Surprise Transfer Notice!

I was only able to get one of Sister Peng's picture to load.

Hello everyone! 
How is life?  How was Thanksgiving???  I'm doing okay, though a little more stressed than normal....  Because... well... I found out I'm going to be moving on Friday morning!  We got a call on Saturday night at about 10:33 pm from the President Blickenstaff telling Sister Schultz that she would be training in the next move call and consequently I will be moving to a new area.  It was nice of him to call before Sunday so I could say good bye to the ward, but Sister Schultz and I weren't able to sleep all night long! 

I'm so sad I have to move from Ping Dong!  I've really love this area, and all of the people in the area!  I made a ton of friends and the ward is amazing!  But I know that I am needed elsewhere and that it's time for a new sister to be born into the "land of milk and honey".  Anyways, I don't know where I'm moving to yet.  So, I'll have to get back to you all on that next Monday.  For now, Sister Schultz and I are busy trying to figure out how we are going to schedule a whole bunch of meetings (which we have to travel by train to get to), a lot of meal appointments (people who want to say good bye to me, I feel so loved!) and all of our other lessons into a period of 4 days....  Also along with the fact that I have to pack...  It's amazing how things accumulate/spread out after you've lived in an area for 4 months.

Oh, yeah! Today is my 4 month anniversary of being in Taiwan!!!  So crazy!!!  Time flies when you're on a mission!  I also passed my 6 month mark of being a missionary.... weird.... :P

Anyways, this week in itself was very busy/crazy/fun.  Like, it feels like this week should be divided into 2 if not 3 weeks, not 1!  This week started off on Tuesday and Wednesday having Companion Exchanges with the Sister Training Leaders, Sister Smith and Sister Ward (who happened to train Sister Anderson and who was just recently also Sister Liu's Companion for half a move call in Taizhong).  I was with Sister Smith up in San Ming for the exchange.  It's always fun doing companion exchanges.  I always end up learning so much!  I feel bad for the STL's though, since they are always traveling because of meetings and because of exchanges.  But Sister Smith and Sister Ward are awesome!  Sister Smith has only a few days left until she goes home! It's so crazy!  Anyways, it was fun being with Sister Smith.  We didn't end up having many lessons (only one) since we were "Fanged" (stood up).  But it was still nice to talk to Sister Smith and get some advice for how I can improve as a missionary.

Then, Thursday was Thanksgiving.  Nothing really happened that was very exciting....  Just the fact that we kept remembering that it was Thanksgiving, and then we started thinking of things we were grateful for, such as Family, the Ping Dong Ward, missionary work, Heavenly Father, Food, Sleep... etc.  And then for dinner we ate Chicken and rice and vegetables... Yup...

But, not to be disappointed about not being in America for Thanksgiving, we had our Mission Tour on Friday, where we did eat a Thanksgiving lunch- massive turkeys and funeral potatoes with frosted flakes all included.  Haha!  Mission Tour was very good.  Very spiritual and very... how do you say.... well, It made us all want to work harder and be better (I think the word I'm looking for is inspirational?)  Elder Funk, who is a general authority spoke to us, along with our mission president.  We also all had to prepare talks in the anticipation of getting called to speak.  I wasn't called, but I was fine with that. :)  Haha!

The topic for the talks was on how we gain spiritual strength as missionaries.  But I think the topic can apply for everyone, since missionaries aren't the only ones who need to increase in spiritual strength. Many missionaries shared on the importance of prayer and reading the scriptures, all of which allow us to councel with the Lord, and plead for his help.  Praying and reading scriptures invites the Spirit into our lives, and they can give us comfort and strength when facing trials and temptations.  Another way to gain spiritual strength that was also shared was the importance of remembering who we are.  Children of God.  And if we truly have faith in him, and we continue to increase in knowledge of him and come closer to him, we will build in our spiritual strength.  We are weak, but through relying on the Lord, we have his strength to be with us, in all things, at all times and in all places.  We can rely on the Lord through being humble and through being obedient to his will, and if we do so, he will strengthen our weaknesses.

