I feel blessed to have had 2 Christmases on my mission :)

Hey everyone!! 

It was another week of miracles!!

The first one was 곽지원's baptism on Monday! It was a beautiful service and her whole family came--including her father! It was his first time coming to church. He usually strongly opposes anything having to do with church, but he came!! 

After the baptism I asked the little sister when she wanted to be baptized and she said, "as soon as possible." We hope the family can get baptized together!

Christmas day was great! We spent the evening at our recent convert, 조은정's jo-un-jeoung's house. We sang carols and before we left we asked the daughter, kim yun ju to pray. She prayed and her mom cried because she was so happy--it was a special experience. 

We had a Christmas party on Christmas Eve and lots of our investigators came! It was super fun. After it ended and it was time to get home, my companion and I called tons of people and sang Christmas hymns--so fun and people were so happy! I love being a missionary. I feel blessed to get to have had 2 Christmases on my mission :)

             Since we have a lot of investigators and new members, we have had to try to be really smart and productive with our planning and prioritizing. On Saturday our whole day was filled with appointments, but on Friday night, jo-un-jeong called and wanted to meet. We told her we didn't have time, but would meet her as soon as we could. The next morning during studies my companion and I both planned to study for the people we would meet that day, so we started our studies and my mind kept shifting to jo-un-jeong. So I studied and found tons of things I wanted to share with her. We ended personal study and I told Sister Park that I think we needed to meet   jo un jeong. Sister Park said she had the same feeling and kept thinking of her too. So we called our appointments to confirm again and one of them cancelled right at the time jo un jeong could meet! We met and the message we prepared was just what she needed. She was in tears as she listened. It was such a cool experience. It testified to us again that this truly is the Lord's work and that we are just His instruments! Super cool!

        I love being a missionary. I know that this is true. I'm learning so much everyday. There are so many things I have to improve and I feel weak all the time, but God uses weak me to do His great work. I love my Heavenly Father and Savior and am so grateful for all of the blessings they give me everyday!

Love you all!


Sister Naatjes :)

So many happy moments!

Merry Christmas!! I can't believe it's already Christmas! Time flies! 

It has been an incredibly busy week with transfers, a mission Christmas party, leadership training meetings, zone conference preparation, and lots of appointments! Because we lost a pair of sister missionaries, we now have double the investigators, new members, and less-actives to focus on and care for. It's been pretty stressful! haha. But we're seeing tons of miracles and there are so many happy moments! 

Today 곽지원 kwak jee won is getting baptized! Woo!! So exciting! She is so pure and accepts this gospel with so much enthusiasm. She is 16-years-old and started coming to church with her mom about 2 months ago. They both listened to the lessons together and are so cute and amazing! The mom doesn't quite feel ready to be baptized yet, but kwak jee won wanted to get baptized as soon as possible, so we set a date. She is 16 and has an 11-year-old younger sister who came to church yesterday! They all hope that their dad will start coming to church with them soon! He will be coming to the baptism tonight, so we're really excited! It will be a very special experience for her and her family! We are praying that her family will see her example and follow :) Her dream is to get married in the temple and for her parents to be able to come. 

When I teach them and see them I think of Bailey and Mikki! They are the same ages :) It's fun to see them find happiness through this gospel. 

Our new members all came to church on Sunday along with 5 investigators! It was the craziest Sunday ever in the best way! We're excited for all of them! 

This week I have felt pretty inadequate with all of the responsibilities and things I have to do, but each time I feel like that I need to look to the Savior and His Atonement. My companion and I are really coming to realize more and more that this is the Lord's work and that we truly cannot do this alone. We need Him every moment. Without the spirit and without the power of the Atonement, we are nothing. 

I am so grateful for my Savior. He is my best friend and I love Him. He is the all-knowing, all-powerful son of God, but chose to come to this earth as a babe and chose to suffer the pains and afflictions of all mankind so that He could succor us in our times of need and so that we could return to our loving Heavenly Father again. I am grateful for Him.

