November Transfers, 2012

The last transfer of the year.  But the same emotions accompany it, as with every transfer.  Oh, how we hate to let go of these four wonderful, experienced, mature and amazing missionaries.  And the only consolation is that we are  getting three new missionaries.  They will never be able to replace those who left, but they will be strong and wonderful in their own right.

So, our warm goodbyes to:

Seated from left:  Elder Amussen, Elder Kishi, and Elder Kusume
Standing:  President Baird, Sister Baird, Sister Nishimuro

Elder Ibuki Kishi

Elder Kishi has a talent for singing, cutting paper into wonderful animals and shapes, 

juggling and card tricks.  He is cheerful and positive and makes friends with everyone.  

Children especially love it when he is around.  He is a hard worker and has a strong testimony.

Elder Kaneko and Elder Kishi--
Out standing in their field.

Elder Kishi loves swords.
Elder Matson on the left.

Elder Berrett and Elder Kishi contemplating the universe.
(Or maybe waiting for a train.)

Elder Yuichiro Kusume

From left, Elder Soliai, Elder Kusume, and Elder Kishi

Elder Kusume at Cherry Blossom Time.

Elder Kusume is very open with everyone.  He is a hard worker and 

can easily gain the trust of people.  He is very easy to get along with, according to 

one elder who knows him well.   He is also a good cook.

Elder Cameron Amussen

Elder Amussen, on left, looks solemn, but he's just wishing they'd
quit taking pictures so he could dig into that great lasagna.
Also, Sister Nishimuro, Elder Kishi, Elder Kusume

Elder Amussen on left, with Elder Dunn
They have just told this sister about the Book of Mormon
and she has invited them to dinner.

Elder Amussen became very good with the Japanese language. Before his mission, he had a goal of learning Japanese, and a goal of serving a mission.  He felt the Lord had His eye on him when he found out he would be able to do both at the same time.


Sister Asahi Nishimuro

Sister Eguchi and Sister Nishimuro (on right)

Aren't they beautiful!
Sister Nishimuro (left) and Sister Eguchi.

You've just got to read this book, Pikachu.
You will be forever changed by it.

Sister Nishimuro has been a very obedient missionary. Her companions say that she has lots of energy and works hard.  She loves everyone, and it is easy for her to show her love to others.  She loves to cook and sing, and her voice is exceptionally beautiful and amazing.  She can become friends with anyone and was a very caring companion.

We dropped them off at the airport in the morning, and went back in the evening to give a warm welcome to our new missionaries.  This may be our last dragon photo.  Next year?  The Year of the Snake.  That can't possibly be as pretty as the dragon.

From left, Sister Katsuta, Sister Silva, Sister and President Baird, Elder Shimbashi, and Elder Waddell

Of course, we can't leave the airport without the Hoiza shout.
Yosh!!

Next morning in the mission home: writing something
for Sister Baird's special book.

Elder Ellsworth at the piano, and Elder Clark on the cello.
We get to enjoy wonderful music whenever possible.

Elder Dee Waddell

Seto will be blessed to have Elder Waddell (left)
along with his trainer, Elder Dunn.

From Manassas, Virginia, Elder Waddell is the oldest of four children.  His first goal is to be a successful husband and father, but he would also like to be a commercial airline pilot or a musician.  He is a musician, singer, basketball player and an avid longboard skateboarder.  He says he is always happy and smling.  He is respectful, enjoys life and is easily liked.  He has born his testimony many times to his friends who aren't members of the Church. 

Elder Dunn could become an author, filmmaker, English teacher or TV broadcaster.  He is 
energetic and enjoys being humorous.

Sister Yoko Katsuta

Sister Katsuta (left) is pointing to her new area, Takayama,
with Sister Adachi, her trainer.

Hyogo, Japan is home to Sister Yoko Katsuta.  Sister Katsuta has a wonderful mother who was kind and cheerful and who influenced her interest in the Church and testimony.  She passed away when Sister Katsuta was in high school.  Sister Katsuta is the only member of the church in her family.  She loves to read and hopes to become a librarian.  She also loves to sing and has been on a women's chorus team where they perform at various places.  Her strong point is being kind to all around her.

Sister Adachi has a strong testimony of the scriptures.  If food is good, you want to share it 
with others.  Like that, she wants to share the Gospel.  She loves the Book of Mormon 
and gets power from it.  She wants to pray hard, feel the spirit, and work with her companion willingly.

Elder Ashton Shimbashi

On left is Elder Shimbashi, and Elder Sarager is his trainer.
They will be working in Kariya.

