Week 47 from Jordan

Hello everyone! Sounds like you all had a great Halloween. There was literally nothing different for us from a different day (except for monthly stats). It was a bit weird not seeing families out in costumes getting candy, but I suppose that's one of the ways the Koreans stay in such good shape. ;)

This week has been a good one. We finally got back to a fairly regular schedule. We have been off for a while due to DMZ trips, conferences, and the like, but it was nice to have a good, regular week again. We have been able to meet some really prepared people. One is a kid that we talked to briefly, had a street lesson with, and now is progressing. His family doesn't know he is meeting us, but we are trying to change that... Sweet kid. I don't know when the next baptism will be, but we're excited and look forward to seeing people progress.

 A lot of the churches around us have signs that say 이단 (heresy, cult) churches can't come and proselyte there. I guess other church's missionaries try to contact in churches...? The funny part is that the picture of people not allowed into the church looks like our missionaries, and the church that is specifically named is that of one of our investigators. It is entertaining to walk in front of the church with our investigator and see the sign. :) 

Things really are good here. The weather has gotten cold, but that's given the leaves permission to change all at once, so that now when we look at the mountains, we get to see red and (especially) orange  patches all over the place. It's really nice. :) The leaves are probably all gone back home by now. If they aren't, I'll bet the snow will take care of them! Let me know when the snow first comes. :)

Elder Ahn is struggling with English, but then I remind him that it is the most difficult language, and he is patient. He is progressing despite what he thinks. Korean is okay. There is an endless supply of words to learn. In English, if I remember, there are about 2 million words, but only 2500 of them are used often. In Korean it seems like there are the same number of words, but they are all used. It's a fun challenge. We're having a good time seeing which language has more arbitrary redundancies. So far Korean has been winning, but Elder Ahn has switched study books, so I think it will be more evenly matched now. :) The ward is really great. They are doing a good job at welcoming those who are baptized for the most part, but Korean culture is still very strong, and that culture is very much a clique culture. It's funny to see high school behavior in 80 year-olds at times, but the church has been a great blessing to the members, and I am grateful. :)

Thank you for the email and news. How was "How to Train Your Dragon 2"? Was it only dad that liked it, or did other people like it, too? The posters were fun... 5 months ago. It is always astounding to see how quickly pop culture changes. I'm glad I don't need to worry about it. ;) Have a great week, and I look forward to reading your email next week!

Press forward with steadfast faith in Christ.

Best wishes,

Elder Jones