6/23/14 ~ Happy Birthday Mom & We have seen the big Buddha!

1)  How was the big Buddha?

So fun! We got there in perfect timing! No one was really there, not until we wanted to leave, so our pictures are relatively free of people.

2)  How is the companionship working out?  Still going well?

Yup

3). Are you as psyched about going to Taiwan next year as I am? 

I am sooo excited!  Guess what, during the summer, here in Zhang Hua, and maybe other places have rent a bike things.  I can take you guys around Taiwan the only way I know how to get around Taiwan! On bikes! Haha! :D

4)  Have you eaten Mua Wan?

Nope.  But we are going to eat hot pot today! :D

5)  Are you tired as always??

Yup

6)  What are you doing today?

Going to a hot pot buffet.... yup

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Dearest MUM! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love you sooo much! You are and forever will be my bestest friend and my guiding light! I love you!!!!

And to everyone else, don't worry, I love you too! It's just that my mom is the best.  Just ask anyone who knows her. :D

So, how are y'all doing?  Any cool things happen? Any changes in the world?

Oh! I know of one! My cousin Jordan got his mission call to Melbourne Australia Mandarin Speaking!  Yay!!! Good luck Jordan, I know you'll do great!  Never forget to always trust in the Lord and to prepare yourself to always be worthy of his guidance.  You'll have so many experiences and you'll learn so much!

Well, as to this week... thankfully it went by rather quickly.  I was EXHAUSTED!  And I've been feeling as if everything is going by in a blur.  To be honest, I've been having a bit of stress trying to figure out how to help this area progress.  It made me a bit... sad to see our numbers this week.  But then to think again what went into trying to get those few numbers we had made them more meaningful.  Even if they weren't high in quantity, I knew I gave my all.

So, this week... we had a lot of time getting bikes fixed.  First, Sister Pope's gears were all wobbly, and we find that the part that holds the gears together onto the bike was broken, so that had to get fixed... Then, two days later my bike had a flat back tire, and I had to get the whole thing replaced because the tire was so worn out.  Then... two days later, sister Pope's tire has a flat that we also had to get repaired....  so... yup... we don't know why we are having bad luck with bikes.... when we were leaving the bike shop after getting my bike fixed the man who works there was like "See you every day!" in English.  It made us laugh, but also groan a little inside.... but hey, at least he's happy! We give him good business. :P

But the whole week wasn't all too bad.  Monday was fun.  We went shopping again... which resulted me in buying three more dresses.... I think my wardrobe is full now... haha! But they are soo comfortable!  And then we went to Bagua Shan or Mount Bagua to see the giant Buddha.  It is HUGE!  And our timing was perfect!  When we went up there, there was barely anyone there, so our pictures were free of other people for the most part.  And then, when we wanted to leave, there was a sudden rush of crowds that came up from tour buses.  Perfect timing! :D  I hope you enjoy the pictures!

On Tuesday we had an inspiring DTM that was about finding new investigators, because that's something we are all in the need of...  We talked about cementing your own testimony of the Plan of Salvation, because once you feel with your whole heart that the Plan of Salvation is true you will know that it is vital for the message of it to be spread.  There won't be anything that you will not be willing to do and sacrifice for it.  And you will burn with a desire to help others share in the blessings the gospel brings.

On Wednesday we went and visited You JM, a less active.  I love her so much!!! And we shared with her the importance of strengthening our faith, because it acts as an anchor to our souls (Ether 12:4).  Then we visited Yang JM who is a completely amazing member! She is a true example of someone doing member missionary work.  We are working with her to bring people unto Christ, because her faith is so great! Miracles are bound to happen!  Then we taught English.  There is this little girl (about 4 yrs. old) who is so cute, her name is Yuli.  She used to have long hair.  Apparently, last week, she decided it was too hot and cut her own hair. Haha!  She's adorable! And she is so good at mimicking the English we tell her to repeat.  It's soo cute!

