My beloved family!!
Wow! What a miracle full week. This week was an amazing opportunity to see the hand of the Lord in all things. It has been an amazing week to see the work of the Lord in Taiwan grow and explode. I’m telling you everything here is going amazing. The people are more and more being acceptable to the gospel and the teaching of it. I just love more than anything seeing a lost souls of God not knowing what they are doing in life, running into the gospel (not knowing in most cases that it was planned by God), and then just shooting sky high, and seeing their life completely change. Lately we have found a man Brother Wang, he is 21 years old. He is doing so well. He loves it! Also this past Saturday he brought his little brother who is a year younger than him. They are both amazing, and so humble. They are so willing to learn about the gospel, and so willing to change their lives and follow the teaching of the gospel. It's amazing to see these brothers together learning about the gospel. They remind me about Josh and me. It's a great experience.
Well last week we had the opportunity to go watch the dragon boat festival races. It was really interesting and an exciting experience. We got there right in time for the final races. We watched the winning team paddle across the finish line. What’s amazing about this sport of boat racing is, it's not about how big you are or how strong you are, but you have to be in perfect unison in order to get the boat to move in the way and manner that it is supposed to move. It's great to see them so unified and so united in purpose. Which reminded me of God, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, how they are united perfectly and how badly they want each and every one of us to return to their presence. But I made another observation, the seats that we were sitting in where right by the winning team’s tent thing. Well they came back and were happy that they had just won, taking pictures and just having fun. Then I saw something kind of contradictory if you ask me. I watched many of them start smoking, and everyone start to drink lots of beer. I thought it was interesting, that they had just won an athletic race and the way they celebrate is by breaking the Word of Wisdom. I thought it was interesting. It just proves how great and how much more the things of God are than mans. It was a good experience thought and was great to see a part of the traditions in the Taiwanese culture.
This week we also went down to Hua Lian, it was great. We went on exchanges with the district leader down there and his companion. We saw so many miracles. Every goal that we set was reached and accomplished by the hand and guidance of the Lord. We saw a total of 6 New Investigators found in that night between the 4 of us. It was a great night in Hua Lian. It is a great place, and not to mention, breath-takingly beautiful. It is absolutely amazing, when we come back as a family I will definitely take you all there. The train ride down is full of dark blue ocean, with light blue sky, white waves, and islands in the background. Wow it was amazing. Hua Lian is still working on building a stake, the missionaries we have there are doing really well, and are setting it up with the members. The work there is doing amazing. The Lord is being very merciful to that area and allowing the work to explode there. It has been fun to see the change of the area as we've gotten faith filled Elders and Sisters down there to work in the Lord’s Vineyard. It's amazing to see, regardless of the area, if you have a missionary that is willing to work, has faith in Christ, he/she will see many many miracles, and be able to take part in all the necessary blessings of the gospel and of missionary work. Hua Lian is a great place, I much enjoyed my stay there and enjoyed being a part of the building a stake feeling for a night. Then we took the 3 hour train ride back to Taipei.
I want to tell a simple experience that I enjoyed on the street the other day. As I was contacting I ran into a man from Canada. He was a nice fellow, but had no hope or interest in church. I asked him more about his background, and then he stated "I've read many books about Christianity in Taiwan, I've been to all churches and I haven't been persuaded yet. Nothing they've said has moved me and nothing will. They all carry the same message, and I just don't believe it can make me move toward believing." I just prayed that the spirit would help me. I said but you've never heard our message, he said yup I've talked too many of your missionaries they've tried and tried, but nothing. I just prayed in my heart of how to help this man, because he was so humble but just didn't believe these things. I thought of our purpose "To Invite". I told him, I know these things were true. We missionaries have an important and exciting thing to invite everyone to do. I turned to Moroni 10:3-5. I invited Him to read it. I then told him, I’m only 20 years old, anything I say you've either heard before or have more experience than I. But one thing I can testify is of these things and their validity. I know there true. I know if you are willing to read them and ask God if they are true, the spirit will move you. I know man can't move you, but the spirit can and he will. This man humbly looked at me and said, "Thank you, that is the best answer I've heard in my 20+ years in Taiwan, I’ll seriously think about it, thank you!” Then we shook hands and parted. I felt a warmth of fulfilling my commitment. We can't force anyone into anything, but we can teach, then invite, allowing them to choose what they want to do. I know I was led by the spirit, and did what they Lord wanted me to do. I hope that man felt the power of the scriptures, and takes up the invite. Because if he does, I know he'll receive an answer, because the Lord does not lie. Also I’d like to invite Josh, Cade, Britton, and Abby. Take up the promise in Moroni, and find out for yourself independent of dad, mom or any other person, the truthfulness of these things. I know if you do exactly as Moroni 10:3-5 says, you will receive an answer through the power of the Holy Ghost. Try it! Plant this small seed in your heart, and watch it grow. Because it will, you just have to allow it too!
