December 14, 2014

I can’t believe there is only 10 days till Christmas and until I get to see you guys! :) It doesn’t feel like Christmas though! It has been pretty nice here, it is starting to cool off a little but it still hit 22 C degrees here which is like 71 F so it really doesn't feel like Christmas, I think that is a good thing or I would get way too Trunkey and miss home! :P I am not sure what time I will be talking to you guys yet because I am moving!!! I am going up north right under 台中 Taizhong To yuan Lin. I heard it is a good area and the ward is awesome so I am excited! I am going to be senior over two other pretty new missionaries and one of them is known for being really disobedient.... ha-ha so wish me luck! The other one is really awesome though and everyone has only said well about him! I will be moving up there on Friday.

This Friday we met with Lin mama and we had a really good lesson with her, we reviewed the first lesson and Elder Rock did the pen example or idiom (I think that’s what it is called in English) and she just freaked out because it made so much sense why we need a prophet now! Ha-ha it was awesome being able to see such a little thing help someone so much! After the lesson she invited us to come to dinner with her and I thought she said the relief society so I asked if we could and she said yes and said how there was going to be a lot of people and you just kind of grab the food you want and it would be OK. So I thought I just miss understood her.... ha-ha we showed up and I definitely understood what she said.... It was all these middle aged women at this table and then us two missionaries.... ha-ha it was kind of awkward but we got free dinner and got to know the relief society better :) 

I have been trying to get over this stupid cold this week and I think I am almost better! I called sister Blickenstaff on Wednesday finally and she told me some medicine I could get and it has been helping quite a bit. That night we had English and I had just took the medicine and boy did it make me feel good!!! Ha-ha I felt like I was just floating and my body was all tingly, it was super weird but felt pretty cool! :) My nose has been really weird though it gets super clogged up but I don’t notice and all.... It is super weird because I can breathe fine and it doesn’t feel weird I just notice because I start to not be able to hear very well... I don’t know if that is normal but it is really weird! Ha-ha my hearing gets all muffled and I start feeling kind of light headed until I blow my nose then I feel fine! Ha :)

Today during my personal study I read Alma 1 and it talks about priest crafts, which is pretty much pride! On my mission I have noticed how bad pride is and how much it can take over people and the things and can lead to! Pride is the hardest thing to overcome but once you do you and the people around you will be a lot happier! I want all of you to forget about yourself this week and focus on the savior and serving others! Here is a video for you guys to think about! Love you! :)

http://www.mormon.org/christmas?cid=HPFR112814529

Hope you all have a great week! Love you lots! :) I will let you know next week about skype! :)

December 8, 2014

This week has been pretty awesome! I have been sick all week with a cold but other than that a lot of fun stuff happened! Ha-ha On Dec. 1st it got cold! It was super weird but now it is getting warm again! It wasn’t anything like Utah but I put on a wind breaker! It has been super nice though up until this last week! This week we had our mission Christmas party which was sweet! We went and saw a huge Buddha and then went to a buffet on the 43rd floor of a hotel that looked out over the ocean! I got to see all of my old companions and it was super fun! After dinner we all crammed in the elevator to go down and it stopped about half way down so we all turned to face the back of the elevator and the doors opened and the guy just sat there for a second until one of the elders told him he could get in then a couple more floors down it stopped and another Asian got in and the one that was already inside says to the other (in Chinese thinking we can’t understand) "when I got in they were all turned facing the back" Then we all started to laugh and he says "what you understand!" in his broken English then turns back around shaking his head in embarrassment! It was super funny! :)

Other than that though nothing to exciting happened! Everyone keeps asking me if I forgot to shave when it gets later in the day because my chin hair is starting to grow fast. Sister Huang is still crazy! Ha-ha but I figured out why I don’t understand a lot of thing she says, she is a lot like mom! She will be thinking about something and then just start talking to you half way through her thought! For example the other day we were in the hall talking and she says “in a second what’s going to happen fruit" hmmmm I understand what you said but it doesn’t make sense! ha-ha she also came up to us and said "pudding" then didn’t understand why we didn’t know what she was talking about.... ha-ha she is so funny it makes me miss my mom! :)

Yesterday I started to do this thing called Project Purification It is where you fast and you write down all the things that distract you from the work and then you fast from all those things for 40 days, you don’t talk about them or think or anything like that so that should be cool to do for the next month and I am really going to need help!! Ha But yesterday I really prayed for help to be able to feel the importance of the sacrament and to help me prepare for church so I could feel the spirit! I had the opportunity to pass the sacrament and I just couldn't stop smiling the whole time! I sat down and noticed how good and happy I felt and it was so awesome! I don’t think I have ever been so happy on a fast Sunday as I was yesterday! :) Ha-ha God answers prayers and he likes sacrifice! The more we sacrifice the more we will be blessed!! 

I love you guys and hope you have a great week! 

