A few pics from Korea

 Here's a picture of bishop, the first counselor (can speak English, lived in Utah, loves it) and I. And the other picture is of a returned missionary named Ji Kyo who's always smiling.

Here's me with the Stake President Bak In Su and his family, and Sister Hammerl, who's also leaving Yeonsu. Then there's one of me and the Elder's Quorom President.

Here's me with the Stake President, his wife, and the young man (RM) I ate with last night. Here's me with Ji Kyo and his dad (a counselor in Elder's Quorom) again

Weekly letter July 20, 2014

This week we got transfer calls. And... I'm leaving Yeonsu (연수). I don't have any regrets, but I'll miss the wonderful ward and missionaries here. I'll especially miss our investigators, but I'm confident Elder Westbrook will take care of them. I'll be leaving for Gimpo (김포) on Wednesday, to be companions with Elder I S B (이상범). It's a little frightening to be moving on to a Korean companion, but I'm determined that I'll take advantage of that situation and learn how to really express myself well in Korean. Here's the goal: fluency by the end of the next 12 weeks! Isn't it incredible to think I've already gone through 22 of my 104 weeks on a mission? This time really is so precious.
First this week, and update on our progressing investigators:
B (간동우): We met with B this week, and we gave him a baptismal date, and taught him "the Gospel of Jesus Christ." He accepted it pretty well, but he backed out of church this week by saying work. B's a tough cookie -- he keeps his reading commitments, but doesn't have a lot of real intent as of yet. Our focus going forward (at least, Yeonsu 2's focus) will be on the Spirit.
C I G (최인국): I met with him this week, and was devastated to learn he's moving! He moved all the way down to the Taejun (태전) mission, to Guanju (관주). That was rough, but he looked me in the eyes and swore to continue reading the Book of Mormon. He gave Elder Westbrook and I stylish ties, as a thank you. He was so lonely and dejected when we met him, and he feels like his life improved after meeting us. We decided to refer him to the missionaries down south, then a miracle occured! As we were walking through a store, we bumped into a member from Guanju (관주)! We gave him C I G (최인국)'s number, and he as excited to meet with him and the missionaries. God keeps looking out for His children, even when they move.
M G I (민경일): My favorite investigator. We met with him on Saturday and taught him the first lesson, using the cup-pyramid apostasy analogy. He really liked that. He went up to Seoul (서울) with his mother though, so he was unable to make it to church on Sunday. Yeonsu 2 will continue meeting and teaching him. We're really excited about him still.
Y S J (윤상진): The son of a less-active, he's the same age as me! In Korea, that's a huge deal, and it's the only time you can call somebody "friend" (친구). We're pretty close. He's been out to church twice now with his mother, and we're eating with him and Bishop tomorrow night. He's really interested in the church, but we're waiting on the members to invite him to take the lessons. Once he does, he'll be baptized lickity-split. I love him so much.
Lately I've been reading the Book of Mormon in Korean and English side-by-side during language study. I'm starting to get to the point where I can actually understand and piece together bits and pieces. It's pretty tough, especially because the Book of Mormon uses "King-form" and other language forms that just aren't used anymore, but I'm doing my best. There's apparently a promise out there somewhere that any missionary who reads the entire Book of Mormon in their mission language will be fluent. Like Moroni's promise, I'm sure there's a lot of missionaries testing that promise right now. I'm curious to see what my answer will be. I'm continually progressing in my Korean. The ward members must've been surprised when I stood up to give my farewell words, compared to my first ones. When I talked to them, I talked about how we're succesful when we work together, and how the more we work together, the more miracles we'll perform. I bore my testimony, and it ended up resembling the first lesson -- that God loves us, and so we have families, and we have prophets to bless our families and guide us, and how I know we have a prophet today, etc. I had a lot of people tell me they're sad I'm leaving already. I made a lot of friendships in Yeonsu.
This last week we visited the Stake President, and we ended up eating impromptu dinner with him. His youngest daughter is the one who drew the picture of me I sent a couple of weeks ago. I love their family. He noticed a hole in my sock, so he gave us socks! That's actually really common in Korea. I guess since socks are so cheap, they're always just stocked up on them. He said that seeing that made him pleased, because he could tell we're working hard. As a matter of fact, the day before he called President Morrisse to express how pleased he's been with the missionaries in Yeonsu! That was a pretty big deal for us to hear.
Last night, we ate with my favorite family again (picture attached (I'm actually wearing my thank-you tie in that picture)). The Spirit there is always just so wonderful. Both of the children are returned missionaries, and there's just such an open spirit of love between the members of the family. I'm really going to miss them. They're also stinking hilarious! The other picture is of me and the ward mission leader. He's also really, really funny. We became really good friends. Bishop said that the ward mission leader in Gimpo is "the best," so hopefully I'll remain in good hands there.
That's it for this week! There's just not enough time in the day.
Love,
Elder Austin Lynn