Elder Ashton Shimbashi hails from Alberta, Canada.  His mother served a mission in Fukuoka and his father in Colorado.  He loves sports, especially hockey, soccer and football.  He is personable and gets along well with people, is a hard worker, and he says he fears failure.  His testimony of the scriptures gave him a strong desire to serve a mission.  He hopes to learn the language quickly, because even though he didn't grow up speaking Japanese, people will expect him to know it.

Elder Sarager is great with building relationships with members.  Someone said of him, "He's the nicest guy you'll ever meet."  He has a great heart and understands his purpose as a missionary.  On top of that, he's an incredible volleyball player.

Sister Fabiana Silva

Sister Silva, left, and Sister Rogers.
They will be the first sisters in Yokkaichi.

We think Sister Fabiana Silva may be the first sister missionary to serve in the Japan Nagoya Mission from Brazil.  She is from Sao Paulo.  She has studied translation and interpretation in college and wants to continue that when she arrives home.  She loves to read, and enjoys knitting and doing puzzles for relaxation.  She has lots of energy and likes to keep moving, even when she is tired.  She rarely gives up on something.  It is easy for her to put others' needs before her own.  In 2009, she prayed to God for a new opportunity, and met the missionaries, who helped her find a new life.  Her mother was baptized four months later. When she was baptized, she told the missionaries she wanted to be like them--she wanted to become a missionary.  And she has.

Sister Rogers is easy going, gets excited over little  things, and is happy and high on life.  She has had a deep love for the gospel all her life. And it is a highlight whenever we get to hear her play violin.  She inspires us with her music.

What a beautiful group, united in a most important work!
From left:  Sister Adachi, Elder Waddell, Sister Katsuta, Elder Dunn, Sister Rogers,
Elder Sarager, Sister Silva, Elders Shimbashi, Sister Baird, President Baird

You've Got Mail

One of the daily tasks of a mission secretary is to forward the mail. I have to determine where that particular missionary is, find the stamp in a drawer with 50 stamps in it, and stamp a label, which I stick on over the mission address.  The next day that letter goes out to the missionary and usually arrives a day or two later. 

Now you would think that doing this job daily would get old and boring.  But knowing how missionaries, even missionaries who get nice long emails from their family every week, live for, love, and even cherish getting letters, this job is a joy for me.  I love doing it. I find it interesting. I wouldn’t want to turn this job over to anyone else.

Nearly all mail to missionaries in the mission comes directly to the mission home.  The reason for this is the frequent transfers.  There have been a few times when I have had a letter handed to me by some missionary with the explanation that he found it in his apartment.  It is addressed to another missionary and has apparently been sitting on some desk in the apartment for six months or so. I don’t know who is being transferred where until the day before the transfers happen.  So I sometimes send letters out on Monday that arrive after that missionary has moved.  I try to be very careful, but it happens.

There is occasional detective work involved. For instance, we sometimes get mail for missionaries who are actually in other missions in Japan.  I email all the other mission secretaries to find out who will claim the letter.  There is some faithful letter writer who has been writing a couple times a week to an elder in the Tokyo mission for about 8 months now. They send it faithfully to the Nagoya Mission.  Perhaps I should send them a letter and let them know that they’ve got the wrong address, but it’s not that hard to put the Tokyo mission stamp on it and send it along.  One day I received a letter to an elder I had never heard of.  But I recognized the return address as one of our missionary’s parents.  I looked to see who his companion was, and his last name started with the same letter as this last name.  I called this elder, and his companion had a birthday coming up, so we decided that his parents were sending a gift to their son’s companion and just got the last name a little wrong.  How thoughtful of them, and the elders will have a fun laugh over the name change.  And we have two sets of elders with the same last name.  Its fine until I get letters addressed to “Elder Baker,” or “Elder Gish.”  Then I get to call one of the elders and see if he knows the person who sent the letter.

Another thing that makes me smile is the packages we receive.  For instance, today we got a package for an elder that listed two items inside, for a total value of $3.98.  The small box cost $11.65 to send.  That is not uncommon.  It almost makes me cry to see the love and sacrifice of  parents who take the time and spend the money to send packages. 

And I can't resist sharing how one young lady, somewhere in the world, addresses her letters to one of our elders.  She puts several words between "Elder" and his last name.  I won't use his name, and I honestly don't remember what any of the phrases were, but here is an example of what I mean:  Elder Work Harder Every Day McGillicutty.  Or,  Elder How Is The Weather McGillicutty.  Or, Elder I Wrote You Twice in One Month McGillicutty.  It's so creative and cute.

Sadly, there is one part of being involved with letters to missionaries that breaks my heart.  There are some missionaries who get very little mail.  I know who they are, and they don’t complain. They act as if it doesn’t matter and they valiantly continue on. But when mail is being passed out, I see the hope in their eyes.  I see the disappointment when there is nothing for them…again and again and again.  If you are a parent and reading this, make sure you send letters to your missionary, even if you email him each week. You might even consider asking your missionary if he/she has a companion who doesn’t get much mail.  Maybe you could share some love with them.

