Week of January 5 2014: Pizza School

Dear Nice and Loving People,

 

This was a pretty good time. I know it can't always be the same---but I'm grateful for the good ones that were there. One of them I think I mentioned the first part of last week. The weather got a little warmer. I guess some of you wish that would happen where you are---I hope it does. Specifically there was the person who came to a few minutes of church outside the doorway of the chapel last week. His name is 추형제님 (Brother Choo), and he's a very nice, quiet high-school student. When he came last week, he seemed just afraid and embarassed that he'd come late to church and didn't want to offend other people, so instead he said we could meet during the week, on the one day of winter vacation he had. We were going to meet on Tuesday afternoon, but he texted us and said it wouldn't work out all of a sudden---he had something to do with the other people at his school. So we asked if he could meet in the evening, and he said that was okay. So we went to the train station, probably the biggest part of our city, with spurts of lots of people coming out when the trains stop, and a big tree next to a volcanic rock out front. We sat down and waited there, and he called us a few minutes after the time we planned to meet---he was waiting, looking the other way, and hadn't seen us. We walked to a popular pizza chain called "Pizza School," and talked for a while waiting for the food. He's very nice, and curious. He's always texted back right away after the first time we met him, which was a while ago, when he told us that he'd met the missionaries on the street a long time ago and gave them his phone number but never got a call from them. He's funny, quiet, and likes soccer. He lives in the dormitory at the biggest high-school here, and then goes to his family's house on the weekend. He said he takes an economics class in English, which is pretty cool and ridiculous. He also used to go to a church in elementary school with his friend, and said he asked them to learn more about Jesus Christ and just what religion is, but they told him just to come to church first and learn it there. He sincerely has a lot of questions, and is very nice. 

While we were walking out on the same street we ended up meeting the branch president, and so he got to talk with him for a little bit---Brother Choo's dad is a P.E. teacher at an elementary school, and our branch president works in teacher re-training, so he said he thought he'd met his dad before. It was a very interesting, rewarding, good day. He was planning to come to church this Sunday, but when we called him, for whatever reason, he couldn't pick up. He was very sincere, and it was a really great time when we met him, so it seems like something just came up---hopefully we'll find out soon. Then we visited someone who the missionaries have taught for a long time, who works in the security room at an apartment complex here---he's kind of older, and isn't too interested in changing things, but he did talk a lot about how we could go around where the farms are here, a little out from the town, and ask the farmers if we could taste what they're growing, and could live that way if we ever needed food, because they're so wholesome and generous---I honestly believe it. 

 

This week we also met a few new people---all on the street, on the same day. It's not usual, so it was a pretty great experience. One of them was an older guy we met on the way to try to visit two less-active twin brothers. He was smoking while we walked next to him, but once we greeted him he put his cigarette out, and wasn't super talkative but also wasn't completely uninterested. He said he used to believe Buddhism a little, and right now doesn't have a particular religion, but that in general Korean people need to go to church more. We talked about his family---just his son lives here in the same city, and we talked a bit about how that's like our Heavenly Father, that most of us are away from him now, and it's hard, but when we meet him again it will be that much better. He seemed to like it, and when he started going a different way he showed us where he was going---a coffeeshop that he spends a lot of time in. We were on the way to visit the other less-active members, so he said maybe another day we could meet there and talk again. It was pretty unexpected, and pretty amazing. 

Later the same day, on the way back from where we were going, we were walking next to a dad and his two kids who were talking really loudly and funnily. We walked by and just said hello, and all of a sudden he got very excited, and asked about what we were doing. He stopped to drop his kids off at a piano studio with "Peanuts" characters on the windows, and talked a bit about the church he goes to, and what we're doing. He was a little surprised that we're called 장로 (elder), because it's usually only used for older members of a church or things like that---he seems like he was very active in the leadership of his church in the past, and was actually interested in our English class and other things that w'ere doing, mostly for the principle of them and not because he wants to come---he said he thinks different churches should help each other out, and wanted to talk to the pastor at his church about what we're doing. He showed us the computer store where he works, and then explained his name again in a very specific, clear way, and then explained why he said it that way, assuming se might not know. He was very nice and enthusiastic, and we went back to try to visit him at his store a few times---he was always out, and it seemed like to take care of his kids again, which is good. We called the number of his store a few days later and talked to him again, and he mentioned that if no one at other churches knows we're doing missionary work, they won't be able to help us. I guess I never really thought of it that way, just because we're not supposed to proselyte nearby other places of worship---but it was nice and different. I really appreciated his sense of unity in the work we're doing, and among Christians. We might not be able to meet him soon because he's so busy with his work and family---but he's been so nice to us, and I hope we can pay him back somehow.

