May 4, 2014

Last Famiy Email!!

The time has come. Yesterday giving my final testimony here in Zhunan was a great experience. I have felt so much love from all of the members here. Especially the Bishop's family. We have the same last name, so they say I am one of their kids. Every time they go to Costco they buy us chocolate muffins and they have taken us out to eat so many times. They bought us steak a couple of weeks ago. This ward here seriously has so much potential. It still feels like all the progress that we have seen here in Zhunan is mostly all because of the missionaries. We shared with our mission leader this past week that we have been seeing some real progression here, but it is all because of our efforts and not because of the efforts of the members. This is one huge thing that Taiwan has got to change. The ward relies so heavily on the missionaries for baptisms and bringing less-actives back to church. I just hope from the progression that we've seen already will really inspire them to do more! Because the members here are really so awesome.
> 
> We had a really special experience with prayers being answered. A couple weeks ago we met a Sister Chen. Her name is Mini Chen. She is an Aborigine to Taiwan and she is already Catholic. On Thursday night I had a feeling I should call her. The first time I called it didn't go through. I called again after we were done planning and this time she answered. She was sobbing. She told me she had been praying to have Heavenly Father to send her some comfort. I read with her Alma 26:37. I told her that her Father in Heaven knows and loves her. And because we as missionaries are doing His work He was the one who wanted me to call her. To give her the comfort that she needed. At the end of the phone call she told me that she felt like Heavenly Father really did answer her prayer and that He really does love her.
> 
> This experience strengthens my testimony even more that God will literally send people to help us when we need them. It has happened to me many times in my life and Heavenly Father let me be the instrument in His hands to help one of His daughters this week. What a blessing and privilege it has been to literally be an instrument for good here in Taiwan. To testify to strangers on the street that I know we have an all loving and all knowing Father in Heaven. And a Savior that died for us. So that they can receive a fullness of joy in this life and in the life to come. This week I got pretty frustrated because I felt like every single person we talked to on the street couldn't care less to what we were sharing or what we were saying. Especially one lady, I bore my heart out to this woman of the Savior's atonement and then she just rode away on her scooter. Haha. After that I got pretty bummed, but I think God wanted to teach me an important lesson. He wanted to teach me that no matter what I need to love these people. Even if it seems like they aren't going to care about what we are going to say, that is their choice. All we have to do is our part and Heavenly Father will be proud. Loving those people who don't love us back is the true test.
> 
> I have learned so much with my time here as a missionary. These past two years have been the happiest times of my life. Serving my brothers and sisters here in Taiwan, loving them, has brought so much pure joy to my heart. I know I will miss this place so much.
> 
> The work is going forth here. The Lord is truly hastening His work. I can feel it. And I am so grateful that Heavenly Father let me be a part of this great work. In helping His children come back unto Him. I know without a shadow of a doubt that this Gospel is true. Every part of it. The Book of Mormon is the word of God. Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer. His Atonement brings real change of heart and mind. God lives and loves everyone of us.
> 
> I will see you all very soon. For the last time as a full-time missionary, have the most beautiful week. :)
> 
> All of my Love,
> Elder Relyea

April 30, 2014

People that I love,
> 
> SO MANY GREAT THINGS ARE HAPPENING IN ZHUNAN!!! Our investigators are actually progressing and coming unto Christ! Elder Gonzalez and I have been working like crazy. Everyday is a blur. We had 4 investigators and 3 less-actives at Church last week!!! This is huge. Two of the less-actives haven't been to Church in over 10 years! One of them hasn't been in probably around twenty years. And now his two kids are our investigators and he brought his kids to Church and they had a great time! His name is Zheng Zhi Hua and his kids are Zheng Yi Hong and Zheng Jing Yun. They had a great time at Church. And I guess that they will be baptized very soon. Probably not while I am here... But that is okay. As long as they get there. :)
> 
> Today we are in Taibei because we came to the Temple. :) I love the Temple so much. After the mission I'm just going to chill in the Celestial room for extended periods of time. I literally cannot believe that I only have one week left of being a missionary. It definitely does not feel real. My feelings are... part of me feels like there is no way that two years could already be over but at the same time I'm feeling like the time is right. I've just got to trust in Heavenly Father's timing. I read a quote once that said, "Faith also means trusting in God's timing." 
> 
> I am completely full of gratitude today. Grateful for many things. A huge one being how grateful I am that I know we have an all knowing and all loving Father in Heaven who is always watching over us. This week I cannot put into words the gratitude I have felt these past few days for our Savior. As I am reading in Jesus the Christ everything He had to go through for us. My mind cannot be wrapped around the things He went through. Talmage words brings our Savior's atonement to life. I know that Jesus Christ lived and died for us. And it is all because of love. His perfect love for Heavenly Father and His perfect love for us. I know He is my Savior and representing Him here in Taiwan has been the greatest thing I have ever done.
> 
> This Gospel is true. This month the mission has been really focusing on The Book of Mormon. An invite that we received was to do Moroni's invite over and over again. As I have been asking Heavenly Father if the book is true, I have been feeling of it's truthfulness every single day. It is amazing. So, right now I can say with zero doubt that I know the Book of Mormon is true. It is the word of God. It will teach us how to have peace and happiness in this life and the next and most importantly it will bring us a greater knowledge of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Lately we've been sharing Mosiah 4:12 like it is our day jobs. Look it up. Also look up Alma 37:44. We've been sharing that one a lot too. I'm so grateful for the scriptures and the GOSPEL!
> 
> Alright, I love you all. Have the most beautiful week. I will see you all very soon.
> 
> Love,
> Elder Relyea
> 

April 21, 2014

Hello my beautiful family.

This week was nuts. Brother Dai received the gift of the Holy Ghost! We are getting him stoked on the idea of going on a mission. It would change his life forever. And he isn't doing anything right now, so why not?

We saw such a huge miracle with working with less-actives kids. A couple weeks ago we met with a brother Zheng Zhi Hua and he told us that he would like his kids to have an opportunity to learn the Gospel. Well, we met with them yesterday and they are so GOOD. Their names are Zheng Yi Hong and Zheng Jing Yun. The first one is the older brother. He is my same age and is a senior in College. The younger one is a younger sister. She is 13 and loves Japanese. 

