Week 34 - 三十四週 - May 26, 2025 - 新店 Xindian

 大家好！

Highlights:

     -Got 學花冰 (Xue Hua Bing) (incredible shaved ice with boba and sweetened and condensed milk and grass jelly) as a final tribute to me and 賴姐妹的 (Sister Lai's) companionship

     -TRANSFERS I moved to 八德 (Bade)! I was so surprised to move!

     -Had to say goodbye to everyone in 新店 (Xindian) it was so so sad

     -Had to say goodye to my beloved companion 賴姐妹 (Lai Jie Mei)

     -I'm back in the Zone that I was born into! 

     -It is so quiet here. People actually talk to us. Halleluliah

     -Met a guy who told us he had a devil in his head and then stated his full name and phone number while standing in the middle of the street. The craziest part about this is he actually came to church on Sunday! Pray that he will meet with us and progress towards baptism.

     -The temperature is in the 60s today (This is a monumental event)

     -The ward in 八德 is amazing!!

READ THIS PART

Today I want to talk about the grace and truth of Jesus Christ.

In Elder Hollands talk titled "I Am He" from the 2024 October General conference he says:

"He loved with “all [of His] heart, might, mind and strength,” giving Him the ability to heal the deepest pain and declare the hardest reality. In short, He is one who could administer grace and insist on truth at the same time"

Grace and truth can coexist. All we have to do is love with all our heart, might, mind and strength! 

But how do we do this? How do we love with this intensity? This is a question I seek an answer to everyday.

Here is another Holland quote that I think sheds some light on the answer to this question:

"The crowning characteristic of love is always loyalty" (Elder Holland, The First Great Commandment) 

How loyal are we to God? Are we keeping the commandments? When He gives us a work to do, how willingly do we do it?

I came to the conclusion that in order for me to truly love better, I must show God my loyalty. We show our loyalty to him by keeping the commandments. 

Keeping the commandments will literally change us. Christ promises us that when we keep the commandments " ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love" (John 15:10). This love is everlasting and powerful, and if we want to receive it, we must keep the commandments.

Without this love, this charity, we are nothing. We have no way to enter into the kingdom of God! We will not want to. This love must change us in a way that makes us the kind of person able to live with God and Jesus Christ. 

And keeping the commandments is how we receive this love and change :)

I hope that obedience can help me to have the kind of love that allows me to be filled with both grace and truth, in the same way that Christ is.

Prayer list:

☆姜恩凱 (Jiang EnKai) --> That he will receive a testimony of the Book of Mormon through sincere prayer!

☆文岐詳 (Wen QiXiang) --> That she will pray and read the scriptures every morning!

再見!

Sister 吳ardle

Pictures: Final pictures in Xindian, One with Nancy, 學花冰 (Xue Hua Bing), Zoom Lesson with Sister Pan and our friend

Week 33 - 三十三週 - May 19 2025 - 新店 - Xindian

 大家好！

Highlights:

     -Went to the temple!!!!!!!

(One of the members in 木柵 (MuZha), who helps with lessons all the time, got her endowment!!!!!! It was the coolest thing ever I cried) (I loved my 3 weeks in 木柵)

     -Triple 請客 (Member meal) (Hot pot, Italian food, Homemade meal, incredible)

     -Accidentally offended an American man we ran into because I asked Him if He knew what the sacrament was (my bad) (I am so blessed to be in Taiwan--people are so nice here)

     -Helped one of our friends discover that we have a Living prophet and she asked us how she can meet him (She is the best)

     -Ran into a man that said if he sees us again he will read the whole Book of Mormon and get baptized (pray we find him)

     -Finished my dads mission journal!

Favorite quote: "I think for the first time in my life I am starting to really believe that God himself is at the head of this work...I thought my hard work and diligence was where the blessings came from. That might be how the blessings come, but not where they come from"             

     -A friend from 木柵 (MuZha) got baptized and they have to come to our chapel to use our font so I got to attend!!!!!!! Truly a fulness of Joy :)

     -Got to go to a cool fireside with all the new members!

READ THIS PART

Here is a cool metaphor I learned from Tad R. Callister that helped me understand the Atonement:

We must think of the Fall literally. When Adam and Eve left the garden of Eden, all of humanity began a never ending literal fall towards sin and death.

Imagine you spontanteously jump out of a plane. In the same way that the Law of Gravity would govern your fall towards the ground, and ultimately a horrendous death, the Law of Justice governs our spiritual Fall, and with it the ultimate end of endless torment under the direction of the Adversary in Hell. 

Pretty scary right?

Now imagine, after you jump out of the plane, as you are helplessly trying to slow your descent, you discover a parachute placed on your back!

This parachute works within the bounds of the Law of Gravity, but still allows us to land safely. Jesus Christ's Atonement works the same way! 

"When we sin, we are like the foolish man who jumped from the plane. No matter what we do on our own, only a crash-landing awaits us. We are subject to the law of justice, which, like the law of gravity, is exacting and unforgiving. We can be saved only because the Savior, through His Atonement, mercifully provides us with a spiritual parachute of sorts. If we have faith in Jesus Christ and repent (meaning we do our part and pull the rip cord), then the protective powers of the Savior are unleashed on our behalf and we can land spiritually unharmed" (Tad R. Callister, The Atonement of Jesus Christ)

This metaphor gave me a greater understanding of what it means to be saved! What an incredible gift.

