Mission of the Rising Sun: Y.O.S.O. (You Only Serve Once)

This week has been all over the place. Stress, cool appointments, problems to face, meeting bros on the street, leaving the area, racing around to hunt for less active's, and comeback Sundays where your stats random,y go through the roof when the last week was abnormally low. Just normal missionary life. I really wish I could experience this a little bit more besides the time I have left out here. You only serve once. No second chances, no extensions, no callbacks. Once it is over, it is gone for ever. I am sad that is coming up soon. I am really glad for the time I have left and the time I had this week as well. Nothing out of the extraordinary, just tender mercies flying about as we try our best and sometimes trip up. The mission man. If you aren't out, I recommend you go.

Monday after Pday we visited a less active as we went to go find my camera that I lost which we found by the way. Tuesday and Wednesday we went around visiting people that weren't home. Thursday was an exchange that was way fun! We were talking to so many good people that we had no time to make it to the people that we wanted to visit. But, we found some people with good potential and then later invited their investigator to baptism which he kind of said yes. It is hard to explain but it is always fun to invite because you never know what to expect. Friday was District Meeting and Saturday we went to a city higher up in our area and talked to a lot of people and one old guy had a ten second memory and we talked about the same thing with him for ten minutes. He was hard to leave because we would say we had to go but then he would forget that we would have to go. Haha. Sunday we talked to a cool guy riding a bike wearing sunglasses and holding an ice cream cone in his hand. He believed in God, wanted to hear more, and was done to meet so we will eat out with him this week! We have WAY too many meal appointments set up because I want to eat all the good Japanese food. I hope I don't get fat at all. #morningexercise

I have been thinking a lot about the joy of sharing the gospel. I have been thinking of how I can measure my overall success as a missionary now as I get closer to the end. Obviously there can be no numbers counted up or a way to know how many people you have actually changed but the only thing I can measure is my own progress. I still have faults, I still joke around a little too much sometimes, I still let my weaknesses get to me but serving others has really changed a lot of my priorities I feel like. I can confidentially feel like I have been able to be successful because I have changed and improved. I am really sad at this time as I think about leaving soon but I also feel peace that so far I have been able to serve the Lord to the best of my ability. I heard once that you have an eternity to prepare for your mission and an eternity to look back on your mission but that you only have two years to live it and love it. Hopefully I can live this next upcoming week in order to look back on my mission and be pleased with my two years service. I guess we will see what happens. I will email you all again next week and I love you all! Enjoy the increasingly hot May weather!

Elder Hall

ホール長老

Ponderize Scripture

"And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth! Wherefore, you are called to cry repentance unto this people. 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 18:13-15

Monday Flashback

"I don`t think most missionaries get to see the full fruits of their labors and I don`t think most people see the effect of their good deeds and actions. Something as little as picking trash up on the side of a street or smiling to someone can change a lot. So I guess the lesson is to just keep on pushing, keep doing your best. You may never see just what comes of your good actions but trust me, someone else will always be blessed as we do our best by living and sharing the Gospel of Christ. I`ve been able to see just a glimpse of the results of my actions and I am excited to help out more and improve people`s lives once again in Numazu."

- "The Return of the Bean" 5/22/15