 

We also did a lot of walking and trying to find addresses this week. On the 1st the entire address system of everywhere changed, and our branch president asked us to try to find out the members' new addresses whenever we visited them. We remembered a while ago when we went to another town's city hall and used a big fancy computer to find them out, and went to our city's---they had  a similar one, alhtough it was a little slower, and were able to find most of them. So we went to some of them, and some in the same other town from before, called 상주 (Song joo). It turns out almost all of them have moved or weren't home---but it was an interesting adventure to go up to find them. Some were in big apartments, others were in big hills with old houses that were all clustered together. Those days as well, because some people had the day off, were a little quieter---so we didn't get to talk to too many people, but we did get to see new places, and say hello to a few people on the way. We also had fast and testimony meeting here on Sunday, which was nice. A lot of people talked about their new year's resolutions, things they wanted to do better. A lot of them talked about their relationships with their families. We also got to teach the young men's class, which we usually do, and only one of them came---but we talked about coming to know Heavenly Father, and he was more attentive and participatory than usual. It was nice. I recently have been reading Jeremiah a bit, after Isaiah and things---it's interesting how much the Lord emphasizes his personal relationship with His people, and his disappointment that they turned from a living relationship with Him to one with idols who don't talk, live, move, or hear.

More than anything, I'm so grateful and have been completely dependent on the fact that Heavenly Father wants to and does communicate with all of us, and that we can reciprocate. Thinking about all the times where people didn't feel like talking, and comparing it to all infinity of small blessings He's given us without our thanks, makes me feel a little more good. I'm so grateful to be here with great members and an awesome companion who thinks things out well and is funny. I love and miss you all---keep it up. Thanks.

 

-Elder Campbell

Week of December 15 2013: Huge Power Lines Above the Tracks

Dear Everyone,

 

I hope you're all very happy and doing well. That's really all I want. This week was pretty good---not too many different things, but a few nice and normal ones. But I also know that everything we do in our lives everyday is an immense blessing and miracle that we can't fully understand. This week we did a lot of things that seem like normal everyday things but that I know have big meaning for other people. We went to try to visit a lot of less-active members, which is not quite as daunting because our ward is a little smaller. One of the people we tried to visit is a student around our same age, but when we went to find his house his parents told us he started his military service a year ago, and so won't be back for a while. But his family was very nice. They raise big dogs for some reason, and so have a big gate around their house---but they came out and talked to us, instead of the other way, which was nice. We also kept trying to visit some semi-less-active members of our ward. They're a family with three kids who own a restaurant near the church. Now that the weather is a little colder, they apparently are a lot more busy, and haven't been able to come to church, even though they don't work on every other Sunday. We went by, and talked to the mom for just a little bit---she was very nice, and said that she wanted to talk like they sometimes have done with other missionaries, but because they have so many customers, it just didn't work out. But it's nice to know how hard everyone works for their families and to make other people happier, even when they're so busy in their individual lives. It seems like almost all the people we're visiting are pretty much the same---even though they're busy in their jobs or other things, they still make time to meet with us, or if not, they're busy working hard for their families so they can be happy together with them, which is ultimately what we're trying to help them to do.

 

On Wednesday we went to the city nearby to have a meeting with the other missionaries in our district. It was a pretty chilly morning---it started snowing as we walked outside and to the train station. As it turned out the train we had planned on taking got delayed a bit---so we got to wait at the platform a little while longer and watch the snow fall onto the huge power lines above the tracks. We got to talk about each other's families a little more, and about other things we've done. He talked about what it was like when he went to B.Y.U. last year, and it made me think of some of you who are there. We took the train, went to the meeting, and Elder Pickard, gave a great talk about asking questions while teaching. It's something that can seem the hardest at times---but is always rewarding and effective. Ultimately the things we're talking about people have to decide on for themselves, so helping them to really sincerely think about it and listening to their thoughts and concerns is much more effective than just talking at them and hoping they understand. Afterward we went to eat lunch together, but because there wasn't too much time we ended up going to a restaurant that's everywhere---김밥천국 (Kim-bop Heaven), which is kind of like McDonald's in that it's everywhere, cheap, and a lot of Korean people don't like eating there---but it's pretty cheap, and has a big variety of things to eat, so it's always nice.

 

We also got to go visit a new place that we recently found out is included in the boundaries of our area, which was pretty exciting. It's a city called 상주 (Sangju (Song-joo)), about a 40-minute bus ride south of here. I'ts a little smaller even than where we are, but also seems somehow more modern---maybe because it hasn't started developing until recently. We visited the city hall to find a map so we could look for some of the less-active members who live here. I think I mentioned before, but this new year the entire address system will change. It's good in a lot of ways, because there's no official signs of the old one anymore on people's houses. The signs and everything have already been replaced for a while, but just about all of our records and maps are based on the old one. Usually we have to hope that people have written their old address out on their gate somewhere, but otherwise there's no way to know if it's the right place or not. They didn't have a map that was different from the one we do, but they did show us to a room with a large touch-screen computer with a program which, if you type in the old address, tells you what the new one is. It was pretty useful and fancy---it took a while to enter in all the people in that city, but we were able to find most of their new addresses, or look at a satellite picture and try to figure out what it was nearby. After that we went to try to visit a few of the less-actives who live in big apartments, which we were able to find with our old map. Neither of them were home, but we got to see a lot of the city, including the symbol (two little farmer cartoon characters with leaves on their heads), and the slogan ("Just Sangju"), and talk to some people who were busy but friendly. It was very nice.

