2014.08.10 last letter home

This is my last letter home... I can't believe it.

Without doubt, this has been two of the most meaningful years of my life. I've seen the Lord's hand so much, seen lives change, and more than anything seen my personal relationship with the Savior improve so much while serving as a missionary. I'm so grateful for the chance that I still have to serve. I know that time is short, but I'm excited to give all that I can to the Lord before it's time to return. And even after returning, I'm excited to see how the things I have learned here will change my life after my mission.

First and foremost, I know that God lives. I know that we are his children and that he is our Father. I know that He loves us and is mindful of all of his children. As missionaries, we have the sacred blessing to act as messengers of that love. In life, I think that the hardest or most trying times are simply when we lose sight of who we really are. I was reminded of a talk this week by President Uchtdorf, speaking on Our True Identity. In it he shared a similar message. He shared about the importance of remembering where we come from, and what we are meant to be. The knowledge of our divine origin and potential changes everything. How we view ourselves, how we view others, each can be seen in a new light.

When we come to know God, it awakens a desire in our hearts. More than anything, we desire to return to Him, and are willing to anything we can to make it possible. He has provided that plan for us. He has showed us the way. He has given us the words of Prophets, and the gift of personal revelation and the Spirit to guide us in our lives. And He has given His only begotten Son, even Jesus Christ.

I know for myself that Christ is our Savior. He is my Savior and my Heavenly Friend. I can never adequately express my thanks for what he has done for me. He has changed my life, He has given me hope, and He has taken away my pain. And all that He asks is that I follow. That I would serve Him and bless the lives of others. And in whose service, I find greater joy than I have ever experienced before.

I am a missionary of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is by His Atonement that all men may be saved through faith on His name, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. It is because of Him that our story does not end at Death. We are creatures of Eternity. We have a divine potential. So many live without this knowledge, or dimmed by doubt and uncertainty. But for me, I am certain. I have felt His love. I've been lead by His Spirit. And I know that one day I will have the opportunity to stand before Him. I hope at that time that I will be ready. With so many imperfections and mistakes, I wonder sometimes how He can love me the way that He does. I want so much to be better. To be the person He would have me be. I love Him with all my heart, and I am so grateful for the privilege to wear His name and participate in His work.

I know that this church is true. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and I know that church is led by a living prophet today, even Thomas S. Monson. I know that this is Christ's work, and I leave this testimony in His name. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

A few brief notes before I close.

Fun part of the week: Yesterday I woke up in the middle of the night feeling super sick. Diarrhea, vomiting, headache, the whole nine yards. Plus, that day was my last day of Church in Korea. There was a Baptism for the parents of a member of our ward, I had my farewell talk, and the missionaries did a special musical number for the Baptism where I had a solo. I almost died. And then the night before one of the Elders here got a call to transfer to the office after church. He's been feeling sick for a while, so he'll serve there for a transfer or two until he feels better. ...Sometimes life can be unexpected. Especially as a missionary. But I wouldn't have it any other way. This week we got to visit a lot of members and investigators we've been meeting, and it just reminded me again just how cool this work is. Met three new investigators. One of which knew the missionaries a couple years ago and seems to be really interested. Visited our Bishop who invited some family and friends there. Talked to his nephew who is currently less active. He had decided he doesn't want to serve of mission, but after talking, he said that a part of him wants to again. There's just no better experience at this part of our lives than serving a mission. (I lean towards the opinion that raising a family probably trumps it, but as I have not yet tried it, I'll have to go on an educated guess.)

I'll see you next week! That's hard to believe. It feels so strange. But I'm excited to see all of you again. Until then, stay healthy, stay safe, and have an awesome week!

~Elder Robarts

2014.08.03

Dear Home,

 

I'm begining to lose my mind. I feel like there's sand runnning through my hands, and I'm constantly trying to hold on to it.

 

Oddly enough (please don't take this the wrong way), I did okay with this whole going home thing, up until I made the realization that I'll be in the Seoul Temple in less than two weeks. I'm here. 100%. But that thought took me back for a second. It made me realize just how short this time is.

 

It didn't help that I took a HUGE trip down memory lane this week. My MTC Companion, Elder Forbes, has been going around the mission helping missionaries and doing brief trainings recently, and this week he came to Mokpo to serve with us and the other Elders here. It was so amazing serving together again. He's an awesome guy. So upbeat and outgoing. It was good.^^

Then, a former investigator from Daejeon called. The missionaries there told them I was going home this week and so they wanted to say hi before I left. They've been having a hard time meeting with the missionaries there right now, so we got to talk a little and they'll see if they can start meeting more again. I arranged to stay in contact after I go home, so hopefully messages through email and facebook will help too.

 

I love this people. This week we met a man who has experienced so much hardship in his life recently. A health condition that is slowly eating away his body, constantly needing to visit the hospital, and he only has a little family here. But on top of it all, this past week, his brother passed away in Seoul. Please keep him in your prayers. The thing is, when we talk with him, there's so much hope in his voice. He's ready to receive the Gospel. I feel like it every time we've talked with him on the phone. I've only seen him face to face once, but as we've talked with him, I've come to love him so much.

 

There are so many in this world like him, just reaching out for the truth. Looking for more.

 

Is there truly any better day than a day in the service of God? I've come to realize that life's greatest joys are simply doing what we know is right. You don't need more than that. Have faith, live righteously, reflect often on the blessings God has given you.

 

That reflecting brings me to another topic. There are a few things I am excited for back home.

 

Family/Temple

Friends

Being able to organize things...

I've had so many ideas about journals, notes, everything. Problem: all of it is digital... But I'm excited to work on it in a little bit.

 

One thing I wanted was just a more effective index. By able to find the memories that will help the most.

 

Also, Gospel Library. I'm making a personal one. G.C. talks, Mormon messages, quotes, favorite scripture references...  Oh, the possibilities...

 

This probably sounds really nerdy, and more than a little weird, but for two years I've had a lot of personal study time, limitted access to a computer, and a lot of desire to reflect on past insights. Plus I've got a terrible memory. So I need to use what I've got. Lot's of plans... :D

 

That's all I've got for now. Don't worry. I'm not more excited to retype journals than I am to see all of you. It's just /one/ thing I'm looking forward to.

 

I hope you have a great week! Love you!

~Elder Robarts

2014.07.27

The dreadful moment you realize you only have three weeks left.

This is going to be a hard couple of weeks, that's for sure. Transfers are bad enough. This... I don't want to think about it, but I need to start preparing. I'm trying to contact investigators from old areas. If I can make contact with them from America, I should be able to provide some good fellowshipping for the missionaries here.

I don't know what to think right now, but there are three things constantly going through my head it seems.

Don't let any miracle slip by. Don't stop unless you hear otherwise, and share your testimony as much as you can while you have the blessed opportunity to wear the name of the Savior on your chest.

Make any preparations needed to maintain contact with those you have taught. Help them from the other side.

Leave something for missionaries to follow. Give them the chance to see miracles.

This week, we met 3 people that seem Golden. One started attending a church 1 year ago because he felt like he needed change in his life, but he has lots of questions. Says reading the scriptures is fun, it teaches him a lot, but he always has questions. Met him just knocking on doors, and he invited us in to talk. 

Second was a student who is studying in Canada and came home for vacation. He has had a ton of thoughts about life, and from the two times we've met him, he really likes what he's heard. Goes back to Canada this week, but we should be able to refer him to the missionaries there through Facebook.

Third is a man who met missionaries in Incheon at the start of the month. He's had a very serious disease come into his life this year, and it's taken a lot out of him, but it's pointed him to God. He says the missionaries helped him a lot, and we wanted to continue going to church. He said he just came down to Mokpo 8 days ago. It always amazes me how God knows where you need to be.  That same day we saw an investigator that went out to a park to read the Book of Mormon.

This is an amazing work. I'm sure life outside of this is good too, but it's hard leaving it behind. Just time to enjoy it to the end.

I love you guys so much! I'll see you soon!

~Elder Robarts

brief extra email exchange

Mom: It's Elder Lee's (an earlier favorite companion that he trained) birthday today.   I don't know if that's today here or today in Korea though.  lol

Elder Robarts: Crazy time lapse... I feel bad. Last year I transfered on his birthday. This year I leave the country. I must be a horrible father...

2014.07.20

Dear Home,

What a fun week! So, we had zone conference, and I was reminded of how old I am. Since this was my last zone conference, a couple times it came up that I was leaving. Comparing transferring areas to returning home. To members, it's the same. And to some extent, we need to do the same. What preparations would you do for the missionaries that come after? What work do you not want left undone? A couple other things too.

