Miracles!

Hey Beautiful Family! 

I have been thinking about "time" this morning as I sat on this little library computer, and had a few minutes to reflect--and I am so grateful. I love my Heavenly Father. I feel like every so often that there is a culmination of experience in which, Heavenly Father shows you how He has indeed been tutoring you (in ways perhaps so small that we aren't refined enough to notice) and then there is a spiritual culmination, a gift! In the troughs of experience we must never look at the pinnacle and say we are not there, when the line of our experience is an ascension. (That was a lot of big words!) Anyway, things are great. I love life!

This week we have had so many miracles. When I first transferred, the ward in Niihama was doing a fast to find Priesthood holders. There wasn't a dramatic increase during my first weeks here, but this week, we have found two men who will become investigators! There were 7 people at Church, and the ward was just abuzz with the feeling and joy of the work and the result that they knew would come from faith. It's been wonderful! We are finding a lot of really great new people recently.  For example, as we were talking with a mom yesterday, she asked if her house would be ok for such an important message. It was such a natural contact and we get to share the Gospel with her this week!! Things really have just been getting big, we have just been running around and teaching so much - lately it just feels busy. This must be what the busy-ness of the last days feels like! 

I will share one more cool miracle with you! So, this week, we were walking to an appointment to meet one of the men we found housing, and someone called out after us. It was the man who had helped us with Owens Shimai's bike when she got a flat tire in the middle of nowhere when we were far out in our area! At that time, he hadn't had interest, but was nice. We invited him to come hear us sing at Church, and he came!! We were able to get contact information and will move forward this week! We also got to testify to a volunteer English group we go to every once in a while, and one of the sweet members wanted a Book of Mormon! I offered to give it, and she raised her hand, it was so cute and such a powerful teaching time. I love teaching the Gospel! Also teaching another new cute mom! So fun.

The Lord is prospering Niihama. I love the Gospel. Isn't it amazing how everything relates to the gospel?! This is truly the best experience Heavenly Father could have given us - life on earth and a way to return to Him through His Son, Jesus Christ. 

I love you all, and pray for you!

See you next week!

Sister Anderson

PS Congrats to all the nieces and nephews on end-of-the-year awards and honors! You are inspiring! Way to go Mook on taking state in the 4x400 relay!  So great!

PPS Wow!  Jeni Bowman is married!  Thanks for the pic - she is beautiful!

PPPS  Thanks for sending the picture of Sister Monson's funeral.  She will be missed.

Note from Sister Jen's mom:

She will be returning home from Japan 

Wednesday, June 5th!

She will be speaking in Sacrament meeting on June 30th at 9 am.  

The ward building address is 14400 South Redwood Road, Bluffdale.

Here are a few pics of the last group of missionaries to leave her mission, 

including her cousin. Soon, these pictures will be of her!!! 

We are so grateful to her beloved mission president and his sweet wife!

 And the huge group of missionaries who came! 

The missionary count in her mission will most likely double!  

So great!!!

From Sister Zinke:

...we welcomed twenty new energetic missionaries from the Missionary Training Center.  What a crazy week it was...but what fun!  Fourteen of them come to us from right here in Japan, three are from Australia and three Americans.  We are thrilled with our new missionaries!

How great is our calling!!!

 My Sweet Family!!

 

We are at the internet cafe again because it is another HOLIDAY in Japan! In fact, yesterday there was this moving float with all of these kids running around it in matching clothes and there were drums being played, out of nowhere...so colorful!  People stopped, traffic stopped, and everyone else on the street was really quiet and acted like it wasn't a really big thing... we were wondering what was happening. And then the next road, there was another one--this one pink! It was probably for "Kids Day" yesterday. It's an actual holiday in Japan! Who knew, right? Will hopefully send pics next week, these internet cafe computers sometimes eat SD cards!

