Korea Daejeon Mission Newsletter - May 2010

I didn't know how to publish the newsletter in it's regular format, but wanted to share it with you. Here is most of what was included!

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

My beloved missionaries, during this past week with the visit of Elder and Sister Stevenson, I was able to receive an “outside” viewpoint of what I already knew with respect to our Daejeon missionaries. Namely, you are a very special group of
missionaries, as good as any in the worldwide church. Elder Stevenson remarked to me multiple times throughout his 3 day visit as to how impressed he was with the caliber, the quality and the unity of our missionary team. He was admiring of your high level of obedience, your enthusiasm, your happy dispositions and passion for the work, your level and exhibition of faith in setting goals and having miracles occur, your work ethic and dedicated focus, all of which is contributing to the success we are seeing in the Daejeon mission. He commented that in both of the conferences in Gwangju and Daejeon, he felt a very, very strong presence of the Spirit being attributable to the caliber of missionaries that you are. It was heartwarming for me to hear him speak of you this way. Know how proud I am of each of you. My expectations for you and the work are high and you are proving more than equal to the opportunity.
Given our charge for a “Miracle Month in May” and Elder Stevenson’s comment that we are looking at having a “historic month”, I thought his stated challenge of: “obedience with exactness will take this mission to a level beyond what has already been accomplished” was very appropriate and timely.
Ahh, this work is wonderful. What a joy and a privilege it is to “go on in so great a cause….on, on to the victory!” (D&C 128:22)
P.S. The 3 M’s stand for: “Many Mighty Miracles”

Obedience is the price
Faith is the power
Prayer is the source
Love is the key
Christ is the reason
Joy is the reward

Sister Perriton’s Zone Conference Notes

What a blessing it was to receive a visit from our North Asia Area President, Elder Gary E. Stevenson and his lovely wife. I certainly enjoyed a spiritual feast of inspired words and instruction, as I am sure you all did. You probably took better notes than I did, but I want to just comment on a few things that especially touched me.
I loved the focus on the blessing of being called “Servants of the Lord” - what an honor it is, how precious to serve the Lord by serving others. I learned at a very young age of the joy of service. I spent my summers during junior high school volunteering at a summer school for handicapped children, and I wrote journal entries, and often bore testimony of the love and happiness I received from that experience. I still have the letters that some of those sweet children wrote to me and am thankful for the testimony I have of the fact that serving others is the greatest source of happiness in our lives.
I loved being reminded by Elder Stevenson of the impact on our lives of obeying with exactness. We are not perfect, but we can be perfect in certain things! What comfort and power that knowledge gives us! I remember a story Elder and Sister Brown told of their tiny little grandson, who being grilled by his father on how to correct something he had done wrong replied, “Obey with ekzakness!” Barely able to speak, this little child had already learned a beautiful phrase from the scriptures that will bless his life forever! I like the definition of the White Handbook as the Handbook of Blessings!
We talked about the history and the miracle of the Book of Mormon, the keystone of our religion, and we were taught principles for the effective "finding" of our own Cornelious's - those precious souls who are searching for truth. I loved the analogy of preparing for and participating in the Olympics, and having a lifetime to reflect on our performance, and relating that to our premortal, mortal, and postmortal lives.
I loved the exercise of writing three things we admire about our companions. Such an activity is so strengthening and has the power to heal! I hope you have all shared what you wrote with your companions! This is a wonderful exercise to use in both good times and bad. When my children were growing up, we sometimes used the following exercise: On one side of a 3 x 5 card, I had them write 3 things they wished their sibling would do to make life easier, and on the other side, they wrote three things THEY could do to make their relationship better. It had the immediate effect of removing contention. I hope your companionship inventories are teaching you important tools for successful relationships.
Sister Stevenson taught the Sisters a beautiful lesson on being Women of Virtue, and extended the worldwide challenge for each Sister (of any age) to earn the newly introduced Young Woman of Virtue value award.
I was so impressed that our visitors were so intune with the Spirit to be able to set aside or change the material they presented according to the inspiration they received. The two conferences were quite different as different stories and examples were used, some things left out and others added from one conference to the other, and I learned that preparation requires much more than is needed, so that what is required is at hand and able to be presented well. It's wonderful to have special visitors who leave such a deep impact, who lift and inspire us so powerfully. I hope we can learn from and apply the great things that were given to us!

April Baptisms

황윤선 상당
오부관 송정
김귀웅 풍향
최창원 송정
Margaret 삼성
모이 정읍
김영화 삼성
이종훈 율전
김진아 공주
임혜원 삼성
오상민 송정
박미란 목포
안영균 농성
지은동 서산
이경한 선화
안세원 서산
한영채 유성
한재혁 서산
최동춘 송정

WELCOME TO OUR NEW MISSIONARIES

Sister Choi Ji Seon, Sister Jo Ah Ra, Elder Philip Jones

A FOND FAREWELL TO OUR DEPARTED MISSIONARIES

Sister Stephanie Thayn, Elder Mark Carlson, Elder T’Jae Thorkelson


MAY and JUNE BIRTHDAYS

May 02 Elder Jackson Richards
May 22 Elder Andrew Alberro
May 26 Elder Kim Sung Won
June 01 Sister Angela Copeland
June 04 Sister Megan Warner
June 10 Elder Andrew Henderson
June 13 Elder Daniel Sorensen
June 17 Elder Jacob Selman
June 19 Elder Lee Won Ki

“The greatest healing therapy is friendship and love.” Hubert Humphrey.
Sister Katie Burgess has a long recovery time ahead of her. We can extend friendship and love to her through short notes and letters. Her address is:

Katie Burgess
Apt #206, 312 3rd Ave NE
Calgary Alberta Canada T2E oH4


Miracle Moment!
After a 10 year arduous journey to escape oppression in North Korea, 2 precious souls, a brother and a sister, have not only found safety and opportunity in South Korea, but have found the Gospel, received baptism, the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and are continuing with faith on a path back to our Father in Heaven. Miracles removed insurmountable obstacles, casting away any possibility of doubt that God is in control of the universe and that His great love and care encompass us all.