I Feel My Savior's Love

 Transfer number 3 has arrived!  It is crazy that I am done with training!  Studies do not seem long enough now days now that companionship studies is only an hour.  I have a new companion!  She and I have the same ethnicity.  Can you guess which country she is from?  JAPAN.  Her name is sister Chayama!  She is really sweet, humble, loving and has a great heart.  This will also be her last transfer, which means I am "killing" another companion (Mission lingo for I am her last companion).  We are serving in the Beehive House.  The Beehive House is the home of the second prophet of the LDS church, Bringham Young.  I am starting to develop a great appreciation for the role Bringham Young played in the work of the restored gospel. 

My new companion, Sister Chayama, from Japan

This transfer we are on early schedule which means we wake up at 6:15am and go to bed at 10:15pm.  So last Thursday I completely forgot to set my alarm to 6:15 and woke up at 6:30!  I have never woken up that late before out on the mission except when I woke up sick one morning.  I was really disappointed, but knew that it was an honest mistake and would not make it again.  Well guess what happened Friday morning?  I woke up late again!  I was really upset with myself for the whole day.  I could not believe that I had been disobedient to the schedule!  

During our TC time we called one of our investigators who has been having a hard time finding time to read the Book of Mormon.  We asked her what she hopes to get when we call her.  She shared with us that growing up she would attend Sunday school for her church all the time, but when she started working she lost the habit of going and regrets it.  She said she knows she has not been doing the things she needs to get done and wishes she never allowed to work and life to get in the way.  We explained the beauty of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  Because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we can constantly start over and develop a Christ like lifestyle.  From this conversation I learned something very important.  I realized that when I shared my testimony of the Atonement with our investigator, I had not followed it myself that day.  For the past two days I had held the burden of not forgiving myself for waking up late.  I was teaching this principle and yet I was not following it myself.  Heavenly Father works in mysterious ways to convert us all.

Later on Friday we gave a Japanese tour.  It was my very first language tour!  It was a really neat experience.  It was a group of four men.  We first took them to the Tabernacle and shared many of our basic beliefs with them.  Sister Chayama translated most of what was said, but I could still feel the Spirit even though I didn't understand everything.  All four of them had knowledge of the general Christian background which was interesting.  They asked a lot of questions, which was great!  We invited them to read the Book of Mormon.  One of them requested a copy.  So we walked over to the the North Visitor Center and gave him a copy.  A minute later another man asked for a copy.  Then a couple minutes later another one asked.  We also gave them  mormon.org cards that had Sister Chayama's number in case they ever wanted to learn more.  I guess in Japan if someone gives you their business card, it is a sign of respect to give your business card in return because the first man who requested the Book of Mormon gave us his card.  They asked to take a picture with us and they all held up their copies of the Book of Mormon.  How cool is that!  By the end of the conversation three of the four men left with a copy of the Book of Mormon.  I really enjoyed this experience.

This past Sunday I has the opportunity to be part of a musical number for the Bountiful Heights Utah Ward.  President Harmon, first counselor of the mission presidency, asked Sister Davis to put together a musical number for his friend's ward.  Sister Davis asked me and three other sisters in the mission to sing with her for this ward.  I had so much fun attending a family ward!  I miss being around little kids all the time.  We sang an arrangement o f"I Feel my Savior's Love".  We had the chance to sing in both our sacrament meeting and the family ward. The ward members brought their non member friends to church.  Afterwards their was a "linger-longer" and as missionaries we had the opportunity to meet the members and friends that attended.   Both times we sang I felt the Spirit so strongly.  I am grateful I had this experience to bear testimony through singing.

In the Beehive House today we took a member family through and in Bringham Young's office there is a painting of the Salt Lake Temple.  We asked the family when they look at the picture of the temple in their home what they think of and the oldest daughter (who looked around 13 years old maybe) said, it is a reminder to her of how their family started.  At that moment my heart was filled with the Spirit and my testimony was strengthened.  I love my mission.  I am blessed to have such a sacred calling as a missionary.  I know there are many reasons I was called to Temple Square at this specific time.  I am grateful for my home ward that have been a support to me.  I love my family so much.  Everyday I cherish the love that my family has given me as I look at the temple.  What that girl said in the Beehive House was a reminder to me of how much more I need to appreciate the commitment my parents made to one another and with our Heavenly Father in the temple.  Because of that commitment I have received numerous blessing and miracles throughout my life.  I know that the temple is the house of God.  I know that I there is a life after death.  I know that my Savior loves me because I feel it every single day.  I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Love,

Sister Aquino

Last transfer's roomates...from India, Japan, Denmark, Norwary and USA