By Small and Simple Means - Letter to Dad - 24 August, 2015

Hey Dad!

Those business cards look great! :D You are just he coolest president of a company ever. Keep up the good work, and make sure to include the Lord in all of your decisions for your company. He knows how to run things a lot better than we do. Haha I have definitely been learning that recently. I love the work here so much!

In answer to a couple of Mom's questions, I haven't yet bought shoes, since the ones I have still work, they are just getting closer and closer to their final days. I thought it was super bad a little while ago, but they have held up surprisingly well!  :) so that is good. The workouts that dad sent will be helping more in the coming weeks. I hadn't used them due to the timing problem, but this past week just decided that I needed better workouts, especially after seeing Ammon's progress with his. :) haha thanks for sending them, dad. They really are helping. I had a good Total Synergistics workout this morning, even if I didn't do everything perfectly. I am looking forward to see how it goes in the coming weeks. Elder Driscoll and I made a goal to wake up an hour early every day and work out, and then we will have an extra hour to get ready, so that has also helped. :) but, that has really been the biggest help for our studies, which often die due the fact that we have to go to all sorts of district meetings and things like that. It is super fun though. :) thanks for praying for Oscar too! I know that he will be able to help his family,

My wrist is doing better! It was better after a week. :) and it is starting to cool down a little bit. It is still hot though. We had a day with 100% humidity the other day! :D haha it was SO hot. But the worst was when it was around 111 degrees or so, and still 60% humidity. Um.....let's see.....that's about all of your questions, right?

Well, this week I learned a lot about the small things. I know that goals are important. But in order to reach those goals, we have to take small steps. I have been struggling to know how to break the plateau that I felt my Japanese has taken recently. However, I got to go and teach a lesson with Elder Mukai, this awesome teacher and Japanese elder. He talked a lot about how to learn English because it was a half English half gospel lesson. I learned a ton about how to improve my Japanese. So, I will be learning about 150 new things each week, which should (if I keep steady) improve my vocabulary by at least 4300 words and 2000 or so characters by the end of my mission (which would make it so I could read almost anything!). That is one way interesting thing. I can't read most of the things I see in stores and on the streets. Because there are thousands of characters. But, it's a work in progress. :) haha But the little things, like trying to be consistently good, and consistent with goals, is so important, and I hope you remember that. When you build this business that is a big goal, but don't get lost in how big it is. Just take it one bite at a time, one step at a time, one goal at a time. :) I know you are going to do fantastic. Good luck with everything! I will be praying for you! :) <3

I love you so much, dad! I am not sure how much time I have left, so I  better wrap up so I can finish emailing everyone else as well. I love you so much, and I look up to you infinitely! Keep working hard! I love you! <3

Love Elder Livingston

Note: Some names may have been changed for privacy.

Oscar! - Letter to Mom - 24 August, 2015

Dearest Mother,

How is it over there in good ole AF?? I am super excited to hear about how things are going, particularly because you have all sorts of exciting time to build up the new business! I am super excited! Keep me posted, okay?

How is your health holding up? How about your spiritual health? How is your scripture study? What kinds of things do you do for study? Do you enjoy your study? I have learned a lot about studying with real intent this past week, and just real intent in general. I hope you have real intent when you study! :)

So, I guess you are all wondering about Oscar, right? Well, he did not get baptized yesterday, but will be getting baptized the 12/13 of September. We had a super good lesson with President Wada that helped him to see what he needed to do to help his wife! It was so good. President Wada is such an incredible teacher. I think what he does best is that he just teaches from the scriptures and is perfectly bold and loving at the same time. He tells people exactly what they need to do to follow the Savior, even if it isn't the easiest. This lesson he really just listened to Oscar’s problems, and then counseled with him on how to overcome the problem, using scriptures like 1 Nephi 5 (we actually shared this one with him earlier) and applied it to his life right now, and how he has a vision of the future, but his wife hasn't seen it yet so he seems kind of crazy. It was super good for him to hear from president Wada. He also shared Alma 20 (I think it is 20....) when King Lamoni's father is opposed to Lamoni. He related that to the situation as well, and it helped Oscar to understand his need to introduce the missionaries (like Ammon) to his wife. We are super excited to meet her. We are pretty sure that she is going to come to a family home evening activity that the Wada's have at their house once a month. She is going to have a great time and be able to feel the Spirit, so we are super excited for that. So, that is the update on him! He has some goals made, and really feels like he can see the light at the end of the tunnel! So that is good. :)

