The Work Continues

Well, we had another great week here in good old Aizu.

 

That phone call was really fun. I'm sorry there is so much to tell you and sometimes you just don't know where to begin and where to end.

 

Anyway, I forgot to tell you that Jeremy Reynolds joined the mission force here in Sendai. So I know someone actually in Japan! It's crazy.

 

This week wasn't too eventful. As I was sitting in church on Sunday listening to a talk given by the Elders quorum president, he was talking about families and time. He talked about that how our time in this life is limited and very short. But that is what is so great about the Gospel that families can really be together forever. I just really think what a great blessing it is to have this knowldge that we can be eternal.

 

This week we were able to teach our investigators a couple times. The Hoshi couple has so much potential but I feel like I just want them to be perfect investigators and always progress. But that's not the case, you have to be patient and long suffering you have to really try and discern peoples' needs and help them anyway you can. Right now they are really hesitant about coming to church but we will continue to search and be guided by the spirit to know why and try to settle any worries they might have.

 

Oh I don't know if I told you about the Shuwa Class.  After one of our Eikaiwa classes, I overheard one of the students talking to someone about shuwa and a class so I jumped right in and got all excited because she told me that there was a Shuwa class here in Aizu and that it was free. You better believe I went! It was so awesome, when I first arrived the lady who was a translator for the Deaf teachers came up to me and told me you cannot have any religious talk in this place.  I was a little upset because I wanted to proselyte but I understood that it is a free class and I couldn't. But that is where the Lord works in Mysteriouus ways... So we went to this class with an Eikaiwa student who just happens to be an investigator too. The class is 2 hours long and there is a half an hour break between the two hours and during that time all of the deaf people asked me questions about who I am why I know Shuwa what am I doing in Japan and so I got to Proselyte and tell them all these things.  At first I was hesitant because the lady told me not to, but our Eikaiwa investigator was able to actually work with us in explaining our purpose. It was way good and a lot of the students are now coming to our Eikaiwa class ( the ones that aren't deaf) and the deaf people I am going to try and get their phone numbers next time and see if I can't use what the Lord has allowed me to learn and build up his kingdom that way.

 

Anyways hope you are all good and love you all.

 

Elder Nebeker

You don't always get to see the fruits of your labor (Dec 22nd letter)

So this week was incredible.

 

So this week I learned that sometimes you don't always get to see the fruits of your labor. While I was in Hachinohe I didn't have the best success but I always had faith that I could find people and did my best everyday. As I was thinking about it this week eating lunch, I saw a letter on the table and saw that it was addressed to me. I was confused why I hadn't seen this letter before but I grabbed it and it wasn't from anyone from America it was from Japan.  I opened it and it was a letter from a Member in Hachinohe who told me that when I had taught her High school class they had an amazing time and now 3 of the students are active participants in Eikaiwa and love talking to the missionaries. Even though it was something small it made me realize that even though I might not always have success I am setting a strong foundation and leaving my areas stronger than I found them. It's really amazing how the Lord works in Mysterious ways.

 

Anyways this week was full of fun awesome things. We got to teach our investigators quite a few times this week. I really love the 2 year old Yuna, she is so CUTE! Makes me want to have a little Japanese kid. Anyway, they invited us to go out to dinner with them too. It was their anniversary and they took us missionaries with them. Super cool. We were able to really strengthen our relationship with them and afterwards we went to some weird place and took the most hilarious pictures.  It is some self editing thing that makes you look like you are wearing some hardcore make up. It was ridiculous but hilarious.

 

Right now we are really trying to get their family to come to church.  They read and pray all the time, but for some reason they won't or can't come to church. It's frustrating because you love them so much and you just want to see them be happy forever.

 

Also, this week we had one of our Christmas parties and it turned out awesome. So to give you some background, at least each quarter the branch has a missionary fireside where we create goals that the branch wants to see the missionaries do. And one of the goals was to see 70 people at the Christmas party. So the Christmas party came around and we had exactly seventy people there! It was an awesome Miracle. Everyone me and my companion had invited to the Party came and we saw so much success from it. The sister missionaries were able to find a new investigator through it and also some people came to church the next day that were at the party. So I think It was a pretty good success. We were able to squeeze a lesson right after the party too.

 

I could always use more ideas to teach, using books would be awesome. Im getting a little tired of drawing pictures. Literally even if you can think of themes or anything that could be used as a teaching aid that would be great because I teach a few kids from the ages 2-5 years old.

 

Love you cant wait to talk to you.

 

Elder Nebeker

Aizu Wakamatsu (December 15th Letter)

When I first arrived in Aizu it was actually really warm and quite pretty. There are a lot of mountains to look at and it's kind of like a Park City feel except for about a thousand times more houses and buildings. Then my second day in Aizu one of member tells me it's going to snow. I didn't think much about it because it snowed once in Hachinohe and it was barely anything so I thought Japanese people didn't understand what it really means to SNOW. I was completely wrong. It has been snowing for three days straight now and I have never seen  so much snow in my entire life. I can't ride my bike anymore for the winter and and it is so crazy how much snow they get. I would have to argue that there is more snow here now in these three days than Utah gets in an entire year. Super crazy!

 

Just to tell you a little bit about the area; It is by Fukushima where the nuclear power plants had a problem and are leaking.  I won't get to see a lot of my area because radiation levels are too high and there is still a lot of people who live in these places because they have to. We have another Branch in Koriyama that had to be closed down to missionaries but we still get to go every once in a while and help the members out there. And I really want to help them out because there is a deaf person! I love deaf people, so I am excited when it is my turn to go! There are a lot of people who were affected by the earthquake in 2011 here in Aizu. There are still a ton of people who are living in the assisted living homes which are teeny tiny little things. I feel really bad for them but so glad that I get to help them out in my time here in Aizu.

 

My companion is a great guy! But its certainly weird switching companions.  He is from Idaho and he doesn't speak much Japanese which was weird going from speaking only Japanese to now English. He really is as nice as they come.

 

Right now I have 3 Investigators! WHOOOO!!! Its a miracle!

We are teaching a family called the Hoshi family. We teach their 2 year old daughter English and she is super cute! The mom is super nice and so is the dad. They knew each other in Junior High but didn't really talk and then later in life ended up getting married. Anyways, you might be wondering how in the world do I teach a 2 year old English. It's not easy.  You have to be super creative and make a lot of crafts to try to have attention the whole time. So if you have any Ideas I would love to hear them. Right now they live really close to the church, living with their parents because when the Earthquake happened it split their house in half. They told me all the stories of what happened here in Aizu during the earthquake. It sounded pretty scary. Food couldn't be shipped into Aizu for a couple months and so all the stores were out of food and a lot of people were coming into Aizu to evacuate Fukushima so there were a lot more people here. They said that this was one of the hardest times but that's when they prayed to God to help them to know what to do. They said that it was during this time that they realized just how important families are and that this life is pretty short with families. So we were able to explain how the Gospel can help them and that they can be with their family forever and that they can always talk to God and seek his guidance and thank him. They right now are reading the Book of Mormon together as a couple and basically share it with all their friends. Its super awesome! We have been shoveling their snow in front of the house so they can leave and go to work and stuff. And they were very appreciative. So much that they asked to set up appointment(s) We have a couple with them already set and they invited us to go get dinner with them on their aniversary! Like way nice! So our other investigators have been coming through their friends.

 

Oh I almost forgot! Here in Aizu we have two missionaries who just recently returned from their misisons and one went to Nagoya and the other went to tokyo. They know a lot of Jamies friends (WADE!) and they know a lot of my friends too who are serving, They know my prom dates brother Elder Sanderson, They know my friend Josh Nielson and they know Riley otteson. So it is a pretty crazy small world! They also know some of my MTC teachers, The branch does at least.

 

 So I hope to keep on working and doing my best here in Aizu. We have an appointment tomorrow with Hoshi family and one or two of there friends so I will ganbarimasu! Will do my best!

 

Love you all keep up the good work in LEHI!

 

 

Elder Nebeker

Transfer

Well, hello there.

 

This week made me really love my area Hachinohe!

This week we had Zone conference which was way fun! 

