8/15 Cheung Sha Wan is doing well!

ZONE TRAINING

Cheung Sha Wan is doing well! This week was a little slower meeting with people, we found ourselves doing a lot of service (helping move the Wan Chai apartment with the office Elders, and soap cycling) , as well had a successful Zone training. K however is doing great! He took us to meet a friend and play basketball for a bit. We sat down after and started sharing a message about God. K is pretty mature for his age, didn't expect his friend to be as well. J, the friend, mentioned that he and some classmates (including K) had argued with their teacher that the Bible didn't seem to be complete and that his teachings had contradictions. Then we shared about the Book of Mormon and how he was right, that the Bible has a lot of truth, but is missing a few things and that the Bible and the Book of Mormon are able to support each other to answer our questions and give us a perfect gospel. He accepted it and in his prayer, prayed that this book would answer his questions. Did I mention they are both 13 years old? What 13 year old thinks about this out of the blue? The Lord is preparing people to hear the fullness of His gospel restored in these the latter days. A is doing great. He is a very amazing fellow shipper. Come to find out he has still kind of got his foot in the door, he told us he misses alcohol and smoking. It reminded me of a good friend who had the same problem. I told him about it, and we discussed that we can't walk away from the door, our old life, unless we take our foot out and not just walk, but run from that door. Just as my friend was eventually able to see. Only then can we have progress. He also got the priesthood and passed the sacrament today! A-Y was also at church yesterday and is doing quite well. He hopes to make his date of the 28th with K.

The area really is doing well, with lots of good potentials, we just need to be better at scheduling, there is a large differences in the weeks we schedule well and the weeks we don't. Able to see a lot more people. We have been doing a lot more sifting recently. Finding new investigators, working and allowing themselves to make ground. It is really helping us find more people capable of progressing right now, as well as letting them use their agency. Several people have just been showing up as far as Less Actives and Investigators, even Bro. Y decided to keep coming to church even though his son left. Big steps in the work. I like what a friend once told me, "The train is moving, not just moving but speeding up. We can't slow it down and we can't speed it up, but what we need to do is get on and get as many others as we can on it!" I believe it.

The Mainland baptism was so cool!!! I got the opportunity to baptize and confirm a Cantonese lady from Mainland (the others were Mandarin so the other Elders couldn't do it) and it was amazing. Again a spiritual uplift with the amazingly humble mainland people. Even though I didn't understand it all (the meeting was in Mandarin), I loved it, and felt the Gift of Tongues teaching me, and helping me to understand. 

Push on! I know Jesus Christ lives. I want to be better and shout out from the MTR that the fullness of the gospel is on the earth! I know this is the true and restored church today. It makes my blood warm and gives me goosebumps. I love it. I love my Savior. This is the fullness of times.

-- 

Love,

   Elder Sargent

8/7 110%

Things are good on the frontier! Things are doing well. A was confirmed today, great blessing from the 1st couselor in the Elders Quorum, he is doing well, as well was called to receive the priesthood. Brother T got his temple recommend today which I am ecstatic for. The members love him, SM just told me how faithful and loving Brother T is and how they love having him in the ward. Best part, he still loves to wear sandals to church with his suit. We talked to SM as well this week (Bishop just barely got back into town this week) about the work, now that he is in the Bishopric and still the Elders Quorum President , it was very effective. Hopefully both A and Brother T will have callings next week.  A has still been leading our Gospel Principles class, just kind of because Brother F asks, but I love it. He is literally one of the elect, as is Brother T. They will both do great things. K is still making leaps and bounds. He called us this week to meet which was awesome. So hopefully we can meet the family and see his mother again. The rest of the area is doing well.  We have two really solid investigators from Mainland that actually keep coming down. They have a family member that's a member that comes to work in the temple, so they have come the last two weeks. Not really sure how to handle that, but the faith!!! They read and prayed every day this week. More of the elect. As for the rest of the area, A-Y is doing well.  Also started a thing every Sunday night/afternoon, eating with those Young Men or YSA who don't have anyone to be with, as well, reading together after (Scriptures and PMG is the goal). The idea behind it being to help these young men keep the Sabbath Day and to continue learning. It went so well last night! The fellowshipping was great, had a great time, even though after talking about 17 Miracles they were adamant we watch that, so we turned it on for them. It was a good turnout and response.
We are striving to continue to find the elect and gather them in the the garners, the stakes and units of the church. Miracles every week. Really working to keep our teaching pool vibrant and moving, teaching repentance and baptizing converts. Then following up and making sure they are at the temple. As well we are starting to work with others in the ward to strengthen them, by using the temple. It's next door to our ward building! We should all be going. It's closer now than it was in Utah, and that's saying something! That is where we find ALL the ordinances of salvation, that and continually going. That's another thing we are working on. I love the work and the joy it brings to all those who partake.
Elder R and I are doing great! We have had some great discussions this week and have really continued to bond. At first it was a really tight upper level relationship, and now I feel like it is a deeper, stronger relationship. I love him so much. We are striving for 110% obedience and facing the mark. No creep.
The zone is doing well, preparing for Zone training this week, Elder P and I will be giving a training on The Ordinances of Salvation, and working with the ward. The zone is very polar right now with areas that are doing very well, and others that are a little slower, and so the idea is that, in the busy areas, there is a downside that it's harder to be with and focus on the members, but in the slower areas, you have that time, which is necessary. So a blanket topic, to help those without a lot, work to strengthen the ward, thus building faith as well as preparing the hearts of the people to do the work. As well at the same time, we will be working with the members developing relationships and finding new people, LA's, referrals and part member families. There's lots to do. So we are looking forward to this week. 
The work is great! The field is white ready to harvest!