 

I guess the last things were all from yesterday. After church, which was pretty good, we got to visit our branch presiden'ts house. His name is 김창호 (Kim Chong-ho), he works for the school system here, and also runs marathons. He's very nice, cool, and friendly. We had a really good lunch with him and his wife, and talked about them and their family and their work. Lastly, that night we went to visit a less-active member who's been away from the church for a while, and the missionaries have been trying to help. I'd heard a bit about him from my companion and from other people who had served here. He believes in some interesting philosophies and groups that aren't really related to the church, and that no one has ever really heard of before. He's very nice, quiet, and polite---there were a lot of things that I wasn't really sure about, but he talked about how he's been worrying about these philosophies and philosophical problems a lot since he was young, and that's how he started meeting the missionaries. After we ate dinner together, a popular kind-of fast food called 짜장 (Jah-jong), we talked about Joseph Smith and the First Vision, which he said he'd learned about but not for a while. We talked about how it shows us that we can search for answers to our questions, but in the end the most sure way we can know answers is by asking Heavenly Father and believing in the answer he will give us. He seemed to remember the things he learned before, and I just hope our visit was helpful for him. But I know that all the things we're doing are for ours and others' benefit, and that we learn and grow from everything we experience. I'm so grateful for all the help and things you have all given and taught me. I know that Heavenly Father is there, wants to give help and answers to our prayers, and has already given many of them through Jesus Christ. I'm so grateful to be here and to have wonderful people to learn from and to help me. I love and miss all of you---keep it up.

 

-Elder Campbell

Week of December 1 2013: Transfer to Kim-chun!

Dear People,

 

This has been a pretty great week---including the weather and everything. But I'll try to tell you about it in a way that's understandable and not too long. First of all is my companion, Elder Judd, who is pretty amazing. He is a very kind, patient, great person and missionary. One thing that he's very good at is just being nice and kind. If someone gives him something, even if it's something small and simple, he's always really grateful, and you can tell he means it. He also treats others politely always, and thinks of their feelings first without any regard for other things. He's a great example, and because of him this last week we were able to do some pretty great things. We visited the same person I wrote about before who's in the hospital---his name is 림형제님 (Brother Lim), and he's a very cool, interesting person. After talking about his strong belief in an gratitude towards God the last time we met, we visited him again and just talked about how the Book of Mormon is a strong expression of God's love for us, and how He gave it for us to come to know about Him and Jesus Christ more fully and with greater conviction. He likes reading a lot, and so he's already started to read the Book of Mormon after we invited him to last time, although says he thinks it will take a while to understand, like the Bible did for him. As we talked abou that, I thought about my own personal experience. It's not that the Book of Mormon didn't make sense as much, just that a lot of the time when I tried reading it in the past, like some other books, it could be easy to move along without really thinking about or comprehending exactly what it was saying. 

When I thought about it again, it seems like those times were when I was trying to read because I thought I had to, rather than thinking about how the Lord wanted me to in order to come to understand Him better. When I tried to do that, even if I didn't read that much, I found how much easier it was to understand the actual message it had for me rather than just the substance of the text. We told him how if he tried to read with a sincere desire to understand what God wanted for him and if it were true, he would be able to understand, and that God would give him an answer to that question for himself. He said he would specifically ask God when he prays about it, and seemed very determined and happy. He's in his fifties, and most of his children live outside of the country, and he said he prays every day for their welfare and in gratitude to the Lord for them. After that, we weren't able to meet him (he left and went back to his house)---but hopefully he will be able to remember.

 

This week we also had a district meeting. Most of you probaby already know what that means---it sounds pretty weird without any context, but I realized I haven't really explained specifically how it kind of works for us. We usually do it on Wednesday, and meet in the main chapel of the building we end up doing it at. We set up tables in a roughly u-shaped pattern, and usually just sing hymns until it starts, which is pretty nice. After starting, we talk about the people we've met, if there's anyone who we need specific advice with how to help them, and things like that. Then someone usually explains a part of language learning, after which there's a talk and a teaching-practice activity of some kind. At this last meeting, one of the missionaries who lives in our house, Elder Himmer, had a practice about sharing our testimonies with those we meet. It was pretty different from the way people usually run the activity, in a good way---his style is also pretty different. He's actually from Washington (Gig Harbor), is very enthusiastic and touchy (in a literal way). After he did that, and talked about Abinadi, our district leader kind of talked for a long time about doing missonary work happily. He talked about how he's been a missionary for a while and still hasn't really had anyone be baptized that he's taught. He said sometimes that's been very stressful for him, but it helped him to realize how to do missionary work happily---without only focusing on the results of our efforts that we can see. It was really nice and good.

 

On Thursday we also did an exchange---Elder Himmer went with Elder Judd, and I was with our district leader 정장로님 (Elder Jung). We mostly just stayed in the neighborhood of the church, and surprisingly, even though it was really cold, met and talked with a lot of people and shared our testimonies with them. After dinner, we went back to the church to get ready to go out and try to talk with people more, and suddenly the other missionaries came in and asked if we had a copy of the Book of Mormon. They had met someone on the street who wanted to read it, and we ended up talking with him for a long time about it. He kept expressing how surprised he was and how amazing he thought the things we were talking about were---and said he wanted to meet again the next day. It was a pretty amazing experience---one of the most obvious miracle-type things I've ever seen. Later Elder Himmer told how the first person to talk to him was Elder Judd, how one of his friends who had been walking with him laughed at him, but he kept talking to them, and after Elder Judd shared his testimony he wanted to come to chuch to read the Book of Mormon. I was so grateful for his bravery. It was pretty great.