So, Mission Tour ended up taking our whole day though.  We left our apartment at 7 in the morning to catch the train.  The conference started at 9 and went till about 3:30, but then Sister Schultz and I had to stay afterwards since she was chosen to have an interview with Elder Funk, along with 5 other missionaries.  So, we didn't get to end up leaving till after 6.  After traveling, we didn't get home till after 8, and at that time we still hadn't eaten dinner... so... Yeah, we only had time to call phones for about 30 minutes and then eat dinner.... So, that day most proselyting was just swept out of the door! It was crazy!

And then, on Saturday we spent most of the day preparing for our ward's Thanksgiving activity, in which they wanted us missionaries to do a performance/play that would describe the story of the first Thanksgiving.  It was super fun to do, though we didn't have time to practice before hand.  It was so funny though, for costumes, we Indians wore Taiwan aboriginal clothing... which isn't really like Native American clothing at all.... But, ah well, it was cool!  We also had a pot luck, for our Thanksgiving dinner.... which wasn't like any Thanksgiving that I've ever had....  There was no rhyme or reason to the dishes... Like... there was a dish where the bottom was tortilla chips smashed into salsa with blueberry bagel pieces on top... which actually ended up pretty good... though it's not really Taiwanese food or American food.... that I know of....  But it was all pretty yummy!

So, aside from all that craziness, missionary work is going as usual.  This week’s lessons were a bit fewer and far between since we were so busy all week.  But, we did have a lot of investigators attend church and our Thanksgiving activity.  This week is bound to be just as crazy.... So, I'd better buckle my seat belt and hold on tight!  Haha!

I hope you all enjoy the pictures (which I'm going to try and download right now), since I haven't uploaded pictures for a few weeks.  Didn't have much opportunities to take pictures until this week....

I love you all! Hopefully you are all having a great week!  Hope you all are full of turkey and happiness!  Miss you!

Oh! Weird! Just remembered that it was December!!!!! WEIRD!!!!

Love you!

Sister Nicholle Peng

Knock, knock, knock.....Q: "Who Is It?" Answer: "Missionaries" Response: "No one is home." O.o

Do you have to go tracting on Thanksgiving?

Yup.  Thanksgiving doesn't exist in Taiwan.  We don't believe in being thankful through eating turkey here... Turkey is expensive apparently... But we are going to have a Thanksgiving party on Saturday for the ward.  We missionaries have to do a play explaining Thanksgiving.... I'm going to be an Indian! Of course... Haha!

How far do you have to travel to church?
8 minutes if we bike at a very relaxed pace.  2-3 minutes if we bike our guts out.

How many investigators did you have at church this week?
Only 2.  but that's okay. :)  Better than none!

What food do you miss the most?
Not really that I miss it... but Mexican food is pretty rare... oh, and very very yummy sushi!  Taiwan sushi is weird.... and Indian food! There is an Indian place in Ping Dong though.  Looks expensive, but I've made it a goal to go there. :) 

Have you been hit on your bike yet or had a close call?
I haven't hit things yet or been hit.  Knock on wood!  I've probably had some close calls, but everyone has close calls on Taiwan streets.  Actually, Ping Dong isn't very bad, rode wise.  Not as many people on the streets.  Though, traffic laws are a bit more laxed here as well... so.... it kind of balances themselves out.  Don't worry, I do my best to be safe.  :)

Oh, sorry about the lack of pictures recently... we really haven't had many opportunities to take some.  This week and next week we'll for sure have some opportunities though!

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

Hello Mum and other really awesome people!

