July 14 Week 49 - Morgan Baptism! Qiong Mang, Zhu gas station guy, Annie and Johny, Help inactive convert, Muslim with green eyes, Dead battery and Companion jokes

Hello again!  This week Morgan got baptized!

 It was great!  This week was what Chinese people call qiong mang.  It mean busy, but you don't feel like your being busy brought many results.

On Tuesday we met again with Zhu.  (The gas station guy.)  He was doing good, we were struggling to get him to even start praying though.  We also met with Henry.  Henry is still reading and praying and everything, he says he feels something.. sometimes.  Other times he will even say he believes a little bit.  However, every time we bring up baptism he says no.  The only reason he says is that he doesn't believe in God.  That night we also met with Morgan.  He really likes how the purpose of the gospel is to help us become better people.

Wednesday was crazy.  We went and cleaned a road early in the morning.  It is the community service we do in exchange for free use of a room for English class at the community center.  Not a bad deal.  When we got home we got a call from a girl that Elder Snyder and Yeung baptized right before I got here, but she went inactive.  She called us crying really hard and asked us to meet her at the institute.  When we got there the institute teacher had already taken care of everything.  She had been having some problems with some domestic violence.  The school counselors and cops all came to the institute and got everything worked out really well.  After that we went and met Annie and Johny.  They are not progressing, and they just got some friend from China in town, so they don't want to meet.  It makes me really sad.

Thursday we met with Li Rui's Dad.  He is really grateful for what the church has done for his daughter, and he knows he needs to repent he just isn't really willing to right now.  We tried to meet with Xiong, but he was too busy all this week.

Friday we tried to meet with Zhu again.  We called and he dropped us.  It was a real shock.  We don't even really know why.  He just dropped us.  Oh I forgot to add something.  On Monday last week, we went out and Elder Yeung took a wrong turn, and we saw 2 people from English class on the street.  We got out and said hi they invited us in and we had a lesson. The only hitch is they are musllim.  China has a small minority that immigrated from Turkey.  The wife has brown hair and green  eyes.  It is super weird.  We need to get permission from President if they start to progress and want to be baptized.  We made sure they weren't going back to China, and they both said they aren't super devout muslims.  So we will see.

Saturday was crazy we went on exchanges, so  I drove.  That night I was an idiot and left the keys in the ignition with the car turned off.  so in the morning the battery was dead. Luckily the apt complex office had this neat little jump start battery thing.  They rest of the day was pretty rough, lots of rejection and people not answering.  The white handbook says that weekends are excellent proselyting time... but so far I haven't had much luck.  

Sunday was the baptism!  YAY!

Recently I have started to play some jokes on my companion.  He caught a grass hopper one day.  One Elder  wanted to put it in a water bottle.  While the other Elder was holding it I said.  "Oh no it is getting into biting position."  He started to freak out, and yelled for the other Elder to hurry up.  I don't know if grasshoppers even bite, but it was funny to watch. 

Another day One Elder left his expensive electronic dictionary in the institute building.  I said "I heard they are having a convention for troubled youth tonight."  He didn't like that either.  

Love you guys have a great week!

-Elder Murray

July 7 Week 48 - Happy Fourth of July, New President, Henry, Charles, Annie and Johnny and Grandma, Zhu from gas station, Bro Jiang

Hello family!  Thanks for the new shoes!  I just used them this morning.  They are perfect!  OK just to get some stuff in before I forget.  When Elder Schoonmaker left he took all the cards with the characters,  so I need some cards, now I am just desperate.  So if they aren't Book of Mormon characters that is OK.  Right now I am just going through and writing my own flash cards, they look pretty crappy.  I think I left some cards under my bed, along with my Chinese stuff from high school.  If you could send that stuff it would be awesome!