  

And...you guessed it, I am low on time today--but I am so grateful to be a missionary! It's been crazy with things "winding down." But our work is winding up and we are so focused on finding people ready to make commitments in the Gospel. It's been an awesome week. We've had so many neat opportunities! We met some former investigators this past week, and some are looking good to investigate again. We had a contact yesterday while  we were housing and no one was listening...and we met this woman who didn't believe in God. She told us her life story and the Spirit just testified to me (as I testified to her) of the Restoration and the Plan of Salvation. In her story, at the hardest time in her life, no one would give her a hug or a handshake which is what she really needed. So, at the end of talking with her, I asked if I could hug her. She just stood there, and then said, "I'm embarrassed!" But she hugged both of us and told us good luck in everything. I looked into her eyes as we talked and could feel the Spirit touching her heart, her face softening and eyes glowing as the Spirit touched her. There are moments like that when people are prepared only to listen and not to "hear," but it was good. I love this work. I love just having the chance to give the people we talk to a chance to hear what we have to say. 

Tomorrow we have our last Zone Taikai, and I will give my "last remarks."  This is what has been on my mind: that it is an incredible opportunity to serve. That it is such a privilege to be a missionary. That it is a joy to let His children choose!  We grieve when they don't listen, but our calling is to invite. HOW GREAT IS OUR CALLING! My mission means so much to me. It is sacred ground where I have come to know Heavenly Father and to act everyday on the Atonement my Savior performed. It is a miracle. :)

 

Next week - Mother's Day!!! Call Japan time 9:30-10:30 (or 10 to 11 if it is easier). Let's talk, call me! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!  :)

 

I love you all, little schnookums. I hope you have a great day. The work is true!

 

Love from the other side of the world from where I was raised,

Sister Anderson

Note:

Our sweet missionary will be arriving home from Japan on Wednesday, June 5th!

She will be speaking in Sacrament meeting on June 30th at 9 am.  

The ward building address is 14400 South Redwood Road, Bluffdale.

Thanks for your continual love and support!

Tango no Sekku 

The day was originally called Tango no Sekku (端午の節句^?), and was celebrated on the 5th day of the 5th moon in the lunar calendar or Chinese calendar. After Japan's switch to the Gregorian calendar, the date was moved to May 5. It was originally for boys but has since been changed to include both boys and girls.

Sekku means a season's festival (there are five sekku per year). Tango no Sekku marks the beginning of summer or the rainy season. Tan means "edge" or "first" and go means "noon".

Children are stars. Fish fly. Schools have the day off.

Every May 5, it is Kodomo no Hi or "Children’s Day" in Japan. Families fly koinobori banners in the shape of a carp (a type of fish) for each child in their house. In Japanese folklore, the carp is a symbol of determination and vigor, overcoming all obstacles to swim upstream. Samurai warrior figurines and samurai kabuto helmets are also displayed in homes to inspire strength and bravery.

Children indulge in kashiwa-mochi, sticky rice cakes wrapped in oak leaves, and other sweets. Around the country there are many events for children and families. Children take center stage in traditional Japanese plays. Thousands of children compete in the "Kids' Olympics" held at the National Kasumigaoka Stadium in Tokyo. Children also use the day to thank and show respect for the teachers, parents, and relatives who care for them.

Until 1948, May 5 was called Tango no sekku and only honored boys. A separate holiday called Hinamatsuri or "Dolls' Day" celebrated girls on March 3. Even now, on this day girls still receive dolls that had been passed down to their grandmothers and mothers. For many families, May 5 still centers on boys. Some people say that Hinamatsuri for girls should become an equal holiday instead of combining them into one. How about you? Would you want a holiday for all kids, or one for boys and another for girls?

http://kids.asiasociety.org/explore/childrens-day-japan-kodomo-no-hi

http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/childrens_day_japan.htm

 

Happy talks and finding flocks!

