hello! here is not last week's email, but the week before. so August 14th email. no pictures this week, unfortunately! i love her message this week though, so please read!!! hope you enjoy!
Are you sharing your chair?
Hello Everyone!
Thank you for all the emails this week! i love hearing form you and i hope you know that your prayers are being heard. I feel of your love and Hong Kong has been blessed with a not TOO hot summer thus far. Thanks for keeping the weather cool ;)
Now, for the good stuff. We had a lesson yesterday in Relief Society about the Sacrament. The teacher gave an awesome object lesson and I think we could all learn from it. She picked four sisters to help her out then put a chair at the front of the room and had one sister sit in it. After sitting int he chair for a second, the teacher had the person sitting down scoot over to make room for another sister to sit down with her, then asked the original sister, "are you comfortable?" She then repeated the process with the two remaining sisters, asking them the same question. Each sister replied that she was comfortable, not too bothered by the other person sitting in the chair with them, it was bearable. Then she had the sister who ad been sharing the chair with the other three sisters to take a seat on her own chair and asked her, "what's more comfortable?" This sister of course replied, "sitting by myself is, of course, more comfortable." The teacher then related this to us sitting in Sacrament meeting but letting other thoughts occupy our minds and hearts while we are partaking of the Sacrament.
Are you forcing the Savior to share a seat with your health problems, your family problems, your investigators...etc? You can still comfortably sit in Sacrament and think about the Savior and other things at the same time, but is that the best option? Is that what will bring you the most growth? I myself get too caught up in thoughts of "did my investigators make it? are they feel the spirit? i hope the lessons answer their questions later..." When i should be spending that time focusing on my Savior and how I can become more like Him. The Sacrament is a sacred time, don't share your chair. Cherish it for the saving ordinance that it is.
On another note, what do you feel when your investigator drops you? Well, dear friends, I can tell you first hand (from lots of experience) that it feels A LOT like a break up. You're a little angry and confused. You ask yourself, "What did i do wrong? How could I have made them stay? Did i not love them enough?" You cry a little bit, or a lot. You pray a lot! You're kind of in denial and it takes a few days to recover properly. I love my investigators and I truly want to see them progress. In the end, it's their choice to accept our message or not and i'm learning to trust God's will and timing.
I love you all. Keep sharing what you know and keep looking towards the light.
Have a great week!
Sister Adams
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
The One Where Mindy Talks About Alma and Amulek
Double posting because i want you all to read her emails! she's an amazing missionary and everyone should read about her time in Hong Kong! sooo this is last week's email. see, i'm pretty caught up now! enjoy :)
"When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren"
Hello Everyone!
How are you all doing?
We were very blessed this week in the form of less-actives. There are a few less-actives that have moved into the area recently. They previously were unwilling to meet with the missionaries, but because God has been softening their hearts, they let us schedule them this week. We had two very good lessons with them and were able to bring along some members to help. They loved the member and I can already see the friendships beginning to form. God loves His lost sheep and when the ward really truly starts to take care of them, that's when we see miracles. Tsim Sha Tsui ward sometimes has a mindset of "figure it out yourself and I'll figure it out myself." Which leaves a lot of people feeling unloved and unwelcome. I've been studying and praying for days trying to figure out how i can help the ward have more unity and love. I think i finally found my answer. It's kind of a no-brainer.
As i was ready the Book of Mormon this week, I read the story of Alma and Amulek and I noticed something int he chapter that i hadn't noticed before. in Alma Chapters 14 and 15 we learn some more missionary adventures of Alma and his member-present companion, Amulek. They finally see some success after some miracles, but then the people they converted get murdered and they get thrown into jail. After miracles happen at the jail, they escape to Sidom and there they find some of their convert refugees. I cannot imagine how stressed and tired they both were at this point. They tell the refugees what happened to their families and then begin establishing the church there is Sidom. As soon as Alma gets the church settled, priests ordained, people baptized, he realizes that his companion, Amulek, is looking pretty bad. Amulek has literally just lost EVERYTHING because his belief in God and Jesus Christ. He's seen murder, he's had to tell the families of the people that were murdered about their deaths, he has to help with establishing the church and along the way he's performing some healing miracles. He's having a pretty rough time. So, in verse 18 (the most important part of me telling this whole story) we read, "..Alma, having seen all these things, therefore he took Amulek and came over into the land of Zarahemla, and took him to his own house, and did administer unto him in his tribulations and did strengthen him in the Lord." Alma, the set apart missionary, administers to his member present companion and strengthens him in the Lord so that Amulek has enough strength to keep doing the work that God needs him to do.