Other good things that happened is week......we had zone meeting! That was really fun. Nothing super crazy, so I won't spend too much time on that. But that evening was incredible! There is a missionary by the name of Elder Hansen who is now home, but the day before he left he did a special concert in Kichijoji with a bunch of different songs and hymns. It was incredible. He is a really good singer (high tenor), and absolutely amazing at piano and guitar (and other instruments too, I think....I just haven't seen that haha :) ). It was absolutely stunning. I loved hearing his arrangements of songs that really brought the spirit. We had one boy, whose name is Markus, come with us. He is a recent convert’s little brother. He is super nice, and loves to do stuff with us, but doesn't have a ton of interest in the gospel for now. But, we did get him a nice copy of the Book of Mormon that he thought was really cool, so we are excited to see how his interest grows in the next months and years of his life. I know that he is going to be a strong member someday.

I think one thing I have learned in the past week or two, that is definitely an eternal principle, is the wonderful joy that comes from trials. That might seem paradoxical to someone who has never experienced it, or can only see the darkness inside the tunnel, not the light at the end, but it is so true. I love it. We have never been so busy or stressed as a companionship than right now, but I also don't know that I have ever had this much fun with a companion. We get along so well, and we just work hard through the things that come towards us. It is the best. :) I just read your email, so it looks like you know what I mean that trials produce a lot of good as well! I love how you talked about God being the creator, so we can trust Him with our individual lives. That is so so true. I love that about God. He is always there for us, and will always direct our path for good! I know you are on, so if you have any questions specifically you want answered in my email to Dad, just shoot those to me and I will answer them then! I love you so so much, and I thank you for your prayers! :) :) I love you, Mom! <3

Love,

Elder Livingston

Note: Some names may have been changed for privacy.

Pictures this week - 17 August, 2015

Ping Pong

Last trip to Kunitachi Church for district meeting!

Mission Motto - With Yokohama as the background

The Power of Scripture Study! - Letter to Dad - 17 August, 2015

Hey Dad!

I am so excited for you and your new job opportunity. I am so surprised that happened, especially with you making the new break room, but I guess that it makes sense since they wouldn't give you promotions for any of your people. I will be praying for you and your company to start succeeding. I know that the Lord will support you.

I think one of the most important reasons that people are sent out on missions is to build a habit of scripture study and prayer. I can honestly say I have never loved the scriptures as much as I do right now. I hope that you cherish the time that you spend with the scriptures every single day of your life! I want to tell you a bit about my dream.

I have learned about marking scriptures on my mission, and how important it is to do that. It helps me to get so much more out of them, and turns it from a book to a treasure chest of knowledge that I just have to unlock with the key of the spirit. Everyone can do it, especially if they have the gift of the Holy Ghost. Have you been turning the lock (remember, it will resist a little. You can’t just expect it to slip into place) to open that treasure chest recently? I have loved marking up my mission scriptures. But, I have a dream. When I finish the standard works and come home, I am going to buy a new set, a cheap one. And I will start again. I want to read the standard works all once a year, and the Book of Mormon at least once, if not twice a year. And then I am just going to store them in a box, with a whole bunch of different questions and topics and marking systems, and on Sunday I will select a set through prayer and take them to use during Sunday. :) and then when I am rich someday, I want a normal sized house, but a big library. And one section will be completely devoted to scriptures. And my kids will just be able to go and read from the different markings that we have made in our scriptures, and be able to add their own scriptures. I love the scriptures. I am so grateful for them.

