Monday, January 13, 2014

These are pictures from a P-day trip to the mangakan, a Japanese anime museum!

On Monday, January 13, 2014 Sister Johnson wrote:

I had a hard week. I haven't been feeling super stellar this week. I caught a cold, but it's not a normal cold. My throat is a little sore and my body is super tired and weak. I went to the doctor, but he said there wasn't anything to be done except rest (which I kind of figured), so that's what I've been doing, as much as I can. I feel bad for Luk Shimai; because I'm stuck at the apartment, so is she, and I think she's getting bored. Hopefully I will feel better soon!

This week, Luk Shimai and I had one truly incredible experience, one of the biggest miracles I think I've seen on my mission so far. The story starts a few weeks ago. Luk Shimai and I were on splits with the Sister Training Leaders. It was about 2 in the afternoon, and it was snowing like CRAZY, but Smith Shimai and I decided to go Christmas caroling! We knocked on a few doors, but no one was home. Then we knocked on one door, and we introduced ourselves through the little door-phone/intercom thing. We asked the lady if we could shovel her walkway for her, but we didn't really know how to ask that in Japanese (Smith Shimai has only been here six more weeks than me), so the lady told us to wait for a second while she came to the door. After that, we mimed shoveling the walk but she said that she could do it herself. Then we ended up talking for a few minutes, and she invited us to stand in her genkan (entry way), where we asked her about her religious background. She pointed to a beautiful painting she had of Buddah, and said that she is a Buddhist. After a little bit of talking, we asked her if we could sing a Christmas carol for her, and she agreed. Smith Shimai and I sang Silent Night (in Japanese, of course), and then we felt it was time to leave. She then told us her name is Kato San, and she gave me an umbrella right as we were leaving, telling us to be careful and stay warm. She was super sweet, and Smith Shimai and I liked her a lot. After that, I kind of lost track of her in my mind, but last week, I remembered that Kato San had given me an umbrella, and I wanted to go back and thank her and give it back to her, so that is what Luk Shimai and I did! We weren't really expecting anything to happen because she is a Buddhist, and seemed more devoutly so than most people we meet. We were just hoping to say thank you and ask if we could help her in any way. So, we took a break from weekly planning on Friday and headed over to Kato San's house. When we rang the doorbell, I said though the intercom "Konnichiwa, mae no Matsu Jitsu Seito Iesu Kirisuto Kyokai no senkyoshi desu" (which means Hello, we are the missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints that visited you before!), and she said "Aaaa, konnichiwa!!!!" and then ran to the door and invited us in. After Luk Shimai introduced herself, Kato San looked me right in the eyes and said "Thank you so much for coming back to see me. When you sang in my genkan before, I felt the warmest feeling in my heart, and ever since you left, I have been praying and praying to God that you would come back. It was God's guidance that brought you to my door before, and you coming back today is also God's guidance. You see, today is Friday, and usually I am out of town on Fridays, but today, I decided not to leave my house. Now I know the reason why: because you came to see me today. This is God's guidance." She proceeded to tell us that she has been so hopeful to see us again. She has been learning about God from some other churches, but she said that she felt something different when Smith Shimai and I were there. She told us that she wants to hear our church's "hanashi," which means she wants to take the lessons! We were able to set an appointment with her for next Wednesday. Wow, the guidance!!! Luk Shimai and I left Kato San's house with tears of gratitude in our eyes for the guidance that Heavenly Father had blessed us with. It is my hope and prayer that Kato San has been prepared to hear and accept the Gospel, and that Luk Shimai and I will be able to listen further to the guidance of the Spirit so that we will be able to know exactly what Kato San needs. This was a miracle, and I am so thankful for the guidance of a loving and concerned Heavenly Father who is preparing one of His precious daughters to find her way home.

That's my miracle for the week, and what a miracle it was! I am so blessed to be a part of this wonderful work that is the work of my Savior, Jesus Christ. He is my Light, and I know that He is a guiding Light for all those that seek to do good.

Love: Shak Shimai