-- 

Love,

   Elder Sargent

8/1 Aaron!

the companionship post full day. 6 lessons, english class and party, and correlation. I was SO emotionally, spiritually and physically dead

Aaron is baptized!!! That is a super bonus of the week. What a week to add to that. I don't know where to start. We had dinner with Aaron this week at the Tsang and Chung families homes. This week seemed moderately slow to start, but picked up very fast at the end. The Sports Night activity has been a hit, as well as our children's English class on Saturday.  It has been garnishing a lot of potential. Both have had much success. Our correlator  wants to get other wards more involved, because we seem to put on a lot of the activities in the area.  

Aaron is doing great. He had 4 friends from mainland at the baptism, unfortunately that will be really hard to follow up on, but hopefully they had a good impression. It was also really cool to see Brother T get the priesthood yesterday, then pass the Sacrament after. He is doing well, but we really need to help him continue to understand the concepts. Not too complicated, but understand their importance. K is doing super well, both he and Aaron have mentioned missions which have been great, because we have been working hard with C doing mission prep. So hopefully we can get Aaron learning some more, and on a mission. K is only 13, so he still has some time. He is quite large, smart, and mature for his age so sometimes I forget how old he is, but he is making great steps, and will be baptized the month or next.  The ward is doing great work with these new members, I am really grateful for all they do. Making them feel welcome and at home. 

Tender Mercy of the week. An, our not fluent in any language investigator from Canada, brought his girlfriend to meet with us this week. Secrets out, she is a LA from like 10 years ago! Not only that, but she is so prepared to come back. At first, she didn't remember much about her baptism, or why she was baptized, but as the discussion progressed, she bore one of the sweetest testimonies I have heard on my mission about how it was all coming back. The feelings she has, and had had in this church. The past 6 years she has just been to a bunch of other churches and none of the others even compare to the feeling she has when she is here. She wants to come back. It was pretty touching. Such a miracle we ran into An. 

Should be another busy week, too many miracles to write. Lots of stuff going down. 

There are always people to share the gospel with, no matter who you are or where you live. Maybe its already a member who is struggling. Find them, and love them back.

I love you all!

Typhoon coming this week, should be fun!

