Miracles in the work Sept. 14, 2014

We were definitely blessed to see the hand of the Lord this week. But before that, I feel like I've been slacking in fun/culture stories, so here's some fun things about Korea. Last week we had a big holiday that people call the "Korean Thanksgiving" and Mom asked me to explain a little bit more.

I've actually only been to one of these "holiday meals," so I don't can't really make any generalizations, but here are just a few general things I know… As for the food, I think it's pretty similar to their other meals, just bigger. Our Thanksgiving is all about the meal, but their holiday is more focused on the family and their ancestors, where the meal is just an inevitable plus. They do, however, have some traditional puffed rice snacks and some rice cake dessert they eat every year. The rest of the food would probably consist of rice, some sort of meat (in our case "bulgogi"), and lots of side dishes (obviously with kimchi included ^^). We almost always sit on the floor to eat, especially if it's a big meal. Korean's homes are rarely big enough for a big dining table, so when lots of people come to eat they all have little tables with collapsible legs that we sit around on the floor. The standard Korean silverware is chopsticks and a spoon, both of which they use quite a bit. One of the interesting differences between Korean and Americans meals is that the concept of dessert is definitely not the same. Korean "dessert" is almost always puffed rice, rice cake, or fresh fruit, none of which are really sweetened much. I have to admit that Korean's definitely have the healthy diet thing down a lot better than Americans. 

As for the miracles this week, the first once has to do with our recent convert, Yoon-Hyun Kim. He's been really busy lately and struggling a bit and we had a hard time contacting him for a week or so, but this week one of the most sad but amazing miracles of my mission occurred. We've been praying for him to have more time to meet and come to church and I'm afraid that maybe we prayed too hard because he recently found out that he injured his foot from the consistent work and stress and can't really walk much for the next 6 months. His job included a lot of driving and they said that driving is also no good, so for the next 6 months or so he will just be studying. He called us on Saturday and and said that he doesn't have much else better to do, so he wants us to come almost every day. He also made it out to church on Sunday for the first time in a couple weeks, which was amazing. I definitely hope that his foot heals quickly, but we will also do our best to utilize the miracle of him having time.

The second miracles is about 이준영 (Jun-Young Lee), our new investigator. He's about 26 years old and lives here in Daejeon alone. We met him on the street on Thursday and had our first lesson on Saturday. He is so prepared. He readily desires to have a religion in his life and is willing to do what he needs to learn and progress. We gave him a baptismal date for mid-October and he accepted it really well. I'm really excited to keep meeting and helping him progress.

I know that this is God's work whether we are a part of it as a full-time missionary or not! I know that He loves and know each of us! I know that every sacrifice we make to serve God and follow Him is completely worth it!! 

I love and look up to each one of you! Thank you! Have a wonderful week!

-Elder Tolman