Week 20

Taiwan Week 1

Good first week in Taiwan! I actually happened to have a baptism this week! He already had his date when I got here, but it was still cool to see it. A member of the ward baptized him and it was all in Chinese, but I still enjoyed it! My first baptism in the mission field!

This last week I got to meet a lot of our investigators. Right now Shalu is on fire. We have a bunch of good investigators (one of them is actually sitting right next to me right now.. small world). They are all pretty solid, but they all have their own problems and some of them make me eat horrible food.

This last week I got to try Stinky Tofu, which was a good experience... And last weekend I ate something that tasted like death. I learned that my gag reflex is horrible, or really good?  Every time I put something in my mouth I don't like, my body just tries to reject it. I am able to get most things down and I am even learning to love the weird food. For the most part the food is really good here. There are a lot of good fried rice places and good noodle places, not to mention all the dumplings we get to eat. One bad thing about a mission in Taiwan is I am not learning how to cook. I only have to cook on Sundays and I usually just have bread and eggs on Sunday.

I also had zone conference this last week. It was a really good experience. We learned about following the spirit and becoming more consecrated missionaries. It was actually a lot like the one I just had in Washington. I was fortunate enough to have 2 zone conferences in less than a month. 

I don't have a lot of good pictures this week, because I actually got really tired last PDAY and we ended up just sleeping for an hour at the house.  But today we are going to Dajia, one of the bigger cities of our area, and we are going to visit a miao (like an Asian temple) there. We are also going to an Asian buffet, so I will take some good pictures there.

Shalu is great!  The members are great and everyone here is really nice. The weather is kind of cold lately (nothing like Washington or Utah though) but I guess it's going to warm up really quick. The hardest part about Shalu is that it's right on the coast, so it's really windy here.

My Chinese is getting better everyday. I am enjoying my experience here and look forward to my stay on this island! I will also include more stuff next week about my investigators.  Right now I am still getting a feel for things.

Love you all,

Elder Quist

Week 19

Shalu the Zion

I am in Taiwan!!!  This last week was so crazy and filled with so many different things.. I don't know if I can even email all of it. I guess I will just start day by day.

Monday I said goodbye to Elder Kim and Elder Nelson. At about 8 at night we drove down to the mission home and I stayed there for the night. I didn't sleep as well as I would've liked.  I probably got about 3 and a half hours, because I had to get up at 4:30. Then we packed up and went to the airport. We traveled from Seattle to San Francisco. In San Francisco we met up with all our old Elders and Sisters from the MTC. Then we hopped on another plane and we flew from San Fran to Taipei. I was glad we got to fly straight to Taipei. I had a middle seat, which made me a little disappointed until I found out it was also an emergency exit seat! So I had so much leg room! It was about a 14 hour flight, and I tried to sleep during it, but I just couldn't ever get comfortable. We arrived in Taipei at about 6:30pm Taipei time and like 2 or 3am Utah time. We had no problems, it was a quick and easy transition from the airport to the bus. We met the Mission President in the airport then all got in a big bus. It looked so cool, all the party buses in Taiwan look pretty awesome. Then we rode two hours to get to Taizhong.  The whole time we introduced ourselves and talked about the mission. Then we got to the mission home, and it was super warm outside. I was actually really surprised! That night I slept in the AP's apartment, which is right above the mission office and right next to the mission home. I slept surprisingly well that night!

On Thursday we woke up and exercised at a stadium close to the mission office. We ran a mile and I did pretty bad, it took me like 6 minutes and 40 seconds. I think it's because in Washington I was always in a car. Then for rest of the day we had orientation, where we learned about the mission and the mission president. That night we went to dinner at a really nice restaurant. I got the opportunity, I guess you could say, to eat the fish eye. It tasted fine but was surprisingly crunchy. But for the most part the food was really good there. Then we went out to one of the biggest night markets in Taizhong. There we did a Dan Jones approach thing where we all got to soapbox. It was exciting. After we soapboxed they gave us a companion (I had the zone leader of the main Taizhong zone) and we went around contacting people in Chinese. It was pretty great. Then we went back and slept, because we were all super exhausted.