 

Until that point, I didn't realize that it was my last one. It hadn't registered. Training was fun though. It talked about planning, and the importance of thinking ahead. They went over a lot of tips that I'd started just doing on my own, but they made some new records that make it easy to update and organize. The coolest thing is that it makes communicating plans between companions better. Before, a lot of it was just in my planner or in my head, so I couldn't always express thoughts very clearly. But now it's something we both see, and it's easier to go over. AP's did good.^^

This week we found out that a LA member we met last week started going to church again! His family is here, and we bumped into him on the street. Arranged to visit his house, talked a bit, and when it was time to go back to school in another city, he said he'd start coming out again. So far he's been doing well! 

 

Met a couple prepared people on the street too. A father who feels like values are changing, and it's harder and harder to spend time with family. He especially wants his son to know that joy in life doesn't come from money, or worldly success, but in family and gratitude for what you have. An academy teacher that had heard a lot about the church before and wanted to learn more about it. An atheist who struggles with the idea with belief, but wants to help others live better lives. Says the principles of the gospel seem like I good place to start.

Missionary work is so incredible. A lot of the people that we're meeting now have a lot of potential. That one family I mentioned last week is amazing. The father started becoming more interested in church, said that he wants to take his family as soon as he fixes his car situation. (Broke down and they need to buy a new one) Prayed for the first time last week! I love hearing those prayers. So honest. Just like Lamoni's father.

Fun news: I gave a talk in church again this week, plus one of the teachers for Sunday school was gone, so I taught the youth. Preparing to go to the Temple.^^ Got to share an object lesson of the bowl of water and pepper where you put your finger into it and it comes out dirty, but if you coat your finger with dish soap it comes out clean and pushes the pepper away. We talked about the power of the Temple. The importance of being worthy of it, and the power that comes from going. I wish I was better at teaching, but I lucked out on the subject. Sacrament meeting was on having sincere hearts. Definitely get to participate a lot in this ward.^^

I love this work. It's fun, rewarding, challenging, driving, and it will show you things about yourself that you'd never see otherwise. Things to strengthen, things to be grateful for. And above all, you're surrounded by the power of the Gospel. Have a good week! Love you guys!

~Elder Robarts

2014.07.13

Thanks for the pictures! They were super fun! Everyone looks so different though...

There are a lot of Buddhists in Korea. Not all are very /active/, but they go by the title. 

Funny story. I am with Elder Hawes now. Used to be housemates, then we got transferred together. ^^

This week has been insane in all of the best ways. Ups, downs, and almost everyday a reminder of God's love for us. 

We met an awesome family this week! First met the dad on the street who asked if we could talk to his son. He's in middle school, and likes learning english. After talking with them, we get onto the topic of religion. He never had a religion, and to be honest, wasn't too interested until about 5 years ago when I was diagnosed with cancer. He went through a lot at that time, and he said that since then, there's been a part of him that's looking. Since they don't go to church yet, they said they would try to come out to ours sometime.^^ 

Also had an investigator that we thought for sure just wanted to learn english that progressed a lot. He said that he'd been doing a lot of researching online and found a lot of things about our church that he liked. Left a good impression on him. At first, he went to church, but had a bad experience when he was little so he stopped. Started going a little during military, but now he just prays by himself. Such a pure, innocent guy. While talking with him, he's always really honest about what he's thinking, and what questions he has. Really excited for him.

One hard thing this week was seeing an investigator growing a little more distant from the church, and I felt terrible the entire day because I had had such high hopes for him. It wasn't until the next morning that I started feeling better. I opened my scriptures for personal study, and the very first scripture it fell open to was what I needed. God truly is a god of miracles. He knows us, our needs, our desires. And He'll help us every step of the way.

Other fun facts: We've got a couple investigators who like meeting and playing basketball with members on Saturday nights, so recently I've been learning just how much I didn't know about sports. There's a lot more to it than I thought. Still terrible at them, but I see a lot more of the beauty behind it than I used to. Great for talking with people too. Here in Korea, they say you bond the most when you're eating or doing sports together. I see some truth to that. I also determined I need to exercise more.

Another miracle: Ran into a less active that lives in another ward. He was visiting his family here so we jumped on the chance to visit and talk with him. Turns out he lives 15 minutes away from the church there. Said he'd go this week, so we'll be checking up with missionaries there to see how he's doing.^^ I love his family, they're so nice. He's cool too. Likes art, so I brought some of my sketches from home. Reminded me how long 2 years has been. I haven't sketches in ages. Tried this morning... Didn't go well.

One of the things that pulled at my heart this week was a number of Less Actives that want desperately to come to church but can't. A sister who has a husband that hates the church. Keeps her from going if he finds out. She can only meet members or missionaries when he isn't there and she's alone. Another who is so busy with work 4am to 10pm some days on weekdays, then helping his mother on weekends in the countryside, that he can't come out. Another who is trying to provide for his family while paying off an old debt which makes him have to work sundays.

It tears my heart when I see them going through these things, and I wonder how to help them. But this week I realized something. We're doing it just by visiting. You can see in their eyes sometimes how much they want the church. Sometimes, if they can't come to church, God with bring church to them. Makes me think a lot more about the messages we share, and the spirit we strive to invite when we visit them. I love this work. And l love God. He knows us each personally in ways we cannot fully understand. But each new day I feel like another glimmer of light gets shown on his love for us, making it just a little more clear, a little more bright. Never let that fade!

Thanks for everything! I love you all! I look forward to seeing you all again soon!

~Elder Robarts

2014.07.06

Dear Home,

We had a great week this week! It feels so different now. I'm taking on a new role here this transfer. Fading out of the leading role and focusing more on mentoring, if you want to call it that. My old companion is serving as District Leader now, so President asked that I help him settle in for the transfer I'm still here. He's doing great! In addition to that, I think my new companion might be going senior next transfer, so I'm trying to help him get in some practice. Language, teaching, planning, the whole nine yards.

I've also started my "Lessons learned" journal. What works, what didn't, and just random tools that are useful. There's not a whole lot of time for it, but I should have a little now that I don't have to worry 100% coordinating district stuff.  It's been fun looking back at it all.

This Gospel, this mission, changes your life. You never really just how big of a change that is until you see your desires change. I love serving. While a missionary, you go from doing things you know you should to doing things you love, which are good. Sharing the Gospel, sacrificing time and efforts for others. Simply taking time to plan ahead.

There are few things as meaningful and of great a value as serving the Lord and directing your thoughts towards others.

This week, we met a Taekwondo instructor that told us that he used to go to church, and sets aside time in his schedule so that he can go, but doesn't feel right about the atmosphere of his last church. We talked a little about our relationship with God, and church is simply there to help support it. He took a big interest in the Book of Mormon and said he would start praying again. Pretty cool miracle.

Also paid a special visit to a less active family in our ward. We followed a prompting to visit, and it was the one day the husband came home early from work. Usually he gets home at 10. But since he was there, we could go inside and talk a little. Their family is so beautiful. Their testimonies are strong as well. It's just hard to come out sometimes. They have family in the countryside that need their help a lot, a family member with cancer in Seoul, and the husband recently injured his arm. I was glad we were able to visit that night. There have been a couple times I really feel like our visits have been inspired with their family. The spirit is so strong when we visit them.

There's no doubt for me. This is the work of God. There's no way it can't be. I've witnessed a peace enter into people's hearts that can't be described. And in serving, I've learned just how plain and precious the Gospel really is. It's not big and showy. It's inside us. It's a prayer answered by a loving Father. It's a calling to save another's life, or to lift arms hanging down. For that, I'm grateful. More than I can possibly tell.

I love you guys! You're the best. I hope you have a good week!

~Elder Robarts

2014.06.29

I'll never get used to this... Another transfer, another whirlwind.

So, before this week, my companion has been having a lot of problems with his health. First coming to Korea was rough on him, and he's been sick pretty much ever since. It gets better and worse, but never 100% cured from what he's told me. At first he didn't really say much about it, but it's gotten worse recently. From the looks of thing, he may even need to transfer state-side if it doesn't work out soon. Originally, President told me that I would be training him to be district leader before I go, but with this new turn, I won't be his companion. President brought in a Korean in case they have to go to the hospital again and they need someone more familiar with the system. As is, I once again became companions with a housemate. This is the fourth time I've had a transfer within my own house. But my new companion is Elder Hawes. Awesome guy, I'll tell you all about him later.^^ So Here's my district's changes...

Elders    Robarts Dursteler --> Dursteler  하용식

             Merkley Hawes   -->  Robarts Hawes

Sisters   이예지 윤미영  -->  Jacklyn 윤미영

This is it. This is my last transfer in Korea. But I'm aiming for this one to be the brightest.