--

Love,

   Elder Sargent

7/25 The Peak

temple visit with visiting youth

Nothing can get me down! Haha This week was a little interesting. Got cancelled on and stood up all week, but hey I think it was just God preparing us for the crazy good week this is going to be. The area is well, A wanted to be baptized this Sunday so he could have some more people there and he feels ready. He is so powerful. We definitely need to continue to strengthen his faith, but he did use the tree of life (with scriptures that we haven't talked about) on some friends that were bashing him and his LessActive friend. I was impressed. As well he has been leading our gospel class the last couple weeks. Should be a lot of fun, the ward really likes him and I think we have 2 cheng outs with him this week at members homes. Brother T should be there as well. Brother C went to Mainland this week, but is doing well. K is making great ground, set a baptismal date in October that he should be able to make easy, I think he is just a little nervous right now. A very mature and large in stature 13 year old. Doing well. The W family wasn't at church unfortunately, but we visited them on Wednesday. They are doing well. Less actives are well, found another this week, as well Dave is doing very well. The area is doing great. 
My personal bit. Elder R shared a quote with me, that hit me pretty good because of the mountain boy I am. "To those who have struggled with them, the mountains reveal beauties that they will not disclose to those who make no effort. That is the reward, the reward the mountains give to effort. And it it because they have so much to give, and give it so lavishly to those who will wrestle with them, that men love the mountains and go back to them again and again. The mountains reserve their choicest gifts for those who stand upon their summits," Sir Francis Young Husband. That's why so few people see it. Effort. We hear tales of peaks that touch the skies in the Himalayas, mountains with secrets untold in the Rockies. We may even see pictures, but until we, "shake off the chains from which we are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust," we cannot arise even to the peaks of which tales are told. Just as any and all things, it is one to hear and another to do. Christ's atonement is full of joy greater that that to be found on any peak, but only to the man who arises to find it. It's the joy inexplicably felt after the wrestle, that makes it worth it. When your reserves of strength are quenched and you feel like you can't move anymore, then you make it to the summit. That last push. That's when we find the ultimate joy. In becoming free. Free from our sins, from all burden. To some, the peaks of mountains are their closest to God, as is the point of remission of sins to the wearied hiker. That feeling, that is what takes us back again and again. When we stand on the summit. That was my revelation piece for this week. Been a good one. 

-- 

Love,

   Elder Sargent

7/18 The Best Area!

S W and Family

Been a really good week! Kind of a rough week getting members involved due to many last minute schedules and more our fault as missionaries, but it's been pretty good. The area has been as thus: Meeting several semi-active members and working on testimony. Most of them are just reactivated members, and or YSA. C is doing super well, and has voiced that he wants to go on a mission. This time more serious, his mother even brought it up. He is still 17 and has some time, but will be a great missionary. He already teaches great with us, still needs some strength, testimony, and doctrinal knowledge, so we have decided to start meeting with him once a week for "mission prep," and as well have really liked this idea and hope to get some of the other youth involved. There are a couple other YSA or Young Men that are preparing to go, or haven't made up their mind, so we feel like this would be a great opportunity to strengthen their testimonies as well as our relationships with them. Work even into opportunities to use their capabilities with friends. 

Investigators: Brother C is doing very well and is progressing. Doesn't seem to have any big problems right now, and takes everything in. So this week we are really going to try to work with him on knowing and praying for the truth. Aa is as good as it gets. Stood up to his friends about the gospel and even used a few scriptures from 2 Nephi Tree of Life story to combat them. He has become such a good friend. He takes all the commandments with "well if God doesn't want me to do it, then I won't do it, because He knows." He is such a good example. Our Gospel Essentials class teacher had him lead class on Sunday... He has been coming to church for a month. Doing well.  S W came to church on Sunday! With his wife and two kids!! It was a big step for him. Visiting them this Sunday, and hopefully we can extend a baptismal date. K is doing well, really close with the YM group, progressing, and hopefully can get baptized this next month, J as well is back most members refer to him as Michael Jackson, you could say he has swag, and doing really well also. I love the area, the investigators are doing well. Miracles. D, the only other real less active we are working with is so much fun as well. He is also in the early 20's area, and is quite powerful. Asked for a priesthood blessing last time we met as a result to the miracle that his stomach sickness had just been cleared that day. Now he can put back on the 30 lbs of muscle he lost this past year (He used to be shredded and huge). I love D!

Zone Training went really well I felt. Had a lot of good feedback. Had two discussions, Obedience and Language (as they took the ban off learning characters), followed by break out groups with the Zone Leadership focused on Baptism in the Doctrine of Christ. I emphasized and discussed HTBT and its role in inviting investigators to be follow the example of Jesus Christ, and be baptized, in the first or second lesson. Emphasis on following Jesus Christ. Too often we come off as just asking people to "be baptized" and it scares them off, therefore missionaries don't ask. Trying to work on that. 

