Assistant Elder Juchau. Taught him everything he knows ;)
Leaving the mission home (March 16th, Fri. morning)
Called to Serve
Japan Sendai/Sapporo Mission
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Welcome Home
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Good-Bye Japan!!!!
I never thought this day would come. I can`t believe it`s here. But it`s been one for the records!! As much as I would like to compile the experience of a lifetime into a final last letter, it seems rather difficult. Words cannot describe the uncomparable experience of a mission, and mine has been just that. All missions are special and I am more than confident that my Heavenly Father knew that Japan Sendai/Sapporo was the place for me. I have LOVED my mission!! :) It hasn`t been easy, but it`s definitely been worth it. Although we go on missions in order to serve our Heavenly Father and His children, I feel in turn as if I have been most blessed. The lessons I have learned, the people I`ve met, and the testimony I have gained will remain with me throughout the eternities! I`ve loved everything about this.
For the first time in a couple of weeks we were able to meet with one of our new investigators. Her name is Emiko. We had previously given her a Book of Mormon but hadn`t had the opportunity to follow up. She has continued to come to english class and this week we were finally able to meet! She took us out for a drink and dessert. We were surprised to see her pull up in a `HUMMER` haha. Come to find out, she has read over 100 pages of the Book of Mormon! She didn`t understand much, but at least she`s reading. And she wants to start coming to church in April!! :) Although I may not be here, I am excited for Elder Saunders and his new Japanese comapnion to continue to work with her.
Before meeting with Emiko that day, we made plans to visit a couple old investigators from the area book. We had the addresses and knew the general direction of the area. As we got closer we began to ask people for a more detailed spot. We were gladly helped (as the Japanese always do), but for some reason we still couldn`t find the apartments. I didn`t want to waste the precious time I have remaining riding my bike in circles trying to find the place, so I began to pray in my heart that we could use our time effectively. We parked our bikes and began to house. We went from one apartment to the next. As we came across one apartment and looked up, we noticed it was one we had been searching for. God led us right to it :) The person wasn`t home, but I knew we had accomplished one of our goals. We hit the bikes and began to make our way back, this time taking a different route. I rode with wide eyes through the cold rain. Again, to my surprise, we were led to the other apartment we had been searching for. We knocked on the door and the girl came to the door. She didn`t have much interest, but we found her. God was with us. He led us and he answered a sincere prayer from the heart :) We left the area confident that our Heavenly Father was pleased with the work we had done.
I am a disciple of Jesus Christ! My two years as a full-time missionary may come to an end. I may not wear the badge. I may not be in Japan. But I will continue to testify about the Lord Jesus Christ and His restored gospel! I know this church is true. Our Savior lives and loves us. I can`t wait to re-unite with you and tell you of all the experiences I`ve had. See you Friday!!!!!!!!!! :)
Love Elder Ovard
For the first time in a couple of weeks we were able to meet with one of our new investigators. Her name is Emiko. We had previously given her a Book of Mormon but hadn`t had the opportunity to follow up. She has continued to come to english class and this week we were finally able to meet! She took us out for a drink and dessert. We were surprised to see her pull up in a `HUMMER` haha. Come to find out, she has read over 100 pages of the Book of Mormon! She didn`t understand much, but at least she`s reading. And she wants to start coming to church in April!! :) Although I may not be here, I am excited for Elder Saunders and his new Japanese comapnion to continue to work with her.
Before meeting with Emiko that day, we made plans to visit a couple old investigators from the area book. We had the addresses and knew the general direction of the area. As we got closer we began to ask people for a more detailed spot. We were gladly helped (as the Japanese always do), but for some reason we still couldn`t find the apartments. I didn`t want to waste the precious time I have remaining riding my bike in circles trying to find the place, so I began to pray in my heart that we could use our time effectively. We parked our bikes and began to house. We went from one apartment to the next. As we came across one apartment and looked up, we noticed it was one we had been searching for. God led us right to it :) The person wasn`t home, but I knew we had accomplished one of our goals. We hit the bikes and began to make our way back, this time taking a different route. I rode with wide eyes through the cold rain. Again, to my surprise, we were led to the other apartment we had been searching for. We knocked on the door and the girl came to the door. She didn`t have much interest, but we found her. God was with us. He led us and he answered a sincere prayer from the heart :) We left the area confident that our Heavenly Father was pleased with the work we had done.
I am a disciple of Jesus Christ! My two years as a full-time missionary may come to an end. I may not wear the badge. I may not be in Japan. But I will continue to testify about the Lord Jesus Christ and His restored gospel! I know this church is true. Our Savior lives and loves us. I can`t wait to re-unite with you and tell you of all the experiences I`ve had. See you Friday!!!!!!!!!! :)
Love Elder Ovard
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Sunday, March 4, 2012
I'm Not Coming HOME!
Hey everyone! How you all doin? Time just doesn`t slow down. I can`t believe I`m down to my last 10 days. It`s so crazy!! Although I am excited to see everyone, I am going to miss Japan and all my friends over here!!! It`s going to be hard to leave. But I guess all good things must come to an end. It`s been a great week over here. And the snow is finally starting to melt!! We had a `music night` Saturday evening and it was a huge success!! We had close to 30 people show up and were treated with around 10 awesome musical performances varying from the guitar to the flute. Everybody seemed to have had a good time :) Elder Saunders sang a song called `I`ll Find You My Friend`. I accompanied him on the piano and one of our english class students played the flute. It was a nice piece. We recieved a phone call from a gal inquiring about english class. Her name is Sakamoto Kaori. She found us on the homepage, gave us a ring, and we were able to meet with her the next day! She`s very cheerful and will make an awesome student. She also went to a Christian Kindergarten so even has a little Christian background! She moved from a different prefecture about 10 months ago and is still looking for friends and people to meet. Her dad passed away a couple years ago. We introduced the message to her and she had questions. I feel like she is prepared to hear it; even if she doesn`t know it yet! ;) I`m excited to see what happens with her. We are finding new investigators and teaching the gospel. Now we just gotta help them progress! I love sharing this message. I love being a missionary. I love my Savior and am grateful for His perfect example. I`m grateful for a loving Father in Heaven. I`m grateful for all my many wonderful blessings. I love you all and appreciate the support you`ve been to me. Till next week.
Elder Ovard
Elder Ovard
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Elder Oaks is the Man!!
Hey family and friends! It`s been another fantastic week in Japan and one I definitely won`t forget!! The mission conference with Elder Oaks, Elder Hallstrom, Elder Aoyagi, and their respective wives was awesome!! I couldn`t have asked for a better 2 year anniversary :) Elder Oaks is the man. We took a picture with him to start things off, then each missionary had the opportunity to shake his hand. It was the first time in my life I met an apostle of the Lord! He was way nice. He asked where I was from and when I told him , `Santa Clara, UT`, he began to tell me how he would be attending a stake conference there on the 18th of March. I told him that I had heard and was excited to see him there! Haha. He took another look at my name tag and told me to be sure to say hello and shake his hand at the stake conference as well :) It was a lot of fun! He has a really sweet wife too. She did speak a little Japanese and as a returned missionary from the Sendai mission it was fun to hear about her experience. Elder Hallstrom was a very nice guy as well, but not somebody I`d want to mess with. He is huge!! It was a fun-filled, more than spiritually uplifting experience. I am grateful for the guidance of living prophets. Elder Oaks talked a lot about the nature of God. I am excited to share more about it when I get home! Hard to believe and quite sad to think about, but I only have 2 weeks left :( I guess I`ll enjoy it while I still got it! We`ve got a good week planned ahead including a music fireside on Saturday evening. Should be fun! Thanks for everything everyone. I love you much. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Elder Ovard
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Miracles this week!
Hey everyone! I can`t believe another one has already passed by!! I hope your week went as well as mine did. It`s been a busy, fun-filled one that`s for sure :) And the snow keeps coming down!! Pretty crazy. There are times we wake up to a foot of fresh powder. On top of the 5 feet already piled up, that is!! We spent a few days in Niigata this week for interviews with President and splits with the zone leaders and due to heavy snow we weren`t able to ride the train back. We ended up taking the shinkansen (bullet train)!! We ended up making the hour and a half ride in twenty minutes, but also lost an extra 20 bucks out of the wallet. Not a bad experience though! I couldn`t help but to think, `The next time I`m on the shink I`ll be heading to Tokyo!`. As excited as I am, it`s really sad to think about. But we`ve got an awesome week ahead!!
Although our working time in Nagaoka was short, we saw miracles this week! We were able to see Yamamoto last week on P-Day, follow up with her, and get a return appointment. She`s been reading the Book of Mormon too!! :) We`re gonna go back this afternoon. We also found a new investigator from the area book named Wakai. She`s a middle aged lady who runs a shop not far from the train station. She`s really sweet and fun and has the potential of coming to church next week! After retuning from Niigata Saturday afternoon we began knocking on doors. We came across one really sweet woman and began to introduce ourselves. She was really nice and I had the feeling that we ought to push for an appointment with her. I did, and to our surprise, she asked if it was ok to meet at the church! She said an hour would be good haha. She said she was just going to listen, so we`ll see where things go. The appointment is for today, actually in just a couple hours! Her name is Emiko. We`ll pray for the best!
