So, I was way excited when I read this week's e-mail. It sounds like super mom is pulling the concert together!! Awesome! And thanks dad and girls for doing TONS to help out. It's when we all pull together that we can accomplish goals and see miracles! Putting this concert together will be just that, a miracle. It'll be a first for us and we only have one day to practice!! But you know what? If we do all we can on our part, it'll work out perfect when we come together. I'm really excited, so I hope you guys are too!So we're seeing alot of changes over here in Kurume as well. Kazuki's still doing great! Going off to activities with the youth and YSA without us....sniff, sniff...our little boy's all grown up! 2 Vietnamees' investigators finished all the lessons and they've committed to keep the commandments! They've got their interview on Saturday followed by the baptism on Sunday morning!!!! We were a little worried about how they were doing because there is a bit of a language barrier...we can't really tell if they are understanding what we are teaching...but when we ask them what they feel about baptism, we are always blown away by their pure faith and testimony. They know the Book of Mormon is true, they know that Jesus Christ is our Savior,that we can become happier and closer to God by following in his footsteps, and that being baptized is the first step onto that path.
One of them is still a little nervous because she hasn't told her parents about this. She's 28, so she doesn't need permission, but she loves her family. She knows this is the right thing to do, and she told us that she still wants to be baptized even if her parents are against it...but it's tough having people you love tell you that what you're doing is wrong. We're praying that she'll be able to overcome this obstacle and that she will be able to hold onto the faith that she has.
She is so funny. She calls our lessons "research". :) But that's what she is doing...a big research project of the gospel. And she LOVES it!! When we go over for lessons, she just lights up. Last week there was a ward badminton activity that was at the same time that we usually do our lessons. We invited her to come play badminton, but she got all worried and said, "but what about or research?!" The ward REALLY wanted us to come, because my companion is the badminton legend(thanks to her performance at the Stake sports taikai(sports fair)...did I tell you? She got MVP...hahahaha) but we told them " sorry, we've got to research" :) It turned out to be an incredible lesson though, so I was glad we did what we did. The two Vietnamese girls are adorable and incredible. This is just the beginning for them. There's still a TON they don't understand, but I know it will come in time. They know enough for now. So we're praying that next Sunday we'll see the two of them in white. We're excited!
More good news!!! We set a baptismal date with another one of our investigators. She's one of the member's friends. She's the one that came to Kazuki's baptism and started to cry when she saw him come up out of the water. She's got a date for June 27th. There's still alot to teach and a lot of work to do, but with a specific goal, she has something to work towards!
Let's see, what else. Did I tell you about the Philippina that we met on the street? She has three incredibly adorable girls. Anyways, she just got finished with going through a really tough time. all we could do was wait for her to contact us. We had her phone number...but she wasn't picking up. Anyways, this week we saw a miracle!!! We bumped into her on the street!!!! We were riding our bikes when we saw her daughter riding towards us on her little bike with training wheels!!! She got all excited and was like "Mom!Mom! Look!" She was right behind on her bike. I guess they were on their way back from the shiyakusho(city hall). They had just finished doing a bunch of paper work for the move. Marie was excited to see us! She said she had been meaning to get a hold of us, but had lost our phone number...and that her old phone was now her husbands phone (no wonder no one picked up). So we found out her new address and paid her a visit a few days later. She grew up in the Philippines knowing God, going to church every week, and she said she wants that for her kids too. So we're hoping to see her come to church soon!!!!
So that's the update here in Kurume.
I'm loving the work! It's ridiculous how fast my body gets tired these days though. But my companion and I are working hard and having fun! Motegi-shimai (sister)is the greatest. She keeps every day entertaining. Yesterday as we were about to start our nightly planning session she took her scarf, wrapped it around her head, pointed at it and said "Look, a turban". Well, I burst out laughing, and we had to do a few breathing exercises to we could calm down and pray without laughing.
I hope your days are filled with joy and laughter too!
Sister Osterloh
PS scripture of the week Mormon 9:19-21 Miracles happen!!! All you have to do is ask for it and believe it will happen! As simple as that.