How is life in the states?  Is it getting colder?  Because it's getting cooler here.  We actually wear sweaters in the mornings and evenings because it gets a bit colder than normal... which means it's not in the 80s or something... actually, most days it's my companion who wears the sweaters because she is cold.  I wear them because if I don't, everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) I talk to says: "Ni bu hui leng ma?" Which means "You won't cold?" or in plain English: "You aren't cold?"  And I always say, "Bu hui."  And then I get lectured on how I'll get sick if I don't wear a sweater....  Yeah, everyone here in Taiwan is concerned about other people's health.  Which is pretty nice I guess.  My favorite greeting here is : "Ni chi bao le me?" Which means:  "Have you eaten full yet?"/ "Have you eaten yet?"  I've always wondered what would happen if I just awkwardly said "Hai mei"/ Not yet.  Would they offer to let us in so we can eat?  Perhaps that would be a good strategy to getting into doors... Haha!  Taiwan people are so concerned with food and eating.  I like this culture! Haha!

Talking about getting into doors.... When we are door contacting, we get some pretty funny/interesting experiences.  Such as when we ring the doorbell and people from within shout: "Who is it?"  And we answer back: "Missionaries!"  And they answer back: "NO ONE IS HOME!"  Or another one of my favorite answers:  "I'm in the shower!"  Half of the time, you can see them through their windows... And A: I'm pretty sure if you weren't home, I wouldn't be able to see you... and B:  Why are you showering in your living room without water????? 

Also, I've never been bowed to so much in my life.  I've learned that in Taiwan, one of the most common ways for missionaries to get refused is through bowing while walking backwards and saying "Thank you. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You...."  We get bowed to every day!  And these people are thanking us just for saying something along the lines of: "Hello, we are missionaries and we are in your neighborhood sharing a happy message about Christ and how he can bring more peace and happiness in your life."  They just get so excited they just keep saying thank you, over and over again and they are unable to take much more of our message, so they go back inside....  Yeah... that's pretty much sums up 95% of the experiences we have contacting people in their houses....

So, this week has been pretty good for the most part.  Though, with lessons it's been kind of slow or not as productive as we would want them to be.  Most of our people have been too busy to meet this week due to testing in all of the schools.  Also, when we were teaching Amber, her son was all over the place, so we weren't able to have her focus very well...  But I have a feeling if we keep pressing forward and trying harder to find new investigators and praying for the investigators that we are teaching that we'll have some miracles.  I'm just really praying to have some of the investigators I've been working with for a while be baptized soon!! They are so ready! Most of their problems is the fact that they haven't come to church as much as they should.  That's the only thing keeping Amber back... because she has Logan, her son, and she is about 8 months pregnant.... very very very pregnant.... she doesn't think she can do it... she just needs faith!

Anyways, Wednesday was Sister Schultz birthday!  Happy birthday to her!  The Lord gave us a pretty pleasant day, especially with teaching English.  Our English class went more smoothly than it has for a loooong time!  Also, for part of lunch we stopped by a cafe to grab some cake for her birthday.  And after we finished eating our cake, a couple was celebrating their 30th anniversary with a cake in the shape of a duck.  They were so cute!  And so was the cake!  And they just gave us two slices of their cake, right out of the blue! It was super nice of them.  I don't understand some Taiwanese cake though.  This cake had a whip cream frosting.  And on the inside, it had a layer of frozen whip cream with frozen cubes of cake.... So it was cake with frozen cake as the filling.... interesting....

Other fun things that happened this week.  On Saturday we pretty much had a day of service.  First, we helped a convert, Xuen Xuen, clean her house.... in which we pretty just moved a whole bunch of things around because her house has a lot of stuff she doesn't know why it's in there....  She was getting frustrated, because no one in her family really knows how to clean...  So we went and helped her.  Anyways, the funny moment was when she gave me a wet rag and told me to go dry of a plastic bin with it... Well, the rag was about as wet as the bin... so I wasn't sure what the logic behind it was, and Sister Schultz was just as confused.  And then, after we helped Xuen Xuen clean, we helped Sister Hu weed her garden.  Well... weeding also includes spreading manuer all over the ground... yum!  So yeah... we got dirty....