So, my answer is that I need to spending more time lifting up my member and helping them through their trials os that the Lord can trust this ward enough to give us new investigators. I will also be spending time repenting for the neglect that i unintentionally showed them. I should have been more selfless like Alma. I need to be better. I am not a perfect missionary, nor will i ever be but i can always do better than i have been doing. God just needed to remind me that i need to strengthen the sheep that He's already given me before He can give me more sheep to love and nourish.
I hope that you all have had a fantastic week and that you are looking for the people who are in need of your nourishment in your wards. The missionaries are just two sets of hands. If one member helped out one other member, there would be a lot more hands serving than just the missionaries and there would be a lot more people converted to this Gospel. Please pray about someone who needs your help and take care of the sheep that God has asked you to care for.
I love you all so much. Be safe and trust God.
Sister Adams
#blessedtobeamissionaryinhongkong
"When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren"
Hello Everyone!
How are you all doing?
We were very blessed this week in the form of less-actives. There are a few less-actives that have moved into the area recently. They previously were unwilling to meet with the missionaries, but because God has been softening their hearts, they let us schedule them this week. We had two very good lessons with them and were able to bring along some members to help. They loved the member and I can already see the friendships beginning to form. God loves His lost sheep and when the ward really truly starts to take care of them, that's when we see miracles. Tsim Sha Tsui ward sometimes has a mindset of "figure it out yourself and I'll figure it out myself." Which leaves a lot of people feeling unloved and unwelcome. I've been studying and praying for days trying to figure out how i can help the ward have more unity and love. I think i finally found my answer. It's kind of a no-brainer.
As i was ready the Book of Mormon this week, I read the story of Alma and Amulek and I noticed something int he chapter that i hadn't noticed before. in Alma Chapters 14 and 15 we learn some more missionary adventures of Alma and his member-present companion, Amulek. They finally see some success after some miracles, but then the people they converted get murdered and they get thrown into jail. After miracles happen at the jail, they escape to Sidom and there they find some of their convert refugees. I cannot imagine how stressed and tired they both were at this point. They tell the refugees what happened to their families and then begin establishing the church there is Sidom. As soon as Alma gets the church settled, priests ordained, people baptized, he realizes that his companion, Amulek, is looking pretty bad. Amulek has literally just lost EVERYTHING because his belief in God and Jesus Christ. He's seen murder, he's had to tell the families of the people that were murdered about their deaths, he has to help with establishing the church and along the way he's performing some healing miracles. He's having a pretty rough time. So, in verse 18 (the most important part of me telling this whole story) we read, "..Alma, having seen all these things, therefore he took Amulek and came over into the land of Zarahemla, and took him to his own house, and did administer unto him in his tribulations and did strengthen him in the Lord." Alma, the set apart missionary, administers to his member present companion and strengthens him in the Lord so that Amulek has enough strength to keep doing the work that God needs him to do.
So, my answer is that I need to spending more time lifting up my member and helping them through their trials os that the Lord can trust this ward enough to give us new investigators. I will also be spending time repenting for the neglect that i unintentionally showed them. I should have been more selfless like Alma. I need to be better. I am not a perfect missionary, nor will i ever be but i can always do better than i have been doing. God just needed to remind me that i need to strengthen the sheep that He's already given me before He can give me more sheep to love and nourish.
I hope that you all have had a fantastic week and that you are looking for the people who are in need of your nourishment in your wards. The missionaries are just two sets of hands. If one member helped out one other member, there would be a lot more hands serving than just the missionaries and there would be a lot more people converted to this Gospel. Please pray about someone who needs your help and take care of the sheep that God has asked you to care for.
I love you all so much. Be safe and trust God.
Sister Adams
#blessedtobeamissionaryinhongkong
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| Sister Mindy Mint and her companion Sister Villasin |
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| Sister Mindy and her "super cute district" at the temple |
The One Where Mindy Talks About Her Hard Week
Playing catch up on Mindy's emails. sorry about being so behind. here is mindy's email from Aug 1, 2016! enjoy :)
"It's not the numbers that matter but the lives that are touched"
Hello everyone!
I'm sorry i that I was absent last week, time got the best of me and I didn't really have much to say so....
