7일

I have done it!!!! I’m the man!!!!  

I have finally completed the mission/game I set up for myself over a year ago. I didn't expect it to be near as hard as it was, but it has been a good challenge—and really really difficult. 

I have grown since starting this personal game also.

I had the thought of doing this game after watching "How I Met Your Mother." One of the characters, Barney, had been trying to have "the Perfect Week," which (in the show) meant seven women in seven days. But, I wanted to change the game into a more spiritual game, so I attempted to have the Perfect Missionary Moment Week. This meant that I needed to have seven missionary moments in seven days. 

There were a few rules I set up:

Rule One: I couldn’t just ask someone if they knew about Mormonism or hand them a flyer or business card. The other person needed to prompt the moment or I needed to do a little Three Steps of Mormon.

In my point of view, the best missionary moments have come when the other person has an interest or an issue and Mormonism or the LDS church or the scriptures can help them out.

Rule Two: If I had two missionary moments in the same day, that was a bonus, but it didn't mean that the second missionary moment could count for the next day. I needed to be able to say, "On Monday, X happened; and on Tuesday, Y happened...." There needed to be a Missionary Moment for each day. 

Rule Number two ended up being the hardest obstacle, because I would sometimes have three missionary moments in one day, but then have nothing the next day. 

The other big problem was Saturday. 

Oh, Saturday, thy art a heartless snob!

Saturday was the big problem with the Perfect Week, because I usually just spent Saturday at home with the wife or doing grad school work on the computer. It was hard to have a missionary moment on Saturday for me.

But, after a year, I finally managed to have the Perfect Missionary Moment week! You all have the right to be impressed. I will expect praise and presents the next time I see you all. 

And, this is what happened during the perfect week:

Saturday

I got to talk to my European Mason friend about Mormonism some more and gave him a Book of Mormon. This was the same guy who I messaged the first five chapters of the First Book of Nephi to him (verse by verse) to wake him up.

Because of this Missionary Moment on a Saturday (which is always difficult), I was off to a good start.

Before he left back to Seoul, I gave him a Book of Mormon which he promised to read, especially on the train ride back to Seoul

Sunday

I had gotten the Thai Book of Mormon I asked for some days before, and my Thai Facebook friend said she would happily accept it. We talked about it over Facebook Messenger. She had never even heard of the Book of Mormon before. I talked with her on Sunday and mailed it on Monday. She shared the Book of Mormon with her two friends, as she told me on that Thursday over Facebook Messenger.

Monday

I had some pictures of the General Authority. My students saw the pictures and asked me about them. I told them about keeping the pictures and using them similar to the Jesus picture. You remember the journal entry? The Jesus picture kept me focused and kept reminding my office mate about Jesus. 

I had the pictures cut out when my students came in. I had to go to the bathroom and when I came back they had done this: 

Yeah, it was a little creepy, but they did ask me who they were and I got to explain and help their curiosity 

Tuesday

I was searching for a certain Facebook group, but I misread/misunderstood the group name, so when I messaged the administrator of the group and asked to be admitted into the group, I got a message over Facebook Messenger that was very interesting. I quickly understood that I had misunderstood what the Facebook Group was not what I thought it was, but I kept talking to this middle-aged woman. She had recently left the RLDS church and has been recently having a little trouble with her faith as she has been studying up and praying about the LDS church. She has recently been going to an LDS ward with some other former RLDS ladies. We had a long discussion about conversion and baptism into the LDS church and what had brought us to the LDS faith. This all happened by accident, but it was a good opportunity to share my testimony with someone who has been struggling with her faith. There are still a lot of things of the RLDS church and the Restoration Branch that she has held to be true, and she has had a hard time letting some of them go for what has been giving to us in the Revealed Gospel. 

This story will unfold some as time goes by. I friended her on Facebook and promised to keep in contact with her. 

Wednesday  

A long time friend of mine (over thirteen years) is now a professor at the same uni I work at. She was a Korean exchange student at MSU in America when we met and we have stayed friends since then. I helped her get a job at my current uni. One of her other friends became a Presbyterian a few years ago, and then I got my faith and became a Mormon about two years after that. Her family is very Buddhist, so she has been very curious about have these spiritual awakenings and coming to accept God and Jesus. Her friend and I have tried to get her to understand.

On Wednesday, I gave her a Book of Mormon to read. She asked about it and we got to talk about it for a little while.  She started reading it in class while monitoring a final test. I told her to wait until she gets to Alma and the Reign of Judges, because she will be really interested in that part.

Thursday

Usually, when I want to go out and eat lunch, I can message a few students and they will join me for lunch. Today, I messaged a girl student of mine and she said she would meet me for lunch. A friend came with her (another of my students). While I was waiting in the fast food joint, I was reading the Scriptures. When they came in, they asked me what I was reading. Directly, this led into a conversation about Mormonism.

Friday

There is a large Africa International Student Organization in Daegu Catholic University and Daegu University. Many moons ago, I had asked the Missionaries in our ward for a bunch of different Book of Mormons from different African countries. Over the months, I managed to give a lot of them away, but I still have about eight of them in my office. 

One of my female Korean students is a mentor for the group—helping them get around, translation, and setting up ‘cultural trips’ for them. I have helped out now and then with the Africans. I know most of them because I studied Korean with a few of them some years back. Some Zambians, Nigerians, Kenyans, Ghanans, and those of the Congo are students at my university. I have asked them off and on if they want a Book of Mormon or come to church. Some of the Nigerians, students from the Congo, and the Zambians have all gotten Books of Mormon. 

Today, two of the African students who I have recently friended on Facebook asked me if I had a Book of Mormon in their language. Apparently, they saw the Bhuku Ramormoni (The Ibo translation for the Nigerians) in his apartment and asked where he got it. The Nigerian told them that I had a lot of different translations of the Book of Mormon and I could probably give them one. Considering that they are currently in a country whose native language is Korean and who favors English, any book in their native language is very appealing. I realized this idea some months ago and figured it would be a good chance for some missionary moments. 

Anyway, this morning I was asked if I had a Book of Mormon in Shona (Zimbabwe) and one in Twi (Ghana). Luckily, I have one in both languages. So, I contacted my student and asked if she could get the Books of Mormon to the two African students. She just came by my office and got the two Books of Mormons, promising to get them to the African guys this Sunday when they meet.