Finding through less-actives is the way to do missionary work! Because we found them and they are now very stable investigators. We know where they live and they actually have real interest in learning about the Church and about Jesus Christ. The coolest part was the Meimei(little sister). When we first got there she didn't say anything. She seemed pretty cold and had no interest in what we were sharing. But towards the middle she shares with us that she has always had interest in Christianity and that she feels out of all the religions Christianity can bring the most happiness! At the end she said she had many questions and as we were meeting with her all of her questions were answered about Christianity. They are so willing and excited to learn about the Gospel. It is so refreshing to teach people who actually want to learn. Who actually have a desire to know about the Gospel. When we invited them to be baptized the Meimei said, "Wo hen xiang." She really wants to be baptized! And the Gege(older brother) was also really willing as well. So very cool. That was such a tender mercy from the Lord and we are so very grateful. And you know what else President Day, this shows that turning our two area's in to one area was completely inspired. Because if our areas weren't put together I probably wouldn't have called Zheng DX and we never would have met with him or his kids. So... it was inspired and God is truly leading this work. He is leading us to His prepared children. Because these kids feel like they are truly prepared to accept the Gospel. And as they come to Church, their dad is coming back at the exact same time! The dad can prepare to receive the Melchezidek priesthood and be a worthy priesthood holder in his house. So many blessings. This Church is true.

That was probably the coolest miracle we saw this past week. But there were many more. On Easter everyone in Taiwan doesn't celebrate Easter and the Ward forgot it was Easter... That was a bummer. I was pretty stoked for some awesome talks on the Savior. But, my companion and I saw a video last week on Mormon.org all about the Savior and because of Him everything is possible. It blew me away. You can all go watch it. Lately I've been reading Jesus the Christ like crazy. This book has changed my life. It has taught me so much about our Savior, everything He did, He taught, and who He really was. I am so grateful for the words of living prophets.

This Church is true. I know it without a shadow of a doubt.

I love this work and I love our brothers and sisters here in Taiwan.

I love you all. Keep it real. I'll see you in less than a month.

Elder Relyea

April 14, 2014

This past week was such an amazing week. Brother Dai, Sister Zhang(the sister's investigator) and an 8 year old boy, Shang Yi Ming were all baptized on Sunday! It was a glorious occasion. Right after listening to the Prophets, Seers, and Revelators of our day give us some serious revelation 3 beautiful souls stepped into the waters of Baptism.

I loved Conference so much! My faith has been strengthened and I feel completely rejuvenated. This Church is TRUE.

Let me tell you a sweet miracle that happened...

We met a potential investigator Sister Mai two weeks ago and she set up a time for Saturday night. Well, Friday night during dinner she calls us out of the blue and says, "can we actually meet tonight at 6?' We said, "Of course we can!" We found a peike super fast and went over to her house. When we first got into her house it was just her. Then she calls down her little brother to come and meet with us as well and before we knew it the mom and dad were sitting and listening as well. The mom asks us, "What differences does your church have with other Christian churches?" Then we shared the entire restoration with them. The mom and the daughter were listening so intently. Looking straight into our eyeballs. The Spirit was so strong as my companion recited the first vision. The mom was impressed that he had it memorized word for word. We then invited them to pray and ask God if the things that we had shared with them were true. They weren't super stoked on the idea of praying by themselves but they said they would try. Sister Mai was very willing to set up another time to meet. 

We have felt that the Spirit has truly been leading us to those who are prepared. As we rely on prayer and stay humble, God will really put those people in our path who are prepared to hear the Gospel. I know that to be true.

I am so grateful for the restoration and that we have the huge blessing of having prophets, seers, and revelators on the earth again. Who love us and desire our salvation. I am so grateful for Heavenly Father trusting us enough to give us His priesthood. I am especially grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ. For His life, His Atonement and His Resurrection. My faith has truly been strengthened in Him this past week. I know He lives and loves us. I still have so far to go to really know who He is and everything He has done for me, but I am grateful for Him. I am grateful that Heavenly Father loves me enough to let me represent His beloved Son. To testify of Him every single day has brought indescribable joy and happiness into my life.

I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is His church and His work.

Have such a beautiful week. Know that I love you and am praying for you. My weeks are few... :( So, I'll see you soon.

All my love,

Elder Relyea

April 7, 2014

This week was such a blur. Literally felt like 5 minutes and it was over. We saw some serious miracles this past week. We had 5 investies at Church! That was a huge miracle. And Brother Hu and his little sister loved church! I talked to them last night and they both said they loved it. They felt the love and I am so stoked! They need the Gospel so badly in their lives. Our friend Brother Dai has his interview for baptism tomorrow and if he passes he will be entering the waters of baptism this SATURDAY! Which is so cool because it is right after we watch Conference. We watch it a week later here because of translation purposes. But, my companion and I get to watch it in English. YES. I'm so stoked for Conference.

Then we had two other Brother Chen's come to church as well. One is Chen Jun Yi and the other is Chen Jun Ting. Jun Yi is a sophomore in college and he is as innocent and a baby lamb. We met with him on Saturday night and we read the introduction to the Book of Mormon with him. My companion asks him, "Brother Chen, what do you think would happen if you read and prayed about the Book of Mormon?" And he said, "A miracle." Haha. It was awesome! He is so right! Receiving a testimony of the Book of Mormon truly is a miracle! He is great.

Awesome things are happening here in Zhunan. We are finding less-actives who want their families who aren't members to hear about the Gospel. Yesterday we met a Brother Zheng Zhi Hua who learned the Gospel and was baptized about 30 years ago who still has faith and wants his son and daughter to learn the Gospel. We are visiting them this next Sundae. :)

The work is truly going forward here in Taiwan and I am so grateful I can be a part of it. I've been reading Jesus the Christ like it's my day job and I learn so much everyday. Something that really stuck with me this past week was the parable of the Prodigal Son. That it doesn't matter where we have been or what we have done, Heavenly Father is so willing and ready to forgive us. To embrace us with His infinite love. I'm so grateful for Jesus the Christ that I can learn more and grow closer to my Savior every single day. Such a huge blessing. I love this Gospel and I love bean a missionary. I will miss it so much when I am not one anymore.

I love you all. Have a beautiful week.:)

Elder Relyea

P.s. I saw Crofty this past week. Haha. My friend Sister Zhong aka Oreo visited us from Taizhong and right when I saw her she slaps her cell phone in my face and I see Crofty! Haha. Got to chat with him for a minute while I ate my dinner. That was nice little trunky surprise. 

Alright, PEACE! 