This week we saw a huge miracle. Before in another area I had investigator I loved so much. We first met him by calling a wrong number, and ever since then he's progressed a ton. He's come to church six times or so now, and he used to have a date to be Baptized, but he had a big exam come up that made him too busy to meet. I'll try to share his whole story later, but last week I got the feeling I should call him. When I did, he told me that he moved since then, and he's now in my current area...  Met him again on Sunday. My goal is to help him get baptized before I go home. He's so ready for it. He just likes to question his faith sometimes.

There's so much to write about, but so little time. As is, we had an appointment this morning that kept getting moved around, so we couldn't do anything. We just about gave up and started emails when he called. Got about 10 minutes left before we'll rush to meet him.

But I love you so much. I'll see if I can do the second half of this later, but with transfers, I don't know if we'll have time. Just know that I'm thinking of you, I love you, and you're in my prayers!

~Elder Robarts

2014.06.24 email

Dear home,

A bit of a lot to go over... So, right now I don't have a companion. I'm in a threesome with the other Mokpo Elders because my companion has to stay in the hospital for a couple days. He's had a couple health problems since the start of his mission, but he has mostly just tried waiting it out and didn't say anything. But since it hasn't resolved itself, and it's been getting worse recently, they decided to get it looked at. Keep him in your prayers please!

It's weird not being with your own companion. It's like a part of you is gone. Even more so because you know he's having a rough time. But life goes on in the field, I guess. We had an FHE last night with a member's family, then District meeting this morning. We think we'll be able to come back around Friday maybe. He has to stay in for more tests for a few days.

This week we had Stake Conference, interviews with President, and there was a combined missionary activity in Gwangju yesterday for P-Day. Ate lunch, played a little sports, and did some service at the new church building. But because of that, we got back to Mokpo a little late.

This week had a lot of exams, so most of our younger investigators were busy this week. But with that comes summer break for a couple weeks. We're looking to arrange a service activity with some of them and members of the ward. Should be pretty fun. I love service, and it's been harder to do it recently.

This truly is a great work. The ways that we serve may seem small, but they are all pieces of something bigger. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is so much bigger than the little things we as humans stress over. The answers are all fairly simple. The only complicated things about life are what we make.

Right now, I'm trying to refocus. My thoughts feel like they kind of went through a blender. Thinking about my district, my companion, our investigators, my own testimony and how I can help it grow... It's all kind of blurred now. But I know one thing. Everything will work out. And in the meantime, I'll trust God and follow his direction.

I love you all! Have a great week!

~Elder Robarts

2014.06.23

Sorry! No time to email today! I'll explain tomorrow! Love you!

2014.06.16

This week was great. There's a family that we met recently whose son is progressing really well. Loves coming out to church, and has a good time with the members here. Because he's still a student, we've been trying to focus a lot on helping his parents, but he's doing great, and they seem really supportive.

We met a couple awesome people on the street too. The family guy from last week is doing well. I can't remember if I mentioned him. Recently married, turns out he has a seven month old son. Super awesome. I have a good feeling about him. Last time we talked with him, there was a festival going on nearby so we weren't able to talk as long as we'd wanted, but he said he would bring his family next time. Doesn't go to a church at the moment, but I feel like he's super open to it if he finds one with values that he likes. And with such a love of families, he would do so well here.

Also met a couple university students that used to go to church when they were little and have been thinking about going again. They were really interested in the Book of Mormon.

More and more I'm struck by the simplicity of it all. God loves us enough to give us this opportunity to grow, and has provided the perfect plan for us to be able to return back to him and continue to grow. Without the Atonement, life would be empty. It would end, and with it our hopes, dreams, and everything we live for. But because He lived, so does our joy. Relationships formed here will continue beyond the grave. And things learned here will bless eternities. That to me brings it all into perspective. Take what comes and learn. And above all, Remember. Don't let this blessed gift of experience slip away because we do not value it. Treasure memories and lessons learned. They will never see to enrich us.

I love you all! Have an awesome day! Until next week!

~Elder Robarts

2014.06.08

I guess the best way to go about this is just go through my notes from Elder Christofferson's visit one by one.

First off we heard some talks from Elder and Sister Mayne and Sister Christofferson who talked a lot about our relationship with God. Elder Mayne talked about how we can use PMG with those who have lived without a Christian background. With the flexibility it gives us, we are able to really focus on the basics. What I loved most was looking back and remembering those times when an investigator had prayed for the first time, or when they started wanting to know more about God. They are so powerful experiences, but the principles were so simple.

Then there was Elder Christofferson who did some Q and A for most of his time.When it is out of our power to comfort someone, help lead them to Christ, then simply be there for them. Mourn with those that mourn.

The true tragedy, he reminded us, is not accepting the peace the Gospel brings. Ultimately, nothing else can harm us.

One of my favorite things from last week that I learned was about faith and blessings from the Lord

They talked a lot about how in order to obtain extraordinary faith, you need extraordinary prayer and action. As we call on God and express willingness to act, we are able to see miracles beyond what we could imagine

It all depends on our spiritual preparation. Sister Christofferson shared a scripture from 2 Kings 4:1-7. It describes a widow that goes seeking help from Elisha, who tells her to gather as many vessels as she can. Not a few   And pour a vessel of oil she already had into them. The thing is, the oil ran out exactly when she reached the last vessel. If she had brought more, it would have stretched further. If she had brought less, it would have ran out sooner. The Lord will bless us according to our desire and preparation. That was a powerful thing to learn.

He talked a lot about what to do when others choose not to accept what we teach. Simply enough, if needed give their heart time to be softened. Keep records so that they can be found again, don't give up on them, keep them in your prayers, and then continue to look for those who are prepared.

We heard lessons of not letting small things distract us, hastening the work, and especially building a firm foundation within our own homes.

This week, I also began thinking a lot about the process of drawing closer to God. In short, repentance.

It is such a powerful gift really.. And it all begins and ends with Christ. When we turn to Christ, we have power to overcome all things. That change of our very nature so that it is in line with God is incredible to think about.

The rest of this week was really nice too

A couple meetings in Gwangju, then there was a sports conference to celebrate the completion of the new stake center. Had a couple investigators come out and have a good time with the members. I was Really excited for them. One of them came out to church again this week, and it looks like he really wants to learn about the church. Him and the rest of his family are awesome. This week, we also saw some cool miracles on the street. Met a guy who got married last year. Used to go to church, but now follows his father in being Buddhist. He didn't like how churches only ever say to go to their church, not another church. Always fighting. But he likes missionaries, and has a lot of interest in eternal families. Arranged to meet again next week.

I love this work. You learn and grow so much. I've been realizing so much more I need to change. So many things about myself that aren't Christlike. But one by one, I'm working on them. I love the spirit that comes from that. In just trusting God. I love you all so much. I wish you could feel what we feel out here. At times, naturally it can be hard, but it's the work of the Savior. What trial could possibly compare to the joy of seeing lives change?

Have a great week! Until next time!

~Elder Robarts

2014.06.01

Dear home,

That was one the most amazing weekends of my life! It was so packed and crazy I don't know where to begin. Since last pday, we saw a lot of miracles. Visiting Less Actives that asked us to talk with some people they know, met a couple investigators that were able to come see an Apostle (more later), had a great combined district meeting, and spent the weekend with events in three different cities, all of which have become close to home for me.

It's a shame really. There were a lot of cool miracles, but I can only think to write about when we learned when Christofferson came... He answered so many questions I had brought with me. Everything he talked about was what I needed to hear. He talked about relying on the Lord, turning to him in all things. Another speaker talked about how we need to help our investigators understand that as well. Help them understand who god is. What our relationship is with him. He talked about how all Gospel knowledge is founded on an understanding of God, and the Godhead. If you look closely, the 1st lesson talks about each. The beginning teaches about God, the middle teaches about Christ, and final part teaches about the Holy Ghost. They are the first key doctrine. Faith in them, and who they are. No coincidence that that is what composes the 1st article of faith.

I feel so spoiled. Granted, we had to spend about 100 dollars with travel or what not, so I'm deep into savings for a while, but I'll never forget this weekend. We got to see him twice! First with the missionaries, then with our Stake for the dedication of our new stake center. (Which, by the way, is MASSIVE. Only one building I've ever seen rivals it. Elk Grove's vintage park building. I don't know which is bigger. But this thing is designed to hold a lot of really large wards.) It'll change things a lot. Before, members often walked to church. There used to be 4 buildings that this one is replacing. The distance to some member's houses is a lot bigger now. I wonder what will happen, but it is a lot more capable of expanding the church now. A lot of the old buildings were too small. And member missionary work has been big here for a long time now. I'm excited to see how it continues to progress. Next step is a Temple in Gwangju!