I know that this gospel is true. I know that God is aware of each and every one of His children and loves them all perfectly. I am grateful to be able to share this joyful message with these wonderful people. 

I love you all! Have a Merry Christmas!! 

Sister Naatjes

I love speaking Korean! :)

I have little time, so this will have to be short! Sorry!

We got our transfer calls today and I'm staying in 농성 ward. My companion, Sister Lee ended her mission today-- crazy! we served together for almost 5 months, so I cried when she left, but my new companion Sister Park is super great! and a very hard worker! I know we will keep seeing miracles together. She's from Busan area and super cute and fun! I'm happy to be with a Korean again--I love speaking Korean! :)

Our ward had 4 sister missionaries because 2 wards were combined in May and the area is huge, but because Sister Park's companion and my companion both ended their missions today and because of a lack of sister missionaries, we got combined, so our already busy schedule got tons busier!! It's going to be crazy! I also got called to be sister training leader, so I'm feeling a little stressed haha, but everything will work out great! We spent our pday today moving my comp and everything out of her house! :)

This week was super busy! Everyone wanted to say goodbye to my companion, so we met a lot of people.

Miracles!! This week our investigators, 곽지원 and 윤성이 came to church again. They are a mother and daughter who are a member referral. The daughter is getting baptized next Monday and the mom said she's still not sure, but thinks she will get baptized later. The dad hasn't come to church yet, but will probably be able to come to his daughter's baptism! We're super excited about this family!! So great! They have so much pure faith! We're meeting them again tonight :)

jo un jeong and kim yun ju came to church again and kim sang hyun came too! (the son!! It was such a miracle! It's so happy to see families coming to church and being strengthened through the gospel. Jo un jeong was crying because she was so happy. I sure love them! 

Because my companion finished her mission, I was able to reflect again on my mission and all of the wonderful things I have learned and experienced and all of the people I love so much! I'm just so blessed! I love being a missionary. A lot of times it's really hard, but there are truly moments that feel like Heaven every week that make it 100 times worth it! I love this work. I love my Heavenly Father. I love my companion. I love Korea and the wonderful people who live here. I'm the luckiest girl in the world!

I love you all tons! Have an amazing week!

Sister Naatjes :)

I think that's what heaven feels like!

What an amazing week! There were countless miracles!

First of all, 조은정 and 김연주 got baptized! The baptism was beautiful!! It was on Monday (our Pday), so we spent the day with them and helping them with English homework (조은정 is going to English grad-school), so they could be stress-free at their baptism! 

A huge miracle was that 조은정's son came to the baptism! He doesn't like being in places with a lot of people, but he came and really liked it! At the baptism the spirit was so strong. There were great talks, musical numbers, etc... Right before getting baptized 조은정 and 김연주 bore tearful testimonies and were just glowing! After being baptized they said they felt different and just so good! They wish they could be baptized again haha! We're excited for them and all of the blessings the gospel brings!

We saw them later in the week too and they were just still happy and glowing! They received the Holy Ghost yesterday :)

After the baptism we walked out to a beautiful snowfall. 조은정's favorite weather! We walked home with shin-deong-hyun, kim min sun, and jo un jeong and kim yun ju! Some of the people I love most in the world! I was just so happy! I think that's what heaven feels like! 

This week we got to start meeting with a mother and daughter who have a lot of interest and have been coming to church! They are so great and the daughter wants to be baptized! 

This week Elder Aoyogi came to our mission and spoke and it was so good! He spoke in Japanese and one of our members who served a mission in Japan translated into Korean...and then in the back there was translation from Korean to English for the greenies (new missionaries)! 

We saw a lot of miracles on the street too as we spoke to people. When we have the courage to open our mouths, there are so many miracles!

I just feel so blessed and grateful! This is really God's work and I'm grateful to be a part of it! I'm so grateful for my knowledge of the restoration and the plan of salvation. It changes lives! 