Dearest Family,

Wow!! Another week. This week our sweet investigator Yuushi Kun will move away from our area. We will refer him to the Elders where he will be. We had one of the best lessons I may have had on my mission. It felt like EFY or something again. Yes! We got to talk about how Heavenly Father knows him. His mom is a member, and asked him to listen to the lessons. He said that he didn't believe in God. I was prompted that day to share a scripture from the Bible (Jeremiah 1:5) about God knowing us before we were born. Usually I don't cry a lot in lessons. It has been so incredible to teach along with his mom. I feel like I just get to be a fly on the wall that is somehow needed because I am a missionary now, on the wall of their eternal family. We have had chances where I really felt like I was just emphasizing the teachings of his mom. Seeing her testify to him and the love she has for her son, is amazing. His mom and I both cried. After, as everyone ate at the little farewell lunch for her, we stood up to say things we love about her. I am amazed at the love that comes for people as you teach. It is Heavenly Father's love, and He gives us a part so that we can teach with power of His love. I have never felt so strongly how I should have taught about Him my whole mission. I feel like I need to repent all of the time! I was so grateful. We couldn't have tied it better with a bow, it was beautiful with his mom's testimony, and testifying about the Restoration and relating it to Yuushi. The Spirit is an amazing teacher. My companion shared the First Vision and her testimony, and we talked about how the first word that Heavenly Father said in this restoration was a young boy's name. I kept asking him what he thought, and he would say, "sugoi." (great), or that he hadn't thought about it, or something like that. And he'd think, and feel. It was really hard to say good-bye to them, but I got her address so we can write--I can't wait until he is baptized!

My beloved friend, Yuushi Kun's mom, Takita Shimai!

 Yuushi Kun and his missionaries...

The Church is true! We have been running with our neighbor in the mornings who is investigating, it has been fun. I love training. My cute companion, after we contacted one of our first doors this week--it was a family whose response was kind of so-so, and she looked at me with these huge sparkling eyes and smile and said, "That's the family I'm going to baptize!!!!!!!" (probably with her hands clasped). I was like, yeah! We need to all have that faith. We are heading to Kobe for trainer/trainee training again today! 

Note: there has been a change in email policy so we can communicate with friends,  Priesthood leaders, and extended family via email from now! Yeah! :)

I love my Savior. I know Heavenly Father has direct, personal love for us, and is waiting to help us. We are so blessed to have the Restored Gospel this week. I love the Resurrection. He really is the truth, the way, and the life. What a blessing! What a blessing to testify of Him. He truly was the Man of men, and yet the Savior of our souls. I am so grateful for my Savior. This IS our message, and it is a miracle.

We had an incredible "finding" miracle this week. We got on the train and we were sitting by this mom and her two kids. They gave us some candy, we gave them some stickers. She had her iPod on so we didn't get to talk a lot, but I gave her a pass-along card. We got to our lesson 30 minutes early, and decided to pray and house even though we only had a little time. We's walked over close to our investigator's house, and then we saw a big white apartment a ways away which we decided to go to. We walked for maybe 10 minutes and found it. We didn't have very much time, so we prayed to see what floor we should go to. The first door we knocked on, this mom poked out her head and said, "Oh, I just met you on the train!" We were shocked and shared some of the experience with her, it just tumbled out, that we had a tiny bit of time before our appointment and felt we should go there. She asked if our talk was a "happy talk," and we said "YES!" She accepted an appointment to meet with us this week. Isn't the Lord amazing? It was neat because it was one of those things that we KNEW wasn't us. Seeing the Lord's POWER in missionary work is incredible!!

The Lord's work is heralded by miracles. How fun for everyone at home to get to just study lds.org and the Gospel any time you would like!! I love it! Have so much fun learning of His kingdom. Heavenly Father wants us to be happy, and rejoice for  the Savior will come again!

Happy birthday to everyone who celebrates in March!!! Way to go on the musicals, the competitions, and all the other fun things you are doing. I love you!

Sister Anderson 


Sometimes... they put curry in bread in Japan!  They have a lot of fun and different, varied breads. Yum, yum, yum!

A Guest at His Feast, a privilege to proclaim His birth!

