Over the hump - Letter to Dad - 12 July, 2015

Hey Dad!!  How are you doing? Can you believe that I have already been out on my mission an entire year? I look back on the year, and it has gone by SOOO fast!! And then I look at the moments and it looks so long. :) haha I have been able to do and experience so much in this past year, and there is a lot that I am looking forward to in this next year.  

As a quick bit of news with P90X3, I just wanted to say thank you! It has been way good to have those to reference. :) I started doing Total Synergistics today. I will admit though, that looking at those workouts, there are a LOT that I don't remember. I am going to do the best that I can, and obviously sometimes my resources are limited, but I am excited to go through it. If you could maybe even make a CD of you doing the workouts and send that, I am 99% sure that it would be okay if I used it. I would ask President Wada, obviously, but I think that is okay. :)

Also, speaking of President Wada, I for sure get to go home with him!! :D :D I am super super excited. We were at Mission Leadership Council on our one year mark (Elder Driscoll and I as well as three other zone leaders all came over on the same plane) and we mentioned it was our one year day to him. He then turned to Sister Wada and told her that this was the group that would be going home on the same plane as them. I am so happy. I did not want to be with another mission president for only two weeks, although if that was what the Lord would have needed I would have done it.

Let's see. We got to talk to a lot of people this last week, and one of them was a man by the name of Karl. We stopped him when he was riding his bike at the park, and we got to have a really good conversation with him. It was great. :) What was really interesting was that as we talked to him I felt that there was something in his life that was really weighing down on his shoulders. We testified so much to him, and we did everything that we could to have the Spirit with us as we talked about the restoration a little bit as well. It was really powerful. And so we asked him to sit down with us at this bench just a little bit away and really talk about the gospel. And we just sat there in silence for the better part of a minute. It was so good to just let the Spirit work with him. Sadly, he still rejected it. We continued to talk to him for a little bit, and invited him again, and the same thing happened. He didn't listen to the Spirit. We did all that we could, and gave him a Book of Mormon, and directed him to where he could find the church, and we went on our way. It was way sad to see him leave, when the Spirit was working as well as it could. Agency is really hard sometimes.

Similarly, we got to teach a less-active member yesterday. It was really good as well. His name is Uther Kyodai. I love him so so much. We have visited him a few times in the past few weeks, but we have only been able to share a message at the door. This time we just asked if we could come in and teach a message. To our surprise he said yes! It was so good. We got to find out where his testimony is right now, at least a little bit, and a bit more about his life. We also got to talk about God and his love for us. I tried to do everything I could do discern his needs as we taught him the lesson, and I prayed for Elder Driscoll to do the same. I don't think that we found out everything that is in his heart, but at the same time we really felt like he has some concerns about the Plan of Salvation. We get to teach him about that next time.

I have been able to learn a lot recently about loving people, and how when we love people we really try to learn how to help them, and what the questions of their souls are. Through the Book of Mormon we can really answer those questions. I testify that the Book of Mormon has the power to help people answer their own questions.  I love you so much, Dad, and I hope that you have a good week. I know that you will find answers soon! Thank you so much for all that you do for me. :) I love you!!  

Love, Elder Livingston


Note: Some names may have been changed for privacy.

President Wada's Deepest Desire - Letter to Mom - 12 July, 2015

Hey Mom!! :) 

How are you doing? How is your health holding up this week? How are things going adjusting back to normal life after your crazy spontaneous trip to Disneyland? :) I am super super jealous that you got to do that. Can we do that when I go home too? ;D haha That would be really fun. :) Let's see....where to start this week. How about President Wada's deepest desire...haha