Our zone (Aomori) decided that they wanted to do a play of Jesuss birth and I was lucky enough to be Joseph for it! Lucky me. We didn't have any practice either because there is no time to meet together as a zone to practice it. But I still think it went very well. And don't worry, my head was covered with a cloth so people didnt have to stare at my bald spot. :)

Thank you so much for the lettters I really appreciated them and it certainly helped me realize how much love there really is around me. 

This week was a pretty exciting one, it made me absolutley love Hachinohe. I had the opportunity to go and teach an English class at a high school and I had no idea that I was supposed to teach. Literally I just walked in, ate dinner with the teacher, and she said, hey I have to grade the students tests today so you'll be teaching for about an hour today. I was a little bit panicked, cause I had like 5 minutes to prepare. So I said a quick prayer and asked Heavenly Father to help me think of ideas and things to do with this class and that it would just be a good time. So we started class and it was honestly SOOO fun! I made everyone do introductions and played games and talked about America with them. And the best part is is that they asked what Elder meant.... Hee hee i could then preach to them. So we shared what Elder meant and why we call everyone Brothers and Sisters. Then one of them asked what the meaning of Christmas was. So I got to share with them the meaning of Christmas and so basically I taught thirty or so students at one time. I had a blast! Its amazing how far a simple prayer can go. I actually ended up teaching for 2 and half hours because it was so fun and the students really enjoyed it and wouldn't let me leave.

This week we were able to visit one of our potential investigators.  It was a lady I had found clear back in the summer when I first came.  We haven't been able to get ahold of her because she is always busy but we we have been able to talk to her family in the past and finally this Sunday we were able to get ahold of her and shared a message about the restoration and we got her phone number and we will teach her family! Yeah! 

This week also one of our old investigators came to an activity.  We had zone conference so we only got there at the last few minutes of the activity.  We weren't able to see him, but the branch President came and said that he wanted to talk to us because he lost his job recently and wants to talk to the missionaries again. So we have an appointment with him today to eat dinner and talk some things over.

And of course, things start to liven up here and I WILL TENKIN! I will transfer. Im transferring to Aizuwakamatsu! Basically the other end of the mission! Crazy! I will be companions with the Disrtict leader. I'm super excited but I am so sad to leave Hachinohe because I know that I might not see these wonderful people again. But I know that the Lord's work must continue.

 

Love you all and hope to hear from you again soon! Sorry I don't have more time to write!

Elder Nebeker

Baptism in Hachinohe

Kazoku! (family)

Well I'm just going to start with my week,

On Monday I decided I needed a hair cut but I don't trust the haircut places here because they cut Japanese style hair not Gaijin (foreigner) hair so I thought I would try giving myself a hair cut. I went to the local mall here and found some clippers and returned to my apartment. So I didn't want to charge the clippers for very long cause it was P day, I wanted to do other things, I wanted to get my hair cut over fast. So I charged it for about five minutes and thought that if I just do like a 3 on the sides and a 4 on the top I should be fine. So on these clippers its only one clipper and you can slid it up and down to change the length to like a 3 or 4 or 2 and so I did that and I got the length that I wanted and began shaving away... Then because I didn't charge it for very long it started to slow down so I thought I would just try to go faster and faster...  I added a little pressure as I was going fast and all of a sudden the slide lock came loose on the clippers and it switched into a 1 and I heard Vrrrrrooooom, and I became Hage (Bald)... not really bald but I shaved my hair down quite a bit that you can see skin which is not normal for my rather thick hair. I was a little shocked but I just thought maybe if I cut the rest of my hair to a 2 on the sides and 3 on the top that would blend it better so then I relocked the Clipper adjustment and continued cutting when all of a sudden the clippers died. So I didn't have time to charge the clippers and finish the hair cut so I took out the scissors and thought meh, If teenage girls can do this so can I. So I tried to taper things out a little bit but then my companion yelled LET`S GO! crap I was only half way done with my hair cut. I looked at it and had a flash back of cutting Rachel Tietjens hair. Nothing has changed in the last 10 years or so,my cutting ability is about the same. Eventually one of the church members noticed that I was a little bit bald on the sides and asked if they could help and she fixed my hair right up. Very nice Kyoukaiin (church member).

On Thursday, we got a call from a church member in Misawa which is where the American Air base is and it was actually an American on the phone and they invited our district to Thanksgiving. Oh my goodness I have never seen more glorious food in the 5 months since I have been in Japan. We had a good talk with them and they were so nice.  We were very fortunate to go because Misawa is not in our area but we got special permission.  It was really funny because Japanese Elders have never sat in a lazy boy before or just a regular American couch. They were in heaven. It was super funny. They all said they want to move to America after that. I was really grateful for them and their charity.  They actually came back to Hachinohe and helped me repair my bike because they had a lot of spare parts.  I had to replace my back tire, both my brakes, both pedals, and I found out that my back rim was bent pretty bad. My poor bike has had to go through a lot lately but that's okay. 

 

Jump Back to Wednesday. Eikaiwa day. We had a special new student who came.  He is in the Japanese Jedai.  Its like a marine force for Japanese but Japan can't have an army because of world war two, but he had a really good time at Eikaiwa and we were able to talk to him after class.  He asked us a lot of questions about church and he said that he wouldn't mind becoming Christian... We were all in shock, so we invited him to Open space, another activity we have at the church, so that we could talk to him more and teach him break dance,cause my district leader break dances.  He had an awesome time and really enjoyed talking with us missionaries and he asked if we could get lunch with him sometime, and of course we said yes and we invited him to church and we went on our way.

 

 Oh time out, almost forgot Saturday, there was a baptism in Hachinohe!!

Super Exciting we finally had a baptism here in Hachinohe.  It was one of the Sisters investigators. It really made all the church members happy and it gave them some mission fire I think. It was so amazing to see someone who humbled themselves and became clean. I was able to participate in the confirmation and it was really amazing to feel of the power of the Holy Ghost. She is a very Humble lady and will be a great church member.

Sunday, Sunday was an awesome day. Like I said we were able to confirm the Holy Ghost and not only that our friend from Eikaiwa came to church and stayed for the whole thing! We were really surprised.  We asked him if he thought it was long and he said no.  He said that what he felt today wasn't a usual feeling it was a better feeling and that he really liked Sunday school and being able to have a discussion. It was super awesome. So we plan on continuing to work with him. After church one of the members came and grabbed  us and said this is my son teach him. WHAT! I was so shocked, apparently the members son has been struggling in life and wants to know what the purpose of life is. So us Hachinohe missionaries get to teach him. Super awesome.

I love you all and I am so grateful for you.

 

Elder Nebeker

Everything can be a Learning Opportunity

Wow this week was crazy eventful, Ill have to tell you after my mission because its a little bit too crazy... :)

 

Anyways, this week was super awesome we had about 10ish Eikaiwa students last week and we have been getting 2 new students every week but this week something changed and we had 8 NEW students come in 1 week! My district Leader who leaves in 1 transfer said that is the most new students he has ever seen come to Eikaiwa at one time. So we were are very grateful for the the blessings that brought us. We are super close to our goal now and we have a about 1 month to accomplish it. (25 students). It was really awesome to see the results after standing out in the cold on main street handing out thousands of flyers, and even though 8 new students might not seem like a lot it's actually a miracle. 

This week I was able to do the translation for the Sacrament in Sign language it was a really neat experience. I really like Shuwa ( Japanese sign language) because they use so much emotion and things when they sign.  Japanese people are usually passive people, but Shuwa people aren't, and I like that. After Sacrament we had dinner with basically the whole ward at a members house and I sat down by the Shuwa members and had good conversations with them. They are super funny! I really enjoy them. 

Recently I have learned that everything in life has a learning opportunity. When we do something wrong or when we do something right, as long as we look at as improving our selves. In 3 Nephi Jesus says, ``Be perfect even as me.`` None of us are perfect, and that's what is so great about the Gospel because it is a Gospel of personal improvement. When we learn and recognize and change who we are for the better we become one more step closer to to being like Jesus and keeping this great commandment. 