Alright well this week was great!  We had 7 member present lessons and had 5 people at church. We worked pretty darn hard, and it payed off.  Morgan is on date for this Sunday!  He is doing good, his wife isn't.  She still has a lot of concerns, but won't pray because she feels that relying on herself is better.... Chinese people always say this.  

Tuesday we met with this guy from English class, we taught English for a while and then taught a lesson.  Looks like he isn't really interested in the gospel, but that is OK.  We will keep finding people.  Tuesday we also met with a recent convert that has gone less active because she broke her foot pretty badly while chasing a guy that stole her purse in China in high heels.  So hopefully once her foot heals, she and her husband will come back.  Tuesday we also met with Xiong.  He is really cool, we are going to try to put him on date this week!

Wednesday we met with Henry.  Henry is going to San Francisco in August so we really want to get him baptized.  He comes to church basically every week, but he just doesn't believe.  He reads and prays, but he just isn't feeling the spirit.  We will keep trying though!  

Thursday we met the new President!  He seems really awesome cool.  He is from Northern California, he is a CPA and he loves to scuba dive.  He and his wife were both really nice, I am sure they will do great.  Thursday we also met with Annie and Jonny.  They haven't been reading and praying!  However, their grandma that came with them has been, she read to 3 Nephi, and understands it!!!  She just hasn't prayed about it yet!  Crazy.  I am really bummed Annie and Johny aren't praying, reading, or coming to church.  (This week they slept in...)  We will keep on meeting with them and bring all the members of the whole ward over to meet with them!  One day it'll happen.

Friday was the 4th of July, but we had a really productive day.  We met with the old guy that we thought was homeless outside of the gas station last p-day (Zhu).  We brought a member that also speaks Cantonese.  Elder Heaton and I didn't participate too much in that lesson,  Elder Heaton actually fell asleep.  Then we met with a lady named Daisy.  She is super lonely, and bored.  She invited us over every week to study the bible/bom with her.  We invited her to be baptized if she knew the Book of Mormon was true, she said maybe.  So we will see.  Then we met with this young couple in University Heights.  The wife has been reading a lot of the Book of Mormon and said that she has felt something.  She also accepted baptism, and they said they were going to come to church, but then they bailed..  Again, we'll keep trying :)

At night we had to be in at 7:30 and they allowed us to watch the "Other Side of Heaven"  it was fun, but I fell asleep in it.  I am becoming like mom.

Saturday was really not productive.  No one would set up, we went and tried to visit a ton of people, but no luck.  So we used that list with all the Chinese names to go try to find new people.  We also went to the Chinese market, but absolutely no luck.  Lots of angry people in the world.  At night we met with Tracy and Morgan. With Morgan we talked about the interview questions and modern day prophets.  Tracy we taught about prayer and she said she would try.  

Sunday we had Tracy and Morgan and Zhu come to the ward here in Eastvale.  Then in the University Heights ward Henry came and another guy named Derek.  He is a cool guy, but he says he just is curious to learn more.  Hopefully as he learns more he'll want to join :)  Sunday afternoon.  A Chinese member (Bro Jiang)  took us home teaching with him.  It was fun.  We went to go visit that family we found that had already been baptized in Idaho, that had 7 kids!  They weren't home.  We met with the wife of a member that went less active this past year to invite him back, but he was sleeping. Afterwards Bro Jiang offered to have us over tonight for dinner!

Phew that was a lot, but it was a good week.  

Notable Quotables: 

"We knew not."  -Elder Yeung after Elder Heaton asked him why he had done something.  I think Elder Yeung learned a lot of English from the scriptures because sometimes he says stuff like Nephi.  I am sure my Chinese is similar.

"This is the most handsome man ever!"  A 80 year old Chinese lady that lives with Morgan and Tracy after she saw a picture of Joseph Smith.

Love you guys!