I know that God lives. I love Him and His son, Jesus Christ. I'm so grateful for His Atonement and the role it plays in my life everyday. 

I love you all tons! 

Have an incredible week! 

Sister Naatjes :)

Don't worry, be happy!

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

I feel so grateful for so many things! I know that God has blessed me so much and I'm so grateful to be here in Korea doing His work! 

On one evening when our appointments didn't work out we ran into a grandma on the street and greeted her. She immediately got excited and gave me a big hug! She said that some missionaries had knocked on her door in the past and she really liked them. She was the happiest person I think I have ever met. She was in her late 80s and talked to us for a long time about the importance of being happy no matter what happens and about being grateful. She had the biggest smile and said that there's never anything to be sad about because God is real and is always holding her hand! It was a great lesson to me and I felt blessed to meet her! I need to live more like her!

This week was full of miracles!

Our investigators 조은정 (jo-un-jeong) and 김연주 (kim-yun-ju) are getting baptized tonight! 

조은정.has been an investigator for over 2 years and has gone through tons of missionaries! She started meeting for English interest and gained a testimony of our church as she kept meeting with missionaries. She has had plans to be baptized for a loooong time, but has a really hard time making decisions. When I first came to this area we thought about stopping meeting with her because she wasn't making any progress and kept meeting us for only English and didn't want to listen to our message, but then her daughter came home from Busan and we started teaching her. 김연주 started meeting with us and told us she felt that it was really her time to find God and start a relationship with Him. After meeting for just a short time, she had a desire to be baptized and keep the commandments. Before we even taught her about the Word of Wisdom, she heard about it from members and her mom and stopped drinking with her friends and also stopped drinking coffee. I was amazed at her simple, pure faith. We set a date for 조은정 and her daughter to get baptized together, but we weren't sure if 조은정 (the mom) would be able to get baptized because she didn't want to give up coffee or keep some of the commandments, but miracles happened! 

We met with her on Friday and taught her and she was so sincere. Her heart had changed. She said she felt that it's finally time. She still had a few concerns until we taught her about the temple and then she said she felt at peace--so cool! She felt that this is true and finally showed a real, sincere desire to be baptized. She said the closing prayer and it was one of the most powerful moments I think I have ever had. She tearfully poured out her heart to God and asked for His help.She prayed about her family and thanked God for all that she has been given. 

We're so excited for tonight! It will be an amazing, spiritual experience! God sure loves them so much! I'm so blessed to have gotten to be a little part of their conversion. They're so great!

I just feel overwhelmingly grateful in my heart. I know that God lives. I know that Jesus Christ lives. I am so grateful for Christ's Atonement and the role it plays in my life each and every day. I love being a missionary. I love Korea. I love my companion. I love this work. I'm so grateful for the gospel. I know it's true. I feel it everyday. 

I love you all! Have an amazing week!

Sister Naatjes :)

Children are so pure

This week was full of miracles, as always! This is truly the Lord's work!

On Tuesday night we met with our investigator who has been an investigator for a long time, but can only meet very rarely and didn't seem to have too much interest. She has two cute little daughters who are 5 and 2. A couple weeks ago we gave the family a gospel art book with pics from the bible and book of mormon and the 5 year old daughter who is usually noisy during lessons sat and asked a million questions about Jesus. We were all amazed, especially her mom. Last week we got a call from the 5 year old. She asked us why we need to confess our sins to God--super deep question! Her mom had no idea, so she called us. Then she told us that her daughter had been talking about God tons and asking questions and praying every night! When we visited again we spent almost an hour answering questions about the pictures of Jesus. Children are so pure. They know and recognize God and are so close to Him. We think that her mom will start actually coming to church because of the example of her cute little daughter. Miracle!

This week was Stake Conference and our recent convert spoke! She did an amazing job! She talked about her conversion and how the gospel has blessed her life. She was super nervous about her talk, but she did great and inspired many. She shed tears as she bore her testimony. I feel blessed to have gotten to see it. 

