11/16/2014

This week was centered on the zone music practice for the Stake Christmas Party. I'll explain it all as clearly as I can. 

 -- A Brother from my ward (Gimpo), named Shin Gi Chor (신기철) has been put in charge of a significant chunk of time during the Stake Christmas Party -- about two hours. 

 -- To help fill this time, he's enlisted the help of the missionaries. 

 -- Initially, he approached Elder Harline and I with one idea -- to sing Michael Jackson's "Heal the World," a song that's entered my heart since then. It really is a wonderful song. He planned on having a small group of missionaries lead the verses, then having everybody sing together for the chorus. At this meeting, he gave us the sheet music for the song, so we were able to start practicing with a piano. As of then, we'd never heard the actual song.

 -- When we met again, he got us an MP3 of the song, and a karaoke version -- the version we'll ultimately be singing too. We found out that he's renting a synthesizer for Elder Harline to play along to the song. He refined this original idea, and wanted 3 Elders and 3 Sisters to sing the verses, one of those Elders being me. He specifically said that he wanted me to be Michael Jackson! He also gave us another song, out of the blue -- Miley Cyrus and John Travolta's "I Thought I Lost You," from the Disney movie "Bolt." He told us he wanted 2 Elders and 2 Sisters to sing that, with one of them being me. It seems like he wants me to sing, eh? I was just worried about learning all those songs. He also decided he would ask a Sister missionary who's an excellent violinist to play the first movement of Vivaldi's "Winter," with Elder Harline accompanying on piano. 

 -- When we met together as a zone to practice, it went really well. I picked out the singers for both songs, and we were able to have a focused practice, and made a lot of progress. That's good, since we might not have another practice. Meanwhile, Elder Harline worked with the rest of the zone on the chorus. They're not perfect, but they're pretty good already. The songs are lots of fun. At the practice, we got the score for "Winter," so Elder Harline could practice... 

 -- And now, I've been sucked into "Winter." Elder Moon, who lives in our house, has a cello, so, somehow, I'm now practicing to play the cello part for the first movement of "Winter." Thus, without trying, I've been involved in all three songs. I just don't want to let Shin Gi Chor down! 

That's consuming a lot of thinking right now; it feels like I've always got one of those songs stuck in my head. They're coming along nicely; they should be good by the time the party comes. 

We had our first snow this last week! It was just a tiny bit, and it all melted, but there was definitely snow when we woke up. It's also getting colder by the day. 

Last Monday, we had a Turkey Bowl here in Gimpo! It's surprising, but I've managed to consistently attend a Turkey Bowl for years now! Korea can't stop me! I play the position of Center, snapping the ball to the QB. I had a few duds, but, as Elder Chow kept reminding me, it was my first game. In the light of experience, it went pretty well, actually. A lot of Elders came, including the Yeonsu gang. It was a blast playing in the giant soccer field by our house. Hopefully I'll be able to send you a file with tons of pictures from it. As missionaries we didn't keep score, so I can't say we won, except in this sense: it was lots of fun! 

We were only able to meet with our investigator  (정민수) once this week, but it went pretty well. We began teaching the Plan of Salvation, and... we were able to get to the Fall of Adam and Eve. During that part of the lesson, he expressed some common Christian beliefs, such as the belief that the Fall was a loss of chastity on Eve's part, and that their transgression consisted of a sexual relationship. Clearly, this is false doctrine. It's an example of men using their own wisdom to try and interpret the scriptures -- or, as Peter would say, as he does in his second Epistle, "Wrest the scriptures" -- to fit their own theories and philosophies. We believe in the biblical account. They ate the forbidden fruit, and were driven out because of it. We believe it was a part of God's plan for us, and not only led to all of us being born, but enabled Adam and Eve to grow by experiencing sorrow and pain, success and happiness. 

He also theorized that Adam and Eve were not the first people's names, but rather a generic name for "Man" and "Woman." That was.. interesting. The Spirit led us to simply state and reteach the basic principles, essentially disagreeing, but in the politest way possible. He accepted it well, though I'm not sure he believes it. 