Love Elder Roberts 愛阮張老

November 30 2014

This week was full of finding!! We did a lot of contacting at the begging of the week but a lot of little things still happened this week! :) On Tuesday morning I ran a mile in 5:20!!! I was running and kept looking at my watch and I couldn't see it very good but I thought I was running slower than usual so I would run faster and faster and it was kind of hard but I have been sick so I thought that was why and so I just kept pushing myself faster and faster and then I finished thinking I ran pretty slow and I looked at my watch and it was at 5:20, it was awesome! :) This week I am going to break 5 minutes! ;)

We had Mission Tour this week and Elder Gong, from the Quorum of the 70 and he is the Asian Area President, came and spoke with us. We did a lot on the first vision and the restoration it was super good! They asked all of us to memorize the first vision before and then we all had to teach that part and say the first vision. It was a good meeting and on top of that they gave us a big thanks giving lunch!!! IT WAS SO GOOD!!! I haven't had mashed potatoes and gravy in so long and it tasted so good!!! :) Ha-ha I can't wait to get home and have some of my grandmas’ Delicious gravy!!! :)

On Monday we went to Costco and got a bunch of food to fill up our fridge and for the move call and then Tuesday morning our fridge was no longer cold.... our big fridge full of food was now broke and the only other option we had was the mini one that the other elders were using.... When we asked them if we could put our milk in there you would have thought we were asking for their first born! They acted like we were nuts ha-ha then I told them we were putting our milk in their fridge and they didn't have a choice and they just went quiet :) I guess that is what I get for taking the big fridge though.... ha-ha Later that night we were walking around a park and we found this family with these skate things, they are like a rip stick but separated. I don't know what they are called in English ha but we started talking to them and they asked if we wanted to try, of course I did ha-ha but I just ended up making a fool of myself for like an hour! They are so hard!!!! :) It was super fun though and I kind of started to get it at the end! This is a picture of them ha-ha all the little kids would ride around me and make fun of me! : P It was HARD!!!!  :)

This week we BAPTIZED!!!! Sister Lin or Lin mama got baptized and it was awesome! At her baptism they asked her daughter that is serving around here to give a talk and the spirit was so strong! After the baptism Lin mama bore her testimony and I'm pretty sure everyone was crying. She has been being prepared for the last couple years and I am so thankful that I was chosen to be here when she was finally able to o

I am so thankful for this Gospel and for my family thank you guys for everything you do for me! I love you so much and truly do appreciate everything you do! I hope you had a great thanks giving and have great Christmas holidays!! Don't forget why we have Christmas!! :) Love you all!

Love Elder Roberts

Overcome the things that were holding her back! She is so strong now and is going to be such a good member! It is so awesome being able to be here and serve and help people change their lives for the better!!

November 23, 2014

This week has been pretty exciting, on Monday we only got to email and our P-day was on Friday because of transfers. On Monday while emailing we got a call from President saying Elder Ng was going to be training a new missionary so we were really confused what was going to happen to me because I was told I was staying in my area. We ended up splitting into a 4 man and he is white washing (starting from nothing) with his trainee and I get to keep all the investigators :) So this week we had a lot of meetings and stuff getting ready for the new people and for him training. On Friday he went and picked up his new companion and some of the other Elders came over and we cleaned our whole house and organized it for the new guy.... I got my new companion and his name is Elder Rock, he is super cool and likes pretty much everything I like so it will be a fun next couple weeks! :) He is from Minnesota and is Native American! Super cool! He has been in Taiwan for 4 months :)

Lin mama passed her interview and is going to get baptized on Saturday! We had one of Presidents counselors do the interview and after he told me that we have to make sure her daughter that is serving in this area comes to the baptism and that she gives a talk! Ha-ha this will probably be one of the coolest baptisms I have had yet! It is really awesome to be able to help bring this Gospel into her life and to see it affecting the family! I don't even know how to explain it but it is really cool! :)

This week during our morning work outs we have had some funny things happen!!! Thursday morning I we were at the track and I was over doing pull-ups an push-ups and this old guy comes walking over and waves at me, I looked behind me thinking he was waving to someone else then looked back at him and he waved again but this time gave me a huge smile with his three teeth! Then he slowly walks over to the pull up bars and grabs on and starts hanging from it like all the old people do, then out of the blue he cranks out 10 pull ups like it was nothing and then slowly limps away!!! I was pretty impressed and kind of embarrassed because this old guy that can barely walk just came over and showed me up! Then like ten minutes later he came walking over and gets in push up position and does like 50 push-ups.... ha-ha luckily it was time for us to leave! :) The old people are crazy here!! :) Then Saturday Elder Rock disappeared for a little while and when I found him again he was missing a sock.... I asked him if he was running so fast it fell off and he just said the bathroom is out of toilet paper.... ha-ha I had a pretty good laugh about it but he lost one of his good socks! :)

That was pretty much the week Hope all of you had a great week! And have a happy thanks giving! What are you thankful for? Try to do something nice for someone and let them know how thankful you are to have them in your life! Love You all!! :) Live life to the fullest! :)

Love Elder Roberts