The Family

Wow already June?! Crazy!

Also it's crazy hot. Especially here in room where we are emailing,
but I guess that's what happens when you're a missionary and "The
Spirit of God like a fire is burning." Ha!

This week there was night in particular that was such a wonderful one
to me, this is the journal entry of that day (with just a few more
details added later)

"Today we went to a Barbeque at the church in Naha with all the
priesthood holders. It was so delicious! I loved simply looking around
for the people who looked lonely and showing them love and kindness.
Like this old grandpa member sitting there all by himself, I went over
there and listened to his stories and laughed and enjoyed time with
him. I love that simple loving and ministering to people, it really is
the fruit of life.

Then later we went with brother Yoshimura to teach a family named
Komesu we found recently. We got there earlier so we had about 10 min
just sitting there on the 7th floor of their apartment building
overlooking the city and I asked him about his mission. He told me of
an elder in his mission who until the last minute went out handing out
book of Mormons and testifying to people, and how he wanted also to be
that kind of missionary so at the very end of his mission, instead of
having all sorts of dinners where people would praise him, he just
wanted to go out housing and find and help people.

It filled me with a desire to do the same. I want to end my mission
not worrying about what others around me think of me, but I want to
end thinking what Heavenly Father would think and serving as he would
have me serve. It was a precious moment with such a great member.

Then we taught the Komesu family and it was just such a sweet
experience. The mom had already had an experience with the Book of
Mormon that helped her with problems at work. Then when we taught
about Christ and his love we showed her a bunch of pictures of Christ
loving and ministering to others around him, while we did that she
started to tear up because she felt such a strong desire to be a
better person and love others more.

The father told us how right before we had housed into him he had been
out on his porch step pondering about the world and about life and
that his heart had been opened, and the 16 year old daughter was just
so sweet and kind as she shared her own feelings about how Christ
loves and helps us in our lives.

I'm so grateful to be able to teach this family, they are such a
blessing. They are such a precious family! I hope so much that they
can get baptized and become that amazing eternal family I know they
can."

It was truly a precious experience to see just how much this gospel
really does bless and help people's lives and families lives as they
accept it into their lives. I don't think everything will simply go
smoothly and easily for them to conversion, just as it doesn't for
anyone. Even that man last week, despite that amazing miracle, we
haven't able to meet him yet. But just because things don't work out
in a storybook perfect ending doesn't make the miracles along the way
any less miraculous or amazing, or the experiences any less sweet.

I'm so grateful to Heavenly Father to each and every part of it. =)

Love,
Elder Walton



Picture: the sister in he middle is sister Joyce Curtis, she is my
second cousin and currently attends church in the same building here
in Okinawa as me (though a different ward)
Picture: me and one of our high school investigators, he is like my
little brother ha