That same night, we were able to bring him to a "Priesthood Party" held at one of the ward's patriarch's house. Another one of our investigators ( (함대식)) also came, which was good, since he's been unable to meet lately. We were able to get both of them involved in a gospel discussion with a patriarch, our bishop, our ward mission leader, and the other patriarch! It was pretty awesome; and it came from me asking Bay Pan Bong, the ward mission leader, about the Word of Wisdom, since we talked about it a bit while waiting for our bus with Jung Min Su. Bay Pan Bong had smoked three packs a day before becoming a member, so he was able to testify of that to Jung, and we were also able to discover that Ham Dae Shik is living the Word of Wisdom, which we haven't been able to teach yet, but he's heard about at church. So it was a great night. 

Last, but not least, we got involved in the Gimpo Ward's Primary musical number for that same Stake Christmas party we're performing in... and it was a total accident. Or, at least, not planned in any way. They asked Elder Harline to play in Primary, since their regular pianist had to leave. As they did, I sat in the back and tried to learn me some primary music (in Korean!). For their Christmas song, they sing it all, then split off and have little two-somes sing verses together, going through all 10 or so children. Randomly, the Sister directing pointed at me, and called my name! I was a bit surprised, but I sang, and the kids really liked it. Then, the Sister told them all that the missionaries will perform with them, just like they'd practiced just now! We definitely weren't expecting that. I really love the little children though, so I think it'll be a blast. And I think that'll wrap up this week's email. 

Practice, practice, practice!

Love,

Elder Austin Lynn

11/9/2014 Weekly Letter

This week I went through one of my most blatant "If smiles could kill" moments. Elder Harline and I were on the way to a zone meeting, and a man stopped us, gave us some peanuts, which was awfully nice, then looked us in the face with a smile, and told us that our church was a heresy, and we couldn't go to heaven if we believed in it. 

Well...

     I did the only thing you really can do, and testified that I knew the church was true by the power of the Holy Ghost. I said that was the only way you can know truth. 

     He responded by referencing an list of churches that are "heresy" here in Korea -- technically true. There's a list, made up by one of the larger Christian churches out here, where they said who is and isn't heresy. 

     I responded to that by telling him that I knew about it, yes, mankind can declare things whatever they want, but I've asked God, and I know through revelation that this church is true. 

     The man resorted to once again telling us we can't go to heaven if we believe in "Mormonism." I responded by telling him I understand what he's saying; and believe God will save all of us who do our best to follow the Savior. He repeated the same thing, and we walked away, bidding him a good afternoon, munching on peanuts. 

     That's not an uncommon experience. I've gotten really good at testifying of truth, and avoiding confrontation, because that's all you can do. As Christ taught the Nephites, the spirit of contention is of the devil. Regardless of what gets said, I want to be seen with a smile on my face, being polite, but firm for truth. 

     Our family home evening went really well last week. We shared a message about "the power of one." We started off by talking about the prophet Abinadi, who boldly taught the gospel. He was martyred without seeing a single person become converted. But, his mission was not a failure. One man -- Alma -- accepted his teachings. This one man personally baptized hundreds, and established the church. His descendants would also be prophets and incredible missionaries. Abinadi may not have baptized, but he had a huge influence. I shared how dad was one man -- the missionaries converted one man. But now, he has 8 children, sealed to him and mom in the temple. One of those children is on a mission (me!). Others are baptized. Each of us will have families in the future, bringing dozens more into God's kingdom. Through one man, dozens will have found the gospel -- and that's just within two generations, not counting the influence he has on others! If we work our whole life and only show one person the gospel path, we've succeeded! As the Lord Jesus Christ declared to Joseph Smith, "And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!" (D&C 18:15)

     Let's see, what happened this week... hmm... Oh, well there's one big thing coming up! There's a stake Christmas party coming up, and our zone of missionaries will be participating! A Brother from our ward was put in charge of the party, and since he's so busy, he's asked us for help. He wants the missionaries to sing the Michael Jackson song "Heal the World." He talked to Elder Harline and I, and he wants us to teach everybody how to sing it! We met and talked about it longer, and now our method will be to divide the verses between the missionaries in our zone who sing the best, and then have everybody come in for the chorus. That'll allow us to focus our teaching, and split the zone into two groups -- chorus, and a small group that'll learn the song. I'm one of the 3 Elders that'll be singing in the song. Hopefully we can get some video footage! That's normally way too big for email, but I'll figure something out! That'll happen in about a month's time. I'm pretty excited for it.