So, this past week we had the opportunity to once again attend Mission Leadership Council. it was super good, and I learned a lot, and had some really really good experiences. I loved it so much, and I hope that I can continue to apply the things that I have learned there. As a quick side note, one thing that I have learned a lot about on my mission is that there is a huge value in actually applying the lessons that you learn from the meetings that you go to. I haven't noticed too many changes in me on my mission, but this one I have noticed: I have come a lot more sensitive to the things that I learn and the value that they could have if I really applied them in my life. It is something that I am really working and striving to do. Anyway, that is a little tangent that I had to meander off onto, but the real story was this way funny thing that President Wada said. Pretty soon we are going to be able to use Facebook again for missionary work, and there was about a 5 page section in a specific handbook that we have (called Becoming Disciples in the Digital Age) and he said, "My deepest desire is for you to learn what we are about to read." It made me and Elder Driscoll chuckle a little bit that it was his deepest deepest desire for us to learn how to use Facebook. Haha. But, that little story set aside, one thing hit me extremely hard in the meeting. It was the Spirit. It basically came like a 200 mile an hour bullet train and slammed me in the face. :) In all honesty, I felt much like Lehi, when he got chastised for murmuring when they didn't have food in the wilderness. The Spirit kind of chastised me for a couple of things. Mainly forgetting some of the incredible experiences that I have had in the past with the Spirit. Those are things I'm not supposed to share yet, but they were incredible, and I hadn't thought about them in a while. And the Spirit very strongly reminded me to remember them. And it made me reflect on the importance of the spiritual experiences that we have in our life. How many times do we just take the things that we feel for granted? How many times do we feel a prompting, and just ignore it? More often than that, how often do we feel a prompting, begin to act, and then because of the busyness of life just get caught away in other things? It is so important that we do not shut out those small and simple things, sometimes even the big things. They are the foundation stones that we are to build on in order to

endure to the end of eternity.

I learned another thing from this experience. At the same time that the Spirit was chastising me for forgetting, I never felt more love in my entire life. That is how I know that it was really the Spirit, and not just me beating myself up. It was incredible. While I was being told things that I needed to improve on, I was feeling the love of God in so many ways. In a lot of ways, it was one of the most powerful witnesses to me of the love of God. Also, I learned a lot about how we are supposed to give correction. When we give correction, we should have already built up a relationship of love and trust. Also, when we give it, it should not be accusatory in anyway, but instead showing the blessings that the offender could have received. It is a completely loving, all encompassing thing that I know will take a long time to learn how to do, but is nonetheless not impossible. I am excited to learn how to do that as well. :) I really feel like you and dad have been able to do that in my life. So thank you so much for that. :)

Tell Becky Congratulations!!!!!! I am so so thrilled for her, and I can not believe that this day finally came! Also, thank you for your challenges mom! I am definitely going to do that, and there are definitely things that I want to improve on from the past year. :) Thanks so much, Mom. How has your last year been? Are you improving? ;D haha I challenge you to do the same things that you asked me, although obviously some of the questions have to be switched because of the nature of our separate callings right now. :) I love you, Mom!! :) <3

I hope that you have a fantastic week, and that you give everyone lots of extra hugs for me! :) Don't forget about Jenna's Birthday!! :) <3

Love, Elder Livingston

Pictures this week - 5 July, 2015

The Hotta Family (They used to live at Traverse Mountain)

Elder Livingston, Ryosuke, and Elder Leftwich

Big Bubble

On the Roof

A Sunday Miracle - Letter to Dad - 5 July, 2015

Hey Dad! :)

Well, as you saw in my email to mom, we were able to receive one referral from Roger, our investigator. That is pretty rare. We don't get that many referrals in our mission. But, Sunday was even better! :) <3 There is a member in our ward named Nasu kyodai. He is super cool. He is the person in the ward who is the most fired up to do missionary work. He has had some way hard trials in his life, and so he is one of the most purely good people in the world. Last week he was talking to one of his friends and then just suddenly said, "Hey, will you come to church?" And his friend said, "Okay." And that was the end of the conversation. But his friend came! He was late, so he didn't make it to sacrament meeting, but Nasu kyodai called me out from after sacrament meeting, and introduced me to him. We then got to go to Gospel Doctrine's class with him, and then during the priesthood hour we taught him a lesson (normally that is not what you want to do, but in our ward on Fast Sunday in place of the first forty minutes of priesthood there are a bunch of committees, so we did it during that time). He accepted everything super well, and loved it. He is so open, and you could tell that his heart was really touched by the method. At the end we asked him to pray, and taught him how, and he said that he would. Normally people in Japan are a little bit too shy to pray there first time, but he just dove right in and said one of the best prayers that I have ever heard. He prayed that we could become perfect like Jesus Christ (and today was one of the first days that he really learned about him) and come closer to him and to God. It was great. And he is going to come to all of church next week. :)