Today we are going to meet her older sister and I'm so excited!

At Stake conference something that the Stake President kept mentioning was something that was also really prevalent in General Conference--nurturing our personal testimonies. Doing the little things--praying, reading our scriptures, and going to the temple end up being the most important things. Strengthening our personal faith and testimonies puts us in a position to be able to overcome trials in our lives and to be able to help others also. 

I know that this is God's work. I know that this church is true. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I know that God is a god of miracles and that He loves His children so much. I know that through Him we can do all things!

I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week!

Sister Naatjes :)

Don’t give up when the pressure mounts

So first of all I need to tell you about my experience in Seoul! It takes 3 hours to get there by train, so we left at 5 in the morning, went to a member of our church's office so that my companion could get training for her visa interview, and then went to the interview. When we got to the door my companion showed her I.D...etc...and then I showed mine and they said I couldn't come in! I was time for her interview, so there was nothing we could do! I was told the interview would take about an hour. She went in and there I was, alone in Seoul! I freaked out! As missionaries it's a rule that we should never be without our companion...wahh! So I called my mission president and his wife and they didn't answer! So I called the AP and he had no idea what to do, so there I was! haha...a while later President and Sister Shin called back and laughed and said not to worry. I ended up going back to the member's office and studying until my companion finished her interview. It was quite the experience!!

This week lots of miracles happened! And a lot of funny things too!

This week several times as I tried to talk to people on the street--especially at stop lights, they run away from me~! The light turns green and they bolt away! haha...But there are also people who listen and have some interest!

This week we have met with a lot of people having a really hard time, especially our recent converts. Life is hard! 

A quote that stood out to me this week was one by Elder Holland

“Opposition turns up almost any place something good has happened. It can happen when you are trying to get an education. It can hit you after your first month in your new mission field. …

“With any major decision there are cautions and considerations to make, but once there has been illumination, beware the temptation to retreat from a good thing. If it was right when you prayed about it and trusted it and lived for it, it is right now. Don’t give up when the pressure mounts.”

Especially our investigators, recent converts, and less-actives seem to experience many hard things as they begin to know about or start coming back to church. I know that through these things they will become stronger and be able to have stronger testimonies. I also know that the Lord is with them, especially now.

My heart felt super heavy because of all of the hard things I saw, but I felt again God's love and gentle assurance that everything is in His hands. He loves us so much and is always ready to help us anytime.

A miracle happened this week! A few weeks ago I met an inactive member from the U.S. who was visiting her family in Korea on the street and got her sister's number so we could contact her. She told us she was having a really hard time and I invited her to conference then. But we kept not being able to get ahold of her, so I figured she went back to the US. 

This week we ran into her randomly on the street again! She immediately came up to me with tears in her eyes and told me about how hard things are for her right now. I was able to give her a Book of Mormon and invite her to church. On Sunday morning we called and she came! She cried many times and said that she felt like she got needed strength from church and will come again next week. What a miracle! God loves her so much and is aware of her. 

This week we randomly got tons of new investigators, which is a huge blessing!

Our investigators, 조은정 and 김연주 set a baptismal date for 11.30! We're excited for them! 

 I know that this is God's work. I'm grateful to be His weak servant. I know that He loves His children. I know that this gospel is true. I love the Book of Mormon and the Bible and know they are true and from God. I receive guidance and light through them daily and see my investigators do the same. 

I love you all!

Have a wonderful week!

Sister Naatjes :)

I love being a missionary!

Hey Everybody!

What a crazy week it's been! 

Right now I'm emailing from a cafe in Seoul and have very little time, so this will be short! My companion has to get a visa because her mom moved to America during her mission. The mission president said I needed to come too, so here I am! haha…

Last week we got transfer calls and I'm staying here with my same companion, Sister Lee--this will be out 3rd transfer together.

