Pictures

Please keep me in your prayers. 

The young single adults in our ward made a video for one of our investigators.  We were seeds.

This is my Korean Grandma.  I had to say goodbye to her this week.  It was a rough good bye.

Our ward gave us a goodie bag full of lots of yummy treats.

This is my new glove.

I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to serve the people in South Korea.

Fifteen People In Thirty Minutes

hello!!!!!  how is everyone doing!!!!  sounds like my fams trip to middle bass was a blast!! we started talking about all our trips the other day and i told my 'roommates' all about middle bass did forget a single detail! it was super fun to relive everything.  saw all the pictures mom thanks so much.

well here goes some explaining about this last week.  we set a goal to make sure that each one of our investigators knows that our purpose is to teach our message and not just be friends or teach english.  so far the blessings have been huge.  we have 2 baptismal dates!! both will be on aug 4 and hopefully i can stay here in the area to see them get baptized. one of them i have found on the street while contacting.  we also have 2 new investigators ad one of them we met on the street on thursday and said he wanted to meet asap. we gave him a bom and taught him the restoration yesterday we are going back today to teach the plan of salvation.  so so so amazing.  also someone i found last transfer showed up and said he now has interest in our message not just in english and this was before we even said anything about our purpose.  the blessings have been enormous.  also an investigator we have been teaching since i came to korea said she believes the first vision.  the only thing holding her back is the fact that she just wants to go to church with her friends-typical teenager. also we met our uzbekistan investigator this week and first thing he said is i am not going to come to church any time soon.  he still has a lot of things we are trying to work out.

that was our week!!! so so so amazing.  we set a goal and because it was what was needed to happened we were blessed for listening to what needed to be done.  last night we totaled up our stats and took a look at if we had fulfilled our purpose.  I AM SO THANKFUL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY. i felt my Heavenly Fathers love so much as i knew that i had been and was doing what was/is right.  i know that i wouldn’t have been able to do what we did last week without all the prayers in my behalf thank you all so much.  i love you all so much.

yesterday in one of our lessons we talked about levels of happiness. first level maybe being sports which only lasts a few hours.  second maybe idk a baby being born which is clearly longer then a few hours. and ultimately the most happiness you can receive is through service/sacrifice.  missionary work is so amazing i am so thankful for the opportunity that i have to be here and feel true happiness! thank you all for everything that you all are doing for me!! i love you!! be someone’s miracle!!

Elder Hunter

so a member saw elder gillis contacting and took this picture in his car. i am on the opposite corner. we had 30 minutes to reach our goal of 15 ppl.  it was 8:00  at night pouring rain here in the city of seoul.  one of the coolest memories of my life.  i am so blessed.  as far as how hard we worked last week let me tell you... 2 baptismal dates 3 investigators at church.  21 lessons.  141 contacts. and 10 new numbers.  thank you for this opportunity!

Hey guys hope all is well.

Well, having a new companion is great he is a 100 times better missionary then I am and I love it. We work so hard teach with unity and wow so amazing.  As far as some cool things that happened this week.

As you remember our referral, the Chinese guy with no religion background at all. Well we met him for the second time on Wednesday. We planned on talking about Jesus Christ but he had a lot of questions...black people because of the priesthood thing, polygamy, word of wisdom and law of chastity-all of which he found online.  Wanted to know about it all. Luckily we had a member.  Well we taught him about all of it.  He was shocked.  Not only because we have the commandments but because he felt so bad that he had done all those things and just kept saying.' now what like what do I do?

We assured him it would all be made right through repentance, especially because he didn’t know well because he took it so hard we didn’t commit him to keep the commandments he was really shocked and hurt from them and he doesn’t even understand that there is a God yet so we didn’t ask him to not drink etc.. Well he showed up yesterday to church looking so happy. I didn’t know why. When we went in to go teach him he was so excited to tell us that he has gone from drinking 7 cups of coffee a day to within the past 4 days only drinking one because he felt bad when his friend got a buy 1 get 1 deal.  The best part in my mind was he also going home and deleting every bad picture he had on his computer. 

This mans desire to do what is right is amazing.  It helps so much that he is so willing to ask questions and I am just so amazed by him. The fact that right now he is keeping those commandments even when we didn’t ask him too lets me know how much the Spirit really has touched his heart.

Hmm oh-yoon-gyoo we met with him, with a member that is having a kinda hard time right now. oh-yoon-gyoo started asking super hard questions. it was great to see the member share a simple testimony of what he did know and then to see the look in the members eyes when he realized hey I really do believe this and I know its true.  oh-yoon-gyoo now looks forward to every day that we will send him a scripture to read!

Last, on a sad note is ee-young-sook.  My Korean grandma. She hasn’t been progressing nor wants to progress.  We haven’t been able to meet for 2 weeks.  I fasted yesterday that I would be able to know how to say and what to say to tell her we can’t meet.  Well. she called yesterday and dropped us.  Am I glad I didn’t have to break the ladies heart, yes because I couldn’t have done that. But I am so sad that I may never see her again.  When I first came to Korea I guess you could say she was one of my rocks. 