But when Elder Christofferson came to our stake, we had to investigators come, and as we were walking, we saw him get out of the elevator, so they both got to shake his hand. It was so awesome. Tons of people. Easily over a thousand people were there. More than I've ever seen gathered in one place. It's true. The work is hastening. He talked about it too. Said that with the completion of the new building, we've seen a lot of progress in this part of the world, but our Stake President was already looking ahead to when there would be a new Temple. He talked about the need to continue the work of Salvation. And the most urgent place, he said, was in our own home. Scriptures, prayer, family home evening. He knows it is not always easy, he even admitted at times to have dosed off during those things once or twice himself, but he testified of how powerful they really are. It was amazing.

I love this work. I feel like those two investigators can get baptized this transfer. And there was another and his friend that couldn't come because one injured his leg, but they're amazing too. The work is busy, and I love it. I'm sorry I've been so bad about post mission prep, but I'm in close to denial about it right now. I know that I'll be coming home the weekend of the 14th, but I'd recommend contacting the office for more information.

I'll be sure to bring my study journal next week. I feel like I don't stand a chance of writing any of it more now... The church is true. The spirit I felt this weekend was so strong. Hearing an Apostle, seeing saints, and feeling the difference in the room after the dedicatory prayer. It felt like a chapel... I love this message so much. We are children of God. He is involved in our lives, and he loves us more than we can possibly comprehend.

I love you all, and I can't wait to share more next time. As it is, I'm almost out of time.

Until next time!

~Elder Robarts

2014.05.25 (Monday, the 26th his time)

Monday we met with the assistant ward mission leader and talked about how to build Mokpo this next transfer. The main situation is last year there was a big push for member missionary work and referrals. Because of that, a lot of members feel like they don't know who else they can invite. There s a great opportunity with Elder Christofferson coming, but there's no one to share it with. That s how a lot of them feel anyway. One thing we're focusing on is past received referrals. Trying again with those that didn't accept it the first time.

After that we saw an awesome miracle. We were going shop for the week and we met an awesome guy on the street. Introduced us to his friend that teaches a Taekwondo academy, talked with him for a while and said he wanted to meet again. Talked with a couple other awesome people later that evening too as we were going to visit a member. 

Throughout the week we saw a lot of other miracles too. We met a lot of students at a university here that were super awesome, one of them attends a local church and wanted to know what happened to ancestors who didn't know about God.. The days I love to be a missionary. :D Such a great discussion.

Then there's transfers. My new companion is awesome. He works really hard, I am pretty sure he is half giant, he studies a lot, and he has a really outgoing personality.

In the past couple of days, we met a couple of cool people on the street, and saw some big miracles. Saturday's miracles were the best. We played basketball with a kid we met a couple days back and told him about ourselves a little more, then he invited us over to his house for dinner the next day. When we visited, his family was awesome. He loves church, and says he wants to come to ours. The mom wants a church, but tried to go to a different one for a while and it didn't feel the way she wanted. She's super open though. And they're such a fun family.

Then we had English class and an after party which went really well. (The assistant ward mission leader is a manager at a meat processing factory, so he likes to organizes 고기 Parties. Essentially BBQ^^) A lot of investigators came or stayed after Eng class, plus a long time Less Active suddenly came and introduced two students from his academy who wanted to meet us. It was a super good time.   I think we'll be able to meet a lot of them again. The member I was really excited about. I'd been looking for him for a while. I had heard of him before, but I didn't have an address for his work, so I could never find him. Then, without us even saying anything, he appears at just the right time. It's official. We've got the best Boss.

I absolutely love Mokpo. It's so beautiful, and I see so many miracles happening this transfer. I'm excited. I'll have to send a picture of my new companion. He's a football player, super fast learner, and has a really outgoing personality.

Then if that wasn't awesome enough, we have an Apostle coming this week! It's going to be awesome! I hope everything is going well back home. You're in my prayers. The more I serve, the more grateful I feel to have the family that I do. It's such an incredible blessing.

You're all the best! have a good week!

Elder Robarts

2014.05.18

2014-05-12

There were a lot of things to be grateful for today. First off, I got to say hi to my family. Not much better than that!

Then Spaulding was resurrected

Most probably don't know Spaulding, but he is a small music player that has technical difficulties when experimented with too much. Lately he has been acting up, but he has recovered. Found out that in order for his immune system to work and allow him to fix himself, he needs a good charge. Once he's fully charged, I know a complex series of steps that usually cures him.

Oven

We bought an oven! A little toaster oven. Not too impressive, but it can make bread! And it's not a rice maker... We've only practiced a couple times, but I like it.^^

Ice cream

Found a place that had a good deal on tubs of icecream

Not the little bars but the real stuff. It's a little more bulk than we are used to. Which means, I begin saving pennies... One day.

Met a less active for the first time This week

We've been trying to visit for ages, but they've been busy. We met them, they're awesome. Love the missionaries. And they came out to church this week, so we're super happy.^^

Yep, good start to the week. The rest was pretty good too, but we got some sad news. One of the investigators here who was planning on getting baptized out of no where says that he needs to move to America in two weeks for school. Super busy, couldn't meet, and it doesn't look like he'll be able to be baptized before he goes. Time to refer to California! 

Trying to think of what other news there was. Transfer calls come today, but we don't have them yet. Looking forward to seeing what happens.^^

 I love you!

~Elder Robarts

2014.05.11 Mother's Day Letter

Surprise!

I wasn't sure if we'd be emailing on Mother's day, but I've got a little time.^^

I love you all so much. I don't even know where to begin. I'll start with mom. Here in Korea, it's not as big. May has lots of holidays, including one for parents day. But Mothers day isn't celebrated. I sure am glad for my mother though. She's a saint,she almost single handed raised 8 children, and I don't think I have ever heard her say a negative thing about the matter. Maybe that it is sometimes tiring or that she wishes she was better than she already is, but never did I hear her say that it wasn't worth it. I never heard her complain of the sacrifices she made. But I can see what she has given for us, and I am so grateful for it. I remember as a toddler asking her to read to me and having her share with me Jesus the Christ. Those who know the story know how special it is to me. It was the start of our reading club, but more than that, it became a firm anchor in my own testimony. Young as I was, I didn't understand what was being read, but even now I remember the feeling I had as I listened. As I grew older, that feeling helped me recognize the spirit more. I don't know if she fully knows what she has done for me, but I hope one day she can feel a piece of it.

That was only one of many memories of my mother. Others include a quiet morning where we go on a bike ride with just the two of us. I still don't remember the reason or purpose of the ride, but as the last of eight children, that quiet time with just the two of us felt very special to me. There were a lot of those. I also recall nights of reading club, days spent baking together and learning the joys of cooking. I remember days being taught with my mom as my teacher, learning anything from math to art. Never criticizing, always supporting. I felt like I could ask her anything. Often, she would tell me where to find the answers, other times she would teach me herself. She taught me love, as well as faith. She shared with me the joy of learning. I remember her often saying, "look in the dictionary," or "if you can read, you can cook." Those practices helped me more than I would ever know. They taught me curiosity and gave me a thirst for knowledge.

But the thing I am the most grateful for is the home she provided for us. A sanctuary for the spirit. Family prayer and scripture reading has always been natural because from the time I was young, she protected those habits. I don't remember many days where we did not pray together or read together from the scriptures. I remember monday nights of family home evenings. We may have missed sometimes, and I may not remember what we talked about or learned, but I remember what I felt. And that too has become an anchor for my testimony. 

Looking back, it would have been easy to lose those blessings. Easy not to pray. Easy not to get up for seminary. But I had a mother that fought for them. Protected them. Even when it was hard. I didn't realize what difference that makes in a family. But I do now. I can say with confidence that I know Christ is my Savior. And I, like the Sons of Helaman, attribute that to my mother.

My mom is awesome. She's artistic, a great cook, powerful reader, and wise friend. She's a shoulder I could always lean on, arms ready to embrace, and has ears that would always listen. In times of trial, I would always find her in prayer. And then, with a heart of faith, she would give the Lord her all. I've never seen her decline a calling, despite demands on her time, I never heard her speak against poorly of those the Lord has chosen, even when her thoughts disagreed. She showed me what loyalty to the Lord meant. She showed me trust in something more.

I love her more than words can express, and I am proud to be her son.

So don't all be jealous, I'm sure your mothers are great too, but I'm inclined to say mine is the best.

~Elder Robarts

2014.05.06 email received

Dear Home,

I like the idea of having notes prepped ahead of time, but it's weird trying to manage the flow of the letter when there's a big block thrown in that I wrote days ago. 

