Peterson's In Taiwan: April 2019

Dear Family and Friends,

It's been awhile! What a glorious Feast upon the Word we just experienced (a week delayed) here in Taiwan with the broadcast of General Conference from our Prophet Russell M Nelson and church leaders. I know that heeding their counsel will bring us great blessings. I so appreciated the calls to repentance and the Savior's invitation to "Come Follow Me" I received as I watched and I am so grateful for the love of our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ that I felt throughout each session thru the music and spoken word. I invite all to partake in that feast and be filled with the Spirit of the Lord. See www.ChurchofJesusChrist.org and see how General Conference can feed your spirit! The greatest news ever given is HE IS RISEN!

We are are nearing our tenth month mark and things are moving quickly toward a very exciting month ahead with the wedding of our youngest daughter Anne to Chandler Bruce in early May. We are so grateful for all the love and support of friends and family who have given bridal showers, so much love and words of support. The Bruces are wonderful people and we are so excited to meet them in person! How incredible that they'd be willing to come to Taipei for Anne and Chandler's sealing. All of our children are now coming as well. It will be JOY to be in the temple
together.

In February for Valentine's, we "loved" attending the interim Mission Leadership Seminar in Hong Kong (such a beautiful city on the water! Loved the "junk" boat ride around the harbor!) and was it so power packed and instructive. Always a lift to be with our Asia Area Presidency and their wives as well as our Asia Area MP's and wives who we've grown to know and love too. They call it interim because the main one is in the fall and this one is just three days. We especially loved the instruction by Elder Evans. He taught us from D & C 107:30 that we need to study Christlike attributes, because as we developing Christlike attributes brings revelation! One of those important qualities we need is to be "Easy to be entreated". He taught us how important it is to be obedient to what we are asked to do. Are we easy to be entreated? Are we willing to accept counsel and direction? We will just be asked once. If we listen and follow we can receive the blessings of that obedience. If we don't listen and resist counsel we get what we want, but we miss what we could have gotten had we been "easy to be entreated." So we came away so excited to embrace counsel of our leaders. We were counseled that the Asia area leadership and missions has too many white faces! We are to get more youth to serve missions and work with more members to train them to take our places! We must grow the centers of strength and the church in Taiwan! It was a powerful session with Elder Evans that reminded us of what Elder Gerritt Gong pleaded with us to do as well at the Mission Leadership Seminar last year in the MTC. Asia Area presidency counselor Elder Meurs taught us to TRBC and to train our missionaries on finding the elect and ask for REFERRALS. It hit me powerfully that if our missionaries are constantly urgent in asking for referrals, they are witnessing of the love they have for all of God's children and of their faith in moving forward to keep finding as a witness of the truthfulness of the message they bear! Powerful! Elder Meurs taught us how to break down the doctrine we are teaching with inspired questions, promised blessings, invitations/commitments and scriptures that will lead us in our teaching investigators or "friends" as they are now called. Incredible reminder to to teach the Restoration and memorize the First Vision with Joseph's words. So important to teach the Atonement of Christ as we teach repentance because he cleanses as well as changes our hearts. He also trained us on making sure our new Converts have in the first week: a friend, their Aaronic priesthood ordination, limited use recommend with assistance to find family names for temple work, a calling and starting the NM lessons with the missionaries. We were also reminded that we don't baptize perfect people. We baptize people who have repented and are coming to church seeking to Come unto Christ. Elder Homer taught us about the impact we will have on missionaries and how to not just teach them success on their missions but success for life! He said "Obedience is powerful spiritual medicine. It becomes close to becoming a cureall!" So many wonderful trainings I could go on and on. We have lots of work to do!

Sisters Emma Larsen and Abigail Swanson

So sad to let Sisters Amelia Phillips and Alesia Love go home! They have changed our mission for good!

Pday introduction to the sisters of our fav restaurant "Golden Chicken Garden"

LOVE is what we feel for this amazing group of departing siter missionaries. Our sweet testimony meeting with them in our home the night before they left was a heavenly experience. I thank Heavenly Father for each one of these amazing women and their service and the blessed experiences we've shared with them!