On Sunday also, I got to hear a lot of the members conversion stories. Its really amazing how people found the Gospel in their lives. I really enjoyed Kanazawa Kyoudai's conversion story. When he was young, his brother got Baptized and his brother was super happy and showed his brother a picture of the missionaries in white helmets and riding bikes.  Kanzawa Kyoudai looked at it and was like ``cool man`` and tossed it off to the side. And later his brother invited him to Eikaiwa and he went with his borhter and met the missionaries, and after Eikaiwa the misionaries asked if they could share a message about Jesus and he look at them and said, "Heck No". He then apologized to us missionaries while sharing this story and said that he was arrogant and he understands what missionaries go through. I thought it was pretty funny because it's so true. But His brother basically just kept persisting and he finally met with the missionaries and got baptized. 

I don't actually see anyone from American Fork here in Hachinohe, but that's okay because I get to make a lot of new friends.

I got your package too! Thank you so much I opened up and I could feel a whoosh of love streaming out of the package, I was pretty happy. Im actually going to use the stuff for a pot luck that we have at Eikaiwa and share it with the students. Unfortunately in Japan, Thanksgiving doesn't exist.... But thats okay!

Anyways I love you all and I appreciate your Letters each week! Love you!

The Journey Continues

Family!

So many things happen in a week that I don't know what to say! But we had another earthquake a couple of days ago during personal study, or it was awesome revelation... one of the two. Just kidding it was both! Recently I have been reading in 3 Nephi about when the Savior came to visit. I have been taking notes on everything that the Savior commanded and how I can apply it to my life to follow the Savior better.  It's been very beneficial to me because I can find my weak spots and study them and try to strengthen them. I really suggest doing it, if you would like too. You can just start in Chapter 11 I think and continue to go on from there. 

This week I realized just how powerful the priesthood really is. One of the sisters in the ward was riding her bike on a fairly stormy day and the wind blew her off her bike and she fell face first into the gravel leaving a big wound on her face.  One that didn't look like it could heal well, (at least when I saw it), but she asked if we could give her a blessing of healing. When we gave the blessing you could feel the power of the Priesthood and the faith of the sister.  She was very grateful for us and gave me a nice looking tie afterwards. We didn't get to see her again until the next Sunday at sacrament meeting, but when we saw her she was completely healed. It's amazing what faith and the power of the Priesthood can do. 

She is also a teacher and she planned for our District to come and teach her students for a class. I'm super excited!

(side note)

Oh I almost forgot we celebrated Okada Choros birthday, He is a stud muffin. He is currently Hachinohes district leader and a trainer but he leaves once he is done training his new missionary. So we ate a good meal for his birthday, (steak), which is very expensive in Japan. Like ridiculously expensive. We love Okada Choro. He says he wants a present. He is selfish. But we still love him, Ill pray about sharing my package I get with him.

 

I don't know if I have told you about Angel House yet, so I will talk about angel house. Once a week I get to go to Angel house which is where people with Downs Syndrome and other problems live and work. We go there every week and perform service to them and do activities with them.  My favorite activity with them is doing Yoga! Its the best! I always feel so much better after I am with them because they really are perfect Spirits. 

I have done so much Eikaiwa streeting that basically all the teenagers know me on main street. They like to take pictures with me because I am a gaijin ( foreigner) so I might be randomly on someones facebook in Japan.

Funny fact about Japan. Kareoke is HUGE here in Japan. There are like 60 kareoke bars in Hachinohe alone and they make pretty good money which I think is hilarious. We visited a two story kareoke bar to see if they could put up an eikaiwa poster there and we ended up talking to the head honcho of the business He was a little bit Kouman (arrogant) but before we even asked if we could put up a poster in his place he asked if we came here on bikes with white helmets. We were surprised and said yes and found out that he has seen the missionaries before and without us even asking he asked if we had Eikaiwa flyers and a poster for him to take. I thought that it was pretty omoshiroi (interesting/ funny). 

I can find food here but Its not very healthy food so I'm becoming a debu (fatty) but that's okay because yamanaka kychou ( President Yamanaka, Branch President) asked if I would be santa claus for the Christmas party. 

Eikaiwa is starting to pick up a little especially from when we started. When we started we only had 2 students who have come for like 20 years, but since we started we now have 12 consistent students who come and our goal as a district is to get 25 consistent students to come to Eikaiwa by Christmas.

Grocery stores are very similar except they don't have any American things. Like at all. So you Definitely have to learn to cook Japanese food.

I'm staying fairly warm although it has started to cool off here real fast. It snowed once but it warms back up and then cools down fast again.

Love you! 

Elder Nebeker

I Have Faith

Well Hello there family!

Recently in Japan it has been very cold! We have had so much wind and rain! It actually hasn't felt that humid in the winter here so I haven't had to do too much adjusting. This last week we have been focusing on Eikaiwa so we have been handing a ton of flyers out! Our district in one day handed out 2000 flyers to try to get people to come to Eikaiwa, and we got 3 new students! Which is actually a miracle. The crazy part is  one of the girls who came to Eikaiwa name is Zion..... interesting huh? Our hope as a district is to get a substantial amount of people to come to Eikaiwa during the winter and find people to teach the gospel through Eikaiwa. 

Our district leader said that's how he has found all the people he has baptized so we have high hopes for it. 

This last week we had the Primary program and because there are only 3 kids in the branch the missionaries got to participate! It was fun to be back on the stage with the kids. I got to bare my testimony, but I totally forgot all my Japanese. It was so embarrassing! But, it's all good because I got to redeem myself later on teaching Sunday school and Priesthood. 

So just to update you on something fun, I am currently learning how to play the Piano from Pattysan so that we can play a duet together at the Christmas Party. I will try to get it on film when we play I think you will enjoy it. 

And yes I do use Sign language very often.  Sometimes for fun, my companion and I will do companion study in sign language (shuwa). We really want to get our sign language strong because we believe that if we could get good enough we could ask for referrals from a lot of the church members and its a great way to gain the trust of the church members. 

Last time I wasn't able to give you a lot of detail that happened when we visited the church member who is deaf, so this time I will try to go in more depth.

So me and my old district leader were on a split and his Shuwa is pretty decent so we felt that we should go visit a deaf member that day. We were just planning on it being a way to build a better relationship with the church members. But when we visited her she looked at us and began to cry and said, ``I'm sorry I missed Church last week! I didn't feel like I wanted to go, I'm sorry``. We were stunned! I wasn't sure at first why she was crying so we asked her if she was okay and that we weren't there just to tell her to come to church. She explained to us that she has had a headache for the past 9 years and that every time she reads the book of Mormon that pain worsens and she feels like a bad person and her heart aches. She looked at us and asked us to please help her. She said that there are just so many Commandments and she doesn't know how to keep them all. I looked at her and I felt so much love for her. We explained why Jesus Christ's Atonement was given to us, because God knows we can't be perfect in this life, and that when we go to church and partake of the sacrament we can be forgiven and feel peace in our lives. I then shared a scripture in DC which I will probably have to write next time because I don't have a whole lot of time. But she said she is grateful for missionaries and our help and we saw her at Church the next Sunday.

Anyways, I'm still praying to find that one person who will listen to the Gospel and feel of the Love of our Savior and Heavenly Father.

Shinkou ga motte imasu!

I have Faith!

Love you,

Elder Nebeker

Making Contacts

Family!

So you want to know what my typical day is like here in Japan? Huh?

Well serving in Japan is much different than serving anywhere else in the world in my opinion. For my first transfer (6 weeks) I did a lot of Housing which was knocking on peoples' doors and introducing the church to them. And also I would go to main street and contact people there too. It's pretty fun, you get rejected a lot but there is always that 1 person who will listen. 

Recently though we have had a transfer and we got a new District leader so our focus has changed quite a bit. Now we are focusing on Eikaiwa, That is the English class which we teach each week. It is probably one of my favorite things to do so far. So my companion and I have been trying to do our best to advertise Eikaiwa. This last week I have visited with Newspaper companies, Radio station companies, and all sorts of stores to try and get Eikaiwa popular. It is certainly a new experience but I really enjoy it. I kind of feel like a businessman talking to all these businessmen. Our hope is that we can find people to teach through Eikaiwa because its one of Japan`s best finding tools. 