We`re off to Sendai this Thursday for our Mission Conference with Elder Oaks, Elder Hallstrom, and Elder Aoyagi. I can`t wait!! I`m so grateful for the opportunity I have to hear from special servants of the Lord before I return home. We are blessed with the guidance of living prophets!
This morning, for the first time in a long time I opened up my journal to the first part of my mission. It brought back so many good memories. I love my mission :). I`m grateful for the many learning experiences I`ve been given and for the many friends I`ve been able to make. I will never forget this time. Thank you for all your support. I love you all. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Pics: Fireworks in the snow! It was quite the show. In August, Nagaoka has the biggest firework festival in Japan.
Although our working time in Nagaoka was short, we saw miracles this week! We were able to see Yamamoto last week on P-Day, follow up with her, and get a return appointment. She`s been reading the Book of Mormon too!! :) We`re gonna go back this afternoon. We also found a new investigator from the area book named Wakai. She`s a middle aged lady who runs a shop not far from the train station. She`s really sweet and fun and has the potential of coming to church next week! After retuning from Niigata Saturday afternoon we began knocking on doors. We came across one really sweet woman and began to introduce ourselves. She was really nice and I had the feeling that we ought to push for an appointment with her. I did, and to our surprise, she asked if it was ok to meet at the church! She said an hour would be good haha. She said she was just going to listen, so we`ll see where things go. The appointment is for today, actually in just a couple hours! Her name is Emiko. We`ll pray for the best!
We`re off to Sendai this Thursday for our Mission Conference with Elder Oaks, Elder Hallstrom, and Elder Aoyagi. I can`t wait!! I`m so grateful for the opportunity I have to hear from special servants of the Lord before I return home. We are blessed with the guidance of living prophets!
This morning, for the first time in a long time I opened up my journal to the first part of my mission. It brought back so many good memories. I love my mission :). I`m grateful for the many learning experiences I`ve been given and for the many friends I`ve been able to make. I will never forget this time. Thank you for all your support. I love you all. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Pics: Fireworks in the snow! It was quite the show. In August, Nagaoka has the biggest firework festival in Japan.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
The Book of Mormon is True in Japanese Too!!!
Hey everyone! Happy Valentines Day! haha. We celebrate it here in Japan too, but it`s a little bit different. The ladies do the `treating` and the men just enjoy. Ha. Not bad huh?! The sisters in our branch were really nice and made all the guys homemade chocolates with nice notes. They gave them to us yesterday at church. Also, a less-active member who we have been working with since we got here also came to church!! So it wasn`t a bad day. I really like the members here in Nagaoka.
The snow is still crazy!!! With the exception of 15 minutes, it snowed for 3 days straight!! I couldn`t believe it. It just kept coming and coming. Today is sunny though :) Riding bikes has been quite tough and we were even slowed down for a day as my bike broke. The screw that holds the tire in and everything together snapped! It was really a bummer but thankfully we were able to get a hold of a bike that was left here by an older missionary. It definintely doesn`t ride like my GT though!;) Ha.
We weren`t able to meet with Yamamoto, our strong investigator from last week. She has been busy with different things. We were, however, able to find a new investigator in her area! Her name is Arai. She may not be the strongest, but we were able to teach her about the Restoration of the gospel and she accepted the commitment to pray. She`s a nice lady with a cute family of 3.
Yesterday was a special day for me and one I have been looking forward to for quite some time. I finished reading the Book of Mormon in Japanese!!! It was quite the project requiring much dedication and perseverance. But I`m proud to say I got it done! :) I began my first transfer, nearly 21 months ago. Sure, there may have been a lot I wasn`t able to understand. But through the power of the Holy Ghost I was able to feel and know more now than before that the book is true!! I know it. It`s tru in both the English and Japanese languages;) Ha. I love the book! And for those of you who know me, I don`t say that about many books! I`m not the biggest `reader` in the world. But I can say with all my heart that I enjoy reading the Book of Mormon. It has been a great blessing to me on my mission and will continue to be throughout my life. It is my personal liahona. Through it I have drawn nearer to my Savior. And my testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith has been solidified because of it. I encourage us all to make the study of the Book of Mormon it a fundamental aspect of our lives.
I love you all!! I appreciate all your love and support. I look forward to seeing you in just a short month! Take care.
Elder Ovard
1- This is what we call `OOYUKI`!!
2- Helping a member with the snow
3- The cute little girl on my left made me chocolates! :)
The snow is still crazy!!! With the exception of 15 minutes, it snowed for 3 days straight!! I couldn`t believe it. It just kept coming and coming. Today is sunny though :) Riding bikes has been quite tough and we were even slowed down for a day as my bike broke. The screw that holds the tire in and everything together snapped! It was really a bummer but thankfully we were able to get a hold of a bike that was left here by an older missionary. It definintely doesn`t ride like my GT though!;) Ha.
We weren`t able to meet with Yamamoto, our strong investigator from last week. She has been busy with different things. We were, however, able to find a new investigator in her area! Her name is Arai. She may not be the strongest, but we were able to teach her about the Restoration of the gospel and she accepted the commitment to pray. She`s a nice lady with a cute family of 3.
Yesterday was a special day for me and one I have been looking forward to for quite some time. I finished reading the Book of Mormon in Japanese!!! It was quite the project requiring much dedication and perseverance. But I`m proud to say I got it done! :) I began my first transfer, nearly 21 months ago. Sure, there may have been a lot I wasn`t able to understand. But through the power of the Holy Ghost I was able to feel and know more now than before that the book is true!! I know it. It`s tru in both the English and Japanese languages;) Ha. I love the book! And for those of you who know me, I don`t say that about many books! I`m not the biggest `reader` in the world. But I can say with all my heart that I enjoy reading the Book of Mormon. It has been a great blessing to me on my mission and will continue to be throughout my life. It is my personal liahona. Through it I have drawn nearer to my Savior. And my testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith has been solidified because of it. I encourage us all to make the study of the Book of Mormon it a fundamental aspect of our lives.
I love you all!! I appreciate all your love and support. I look forward to seeing you in just a short month! Take care.
Elder Ovard
1- This is what we call `OOYUKI`!!
2- Helping a member with the snow
3- The cute little girl on my left made me chocolates! :)
Sunday, February 5, 2012
LET IT SNOW!!!
Hey everyone!! :) How`s everything goin? You wouldn`t believe the weather we`ve been havin over here the past couple weeks. We`ve had sharp winds with tons of snow!! It`s pretty crazy. We`re still hittin the bikes however, or I guess I should say the bikes are starting to hit us! Ha my legs have never been so worn out my entire mission! Biking through the snow is quite the workout. And not having any brakes doesn`t help out either! Ha I had my brakes fixed just a couple weeks ago and they`ve already gone bad again. My boots have been doing the braking lately. Thankfully we`ve been blessed with safety thus far! ;)
It`s been a really awesome week!! We have had much success that is leading beautifully into the upcoming week as well. The biggest news is that we were able to come up with a new investigator!! Her name is Yamamoto Saiyaka. I actually found her on splits with the District Leader a couple weeks ago and Saunders Choro and I were able to meet and teach her a couple times this week. She is a single mom with a cute 4 year old girl (single moms seem to be the story of Nagaoka since we arrived) ha. But in any case, she is a fantastic investigator. She believes in God, just not a particular God. When her daughter was younger she had a skin sickness. They both would pray to God everyday asking to be healed, and eventually she was healed! They give thanks to God. We taught her about the Restoration and the correct way to pray. She soaked it all in and has been praying in the name of Jesus Christ! We also gave her a Book of Mormon and she said she would read it. I have really high hopes for her and look forward to working with her in the future! We were also blessed to make appointments with others as well. We have a lot of potential for the upcoming week and will hopefully be teaching new people. :)
We had the opportunity to do a little snow shoveling for an older woman in the branch this week. I think she was a little surprised, however, to come out and see Saunders Choro and I standing on the roof! Haha. She hadn`t taken the snow off for a while and it definitley needed to be done! With the snow on the side of the house nearly piled up to the roof it didn`t take much to get up. We began to throw it off with our shovels. It was a little scary at times but her house wasn`t nearly as bad as most houses here. I worry about these people standing on their roofs at times. So between all the biking and snow shoveling we`ve definitley been getting our exercise in!
The work is going great. We`ve got an awesome branch and I love the people here. They are so good. I`m grateful for the opportunity I have to be a missionary. It has blessed my life so much! I`m grateful for the Book of Mormon. I love reading it each day. Doing so has increased not only my knowledge, but my testimony as well. I`m grateful for the restored gospel and the goodness it brings to those who follow. I`m grateful for a living prophet who leads and guides us. I know this is the true church! Thank you all for your love and support. You are the best!! I love you all. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
1- shoveling snow off the house
2- Nagaoka!
