Sister Crofts-Called to Serve

June 30, 2014

皆さんこんにちは

THIS. WEEK. WAS. AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh. MY. As I reflect back on this week I honestly just want to start crying because I am so grateful for how infinitely God is blessing me and Sister Moore. We are 100% talking to every person about God and the gospel and it is UNBELIEVABLE how much the miracles are following. Sunday, we had been fasting to start the "40 day fast" so we can be more consecrated and more worthy of the Spirit. So, we hadn’t eaten all day, had talked to over 50 people and received lots of hard rejections. So then right by our apartment, there was this woman who didn’t look very friendly and so I was thinking... "uh... okay maybe I won’t talk to her" but then I remembered that she was a daughter of God too and she needs the gospel too. So we talked to her. She wouldn’t give us any contact info and didn’t really seem to have interest but said that she would maybe come to the church Sunday to learn English for 30 minutes and then learn about God. So we accidentally scheduled the appointment during the baptism ... :) So we didn’t really think she would come, but we prayed before "if she is really prepared, please let her come." So then 30 minutes after the meeting had started she comes walking into the church RIGHT before the baptism was actually going to be performed. So she sees it, was totally shocked and then while they were baring testimonies and what not she was taught the first lesson. ( I had to play the piano for interlude music, so I kept messing up because I was just praying for Sister Moore that she would be led by the spirit and I was watching them.) Hahaha but SHE LOVED IT and believed everything that was taught to her. So after, one of the members invited her to eat some food. They are actually close in age and she was baptized a year ago. So we gave her a Book of Mormon and she was so stoked to take it. AND>>>> We invited her to be baptized and she said YES!!!! She will be baptized July 20. Yamamoto san is so excited and was SO PREPARED. We couldn`t believe it. From the time that we first met her to the end of the get together after the baptism, she changed so much and opened so much.

THIS MAN WHO WAS BAPTIZED HAS AN AMAZING STORY!"!!!!! So he was against the church for 30 years. He lit his wife`s Book of Mormons on fire... through them in water... would lock the door and throw away the key just so she couldn`t go to church. He really hated religion. However, recently he was super sick and received a priesthood blessing from the branch president. He felt so warm inside. SO then he was at a fireside with President Yamashita and in front of everyone he just said how he doesn`t understand the feeling he had and that he has been learning from the missionaries for a few weeks. Then President Yamashita said – “that is the SPIRIT.” He invited him to be baptized in July and he said yes. Then the man called and said he wanted to get baptized earlier. Because of this awesome man`s baptism, Yamamoto san is getting baptized!!! I was so touched by this family`s experience and couldn`t help but cry throughout the baptism because it was such a miracle and this family is so happy. The grandchildren, the children, the wife... Ahhhh this gospel honestly brings people together.

Tuesday, we went to go meet one of our members to teach English to him and some nonmember friends. As we were waiting for him at the train station, there was this cute grandma that we saw so we helped her up the stairs. She looked kind of tired so we bought a ticket for her and then gave her a card with our number on it. We then went to go to Brother Itakura`s house. As we got into the car, he just said "Sisters! We are eating wild boar that was found around my house today!" Me and Moore Shimai just looked at each other and started laughing. "Bring it." ahhaha but it was actually delicious... but the next day we were super sick. We ended up having to work close in the city so we could always be close to the bathroom... Hahaha brutal. So then on Thursday, we get a call from this random number who had actually been the SON of the grandma that we helped. He thanked us for helping her and said that she had actually been really sick and tired and that we saved her life because she went to the hospital. So he said he wants to go to our church and learn about who we are. He said "do you understand interest?" ahahha I was like.. UM. YEAH! So then on Sunday he showed up at church. It was his first time at a Christian church. He listened intently. After church he told us about the warmth he felt in his heart and then he said (it sounds weird in English) but that Jesus Christ is IN us, he can see Him. And that we are friends with God. He said over and over again how happy he was and how much we helped him. I am so excited to teach him. He is SO READY to accept the gospel. After that we were just screaming because he was sooooo awesome. His name is Kobayashi San. It was seriously the BEST day ever.

Also, this is just kind of funny. But there was this guy on the street who asked who we are and how we speak Japanese. He said he had been to Fiji for 2 years, but couldn`t speak any English. He smelled like alcohol, and I think he was drunk. But then we told him that it is because we don`t drink alcohol, and study hard. We told him how he would be so much happier if he stopped drinking alcohol. Then he said- well you have never had alcohol so you don`t know if there is greater happiness. Then we said, well you have never not had alcohol so I guess the same principle applies. He was kind of taken aback, but it was like "touché." We tried to get him to commit to follow the word of wisdom on the street... It was super fun.

There were so many awesome people we talked to this week. One new girl said "信じたいi want to believe" (in god) one said "すごい awesome" (about the restoration) most said "考えたことないnever thought about it" (God, the purpose of　this life, where we go after we die, Jesus Christ...)" "no interest" いらないＩ　ｄｏｎ‘ｔ　ｎｅｅｄ　ｔｈａｔ！” But it is awesome! I am so happy and just overwhelmed with gratitude .... ahhhhh.... this is so fast. I KNOW that God answers our prayers and He helps us every single day. I LOVE THE GOSPEL