This Monday (p-day) we went ice-skating as a missionary activity with all of the sister missionaries in Gwangju which was fun! I got to see Sister Scott again!!

Our investigator, 김민선 received the gift of the Holy Ghost yesterday! 

기연주, kim yun ju is really progressing and wants to get baptized! We think she will get baptized on the 24 of this month! She's so pure and wants to do good! She's 22 years old and her mom has been an investigator for 3 years, so we met her through her mom and we think she may be baptized before her mom, but we hope they will be baptized together on the same day!

We had a lesson with her at a member's house this week and it was super powerful! My companion told her story about coming to know the Book of Mormon is true and that this church is true and we were both in tears. I was able to bear my testimony and the spirit was so strong. I love being a missionary!

our recent convert, shin deoung hyun was assigned to give a talk in Stake conference.

We met a man while we were exercising one morning and the next day he brought his whole family to our English class--wife, son, and daughter--and then came to a ward activity the next day! He wants us to come to his house this week! Yay! It's important to open our mouths everywhere we go! God prepares miracles always!

I love my Savior with all of my heart and am learning more and more about Him each day. I am so weak and make mistakes everyday, but He loves me and helps me to overcome my weaknesses and become good enough.

I love you all!

Have an amazing week!!

Sister Naatjes

God's plan is so cool!

Wow! What a week! It was among the hardest weeks of my mission, but the best at the same time.

On Tuesday we had a few appointments lined up and thought we were going to have a pretty busy day, but in the morning during our district meeting all of the people cancelled...we were a little bummed, but went back home to finish our studies and eat lunch when our recent convert 신동현 shin deong hyun called us crying and told us she was at the church. We went to meet her and she was having a really hard time. She had just gotten back from her really close friend's funeral who had passed away the day before and didn't know where else to go, so she came to the church. We talked with her and cried with her. It was really hard, but I was so amazed by how great her faith was. She knew that her friend was not gone forever and that she could see her again. She knew the Plan of Salvation and bore testimony to us about it. One of the first things she said to us when we came to meet her was, "when can I go to the temple?" We had just talked about it the Sunday before and she wanted to go and be baptized for her friend. I was so amazed at her faith.

I was so grateful that our appointments cancelled--God had another plan for us--to help shin deong hyun. He was aware of His hurting daughter and made a way for us to be able to meet her. God's plan is so perfect.

This week our investigator 김민선 kim min sun got baptized! She's 18 and just about to start college--Kendall's age! She started coming to church with her friend about 3 months ago. At first she didn't want to meet with missionaries, but after we kept talking with her at church and she got to know us a little better--especially my companion--she decided to meet with us. She wanted to get baptized, so we set a date and it all went great!

She is really cute and pure and accepted and believed the gospel easily. After we set a baptismal date we found out that her mother is an inactive member and her aunt and uncle are really active members in another city--super cool! We think that through her conversion her family will be able to come back to church again! God's plan is so cool!

Her baptismal service was beautiful--shin deong hyun talked about baptism and bore her testimony of the gospel. She's a recent convert of just over a month, but her words were so strong and I felt so proud of her. She talked about the death of her friend and how she is constantly receiving strength through this gospel and how she's excited to learn and grow together with kim min sun. Then one of our new Elders sang "Consider the Lilies.."--in English because he just got to Korea this transfer and I'm not sure that they have that song in Korean, but it was so good--almost everyone in the room was in tears even though they couldn't understand the lyrics. the spirit was super strong. 

I feel so blessed to be a missionary. God is always with us and gives us needed strength, even when things are hard. 

A scripture that really stood out to me this week:

Isaiah 40:28-31:
28 ¶Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.

29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

I know that as we rely on the Lord we are always given strength to do what we need to do--especially during the hard times. I know that this gospel is true with all of my heart and I'm grateful to be able to share it everyday with these wonderful Korean people who I love so much!

Love you all! Have an amazing week!