March 30, 2014

This week was NUTS. For real. I'm not a Zone Leader anymore! Haha. I probably shouldn't be as happy as I am. But, I'm just stoked I can really focus on my area and helping my investies!!! We are going to have some serious baptisms in APRIL! I'm excited. One of the ones who is getting baptized for sure is a Brother Dai. Who actually I found on the street and he lived in the other Elder's area so we had to give him to them. I was pretty bummed when we had to do that... But then last Friday we go to the Move meeting(where all the missionaries go to Taibei and find out where they are going and who their new companion is) and President Day put the two Elder Area's here in Zhunan together! So now, here in Zhunan there is only one set of Elder's and one set of Sisters. Pretty crazy. Last transfer there were two sets of Elder's and one set of Sister's. So, I am now with an Elder Gonzalez. He is awesome. He is on his 6 transfer, has great Chinese, is from St. George Utah and is half Mexi-fry. Super humble and stoked on the work. WE WILL SEE MIRACLES TOGETHER. I'm really happy about the things that happened. And that I can die here in Zhunan!
> 
> Other than Brother Dai we are also meeting with a brother and sister. Their names are Hu Wei Chong and Hu Kai Ling. They are great. The older brother is 15 and his younger sister is 14. Kailing has a total crush on me. Every time she looks at me she starts to giggle and blush. Haha. It is adorable. We saw such a cool miracle with them this past week. We were teaching them and their dad came home early from work. We got chatting and he told us all about how his first wife cheated on him... After that I straight up asked him if his kids can come to Church with us. And he said if they have interest they can come. YES!!!! After he said that Hu Weichong said, "And I have interest." I asked him last night of how he feels about getting baptized and he said he is super excited. :) Pray for these people!
> 
> Eliza is struggling.... Please pray for her that she can discern the TRUTH.
> 
> I love this work with my whole soul. I love my Savior. I love growing closer to Him everyday. I am reading Jesus the Christ and I am learning so much about Him. 
> 
> I also love you all. :)
> 
> Elder Relyea

March 23, 2014

"For the beauty of each hour, of the day and of the night."‏

SUP!
> 
> Time is flying faster than any other time in my entire life. It is nuts. This past week was really good. We met with Eliza three times! Haha. Everytime is so good. This week we gave her a conference edition of the Liahona and she looks at the inside and says, "this is the work of God." YES! We met with her yesterday and shared with her the Word of Wisdom, Prophets, and Fasting. She is already fully keeping the Word of Wisdom. She even wakes up early, goes to bed early, exercises daily, and hardly eats any meat. Haha. Our member that was there said, "she is keeping the word of wisdom better than I am." She is the most prepared person I have ever met. When we shared with her about fasting she told us about when she was working in the Middle east how her and her friend fasted for an entire month.... And they would only drink a little water a day. What. So yesterday for part of our lesson we asked if we could fast with her so her boss will let her come to Church and so her husband will let her be baptized. She asked how long we would be fasting for, when we told her it was two meals she says under her breath, "Oh, that is too easy." Haha. Please pray for this woman's husband to soften his heart and let her be baptized and for a way she can come to Church. If Eliza isn't Baptized while I am here, I don't mind. Because she is truly converted. She knows that our Church is God's one and only true church on the earth today. And that is what truly matters. I know if she could she would be at Church every single week. She is already keeping all of the commandments that we taught her. It is just her husband and work that is holding her back from being baptized. Keep her in your prayers!
> 
> Other than Eliza this past week I went on X-changes with an Elder Nasman. He is from Finland and he is the man. He owned his own modeling company before the mission. He was super rich. Cool guy.
> 
> This past week we also had Specialized Training. Which means we are trained by President Day for an entire day. From 9 in the morning to 4 p.m. Super long, but you learn a ton. After the meeting President Day told my companion and I that our Zone would lose a lot of it's companionship's and that it would be combined with the Xinzhu zone. And that one of us would move and one would stay when the transfer is over..... He thanked us for everything we have done as Zone Leaders and told us that we did a great job. What I'm hoping will happen is my companion will move(he has already been here for 6 months), and I become just a normal Senior companion. So I can really focus on helping the area and the members here in Zhunan. I really love this area so much and the members here are so good to us.
> 
> So weird that I only have a little bit of time left... I am so grateful for the time that Heavenly Father has given me to serve Him and His children here in Taiwan. I read the talk, "Mountains to Climb" by President Eyring this past week and he talks all about the foundation of Faith being embedded in our hearts. He says, "If the foundation of faith is not embedded in our hearts the power to endure will crumble." Then he tell us how we build the foundation. He says, "it is serving God and others with full heart that turns our faith into a solid foundation." Something like that. I love that talk so much. You can go read it. But, serving others is truly how we gain our faith!
> 
> I love this work and this Gospel. I know it is true.
> 
> I love you all so much. Have the greatest week of your life.
> 
> Love, 
> Elder Relyea

March 17, 2014

 This past week was nuts. Literally an emotional roller coaster. Saturday was probably one of the hardest days of my entire mission. BUT, things got a lot better by the end of the week.
> 
> 
> Some serious drama with Eliza. So, when we invited her to be baptized she was concerned that her husband wouldn't let her. So she said before she sets a date for baptism she would like to ask her husband first. She asked him and he said it would be okay as long as she didn't take him to Church. Ha. Alright. No worries. Then on Saturday morning she sends us this text that says, "I want to read the entire Book of Mormon and understand everything about your Church. And I don't want to be baptized anymore." ..... We were super confused. So we went to her house to see what happened. She told us that her husband and daughter sent her tons of anti-mormon/Joseph Smith stuff over text. And she was super freaked out. When we went to her house we helped he a little bit and made sure if she would still be willing to come to Church on Sunday. When we were there she said it would be okay. But then a few hours later she texted us and said she doesn't want to meet with us and she doesn't want to come to Church. Uhhhhhhhhhhg. This made me so sad. So that night(Saturday night) Elder Liu and I decided to do a special fast for her. That she would still be willing to meet with us and that she could know the truth. 
> 
> She said she didn't want to come to Church so I didn't tell anyone to take her to Church. Then, Sunday morning after church has started for ten minutes she texts me and says, "Is Brother Lin going to come and pick me up?" ....... What? Haha. I was super confused. So I asked if Brother Lin's wife could go get her. She said she could. But then she comes back a half an hour later and says she couldn't find her. During Church I continued to talk to Eliza and apologized that no one came to get her. And asked her if if would be okay if we visited her this week. She said we could come any day from 1p.m. to 7p.m. YES! She is still willing to meet with us!
> 
> So, I believe that Eliza's mind was changed because we used some serious faith to pray and fast for her. Please pray for this woman. She needs the Gospel in her life so bad. I think that God gave her some hard challenges right off the bat so she can find her testimony and be truly converted. So, I'm grateful for these challenges. She will be like the anti-Nephi-Lehi's! Completely converted unto the Lord!
> 
> Other than that this week was really good. Saw another really cool miracle. When I was on exchanges with an Elder Meeks we were waiting for an investigator outside of Mcd's when this girl that kind of looks like a boy walks by me. I start talking to her and she says that she just came back to Zhunan from Gaoxiong(the south of Taiwan). And her friend in Gaoxiong would take her to Church and pray for her. I asked her if we could sit with her for a minute and share a message about Jesus Christ. She said, "Yes." We met with her and during that first meeting the Spirit was strong. It was such a happy meeting. She set a baptismal date for 4/12! Her name is He Yi Fang. Pray for her!
> 
> Our mission leader told us yesterday that if we can have a baptism in April that we can go and have a river baptism. THIS IS WHAT I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR MY ENTIRE MISSION! I'm super stoked.
> 
> I love this work. I love the Gospel. I know that Joseph Smith is God's chosen Prophet. I love you ALL!
> 
> Love,
> Elder Relyea

