Chinese New Year is no longer the worst

Another week! I really wish I could stop saying "the Asians are all still gone, they'll be back next week" but I really mean it this time. Students are coming back, one by one. Teaching pool is filling out and then draining again because they're all in school. But this is our life - pray, study, seek, pray some more, teach, come home and do it again the next day. Recently, still a little short on the "teaching" part. But we have so many contacts and so many opportunities to serve, for which we are grateful. 

Elder Liu and I are doing awesome. I'm so grateful for him, and that the Lord trusts me enough to guide him as he grows to become the missionary He needs him to be. We spent a lot of time bonding this week. It's going to be a sad day when I'm inevitably transferred out. It's alright, though, we're still in the same mission which means I'll see him regularly. We see almost all of the Chinese on a weekly basis, which is fun.

Except for Mourino and Gao and Wang and Bibb, who have been transferred to Outer Darkness. 

Chinese. As of recently, I've been translating in district meetings, so I'm okay-ish at going from Chinese to English. I've discovered it isn't too bad to translate a meeting for someone who doesn't speak the language because, guess what - they don't speak the language. You just have to get close and make sure you don't share false doctrine and they won't know otherwise. I do my best to give accurate translations and I can see my language growing. It's been a long long time coming, but we're starting to get there. What an incredible language and culture it is. 

Speaking of culture, we attended the annual New Years activity last week. If you've never experienced any part of Chinese culture before, I highly recommend finding a chance to attend anything related to New Year. The ancient Chinese used a different calendar, one based off of the moon and lunar year instead of the one we use. So every middle of February-ish, we have the New Year celebration. Even here in Australia, it was one of the most impressive gatherings I've ever seen. Food and music and games and people and everything is in red. It was festive and cultural and Chinese and I loved it. They invited a few members with old Chinese instruments to come play - Chinese harps and mandolins and whatever else - so incredible. We forget sometimes, within our own culture, that there is so much more beyond what we live - people with lives so different and yet so rich and diverse. What a blessing it is to be here. 

We made lots of phone calls this week from super old area books. It was great fun to talk to all of the people who are angry that the missionaries still have their phone number. 

Elder Liu and I spent a lot of time talking about some more obscure topics to increase our language capacity. Elder Liu can now explain The Count of Monte Cristo and all included vocabulary. If you need someone to tell you all about betrayal, framing people and revenge, he's your man. And I can now confirm that Pokemon names are way better in English than Chinese. Fire-breathing dragon (penhuolong) isn't nearly as cool as Charizard. 

We did have the opportunity this week to meet with Mandy and with Ken, both lessons we were very excited for. Mandy is so close to baptism - she's ready to change and grow and come to know Christ - she's just a little hung up on the whole "tea" thing. I know giving up coffee and tea can be kinda hard for Americans, yes. But to ask a Chinese to give up tea is like taking part of their history away - tea is life. So, it's hard. But it's also such a miracle to watch and see them change and grow and be willing to give up something so simple to obtain something so much greater. The Lord understands sacrifice better than any of us ever will. As we are willing to give up of ourselves, He gives us so much more in return. We've seen that as missionaries - I find that it's when I worry less about myself and my own inadequacies and my own hope and start to be more concerned about serving these people, I find that my own faith and abilities grow and I find that I love the people more than I ever thought I could. We met a less active and her son last night - oh, man. I just want to share what's in my heart with them. Let them feel how Christ has made me feel. No greater power on this earth than that of His love. 

Have a lovely week, my dear friends and family. I miss you all lots. Best of luck to all my choir children back home in their Broadway performances - I hope it all goes beautifully. Keep on reading and praying and I look forward to hearing from you next week. 

Elder Blackhurst

Chinese New Year is kinda the worst

Happy New Year, everyone! It's been another fun week in Heidelberg. Transfers have come and gone and I'm still in the same place. For those who are counting, that'll be a total of 40 weeks in one area. Fantastic. Elder Liu and I had the pleasure of talking to virtually nobody for the bulk of last week because everyone was celebrating in their homes. We met one guy on the street last Friday - he told us, "What are you guys doing? No one is out on the streets. You should go home."

But we don't go home. We keep looking. Because missionaries don't give in logically we should. We keep going, keep searching, keep calling. Keep waiting for the Spirit to guide us where He'd have us go and put our heart and soul in as soon as we do.

So, beyond that, not too much to report. I'll dig through my planner and see if there was anything worth sharing. 

*flips through planner*

(Liu, what did we do this week?

Not much.

Thanks.)

Okay, let's see.

Elder Liu likes experimenting in the kitchen late at night before bed. The other night, I come out of our studying room after making some last minute phone calls to find that he's got a pot of oil on the stove. He was trying to deep fry Tim Tams, which turned out to be delicious and horribly bujiankang. Anyway, we started deep frying everything we could. We starting putting Asian peppers in and gave them to our district at district meeting the next day. Great fun. 

I had some pretty powerful personal studies this week. There comes a point where your patience runs a little short when none of your investigators pick up phone calls or return texts and there simply isn't anything you can do to contact them besides wait. You start to wonder where the blessings are that are promised to us as we do our best to serve and work and prepare. As always, in our harder moments are when we truly find what we need. I found great strength in the words of Paul and Jacob and Helaman - the scriptures truly are magnificent. Read them, study them. They truly are the words of God. He is with us, guiding us. Preparing our path. He isn't going to answer every question - we don't need Him to. We just need to trust He gives us what we need. 