Dear Fam,

Thank you SO MUCH for all of the birthday wishes! I can't believe it's this week! ha ha. Things come so quick these days! You are all so sweet to think of me and send all those THOUGHTFUL greetings - you made my day and my birthday week!  You are the greatest!!! Thanks for all the updates on the happenings in your lives...from "Back to Bethlehem" breakfasts to ball games...and even a new driver's licence (what...Mook? ahhhhhhh!) to church service and travels, parenting and grand-parenting, school stuff, birthday celebrations, competitions and concerts, cute things the little ones say...and everything in between! I LOVE LOVE LOVE to hear from my loved ones!  Happy birthday to all of you who celebrate your birthdays with me in December! And...Merry Christmas month!

What a week! Time is flying, I can't believe it's preparation day again. I feel like I turn around and here we are again, planning for another week, or here we are again at the computers. Life is so wonderful. The weather in Japan hasn't been too cold, only sometimes (like this picture that my comp took of me this morning... when we were pretty much out of everything but salad and ramen and the weather was a little... chilly... ha ha) I love Japan!

Yes, we are gearing up for winter around here!

On top of that, today I polished my shoes, (do you think they needed some attention?)

and now they look like they've only been out three months. I was so happy!!

My time, as the mission has gone on, has become more and more devoted to how I can help my investigators understand a certain principle, how I can teach, how I can organize my visuals, etc. Love it! It is so wonderful. I love this work with all my heart. 

This week Yamashita Chorro will come to our mission! (And I turn 22, which means in 3 years I will be 25... which sounds so old for me to be! Ha ha. I can't believe how quickly time goes. My life has become all of those feelings I felt at Christmas each year, the constant, warm soft joy—it is the Holy Ghost who takes care of us, and I love Him! It has been so fun throughout my mission to feel even closer to Heavenly Father, to learn how we can access that power depending simply on what we choose, especially to do with our time. Isn't the Gospel plan amazing?) I love you dear fam. I just want to give a shout out to all of you who have put up with me so long. It has been so delightful. The cache of my memory bank is so full of wonderful YOU, and I love this earthly experience. I am just so grateful that I get to spend it with you...and eternity, too!!! :)

I had an experience feeling the JOY of missionary work all over again this week. It is so amazing to feel like you need to go house in an area, to house for so long, and find who you are looking for. We found this young grandma who said, “I want to hear your message! I want to hear your message! That's what you came here to share, right? I believe we are all children of God and God loves us. I am not really Buddhist or Christian, but I think that Japan is God's country too...” and on it goes. I was so touched and humbled after our short interchange that as I rode my bike back to our apartment, the joy swelled up inside of me and I just laughed the whole way home, rejoicing in the glory of the work with Heavenly Father. Even now, tears fill my eyes. We truly have the most precious message in all the world. 

Today we get to start teaching Yuki San's boys, we are so excited. The Lord has helped me so much over my whole mission to find fun ways and simple ways “wakariyasui” (easy to understand) ways to teach. I am so grateful for every investigator, every day that has added to the preparation for today. And just imagine what the future will be like if "what a past" led to the here and now! I love it and I love you.

There are so many little miracles every day, answers to prayers, being led by the Spirit, having the chance to be obedient, laughing with your zone and learning so much. I love swimming in this, an Elder in my district calls it “spirit juice”... so we say that a lot now. I love Spirit juice!!
Our district didn't change with transfers (I don't know if I told you!) and I just love it because our district is so close, they are like our brothers. It is so fun. The work is just FUN right now. 

President is encouraging another type of dendo style where you just tell people you are a missionary for Jesus Christ's Church and that we'd like to share a message with them next week for 20 minutes about God. It has been pretty incredible. I realized again this week, thinking back, that I know this work is not about me. I rejoice in these opportunities, just to be a part of it. I love investing myself, I love hard work and dedication! I can't imagine how joyous Heavenly Father must be, how perfect the Savior must be, what examples they are to us in ALL of these areas—perfect! With the beautiful promise that as we trust them, they will sculpt us into magnificent castles. What a blessed life this is. I can't express my love for Jesus Christ, my Savior, for my loving Heavenly Father. I just want to testify wherever I can. I can't believe how blessed I am to be in this work. Today I am working on organizing my teaching materials, and I am so excited! Heavenly Father helps us so much, and is always helping me change and hone to help these people with whatever individual gifts we have. Isn't that amazing! The Lord loves us enough to let us, our beautiful individual selves, help others and interact with them—but that will never be enough. It is us coupled with HIS power, with complete dependence on the Lord. I am so grateful that I have knowledge of Him. I am so happy and joyous that I get to be part of His work.