March 10, 2014

This past week was nuts. My companion got the flu and yak-ed three times. You know you really love your companion when you wipe up his warm vomit off the cold tile. Then in the middle of the night, jump off the top bunk and clean his throw up bucket for him right after he threw up in it. 

But, other than that we saw some serious miracles this past week. I want to share two with you. 

We went to one of our new investigators house to tell her we couldn't meet with her because we didn't have a male peike(member) and her husband answers the door and says, "come in!" We go in and have a great lesson with them. We teach them how to pray and before we left I invited them to kneel with us and the dad could say a closing prayer. We all kneeled (they have 2 sons, one is 6 and the other 10) and the dad said such a sincere prayer. He asked Heavenly Father to let his family become an eternal family.... Yeah. It was amazing. Such a huge miracle. They said they would come to Church. Called them on Sunday morning and... No answer. That is okay. We are visiting them tonight. I have faith in this family! They feel so good. It is the Zhan family. You can pray for them.

The other miracle was the Sister's found a Filipino lady last week and it turns out she lives in our area so we went and visited her last night. Her name is Eliza. The last time the Sister's met with her they shared with her that we could give her a priesthood blessing. She has some serious problems in her life. We got there and had an awesome lesson with her. And before we left I gave her a blessing. Before the blessing she said she was very nervous and her hands were super cold. I gave her the blessing and the Spirit was very strong. After the blessing she says, "my hands are cold but my inside is so hot!" The Spirit touched this humble Filipino woman's heart! After she said this we shared with her out of Helaman and 3 Nephi about how the Spirit sets our hearts on fire.

I know that Eliza got this conformation from the Spirit because our Church is TRUE! God will send his messenger to those who are prepared and those who seek Him. I am so excited to see what happens with Eliza. She takes care of a 98 year old man who never lets her go outside. His heart is going to be softened and she will be baptized! Please pray that her old man will let her out of the house to come to Church! She needs it so badly.

I know that this Church is Christ's true Church! I am so beyond grateful that I was raised in this Church and that I can know who Christ is. He is our Brother and He loves us!

I love you all so much! I only have 8 weeks left. :/

Have the best week of your lives!

Elder Relyea

March 3, 2014

"For the joy of human love, brother, sister, parent, child"

Hello beautiful people!

This past week went by especially fast. This time is going by faster and faster! It is freaking me out. I only have 9 weeks left. Yesterday I was thinking a lot about how I go home in only 9 very short weeks and feeling a bit nervous. I was writing in my journal and I thought of a talk by Elder Holland that changed my mission as a very young missionary and I decided to read it again. It is called, "The Best is Yet to Be." Such inspiring words. He talks all about how faith is pointed towards the future and if we put our whole trust in God, never looking back, never wallowing in the past, that God will give us the blessings that are waiting for us. I felt like I really needed this talk this past week. I need more faith that God will help everything work out. 

I know He will.

We found like crazy this past week. 8 new investies! But two of them are already dead. Not really dead. They just don't want to meet with us anymore. We are having a rough time finding investigators who are actually willing to progress, come to Church, read the B.o.M. These types of things. But, I know Heavenly Father is preparing these people. And we will find those who are prepared. I know it!

Alright, I love you all so much! I know this Church is true and that Christ is our older Brother! He loves us and died for us. If you are ever doubting turn to the words of the Prophets! Living or past. They are all great.

Love,

Elder Relyea

February 23, 2014

Apostolic Love

Hi Everyone!

> Elder Holland came. I wish I was a brand new missionary when he came because the things he shared blew my mind. I don't think I can put into words how I felt when him and his wife were speaking to us, except for complete and total love. They are so full of love. It was like they were speaking to me personally. Such a special and memorable experience. One that I will never forget.
>  > I realized this past week that I only have 10 more weeks on island. :/ That thought really freaks me out. Elder Holland said, "missionary life is the closest to real life I will ever get." So, I don't want to have to start my fake life. Ha. But seriously. Something that gives me a huge comfort is my patriarchal blessing. It talks a lot about my future. So... We'll see. But I have 10 weeks to give everything I have to the Lord and to Taiwan. I will miss this place so bad.
> 
> 
> I SAW BRONSON! It was so good to see him and ask him how everyone is doing. Mom, he told me all about Kevin. Sounds like a pretty cool guy. And Bronson is being born in Taidong! My birthplace! So stoked he gets to experience everything I did as a brand new missionary. It is so weird that I am such an old missionary and he is so fresh. It was so good to see him. I most likely won't see him again because we are literally on opposite sides of the island. Unless when I end my mission he moves and comes up to Taibei. Because when he is done being trained, I will die.
> 
> Alright, I am so grateful that I was able to listen to an Apostle of the Lord this past week. I know that he is called of God. I know that this Church is God's true Church. One thing Elder Holland also said was(in his super intense kind of angry sounding but still full of love voice), "We gave our lives for this. We have sacrificed everything for this Gospel. Because it is true." 
> 
> I love you all so much. Have the most beautiful week! 
> 
> love,
> Elder Relyea 