 

This week was also transfer week, and I got a call that I have to leave Ulsan and go to a place called 김천 (Kim-chun), which is pretty far away and doesn't have too many people---but my companion is Elder Pickard, who is very responsible and cool---I'm really excited, but more than anything grateful to be able to serve people, like all of you are. I'm so grateful always for your examples and for everything you've given me. I hope you're all healthy and happy. I love and miss you. Keep it up.

 

Week of November 24 2013: Faith and Desire

Dear Family and Friends,

 

Things are pretty good. I thought about what I should call you guys ,and realized that those aren't mutually exclusive terms. We're really all family no matter what, but you're also true friends in the best sense of the word. So I thought it'd be good to try that. Lately it's been pretty chilly, windy, and leafy. But I'm glad there's any weather, at least. And that weather's not the only aspect of life.

 

Lately we've been trying to visit the less-active members in our ward a lot. A few of them we've been meeting for a long time, and they like missionaries and the Gospel, too. They're very interesting people, and I'm glad to get to meet them. Mostly it's because of their work and careers that they haven't been able to come to church. There's 김형제님 (Brother Kim), who lives in a kind of far away apartment in the middle of a lot of hills. It's about a forty-five minute to an hour bus ride from our usual neighborhood. We went to visit him this week, and talked about the latest Liahona, with the conference talks in it. It turns out the Liahona is one of his favorite things to read out of all the other things in the world. He hasn't been to church in a long time, and says he doesn't know anyone there so it's akward to go. But he really, really likes the Liahona and things like that. We took the bus, which was kind of jerky and didn't have too many people on it, but had a pretty good view, and got to his house. He lives in a big apartment complex next to a river, and invited us in to sit down and talk about the new Liahona. He talked about a few of the talks he really liked, especially one of President Eyring's where he quoted from Moroni 7 where it talks about charity and love, and what they really mean. He says it's probably the best description of love he's ever heard, that even though it's similar to the one in the Bible that it just puts it in a way that we can really think about our relationships with others and if they're truly loving or not. We talked about that for a while, and he was very friendly and smiley, every once in a while he saying one of the things he's talking about in English, kind of to test his own memory---words like "charity" or "procrastinate". Then we asked him if he thought the talks were not just, as he always says, really great words, but if he thought they were true. He thought about that for a minute, but then said he truly did. He mentioned how the speakers are all serving and trying to help other people, not just to make money or anything, and how much they've helped his life. As we talked about them, and how they're leaders with true authority from God, restored through Joseph Smith, he started talking about how he likes Joseph Smith, but some doubts he's had about him in the past. He mentioned how he was martyred and died when he was very young, and how if he were a prophet, he would have been able to forsee the outcome of the events that lead to his imprisonment and death. He was a little more serious as he talked about it, and that was the first time I had ever heard him express that concern. We weren't able to give him a specific, thorough answer, but testified of al the great things in our lives and world that have come through Joseph Smith's bravery and faith. It made me think that maybe we'll never be in a state where we won't have a question or wonder about something like that---but the key role of faith and desire to believe and to know play in being able to have a surety of that.

 

Another one of the less-activem members is named 이형제님 (Brother Lee (Ee)), who really likes meeting with missionaries. He's also working right now to design a stacking/building kind of toy, and while we were eating lunch together he showed us pictures of the things he's made so far. It's a small geometric shape he made out of folding paper, that can be stacked and formed into lots of interesting shapes and neon colors and things. It's pretty impressive. He also showed us drawings of flowers he made that are very close to real life, and told us about how his parents wanted him to be a lawyer when he was younger, so he studied for a while and knows a lot about Korean law. He's a very talented, interesting person. We met inside a big department store, and went to some seats near the children's playing place. We talked about the parable of the unforgiving servant, and the need and importance to ourselves and others of forgiving them, and how the Lord promises to forgive us the moment we recognize our mistakes and start repenting and trying to be better. He said he really liked it, and always really likes when we talk about the Gospel with him---he just lives far away, and has a lot of things he's working on, so it's hard for him to come to church. We invited him, and told him how the other members wanted to get to know him and the interesting things about him. He said he's still not sure, but that's okay.  

 

