HAPPY CHRISTMAS!!

I am sure everything is the same at home and that the post Christmas eating has began to slow down... ;)

haha no worries.  nothing changes no matter what country you are in.  

I LOVED SEEING YOU ALL!!!!! It was the BEST christmas gift I have ever received.  really.  It was like nothing changed.  We still made jokes and laughed and I really felt all of your love.  What a special experience.  I am so grateful for my beautiful family.  Sorry I like rambled a lot. haha I think I was really overwhelmed.  Also, I am glad most of you couldn't understand my testimony/prayer because really it didn't make much sense.  I was so overwhelmed and full of emotions I didn't know what to say.  But it was fun to share a little of what I have learned with you.  I know dad probably told you it was great but really I have SO MUCH more to learn.  

You all look SO GOOD.  wow.  I left the computer just so grateful and in awe of how all of you have changed and the light in all of your eyes.  I love my family so much.  Thank you so much for all of the support and love you gave me.  Christmas was a litle hard but it  was also beautiful.  So I told you all about our christmas party in Taipei already! It was so fun and so beautiful.  The talent show was hilarious!! People made up songs about their missions and performed them. hah. they all were so true.  I love how we can take hard things and laugh about them.  It was such a beautiful time to bond with our mission and to be brought closer together as missionaries and as a family.  That truly is what we are here.  One big huge family.  President and Sister Day make it like that too:) Sister Day is hilarious and is always joking around/ jumping around/ making some kind of loud noise.  Its great.

We also had training that day (of course. ha) and we saw the missionary choir sing.  it was beautiful.  Absolutely beautiful.  In the Book of Mormon it says that when we receive the gift of the holy ghost we speak with the tongues of angels.  I think that missionaries feel the spirit more than the average person because we are constantly striving to. And as I listened to them sing, it was the sound of angels.  It was absolutely beautiful and filled me with so much joy and gratitude to be here.

On Christmas we woke up, opened gifts, ran, and them skyped you!! after we came home, studied and then a couple LA's treated us to a yummy lunch, came home, finished studies, and hit the streets! It was cold and super rainy.  But as I rode my bike and knocked doors, I was so happy. I was busting out Christmas songs as we rode through the streets.  Haha everyone probably thought I was crazy but hey, I was embracing the spirit of Christmas :)

Everyone I pulled up to on the street were cold to me until I said "Merry Christmas!" Once I did, their whole manner changed and they would listen to me.  I thought it was beautiful how Christ could break down the barriers between me and every devoute buddhist I stopped next to on the street.  

We then treated ourselves to a fancy dinner of hot pot! woo! It was so warm and tasted so good.  It is vegetables and duck blood... probably different from your christmas dinner.  

The evening was then full of lessons and contacting.  I LOVED every minute of christmas here.  I got to share the beautiful message of our Savior on his birthday... how special is that.  I was happy inside and out. 

Since then we have seen some awesome miracles!!!

We have an investigator name Liu Dixiong and we have been trying to help him get baptized but he won't set a date.  So last time we invited him to pray about his baptismal date.  Yesterday we met with him and followed up.  When we asked if he had received an answer he just smiled and pulled out his Book Of Mormon.  He opened it up to Alma 7:15 and read it out loud and then just sat there staring at it smiling.  After a minute or so he looked up and said "after I prayed, I opened up my book  of mormon right to this scripture.  I know I need to be baptized.  My date is january 20th." everyone in that room was hit by Heavenly Fathers beautiful and powerful spirit.  I promise people all day everyday that the book of mormon is the word of God.  I testify of its truthfulness and that God hears every single one of our prayers.  But until that moment, I had forgotten just how true that is.  God loves every single one of his precious children.   Our souls are important to him.  He will answer us and bring us unto him. and I am so grateful he does!!  because I am far far far from being a perfect missionary.  I know that my lessons don't always make sense and I don't always have answers to their questions.  BUT God is perfect.  His lessons are perfect. His love is perfect and eternal.  I don't have to be perfect because He is.  

He answers every single one of my prayers.  I know if we are willing to bring our will in line with his and are willing to act, he will bring us to answers and he will give us the strength we need.  How beautiful is that, that we get to talk with God?

Speaking of prayers being answered, this week almost all of my lessons have fallen through.  ALL OF THEM. ha.  I don't know of anything more frustrating.  So saturday night I still needed 4 member lessons to meet my weeks goal.  I only had one planned for sunday but I had faith that if I set my goal high and worked hard on sunday, Heavenly Father would help me.  SO I set my goal as 3.  Yesterday I taught my one lesson and went about the rest of my day.  We had a dinner appointment across Xinzhu so the whole way over I was just thinking about my goals and what I could do better to reach them. when we got to the appointment, we got in the elevator and heard "hello!", I turned aorund to see my investigator standing there!! The people had invited him to come!! When we got to their house, dinner wasn't done yet so we had thirty minutes to have a lesson!! AND THEN about 8 other people walked in, all nonmembers! And we had another lesson! Heavenly Father completely answered my prayers.  I know numbers aren't everything but it meant a lot to me that He would take my little goal that means nothing in the big scheme of things and help me make it.  and on top of it, we had two extra, absolutely beautiful lessons.  The spirit was so strong and beautiful.  Its times like these where I just step back and thing "is this real life?"

Heavenly Father LOVES LOVES LOVES Taiwan.  I know that with all of my heart.

And I know he LOVES LOVES LOVES me and everyone :)

also... I LOVE LOVE LOVE you all!! :) haha.

Keep it up everyone.  you are awesome!!!

Geng Jie Mei