     We've been practicing teaching a lot with members this week, and I think the words of our Ward Mission Leader, Bay Pan Bong (배판봉), really sum it up well. We met with him, practiced teaching the 3rd Lesson, and he said this: "You've really progressed a lot in Korean since you've come here." He expressed pride in us, and said that investigators would be able to learn well. I'm glad that we have his trust, and I know that as we become better teachers, the Lord will be able to send more of His children our way. 

     We've been teaching a 61 year old man with English interest named JM S (정민수). He's Christian and has a firm testimony of prayer. He met missionaries when he was in college, decades ago. He knows a lot of the church terms pretty well (in Korea, even words like "Prophet (선지자)" are church specific; other churches use a different word). He's accepted the first lesson, and has agreed to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it's truthfulness. I'm excited for him; we work on translating his Korean poems into English for 30 minutes, then teach the gospel for 30 minutes, as the Family English Program. We're going to start teaching the Plan of Salvation this week, and he's excited for it. He has several questions about his ancestors that we'll be able to answer. 

     Today, we're hosting a Turkey Bowl! Among the missionaries coming is my father, Elder Westbrook, and the rest of the Yeonsu gang! It'll be great to get together, and throw the ol' pigskin around.

Okay, so anybody who knows me probably knows I don't know how to throw a football, or really play football.

Well, I didn't know. I do now! Elder Chow played football throughout high school, so we've been working together to train me! I learned a lot of things during exercise time this week; things like -- how to throw a football*, how to snap a ball, and how to block several different rushes. I'm going to play center! With only 6 days of training, Elder Chow says I'm actually pretty good. I'm excited to play! Thought a lot about Turkey Bowl back home, and I regret not having much of any interest in this before. Sorry, dad! By the way, *! This * is the "Hey, I found out that when I play sports, I'm left-handed. I throw a ball way better when I use my left-hand" *. I'm learning lots of things about myself on the mission! My goal was to be able to throw a football to my dad, Elder Westbrook, and to throw one to my real dad -- after the mission! I'm coming for you! You better be ready!

Determinedly, 

Elder Austin Lynn!

Fall has arrived in Korea!

Weekly Letter 11/2/14

So, last week was our Halloween Family Night! It was a hit.  Each missionary companionship provided an activity. The other Elders made a pinata, and the members had lots of fun hitting that; although they didn't actually break it! They knocked the top off, and Elder C just dumped it out on the floor. Guess it was a little too tough! 

My companion and I brought toilet paper mummies to the table. We had three groups race, and it was tons of fun! I was one of the mummies, then one of the Sister Missionaries was another, and then our Ward Mission Leader was the last one. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of that; hopefully I can get some from the missionary who was taking pictures. 

The Sisters brought an activity where you work together to create monsters -- by drawing. Everybody draws the head on their paper, passes it to the right, draws the torso, passes it, then draws the lower-body. That was fun; it was very calming after the previous two activities. 

The spiritual thought we shared was about light -- spiritual light. We shared one of the Mormon Messages where Elder Bednar talks about receiving revelation. My favorite part is where he talks about two different patterns of revelation. 

The first is comparable to flipping a light switch in a dark room. Instantly, the room is flooded with light. You can see everything. 

The second is comparable to a sun rise, or a foggy morning. Bit by bit our surroundings are illuminated, until we can see in front of ourselves, enough to take a few steps into the fog. After that, we can see a bit more.

He said that he feels the second pattern is far, far more common, and that's how it works for him most of the time. I'd say that's correct!