Anyway, just as an update from the last two weeks. Sister Villasin and I are having fun in the sun and we love TST! I will admit that I have never had so many freckles on my face in my whole life and no amount of sunscreen seems to make a difference so, i'm embracing the speckles. LOL! It doesn't matter what you look like, as long as your testimony is still intact and you're willing to open your month. But some advice for you missionaries going out this summer, bring sunscreen. Finding on the street in the sun is a real thing and the sun will burn you. Be smart and be safe!
Sister Viillasin is a ball of energy that never stops moving and she "whistles while [she] works." i'm having fun being her companion because we laugh a lot and we're both kind of awkward so it's led to some funny situations. She's been the pillar of positivity that I needed these last two weeks because these last two weeks have been some of the hardest that i've had in the mission. The numbers are the lowest that i have ever had in my mission. People won't answer the phones when we call and when they do answer, they won't schedule us, or they will cancel the lessons at the last minute. Sister Villasin is incredible at keeping a positive attitude and I will admit that i am not always as positive as I should be. Sometimes when i think of the numbers, i feel like i'm the worst senior companion in the mission. But i got a sweet reminder from my Heavenly Father the other day that has reminded me of why i am here. While i was looking at the numbers and thinking about all the "failures" that we had this week I got a thought in my head that said, "Sister Adams, It's not the number that count. It's the lives touched." Then i get to see all the sweet faces of the people that i did get to meet this week. I got to spend so much time with my members this week. Serving with them, playing with them, sharing with them and overall building a relationship with them. I got to spend time on the buss, on the street and in houses making sure that God's children knew that He loves them and striving to help make their day a little brighter. I also got to remember that although my numbers are the lowest they've ever been, my chinese is the best it's ever been. My relationship with my Heavenly Father is the closest it's ever been and my ability to overcome opposition is getting stronger every day.
I was reading the Book of Mormon today and miraculously I was in the book of Alma Chapter 8. This is the chapter when Alma the Younger is rejected in the city of Ammonihah. Ammonihah is described as a city where ".. Satan had gotten great hold upon the hearts of the people of the city Ammonihah, therefore, they would not hearken unto the words of Alma." When Alma gets rejected, he leaves the city and tries to move on with his mission but his heart and his thoughts are still troubled by the wickedness of the people of Ammonihah. While he's thinking about these people, an agel appears to him and tell him to "lift up your head" and reminds him that he is blessed. Hong Kong has felt a bit like Ammonihah this week and I will admit that my heart and my thoughts have been troubled because of it. But then i am reminded of the blessings. After that, Alma is told to reurn to the city and it there that he meets Amulek. Amulek is what I like to call a "member present." Lots of people think he is Alma's companion but the truth is that because Amulek was a native to the Ammonihah people, Alma and Amulek have TONS more success because people are willing to believe Amulek AND Alma. Love your members. They're your Amuleks and will give you the success and the hope that you need when you feel like no one wants to listen to you.
God loves us and is aware of our situations. He's trying to help us grow into the person He needs us to be. As my Aunt Lisa shared with me today in an email, "Heavenly Father is the best lemonade maker." and He truly is. "Count your blessings" and "expect miracles today." I love you all and I hope you have a great week!
Sister Adams
"It's not the numbers that matter but the lives that are touched"
Hello everyone!
I'm sorry i that I was absent last week, time got the best of me and I didn't really have much to say so....
Anyway, just as an update from the last two weeks. Sister Villasin and I are having fun in the sun and we love TST! I will admit that I have never had so many freckles on my face in my whole life and no amount of sunscreen seems to make a difference so, i'm embracing the speckles. LOL! It doesn't matter what you look like, as long as your testimony is still intact and you're willing to open your month. But some advice for you missionaries going out this summer, bring sunscreen. Finding on the street in the sun is a real thing and the sun will burn you. Be smart and be safe!