Sister Naatjes

Time is starting to fly by faster and faster

Hey Everyone~! It's been another amazing week as a missionary! Time is starting to fly by faster and faster--I can't believe it's almost November! Wahh! 

This week we saw so many miracles! 

We visited one of our members houses this week in the evening--she's preparing to go on a mission to Temple Square next month, her mother is less-active, and her father is not a member of our church. We had never met her dad before, but when we went they were all at home and we were super excited! They showed us all of their old family pictures, gave us fruit (persimmon) and sweet potatoes (that's what members usually give us when we visit), and then we got to share a message. We shared the Plan of Salvation and the spirit was strong. After we taught, the mother told us about a friend of hers she wanted us to pray for who is very sick. She also requested a priesthood blessing for her friend. When we left I got to say the closing prayer and prayed for her sick friend and the spirit was so strong--it felt almost tangible. I was so grateful to share that experience with them and to see that mother's little act of faith. I know God loves that family so much and is mindful of them and the mother's sick friend. 

신동현 shin deong hyun, our recent convert, is sooooo amazing! She teaches with us almost everyday and her testimony has become so strong. I love her so much! After church yesterday my companion and I had to go on a member split because we had to teach two investigators. I taught with 신동현 a lady who has been an investigator on and off for 3 years who has fear of being baptized. 신동현 bore a pure, strong testimony that God is always with us. Although she knows being a member of this church and living the gospel will not be easy and that she will continue to receive a lot of opposition from her family, that God will help her. She's so amazing!

On the weekly conference call that our mission has I found out that a recent convert in Daejeon who I used to visit tons--her husband--got baptized!! I'm so excited! Such a miracle!

One of our investigators who is Kendall's age is getting baptized next week!! She's super cute and just really pure. we're excited for her!

I taught Ursula again this week and it was hard again--English! Haha...but it was good! She has a lot of questions. I really like her and the members are really excited about her.  :)

I feel so blessed to be a part of this work. I feel the Lord's influence everyday and know that it is true with all of my heart! I know that God loves His children so much and that He is aware of each of us. I am grateful to be able to be His instrument in sharing this gospel with others. I am so weak and inadequate, but through Christ I am enough. He makes up for my weaknesses. I love this gospel!

Have an amazing week! I love you all!

Sister Naatjes :)

This is really God's work!

Wow! What a week! so much happened and I learned so much!

This week we had lots of miracles~I'll tell you about a few of them!

So about a month ago on a P-day we went shopping in a store called Art Box and I saw a foreigner, so I talked to her--she said she was from Slovenia and came to Korea to live for a little while. Her name is Ursula. She knew about our church and we talked a lot about religion. She had just gotten to Korea that week, so she didn't have a phone yet, so I didn't get her phone number. She gave me her email address, so I emailed her and she replied once, but then didn't reply to any more after that, so I thought she probably just didn't have interest.

Last Monday we got on the Subway and Ursula was there! She gave us her number and we set up an appointment for Sunday. We met Yesterday and it was a challenge to teach in English again, especially because my companion can't speak English, but it went pretty well. She has a return appointment for next week--I'm really excited!

It was super cool that we ran into her randomly again! Things like that happen all the time as a missionary. I know that it's not just a coincidence. This is really God's work!

This week we met with a young woman in our ward and her friend and taught them. The friend, 김민선 (kim min sun) wants to get baptized! We set a date for the 2nd of November. She has been to church 6+ times with her friend, so she has been pretty well prepared! She's really cute. 

신동현 (shin deong hyun), our recent convert who just got baptized a month ago is doing amazing! This week we met with her and she told us that her job that she was going to start next week (which initially told her she wouldn't have to work on Sundays) changed and said she would have to work 2 Sundays a month in the morning (during church). We were really worried about her because if she accepted the job it would be really hard for her to come out to church and to stay active. So we told her to pray about her decision...Later in the week we scheduled to meet with her again and prepared a lesson about decisions and trusting in God and His commandments and were really concerned. We met and as soon as we started teaching she said, "I decided not to take the job." Wow! She then bore her testimony about the lesson we were about to teach--that God is preparing better things for her and that He would bless her for keeping the Sabbath day holy. She's so amazing and has such strong faith! I'm so blessed to know her and learn from her example!

