This Week Was A Good One

Well loved ones, another week has passed and here I am sitting at this computer writing to you all. Time seems to fly faster and faster. 

This week was a good one. Taught a lot and found a couple of people who were so prepared to receive the gospel. The work is progressing here in Akashi and I feel so grateful to be apart of it. 

We had a dinner appointment with some members in our ward. My companion and I were in charge of the spiritual message and so we decided to show them the He is the Gift video. (In case you didn't watch it last week here's another chance http://www.mormon.org/christmas?cid=HPFR112814529 ). I have watched that video lots of times. But for some reason when I watched it this time with these people that I have learned to love so much it got me. It was amazingly powerful and I could just feel the love of my Heavenly Father pouring out for everyone in that room. I am so grateful to God for giving us His Son. I'm grateful for the opportunity I have to share this love with the Japanese people. 

One of the people that we found this week was amazingly prepared. We taught her Saturday, she came to church on Sunday, taught her, stayed for all 3 hours, then she called us afterwards to thank us for letting her come to church. When we taught her that God was her Heavenly Father and that this meant that she was God's daughter she said, "sugoi!" Which in English translates to "amazing!" You bet it's amazing! 

I love this work and I love the Japanese people. I hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas season and has a happy week!

Love your Japanese friend,

Aulick Shimai 

アウリック姉妹

24 days until CHRISTMAS‏

First off, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM. Go big you cutie.

So transfer announcements were this week and....I'M STAYING IN AKASHI WITH CURRENT SHIMAI. I am so excited and feel so blessed to be in this crazy awesome area for another transfer. But our area won't have 4 sisters in it anymore. It will become 2 sisters again but it will still be great. :)

This week we have been getting more and more involved with the members in this ward and I love it. On Sunday we went over to this family's house to help decorate their house for Christmas and have FHE and they invited some friends to come too. We talked about eternal families and it was so exciting to see members get so involved in the work. Also during church on Sunday my companion and the other sisters and I performed a musical number. That went well and it was fun. 

Thanksgiving was so good this week! Current Shimai and I went to our local 7/11 and got some fried chicken, sparkling cider, and then thanks to my mother and her wonderful package that got to me the day before we had stuffing and mashed potatoes. And then to top off the meal we had PUMPKIN PIE...pop tarts which seriously tasted just like the real thing. Super yummy. And then we had members invite us over on Saturday so they could feed us a Thanksgiving meal as well. That was super yummy too. All in all it was a great Thanksgiving. :)

This week was really hard. We had about the worst numbers you could ever have. But I learned a really valuable lesson. I learned how to rejoice in other people's successes. The other sisters in our area have been doing really well and are teaching and finding and I learned to instead of getting envious or jealous to congratulate them and find joy in the things that they're doing really well. I have also really learned to supplicate myself to total humility in sincere fervent prayer. It was a happy, hard week. A week where I learned a lot. And I sure didn't want to learn these things in the way I did but that's not how it works. God is in charge and I know if I let Him take the reins then He will guide me to become someone far better than what I had in mind for myself. I love being a missionary and I know that opposition is necessary for growth. I also love and am so grateful for all of you! I hope you have a happy week!

Love your Japanese friend,

Aulick Shimai 

アウリック姉妹