Dear Family and Friends,
Well this week was really great! We got to go on two splits, one back in Obihiro, my first area, and then one in my area now. One day in two hours we handed out two Book of Mormon's on the street, and they both said they wanted to hear more! One of them, was a man named Seto san. In our mission we aren't allowed to street contact the opposite gender, but we pulled into the parking lot of one of our investigator's apartment buildings that we had decided to drop in on. I had thought about calling to make an appointment before hand, but for some reason I felt we should just go unexpected. Seto san was the manager of the building, and he just happened to be out front raking some leaves as we pulled in. We said a friendly konnichiwa, and he said hello back - in English! He started talking to us in some of the English that he had taught himself from TV shows, and we had a nice little chat, and ended up inviting him to come to our English class - he accepted, and said he would come the next week! We gave him a flyer, and then went to drop in on our investigator. She ended up being busy getting ready to go to the dentist, and so we went back outside and started to get ready to leave. Earlier that day we had decided to try a new kind of dendo - and try to find a community service center that we could go to one, to look for good service projects, and two, to find good people that were searching for service opportunities that we could talk to around there. Anyway, as we were at our bikes getting ready to go, we realized that we had no idea where to start - then suddenly I had the thought to just ask Seto san - he would probably know. We caught him as he was walking in, but before we could ask him he had thought of some more English to use, and we just started talking again. He asked us if we were Mormon. We said yes. He told us a little about his life - how he is studying to be a land lord, and he is a ski instructor on the side. He said that he had kids once, but that they had passed away. He said he read a lot of books, and listened to a lot of religions, but he was never able to find an answer that satisfied his soul - why did his little children have to die? What happened to them? But he said, I guess it just comes down to that everyone has to die at one point - there is nothing you can do. He asked us what we thought about death. We pulled out a Book of Mormon, and read Moroni 8:19 with him. It reads, "Little children cannot repent; wherefore, it is awful wickedness to deny the pure mercies of God unto them, for they are all alive in him because of his mercy." He read that, and simply said, twice and in a loud voice, "Yes! Yes!". We exchanged contact information, and he said at the end, "I am very excited to learn about the Mormon church. I am looking forward to meeting again."
I'm grateful that we chose not to make an appointment with our investigator that day - because she would have said she was busy and we wouldn't have there. I'm grateful that she was busy. I'm grateful that he studied English which allowed us to spark up a conversation. I'm grateful that we chose to do a new kind of dendo that day that inspired us to talk to him once more - even though we never did end up getting to ask him about the community center. I know that God is watching over all of his children, and knows just where we need to be, and takes care of all the little details to make the perfect little moments for us to share the gospel.
I am grateful to be a missionary. I am grateful that I don't ever have to stop being a missionary, because members are just as much missionaries as those of us wearing badges. I'm grateful for the Book of Mormon. I know it's true. I'm grateful for God and for his all-seeing eye and his perfect love. I'm grateful for my family - you are, and always have been such a strength and anchor in my life. I have been so blessed in my life!
Thank you for your letters/voicemails, and all your love and support! I love you!!
Love,
Sister Budge
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