Monks & Hikes & Attics

Service is sometimes done in an attic!

Found this Order of Monks on the UC Berkley campus - they were thrilled that the missionaries spoke Chinese.

Keeping the splits going strong - has to compete with Dorothy when he returns.

The view from the District Hike this morning for PDay.

Best District Ever!

#72 - Motivation, Music and Miracles

大家好! 

This has been a wet week for us in Oakland, but it's still a fun area. We've had a lot going on the past few days. 

A miracle that happened this past week involved us "picking up" a previously dropped investigator. Lisa Sun just returned from an extended stay in China, and was happy to meet with missionaries again. She is a rare find in the fact that she is Chinese but is heavily involved in a Christian faith. She loves the Bible, and her primary reason for meeting with us is to learn more from the Book of Mormon. This is where the miracle comes in. We went by to see her, and had prepared to share Mosiah 2 with her. However, amid our conversation (boy, can she talk...), she told us about how she brings her grandchildren to church in the hope that it will have a good influence on them, and give them a desire to improve and develop that faith. I felt that we needed to change our game plan, and the perfect opportunity to teach "faith like unto a seed" had just presented itself. We shared with her Alma 32:28-30, and it was the perfect thing for her to read. She loved the language that was used, and agreed with everything we read. It was a testament to meet that the Spirit truly helps us to teach to the needs of others. We hope something similar happens next week at our Thursday appointment. 

My favorite portion of the week was going on exchanges with one of the Assistants to the President, Elder Terry. I was initially very nervous for this occasion, but it turned out to be a great day! He talked to me a lot about examining personal motivations in order to recommit ourselves to our tasks and obligations. We talked a lot about what righteous motivation is, and why it is so important. He is the kind of leader that makes me want to be better. I am grateful for all that I learned from him in our day together.

A lot of what we talked about was in regards to be motivated to find, and Elder Carns and I had the chance to do a lot of it this week. We returned to UC Berkeley to do more finding with our surveys, and also contacted an order of Bhuddist Monks who were visiting the campus. We also tracted a few places that until this week I hadn't been to yet. We knocked on the door of a woman named Linca. She was from Peru and accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon! We were able to pass on her contact info to the missionaries who work in Sacramento where she is from, so hopefully good things happen with her.

Finally, I had a lot of opportunities to sing this week. I sang at a baptismal service for the members of my District, and also participated in a concert at the Visitors Center with numbers performed by missionaries. I got to sing a few solos and be in a really cool A Capella group number. The Spirit was strong there. I love how easily the Spirit can tough people's hearts through music. Singing beneath the statue of the Christus is an experience I'll never forget. 

I love my Savior. I am so grateful for His atoning sacrifice. He is the way, the truth, and the life. I am grateful for the chance we have to celebrate His resurrection for all of us this coming weekend. 

I love you all and thank you for all of the blessings you send to me. I could never be out here without all of your support! 

我爱你们! 

Elder Butters/包长老

Phones Arrive In The Mission

大家好! 我在打中文给你们看! 那么好! 同意吗?

 Anyways, hello everyone! Wow, another week in Oakland has past. It's been a pretty typical week here; pretty cold most of the time with constant rain, but not too bad. We had some fun this week.

The big news, of course, is that we are officially a Smart Phone Mission! This past Thursday, we were in Castro Valley for a Zone Conference completely dedicated to phones and how we will be using them in the work. We have new apps and systems and trackers for our investigators and indicators, not to mention changes in our Area Book records and referral management... Needless to say, it was a HUGE day full of tons of newly digested information. Now having been using our devices for a week, it's been quite the adjustment. The more experiences missionaries in our mission almost have to relearn the basics of our work so as to involve and accommodate technology use. It's pretty crazy, and will definitely take some getting used to.

We met with Aris Yuan again this week. He's been hard to get a hold of recently, but we managed to snag some time with him. He has expressed a desire to be baptized, which is great. He has no problems with the Word of Wisdom (a MASSIVE blessing!), but needs a little bit more help boosting his faith. Elder Carns and I taught him all about the importance of what our mission calls "CPR:" Church, Pray, and Read. We told him that it is through these basic activities that we not only gain, but maintain and further develop our testimonies in the Gospel. We read Alma 32:28-30, and encouraged him to specifically pray about a date to be baptized. After our lesson, we taught him the song "I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go" and we also sang a duet version of "You'll Be Back" from the musical Hamilton. Aris sings in an A Capella group on the UC Berkeley campus, so we've bonded over our mutual love of music. I also had the chance to sing at a baptism and a dinner appointment this week, which was fun.

In other news, we contacted a woman named Lisa, who missionaries here in Oakland have been teaching for a while. She is from Beijing and a lover of Chinese culture. She loves the Bible, so hopefully next week we can get her to understand a little more about the Book of Mormon. We also did a lot of contacting former investigators and less actives, used a survey we created to help us do some contacting at UC Berkeley (those are a big hit with college students), and had a Zone Testimony Meeting.

The Spiritual piece of doctrine I've learned this week is about mistakes. I hate looking stupid or embarrassing myself when my wrong choices or actions are left open for the world to see. However, in my contemplation, I've learned that it is not our mistakes that define us, but how we overcome them. One of my favorite quotes is from Rafiki  in "The Lion King:" 

"Yes, the past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it, or learn from it." The past is meant to be learned from and used to motivate us to become better than we were yesterday, not to debilitate us. I'm grateful for the lessons Heavenly Father is teaching me on my mission. I know He lives and he loves and knows each one of His children personally. He is there!