This week has been pretty fun. In Korea, there are a lot of holidays in may, so we have been doing a lot of proselyting activities to find people to teach. On Monday it was Childrens Day here, so our mission decided to move Pday to Wednesday in order to take advantage of all the families going out. A lot of people were there, so it was pretty successful. Hopefully we will be able to meet a lot of them later. But yeah, that was why I wasn't able to email Monday.

I've gotta say, having four Elders in the house again is nice. You can do a lot more when you have more people around. I love how efficient two man houses can be, but I like the perks of four man too.You get to share stories a lot more. Usually serving in a two man and being together twenty-four seven, you have already shared all the stories you can think of.

This month has a lot of excitement going on.Coming up, there are tons of holidays in Korea, then there is a ward fellowshipping activity we are working in to help prepare everyone for the visiting apostle, then Elder Christofferson comes, first to Daejeon to meet the missionaries, then down to Gwangju,so we will get to see him twice! It'll be awesome.

It feels like there is a lot of news, but I'm always at a loss of what to share first. After finding out the notes capability of a translator I use here, I've been finding all sorts of useful things with it. I put PMG on there, I'm working on typing up lesson plans on it, and it is a good place for just simple references. Pretty similar to what I'd been doing with the phone, but with better connections. In a hurry, I also can copy emails onto it and read them later, rather than my method of taking a picture of it like I used to.

Little tricks to make life easier. Of course, these are extremely simple tasks for others with modern technology. As missionaries, we run a little more simple, but I love it. We've also started using little outlines when we make our lesson plans. Found out that helps us a lot. Plus, it makes it easier to record impressions we get for lessons during the week.^^

Yep, Buddha's Birthday, Children's day, things are pretty exciting here. Children's day was the best.

Another fun story: I ran into an old investigator I met a year ago. I met him in Daejeon, and missionaries there found him again. Turns out Mokpo is his hometown and he's started coming down for the weekends to look after his mom. IT was pretty cool to talk with him again. He loves history and says he wants to read the Book of Mormon. He loves the idea of church, but he felt like a lot of them were more monetary than they should be. Loves what he's seen of ours though. He's always been a super nice guy. I hope we get to see him a lot more.^^

~Elder Robarts

2014.04.27

Dear home,

 

First, here's something cool. I got a Korean name a while back, and I found the chinese characters for it.

吴保太 오보태

오 중국에 있는 옛날 나라

보 보호

태 큰

The family name is the Stake President's here. It comes from the name of a country in China.

Then my given name translates to "great protector"

I really like how it came out. The English Pronunciation would be something like "Oh Boh Tae"

 

Lots of interesting things happening! General Relief Society President came, Elder Christofferson is coming, I hear the Pope is coming in august, even Obama from what I hear. Is there something happening I haven't heard about? No idea. Should be an interesting couple months though.

목포 is a really beautiful place. I love just seeing the people here. Lots of families, lots of outgoing people, and there's a family like feeling here with a lot of people you meet. 

Not all news is cheery though. There was a ship that capsized about two weeks ago with 476 people on board.170 saved,150 or so confirmed dead,150 still missing. It has been a tragedy here. It is all that has been on the news since it happened. The saddest part is that most of the passengers were just students, Middle school or high school.They are guessing that it was due to unsafe loading of cargo, three times the legal weight limit, and not enough balancing fluid(not sure what that is).A lot of people are really upset about it. For me,I just find myself so thankful for the plan of salvation.

 

That's it for now. Other news, switched phones again. I've had three different phones here and I've been in this area for 2 months. Copying address info, while becoming faster, is not much fun. The perks of this new phone: a great dictionary that can link to words found in definitions (doublecheck accuracy), thread style text messaging so you can see what the replies are from, and a decent menu system that makes it easy to organize. Yay.

Also, two wards were merged, so one companionship got moved down here. I was expecting that, but I wasn't sure when it would happen. So, our ward will be six-man again starting this week. Looking forward to it.

Life is good, but I am almost out of time. Lot's of logistics today...

I love you all! I'll try to find time to write more. I think of you a lot more than you know, I promise!

 

2014.04.22 snail mail - Thankful Chain

Every November we begin writing things we are thankful for on strips of red, green, and white paper to make our Thankful Chain.  We like to see how much of the house we can decorate.  The chain usually starts to fall down some time after New Year's.

Elder Robarts' Thankful Chain:

* Living Prophet Thomas S. Monson * Quentin L Cook * D Todd Christofferson * Neil L Anderson *Russell M Nelson * Dallin H Oaks * M Russell Ballard * Richard G Scott * Robert D Hales * Henry B Eyring * Dieter F Uchtdorf * Boyd K Packer * David A Bednar * Jeffrey R Holland * L Tom Perry * Peace * Scripture Study * Love of God * Keys of the Priesthood * Candy Corn * Revelation * First Vision ! * The Book of Mormon * Lehi, The Great Pioneer * Elder 카이저 ! * Temple * THE GOSPEL * FAMILY ! * Witness of the Holy Ghost * Sacrifice * Testimony * Communication * Trust * Week at a Glance * Gloves *  Hand Warmers * Gift of Tongues * Highlighers * Prayer Rolls * Study Notes * Little Commitments * Sticky Notes * Tabs * Music ! * Prophecy * Priesthood Blessings * Sleep * Pictures of Savior * Temple Pamphlets * Gospel Library *  김  밥 * Understanding of the Atonement * The Examples of Righteous Saints * Little Smiles * Object Lessons * Happiness * Holidays * Miracles * Chances to Share Gospel * Example of Christ * Tradition ! * History * Records * Journals * Stories * Memories * Little Tips from God * Old Friends * Everyday Miracles * Notes / Letters * Origami * People Who Care * Opportunities to Share Gospel * Mission Leaders * Cell Phones * Super Cool Pens! * White Handbook * Book of Mormon Reading * Nativities * Chances to Serve *  가 족 Mom Sariah Ryan Cadi Rori David Teresa Miriam Ruth Tom Esther Jared Naomi Debi Joe Andrew * Beautiful Seasons * Paper & Computers *

2014.04.20

Dear home,

I love missionary work, it teaches you so much, and allows your spirit to be so much more enlarged for the welfare of others.

Probably the hardest thing about being a missionary is that you are always thinking about so many different things. And the hard part is, often you cannot say that one is more important than another. At the moment, that is what I am focusing on. When you are led by the spirit you never have to worry, but so often you are following promptings and thinking about one thing and another will come up. You really have to stay in tune not to miss something. But the great thing is the promise that if we do our all, the Lord will support us and not let us fail.

(Explanation needed: I found out that I can type on my translator, which means I can draft letters before I come to the computer.)

One problem with this is that its a little broken up, and the punctuation is hard to access. Korean doesn't really use punctuation much.  (For example, while typing, I can't put in apostrophes, commas, or periods. Try counting how many were in that last sentence. :D Two ways to get around. Leave them out and put in later [Not a good idea] or think about what punctuation you need before writing the sentence, put those in, and then type into the appropriate spots. That is what I'm trying now. Haha, just wanted you to be aware of the sacrifice.)

Back to the spiritual note:

This last week I have been thinking a lot about testimony. Thinking about missionary work, I remember a quote that said that home teaching and missionary work is the same, one for members, one for non members. It is a pretty cool work really. All we do is help people build their testimonies. Because of that, I have been thinking about how we build our testimonies. One talk from GC mentioned how we can come to know about something through Study, experimenting for yourself, and praying for revelation from God. I loved that. To me, a couple other thoughts about conversion come to mind. What do we need in order to receive conversion? To me,the answer came to Desire, Willingness, and Trust. Throughout my mission, I've focused on helping others build these three things. All of us are lacking in one or the other. But we can always grow.

What I've learned also is that missionary work isn't reliant on who you are teaching. It can be a member, non member, less active, or other missionaries. We all need the healing power of the Atonement. I guess our own personal progression is sharing the gospel in a sorts. We share with ourself.

I know that God lives. I know that he is aware of us. I know that as we do our best, we are led. These days, I have a lot on my mind. There seem to be many that require the Gospel, as well as a friend. As an interesting coincidence (tell me if you believe in those, I've come to think they don't exist) our mission has begun a 40 day fast again. Purification and preparing for Elder Christofferson who comes next month to our mission. I've realized over the past week some other things I need to be doing. I've decided to change my studies for a while, as well as to fast once a week to help recognize and follow the spirit. As well as for others that need extra prayers.