The next morning we worked out some more at the stadium, and after we went to the church by the mission home and did personal study. They made us stay in the basement while the trainers had a meeting. After about an hour we got to go up. We had an hour meeting with the President, then he called missionaries up individually and gave them a red envelope. In the red envelope was our companion's name and our area's name. My companion is Elder Fox, a missionary from Tremonton, Utah, and my area is called Shalu. So after that we went to our areas. Me and Elder Fox got on a bus and drove for about an hour and a half north to Shalu. Then we went to our apartment, which is one of the nicest apartments in the whole mission, and I think definitely the biggest. It has 2 floors, I will send pictures of it, it is so big. And Shalu is kind of rural in some areas, but other areas have a lot of people. Our whole area is actually really big though, even bigger than my area in Washington. We technically have 8 cities in our area, and Shalu is just one of them. My companion said it would take like 3 or 4 hours to bike from one side of our area to the other. 

Then that night we happened to have a ward activity for Chinese New Year. I went to the church (and we have a really good ward, especially for Taiwan. We have like 100 people come every week!) and had some dinner. I met a lot of nice people, who all tried to speak to me in Mandarin.  Then we went and played a game as a ward. It was super weird for me, because I didn't understand a lot of it. But it was basically a riddle game. It was a crazy first day in my area. 

Then next we went around to tract. We started with an area, and my companion just asked me to pick a street to tract. So I picked a street and met this guy outside his house. We talked to him for a while, he was really nice (actually all people in Taiwan are really nice). Then we went down another street and this old guy let us in his house. He was 90 years old and from mainland China! I could not understand him. Then we got on a bus and drove to a city called Dajia. On the bus, however, I met this kid going to high school. My companion asked me to talk to him, so I did.  And I got his number and he said he would meet with us this week! It was so cool! After that we got to Dajia, which is a pretty big city full of night markets and crazy drivers. We found a decent place to eat, then we went to Starbucks to have a lesson with an investigator. He was a super cool investigator, and after we taught him he wanted to take us to the night markets to feed us. We went to this one stand and he bought us like tofu and this thick skin stuff. It was all right, but I had to force some of it down. Then we went to another store, because he wanted to buy us more. This next food almost killed me. It was like oyster and shrimp, which was fine, but it was covered in this disgusting sauce. I was eating super slow, and we had to leave eventually, so I took it to go and just threw it away when I got away from our investigator.

The next day was Sunday. Church was.. good. It was testimony meeting, so people told stories I didn't really understand. After that we taught a couple more investigators, including a guy named Mike. He is pretty sweet.  He is a magician and he showed me a bunch of card tricks. Then we went around with a member to a bunch of less actives houses. It was another good day. I really enjoyed my first few days here.

My area is really nice. Hard to explain because it has both rice fields and big cities. It goes all along the ocean, but I haven't been to the coast yet because it's like a 30 minute bike ride from our apartment. It's always really windy, and sometimes a little cold, but they told me this was like the best summer area, because the south is super hot in the summer (I am in the northern most part of my mission). 

It was a good week! I am ready for more Taiwan food! There have been a bunch of crazy fireworks and stuff because people are still celebrating Chinese New Year. I will include some pictures and write more next week.

Love,

Elder Quist

Party bus to the mission home

Arrival in Taiwan

Noah arrived safely in Taiwan on Wednesday.  Although we have not heard from him yet, we have seen pictures on the mission president's wife's blog.

His second day there he dined on fish eyes and duck brain!

The below link is a video of Noah and the other new arrivals preaching and teaching on the streets of Taichung...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MW4D6ruWbVs

Week 18

Last Week In Washington

This last week in Washington has been a good one, but it also has been hard. The weather started off a little rough, but has gradually (especially this last weekend) become beautiful. For my last day in Washington, the sky is blue and it's warm outside (relatively). I have been preparing to go to Taiwan most of the week and I am about ready to pack up and leave. I feel like I just got here, which is crazy because it's been over 2 months. But I am so glad I got the opportunity to serve in the Federal Way Mission.