We also tried again something we did the week before this one to talk with new people. We went around the neighborhood close to the church, which has mostly restaurants, bars, 학원 (private places to study specific topics), and things like that, talked to the ipeople around and explained where the church is, what we believe and why we're here, and then invited them to watch a short video about it. We had a video of the First Vision in on of the rooms in our church, on a T.V.  that you have to use a pen to turn on. We tried it for a while, but weren't able to find anyone who wanted to come in and talk right away. But we were able to find some people who were interested and said would come later, including a student wearing neon clothes and a hat that said "A.S.A.P." on it. We also talked to a lot of kind of drunker people, which Elder Judd found funny and interesting. It sometimes seems like they have the most interest in religion, which maybe means something, but I'm not sure what. One of them asked if he could write something in my planner, which it later turned out wasn't really anything comprehendable, but just a lot of letters---it looks pretty impressive, though. We also ended up meeting someone new in a small convenience store across from the church building. We were inside looking around, when he came around the corner into the same aisle and stopped and looked at us like he was expecting to find us there. He started talking in English, asking what we were doing and where we were from. He told us he was staying in a hospital nearby the church, and gave us his phone number so we could visit him later. His name is 림형제님 (Brother Lim), he's getting treatment for a back problem, and he's very funny and friendly and talkative. We went to see him a few days later in his hopstial room, and he brought out a bunch of juices, fruits, including oranges and 배 (kind of appley-pears), and squid-flavored chips. After talking for a long time in single word English about his family and himself, we asked what he thought about missionaries and religion in general. He said he used to see them a lot, and also that he goes to church with his family. He talked about how he thinks God is like a doctor, a fisherman, other things, and how grateful he is to Him for all the things in his life, especially his family. Then we told him that we believe the same thing, and how the Book of Mormon helps us to know those things. He seemed interested in it, and said he would read the first part. He also remembered where each of us had said we were from the first time we met, and other things like that, and seemed to really enjoy talking with us. We talked about it afterward, and both agreed that it was impressive to feel the Spirit as he talked about how grateful he is to all of the thigns God has done in his life. We went to visit him really quick last night while walking by the hospital he's staying in, and he said he read the first part and up to part of 1 Nephi. He said it took a long time to understand the Bible and thought the Book of Mormon would, too, but also after reading Moroni 10: 3-5, that he agreed God could help him to understand it. It was pretty great, and I'm really glad we've been able to meet him.

 

I'm really glad to be able to be here with all the great people and members and missionaries. On Sunday (yesterday), Elder Judd and I went with the Sisters here to in front of a big department store, where there were Christmas lights and lots of people walking in front, and sang hymns and talked to people about the Gospel. It was pretty great---we didn't end up talking to too many people, and it started raining a bit, so we had to go early, but I was glad just to be able to be around a lot of the people we're here to serve, and that they could even hear a few words and expressions of the joy that knowing these truths gives us. I'm so grateful for everyone, especially my companion, and all the opportunities I've been given, especially through all of you. Keep it up, work hard, and remember that the Lord always wants to be with us and help us, especially when things are hard. I love all of you---keep it up.

 

-Elder Campbell

Week of November 10 2013: Colder Things

Dear Loving People,

 

I hope this was a great week for all of you. There's not too much I can do to control it, so I just hope so. We had good things, and colder things, and other things this week. But overall it was really great. 

Last week for our P-Day time we didn't do anythig too great or specific, and this week we have to meet the other missionaries in our zone to prepare for a district conference event where we're supposed to sing together. I'm sorry I haven't been able to write or send about crazy sightseeing spots or anything---we did go somewhere to try to find ties that Elder Judd has been interested in buying for a while. There are some ties that are pretty fancy, which are famous for some people---with shiny things or little animal designs. So we went to a department store near our house to see what there was. We had to go up about four or five floors or so, but we found a big section of neckties on little drawers that fold out. The nicer/sparklier ties are pretty expensive, it turns out, so my companion just bought one that was a little more moderate---there was one with whales on it as well. 

After that, we had a pretty regular week, highlighted with a few more exciting things. On Tuesday, we were getting ready when one of the members of our ward, the second counselor in the branch presidency, called us and asked us to meet him at the church to copy a key. It wasn't an especially exciting event, but it reminded me just about him and how hard he works for the branch, his family, and in general. He works at the city hall here in Ulsan, which is pretty close to the church, and has a big garden in front of it. But he's very nice, kind, and makes time for us to meet him once in a while, not to mention everything he does in his calling. His kids are pretty cute as well, especially his youngest son, whose name is 김율 (Kim Your), and kind of looks older man. He likes walking around and falling over, kind of like some younger cousins I know. 

But after we met him, we went to the service projecct that we've been helping out at almost every week. It's basically just an actual soup kitchen---I don't know if all the people who come are specifically homeless or not, but the food usually does have soup included. The patrons are all pretty old, but fun and funny. They come in, get their own food on a big tray, usually with rice, kimchi and other side-dishes, and soup, and then go to sit down. The room isn't too big, and the chairs are all pretty close together, so there are some times when it gets way too crowded---but it's still fun. We usually help people who need it get to their seats, or just get food for them, and then when they're done eating take their trays and clean them off so they can do the dishes as fast as possible. Sometimes they ask us to move things like big bags of rice, but sometimes we just have time to wait until they're done eating that we can talk with them or the other volunteers. The women who run the activity also are very nice and helpful---very kind and patient. When we finished and left to go take the bus, one of them was going the same direction as us, and asked us where we were going, in a very nice polite way. I realized we've seen her almost every week without really getting to know each other too deeply---she said she was on the way to her work, when I just assumed she worked at the service center. It's good to see there are so many amazing people around who just want to help other people like Jesus Christ would.