The simple truths of the Gospel are the most strong to me these days. God is our father. I gave a talk in Sacrament Meeting this week. (I've gotten a lot of those here. Love this ward.^^) The topic was God's love. The thought came that if you feel God's love, you will feel happy. No matter what, you will be okay. A lot of people in the world struggle with that. They need the news this Gospel brings, and the very first principle we teach is that God is our Father, and that he loves us. Everything else is supportive of that fact.

I love you all. I think of you often and pray for you daily. Have a good week, and I'll have more next time. ^^

~Elder Robarts

2014.04.13

Dear home!

This is going to be one crazy transfer. I've got a small district for now, but lots of interesting things are going to happen in it. First off, we're host to our mission's traveling AP. A new position made to help train missionaries. Since our house has too much room, he's using it as a homebase, so we'll spend about a fifth of his time here, and most of it in other areas. Also, we've got a greeny in our district and two missionaries returning home. Impressive eh?

As for emails, I've got some bad news and great news. First, my new companion is fast at emailing. Only takes about half an hour so I feel bad going longer. Great news, I found an awesome trick. I can type up letters on my translator. I originally wanted to use it for President's letters because it takes so long to type Korean, but I might start using it for family letters too. Write little notes during the week. Could be good.^^ I'm also using it for lesson plans. Seems to work well. A lot easier than constantly rewriting and throwing away old papers.

I've had a lot of my mind this transfer. There's a missionary in our district that is having a really hard time. I think that's been the hardest thing. They're having an extremely hard time finding joy, and there's stress from a hundred odd sources on their mind. It's been where my thoughts has been the whole week. Even general conference was different than usual. But I have it on my mp3 player, and I plan on relistening to it over time. The important thing is that I got from it the inspiration I need for the moment. I'll worry about the rest later.

I'm so thankful for a testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ. That truly is the greatest strength in the world. To know that we are never alone. To know that no effort is wasted. To know that we are led and loved by an all knowing being. That is the blessing of being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Sadly, this knowledge is often doubted, and almost daily rejected by those who do not understand it. My testimony is small in comparison with those we've heard this weekend (for you guys, last weekend), but I want to add mine to theirs as a humble witness that Jesus is the Christ. That God lives, and has called a Prophet to lead us. More than that, we have the opportunity to speak to our Heavenly Father through prayer, to take our deepest concerns to him. And find answers.

I know this Church is true. Over the next couple weeks, I want to share more of the things I liked from Conference. For now, I wanted to share a Talk from Priesthood session. Elder Hallstrom. We can change.

Times up for now, but I love you all. Have a good week, and I'll be back with more later.

~Elder Robarts

2014.04.06 email

That was a big shock.

Transfer calls was a wall for me today. First off, my companion Elder Williams is getting transferred. That alone was a hard one to take. I love that guy. Second, I'm becoming DL again, but our district is being split. It's going from 12 to 4. It's now going to be just our ward, and our ward lost a set of elders, so it's just us and the sisters. Almost all of our mission leaders will be going home soon, so President Shin mentioned today in the conference call that he's trying to train new leaders. I'm guessing that's why a bunch of new districts opened up. It's a shame though, the bigger districts are always nice. Plus, we might be getting more elders in our ward next transfer, we're not sure. Funny thing, I'm serving with Elder Esplin again. I served with him exactly a year ago, and we're companions again. We'll see the April General Conference together, just like before. He's an awesome guy, and I love how honest and pure hearted he is. One funny thing is our house will seem huge with just the two of us. We might get moved.

Either way, it's a lot of change. And I'm bad at change. Still, I'm excited. I love this ward. I'm convinced I'm here until I go home, and I wouldn't have it any other way. The leaders are incredible, the city is beautiful, and I've learned a lot here.

Everything I had thought about writing just left me. (Tends to happen during transfer week.)

We went to a beach last P-Day, made a little message card for the members of our ward with ideas for how they can share the gospel, met a lot of cool people. But it's been hard meeting investigators recently. That's been a test of faith, but I'm looking up. I want to make a difference here. I want to help others come unto Christ. I know He's guiding this work, and I know that it will continue on in His time.

I'll sure miss Elder Williams though. He's powerhouse. At first, I'd expected that he'd be transferring. He's been here for a while, but the more we served, the more hopeful we became that we'd have one more.

Who knows what'll happen next transfer. I love you guys! You're the best in the world.

I'm having trouble thinking today to be honest. So many thoughts going through. I can't say there's ever been a relaxing transfer day. It's gotten to the point where I don't think ahead of it much, but it's always a surprise when it comes. This transfer felt SO FAST...

I love you guys, I miss you a lot, but I'm excited to be where I am. I hope conference was good, I'm looking forward to hearing it this week. Until next time!

2014.03.30

Hello!

This week has been a number of interesting experiences, I loved it. Sometimes while we're walking, I feel like we're a little random. Here's a quote from this week.

"Snap, 15 is here!"

*frantically running towards the bus stop*

"I've got to bail the milk!"

*five minutes later on the bus*

"I lost the milk. Failed..."

This was an intricate plan. I would watch for 3 buses that would be coming from three separate directions while Elder Williams went to a vending machine about twenty feet away to get a cup of hot milk. (Good stuff here.^^) I was supposed to signal if a bus came. Trouble was, one came the second he got the milk, but it was a bus that we had to outrun and cross the street in order to catch. Needless to say, hard to do while holding a cup of hot milk. It was in the moment, so probably not funny to you, but if it helps, the whole dialog was done in a batman voice.

Little things that ensure that I'll never lead a boring life, despite being a boring person.

Also, this week our arts and crafts continues. I love message cards. And members love getting them. We're missionaries, so our ways of showing love are limited a little, but the time taken to make a little gift like that is fun. Origami is sweet too. Been giving little turtles and random things to kids recently. We also spent some time during weekly planning making a prayer list. I've always had my prayer roll, but it takes a long time to update or get out all the names. This is a sheet of paper that uses sticky notes to categorize people in need of prayers. So I use that for others, and use the other for more personal things. What I'm thankful for that day, what I need His help with, as well as a couple cards with prompts to "Ponder" as Elder Williams likes to call it. How has God blessed you today? Were you 100% obedient? Where did you see the Lord's Hand? What part of your testimony has grown? Etc. I encourage you to try it. If praying sincerely is hard, treat it like homework, write it out, give yourself questions. When you make the time for God, He helps with the rest.

I love you all. I'd write more things that happened this week, but the things I felt most strongly about this week was mostly in the morning or evening hours of study and preparation times. More meaningful scripture study by adding notes at the end of my nightly prayers. Just thoughts that come to mind. I've found that as I study those the next morning, it opens the door so much more to revelation. Also, reading a chapter in the Book of Mormon twice. Once in the morning before exercise in Korean, then again in English during personal study. 

I've finally found a way I like to journal more regularly too. Do it while pondering before prayer. Works great. Helps gear it towards what is important.

All getting ready for General Conference! So excited! I think it'll be a good one.

That's about it. ^^

~Elder Robarts

2014.03.23

Dear Home,

I spent half this week without my companion, and I missed him a ton. How it went was there's a missionary that had military obligations for a week, so he had to go to Seoul. Elder Williams went to stay with him, and I did a split with the other two Elders in my area. Lasted for about 3 days I think. But it was interesting.

We've got some interesting things happening here though. We've got a couple programs we're trying to jump start. One of them is a program to help members pray more regularly and be able to share the Gospel. Started while reading the March Liahona. There's a list of 10 suggestions for sharing the Gospel. What we decided to do was make a message card with that and a list of 10 small steps to introduce the Gospel to a friend including situations where they have interest or if they do not. Both emphasize prayer and personal testimony. We're hoping it's not pushy. Reading through it, it doesn't look bad. But it should be good. It has a blank missionary tag where they can write in their names and a space to list possible friends to pray for and look for opportunities. Excited for it.^^

I love this ward. Last night we visited a family that has possibly the cutest baby girl in the world. There are a lot of cute kids here, but she's at the top of the list I think. The ward I'm in now is definitely largely primary. Kind of new, but I love it. So many young families here. Love it. Also learned how to make an origami boat yesterday. Pretty fancy.

Anyway, the work is moving forward. We found one investigator who seems to have a ton of potential. The only problem is he teaches at a 학원 closest definition is academy, but we don't hardly have them in the US. He works evenings and weekends. ...Pretty much the only time we have meetings. He's awesome though. Lots of great questions, and his prayers are so sincere. He's studied religion a lot. His family are Atheists, his wife's family are strong Christians. Interesting discussions at home I hear. But he's super opened minded. He knows a lot, he just says belief is hard for him. (He teaches math.) Every time we meet he says he feels this could help his belief grow. Keep him in your prayers!