This last week, we had our specialized training meeting. It has been so much fun. We have been focusing on becoming an agent rather than being an object. I’m writing a talk on it right now, that hopefully in the near future I’ll be able to send home. It's helped me understand the importance of acting and not being acted upon. Taking it upon yourself with the hope and faith in God to do all things. This specialized training meeting, we invited all the senior companions, because we feel like zone leaders get it, most of the district leaders get it, but sometimes we feel there is a gap that rarely gets bridged from the district leaders to the senior companions, therefore the junior companions also don't get the right information passed down. So we met with all of the senior companions, and taught them this principle. I feel like it went really really well. We focus on being an Finding Agent of the Lord. Just like SARS (search and rescue squad) we are Gods SSARS (salvation search and rescue squad) we focused on the setting of a war and having a lost or fallen comrade in the face of danger. How these men, because they are one in purpose will do anything to get to their fallen comrade to help him. We as servants of the Lord and members of this church are Gods SSARS. We have made a promise in the pre-earth life to come and search and rescue those lost sons and daughters of God. We have come to find them, once their found to address the wounds of their life through the gospel of Jesus Christ, then to apply medicine to help them, which is through faith, repentance, baptism, Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. It is a great connection that President Erying so beautifully portrayed in His talk "Man Down". We let them listen to a part of his talk, about the war we are going through between Good and Evil.....This was a great learning experience for me to learn about being an Agent, and the importance thereof in the church of God. This church is living, therefore we as members have to be living also. We can't be lazy objects that get out of bed on Sunday and head to church. We must be those living agents that go about doing good continually and go about establishing and setting up the kingdom of God on the earth today, here in this last dispensation before the coming of the Lord.
I know that the battle between us and Satan is real. I get influenced by it every day. More and more the closer that I get to finishing my mission. It's like Satan just wants me to finish on a lower note, because he has the knowledge of how much I've been blessed throughout my mission. Just as it is with all of us, he knows how we've lived our lives. He knows how much we've been blessed by the one he doesn't care much for. We are the children of God I know it. I know that we have the potential that Satan will never have of becoming like God, perfect, full of love and faith. I can't wait for the perfect day that I can stand at the feet of the Savior and thank him for all he's done for me - to stand there with my perfected family, in love, peace, and hope in all things. I love my life so much! I love all of the trials that I’m going through. I know sometimes they seem so deep, so terrifying that I can't move on, but I testify that God lives. He loves us. I also testify that Jesus is the Christ!! I know it, I know Christ accomplished the Atonement for this very purpose, of allowing us to return and live with them in perfection. I love my Savior, I hope and pray that I may serve Him and in His church for the rest of my life. Never stopping at anything to accomplish the task at hand. I love this work, it has changed my life, I hope that I can take the things I've learned and change the life's of others while I’m here on my mission and after the fact also. I love all of you, with all my heart. I know our family is ordained of God. I Just hope because of this fact, that we may all learn our responsibilities and understand we all have imperfections. There is no need of getting angry with each other because it will never, and has never fixed any problem. We need to become as a child, submissive, meek, humble, full of love, and patience. I testify as we do that, our family will become more unified and unstoppable in the work of the Lord. We can be an example of the believers, and help many others come to know of the truth because of our example. Thank you all so very much in all you do. You are all example to me, and make me so very happy. I can't wait to see you all!!
-Elder Rasmussen