Along with that, we need to have good prayers. Do you pray with full intent? Do you commune with your Father in heaven? One thing I loved that someone said last Sunday about prayer was that it was communication with God. Communication can not be one way. The definition of communication requires for it to be two way. I love that. God wants to answer us and help us. I hope that you pray with your whole entire heart, and that you listen during your prayer, not just after. It is so important to listen to His counsel as we talk with Him. We will miss some things that He desperately wants to tell us and bless us with if we just through our blessings shopping list.

I hope that you are studying the scriptures personally and as a family. I also hope that you do this in your best time, not the scraps of time you scrape after work, school, house stuff, etc. Put Him first and all other things will drop out of your life or fall into place. 

That is the real purpose of a mission. To give people the opportunity give up their will to the Lord. That is such a sacred experience in am learning more and more how to do it here in Japan, but I know that as I continue to grow, I will give my will more to Him. When we can do that perfectly, then we will be endowed with power from on high. We will be given direction from on high. We will become, as Christ was, one with the Father. The Holy Ghost will be able to perfectly talk to us.

I love you so much, Dad. You are the best example! I love you so much!  Have a great week and push forward with faith! Put the Lord first. Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all things shall be added unto you.

Love, Elder Livingston

Craziest Week Ever!! - Letter to Mom - 17 August, 2015

Hey Mom!! :D

So, I forgot my keyboard, so this is going to be a little bit shorter, probably. I'll do as much as possible, though! :D

So, for some quick highlights (I'm not sure how long I'll have this week, so if I only get one out to you and dad, I'm sorry!) we: -Got a new missionary in our apartment -Had successful transfers -Went to a Buddhist teaching center and had our testimonies strengthened -Had Oscar’s baptismal interview -Etc. etc.

First, we have Elder Pratt in our apartment! He is this super good guy from Seattle. We love having him, and it is super cool to see the fire that he has. He is super cool :) I know that every single missionary can have that fire. Every single MEMBER can have that fire. That is the song of redeeming love that it talks about in Alma. I want to have that more and more in my life. That is the best thing, feeling the desire to serve. Which I definitely have. I have never had as good of a time, and done as much, and had so many stressful events (mainly Oscar) in my life! But, more on that later. :)

We had successfully transfers! Nobody in our zone got lost, and everyone was able to get to their areas quickly. Transfers can always be a little bit worrisome, as people can just get lost on the trains if they aren't careful. :) but, it all went well!

So, there is this man in our area book by the name of Trevor. He called us to set up an appointment. However, he has a history of taking people to Buddhist temple like places and just trying to proselyte to them. However, we decided to give him the benefit of he doubt just once to see if he actually had interest now, and go talk under a super strict 30 min. schedule (They would usually try to trap the missionaries for about three hours). But we went to meet him, and he told us he wanted his friend to hear too. We automatically knew that he was going to take us there, but we would just have to bear our testimonies. He had said he had read part of the Book of Mormon and had some questions, so we wanted to answer those. We got there and met his friend (obviously the one who wanted to teach us, not actually Trevor). He seemed like a nice guy. We asked if we could pray first, and they said that they couldn't participate so we just had a good prayer. :) haha they then said they didn't actually have questions from the Book of Mormon (lie number one) and then proceeded to ask us how we believed in God if we couldn't see Him. We did our best to bear testimony and teach truth, but they did not want to listen. No matter what we said, they just rejected it. It was sad. But we were able to be so bold. On the way back to the station with just Trevor, I was more bold than ever in my life. I just plainly asked him if he had wanted to make us doubt, and that I felt like he had attacked us. He started backtracking as fast as possible trying to save his skin, but didn't have an answer. And then I asked him what Elder Driscoll and I have decided is the only question you have to ask a religious person to see if you want to learn a little more. It is, "In your religion, can I live forever with my family after I die?" If the answer is no, then I have absolutely no interest. We asked him, and he said no, but we could be reincarnated into another good family. We basically just said that we loved our families now, and had absolutely no interest in learning about a religion that took us away from them. He didn't have an answer for that one. We testified in our church he could do that, and then we were on our way. It was really a sad experience, because they just did not want to listen, and if their hearts had been opened, they could've learned so much. :)