This week I have felt every ones' prayers and I am so grateful for my Father in Heaven for giving me the opportunity to come to Japan and serve these people. I have certainly learned fast that we need to be grateful in life and always have a positive perspective on everything. That is when we feel Joy even in the rough times of life.

Oh I almost forgot to tell you about Patty!

So Patty is a foreigner to Japan..... (she says) But she totally understands Japanese even though she says she doesn't.

Anyways a little bit about Patty, She speaks 7 languages (fluent) and that is not a joke. She is crazy talented at the piano.  She doesn't need sheet music and she can play all the beethoven and bach songs and basically all the classics. It's crazy. Apparently she is royalty in Russia, (I'm not sure If I believe that one.) She said that she has been in hiding because people are trying to kill off her family. Apparently she was a pro ice skater too. Shes also lived like everywhere in the world, which I might be able to believe because she really knows the history about everything.... Like everything. She can look at your name and the spelling and tell where your ancestors came from. She is pretty good. But she tells a lot of half truths too.... Apparently she is also a fortune teller in her words.... She says she can see the future.... She doesn't show her eyes and she wears a wig (I think). Apparently in her past she was a sniper too, to take of special business (she says). She says she has 20 children all around the world. She is a pretty interesting lady. She sent me a big letter about her life story. And I'm suppose to sign it and and yeah... I think she is a bit crazy but I will try to send you pictures of it. 

I love you all keep up the good work!

Love Elder Nebeker

Earthquake

Sorry I really don't have time this week!

But yes, we totally felt the earthquake it shook all of Japan. I actually woke up like 10 seconds before it happened. Not sure why but I did. It shook for about twenty seconds it was pretty big. I thought it was pretty cool. 

This week we were able to visit a family who is deaf.  It was a very spiritual experience. They definitely needed help in their lives. I think that the Lord had some mercy on me because I was able to sign exactly what I needed to to get my message across to them. It's amazing when you know the Spirit it working through you. I am so grateful for that experience in my life it will be something that will change me for the better.

I will try to tell you more next week.

Love,

Elder Nebeker

Typhoon

Wow I don't even know where to start with this week!

Well this week we had a typhoon come through so we weren't able to proselyte for a day or so and the typhoon certainly brought winter with it. I went from wearing short sleeve shirts one day to the next day wearing really big coats. It's crazy what a typhoon can do! It really wasn't that exciting though, there is just a lot of wind and rain that never stops... like never.... basically every book that I have ever put into my backpack is ruined because of the rain, but I love it!

I find it funny that you talked about nachos... actually there is a American air base about an hour away from Hachinohe and recently we were able to get peanut butter from there.... Let me just say that is the most delicious thing I have had in the longest time. Peanut butter and Jelly sandwiches are basically a delicacy here. Oh and cereal too. Very hard to find. So Nachos sound super delicious too because cheese doesn't exist here.

This week while we were housing we found a lady who was really fun to talk to and certainly has interest. I really hope we can start lessons with her but it might be a little hard....

Her husband is a Buddhist temple priest and she says that if he finds out that she even talked to us she would certainly get in trouble. But when we talked about Jesus she really lit up and was super happy.  I think she is trapped by her husband but she really does have a desire to learn about Christ.

I'm sorry I only have 25 minutes to email today!

But anyways I want to tell you about patty san next week! Don't let me forget!

Love you all sorry I cant talk longer! 

Hachinohe

Wow, this week was a good one.

 

 Since a lot of people have been asking about where I live and what my arrangments of life are like here I will tell you a little.

 

I live in a apartment which is small, but for Japan it is actually a pretty decent size. I do sleep on the floor and at first my back hurt but now I wake up just fine. I have noticed since coming to Japan my body is much more limber. I certainly am more flexible than when I came. I sit Japanese style with no problem anymore. if you want to know Japanese style sitting, look it up and try it. Its very uncomfortable at first. Oh and food.  The food I have eaten is pretty basic, Ramen, Pasta, and Curry, Rice. That is basically my diet. One thing that has taken me some time is that they really don't drink much water here. They drink a lot of flavored drinks. It's delicious though. They don't have garbage cans anywhere here.  I don't know if I have told you that or not yet. We are all walking trash cans.  Anything that you want to eat away from home you need to expect to keep the trash for awhile. 

 

Just to tell you a little bit about the landscape. It's hills everywhere! My legs are going to be ripped! At least my quads. My hamstrings will need some work later on but that's all good. In the city there are a lot of building and the houses are very close together. I think this is a huge place, but for Japan Hachinohe is like Montanna or Wyoming. Its kind of the Hick town of Japan. I love it, its a bit of a cement jungle in the city but when you get outside of the city there are beautiful Mountains where every inch of the mountains are covered in trees and vines that drape down from the top of every tree going to the ground. The Rice fields are beautiful.  They beautifully place them between mountains and hills. There is a big river which runs through all of Hachinohe. The river comes from the ocean which is maybe 35 minute bike ride to get to. Its not that pretty because Hachinohe is very much known for the fishing industry, and there are power plants by the ocean.  I have hardly eaten fish here, just squid every once in awhile. 

 

Okay this week,

 

This week we weren't able to get ahold of our potential investigators but we did a lot of tracting and finding and just when I thought there was no luck we found someone who would listen. It was actually today. My companion doesn't really like street contacting because he says it's really weird for Japanese people to go up to strangers but he said that its okay for Foreigners to do it. So I am the contacter and he is the saver when I don't understand what they say.  We went to a large park and I saw a lady sitting with her daughter having a small picnic and I contacted her and handed her a simple pass along card that had a picture of the temple and she asked me about the temple and I was able to tell her that thats where families go to be sealed so they can live together forever in happiness. She seemed intrigued but anything that has to deal with religion people aren't too interested here in Japan. But I talked to her more and got to know her.  She apparently studied English for a little bit so I gave her a Family English Program thing that we do here in Japan. What that is, is we offer to teach english to a family and after we get to practice giving them lessons of the Gospel in Japan even if they don't have interest in the gospel. She seemed interested in that so I gave her my missionary card and we were able to get her phone number which is unheard of here in Japan not very many people give out there phone numbers according to my companion. So I have high hopes for her.

 

Well I love you all I don't have much time so I'm sorry but I love you and I will continue to do my best here. I'll do better at giving you more details next week of what tracting and contacting is like here in Japan.

 

Elder Nebeker

 

 

 

Week 3 in Japan

Wow, weeks go by way too fast here. I am learning the language a little bit better. I can speak, I just cant understand. It's certainly different.

Oh and I am an awful son and a brother! Kelsey, Dad, Happy Birthday! I literally can't remember anything about home anymore. Sorry if my typing is horrible because I have to use a Japanese keyboard that is a little bit weird. So forgive me in advance. 

This week I was able to participate in a blessing that was pretty cool. I didn't understand exactly what the problems were and why she needed the blessing but I know that during the blessing I felt the spirit. It's an amazing feeling. 

So we might have an investigator or two... maybe... We're not sure yet but we have been visiting a lady and we gave her a Book of Mormon and asked her to pray about it and she said she would. So I have high hopes and faith. She is a very nice lady, the last time we visited her she gave us a owl that she had sewn.  It's really cute and she told us she gave it to us because she likes to make people happy.  And well it worked, so we gave her a Book of Mormon and told her that this book makes us happy and it can make her happy too. We had a pretty interesting conversation with her. Her father had passed away when she was only 7 years old but she said that she feels as though her father has been guiding her throughout her life. We shared the love that Heavenly Father has for us with her and told her that just as she feels her father guide her so does Heavenly Father. So I will report to you next week on how that goes!

