Trio Power Part 2

给位家庭朋友好!

This has been a pretty eventful week for me. Lots is going on, and I feel like I tried to make every second count!

The biggest change of the week is of course we now are back to a trio again! Elder Mitchell and I picked up our new companion Friday afternoon. His name is Elder Lee, is from Salt Lake, and has been permanently reassigned to our mission after returning home a few months ago from is original calling for medical reasons. We are excited to have him. He's a hard worker and has jumped in with both feet, ready to work (pretty much night and day from the last time I was in a trio). I am grateful for His example already! 

His first day was one that involved and experience that not many new missionaries get to have; we were on exchanges with the Assistants! Elder Peterson came and joined Elder Lee and I in our area, where we spent the entire day contacting people. We even met a new person who we will start teaching. His name is Wang Pu (yes, it's a pretty strange name...), and he previously met with missionaries. He had a lot of questions about the Holy Ghost and how he can learn the truth for himself. He agreed to read and pray, and we have an appointment set up for this next Saturday! I also had the chance to go on another exchange this week. I went with my Zone Leader, Elder Ballard, to the Spanish program for a day. He's a great leader. We had the chance to teach a few members from his ward, which was nice. It was cool to be able to feel the Spirit with them even though I barely understood what was going on. 

Our Branch is seeing miracles. Elder Mitchell and I had the chance to go on splits with some Priesthood brethren the day before Elder Lee's arrival. I went with our 2nd Counselor in our Elders Quorum Presidency, Edward Szeto, to teach a less-active man named Bro. Tan, who only speaks Cantonese. Edward is a Cantonese native, so it was good to have him there. We came to find out that Bro Tan formerly worked in his home province of Taishan as a Snake Hunter! He sold wild snakes in the market place for outrageous prices, some selling as much as $4000! It was so cool to relate to him and hear his stories, but sad to hear that he feels looked down upon by the Branch, because he is illiterate and only speaks Cantonese is a branch of Mandarin speakers. It's tough when members feel that way, especially because the last place they should feel looked down upon is at church. However, he still came to church yesterday. Not only him, but three other brethren we've been working with recently attended church. We had 18 PEOPLE IN ELDERS QUORUM!! MIRACLE!! It was awesome to see that though we may not have many solid people to teach right now, our work is being blessed in other facets. Church was awesome this week! We had lessons all about Pioneers, focusing on the pioneering efforts of the church in China. It was fascinating, and a day at church that was particularly close to my heart. 

Time on the mission continues to fly. I cannot believe how much I continue to learn about myself and my Heavely Father every single day. A lot of my studies have been focused on how one can become a true disciple of Christ. I was particularly impressed by talks given by Pres. Nelson and Elder Hales in previous conferences. The scripture 2 Peter 1:5-7 is something I really want to emulate in my life a lot more. 

I am grateful for this experience. It continues to impress me, stress me out, freak me out, and blow my mind! Mostly, it has brought me a lot of growth. The Gospel is true. 

Have a fantastic week!

我爱你么! 加油!

Elder Butters/包长老