-Elder Murray

June 30 Week 47 - New President Mullen, Tracy and Morgan, Charles, Annie and Johnny, Henry, How long?, Samoan RM and girlfriend, Gas station buddy

Well today is the day.  Right now Brother Smart is showing President Mullen around the mission, and in a few hours, the Smarts will be back in Utah.  They are in the Highland 13th ward.  What ward are grandma and grandpa in?  Crazy.  We get to meet the new president on Thursday.  I am excited and a little nervous.  

Anyway this week was really good.   Elder Heaton, Yeung, and I all get along well.  We have made a good team.  

At the beginning of the week we worked crazy hard to get all of our new area's investigators and potential investigators contacted.  We have some good people.  I will probably just spend most of the letter on them.

Tracy and Morgan:  A couple that was in Elder Heaton's area that is now combined with ours.  They are renting a room in a house of another recent convert in our ward.  I still don't know them too well, but they are really nice, and are willing to be baptized!  This week they went travelling in Utah and actually went to church yesterday in Elder Heaton's home ward.  How cool is that!  Not many missionaries have investigators attend church at their home ward.  We are meeting with them tonight, hopefully to get them on date!!!!  

Charles Xiong:  He is a dad that has been here in America for a while and was already baptized in another Christian church.  He explained he wasn't feeling like he was improving right now in his life.  We taught him the Restoration last week and gave him book of mormon to read.  He is already done with 1st Nephi, and he is praying to know that it is true!  He also came to church on Sunday and brought his kids.  I think he liked it, because he said he will be back next week.  Our next appointment with him is tomorrow!  He is a super cool guy.

Annie and Jonhny:  The people I oymed from the car.  They are still reading and praying, but still not recognizing their answer.  We had a lesson on feeling the Spirit on Saturday so hopefully that helped.  They have only come to church the one time.  Yesterday they were in Las Vegas.  The week before they were sick, and the week before that they were getting new furniture delivered.  We are going to plan better this week and get lots of members to come teach with us, and get them to come on Sunday!

Henry:  UCR student/Shell's friend.  We have been working with him forever.  He comes to church a lot!  We call him almost every night to remind him to read and pray.  He has said he has felt peace has he reads and prays, but still says he doesn't want to be baptized.  We think the concern is keeping the commandments, especially the Sabbath day.  He says he has to buy lunch after church because he is so hungry.  We are thinking of making a lunch to take to him.

Those are our top people we are working with.  There are some other people, but those are the main ones.   

On Tuesday we met with a family and the wife told me that she was pregnant.  I went to ask her when she was due, but half way through I realized I didn't know how to say "give birth."  So I just said "How long?"  She awkwardly said "One month."  I said "Wow!  It doesn't look like it at all!"  Then I realized she thought I was asking how long since they had conceived the child.  Awkward.  I apologized and explained the misunderstanding.  Oh well.

Sunday we had dinner with a Samoan RM and his Chinese girlfriend.  They have been dating for 2 years!  After dinner we taught about prayer and committed her to pray everyday.  We need to follow up to make sure she actually does. It I really hope we can help her get baptized, but she is super skeptical and is going back to China soon to vacation.  

I always have cool experiences talking to people on the street.  Last night I saw to people that totally looked Korean.  Trust me I have made the mistake enough times to know the difference.  I went and talked to them, they totally rejected me.  They were walking away, and I thought I might as well try, so I spoke some Chinese to them. They freaked out and ran back and after we shared more of our message, they agreed to come to English class.  I hope they do.

Also today.  We stopped to get gas on the way to basketball.  Anyway on the way in there was a old asian guy breaking down cardboard boxes outside as we were walking into pay.  Elder Yeung smiled and waved, and we started to walk in, but as I got the door I started to to talk to him.  We told him about what we do and he wanted to learn more we have a return appointment tomorrow!  As we were walking away he threw his fist up in the air with a smile and said "give me church!"  So hopefully that goes well!

Love you guys a ton!