But I suspect that any parent reading this blog is a regular letter writer, both email and snail mail.  Thank you for your love and sacrifice while your child serves the Lord.  Thank you for raising such an amazingly valiant child, so that I can work here in the mission home and have the privilege of knowing him or her.  Being a mission secretary is such a great joy!

Dendo with President Baird!

Written by Elder Jose Romero

We were so surprised one day, September the fifteenth I believe it was, when we got a call from Elder Ito. We were right in the middle of companionship study, when the phone rang. Elder Ito proceeded to inform us that we would be spending the following Tuesday working together with our beloved Mission President! Not to be redundant, but we were extremely surprised. This was something that neither of us had expected to happen. I (Elder Romero) was in the middle of my third transfer, and Elder Rocha in his thirteenth. And up to that point, neither had done a day's missionary work together with President Baird. We were told we would meet President Baird at the Ina Branch building at ten in the morning. And he was to work alongside us until five in the afternoon.

As we talked together after finishing the phone call, we were still quite shocked. But as we looked at our plans, and discussed, an excitement began to replace the shock. This opportunity probably wasn't going to come again. Therefore, who would be best to visit? Who could benefit most from a visit from the Mission President himself? With questions such as those in mind, we planned. And we prayed.

The day soon came. We had our usual morning routine, and left the apartment to meet with President Baird. As we had been preparing for this day, we had had many questions about how it was going to work. We were informed that he was bringing along his bicycle, and would ride alongside us. As we peddled to the church, excitement, and a little nervousness bubbled within us. We turned into the parking lot, and there was President Baird, bicycle out, helmet in hand, ready to go. We offered a prayer, and began our day's labor.

The day began by our going to the main hospital here in Ina. It's a large building, with opportunities to see, meet, and talk with multitudes of people. This particular day, we had been focusing on finding a new, possibly more than one, investigator. That being our goal, we needed to do our part, and talk with everyone.

Now when President Baird says to talk with everyone, he's not messing around. He talks to EVERYONE. Well, except we can't directly contact a female, but everyone else was stopped, and talked to.

President Baird as a hospital volunteer.

I learned a great lesson during that trip to the hospital. Not everyone is going to talk to us very long. Not everyone wants to talk to us at all. But everyone that we talked to on that ride was perfectly willing to give us directions to the hospital, even though both Elder Rocha and I knew how to get there. And not only were they willing to direct us, but it usually opened up a conversation. They would ask why we were going there or something to that effect. We could explain about who we are and what we are doing in Japan. We passed out around seven pamphlets into the hands of those that knew not God. In time, we reached our destination. We registered President Baird to do service with us, put on our aprons, and went to work.

Our hospital service usually consists of helping people who need wheelchairs, assisting with carrying heavy bags or other items, and just being friendly. Many appreciate our help and will engage us in small conversation. On this particular day, Elder Rocha and President Baird talked to a man who spoke English fairly well. As they talked about why they were in Japan, he suddenly had to leave. They attempted to obtain his contact information, but he left too quickly. They did what they could.

Elder Romero and President Baird

Service time ended, and we once again took to the road on our bicycles. We had planned to stop by a potential investigator’s house, who lives close to our apartment. We play badminton with our Branch President and many others, every Monday. We wanted to invite her, as she had come before. But she wasn't home. We were about to return to our apartment, but first decided to knock on the next-door neighbor's home. I had met a very lively and kind woman who lived there a few weeks earlier. So we knocked.

A man answered on the speaker box. I was slightly surprised, not having known she was married. We introduced ourselves and expressed our desire to meet all our neighbors. The man said OK and came to the door to speak to us face to face. It was a pleasant interaction. We told him why we were in Japan, asked about his family, and gave him a Proclamation to the World pamphlet. He was very kind, accepted the pamphlet, and said it was OK if we stopped by again. We then returned to our apartment for lunch.

After lunch, we had an appointment with a less-active member, a Brazilian named Mateus Fujihara. He is an extremely nice and friendly man, who slightly struggled with the Japanese church vocabulary. He has had many difficult trials in his life, and we believed a visit from President Baird would help him build his already quite strong testimony.

Elder Rocha and President Baird

The lesson went very well. We hadn't told him President Baird was coming to his home. We told him a special visitor would be there, but we didn't say who. Needless to say, he was very surprised to discover the Mission President knocking on his door. It was a day he still talks about often, and none of us will ever forget. 

