Happy Easter!

     Happy Easter!

 

     It has been a good week here, saw some miracles and awesome stuff.  It's been a good Easter like last year, even though nobody celebrates or has even heard of Easter here, it was good to take some time to remember Christ.

     

     Last pday, we ate with a member from Xinzhu (in 40s) that Elder Jensen helped baptize, and her high school teacher who is retired. We then went to a place and took pics by walls of paintings. we are trying to get the teacher interested in

the gospel. Today we will go hiking for a bit with the district then go get some shopping done. I gotta say, i am so glad to have fun pdays again, i really missed them.

 

     Next week is temple day, I am so excited, I haven't been since last July!  We go once every three months. Because I lived too far away in Yuli, I couldn't go last October and January.  I am so grateful to be in a mission with a temple. I feel sorry for people who only get to go to the temple once in their lives or not at all, it is such an amazing place.

 

     In his last email, my brother said that it was hard to be rejected by people. I agree, it can be hard being rejected only because we represent Christ. I remember some sisters telling me that if people reject us just because we represent Christ, how hard it must be for Christ when they reject Him.  When they reject us, they not only reject Him, but His Atonement.  I wonder why people reject Christ who offers every good thing. I was reading in the scriptures in the Bible dictionary about prayers or faith and I liked how it said that the ones that have iniquity are the ones that reject Christ. So people reject Christ because they feel guilty for what they have done and don't want to deal with those bad feelings and do whatever it takes to stay away from anything that reminds them that they did wrong, even if it means relief. Repentance is such a hard process because we have to deal with those bad feelings, but in the end we will feel better. I like a quote that asked which is better, that we fix the problems now or at the judgment bar of God.

 

     I like the new church Easter video #princeofpeace. i invite you all to share it on facebook, instagram or wherever, i don't know what social media people use these days, I was never into it. Here in Taiwan, they have this app called Line, which is pretty gives you free texting and phone calls. I want to get it after my mission to stay in touch. It's even more popular than facebook here.

     My companion, Sister Huang, (Sister Yellow) has a cool life and I learn new things about her all the time. She used to be an actress and a model. I'm not kidding, we have walked down the street and at a big and another small poster, she's like, "I know that girl, she worked at the same modeling company as me." I was like, "What?" and then she has told me that she lived in Russia for a year, has been to Japan when she was little, and went to Utah last Christmas to visit the elders who helped baptize her (she's been a member for two years). She is "visa waiting" right now and will go to the England MTC on May 31. Usually, trainers train their trainees for 12 weeks (two transfers), but I will be with her for only 10. I will probably a member will be my companion for two weeks. 

     For Easter, I attended another sacrament meeting with some investigators. It was super awesome and super spiritual.  People in Taiwan don't celebrate Easter, all they know about it is maybe chicks, rabbits and eggs. 

     We are copying the sisters' example and making an awesome sacrament meeting for Mother's Day filled with songs and we are going to make it super spiritual. 

The members are awesome here, lots of single women. 

     It's been a great week. Love you all!  Please pray for the members and our investigators as well as our recent converts. 

     I know this gospel is true and I am so grateful to see the Lord's hand in my life so many times. 

-Sister Brinkerhoff

General Conference Galore

Hey Everyone!

     It has been a good week, with conference and Zone Meeting! Super awesome, can't wait to tell you all about it!

     Last pday: We ate lunch with some elders and members in xindian, where one of the elders previously was serving with his trainee. It's his trainee's birthday, and his trainee is training, so we just got together, ate then went to a park. 

A Sunday on La Grande Jatte by George Seurat

     You know that famous painting of people in the 1900's at a park, the painting is all made up of dots, called Sunday at the park I think? (I remember seeing it in the Chicago Museum, and seeing the other painting that goes with it at the London museum about a week later). That's exactly what it felt like, and ironically, a few days later, I saw a mosaiac of that painting at an elementary school in my area. 

     At the park, there was this lady dressed up like a cheetah and acting like a cat, just sitting there pretending to lick her hand. It was so crazy, a whole group was just staring at her. People were paying money to get pics with her. One member who was with us gave her money so we could get a pic. My camera battery was almost dead, so I got it on my comp's camera, I will send the picture shortly. 

     We have a Sister Guan getting baptized hopefully on April 29th. Please pray extra hard for her. She is 23, works, has some free time to meet with us. I think she needs friends and still needs to be converted a bit more. Please pray for her to have an amazing spiritual experience with repentance and Christ's Atonement. I hope that when she gets baptized, she is really ready to follow Christ her whole life. I have heard so many stories of people who are baptized but become LA as soon as the missionaries move away. Please pray that she won't follow that trend. The Sister Training Leaders found her while studying at a McDonald's weeks ago. They were teaching her until we came, since they didn't have sisters in our Taoyuan first ward for three years until we came. She is super awesome! Can't wait to see her get baptized! 

     Also, it was my Yuli RC Ding JM's birthday April 6th, same as Christ's. I called her and wished her a Happy Birthday. Please pray for her as well, she is super busy with her new work in Hualian and hasn't had much time to go to church and other stuff. Please pray that she will be less busy and can have more time to focus on her spiritual health. 