February 16, 2014

An Apostle is coming to Taiwan!!!!‏

YO!
> 
> This Saturday Elder Holland is coming to Taibei!!! I'm so beyond stoked. It is going to be a night of inspiration and revelation! I cannot wait.
> 
> This past week was really good. I have set a personal goal to strengthen my testimony in the Savior by studying His life everyday. It has helped me so much focus more on Him when we are talking to people on the street. Since I am learning about Him daily He is on my mind more and when I testify of Him it has more feeling. I am so grateful for Him and His sacrifice.
> 
> My companion and I are doing really well. Elder Liu is the bees knees. He knows some seriously weird English. Makes me laugh. We have English days. Every Wednesday and Friday we only speak English. It is weird. I have found that I have completely gotten used to speaking straight Chinese. Haha. I will forget that it is English Day and just start speaking Chinese without even thinking about it. I even think in Chinese now. Haha. Pretty crazy. Most of my dreams are in Chinese as well.
> 
> In Taiwan there are so many girls that would like to be boys. So they dress like boys, cut their hair like boys, and talk in lower voices to sound like boys. It is very strange. Some of the time I talk to someone and I literally have no idea if they are a man or a woman. Blows my mind. But, last week we were tracting and we saw a person walking towards us. We started talking to her and she was one of these wanna-be-boy-girls. But she was super cool! We taught her about Heavenly Father and she said that she already believes in God. We taught her Baptism and she was willing to set a date right there for March 22. Yes, she may be swingin' for the same team, but that is okay. She is super willing to try. I've found that the best investigators aka bestigators are those that are willing to try. Who have desire to know are are willing to at least give it a try. You can look up Alma 32:16. I love that scripture. It talks about being humble without having to be compelled to be humble. I hope to be this kind of person. 
> 
> My time on my mission is going by faster and faster. I feel like yesterday I was sitting in this chair typing this letter. Weeks now feel like less than days. I really don't like how fast the time is going. Because I love being a missionary. I love talking to strangers on the street and letting them know that they have a Father in Heaven who loves them and a Savior who died for them. This time truly is the most precious time of my life. I'm so grateful that I have had this opportunity to serve Heavenly Father and represent His Son, Jesus Christ.
> 
> I love you all. Have the greatest week of yo lives!
> 
> All my love,
> Elder Rel-YE

February 9, 2014

What UP!

Last week I forgot to tell you everything that happened during the Chinese New Year. It was crazy. We ate so much food. We had members feeding us everyday of the week. Saved a lot of money. :) It is weird, every year during Guonian I seem to have some sort of bike problems. Last year my handlebars broke in half and this year my basket broke off... while I was riding. I'll tell you the story.

So, my District Leader Elder Kunz asked me to bring a 10 pound weight to district meeting for some reason. He never told me why, so I slap that guy in my basket. My basket is in front of my handle bars and is attached to my front wheel. There were two hooks on the basket that went over the handlebars to keep the basket from falling off but one of the hooks was already broken. But, I thought it would be fine. So, Tuesday comes, we are riding to the Chapel for District Meeting, we are riding pretty fast cause we don't want to be late. There was a car in front of us that was slowing down so my companion passed him, as I was passing him my basket breaks and since it was still attached to my front wheel it went onto the ground and threw me over my handlebars. Haha. I was fine. Got onto my feet and watched the car that I was passing run over my beautiful Roxanne(my bike). I don't know what this man was thinking. After he ran her over he just drove off. Nice. So I pull her over to the side of the road and some lady was screaming that we have to call the police. My companion comes back and tells me to look at my bum. I look and there is a huge hole where my pocket used to be. Yeah, everyone saw my G's. That was embarrassing. Then the fuzz show up and we have to tell them everything that happened then they tell me we have to go to the Police station and tell them again what happened. We did that, but nothing came out of it. There are two things I'm really sad about. 1. My favorite pants now have a huge hole in them. 2. Roxanne is dead. The gears in the back went into the spokes so the wheel can't turn at all.

I fell over again this past week.

I was getting into the shower and it was super slippery. I slipped and hit my head on the back of the tub and my ribs on the side of the tub. Hahaha. It hurt way bad. But thinking about me slipping naked makes me laugh everytime.

We were riding somewhere the other day and there was this man walking with two canes. We stopped to talk to him and right off the bat he told me I look like a paper man. That I have no muscle. He said, "next time I see you I want you to have more muscle." And he said this all in English which made it a lot better.

We are teaching this Ding Family. And they are so COOL. The whole family has interest in the Gospel. They have no Christian background but the son knows tons about the Bible and Jesus Christ. We were teaching them the other day about Baptism and Eternal Families. And it is like something clicked in my head. As we were talking about how our families can be together for eternity it made perfect sense. God let us have families so we can learn, feel loved, know that we are a part of something. And if we came down to this earth and lived with our families for as long as we do just so we could be separated when it is all over is completely contradictory. And simply we would be wasting our time here. When we spend so much time serving, loving, and building relationships with these people I know it has a purpose. We are here for a reason. I'm so happy that Heavenly Father let me have that experience so I could understand a little bit better why He gave us the beautiful gift of families. I am so grateful for my family and everything that they do for me. I am especially grateful for my Father in Heaven who prepared a perfect plan for us to return back to Him. So we can live in perfect peace and happiness with the people that we love the most.

I love this Gospel. I set a goal this week to study the life of the Savior everyday. I want to grow closer to Him. I know when we are close to our Savior we will feel His love. We will know He is proud of us and what we are doing. I am so grateful I have this opportunity to represent Him here in Taiwan. To spread the joy of His Gospel to my Brother's and Sister's here. I love my LIFE!

I hope you all can feel the love of our Savior. I love you all!

Elder Relyea

February 5, 2014

HELLO!
> 
> After a long 9 months without going to the Temple I got to go today!!! It was incredible. I will always love going to the Temple. The blessings that come from that place are incomprehensible... Big word, trying to fool you all into believing that I have good English. Seriously though, I love the Temple with my whole heart.
> 
> I can't remember what has happened in the past week and a half. We had our Zone Training meeting yesterday and it was a good time. My companion and I gave our training on being consecrated missionaries. We used the talk, "Becoming a Consecrated Missionary." That talk changed my mission/life. Elder Tad R. Callister is wise beyond his years.
> 
> It has really been hitting me lately that I have no time left on my mission. I have next transfer... Then the one after that and that is it... I feel like I've been here for 10 years but at the same time like it just started. It is the strangest feeling. This past week mostly yesterday we were knocking doors and people were just giving us the lamest excuses. This one woman seemed like she was literally brainwashed by her family and this man was talking about worshiping idols and it is like the Gospel clicked in my brain. The message that we are sharing to the world makes perfect sense. We have a loving Father in Heaven who loves us without end. He has prepared a perfect plan of Happiness for us and if we are willing and humble enough to accept it we will find the most happiness and peace we can possibly find in this life and in the life to come.
> 
> This Gospel is true. I am so grateful that Heavenly Father has let me have this opportunity to serve Him here in Taiwan. I love our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is our Elder Brother. He understands us perfectly.
> 
> I love you all. Never forget it!
> 
> Love,
> Elder Relyea