On Thursday, we spent the day up in LuGang and FuXing.  We visited with Liu JM, who is as sweet as ever.  It was a miracle we got to her house only 15 minutes late.  It was that morning that my bike decided to have a flat so we had a 45 minute delay, and biked our souls out to get to her house.  She kept looking at us amusingly as we wiped sweat from our faces... yum!  then we also visited with a Lin JM, who is very nice and loves to do origami.  Oh! And also in the evening we had a dinner appointment that was set up for us by the other Sisters, since the girl wasn't in their area.  That was fun, but she isn't very interested in the gospel, just friends and English.

Side note, on Thursday, Family Mart (a convenient store) started selling Mango Ice cream cones... yup... now all the Family Marts that sell ice cream are full of people eating and buying ice cream.  It's kind of funny.  So glad we got our ice cream when people were still in work and school so we didn't have to deal with that craziness. :D  Ice cream is good! Especially mango flavored!

On Friday we visited Gu JM and her kids.  Gu JM is super pregnant! She could give birth any day now... Her kids are super crazy.  We were trying to review the 10 commandments with her as the kids were trying to climb all over us- something not really in line with the rule books.  So we left that lesson completely hot and sweaty, but with happiness in our hearts.  I love that family so much!

And on Saturday and Sunday we had our stake conference.  Saturday was about hastening the Work and Sunday was on making a Christ centered home.  The talks were all super good! But the chapel was sooo hot! I think the AC was broken or something....  On Saturday we were a bit confused because we had to be there at 7... but the bishop really wanted to take us there, even though we said we only needed a ride back... so... he took us and his wife to Yuan Lin.... and we were there at 4.... so then we had to figure out what to do with that time.... so we went and found a McDonalds and bought some food and called phones had such.  I ate a happy meal! It made me happy!  It's called a "Kuai Le Can" in Chinese. :D

Oh, and on Sunday we had a miracle.  So, after we got back to our area, I felt the need to go and tract... even though it was in the afternoon.  Here in Taiwan, everyone is sleeping in the afternoon... but I just went with it.  And guess what! We tracted into a really nice lady who actually is an LA from a different ward and she moved to where we found her!  She is also willing for us to go back! Yay!  We were hoping to have a new investigator, but finding an LA who is MIA is also very awesome.

So, now we are to Monday again.  Sister Pope and I are hoping to go to a Hot Pot buffet and stay there for a long period of time writing letters and eating.  It shall be fun! :D I love Hot Pot.  If you haven't eaten it yet, one day I'll make it for you. :D

Anyways, I had best go and write a few other emails.  But before I go, I'll share with you some spiritual things that I've been pondering this week.  Specifically concerning prayer.  when you pray, how heart felt is it?  I've realized sometimes it's so easy to get caught in repetition. And I'm sure he is happy to hear our voices all the same, but we are living way below our potential! We have the opportunity to commune with the all-knowing and ever loving God.  He wants to be a part of our lives.  He wants us to converse with him.  And a part of conversing also includes listening.  After you pray, take the time to really listen for the Holy Ghost.  Give him the chance to answer. I love the scripture found in Alma 37:

36 Yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest let it be in the Lord; yea, let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord; yea,let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever.

 37 Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.

If prayer isn't a part of your daily habits, make it a part of your life today.  It's simple, but powerful.  There is no need to have flowery words.  Use your own words.  Your Father is waiting with hands outstretched.  Just come unto him.

Did You think to Pray

​Hymn 140​

​"​

Ere you left your room this morning,
Did you think to pray?
In the name of Christ, our Savior,
Did you sue for loving favor
As a shield today?

When your heart was filled with anger,
Did you think to pray?
Did you plead for grace, my brother,
That you might forgive another
Who had crossed your way?

When sore trials came upon you,
Did you think to pray?
When your soul was full of sorrow,
Balm of Gilead did you borrow
At the gates of day?

(Chorus)
Oh, how praying rests the weary!
Prayer will change the night to day.
So, when life gets dark and dreary,
Don't forget to pray.

​"​

I love you all! And I pray for you always!  Until we meet again,

Love, Sister Nicholle Peng

6/16/14 ~ The Lord is Defnitely Guiding Us!!!

Dear Mom, Regan and other wonderful people in my life!