Weekly Letter July 13, 2014

I guess people over there can be brutally honest!! Poor guy!! (Brandi)

This week I don't have as much to share, but that's because we were out on the streets! Seriously, did a lot of proselyting this week, and taught a lot of street lessons.
One of those street lessons was with a group of old men. One of them literally just lies under a tree all the time. It turns out, he's from North Korea. He came over when he was 6. He's the first North Korean I've met so far. Apparently, they're pretty rare (sorry if that's too obvious). We talked about who Jesus Christ was, and about sin. He said he's never made a mistake, never fought with his wife, and never felt guilty. We were kind of befuddled at that. Without any of those things, the definition of sin's a little dry. We did our best, and he ordered lunch for us. It was cold noodles... it was pretty hard to eat, but I suffered it. After, we had a two-hour training at a service center for a service opportunity we're going to start. To be honest, I didn't understand anything, but I wrote down a ton of words.
I learned a fun expression in Korean this week: "Since the tiger smoked." The day I learned it, Elder Lee (part of a senior couple in our mission) was in our house, working on our sink. He's fluent in English (lived in America for 24 years) so we asked him how he'd explain it. He said, "It means a very, very long time ago. We simply don't know when the tiger stopped smoking." I think an equivalent phrase would be "Ever since penguins flew." It's a fun little phrase. I used it in a meeting the other day. I said, "They've been busy since the tiger smoked, but we'll continue to call them." It was neat to learn a traditional phrase like that.
We met with our investigator C I G twice this week (최인국), and the lessons went pretty well. We taught him from the Book of Mormon, in Alma 32. Alma 32 is about the poor Zoramites, who have been humbled by their afflictions. He was able to see the parallels with himself, and learned a lot about faith. We met with him the very next day, with a member who talked to him at church last Sunday. They talked for days, but we were able to follow up on the rest of the chapter -- planting the seed of faith. The member took the three of us to a restaurant after, and a miracle occurred! I said hello to a woman, who immediately said hello back. That's pretty unusual in Korea, and it turns out she's a member! She'd been living in Utah for years, but was originally a Korean, and now she's back in Korea. She doesn't live in Yeonsu, but her daugher does. Her inactive daughter. We were able to get that number and send it to the Sisters, who were able to meet her that night. That was definitely a miracle sent from God, to find one of the lost sheep of His fold.
Anyways, C I G wasn't able to attend church last Sunday, but he had a legitimate excuse. He was visiting his parents down South. His parents are really important to him. He prayed at the end of our first lesson with him this week, and his prayer was basically just asking God to let him live long enough to bury his parents, begging God not to make his parents bury their son. He's really concerned that he's dying. Hopefully the Word of Wisdom will convince him that he can't give up on himself. God never wants us to give up on ourselves.
Our investigator B (간동우) came to church last Sunday, for the first time! We're really excited about that, and hopefully he'll start to progress more. He hasn't had much real intent, but we're hoping he'll feel the Spirit really strongly next time we teach, so he realizes that this is all real. After church we had Ward Council, and the missionaries were in! For the first time in what must've been years, the missionaries were in! Afterwards, Bishop told us that the 6 of us here in Yeonsu (연수) are literally "the best" missionaries he's ever known. That was a glowing compliment, and meant a lot coming from the man who told us to "go do real missionary work" when we asked to attend meetings 11 weeks ago.
I went on exchanges with Elder Thomas this week, and I really love that Elder. I learned a lot about being a more effective companion. He's not as fluent as Elder Westbrook, so we were able to work more together. He's also a bit better at discussing our plans together; probably because this is the first time he's been a senior companion. We visited K B J (김범진) in the hospital, and did service with a member.
The member was R A G (리안갑), and we helped him at his work. He ships out napkins, so we show up to his little warehouse, and help him pull down the boxes he needs, box them up, and stack them in a corner. It's actually pretty fun work. He took us out for lunch, and it was another example of Koreans saying what they think. We're eating our noodles, and he looks over at me, literally grabs my stomach, spews some stuff out in Korean (I'm pretty sure I hear the word for fat, but can't be sure) then he looks up and says, "In English, 'You're fat,' right? Haha, You're fat!" I was laughing, partly out of embarrassment, partly out of surprise, and partly because he's grabbing my stomach. It was really awkward for me, and for Elder Thomas.
Later that day, we taught their investigator Y O (윤옥) and that went really well. We had a member present (윤지운(Y J O)) and we taught what the Book of Mormon is. We did a solid job explaining it and what it's purpose is, and we were all able to bear some solid testimony. At the end, I asked him what it'd mean if the Book of Mormon's true, so he just looks up, and says, (in English) "I guess I'd have to become a member of the Mormon church." It was amazing to hear that from a man who didn't have a lot of real intent; mostly English interest. The gospel is so true, the Spirit can just walk in and knock people's walls down. It's truly marvelous.
As a funny side-note, the ward soccer coordinator was called last week. It's Y J O (윤지운)! Everybody laughed at that, but it is good that we got an official calling for it. We're continuing to play Soccer every Saturday, and it's working out really well. We've actually got an investigator out of it, who's going to get baptized! To be fair, it started out as a less-actives two non-member sons, but now she's coming to church, and they're coming with her! That miracle came as a direct result of playing soccer with them, and that feels so great. It really is a wonderful thing to be an instrument in the Lord's hands. Even when we make mistakes, he knows exactly how we can be best utilized to make beautiful music.
Transfer calls come this Saturday. Who knows where I could be for next weeks email? I'll take whatever happens with a happy heart. I learned recently that prayer isn't to change God's will -- it's to align our will with his.
Love,
Elder Austin Lynn