We began (after the prayer) by watching the Restoration video. It was something to really invite the Spirit into his home, to help us teach, and enlighten us all. We read from the scriptures together (even President Baird. The whole lesson was in Portuguese!), and testified of what we had seen and heard. Mateus bore his own testimony, and President Baird then asked a few questions. He then gave Mateus a challenge. Up to this point, Mateus had been a bearer of the Aaronic Preisthood. President Baird issued the challenge that he prepare himself to receive the higher, Melchizedek Priesthood. He suggested that together with the missionaries, he prepare his mind, his heart, and his soul for this honor. He accepted. And I am happy to say that he has prepared. He was done everything that has been asked of him, and he is ready to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood, November 18th, 2012. We concluded with a prayer, and it was time to be at our next appointment.

Our next appointment was in the home of another Brazilian family.  This is a couple, who had recently been baptized on the 26th of August, Anderson and Erica Kataok, together with their now one year old daughter, Naomi. This day we had planned our first Family Home Evening with them, (once again, almost all in Portuguese). We were very excited, as President Baird was present for their baptism and already knew them on a personal level. This visit was planned with the hope to strengthen their faith personally, and as a family. 

We had a great time! Singing hymns and playing the game with the cups and balloons was great! And afterwards, we shared a small spiritual message about how the Lord has prepared so many ways to strengthen families and feel His love more in our homes. We testified of the divinity of the family organization. This, of course, brought the Spirit into their home. But what touched that family most was when the parents, Anderson and Erica, expressed their own feelings and testimonies of how they have seen this gospel already bless their lives. We closed with another hymn and prayer and left, leaving a portion of the Spirit to reside in their home.

As we left their home, it was time for President Baird to leave Ina, and for us to continue our work for the day. President Baird told us many things, and counseled us on the subject of finding the faith to find, as written in Preach My Gospel. We took a few pictures, and parted ways.

Elder Rocha and I pondered much about our experiences with President Baird, and each learned different things about how we can improve our own missionary work. It can often be as simple as asking directions.

I am very grateful for the opportunity I had to work alongside President Baird. I know he has been called of God and holds the keys to direct the work here in Japan, even in little Ina. He cares for each of his missionaries, and those they teach and interact with. And if you don't know how to approach someone, ask for directions. People are inherently good.

October, 2012 Transfer Week

Perhaps someone could make money on a book for mission bloggers.  They could suggest 30 new titles for Transfer Week, 30 ways of welcoming new missionaries with words, and 30 ways of sadly saying goodbye to missionaries who don't really want to go, but know they must.  Oh, and 30 ways to let these missionaries know how much you have grown to love them and will miss them. Since that book hasn't yet been written, we will just go ahead and write about five amazing young people, for we have had transfers again.  We will begin with three mature and experienced missionaries who were hard to let go of:

Sister Saito

Sister Saito knows the Savior lives and that Heavenly Father always answers our prayers.  Her Patriarchal blessing and attending the temple helped her decide to serve a mission.  She has been a superb missionary.

Sister Saito is on the left, with Sister Yamada

From left:  Sister Nishimuro, Sister Saito, Sister Clark

Elder Duarte

Elder Duarte's goal on his mission has been to take advantage of every minute.  He is talkative, friendly, loving, and positive. When people are around him, they are generally smiling.  

Elder Duarte just might be a good cook.
(Elder Burnett is behind.)

Elder Ikeda (left) and Elder Duarte

Elder Soliai

Missionaries can do anything!  (But how did he do this?)

Elder Soliai is very good at working with members to involve them in missionary work.  He is exactly obedient and he shows his love to every missionary and every person.  He is very focused on his purpose as a missionary and is an excellent trainer and teacher.

Elder Soliai in Shirakawa-go.


Oh, how we will miss the three of you!

But what joy, to have two new elders come in who were ready to go and excited to try to fill the big shoes of those who left:

Our first peek at our newest elders, coming through the gate.

You can tell these two missionaries are ready to go,
and President Baird is ready to get them started.

Our traditional picture at the dragon.
(It is the Year of the Dragon.  What will we do next year without him?)
From left:  Elder Prestwich, Elder Wilkinson, President and Sister Baird

At Nagoya Eki by the golden clock,  from left:  Elder Clark (Recorder), Elder Ellsworth (AP) Elder Prestwich,
Elder Wilkinson, Elder Ito (AP), and Elder Koesashi (Commissarian)

And finally, meeting their new companion and trainer:

Elder Prestwich with Elder Parra

Elder James Prestwich is a Murray, Utah man.  He is the second oldest of five children and is coming on a mission partly to set a good example to is younger siblings.  His ultimate goal is to live again with God, and his mission is a great help in that direction.  He calls himself an all-around person, enjoying many things, but especially mentions sports, reading and music.  He has a long list of things he loves to do.  He is creative, optimistic, kind, happy, intelligent and fun loving.  And he is overjoyed to come to Japan. Elder Parra is extremely patient,  and is always happy.  He has great comunication skills and is very  responsible.  He doesn't get irritated if people don't use common sense.