I know that this work is true with all of my heart. I know that this church is true. I am so grateful everyday to have a knowledge of this gospel and to be able to share it with others everyday! I feel so blessed. 

I love you all! Have an amazing week!! 

Sister Naatjes :)

General Conference was AMAZING! Better than Christmas!

Sorry!! I forgot to hit the send button last week!! This is last week's email! Love you all!

Hi everyone!!

What a crazy week! So many ups and downs and so much learned.

This weekend we got to watch General Conference and it was AMAZING! Better than Christmas! In Korea they have general conference one week delayed so that it can all be translated into Korean. Luckily, all the foreign missionaries get to watch it in English so that we can completely understand it. So much inspiration and needed words! 

3 of our investigators and a former investigator came to watch and it and they all had a good experience--they especially liked Elder Bednar's talk. One of them told my companion that she wants to get baptized--조은정. (jo-un-jeoung)

Lots of little miracles, as always! One day we were walking to our apartment and saying hi 안녕하세요 to people as we walked. One lady said, in English, "hi." We stopped and talked to her and it turned out that she lived in america for 20+ years, was a member of our church, got married in the temple, but had a lot of hard things happen in her life and doesn't go to church anymore. We talked for a while on the street and then got her phone number. It was a miracle that we were able to meet her. Unfortunately, she hasn't been taking our calls, but we'll keep trying. We have experiences all that time that remind me that this is truly the Lord's work and that He puts people in our paths. 

We met with our recent convert, 신동현 a few times this week and she is doing so great! She has such a pure testimony and a desire to do and be good. Conference was a little hard for her because it's long--haha, but after conference I had a talk with her where she asked really good questions and bore testimony to me. It was special. She said that this week a friend asked her about the church this week and she started telling her about it...when suddenly a strange feeling came, she said. She wanted to share everything with her. She wanted to share this joy with her friend and realized how much she really does love this church. She's doing so great!

We had a ward picnic this week and the day before we didn't think we would have any investigators there, so we were a little sad, but the night before and the morning of 3 investigators and our recent convert told us that they were coming! It was great! Lots of fun they got to meet a lot of members.

I feel so blessed to be a part of this work. It's truly the most important and rewarding work on the Earth and therefore, maybe the hardest. I'm so blessed to be able to learn and grow and become better each and everyday. I know that God is real. I know that Jesus Christ lives. I know that they want us to be happy and through the Savior's Atonement I know that we can be so. I know that the power of the Atonement is real. 

I love you all!

Have an incredible week!

Sister Naatjes

"If you sing too much, you look stupid."

It was another crazy, amazing week being a missionary!

We had some funnies and lots of miracles, as always!

This week as we were walking to our apartment to do language study and eat dinner we saw a grandma standing in the parking lot, so talked to her. She greeted me in pretty good English and said she was 94-years-old! I couldn't believe it! She was in great health. She invited us to come to her apartment with her, so we did :) She lives alone and had a stack of japanese books on her table. She also speaks fluent japanese! She was hilarious and showed us all her old pictures. She talked about feeling lonely sometimes and we talked to her about how God is always with her and loves her so much. Then we asked her if we could sing a hymn for her before we left and she said we shouldn't sing. We were surprised! She said, "only sing when you really need to. If you sing too much, you look stupid." My companion and I laughed really hard. I could feel how much God loves that little grandma.