Weekly Letter July 7, 2014

First things first: the baptism!

Last Saturday was our baptismal service for Ii S M(이성미), the Sister's investigator, found by Elders Westbrook and P when they were on splits. She was really golden! She chose me to baptize her, and it was such a special experience for me to baptize somebody for the first time in my life. We got there at noon, and we started the water in the font. Elder Westbrook got rid of a few webs, while I changed. What an experience, to put on the full white baptismal clothes for the first time! She got there, and we had the regular baptismal service -- there was a special musical number (all of us missionaries singing "I'm Trying to be Like Jesus"), a testimony from a member (the first counselor's wife), and then, oddly, they had Ii S M and I stand up in front of everybody and practice baptism again. That was a little awkward, but whatever. We got down to the font, I said the prayer (in Korean!) and dunked her. Unfortunately, we didn't have a hair band, so her hair came up the first time. No problem, I pulled her back up, re-recited the prayer, and baptized her. Funnily, after she came up the second time she crossed herself! Haha. She's actually really funny -- she speaks English, and she's basically fluent, so she'll make lots of jokes in English. After the baptism it was basically a party, and our wealthy bishop footed the whole thing. There was soooo much chicken! Our investigator M G Ir (민경일) came to the baptismal service, and he didn't feel weird or out of place or anything. He thought baptism was pretty cool! We've just barely started meeting with this fourteen year old kid (12 in American age; he's the same year as Christian!), and he's already so amazing. We fed each other duk (rice cake) (떡) and in Korea, that means you're really close! I actually offered Bishop a piece of food from my chopsticks, and his response was, "린 장로, 역시" (Of course/typical/you would, Elder Lynn!) He was realy pleased about that. Elder R jokes that if our adventures in Yeonsu were written, I'd just be "The Elder whom Bishop loved," playing off of John's writing style in the Gospel of John. Anyways, we played ping-pong with him after, and played a bit of piano together. He mentioned how fun it was playing piano with me afterwards. ^^ There were several less-active families we've been working with at the baptismal service, so that was really great to see, and virtually everybody interacted with little G Ir! The member missionary work was off the charts. It's so great. He had a test the next day, but he's definitely coming to church next week! He's so solid. Bishop kept saying that we've got to do this every week. I said that if the ward and missionaries work together, we'll be able to! We've become really integrated with bishop in the past few weeks, which is a huge change from when we asked to attend meetings, and he'd tell us to "G do real missionary work!" Apparently, our bishop's well-known for not being a big fan of the missionaries! It's incredible that, through our diligence and consecration, we've changed his mind. It's such a miracle, and a necessary one at that. God truly can do anything if we put in our effort.

The next day at church, we got another shout out over the pulpit! We'd ran into my favorite member's son, and it turns out his dad had been in a car accident, and sustained a minor injury. His dad's not a member, and has never liked the missionaries, but we went with Y J U (윤지운) to visit his dad, and it actually went pretty well. We visited his dad again at their home a few days later, and brought him a little plant! We talked some more, and he liked it. His son testified that Sunday about how his dad's never liked the missionaries, but now that they're making an effort, something's actually happening with him, which he didn't think was possible! After I testified,* his mom got up and said something similar.