3- small snow festival
It`s been a really awesome week!! We have had much success that is leading beautifully into the upcoming week as well. The biggest news is that we were able to come up with a new investigator!! Her name is Yamamoto Saiyaka. I actually found her on splits with the District Leader a couple weeks ago and Saunders Choro and I were able to meet and teach her a couple times this week. She is a single mom with a cute 4 year old girl (single moms seem to be the story of Nagaoka since we arrived) ha. But in any case, she is a fantastic investigator. She believes in God, just not a particular God. When her daughter was younger she had a skin sickness. They both would pray to God everyday asking to be healed, and eventually she was healed! They give thanks to God. We taught her about the Restoration and the correct way to pray. She soaked it all in and has been praying in the name of Jesus Christ! We also gave her a Book of Mormon and she said she would read it. I have really high hopes for her and look forward to working with her in the future! We were also blessed to make appointments with others as well. We have a lot of potential for the upcoming week and will hopefully be teaching new people. :)
We had the opportunity to do a little snow shoveling for an older woman in the branch this week. I think she was a little surprised, however, to come out and see Saunders Choro and I standing on the roof! Haha. She hadn`t taken the snow off for a while and it definitley needed to be done! With the snow on the side of the house nearly piled up to the roof it didn`t take much to get up. We began to throw it off with our shovels. It was a little scary at times but her house wasn`t nearly as bad as most houses here. I worry about these people standing on their roofs at times. So between all the biking and snow shoveling we`ve definitley been getting our exercise in!
The work is going great. We`ve got an awesome branch and I love the people here. They are so good. I`m grateful for the opportunity I have to be a missionary. It has blessed my life so much! I`m grateful for the Book of Mormon. I love reading it each day. Doing so has increased not only my knowledge, but my testimony as well. I`m grateful for the restored gospel and the goodness it brings to those who follow. I`m grateful for a living prophet who leads and guides us. I know this is the true church! Thank you all for your love and support. You are the best!! I love you all. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
1- shoveling snow off the house
2- Nagaoka!
3- small snow festival
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Last Transfer!
Hey everyone. Well I guess today I begin my `last` transfer. Hard to believe! I will be spending it here in Nagaoka with Elder Saunders. As a matter of fact, our whole zone is staying the same! Probably the most exciting news, however, is that my firstborn, Elder Juchau, is the new AP!! :) I was happy to hear and am excited for him. He`s an awesome missionary. Must have had a good trainer? Ha jk. He taught me more than I ever taught him.
You wouldn`t believe all the snow we`ve got this week!! It`s crazy. I mentioned most of it was melting away last week but that is definitley not the case now! We`ve got nearly 4 feet on our balcony. It does make riding bikes a little difficult but thankfully we`ve got sprinklers in the road to help out. And if we do fall, at least it`s a soft landing! Ha. The snow is really soft and powdery over here. I hear we`re in for more this week too so it`s time to saddle up!
We`re still lookin for investigators! They seem pretty hard to come by these days. But it only takes one! We are meeting with a woman named Furukawa and her two year old daughter this afternoon. She called us last week having interest in English Class. We`ll intoroduce the good news to her today as well and see if she doesn`t have interest in it as well. Sometimes we just don`t know how God prepares people!
I love you all. I am so thankful for your thoughts, prayers, and support. I have the best family and friends in the world! Hope all is well. Have an awesome week and take care.
Elder Ovard
You wouldn`t believe all the snow we`ve got this week!! It`s crazy. I mentioned most of it was melting away last week but that is definitley not the case now! We`ve got nearly 4 feet on our balcony. It does make riding bikes a little difficult but thankfully we`ve got sprinklers in the road to help out. And if we do fall, at least it`s a soft landing! Ha. The snow is really soft and powdery over here. I hear we`re in for more this week too so it`s time to saddle up!
We`re still lookin for investigators! They seem pretty hard to come by these days. But it only takes one! We are meeting with a woman named Furukawa and her two year old daughter this afternoon. She called us last week having interest in English Class. We`ll intoroduce the good news to her today as well and see if she doesn`t have interest in it as well. Sometimes we just don`t know how God prepares people!
I love you all. I am so thankful for your thoughts, prayers, and support. I have the best family and friends in the world! Hope all is well. Have an awesome week and take care.
Elder Ovard
Sunday, January 22, 2012
HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY!
What a week it`s been!! As always, we had our ups and downs, but I do feel that the ups of the week definitely out weighed the downs :). And I had an awesome b-day too! Thanks for all the wishes. It was pretty much a party all week beginning last p-day in Niigata. We gathered with quite a few missionaries from the zone and played basketball. Before we went to the gym, however, they tried to get myself and Elder Shaw to sit down. His b-day was on the 17th. I knew exactly what was coming and not too long later I had a pie put to the face! Haha. It was all over and way up in my nose but did taste quite good :) ha. The sisters made it. Dang sister missionaries. Wednesday evening we had our usual English Class and afterwards to my surprise one of the members brought a cake! We had around 20 students show up that night so it was fun to spend time eating cake with them. Thursday we went to lunch with a less-active member. She took us to a buffet and we ate up! That didn`t stop us from going to another one that evening though ;) ha. I think I gained a few kilos.
I recieved a couple letters this past week that almost brought tears to me eyes. One was from a past companion, Elder Kobayashi, and the other was from my recent-convert in Sapporo, Fukuoka!!!! :) I had been waiting, hoping to hear from both of them and finally did. They are doing great! I couldn`t have been any happier hearing that Fukuoka has continued to stay strong and even finished reading the entire Book of Mormon this past December :) He`s a stud and I`m excited to get in contact with him when I get back in the States.
While on splits this past week Ikeda Choro and I found a really sweet young girl who became an investigator! Her name is Mikuno. She is a really nice girl. Her mom teaches her about God and we were able to have a lesson with her. We made an appointment for a few days later to meet her mom. Turns out that she is actually meeting with the Jehova Witness`s when she has time. That`s not gonna stop us though! Our branch president also met with the JW`s when he was investigating the church. He said the difference between us was the Spirit. We may need to give them a little time but we`ll definitely stop by again! We need to find some investigators real soon as my time is running short!! Yesterday after church we had an awesome activity with the branch. We made a flyer with Elder Saunders and my pictures on it including short messages. We divided up and posted nearly 1000 flyers in nearby houses/apartments. So now people are going to know who we are when we make our way back from here on! Hopefully it will result in some investigators:)
It has been quite nice weather this past week and a lot of the snow has melted. I hear we`re in for more this week though! Thanks for everything!! Love you all! Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Happy Birthday Pie!
Sports Day!
Splits with Elder Shaw and Ikeda.
Flyers with Elder Saunders and my picture on it.
I recieved a couple letters this past week that almost brought tears to me eyes. One was from a past companion, Elder Kobayashi, and the other was from my recent-convert in Sapporo, Fukuoka!!!! :) I had been waiting, hoping to hear from both of them and finally did. They are doing great! I couldn`t have been any happier hearing that Fukuoka has continued to stay strong and even finished reading the entire Book of Mormon this past December :) He`s a stud and I`m excited to get in contact with him when I get back in the States.
While on splits this past week Ikeda Choro and I found a really sweet young girl who became an investigator! Her name is Mikuno. She is a really nice girl. Her mom teaches her about God and we were able to have a lesson with her. We made an appointment for a few days later to meet her mom. Turns out that she is actually meeting with the Jehova Witness`s when she has time. That`s not gonna stop us though! Our branch president also met with the JW`s when he was investigating the church. He said the difference between us was the Spirit. We may need to give them a little time but we`ll definitely stop by again! We need to find some investigators real soon as my time is running short!! Yesterday after church we had an awesome activity with the branch. We made a flyer with Elder Saunders and my pictures on it including short messages. We divided up and posted nearly 1000 flyers in nearby houses/apartments. So now people are going to know who we are when we make our way back from here on! Hopefully it will result in some investigators:)
It has been quite nice weather this past week and a lot of the snow has melted. I hear we`re in for more this week though! Thanks for everything!! Love you all! Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Let it Snow!!!
Hey everybody!! How you all doin? It`s hard to believe another week has already passed by. It`s been a good one though!! We are being so blessed. And there is tons of snow too!! Haha you wouldn`t believe it. It snowed every day this week and just keeps piling right up. We have at least 4 feet right now. The other day I said to one lady, `This snow is crazy isn`t it?!`. She replied, `Not yet.` Haha. Here we go!! We are still pushing things however and riding bikes. Yes, it may be a little dangerous and does make for a good work out, but also makes our work much more effective. It was unfortunate the other day as we came back from Joetsu after splits to find that both mine and Elder Saunders helmets had been stolen. That put us on foot for a few days. Poor thief, what good does a helmet do you with out a bike? Should have took it as well! Ha. We were lucky to have a returned missionary in the branch lend us a couple for the time being.
Our hopeful investigator, Hasebe, has decided to stick to her Buddhist ways :(. She was thankful for all that we taught her and said she will still continue to read the Book of Mormon from time to time but it doesn`t look like her lessons will continue. Another one bites the dust! We have been finding new people however, and as a matter of fact, people have even been finding us! Ha. We did recieve a self-referral this past week. Her name is Kondo and she is 27 years old. She is studying abroad in China and actually heard about the church from a friend over there. She came back to Japan recently and got a hold of us. We were able to meet, teach a lesson, and she even came to church yesterday!! She is golden. There`s only one problem- she`s going to visit her sister in Tokyo this Friday and headed back to China next week :( So sad!!!!! We are gonna meet with her before she leaves and hopefully figure out a plan. Apparantly they are able to hold meetings in China. She is not in Hong Kong. I guess the Chinese may not be able to attend but foriegners can?! Ha, kind of confusing. She is definitely prepared to recieve the gospel!