Sister Viillasin is a ball of energy that never stops moving and she "whistles while [she] works." i'm having fun being her companion because we laugh a lot and we're both kind of awkward so it's led to some funny situations. She's been the pillar of positivity that I needed these last two weeks because these last two weeks have been some of the hardest that i've had in the mission. The numbers are the lowest that i have ever had in my mission. People won't answer the phones when we call and when they do answer, they won't schedule us, or they will cancel the lessons at the last minute. Sister Villasin is incredible at keeping a positive attitude and I will admit that i am not always as positive as I should be. Sometimes when i think of the numbers, i feel like i'm the worst senior companion in the mission. But i got a sweet reminder from my Heavenly Father the other day that has reminded me of why i am here. While i was looking at the numbers and thinking about all the "failures" that we had this week I got a thought in my head that said, "Sister Adams, It's not the number that count. It's the lives touched." Then i get to see all the sweet faces of the people that i did get to meet this week. I got to spend so much time with my members this week. Serving with them, playing with them, sharing with them and overall building a relationship with them. I got to spend time on the buss, on the street and in houses making sure that God's children knew that He loves them and striving to help make their day a little brighter. I also got to remember that although my numbers are the lowest they've ever been, my chinese is the best it's ever been. My relationship with my Heavenly Father is the closest it's ever been and my ability to overcome opposition is getting stronger every day.
I was reading the Book of Mormon today and miraculously I was in the book of Alma Chapter 8. This is the chapter when Alma the Younger is rejected in the city of Ammonihah. Ammonihah is described as a city where ".. Satan had gotten great hold upon the hearts of the people of the city Ammonihah, therefore, they would not hearken unto the words of Alma." When Alma gets rejected, he leaves the city and tries to move on with his mission but his heart and his thoughts are still troubled by the wickedness of the people of Ammonihah. While he's thinking about these people, an agel appears to him and tell him to "lift up your head" and reminds him that he is blessed. Hong Kong has felt a bit like Ammonihah this week and I will admit that my heart and my thoughts have been troubled because of it. But then i am reminded of the blessings. After that, Alma is told to reurn to the city and it there that he meets Amulek. Amulek is what I like to call a "member present." Lots of people think he is Alma's companion but the truth is that because Amulek was a native to the Ammonihah people, Alma and Amulek have TONS more success because people are willing to believe Amulek AND Alma. Love your members. They're your Amuleks and will give you the success and the hope that you need when you feel like no one wants to listen to you.
God loves us and is aware of our situations. He's trying to help us grow into the person He needs us to be. As my Aunt Lisa shared with me today in an email, "Heavenly Father is the best lemonade maker." and He truly is. "Count your blessings" and "expect miracles today." I love you all and I hope you have a great week!
Sister Adams
Tuesday, August 9, 2016
The One Where India Was Put In Charge So Of Course I'm Super Behind On Posting On Mindy's Blog
Hello everyone. It's been too long since i've posted about our gorgeous missionary. I'm getting back into it. Life went a little crazy sauce for a bit and unfortunately this was on the back back burner. Time to get caught up!
Since i'm going to get caught up, i will be posting the last two emails of July on this one
SOOOO YAY TWOOOO EMAILS!!!
enjoy :)
p.s. This missionary sister is more than halfway through her mission!! WAHOO!!!!!
here is her email from July 11, 2016
"Expect miracles today"
Hello Everyone!
I don't remember if I shared that title with you guys or not. When we power on our phones here in the mission, the phone plays a little tune and the screen reads "Expect miracles today." It's become a little bit of a catch phrase for me because I truly believe that God gives every single one of us miracles every day. We just have to have the eyes to see them.
That being said, some miracles that we saw this week are, some new investigators! Some investigators that are keeping commitments! A ward who loves their missionaries! Lots of people willing to talk to us in parks, buses, bathrooms, on the street, and in the lobby of our building. And some summer missionaries that are willing to step out of their comfort zones and make sacrifices to love the people that I love so much. I'm really, truly so proud of my summer missionaries. I love them both so much.
As a missionary, I don't usually get to hear very much about what is going on in the world outside of my little section of the world. But, this week I got to get a little more information that i usually do. There's a scripture that has brought me a lot of comfort when it comes to the world, it is Ether 12:4, "Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which world make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God." I love this scripture because it doesn't say that everything will be good all at once, it just tells us to have hope. Have hope and be steadfast. God gives us trials to humble us, to help His children remember Him. If we are faithful and steadfast then it doesn't matter what happens in the world around us. All that matters is that we will KNOW that there is something better coming around the corner.
Have HOPE. Be abounding in good works. Be humble and remember that God has it all figured out. He knows the end from the beginning. He's got it all worked out, we just have to trust, plan well, and "expect miracles today."
I love you all. Keep your chins up and keep fighting. There's always sunshine after a storm.