*I felt like a missionary was supposed to get up that Sunday, so during fast and testimony meeting I bore my testimony! While I don't have any verbal prowess in Korean, I got up, and said, 
"I want to bear my testimony, but since I'm not good at Korean, it'll be simple (crowd laughs).

"I know this church is true. I know Joseph Smith was a prophet. Since I know that, Thomas S. Monson must be a prophet in this day and age.

"I also know that the Book of Mormon is true. If you ask how, I've learned it's true through prayer and study.
"By praying and studying, you can know if anything is true. Without prayer and study, you can't know.

"I love Yeonsu (연수). I hope all of you pray and study.

"I testify of these things in the holy name of Jesus Christ. Amen."
The members were definitely impressed; but that's not why I did it. I felt like it was necessary, and I think the members liked that the missionaries aren't above getting up to bear their testimony, even if it's simple. 
Later at church, a member of the bishopric announced that there were over 80 people at church! That means that the room was basically packed, and there was a significant number of people there. Most of those extra people were investigators, and less-actives we've been working with! Lately, I've really found that working with and retaining recent converts and less-actives is vital to the progress of the church, and more importantly, to the salvation of souls. These people are important. The gospel can cover any need, answer any question, so all you have to do is find their problem, and help them see how the gospel can fix it. Our investigator C I G (최인국) came to church, and he continues to ask questions and learn more. He actually came an hour early so he wouldn't sleep through it! We walked into the chapel, and he was just sitting there reading the Book of Mormon. I really hope that I'm not transferred, because we have two really solid investigators that I just love to pieces right now.

Something I forgot to mention from last week is that as we were practicing before church, our less-active who played the flute (H H S (하현숙)) suggested that I hadn't finished puberty yet, because of my voice. I won't lie, that hurt a bit. That's one thing about Korean culture: they are brutally honest. They'll say literally whatever's on their minds. For instance, Bishop was talking about maybe having a hamburger party, and we were all like, "Ah, good idea!" He looks over at me, and says "Elder Lynn can't have hamburgers. He needs to go on a diet." So, that was a bit rough, especially after a member told me a few days ago that it looked like I was losing weight. Ouch. Just the culture.

Elder Cl, who goes home this transfer, asked me to bear my testimony about the Book of Mormon at our last Zone Training, last Thursday (about the Book of Mormon). I wasn't really sure what I'd say until I stood up. I spoke what was on my mind, and ended up testifying that the Book of Mormon is real. It's a real record, of real people, who really taught, fought, and lived in America over a thousand years ago. They are real people! More than excellent sermons, the Book of Mormon tells the story of a real family and their descendants. It's incredible! We miss out on so much of the Book of Mormon if we don't let it come to life for us. It won't mean as much to us if we don't try to put ourselves in the places of the people in it. We have to try and imagine that we were there. We need to put ourselves in the Book of Mormon, if we want it to really be a part of us. It's such a blessing. I can honestly say that the literal story in the Book of Mormon -- the history of the Lamanites and Nephites -- is one of the most interesting stories I've ever read! As I think more about the actual character and lives of the people in the Book of Mormon, it means more and more to me. That's one of the reasons I loved seminary so much. From talking about Alma's "Dream Team of Missionaries" to reclaim the Zoramites, to the dreadful task that faced the prophet Jacob, the Book of Mormon is (at times) brutally real. Try to keep that in mind whenever you read it, and it'll become more meaningful, more memorable. I promise, as a representative of Jesus Christ.

I don't know if you remember K
B J (김범진), but he got in an accident last Saturday, and fractured both of his wrists! He called us, and we visited him in the hospital. We told bishop, and the next day all five of us (Bishop and four missionaries) visited him, and gave him a blessing. Bishop had me do the annointing with oil. I'll send a picture of us together right after this.

I'm out of time for this week, but just know that Yeonsu's on fire! And we're gonna keep it burning! The Lord is pouring out his blessings as we do our best, and miracles are happening left and right. If there's anything I mention in my emails you'd like to know more about, or any other questions, please let me know! I love getting mail from home!

Love,
Elder Austin Lynn

Weekly letter June 29, 2014

First off, we weren't able to meet with our investigator B last Saturday, because of work. Work's becoming a bit of a problem, because he can't come to church either. We've actually written him a note to give to his boss, asking for church time off. We teach B English and Korean, because his English is pretty solid, but his Korean can use a lot of work, especially since everyone he works with speaks Korean, or a different foreign language. He picks it up pretty quick, but definitely isn't fluent. He did make it to English class on Friday, however! I talked to him before the class started, and he kept his reading commitment, and read 3 Nephi 11! He had trouble understanding some of it, but it was so exciting that he read it. When investigators keep their commitments, it shows that they have real intent, which opens the door for revelation. I hope we can resolve his problem with work soon, because Billy is so golden.

