MTC Week 11

Aloha Everyone!

Here I am in my eleventh week in the MTC! I depart this Monday, Sept. 1, at 5:30 p.m. for the SLC airport to go to HONG KONG!!! I am soo excited!!! Meanwhile, I can call family while I'm at the airport! I'm going to buy a phone card for that time so I'll probably either call while I'm still in SLC or during my layover in California.

This week has been amazing and full of miracles. Our district has decided to focus on recognizing and following the Spirit instead of Canto in the remaining time that we have left. Last Saturday in the Teaching Appointment (TA)center, only one Canto-speaking volunteer came to help out so we all knelt down to pray for more to come. Within 10 minutes, we had more than enough investigators for each companionship! Halelujah! So if you know anyone who speaks Canto and lives in Provo, PLEASE encourage them to volunteer to help the missionary work move forward in China by coming to the TA! Sister Bostwick and I ended up teaching our good ol' teacher Brother Burby. Because he used to be our teacher, it's easy to feel a little intimidated because he's worked with us for so long! No fear though! The Spirit was there as we testified of our Savior Jesus Christ and I ended up crying again LOL! I love testifying!

Last Sunday for Relief Society, Sister Elaine S. Dalton (general Young Women's president) came to speak to us. She is just so full of energy and love for the gospel! She encouraged us to "cast not away our confidence" (Hebrews 10:32, 35) and to be 100% in praying every single day, reading the Book of Mormon everyday for 5 minutes, and remembering to smile 100%! So I challenge you all to do these things! I promise that God will see your efforts and bless you and your families. :)

Monday night, we had to go to this health meeting for international missionaries. Our speaker Dr. Wooley was pretty amazing because he's been called ever since 1987 to be on the missionary health committee, and he's in charge of keeping all the missionaries around the world healthy! He's come up with all these things like water purifying systems in water bottles and sprays that pretty much kill everything except for humans heehee! He's pretty much obsessed with the stuff and lives what he says. It definitely takes effort to stay healthy and safe, but it will be worth it!

After the meeting, Sister Bostwick and I were walking a solo sister back to her building when I saw this lone elder standing besides a tree outside Building 17M. He was all alone and had one arm hanging on a branch. He was so still and it was a bit dark that it was almost like he was part of the tree! I don't know what made me turn around and stop to ask if he was okay. He plainly wasn't okay--his voice trembled along with his whole body. He seemed almost about to cry. I learned that his name is Elder Justenson from northern Utah. He has no companion because he is a service missionary so he lives off the MTC campus with a family who rents a room to him. I don't know exactly what was wrong but I asked him if we could pray for him. As I prayed, words came into my mind that I know are from the Spirit, giving him comfort about his family and that he does have a testimony of Jesus Christ. I am so grateful that the Lord gave me this opportunity to be an instrument in His hands that night, and I won't forget it! The elder seemed so grateful. Praise God! It's so worth it to be worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost. It will lead us all to do good! (D&C 11).

As I'm almost out of the MTC, I feel like I have grown a lot. I even got to be pretty good at four square, a fifth-grade dream fulfilled a little too late haha! I am so grateful that I've had the chance to be in the MTC for so long cause I know this chance won't come again. There are several senior missionary couples here, one couple even on their fifth mission! I totally want to be like them!

I want you all to know that I have a testimony that God is our loving Heavenly Father and that through Jesus Christ's atonement, we can return to Him! Pray to always remember Him and He will help you to bless the lives of others!

Please keep in touch and write!

China Hong Kong Mission
2 Cornwall Street
Kowloon Tong, Kowloon City
HONG KONG

I love you all!

Sister Chu :)

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MTC Week 9

Hey Family! And Everyone!

I'm so happy that you all moved safely! I can't imagine how much junk you had to through away hehehe but I'm glad it's all done. Does this mean the house is sold? Thank you so much for sending the wonderful package last week! My comps had NO IDEA all these Chinese snacks existed . . . all except for the poki sticks and the chocolate-filled pandas! So good!

Our flight plans should be coming soon! Ahhhhh! So exciting! My deih keui (district) is wayyy excited! Sister Bostwick just realized last week how little time we have left and she started freaking out LOL! She kept saying, "I can't believe we're actually going to CHINA!!!" ten times a day. Elder Hyde was like, "I can't speak Cantonese! I don't even KNOW any Asians!" And his companion is Elder Ling LOL! And then there's me. Where has he been all this time?! I guess the ABCs don't count hehe.