I had the opportunity to prepare a little for biking in Taiwan this last Wednesday. We went on exchanges to a biking area in our district, and I got to bike all around Auburn. I realized how fun it was to bike, but I might need a little more practice before I get to the crazy biking streets of Taiwan. I also learned that it takes a couple days before you get.. comfortable riding a bike. Let's just say the first little while you are a little sore.

Then on Thursday I had the chance to do one last missionary splits in the Lake Holm Ward. That is one of the best things I will miss about Washington, the Lake Holm Ward. The people in this ward are all so awesome, and I love going out on Thursday with the Ward Missionaries. This week especially has made it a little bitter sweet to leave, because the Lake Holm church is tucked away in the big evergreen trees of Washington and the Sunday drive out there in the sun is beautiful. It will definitely be hard to leave Washington and all the great people of the Lake Holm Ward.

On Friday we got to go on exchanges again, but this time with the Zone Leaders. Elder Kim stayed in Lake Holm, but me and Elder Nelson went to the White River ward with Elder Eliason, the Zone Leader of the Auburn Stake. It was an interesting experience, but I feel like the people of White River are pretty mean. We were rejected by men all day and I was just ready to get back to Lake Holm. Just kidding, it wasn't so bad in White River, but it did help me realize how different people were just a few miles away. 

On Saturday morning we had a stake missionary breakfast. The Stake High Councilor who is in charge of missionary work invited all the missionaries in the stake to come and eat breakfast at his house, which, by the way, is enormous. (There are so many millionaires here, it's ridiculous. I think it's because we are so close to the Boeing headquarters, and amazon, and Microsoft, and basically a hundred other multi-billion dollar companys.) It's nice to go to these houses, but the people need to be humbled. I think the Seahawks defeat earlier this month was a good first step.

This last Sunday was sad- my last week in the Lake Holm ward. We were able to have a member dinner with a family in the ward who has fed us every month since I got here. Then I was even able to go on exchanges again to the Federal Way Stake to help again with a Chinese investigator. It helped me realize that.. well let's just say I am going to be a little lost when I get to Taiwan. But that's okay because I know the Lord will bless me as I try. 

I am so excited to go to Taiwan. I am leaving tomorrow morning at 5:15 from the mission office and after that I head to San Francisco. I don't know much about my travel plans besides that. All I really know is that I will be in Taiwan sometime the next day. I am going to miss this mission, and I am really glad I had the opportunity to serve here, but Taiwan here I come. Next week I will send pictures of my new area and companion and some pictures of me departing from Washington.

Love,

Elder Quist

Week 17

Taiwan Bound!
I have exciting news! I guess I have to share the whole story, because it is a pretty cool story and a testament to the fact that God answers prayers in mysterious and diverse ways. A couple of weeks ago, exactly a week from last Thursday, I had the opportunity to go to a Chinese restaurant. That day I was particularly anxious about my visa, and I prayed so hard that God would simply let me know when I would get my visa. It didn't have to be soon, I just didn't want to have to worry about it anymore. So I was at the Chinese restaurant, and as usual, I got a fortune cookie. Before I opened the fortune cookie I prayed to please let this fortune cookie give me some guidance about my visa. As I opened the fortune cookie I was surprised when my fortune read "At this time next week you will receive something long waited for". It was too good to be true! Could Heavenly Father answer my prayer through a fortune cookie?

As the week went on I heard no news about my visa. A week after that day at the Chinese restaurant, last Thursday, was the day the fortune cookie read I would receive my visa. Miraculously, I got a call almost exactly a week after, at the exact time I got my fortune cookie, that my visa had arrived. I was speechless! The Lord is merciful, he answers prayers, even if it isn't the way we expect him too.