You are beautiful, all of you! We had a miracle this week where one of our sweet investigators (Ushiroda Shimai) who has been doing a lot of thinking, called us and said, "I will be baptized!" Our days are filled with such wonder, because it is His work. I testify it's true.

I love you now and forever, because Jesus Christ came to die for us so we could live in Him. What a privilege. What a life.

I love you!

Love,
Sister Anderson who is eating beans in bread... they love that in Japan, and it definitely has grown on me.  haha! Beans!

breath-taking sunset in my beloved Japan!

Note from Sister Jen's mom:
She is so excited to have Elder Yamashita come to her mission and there is no question why!

Click here to read ELDER KAZUHIKO YAMASHITA's conference address from October 2011 (Ensign November 2011)


Treasure of the Church

Quote from his talk:
"I would now like to say a few words to the missionaries currently serving missions around the world. Your attitudes and the love that you show toward others are very significant messages. Even though I didn’t immediately grasp all the doctrines that the missionaries taught me, I felt of their great love, and their many acts of kindness taught me important lessons. Your message is a message of love, a message of hope, and a message of faith. Your attitude and your actions invite the Spirit, and the Spirit enables us to understand the things that are important. What I want to convey to you is that through your love, you are imparting the love of God. You are a treasure of this Church. I am so very thankful to all of you for your sacrifice and your dedication."

Missionary cousins!!!

Sister Anderson and Elder Lythgoe - the cousins finally meet!

Dear Fam,

Wow, it sounds like things have been fun at home! Thanks so much for the updates and notes, everyone! I love you so much. What amazing mothers and fathers you are in Zion, what amazing missionaries you are wherever you are. Thank you for your examples and your love!

This week has been pretty amazing. We got to go up to Okayama for interviews and I met my cousin Elder Lythgoe for the first time on our missions!! As requested from his father, I gave him a hug... written on stationary! ha ha! He is my Zone Leader, isn't that crazy? He is amazing! Like i said before - he is legendary in Takamatsu! :)

We have seen miracles and the work moving forward before our eyes. Our sweet investigator is doing well, her family is not excited about the idea of the Church, but I know the Lord knows her enough to strengthen her, and provide a way. Apart from that, we rode out to this area in the rain... it was so funny because it is about an hour bike ride and it was raining hard. We packed a lunch and found a hidden back road to sit in our raincoats, eating cold rice in the rain... but the Lord led us to two families. We taught them both on Saturday and we are meeting with one again today. It was pretty amazing, let me tell you about one of the experiences.

We met this beautiful family, the little girl came to the door and went to get her mom. When her Mom came to the door, we quickly found out she was deaf. This beaming, bright woman with her little girl translating between us, invited us in. The Spirit was so strong in that room. She had met missionaries before a long time ago, and they were so kind to her. (That is such a compliment to all of the wonderful missionaries wondering about people they didn't see entering the waters. You planted so many seeds!) We knew a member in the ward who knows sign language, and my companion had the thought we needed to ask her to come to our next appointment. Four doors down, we knocked on this door and... the member came to the door! She lived right by both of these beautiful families, and speaks Japanese sign language. We met the father on Saturday, he is deaf too, and they are both so pure. The whole family is just beautiful. I've never known love like I feel for our investigators. I've never felt a love so directly associated with salvation. The other family has three boys and let us in, and said we could come back. I am overwhelmed at the mercy of the Lord. Just think of it, two gaijin girls running around in Japan, speaking a foreign language and in a strange (to us) culture, and the Lord working miracles through us. Someone asked us why Joseph Smith, why so young, etc. I feel just like that sometimes, asked to do something bigger than me, and I relate with Him so well--even though His feelings must have been so much deeper! I know that man was a prophet of God, and restored the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is His work, my sweet family. He is working miracles in the vineyard. Lately I've been thinking a lot about relying on the Spirit. It is just beginning to sink into my heart, to have that penetrate so deep--I am starting not to fear. I am starting to realize the majesty, even if just a little bit, the competence of my Maker. This is the greatest work in the world. He lives, we must share it for the world to know.