How are you all doing on this beautiful morning/afternoon/night.... etc?  I hope you are all doing well.  I picture you reading my words and asking yourself, "I wonder if she has anything else to write... she always asks the same questions that are more of a rhetorical nature seeing as I can't give her an answer.  And if I were to give her an answer it would be a few weeks too late."  But I'm afraid there isn't much else that you can write as a greeting for an email that gets written every week....  I do like this whole weekly summation of what I did though.  It'll be great to be able to read over what I wrote in the future.  Maybe I'll keep this habit and just blog for the rest of my life... haha... or maybe not... Life's too short to spend it in front of a screen....  I've learned that on my mission.

I mean, do you know how fast time flies?  When you plan your day to day life by half hour blocks, you realize that you don't have much time, so you'd better use it wisely.  I do love doing daily planning though.  Then then next day isn't as daunting.  You already know what you have to do, and when you you'll have time to do it.  Why did I not like planners before the mission?!?!?  Haha! I was probably just too lazy... also; I had a phone to do all that fore me. :)

Anyways, before I babble on a bit more, I have something very important to say!  HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO ALL THE DADS IN THE WORLD!!! Especially those dads who have made a different to me! I'm so grateful that on my mission I've acquired a new father in my life, and I'm so thankful for Regan and all he has done for my mom.  I can't wait to meet him person!  I'm also grateful for my Grandpa who has always let me know that he loves me and that he supports me in all of my dreams.  I'm grateful for my uncles who always teased me, but I know they mean well.  I'm grateful for the fathers of my friends for being great examples to their kids as well as to me.  But most of all, I am grateful to my Heavenly Father who has blessed me so much and has placed many wonderful blessings including the many people who have touched my life and have changed it for the better.

Of course, to answer my mom's question and the questions of others regarding Father's Day in the Taiwan, Father's day isn't celebrated till August 8th or 8/8.  8 in Chinese is "ba" and then they call it "ba/ba" day.  Ba-ba is Dad in Chinese.  Cool, eh?  Mother's day is on the same day as it is in the US.  But I guess they changed Father's Day to make it more... cool? Haha!  But it's okay, I'll just wish the Fathers out there a happy Father's day twice. :)  Also, Happy Father's Day to Mom, since she's pretty much taken on the role of being both parents to me up until recently.  She is SUPER MOM! And she is awesome!  

Oh! Also, shout out to my cousins Jordan, Jacob, and Kaitlyn.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! I hope you all have a great birthday!  You are all getting so grown up!  And I heard Jordan got his Mission Call?!?!!?  TELL ME WHERE HE IS GOING!!!!

And HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY FAVORITE MOM IN THE WHOLE WORLD!!!!  I know it's not till Sunday, but still, I wanted to be the first to say happy birthday!  Don't feel too old, okay?  You are only as old as your heart is. :D  And you'll always be my best friend. :D

So, all of that is now out of the way... do I have anything else to say before I get on with last week's things?  Hmm... 

Well, on Monday we went to a great place to buy clothes.  It's all super cheap and they have dresses that are perfect for staying cool and classy while being a missionary in Taiwan.  Yay!  We may or may not go back again today.  We are also planning on going to the Giant Buddha today. Yay!

The big thing that happened this week is that we gave Albee a baptismal goal!  We are hoping she'll hit it and that she'll really feel the influence of the Gospel in her life!  We still don't quite understand her fully.... we ask questions and she gives pretty much perfect answers.  We are hoping it's what she really feels and not just because she likes us.  She is so cute and so shy!  When we gave her the baptismal goal, her only question/concern was "Will there be a lot of people there?"  I am so excited for her to have the blessing of the gospel in her life. So if you would all keep her in your prayers that would be great! Pray that she will feel the Spirit will touch her heart.  

Speaking about Albee, she lives in the middle of nowhere!  Her house is really in the middle of a bunch of rice fields, and there is only one road that takes you there.  It was funny, because we got lost and we could see her house, but there was a rice field in between us.  So we kept trying to bike around the rice fields to get to the right road.  We eventually found it. :D  Thank goodness she took us to it the first time we had met; otherwise I know we would have never found it via address.