Last week, Sister Bostwick and I prayed for experiences to strengthen our seun sam (faith) in Jesus Christ (Yeh Sou Gei Duk). And Heavenly Father really blessed us! I felt the Spirit so much more and my comp didn't have a breakdown at all on Friday before our teaching appointment! All you have to do is have faith that God will help you in all things. I think I have been really blessed that I have been able to have faith that Heavenly Father will make up for my inadequacies here. I know I have many because I don't know so many things. BUT I do have a testimony and if I teach with the Spirit, I know I will see miracles. :)

So we always joke about President Monson coming to our firesides on Tuesday nights even though he never comes . . . but last night Elder Oaks came! Wahoo! We were singing "Our Savior's Love" when he walked into the room, and we all stood and felt the Spirit testify that he is God's apostle! He was broadcasted to all 17 MTCs around the world! He and his wife spoke to us about teaching with the Spirit (D&C 42:6, 11, 12-14). He told us that as missionaries, we must take the sacrament and keep our covenants. He said to always have the Spirit, we must:

1) Keep His commandments
2) Prepare, study, and pray about what to teach
3) Desire to be led and be willing to be led by the Spirit.

Jesus Christ lives and loves us! Always pray for the Spirit and follow it!

I love you all!

Sister Chu :)

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MTC Week 8 :)

Hey Everyone!

Great week as usual! I just got back from the Provo Temple! So good! It's super hot outside, but in the mornings, it's getting to be colder. Fall is coming soon!

Bui Hingdaih's last day as our teacher was last Saturday. We're sad to see him go . . . all the missionaries in Hong Kong have now been taught by him since he's been a teacher in the MTC for so long now! BUT we're not going to see the end of him! His wife is now our new teacher hehehe! And he will come in on Saturdays to act as an investigator, and everyone's scared that they're going to have to teach him LOL! He can be a pretty tough one! Haha last week he freaked out because my friend from Thailand sent me some durian, apparently the worst fruit on earth. According to Bui Hingdaih, because of the Fall, this fruit came into existance LOL! Thank goodness it was fried so it didn't smell!

Another district in our zone left last Monday and Tuesday to go to South Africa and Hawaii! Soon, it will be our turn. During by stay here, I've discovered that there are three types of missionaries here in the MTC:

1) Those who are serving missions for the right reasons and who have burning testimonies that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true! They have faith in Jesus Christ. They always have a smile and glow about them. They don't mind if they need to train at the MTC for 12 weeks or more because their visas won't come through. They are happy and they make others happy no matter where they are and no matter where they go.

2) Those who are still figuring out why they're here and struggle with their testimonies. Here in the MTC, everyone's strengths and weaknesses are amplified to the max so sometimes they wonder if they should even be here.

3) Those who are here because their parents/girlfriends. The mission is especially hard for these missionaries because they do not have testimonies yet. Many of us pray for them because they want to go home. Some do go home, and it's a sad time. The Lord wants those who are prepared and ready to serve so those of you who haven't served yet should prepare now!

So there you have it! That's who I'm surrounded by on a day-to-day basis! Each missionary is so different and yet we are all united because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. So awesome! I love hearing everyone's testimonies. It's pretty much a fact that if you decide to study outside, someone will come up to you to bear their testimony in their language. Like me hahaha! The Canto is still coming along and I am so amazed that I only have a couple weeks left!

I've discovered for myself that it is so easy to live the gospel if you choose to do it! This is why I feel so happy now! Faith in Jesus Christ is so essential to do His work. Otherwise, you go through a lot of unnecessary struggle. I've found that if I let Him help me, everything is made easier like getting along with the unfriendliest personalities, teaching, everything! I love Jesus Christ and I love this gospel!

I love and miss you all!

Sister Chu :)

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MTC Week 7 :)

Hi Everyone!

I really don't know how many people actually read these but here's another email to let you know that I'm still alive! :) Sister Daniels (Ding Jimuih) is now my companion along with Sister Bostwick. Despite what others have said about threesomes, I love it! She lived in Japan for 14 years . . . her dad served a mission there and is now the mission president in Sapporo. She is soo nice and already has learned so much Canto! She reminds me a lot of Sister Bostwick in terms of personality and temperment so it's a good balance for me! Maybe it takes two to calm me down LOL! I'm so glad that Sister Bostwick has recently learned that she should enjoy being at the MTC cause I definitely am! She's been smiling a lot more and has grown so much.

There are so many wonderful elders and sisters here in the MTC. I've been here for so long now that being around so many missionaries is normal. There's Elder Ying, another ABC in another district in my zone going to Hawaii. He reminds me of a giant panda bear haha! He's so nice and his hair is always different everyday LOL! Sometimes, there's a part and sometimes it's just wild and everywhere. I asked him about it and I guess he's just trying to figure it out! It changed twice yesterday since his comp did it. I guess they're trying to tame it or something, but as some of you know, Asian hair just doesn't lay flat. And then there's Sister Kaufusi from Tonga going to the Phillippines. Now she definitely has a mind of her own! Everyone was looking for her the other night cause she wasn't in her room. It turns out that she decided that she wanted to sleep outside under the Provo skies and watch shooting stars . . . so that's what she did! I can't believe she wasn't found LOL!

In class, we've been learning how to read the BOM in characters. Some days, it really seems impossible because they are SO tiny and blend together so fast. Maybe it's because I should blink more or something. I can't wait till I'm able to read the scriptures on my own so I'll try to be patient. :) Sister Slade's so funny . . . she taught us some useful phrases last week like "I called you so much, I exploded your phone" and "I'm so pretty I explode the mirror." We are going to be the laughingstock of HK in our free time hehehe.