Upon our return we had Zone Conference. Wow it is always such an amazing time. We heard testimonies from our huge batch of 11 sisters who are going home. So sad to say goodbye to these wonderful women who have become part of our lives and whom we hope to keep in touch with. They all were such a strength to this mission, we just pray to continue the great work they and the Elders are doing here! We have such amazing Elders as well. I have to mention the faith of Elder Donovan Bracken--who has hobbled around on infected toes nearly his entire mission--horrible recurring ingrown toenails. He's had countless surgeries and has continued to labor while suffering. I asked him how he did it. He said this: "My strength is probably coming from the fact so many people are praying for me! At times I wish it weren't so, but I think Alma effectively sums up my thoughts about it in his 29th chapter: "...I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me...Now, seeing that I know these things, why should I desire more than to perform the work to which I have been called?...I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it. I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy. And behold, when I see many of my brethren truly penitent, and coming to the Lord their God, then is my soul filled with joy; then do I remember what the Lord has done for me, yea, even that he hath heard my prayer; yea, then do I remember his merciful arm which he extended towards me." Truly this Elder reminds me of the scripture--"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of them who publisheth peace!"
I loved hearing about miracles in Finding by Taipei West Zone leaders Elder Bateman and Elder Tyler Brown. I asked them to write down the experiences they shared as they taught. Elder Brandon Bateman shared this miracle: "Elder Turpin and I were doing daily planning one day in Taitung and we had a wide open day! Elder Turpin told me that we should say a prayer and ask where God wanted us to go today! After the prayer Elder Turpin sits up and says "Elder Bateman, we are going to go to Luye today!" I thought he was kidding and laughed a little, but he said he was serious, and I remember not being super excited about the anticipated bike ride of....20 km!!! We made the 20 km trip up the mountain and into the valley and as we were riding down, we saw a lady in a black beat up old car waving us down! My companion saw it and he pulled on over! She asked us if we spoke English, we responded that we did, and she handed us her phone. Turns out there was a man asking for her credit card information and so we dealt with him because we speak the language and he eventually hung up. We handed her the phone back and she said thank you probably 100 times and introduced herself as Gao Guan and we started talking to her and introduced ourselves by talking about Jesus Christ. She said that she had interest and invited us to her house the next day to share! WE arrived the next day to find her waiting for us! And she was super excited when we taught her about the Restoration and we set a baptismal date that first meeting! And gradually we taught lesson by lesson, and she came to church week after week, and as we taught, she fought like a lion to over come all her problems with the commandments and 8 months after the initial day contacted, she was baptized at last! I remember riding back from Luye to head home that night we met her and my companion said to me "Elder, Don't you just feel like that ride was worth it? We joked that it was a day to remember and we both still talk about it all the time! And we made a friend for life! It was an amazing experience for us to witness of receiving revelation, even when it does not seem the most convenient, those are the days you go to bed realizing that it was worth it! Because every step"or pedal" is worth the Salvation of just one soul!"

Elder Brown shared this miracle: "One night we had an open night with nothing planned and Elder Raymond and I had a feeling to go knocking doors on the outskirts of our area. That night we kept praying and following the spirit to know where to go, which house to knock, what to share, talked to people on the streets. And we just had no success. It came down to about time where we had to head back. So we got on our bikes and started heading back. On our way back we saw a man pushing his scooter on the side of the road. We had a feeling to stop so we pulled over and asked if we could help him push it. He accepted which was awesome! So we got off our bikes and we started to help him push it. We pushed for a little then he stopped, put the kickstand down and showed us a kick-start and started trying to kick-start it. But he was pretty old and didn't have enough strength. So Elder Raymond got over there and started kicking and start pushing the gas. Eventually we got it started and he was so happy! He opened up his seat to grab his helmet and we saw that he had a Bible. As soon as I saw it I had a feeling to let go of the gas. So I did and the scooter died again. :) So we talked with him and shared about the Book of Mormon, he said he would have interest but he didn't have a way to meet with us because his scooter broke. So we exchanged numbers and we tried to get the scooter started again but it wouldn't start. Elder Raymond was very inspired and suggested that we say a prayer with him. So we told him that he wanted to say a prayer and promised that if he had faith it would start and he could get home. We prayed and it started on the first try after! He had the biggest smile on his face! But he didn't want it to die again so he left. We got home and he called us and said that he got home safely and that it was such a miracle! He then set up for that Tuesday! A couple months later he was baptized!"

