Qing Ming - Week 34

Hello everybody happy Qing Ming day!

We had a real up and down week but it ended on the best note!

If you'll remember Jason went home last week to ask his parents
for permission for his baptism this Sunday. We have all been praying
and fasting and having faith that he would get the permission. When he
came back this Tuesday we met with him, and told us that his mother
would not accept it. I was low key devastated. I don't know if there
are many things in my life that I have prayed for and fasted for that
hard before, and I was just shocked. I thought, after all our work,
faith, and hope, why still no? We continued to meet with him, to try
and build his faith enough to make his own decision. He kept telling
us that he hopes and has faith that his parents will change, and on
the inside I thought, they probably won't, and you should just do it
anyways! He has amazing desire and faith. We told him to decide by
Friday if he was going to decide what to do. And you know what? He was
right. He called his parents one last time to ask if they would allow
him, and suddenly, they changed. Suddenly they said sure, on April
17th he can be baptized. Again I was shocked! It was like instant
chastisement to me and my lack of faith. My investigator had much
greater faith than I! I was immediately humbled. He just has the
purest, most innocent faith in the power of God and the Savior. In my
mind I thought his parents weren't gonna change any time soon, and
that we had to strengthen his faith enough to choose for himself. But
he had the faith that they could be changed. He constantly told us, I
think God will provide a way. And he was right! What an amazing
example of faith and miracles. It is sometimes so so easy to doubt.
Faith requires constant activity, but doubt is passive. You don't have
to do anything to doubt. But to have real faith, you honestly have to
work. Doubt and faith cannot exist in the same mind. Jason quickly
showed me true faith, and made me evaluate my own faith, and the
qualities of my prayers. I like the quote that "our actions are
children of our prayers" meaning that everything that we do should
reflect what we pray for. It should give us a course of action, to
actively strive and work to have faith to accomplish what we pray for,
then the lord provides.
This result was certainly a product of his amazing and
undoubting faith. I think sometimes we complicate things too much, we
consider all the factors of things and let them discourage us, make us
doubt, and we forget the greatest factor in our life, which is a
Savior, and faith in him. I forgot the simple principle taught many
times in the scriptures, that "Whatsoever thing ye shall ask in faith,
believing that ye shall receive in the name of Christ, ye shall
receive it." It really really is true, and this was a huge testament
to me of it. There is power in prayer. Heavenly Father, a real all
knowing and all powerful Father of our spirits who knows and loves us
is only as far as one prayer away. If we but have faith, we really can
receive miracles, we can receive very specific changes and blessings
that we thought impossible. I am so happy for Jason and his faith. He
is truly converted to the Lord, and I can't wait for the 17th! Elder
Sy gave him a suit, I gave him a tie, and Elder graham gave him a
white shirt, he was super hyped to wear them all to church! It's kinda
hilarious, all of our converts and strong investigators are all
starting to wear suits haha it's the best. Our RC Yang kai also got
the priesthood on sunday which was great! We are continuing to work
with him to keep his testimony growing and solid.

Today is the holiday Qing Ming, or tomb sweeping day.
It's a day when all the chinese people go the gravestones of ancestor,
clean them off a little, and pay their respects. I reflected on the
most recent time we celebrated that holiday in San Francisco with
Popo, spending hours trying to find uncle wing, goong goong, and other
various relatives graves. I remember Popo humorously kept insisting
that the gravestone was black, when it actually turned out to be
different and made it take forever to find. I love the respect that
this culture pays to their ancestors. And as I reflect on my ancestors
I am again so grateful for everything they went through to get my
family where it is now. I am grateful to both sets of grandparents,
and their amazing examples of service in this Hong Kong mission, the
affects of which I feel weekly from meeting members or old friends who
were touched by their examples. I am grateful for the early pioneers
of the church in my family, on both sides, and I am honored to be
preaching the gospel here in Hong Kong. I can't think of anything
better I could be doing right now, I really can't. It is the most
fulfilling thing I have ever experienced. I am grateful for temples,
and for a fair and understanding God and his perfect plan, which
allows us to aid and honor our ancestors progression. And as I turn 20
(so weird) I reflect on everything in my life that has led me to where
I am right now, and who I am right now, and I feel an immense
gratitude to the Lord and all of his mercies to me. I really feel I
don't deserve all the blessing I have received. I am grateful for all
of the amazing examples in my life, they are too many to number, I'm
grateful for the best family, and amazing friends. I am grateful for
mistakes, and for weaknesses, they have helped humble me, shape me,
and help me to learn what it means to rely on the Savior, and to use
his Atonement daily. I am grateful for parents who taught me that "we
talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy
of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children
may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins."
I am happy to be doing the same for all the people of Hong Kong that I
can.

Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes! I had a great day!
LOVE,
Elder Woolley