The other person we contacted a while back and didn't think too much of the contact, but she had heard of the church. When she was in Junior high school her friend was baptized but that was the extent of what she knew about the church. This was all during the first contact. We decided to make a second contact and when we were planning for her we just weren't getting anything. So my companion let me have the opportunity of acting on my faith and knocking on the door and leading the discussion. I said a prayer in my heart that all would go well. Well certainly Heavenly Father is mindful of his servants. I started to talk to her and found out that she teaches English at a High school! So as I was struggling with Japanese she kindly smiled and said, ``I can Speak English``.  Wow what a relief that was. So I was able to really tell her how I feel about the Gospel. As I was talking to her I found out that she had attended a Christian High school and college. It`s the first person I have met on the street or in a house that actually has some belief in God. So I continued talking to her and her thoughts about religion. She said it is hard because her family is buddhist but she believes in God. But then she added she thinks religion is just about love. So I talked to her about the Love of Jesus Christ and the power of His Atonement. She was very nice, so I gave her a Book of Mormon and asked her if she would read the introduction page and pray to God to know whether or not it is true. We set up an Appointment with her and I will let you know how that goes next week.

Anyways, Recently we have had a lot of zone and district meetings so I have been traveling a little bit around in Japan. This past week I traveled to Aomori. Its a beautiful City right next to the ocean so I got to see the ocean which was cool. Oh and also in Aomori they have the biggest spiders I ever seen in my entire life they are super cool! They are Neon yellow and about the size of my palm. They make huge Spider webs and not like the little stringy spider webs we see in Utah but like Spider man Spider webs but they have a brown web, not white. It's pretty cool. You should try to look it up.

So I cant believe Utah already has Snow That is insane! I am actually still in short sleeve shirts right now, believe it or not.  It's not that cold here yet it just rains a lot.

I'm going to send some pictures. So I will end this emaill now.

But love you everyone make this week a fantastic one!

 

 

September 30, 2013 Letter

Holy moly, Japanese is still crazy hard, but I have the faith that I can learn it but its going to take a very long time.... Anyways, this week was really good. We still don't have any investigators but we have been able to teach lessons. There are a lot of part member families in the Branch so we have work to do! We visited with one family, and well it was only supposed to be with the church member but his family joined us.  As we began talking we kind of didn't teach our lesson we had prepared for the church member because we began teaching his mother about the church. I boldly asked if she believed in God, and thats what got the conversation rolling. We talked a lot about God and how that through prayer we can talk to God and that He loves us and if we want to know He is there we can pray. I bore my testimony and we went on our way. I enjoyed being able to teach and I asked my companion how he thought it went and he said "meh", Japanese style. But I didnt feel that way I felt that it was better than "meh". I didnt think too much about it after that but this sunday when I went to church, the church member came up to me and said, "thank you for coming, my mom was very happy after you left". So it brightened my week a little to know that my efforts weren't wasted. I dont know if we will be able to go back and visit her or not but I hope so. Apparently she doesn't like the missionaries, but she was very nice to us and gave us food to take home and things.  It was great.

 

Anyways that was cool, made me feel the joy of missionary work.

 

Today is Pday so we had the opportunity to go to ``Christs Grave``.  Apparently in Japan they believe that Christ came to the city I am in and studied here for the years that the bible does not account for. I will attach pictures that have the explanation. But it is interesting and very odd in my opinion.

 

Some info for you.

 

 

I sleep on the Ground, on a futon. Its not very comfortable but you are always so tired by the end of the day anyways. So its good enough for me.

 

Oh yeah also today I ate some interesting food. The branch President took us to a place that was all you can eat. So I tried Horse meat which is really good actually. I tried Pig tongue and I also tried Pig fillopian tubes..... yeah not my favorite. But it was good. Probably some of the best food I have had in awhile.

 

Anyways, If you want to send a letter or package or anything you send it to the mission home and then they send it to me. So yeah. I have a bike. I wouldnt consider it a 700 dollar bike but in Japan apparently its nice. I would consider it more of a walmart type bike..... hahahaha but its all good.

 

I will send pictures next week.

 

love you

 

Elder Nebeker

First week in Japan

Oh wow, Seriously I don`t know where to begin!

 

 The plane ride to japan was awesome.  I sat by a Japanese guy who flew to America to watch a baseball game.  He was really cool, he added me as a friend on facebook so you should get on my face book and add him as a friend for me.

 

We got here and we were super excited to see where our first area would be. Everyone except for 2 out of the 26 people got English speaking trainers. My Trainer is Elder Keshino from Osaka Japan. He doesnt speak a lot of English so we are both forced to speak each others language to understand each other.

 

Although there were reports of an earthquake, I didn't feel it at all and its nice and sunny here in Japan. I am in Hachinohe area.  It's the most Northern area of the main island of Japan. It is very pretty and there is a big city and a lot of farms too once you get out of the city. Also there are a lot of hills and trees. I will try to get more pictures next week.

 

Right now we don't have any investigators but I have faith that we will get investigators.

 

I really don't understand Japanese at all but I smile and bear my testimony.

 

I love the church members here they are awesome and they take really good care of us.  There are about 45 members.

 

Sorry I wish I could make this letter a lot longer but someone walked into the church half way through my email and it just happened to be an investigator.

 

So just to update you on the things that I do. I teach English class, help teach seminary, I am learning Japanese Sign language because a lot of the members here are deaf.  I feel a lot of love for these people already. Even though learning Japanese seems impossible right now I have faith that I will be able to learn the language.

 

Some fun adjustments I have been making is always taking off my shoes at the door way and there are no garbage cans or drinking fountains in japan so that is really hard. Also putting books on the ground is not good so that is different for me. Not having chairs to sit on for meals at dinner is a new experience. Also I found out quickly you are not suppose to say hi to girls at night..... whoops my bad. Oh its so fun here I love it.

 

Sometimes I feel opposing forces working on me, but when I overcome whatever trial I might have I feel very happy.

 

Sorry I dont have time good luck! I love you!

Last Letter from the MTC

Wow, My time here at the MTC flew by! I can't believe it has come to an end. I have grown so much since where I started. It's amazing that someone could change that fast. But I am so happy for the opportunity to have stayed at the Provo MTC. I will not be traveling with my district, only the missionaries going to Sendai. It will be a bitter sweet goodbye tomorrow. But I am so happy to have met the people I have met and appreciate how they have helped me to grow too.

I don't know if I have told you, but here at the MTC we get the opportunity to skype with people in Japan. It's really fun, except for last week me and my companion forgot to prepare a lesson to teach for skype and the topic for the Skype session was revelation through prayer. Well, lets just say preparation goes a long way. Since the topic is on prayer, what a better way to start out a meeting than a prayer! Yeah we forgot to do that with her... Also during the skype session she had a Pepper and Olive that wouldn't quit BARKING! We couldn't hear her and to top things off after we gave a message about prayer we didn't even end with a prayer.... Yeah we learned a lot last week! 

 

We took our mistakes and we made them the best we could. So this week we were ready for skype.  Since it was our last week me and my companion picked the topic for what we thought needed to be shared, I picked the topic of Church attendance and kind of tied it into taking the sacrament and then how when we receive the sacrament we receive a remission of our sins and the spirit of Christ, and then I shared 3 scriptures through out this. Anyways I will get into more detail about it in a sec. But my companion shared a message for Revelation through The Book of Mormon. Like I said we learned from our mistakes and so we made sure that we prepared and prepared well and prayed like crazy because you can't do anything without the Lord's help. Like what a better way to do the Lord's work with his help...... DUH! 

 

We shared our message and I shared 3 scriptures. The first one being D&C 84;45, which talks about the Word of the Lord being truth and light. I explained to him when we go to church and partake of the sacrament and hear truth about the gospel we receive light. Then I shared with him D&C 50; 24 which says He that receiveth light and continueth in light receiveth more light and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.  I explained that scripture, and I shared 3 Nephi 18;24 which talks about let you're light so shine that it might be a light unto others and follow in the Footsteps of Christ. I bore testimony to him that if he continues to follow in the path of truth and light and shares his light with others he will become closer to Christ then he has ever been. Well after I shared this and my companion shared his message, he expressed his thanks for our message and said he was very touched by our message. I knew that the Spirit was guiding us through this. After our message he explained to us that he is an Area of the Seventy! His name is Brother Ishi. Wow it's a good thing we prepared well! I really enjoyed his Spirit and our skype session it was really cool talking to him and bearing testimony to him.

