HOPE THROUGH THE SAVIOR. HOPE THROUGH THE PLAN.

"We were out contacting and we found this couple. They didn't seem interested at first. But as we kept testifying, their interest little by little started increasing. We taught them about eternal families and God's plan for us. We asked if we could pray for them. They said yes. We asked what we could pray for. They were silent and wouldn't talk to us but we kept asking them. Finally the mom broke down and told us their little boy had just passed away a few months ago. They were so sad. We prayed for them and talked to them about hope. 

Hope through the Savior. Hope through the Plan. It was so special. 

I am so grateful that God lets His servants, and in many cases these are young missionaries, 

have these incredible, life-changing experiences. Truly The Best 2 Years!"

YuSen Liu (from Hsinchu) with Elder Willes outside the Taipei Temple 

Jerry Chiang, a young member from Hsinchu, an area Elder Willes previously served in.  Jerry saw Elder Willes this week when he went to the Taipei Temple.  He and YuSen Liu (pictured above) came and visited us in Utah this summer.  What a pleasure to know these awesome young men!

Beautiful Hualian, Taiwan

Hello!

Everyday here in Taiwan is such a joy. I have a new companion. His name is Elder Huntsman. He's a stud. He and I and Elder Stewart are in a tri-panionship until this upcoming Friday when Elder Stewart moves out and will have a couple of transfers out in the field. I'm really grateful I've had the past 3 transfers to work with Elder Stewart. It's been a big blessing and such a blast. So much fun working with him. Love that guy. 

Elder Huntsman, Elder Stewart and Elder Willes

Elder Huntsman, Elder Stewart and Elder Willes - our first meal with all 3 of us

This week on Monday we went to visit a new and recent convert who moved into our ward. She brought a friend, Liu2 JM, and she became our new investigator. Liu2 JM is super prepared for the Gospel. We are meeting with some amazing people. Sister Lin came to church. She is awesome. Progressing well. We have some other investigators and we are just trying to find the time to meet with them. As crazy as that sounds finding the time to help them like I would like to is really difficult. I wish for more hours in the day. We are working really hard though and I feel like all these investigators have pretty good potential. 

We saw some crazy cool miracles this week. We had 3 additional Outdoor Zone Conferences this week. It was super tiring and a lot of traveling but so great. We went to Hualian and hiked up Taroko Gorge and had training on being positive, the Mandarin Chinese language, and becoming a disciple of Christ. It is so beautiful in Hualian. We left Taipei for Hualian at 

3:00 AM, had 9 people (the Office Zone) in the van, and left to drive back at 9:00 PM. It was a very long but great day. 

Elder Stewart, Elder Huntsman and I, were out contacting one night. I accidentally almost bumped this girl (Taipei traffic is indescribable) while on my bike so of course I started talking to her. She was so so cool. She's in her early 20's. Sister Zhong. A really really awesome girl. She has lived a hard life. Her friends and family haven't really supported her. She's struggling financially, and she's just lost in life. We asked her if we could pray for her. She said YES! She told us 4 things she hoped we would pray for. 

1. Better group of friends to better influence her life

2. Better family relationships

3. Direction in life

4. A testimony of God 

I was amazed at her super sincere desires. The people in Taiwan inspire me every day. We prayed for her and had a powerful lesson with her. The Spirit was so strong. We taught her that Jesus Christ is our powerful and very personal supporter and we each can and must rely on Him. I think it was cool how God led us to her and we were able to share the beginnings of the Gospel with her and strengthen her. It also made me so grateful that I have a great group of friends, a wonderful family, direction in my life, and a personal relationship with God. The gospel is so perfect! Sister Zhong is set up to meet with us next week! 

At one of our Zone Conferences this week Elder Huntsman and I decided to literally say hi to everyone we saw while hiking. We said hi to a lady and she asked us if we were Christians. We told her we were Christ's representatives. She told us she wanted to be baptized! We told her our purpose is to invite and help her do this! It was a crazy cool miracle. So way up in the mountains we taught this lady a lesson, gave her a Book of Mormon, and set a baptismal date for her. Sister Huang2! We then referred her to Elder Green in Xin Dian. She's incredible. 

The last really cool miracle happened last night. I was on exchanges with Elder Dethloff. We were out contacting and we found this couple. They didn't seem interested at first. But as we kept testifying, their interest little by little started increasing. We taught them about eternal families and God's plan for us. We asked if we could pray for them. They said yes. We asked what we could pray for. They were silent and wouldn't talk to us but we kept asking them. Finally the mom broke down and told us their little boy had just passed away a few months ago. They were so sad. They want a family and are not sure if she can have any more children because of some health complications. We prayed for them and taught them about where their son is. We showed the "Because of Him" video and talked to them about hope. Hope through the Savior. Hope through the Plan. It was so special. In that brief half and hour I felt the spirit so strongly and know that Heavenly Father's plan is perfect and real.

Elder Willes and Elder Dethloff 

Wow so cool that BYU is off to a hot start. Tanner Miracle Mangum is a boss! I hope they play well this week against UCLA. Go Cougars!

I am so grateful that God lets His servants, and in many cases these are young missionaries, have these incredible, life-changing experiences. Truly The Best 2 Years! Congrats Nate on getting that Eagle!!!! That's my boyyyy. Congrats to Jeff. My cousins are dropping like flies. Love you all! I really appreciate the support and prayers. 

Elder Willes

I saw my recent convert, Sister Xu3, in the MRT station.  Cool!