Good Week, no Christmas packages

This is my letter to Kaicho this week:

Dear Kaicho,

Thank you for mensetsus! Good training, and all. Thank you.

The first things that I am to report to you on are: my responsibilities to represent the Lord in our area, and to obtain His direction in carrying out my assignments and blessing the people here.
I am doing my best to fill this responsibility. I really felt that I was filling it this past week as I was able to preform a baptism, stand in for two confirmations, and give a healing priesthood blessing. I felt that the Lord put us in His hand and led us to where to go. I felt so at the baptism, and again as we visited a recent convert`s home where we met (without meaning to) the bishop and where able to give that priesthood blessing.
I also felt that way as we did finding activities this week and as we studied and planned together. I also felt it at training during mensetsu`s. I have hope that as we continue, we will continue to be guided by the Spirit in doing what the Savior would do if He were with us.

The next things to report are the status of the work and my personal progress.
The work is good. In many cases I think our miracles have been named "potential investigators" in stead of "new investigators", so it has made me think more about my responsibility to follow up with the things that I do have. I need to follow up better on potential investigators.
I am doing well.

My companion is awesome. I could not have asked for better.
We are doing good finding. Need to work on giving BOM and BI.
training is moving along.

Thank you for all you do!
Working hard and keeping the rules,
Much love, Elder Bevan

This week really was great. "Mensetsus" means "Interviews". Those were yesterday.

This is the recent convert we were able to bless. We ate a "banpaiyu" together. It is a giant citrus. It is way good. :)

This is Brother Akiyama and the sister who introduced him to the church. Sister Kametani.

It was a great week and I feel very blessed. 

I know that this is the church of God, with His priesthood. I know that it is led by revelation.I know that the Savior paid for our mistakes. I know that through Him we can be made strong. I know that the Book of Mormon is true by the power of the Holy Ghost.

I love this work.

Love to all, 

Elder Bevan

The packages didn't come to the house at all, they would have left a package slip if they did. thanks

New Missionary!

Hey, I got a new missionary again! His name is Elder Pettit (pet-it). He is from California, and is the oldest of five boys. He played football, did wrestling, and threw shot-put and discus. He is clean and neat. Is an Eagle Scout. He is pretty fun. And I am way lucky to have him.

One of his first experiences in Japan with the culture was a Mochi tsuki! where we make Mochi!

We make Mochi by taking Mochi rice(alreadycooked) and dumping it into a stone bowl. And then smashing it together with giant wooden mallets. when it is just one giant lump of gooey white dough, we cut it up into small balls and roll it in powder to keep it from sticking to anything. 

This was probalbly one of my favorite experiences with Japanese culture so far. It was so fun! and way delicious You eat mochi in soup, and with sugar and soybean flour, or you can eat it with daicon and tsuyu mix. You can put sweet bean paste into the balls too, and I think that they even had chocolate if you wanted it. I didn't know that I liked it so much, but I think that it might have become one of my favorite foods this Saturday. It also turns out that chopping wood gives you what you need to be a good mochi maker... that was cool too.

Here is  a picture.

I love Japan! and I love the people more. I love to talk with them and to work with them.

 I love the gospel of Jesus Christ and the peace that it affords me. I love to work in this work. I would not give up my hold on the blessings of the gospel for anything.

In other News Akiyama Kyodai passed his baptismal interview. He is so ready! We are so excited for him. I really think that he will go far. I love him a lot.

Much love,

Working hard and keeping the rules,

Elder Bevan

Bakari

P-day at Kumamoto Jo

Elder Hunter

a comp switch in the city of yatsushiro

with elder bowler in yatsushiro

this is the sisters recent convert that I was privlidged to baptize, her name is Sarina

this is elder hunter and I just before he left... i`ll find out who my new companion is today

Last night went to  a band preformance

Sorry that is all I have time for now. More next week.

they won first place nation wide this last year... it was awesome!!!

New Years!

Happy new years everyone!

The Japanese love new years! Everyone (mostly everyone, I guess) goes home to be with family. Before the new year everyone cleans like crazy (to get the old year out), and then at the new year they all stay together and eat with each other. It lasts until the third. Our ward is Awesome and set up meals for the whole time for the missionaries.

This is the Hirata Family, new years eve.

N

This is our Dendo Shunin (ward mission leader) brother Sato., who set this all up fr us. We ate at an all you can eat place with yakinike, sushi, and other great stuff. We all ate too much I think :).

This is the Nakagawa family. (we took this picture with my camera on a pole :).

This is the Bishop and his wife. The Miyase family. Also the sisters, and Yuji, our investigator. When I first got here I thought that she was a young woman and he was in his twenties. It took a while to figure out they they were married. He is thirty seven, by the way. 

This was dinner with the Usui and Okamoto families.  It was way fun, they are from both Nagamine and Kumamoto wards, so all the missionaries where there. It was so good to be with a family like ours. The boys would not stop wrestling all night. and I felt right in place :).

That`s my goofy companion!

Oh, yeah. We ate Basashi here. That is Kumamoto`s specialty food. Raw horse meat.

Anyways, I have resolved to be more perfectly obedient. I have set myself to do better in all that I do. I love the new year because I love change for the good. I love it! I guess that just means really; I love repentance! I love doing better than I have done. I love to become better. I have so many ways that I must improve in order to really fulfill my purpose and my duty as a priesthood holder, but I know that God will help me to do that. I am so thankful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ, which allows us to change and improve. I cannot even begin to understand, I know, what that sacrifice has done, and is doing, and will do for me. But I can feel it just a little bit, and it is more sweet than anything else I have ever felt. 

i love this church and this work. 

With love, Elder Bevan