I learned more about Gasman! It turns out, he's called So Dok Cha in Korean (독차) which means "poison dispersion car!" He sprays out pesticide. We finally solved the mystery of Gasman. It's crazy that they just drive around spraying gas everywhere. It's pretty thick! You don't wanna be outside when he comes around.

Koreans like to use English words and phrases a lot, but it's usually got really basic mistakes in it. We see that all the time on signs and things. An example is the special KFC ads in Korea for the world cup are "Korea Fighting With Chicken." I'm not sure exactly what that's supposed to mean... whether they're using chicken as a weapon, or if chickens are their enemies. Who knows?

Our investigator (the old, poor one) wandered by the church the other day, right after we'd finished teaching a lesson, and we ended up giving him a tour and going over the first lesson with him! It turns out he'd come 30 minutes early (in the middle of an earlier lesson) but we'd forgotten the keys, so we were in a different area, waiting for the other Elders. What a miracle that he came back a half-hour later! If we'd been there, it would've been pretty awkward with the two of them, but because we'd forgotten our keys, everything worked out perfectly. Sometimes, God is in the smallest of details, working things out for our benefit. Chwae In Guk (최 인 국) also came to church! He remarked that it was noisy, which we were guilty as charged. There's a lot of children at church. However, he stayed for all three meetings, including gospel principles, which is taught by the ward mission leader! That was really good, and he learned about the plan of salvation. We're meeting with him again this week.

We've been working with an inactive Sister, and she came out to church this Sunday! We asked her if she'd play with us for a special musical number, and she agreed! She played the flute while the missionaries sang, "Abide With Me, Tis Eventide" in Korean. It went pretty well, and the members were really excited to see Ha Hyun Suk (하현숙) at church! We also had several other less-actives we've been working with there, so Bishop was really pleased with that.

Speaking of Bishop, he's such a wild card! When we first got here, he wasn't a big fan of the missionaries. As a matter of fact, when we asked if we could attend P.E.C., he literally thought we were joking! He laughed for a minute, then said, "Go do real missionary work!" He said that several times after. Of course, real missionary work is so much more than just proselyting. Working with the members is far more effective. One night, all of the Elders sat down, and we started discussing how we can get Bishop and the ward to trust us, because we need their help. We decided that gok, (곢) (at all cost, any price, etc) we had to get somebody out to church that Sunday. With that fire, we did it! As we continued to work hard, especially visiting less-actives, Bishop started to see that we were working hard, and he eventually started telling us who not to visit, which progressed to telling us who to visit, and eventually we made it into meetings with him! That was really rewarding. Bishop's been Bishop in Yeonsu twice, which says a lot about the members, and how hard he works. He said, "it's fun!" That's so unusual in Korea, where the church is seen as a burden sometimes. We played soccer with lessactives, potential investigators, and some of the youth last Saturday, and Bishop showed up! We joked that he was going to play, and thought it was pretty funny when we saw him doing stretches. We realized he was serious when he did a warm up lap! He played as goalie that day, and became friends with everybody we got to come out. On Sunday he told us that he wants us to do soccer every week, and when we suggested somebody in the ward be given the task of being the soccer coordinator, he responded, "Aju choin idea! (literally 아주좋은 idea!)!" (Very good idea!) That same day, in a combined Priesthood/Relief society meeting, Bishop stood up and said that he's found that the more he works with the missionaries, the more effective missionary work is in the ward! That was such a blessing and answer to our prayers to hear him say that. It blew us away. Things have really changed here!

Another amazing experience at church: A less-active we'd visited only a few weeks after I got here gave a talk in Sacrament meeting. She related an experience she had with us! She talked about how she'd never really understood the commandments (a really common thing in Korea, and perhaps even the church at large) and how she asked us about the whole "punishment" thing when we visited her. It was amazing to hear her talk about this, because I remembered exactly what she was talking about! Elder W wasn't sure what to say, so he turned to me, and the answer I gave (translated through him) was, "Sometimes our punishment is not receiving the blessings we receive from keeping the commandments." At the time, we didn't know if we'd had any success with her, because she didn't come to church that next week, and we didn't hear from her again. But it turns out that the answer really made sense to her, and caused her to reflect on the blessings she's received throughout her life as she's kept the commandments, and how unfortunate it would've been if she hadn't received those blessings! It really strengthered her faith in God, and that He truly loves her. That was a major teaching experience for me. At the time, we didn't know the effect my answer had, and I didn't realize how inspired it was -- because an answer that has an effect like that is an inspired one, given of the Spirit -- and this experience taught me that you don't always feel the Spirit in the moment when you're inspired, and you can never know what effect the things you say have! I can only imagine what it will be like after this life, when we learn what an effect we've had on those around us.

