Great News!  We will be able to Skype with Taft on Mothers Day!

April 28^th

Hello everybody,

So sorry about last week because of the new missionaries and everything there have been big changes in the progress out here.  Elder Bee left, and I have to say the biggest thing I learned from him is that these are real people, they are Gods children, treat them as such.   Listen and desire the people’s salvation. Especially with everything that happened with Elder Bee, and with Grandy and all, I think I definitely succeed in making him my brother.   It was actually pretty cool he happened to move down to an area where one of our investigators moved, so we’re both hoping that he will find him. My language isn’t perfect by far but it keeps improving.   In all honesty if you want to pray for me about the Chinese pray that I will understand the people. But something cool related to that… every time, since the beginning of my mission I have been able to share my testimony and the spiritual things that the people needed to hear with perfect Chinese. There has not been one time that the Lord has not allowed me to share my testimony. My normal conversation Chinese is low, but when I am teaching a lesson and there is no stopping me. I know that it is all through Heavenly Father and Him letting me speak and giving me the gift of lounges.

Well just a quick shout out to my brother Colby who got his master’s degree Friday,  and I would like to thank him for being such an amazing example to me my whole life!

My new companion Elder Taylor is awesome he is a super funny guy easy to get along with and a super good missionary! He just came from being a zone leader and he is helping me remember a lot about what leaders need to do and their responsibilities. He is from bountiful Utah and he is a runner and wants to be a dentist.

Oh by the way brother Wilkinson you are the right man for the job! You just keep doing what you’re doing and if you need anything let me know.

This week Elder Taylor  and I were on foot most of the week and it was crazy how much we got done and how many people we found and the people we were able to visit.  But something that I have really remembered and tried to magnify with Elder Taylor is "forget yourself and go to work", and "focus on serving others". You just feel happy all the time, which I am really happy about because here in Taiwan they don’t like people doing service for them. Back in America I would just ask everyone if they needed help and start helping them.  This week I finally got to serve someone here.   This old grandpa was trying to move some stuff for his food stand and I went over and he actually accepted my help and I loved it! Elder Taylor and I are doing some good work. I’m not going to lie, it feels good to be out of the greenie status and be able to work a lot.

  Alright well do you know what time it is? That’s right… it’s the time when I say read your scriptures, say your prayers. Trust in the Lord, love the Lord.  Trust yourself and love everyone. But this week I will say this all so. Thank you! The more I come to a realization how much the Lord does for me the more I come to thank him. And for something I haven’t done in a while which I just got permission to do go to this link.   http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/mormon-messages/mormon-messages-2010?lang=eng&start=25&end=36#2010-11-23-thanksgiving-daily. And ponder these questions at the end of every day no matter how bad it is. Do I still know that I am a child of God? Do I know that he is trying to help me? And then look at your hands see the potential they have as a child of God. And go out and do some good in the world. I love you all I know that we are all children of our Heavenly Father.  In the name of our Lord, our Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.                                       

  Love Elder Green

April 22nd

I will apologize in advance for the shortness of this letter but we had an unexpected companion ship change and I am now with Elder Taylor. He seems really cool but move day has been kind of hectic so I don’t have much time to write.

Mom at the end of everyday I remember that the lord keeps his promises and he promised to protect you and he promised I would feel your prayers. And I can tell you right now I have felt every single prayer. The area is doing well and my language continues to improve.  

Well this week due to time I will say this. Families are forever. Heavenly father loves you and wants to bless you. No matter what challenge you have no matter how insignificant you feel. Know that heavenly father loves you and he needs you right where you are. And know that whatever you are going through our Savior, our Redeemer, our Older Brother felt the same pain as you did, just for you so that you can live with your family forever.

Read you scriptures say your prayers and don’t let a day go by without seeing how much love is around you. It is your choice to be happy or sad chooses to be happy and choose to see the good around you instead of the bad.

April 14^th

Dear everyone.

With everything that has been happening this week it is making me stronger and stronger and getting me more and more on the ball I love it. You know it’s kind of interesting but I had a fast this week too for the family. and I think it was about the same time you had it.

So you have heard this many times, “Every Member A Missionary”.  You have no idea how much more effective missionary work would be if the members referred investigators to the missionaries.    You are doing the Lords work never be afraid to do that. This week I was on exchanges with an elder and I realized how much everyone having a strong testimony helps people around you. No one person can do this work alone. You need everyone’s help. And what’s even cooler is that we are never alone when we stand with God.  This week was especially interesting and as I was reading my mission scripture this week I remembered how much the Lord has in store for each of us, if we but do what he has asked in fact he wants to give us the blessings all we have to do is the action that is required to receive the blessings. We have made good progress with three investigators and the bishop is starting to trust us even more.  And the ward attendance jumped from 40 people to 60 people. I love you all and I hope that something in each of my letters will be able to help you in some way. I love you and I hope that you are all safe.