And not only to him, I think that we could all apply those scriptures to our lives, We have so much Light and Truth and Knowledge and the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Sometimes I wonder why we get so scared to open our mouths and share the message with others. Yeah not everyone will accept but you would be following His footsteps and that is how we become like Him.

On Wednesday we had the opportunity to hear from a Japanese man and his conversion story, (all in japanese) it was so nice I understood everything it was amazing I wish I had more time to share his conversion story but it was cool I will try to remember to send it when I have more time but a quick over view. He met the missionaries believed in it and asked his parents if he could be baptized and they said NO! Because he is Buddhist and everything. Well with faith and some time he was able to get baptized and yeah. I'll try to tell you the real story next week if I have time or later tonight.

Thanks for the packages I recieved them and I was very Happy! Arigato!

Last Week at the MTC!

Kazoku!,

(Family),

 Wow It's almost that Time! I have My Japanese Name Tag and It is Basically the Coolest thing ever. I will try to get a picture as soon as I can. Just to let you know I leave Early Early Monday Morning 3:30 A.m. That's Next monday... But I leave early, Go to Salt Lake Airport and from there I will Fly to Detroit Michigan! Nicks Homeland. From Detroit I fly to Nagoya Japan, then from Nagoya I fly to Sendai! I am so Excited but at the same time a little sad to Leave the MTC just because I know I probably won't ever have a time in my life like this again. And I will miss all the great teachers and friends I have made here. Anways, Back to the Flight. It's an (18:06) 18 hours and 6 minute Flight to Japan! Super Excited! 

 

I am having an ingrown Toenail removed this monday. I was in the Doctors office and we tried calling you 

but no one answered so hopefully you are all good with it ;)  I love you and I wish I had more time. 

ai shite Imasu. 
Elder Nebeker
 

Sacrifice to Love and Love to Sacrifice

Dear Family and Friends,

This week has been really cool. This last Sunday we talked about the Atonement and it was very powerful.  I love the Savior and what He has done for me. I can't wait to share the message with the people in Japan. The following Monday I was able to give a blessing of comfort to one of the Sisters in our District. It was very neat, She will be a fantastic missionary. Then on Tuesday we had Elder Niel. L. Andersen come and speak to us which was really cool. I really enjoyed the Spirit of his message. He talked about that we must sacrifice to love and love to sacrifice. When we love the Savior we have to sacrifice the worldly things and we need to love in doing so. He didn't go to deep into the concept because he wanted us to find out what it meant for us. But he said one of the best examples of Sacrifice was God's Sacrifice. "For God so loved the World, that He gave His only Begotten son, That whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life." It quickly drew my attention to the Savior and His Atoning Sacrifice. He loved us so much that he took upon him the Sins of the World. I realize as I strive to become more like the Savior I too must be willing and Loving when I sacrifice. Sacrificing is hard but when we do it to become closer to the Savior we will feel of His Great Love and joy, and will desire to come closer to him. The Spirit of his Message was great. At the end he bore Testimony and said that, "He is the Savior's witness." I thought that was really cool, because us missionaries are a witness of Christ also. What an amazing calling we have.

As the days followed I felt as though My Japanese learning was increasing tremendously. I have started to organize my Language learning more and more each day and teaching by the Spirit with more effectiveness. My companion and I had planned on teaching The Word of Wisdom with one of our investigators though we didn't end up teaching it because the Spirit prompted us otherwise. I can't remember the exact details but it was cool. He didn't understand the importance and blessings of keeping and following the Savior's example and commandments. I shared with him 2 scriptures the first D&C: 84:45 which talks about how Christ Is light. Then I shared with him D&C: 50:24 which says something among these lines, "He that receiveth light and continueth in light will receive more light and that light will grow Brighter and Brighter Until The Perfect day. " I was able to read the last scripture to him fluent as he was in reading that scripture, (In Japanese). I then bore testimony to him and said that, "I know even though we have hard times in this life, we can always use Christ's Atonement and become happy." It was really cool. I didn't even know I could say those things in Japanese.

 

The next few days followed and yesterday, (Friday) I was able to give another Blessing of Comfort. It was a very unique experience, I love The Priesthood and Knowing that as I live worthily I can always have it.

I love you family and I hope all is well. You should send me an Email so I have everyone's Birthday, I feel bad I missed Reegan's but tell him I love him and I am praying for him. Talk to you soon!

Love,

 

Elder Nebeker

I love Missionary Work

I love Missionary Work I don't want to come home.

Anways, This week has been really exciting because all the "daisenpai" which means people who have been in the MTC the longest are leaving and now we become Daisenpai. Today I got an email from The mission office in Sendai and they requested that we give them how we would like our names to be in Japanese! So exciting! They are also making our business Cards for Japan and we had to fill out a little get to know you thing for our Bishop and Stake President in Japan to the zone that we are being assigned to sometime this week. Time is Rapidly approaching to Japan. I am starting to get the hang of the Language. It is still super hard but I can carry on conversations and teach lessons and have good laughs and stuff. It's really cool. I still have a stupid cough. I am not sick it just won't go away. I think I just have had a lot of fluid in my lungs cause I am not congested or have a dry throat or anything it's just lingering. Anyways, I am learning so much and I can't wait to leave to Japan and just tell people what I know is true. This Email will probably be short because I took a lot of my time emailing the Mission Office. 

Thanks for the Scriptures, They weren't the size I had in mind. I was thinking like the really small kind. I think you will have to order them online though. But I will put the other ones to use While I have them. 

Okay I have to go but I might get back on a little later today.

あいしています！

Great Week

Dear Family and Friends,

The MTC is fantastic. I will definitely miss it. It's like a Garden of Eden cause you are protected no one is making fun of you when you say something stupid and it's a time to learn by and from the spirit.

 This last Tuesday we had the opportunity to hear from Elder Scott at one of our Devotionals. When he walked into the building you could just feel the power and authority which he holds and you could see a glow about him. It was very very cool. The spirit was very strong. You knew that he was a disciple of Christ. 

 The Missionary Choir Sang Jesus Once of Humble Birth before Elder Scott Spoke. And I mean the Choir is usually pretty good but that day they were AMAZING. It really sounded like a choir of angels.  Elder Scott was crying while they were singing and I felt the spirit very strongly, it was awesome.

 Elder Scott then got up and before starting his talk said to all of us missionaries learning a new language and that it is an extra burden placed on us but he said through our faith all things are possible. He than gave an Apostolic Blessing to us missionaries learning a language and he said, "I Give you a blessing that you will learn you mission language through your faith and diligence." I really needed that because seriously Japanese is so confusing, Here is just another taste of what Nihongo is like. Literally translated sentence structure. ( Baptism receive when we remission of sins will receive.) and to make sense of it that says, ( When we are baptized we will receive a remission of our sins.) So I really needed that blessing, I felt so much peace when he said that.

 He then said, "Every good thing that has come in my life has been from serving a mission." Wow! I knew instantly that was true. The things I have been learning are just amazing, I really love scripture study and i have grown very fond of the book Jesus The Christ. It has strengthened my testimony so much. I am starting to understand just a little bit of how important the Atonement really is. And I love it. 

 He than adrressed his talk, "Communication With Our Father In Heaven." He told us that when we pray we need to recognize that Heavenly Father is near, talk to him just like you would talk to your father. He knows everything and wants to talk to us. He told us that if we feel that God is not answering our questions are we asking the right questions? Are we seeking his Will or Our own will? He recommended that we read D&C Chapters 6,8,9 to learn how God answers Prayers. He expressed to us that when God answers our questions it will either be a calm peaceful feeling or a confident Yes. When it is a No a stupor of thought. When God doesn't answer our prayers he is putting trust in us that we will make the right decision, and if we make the wrong decision he won't let us go to far without letting us know and getting us back on the path.

 When we do receive an answer to a prayer act upon it, proceed with trust showing your faith. God wants us to grow closer to him but he does this by stretching our abilities, our faith in Him. What is withheld from us will help us grow in faith. 

 He then said if it seems that he had been emotional it's because he felt as though his wife who has been on the other side for 20 years to the day was there in the building listening to him speak. It was really cool. The spirit was so strong. He gave us another Apostolic Blessing to us who are learning a new language. 