We had another miracle with the woman we couldn't find (at first) who been on an old PI list from years ago. We tried and tried to find her, couldn't find the house, and decided to knock on the doors of one little complex randomly before we went home. The second door we knocked on was this family. We felt guided and kept returning, always at the door, gave them the Book of Mormon another time... last week we went and the husband said he hadn't really looked into it, to come back in a week. We came back and he had studied and researched on the net all about the Church. He knew about temples and where they were, and had some wrong information too... (it made me happy for what "More Good" is doing! Getting wonderful things, true things, on the internet!)... so we passed him the right information on our websites, I AM SO HAPPY AND GRATEFUL THAT mormon.org BECAME AVAILABLE IN JAPANESE JUST LAST WEEK! Pretty amazing. He says he will study one more time. I know that we are led to those the Lord wants us to talk to. I know He knows His sheep. I know that we did what we were supposed to. It is so amazing to feel the influence and confidence that comes with the Spirit, so you can testify in a way to help our brothers and sisters return to God. Wow, I love the work. He said he'd studied as hard as he could because we'd worked as hard as we could. It is so humbling just to get to be part of the work in these latter days. We have divine gifts, divine help.

Another one of our investigators came at the end of Church even though he was sick, and we were able to teach him. The work is pretty amazing. I know that I need a lot of polishing, but my "confidence is waxing strong in the presence of God." He knows His sheep. We have been led to areas where we were supposed to be through prayer--beautiful, simple things the Lord has given us that WORK. I know that His work is real. 

I love you Fam! I was studying this week and delighting in the Gospel. It is SO WONDERFUL. I promise, no matter how many times you have read the Book of Mormon, you will learn more if you read it again. That book contains what it is necessary to gain salvation. as the prophets  have promised. this is the most exciting time to be a member of the Church in all the history of the world--it is! What a blessing we have. I love this work, I love you. Thank you for all of your love, prayers, and support.  

"Shall we not go on in so great a cause?"

Love always,
Sister Anderson

Guess whose door we found??????

Note from Sister Jen's mom:
To learn more about the More Good Foundation referenced in this letter (and to see Sister Jen and her parents in the TEAM PICTURE in the header) click this link:

http://www.moregoodfoundation.org/

The field is white!

My Dearest Family,

I just want to start out by testifying that I know this work is true.
I know that it is true in so many ways, I can't number them. Something
from the daily living, those little, consistent choices, something so
deep that only those little choices can drill into the very
fiber of your bones--your spiritual bones, so deep it almost hurts - but
it's good, with your whole frame you know it's true!