On our way to the church for an appointment one day I was greeting everyone along the way and one guy suddenly stopped which happens really rarely. We talked to him for a while and he said he wanted to come to our church, so we told him he could come with us right then. As we started walking with him I turned and saw a little lady with a BYU shirt--woah! Something you never see in Korea! She approached me and said that she was on a trip here and was praying to find someone to show her where the church was! And then she saw the sister missionaries! How cool! God answers prayers! We all walked to the church together and were able to introduce the man we met to the Elders :)

On Sunday 신동현 got the gift of the holy ghost at church--she was so cute. She sat by me in the front and was super excited. After she was confirmed, she sat by me, smiling, and said, "I'm officially a member!" The spirit was strong and she was blessed with amazing things!

We had 4 investigators come to church this week which was exciting! It was a great meeting.

On Sunday after church we met with a girl from the middle-east because she was interested in learning about Korean culture and wanted help adjusting to living here. So we met and talked and then taught a lesson. My companion doesn't like to speak English, so I taught most of it (luckily there's a foreigner in our ward named Chloe that could help me a little bit!). It was cool to hear about her culture and beliefs. She believes in both Jesus and Mohammad. I was amazed how hard it was for me to speak English! After the lesson Chloe said she could tell English was hard for me--haha...I can't speak English or Korean fluently anymore!

I felt blessed again this week to be a missionary and to be doing this work. There are miracles everyday and I'm so grateful to be a part of it. I love these Korean people and the culture and am just grateful. God is so good to me. I love the gospel. I love my Heavenly Father. I love my Savior. I know that through Him I can do all things. I love you all and hope you have an amazing week!

Sister Naatjes :)

신동현 and 이송이 got baptized!

Hello!

Another crazy week!

The biggest news of the week is that 신동현 and 이송이 got baptized! It was a beautiful baptismal service filled with the spirit and I was so blessed to be a part of it! A lot of people were able to come and both girls were so happy!

The opening song was "nearer my God to thee," one of the only ones 신동현 knew from our hymnbook :) It was very fitting. Then one of our members who is only 19 and preparing for a mission gave a little talk. She helped us with a lot of lessons and talked about seeing both of them progress and their desires to follow Christ. 이송이 cried. It was a special experience for both her and our member.

They both got baptized and were just so happy! They were glowing! After the baptism Sister Lee (a sister who would end her mission that week) bore her testimony. The most memorable part for me was at the end--before the baptism we had asked 시동현 if she wanted to share her testimony after she was baptized and she didn't think she wanted to, so we didn't schedule it in. But! as we were about to sing the closing song she interrupted and said she wanted to share her testimony!

It was one of the most beautiful, simple testimonies I've ever heard. She talked about her experience meeting with the missionaries and growing to know God more and then told of a little miracle: Before someone gets baptized they need to attend church at least 3 times. Initially her baptismal date was Sept 28th (yesterday). A few weeks ago she had plans to go to Seoul, but they fell through and she was a little disappointed, but because she couldn't go she came to church. The next week she decided she wanted to get baptized on the 22nd because it was the date that Joseph Smith received the gold plates from the angel Moroni. If she hadn't come to church that weekend, she wouldn't have been able to be baptized. Also yesterday was her grandma's birthday and she had to travel with her family out of town, so she couldn't have gotten baptized. She talked about how God always has a greater plan and how God loves her so much.  Her testimony was pure and perfect.

I know that God loves her so much and is so proud of her!

She's really excited about being a member and has been attending institute and activities! She's so great!

We got a couple new investigators this week and one came to church yesterday! Yay!

I had the chance to teach the spiritual message at the end of English class and it was a really spiritual experience for me. Our old investigator who hasn't been meeting with us in a long time came and I was so grateful she was able to hear. I love being a missionary and being able to testify frequently of the things I know to be true!

I love My Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and I know they love me. I am so blessed in so many ways. I love being in this beautiful country, I love this gospel and love sharing it. I know that God knows each of us personally and perfectly and is waiting to bless us. He hears our prayers and answers them. I know that this church is true. I know that miracles still happen--I see them all the time!

I love you all! Have an amazing week!

Sister Naatjes :)