 I loved his talk so much!

Things here at the MTC are great, The language is coming along, I still have a little cough. It's not bad though. I cannot wait for Japan! Time is rapidly approaching. Now only if I could speak the language that would be nice.

 Hope everything is good at home and my companion and I enjoy talking about weiner Dogs because he has one too. And we both think they are stupid but love them.

Anyways, Love you very much and Can't wait to hear from you again!

-Elder Nebeker

Week 4

Family!

 

I think I should probably let you know a little more about what the mtc life is like.

 

This is usually kind of a normal schedule.

 

6:30 (wake up)

6:45 breakfast

7:15 Personal Study

8:15 class or service (depending on day)

9:50 Physical Excercise

11:10 Lunch

11:55 TALL (a program that helps you learn Japanese)

1:10 Class

4:10 Dinner

4:55 Class

8:00 Language Study

9:00 Companionship Planning

9:30 Return to Dorm

10:15 Quiet Time

10:30 Bed time

 

 

So they keep us really busy which is really quite nice. During class times is usually when we Teach Investigators or Teachers in Nihongo (Japanese).

 

This week has been really good, I have really come to learn that you only get out what you put in. The Lord will bless us for our obedience but someone who is constantly seeking to please the Lord will recieve Miracles in their lives. We are teaching 2 investigators, which are our teachers, except on Saturday we get chances to teach real Investigators and members. Anyways, we taught Nishimurasan, (a teacher), about The Atonement of Christ, wow was it powerful! Gift of Tongues was there along with Gift of Interpretation, he really liked the message that was shared and the Spirit taught him a lot of things, He even asked about Baptism, (which will be our next lesson with him.) Even though it's Role Play it is very real, I've come to notice that In the gospel we do a lot of Role Playing.

 

I hope everyone had a good time at Evelyn's Birthday! The picture of the cake that Shauna sent me looked pretty legit. Although I am sad to miss events like that and boating.... I am so glad to be serving the Lord. I would not want be anywhere else right now.

 

I am feeling better I just have a cough that will not go away, I sleep with a humidifier above my head so that maybe it will loosen the stuff up in my lungs, which it is. Anyways, Language is still hard but it is making more sense.  It's certainly a different language, the way they conjugate things and the sentence structure is a little mind boggling. For Example: ( Morumon Sho Yome ba Kotae o Ukemasu.) Literally Translated means ( Book of Mormon read if answer receive.) Which when translated into English Context means if you read the Book Of Mormon you will receive answers.

 

Little hard to understand especially when you are trying to interpret what someone is saying, but I am much better at interpreting than I am trying to make sentences. Also I have the hardest times with books now because Japanese read different. I always open books backwards or upside down, it's frustrating and kind of funny, also when people ask me yes or no questions I respond with Hai ( yes) and they think I am weird (if they don't speak Japanese) cause they think I am saying "Hi", so sorry if when I come home I do that to you.

 

I love you all and  hope to hear from you all soon, sounds like everyone is having fun vacations at Fish lake and Bear lake! Have fun for the last little bit of summer cause it is flying by!

 

Ai shite imasu! (love you)

 

Elder Nebeker

 

A Poor Man's Milk Cup - (Where there's a will, there's a way)

Fancy Apartment at the MTC!

Week 3 Letter

Whoa time flies here!

 

   So Japanese is still hard but I can say some essential phrases and stuff, I am still sick it's just a stupid cough that won't go away. I'm not the only one sick in my district my companion is and about 3 others, we have given 2 blessings for the sick so far. One for my companion and one for Elder Day. It's pretty cool being able to excercise our priesthood but not cool that everyone is sick.

 

  I can't even explain how many missionaries there are that are going to Japan.  Back in November there were only 7 people at the Provo MTC going to Japan now there is like all of Provo MTC which is just mind blowing. The Lord has decided Japan is ready. Now we just need to learn how to speak Nihongo (Japanese).

 

  I have taught about 10 lessons now, we teach everyday, it's hard but it really makes you want to try that much harder. We were teaching a man named SaitoSan, we taught him about prayer and asked if he would pray.  We told him basically everything about prayer that I can think of to say in Japanese and he still said he doesn't understand prayer..... It was pretty frustrating but we'll just keep bearing our testimony to him and asking him to pray about it till he can know for himself.

 

  Anyways, I love all the Elders and Sisters in the District they are all super cool and each bring a unique spirit to everything we do. We all think we are going crazy because the stupidest things are hillarious to us all and make us laugh so hard. I guess it's just missionary Humor. I'm not going to lie I am sick of the food here..... It's all burgers and more burgers..... occasionaly something good will appear in the lines but it's rare. I don't dare weigh myself cause it'll just be embarrassing.

 

  My companion who at first was shy is starting to open up and I really like him, we both have weiner Dogs and we both did the same things to annoy them which is kinda funny. 

 

  Tell Evelyn I say happy birthday! I hope you all have fun and enjoy your Saturday,

 

 

 

あいしてます！

 

かみさまがしんじつあかしします。  イエスキリストがすくいんぬしあかしします。　

 

ネベカー長老

Week 2 Letter

Family, I can't remember what I sent last time and I don't have a whole lot of time to look, but to let you know my companion is Elder Rasumussen. He is from St. George. He has blonde hair and is really nice. he is into extreme martial arts and can do some crazy things. Anyways, the MTC is great I really enjoy it. The Language is really hard but I definitley know that the gift of tongues and interpretation is real. It's Like i can understand most everything they are saying but I don't know how to respond, which is very frustrating. We have been teaching Harukawa san, I have taught about 5 lessons and the teaching is going to pick up cause now I'll have 2 investigators. But to update you on harukawa san, we were able to teach him about God and Jesus's Atonement, he really liked that we could fix our sins, so we taught that we can be cleansed from our mistake through baptism and than we extended the invitation for him to be baptized. He said he really liked the Idea of baptism but needs time to think about it. Unfortunately the day we extended an invitation to him to be baptized our teacher told us that this was our last meeting with him. Well I'm learning so much and although the language is hard I know that there are so many people praying on my behalf and it is definitley helping, so thank you. I don't have a whole lot of time to email sorry this email is short I'll write to you more. or try to send pictures later today

 

Love, Elder  Nebeker.

First Email

Kazoku! (family!) whats up with the no letters or email!? just kidding. The MTC is fantastic! Much better than what people portray it as, although the days seem like they last forever but once the day is over it feels fast. if that makes sense? Anyways Nihongo (japanese) is really hard, the first day we were flooded with japanese. But i'm really starting to get the hang of it I think. My Companion is Elder Rasmussen, he is super nice and a little shy but the kid is a ninja, literally a ninja. He does extreme martial arts and can do all sorts of crazy moves! There are 14 missionaries in my district, and lucky me I get to be their Leader! yep I'm the district leader, so I basically get their mail for them and make decisions when were not sure what to do and I get to interview them and make sure that they are enjoying their MTC experience. Everyone in my district is amazing and we all get along great, everyone loves the MTC in my district, so far, which makes it easy on my part! Anyways, yesterday we taught our first lesson in Nihongo, WOW! it was hard but me and my companion were able to get through it, we taught tomohiro san an investigator. We asked him if he believed in God, He said that he knows that other people do but he wasn't sure himself who God is. Because we knew little Japanese we simply bore our testimony to him in japanese and and asked him to pray to God to see if he is real and then we ended in a closing prayer. He seemed really confused and a little lost, but hey we did our best to communicate! Later that day we got to teach a investigator in english while we were in class, the spirit was so strong and was testifying to our investigator that what we were saying was true. After our lesson in English one of the Elders raised his hand and asked how does this help us learn japanese? I can't remember exactly what the teacher said but his answer was so good and the spirit was so strong when we were talking about this and he taught us about our purpose as a missionary and that we shouldn't learn japanese to know japanese. We should learn japanese to Help the japanese people come unto Christ. It's not for us it's for them so that they can know of the truth. I wish I could remember what he said cause the spirit was so strong and it made our entire district want to try that much harder! anyways, the food here is better than I thought. Most things are deep fried but you do have options to eat healthy. And Oh baby there is Chocolate Milk!! mmmm so good! Once I figure out how to send pictures I will but I'm not sure quite yet.