Elder Wilkinson with Elder Schade

Elder Travis Wilkinson hails from Payson, Utah and says his family is huge. He has two brothers and four sisters.  Elder Wilkinson is the oldest, and he has a special love for his four-year-old sister.  He has completed a year at Snow College and wants to eventually go to the Huntsman Business College at Utah State.  He wants to own his own business.  He plays saxophone and guitar, has done a lot of ballroom dancing, and enjoys working on cars.  He likes working hard and he studies hard.  He worked hard to prepare for his mission with college roommates and with regular scripture study. Elder Schade's first goal has always been to serve a successful mission, but he wants to obtain at least a bachelor's degree to provide for the family he wants to have.

And after a day of training, off they go, in the work of the Lord!

Listen to the Promptings

Written by Elder Kevin Baker

It was late morning or early afternoon when we were riding on our bicycles alongside President Baird that Elder Finlinson received an impression that we ought to pay a visit to the grandmother of one of our investigators, Shoei. Having ample time in our possession, President Baird and I both readily agreed to this course of action and we promptly set off to accomplish this task.  We rode over to the neighborhood and parked our bikes outside the front of the house.  Before we knocked on the door, however, Elder Finlinson revealed to President Baird and myself some new information which he had hitherto failed to mention, namely that the last time we had visited here the grandmother had told us to never come back.  Nevertheless, we followed through with the course we had set out upon and knocked on the door.

The grandmother opened the door to us and, to our surprise and relief, invited us in.  As we stepped in, we realized someone else was there as well!  Shoei was there !!  Apparently, he had a doctor’s appointment that day, and was staying at his grandmother’s residence until that time.  We (Elder Finlinson and I) then started playing with Shoei while President Baird talked to his grandmother about various subjects.  Eventually, it came to a point where we were about to leave when President Baird asked her about the situation concerning Shoei and baptism.  Shoei had been an on and off investigator for about the space of two years now, due in part to an uncle he lives with that was very much against the missionaries coming over.  This situation had resulted in numerous problems and setbacks which in turn had caused Shoei’s chances of salvation to dwindle down almost to nothing.

Unable to meet or teach Shoei at his home, his grandmother then noted that their one glimmer of hope lay in the hands of Brother Fujii.  Brother Fujii was an active, God-fearing member who lived in the Toyama Ward and had almost a grandfatherly relationship with Shoei.  He took him and his brother camping, did activities with them, and even had restored members of the family (namely this same grandmother) to activity.  It was at this point that Elder Finlinson laid out the suggestion, “What if we taught him at Brother Fujii’s house?”  The grandmother replied that that would be wonderful and would provide a perfect solution to the problem.

This situation only proved to be even better for our schedule since the person we were next scheduled to meet was in fact Brother Fujii.  We biked over to his house and, instead of going over our pre-prepared lesson, informed him of Shoei’s situation.  Hearing our story, Brother Fujii promptly replied that he would take care of everything.  If we showed up, he would have Shoei ready and waiting, and that is exactly what happened.  A few short weeks later, Shoei entered the waters of baptism and became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  The spirit guided us that day and I will ever be thankful that we listened to and followed the impressions that my companion received.  

From left:  Elder Baker, Elder Finlinson, Bro. Fujii, Shoei's older brother,
Shoei, and Shoei's mother Yoshioka Shimai

A Week in the Life of an Assistant to the President

A Week in the Life of an Assistant to the President, written by Elder Tanner Ellsworth

The following is a retelling of a week in my life as AP. I will admit that this was one of the busier weeks of my mission, but this pace is not unusual for the missionaries here in our mission. Hope you enjoy a week in the life of a missionary.

Monday

Left to right:  Elder Koesashi, Elder Kishi, Elder Berrett,
Elder Kervinen, and Elder Ellsworth

5:45- Wake up, quick run around the block, get ready for the day.

6:30- Start weekly reports with Zone Leaders, each Zone takes about half an hour. We discuss investigators committed to baptism and celebrations in finding and teaching from each zone.

8:00- Update/double check all the Key Indicator stats for the week on the computer. Start preparations for President’s report.

8:30- Meet Brother Hisaka at the church. Plan for our lesson with our investigator and drive to her apartment.

9:00-Lesson with an investigator. We talked about the importance of coming to church and invited her to come to church with Brother Hisaka. She really wants to come to church because she feels like it would help her feel closer to God and recharge for the week. Unfortunately, she teaches a yoga class every Sunday, but she committed to pray about asking her clients to switch their class time!