One thing that's already surprising me is how quickly the time is passing. I'm over halfway through my second transfer already! We sit down for weekly planning on Friday, and it feels like we did it yesterday! Time really is passing so quickly. I've come to realize what a precious commodity it is on my mission.

A pretty big thing I learned from my Book of Mormon study recently is what I've termed "The Deceitful Doctrines of the Devil." I've written it all out in my study journal, and as I continue reading through the Book of Mormon, it helps me really hone in on what the Anti-Christs like Sherem are teaching, and how it conflicts with God's truths. The more we understand the tactics Lucifer uses, the easier it is to thwart him and remain safe. 2 Nephi 28 is a really good place to start for that. Another thing was a really powerful analogy, which I've labeled "The Consequences of Careless Crossing." The crux of it is that if you cross the street when the light is red, it has all sorts of far-reaching effects. I don't have the time to write it out,  but some of them are the concept that you're literally taking your life into your own hands, and how while most of the time it'll be okay, there may be a time when something tragic happens, or how your little sibling might see you, and think it's okay to do that. My companion and I have really discussed it, and it's a powerful way to teach about the commandments, and the safety we find in them, while also helping us grow as people. Next week I'll bring my study journal and write down the miniature talk I wrote about it, because it really affected me.

After church, my companion had a baptismal interview with one of the Sister missionaries' investigators, Ii Sung Mi (이 성 미), and she passed! She'd had a bit of a struggle with the Word of Wisdom, but overcame a coffee addiction through fasting. Wow! She was really golden, and was converted over a period of one month. The Elders gave her a blessing when she was just starting out with the Word of Wisdom, and I was the one she asked to give it. She's fluent in English, so I was able to do it in English. During the interview, my companion called me over, and Ii Sung Mi asked me to baptize her!  This Saturday I'll be performing my first baptism -- in Korean! -- and the first missionary baptism in Yeonsu in years! The ward is so excited, as the missionaries are.

We had a meal with my favorite members (the mother/son duo) last Saturday, and she gave a good suggestion for my Korean name that Elder W is now thinking about! Originally, it was 임수천 (Im Su Chun), to go along with his 서천 (literally translated, west river (Westbrook)), but he wasn't sure, so we asked her! She suggested 임광천 (Im Guang Chun). The middle character means, "bright" like a light! Sounds like I'm gonna be related to Brother Chun, huh? The first name has a ton of different meanings (maybe you could ask Brother Chun!) but the second one is bright, combined with any of the various meanings for Chun (such as river, diety, etc). I'l try to give you more description next week. The meal went really well, and we got to see a painting she did (attached)! Sorry the picture's blurry, I forgot to check it immediately after. That is literally a giant painting of the classic Jesus Christ picture! That Korean is her son (sorry if that's really obvious!). This week's going to be really exciting! Lots of things going on in Yeonsu! We've finally started a fire here, and things are really picking up.

 

Until next week,

Elder Austin Lynn

Weekly Letter 6/22/2014

 A little girl we sat behind drew a picture of me during sacrament meeting (attached)! She's really nice, but pretty rambunctious. A little like Grace, maybe?

 

Here's the poem I recited at last week's District Meeting Poetry Slam Jam!

The Conductor of Nazareth

 

Music soothes the savage beast 
It heightens the mood at a banquet feast

 

It calms your soul in times of trouble, 
And inspires you, when you're on the bubble!

 

Every soul has its own reaction, 
To music's moving traction

 

Each music notes unique
Appealing to the proud and the meek

 

Not everyone likes A sharp,
Or the twinkling springing of the harp

 

Some folks only tolerate a B
When it's part of a full symphony

 

Some swear by piano only,
While another says, "The Flute's the one for me."

 

Humans are like a musical scale
Without beginning or end to a wondrous tale

 

Alone, I'm one note fading,
Together, we're a melody, building

 

We can touch everyone
Playing the music of the Son

 

He's the great divine Conductor
Who causes walls to break and hearts to rupture

 

He made me and you and them
He knows which song will reveal soul's hidden gem

 

Let your will be swallowed up 
By Him who drank the bitter cup

 

Piano keys don't always understand
The all-knowing, omnipotent hand.

