Learning to Listen Better

Hey everyone! Thanks for the email and Dana`s address. Sounds like a pretty fun summer in Idaho. When does school start for everyone? Ill try to memorize the Living Christ with you guys. It sounds fun. I`ll answer your questions first. I didn't get to see Harris and Kody hasn't written me back yet. Kinda a bummer I guess. It is sad to hear about grandpa but what does failing mean? Like dying? I`ll write grandma today and try to help out. Well this week was pretty wild. I was outside of my area more than I was in. I was in Okayama for 3 days. All the district leaders, Zone leaders, and trainers received training from Pres. McIntyre for 3days. It was awesome! I really learned a lot and I am excited to share it with other missionaries. This is the direction missionary work is going now. We are getting trained better so we can be better leaders. The one main thing that I took from the training was that I need to listen better and ask inspired questions. I feel that I am lacking in this category and I want to improve. Teaching to people`s needs is so important and I want to focus more on this. I don`t have much to say this week but yesterday was pretty cool. The Ise family came to church except the mom Eri. She had work. I had a chance to sit down and really talk with RiuJi san, the dad. He is really trying to come closer to Christ. Every night he gets his family together for prayer. They all sit in a circle while holding hands. I know that I always made fun of you mom about the holding hands thing, but it is really helping this family. Pretty cool. I can feel him really getting closer and closer to baptism. Yesterday he committed to quit smoking too. Their family is starting to experience the blessing of the gospel. They just need to enter the gate of baptism and receive the Holy Ghost. I have always tried to listen to my investigators but because of whatever excuse I haven't been the best at it. Lately I have really been seeking the gift of discernment and I have really felt God`s help. This week was great and I really do love the mission. I know I say this a lot but it is true. I feel that everyday I can improve something so that my brothers and sisters can some closer to Christ. I am excited to do this. I love you guys and God bless you!

Things Happen for a Reason

Grady with Moriya, an investigator that he taught in Osaka--

Grady and Elder Kudo with the sister missionaries in their district, at a member's house.

Beautiful Niihama!

President and Sister McIntyre with the new Niihama Branch President, Brother Aoba. His son just returned from serving a mission and is one of his counselors.

August 15, 2010

Hey everyone! Thanks for all the emails. My week was great! Before I forget how is Andrew Wardell doing? If you could I would like to write him a letter. Oh and the only thing that I need is Monkey but. I am almost out. I love that stuff. Well it sounds like everyone is having a great week. Ill answer some questions first. Yes my apartment has an air conditioning in the study/ sleeping room. If I slept in a room without an air conditioner, lets just say it would be disgusting. My apartment is on the second floor so it is pretty hot. Ya I am still in Niihama with Elder Kudo. About the picture thing. I cant go on that website but I think I might send home my camera cards from my old camera for you. It is kinda scary but I think it will be alright. Olivia, it sounds like you are pretty happy. Keep up the good work. Mom, I liked what you said about no matter how strange or random some things are, if they are helping someone we do them. I have felt this a lot on my mission. . These last two transfers have been a little different for me. Because Kudo is very honest, almost brutally honest sometimes I have realized that my Japanese skills aren't where they should be. He is very honest with me and I am learning a ton. He is a good teacher. My other Japanese companions weren't honest with me because they were way nice. I am learning a lot right now. For the first year of my mission I focused on trying to understand Japanese. I didn't really focus a ton on talking. It just came with talking to everyone about the gospel. But recently I have realized that my listening skills are better than my speaking skills. I have a long way to go but I am really trying to learn fast so I can express my feelings better. When this happens it will be easier for the people to feel the spirit. This week some pretty crazy things happened. The Ise family is doing well but is struggling with the Word of Wisdom. The other morning I got a call from a member and he was a little upset. He told me and Kudo to stop committing the Ise family to baptism. His idea is that when they are ready they will tell us. This member is a really great member and shares the gospel with people but has never read "Preach My Gospel". About 8 months ago the 12 apostles told all the missionaries to commit people to baptism almost always in the 1st lesson, and always by the second. The spirit is everything in teaching but the 12 were very direct with this statement. One apostle even said that baptism should be the most used commitment a missionary says. This was hard for me at first but I followed their counsel and miracles happened. I explained this to this member and he was still very set on his idea of helping others come closer to Christ. I am not perfect I make tons of mistakes but I follow the Apostles counsel. I am very optimistic on how the spirit can change people. I have seen this change in my life and tons of people in Japan. This week was definitely a week where I needed to stay positive. Things happen for a reason and I am excited to try to teach through the spirit everyday. I love you guys and your the best. Till next week/

