Awesome Family! Wow, what an awesome week!
Hey everyone! Wow I can't believe it's P-Day again, it was such an amazing week! Starting on Monday, we received a call from our great investigator Futoshi, and he told us he wanted to meet up at the church! We ran down to meet him, and it turns out he said he really received the answer that this church is good and true, and he set his own date to be baptized on December 20th! It was such an amazing miracle, and one of the coolest things I have seen on my mission. We've been praying so hard and long for him to have that spark in knowing this Gospel is true, and Heavenly Father truly worked an awesome Christmas miracle! As well the rest of the week of was just really awesome, and Heavenly Father is truly blessing us so much as a zone. The zone is really starting to pick up this Christmas, and I feel so blessed to be serving here in Saitama, and especially in the Urawa ward! It's such an amazing place, and it's really looking so great for this Christmas season. I can't believe my last Thanksgiving is coming up, that seems so crazy! I remember the last one so vividly, and it seems so crazy to see it's already been another year. Heavenly Father has truly been so kind to me these past months, and I feel so thankful to be serving as a missionary at this really special Christmas season. It's a true honor to wear the name of Christ, and share the message concerning His life.
It sounds like you guys are all doing so great! I'm so stoked to always hear of all of the great things that are going on in your life, and I can truly feel Heavenly Father sending those blessings to our family. Sometimes I wish I could be there to be super stoked with you guys, but it's all good! I know that this is where Heavenly Father wants me at this time, and I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be serving in the amazing country of Japan. :) Those photos from San Diego were so pretty, Whit! I looks like you had a way awesome time, that makes me so happy. As well Alexa it sounds like Texas is awesome and full of barbecue, way jealous. Haha, and the iPhone 6 is actually everywhere in Japan, haha. They love the plus addition, even though it's seriously massive! Also Mom and Dad I'm way excited to hear how great things are going in your lives as well! I'm always praying for the success of all of the stores you're running, and I'm so happy to hear of all of the blessings. :) I just want to say especially thank you so much for always teaching me the power of prayer and the fact that Heavenly Father truly does answer and hear our prayers. I truly felt that amazing truth this week, with a really awesome experience I want to share! So yesterday Elder Shumway got out of church and began doing some work around the church, and it had just been a seriously amazing week, but we were still 2 lessons short of the goal we set that week in weekly planning. We tried calling all of our investigators to see if they could meet, but no one could, and it was looking pretty impossible. We had been praying all morning that we'd see this great miracle, and then out of no where our investigator Teshi calls us! He says he's coming to the church, and would like to meet up. So we had a great lesson with him concerning Jesus Christ, and the importance of thankfulness. After that our other new investigator Tuan from Vietnam says he's coming by the church later that night, and so we just needed to meet with one more person to achieve our goal! We decided to pray, and we felt we needed to visit a small family we recently found on the bus named the Matsuhashi's. We ran by their house, and they were so pumped to see us! They invited us in, and we were able to make real Thai green curry (Son Pon the Mother is from Thailand, and is a really famous chef in Tokyo!) and it was awesome! We were able to share a message of Jesus Christ, and how has blessed and strengthened our families, and invited them to learn more about him with us. It went so great, the we rushed back to the church, met with Tuan, and just had a seriously awesome ending to the week. It really strengthened my testimony that as we make a solid effort, and stay focused on the goals we desire to achieve, Heavenly Father will truly answer our prayers, and if the goal is right, he will help us to achieve it. I know he's so aware of our desires, and His love truly is infinite. I felt really so blessed to feel that this week, and I'm really so thankful to be serving in Japan. Although it's not the easiest country to be a missionary, it has truly been the most awesome rewarding experiences of my life, and one I'm really so thankful for. I love being a missionary! :)
As for the amazing care packages! Thank you again so much Mom. :) I received the conference package, and am happy to report the M&Ms are all gone, and the beef jerky was so good! Haha. I'm really so thankful for those packages, thank you so much! It really means so much to me, and I'm so thankful for all of the time and effort you put in them to send them to me. You and Dad are the best, I'm so sorry I never seem to send anything home! Just know I'm so thankful every time I head home and see the white envelope in the box. :) As for the Christmas package! Some deodorant would be greatly appreciated! I've run out actually, and it turns out Japan only has spray! Haha, it's not bad, but just one roll of deodorant will be perfect! Thanks so much. Other than that I think I'm doing pretty good! Just some homemade cookies would be way cool! Clothes I'm doing good, and recycle shops here sell anything I could need at a way cheap price. Today I bought an awesome peacoat since the Guess one broke last year, and it only cost about 7 dollars! Pretty awesome huh? But yeah! Just some photos, cookies, letters, and some Christmas CDs? The Lower Lights have a Christmas album I heard! Anything would be absolutely perfect. But for the members! I really love this idea! Maybe some American candy I could give to the Primary kids or youth in the ward? That would be so cool! As well maybe a Christmas card of our family? I don't know if we'll have that this year, but it would be cool to give to some of the ward members here! Thanks so much though, I'm so excited to give out some presents this season. Okay... This is just one last thing that would be so cool. I haven't had American cereal in such a long time, and it would be pretty awesome to have a bowl of Coco Puffs or Reese's Puffs. Nuff said. ;) Sorry I know that's so much, but I just want to say thank you so much for being so great and sending this packages! They really mean so much to me, and I'm so thankful to have such an awesome family that sends these packages all the time.
Also for Dad! I showed Elder Shumway what you did in your zone, and we decided we're going to attempt the same thing! We can't make a turkey dinner, but Elder Shumway and I have become pretty great at make indian curry and nan! It's kind of a Tokyo missionary staple food, and we're planning to do a Zone P-day and make Indian curry! It should be way awesome, thanks so much for the solid idea! I'm always so stoked to hear the stories from your mission, you should send some more! I always learn so much from your awesome example, and I'm so thankful to have you to look up to! Thanks Dad, you're the man.
Well it sounds like everyone is doing way great, and that makes me so happy! I was reading Elder Jörg's talk again today, and I know that as we utilize the power of the atonement in every aspect of our lives, we can truly become the sons and daughters Heavenly Father wants us to be, and he can truly guide and bless our lives so much. I've definitely felt this so strongly since becoming a missionary, and I'm so thankful for the amazing blessings this short time has given me. It's so crazy to realize that the Sisters of my district will be heading home next transfer! It gives me such a strong desire to work hard with every effort, and always strive to be the servant and missionary the Lord wants me to be. I'm so thankful for the immense change that this time has brought to me as a missionary, and I'm so thankful to make every change last, and strive to become the person the lord wants me to be. I know that Heavenly Father lives, and the through His son Jesus Christ, all the worries, doubts, fears, and trials of life can be made right. He will always show us the path we must walk to gain happiness in this life, and eternal life in the world to come. I love serving as a missionary with all of my heart, and I'm so stoked to keep going forward with faith into the Christmas season! As Elder Hamada used to always tell me, "頑張ろう日本!" It's gonna be such an amazing time, and I'm so thankful for this chance to be serving as a missionary in the amazing country of Japan. Thank you guys so much for all of the prayers and kind words, I love you guys so much! Have an amazing week!
最後に少し日本語で証したいと思います。
この福音が真実です。モルモン書は青本です。神様は皆のことを愛しておられます。
Haha, it sounds way different in Japanese! The gospel is true, the book is blue, and God loves you!
Love,
Elder Justesen
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