We Are Numbered

A grand hello to everyone!

Or in Japanese, minnasan, konnichiwa!

So, the biggest news of the week is that we are having our first baptism! It's on the 21st of the month! It's so amazing to think that we are able to help God in His eternal work. To help a soul come unto Christ and gain a testimony of Him! I know that we were only tools in bringing this wonderful soul unto the knowledge of her Father in Heaven. K-san is about 13 years old and has been investigating the church for about a year now, with various different missionaries. As we have taught her over the past three weeks I've been here (has it really already been that long?) we have experienced miracle after miracle!

This past week, we taught her about what prophets are, and that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. K-san had been taught this previously, but both my companion and I felt that she needed to review this truth and have it reaffirmed to her. I prayed long and hard that we would be able to teach with power and authority, as true disciples of Christ. Even as we taught the lesson, I kept a prayer in my heart that K-san would be able to know for a fact that what we were teaching was true. That the Spirit would be able to be invited into the room and be there as we taught. My prayers were answered in such a marvelous way - as both my companion and I testified of the truthfulness of this gospel, we were overcome with joy and with the Spirit. I felt so grateful and overwhelmed with happiness, I cried a bit. My companion did as well.

We asked K-san what she was feeling, and she told us that she knew that what we had taught was true. She knew it! And not just that, but she accepted our invitation to come to church with us that week (something we had asked her to do many times, but she had previously rejected due to this or that). I know, for a fact, that God will answer our prayers. He wants to help us. He loves us. And He loves each and every one of the people of Japan. I feel that love everyday, and everyday it grows stronger.

Sister Weigl and her Companion

 After the lesson, my companion and I went and got sushi for dinner as a sort of celebration. I mean, K-san was getting baptized and knew the gospel was true! If there was ever a reason for a celebration, it's most definitely the salvation of souls! We both ate SO much sushi, it was sort of a bit ridiculous. We spent about 800 yen each, which is about 8 American dollars. This might not seem like that much, but it is when you are on a budget. Plus, each plate of sushi was about 100 yen, or  one dollar. One plate had about, 2 or 3 pieces of sushi on it. So if you total that up, that's 16 or 18 pieces of sushi each. Yup, we ate like kings that night (Or queens, I guess you could say).

K-san's one request about coming to church was that we make bentos for us all to eat. A bento is basically like a Japanese lunch...in a box. It usually consists of rice (of course) and various other small foods, such as wieners or egg rolls or sushi. So, of course, how could we say no? So, Saturday night, after we finished planning and preparing for the next day, we made bentos. Now, one thing that's interesting about the Japanese culture is that it's all about presentation. How something looks is very important. So for example, the wrapping on a present...or food. So, under the guidance of my native Japanese companion, we made wieners that looked like octopuses...octopi? And apple slices that looked like rabbits.

When I initially asked my companion what I could do to help, she said, "Could you cut these apples to look like rabbits?" And of course, I had no clue what she meant. Even after she showed me, I still didn't really understand....it didn't really look like a rabbit at all! But maybe that's just my lack of imagination/foreigner mind talking. Anyways, I was HORRIBLE at cutting the apples! They looked even LESS like rabbits than ever! We both laughed so hard as I struggled to cut the apple skins to look like bunny ears. It was a pretty fun night. (Side note: The bentos tasted delicious and K-san loved them! She even complimented my rabbit apples - I am not sure how she knew that's what they were haha).

We've been spending lots of time finding people to teach this week (again). And I am glad to report that I am slowly getting better at it! I am not so afraid to talk to people now, but there's still the whole issue of the language barrier. But that's okay! I am learning that it's better to say something, even if it's wrong, than saying nothing at all.

Outside Her Apartment Door

We spent some time knocking on the doors of the houses around the area of the apartment where we live. For some reason, we decided to try and knock on some really old apartment buildings that were creaking and rusting. It was there that we found N-san. N-san is an old, sweet man who I immediately felt a love for the moment he opened his door. He is a testament to me that God does love EACH and EVERY one of His children.

N-san listened to what we had to say and as we began to talk about God, a peaceful feeling swept into his doorway and enveloped us all in it. I have never felt that sort of feeling when trying to knock on people's door. This humble old man taught me that truly, God knows each one of us. We are numbered by Him. He led us to this man, a man who lives alone in an old apartment building, who is searching for the truth.  We have yet to meet with him again, but I know that N-san felt something undeniable. And that feeling is God's love.

Remember that each and every one of you is loved by God. He knows you.

The most POWERFUL being in the universe, knows YOUR name. And He cares.

That is a miracle. 
That is who God is.

Sister Weigl