The work in Seocho is progressing.  We did so much work this last week and I can’t tell you how good it really feels to be doing work again.  Reading that talk by elder Holland and also Enos is also helping me to realize how important this life and how important our sacrifice now will bless others and us.  Thank you for this opportunity I love you all so very much. Thank you for your encouragement to keep the mission rules, to keep working hard, to continue to do my best. You are all a miracle in my life.  Thank you so much. 

--

Elder Hunter

be a best friend, overuse i love you and see where it can get ya!

what up? another week down.  transfers were last week. i stayed in seoch yay!!! and i have a freaking tight comp now from texas. elder gillis. he is a hard workin machine!!  always happy, super spiritual and is always willing to help out.  i love him already!!! he is a machine.  so crazy to actually to finally be out working again i love it!!!

we had a big ward activity last week that i was in charge of last week after elder han left. super stressful. but good news already! from working hard for maybe 5 days we have done so much work and been so blessed. 

we have received 8 #'s from contacting and got like 5 referrals. that's so amazing!!!!!!!!!  one of them is a korean but he lived in china so he understands mandarin better then korean. ps, i don't speak either of those.  luckily the ward has helped out a lot and helps us teach. he has no religious background. aka there is a God? he lives in the sky and for some reason he loves me and i can pray to him?  in pmg it has an activity that says 'practice like your in asia teaching someone who has no religion background'  ya definitely that's me.  us korean missionaries kinda make fun of that so sorry if i offended anyone.  
 

other then that, this week has been so good. personal study, i issue a challenge to one and all.  15 day challenge!!!  read enos every single day.  no matter how old you might think it gets read it everyday!!  see what you can learn. 

i also remembered a talk i found in the mtc. 'the inconvenient Messiah' by elder Holland its amazing.  one thing i have learned is that every sinner has a future and every saint has a past. that when i someone goes to talk to the bishop or ask someone for forgiveness THAT PERSON IS NOT A SINNER. that person was a sinner but knows that his sins can be forgiven. 

last week a missionary said something that i really liked. he said that most of us would say we would pay for this gospel and this church.  but, (talking to missionaries)  how many of us are sleeping in or not keeping the rules?  i also ask everyone to think about that question and how it can apply to them!!

keep being someones miracle!! the work in seocho korea is back up on the rise!!!! and always, be happy!!! i love you so so so so much!!!!! be a best friend, overuse i love you and see where it can get ya!

Elder Hunter

New Mission President

wow well this week not much happened except for our mission president finished his mission.  so so so sad. good news is though he is moving into my ward!! so i will see him at least every sunday!  how is everyone doing??  because of so many busy things last week we weren't really able to meet with our investigators.  i did go out and contact with a member in our ward and then after that go contact with the bishop hahaha it was a blast.  so so so funny.  so that was good.  also we did a contacting where we gave out blown up balloons twisted into the shape of dogs so that was cool to see people see us as humans not as just crazy foreigners. 

as far as how I'm doing I'm doing great transfers coming to an end is always stressful just kinda preparing to say goodbye. for personal study i have been studying a lot in mosiah.  i have a book of mormon manual and guess who had given a talk about mosiah 15;10-11 the one and only Merrill Bateman!!  April 1995.  

On my mission i have come to really not just appreciate the Atonement but understand it just a little!  In verse 10- make his soul an offering for sin he shall see his seed.  Pres. Bateman goes on to say 'Abinadi explains that 'his seed' are the righteous, those who follow the prophets. In the garden and the cross, Jesus saw each of us and not only bore our sins, but also experienced our deepest feelings so that He would know how to comfort and strengthen us.'  This is so true! Especially since being out here i have been able to see that the Atonement does more then just comfort me it strengthens me.  I read the entire talk and after just thought how blessed I am for the Atonement.  I am so thankful for this mission!!  Abinadi sealed his testimony with his death,(moroni 17;20) i don't exactly have that opportunity but i do have my mission and the rest of my life!  

I hope to always strive to do that!  Also i read the talk 'was it worth it' by elder evans from this last conference.  being able to share that talk with members this week really has helped me put into perspective how truly important my life as a missionary, son, future father and husband is in sharing this gospel!

i hope everyone is doing well!! I'm doing great the work here is awesome!! thanks for everything! be someones miracle today!
--
Elder Hunter

Thanks BIG DAN!

pics from our ward activity on wednesday...

hey everyone so not much news from korea..EXCEPT THAT BIG DAN NORMAN TOOK ME AND MY COMP OUT FOR A MEAL! HOLY COW! so great to see someone from home and actually have permission to do so!!  so so fun! he was so great treated us to an awesome steak dinner and even got me a nice chocolate brownie with some ice cream.  it was so so great! thanks everyone for sending me some more goods too!! jan-  you are the best!! i have been craving some cream cheese brownies! you came through again! thank you much!! now i just have to keep the other missionaries away from them! wow!!