How was Disneyland this week? Oh! You said that they have a new World of Color show! How was that? What was it like? Are they still going to show the old one every now and again? Which one do you like better? Was it crazy crowded there? What rides were closed? How was the weather? I could go on with questions for a long time when it comes to Disneyland. :) I'll be honest, I am way excited to go back and ride Small World and actually understand the warning that it says in Japanese. :) haha

It's weird how a part of your heart loves to grow a completely separate world from where you grew up so much. I love home so so much. But I have thought a couple times about what I want to have accomplished when I leave, and I have thought a couple times about what it will feel like to get on the plane, and I know that I am going to cry. I love the people here so much. It is crazy. They are so great. They have such good morals, and such good core values. Sometimes they just completely ignore us, and they always ignore God, for the most part, but they are His kids too, and we are so blessed to have the opportunity to take the gospel to them. I am so excited to see just how many people that I can build friendships with here. Some of my best friends are here, and I am so grateful to have met them. Do you remember Suzuki Choro? I got to see him today. He is the best. I can honestly say that he is my best Japanese friend in the whole world. He is so great. I am so grateful for the things that I learn from the Japanese people each and everyday that I am here. :)

I love you so much, Dad! Hey, someday will you take us to Germany, so that you can show us all around your mission? :) I would love that! Thanks for everything, Dad! I love you!

Love, Elder Livingston


Note: Some names may have been changed for privacy.

A Journey with a Driscoll - Letter to Mom - 5 July, 2015

Hey Mom,

How are you doing?? I can not believe that you just up and went to Disneyland without telling me! ;D  haha Also, I didn't even know that you were planning on going to Lake Powell before that. haha Do you have any other crazy fun plans for the summer?

As I am sure that you may have seen, it has been raining here every single day for about the last week or two. That has been a little bit rough, but it is okay. We have seen so so many miracles, which is something that I want to talk about. Elder Driscoll is way cool, and a way good companion. I am so grateful to be able to work with him. We actually came to Japan on the same plane! It is way fun. And he loves soccer. :) But, I want to talk about this past.....Saturday! :) It was such a good day. It rained a lot that day too. ;D haha

So, first of all we had a lesson with our good friend Adam. He is the one who grew up a little bit in London, so he has flawless English. Elder Driscoll and I did a practice lesson for him in the morning on Saturday, and I felt like it was going to go really well. Usually our lessons with him consist of a lot of his questions, and us just trying to answer them. But Saturday was different! He always starts out with reviewing what we had done in the past week, like what we were talking about, and then going from there. Last time we had talked about the Book of Mormon, so he said that he was going to read the introduction and the testimonies. Saturday he said that he couldn't find the app (Gospel Library) that we were talking about, so he looked it up online and found it and started reading that part. I was shocked. I haven't seen that much commitment from people before. It was way cool to hear it. He said that it was good, and he learned some interesting things. Then we got to teach him the entire Restoration lesson, which we hadn't done in one lesson before, so that was really good. He had to go early because his baby started crying, but we were able to invite him to ask Heavenly Father if Joseph Smith had really seen them, and if what we had taught was true.

That was the first miracle of the day, and it was a super good one. We could have ended the day there and felt so good. I loved it so so much. But, second, we had a lesson with a man named Roger. I think I have mentioned him before too, but he is Nepalese. He is super nice, and loves the gospel and Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. He just isn't quite confident enough to receive baptism and commit to that. He disappeared for about two months, and then randomly texted us Friday night and told us that he wanted to meet with us! It was so great. I was so thrilled that he had finally responded to us. So, right after meeting with Adam we got to meet up with Roger. We walked around the corner in our church to go and meet him in front of the church and there he was . . .with a friend!! It was a little bit of a shock, but we were thrilled. His friend, Randall, is super nice. He is also Nepalese, and really wants to learn more about the gospel, as well as start coming to church regularly. I think that he is going to progress really well. We got to talk to them about the Plan of Salvation a bit, and that was really good. I also got to play piano for them too. :) haha I am getting better at adding things to hymns to make them more like solo pieces, so that is fun! I have practiced a bit here for different conferences and stuff. It isn't anything fancy, but it sounds pretty fancy. haha ;D It was really good. I am really excited for him to come to church. We haven't been able to get anyone to come to church recently, and it is something that we are  really working on. I know that as we continue to invite people, we are going to make lots of progress, and help them come closer to Christ.