 

Learn to recognize Christ's fingerprints,
And you'll always hear the Spirit's hints.

 

You'll know just how to play your part
To touch a fellow human's heart.

  

While I'm at it, I thought I'd share my most recent GSP (Gospel Song Parody), based off of the song, "All-Star."

 

All-Star

The Master has told me

I shouldn't be so worldly

It doesn't matter what's on my head

 

I was feelin kinda flat

With my logo namebrand hat

Bringin shade to the tip of my forehead

 

Well, the years start comin and they don't stop comin

Back to His rules and to church I'll go runnin

 

Didn't make sense just to live for one

It shrinks your heart and it dims the sun

 

So much to do, so much to see

Including feeding the hungry

 

You'll never know if you don't try

You'll never shine if He's not nigh

 

Hey now, you're an allstar

Read your scriptures, go, pray

Hey now, you're a rockstar

Do some service, no pay!

 

Selfishness is like mold

Only selfless souls break the mould

 

It's a cruel place

They say it gets crueler

Your heart's hurt now, wait till you get older

The teachings of Christ beg to differ,

Judgin how for you and me He suffered

 

The life I live is gettin pretty thin

My spirit's gettin worn and I don't ever wanna sin

 

My heart's on fire, how bout yours?

That's the way I like it and I'll never get bored

 

Hey now, I'm an allstar

I'll read my scriptures and pray,

Hey now, I'm a rockstar,

I'll do service, no pay!

 

Selfishness is like mold

Only selfless souls, break the mould

 

My bishop once asked if I have a sinful past

That's taken me out of life's race

I said, "Nope!" That was pretty dope.

I had used a little grace myself,

And we can all use a little change!

 

Well, the trials start comin and they don't stop comin'

Back to repentin' and I'll hit the ground runnin!

 

Doesn't make sense just to live for one

Unless His name is the Son of God!

 

So much to do, so much to see

And it won't be for just me

 

You'll never know how to rise

If you never learn to sacrifice

 

Hey now, you're an allstar

One of Jesus' rays

Hey now, you're a rockstar

You'll know just what to say:

 

All that uplifts is God!

Only sin rusts the Iron Rod

 

Selfishness is like mold!

Only selfless souls break the mould

 

So that happened. I just thought I'd share those with you. I thought some people might enjoy them.

In other news, this week none of our investigators came to church, but several less-actives we've been working with did! It was really rewarding to see lost sheep return to the fold. B didn't come to church, but we did meet with him Saturday night. We reviewed lesson 1, and he retained a lot! He remembered how the priesthood is like being knighted (which he came up with!) and he really opened up to us at the end about how he's been searching his whole life, and his heart was just never content. I really hope he understands that the feelings he has when we talk together -- which he recognized again during the lesson -- are what will fill that hole in his heart, and that he's being led to the truth. So we taught more about the Spirit, and we actually had to teach him how to use the scriptures! Literally how to find Books in the Book of Mormon, and how to recognize a chapter, etc. That was new! I'd never done that before, but realized it's pretty important for people without a Christian background.

We met with a potential named J, who's a Korean who speaks pretty good English, then found out he's actually an inactive member! He was a clerk at one point! He fell away because he wasn't very social, and didn't like talking to people at church. Apparently, Bishop's good friends with his dad, who goes to a different ward! Unfortunately, J has no relationship with his parents anymore. He believes in the scriptures, and still prays, but figures he's fine if he just does good things like helping people every once in a while. We just really testified of the additional blessings that living all parts of the gospel can bring into your life. He liked our sincerity, though he wouldn't come to church. We're going to try and keep meeting with him, which surprised him, since he said he wouldn't go to church. Even if he never returns, we'll still be his friends.

That same statements pretty similar to one we made yesterday to a man we met -- Chwae In Guk. He used to be really wealthy, playing the stock market, but now, at age 50, he's lost it all. We met him the first time on the street, while we were trying to find an address in the poor area of Yeonsu. He was familiar with our church, and had met with missionaries before, about 20 years ago, but got busy with work. Of course, that's no longer an issue, since he's not affluent anymore. We sat down with him in a park and taught him a condensed version of the first lesson. We saw him later, walking around that same area, and he just goes, "Hmph. Come on. Follow me." We follow him to his house, and he has us sit down inside his little two-room apartment. He walks into the room holding a butcher knife, makes eye-contact with us, and says, "Don't be scared." Whoa! He walks over to the fridge and slices up a watermelon, but we were pretty freaked out for a moment! As we sat there and ate watermelon in his home, he just opened up to us all about his past, how he was greedy, and how he put off having a family, and now he has nothing. No family, no money, no faith, no health. He literally said that a cigarette is his only friend. I forgot to mention, but he speaks English, so I could actually understand everything he told us. He really reminded me of the poor Zoramites in the Book of Mormon that Alma taught. They'd been humbled by God, and were now ready for the gospel, as opposed to before when they were raised up in pride by their riches. I really think this man is ready for our message. He asked some good questions, and said he'd come to church this Sunday. I have a good feeling about him.