January 27, 2014

YOOOO! Hello beautiful people!
> 
> It is that time of year again. Everyone is cleaning their houses and no one is willing to set up a time to meet. Guonian is here! It starts this week. I'm going to get so fat. Our mission leader put together a Chinke biao. Which is a sheet of paper where everyone in the Ward who wants to treat us for lunch or dinner sets up a time to treat us. Our mission leader said that there is at least one everyday. Someday's there are two in one day. So... For the next week I'm going to be continually full. The kind of full where you feel like the food is just chillin' in the back of your throat. Stoked. 
> 
> This past week was awesome. Everyday goes by so fast. It blows my mind. Especially since there have been so many companion exchanges lately. The time on exchanges goes by twice as fast. This past week I went on exchanges with an Elder Kesler from Missouri. And we are twins. He is also the middle child of 5. The oldest in his family is also a girl. Then there are 4 boys. He is the first one to surf a mission in his family. Yeah, that was weird. That night we found two new investigators together. One was a Sister YE. She has the same last name as me. :) She was super cool. An 18 year old senior in high school. Then we met a Brother Gu. He is a scientist who still believes in God. We taught him how to pray and about Baptism. That was an awesome exchange.
> 
> Then this past week my good friend Elder Mattsson came to Zhunan with me and it was so FUN. It was a blast but we still got so much done. Saw some seriously cool things happen. We even ran into his investigator who lives in Miaoli but was in Zhunan visiting her G-ma. Her name is J. She is in a band and loves all the same music as me. That was crazy.
> 
> Probably the biggest miracle of the week was when I was in Toufen with Elder Kesler, my companion and Elder Kesler's companion Elder Smith found a FAMILY! They are the Ding Family! They have two kids(Son:Dennis-14 Daughter:Kassie-12). I got to meet them on Sundae night when we went to their house to give them some copies of the Book of Mormon and invite them to Church. They are some of the nicest people I've met here in Zhunan. So open and willing to be friends with us. We are meeting with them tonight and are going to invite them to be baptized! If everything goes smoothly they could be baptized in February! Pray for them!
> 
> I love this work. I love meeting new people everyday and being able to share the Gospel with them. I have a testimony that the work that I am doing here in Taiwan is the Lord's work. He is guiding His missionaries. Of this I have no doubts.
> 
> D&C 6:36 "Look unto me in every thought. Fear not; doubt not."
> 
> I love you all.
> 
> Elder Rel-YE

January 19, 2014

 This past week was nuts!
> 
> It was super fun though. Went on tons of exchanges with other Elders in our Zone. Two exchanges in three days. First went to Miaoli with an Elder Weng then stayed here in Zhunan with the other companionship here. An Elder Kunz. The time is going by so much faster now. A week feels like nothing. Especially when you have exchanges in the week, that time goes by twice as fast. It is insane. This past week was full of meetings. We had our Zone meeting on Tuesday then on Wednesday we had a meeting with our mission President from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Yeah, it was super long. But this week my companion and I were still able to crank out 18 other lessons. Which is crazy. That is the most I've ever had on my mission in one week. So many people were willing to talk to us.
> 
> This past week our area was split into three sections. The Sister's have a section and the Elder's have their own sections. It is really strange. Our investigators are getting thrown around like pizza dough. Because we have to teach those people who live in our sections... It is weird. Still getting used to it.
> 
> Other than that nothing much has changed. I love missionary work and being a missionary here in Taiwan. I love you!!! 

January 12, 2014

Hello beautiful people.
> 
> Being here in Zhunan is so great. This past week we spent so much of our time on the streets talking to everyone. I love it. I never realized how much I love to talk before coming on the mission. I love talking to people, getting to know them, and relating it back to the Gospel. It is the greatest. One of the coolest things is being able to pray with people on the streets. Nothing helps them feel the Spirit stronger than just saying a simple prayer with them and asking Heavenly Father to bless them in their lives. Seriously, I am so blessed to be where I am. With the most loving people. The start of this week was rough. I think Heavenly Father wanted to test us for a sec. We spent all of Wednesday on the streets and no one would really talk to us. Some would talk to us, but those people had no interest. So we decided on Thursday to fast to find some prepared people and Heavenly Father let us have such a sweet experience.
> 
> Elder Liu and I were walking down the street and a man and a woman walk past us. As they walk past I ask if I can give them a pamphlet. They stop and talk to us for a while. We tell them who we are and what we are doing here. The mans name is Qui and his wife's name is Lin. He shares with us that they are in Zhunan looking for work. We explain that we can ask God to help us through prayer. We say a prayer with them and when the prayer is over Qui is crying. He said he didn't know why he was crying but he felt something during the prayer. YES! We told him that what he was feeling was that God heard his prayer and that he will answer it. Such a cool experience. First time I've seen a man we just met cry from prayer. Pretty crazy. Thank you Shengling(Holy Ghost)!
> 
> Being here in Zhunan is such a good time. It is such a difference experience than the first time I was here. The first time I was here I thought everyone hated missionaries and no one wanted to talk to us. But, now my eyes have been opened and I know that the people here are the beans! I have so much love for these people and their culture.
> 
> The second day I was here Elder Liu and I found a new investigator named Zhang Lu Yu. And he is doing so well. He was able to come to Church yesterday and meet with us afterward. He is a 17 year old high school student and he is the man. He lives in some place like a foster home. He has been there ever since the 4th grade. When he was a small baby his dad did drugs and would beat his mom for money. He beat her so many times the mom had serious brain damage. Brother Zhang didn't start going to school until the 4th grade so he still can't really read Chinese. I can actually read a lot more than he can. It is super sad. This kid's life has been extremely hard. But he is still so happy. Knowing his background, testifying of God's love for him and Christ's Atonement has so much more meaning. This kid is going to be brought into the Church and be wrapped in this wards loving arms. I'm super stoked. He such a sweet kid and the Gospel is going to help him so much. Please pray for this guy.
> 
> I know the message that I'm sharing to the people of Taiwan is true. I know we have a loving Father in Heaven who listens and answers our prayers. I know that Christ is our Savior and Redeemer.
> 
> I love you all so much!
> Love,
> 
> Elder Relyea

January 5, 2014

My loved ones! What UP.