Boldly Testifying

August 8, 2010

Wow! Thanks for all the emails! A lot of new things happened that I didn't know about. Lenzi is pregnant, and Drew is getting married in September! Pretty wild! Rudy keep it up man. I couldn't help but laugh when I heard what happened because I remember how the last week of the river was for me. Maybe not as dramatic but still amusing. Dad, I liked your story about the camera. I guess in my case on a mission it deals with investigators, companions, or members for the most part. My week was pretty interesting. Saturday and Sunday I was in a place called Kochi on an exchange because the Ise family was going to be interviewed for baptism by an elder from Kochi. Kochi was sweet! It was a lot more city than Niihama and there was a ton of people to talk to. I was with Elder Nishio. His dad was my bishop in Amagasaki. Pretty wild, huh? His family lives within the mission boundaries. In Kochi 4 people accepted to hear the message another day. It was nice. One of the investigators, Shiozaki was pretty interesting. He is 20 years old half Australian and half Japanese. When we were talking to him I shared Alma 34:32 with him about our life's purpose. It talks about us preparing to meet God. He bluntly told me that God didn't exist and that scripture had no meaning to him. His comment didn't sit well with me. I boldly testified to him that God existed and that I knew through something called the Holy Ghost. Shiazaki sat there and thought for a moment and then said, " I want to know more about the Holy Ghost and your guys' message. I want to know if God really exists." I learned from this experience that people's hearts can change. Lately in my mission I have felt more meaning in my words. I feel that God has really helped me by having the Holy Ghost testify through me. I can't explain the feeling I get but I love boldly testifying to people and telling them that they can know for themselves. Pres. McIntyre has been telling us to preach repentence. When I first heard this I imagined the old movies with the ministers yelling, telling everyone to repent. But recently I have realized how to do it. Everyone on earth needs baptism to go to the Celestial Kindgom. To recieve baptism we need to repent. This is honestly what I tell people on the street. Looking these Japanese people in the eye who don't even know if God is there and telling them that they can have eternal life with their families is way rewarding. I learned a lot in Kochi. Well, about the Ise family. Well to make a long story short they didn't get interviewed this past week. They are having marital problems that we didn't know about but it looks like Eri, the wife, will still get baptized this coming Sunday. It seems like every time someone is so close to baptism Satan just pulls them away. Me, Kudo and the branch are working hard to help them out. I know that things happen for a reason and I will do everything in my power to help them out. Well, this was kinda long but I love you guys and good luck with everything. The gospel rocks and Jesus is our Savior.

Everywhere I Go, Sweet Blessings Follow

Grady and a couple of young people he met on a bus.

August 1, 2010
Hey everyone! Sounds like all is going well in Idaho. It is sad to hear about Grandpa but it sounds like he is doing better. In Japan they just let people in Grandpa's shape walk around and have the family take care of them. It is pretty wild. I like what Olivia learned at Girl's Camp. Pres. McIntyre talked about that about 4 months ago at a mission conference. He told us all to " make our own weather". It really helped me try to live that way. You guys asked last week how Pres. and Sister McIntyre are. Pres. McIntyre is way bold and cares about people a lot. He has a funny sense of humor. He has a good balance of laying down the hammer when we need a little repremanding and being way spiritual at the same time. I like him a lot. Sister McIntyre is way funny! She is way nice and I have talked to her a lot on my mission. When we get interviewed by Pres. she goes over some other things with each companionship. These little meetings are probably supposed to last about 15 to 30 minutes but I am always with her for about an hour. We just talk and talk. She is way cool. Do you remember my second companion Budge? Well he is my Zone leader and yesterday we were on an exchange. It was just like old times but we could communicate with people a little better and have both learned a lot of good life lessons. I'll tell you about a cool experience we had together yesterday with the Ise family. Budge came to Niihama to interview them for the baptism next week. They are both struggling with the Word of wisdom so we were both praying hard. About a week ago I felt prompted to call Budge and tell him that he would play an important role in their conversion. He and I had no idea why, but we found out yesterday. Yesterday at church we had a lesson with the Ise family where they expressed why they wanted to be baptized. The mom, Eri San, said that she was doing it for her kids and so that she could be "saved" and have eternal life. When she said this I knew that she was ready for baptism. I felt the spirit probably one of the strongest times of my life. After Eri went it was Riyuji's turn. He said he was getting baptized not only for his family but for himself too. He said I want eternal life. These were some of the most pure humble reasons for baptism that I have heard. They are getting baptized on the 15th now. I am way excited for them. I know that you pray for my investigators everyday but they really need help with the word of wisdom. Oh. and the prompting I had was real. Budge testified about why he knew the church was true and why he was a missionary. He really gave credit to his parents for teaching him the gospel. The spirit was way strong because this couple was seeing living evidence of what teaching the gospel in the home can do. They really needed to hear Budge's testimony. I am also very thankful for my parents. If you wouldn't have taught me the gospel I don't know where I would be. I love it here! It seems like everywhere I go, sweet blessings follow. That is about all I've got this week. I'll try to send some pictures today. Niihama is beautiful like Maizuru. Well, I love the mission and I really feel like this is where I am supposed to be. I love you all and till next week!