Our teacher Bui Hingdaih has been dropping hints left and right as to who our new teacher is going to be. So far, we all think it's his wife! If that's the case, she's gonna be an amazing teacher cause she's from HK and served her mission in Oakland. Horray! This week we've been practicing how to teach Lesson 2: Plan of Salvation in Canto. So far, so good! I just need to practice A LOT more for Saturday.

I taught a lesson with Sister Bostwick for our district meeting last Sunday on the Holy Ghost. You get plenty of chances to teach here in the MTC! I've been learning to teach with the Spirit, and it's amazing what the Lord can do if you're listening. There's a definite difference between the way elders teach and the way sisters teach, but I can't really describe how.

Hmm . . . other random things that keep happening . . . I keep getting sprayed by the bathroom air freshener so I always smell like that apple stuff LOL! It just KNOWS when I'm there haha! I wonder if racing other missionaries is very dignified but I do it anyway . . . sometimes! :)

In the end, I love this gospel! I know that God lives and I've never know this more than I do now!

Love,

Sister Chu :)

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MTC Week 6 :)

Hi Everyone!

It's already p-day again! As always, I'm having a lot of fun here in the MTC. Sister Bostwick and I taught completely in Canto for the first time last Saturday! Our "investigator" in the TA is the husband of one of the Mandarin/Canto teachers in the MTC and he's from Macau. He's so fun! I just loved it! Our task in the beginning was to eat and share a message, and then, we taught him Lesson 1 on the Restoration. The whole lesson was seriously a miracle! My comp was speaking Canto and she wasn't hesitating or struggling . . . I remember just looking over at her in shock as she was teaching cause the night before, we were having some major issues. I can't believe I'm speaking Canto either. LOL there were some times when he would just look at me like huh? but for the most part, we were able to communicate with him. AND the most important part is that the Spirit was so THERE. Each time I bear my testimony in the TA, I always end up crying and my poor companion has to figure out what to do hahaha! It's amazing! AND I saw Dar in the TA last Saturday! As soon as Sister Bostwick and I came out of our room, there she was! I was so shocked that I could barely say anything but "Hey! Ligo haih ngohge muimui!" to my just-as-shocked elders, and then my comp was like you should hug her! LOL! It was fun seeing her for like one minute.

Well, now that we're more than halfway through our stay here, every companionship switched senior comps so now I'm the senior one. And Sister Bostwick is the coordinating sister. It doesn't really mean much to both of us cause we work together so well and I just love her!

Each Sunday, the branch president randomly chooses two missionaries to speak in sacrament meeting based on a Christlike attribute from Preach My Gospel, usually one elder and one sister. Last Sunday was my turn along with Elder Ling . . . I only remember cause everyone was like it's the ABCs haha! I'm so glad I actually really REALLY prepared for once, and I absolutely loved it! I love speaking in sacrament meeting! The week's attribute was knowledge, and I shared a little bit of Dad's conversion experience in Hong Kong when he gained his testimony reading about Abinidai. I shared how we as missionaries need to help and encourage those we teach as much as possible to gain that knowledge and once that happens, to help them to have that spiritual confirmation! I love helping others have their own spiritual experiences. It's also one of the biggest challenges too.

Our days with Brother Burby are dwindling . . . he still hasn't told us who he's hired for our new teachers yet! Yesterday, we learned how to buy and sell stuff in Canto even though Brother Burby said that as missionaries, we should not bargain because the Spirit won't be with us. He set up a scenario in which he was the seller and we had to talk to him about the restored gospel as companionships. We all miserably failed because we forgot one of the most important things about being missionaries--we are to SERVE and LOVE the people first! Most of us forgot to ask him what his name was, his family, his background . . . we just jumped into the we-have-a-special-message-for-you part. Needless to say, Brother Burby put on the brakes and we all lurched to a halt. He was not too happy with us! It was a good lesson to learn even though it hurt. Our whole district was in a somber and thoughtful mood for a while. I am so glad that our teacher has enough love and foresight to help us realize when we aren't going the right way. Like Heavenly Father, He doesn't purposely want us to be unhappy. We just need these experiences so that we can be happier and help the people in Hong Kong better!

We've just met our new Canto district of two today! The elder is also an ABC and Sister Daniels is now living in our room. Her parents are mission presidents in Japan so they were pretty surprised to find out that she's been called to Hong Kong. She seems really nice and we want to help her not feel so stressed even though the first few days are pretty hum-drum with all the orientations. She's American but has lived in Japan for a while because after her dad served his mission in Japan, he just went there to work. Now that he's a mission president, they really have roots there! So she can speak Japanese if needed, which is pretty awesome. AND Spanish! Wow!

Anyway, I just want to say that I love you all!

Thank you for your emails and letters :) !

Love,
Sister Chu :)

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