Friday, May 22, 2015

The Last Transfer

Dear beloved family and friends,

This week had many wonderful miracles as well as stretching and
growing trials. Both of which I am so incredibly grateful for!

The other morning I felt this emotional wound in my heart I couldn't
let go because of actions of others who I had been hurt by, I felt
both that emotional pain as well as resentment and difficulty to
forgive. But that morning in personal study I imagined I was in the
temple and just talked with my loving Heavenly Father. I poured out my
soul to him and sought his guidance and love to heal both the pain and
also help me to forgive. I felt the spirit speaking the healing word
of God to me and I really felt the power of the atonement  healing the
wound in my heart and helping me let go and forgive. I finished that
prayer feeling so much peace and joy and so grateful for the power of
the atonement.

As always the work isn't easy, it takes a lot of housing and working
and talking and getting rejected to find those who are ready and who
will listen, but he lord has blessed us so much! This week we were
able to teach a family named the Komesus. We met them housing and the
father, a big almost Polynesian looking Okinawan told us that he had
met a missionary twenty years ago and became friends, so he let us
come back and share our message to his wife and 16 year old daughter
as well. We gave him a plan of salvation pamphlet to read before we
met.

A day before the appointment he called us and asked we could meet that
night, so we adjusted our plans and went. We went and felt so much
warm love and acceptance from that family! And especially the daughter
was really interested and had read the whole pamphlet before we even
met her! At first they said they just wanted to listen because they
thought it was amazing how we were volunteers and giving so much. But
as we helped them see how the gospel changes hearts and strengthens
families they opened up and allowed us to come back again next week. I
am so excited!

Today is the transfer call day for my last transfer. What makes it
worse is that my last transfer is only 5 weeks. I will be happy to see
my loved ones again, but I will miss Japan and being a missionary so
much! I'm determined though that my mission will not end. I may return
home, but my mission and my discipleship in following Christ will
continue forever! And I'm so excited to live my life as a light on a
hill for those around me and love them as He would.

Me and my companion were talking about the song "come unto Christ" the
other day and I realized how amazing it truly is to be a
representative and servant of Christ. In the song the lyrics encourage
us to come into Christ and be healed by him, but often to come into
Christ we have to go towards his servants who he has called. And for
the non members and investigators here, I am that servant, to come
unto Christ, they need to come unto me and then I bring them to Him.
That is simultaneously so amazing and also such a huge responsibility
I want to give my all to live up to especially these last several
weeks. I love it so much!

Love Elder Walton
Okinawa Japan

Sent from my iPad
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