have the opportunity to serve. I know this gospel is true.

Have an incredible week and remember God loves you!

Mustain 자매

Riding the train