We also had an english class student attend church as well!! His name is Yuta and he`s 24 years old. He is a fairly new student, only a few months, and has heard some of the lessons in the past. He is a deep thinker which can make things tough, but did come to church yesterday for the first time!! He had a good time. The branch here does an awesome job of fellowshipping. I think his heart might be starting to change!:) Hopefully we can start meeting with him more often to help him start progressing. He has read over 300 pages of the Book of Mormon, but like I said- he`s kind of a toughie. We`ll get him though! Ha. We also got a phone call from a guy we had found the previous week. He said he would come to church but when we tried to call him and follow up he wouldn`t answer our calls. I was a little disappointed. About 5 minutes before sacrament meeting began I got a call from him! He apologized for not being able to answer the phone. He had been working the night shifts. He explained that he wasn`t going to be able to make it today but that he wanted to come next week. So I think we may be able to get another person to church!! These have all been blessings from the Lord. Church attendence and lessons with members present has been one of our focuses for January and we are starting to see the hand of the Lord in all things :)
Thank you all for everything. I cannot express enough how grateful I am for all you do for me. Thank you!! I love you all. Hope you have a wonderful week. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Our hopeful investigator, Hasebe, has decided to stick to her Buddhist ways :(. She was thankful for all that we taught her and said she will still continue to read the Book of Mormon from time to time but it doesn`t look like her lessons will continue. Another one bites the dust! We have been finding new people however, and as a matter of fact, people have even been finding us! Ha. We did recieve a self-referral this past week. Her name is Kondo and she is 27 years old. She is studying abroad in China and actually heard about the church from a friend over there. She came back to Japan recently and got a hold of us. We were able to meet, teach a lesson, and she even came to church yesterday!! She is golden. There`s only one problem- she`s going to visit her sister in Tokyo this Friday and headed back to China next week :( So sad!!!!! We are gonna meet with her before she leaves and hopefully figure out a plan. Apparantly they are able to hold meetings in China. She is not in Hong Kong. I guess the Chinese may not be able to attend but foriegners can?! Ha, kind of confusing. She is definitely prepared to recieve the gospel!
We also had an english class student attend church as well!! His name is Yuta and he`s 24 years old. He is a fairly new student, only a few months, and has heard some of the lessons in the past. He is a deep thinker which can make things tough, but did come to church yesterday for the first time!! He had a good time. The branch here does an awesome job of fellowshipping. I think his heart might be starting to change!:) Hopefully we can start meeting with him more often to help him start progressing. He has read over 300 pages of the Book of Mormon, but like I said- he`s kind of a toughie. We`ll get him though! Ha. We also got a phone call from a guy we had found the previous week. He said he would come to church but when we tried to call him and follow up he wouldn`t answer our calls. I was a little disappointed. About 5 minutes before sacrament meeting began I got a call from him! He apologized for not being able to answer the phone. He had been working the night shifts. He explained that he wasn`t going to be able to make it today but that he wanted to come next week. So I think we may be able to get another person to church!! These have all been blessings from the Lord. Church attendence and lessons with members present has been one of our focuses for January and we are starting to see the hand of the Lord in all things :)
Thank you all for everything. I cannot express enough how grateful I am for all you do for me. Thank you!! I love you all. Hope you have a wonderful week. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Another Week flew by!
I can`t believe another week has already come to a close. They`re flying by!!! And we`re starting to see all sorts of success here in Nagaoka :) It has really been an awesome week that I believe will lead into an even better week. We are working hard to find new people as well as strenghten the members here and are being blessed because of it. We spent a lot of time on bikes this past week visiting people (it takes a little bit longer in the snow!), so we didn`t necessarily find `tons` of people, but the people we did find were strong and full of potential. I am confident that we will have new investigators this week and hopefully even a few coming to church!
One of our investigators, Hasebe, had an uncle pass away this past week. She returned home for funeral services to southern Japan for the week so we unfortunately weren`t able to meet. Definitely will this week though! We did find a new investigator named Isono, however. She is a young mom with 2 kids and divorced. She is a nurse and works the late night shifts making things extrememly difficult for her and her family. Thankfully grandma lives close to help out ;). We found her over a month ago and have been meeting from time to time. She may not have the most interest right now but is very sweet and will listen to what we have to say. Due to past experiences and with all the terrible things going on in the world right now, she doesn`t believe in God. At all. It`s quite sad. She doesn`t seem to have much hope. We testified with all we had that God is there, loves her, and wants to help her. When we asked her what she would like from God, she looked at a cute picture of her family and began to cry as she said, `To live happily with my family`. I felt so much love for her and wanted to do anything I could to help!! Bless her heart. We have what she needs, she just doesn`t know it yet. Her kids are ages 10 and 3. They actually remind me a lot of the Kawamura family in Morioka! :)
It was quite an exciting evening Saurday night. I mailed one of our english class students to see if he wanted to meet up sometime Sunday. The previous night I had talked with him over the phone and invited him to come to church but he humbly refused. In his mail, however, he said, `I changed my mind. I want to come to church. What time does it start?` Haha I couldn`t believe it!! Getting investigators to church has been difficult and I knew it was an answer to prayers. I gave the branch president a call to inform him of the good news. He then passed the phone over to his wife. She explained to us that somebody had called wanting to learn about the church and would be giving us a call in the near future. A self-referral! Ha. Then I got a call from another missionary asking me if I recieved anything in the mail from the mission home. I replied with a `no`, and he began to relate to me that we would be having a Mission Conference in Sendai on the 24th of February. Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Elder Donald Hallstram, and Elder Aoyagi will be making a visit to the mission!!!! Hahaha I couldn`t believe it!! So much good news all in just a matter of minutes. So I am more than happy to say that I will have a very special 2 year anniversary :) Even if the kid didn`t end up coming to church. Haha. But one recent convert brought her husband so it worked out alright anyways ;) ha.
The mish is full experiences, ups and downs, and miracles. I`m grateful for all I have been blessed with during my time here. I`m grateful for all of you and your love and support. I love you. Have a nice week! Take Care.
Elder Ovard
The Nakagawa kids. We helped build an igloo. So cute!!
They fed us an awesome meal! Traditional Japanese food. A New Years thing! :)
One of our investigators, Hasebe, had an uncle pass away this past week. She returned home for funeral services to southern Japan for the week so we unfortunately weren`t able to meet. Definitely will this week though! We did find a new investigator named Isono, however. She is a young mom with 2 kids and divorced. She is a nurse and works the late night shifts making things extrememly difficult for her and her family. Thankfully grandma lives close to help out ;). We found her over a month ago and have been meeting from time to time. She may not have the most interest right now but is very sweet and will listen to what we have to say. Due to past experiences and with all the terrible things going on in the world right now, she doesn`t believe in God. At all. It`s quite sad. She doesn`t seem to have much hope. We testified with all we had that God is there, loves her, and wants to help her. When we asked her what she would like from God, she looked at a cute picture of her family and began to cry as she said, `To live happily with my family`. I felt so much love for her and wanted to do anything I could to help!! Bless her heart. We have what she needs, she just doesn`t know it yet. Her kids are ages 10 and 3. They actually remind me a lot of the Kawamura family in Morioka! :)
It was quite an exciting evening Saurday night. I mailed one of our english class students to see if he wanted to meet up sometime Sunday. The previous night I had talked with him over the phone and invited him to come to church but he humbly refused. In his mail, however, he said, `I changed my mind. I want to come to church. What time does it start?` Haha I couldn`t believe it!! Getting investigators to church has been difficult and I knew it was an answer to prayers. I gave the branch president a call to inform him of the good news. He then passed the phone over to his wife. She explained to us that somebody had called wanting to learn about the church and would be giving us a call in the near future. A self-referral! Ha. Then I got a call from another missionary asking me if I recieved anything in the mail from the mission home. I replied with a `no`, and he began to relate to me that we would be having a Mission Conference in Sendai on the 24th of February. Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Elder Donald Hallstram, and Elder Aoyagi will be making a visit to the mission!!!! Hahaha I couldn`t believe it!! So much good news all in just a matter of minutes. So I am more than happy to say that I will have a very special 2 year anniversary :) Even if the kid didn`t end up coming to church. Haha. But one recent convert brought her husband so it worked out alright anyways ;) ha.
The mish is full experiences, ups and downs, and miracles. I`m grateful for all I have been blessed with during my time here. I`m grateful for all of you and your love and support. I love you. Have a nice week! Take Care.
Elder Ovard
The Nakagawa kids. We helped build an igloo. So cute!!
They fed us an awesome meal! Traditional Japanese food. A New Years thing! :)
Monday, January 2, 2012
Happy New Year 2012
I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!! :) Wow I can`t believe it`s already 2012. I remember looking at my proselyting license back in the MTC with my release date on it I didn`t think 2012 would ever come! Now we`re already 3 days into it and I can`t believe how fast it`s going by. I get sad as I realize that my days in Japan are numbered. I like this place too much!! And I love the people even more.