Love,
Sister Adams
here is her email from July 17, 2016
something that I learned quite well this week is the need for "opposition is all things." If i didn't have hard weeks, I wouldn't be able to appreciate the good weeks. We taught the Plan of Salvation a lot this week and one part that really stood out to me was Adams and Eve. We had an investigator this week that had a really hard time understanding the scripture in 2 Nephi 2:25 that says: " Adam fell that men might be, and men are, that they may have joy." She had a hard time accepting that Adam and Eve didn't know joy in the Garden of Eden. Actually, there were a lot of things about the Plan of Salvation that she told us she didn't believe because they weren't things that she had grown up hearing. But as i've studied Adam and Eve more, and the other parts of the Plan of Salvation to be able to better answer her questions, i've come to have an even greater appreciation for my Heavenly Father and for the sacrifices that Adam and Eve made for all mankind. I hope that my investigator opens her heart and mind to feel the Spirit the next time that we teach her. I'm grateful for the learning experience that I had from that lesson this week. My summer missionary took the opposition and the unbelief like a champ. I'm so grateful for her.
We had lots of other disappointments happen as well. We had some investigators drops us, some less-actives not come to church after promising for the 5th time they would come, and lots of rejection from finding. BUT, we also had some incredible miracles. We have loving ward members who are willing to support our ideas and give up their time to help us. We had a wonderful two weeks of 4 sister missionaries finding, teaching, and loving the people in TST and we made some new friends that I hope continue to have interest in learning more. As I mentioned above, these oppositions made it possible for me to better appreciate the good times, the times of laughter and fun. Opposition made it possible for me to gain a deeper testimony of my Savior and these oppositions made me more grateful for the sacrifices of those that I work with and the sacrifices of those that have come before me. I'm blessed to be here and blessed to have a Heavenly Father that's patient with my weaknesses and my impatience. "For it must needs be that there be opposition in all things...If not, ...righteousness could not be brought to pass."
I made it to the halfway point this week and I cannot believe how fast the time has gone. I wish I could put to words how much my mission has meant to me thus far but I really can't describe it well enough. To keep it short i'll just say that my mission has changed my life and I never want to go back to what I was. the time that i've spent here, the love that i've felt, the joy, the pain, the disappointments, the triumphs, they are all so precious to me. I think of the scripture Mosiah 18:30, "...how beautiful are they [the city of Hong Kong] to the eyes of them who there came to the knowledge of their Remdeemer; yea, and how blessed are they [the missionaries] for they shall sing His praise forever." Hong Kong has truly become a precious place to me because it was here that I came to better understand my Savior and I'm forever indebted to these people and to my Heavenly Father for giving me this knowledge.
Never forget how blessed you are and how loved you are. Keep working hard and keep learning to love those around you. My invitation is for each of you to think of a place that is precious to you and why it was precious and figure out why Heavenly Father gave you that precious place.
I love you all! Have a great week!
Love,
Sister Adams
P.s. I sadly had to drop off my summer missionaries today but they will forever hold a special place in my heart. i'm not sure what God has in store for each of us but I know that it's beyond comprehension and imagination.
Since i'm going to get caught up, i will be posting the last two emails of July on this one
SOOOO YAY TWOOOO EMAILS!!!
enjoy :)
p.s. This missionary sister is more than halfway through her mission!! WAHOO!!!!!
here is her email from July 11, 2016
"Expect miracles today"
Hello Everyone!
I don't remember if I shared that title with you guys or not. When we power on our phones here in the mission, the phone plays a little tune and the screen reads "Expect miracles today." It's become a little bit of a catch phrase for me because I truly believe that God gives every single one of us miracles every day. We just have to have the eyes to see them.
That being said, some miracles that we saw this week are, some new investigators! Some investigators that are keeping commitments! A ward who loves their missionaries! Lots of people willing to talk to us in parks, buses, bathrooms, on the street, and in the lobby of our building. And some summer missionaries that are willing to step out of their comfort zones and make sacrifices to love the people that I love so much. I'm really, truly so proud of my summer missionaries. I love them both so much.
As a missionary, I don't usually get to hear very much about what is going on in the world outside of my little section of the world. But, this week I got to get a little more information that i usually do. There's a scripture that has brought me a lot of comfort when it comes to the world, it is Ether 12:4, "Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which world make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God." I love this scripture because it doesn't say that everything will be good all at once, it just tells us to have hope. Have hope and be steadfast. God gives us trials to humble us, to help His children remember Him. If we are faithful and steadfast then it doesn't matter what happens in the world around us. All that matters is that we will KNOW that there is something better coming around the corner.