These missionaries' faith precede the miracle of finding the elect and every story and every individual found is an inspiration!

In March Elder and Sister Evans came for a mission tour--our first one! WE were so nervous but wow what an amazing experience. The Evans are so full of love and of the spirit. They ministered to us--our family members--and our missionaries in so many ways. I can't talk details, but I know the timing of this visit was too perfect for special needs that he met and for ways he ministered to us in timely ways to our family members back in the States for it to be coincidence. God is so merciful and kind and His servants are truly on His errand to minister to His children in ways so specific and personal that they know it is God's hands. Incredible! We were so proud to introduce all our sweet missionaries to them. We feel such a bond and deep love for each one. When Elder Evans spoke during the conference he said something I will never forget, that explained why we feel such a love for them. He said that we made covenants in the pre-earth life to come here together at this time to serve in Taiwan! He said that is why we have a familiar feeling one with another. I wept like a baby and when I was called upon to speak I told the missionaries "that explains it!" I haven't been able to explain how much we love these missionaries and now we know, it's because we have loved them for a long time. Elder Evans was so kind to also inquire about my parents and offered to go see them when he went back to SLC for General Conference. He was good to his word and FTimed with me here from my parents' living room! What a tender mercy and joy to see them looking so happy and well and enjoying the wonderful and kind ministering visit of Elder Evans whom they had met briefly at the end of their service in Japan in the Area Presidency plus he also knows my brother Kevin from when he was stake president and Kevin was a bishop in his stake. Too small of a world for this to be coincidental. These are special connections the Lord orchestrated for our comfort and support at this time when we are so far from family and I'm deeply grateful.

Beautiful recent convert Aileen Ho

A big part of our mission is to build the church in Taiwan--meaning the membership and leadership here. It is a joy I hadn't anticipated because of the language barrier for me. But as I try to speak they respond with such kindness and warmth for any attempt great or small. It is a privilege every time I get to speak to a ward or a stake conference and share my testimony because in this way I can be a missionary and try to build and strengthen the members here in Taiwan. I just learned of a great miracle of a recent convert I was called upon to respond to during the Elder Whitney Clayton Q & A fireside who was struggling because her family was giving her a hard time for joining the church. I felt impressed to tell her she is a pioneer and commend her for her courage to join the church. I shared about my ancestor who joined the church and her mother wasn't happy but promised her she would never leave Christ . I told Aileen that I felt also to tell her that if she would show love and look for ways to serve her family, that was a way to teach them about Jesus Christ and what our church teaches. The miracle is that now both her brother and mother are going to be baptized!!!! This brings me sheer JOY! I just love Aileen and her sweet example to her family is amazing! She sent me the sweetest text: "I take my mom and my brother to church and watch the conference. (General Conference). They really like the talks and the music! And then my mom had a lesson with the Elders today and she (set) a baptism goal!!!! I'm so happy! That's unbelievable! My family is really change! Just like a dream. I remember what you said at the conference last year being a pioneer is really hard and not easy but you made a great choice. Just keep going, help your family, let them feel I love them, that God love them and my love for God will do the missionary work....I think I did it. I am really grateful that God let me came to this church...I realize I am loved, I am not alone. We are the child of God. His words can help us, we can use his words help other people." I am so grateful for these amazing sweet people we get to meet and who are such great examples of love and faith.

One of my many sweet translators--and this one is a former missionary from the California Oakland mission! Yay!