I am ever so excited to hear about mission calls starting to come out. Brazil and St. Louis are very lucky to be receiving the missionaries they will starting next June. I wish you all the best. Those of you working on your papers and waiting for your calls, please let me know - I'd love to be a part of your preparation. There is nothing like getting up and serving the Lord, each and every day. I love with a love I didn't know I had in me. I serve with a fire that I didn't have back home. Oh, I've got a long way to go. That's for sure. But I do know that the Lord is building me, each and every day. 

Have a blessed week, everyone. I miss you all. Keep up the faith, keep searching the scriptures. May God be with you every step of the way.

Elder Blackhurst

Put "cat king" into google translate, copy the characters, plug it back in and translate into English

You won't regret it. 

Hey everyone! It was another week. Lots of crazy weather and crazy people and investigators who conveniently never ever pick up the phone. So it goes. We had lots of chances to contact on the street, go on exchanges, experiment with weird foods, and cry because our investigators aren't picking up the phone. Elder Liu and I are praying to stay together in Heidelberg for one more transfer - training has been such an adventure. I love working with my missionary son and I look forward to having one more transfer with him. 

This week was pretty regular, in all honestly. We went to work and did what we can. Not too much success right now, but we're hoping as students come back in the next few weeks, we'll have new people to teach. 

No serious stories means you all get to hear the stupid ones. 

Lucky you. 

So, my Chinese is still pretty poor, but it makes me feel better sometimes when the Asians make English mistakes. We got a text last night from a missionary about a New Year's activity (Chinese New Year doesn't start until this week. You all better be have crazy big celebrations this Friday with lots of red and lots of fireworks and lots of Sichuan chili) and he was trying to make assignments so that no one would have to buy everything. The text read something like: "We'd like everyone to bring their own bowels and chopsticks" and all of the Americans who got the text died laughing. We were making digestive jokes for the rest of the evening. 

There are anti-Trump posters all over the marketplace we go to GQ right now. Great fun. We make Wall jokes every time we pass one. The white missionary hand book has a page that instructs that we don't speak poorly of the country we're in, regardless of political circumstances. It says nothing, however, about commenting on our own. I'm really not totally sure what our dear Zongtong is doing back home, but I've heard nothing about missiles or war, so we should be okay. 

We met a girl on the street the other day. She gave us her number and told us we could contact her, but I think it was mostly because she thought we were "shuai". Reaaaally uncomfortable, but hey, it's fine. That's the extent of my romance as a missionary. Happy Valentine's Day. 

Elder Liu and I contacted a member yesterday and read out of the Old Testament with him. For those of you who have never tried to explain Genesis 1 through Genesis 30 to someone with zero Bible background, I highly recommend it. 

Not so recommended if you don't speak Chinese, like yours truly.

On an unrelated note, I know now how to say lots of great words like "tribes" and "Sodom and Gomorrah" and "circumcision" in Chinese. 

On a more serious note, we had the blessed opportunity to go with Ren Rong for her first time to do baptisms for the dead. It was such a sacred moment - when I saw her come out and sit down all dressed in white, my spirit swelled. Even more so when she came out of the font. She's growing and learning and I couldn't be more proud. Seeing an investigator be baptized is a beautiful thing, but seeing them go and fulfill those covenants through church service is beyond words. I will forever be grateful the Lord has blessed me to be a part of their conversion and pray He allows me to see more of them make those same covenants. 

How grateful I am for the gospel of Christ. May we all better strive to live the covenants He has extended to us. The blessings promised are greater than we can imagine. They aren't always what we expect, they aren't always what we want. But He knows what we need. 

A shoutout to all of you working on your mission papers right now. Good for you! Keep it up. Kristen and Emmalyn and Jarom, I look forward to hearing about your calls, as well as everyone else preparing to serve. It makes me giddy - I can't wait to hear where in this vast vineyard has the Lord prepared people for you. 

I love and miss you all. I appreciate all who reached out last week - it was a hard one for my family back home. We don't know why everything that happens does. But it doesn't change the fact that we trust the Lord in all things. 

Have a great week! Make sure you're all reading your scriptures every day. Enjoy the real New Year and I look forward to hearing from you all soon!

Elder Blackhurst

​​And here's a picture from last week - another good one

In which I meet my first Kangaroo

And second, and third, and 20th, and 50th. And who knows how many beyond that. 

It's been another good week! Elder Liu and I have been working hard to keep a hold of our investigators and keep them progressing. Busy, but always good. 

Zone P Day was yesterday, so we went out to Phillips Island. We had a wonderful time wandering through a sort of nature park with hundreds of Australian animals on display. Most of them were just wandering through. Hundreds of kangaroos, wallabies, emus, and who knows what else. I met a tasmanian devil or two (behind walls, thank heavens) and a handful of other crazy dangerous Australia pengyous. It was great fun. Phillips Island is also known for their Penguin Parade - a chain of spots along the ocean where little penguins hide in their little tunnels. So much fun. It was a fantastic day and we took some phenomenal pictures. 

As far as the work, it was a long week. Investigators were a little harder to get a hold of. Regardless - we keep on keeping on. Elder Liu and I had a chance to meet with Mandy again, and we're so excited about her progress. We've had many chances to serve our members, and we're learning more and more about relying fulling on the Spirit of the Lord to guide is to do His work. One day at a time, we keep on growing. 

Short email this week - we've got lessons to teach and people to take care of because today isn't P Day (we're not being dodgy, promise. President gave us permission to email today). Know that I love you all. I hope we all can better come unto Christ by learning about and applying the power of His atonement. There is no pain or grievance that cannot be overcome by Jesus Christ. We can find the peace He has promised. We just need trust in Him. 

Have a lovely week! I miss you all. Keep doing your best and I look forward to hearing from you all soon. 

Elder Blackhurst​​​​​​