So I will be leaving to Taiwan next Tuesday. I am excited, even though I will miss Washington. This last week has been particularly beautiful, it hasn't been too cold and the sun has been out all week. I think Washington is just giving me a going-away gift.

Another great thing that happened this last week was Zone Conference. President Eaton taught us about the gift of the Holy Ghost. He told us we all live under our potentials.  We have the companionship of the Holy Ghost, a member of the Godhead. If we live in accordance to the laws of God, we have the right to the power of the Holy Ghost and the gifts that come with it. Sometimes I think we forget how amazing it is to have the Holy Ghost.  He is not just a compass that points us to the right path when we make mistakes or when we are in danger, but he brings us comfort, teaches us eternal truths, and magnifies our gifts and talents. Through, and only through the Holy Ghost we can become the kinds of people we were supposed to become, Sons and Daughters of our Heavenly Father.  As members of the church, we have the glorious gift of the Holy Ghost, so we have to make sure we do not waste this great gift.

I am so grateful for the opportunity to serve a mission, because I have learned so much that I would have never known if I didn't serve my mission.

Thank you all again for the emails and letters. I will probably email you again before Taiwan, but if not, I will let you know how Taiwan is!

Love,

Elder Quist

Week 16

My Crazy Week

This week was different. Last Wednesday was pretty normal, we didn't have too many surprises. Thursday was basically the same. We had splits and we were able to teach a less-active family we have been teaching for a while. They are the Pantojas and they have been really active in the past. Brother Pantoja really wants his daughters to go back to church, but there has been something holding him back. We have been teaching him for about a month and trying to get him to come to church.

On Friday we had a lesson with a new investigator. His name is Eddie and he seems like a really nice guy. He sings in a Christian Rock band and he has a close relationship with Jesus Christ. He said he was open to us telling him more about our church. We taught him the restoration and the lesson was going really well, but right at the very end, where we would usually invite him to pray to know if Joseph Smith was a prophet, his entire family came running in the house and things got chaotic. We had to leave quickly and the spirit was lost. We are going back tonight and I hope we have a better chance to get him to feel the spirit. 

Then Friday I had the chance to go to a local community college to set up a booth about Institute. We worked with another companionship, the YSA Elders and in that companionship happens to be my old companion from the MTC, Elder Millet. So me and Elder Millet got to actually go contacting. We went around and tried contacting Chinese speakers, but no one would talk to us because it was pouring rain that night. 

Later that day, I had a unique opportunity. We have a family in our ward, the Russells, who invited someone to meet with us.  So Friday, during dinner, we went over and met them. It just so happens though, that the lady they invited over was from China!  She spoke Mandarin with me all night. I had the "opportunity" to teach her the restoration in Mandarin. It went well, but she said her life is very hectic right now, in preparation for Chinese New Year, but if I am still here after Chinese New Year she would be happy to meet again. 

Then on Saturday we went on exchanges, because Elder Kim is the district leader. We went on exchanges with Elder Lee Wen. It was supposed to be me, Elder Nelson, and Elder Lee Wen together, but the zone leaders called and told us one of the zone leaders were sick, and they needed one of us to sub in for him. Elder Nelson went to help them and it was just me and Elder Lee Wen. However, we had 2 set lessons that day with single sisters, and we can only visit single sisters if there are 3 males in the house. We had to rush to try and find someone to come to the lessons with us. One of the lessons actually cancelled, which was a blessing, and the other we got a ward missionary to come with us. Everything was peaceful again, until we had an investigator call us and tell us he needed our help. So me and Elder Lee Wen rushed to our investigator's house, who had relapsed again and was extremely drunk. Me and Elder Lee Wen spent an hour chasing around a drunk guy and trying to figure out what to do with him. 

On Sunday we exchanged back, and I was back with Elder Kim and Elder Nelson. However, early in the morning the zone leaders called again, and said one of the zone leaders was still sick. So now it was my turn to go. For the rest of the Sunday, I was a zone leader and I got the opportunity to see what the zone leaders do. 

