I had a lot of stuff to email about, but I've forgotten nearly all of
it and I'm sooooo out of time. Sorry. We had a good week though! Life
with Elder Zhu is still fun. We just got done with President's P-day,
which is the last preparation day of the transfer when all the
missionaries in Lyon and Ecully Zones get together at President's
house. It's so awesome. We played pétanques (should make my high
school French teachers proud of me), volleyball, ate hot dogs and
chatted with a real American family since President and Sœur Brown's
daughter and her family are visiting.
The moving équipe went to Toulouse for a couple days to help move an
apartment, but they had an electrician coming the next morning, so we
and Porte-des-Alpes got to stay in their apartment! We slammed Tim
Tams and drank hot chocolate and got freaked out by one of those
really old, scary, European elevators.
To all my siblings: please write me! I want to know what's going on in
your lives! I love hearing about the family as a whole, but I want to
hear more detail from each of y'all :)
The biggest news is of course Tian's baptism! Which you already heard
about, but ça va. It went off without a hitch even though I totally
forgot to ask anyone to play the piano until we were about to start.
Tian was found when our friend Sandy (whom everyone called Potato or
土豆) left back to China in January. Tian came to see her off and we
invited her to play cards the next week and yep she's a new member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints :) she's awesome,
hearing your amis near their testimony at the baptism is always the
best part because its when you fully realize that they've actually
changed and learned, all thanks to God.
My spiritual thought this week is about an experience I had, in which
I made a mistake and learned a lesson because of it. We went to see a
less active and had a good chat, and I honestly mentioned to him that
I don't often get to meet with less actives and hear their
perspectives and how I was trying to respect his thoughts when they
were different from my own. He looked at me for a second and said,
"Why don't you love me?" I asked what he meant, and he explained that
if I really loved him the way I should as a representative of Jesus
Christ, I shouldn't have to work to respect him. That should come
automatically. He doesn't agree with everything in the Church, but he
believes very strongly in love. He taught me a really good lesson that
day. I was worrying too much about what to say and how to convince him
to pray and read his scriptures, but I wasn't doing what I should have
been doing, which is helping him because I love him he way God loves
him.
Love one another the way Jesus loves you. That's all. Have a good week :)
Your son, grandson, brother, cousin, nephew, and friend,
江长老
it and I'm sooooo out of time. Sorry. We had a good week though! Life
with Elder Zhu is still fun. We just got done with President's P-day,
which is the last preparation day of the transfer when all the
missionaries in Lyon and Ecully Zones get together at President's
house. It's so awesome. We played pétanques (should make my high
school French teachers proud of me), volleyball, ate hot dogs and
chatted with a real American family since President and Sœur Brown's
daughter and her family are visiting.
The moving équipe went to Toulouse for a couple days to help move an
apartment, but they had an electrician coming the next morning, so we
and Porte-des-Alpes got to stay in their apartment! We slammed Tim
Tams and drank hot chocolate and got freaked out by one of those
really old, scary, European elevators.
To all my siblings: please write me! I want to know what's going on in
your lives! I love hearing about the family as a whole, but I want to
hear more detail from each of y'all :)
The biggest news is of course Tian's baptism! Which you already heard
about, but ça va. It went off without a hitch even though I totally
forgot to ask anyone to play the piano until we were about to start.
Tian was found when our friend Sandy (whom everyone called Potato or
土豆) left back to China in January. Tian came to see her off and we
invited her to play cards the next week and yep she's a new member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints :) she's awesome,
hearing your amis near their testimony at the baptism is always the
best part because its when you fully realize that they've actually
changed and learned, all thanks to God.
My spiritual thought this week is about an experience I had, in which
I made a mistake and learned a lesson because of it. We went to see a
less active and had a good chat, and I honestly mentioned to him that
I don't often get to meet with less actives and hear their
perspectives and how I was trying to respect his thoughts when they
were different from my own. He looked at me for a second and said,
"Why don't you love me?" I asked what he meant, and he explained that
if I really loved him the way I should as a representative of Jesus
Christ, I shouldn't have to work to respect him. That should come
automatically. He doesn't agree with everything in the Church, but he
believes very strongly in love. He taught me a really good lesson that
day. I was worrying too much about what to say and how to convince him
to pray and read his scriptures, but I wasn't doing what I should have
been doing, which is helping him because I love him he way God loves
him.
Love one another the way Jesus loves you. That's all. Have a good week :)
Your son, grandson, brother, cousin, nephew, and friend,
江长老
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