Fresh Courage Take

Ohaiyo gozimasu, minnasan!

So, here I am! In Hanayashiki! And boy, am I loving it here! First off, it's much more country-like than I was expecting. I thought it would be in the big city part of Osaka, but it's actually pretty small. Our apartment is SO NICE! Very new. Kind of small. But there are only two of us living there, instead of four, so that is really no problem. Honestly, it is more than enough space. And like I said, it's very nice. I feel really blessed!

Sister Weigl all packed and leaving her apartment
in Akashi, Japan

The first couple days in the area were a bit...interesting. We had absolutely NO idea where we were going or where anything was. Not to mention that our apartment was completely empty. We had no food, no tables, no nothing. The very first thing we did was go buy bikes, so that we could, you know, go places. Then we went and bought food. We seriously misjudged how much food we would need though, and bought way too little. By dinner time that night, we had a brand new list of things we realized we had forgotten to buy, such as salt, oil, and other vitally important food items along those lines. 

Our new Apartment front door "Welcome"
from the Hanayashiki Members

Our first meal in our new apartment was a blast! Luckily, the ward members had stocked the apartment with plates and knives and the like, so we had those, but had no place to eat. So we ate on the floor! Whoo-hoo! Like I said, it was a party! We couldn't stop laughing the whole time because it looked so ridiculous. 

Throughout the week, we received multiple packages from the Mission Home (which is sort of like the mission headquarters), so don't worry. Now we have a dinning table, desks, chairs, a rice cooker, drawers, and everything else we need for living. And the Ward is crazy nice! The very first night, the Ward Mission Leader (the person who helps us missionaries coordinate with the members of the ward) and his wife brought us by food. Not to mention that some members heart-attacked our Apartment door with candy and a sign that read, "Welcome to Hanayashi, Sisters!" Like I said, the Ward is AWESOME! I already love them to death! On Sunday, they basically mobbed us with questions of what they could buy for us and what they could do to help us. One sister pretty much tackle-hugged us, she was so excited to have Sister Missionaries here in Hanayashiki again (there hasn't been any for around five or six years, I believe).

So, upon arriving in Hanayashiki, we had absolutely no investigators. Nobody to teach. Not even one phone number or name. Nothing. We had absolutely no records of any previous teaching that had been done in the area and absolutely NO idea where anything was. But, we know our purpose, so my companion and I said a prayer asking to be lead to someone willing to accept our message, and off we went. We rode our new bikes around Hanayashiki, going where the Spirit told us to go. And it lead us to one particular apartment building where we met THREE separate people who said that we could come back and visit them. Three, all in the same apartment.

My New Companion - T-Shimai

I know that if we turn ourselves over to the Lord and try to seek for revelation, our footsteps will be guided. We don't even have to know where we are going ourselves. The Lord knows us, He knows Hanayashiki, but most importantly He knows those willing to hear His voice and accept it. He knows exactly where these people are, even if we do not. If we pray and seek for guidance, He will lead us to them, or them to us. I hope that I can be faithful enough to be a profitable servant to the Lord. I hope to gird up my loins, fresh courage take, and put on the whole armor of God. I want to go into battle as a warrior of God. I want to battle for the souls of those waiting out there, prepared to come unto God, their divine leader and protector. 

On Saturday, we went to the baptism of an eight-year old member. Oh gosh, was it cute! There are so many children in the ward! After the baptism, all the children sang, "I am a Child of God" together, and as they did so, I couldn't hold back my tears. I just felt this overwhelming love for them. I KNEW in my heart that they are loved by God. I just imagined Christ sitting there, among them, just like in the New Testament. I imagined the smile on His face as He called each of these children by there name, and lifted them up onto His lap. I am sure He would tell them how special they are, because truly, each of us is so special to Him. We are so special, He was willing to sacrifice His own life so that we could overcome death and sin and live with God again after we die. 

The love of God is a strong and precious thing. To be able to feel just a small portion of that, well, it is the desire of my heart. To be able to truly love the people of Japan like the Savior does, to have that love be the motivation for my every action and desire. To be a conduit of that love, so that everyone to whom we speak can feel the immense love of God and come unto Him. For we truly are His children. 

Sister Weigl

FIVE QUESTIONS:

1. How far away is your new area from the mission home?

I have no idea...maybe about one hour. Probably about the same distance as Akashi, but in the other direction.  From your old area? Two hours? One and a half? Not too far, but boy, is the terrain different. This area goes up a mountain.

2. Is the church close by? what time is church? 

Oh my gosh, the church building is close to our apartment, about 15 minutes away, but we have to go up this KILLER hill to get to it. Like, it is SO STEEP. I pretty much die every time we go to the church, haha. I guess we will just get extra strong this transfer! Church is the same time as it was in Akashi, from 10:00 to 1:00, but Ward Council is at 8:00 and somehow we got roped into being in the choir (my companion, Sister Takanezawa, is an AMAZING singer), so church this Sunday was pretty much an all-day affair. 

3. Do you meet at the church for most things like the last area?

So far, not really, but that's because we've been so consumed with assembling the things in our apartment (we had to put all the desks, tables, and drawers together ourselves), which was pretty time consuming. And then just running back and forth trying to get everything we need and to learn the area, we have had a bit of an abnormal schedule this week. This coming week should be more normal. 

4. Will you be teaching English classes in this area?

YUP. I really love teaching the English Class (Eikaiwa). We teach at the church every Tuesday and it is something that is set up in every area and to my understanding, is a mission-wide thing. So YAY FOR EIKAIWA! 

5. How are the members? Is the ward big?

The Members are so nice. The ward is HUGE, probably twice or three times as big as Akashi ward. Not to mention how big the church building is. The atmosphere really just reminds me of Rolling Valley.