-Elder Murray

June 23 - Week 46 Horse Tiger Tiger Week - Nora, Rialto, Schoonmaker goes English, Elder Reed, Yvonne baptismal interview, Lots of Finding

Well this week was what the Chinese would call horse horse tiger tiger.  I don't know why but for some reason that means it was just ok;  not amazing not awful, just a week.  

Wednesday we did some door knocking.  Elder Yeung got a list from a member of all the houses and the names of the people that own them.  So we go through and knock on the ones that are Chinese.  We have found some people.  We found a lady named Nora.  She used to live in Irvine and her neighbors where members of the church there.  She  invited us back!!  Excited to go see her this week.

Wednesday we also went out to Rialto to see two old people from Taiwan.  Some missionaries over in Rialto set it up for us.  They weren't really interested and we sort of offended them by not drinking their tea.  Oh well.  Wednesday night we met with a part member family.  The Dad was baptized when Elder Snyder was here.  His wife wasn't baptized so we are trying to work with the Dad to get him more active and get the wife baptized.  They really struggle with coming to church on Sunday.

Thursday was super slow.  We couldn't get in anywhere.   We did our weekly planning. and just drove around trying to find.  I really like going around and finding.  It is cool to talk to so many people.  Especially when they freak out when you speak Chinese to them.  It makes it fun.  Sometime they are still rude though.

Friday I went on exchanges again.  This time I went to another bike area with an Elder named Elder Reed.  I won't be surprised if he becomes A.P.   We biked around a lot trying to meet with anyone.  We met with a crazy guy that believes in UFOs and government conspiracies.  He was nice though.  I also got to do a baptismal interview with one of their investigators.  She was really cool.  Her name is Yvonne. She is a 70 year old woman, who was really sincerely just looking for more peace and help in her life. She got baptized yesterday. 

Saturday we did a lot of finding again.  We walked around in a Chinese supermarket's parking lot for 2 hours, but still no luck.  After dinner we went to a park and found a Chinese family with 7 kids!!!  They had joined the church in Idaho, but have been inactive for at least 2 years (when they moved here.)  Probably longer though.  We got their info and gave it to the ward council.  I really hope we can help them come back.  I know it will be such a huge help to their family.  Night time we had transfer calls.  This whole week Heaton and Schoonmaker left the area and Schoonmaker was with the other Zone Leaders, and Elder Heaton went with the OAs.   They put Elder Schoonmaker English speaking and put Elder Heaton with Elder Yeung and I in a three way companionship. I am determined to make it a good experience.  Especially because after Yeung goes home who knows what will happen.  They APs originally told me that president wanted to me to train the new guy, but now I don't know what will happen.  Heaton and Schoonmaker both think that Heaton will train and I will be back with Schoonmaker.  I would prefer to train the new guy but if that is what I gotta do I gotta do it.  

Ok well anyway that is my week!

-ILY 

DEX

June 16 Week 45 Pictures, Sick, Baptisms for the Dead with converts, Annie and BOM, Chinese Market and Japanese Dollar Store, Visits around Mission, Su and Eden back in China

Well this week was good.  Today I am pretty sick though which isn't fun.  

Well cool stuff from this week.  President said we could go do baptisms for the dead with our recent converts at the temple.  That was really fun.  I have all the prayers memorized in Chinese.

Oh update on Terry.  He was all good to be baptized.  We got permission from President, he passed his interview, we got everything all set up, but he called at 10:20 the night before and cancelled.  Big bummer.  He said that he and his girlfriend in China couldn't keep the Law of Chastity.  We talked with him for a long time, but he said that he wasn't ready.  So we cancelled it.  

Annie and Johnny didn't come to church this week, because all of their new furniture came.  It was crazy, they said each chair was 600 bucks!  I wish I could send some pictures of their house.  They are pretty darn wealthy.  Anyway they are doing good.  Annie texted us today and said that she prayed about the Book of Mormon and felt something.  She said she was beginning to have faith!  Awesome!  They are really cool.  Hopefully they will continue to progress and we can get them on date this week. 

