konnichiwa!!!!!!!

hahaha Spencer's little highlight in the school newspaper is super classic, I love it despite all of the lies. ahhahah you are my favorite brother named spencer. I think you confused the part about you being 1/8th native american with grandma being 1\8th native american. hahhah how many squirrels have you shot? I'm sure mom is proud. Also Lizzy- GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR PRESIDENCY CAMPAIGN!!!!!!!! I would definitely vote for you. I don't know if you are allowed to bribe people with cookies or candy but I found it's really successful making friends about your age. Or really any age to be honest. Especially in Japan-- their love language is gift-giving.

ELDER CHRISTOFFERSON CAME TO KOBE AND DID A SPECIAL MEETING WITH JUST OUR MISSION AND IT WAS AMAZING. We woke up at 4 to be able to travel with enough time to be early to the meeting and spiritually prepare and it was so insanely awesome. The mission had all spiritually prepared really well and the spirit was SOO strong in that room and throughout the entire meeting. I received so much revelation for our area and our investigators and for my life. It was awesome. We got to shake his hand! each missionary had about 5 seconds with him so I didn't get to ask if he remembered me when he came to Michigan or really thank him properly for coming and for being the spiritual giant that he is, but I'll suffice with the simple thank you I was able to squeeze in. Also, Black shimai pointed out that when he shook my hand and read my soul he probably recognized it from the last time he read it in Michigan. hahaha but I feel like I'm super different from before my mission so maybe he didn't recognize it. He opened up time for questions and I didn't get a chance to ask mine, but the questions that the other missionaries asked were super inspired and I really just don't know how to describe to you how precious of an opportunity this was. I feel like it was an Alma 7 kind of moment. We have excellent leaders that helped us all prepare. Elder Christofferson told us at the end of his remarks that he feels like the Lord is pleased with our work and that He wants us to understand that more than anything. We weren't perfect, but we were definitely trying to work with and rely on the Lord and Elder Christofferson said he could feel that. He blessed the mission to feel that peace of conscience and assurance. There are few feelings better than knowing that the Savior of the world approves of your work.

also, another cool experience. The elders referred us their strongest investigator named Yuko chan. She is as pure as an angel.  Last week when they passed her over to us, we all invited her to church, and during weekly planning we received some little tidbits of revelation for her. She came for sacrament meeting (which is the last block of the 3 hour period here in Wakayama?) and I slipped her a little card with really unfortunate kanji written on it asking her to remember what she's learned about Jesus Christ and her Heavenly Father and remember them throughout the meeting, and also to pray and ask Heavenly Father if He is pleased that she came to church. She's soooo special and the whole meeting I was just pleading with God for her to receive an answer because this Sunday was key to her becoming progressing. The entire meeting the spirit was super strong and like none of the children were screaming and then as the first speaker began to speak, she started to cry and we helped her out and comforted her and did all of those sister missionary things, and at the end of the meeting we talked and she was like ''I've never felt God's love so strongly in my life. I feel so much peace and comfort and happiness and my heart is overflowing and I don't know why I'm crying because

 I'm so happy. I prayed the whole meeting to ask God if He was happy and I didn't hear a voice but I just am so happy.'' and I said ''do you think that could be God's answer?'' and she thought about it and ''yes, He's really happy that I came today. I feel like this is right.'' And God answers prayers and blesses us with revelation and I'm repenting and never not following through with revelation for as long as I live. Sometimes, espeically as missionaries, there is literally no time because you are sosoosososo busy but God created time. and He entrusted you with that revelation and also the accompanying responsibility.  So really I'm never letting the super tiny nudges in my brain escape my acts ever again. I wonder what my mission would be like if I'd followed through with every revelation right away in my previous areas. And I'm wondering why I haven't connected this really before.

This is the Lord's work here in Wakayama. The Lord's work is the Father's work: to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. That's why I'm here in Japan and it's what I'll be doing for the rest of my life. I love my Savior, Jesus Christ. I know He lives. I know He loves me and He loves each of you and each of these amazing japanese people. I know that He'll guide us in our lives if we ask Him and we listen and we follow through. I know that repentance is real and that Satan is real. I know that if we repent every day and ask God to show us what we need to repent of He'll keep us on track. He will forgive us. As Elder Holland taught at conference, Christ always forgives sin, but He never condones it, not even once.

I want to leave you with a question that Elder Christofferson left us that I've considered a lot. How much time passes in between your prayers?

fun fact: Elder Christofferson's mission president was Elder Richard G. Scott. whaaaaaaaaat!!! Argentina!!!

Mom! how was meeting Elder Holland?!?!?!?!

I love you all and pray for you each day. I'll try to send some pictures today for once haha.

all my love,

Daniels shimai

2. this is a woman from Thailand named Flower shimai (nickname from missionaries because her name is impossible to say). I wish she was in my area. She needs love. also, she killed all of us in ping pong in those heels

3.  the Gobou sisters stayed over night with us in Wakayama so that they could make it to Ibaraki for the conference with Elder Christofferson. Madison Bowman from my hall at BYU is the one in pink (: it was so fun to be with her

4.  the biggest church in Japan (that I've seen). Wakayama is AWESOME. We have about 80  members and 300 less actives. As of today.