Have HOPE. Be abounding in good works. Be humble and remember that God has it all figured out. He knows the end from the beginning. He's got it all worked out, we just have to trust, plan well, and "expect miracles today."
I love you all. Keep your chins up and keep fighting. There's always sunshine after a storm.
Love,
Sister Adams
here is her email from July 17, 2016
something that I learned quite well this week is the need for "opposition is all things." If i didn't have hard weeks, I wouldn't be able to appreciate the good weeks. We taught the Plan of Salvation a lot this week and one part that really stood out to me was Adams and Eve. We had an investigator this week that had a really hard time understanding the scripture in 2 Nephi 2:25 that says: " Adam fell that men might be, and men are, that they may have joy." She had a hard time accepting that Adam and Eve didn't know joy in the Garden of Eden. Actually, there were a lot of things about the Plan of Salvation that she told us she didn't believe because they weren't things that she had grown up hearing. But as i've studied Adam and Eve more, and the other parts of the Plan of Salvation to be able to better answer her questions, i've come to have an even greater appreciation for my Heavenly Father and for the sacrifices that Adam and Eve made for all mankind. I hope that my investigator opens her heart and mind to feel the Spirit the next time that we teach her. I'm grateful for the learning experience that I had from that lesson this week. My summer missionary took the opposition and the unbelief like a champ. I'm so grateful for her.
We had lots of other disappointments happen as well. We had some investigators drops us, some less-actives not come to church after promising for the 5th time they would come, and lots of rejection from finding. BUT, we also had some incredible miracles. We have loving ward members who are willing to support our ideas and give up their time to help us. We had a wonderful two weeks of 4 sister missionaries finding, teaching, and loving the people in TST and we made some new friends that I hope continue to have interest in learning more. As I mentioned above, these oppositions made it possible for me to better appreciate the good times, the times of laughter and fun. Opposition made it possible for me to gain a deeper testimony of my Savior and these oppositions made me more grateful for the sacrifices of those that I work with and the sacrifices of those that have come before me. I'm blessed to be here and blessed to have a Heavenly Father that's patient with my weaknesses and my impatience. "For it must needs be that there be opposition in all things...If not, ...righteousness could not be brought to pass."
I made it to the halfway point this week and I cannot believe how fast the time has gone. I wish I could put to words how much my mission has meant to me thus far but I really can't describe it well enough. To keep it short i'll just say that my mission has changed my life and I never want to go back to what I was. the time that i've spent here, the love that i've felt, the joy, the pain, the disappointments, the triumphs, they are all so precious to me. I think of the scripture Mosiah 18:30, "...how beautiful are they [the city of Hong Kong] to the eyes of them who there came to the knowledge of their Remdeemer; yea, and how blessed are they [the missionaries] for they shall sing His praise forever." Hong Kong has truly become a precious place to me because it was here that I came to better understand my Savior and I'm forever indebted to these people and to my Heavenly Father for giving me this knowledge.
Never forget how blessed you are and how loved you are. Keep working hard and keep learning to love those around you. My invitation is for each of you to think of a place that is precious to you and why it was precious and figure out why Heavenly Father gave you that precious place.
I love you all! Have a great week!
Love,
Sister Adams
P.s. I sadly had to drop off my summer missionaries today but they will forever hold a special place in my heart. i'm not sure what God has in store for each of us but I know that it's beyond comprehension and imagination.
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| "Sister Ng and I celebrated our 9 months in the mission field together at Pizza Hut. Thank you Sister Ng for being a constant presence in my mission life. I love you! Thank you for being such an incredible example and friend to me. " -Sister Mindy |
Thursday, July 14, 2016
The One Where Mindy Talks About Her Summer Missionary
Hello everyone! Here is last week's email, from July 6th. sorry i'm so behind on these! slowly catching up! haha enjoy :)
"Some things can be learned only by faith"
Hellooo Everyone!
Sorry for emailing so late this week but i got a surprise on Friday that needed to be taken care of on Monday so i had to wait until today to let you all know i'm alive and well! Happy Independence Day!