I love you all. Thank you for your support and prayers. I feel them and recognize them. I am grateful for the massive support system I have in all of you.

我爱你们每个人! 耶稣基督或者!

Elder Butters/包长老

Photos of District Fun!

We found a chalkboard garage door!  And the owner had chalk sitting out to be used!  Could not pass that opportunity by so Elder Carns and I left a few gospel messages on the garage door!

Elder Carns admiring our garage door calligraphy!

At a Inter-Stake Youth Activity I ran into Thomas, he played Flounder alongside my Jetsom, in Little Mermaid at Hale!  What a small world!!!

An adventure at Pixar Studios earlier today for P-Day!

Molly would have loved every minute of our 90 minute tour!!

James Johnson, in blue, is a member and is in the Lighting Department at Pixar - he hosted our group today.  Thanks, James!

Letter Number 70!

NiMen Hao!

This has been a pretty good week for us in our area. 

We spent a lot of time finding, going all over our area to hunt for new investigators. Last Tuesday we were tracting in the Concord/Pleasant Hill area and were invited in by the woman who answered one of the first doors we knocked. Her name was Bailee, she's a student at Diablo Valley College, and she'd always been curious about what we as Mormons believed. She had grown up with a lot of spiritual influences, put has also experienced a lot of very difficult trials. We had a long discussion with her about spirituality, and the concept of how Heavenly Father knows each of us personally. She ended up saying the closing prayer and accepting a copy of the Book of Mormon, and we later passed her on to missionaries serving in that area. It was a nice little visit and teaching opportunity, one that we as Chinese missionaries don't often get. 

We are still working with our current investigator Aris. He is doing well, but was too busy to meet with us at all this week. He did tell the Visitor Center sisters from Salt Lake who are co-teaching him with us that he now knows that God is there. This is a HUGE step in the right direction for him. He has been challenged to read specific sections of the Book of Mormon by us, and we hope that that also propels his progress. 

My studies this week have been really good. I've been focusing my personal studies on prophets, specifically Adam as the "Ancient of Days." It has been insightful to read about how he was baptized and how he was taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Its so much that I've never learned about before, and it's been so fascinating. 

This week has brought me a lot of joy. Pres. Frandsen invited Elder Carns and I to participate in a  panel discussions at an Interstake Youth Conference. We were apart of a workshop all about what it is really like to be a missionary, answering questions and telling funny stories.  I also got to sing at this week's "Why I Believe?" fireside, given by recent-converts who've been baptized in the last few months in our mission boundaries.  I felt a lot of joy as I was able to connect with people I've served with previously, both ward members, companions, and even friends from home. Joy has been something I've been searching for lately, and I've definitely been able to find it in strong relationships with others, and renewing those connections. It was a great way to end our week. 

In other news, we were able to make some more good dinners, and just returned from a visit to Pixar studios! Oakland has been great thus far. Next week, lots of changes with the addition of Smartphones to the mission! Dun-dun-DUNNNNNN!!!

Love you all! Have an amazing week! TianFu Ai NiMen!

Elder Butters/Bao ZhangLao

Photos From Week 69

The traffic in Oakland makes tracting in Richmond a huge undertaking!

Hello from the Elders - a great team!

Elder Carns likes Benjamin's roasted potatoes.

At the Oakland Temple Visitor Center.

The Time I Translated For The Prophet

DaJia Hao!

Well, this week was full of surprises! It all started when a former investigator called us out of the blue and said that he wanted to start meeting with us again. We got to meet Tsui Hang Yu at the Visitor's Center and teach him a little. We also primarily answered his questions about how God can help him find answers to his questions, both temporally And spiritually based. He seemed interested, but still a little unsure. However, he was sure enough to come to Stake Conference AND bring one of his co-workers, Wendy, as well! It wsa a total miracle, but they unfortunately had to leave a little early to go to start up work. They seemed to enjoy our special guest, though...

Speaking of special guests...Elder Carns and I woke up Sunday morning to texts from our leaders that PRES. NELSON WOULD BE IN ATTENDANCE AT STAKE CONFERENCE! It was crazy! What was crazier is that I got to translate for him. I am SO grateful that the Gift of Tongues is real. The theme of the conference was Happiness and Joy, and he had some wise words to share with all of us , particularly about centering our lives in Gospel principles. He also left a Prophetic blessing on the congregation, and the Spirit was tangible. It was a meeting that I will never forget! Having two investigators there getting to hear his words was a total blessing as well!

Our other investigator, Aris, is doing really well. He is still struggling with coming to find his answers , but we encouraged him to continue reading the Book of Mormon. He does, however, have a great faith in the power of prayer. We continue to pray for him. He loves music, and we've been able to bond over that. We even got to take him to a special concert last night provided by the Temple Hill Symphony, and we hope he was able to feel the spirit as a result. 

We've been doing a lot of finding this week. We've gone on splits with our 2nd Counselor, Bro. Gallagher, who is a return missionary from Taiwan. We also went contacting on the campus of UC Berkeley. I also did a lot of tracting with my Zone Leader, Elder Dayton, while I was on exchanges with him in his area. I learned a lot about motivation from him, working till the last minute brings miracles. The last door we knocked on ended up becoming a potential. God expects us work our hardest before he reveals His hand. I need to remind myself of that. 

It has been a cold, wet week for us, but one with a lot of miracles. We hope they continue to come.

Love you all! Have an amazing week!

Elder Butters/Bao ZhangLao