 

We tried to visit a few of the less-active members of our ward this week. Most of them are people the members suggested and maybe knew well before, but haven't been able to come to church for a long time. For that reason I think some of them feel a lot of pressure if we come visit them. One of them is named 홍형제님 (Brother Hong), and he works at a place called a 겁도관 (Come dough gwan), where he teaches swordfighting. We tried to visit him a few times, but he was busy with class. We were able to meet with another less-active member we have a few times before, who works near Ulsan University, and really likes missionaries. He's also desiging a toy of some kind, and wants to present his design to a company he likes in Germany. It's pretty impressive how hard he works for the goals he has, even while doing other work and everything. He says he finally finished the design itself, and showed us a bunch of pictures of it while we ate together. It's kind of a building toy made of paper, and which can be used to make lots of different shapes and things. We talked about the preocess of how he made it---apparently he's been designing it for two years, and after finishing that had to spend tons of time, or asked help from his friends, cutting it out from colored-paper (kind of origami type paper) to make enough designs to send to show the company what they're like. We talked about how good he feels now that he's finished this thing he's been working on for so long. We then compared it to how the Lord created all things, and then rested---how he saw that everything He had made was good. He also hoped that we would use it well---kind of like how the member hopes his design will be sold, and people will enjoy and use it well. We talked about the things God hopes from him, comparing it to his own experience. He seemed to like it---but still said it's just hard for him to make it to church. Hopefully he didn't feel too much pressure or anything, but 

 

As kind of the highlight of the week, we got to met with one of the other investigators we have before. His actual last name, like lots of people, is 이 (Lee (Ee)), but he said we could just call him 수 (Soo). He's a very nice, interesting guy. He's really polite and formal---whenever we call or meet at the church to have a lesson, he's always very straightforward about things, and very sorry if he's late or someone calls him or something like that. He came to church for the first time a few weeks ago, and said he liked it overall (the same week as the primary program) but that there were some parts of it that were hard to understand. He also said he felt a little guilt and pressure, when we invited him to come again. Because he's starting a new job, he probably won't be able to come very regularly, and he said he's worried that if he comes every once in a while, it will be rude and make the other members feel bad. We tried to tell him, of course, they would be glad to see him whenever he had time to be able to come. We talked about his personal relationship with God, and one way he can understand and develop it---through praying. We read Alma 33:5-8, which has some pretty good stuff about it, specifically that Zenos prayed when he in his field (even during work), and the Lord heard him. It's a great promise---that we don't just have to pray regularly and habitually, but in the times we can, or when we need help. He seemed to like it, and said if he has time, he'll try to come to church again.

 

We also did a kind of sticker survey like we have before this week---an activity usually only girl students have time for or want to participate in. One of the first people we talked to was an older guy who said he'd met missionaries before and talked about English, but not much about the Gospel. We decided to meet him again the next day. I said something about how mostly girls were coming to do the activity at one point, which it seemed like Elder Judd thought was directed at him---unfortunately, he seemed a little deflated by it. I felt bad and realized again how even at times when we don't mean it, maybe especially then, is when others' feelings can be hurt and when misunderstandings arise, which is why it's so important to be quickly and frankly forgiving. I'm so grateful for good family and friends who have shown that to me, and have always shown good examples. On the upside, we met him the day after, ate lunch together, and had a good talk---he said the next time he has his car, he could come and talk at the church. Overall, it was an interesting but good experience, just like everything. 

I'm so grateful for all the  experiences I've been able to have, even the harder ones. I know the Lord loves us, and even if we don't totally understand all the time, He does everything because of his desire for our happiness. I hope you're all happy and doing well, and am grateful everyday for you. I love you---keep it up.

 

-Edler Campbell

Week of October 28 2013: The Barbershop

Dear Everyone,

 

It's so great to be able to be here and to write to all of you together like this. It's also sometimes hard to know exactly what I should say---what would be helpful, without making it too much for all of your busy lives. To put it all in one thesis statement, I guess,  I'm so grateful, more than anything, for all the people around me all the time, and don't ever want to make the mistake of taking them for granted. This includes all of you, but lately and more specifically the other missionaries, leaders, and members here who are all helping me, and especially Elder Judd. 

This was a great week for all of us. One of the missionaries who was serving here was went to the other area in our district, about a forty minute ride by bus from here. The missionary who came to replace him is someone I met a long time ago, but I really liked, named 정장로님 (Elder Jung). He studied comic-drawing at school, is really funny and positive, and in his own companion's words, seems kind of like a character from The Muppets. We met on Tuesday with him and all the other missionaries in our area to talk about the things we need to do together, and it felt really good---everyone here is just really great and hard-working, especially one of the members named 이자매님 (Sister Lee (Ee)), who I think I mentioned a bit before. She's from here originally, and this is where she found out about the church---but she moved when she got older to Switzerland, where her husband is from. Her kids all grew up there, all speak lots of European languages as well as Korean, and she basically visits here a few months of the year and helps out missionaries as much as she possibly can. She comes to all of our meetings, helps out with all the activities and things we have, and brings food and little cartons of 두유 (soy milk) for everyone.  She also has been helping out when we do lessons and visit people, including the member who was baptized last month, 한형제님 (Brother Hahn). 