so this last wednesday was memorial day here in korea. it was so awesome.  we went to a park in the country about an hour and a half away.  our ward rented to big charter buses.  is was so cool.  we took an investigator with us and wow it was so much fun. we had a bbq and played so many games!!! it was a blast!!!!  it was so neat talking to him after, as he said that he had never seen a big family like this and he loved how much they really do treat each other like a big family!!!  on the way back,  there was some road delays everyone was so exhausted from a full days worth of play.  i was sitting in the back of the bus just looking out the window seeing the wonderful country side of korea as the sun was setting. so amazing.  the fact that anyone can deny there is a God amazes me. 

sorry for all those reading but this is a soft message.  after spending all day with these amazing people it really got to me! not only seeing how a ward should be but also seeing how blessed i am to see how well fathers treat their daughters and wives. how even grown ups believe its ok to be a kid.  i am so blessed to be here in a time where i can grow so much and learn by example from people that care about me so much, even though i am just another missionary to them.  i truly am so blessed.

as far as my personal study goes. i read through elder hollands talk again this week.  i cant get over that Gods favorite thing about being God is being merciful.  it is so true. i have felt that mercy in my life. especially out here as a missionary where i really see my mistakes.  the atonement is so real.  elder hollands last words to us all, were; 'dont delay. its getting late.' this is so true and what a profound prophetic statement.  I also read elder hales and elder eyrings talk, mountains to climb. i like elder eyring feel that i prayed early on for challenges that were beyond my capability.  however through them i have come to truly KNOW God.  I promise anyone who wants to come closer to Him, can.  its not to late. be someones miracle! thank you all so much for everything you have done for me! i love you!!

Elder Hunter

Thank you everyone for your constant prayers!

Macay and baby bear

Sportin' my new back pack.

This is hard work!

Buda

This is really what we do all day.

This is the "Happy Book Couch"

mom thanks for the package!! Pitts family thank you so much for all the dental hygiene i really needed it! I thank you so so so much!

hahaha what up!! so i think you guys might have received an email last week. you guys woulda thought to teach me to not put my hands in a fan but you failed on that one.  sliced 2 fingers open . they wanted to do stitches but thank goodness I'm allergic to stitches so they didn't do that. I'm all fine and dandy now.  it was fun though going to a Korean hospital at 11 and then going to McDonald's cuz i had to take food with my medicine.  um as far as news goes not much.

well actually.  our 17 yr old investigator dropped us.eem-say-yun no idea why but she did.  she had a baptismal date and was so so so great.  then our ward is making us drop ee-young-sook.  my Korean grandma. I'm not happy one bit.  not at all.  I'm rather mad and upset at the same time. you come to love the people here so much and now we have to say goodbye. i don't know what to do.  we had 9 investigators maybe 2 weeks ago and now we are down to 5.  personally. i hold myself responsible.  for not standing up and saying to my companion we need to work harder. i feel this misfortune is because of my lack of standing up and saying to cut it out.  i am so sick of hearing you have only been here for 4 months so you don't know.  I'm doing my best.  transfers are in 2 weeks so we will see what happens.

the other night i was so irritated. so upset. i got on the subway and just sat down. i was so angry for multiple reasons.  i saw a foreigner about 10 seats away. (ps, its so awkward when you see foreigners here.) but, he knew who i was. i sat there just so upset and absolutely refused to talk to him.  but, then i heard the amazing voice of brother tamang ringing in my ears saying 'it may be awkward and you may not want to talk to someone but that's your job just do it!' then i remembered in mission prep getting up dead tired to open class to shake someones hand.  well brother tamang and brother covey i am happy to report that i got up and talked to him.  my anger left me! i don't know if he will want to call us back but i do know i did my best. 'i am a disciple of Jesus Christ, i have been called by him to declare his word among his people that they might have everlasting life'.

i guess going through all this makes me super humble and think about how can i do better.  you know we read in 3 nephi 12:48  that we are suppose to be perfect.  and we are!! i think if anyone has had a hard time with this concept it is me. i want to be the best person i can be!  its been hard knowing I'm not perfect and i cant change the past. however in this scripture the biggest thing that stands out in it is not even there. it says we are to be perfect but is there a deadline? is there a time that says be perfect now?  its a continual progression.  mosiah 3;19  be as a child right?  it doesn't mean being childish it means being patient and humble and willing to learn.

i read elder packers talk from this last conference. so amazing.  its like my favorite teacher sister stucki says 'you are an uncommon man'  we can only become an uncommon man through the atonement of Jesus Christ.  in greek, saint means to be set apart! aka latter day saints. this has been one of the biggest things i have learned in my life and am still learning but i encourage everyone to find out what the atonement really means to them.  in jacob 'what more could i have done for my vineyard' everything has been done all we  have to do is truly believe. 

Thank you everyone for your constant prayers!  you are all so awesome! thank you for everything! be someones miracle! i love you!

Elder Hunter