I love you all and I hope to hear from you soon, the church is true and  I can't wait to serve the people of japan!

Elder Nebeker

Jason went into the MTC today at 1:30. He was welcomed by Elder Connor Breinholt from our Highland Ward!

FAREWELL TALK

The word Hope can be used in different contexts, whether it is “I hope my mom cooks something other than nachos tonight.” Or “I hope all the women stay single while I’m on my mission.” But Hope in the context of the gospel is different. In reading a talk given by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf entitled The Hope of God’s Light, I was reminded of an experience I had when my family was vacationing in Washington State years ago.

 My Aunt took us on an adventure to see the ape caves, which are caves carved out of the mountain by the hot lava from the eruption of Mt St. Helens.  When we looked at the map, it showed a 3 mile trail and indicated it would take us 3 hours.  Because we thought we were in such great shape, we were certain it would not take us 3 hours.  The eight of us began the hike into the caves each carrying our own flashlight.  The darkness became very thick and soon surrounded us.  Our flashlights only illuminated a small circle which was barely enough to see where to place your next footstep.  Several times we had to climb over rock falls in the pitch black, or took a wrong turn only to hit a dead end.  It was very slow going and frustrating.  Three of our flashlights ran out of batteries forcing us to shine our flashlight, place a step and then turn and light the way for the person behind us.  The dark was very consuming, heavy, and cumbersome.  We reached a shoulder high wall requiring each of us to lift, push, and pull one another to get over it.  After we had hiked nearly two hours, we reached a cavern that had an opening high in the ceiling letting in daylight.  It was such a wonderful feeling to be in the light once again.  We studied the map thinking we were almost to the end, but discovered we had traveled only 2/3^rd of the way.  It was hard to leave that sunny cavern, but we knew to reach the end we had to keep going.  By the time we were out into the open again, we were down to 3 or 4 flashlights.  What a joyous feeling it was to be back into the light! 

As I look back on this experience, I have a greater understanding and appreciation for the gospel in my life, when we obey  he promises us the hope of His light—He promises to illuminate the way before us and show us the way out of darkness. We must be pushing forward toward the light whatever our circumstances may be.  We would not want to stop in our progression before we realize our full potential. We do not want to be trapped in a cave with lights we do not know how long will last.

President Uchtdorf said, there may be some among you who feel darkness encroaching upon you. You may feel burdened by worry, fear, or doubt. To you and to all of us, I repeat a wonderful and certain truth: God’s light is real. It is available to all! It gives life to all things. It has the power to soften the sting of the deepest wound. It can be a healing balm for the loneliness and sickness of our souls. In the furrows of despair, it can plant the seeds of a brighter hope. It can enlighten the deepest valleys of sorrow. It can illuminate the path before us and lead us through the darkest night into the promise of a new dawn. 

The first step to feeling God’s light is to start where we are.  Hope in the gospel is god’s promise that he will illuminate the path for us and show us a way out of darkness. Mormon teaches us that we should have hope through The Atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him.  This is “the Spirit of Jesus Christ,” which gives “light to every man that cometh into the world.”

Second, we must turn our hearts to the Lord.  One of my favorite events that happened in the scriptures that I think shows great hope in the savior and turning their hearts to the Lord is when the four sons of King Mosiah____Ammon, Aaron, Omner, and Himni went among the lamanites as missionaries and taught them the gospel. Many Lamanites believed the teachings and were converted, including the king. The king told his people not to hurt or imprison the missionaries, that they were free to preach the gospel throughout the land. Thousands of Lamanites joined the church of God and became a happy righteous people that felt the light and hope of God. These converts laid down their weapons of war and refused to fight against God or anyone else anymore. These people no longer wanted to be called Lamanites, so they named themselves Anti-Nephi-Lehies. They became a hardworking people and friends of the Nephites. Many Lamanites, however, had not been converted to the truth. These Lamanites became angry, rebelled against the king, and decided to fight the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. At this time, having conferred the kingdom upon his son Anti-Nephi-Lehi, the old king died. When the sons of Mosiah saw the Lamanites preparing for war, they met with the new king to decide what could be done to defend the people. The Anti-Nephi-Lehies would not take up weapons to fight the Lamanites. The people had repented of their past sins and murders, and God had forgiven them. If they were to kill again, they would not be forgiven. As a testimony to God, the Anti-Nephi-Lehies buried their swords and all their weapons of war deep in the earth. They covenanted that they would never kill again. Rather than shed the blood of others, they would give up their own lives. They also promised they would give to others rather than take, and instead of being idle, they would work hard. When the Lamanite warriors came to fight, the Anti-Nephi-Lehies went out to meet them. They knelt on the ground hoping in Gods light and began to pray. The Lamanites fell upon them and began killing them with their swords. They killed a total of 1,005 Anti-Nephi-Lehies. When the attacking Lamanites saw that the Anti-Nephi-Lehies would not fight back, they stopped killing them. Their hearts began to swell with sorrow for what they had done. Many of these Lamanites also repented, threw down their weapons, and joined the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. That day the number of Lamanites who repented and joined the people of God exceeded the number of Anti-Nephi-Lehies who had been killed. The Anti-Nephi-Lehies knew that those who died were righteous and would be saved in the kingdom of God. They also knew that they had given their lives to bring more people to the light and truth of the Gospel.

The Third step, we need to take is to walk in the light. Our Heavenly Father knows that we will make mistakes. He knows that we will stumble—perhaps many times. This saddens Him, but He loves us. He does not wish to break our spirit. On the contrary, He desires that we rise up and become the person we were designed to be.

To that end, He sent His Son to this earth to illuminate the way and show us how to safely cross the stumbling blocks placed in our path. He has given us the gospel, which teaches the way of the disciple. It teaches us the things we must know, do, and be to walk in His light, following in the footsteps of His Beloved Son, our Savior.

Many of us face trials in our lives, but with hope in God he will illuminate the way and show you a way out of darkness.

My whole family likes to get together each Sunday to have dinner and be together.  During a weekend last November, my sister was away at school but surprised us and came home.  There was such a great feeling that weekend, and we quickly recognized that warm feeling was from the Spirit.  My mom immediately wondered, is something bad going to happen?  Two weeks later, my sister went to the hospital and was diagnosed with Leukemia.  Although we are saddened that she has to go through the trial of sickness, we remembered that feeling of love and knew that Heavenly was mindful and was giving us the hope and light of Christ.  Many of our friends and neighbors prayed on her behalf.  Remembering the warmth of His love sustained us through our worry and increased the hope and light that Christ offers.  Just as she was beginning to feel better from the side effects of her medication, my other sister began losing weight rapidly.  She became extremely ill and finally began to feel better after undergoing surgery.  We recognized his hand in our lives and were able to push on with the hope, and faith in Jesus’s atonement, and the resurrection, so that we could have the peace that no matter what happened one day they would be raised from the dead and reunited with family.  God however blessed our family more than that and both sisters are doing very well this day.

However much of the world does not know about hope in Christ, many struggle through trials like these because they do not have the Gospel and light that Christ offers. In Japan, a country with a population of 127 million, only 1% of them are Christian and only .01% of them are of LDS faith. Many of these people are living without the hope of Christ’s atonement and the resurrection. On March 11, 2011, a 9.0 magnitude Earthquake happened off the coast of Sendai Japan causing a tsunami to occur sweeping everything in its path, killing 19,000 people and caused nearby nuclear power plants to fail and leak harmful nuclear waste in the air. Many of the people lost their homes, loved ones, and were left feeling lost and in great despair. How great will it be to share the gospel with these wonderful people to let them know of hope, that Christ’s Light can sustain us through troubling times, so that we can reach our full potential.

President Uchtdorf said, as we seek to increase our love for God and strive to love our neighbors, the light of the gospel will surround and uplift us. The darkness will surely fade, because it cannot exist in the presence of light. As we draw near to God, He will draw near to us. And day by day, the hope of God’s light will grow within us, “brighter and brighter until the perfect day.”

The Savior said, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”