We met him this week just to talk about how he's doing and feeling---he's been looking for a job for a long time, and taking tests in order to find one. As a result, he hasn't really had time to study the scriptures very much, which he said at first he had trouble understanding, anyway. We met with Sister Lee (Ee) to talk about that and what we might be able to do specifically to help him with that, and then because there were no other men in the church we had to go outside to talk---and while we were walking, she talked about the scripture Jesus quotes when Satan tempts him to miraculously create his own bread, saying that we need to be using and reading the scriptures everyday in order for them to beome a part of our lives and our selves. It made me realize that this is something I guess I've kind of been taking for granted, that as missionaries we have time to do that. So when he got to the church and we met him, we talked about it, and she shared her own experience of joining the church in high school, and then becoming less active becuase of her not setting aside time to study scriptures. Then she gave him a bag of stuff she bought for him at a stationery/stuff store: a giant notebook, a four-color pen, and crayons for him to study, mark, and then in English write the scriptures with. She said it's a personal practice she started when she had to learn her new language in Europe, and helped her a lot. Brother Hahn is both trying to learn English and needs to read the scriptures, so it seems like a good, if unexpected, way to do it. He seemed a little surprised, but also grateful, for what she gave and said---I was, too.

 

Some of the other people are people who have been around for a long time, but recently have changed a bit, or have started helping in a new way recently. One is named 장형제님 (Brother Jong (John)), who worked in the military in the U.S. for a long time, knows English really well, and is a pretty funny, interesting person. He tutors kids at the school near his house, which has kind of a road going through lots of plants next to a little brook, which is nice. In his house he has lots of old board and video games, and army clothes. He's very curious about religion and beliefs, but is pretty set in his own, and also in his skepticism about others beccause of hypocrisy, etc. Basically he's been meeting the missionaries for a long time, and a bit ago told us he wanted to invite one of his friends to meet us when we visited him on a holiday. We didn't get a chance to meet them then, so we thought we should try to ask him again if we could meet them, kind of as a last-minute measure. When we did, he suddenly thought of several people he wanted us to meet, and we left and went around his neighborhood and met people at the barbershop he goes to, a small clothing store, and the store he gets his glasses. It was kind of funny and sudden, but also a really great experience---we got to meet these people who he knows well, and to see how he cares for and is kind to them, and that they were a little curious to learn about the gospel. 

The day before that, we were going to visit one of the familes in our branch that I think I mentioned about to you before, who work together at a restaurant and work really hard and sacrifice a lot in general---정형제님 and 오자매님 (Sister Oh and Brother Jung), but because of my mistake and being a little rushed because we were late, ended up taking the wrong bus and going to a neighborhood I've never been to before. While we were trying to find the right stop to take the bus to get back home in time, we met two college students on the street---actually, they came up and talked with us first, who were interested in learning about English, and then started asking about which church we were from. We ended up planning to meet again at our English class, and they told us where we needed to go to take the bus and everything---it was great. 

Another one of the members of our branch came to our English class, sat and watched, and then on Sunday talked about some ways he thought we could be doing it more effectively, specifically in helping the people who come to learn more about the gospel. I think that's something I could apply more in everything---there are so many people we talk to everyday, and all of them are children of God, and I thought about how much better it would be to not worry about how they will think, or how we will seem if we invited them to learn about the gospel, but about how Heavenly Father would feel if we did and then they decided to. It's sad, but good how sometimes obvious things can be overlooked, but then when we remember them they can help us to realign our thoughts and priorities.

 

One other thing happened that was interesting this week---we took the bus to go to help the missionaries in the other area with a Halloween party they planned for their ward. In general, most people don't really seem very interested in it, but there is a kind of costume-party store in front of the church, and it seems like the past few days have been their happiest week of the year. But we took the bus, at about 6:00, not anticipating rush hour, and it ended up taking almost an hour and a half. Some of the people we invited were sitting on the steps because there were no seats, running around and yelling (they're younger students), and doing crazy stuff. But when we got there, it was really fun---lots of people wearing Halloween-themed costumes and playing games with little rice snacks. At the end, we all ate a combined meal of 김밥 (kim-bop) and Costco muffins, which was pretty good, actually. It was fun, and reminded me of all the trunk-or-treats and other things from before. Hopefully everyone has good, safe plans for this year.

 

Elder Judd is doing great---I'm again so grateful for him and to be serving with him, and just hope I can be better to help him learn all the things he needs to. I've been reading Isaiah and the Mormon's book during study recently, and am so grateful for scriptures, and have really noticed what a big difference it makes to read them and learn from other peoples' experiences. I know you guys already know that, but especially Alma 12-15 is pretty good recently. I love you and miss you all, but I know you're doing great things. Have a great Halloween, good family time, and be happy. I love you---keep it up.

 

-Elder Campbell

Week of October 14, 2013: Running In No Particular Direction

Dear Everyone,

 

This one will have to be pretty fast---I wish it wasn't, but we just don't have too much time left after going to the other city in our area to do some stuff with the other members in our district. This was a pretty exciting week in a regular way. The weather and other events are actually related this time, so it makes it a little faster. On Monday, we spent the P-Day part at the market near our church searching for cheap ties, unsuccessfully but seeing lots of good stuff in the process---displays of interesting food, cute kids and families buying cute/funny clothes, stores with retro Korean pop/show tunes playing out front, and lots of live seafood, including crabs in cardboard boxes covered with sawdust that were still alive and flailing around, and a few things that escaped and were running away in no particular direction. 