So, now that I've pretty much written a novel, I guess I'll hurry up and do my spiritual share so I can go and email my mission president.  Yesterday in church, our bishop mentioned there were two different parts to the phrase "Children of God."  The first one is the fact that we are literally children of God.  He created us, both body and spirit.  The second is more of being known as a Child of God because we are willing to do what he wants us to do.  We are willing to be converted unto him.  That got me thinking the difference between being a child and being an heir.  We are all children of God.  But how many of us are striving to be an heir of God?  To be an heir, means to be obedient unto the Father so that he is pleased with us.  It means showing our love to him, and being willing to follow his will.  In return, he promises us an eternal inheritance. The Lord has prepared an inheritance for every one of his children.  But he will only give it to those who are worthy and will appreciate that inheritance.  For our Father is a just God.  So strive every day to be an heir to the Lord's kingdom.  Remember that we are all children of the most High King. He loves each and every one of us.  And he is waiting with arms out stretched. 

I am so grateful to be part of this work.  And though I know that I have many imperfections and am not qualified to do this work, I know that this is the Lord's work and he will see it through.  He works through imperfect people to build up his kingdom.  We just have to be willing to be humble enough to accept his help. 

I hope you all are doing well.  I miss you and love you all! 

God be with you till we meet again,

Sister Nicholle Peng

You Never Know What Is Behind The Door......

Are you still working on phase 2 of your language learning? Yup.  I have two boxes of flashcards with 1000+ cards in each...  Almost done with the first box though.  I'm actually further along than my companion....

 

What is your favorite thing about your new companion? She is very spiritual.

 

Hello Madre and everyone else who finds my wandering thoughts amusing,

How is everyone?  Well... I'm doing okay.  I just wrote a lot of my email... and then it got deleted because this computer wants me to learn patience and decided to freeze on me.  Not good....  Anyways I was doing better. All good...

So, how's the weather?  Is there snow?  I miss snow... snow is a foreign concept here.  Probably since it's "cold" here when it's in the high 70's (F)...  Members keep telling us to bundle up.... but it's the first time that I've actually enjoyed the temperature here. :P  Anyways, it looks like that we might have a white Christmas here afterall.  Not from snow, but from pollution.  Every morning I look out of the window and the air is white.... like... a really milky white... Probably not the most healthy thing ever, but as missionaries, you just got to deal with it.  Most people here wear medical mask things over their mouths (either paper or cloth ones) when they travel or go outside... missionaries aren't allowed to do that though... so... yeah...  I just try to forget what I learned about fog and air pollution in my Enviromental classes...

Well, this week has been... long? short? tiring? interesting? good? stressful?  All of the above!  Missionary work is still going on here in Ping Dong, which is really good, because I'm always afraid that I'm going to mess something up... Haha!  This week has flown by, but also feels like it's been forever.  And that's probably because missionary work always feels like being on a rollercoaster with it's ups and downs.

Right now me and my companion are struggling to hit the key indicators (goals set by the mission to identify how well we are  doing in the work such as how many lessons we are teaching and how many people are coming to church).  We've just cleaned out a lot of our old investigators who weren't progressing and now we are on the hunt for  new people to teach.  We are trying to be patient as we try to find those people that the Lord has been preparing to come unto him... but most of the time, when we find those people, we have to help them get over a few of their challenges and obstacles...

So, We are still teaching Amber, our American investigator.  She is doing well.  She is very, very pregnant though.  Like, 8 months pregnant.  Like, when the elders told us that they saw her at the park, and we asked how she was, their answer was "pregnant."  She is also having to deal with her 17 month old who is sensing a change is happening in the family.  And the only person he wants to help him is his mom.... who is the person who is least able to help him and hold him because she is pregnant.  Amber wants to be baptised, but she has to come to church more before she can do that.... so... we are trying to help her build faith in order to come.  She's just hesitant, because she'd have to bring the 17 month old (who is a very active little boy)... by herself and she isn't sure she can.... But we'll get her to church! It'll just take prayer, and a lot of member help.

