Whaddayaknow it's August already

Hello Family! I love you oodles and loads.

 

Can you believe that it's August already? I was expecting July to take a bit more time than it has, but no. It was short. I think having lots of summer missionaries has contributed to that fact. Speaking of that, we have two more summer missionaries! Yeah. I think it is our fate to have them all summer. But they really can be a big help. Because we have two, we can split constantly and do twice the work! It's so cool to be two places at once. At first, Sister Lau was a bit worried about having to lead around a summer missionary by herself, but now she's tried it and likes it so much she might never want to go back. Luckily, she might not have to. :)

 

Anyways, these two new missionaries are a Sister Ho from Taai Wo and a Sister Wong from Seung Shui. I am with Sister Wong, which is funny because her sister is on a mission in HK right now and I used to live with her in Kwai Fong. Yeah! It's a small world. I think this program is really good for these teenage members. It helps them find their testimonies. And it's also helping Sister Wong really understand what her sister is doing.  I attached a photo of us in our apartment with all of our summer missionaries. There are 8 of us total now. In a tiny HK apartment (side note: I wonder if HK people ever know what they are missing out on, elbow-room wise. Though I will miss many things about HK when I go home, I am excited to have elbow-space again). Anyway, the sister behind me is my summer missionary, Sister Wong.

 

Penny finishes her summer mission today, which makes me sad, but grateful for the chance I had to be with her briefly. Actually, earlier this week, I had a chance to go street contacting with Penny, which was the coolest thing ever. You see, I remember when I first met her, she said that she thought being a missionary and getting to talk with random people about the gospel would be so fun. And then I got to be with her the first time she got to try it herself. She was a bit apprehensive, but quickly got into it, and was so excited (literally jumping a bit for joy) the first time we got someone's phone number. Tee hee.

 

Anyway, all these summer missionaries mean that I have very few chances to see my actual companion but she's doing well. She's so capable, it's just awe-inspiring.

 

Hey, here's a bit of news that you might like to hear: Apparently last week, Stellar's mom, of her own free will and volition said that she'll let Stellar get baptized after September! My comp met with her yesterday, and she said the same thing again. Basically, that she won't be able to stop her children anyway and she'll let them make decisions like that. In my opinion, her heart has been softened. The elders have been meeting with her as much as they can, and Stellar's been working harder to be a good daughter, and that is the right recipe, apparently, for a miracle. I know that Heavenly Father will always arrange things in His way and it is our job to trust and follow Him and do our part.

 

Also, in the news realm, we have new ward mission leaders in each ward! This is exciting because they have lots of fire and ideas to help the area. And it comes just at the right time because our whole mission seems to be focusing much more on working with ward and stake leaders better. We sorely need to focus on this matter, and it's exciting to have such a big chance to. We have definitely started off on the right foot with these new leaders, since we are already have relationships of trust with them (knew them long before they were called). Also, we've been working to get the wards more involved lately, and I just get the feeling that big things are afoot. It's exciting.

 

Lastly, yesterday we had a full day of leadership training in Kowloon Tong (trainers and district and zone leaders attended) and I learned so much that my brain can hardly fit it all in. I feel inspired and rededicated and guided. It's the best feeling ever. I've been trying to figure out lately how to be more effective and dedicated, and I got all my questions answered. Our mission focus now is to not just focus on rules but on our target, to help others come unto Christ. We basically have been called to live the higher law. Also, we are to focus on finding families more, on working with leaders better, and on speaking the language better (not really on reading characters). I feel all inspired.

 

Well, anyway, that's the main news. Also that I love you all. I am so grateful for this chance to be here serving, and I pray for it to change me every day. I know that my goals are eternally-minded and ambitious, but I'm so grateful to get this chance to learn and to dedicate myself. This work is true and is incredibly important. I hope that we can all find ways to participate more. Because in the end, our time to serve is really short anyway.

 

Well, I love you. Lots. Don't forget it.

 

Love,
Sister Nielsen