 

I finally left the beautiful land of Yuli... It was very bitter sweet. Before leaving I felt like I could stay for one more transfer. But then, I got moved. To ZHUNAN! Which actually was my second area on my mission! Super cool. This hardly ever happens. All the members were freakin' out. They are all like, "you can speak Chinese now!" Haha. Yesterday was awesome seeing them all. It is so crazy to me to think of the person I was back then to the person I am now. It is also crazy to think that I was here in 2012... And now it is 2014... It is mind bottling.

 

I am with a Bendi!!! Aka a Taiwanese Elder! His name is Elder Liu and he is the man. We actually started our missions at the exact same time. So we are both on our 14th transfer. Another cool thing is when I was in Zhunan the first time he was in Miaoli. And at that time we were in the same district. So, it is super cool. He is a crazy good missionary. Super smart. And focused. Heavenly Father has truly blessed me with the greatest companions. Elder Liu is my 12th companion. haha. I am so old. We are both on our 14th transfer.

 

Lemme tell you a sweet miracle we saw last night. We were walking around this park looking for people to talk to and I see this guy with his hood on to my right. We walk up to him and start talking to him. He has my same last name(YE), so we were homies right of the bat. He is a dad who was just barely divorced. He has a 5 year old and a 2 year old. We taught him how we have a loving Father in Heaven who loves us all and understands us completely. We taught him how to pray and I said a prayer for him. As a prayed the Spirit was strong. We asked him how he felt as we prayed. He told us his sadness was still there but he was able to feel complete peace. Before we left he said a prayer. It was one of the most sincere prayers I've heard from a man we just met. He even prayed for his ex-wife. That she could also have peace and happiness. I know that Heavenly Father wanted us to meet this man and teach him how to pray. I believe so strongly that there is serious power in prayer. I feel it every time we pray with someone. I know God hears our prayers and is watching over us all. The Ye Dixiong last night said we were just like angels. It is always a bit strange when people say that... But whatever.

 

Yeah, the last little bit in Yuli there was a bit rough. It was hard to stay positive. I wanted to help that place so so bad. But there are things that missionaries can't fix that need to be fixed before they see real improvement there. I love that place and those people with my whole heart. I've never felt like a real member of a Branch or Ward on my mission until I went there. I learned so many priceless things there that I know I wouldn't have learned anywhere else. And the companions I had there taught me so much. Heavenly Father truly gives us trials so we can grow. I know that to be true.

 

I love you all so much it is weird.

 

Love, Elder Relyea

December 29, 2013

MAN, it was so good to see all of your beautiful faces! Seriously, made me so happy. I think Skyping made me realize how ready I am to see you all in real life. I feel like I've been away from home for 10 years. They have been a good 10 years, but I'm just stoked to see you all and hug your bodies!

So, my companion has had problems with his throat ever since the start of his mission. It started in about July of this year, and since then it has only gotten worse. Since we've been together we've seen the doctor many times, we've even talked about cutting his tonsil out, but the mission office wouldn't let him. And this past week we have spent most of our time indoors. It is really weird. I don't like staying inside at all. It's like if we are inside my body wants to shut down and I get super tired. It is lame. Especially because I could be using that time way more productively. So... last week not a lot of missionary work took place. We did see one really cool miracle though.

We were giving our friend Brother Xie a thank you card for taking us out to play on Christmas when we see his neighbor is home. We go talk to him and he tells us his life has been super hard. 5 years ago his best friend swiped his wife, he saw his dad die from cancer, then he was drunk driving and got in a car accident. We told him we couldn't completely understand his trials, but Christ does. We taught him how to pray then taught him about the Atonement. The Spirit was there when we testified of the Atonement and Christ's love for him. That was a cool experience.

I think since this Christmas season has started I have grown closer to Christ. Trying to do the things He wants me to do and remember Him always has helped me grow closer to Him. Yesterday I was blessing the Sacrament and right before I blessed the water I had this feeling of complete peace come over me. It has never happened to me before when I bless the Sacrament, but I felt the Spirit so strong. Taking the Sacrament every week and renewing our covenants with God has true power. I felt that yesterday more than I ever have before.

I love you all so much. It was so good to see your faces!!! I can't wait to kiss them when I get home. :)

All my love, Elder Relyea

December 25, 2013

• MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!‏

  What up all the people that I love!
  > 
  > Today is Christmas and it has been magic. Today's weather is clear and I'm wearing the short sleeve. We are actually going to Sanxiantai today. The place with that bridge that goes to a little island. It is going to be awesome. I'm STOKED. But I'm not going to get a blister sunburn this time... 
  > 
  > This week on Monday we went up to Taibei to party for Christmas. We slept there then on Tuesday had a nice meeting all about obedience and Christmas. And I got both of my packages!!! Yes. So, this morning was full of happiness opening my gifts from you sweethearts! I fully realize and understand that I have the greatest family to walk this earth. And I will see yo faces tomorrow! I'll call Minder first at 8. Then Rusty at about 8:20. Yeah, we only have twenty minutes to chat it up this year. But, it is okay. It will be the best twenty minutes.
  > 
  > I have been in Yuli for almost 7 months now. I have completely gotten used to living here. Homies with all the members and most of the restraunt owners. Haha. A lady that owns a little noodle shop called us her sons the other day. Xiao Mama. She is a sweetheart. I've accepted the fact that I could die here. And if I did, I would be one happy man. This past week I've come to some realizations. That I cannot take one day for granted. That this work that we are doing here is the most important work we can be doing so we cannot waste time! I've gotten so used to being here I feel like I've gotten way too comfortable with everything. I feel like I have a new fire to share the Gospel with everyone. And bear powerful testimony of how this Gospel has blessed me in my life.
  > 
  > This Christmas season, a lot more than rest, I have thought about Christ. The importance of Christ in my life. Who He is and what He means to me. I know without a doubt that He loves us with unfathomable love. We do not comprehend the love that he has for us. I know that He died for us so that we can return to our Father in Heaven. If he didn't there would be no way for us to return. He showed us the way to have happiness in this life and in the next. My compainon was pretty sick this week and last. One day, he was sleeping during studies and I wrote a song about Jesus. Maybe I'll play if for you someday....
  > 
  > I love you all. I am so grateful for my family and the love and support that they give to me. There is nothing like a mission to make you truly appreciate you family and all they do for you. I have felt that love today for sure. And we'll feel it tomorrow TOO! Have the best Christmas of your lives. Mingtian Jian! PEACE!
  > 
  > Love, Elder Relyea
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