  

 

A our good buddy from Canada. His mom is HKese, his dad is eskimo, he speaks pretty good english and a little chinese, and has a heavy Texan accent because he likes to sing country. 

 

A member treated us to McDonald's.  It is gourmet here in HK.

  

Our summer missionaries.

I think much of what I have been blessed with here is a result of all the many prayers in missionaries behalf, I really feel them. Especially those directly for me. I am so grateful for all I have and the many blessings and miracles which have been bestowed upon me. I still think I am the most blessed missionary out there. 

I love my life and my calling here in HK. I love the people the food, and sometimes the hot and humid weather! 

Ever Stalwart

--

Love,

   Elder Sargent

PDAY soccer fun

7/11 Extra early but NOT during REM

The Y family in our ward... they give us food every week and make us banana bread and cookies

Companionship study one day

Shout out to my cutest sister BROOKE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Look out folks she is on the streets.

Great weeks just keep on coming! A is doing super well, we need to get some more members involved with him though. Progression is great, and just going to keep on moving forward. A-Y is also doing well, very excited we could have him at church amd can continue moving on. Church has always been the hard thing and it looks like he has turned a corner for that. Brother C has been really moving forward on that note, and is also looking solid for his baptismal date. It should be a promising next couple months. Those are the investigators with baptismal dates right not and we are looking forward to extending a few more in the coming weeks with a few other investigators moving forward very fast. I am still quite confused as to why all of the people keep coming here and ending up in our area, we have just been so blessed. Especially these past two months. Brother T is doing great, looking forward to the Priesthood soon as well. Another miracle is we just picked up another great LessActive named D,  22 and went LA last year in Mainland, but just moved back down here. He is super solid, and should be a great addition to the ward. 

Elder R and I are doing very well together. I love working with him and he has spiced up the work around here. As well we have started waking up at 5:15 to give us some more time to study. I don't feel like I have had much time to study recently, and so that extra hour and a half (I said 6:00, but he refused because apparently that's in the middle of a REM cycle?), to study the langauge. I love it! That extra hour plus is so helpful and I have already learned so much using it. So we are doing well together. Love the work.

Ever Stalwart

-- 

Love,

   Elder Sargent

7/4 Staying!!!

Bye Bye Elder N

Out with the old, in with the new

last district lunch after meeting

A great week! It is definitely a big change and a new start. Sending Elder Da to Tai Wai was tough. It is going to be really weird getting used to not having him around. From step training to now. 6 months, a long time. I will see him often though with Elder P. Bringing Elder R in has also been very fun. I love having him around, we were pretty good friends in the MTC, and so it will be a fun time bringing him into the area. It seems like he misses Wan Chai a lot, but he is getting adjusted. 

The area is well, this last week was very interesting, didn't get to see a couple of the investigators due to moving our companionship back to Kwai Fong on Wednesday, and then Elder Da on Thursday, but will get back into the groove this week. The area is thriving as it has been the past month and a little. Brother T was confirmed on Sunday, as well bore a good testimony after about God answering his prayers. I know the members absolutely love him and really hope his wife will have interest and come. The rest of the investigators are doing well also. A is progressing great, couldn't be at church on Sunday due to a competition, but still should be good for his baptismal date. Bro. C has been a waiting gold mine no missionaries have taken advantage of, just been waiting for the past few years. He is looking solid for this next month, we will review all the lessons, but he has been coming to church for a long time so knows and has heard all the lessons. Should be good. A-Y wasn't at church, frustrating, and  Bro. P as well.  Brother C was there and is progressing, wants to focus on baptism now as well, and so is K (who said he really thinks he can do it this time). Our ward is doing so well at working with all these individuals that they can, and we are seeing immense growth. The area is just flourishing. 

Companionship is great! It is a little different having a companion that is so much more out going. We really have a lot of big plans and teaching together has clicked pretty fast. It has just been full immersion for him in teaching the investigators, having had to split a few times already in these past few days. We are working well together, striving for obedience and I can't wait to see what happens this transfer. 

Sometimes things don't go our way, in fact, most of the time they don't, but what does go our way, is the attitude to we choose to react with. When we get fonged. That's just the attitude. Reel in your line and find a new fishing hole. 

I love the work! I can't believe how fast time goes. 


Love, Elder Sargent
Ever Stalwart