Oscar. Well, his wife does not want him to be baptized. So, we are doing everything that we can to help him talk to her and get her permission. Please continue to pray for him. His date is still set for this weekend, and we are just praying for a miracle. We need all of the prayers that we can get! He already passed his baptismal interview, so it is just a matter of time before he gets to make that sacred covenant with God. :)

Well, that is this week in a wrap! :) haha it was a super good week. I have honestly never had this much fun on my mission before. I think it is because of how well Elder Driscoll and I get along, as well as how hard we work. Also, having a lot of super crazy busy stuff can be fun too. I love it. :)

I love you so much, mom! I will send some of the things I learned in study and such in another email to dad. :) I may start doing that. A weekly report in one, and a report on my studies in another. Also, I am doing fantastic. I love life. :) haha I love you so so so much, mom! Thanks for your example of faith during this new opportunity that dad has! Am so grateful for that. :) I love you!! :) <3

Love, Elder Livingston

P.S. I am excited to see you too ;D

Note: Some names may have been changed for privacy.

Pictures this week - 9 August, 2015

Elder Livingston

iPad Screenshot

Selfie

Elder Livingston and Elder Driscoll

MLC - Letter to Dad - 9 August, 2015

Hey Dad!!! :)

How are you doing? Any news recently on your job and things like that?  Thanks for always showing me how to work hard, and for being an example of a good leader. I actually wanted to talk today about a couple of the traits that good leaders have that I have learned a lot about recently. The first one is patience.

Yesterday at church we had a meeting with the bishop, the ward mission leader, and some other members that were helping to coordinate an activity that is coming up. The discussion started off great, and we were trying to decide best how to run a booth focused on family history that the missionaries will be running at this next ward activity. Slowly the one committee member started to get a little agitated. Finally he just kind of blew up and told the bishop that they had already decided in the committee meeting how it was going to work, and now he was just switching it, so all of the hard work of the members in the committee was wasted, and then stormed out of the room. It was kind of an intense moment (I felt way bad for him, since it was basically just a room full of the missionaries). Instantly the bishop got up and left the meeting to make amends. I learned a lot in that moment. The first one was the patience of our bishop. I see this same patience in you, but it was cool to see it first hand here. He listened intently to the ward member and his concerns, and then when he left, he patiently got up and went to help him. He left us, the ninety and nine per say, and went after the one that needed his help. I really loved that.

The second thing that I really learned about leadership this week was the need to show love constantly, and then correct through that same love.

We had MLC this last week, and it was super good! Elder Driscoll and I actually got to do a training, which was super fun. I loved it. But, that is a little beside the point that I want to make. One of the things that happens in MLC is that President Wada shares with us the rules that he feels are being broken in the mission, and then charges us to go and help missionaries recommit to follow those rules. This last time he was very adamant. He corrected very sharply, and to the point. But it was all through love. I honestly just felt super warm and good the whole time, even though he was telling us all sorts of things that we need to do better. It wasn't anything that we in the room personally needed (although there were probably some in there that needed it too), but for the other people, and I just felt good. It is incredible to me that when people correct the way that the Spirit would want them to, then people feel motivated to listen and to follow, because the motive for correction is not pride or irritation, but love and the Spirit. I know that this is the way that you led, and I am so grateful for your example. Thank you, Dad. 

MLC is always such a good experience. Whenever I go into meetings like that with questions, they get answered. I know that it is the same way with all of our church meetings. If we take questions to the Lord, and do all that we can to find the answers in the meetings that He provides for us to feel the Spirit, then we will find them. I think that is one incredible thing. I hope that you are continually taking the questions that you have to church and to your other meetings every single week. You will find more answers that way, even if you don't know exactly where to look for them. Just do all that you can to be obedient and follow the promptings that you receive.

I love you so much, Dad!! I hope that you know that. You are my everything, and I am so grateful for all that you have done for me. Keep taking care of the family! I know that you are going to see your personal questions answered as you search for those answers. I love you!!

Love, Elder Livingston