Miracles

     Last week we went to a park one night. My companion started talking to some kids, gave them cookies a member gave us earlier, and invited them to English class. We then played duck, duck, goose and blue shoes which they loved.The five kids from three different families came that Wednesday to our kids' English class and had a great time! It was so great! A few days later, the elders miraculously knocked on the door of the dad of one of those five cute kids. it was so cool, we hope we can teach them soon. 

     Funny story (This is for you cousin Benjamin, you are going to be sooo jealous)

     My companion and I were talking to three 11-year-old boys about basketball and invited them to play at our church gym on the fourth floor. We talked about our favorite NBA players, and my companion then proceeded to tell this story of running into Lebron James:

     In Kaoshiung, where my comp is from (in the other mission, more south of Taiwan), there was a huge Nike store being opened and the people invited Lebron James to come (unbeknownst to my companion). One day as she was going to her classes, she had to get off one bus and walk across the street for another. She saw that the streets were empty of people, which she thought was weird. She then walked one direction and saw a ton of people, and she didn't know why. In her hurry to take a bus to her classes, she ran into Lebron James. African Americans are very rare in Taiwan, I've only seen a handful on my mission. She didn't know who he was, she just remembered running into a really tall African American. She looked up at him and was like "Sorry," than ran off. She found out later that it was Lebron James. I know that if it was my cousin Benjamin in her shoes, he would have hugged him :) 

     I canNOT believe this will be my last general conference on my mission, it was kind of a punch in the gut to think about that actually. Last year's April General Conference, I was just starting my mission. I remember from that conference when the choir sang, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing," and the camera zoomed in on three men in the choir who were singing with tears streaming down their faces especially the "Prone to Wander, Lord I feel it, Prone to leave the God Iove" because they were so moved at the song (they sang it at Elder Scott's funeral months earlier, and they sang it right after someone gave a talk about drawing closer to God). 

     Singing with the members in Chinese- so moving, as the Mormon Tabernacle choir sang with the congregation, we sang the same song in Chinese. It was soo cool and so moving.  I will really miss singing in Chinese after my mission.  I heard one thing missionaries really miss most after their missions is going to church in their language. I heard BYU has a Chinese ward, so maybe I could attend that :) 

     We watched it with members in English with Chinese subtitles in the chapel. It was so nice, in the nice big chapel with comfy benches.

Spiritual Share 

     Our marching orders from the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from last year's missionary training broadcast in January 2016 is Teaching Repentance, Baptizing Converts #TRBC (when I first entered the MTC). Interestingly, I heard a story about how the saying was originally just going to be Baptizing Converts, but Elder Oaks was inspired last minute to add Teach Repentance. 

     I really love in 3 Ne 11, when Christ came to the Americas. The very first thing after meeting the Nephites was calling up Nephi and charging him to TRBC (especially verse 23). I added my name and it was powerful, and I encourage you to do the same.

     I invite you all to do some missionary work by sharing your favorite conference quote, scripture, or mormon message video on any social media site including Facebook. I heard one missionary say that the youth in the ward did that, then a week later they saw which of their Facebook friends liked it, and counted the number of people who liked it who weren't members and were surprised at the high number. It is sooooo simple and easy and helps introduce others to the gospel. 

     I also invite you to read The Living Christ which two or three people invited us to do.

     Love God, love my mission!

     Love you all, have a super awesome Easter Week!

Another Great Week!

     

     Sorry about last week's short email, and this week will be short as well so sorry. We are going to Xindian up in Taipei to play some board games with the elders and some of their friends. Today is a holiday, so the other missionaries will go to Leofoo world amusement park with members. Good luck to them, it's gonna be packed! I wanted to go again, but I remembered how we waited 1-2 hours in line for a seven-minute zoo train ride (like in Hogle Zoo) since a whole bunch of older people came and that was the only thing they could do at the park.

     District meeting was awesome! We were singing our mission song, "Truth Reflects Upon Our Senses" (a hymn about not judging people, I don't know why it's our mission song, I just it's just super fun to sing it in Chinese. I think it's better in Chinese than English), and whenever we sing the chorus, the elders belt it out like no other. At this district meeting, as we sang the chorus, members of another district in a nearby room came in and sang during the chorus.

      Last pday went bowling. super funny did some funny rolls I stink in bowling but that's okay.  We ate steak so good, we have an investigator who might get baptized in a few weeks - so many miracles.

     The members of the other wards and ours really love us. There are two wards that don't have sisters, and the members tell us constantly they wish they had sisters in their wards.  We are the first sisters in Tao First Ward in three years. 

     There's one elder who is being trained named Elder Robinson. I really admire how much he is trying to learn Chinese. He always makes us laugh, being a new missionary. Here's some of his quotes:  When he see's me and my comp: Jie Mei Men?! (Sisters)  Wei shenme ni make fun of wo? (Why do you make fun of me?)

Funny April Fool's Day joke:  My zone leader sent a text that president told us that we would be getting ipads in September so we needed to prepare since we are all on the edge of getting ipads which would be the greatest thing. But it was a joke.  Sister Cullen was like, so many missionaries are gonna email their families about getting an ipad. 

     Loving life, missions are the best, SO PUMPED TO SEE CONFERENCE THIS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY! 

Love you all!

-Sister Brinkerhoff