We are also now teaching a 10 year old girl named Kelly who is super adorable!  I've decided I love teaching kids.  They just understand!  They have so much faith in Christ and their Heavenly Father.  When we asked her about her favorite part of church, her answer was "I like when they said that Jesus loves everyone and wants to protect us."  So adorable!  And you can see the light in her eyes whenever we teach, and she gets so excited to learn more.  Her parents on the other hand... have more interest in us teaching Kelly English... They say we can teach about the Gospel, but they also want us to teach English....  Which... is not why we are here in Taiwan.  We are hoping to have the parents sit down and listen to what we share as well... but, they are always busy doing their own thing downstairs... sigh....

Yesterday was a bit interesting teaching lessons though.  So, first: background.  Our bishop has set up a program where every Friday and Sunday we go on splits with the members... Well, yesterday we only had one member show up, so we had her help us in a lesson... She is a really sweet old lady... but... she kept asking the investigators (who we met for the first time yesterday) if they could see the angels surrounding us as we prayed....(of which, I saw none of.... :P ) And pretty much she scolded them for not believing in Christ.... Hopefully the investigators are still willing to meet with us and are not to weirded out or offended... The member was trying to do her best at missionary work though... She probably just needs a little bit of training as to best introduce the gospel to those who haven't heard it yet....

Oh, and yesterday was a bit interesting for going door to door contacting.  It's crazy how many men in Taiwan think it's appropriate to answer the door when only wearing their underwear....  We were contacting a street, where the majority of the doors were answered by men... and a majority of them seemed not ashamed at all for answering the door in nothing but their boxers.... Yeah... cultures are a bit different here....  We did our best to keep every door approach as quick as possible... It was sooo awkward....!!!!  So, people, keep in mind.  The next time your door bell rings.... PUT ON SOME CLOTHES!!!!

So, my time is running a bit short.  Sorry, I feel like lately these emails haven't been very good. My brain just always feel drained lately, and I haven't had the time to really have a refreshing rest....  But that's okay, I'm tired, just how a missionary should be.

But, before I sign off I will leave you all with a spiritual thought.

I was reading in Jesus the Christ, which I recommend everyone to read, when I came across a section talking about the Widow's Mite found in Mark 12:41-44.

 41 ¶And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.

 42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.

 43 And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:

 44 For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.

The book, Jesus the Christ (page 561), explained how the angels in heaven who make an accounting of the sacrifices made by men count not by quantity but by quality.  How many times in our lives do we do things, not because we sincerely want to do what God wants, but we do them because we want people to praise us for our good works?  I worry about that everyday.  Why did I come on a mission?  Did I do it truly because I wanted to help the Lord?  Or was I afraid that if I didn't continue on with my plans to serve that other people would think down on me....  Am I serving with all my might, mind, and strength to the Lord? Or am I trying to just make sure other people see me as a "good missionary."  I think somedays I get caught in the trap of "working for the praises of men" rather than trying to please God. 

It's funny how we humans care so much about how other people think of us.  We start comparing ourselves to others, trying to make sure we aren't the worst, and trying to make ourselves look good in the eyes of others.  We become self conscious.... when really, what other people care about doesn't really matter.  What really matters is what our Father in Heaven wants.  How he sees us, as his children, is much more important... but we often forget.

Anyways, I'm not sure where this spiritual share is going...  Perhaps what I just want to say is: Don't forget your a child of a King.  Only he has power to truly judge you, and he will do so with love and mercy.  Don't worry about what other people think.  Be you.  Choose the Right.  Because that's what the Lord would have you do.

I love you all!  I hope you are doing well.  Be a missionary.  Ever day.  In every thought, word and action. 

Love, Sister Nicholle Peng