We loved returning to Judong ward (where we came for their first ward halloween party) and speaking in their Sacrament meeting by invitation. I talked about Spencer's admonition to Stand in Holy places and how I felt I was standing in a holy place when I stood in his bedroom after he left on his mission. I thought about all the times he had prayed, read his scriptures or got ready for seminary or church or mutual in there. I thought about how each small daily action had led him to the temple and to the ability to serve a mission and how our home had become a sacred place of learning with church support. The bishop and his wife Margaret expressed their love and appreciation for our messages and are so sweet to us each time we see them. They said "You and president are part of us! Made us feel so happy! " I complimented Bishop on his loving ward family and he said: "Ping JieMei, -we have unique members--they don't have much temporally but they have a lot of faith!". I teared up because I could feel the faith and the love in this wonderful ward! I just love these dear Saints in Taiwan Their open armed love for us is humbling and so touching every time!

The highlight of April so far has been the baptism on April 6th of 92 year old Brother Ye Chong Tong, retired Admiral of the Taiwan Navy.

Meeting this couple has been one of the sweetest experiences of our mission so far. I related last blog entry about Admiral Ye's amazing story of his driving all across the country from Rhode Island to Utah to go see the Salt Lake temple because of his curiosity about the church which his two comrades in the navy were members of and whose example of keeping the Word of Wisdom was impressive to him. He has had many years of attending church with his wife and having many sets of missionaries invite him to be baptized. He has had miracles of healing and of finding things which were lost and heavenly dreams and manifestations of the divinity of this church and of the Savior inviting Him to come unto Him. He was invited to be baptized most recently by his stake president with visiting Area Authority 70 Elder Kanakham from Thailand. And to everyone's joy, he said Yes! And he asked if President Peterson would baptize him! When he came up out of the water he was overjoyed! An those in the audience couldn't help themselves from clapping for JOY! Our four year old granddaughter Rose told her parents after the baptism that as she watched Brother Ye be baptized "I felt a really strong spirit in my heart!!!" We all did too!!! IN his beautiful testimony following his baptismal ordinance he invited all his friends who had come to also be baptized. He said he'd like to see someone "even older" than himself be baptized:) He told everyone why he was baptized is because he knew God is real and that this is His church! We were so blessed to be able to participate in the baptism with Mike's parents singing an providing beautiful music. We were so happy that our son Spencer and his wife Mckenna and their three girls were able to come as well. The next day we were able to attend Brother Ye's confirmation and he was blessed that he would live to be able to be sealed to his wife and do many temple ordinances for his family. What an amazing journey and now he can at last go inside the temple and receive all the blessings that he has longed for for so many years since he made that long journey from Rhode Island to Salt Lake.

And speaking of heavenly blessings! Our hearts are full of joy for the sweet angel Lucy Michelle who was delivered safely into the arms of Clark and Ellee and sister Charlotte on March 9th in NYC. I have loved showing their video of introducing Charlotte to her new baby sister to our missionaries and I feel the love of God's plan of happiness every time I do. I hope you enjoy it too: https://youtu.be/udreblkjxUg

As I mentioned at the beginning, we are looking forward to a heavenly event on May 10th with Anne and Chandler being sealed in Taiwan temple. This is the joy that we hope to help bring all families as they come unto Christ and receive the blessings of the gospel.

We thank you with all our hearts and want you to know how much we appreciate your love and sacrifices to help our family and help us so we can do this blessed service and work here in Taiwan. You are the promised angels that surround us on our right and on our left and bear us up! We know and bear testimony that families are forever and the greatest gift of the gospel--all made possible because of HIM whom we celebrate this EASTER--even Jesus Christ. Every blessing we have is BECAUSE of HIM. Wishing you all A blessed and a Christ-filled Easter feast from Taiwan!

Love, Shelley
Ping Jie Mei

I am overcome with gratitude for my angel sisters in Danville and my dear family who threw a gorgeous shower for Anne and for their generous support. I felt bathed in their love as well!

Thank you dear Taressa, Debbie, Teresa, Jen, Mary, Linda, Carrie, Marji, and friends for hosting such a memorable and beautiful event for Anne! Thank you Debbie for FTing me in to the party!

P.S. I have to add that having Spencer n Mckenna and their cute girls here in Taiwan is so fun! We are so grateful for time with them and sharing special experiences together!