This week we also had a really significant Zone Conference. The theme was "Living by the Spirit," and it divided into four segments of training: 

- Studying by the Spirit

- Planning by the Spirit

- Finding by the Spirit

- Teaching by the Spirit

I learned a ton and brought home a lot of things to apply, so I'd say it was a huge success. Even crazier though, is that they changed our key indicators (numbers we report each week). Since I came here, we've reported the number of people we've talked to about the gospel each week. That's what all of the missions in Korea do. But, we're changing. This is the last week with conversations as a key indicator. From here on out, we won't be reporting to the mission in that regard. However, we are now instructed to teach a minimum of 10 lessons a week; even if we have to meet with members and practice teaching, which is something we've put a lot of stress on lately. As a mission, we're working really hard to become the best teachers we can be, in Korean and English. This is just part of fulfilling that goal. I'm really excited for this bold new mission -- President Morrise shared his experience in making the choice, and I can say that I believe with all my heart it's the right choice for our mission. The biggest point made for the change is that, as Preach My Gospel said, the reason we talk to people on the street is to find people to teach. Now that we're not -- dare I say it? -- suffering from tunnel vision in the goal of talking to people, I feel that we're a little more focused on what we need to be doing. 

This week we spent the majority of our time searching for Less actives, and it actually paid off! We were able to determine that one address no longer existed (hello, demolition) several others were incorrect, and we were actually able to find one of them, rather miraculously, too. We got directions to one house, but we ended up going down the wrong intersection. We didn't realize it till far later, though. As we walked... and walked... and walked, we found an apartment complex that we recognized from our list of less-actives. We walked over, knocked on a door... and we got to talk to a less-active for a little while! We confirmed her phone number, invited her to come to church, and found out a little about her while sharing a spiritual thought. Unfortunately, she didn't show up. However, we won't give up! We'll definitely visit again this week. 

Here's a funny moment: last week, Elder C

and I got our haircut. This is probably the best one I've received in Korea. Anyways, at church, one of our young men friends commented that I looked like Leonardo DiCaprio! Who would've thunk it? 

By the way, I have been loving Preach My Gospel! I've developed a new study method, and it's doing wonders. I am excited every morning to study it; and I feel like I'm getting more out of it. I wish that I'd figured this out sooner! At least I have it now though. I might need it soon, too. Elder Chow (our most senior missionary, and district leader; he leaves at the end of the month) was talking to me, helping me develop my study method, and he mentioned that I'll need to be ready; he told me that President will be placing a lot of trust in me really soon, and it may be all at once. I won't lie; I think he's right, just because of the type of person he is, his relationship with President, and his knowledge of the mission, but it still feels cryptic, and could mean a lot of different things. Who knows when whatever it is could be. It reminds me of a comment President made in his last response to my weekly email to him: "You are such a lift and a light to me and those around you. We all feel it. Thanks for making such a brilliant effort." Hearing that pleased me so much; it reminded me of the scripture where, after living life righteously and dying, Christ will say these words to us: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant." I'm certain the feeling will be similar, but much greater. But, anyways, my thought is this: I want to be an impact player on the Lord's team, so I need to be the best I can be, as quickly as I can, and always be ready for whatever He requires of me. So, that's my goal! The picture I've attached is a sample from my Preach My Gospel. You should see Chapter 3 -- it's got lesson plans taped everywhere!

To wrap up this letter, I'll mention something funny from church yesterday. Our Ward Mission Leader's wife has been sick for a few weeks, but finally came out to church yesterday. When she saw me, she said the very same thing she's said every week at Family Home Evening -- "Wow, Elder Lynn, you've lost weight! Your face has slimmed down!"

And, yeah, I kind of like that; people like to hear they've lost weight, and I still am.The funniest part, was what she did new. Normally she'll move her hands down he face, symbolizing slimming *and is actually the only reason I understood her the first few times* but today she moved her hands down from face to waist! Guess she thinks I look a whooooooole lot slimmer! 