It`s been a wonderful past couple of weeks. We had an awesome Christmas. Thank you all for your love and support over the Holiday season. It`s always special to preach the gospel during the Christmas time of year to a people who really have no idea what it`s all about. The big day for them is definitely New Years. They go to their shrines and temples and give thanks and worship their ancestors. Saunders Choro and I actually had the opportunity to visit one yesterday with a memeber. It was quite interesting to see how they do things! Although I didn`t throw money into the big bin and offer up a prayer to my ancestors, I wanted to get in on the action at least a little bit so I bought one of the fortunes they were selling. I put my dollar in and pulled one out. It was a little hard to understand but with some help I was able to gather it was a pretty `normal` fortune haha. Apparantly you can get really good ones and your year will go accordingly. Good thing I didn`t get a `bad` one! Haha. The funny thing is- as I would ask them why they do things and what the meaning is behind it, a lot of them wouldn`t even know! I guess you could compare it to the Christians who go to church on Easter and Christmas.
We did have an English Class student attend church with us on Christmas!! We were so happy to see her there. And our branch is awesome at fellowshipping. If only we could get them there more often!! We also found a new investigator last week. Her name is Hasebe. She married in her 30`s with a 3 year old boy. I would consider her our strongest investigator since coming to Nagaoka. We have taught her 2 lessons and she is reading the Book of Mormon!! Not gonna lie though- I was pretty nervous as we followed up with her and she started asking about Nephi killing Laban. Ahhh!!! Haha. We got through it however and she will continue to read! :) She is really nice and loves to talk. Our next step is to involve the branch!
In Japan they have something called `oosoji`, or `deep cleaning`. They do it around the first of the year. This year, as a mission, we decided to join and do the same! So our apartment is looking quite nice:) We were also given some time to read from the Book of Mormon beginning in 3 Nephi to the end of the book. That worked out well for me as I am trying to finish the Book of Mormon in Japanese before my mission comes to an end. I am almost finished with 3 Nephi so I was able to gain some ground!;) It was a really good experience though. I don`t know if I`ve ever read so much in my life! Ha. I love reading about the visitation of Jesus to the Nephites on the American continent. It is so powerful. I love the way our Savior teaches and administers. He is our perfect example of love. His teachings are so simple yet bring so many blessings! I`m grateful for the Book of Mormon and the help it has been for me in obtaining a testimony of our Savior. I know He lives!
Love you all. You`re the greatest. Hope all is well. Take Care!
Elder Ovard
Best lookin aparment in Japan!;)
Merry Christmas!! We had tons of snow.
New Years with the Nozaki Family
Just like the Buddhists do it!
It`s been a wonderful past couple of weeks. We had an awesome Christmas. Thank you all for your love and support over the Holiday season. It`s always special to preach the gospel during the Christmas time of year to a people who really have no idea what it`s all about. The big day for them is definitely New Years. They go to their shrines and temples and give thanks and worship their ancestors. Saunders Choro and I actually had the opportunity to visit one yesterday with a memeber. It was quite interesting to see how they do things! Although I didn`t throw money into the big bin and offer up a prayer to my ancestors, I wanted to get in on the action at least a little bit so I bought one of the fortunes they were selling. I put my dollar in and pulled one out. It was a little hard to understand but with some help I was able to gather it was a pretty `normal` fortune haha. Apparantly you can get really good ones and your year will go accordingly. Good thing I didn`t get a `bad` one! Haha. The funny thing is- as I would ask them why they do things and what the meaning is behind it, a lot of them wouldn`t even know! I guess you could compare it to the Christians who go to church on Easter and Christmas.
We did have an English Class student attend church with us on Christmas!! We were so happy to see her there. And our branch is awesome at fellowshipping. If only we could get them there more often!! We also found a new investigator last week. Her name is Hasebe. She married in her 30`s with a 3 year old boy. I would consider her our strongest investigator since coming to Nagaoka. We have taught her 2 lessons and she is reading the Book of Mormon!! Not gonna lie though- I was pretty nervous as we followed up with her and she started asking about Nephi killing Laban. Ahhh!!! Haha. We got through it however and she will continue to read! :) She is really nice and loves to talk. Our next step is to involve the branch!
In Japan they have something called `oosoji`, or `deep cleaning`. They do it around the first of the year. This year, as a mission, we decided to join and do the same! So our apartment is looking quite nice:) We were also given some time to read from the Book of Mormon beginning in 3 Nephi to the end of the book. That worked out well for me as I am trying to finish the Book of Mormon in Japanese before my mission comes to an end. I am almost finished with 3 Nephi so I was able to gain some ground!;) It was a really good experience though. I don`t know if I`ve ever read so much in my life! Ha. I love reading about the visitation of Jesus to the Nephites on the American continent. It is so powerful. I love the way our Savior teaches and administers. He is our perfect example of love. His teachings are so simple yet bring so many blessings! I`m grateful for the Book of Mormon and the help it has been for me in obtaining a testimony of our Savior. I know He lives!
Love you all. You`re the greatest. Hope all is well. Take Care!
Elder Ovard
Best lookin aparment in Japan!;)
Merry Christmas!! We had tons of snow.
New Years with the Nozaki Family
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Picture with President Yoshida!
Hard to believe this is the last mail before Christmas! Just like everything else it`s kinda just crept up on us huh. It`s beginning to look a lot like Christmas over here though!! Had to bust out the boots and have a little fun in the 8 inches of snow we got over the past couple days haha. It was crazy, it went from a clear ground to nothing but white in no more than 30 minutes! Very pretty though. I guess we`ll be gettin lots of hit from here on out . I`ll take another white Christmas :)
I mentioned it before but my last week in Morioka we had District Conference and were visited by many of our leaders. One was President Yoshida, the first counselor in our mission presidency. He also does a lot of translating for the church, including the Book of Mormon into Japanese. I enjoy him so much and really wanted to get a picture with him back in Morioka but he was busy with a lot of different things so it wasn`t able to happen. I left the church that day a little discouraged but was confident in Heavenly Father that I would have another chance to meet him. My first sunday here in Nagaoka there was an announcement that President Yoshida would be visiting our branch on the 18th of December. Recently we were also able to meet up a couple of times in Niigata for some meetings as well. So yesterday as our meetings came to a close I was able to pull Yoshida Kaicho aside and take my long awaited picture :) It was a tender mercy of the Lord and a testimony to me that Heavenly Father knows me personally and has a plan for each and every one of us.
Our branch president here in Nagaoka lives a little ways away but we were finally able to make it over to his place this weekend. He had a nice house and such a cute little family!! The members here are great. We aren`t having a Christmas `party` this year but instead have made Christmas-looking pinatas in which we are gonna fill and take to less-active members, etc. I think it will be a fun activity! We are also doing an English Class Christmas Party this week!! It should be fun. We`ve been blessed and have about 20 people attending class each week!! Although we may not have very many investigators or people to teach, we`re still being blessed and seeing miracles taking different forms. A few investigators wouldn`t be too bad of a Christmas though! ;) I hope you all have a good one. Thank you so much for your kindess, love, and support especially during the holiday season. I love recieving your letters. I hope and pray that we may all feel the joy of our Savior as we celebrate His birth this Christmas season. Love you!!!
Elder Ovard
The Field is White!!!
Tatsuhiro. I love this kid!
Pres. Yoshida- The Man!
I mentioned it before but my last week in Morioka we had District Conference and were visited by many of our leaders. One was President Yoshida, the first counselor in our mission presidency. He also does a lot of translating for the church, including the Book of Mormon into Japanese. I enjoy him so much and really wanted to get a picture with him back in Morioka but he was busy with a lot of different things so it wasn`t able to happen. I left the church that day a little discouraged but was confident in Heavenly Father that I would have another chance to meet him. My first sunday here in Nagaoka there was an announcement that President Yoshida would be visiting our branch on the 18th of December. Recently we were also able to meet up a couple of times in Niigata for some meetings as well. So yesterday as our meetings came to a close I was able to pull Yoshida Kaicho aside and take my long awaited picture :) It was a tender mercy of the Lord and a testimony to me that Heavenly Father knows me personally and has a plan for each and every one of us.
Our branch president here in Nagaoka lives a little ways away but we were finally able to make it over to his place this weekend. He had a nice house and such a cute little family!! The members here are great. We aren`t having a Christmas `party` this year but instead have made Christmas-looking pinatas in which we are gonna fill and take to less-active members, etc. I think it will be a fun activity! We are also doing an English Class Christmas Party this week!! It should be fun. We`ve been blessed and have about 20 people attending class each week!! Although we may not have very many investigators or people to teach, we`re still being blessed and seeing miracles taking different forms. A few investigators wouldn`t be too bad of a Christmas though! ;) I hope you all have a good one. Thank you so much for your kindess, love, and support especially during the holiday season. I love recieving your letters. I hope and pray that we may all feel the joy of our Savior as we celebrate His birth this Christmas season. Love you!!!
Elder Ovard
The Field is White!!!
Tatsuhiro. I love this kid!
Pres. Yoshida- The Man!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Let it snow!
What`s up everyone. Hope all is going well for you back home. I can`t believe another week has come to an end. It`s been another good one though! I love it out here. We got our first snow this week!! We got a couple of inches but it melted within a couple days. It`s pouring rain right now. You wouldn`t believe the grocery trip we just went on! Haha I don`t know what I`m gonna do when I don`t have to handle bar all my food home. Snow is much more convinient and definitley lots prettier than the rain! We`re not too far away from the snow though. Give it a week or two.