I testify that what the Savior did for us is incomprehensible and requires a lifetime of diligent study to even comprehend a small part of His sufferings. I now understand where President Nelson's invitation for us to set aside time to study the Atonement every week comes from. It is a requirement for our spiritual welfare. I extend the same invitation to you all :)

再見!

Sister 吳ardle

Pictures: Bitan, Transfers are next week and I don't want to leave 賴姐妹,  WANDA ENDOWMENT, Zelfie at the temple with President, 譚姐妹請客！(Sister Tang Member Meal), Bishop's house!

Week 32 - 三十二週 - May 12, 2025 - 新店 Xindian

 大家好！

潘姐妹 sent this picture to Lily's family on Mother's Day to show how diligently 

Sister Wardle and Sister Lai are working

Highlights:     

     -Bought a guitar 

     -Ran into a guy on the street who was holding a mini turtle in his hand and said guy let us pet said mini turtle     

     -Found out one of our Elect friends religiously drinks coffee EEK (she cried in the closing prayer)     

     -Went on exchanges in 板橋 (Banqiao)! So fun! (Darrel the pony)     

     -Got locked out of the church with none of our stuff so we went finding (all we had was a piece of paper) and an hour later it was unlocked but no one was there. Insane miracle!     

     -Went to Nancys house and met her friends from Tokyo Japan! So cool! Everywhere I go I get to talk about where my family members served/will serve their missions! The blessings of mission are truly inumerable:)

READ THIS PART

This week I want to pay a special tribute to my mother.

I have been recently struggling with the concept of love. I've been asking people on the street what love means to them and their answers have led me to ponder the same question. What does love mean to me? How do I love? How can I express my love for others? What does it feel like for me to love others? It has truly perplexed me. 

Without Charity, we are nothing. I was feeling so anxious that I didn't even understand what Charity was! I've been so afraid that recently my boldness is lacking the adequate amount of love that will bring people to the Savior.

But something of an answer dawned on me today. 

It is only at certain times that I really understand the love of the Savior. One thing that has helped me understand this love was pondering upon the love my mom has for me!

Isaiah 63:99 In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old. Do not mothers do the same?

I ask myself often, "what would Jesus do?", but I've discovered that I ask another question just as much: "What would my mom do?"

This question is made even more meaningful to me because my mom served here, where I am, even in this same ward! It is truly my goal and my hope that I can come even close to being the kind of missionary that she was.

My mother is the most righteous person I have ever known. What a blessing it is to be able to be in a trial, think of her and know what I must do.

My mother paved the way of love and charity for me. As I think of her, I more deeply understand the love the Savior has for every person who has ever lived on the earth! 

Mom, thank you for being there for me, especially during those times when I wanted to do it alone. You have paved the way of righteousness for me. Because of you, I know what it means to keep my covenants. I know the importance of family scripture study, prayer and meals. I know what it means to live the law of sacrifice and consecration! Thank you for your endless example of true discipleship :)

I love you!

☆Prayer list☆

♡ Luna --> that she will have the courage to talk to her parents about coming to church!

♡ Annie --> that she will come to the knowledge that she truly is a daughter of God

♡ 陳小姐 --> that she will have courage as she begins to follow the word of wisdom!

♡Vivian --> that she will come back to church despite having a not-so-great first experience 

再見!

Sister 吳ardle

Pictures: 滔滔 TaoTao (one of our friends brought her dog to our lesson), Japanese candy, Nancy's house !!, Baptism!!!, 

Week 31 - 三十一周 - May 5, 2025 - 新店 XinDian

 大家好！

Highlights:

     -Interviews! Learned about how truth is unchanging, but our understanding of it will progress

     -Bryan opened His mission call!!!! It makes me so unbelievably happy when converts go on missions!!!!

     -Finally visited 景美 (JingMei) night market

     -Every week is a miracle at church

     -Memorized the Living Christ!

---> Cool miracle related to that:

The Elders found a friend for us, but when she came to the lesson she brought her friend who is from America! Teaching in English is always so odd. During the lesson I found myself reciting phrases from the Living Christ while we were explaining about Jesus. I had been feeling prompted to memorize the Living Christ for a long time, but it wasn't until this past week that I really locked in. In that moment I realized that God needed me to know those phrases so I could share them and help people recognize their Savior. Amazing!

READ THIS PART 

Some thoughts on tribulation:

Romans 5

3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 

4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

I am grateful to have grown up in a home that truly does glory in tribulation. It is a lesson that once learned will change your attitude forever.

I have struggled to teach this concept. We invite people to change their lives, but it is hard! Not a lot of people understand that it is hard on purpose.

How did Jesus himself come to stand on the right hand of His Father and sit in His throne? He went through the hardest thing anyone has ever, or will ever go through in all of human existence. He overcame. We must do the same. 

Revelations 3

21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

When we are asked to do hard things, it is a plea to overcome. God is inviting us to do what is necessary to sit with Him, in His throne, in His kingdom. He is beckoning us with arms of love, calling each and every one of us by name! Every invitation to do something hard is an invitation to come unto Him.

As we glory in tribulation, we glory in our God. We accept the gift. We accept the invitation. We become perfected in Christ.

Prayer list:

♡ Luna: That her parents will allow her to come to church and be baptized

♡ Hannah: That her parents will allow her to come to church

再見!!

Sister 吳ardle