Also, another miracle was the fact that we were able to meet with a Less Active yesterday when doing an LA (Less Active) look up.  I had the feeling to plan her into Sunday's plan, but I had no idea who she was.  Just another name on our records.  So, we when there and sat down with her.  We were having a hard time breaking the ice, but then she mentioned that she had brothers who were members in Gaoxiong, who also ended up living where Sister Pope used to serve.  So, Sister Pope and this LA hit it off, talking about the LA's brothers and such.  It was a great sit down, and we made a new friend!  Then, after the lesson, Sister Pope tells me that she was actually thinking about this LA, Sister Wu, today.  She had remembered that members in Gaoxiong had asked her to find their sister, a Sister Wu, who they said lived in 2nd ward.  Well, we live in 3rd ward, so Sister Pope was going to ask the 3rd ward missionaries about it.  But it just so happens that Sister Wu lives in 3rd ward!  The Lord definitely guided us to her, since she would not have normally been my first choice to pick when we wanted to do an LA look up.  She lived a bit far from our house, and on Sunday we didn't end up with a lot of proselyting time, due to our church changing to 2 pm.  But, it was perfect timing to go to her house, since she is not normally home!  The experience testified to me that the Lord really is guiding us. :)

Hmm... What else.... Oh, we were almost robbed... We had gone to visit with a member and had locked our bikes outside of her house.  Well, we come back and the black pouch that Sister Pope puts extra pamphlets and fliers in was open and it was on my bike.  We opened up our bike boxes to see that they had been rummaged through, and Sister Pope said they really had to dig because the black pouch was on the very bottom.  Thankfully we don't keep anything of value in our bike boxes.  Just a few Book of Mormons (which we just give out to people, so if they would be thief wanted one, by all means!) and our rain gear, and extra fliers and stuff.  We think that someone must have thought the black pouch was a wallet, and he must have gotten very excited.... only to find out that it was a bunch of church tracts... haha! We kept laughing as we pictured this person's look of disappointment.  IT was a funny experience.  But it's also a reminder not to keep anything of value in our boxes.... of course, we are poor missionaries... we don't carry around anything that we wouldn't be willing to give away to others.  Haha!

Oh! We also had our English party.  We did a talent show, in which a lot of people sang and had fun.  We missionaries all did a skit, where each companionship acted as a very small person.  (We used a big shirt and the missionary in the front is the head, and the missionary behind sticks their hands through the sleeves to be the hands of the small person, and the person in front also has their hands in a pair of pants and shoes to form the legs.)  I'll see if I can get pictures, it makes more sense....  We made a lot of people laugh, and everyone had a good time!

As to my spiritual thought, well... I don't know how much time I have left on this computer....  But, I just want to give you all a reminder of your eternal worth and potential.  Never ever forget that you are a child of God!  He is always watching out for you and is waiting to guide you by the hand.  You just have to follow and he will teach you and strengthen you.

I love you all!  Be strong and of a good courage!  Until next week!

Love, Sister Nicholle Peng

P.S. Hello to a Hillary Hughes!  I got your letter, and I'm working on a response.  I'm more than happy to help and give advice and info about mission life in Taiwan.  Good luck!

P.S.S.  Yeah, if anyone has questions or anything, feel free to write, I'll try to answer!  Also just feel free to write in general.... I'm a missionary... mail is like GOLD and it brightens our day!  Heehee! :D

New favorite drink!!

Sis. Pope hates bugs....but this is how she would appear to them!

6/9/14 Pssst....There are actual spiderwebs in my mailbox!!! hint hint hint...

1)  Still no headaches?

Nope, still doing well.

2)  Is the investigator still active?

Uhhh.... kind of?  She still likes us.... 

3)  Eaten Mua wan yet?  I want some so very very very bad

Nope.

4)  How many lessons did you get to teach this week?

We taught 3 lessons on the street. 1 lesson because of English and 10 lessons with recent converts and LA's... we aren't doing too well....

5)  Are you still biking tons?

Yup!

6)  How is your spirit?

Tired!

7)  Are you still basically allergy free?

Pretty much! Except I had a small allergic reaction to pineapple... sadness.  That's not going to stop me.  I just have to remember not to drink water when I am eating my pineapple.

8)  How are the mosquitos?  Still eating you alive?

They think they are my best friends... I think my bike box has three cans of bug spray. haha!  I get paranoid!

**********************

Hello Mom, Regan, Family, Friends, Strangers.... etc...  How are you all doing? You know, being on a mission still makes me feel like I'm stuck in a bubble.... You don't hear anything about what's happening in the world... you just hope that everything is going okay...