I also got to start two amazing journeys yesterday and today! Journey number one: I made a better meal plan so that I can eat healthier (after getting your advice I made a plan) as well as working out harder (if Dad finishes P90X3 for me soon, that will help). I am way excited to see how that one goes. The second one: I am going to read the entire standard works before I go home, from this point on. I started reading in Genesis yesterday, and I really learned that it talks a lot about God, right there at the beginning. I do not  understand how some people believe the things that they do about God (like he is shapeless, and everywhere, and nowhere, and unknowable) because in the very first chapter of the Bible it very plainly teaches differently. Anyway, I am really excited to learn all of the different things that the Bible and the Book of Mormon have to offer. I just need to make sure to stay on top of it! haha

Mom, thank you for everything! I hope that you are doing okay, and that you are having a great time at the beach, and in Disneyland! I love you so so so much! :) <3 <3

Love, Elder Livingston


Note: Some names may have been changed for privacy.

I don't know what to call this.... - Letter to Dad - 28 June, 2015

Well, Dad, it has been a pretty normal week. :) haha

Oh! We got to visit this incredible family last night. Their names are the Shimo family. They are so great. I would probably have to say that they are a perfect family. I don't think they sin. haha They are super super nice. I love them so much. Brother Shimo is an international shipping company businessman, it would seem. And he is very successful. They have a great house, and he gets to travel to London a lot, which is actually where they lived for two years. So, he enjoys that a lot. Sister Shimo is an absolutely incredible cook. She gave us these shortbread cookies yesterday that literally looked and tasted like they were from a store. But she made them. So cool. And their daughters, ages 12 and 8, are super cute, and remind me a lot of Quinci and Britta. They are also very very tall. In Japan they are HUGE! But they are a way fun family. We got to visit with them and to share a message about the temple. How has your temple attendance been recently? I hope that you get to go a lot. Especially with Mom. :) It is an incredible opportunity to be able to go to so many different temples right next to our house. <3 Go as often as you can, because it is an incredible place and you are going to find answers every single time that you go with specific questions in mind. I can testify to that.

Well, like I said in my email to mom, Elder Leftwich is leaving and he is heading to Odawara, the same area where Elder Tolen was. (Elder Tolen is now going to an area called Tama). Because he is leaving, we have a ton of opportunities to visit with people that have been hard to meet with, including members. They really love him here, and I am really reaping the benefits. I hope that when I leave areas they have the same feeling towards me. How often do you get to see the missionaries in our area? I will be honest, it would be so incredibly hard to have so many wards to cover as a missionary. Here we have at least 6 missionaries, generally, for one ward. In Kichijoji we will

have 12 next transfer. :) haha It is super fun though!

How is everybody's health holding up? What are the new things that you have been trying recently to overcome the sickness? How is the running with Britta going?? I am so thrilled that she is working out more, and that she is enjoying it! That is such an important habit to have when you are young, and I wish that I would have had that more. I loved playing sports and all growing up, but I didn't really set a habit of working out. I am trying to do that now. :) Let her know that she is an inspiration to me, and that she is doing incredible things! :)

So I know that we are about half way through summer break now, but do you have any fun plans? I saw that you were at the Mormon Battalion Memorial Site. Where is that? Was it cool? What different things did you learn?

Well, I know that was a lot of questions, but I hope that you can answer at least some of them. I want you to know that I love you, and I love our family so much. I would not be the person I am today if it was not for the incredible influence of all of you, particularly you and mom, in my life. I am eternally grateful for that.