10:00- Return back to the honbu. Finish all preparations for Staff Meeting (President’s report, assignments, celebrations from the week).

11:00- Staff Meeting!! Elder Barney, Sister Barney, Elder Clark, Elder Koesashi, President. Delicious snacks from Sister Baird. Cinnamon rolls. We discuss many things like new email regulations for the missionaries, all missionaries making mormon.org profiles, revising the list of needed items for missionaries who are called to our mission, etc.

1:30- Staff Meeting ends. We slip out to go to the Ayuzawa family’s house. We planned to do a Family Home Evening with their friend and neighbor. We talk for a few minutes with the Ayuzawa’s about what kind of person she is and how we should present the gospel to her.

2:00- Family Home Evening with the Ayuzawa’s and their friend! She loves music and played the ocarina for us. We play a simple game and then discuss the love of God and how he loves each and every one of us. She cried and explained how she doesn’t know who our God is, but that her own personal God is a huge strength to her and has helped her a lot through her husband’s sickness. We sing “I am a Child of God” and make a return appointment for the next Saturday to meet and talk more about what our church really believes.

Top row:  Elder Ito, Elder Ellsworth, President and Sister Baird
Middle row: Elder Hara,  Elder Kobayashi, Elder Hiruta, Elder Kusume, Elder Tojo
Front Row:  Elder Parry, Elder Ashcroft, Elder Dinkle, Elder Clark, Elder Gottfredson

3:00- Back to the honbu. Meet with President Baird. Discuss the status and needs of all of the people committed to be baptized in our mission. Talk about the needs of our mission. Talk about the upcoming Zone Conference and what we will talk about and what he will talk about. Discuss the upcoming transfers. Who will be training, who will be leaders, etc.

5:00- Finish with President Baird. Gather up our bags and clothes and leave for a companion exchange in Gokiso (about 1 hour away).

6:00- Arrive in Gokiso. Off to an appointment! Meet with Brother Odani near the investigator’s house and go together to her house. We met her mom for the first time, so we helped her mom understand the church and its values, committed the investigator to be baptized, and discussed what steps needed to be taken for baptism. Helped the Mom understand baptism. We still have a little bit of time, so we go to this guy’s house who stopped answering his phone and coming to church. He wasn’t there, but we contacted his neighbors, trying to find those who were interested. Still haven’t eaten dinner, so on the way home, I grab some food from a convenience store.

9:00- Return home. Make plan for the next day. Do the routine Apartment and Area Book Check, change clothes, eat some more of their food, and crash.

Tuesday

6:30- Wake up. Exercise. Get ready. Eat breakfast.

8:00- Personal Study.

9:00- Combined companionship study where we give training and talk about the status of their Zone.

10:00- Visit a less-active member whose children are still not baptized. She was home, but she was busy, so we 10x-ed (contacted 10 people living around her) and moved on.

11:00- The investigator who we visited the night before (who wasn’t home) calls! Says thanks for the note and he will come to church this upcoming Sunday!

12:00-Lunch and Language Study then off on our bikes to weekly service activity!

2:00-We do various jobs and tasks with disabled people at the Himawari Center for Disabled Persons.

4:00-Head home, eat some dinner. Kokan (companionship exchange) review. And then back to Meito.

6:00- Prepare all the materials for the upcoming transfer (getting stuff ready for the new missionaries, planning the last day of missionary activity for the returning missionaries, preparing agendas for the meetings that we have during transfer week).

7:00 Meet ward missionaries Brother Hosoda and Sister Morita at the church and go to the Imoto family’s house to follow-up on the planning that we did a few weeks earlier. Go to the Imoto’s, plan to do a Family Home Evening with their cousin who just moved into town and to invite their two neighbors to the upcoming Halloween Party at the church. Brother Imoto is also going to invite a friend to church, so if his friend comes, he would like us to meet him.

8:30- We use the few minutes we have left to invite a few of our neighbors to the upcoming Halloween Party.

9:00- Come home. Plan for the next day!

9:30-Change clothes, get ready for bed, write in journal, etc.

10:00 Send out a HOIZA Daily Press! Announce all the new investigators who are committed to baptism in the last week and other celebrations from this past week.

10:30- Sleep!!

Elder Ellsworth, enjoying mist fans on a hot day.

Wednesday

6:30- Wake up and play soccer with our investigator, Koji Kyodai, who loves soccer!

7:15- Come home, get ready for the day.

8:00- Personal Study

9:00- Companion Study

9:45- Meet Brother Yamamoto at the church and go to our investigator’s lesson!