We are working hard to find new people here, because UCR shut down this week so almost all of the students there went back to China.  Su and Eden went back too.  It was sad to see them go, but we  will stay in touch with them.

I love this picture.  I never have seen any of them make faces.  Usually they are all really serious

Yesterday I was really sick, but we still went out to work.  We went to go see this guy that Elder Yeung and Schoonmaker had talked to once.  He is super cool.  Last night he accepted the invitation to baptism!  Elder Yeung and have a goal to find 10 families to teach.  I think we can do it.  

This week I also got to travel around the mission a bit.  We went to Lake Elsinore to visit a former investigator who some English Elders told us to come see again, and we visited a less active who got baptized when the first Chinese Elder's were here.  She and her son both did.  Her son went on a mission to Leeds England Chinese speaking and is at BYU right now.  Hopefully she starts coming back to church.  The team-up we took with us was another of the first Chinese Elder's converts named  Yuyi.  He just graduated high school.  He is a super nice guy.  The first Elders that spoke Chinese in Riverside did some good work.  

On Saturday we went to visit some people in Chino Hills.  We also went to a Chinese market and a Japanese Dollar Store.  There were sooooo many Chinese people it wasn't even funny.  The family we taught was super nice, they have 4 boys,  which is really weird for a Chinese family.  They have been meeting with missionaries for a while, but not really progressing. The parents are both attending Mt. Sac which is crazy because I remember going there to run footlocker.  It is weird to think I am so close to LA, it feels like a whole different world here.  

Well that is about it for this week.  

Anyways....  Life is good.  I love my mission!

-Elder Murray

That awkward moment when you opened a bag of carrots and didn't realize it had a zipper on it until you were almost finished eating it

I think we should put one of these on the new car for Conner

June 9 Week 44 - Annie and Jonny from first week of mission, Terry desires baptism, Christy and For Strength of Youth

So here is some good news from this week!  So the first week I was here.  We were stopped at a stoplight I looked over and saw a Chinese mom and dad.  I waved they waved back.  I rolled down the window, explained who we were and asked if we could stay in touch.  They said yes, and gave me their number.  They came to English class last week, and then this week we finally got to start teaching them.  They are really nice, they understand everything we teach them.  We invited them to be baptized, but they said that it will take time.  They are really doing this for their daughter.  She is named Audrey and she is 5 and they are really worried about her growing up in America and hope that church can help.  They came to church on Sunday and took her to primary.  She really liked it.  Hopefully as they read and pray they will be able to recognize the Spirit and know that this is true!  Their names are Annie and Jonny!  They just came to America a month ago.  It is a cool story huh?

Alright so I don't know if I have written much or anything about Terry.  He has met with us a couple times and came to church once.  This week I was on exchanges with some Zone members and we met with him. I asked about how he felt as he read and prayed.  He said he felt peace and happiness.  I told him that was the spirit, and invited him to be baptized.  He said yes!  Problem is he goes back to China on Thursday.  Yesterday we were on exchanges again, and Elder Yeung committed him to be baptized this Wednesday.  It is really crazy!  I don't know if he is ready, but this might be the only time he comes to America.  We will see what happens.  

Christy.  She talked to her parents and they are super scared about her joining a church because of some recent violent activity by some "christian cult members"  in China.  She still wants to be baptized after she comes back from visiting in the Summer.  We gave her a for the strength of youth pamphlet to give to them.  

That's about all!  I love you guys a ton!  

