OH MY GOODNESS!

In only a couple of weeks my mission will be half over! I will have 9 months left but half over?! Wow. I just realized that while I was looking at the calendar this week. Shocking.

This week was a little crazy, but really good. We had something unusual everyday. We went to Taipei on Monday for P-day, then back again on Tues for temple tours (Love them!) and then Wednesday was district meeting and English class, Thurs 4 hours were taken up by weekly planning, then Friday (Sister Wynder's Birthday!) we had a zone conference. Which was absolutely amazing.

I feel like we have been running around all over the country side. But its been a good one.

On Thursday night we had an experience with an investigator that I would like to relate. This investigator is a member referral, and so this member is with us every class we have. This woman, Fu Jiemei (sister Fu) is from a family of three sisters. The other sisters right now are all taking lessons with the missionaries in different places (imagine that!) and so that day Fu Jiemei had been visiting her sister when the missionaries came over. She loved the lesson and baptism was briefly mentioned, but she didn't know what it was, and she didn't have a chance to ask. That day on the drive home she was thinking about it a lot and her curiosity was piqued. Per the ways of the Lord, that day Sister Wynder and I shared about baptism. After the lesson she related to us that she had been wondering about that very topic all day and she was so glad that w shared it. She really believed it was the "arrangement of God." A little miracle. I really hop she can work her way to baptism. She comes to church every Sunday. :)

We had an amazing special meeting today given by the Church's President of records from SLC. It was soo good. It really pounded in the importance of keeping a record. A clear record filled with important things. Really people, appreciate it. That is why we have this gospel today, if some person wasn't wise enough to listen when the Lord said, Hey, Write that down ok? We wouldn't have the scriptures, and so we would have nothing. I am so grateful. Get a journal. Write in it, write you experiences, write your thoughts and your spiritual impressions. And seek for things to write!

On Sunday I had sort of an epiphany. Our Sundays are really long because Zhongli has two wards and we attend both sets of meetings, so we are at the chapel from 8:30 to 5 every Sunday. But in the second sacrament meeting (I have two so if I don't repent thoroughly for the first I have another chance) I received revelation. We have a lot of investigators right now that are dealing with varying levels of depression. I was thinking about a few in particular and how the cause was the self images the world tries to impose on us. Mainly their weight. I remembered over my past experiences with this issue, and my struggles and trials. I've heard that our experiences, like spiritual gifts, are given to us to be used to help others, especially for missionaries. I realized how precious all of those trials were for m and how much I need to rely on them to understand and help pull others through their own hard times. I realized that may be the very purpose the Lord called me here to Zhongli to help these very people right now. I also thought about the power of keeping positive, because it is so easy, almost natural o sink into that pit of despair and just give up, accepting the lie that there is no way out. But we cant to that. We Must Press On. Whatever our hardships are. I have resolved to change my outlook this week. I will develop a positive attitude in all that I do, and develop my own faith in the matter. You cannot convert anyone past you own conversion. And I am here to help that conversion.

Well that's all I have time for. I love you all so much, and miss you too. Carry on!

Melissa Thiessen

Conference

Blog,

Another Conference come and gone in the field.

Since we are in a foreign country where conference must be gone over and translated conference was a week later here. So we watched it this weekend. We got to watch it in English thankfully, it would have been pointless to try in Chinese. Ha. Though my MTC teacher was the translator from English to Chinese, which made my heart swell with a special kind of pride. :p

It was pretty sweet, the missionaries got their own private room with our own tv to watch it in English. And it was amazing. I don't know how I didn't appreciate these things when I was younger...okay maybe I do understand how a child would think sitting and watching old men talk about religion for 4 hours two days in a row is a little..."unprefferable." But I am so glad that I now understand that they are men (and women!!) of God and their words are from God. It was like the best kind of spiritual refreshment. The topic seemed to run a lot along marriage this time around. Young men received a repentance call to get married and then how about Elder Scott's talk about his wife and their marriage? That was the most precious thing. Who wouldn't want a marriage like that. If you haven't seen it, go online and look it up on LDS.org. It will inspire you to serve your spouse and build your marriage up under God. Watch it!

We also had 5 investigators at conference this week! That to me is amazing, its the biggest struggle of the mission to get people to come to church, and I pray that they payed attention and didn't fall asleep because the spirit was there. Saturday's sessions especially where an answer to my prayers. I received another conformation, like a engulfing flame causing my heart to burn that the words these men spoke where truth. Pure an directly inspired by God. There is nothing and no person on this earth that inspires me and gives me the desire to become a better person, to serve others, and love the people around me like this gospel does. Nothing that is so driving, so motivating and so imbued with the power to so wholly change a persons life can come anywhere from a loving God, one who Fathered our Souls and cares about us each individually.

Funny story of the week. Sister Wynder and I were unlocking our bikes in front of the train station on Friday and I heard a group of guys laughing and joking behind me. I didn't pay any attention to them until I hear numbers being thrown about. I listened in as one of them said "180, she's 180 cm." And another said, "No, she's taller than that." Then another said, "Go ask her," and the first said "No! I don't speak English, you ask her!" So I turned around and looked at them all with my hands on my hips and said, "I speak Chinese. And I'm 188 cm." They all stood shocked for a few seconds then burst out laughing at each other. Sister Wynder and I laughed about it the rest of the day too.

Well that's all the time I have. I love you all! And I hope you are doing well on the other half of the world.

Sister Melissa Thiessen
melissa.thiessen@myldsmail.net

snail mail- (costs $0.98 for a card/letter)
106-42 Taiwan, Taipei Mission
F4, No.24, Land 183
Chin Hua Street
Taipei, TAIWAN

Sweet Rain is my name!

Reporting from Zhong Li.

This week went by wicked fast. Its been great though. Sister Wynder and I are tearing it up here in Zhong Li, and its like we go out to play every day. Its been too much fun.

Zhong Li is very different from Taidong and I have to say that I appreciate the beat that pulses through the city up here in the north of this island. The pace is fast, the people are busy, and the rejection rate is high. Its great. We have a lot of investigators and we juggle them all trying to fit them all in. We are busy all the time but its good busy.

Sister Wynder and I have great unity in lessons. I moved up here and something changed. Suddenly I am talking to people. My Chinese still sucks horribly, but I am comfortable with Sister Wynder and we talk and joke and share the gospel with all of our investigators. On Wednesday night at English class I didn't teach, I was the desk person, but I had an hour and a half long talk with the father of a little girl attending class. In solid Chinese. It was by no means perfect but we actually had a conversation, for an hour and a half. It was amazing...a miracle you could say. I have soooo far to go. I still bu dong (don't understand) a lot but its getting better. When the subject is about the gospel I can talk and people understand what I say through the gaps and bad grammar. I'm so thankful. I hope with Sister Wynder my Chinese will improve much faster.

Oh, I also got a full Chinese name this week from some of our member and investigators.

Sun Tian Yu. It means sweet rain. hah. :p

Well that's all I have time to write...sorry its so short! But I do love you all.

Write me?!

Sister Melissa Thiessen