10:00- Lesson with our investigator! We were planning on inviting her to be baptized, but she informed us that her cancer has returned and she will be having surgery in a week. So we veered from the plan and shared scriptures in the Book of Mormon that had strengthened us and told her that she too could receive that same power and help from the Book of Mormon. We gave her a priesthood blessing, and in her closing prayer, she thanked God for strengthening her in her times of need. We told her we will call, text, and pray for her until the surgery is over!

11:00 Language Study

12:00 Lunch.

1:00 Sister Baird asked us to visit a certain less-active woman who she knew whose son was looking for a group of friends, so we go to visit her! She was really nice, but busy making lunch for her husband. She gave us ham and Japanese pears (nashi) and asked us to come back another day. We contacted her neighbors, trying to find those interested in the restored gospel. We met a Jehovah’s Witness who said that the Mormon missionaries usually don’t come to this neighborhood! We had a great talk with her and left her with a Lesson 1 pamphlet.

2:00 More transfer preparation!! During this time, we also planned for the upcoming Zone Conferences. Catch up on all the office work we missed on our exchanges.

5:00 Dinner

6:00 Head to the church to meet Brother Hosoda and plan for our lesson at 6:30

6:30 Meet with our investigator and talk about the Joseph Smith experience! She tells us about how that story sounds really familiar to her because, even though she hasn’t seen God or Jesus Christ, she feels like they sometimes guide her through her dreams and feelings. The Spirit was strong, so we invited her to be baptized, but she expressed concern about her family and the difficulty of her getting married if she joined the church. For now, she would like to just keep coming to church and English class.

7:30 From there we go to English class!

8:30 After English class, we talk to our member who brought her friend to English class. He is an interesting guy who loves playing the bass guitar and traveling. He was really easy to make friends with. So we talked to him for a while and set up an appointment to come to his house on Saturday with his member friend!

9:00 Return home. Prepare for bed.

10:00 Reporting with the Kanazawa Zone Leaders where we hear more about the status of those investigators committed to be baptized and how we can help them keep progressing!

10:30 Sleep!

Daisaku Yamaguchi, member from Ichinomiya, and Elder Ellsworth

Thursday

6:00 Wake up and get ready to go to Gokiso for the first of this round of Zone Conferences. Make sure we have all the materials (translation, taikai box-full of materials missionaries can buy, handouts for missionaries, etc.) Finalize our plans for training and head to Gokiso.

9:00 Help the Zone Leaders set up the church, set up translation, let everyone know about their assignments (opening prayer, accompanist, etc.) Make sure that everyone is quietly waiting for the Zone Conference to begin.

10:00 Zone Conference begins! We hear from President and Sister Baird. We present training, this time about Developing Faith to Find. We eat an amazing lunch prepared by the Relief Society (and then make sure they get paid). And then we hear from the Zone Leaders and have a short testimony meeting.

4:00 Zone Conference ends, and we make sure everyone starts heading home and the church gets cleaned up.

5:00 Come home and eat dinner.

6:00 Language Study

7:00 Lesson at church with an investigator and his member friend. He is trying to quit smoking, so we reviewed the Word of Wisdom, and he seems to have a strong desire to keep it. We made plans and goals, and asked him to read my favorite scripture, 2 Nephi 4, whenever he feels tempted.

8:00 Another lesson at the church with a different investigator and his member friend. He loves church and felt the Spirit very strong when he saw someone get baptized. He comes to church every week, reads the Book of Mormon, and prays multiple times a day. He is working towards a baptismal date, but still thinks he lacks faith. So tonight, we read Alma 32 with him.

9:00 Come home. Plan. Get ready for bed. Etc.

10:00 Reporting again! But this time with the Nagano Zone Leaders.

From left:  Elder Ellsworth (AP), Elder Ito (AP), and
Elder Koesashi (commissarian)
Must have been a stressful day!

Friday

6:00 Another companion exchange! Wake up early, get ready, and drive to Matsumoto (about 3 hours) to do another companion exchange.

9:00 Arrive in Matsumoto and do a combined companionship study, followed by a day of visiting investigators, working to find new investigators, and visiting members in Matsumoto.

9:00 Come home and get ready for bed.

10:30 Sleep.

Saturday

6:30 Wake up and drive home from Matsumoto. Today is p-day! With any time left, do some personal, companion, and language study.

10:00 P-day begins! During p-day, we email our family, go grocery shopping, write letters, and occasionally visit nearby places.

5:45 We get a call from Sister Yui Yoneda. She is at the church with her friend who she would like to introduce to us, so we head to the church and meet her 3 friends. We have a good conversation about the church and what we do. They want to come to church some Sunday.

6:15 Today is a Ward Activity! All the men in the ward rallied together to make dinner for the Sisters. We help serve their food and help with anything they need. A great ward activity! And two part member families came.