 

After that, we met someone who's been coming to our English class for a while, but we stopped being able to see for a while, and now lives and studies at the university here. His name is 박형제님 (Brother Pock), and he's a really funny guy---he studies English, and speaks well. For his English class at school, he had to make a video report, with a good plot and funny/fuzzy dialogue. Then we talked a bit about prayer---how we can pray any time, for whatever reason. It seems like a lot of people maybe don't specifically pray, but in serious or extreme situations, ask for some kind of help. I told him about one time that I kind of put off studying for a test, and at the last minute prayed a lot that I'd be able to do alright. I didn't specifically get answer that it would be 100% okay or see the test answers in the air above me, like some people probably have, but I just felt a natural sense that it would all work out alright---and it did. He said that was cool, and it seems like different churches and different people have their own way of solving those kinds of problems and worries. Maybe he's right---he seemed pretty stressed about school the last time we saw him, but was able to deal with it. But it was good.

 

After that, on Tuesday we did an exchange with the zone leaders here. Elder Judd went to another area, and I stayed here with one of the other zone leaders. We spent a bit riding the bus because I still make lots of mistakes and take the wrong one, but it was good, and we got to talk to a lot of nice and helpful people. People kept telling us a typhoon was supposed to come, and it did while we were riding the bus. It started raining pretty heavily, and so we hurried to find one of the less-active members of our ward our members had told us about but we hadn't been able to talk with on the phone for a long time. He teaches 검도, which is sword-fighting, and so we got to see the place where he teaches, with lots of swords, armor, old paintings, and big dodecahedronal balls for little kids. He said he hasn't been to church since he was a high school student, and just really hasn't thought about it for a long time. We just talked a bit about the Book of Mormon, and when Christ came to the Nephites, something he didn't seem to have a great memory of---but how he invited all of them to come unto Him, and how as members of his church we are commanded to do the same to other people---us to him, and also him to show good examples to others around him. He was really nice, although did seem a bit surprised when we came. 

 

After that, we took the bus to the church and met the other missionaries there, where everyone was so wet we took off our shoes and socks to let them dry. At night the wind blew pretty strongly, enough to break almost one companion's umbrella in every area here. The windows rattled kind of a lot, and it turns out one of them isn't totally sealed shut, so some water came in on our deck area---but we were able to dry it up with fans and other things. The next day we met again at a zone meeting, which was pretty good---we had some good discussions, especially about reading into and searching for the deeper meanings of scriptures, something our mission president has kind of been emphasizing. After that, we did another exchange with the missionaries in the other city here, by the ocean. I stayed here again, but it was fun---we got to do an activity, which Brother Pock from before was able to come to, and it was really fun. 

 

Finally Elder Judd and I got to come back here, which was actually really good---I missed him a lot. He's always nice to everyone, and tries to make things easier for them. That day was a little different---after coming back here, we just walked around a lot, putting up flyers for our English class near the river near the downtown area, and greeting and trying to talk to a lot of people. We also got to meet with Brother Sheem again, who's really great---he always seems really happy, and is just a sincere and genuine person in general. We talked about last week, when he came to the new member's baptism, and what he thought about it. After we talked about it a bit more, he said he would be baptized when he felt and thought our church was right. He's a really great person---he still remembers from a while ago when he learned about Jesus Christ one time at another church, about how he took all our sins upon Himself, and even though he sometimes he sometimes forgets things, he always remembers that part. It's really great to be around and to have met him.

 

On Saturday we came to church to watch Conference, which was pretty fun---not too many people from the branch came, so it was just us and the one sister from Switzerland who came from here originally and is visiting, and the new member who was baptized last week---we watched, and then ate food we each brought together. It felt good just to be able to listen to and think about the talks all day, but also energizing, since we didn't get to really do much else. There was a lot I liked---hard to remember, but especially someone from the Presiding Bishopric who talked about brother/sisterhood and inviting everyone to come with us and helping them feel welcome as Christ would, and also Russell M. Nelson had some good things to say---overall it was great. 

 

On Sunday more members came, and we similarly, after setting up the projector and things like that, watched, ate together, and talked a bit. Afterwards we practiced a song we were asked to sing for a Mission Tour this week, an event I didn't know about until recently, which someone from the Area Presidency is coming to do. 김자매님, our branch president's wife, helped a lot---it seems like she's had a lot of experience doing things like that at church events, which aren't really my "forte"---but hopefully it will go well. Then we went with the Sisters, which we've been planning to do for a while, and sang hymns out on a bridge near the river in the downtown part of our area, trying to talk to the people walking by. It was windy, but good. Sister Burton, serving in our area, who plays the violin, brought it, and played really well despite the wind. It seemed a little funny, just us singing hymns together, but it felt good. I'm so grateful for the Gospel and for the knowledge that gives us about how we're related to each other and to God and Jesus Christ. I'm so grateful for the members, investigators, other missionaries and everyone around us. I'm so grateful for you guys, and for the leaders in the church and for how we are all able to support each other and help each other to do the things we need to and want to. I hope you guys are all happy, and know how much I love and miss you. Keep it up---pray for anything you need. I love you.

 

-Elder Campbell