To start out, my new companion! My companion is Sister Villasin! She's from the Phillipines and goes home at the end of this transfer (so at the end of next month) and yes, that does mean that I will be sending another missionary home! I'm blessed and obviously God has something He needs me to learn and He needs me to learn them fast. Sister Villasin is very faithful and focused. I'm really enjoying being her companion!
Second, I have a summer missionary! This is why i couldn't email on Monday. I Needed to pick up my summer missionary from the mission office and get her started in some missionary work. Sister Villasin and I had only been companions for a day and a couple hours when we got a call telling us that we were getting two you to stay with us for two weeks. Usually, these missionaries are Hong Kong youth, ages 16-19 and they spend two weeks of their summer with us living like full-time missionaries. Some of it use it as a trial run and some of them do it because they love it. I was blessed and got a special summer missionary. Her name is Sister Lui and she's from Lehi, Utah. Her parents are from Hong Kong so she understands the language but her knowledge of gospel terms is about the same as my knowledge of things that are not gospel terms. She's awesome and we're having fun figuring it all out.
As for the title, that's a quote from Elder Oaks in the April 2016 General Conference. He was talking about the need for opposition. We learn by experience. From making mistakes. From picking ourselves up and trying again. That being said, sometimes we don't find the answers that we are looking for. Sometimes we just have to trust God and let Him teach us how to have more faith.
I love you all. Have a great rest of your weeks!
Sister Adams
"Some things can be learned only by faith"
Hellooo Everyone!
Sorry for emailing so late this week but i got a surprise on Friday that needed to be taken care of on Monday so i had to wait until today to let you all know i'm alive and well! Happy Independence Day!
To start out, my new companion! My companion is Sister Villasin! She's from the Phillipines and goes home at the end of this transfer (so at the end of next month) and yes, that does mean that I will be sending another missionary home! I'm blessed and obviously God has something He needs me to learn and He needs me to learn them fast. Sister Villasin is very faithful and focused. I'm really enjoying being her companion!
Second, I have a summer missionary! This is why i couldn't email on Monday. I Needed to pick up my summer missionary from the mission office and get her started in some missionary work. Sister Villasin and I had only been companions for a day and a couple hours when we got a call telling us that we were getting two you to stay with us for two weeks. Usually, these missionaries are Hong Kong youth, ages 16-19 and they spend two weeks of their summer with us living like full-time missionaries. Some of it use it as a trial run and some of them do it because they love it. I was blessed and got a special summer missionary. Her name is Sister Lui and she's from Lehi, Utah. Her parents are from Hong Kong so she understands the language but her knowledge of gospel terms is about the same as my knowledge of things that are not gospel terms. She's awesome and we're having fun figuring it all out.
As for the title, that's a quote from Elder Oaks in the April 2016 General Conference. He was talking about the need for opposition. We learn by experience. From making mistakes. From picking ourselves up and trying again. That being said, sometimes we don't find the answers that we are looking for. Sometimes we just have to trust God and let Him teach us how to have more faith.
I love you all. Have a great rest of your weeks!
Sister Adams
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| Sister Mindy and Sister Villasin |
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| Sister Mindy and Sister Lui |
Thursday, July 7, 2016
The One Where Mindy Uses A Bunch Of Quotation Marks In Her Email
Catching up! Here is Mindy's Jun 27th email. enjoy!
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| Sister Adams and Sister Mendoza |
Hello Everyone!
I have to admit that i wish the title were true but mostly i'm just sweating. It's all worth it though. For those of you that have never lived somewhere that is humid, with limited AC hours, I would just like to tell you that "all wet" is not something that should have been in my vocabulary before the summer hit here in Hong Kong. But on the bright side, I have never been so grateful for AC and shade in my entire life. I am grateful that God created trees and hand-held fans and wind. "Count your blessings" my friends because i promise that you have them.
This week has been "full speed ahead." Sister Mendoza is taking on her last few weeks in Hong Kong like a champ. I am so proud of her. I'm nervous about what's going to happen when she leaves, but I trust God and I know that He's got something great in store for me and for the Tsim Sha Tsui area. I have no clue who my new companion is yet but i already know that this area doesn't know what's coming their way because the missionaries here are powerful and hard-working.
