By All Accounts it was a Miracle

Dear Friends and family,

Another good week here in Chaiwan! Things are going pretty good on this end. The days are feeling warmer but it's Spring time so the few trees that actually shed their leaves in fall are blossoming again! :) There is also a noticeable energy in the air as people prepare for the New Year. During New Year people here get haircuts, clean their apartments, and buy new clothing. Of course they also spend time with their families too. It will be neat to see how it all goes down in the coming days (actual new years doesn't start until February 10th).

I think that I mentioned in last week's email that this week we had a special stake/wards/missionary conference yesterday. It was a fantastic meeting and was geared towards getting leaders and missionaries pumped up and on the same page so that this year we can accomplish our baptismal goals. Our stake includes 6 Cantonese wards and then the Mandarin-speaking Branch and after prayer and consulting with President Hawks our stake has the energy and enthusiasm to accomplish 113 convert baptisms this year. Yesterday's meeting was planned out literally to the minute and involved leaders and missionaries role-playing as well as leaders giving 3-5 minute powerful thoughts in various aspects of missionary/ward interactions and how the 2 can work together and cooperate better. I'm sure that everyone who was in attendance could feel the power of that meeting! It is also inspiring to the four of us Chaiwan Missionaries who are trying our very hardest to work together, share fellowshippers, and be on the same page in all aspects so that we can strengthen our ward and prepare to bring in the 18 convert baptisms that they hope for this year. Lots of excitement and enthusiasm in the air down here :)

This week has also had miracles in this area-- I'll share just a few of them with you. The first one I want to talk about is from English class on Saturday Night. We typically have a very good turn out to English class and last Saturday was no different, but what made it special was that the investigator who I invited called and canceled his attendance since he had some things come up. However, a man came into English class who referred himself! The other companionship snatched this man right up, and the fellowshipper whom we had invited to help teach our investigator went with them and was able to teach him the Restoration! Self-referrals are rare and it's even more rare that a fellowshipper just happens to be available to help out, so by all accounts it was a miracle. The next miracles happened at church when two young men came to church. One is 24, studied in Snow College in Utah and decided he wanted to know more about Mormonism. The other Chaiwan companionship was able to teach him after church and give him a baptismal date! Super good! There was also another boy, 16, who came to sacrament meeting and said that he had come to church once a few years ago and just felt like he should come visit again! We taught him and he has a lot of potential we think. Anyway, that's 3 miracles and 3 new investigators right there!

Our investigator P also came to church this past week (his 3rd time to church) and so if all goes smoothly we hope that he can make his baptismal goal for March 3rd. :) A, the one who was supposed to get baptized last week was unable to make it to church this week; much to his and our dismay, but we're working with him and trying to help him really feel that his testimony of the Book of Mormon is true. He came to us this week with more problems and now says he believes in the Trinity since that is what the Bible seems to teach. We reminded him of Joseph Smith's experience with seeing two separate beings and we also talked about Christ's baptism. I really hope that we don't lose him. He's still willing to meet when he has time though which is good.

Today for P-Day the two Chaiwan companionships went to a Hong Kong Film Museum/Archive and then to an outdoor exhibit of one of Hong Kong Harbor's Fireboats. Both were pretty neat to check out. Afterwards as we walked to the bus stop to come email we walked through a mall and stopped to listen to some traditional Chinese music performers play some New Year's medleys.

Anway, I'm at a loss for what more to write about this week... Hope everyone has a good week, continues to read and pray as well!

Love,

Elder Siebach