Speaking about that.... Sister Pope and I came to a sad discovery this week... We have SPIDER WEBS in our mail box... it was a very depressing and gross find.... Anyways... yup.... *hint*hint*

But on a brighter note, we also saw something that completely blew our minds!  So, we were biking to the train station so we could go to Zone Training Meeting and the sky was looking a bit... grey.  The sky was full of black clouds, and we knew it was about time it was going to rain.  So, when we were almost at the train station, we were struck with confusion and awe when we saw a small area, about the size of a kitchen table, where it was pouring rain.  Like, it was only raining in that area! Everything else was dry!  We looked around for the source of the water, like maybe it was coming from a nearby building, but the water was coming from straight above.  It was a strange phenomenon.... 

Hmm... What else... So, I guess I can just start from the beginning of the week, just to give some order to things and to help me get my thoughts straight.

Monday, we relaxed, because we were dragging.  Oh, we also got lost in Carrefour.... Where we bought the greatest creation on the face of the earth! Okay, maybe not really. I just got a pack of those water coloring pictures that you can paint with cotton swabs.  They make me happy.  My pictures all have hamsters on it. :)

On Tuesday we went to ZTM and learned about how to help investigators progress to baptism.... so we are starting at step number one.... FIND INVESTIGATORS!  I mean, we have Albee, but we are still trying to find times to meet with her.  She's busy, and the time we did had set up got rained on.... and she said it was too dangerous for us to bike out to her house (which is kind of true, since she lives in the middle of a whole bunch of rice fields about 1 hour away from the city....).  But we are working on it!

On Wednesday we taught English.... we taught the kids about Families!  It kind of made us "trunky" but it was also nice to think about how the gospel has blessed my family.  I love my family! I drew a picture in crayon.  I would have taken a picture of it to show you all, but I'm a bit embarrassed.... I can't draw in crayons....

On Thursday... What happened.... I don't remember.... Uh.... Oh! We met with You JM who is an LA.  She knows she needs to change! She just has to exercise faith and act! I love her, she is so cute.  She just needs to go to church!

On Friday we did our weekly planning and I went on exchanges with Sister Adams for the third time on my mission.  I'm so lucky!  She is one of my favorite Sister Training Leaders ever and she is my role model.  I can't believe she is going home in a month!  It just makes me realize how short of time we really have on our missions.

On Saturday we met a cute girl. She had just had an accident on her bike, and so we helped her get cleaned up and stuff.  She is so cute! I hope she can come to English or Church.  She seemed really open to learning more, but didn't give us her info... sadness....  On Saturday was also the day we were going to go to Albee's, but the weather changed those plans in a jiffy.  I don't like rain... it makes this work so much harder! And wetter! Ah well, we must press forward.

Sunday was good.  Ke JM, our RC gave a talk in Sacrament and she did so well! Also Luo JM finally came to church.  She is also an RC, who was baptized right when I got here... but since then she's been too busy to meet or come to church.  She is busy working in a factory that was putting logos on sports things for the Soccer stuff going on in Brazil....  But, hopefully with the summer time coming in, she'll have more time to meet!  We need to go over enduring to the end with her....

And now, it's Monday again.  I'm still sooo tired!  But that's alright.  I've come to the realization that I'll always be tired here on my mission.  I'll probably have to sleep for three days straight when I go home... haha!  So today, our plans are to go shopping with the other sisters.  It should be way fun! I'll go and find clothes that are more suitable for this hot climate and that are cheap so I won't worry about getting them ruined in the rain... because I have a feeling it's going to be really wet this summer.... ugh.....  I've got to learn to love the rain again!

Anyways, I'm still really tired... haha! I keep saying that.  So for my spiritual thought, watch this video.  It's good.  It made me cry.  The Atonement of Jesus Christ is a real thing.  It can change anyone.  It gives us all a second chance.  It brings a light of hope into this world of constant hardships.  Come unto Christ and be changed by him. 

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/mormon-messages/mormon-messages-2014?lang=eng

I love you all so much! I pray for you and I am grateful for your support and love.  Until next time!

Love, Sister Nicholle Peng