June 2 Week 43 Eden's Baptism, Zone Development Meeting Pictures!!, Daniel, Christy, Li Rui Red Bean Dessert

First off I would like to tell a story of this morning.  Elder Schoonmaker brought me a slip of paper that said we had a package in the office.  He asked if I was expecting something.  I said yes (thinking it was snickerdoodles and Chinese conference talks.)  So we go to the office and there are two packages.  Both are for Elder Schoonmaker.  He rubbed it in my face pretty bad.  Oh well.  Oh news on the Chinese flashcards.  Elder Schoonmaker found a ton in our apartment left by old missionaries so I have been using those.  So no worries about finding the cards.  The conference talks are what I really need.  [After getting this we sent off a package of snickerdoodles and chinese conference talks]

This week was really good.  I was able to get through everything I needed to.  I realized I have to prioritize and get the most important things done first and try to do the small things, but not get so stressed out if they don't happen.

Tuesday we went on exchanges with the AP's again.  This time one of them came to our area and Elder Yeung went with them.  It was a good time.  I always learn a lot from them.  They are all really good guys.  They will do a great job when the new president comes in.  We met with Eden to get ready for baptism.  She had a little bit of a concern about coffee, but we helped her resolve it.  We ate dinner with a guy who works in anti-terrorism at the FBI.  We talked about BYU and majors.  I told him I have thought about going into accounting.  He said that because I speak Chinese the FBI would come and recruit me if I did.  That night I also did a baptismal interview for this lady that has been investigating the church for 5 years!  She passed and was baptized on Sunday!  Good week for our Zone, (the same companionship had another baptism and the Sisters in Eastvale also had one) ... Oh CRAZY story about their baptism.  So after I got off the phone with you guys in SLC INTL back in October, Elder Clarkson was talking to this lady sitting next to us.  We talked to her for a really long time.  At the end Elder Clarkson got her info and asked if missionaries could come.  Well fast forward to now and it turns out that she is the one the sister's just baptized!  Crazy stuff. [We hope that Clarkson finds out about this…really cool]

Wednesday was good Eden passed her baptismal interview.  We met with Henry, he is still progressing, but really slowly.  We also met with a relatively new guy named Terry, and a guy named Frank.  Neither are progressing very well.  It is hard when they all go home or move away really soon.  

Thursday we went to Mission Leadership conference.  It was cool to go see.  Hopefully you guys can go see the pictures online!  President talked a lot about the transition.  He said just to go with what the new president says because "he is the new sheriff in town." 

 After the meeting they fed us a pizza lunch which was good.  I didn't really know many people there. That night we met with Christy and Su came and helped.  It was so awesome!  Su bore his testimony about how the gospel and baptism has helped him.  I really felt the spirit and so did Christy.  She said she has made her decision she just has to tell her parents (they have been in a region without cell service for a long time.)  We will find out tonight.

Friday we help our Zone development meeting.  It went pretty good.  We trained on putting people on date, and daily contact.  I really hope it helps our Zone.  We have a cool Zone.  All of them are really good missionaries.  After class we met with another really cool guy named Daniel, he goes back to China in two weeks too.  I am really going to miss them all.  It has been really cool working with them, even if not all of them get baptized.  

Saturday we did a service project and cleaned up trash on the side of a road.  The missionaries here do it twice a month and in return we get a free room in the community center to hold our English class.  So we did that.  Then we finally finished weekly planning.  We got a new investigator named Rodger.  He is really cool then we went to the University Heights ward BBQ.  I am sort of in-between wards right now.   We go to Eastavle 1st Sacrament, then we got to UH for all 3 hours, and we get dinners from the Eastvale 2nd ward.  I miss having a solid ward to be in.

Sunday we went to 4 hours of church, ran and taught a lesson, ran back to the baptism which was really good.  Su baptized Eden, he hit her head on the side of the font, not too hard, but enough that everyone noticed.  Eden cried almost the whole time.  Alex ( Su's friend that said he would rather go to outer darkness than read the BOM) came.  Good to see him again.  It was a good week.  I love being out here.  It is a lot of hard work, but also a lot of fun.  Li Rui made us this dessert that is red beans, rice all wrapped up in banana leaves and boiled.  They are so good.  

ILY HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!

-Elder Murray