Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas my Family!! I love you so!

- Last Monday me and Kanno Shimai were doing some housing, but without too much success. We still had about a half an hour before going back to the apartment, so we decided to go walk and do some streeting.We started walking and stopping and talking with people. We met one high school boy who was really nice and had some interest. We talked to quite a few people as we walked down the street. It was amazing and sad to me, as my companion would ask them if they knew about Jesus Christ, how many of them had maybe only ever heard of Him, but really have no idea who He is to them. 

As we walked back to our apartment, I turned to Kanno Shimai and said how streeting is kinda scary at first, but then once we do it, it always turns out to be some of my favorite dendo and I feel so happy afterwards! 

Its funny how sometimes the scary or hard things in life, turn into the blessings and experiences we are so grateful for. 

- We went and volunteered at the old folks home where we volunteer every week. I had one of those good ole sweet life moments, as I looked around the room at all the sweet grandmas sitting in a circle playing "keep the balloon up in the air" game and beautiful Christmas snow falling outside the big windows. It was a good time!

- Our ward had its Christmas party this week and it was awesome! The primary and youth did the Nativity play. Our investigator Saaya san came too! 

- On Sunday President Smith and Sister Smith came and did a surprise visit to Izumi ward! During Sunday School time we got to watch the Christmas Devotional! I kept tearing up all throughout the devotional. I felt the Spirit and just love Christmas so much. Plus, there was a little newborn baby in the english room where we were watching the devotional, and even though us missionaries couldn:t hold her, just having a brand new baby in there with us as so many of the speakers in the devotional were talking about how Jesus Christ came to earth as a baby, just kept bringing tears to my eyes. I especially loved one moment as the Tabernacle Choir was finishing singing one of their beautiful Christmas hymns and hearing the little baby starting to softy cry in the background. Because that moment seemed so real, like what it was like on the first Christmas. Thank heaven for little babies. 

Merry Christmas Family! I love you more and more and more! 

See you soon!

LOVE, King Shimai

Dendo!

Dear Mama, 

Happy Birthday this week! The Big FIVE ZERO! Woohoo! 

I love you Mom! OH SO MUCH!!!!!!!!! Thank you for being my MOM!

-This week we met with our investigator Obara san twice. She is doing great. One of our lessons this week was so fun. Fun cause the Spirit was there and we were bold! It feels so good to be bold! Something I learned recently is that "The Lord tells us to be bold but not overbearing. Being overbearing is showing boldness without love. When people know and feel your love, you can never be too bold!" 

At that lesson I finally felt like we had a solid relationship of trust and love, so there was a really good feeling in the room, and we were able to answer her questions straight, without having to kinda "cushion" the answer to her questions, if that makes sense. At our next lesson towards the end, we had planned on inviting her to come to church. I almost whimped out, but then I was like, "NO!" "I:m going to invite her to come to church!" So I did it! And even though she said she wasn:t quite ready to come, that she needs a little more time, I felt peace, cause I invited her! 

Pretty much from the first of my mission i:ve been learning to text in Japanese! 

- Being squished onto the subway, literally SO many people jammed in there, and just looking around and thinking "I wonder if Dad ever had any moments like this!"

- Doing jumping jacks to stay warm while we were out dendoing on Saturday night! 

-This week we had our Christmas Zone Conference, and I got all of your lovely letters, and that was the part that I was looking forward to the most! Thank you so much!

-On Saturday, me and Kanno Shimai decided to do some Christmas cheer dendo! So we made snickerdoodle cookies and then biked out to Timbuktwo and delivered them to some members and less active members. After we visited one less active sister, we walked back to our bikes in front of her house, and realized that Kanno Shimai:s bike lock was jammed and we couldn:t get the bike key in to unlock it. 

All bundled up! Winter came this week! BRRRRRRRRRRRRR! :)

-It was super duper cold outside and we were about an hour bike ride away from our apartment and it was dark. We decided to pray. So we said a little prayer to our Heavenly Father. And, without fail, our prayer was answered. After we prayed, we kept trying to push the key into the lock, and then suddenly even without changing anything, it just finally went in. Like Grandma Kerr once told me and Katie, "Miracles. Those are called angels." :)

-Visiting members in Japan is so great and a little funny. I realized as we were going around delivering cookies to the members, that we were almost always given a little goodie in return. We came back with hi-chews, senbei, kit-kats, and tomato juice. It kind of feels like Trick-or-treating! But really, the members are so nice and take good care of us missionaries. I guess its Japanese culture to give something to someone if they come to your house. 

Well, today is the first day of my last transfer. I:ve got 7 more weeks to love my Japan! 7 beautiful weeks to serve my dear Savior. Its going to be glorious! 

LOVE King Shimai

Also I got a couple of Roots Tech emails! Like that you signed me up to go! It looks amazing!! I really really want to go! 

Konnichiwa! (and lots of photos)

Dear Family! 

- Its beginning to feel like Christmas here in Izumi! This week it snowed for the first time! Me and Kanno Shimai got to ride our bikes home and I loved just looking up into the night sky and seeing billions of snowflakes! Then last night we borrowed Nora:s Christmas Gift from the church and watched it in Japanese while we ate kimuchi soup and curry. Christmas time in Japan! So sweet! Nora:s Christmas still makes me cry, I just love that movie so much! haha! :)

- Our investigator Obara san is doing good! She told us something wonderful this week, she said that the Book of Mormon is becoming more and more interesting to her! Me and Kanno Shimai have really been using the Book of Mormon a lot as we teach her, and I love reading some scriptures together and her nodding her head up and down and saying "Oh I get it, I understand." Its seriously so fun! 

Right now we are in the middle of teaching her bit by bit about the Plan of Salvation. We talked this week about the Creation, the Fall of Adam and Eve, and the Purpose of Life. She is so great and thinks deeply about what we talk about, and she really asks us meaningful questions that keep us on our toes...like when we share testimony or testify of blessings, she asks us WHY do we know that, or HOW did we come to believe that, or WHAT specific blessings are we talking about. Its a blessing to be helping her along the path! 

- On Saturday we visited lots of members, which meant, biking up 1000 hills! I:m grateful for hills, cause they make me stronger! :) It was really fun though to visit the members and share a message about Christ and the Atonement.  I especially love dendo this time of year during Christmas! 

I love you so much Family! 

King Shimai

Grocery shopping in Japan!

Merry Christmas! This is my little Christmas display on my desk. Still have that cute little tree Jan! 

Izumi! 

Me and Butler Shimai (my best missionary friend!) at the Honbu this last week for a Missionary Leadership Counsel. On Tuesday evening we all went caroling for our dendo and then stayed the night at the Honbu, and then the next morning had breakfast, then training, and then lunch, and then more training. It was great! 

Brother Heatin was there (He is like the head honcho guy at the MTC I think; and he also is the man who basically wrote PMG I think!) It was so sweet to see his testimony and example. He knows Japanese cause he served his mission in Japan Fukuoka mission when he was young. 

He was only with us missionaries for this short 2 day training, but from Tuesday evening when he first met us, by the end of the training on Wednesday afternoon he had learned each of our names. It reminded me how important names are! And that even if you might never see someone again, it still impacts them if you will call them by name during the short time you are together. 

This week we had Zone Training Meeting! Me and Kanno Shimai did a training about working with the members. It was fun but scary to stand up in front of a bunch of missionaries and talk in Japanese! But one of my favorite quotes goes like this: "Its good to be scared. Because it means you`re alive!" 

First snowfall! I was so excited!