Transfers! October 29, 2017

Hey family! I am staying in Haeundae! We are getting a B-Team, and my new companion is Elder K T H. So it will be fun!   So our house is really a 4 man house... Now a 2nd team is going to come here with us. So it will be good!

Our nerf war last week. Fun times!

And it was my companion's last transfer, so Elder P is going home now. We had a good transfer together. Over the transfer we became good friends and learned a lot from each other. So as we were together I was able to share things I learned from mom and dad with him... he really appreciated the things I shared and in turn shared them with other missionaries. He told me he went out of his mission on a high note, so I am really glad about that! Thanks mom and dad for being so good and teaching and helping us kids since we were little. I am trying to share the things you taught me, and it really seems to help other people.

I would love to share some stuff, I was just thinking about sharing that actually. Here are some things we talked about:

One big thing we talked about was positivity. Some people feel that people who are positive ignore problems, or don't look at them in the right light. But I shared how, especially when I was a little kid, I had a problem with overreacting to problems. Whether it was getting really mad during sports, or getting really sulky because things didn't go the way I wanted to, I let my outward circumstances control my agency... But what I shared was something dad shared with me. Our life is composed of 1% of our circumstances, what happens to us, and 99% of how we act, what we choose to do it our circumstances (my companion is literally saying this to another missionary who he is talking with on the phone right now). Of course, our circumstances can influence our lives greatly-- but we have power to choose those things which are most important to us. That is why there are people who are miserable and rich, and those who are poor and joyful.

And positivity doesn't mean ignoring problems. It means focusing on what you can do, and not on the things you can't control.

I have to leave right about now... I might be able to finish my email time later. We are going to meet my new companion!

Kenz-- that is a really interesting thing you said. I think that is a good point. There is a difference between putting on a face and focusing on the positive! I have done both, too... Putting on a face is no fun!

Other things I was able to share with Elder 박:

There is value in calling out Satan for who he is. Sometimes, as dad also told me, I have just said, "Satan, go to hell." Which in Korea, hell is not a swear word. 

Honestly, though... it is interesting to recognize in my life two things: 

1: Satan is a very real force in our lives. He will constantly whisper at us to:

 criticize others

 to be angry with them

 to believe that we understand everything better than others (whether companions or leaders or whoever)

 to compare ourselves to others (seeing them as unattainable perfect, or hopelessly lost case)

 to criticize and hate ourselves

 to believe that we have problems and circumstances that no one else has experienced, meaning WE are the exception to the rule-- we can't be forgiven, or understood, or loved. WE can't have hope.

To believe that we are the exact same as everyone else

 we have no power to change, to grow, or improve-- man is man and doesn't change.

and many more.

These things are not true.

But one thing that I have learned in the Gospel, is that those who are happiest in the Gospel, living the most realistic Gospel, do not generalize or deal in absolutes quite as much as others. For example, one thing that has been difficult for me, is trying to discern every thought that comes-- is it a prompting??

No. Every thought will not be a prompting. We are expected to use our heads and hearts, and God will lead us when it counts most!

I better go. But I love you all!