We had an awesome zone conference this past Friday! I love to get with the other missionaries and recieve training from my priesthood leaders. It never ceases to amaze me how much Spirit they bring with them! I love President Rasmussen. He and Sis. Ras. gave us such a sweet Christmas present this year. They had all the missionaries take a picture in front of a rice field (D&C 4) and made a nice dvd out of it. I really enjoyed it. I feel so blessed to have a wonderful and loving mission president and mom. Also, I mentioned a few weeks ago how I met the man who does a lot of translating into Japanese for the church. Not to mention the Book of Mormon! Well, I really wanted to take a picture with him but he seemed really busy so I wasn`t able to do it. I wasn`t sure if I would ever see him again, but he lives in Niigata and I`ve actually seen him a couple times since coming here!! He will be coming to my branch here in Nagaoka next week. I love to hear him speak! He is full of the spirit. And I think I`ll be able to take a picture with him too. God has a funny way of putting things together. ;)
Unfortunately our promising and hopeful investigator living on the 4th floor of our building didn`t work out :( She`s a really nice woman but I guess it`s just not her time. We`re gonna have to keep looking for the `elect`!! Saunders Choro and I are both full of faith and confidence that they`re out there, we just gotta work hard and be patient with the Lord. Our English Class has continued to be a success!! We were blessed once again with new students this past week. Hopefully people don`t start getting the wrong image when they see a bunch of young girls showing up! Haha. Saunders Choro is just too cool. We`re always hopeful english class can be a means of finding people to teach.
We may not have too many people to meet with at the moment but that doesn`t keep me from feeling the joy of this work each and every day. I love it!! We had the opportunity to watch the Christmas Devotional by the First Presidency yesterday. It was awesome. I hope and pray that we can all feel and experience the joy that comes from the true meaning of CHRISTmas. He is our Savior. Our Redeemer. Our Exemplar. Our way to true happiness. I know these things!! :) Thank you all for the love and support you give to me. There isn`t anything that isn`t recognized nor appreciated. It means a lot. Love you all. Have a good week!!
Elder Ovard
We had an awesome zone conference this past Friday! I love to get with the other missionaries and recieve training from my priesthood leaders. It never ceases to amaze me how much Spirit they bring with them! I love President Rasmussen. He and Sis. Ras. gave us such a sweet Christmas present this year. They had all the missionaries take a picture in front of a rice field (D&C 4) and made a nice dvd out of it. I really enjoyed it. I feel so blessed to have a wonderful and loving mission president and mom. Also, I mentioned a few weeks ago how I met the man who does a lot of translating into Japanese for the church. Not to mention the Book of Mormon! Well, I really wanted to take a picture with him but he seemed really busy so I wasn`t able to do it. I wasn`t sure if I would ever see him again, but he lives in Niigata and I`ve actually seen him a couple times since coming here!! He will be coming to my branch here in Nagaoka next week. I love to hear him speak! He is full of the spirit. And I think I`ll be able to take a picture with him too. God has a funny way of putting things together. ;)
Unfortunately our promising and hopeful investigator living on the 4th floor of our building didn`t work out :( She`s a really nice woman but I guess it`s just not her time. We`re gonna have to keep looking for the `elect`!! Saunders Choro and I are both full of faith and confidence that they`re out there, we just gotta work hard and be patient with the Lord. Our English Class has continued to be a success!! We were blessed once again with new students this past week. Hopefully people don`t start getting the wrong image when they see a bunch of young girls showing up! Haha. Saunders Choro is just too cool. We`re always hopeful english class can be a means of finding people to teach.
We may not have too many people to meet with at the moment but that doesn`t keep me from feeling the joy of this work each and every day. I love it!! We had the opportunity to watch the Christmas Devotional by the First Presidency yesterday. It was awesome. I hope and pray that we can all feel and experience the joy that comes from the true meaning of CHRISTmas. He is our Savior. Our Redeemer. Our Exemplar. Our way to true happiness. I know these things!! :) Thank you all for the love and support you give to me. There isn`t anything that isn`t recognized nor appreciated. It means a lot. Love you all. Have a good week!!
Elder Ovard
Sunday, December 4, 2011
My Last December!!
Hey hey hey! I can`t believe it`s December!!! And already the 5th. Wow it`s flying by. Every morning when I wake up I realize I have 1 less day and it gives me that much more motivation to cherish the remaining time. I love being a missionary!! There`s nothin like it.
It`s been another busy one full of ups and downs. We had a Specialized Training up in Niigata this weekend and it was there I learned that my MTC comp and best bud Elder Taylor is now back in the States. He broke his foot some time ago and rather than healing it has only gotten worse. Unfortunately it`s gonna require some surgery. I was SO sad to hear the news and was almost in tears. He`s a stud and I love him. I wish him the best with everything and look forward to seeing him in the near future! He was serving in an area just outside of Sendai and in his place will go Elder Juchau. So now I`m gonna have to let go of my boy too! :( ha. It was like a slap on the left cheek and then the right. He had been in his previous area for a while however and I know he`ll tear it up over there. At least we got to spend some time together including another Thanksgiving! ;)
We have a new investigator! And she even lives nearby! I mean, 2 floors down! Haha. So when Juchau Choro and co. were in town a few weeks ago they decided to knock a few doors of our apartment. I couldn`t believe it at first but when I heard that they found someone golden I gave them some slack ha. Her name is Kikuchi and she`s married with a 9 year old son. She`s so good! Elder Saunders and I met with her a couple times this past week. She went to a Christian High School and College so she also has some Christian background. She read the Restoration and Plan of Salvation pamphlets and had all sorts of questions. She now has a Book of Mormon and I`m confident she`ll read it too! :) She has interest in English Class and would like to come to church sometime as well so hopefully we can help her get to that point!
Our English Class continues to be a success as we have been blessed with many new students. I even think the girl we found last week in her car will come to church next week! Haha. English Class is a fun and natural way of getting people to the church, meeting other members, and getting introduced to the message.
Well I`m not gonna need another haircut for a while... Saunders Choro took it off! Haha. It was the first time my entire mission having my comp cut my hair. I guess that`s what happens when it`s the end of the month with no money and you`re gonna be seeing the Mission President in a couple days! Haha jk. He did a good job though and it sure makes things easier.
We went to visit a member the other day and not to much surprise, got a little lost. But some of the cutest little girls helped us find our way! Haha they didn`t know quite what to think about 2 big Americans. By the time we found the place I even saw one of them trying to take a `sneak` picture with her phone camera haha. It was cute. Afterwards we got in a pic with them. Japanese kids are so cute!!
I love the mish. I love this work. I love the gospel. I love having the opportunity to share this `Good News` with these sweet Japanese people. I want to do all I can to give them everything they deserve. Thank you all for the love and support you give me. I love my family and friends! :) Hope you have a good week! Take Care.
Elder Ovard
pics
1- Brother Osman. A recent convert from an area in western China. This man can draw!!
2- Joetsu District!!
3- The Ovard Family minus TD Choro :) Shinno Choro is also now a father making me a grandfather!!
4- The cute little girls!
It`s been another busy one full of ups and downs. We had a Specialized Training up in Niigata this weekend and it was there I learned that my MTC comp and best bud Elder Taylor is now back in the States. He broke his foot some time ago and rather than healing it has only gotten worse. Unfortunately it`s gonna require some surgery. I was SO sad to hear the news and was almost in tears. He`s a stud and I love him. I wish him the best with everything and look forward to seeing him in the near future! He was serving in an area just outside of Sendai and in his place will go Elder Juchau. So now I`m gonna have to let go of my boy too! :( ha. It was like a slap on the left cheek and then the right. He had been in his previous area for a while however and I know he`ll tear it up over there. At least we got to spend some time together including another Thanksgiving! ;)
We have a new investigator! And she even lives nearby! I mean, 2 floors down! Haha. So when Juchau Choro and co. were in town a few weeks ago they decided to knock a few doors of our apartment. I couldn`t believe it at first but when I heard that they found someone golden I gave them some slack ha. Her name is Kikuchi and she`s married with a 9 year old son. She`s so good! Elder Saunders and I met with her a couple times this past week. She went to a Christian High School and College so she also has some Christian background. She read the Restoration and Plan of Salvation pamphlets and had all sorts of questions. She now has a Book of Mormon and I`m confident she`ll read it too! :) She has interest in English Class and would like to come to church sometime as well so hopefully we can help her get to that point!
Our English Class continues to be a success as we have been blessed with many new students. I even think the girl we found last week in her car will come to church next week! Haha. English Class is a fun and natural way of getting people to the church, meeting other members, and getting introduced to the message.
Well I`m not gonna need another haircut for a while... Saunders Choro took it off! Haha. It was the first time my entire mission having my comp cut my hair. I guess that`s what happens when it`s the end of the month with no money and you`re gonna be seeing the Mission President in a couple days! Haha jk. He did a good job though and it sure makes things easier.
We went to visit a member the other day and not to much surprise, got a little lost. But some of the cutest little girls helped us find our way! Haha they didn`t know quite what to think about 2 big Americans. By the time we found the place I even saw one of them trying to take a `sneak` picture with her phone camera haha. It was cute. Afterwards we got in a pic with them. Japanese kids are so cute!!
I love the mish. I love this work. I love the gospel. I love having the opportunity to share this `Good News` with these sweet Japanese people. I want to do all I can to give them everything they deserve. Thank you all for the love and support you give me. I love my family and friends! :) Hope you have a good week! Take Care.
