Sydney Week 22

This week has been so great! We had a great first week as a companionship and I can already tell Elder Yoshizawa and I will accomplish great things here together. I'll send you some pictures to prove my point, but I definitely think Elder Yoshizawa will be the most flexible companion I will have. He did gymnastics back home in Fukuoka, Japan, and every night he does these crazy stretches before bed haha. He really is a great Elder and though the work here is very different from what he is used to, he is adjusting well and is loving serving here. My letter to President Howes:

My core experience every week is difficult to pick since there are so many, but especially this week there seemed to be a great amount of different miracles and experiences. We had great experiences in lessons being taught, both planned and unexpected. There were 2 investigators that we added this week who were unexpected and who walked into the church wanting to find out about English class, but as we showed them around and explained the pictures of Christ found within the building, we were able to ask them questions and find common ground in beliefs and also answer some of their questions. Another 2 girls that we originally met because they were interested in English class became our investigators through a similar manner. As we showed them around, they seemed pretty disinterested in anything other than English and seemed in a rush to leave. But as we stopped and explained the picture of the First Vision to them, I felt the Spirit definitely enter the room and their hearts were touched. They agreed to meet again and we have kept positive contact since then. 

Another experience came from needing to train for district meeting this week. It was a blessing to pray earnestly and seek revelation on something this important. I feel a great responsibility to help my district move forward and upward in great strides. Being able to see how the Lord supports me with my goals and my vision for the District has given me encouragement and a greater desire to keep moving forward and accomplish the vision that is already present. We can use some chiseling here and there and I know that we can accomplish the masterpiece that the Master has envisioned for us to become as a district and individually.

One thing that I learned from my mother that has been of extreme value to me is to love. She taught me from a very young age by personal example the role that love can play in someone's life. I never doubted that she loved me because she showed me, told me, and then told me again how much she loved me. Even when I made mistakes, she did not get angry, but expressed love and concern and always extended a helping hand. Her example of love has helped me to know that I need to love every soul out here. Regardless of what they do, I need to love each person out here since all of us are of divine lineage and each of us is of equal worth in the sight of God. Her example of how much she loved me altered many aspects of my life and I want to use that same ability to love unconditionally here among these people.

Magdo is the investigator we used to have from Belo Horizante, Brazil. He is awesome! We met him in English class and were able to teach him about the restoration. He is pretty set in the Catholic faith because his whole family is, as is pretty normal down in Brazil, but through some time, we helped him to gain a testimony of what we were teaching. In our last lesson he talked to us about his true doubts and concerns that he has had in life. We were able to help him overcome some of those and testified that he can continue to learn more. He is very excited to go back and learn in his own language since it was quite difficult to teach him with nobody speaking Portuguese here in the ward. He will be touring Australia for another couple weeks, and then will be back in Belo Horizante to stay. So I will be sending Seth a nice little referral here in a couple weeks and hope and pray he is serving in Magdo's area! :) 

I need to attach these pictures and then jump off, love you all so much!!

Elder Shafer