Yours slimly,

Elder Austin Lynn

10/26/2014 Weekly Letter

First off, a miracle! As I was sitting here, not 20 seconds ago, I received a phone call! It was a man we talked to in Masong (마송) last week, and he just called us back! Call backs are so rare, this is definitely a miracle! We're meeting him tomorrow evening! Fingers crossed.
This week we went streetboarding again (it's become a tradition to go once during the week, and again after Church on Sunday) and we killed it on Sunday! We talked to a ton of people, and taught 5 street lessons! Using the streetboard as a lead in, we were able to really quickly start talking about the Plan of Salvation, covering subjects such as our true identity as children of God, our purpose in life, and how to find peace and happiness. It was surreal! It made me think of old-fashioned "preaching" like they talk about in church history. I was standing there in front of small semi-circles of people, legitimately preaching the Plan of Salvation, bearing testimony and teaching true doctrine. It was such a good experience.
Here's a moment from gospel principles class: Our ward mission leader was teaching the chapter "Honesty." As he wrapped up the lesson, he started making a bunch of short summarizing statements, such as "Honesty is obeying God's commandments. Honesty is sharing the gospel. Honesty is knowing we're a child of God." He was throwing out a bunch of these really quickly, and it became obvious he was building up to something. His crowning statement was to write a sentence on the word, as he looked at each of the missionaries in the room, and stated: "Honesty = missionaries." That made me feel really good!
Tonight's our Halloween/culture Family Home Evening. It ought to be fun! There'll be pictures and a report next week, so be on the lookout!
In other news, we had a zone meeting this week, about learning the language. We divided into groups by mission age, and talked about things that were difficult, and ways to overcome them. The group I was in -- the middle of the 3 groups -- discussed this, and I felt the most significant thing was confidence. As I've been studying Chapter 6 of Preach My Gospel this week (Christlike Attributes) I really noticed how vital confidence is, in the gospel. Faith in Jesus Christ requires confidence. Hope requires confidence. Humility requires confidence. Confidence is so intertwined with what we're striving to do and become. If we want to become able speakers, of both the language of the Spirit and in Korean, we need more confidence. Confidence in the gift of tongues, confidence in our potential as God's children, confidence in our call to Korea, which was given by God's prophet, and presumes our ability to learn this language, and most of all, confidence in the enabling power of Jesus Christ's atonement, which, as Ether 12:27 explains, can help us overcome anything:
"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them."
Confidence in Christ is "hope for a better world," an "anchor to the soul," a bright hope of a brighter dawn, a more noble morning, an eventual "all is well," the triumph of good over evil, and the making right of every wrong we suffer in this life. Confidence is not a sin - that's pride. Self-deprecation is not humility - that's reliance on Christ and His grace.
How do we accept Christ's grace? We follow Him. As 2 Nephi 31 says, we have faith in Him, then we "follow Christ" into the waters of baptism, we follow His example to us, by keeping the commandments of God. We endure to the end, and we do all we can to become like Christ. This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ: Faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. We show the fruits of our repentance through baptism, which is completed with the gift of the Holy Ghost. The Gift of the Holy Ghost helps us endure to the end, which includes constantly strengthening our faith and repenting. This gospel is a program to perfect us, to bring us joy, and to follow in Christ's footprints -- which we will discover lead us right back to our Heavenly Father. He is our exemplar, our brother, and savior; He loves us, knows us, and suffers with us. I testify that I know He lives, and I know He loves us. I've felt His love in the moments when things got their hardest, moments when it looked like there was no light at the end of the tunnel, no morning to end the night. I am forever grateful for His sacrifice, through which I can overcome my own shortcomings and return to my God, Heavenly Father, full of joy and love.

Faithfully,
Elder Austin Lynn

pics

 Austin with his first companion...Elder Westbrook!! 

There was a fair by our house, with all sorts of booths set up from different schools. This cotton candy was less than two dollars! 

 Gorgeous landscape in Korea...with a handsome Missionary too!!

This is my missionary family! There's me, my father (Elder Westbrook) and my two little brothers!