We invited our investigator, Sister Chan, to be baptized yesterday but she wasn't willing to set a firm date. She has great respect for this church because of how it has influenced her daughters and she even came to church yesterday by herself! She wants to learn more first before she decides to be baptized. I have a strong feeling in my heart that she will be baptized though. When we first met her, she was very "whatever" about the church. She didn't feel a connection to the things that we shared and didn't really feel that it had anything to do with her. She even mentioned that getting up for church was not something that she wanted to do. But through the example of her daughters and through her gaining more knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ through the missionaries, i've seen in her. She shares more now. She goes to church by herself. Her prayers have improved and there's more light in her eyes. This gospel changes people.
We shared the Plan of Salvation with her yesterday and even though I have taught that lesson a bunch of times on my mission, I still learn something new from it every time. There is never a point in this life where we can say "I have enough knowledge, I don't need to learn anymore." (2 Nephi 29!) If we aren't on the level of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ then there is still more to know. I can't help but thin of the fact that God has commanded us to gain knowledge in this life. I think that the reasons that He gave us that commandment is 1. So we can become like Him, all knowing and all powerful, and 2. So that we can make proper choices. There are many other reasons but because of the scriptures we know it is impossible to go to the Celestial Kingdom and be ignorant at the same time. By choosing not to learn, they are choosing not to go to heaven. I had so many people this week tell me that they wouldn't listen to me because I am a missionary, a stranger, from a wicked church, or various other crazy reasons and i couldn't help but think that they are depriving themselves of true happiness and infinite blessings. They are choosing to be ignorant instead of striving to learn everything that they can so that they can make proper decisions about what is truth and what is not.
I love you all so much and I hope that you all have an amazing start to your summer. I hope that you all are striving to gain knowledge so that you too can make correct choices and become more like our Heavenly Father.
God loves. God lives. And i know that this church is true. I know that God is guiding this work and that i am just a small part of something incredible. Miracles are happening in Hong Kong!
Love you!
Sister Adams
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| Bowling like a champ |
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| cute sister missionaries! |
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| Sister Mindy Mint learning how to make dumplings! |
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
The One Where Mindy Tells Us MORE About Her Investigators
Sorry this email is 3 weeks old, but it's just been hectic. you know how life goes, right?
Weaknesses Becoming Strengths.
Here is her email way back on Jun 20. The other two are to follow.
Weaknesses Becoming Strengths.
Hello Everyone!
How has your week been? Did you have a good Father's Day?
My week was full of ups and downs, loads of adventures and full of the Spirit, per usual.
To start out, i don't know if i have told you much about the investigators that i am working with right now. The first is Heidi, she's ten years old and i'm at least 98% sure she has ADHD and I love her so much. She's teaching me how to be more patient, how to be a better teacher (hello object lessons!) and most importantly, how to rely on the Spirit when i teach. Heidi has a speech disability that makes it hard for Sister Mendoza and I to understand what she says to us, but through the Spirit and spending time with her, our understanding of her is at least 87% more clear (we will make it to 100%!). Her mom and older brother are both members. We've discovered that when Heidi's mom helps us teach, Heidi pays more attention and understands more. We've also seen the growth that this process has made on Sister Cheung (Heidi's mom). There's power in teaching your kids the gospel. They truly need their parents help.
Another investigator is Sister Chan. She has three daughters that are active members and hasn't really had interest until recently. One daughter is preparing for a mission and the other is studying at a BYU college. We taught her the Restoration last night and you can see the light developing in her eyes. While we were eating dinner with the Chan Family last night and Brother Chan was asking things like, "How do you even know who God is?" and "How do you know what church is true?" "there are so many churches that it's impossible to know, i haven't found my answer yet." While we were teaching, you could see the questions floating in Sister Chan's head and the answers coming to her. Her heart has been softened by her daughters' examples and it's amazing to see her start to have a desire to learn more. Sadly, Brother Chan did not have "ears to hear" and "eyes to see" quite yet. He has the questions but won't listen to the answers when they are given to him. It's sad to see but i know that God has a plan for him.
Now, for the title, i think that one of the most satisfying things (other than seeing people you teach progress) in the mission is hearing that your weaknesses are becoming strengths. God loves us. Prayer has strength. Never give up on overcoming your weaknesses. It's worth it. Take it from someone that has so many weaknesses, through Christ we truly can overcome all weaknesses and trials. We just have to be humble, obedient, and willing to listen.
Funny of the week: i have never eaten so many dumplings in my entire that i have the past two weeks. i'm pretty sure i won't be able to eat dumplings for a solid couple months after my mission. LOL!
i love you all so much. Don't forget to pray.
Sister Adams
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