8:30 We got all the leftover food. The members are always too kind to us.

9:00 Typical evening schedule, including reporting with the Nagoya East Zone Leaders, and sleep.

Elder Ellsworth and Elder Ogaki
YOSH!!!

Sunday

6:30 Wake up. Breakfast. Get ready.

8:00 Personal Study.

9:00 Ward Mission Correlation Meeting with the Ward Missionaries and the Ward Mission Leader. We have this meeting every week to plan who will help with what lessons and discuss the progress of investigators and efforts being made with members and less-active members to find new investigators.

10:00 Church! Church is always an adventure trying to greet everyone and make sure investigators know where to go and have a friend to sit with. Today, three investigators came to church and seemed to have a great time.

1:00 Church ends. And now the work begins. Usually, we have between 5-10 members that we need to follow up with or make appointments with right after church. It’s a fun game trying to track down different members.

1:30 Come home and eat lunch.

2:30 Language Study.

3:30 District Meeting taught by Elder Koesashi. This transfer, we are studying Christlike attributes, and Elder Koesashi does a great job teaching Faith and Hope.

5:00 Shortened companionship study and quick dinner.

6:00 Head to Yokkaichi (about an hour away) to teach a family who only speaks Spanish. Because my companion, Elder Ito, speaks fluent Spanish, President Baird has asked us to teach this family.

7:00 Lesson with the Inoue family. Martin is excited to be baptized, but he has trouble coming to church on Sunday because of his job. So we talked about that and made plans for him to come to church and eventually go to the temple with his family. His kids are really excited because he said they can go to Disneyland in Tokyo on the way home.

8:00 Head home.

9:00 Plan for the next day.

9:30 All of the missionaries Key Indicator Statistics should be sent to the honbu email address by this time, so we take those and make the reports for President Baird that he needs the next morning.

10:00 Get ready for bed and asleep by 10:30.

The Greatest Joy

Written by Elder Yoshiya Ito, October 1, 2012

Sister Murakami, who referred Sister Mazuka, was raised in an LDS family in Tokyo.  But she became less active when she was 11 years old because her family stopped attending church.  She stayed less active for more than 15 years.  When she had difficulties, she remembered church and started to attend again.  Then she went on a mission and served in the United States, San Jose Mission.

She met Sister Mazuka at the university in Utsunomiya and they became friends.  Sister Mazuka had lived in Hamamatsu since she was born.  Sister Murakami had lived there for college.  Sister Murakami forgot about church, so she didn’t talk with her friend at all about church.  But when she got reactivated, she invited Sister Mazuka to church.  But Sister Mazuka didn’t like church very much at that time.

Sister Murakami referred Sister Mazuka to the Hamamatsu elders, Elder Kobayashi and Elder Ito after she came back from her mission.  She knew that Sister Mazuka had interest in the church because of difficulties she had experienced. 

Sister Mazuka was golden and had strong desires to learn the Gospel and know the truth.  But she struggled with knowing if there was a God.  Brother and Sister Ito tachiaied (went as members to help teach) every time we had a lesson with her.  They are awesome tachiais.  Brother Ito is a convert.  He told his conversion story to Sister Mazuka and encouraged her to set a baptismal date as a goal to know the truthfulness of the Gospel.  She accepted to be baptized on July 15^th.  The missionaries taught her the Gospel with enthusiasm.  But she was not sure that the Church was true.  So the baptismal date fell through.  The Suzuki bishop also helped her a lot by doing several things, such as giving her an assignment to play the piano at Sacrament Meeting.

The Ito family invited her and the missionaries to dinner.  Then the Ito’s encouraged her again to set a baptismal date when the missionaries invited her to be baptized.  She accepted more positively than before.  Her baptismal date was August 12^th.

Elder Ito is on far right. Elder Kobayashi is in white next to Sister Mazuka.
Her friend, Sister Murakami, is in the gold top.
The Ito family are on the left and Elder Hara is second from right..

Sister Mazuka got baptized on that day.  Sister Murakami came to the baptismal service from Tokyo.  It was a great baptism.  After the ordinance of baptism, Brother and Sister Ito bore their testimony saying, “I am feeling the greatest joy of missionary work.  I didn’t serve a mission but I know that missionary work brings the biggest happiness.  And I also want to be a tool used by the Lord to invite my friends and families to come unto Christ as Sister Murakami did to Sister Mazuka.”

I saw a big change in the hearts of some members of the church as President Eyring prophesied in 1998.  If more church members get willing to be involved in missionary work, we can receive many blessings from heaven, having greater success in missionary work.  The baptism of Sister Mazuka is a testimony of that.