And to top off the entire week, Sunday night a different zone asked if I could go on exchanges with them to help teach a Chinese lady who is investigating the church. I was able to go over and I taught her the restoration. I pray that she understood most of it and I hope she felt the spirit. 

A pretty crazy week for me. I was stressed through some of it because I felt like I was running around the whole time, but the Lord blessed me and I could feel the extra strength He was giving me to overcome my trials. I know that if we consecrate our lives to the Lord, we will never "run out of juice" but we will be continually fed by the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Love, 

Elder Quist

Week 15

Another really fast week has gone by! Washington is as beautiful and as wet as ever! I am so glad for our car... but I guess I should probably get ready for never having a car in Taiwan.

This week we were able to do a lot of member missionary work. We started a new training that involves us going over to members' houses, and sharing a quick message with them, then asking them who they think they should share the gospel with this week. We have had a lot of really powerful experiences of members coming up with names they have never even considered until then. It just shows that we have no idea who is prepared for the gospel, but the spirit does know, and when we rely on the spirit we can become the member missionaries we are meant to become. I know that you all must have a name, whether it is a nonmember or a less active, that you can help bring the restored gospel to. I challenge you all to do that, because let me tell you, missionary work is not a burden, but rather an opportunity the Lord has given us to participate in the salvation of mankind. I challenge you just to try it out, and see how you feel when you do. 

This last week I didn't get the best opportunity to work with the investigators we recently met. There is opposition in all things, and as soon as we have an investigator feel the spirit and want to meet up with us again, something happens in their lives that stops them from meeting with us. It's all right though, because at least we got to work with some of our previous investigators. 

One of these investigators is a man who is named Keith. He is 26 and lives right across the street from the church building. He has been investigating the church for a while, and he really wants to change his life. The problem is he has a word of wisdom problem.. Well it's more than a problem, alcohol has basically ruined his life. He is handicapped because of early-age alcohol abuse. As we have met with him over the last couple of months, we haven't see much progress in his desire to get baptized. However, a few weeks ago we felt impressed to introduce him to a guy in the ward, Brandon. Brandon has also had some Word of Wisdom problems in his life, but has recently overcome a lot of them. As soon as Brandon and Keith met, there was an instant connection. Since they met, we have had multiple lessons with both of them, they are both reading the Book of Mormon, and Brandon has offered to baptize Keith. We now have a date set up for Keith's baptism on the 21st of March. This experience helped me realize how important members are in missionary work. When we meet with people, we are usually really nice people who want to help them, but when members get involved, the investigators then have a friend who genuinely cares about them, and supports them through this tough gospel transition. This friend makes all the difference for the investigator.

Another of these previous investigators is Marge McGreggor. She is an older lady who grew up as a Catholic her whole life. We have recently been reading the Book of Mormon with her. As we have spent time with her, reading the Book of Mormon, I have seen a new potential within in her. She is making steps, very small steps, towards baptism, and I believe the Book of Mormon will change her. 

So from those two investigators I learned two things. Investigators need two very important foundations- a foundation of comfort, found in friends in the gospel, and a foundation of faith, which can be strengthened through the Book of Mormon. If an investigator doesn't have either of these two foundations, they will quickly become disinterested. Member missionary work is essential in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Last, I would just like to mention a miracle which we have seen this week. If there are any Seahawk fans reading, I would suggest that you stop here. This last Sunday, as I am sure you all know, the Seahawks lost the Superbowl! You may think that we are a little disappointed, since we are in Seattle. But all the missionaries are actually really glad, because apparently last year the cities went crazy, and people became so prideful. I guess the Lord has humbled the people of Seattle, and I can't wait to use their heartache to bring them something they could never find in the Seahawks- eternal life! 

Thanks everyone for all the love and support you give me! I love it here in Washington, but I still can't wait till the day I step off the plane into Taiwan! 

Love, 
Elder Quist