We have this dry cleaning lady who lives near our house, and we've been teaching her the gospel! Sort-of. Every time we stop in, we always end up talking about religion. She really opened up last time we talked with her. She's sincerely looking for religion right now, but isn't sure where to go. Classic Joseph Smith story. As you know, sometimes the straps on the back of ties wear, and part of it falls off. I had a few ties like that, and she was able to fix four or five ties, for $2.00! That's one example of the kind of service that's easy to find in Korea, but trickier back in America.

 At the priesthood meeting last Friday (I think it's P.E.C. It's basically just the bishopric and the ward mission leader) the missionaries were invited to talk about their investigators for a few minutes. Elder W walks them through, and just as we get up to leave, so they can continue the meeting, Bishop tells us to sit down! He chews out Elder W for talking so much, and asks me to say something, anything. I don't even remember what I said. I told him that the missionaries want to sing a special musical number in two weeks, and how we talked about that with inactives. Bishop was really impressed, and told Elder W that he and Elder T (the other senior companion in Yeonsu) that they need to let Elder R and I (the junior companions) speak more often. Bishop said my pronunciation was good.  My goal is to be fluent by the end of transfer! It's kind of a joke, but I'm learning so fast, and working so hard, that I think I could definitely be pretty proficient with the language, as long as I remain humble and meek. Some of the missionaries are actually fairly concerned for the mission, because it's about to get really young. In July, a ton of missionaries go home, and a lot arrive. While the mission won't get much smaller, all the missionaries here will be pretty green. That means that the overall Korean speaking ability (among other things, like teaching) of the mission will go down quite a bit. In 6 months or so, almost all of the "good" missionaries will be gone, which means that my generations really gonna have to step up as leaders and speakers. I'm sure we're up for the challenge. For some reason, Elder W is convinced that I'm going to end up a district leader, and train by the end of my mission. I'm curious for what the future holds, but my focus is in the here and now. I need to be able to speak to people and express myself!

I received a witness of my progress yesterday, when we had a meal with the Ward Mission Leader. We ate with him once before, when I'd only been in country a couple of weeks. This time, I was able to understand almost everything being said, and I'm getting to the point where I can be pretty witty in Korean! It was so great, especially when I gave the spiritual thought at the end. I'd given it last time too, so I'm sure Ward Mission Leader was thinking about the difference between now and then. I've really progressed so far, though I have a long way to go still. I know that as long as I continue keeping the rules and doing my best, I'll make it there someday!

While I was saying my nightly prayer last night, a memory entered my mind, with great force. It was from years and years ago, back home. Christian had thrown something of mine down the stairs, and broken a part of it. I was really upset, and dad started scolding Christian. I'm pretty sure he didn't cry in real life, but in my remembering he started crying. I could tell that I was remembering this as an adult, and not as the child I was then, because I was so much wiser. I felt so awful. I had a taste of Godly sorrow -- I was filled to the brim with regret and anguish. Why was it a big deal to me? Why didn't I realize my relationship with my little brother was so much more important than any material possession? How might've things changed if I'd just thrown my arms around him and forgiven him? My soul was utterly consumed with regret. I prayed harder and harder, and came to a point, where I felt the Spirit, as I pleaded with the Lord for forgiveness. Family truly is more important than anything else. I never want to have regrets like that. I want to remember that experience for the rest of my life, and remember it the way God wants me to -- to urge me to be better, not to be dragged down in despair. God truly does forgive us of our mistakes. I've experienced it personally. It reminds me of a quote from Joseph Smith:

"Search your heart, and see if you are like God. I have searched mine, and feel to repent of all my sins."

Our ultimate goal is to be reunited with Heavenly Father. To do that, we need to repent of all our sins. I love the way he words it: search your heart. Search your heart for those things that cause you pain, then plead and struggle with Heavenly Father until the issue is resolved. I'm so glad I did. Now, I have a learning experience, instead of a painful one.

Never forget that Heavenly Father's arm is stretched out to take you back, to forgive you.

Love,
Elder Austin Lynn