Elder Ovard
pics
1- Brother Osman. A recent convert from an area in western China. This man can draw!!
2- Joetsu District!!
3- The Ovard Family minus TD Choro :) Shinno Choro is also now a father making me a grandfather!!
4- The cute little girls!
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Giving Thanks for my mission!
Thanksgiving!!! Hope you all had a good one. I sure enjoyed mine over here in the land of the rising sun :) It`s been a crazy week!!! We have literally been `running` all over the place haha. We`ve got a lot done, however, and have been blessed with some wonderful opportunities. I`ll try and give you a quick run down of our very busy week.
We got on the bus last Monday afternoon and headed for Sendai. Unusual for Japan, it was quite an exciting ride; maybe for all the wrong reasons haha. I could tell we it was gonna be an adventure right from the start as the dude sitting next to me offered one of his 3 `tall boy` cans of beer ha. He was a nice young guy, but talked with a loud, disturbing voice. (People in Japan usually keep pretty quiet while traveling). We were having a nice conversation about why we were here in Japan from America. He was intrigued, but it didn`t get much farther. The bus driver pulled the bus over, walked to the back, and told us to be quiet. He especially made sure the louder man heard and walked away with a glaring eye at him. But we were quieter from there! As a matter of fact, there weren`t many words even said! The man didn`t seem to happy about things though because not too long later the man walked to the front of the bus and took out a few words with the bus driver. It lasted a good 45 minutes... so much for the peace and quiet huh?! haha. The funny part is- it had everything to do with the 4 foriegners. Thankfully we were in no wrong. Quite the ride though!
We went to Ishinomaki for service the next day. It was good to get back with Elder Tillemann-Dick and catch up with him. We were able to take a family pic, minus Shinno Choro and the grandson. I will be meeting up with them this week though ;) We picked up a lot of rubble, and wrote a kanji on somebody`s buoys. It was a lot of fun! We made it back into Sendai a little late so we ended up staying another night. After talking with the people in charge of the services, it sounds like we may not have anything else going on throughout the winter! :( I`m not certain on anything but will definitley be sad if that was it.
We made it back to Nagaoka Wednesday afternoon. We had English Class that evening in which we were blessed to have 3 new students attend!!! I was so happy. English Class is something I really enjoy and want to improve here.
Thursday morning we got on the train and made our way down to my firstborn Elder Juchau`s area, Joetsu :). It`s a small area and I believe even has the smallest branch in all of Japan consisting of 3 active members. It`s a wonderful place though and it was a beautiful train ride right along the ocean, or sea of Japan. It rained hard with a brutal wind both days we were there making things a little miserable, but our Thanksgiving feast made up for everything!!! We threw down!! Ha. Thanks to Elder Saunders` mom, Elder Juchau`s mom, and my mamma ;)
We were on our horses getting to the Joetsu Station on time, and not too long after we arrived in Nagaoka we got right back on another one and visited a recent convert. We enjoyed time at her parents cake shop, and ate well too. But when we finally made it out of there, we realized that we only had about 15 minutes to make it to the station at least a mile and a half away!! Haha we were out of breath once again but did make the train :)
Saturday evening we attended an activity called `Hippo`. It is an opportunity to learn 7 languages as people from all over the place gather together. We played lots of fun games and made some new friends. Most of the attendees are Japanese, and we hope to use this new activity as a means for us to find people to teach. Even though it was our first time there, we picked a good night as it was `pot luck` time! We brought some of our extra Thanksgiving food. Everybody seemed to enjoy it as there wasn`t much we came home with!! haha.
I love my mission. I love it. I love Japan. I love Nagaoka. I love these people. I love the Lord. He is blessing us so much right now. Even when we`re lost and don`t know where we`re going haha. Last night we had no idea where we were so I asked somebody in their car stopped at the light. It was a nice young girl and to make a long story short, she led us in her as we were on our bikes to the place we needed to go. After talking with her some more, we exhanged info and I think we`ll be able to meet with her again. The mission is full of miracles!! :) I love it. I know when we have faith in our Savior Jesus Christ, He will help us and guide us. I know that His way is the way to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come. Thank you all for everything. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Elder Ovard with his son's Elder Tillaman-Dick on left,Juchau on right and Saunders,
Our Thanksgiving feast sent with Love from our mothers in America!
We got on the bus last Monday afternoon and headed for Sendai. Unusual for Japan, it was quite an exciting ride; maybe for all the wrong reasons haha. I could tell we it was gonna be an adventure right from the start as the dude sitting next to me offered one of his 3 `tall boy` cans of beer ha. He was a nice young guy, but talked with a loud, disturbing voice. (People in Japan usually keep pretty quiet while traveling). We were having a nice conversation about why we were here in Japan from America. He was intrigued, but it didn`t get much farther. The bus driver pulled the bus over, walked to the back, and told us to be quiet. He especially made sure the louder man heard and walked away with a glaring eye at him. But we were quieter from there! As a matter of fact, there weren`t many words even said! The man didn`t seem to happy about things though because not too long later the man walked to the front of the bus and took out a few words with the bus driver. It lasted a good 45 minutes... so much for the peace and quiet huh?! haha. The funny part is- it had everything to do with the 4 foriegners. Thankfully we were in no wrong. Quite the ride though!
We went to Ishinomaki for service the next day. It was good to get back with Elder Tillemann-Dick and catch up with him. We were able to take a family pic, minus Shinno Choro and the grandson. I will be meeting up with them this week though ;) We picked up a lot of rubble, and wrote a kanji on somebody`s buoys. It was a lot of fun! We made it back into Sendai a little late so we ended up staying another night. After talking with the people in charge of the services, it sounds like we may not have anything else going on throughout the winter! :( I`m not certain on anything but will definitley be sad if that was it.
We made it back to Nagaoka Wednesday afternoon. We had English Class that evening in which we were blessed to have 3 new students attend!!! I was so happy. English Class is something I really enjoy and want to improve here.
Thursday morning we got on the train and made our way down to my firstborn Elder Juchau`s area, Joetsu :). It`s a small area and I believe even has the smallest branch in all of Japan consisting of 3 active members. It`s a wonderful place though and it was a beautiful train ride right along the ocean, or sea of Japan. It rained hard with a brutal wind both days we were there making things a little miserable, but our Thanksgiving feast made up for everything!!! We threw down!! Ha. Thanks to Elder Saunders` mom, Elder Juchau`s mom, and my mamma ;)
We were on our horses getting to the Joetsu Station on time, and not too long after we arrived in Nagaoka we got right back on another one and visited a recent convert. We enjoyed time at her parents cake shop, and ate well too. But when we finally made it out of there, we realized that we only had about 15 minutes to make it to the station at least a mile and a half away!! Haha we were out of breath once again but did make the train :)
Saturday evening we attended an activity called `Hippo`. It is an opportunity to learn 7 languages as people from all over the place gather together. We played lots of fun games and made some new friends. Most of the attendees are Japanese, and we hope to use this new activity as a means for us to find people to teach. Even though it was our first time there, we picked a good night as it was `pot luck` time! We brought some of our extra Thanksgiving food. Everybody seemed to enjoy it as there wasn`t much we came home with!! haha.
I love my mission. I love it. I love Japan. I love Nagaoka. I love these people. I love the Lord. He is blessing us so much right now. Even when we`re lost and don`t know where we`re going haha. Last night we had no idea where we were so I asked somebody in their car stopped at the light. It was a nice young girl and to make a long story short, she led us in her as we were on our bikes to the place we needed to go. After talking with her some more, we exhanged info and I think we`ll be able to meet with her again. The mission is full of miracles!! :) I love it. I know when we have faith in our Savior Jesus Christ, He will help us and guide us. I know that His way is the way to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come. Thank you all for everything. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Our Thanksgiving feast sent with Love from our mothers in America!
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Work in Nagaoka!
Hey everyone! How`s everything goin back home? You all gettin your turkeys ready or what? I`ve got mine ready! ;) Haha. It will be another one to remember here in Japan. I am grateful for the package I recieved from my fam and will be happy to share and spend another one with my boy Elder Juchau! Haha we`re gonna be headin down to Joetsu for splits Thurs and Fri.
I can`t believe another week has gone by. Time flies!! It`s been a good one though. We`ve still got a lot to learn about the area and what is needed but we are getting closer everyday! I love the branch here. The members are awesome! Yesterday we had the primary program, which consisted of a family of 4, ha but it was so cute. I love children, especially Japanese!! They don`t get any cuter. I`m tempted to take one back with me!
We met with an investigator named Katsuko this week. She was found by the previous elders right before transfers. She is a single lady in her 40`s and even came having read the first part of the Book of Mormon! She believes everybody has their `own` God, however, so we`ll have to help her learn about Heavenly Father and help her pray to Him. It looks like we`ll be able to meet with her at least once a week so hopefully she can keep progressing and eventually obtain her own testimony. Other than that we haven`t been able to pick up much thus far so it looks like we`ll be hittin the pavement! Or even better start working with and through our members.
We went to our weekly english class, or `old folk get together` for the first time on Wednesday haha. It looks like we`ll need to put some work into that as well. Of the 8 students, most of them are over 50 and have been attending long before my time on earth. But it seems like they`re all good friends and even have pretty decent english! Ha I`d like to try and visit some high schools, something we did in Morioka, and advertise eikaiwa wherever we can!