We had an amazing experience this week, but before that... wasn't
Conference awesome!!  I was just so amazed at the glory of God 
at that Conference. Missionaries get to go earlier!!!! Wow - just wow!
That truly will go down in history and change so many things! The Lord 
is gathering His sheep ever faster, and because that He has saved 
those who can be ready to come join the ranks, to fight for the right on
the front lines... it is incredible. 
I am so excited!!! If they only knew what awaits them! Angels build us up
and walk with us, preparing the way (Alma 13:24). I've never been so 
changed in my life. I have hard the hardest times on my mission and the 
deepest joy.
in all--the Lord forges our character on our missions. He knows exactly 
what we need. I would echo those who have taught us that that every 
worthy young man should serve a mission. I would echo and invite the 
wonderful young women who desire to go. The field is white. It is prepared. 
The Lord WILL gather His sheep, we get to help in preparing for the Savior. 
Sweet friends and family, prepare and GO!  I loved Elder Holland's guided 
study of that passage--reminding us of our own priorities. I rejoiced in Elder 
Eyring's talk. I am amazed at the grandeur of Conference. I loved every talk 
I heard!!! Has it always been like this? Has it always been this magnificent? 
I love having my eyes opened a little bit to my own unknowing-ness. This is 
His Church, led by His Apostles with authority from Jesus Christ.  loved seeing 
the sweet apostles and prophets, and something changed even a little bit more for
me this Conference. I realized I am gaining an appreciation for living the 
gospel through experiences here. Its amazing! I had been studying about 
prophets and apostles right before Conference, and I received a witness 
again that these are men of God with the authority on earth that binds us
to heaven. We would be lost without the Priesthood. We would be in 
darkness without these men, a clear beacon asking us so intently to come 
unto Christ and participate actively in His Gospel. These men are men called 
and placed on the earth for the "salvation of [God's] children." Do we
know what we have? I love those sweet reminders. It is true. Those
sweet men, so humble and magnificent, are the representatives of God
chosen to be on earth to testify of Jesus Christ at this time. I
sustain President Thomas S. Monson with all of my heart. I know that
man is a prophet of God. I guess I am learning more and more what that
means for us on earth. What a man, what a legacy, what a joy that the
Gospel is restored. This truly is the greatest message every shared!

So...our amazing experience this week. We had been fasting last week
and found a woman who wanted to hear. We went to her house this week
and she wasn't home. We housed a little bit around her house, and were
preparing to go when we "decided" to ring her doorbell one more time.
She came to the door and invited us in. She is SO PREPARED. I feel so
blessed to have an investigator! We said the opening prayer and opened
our eyes, and she was crying. She said she likes to come to church and
came to two sessions of General Conference. She is the mother of 3
boys, and we got to teach her about God's love on Sunday, so much like
the love she has for her boy from whom she is separated. I began to
cry when I talked of my mom, and how much I love her and how hard it
is to be away. She cried with me. I got to tell her that Heavenly
Father's love is even greater. It is such a privilege to be a gospel
teacher in the gathering of Israel. I love the land of Japan. I love
these sweet people. I know that Jesus Christ loves these sweet people.
We felt like we could have taught her more, but we are teaching her
again on Tuesday. Thank you so much for your prayers, my family! I
know that you helped find her. I know that God hears and answers your
prayers, and mine. I know God lives and loves us. I know that nothing
we experience cannot be turned to our gain, and I'm so grateful that
things aren't always easy because it makes knowledge deep; it is the
fire that burns experience into our bones. I wouldn't trade it. I
realized that while watching conference. How incredibly grateful I am for
experience, especially the experience that makes us stretch. I would
take a gentle reminder to any within the reach of this letter that He
knows better than we do, and would cite to C.S. Lewis (as I remember it):

Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. 
At first you understand what He is doing, He is fixing the roof and
getting the drains right, you knew those things needed fixing so you
are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking about the house in
a way that hurts abominably, and you wonder, what on earth is He up
to? The answer is simple. You thought you were being made into a
decent little cottage, but He is building a palace.

To all my cottage builders out there: I love you. I love you so much, 
and I know God is helping you. I know our Heavenly Father knows every 
weakness and strength we have, and that He is working to turn us into a 
palace. For those deciding whether or not to go on a mission, I would say: 
GO.  "The opportunity of a lifetime is yours." (President Monson). It will be 
the greatest cottage to castle renovation you've ever undergone (citing 
Jana Christensen), and it is so worth it. The field is white. Every place in 
the world is being prepared for the sound of your voice, for the tread of 
your shoes, for the dedication of your work, for the zeal of your spirit. This 
is His vineyard, the earth, and He will give you a corner of it to tend and
to learn how to become a little bit more like Him in this short time.
I promise you He knows you better than you do. He knows your strengths
and your weaknesses, and He loves you. (This is getting a little long
for the nieces and nephews, huh?) I know this work is true. God will
burn a testimony into you so deep that "earthly power cannot separate
it from you." I love you future troops!