Ah, I love Korea. It's beautiful. MokPo is especially beautiful. I'll see what pictures I have this week, but no scenery shots yet. I suppose I should take some of those...

I love you guys! Have a good week!

~Elder Robarts

Other news:

We successfully transfer several GB of music. Tons of Motab...

I felt uneasy about losing my mission pictures, so I got a flash drive to back them up. I've taken roughly 7.45 GB of pictures here. 

...I like cameras apparently. But now I am a little more at peace. The flash drive goes into a very safe box until I get home.

email 2013.03.16

Hey all!

What a fun week. Started with cleaning our apartment.^^ At the same time trying to figure out transfering music between music players. Didn't work. But that's okay, because our house is still super clean.^^

This week, I've continued to learn the joys of sticky notes, paper, and other various things to help me remember things when my poor brain is too dumb to keep track. Plus, this week I started up my member texts again. In 풍향 we sent a text to all the members once or twice a week with a simple thought and testimony. I've wanted to do it here since I got here, but it took a while to set up the phone. I need to set members into a separate group so I can send a bulk text. At the same time I wanted to input family names and addresses, just information that we might need later. (Blessings on address books...) I go through that, then we switch phones and I start over. Haha. But I got most figured out, and I was able to send a few out this week. Man I love them. It's such a simple way to show our love and thought for them, and for those that live far away, it gives us a way to make a difference. Build relationships. Even just brighten someones day.

We've also been working on message cards. Picture will be included later. But I'm pretty happy with them. We brainstormed a lot. Fun thing, it even has a place for a secret message. Pretty fancy.

Life has been fairly simple really. Lots of miracles, we met a couple new investigators that have tons of interest in the Gospel, lots of potential. One just got back from serving in the military, one is a math teacher who's family is atheist but his wife's family is strong Christian. Interesting conversations at their family gatherings. But he's super open to both. He's studied a lot of different religions, and so far what we've taught has all agreed with what he's personally felt or thought. Super awesome guy.

Some random things that have happened include me moving the family pictures that were on my desk to the window. It's set up now so that I have my missionary work information at easy glance, but I can slide the window out to see the pictures. Convenience that still lets me focus when I need to.^^ Props to Miriam and Joe though. I found out how to use the sticky things they sent. I'll be honest, with the new rule that we can't tape things to walls, I wasn't sure how to use them, but Miriam's mounting stickies I've used to hang a metal... thing, and put up pictures on the window. (That's fair game. It's a matter of ruining wallpaper in rented apartments...) But the best use was for the map. Usually maps are taped to the wall. No longer an option, but I found a loophole. The crownmolding is okay. Problem, tape it too weak with such a small area. The poster stickers though... Those were great. As for Joe's sticky squares, they're perfect for the message cards. We half laminated them with this stuff called 시트지 (not sure if it exists in America. Clear, sticky plastic you can put over things. Oh so useful...) but that lamination made it so tape didn't stick well. We wanted to put an origami shirt on it, and the squares we strong enough that it doesn't come off. A little too strong actually, but that's okay. Just don't mess up when you're putting it on.

Is that about it for this week? Might be. Wait, no, it's not. I got to give a talk in sacrament meeting this week. That was fun. In most wards, missionaries just give a talk when they first come, but that's it. Here every now and them we give talks too. Mine was on Eternal Families. Score. Temple time. I loved it. Yet another thing to love about this area.

I'm sure there's more, but I forget. I love you all, I wish you the best. Thanks for all the support and love. Have a good week!

~Elder Robarts

2013.03.09

Tons to do today, so I can only write for a little while, but I love you guys!

This area is heaven on earth. I'm sure of it. The members here are the greatest people ever. So loving and outgoing. We've been working a lot to help them and work with the leadership here. Especially in LA work. There are a lot of people who have strong potential to come back, they're just having a hard time right now. Elder Williams and I have been working a lot to visit and work with them.

I love this area. Elder Williams is fun to serve with too. Studies for members and Investigators super well. Always has something to share that can help them. Great at following the spirit to, I've been learning a lot from him.

Lot's of miracles, from meeting a LA who teaches guitar, to meeting someone on the street that said he wanted to read the Book of Mormon, to finding a LA house that was buried in an old neighborhood (a maze). Lot's of fun experiences.

Other news:

Elder Christofferson is coming to visit the mission this may. I did mention that, right? It's been in my planner for ages, but I always run out of time to give details. But it's super exciting! The whole mission will be gathering to meet with him. Should be awesome.^^ His talks are always so fun in GC, I wonder what he's like in person...

We found America. In the form of Bestco. Kind of a simple version of Costco, but a tenth the size and only food. I found cheap strawberry syrup though, so I have no bad things to say about it. It also had Peanut butter, fake m&ms, canned food-- all hard to find here. It was beautiful..

No oven here, so we've been experimenting. You can't cook cookies in an upsidedown pot/makeshift oven. Doesn't work. But ricecookers are good. We successfully baked Banana Bread this week. ^^

New passoff program came out to help study Korean and develop lesson plans. Good program, super excited to use it.

That's about it. I love you all, I'm excited for General conference! Hope you're all doing well.^^

Love you! Until next time!

~Elder Robarts

2014.03.02

Dear Home,

I've been transferred to the most beautiful place on earth...

I'm now serving in MokPo 목포, a wonderful patch of heaven right on the coast of Korea. I've slowly made my way south since I got here, and now I'm at the tip. The members are incredible, my companion is a stud and an incredible missionary, and I'm super excited for this transfer.

It was hard to leave 풍향, the last visits with members took a LOT out of me. I couldn't hold back tears with one, and I was close to it with the others. But the bright side is we're still in the same stake. I'll see them at Stake and General Conference probably. And in the meantime, there's a lot to do here.

I feel like I was meant to come here. I feel like we can help the people here a lot, and there are some people we were meant to talk to. One example happened Saturday. An investigator of the sisters, a 50 year old English Teacher who has been super sick this last week. His phone was dead, so there was little communication, he had to use a pay phone. He was nervous of some hospitals here... It was a miracle just finding him. We had the name of a cafe that he said was near a weird building and a hospital, and we knew where he had been a while before. So we go looking for him, say a prayer, and the very first person knew where it was.

Turns out he's from Sacramento and has been missing it a lot since getting sick. We talked about Sutter's Fort, The American River... Elder Williams is a Pre Med too, so he talked him through the symptoms he's having. Really helped calm him down. So we offered to give a blessing if he needs one, as well as translation, and Elder Williams left him with some advice of what to do if his condition doesn't improve.

There's no way you can call that coincidence... God knows His children.

I'm in love with this place. I haven't seen the ocean since I got to Korea, now I can see it from my house. Every member we meet becomes my favorite. There's nothing I don't like about this place.

You're all the best. I love you so much. Now I've gotta run, but I'm thinking of you all!

~Elder Robarts (Now 로바츠 장로. Easier to remember. And it technically sounds closer.)

Fun tricks I've learned: These mean nothing unless you serve here, I'm sure, but I wrote them a while back and they've helped a ton since moving here.

Ask the missionaries to send a list of leadership names so you can learn them before arriving to the area.

Plug addresses and family relationships into the phone so you can memorize names faster.

Send a mass text to the ward before Sunday so they know who you are

Cram with the member book so you can greet them by name. I forgot a ton of them, but I managed about 85%. I felt a little proud about that. Probably more than I should... But the members here are super worth the effort.

Ask for a Calling list, LA list, and Birthdays list so you can work more with the ward.

Call Bishop and Ward mission leader first day in the area.

Does that mean anything? Probably not to most people, but it's been what has been going through my head for the past week.

Now I'm out of time.

2014.02.23 email

It begins again!

 

Transfer calls, and with it comes the end of my time in 풍향. I'll miss it so much. Last night we expected this was coming. Spent a lot of it visiting members and saying goodbye. It was hard. After serving here for almost 7 months, this has become another home to me. Two particular families we visited were especially amazing. One of them was a family who we were able to help give service for when I first got here. We helped them with building their house, and I can still remember how good it felt to be giving that kind of service again. Hard to find that in Korea. But ever since then, we've been very close. Yesterday we had dinner with them, they made a fire in their frontyard (also hard to find in Korea), we got to play with their dog and their kids for a while, and we shared a scripture that reminded me of them. They're so amazing. They are always sharing the Gospel, always happy, and always looking for ways to serve others. I did really well for the first part, but the prayer at the end was hard. When the father and son gave us hugs goodbye, I completely lost it. Earlier they asked me what "가정은 지상의 천국" meant (a common motto for the church here), "Home/Family is Heaven on Earth." I couldn't get the thought out of my mind. I've talked about families so special that if all I could do here was meet them, it would be an honor. They were definitely one of them. The second was too. Our Stake President. He was a convert. For the longest time he snuck out pretending to play soccer so he could come to church. He's had so much love for the Young Men, and for everyone in his stake. You can feel it. He gets to know everyone. No matter who you are, you feel important when he talks to you. You stand a little straighter. He's always looking for ways to strengthen those in this area. One of the things I'm grateful for is that I'm still in his Stake. Just a different city.