Nagaoka is a beautiful place. It rains like crazy here but we did set a new record of 2 days in a row with no rain! Ha. Before long it will all turn into snow. That`s all I hear about over here- how much it snows! There is a nice river that runs through the city. It`s called the shinano river and is the longest river in Japan! That`s actually where Nagaoka gets it`s name from. There are a few bridges that run over it making for a nice ride.
We`re off to the other side of the country from here for a day of service tomorrow. We take an hour train into Niigata then have a 4 hour bus ride from there. Lots of traveling but it`s a pretty drive. We`ll be getting back into Nagaoka tomorrow evening and will be out again Thursday. So we don`t have tons of time here this week but do have good things going with the time we do have. It will go fast!! I`m starting to feel my time running out and want to do all I can to make the most of it. I love my mission!! I love these people. I love the Book of Mormon. And I love my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ :) Thank you all for all your love and support. I have the best family and friends in the world. Hope you have a good week. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
I can`t believe another week has gone by. Time flies!! It`s been a good one though. We`ve still got a lot to learn about the area and what is needed but we are getting closer everyday! I love the branch here. The members are awesome! Yesterday we had the primary program, which consisted of a family of 4, ha but it was so cute. I love children, especially Japanese!! They don`t get any cuter. I`m tempted to take one back with me!
We met with an investigator named Katsuko this week. She was found by the previous elders right before transfers. She is a single lady in her 40`s and even came having read the first part of the Book of Mormon! She believes everybody has their `own` God, however, so we`ll have to help her learn about Heavenly Father and help her pray to Him. It looks like we`ll be able to meet with her at least once a week so hopefully she can keep progressing and eventually obtain her own testimony. Other than that we haven`t been able to pick up much thus far so it looks like we`ll be hittin the pavement! Or even better start working with and through our members.
We went to our weekly english class, or `old folk get together` for the first time on Wednesday haha. It looks like we`ll need to put some work into that as well. Of the 8 students, most of them are over 50 and have been attending long before my time on earth. But it seems like they`re all good friends and even have pretty decent english! Ha I`d like to try and visit some high schools, something we did in Morioka, and advertise eikaiwa wherever we can!
Nagaoka is a beautiful place. It rains like crazy here but we did set a new record of 2 days in a row with no rain! Ha. Before long it will all turn into snow. That`s all I hear about over here- how much it snows! There is a nice river that runs through the city. It`s called the shinano river and is the longest river in Japan! That`s actually where Nagaoka gets it`s name from. There are a few bridges that run over it making for a nice ride.
We`re off to the other side of the country from here for a day of service tomorrow. We take an hour train into Niigata then have a 4 hour bus ride from there. Lots of traveling but it`s a pretty drive. We`ll be getting back into Nagaoka tomorrow evening and will be out again Thursday. So we don`t have tons of time here this week but do have good things going with the time we do have. It will go fast!! I`m starting to feel my time running out and want to do all I can to make the most of it. I love my mission!! I love these people. I love the Book of Mormon. And I love my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ :) Thank you all for all your love and support. I have the best family and friends in the world. Hope you have a good week. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
Sunday, November 13, 2011
One Down For Nagaoka Baby!!!
Hey friends and fam! Hope you all are doing well. Things are going great out here!! We made it to the ken! Ha, that`s Niigata. It`s nice to be here. I`ll try and fill you in on our quick but exciting week thus far.
It was sad and hard to leave Morioka. I was blessed to be there as long as I was. I made eternal friends both with members and non-members and will be forever grateful for the experiences I share with them. They taught me so much! As I depart I am confident that things will continue to move forward. A couple missionary (former mission president) will also be moving into the area! They are Japanese and will also be a great asset to the branch over there.
But for now I have been called another way and am happy to be here in Nagaoka!!!! :) I already love this place. My new comp is Elder Saunders. Funny thing is- his first name is Blake! Ha. He`s from Meridian, Idaho. He comes from a family of 6 and has got a brother coming to the end of his mission in New Mexico. He likes swimming and lacrose. He`s a good kid and I`m excited to work with him :) Did I tell you his little bro is our District Leader too? Ya, it`s Elder Juchau!! Haha. It may be a little too much fun bein back with him again ;)
The branch here is awesome! I heard nothing but good things about them coming in and my feelings were confirmed as I met with each of them yesterday at church. They are wonderful!! There`s only about 30 of them coming right now, but they are strong and have a desire to do missionary work. We got with the branch mission leader, Bro. Fujiki, our second day here. He`s a young R.M. He was kind as he took us around Nagaoka, and even dropped by the batting cages for a couple swings haha. Apparantly it`s his way of `relaxing` and he knew me way too well :) I`m excited to become their friends and await the miracles ahead.
Speaking of miracles, we`ve already seen some! I knew Nagaoka was the place for me to be the moment I got on the bus heading from Sendai to Niigata. I was able to have a fun conversation with the man sitting next to me. He was on a business trip. He soon gained interest in what we were doing in Japan and was quite impressed! He even busted out his lap top and looked me up on facebook! Haha. I enjoyed seeing pics of his cute family as well. As we talked about religion I was excited to introduce the Book of Mormon! He wanted to pay me for the book and had a hard time `recieving` it but I wasn`t gonna take anything haha. He`s from the southern part of Japan so I don`t know what`s gonna happen next but as least he`s got his hands on what we hold most dear. It was a blessing to talk with him.
As we got on the train from Niigata to Nagaoka we were able to make another friend! This time a young college student. We talked for most of the hour train ride back. I was most surprised however, when he asked us if we wanted to grab some dinner with him! Haha he said he had a car, which would help with some of our luggage, and afterwards he would drop us off at our place. I couldn`t believe it! Sushi was good, and I couldn`t have been more thankful for the help he gave us in finding our apartment.
I knew right from the start that I am supposed to be here in Nagaoka. I have already seen the tender mercies of the Lord. We still have a long ways to go, and many challenges ahead as we try and figure things out, but I am confident that Heavenly Father will help. We can`t do this alone. I am grateful for the opportunity I have to do this. I am the most blessed missionary in the world!!!! This will probably be my last area, and I`m gonna do all I can to make it the best! :) Love you all. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
We made it!!
View from our apartment. We`re on the top of 6 stories!
Last night in Morioka. Dinner with the Kawamura`s!
It was sad and hard to leave Morioka. I was blessed to be there as long as I was. I made eternal friends both with members and non-members and will be forever grateful for the experiences I share with them. They taught me so much! As I depart I am confident that things will continue to move forward. A couple missionary (former mission president) will also be moving into the area! They are Japanese and will also be a great asset to the branch over there.
But for now I have been called another way and am happy to be here in Nagaoka!!!! :) I already love this place. My new comp is Elder Saunders. Funny thing is- his first name is Blake! Ha. He`s from Meridian, Idaho. He comes from a family of 6 and has got a brother coming to the end of his mission in New Mexico. He likes swimming and lacrose. He`s a good kid and I`m excited to work with him :) Did I tell you his little bro is our District Leader too? Ya, it`s Elder Juchau!! Haha. It may be a little too much fun bein back with him again ;)
The branch here is awesome! I heard nothing but good things about them coming in and my feelings were confirmed as I met with each of them yesterday at church. They are wonderful!! There`s only about 30 of them coming right now, but they are strong and have a desire to do missionary work. We got with the branch mission leader, Bro. Fujiki, our second day here. He`s a young R.M. He was kind as he took us around Nagaoka, and even dropped by the batting cages for a couple swings haha. Apparantly it`s his way of `relaxing` and he knew me way too well :) I`m excited to become their friends and await the miracles ahead.
Speaking of miracles, we`ve already seen some! I knew Nagaoka was the place for me to be the moment I got on the bus heading from Sendai to Niigata. I was able to have a fun conversation with the man sitting next to me. He was on a business trip. He soon gained interest in what we were doing in Japan and was quite impressed! He even busted out his lap top and looked me up on facebook! Haha. I enjoyed seeing pics of his cute family as well. As we talked about religion I was excited to introduce the Book of Mormon! He wanted to pay me for the book and had a hard time `recieving` it but I wasn`t gonna take anything haha. He`s from the southern part of Japan so I don`t know what`s gonna happen next but as least he`s got his hands on what we hold most dear. It was a blessing to talk with him.
As we got on the train from Niigata to Nagaoka we were able to make another friend! This time a young college student. We talked for most of the hour train ride back. I was most surprised however, when he asked us if we wanted to grab some dinner with him! Haha he said he had a car, which would help with some of our luggage, and afterwards he would drop us off at our place. I couldn`t believe it! Sushi was good, and I couldn`t have been more thankful for the help he gave us in finding our apartment.
I knew right from the start that I am supposed to be here in Nagaoka. I have already seen the tender mercies of the Lord. We still have a long ways to go, and many challenges ahead as we try and figure things out, but I am confident that Heavenly Father will help. We can`t do this alone. I am grateful for the opportunity I have to do this. I am the most blessed missionary in the world!!!! This will probably be my last area, and I`m gonna do all I can to make it the best! :) Love you all. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
We made it!!
View from our apartment. We`re on the top of 6 stories!
Last night in Morioka. Dinner with the Kawamura`s!
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