So! Youngdo!
This week we visited a few different investigators! One is named G_ K_. We visited his office; he is a border patrol guy and seems pretty high up in the work. His family all moved to Provo Utah a while ago and got baptized! I gave him Allie's contact info, cause his daughter might need help applying to BYU and she is Korean! While we were visiting, we could see in the bay right outside his office, the coast guard was doing a pirate drill. So there were 2 huge boats, one destroying the other's visibility with water, and a bunch of little ones circling the big one with sirens, as well as helicopters with swat teams. It was pretty sweet.
The sad part is that Brother K_ said he is not ready for the Gospel. He is uncomfortable/ pressured by it and doesn't want to do it now. We really want to help make this family eternal, so we are going to visit him again next week. And he lets us play soccer with all the other coast guard people, so it is a great way to meet new people and build relationships with them! They are all what are called Guneens, which just means they are in the middle of their obligatory military service. Please pray for his heart to soften!
We also visited this art teacher we met one morning, and taught him a little about the restoration. He wasn't very receptive to a lot of it, because he is just too busy to go to church, but when we taught him how to pray and prayed with him, it was really spiritual! We are going to visit him again this week.
Last week the General Authority 70 over our area, Elder Choi Yoon Hwan, visited our little Youngdo church randomly one day to inspect the building with a few other people. We were nervous, and just had 3 or 4 hours notice, just a normal weekday, so we had no idea why he was coming, just that he was coming. We hurry and vacuumed and cleaned the church, got there like an hour or so early. Haha but Elder Choi and his group came, looked at a few things, and left within about 5-10 minutes of coming. The cool part is, although they were very busy visiting a lot of churches, Elder Choi took the time to ask us about our investigators. He encouraged us to "Look Up and set high expectations!" Which is what he talked about last general conference. I love Elder Choi!
The weather here is pretty wet-- lots and lots of fog and rain! But it is kind of fun! I love love love the ocean and water in general, so it is a great place to be. Plus it is totally a mountain that we live on, so it is like we are hiking around all day. I am getting thighs of steel, haha!
Yesterday we saw a couple miracles-- a girl in our ward who became less active (she is about 20) came to church yesterday, with her boyfriend. I spoke yesterday on the sacrament, and her boyfriend seemed to listen pretty intently. Anyway, after the meeting I ran to say hello to him and we talked a bit. Super nice kid. I asked where he was from, and he said Daegu. I was excited, and I told him I had lived in Daegu too! Well, I asked him where he lived in Daegu (it is a pretty huge city, hours across by driving) and he told me Hwawon. I was mind blown! I lived in Jincheon, and if you take the subway like 2 stops away (each stop is only a 10 minute walk apart) you get to Hwawon! So he was living in my last area! For reference, it would be like attending church in Idaho, having a less active woman come with her non-member boyfriend, talking to him, and finding out he lives in Erda! Haha. Also the kid loves basketball-- not too common in Korea. So I told him about my last companion, Elder Seely, who is still in that area! He was super excited when I told him they should play together sometime.
I know that God guided us and this transfer! Other missionaries probably wouldn't have known where that kid was from and maybe not have been able to get his contact to refer to the other missionaries, but because I served there my last area I was able to. I know that was God guiding and helping us!
I love my great family! I better go, but before I do, I want to share something.
I have been thinking about patience lately. I am working on patience as a Christlike attribute right now. In Mosiah 23-24, which I think I shared a few weeks ago, it says:
21 Nevertheless the Lord seeth fit to chasten his people; yea, he trieth their patience and their faith.
22 Nevertheless—whosoever putteth his trust in him the same shall be lifted up at the last day. Yea, and thus it was with this people.
I think it is interesting that patience and faith are grouped together. How do you think they are connected? Here are some of my thoughts:
When we have faith, we trust the lord. We believe in Him, and we believe Him. When our lives get hard, our faith can waver. We can wonder if the Lord really will fulfill all that is promised. We get impatient. But when we trust in the Lord and His timing, when our faith is strong, our patience increases! We are able to endure due to the stamina that comes from faith that the Lord will fulfill all that He has promised.
In the case of the people of Alma, this is what happened:
15 And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord.
16 And it came to pass that so great was their faith and their patience that the voice of the Lord came unto them again, saying: Be of good comfort, for on the morrow I will deliver you out of bondage.
I know there are great blessings from patience. How can we be more patient with ourselves and those around us?
Love you all!
Elder Beckett
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