 

I love this work. It's been an incredible time here in 풍향, it'll be hard to leave, but I'm excited to start again in 목포 (Mokpo), my new area. I've kept up my tradition so far. I've been slowly making my way south. I started at the very top, and have moved down little by little ever since. Now I'm at the very southern tip of Korea. I get there Thursday, and my new companion is Elder Williams. Looking forward to it. From what I hear, he's a hard worker, and a top notch missionary. As for the future, I have no idea. I won't be DL this transfer, so I'll be able to focus a lot of working with the Members. Definitely looking forward to that.

 

Anyway, I love you all! Lots of things to do, so I have to go, but it was a great week! Thank you for all of your love!

 

~Elder Robarts

2014.02.16 email

Not much time for writing now. Lot's came up. First, this morning we got to help do some farming at a member's place, and then the bus back to 광주 was too full so we didn't get back until an hour later. But, I still love you guys!

This week was fun. Lots of exploring new areas. A couple of our investigators couldn't meet, so we had a little extra time. But we got to find a couple cool people, and visited some members. We've been looking for some new ways to help them here. One thing that came to mind recently was that in order to help encourage them, experiences seem to help the most. Simple times that have helped us, or things that we did as members when we tried to do these things too. We're not perfect, but God helps our efforts. So we've been really focusing more on that, and it's helped a lot. Shared about FHE and showed a simple get to know you game they can use as an activity. Simple things, but I'm a strong believer in Alma 37:6-7. (that should be the right verse...)

Anyway, good times. I've also learned that I like memorizing scriptures in Korean. They are good wells of strength during the day, and it feels a little more powerful when you hear it in your head in two languages. I memorized this one yesterday. Props to anyone who can find it. 보라, 나는 하나님의 아들 예수 그리스도의 제자라. 나는 그의 백성 가운데 그의 말씀을 선포하여, 그들로 영생을 얻게 하기 위하여 그에게 부름을 받았느니라.

Found out about this a while back. Turns out every sister companionship in the mission recites Our purpose, James 1:5 and the First vision in Korean before companionship study every morning. None of the Elders knew about it, and I've only done it with a couple companions. But we started doing it together, as well as one additional scripture we want to memorize that week. Got me on the memorizing bug. I've also made a goal to finish the Book of Mormon in Korean before going home. I wish I'd made the goal earlier, but there were always more pressing things to study, and the language in the BoM and other scriptures isn't common (not perfect language study by itself...). That said, since starting, I've noticed a huge help with the language. When I first came out, everyone told me not to use a lot of time on it, but it's been a great tool. I just like reading in Korean.

Good week though. Elder Keyser is awesome, and we've been seeing a lot of cool miracles. One investigator that has hated religion most of his life was finally able to pray with his daughter this week. He's been praying in his heart for a while now, but vocal prayers are hard for him outside of us meeting. And his daughter still doesn't like church, so it was a great thing to hear that they were able to do it together. Hearts are opening.^^ I love this place. The people make any mission worth living. Seeing the love God has for them changes you. All in a good way.

Out of time, but I love you guys! Have a great week!

~Elder Robarts

2014.02.09 email

Dear Home,

This week was pretty nice. The holidays are over, people are coming out of the woodwork again, and we saw a lot of miracles this week.

I love this work. This week we met a guy who said straight up that he's been looking for the Book of Mormon for a long time because he wants to know what it is. When we talked to him, almost everything we shared he had been thinking before himself. The importance of prophets, the fact that God wouldn't stop speaking to us, the knowledge that we can know truth through prayer and the spirit. Awesome guy, and super tall. 192cm. That's taller than me. And the first time he met us, he introduced a friend. He's cool too. Recently got back from a homestay in Utah, where he got into a YSA branch and loved it a lot. He was only there a couple weeks, but it left a good impression. He has no religious background, but liked the feeling of our Church and the people. Super excited to meet them more.

Also met an old investigator we haven't seen in over a month. He's doing well, just busy, but we arranged to start meeting again. Taught a lot of cool people on the street, and had a good meeting at ward council. We're merging wards soon, moving into a new building, so they're taking a lot of time trying to preserve and rescue some of our less active members. So many have struggled to come out, and they voiced the concern that once we move, the ward will be a lot bigger and it might become a lot harder to notice when someone is missing. Plus, this building is farther away, so it'll be a bigger sacrifice to make it out. Lot's of less active work ahead. Needs a lot of coordinating. I love less active work. It's harder sometimes, but it's so fulfilling to help people recognize and remember experiences they had when they were converted.

It's a beautiful work, that's for sure.

Been a little busy, so there were three letters sitting unopened on my desk for about a week. (Really sorry about that by the way...) But I have some things to respond to, so I should keep this short today. I love you all. Thank you so much for all you do. It's hard to believe I only have six months left. One of the letters asked about preparations... I don't have any details about that, but it got me thinking. Over the course of my mission, I've made a Babylon List, or a list of things that I want to look up or do back home. Good way to stay focused. Write it down and forget about it. But it's a little messy, so I took one of our blank planners and started putting information in for my first transfer back home. Mostly a to-do list of my first week. Things to research, work on, get information for. School, work, etc. Spent a couple minutes there earlier this morning. I might make a section for foods I miss. Lasagna... 

Luckily I've still got six months before I need that planner. And the planners I've got now have some many incredible things in them to think about. Souls that need saving. Love you all, take care! Until next week!

~Elder Robarts

PS:

I didn't know it was the olympics until we noticed it on TV at a restaurant once. And then only once. Not as big here apparently. Go team Korea!

2014.02.02 email

Happy Lunar New Year!

That was a great week. Started with a split with one of the missionaries in my District, and we got to talk a lot about the things that give us strength in missionary work. There are something that we do because they build us up, and for each of us, those things can be different. For this particular missionary, it's talking to people. He understands so well the call to talk with everyone, and to open your mouth to share the Gospel. For me, it's recognizing God's love for His children. Just how much we does for each of us as individuals. That brings me strength the most I think. I talk to someone, and as I listen to who they are, I feel like I can really recognize God in their lives. That love. It makes it so much easier for me to feel that love for them as well.

We talked to so many people that day, and we saw a lot of miracles. But one thing that stood out to me was something from PMG. It talks about "finding those who will accept you". As we worked, we talked a lot about that. How do we find those who are searching for Truth? Still thinking about that, but the best answer I've felt is to make sure we're doing our best to carry that spirit with us so that they will be drawn to it.

This week, we had a good opportunity for that. With the holidays, Korea was shut down. We ended up spending time as a zone doing a teaching practice. As we did it, the spirit was so strong. I remember one particular lesson where the other missionaries described an investigator that was Buddhist, and had a lot of trials in their life that made it hard for them to find peace. As we talked, there were so many times the spirit led us in what to say. Helping them see how God is important. Because of Him, even hard times are made meaningful. And through Him, we can gain strength and peace, even in the midst of those times. I learned something as we taught that investigator. While I am not one to like Roleplaying, I've felt the spirit so much through it. It's never really felt fake to me. Even in the MTC, the spirit was so strong as we taught. I wondered why that was. But the answer was simple. This Gospel is all about love. No one says you have to be able to see the person you're teaching to love them. As we were teaching, I could really feel love for that investigator, to the point where to this moment, I find myself wanting to know how they are doing.

It makes me wonder how much love God feels for each of us. Must be incredible...

A couple members invited us to eat with them for 설날, so we had lunch with our Bishop and dinner with our Ward Mission Leader. Every year there is a food called 떡국  that they eat on new years. They say that in order to become a year older, you have to eat it. So we had some... and then some more. I think I'm roughly 27 now. Tastes delicious.^^

Other than that, it was a quiet new years. Had Zone Conference this weekend, and learned a lot there, especially about Love, and gaining revelation through our studies. Also talked a lot about how to help investigators come to church, and how to have effective member lessons. I've had some good talks about that with the Zone Leaders this week. Lots of ideas, but still working on application. 

I hope California is doing okay. I've heard that there are droughts, that the ice age is happening again, all sorts of things. Here things are fine. A warmer winter than average. But I hope you guys are okay. You're in my prayers! I love you all, I hope you had a good new years! Until next time!