Do you know what I think is cool? Everyone in the world is part of the same family. We are all brothers and sisters. :) We got to have a PMG study class with some of the boys in our ward yesterday because they are studying and preparing to go on missions, and I got to tell them that. And it really hit me again just how important it was to share the gospel. These are our brothers and sisters. Think about if Curtis did not have the gospel, or Darin, or John, or Dianne. Any of your siblings. Wouldn't you want to share it with them? That is why we are sent on missions. Because this is our family. We need to help them. :) I testify that as we work as hard as we can to come closer to Christ and to lift other people up we will be able to share the gospel in such a way that they will allow it to enter into their hearts. Do not be afraid to share it. This is the truth, and they NEED it. It isn't just something nice and fun. It is absolutely essential. Share it with everyone that you can, because it is the truth, and it is God's plan. I love you, and I hope that you have a fantastic week! :) <3

Love, Elder Livingston

Transfers come and go....just like Elder Leftwich - Letter to Mom - 28 June, 2015

Dearest Mother,

I am penning this with heavy heart, and saddened with the burdens of my lonely existence. Not a fortnight ago, Elder Leftwich, my brave companion, and I set off on a journey. But alas, all good things must come to an end, (except eternal families) just like our companionship.

hahaha Anywho, we had transfer calls! It really will be sad to see Elder Leftwich leave, but I will always remember the days that we got to spend together with fondness. He is a great missionary and I learned a lot. He is a great leader, and someday will be a fantastic father. I am sure of it. But, I get a great new companion as well! :)

Let me introduce, through words, Elder Driscoll. The first time that I met Elder Driscoll was one of my first days at the MTC. He is my doki (the same group that came to Japan with me). He was not in my zone at the MTC so I did not know him that well, but there was one thing that I knew him for. And it was something that I learned during our exercise time......on the field.....the soccer field. :D He is an incredible soccer player!!! :D So, needless to say, he made a very good first impression on me. He is a great missionary, and is currently serving in an area just north of me. He will become my new companion on Thursday. I am a little bit nervous to become senior companion again, especially as zone leader, but at the same time I am really excited for the challenge. :)

I have been thinking a lot about how best to help my zone a lot recently, and I came to the conclusion that inspired goal setting was needed. Well, is still needed. I have thought about and learned a lot about goal setting recently, and I hope that you are continuing to set goals. Long term as well as short term. Both are so vital. If you do not have an end goal, a vision, in mind, then you aren't going to push yourself to do and be better. If you don't have short goals to help you reach that goal, then you aren't usually going to be able to make it. Thus, both are very important. I plead with you to make sure to set good, inspired goals and to follow through with them so that you can better grow in the gospel, as well as in personal hobbies, health, and things like that.

I would also like to talk a little bit about Ryosuke and Tommy. I may have mentioned when we found them just a little while ago. Like....last week or two weeks ago. But, anyway, we got to go to a family home evening in the Wada's home with Ryosuke last week. These two incredibly musically talented elders gave a really good lesson with a bunch of performances about feeling the spirit through music, and it really helped our investigator. He was able to recognize that Spirit and to have just a small taste of that fruit that Lehi talked about. And then on Thursday we were able to meet with both of them and have dinner, go to our Sport's night here in Kichijoji, and then give them a church tour. It was incredibly spiritual, and they said that they want to learn and study from the Book of Mormon. And today we get to meet at least Ryosuke as well! :) haha it is going to be way fun. We wanted it to be more relaxed today, so we are going to watch Meet the Mormons with him and just help him get a bit more introduced to

the Mormon Culture.

Anyway, that is a little update on me! :) How are things going at home? Oh! I remembered one other thing that I really want to share with you. Yesterday in church a man by the name of Akamatsu Kyodai gave a really really good talk about praying. And the point that he emphasized was giving thanks. It made me think a lot about my prayers, and how much thanks that I give in relation to how much I ask for. I really want to make sure that my prayers are full of thanks, and that is something that I am going to work on from here on out. I want you to do the same. Make sure that your prayers are full of thanks. The Lord has blessed you so so so much, mom, and I hope that you recognize that and regularly tell that to him. Mom, you are incredible. Thank you so much for all that you do for me, and for our family. I hope that you know you are an example to so many people. More than you could know. You have touched a lot of lives here in Japan with your example, and they have never even met you before. I love you so much, and I hope that you have a fantastic day! :) <3 And Happy Fourth of July this week! :) <3

I love you!!

Love, Elder Livingston