I LOVE THIS WORK, I love my Heavenly Father, I rejoice in His
goodness, I am aware of my pavilions and my inadequacies, and I am
grateful for His patience. I know that Jesus Christ lives, that He is
"the Jehovah of the old testament and the Messiah of the new." (The
Living Christ) I love you sweet family. This gospel, authority, Church
is on earth so that we can return to God as family units, and the
Gospel is best in families. We are having miracles out here. We are
still talking with the PI family and they came to a little bit of
conference! I made a fancy bingo board but they didn't use it... ha
ha. Teaching is so great though. The mom wants her kids to know about 
the Church, and I think she is still moving that direction herself. ;)

The Spirit is amazing. After knocking again on the door of the sweet
lady we started teaching (who is now a progressing investigator!!), my
wonderful companion had the impression that we should go back to a 
door we'd knocked on before. As we were going, I said hi to a lady across
the road, and when she crossed and found out who we were, she said
something like, "Oh missionaries! Where is your Church? Can I come
sometime?" She then proceeded to hand us her business card with her
information and left because she was working. I know the Lords is
preparing hearts to hear in every land (go on a mission! subliminal
messaging from me to you!)... It is our privilege to share it.

Life lately:

Well, among other things, I zealously killed a cockroach in the
bathroom, we started Eikaiwa that has now gone all English, official
this week MORMON.ORG HAS BEEN TRANSLATED FULLY TO 
JAPANESE!!! It is so awesome and we are so excited! I am just so happy 
that things are starting to be translated. This country will eat that up. I love
that! I want to help my Japanese brothers and sisters so deeply. I LOVE 
THEM. They are a piece of me, inside me all of the time, thinking about
how I can help them, how I can teach simply, how to help them understand... 
which I felt this week is ultimately the Spirit. I love the Holy Ghost. That is 
THE BEST gift we could have. We are not alone in the mission field.

This really old man in our ward showed up on Sunday with
three pictures he'd taken while I was teaching Eikaiwa - so funny!
Our sink broke and will periodically squirt our whole
outfit down well if we don't remember that it is slightly broken. I
will send you pictures of our apartment, we passed our cleaning check,
I have a white bike that gets me around. Dobson Shimai and i love working 
together! I am so blessed. I love studying the scriptures and speaking 
Japanese. Its all sooooooooooooo good!

I love you sweet family! This week I read the calling of Jeremiah and
was so impressed. I love that the Lord calls the "weak and simple" to
declare His message. His is the voice of thunder and the quiet voice,
He is my Lord and Master, My Redeemer and Savior. I love Jesus Christ.

Thank you for your prayers! I have really felt them. I know that you
are praying for me. I love you! Choose the right and enjoy this life of living 
on the front lines, in the last days... what a mission is ours to fulfill.

I LOVE YOU! The work is true. What a joy it is to have a call to labor
in the vineyard.

With love,
Your sister, daughter, grand-daughter, aunt, niece, cousin and friend,
Sister Anderson

typical Japanese bread... we love beans here!

(funny food story... sometimes the milk will make your stomach make

noise and we were in a lesson like two weeks ago, and our stomachs

were just like... gurgling! it was like... and we know that'S true...

gurgle gurgle gurgle... families are important... gurgle gurgle...

she asked us,"did you eat breakfast?" ha ha ha. so great. 

I definitely will not drink milk that often anymore.

Welcome to apartment 203! 

(The front door is featured at the top of this post).

 Ok, so when we transferred here, we found these gooey pink cupcakes that

look like Lisa Frank things on our fridge, which is funny because it's

been an Elder's area for ten years as far as we know...haha!

study space

 Our snuggly fold-up beds...

 We were in charge of buying drapes and getting reimbursed. You would be so

proud, mom! We found these at the recycle shop, 100% polyester and...

they were 600 yen and 700 yen.... altogether around 15 bucks! woo hoo! 

 kitchen (with fridge minus gooey cupcakes)

 laundry room 

 work space...

At the shotengai  商店街 (a Japanese commercial district running along a certain street). 

This one has a pet store....so cute!