Read your scriptures say your prayers. Love the Lord, trust the Lord. Trust yourself, love everyone.                

Love Elder Green

April 7^th

Dear Mom,

As I got to talk to you the other night there isn’t much that I need to work out. (Taft’s mission president had him call home when he learned that Taft’s grandfather would shortly pass away.) Conference will be this upcoming week for me since translations and everything. But I did however get to watch one talk the other night when we were with a member for dinner.  I like writing poems, this is a poem I wrote when I heard about Grandad.

 Dear World 

There is a life after death

I know this to be true

It is why I’m out here sharing that message with you

When you look at your life

You see the good and the bad

But look at it now and see 

What good the bad has shared?

For without those experiences

You would not have known

That Jesus Christ is your savior

You would not have known the difference between good and bad

You would not be able to remember the ones you love

The people you helped

And the things family did for you.

You’ve only got one life

Don’t waste a second

So I will say this

Smile love, and live your life with the knowledge that Christ is walking beside you wanting to help you.

All you have to do is let him

This week was a very big eye opener to how cool everyone in Taiwan is. To how cool every missionary is. And how much the lord relies on the missionaries. We are his driving force to share with the world that he exists, he cares and he wants you to be able to live with him again. For all those that are reading this I hope that you will watch conference and listen to the prophets words. It is free to listen to. They are wonderful men that you can’t help but love. And they are Gods voice on the earth. 

The atonement exists. Jesus Christ is our Savior and because of him we will live again, as a matter of fact we get to live with God again. But do not take my word for it, read the book that testifies of it, read it from the start. There are twelve more testimonies of it right there and we still get to read the book!  It is roughly 600 pages. That is it. It is shorter than Harry Potter, Eragon or Eldest. So I will ask you once again to read the book and see how your life changes after reading it. Read it with interest, read it sincerely, and I promise you your life will change for the better. I love you all, and I want you all to know that I do not write words in my letters that are meaningless I think about and write each letter with the hope that something I say will you. Read your scriptures say your prayers.

 Love Elder Green

Amy here, so I am a little behind on posting Taft's emails.  It has been a crazy month and I feel like our life kind of exploded.  I am posting each of the letters separately so it's not just one long post.  Enjoy!

March 31^st

Hello everybody

So this week I could literally feel the shaking power of the world. It was quite an experience and probably won’t forget it just know that all the missionaries are accounted for unhurt and still working hard.

Alright since you heard about the earthquake I’ll tell you about it. It was actually kind of cool and weird at the same time. The epicenter was in Nanto which is the city right below Taichung I was at the mission office when it hit doing an evaluation on a zone leader exchange and it was really interesting to see all of the people run around. In the office and   how calm president was. but what surprised me the most was that the first thing they office elders didn’t do was pray in all honesty as soon as I heard that it was big I bowed my head said a prayer for the missionaries in Nanto and knew it was all ok. Then president Bishop responded very quickly and calmly just like a leader should have. Few weeks ago I and Elder Bee had the impression to stock our emergency kits and water supply so we did. (Note from Amy* a few weeks ago mom asked him to make sure his emergency kit was in order)  We were fine.

So the rain has started to come. I don’t think we have gone a day without it raining this week, it is awesome!  Also this week I had goose, it was way good!  Expensive but way good! Today is a new move call. Me and Elder Bee are still together in Fangjia. We have a few people switching in and out of our district. 

 So this week I had an awesome experience. I got to participate in Dan Jones again except this time I got to help out the new missionaries, and man it was so cool, right as Dan Jones started it started raining and I love contacting in the rain it is the funnest thing in the world. Also, the new missionary I was with was so cool and so willing to go about saying what he could with his Chinese. It was also a really big helper for my Chinese. I realized I could say more than I thought I could and could understand more than I thought I could. Please keep praying for me though I still have a long way to go but man, the gift of tongues is real!  It is there, and I will continue to do my part to obtain it. Thanks everyone who has been praying for that.

We have a really good investigator right now who has a few addictions and has little time to meet with us. But he is so cool I hope we will continue to meet with him. Elder Bee has gone so long without success, he deserves it. He is such a good missionary. I will invite everyone this week to read 2 Nephi: 32.  It has some really good promises in there and I know each one of them are true because The Book of Mormon is the word of God. And In all honesty if you read your scriptures and say your prayers every day and go to church the commandments won’t seem like commandments, they will just kind of be there. But I promise everyone who reads this if you read the Book of Mormon sincerely, and sincerely ask Heavenly Father if it is true, you will have a sense of peace come over you that you have never felt before. Read your scriptures, say your prayers. Remember the atonement and what our Savior did for us. I love you all I know you are all children of God and he wants to help you. Love your brother, son, friend,

Love, Elder Taft Green