December 16, 2013

Shengdanjie Kuaile!!!!
> That means Merry Christmas!
> 
> Christmas is Here! But it still doesn't feel like it. Actually, it does more now than it did last week. They are pumpin' the Christmas music in all the 7\11's. That really brings the Christmas spirit. And we bought a tiny lil' Christmas tree. So, It is all good.
> 
> We are going to be talking face to face next week!!! I'm thinking I'll call on the 26th here in the morning. At like 9ish. So, that will be your Christmas day. Afternoon. YEAH! I'm stoked. It is going to be awesome. :)
> 
> This past week was super weird. So many of our investigators stopped meeting with us. They either told us they didn't want to meet with us anymore or we decided to drop them because they weren't progressing at all. So... We're going to be finding like crazy this next week. Spreading the Christmas love all over YULI!
> 
> Alright, I love you all with my whole heart. I love Christmas cause we can think of Christ even more. This past week my companion and I did a training in our Zone Meeting and made it all about Christ. Best training I've ever been a part of. The Spirit was there. Keep spreading the love of Christ! Surf someone! Okay, have the best week.
> 
> love,
> Elder Relyea

December 9, 2013

What up my loved ones!?
> 
> The weather in Yuli is still great. It is cold in the morning and night, but during the day it is so nice. The past 5 days we have had clear skies and sunshine! It has been so nice. This morning we went out to excercise and there was a majestic sunrise. So grateful to be where I am right now.
> 
> It is getting closer and closer to Christmas and it doesn't feel like Christmas in the least. We're having a Christmas activity. Elder Hawkins and I are going to play a nice Christmas hymn. He'll play Ukulele and I'll play guitar. It's going to be great.
> 
> Yesterday we had a man who is from Taidong come to Yuli and speak. He and his wife just got back from the Big land aka China. They were there doing missionary work. Which I'm not really sure how that works but, he was awesome. Made me seriously think about if I want to go to China and work there.... We'll see what happens. But, I'm going to be thinking about that.
> 
> I love you all so much. 
> 
> Love, Elder Relyea

November 24, 2013

The time has not yet come to pass...‏

What up, my beautiful family!?
> 
> I am still in YULI! Yeahhhhhhhh. I'm really happy I stayed. I know I am still supposed to stay here in this beautiful land. And that means after this transfer, I'll only have 3 left... Go to some place... and die there. Pretty weird. I feel like an old missionary more and more everyday. But it is good to be old.
> 
> My new companion is an awesome man! His name is Elder Hawkins. He is on his 5 transfer. He is actually my last companion Elder Wright's MTC companion. So, that is cool. He loves running. He is from Mesa, Arizona. He has so much desire to do missionary work and we are going to see so many miracles. I already know it. I can feel it. :)
> 
> This last week was honestly pretty boring... Not a lot happened. Yesterday they had the Primary Program and only 5 kids were in it. Haha. It was the best Primary Program I have ever seen. We got a new Sister in our District and I have met her before. About exactly one year ago I was companions with Elder Zhong. It was his last transfer and after his mission he was going to go into the military so we had to go to Pingdong for his check up. At that time we met his whole family. He told me that day that his sister was going to go on a mission pretty soon. And... The new sister in our District is Elder Zhong's older Sister!!! Whoooaaaa. Small world. Super cool. She is awesome. I'm stoked we have a Taiwan ren in our District. Now we can speak more Chinese. :)
> 
> Alright, I will have cooler stories next week. Tons of miracles! S'gonna be awesome. I love you all. The Church is true. God is watching over us. And is helping us always. Have the greatest week.
> 
> Inspirational quote:
> 
> "We are created in the image of our Heavenly parents; we are God's spirt children. Therefore, we have a vast capacity for love-it is part of our spiritual heritage. What and how we love not only defines us as individuals; it also defines us as a Church. Love is the defining characteristic of a disciple of Christ."
> -President Uchtdorf. 
> 
> Love others. :)
> 
> Love, Elder Relyea

November 18, 2013

"The best way to improve ourselves...."‏

"Is to exercise ourselves in doing good to others. Keep this in mind constantly." Thank you President Snow for that quote. Yesterday in Priesthood meeting that really stuck out to me. The best way to improve ourselves is to surf others. Is in helping others. I know this to be true.
> 
> This past week was a good one. Lots of ups and downs. And the time has come again where we are at the very end of a transfer. I'm going on to my 13 transfer. Man, I am an old man. There is a strong possiblity that I will leaf the beautiful land of Yuli. But, it is still very undecided. This past week President Day, Sister Day, and their daughter Candy and her husband Ray came down and visited Yuli. On Saturday night we held a Fireside. And since Sister Day doesn't speak the Chinese I got to translate for her. So when she gave her talk, she would say a sentence in English, then I would tell everyone in Chinese. It was my first time translating like this and it was pretty fun. I love President and Sister Day so much. They are the most loving people. Sister Day is full on my mission mom. We also had interviews this week with President. While my companion was interviewing I sit and chat with Sister Day. And there is this new rule where we have to wear these reflector vests at night when we ride our bikes. I feel like a straight up crossing guard. It reminds me of Flight of the Conchords. The vests that Murray gives Bret and Jermain to wear when they are on the streets. "Inner. Inner city. Inner city pressure."
> 
> Taiwan is finally getting cold! I wore my jacket for the first time last night. But it is still not super chilly. Just in the morning and the nighttime. But it is definitely winter. Actually today was super nice. The sun was out and it felt like a nice Autumn day in Utah. We ate lunch outside.
> 
> Alright, I love you all. Have the greatest week. The Church is true. Heavenly Father loves us. The Savior lives. Don't forget it.
> 
> Love, Elder Relyea

November 10, 2013

Hello most beautiful people,
> 
> I cannot believe you guys celebrated my birthday party for me! I am way too loved. So happy you rocked it at the Loyal Jade. Classic. I love that place. And I love all of YOU who partied for me on my birthday. Thanks to my beautiful mother's awesome package, a member who didn't even know it was my birthday and bought us steak, and an awesome former investigator who set a baptismal date for Christmas it was an awesome birthday. And my companion even bought me a cake. But we didn't eat it until Sunday. If I didn't say I don't feel completely loved right now I would be lying. I don't know why Heavenly Father has blessed me with so many of the most loving, caring people. But it is a testimony to me that God lives and loves us. And knows us personally. He knows exactly what we need and He is so willing to give it to us. He truly is an all loving Father in Heaven.
> 
> This past week Elder Wright and I realized that we are working with 8 different families. Some aren't complete families and some we've only met with once or twice. BUT, that is not the point. Point is we're working with 8 FAMILIES! How cool is that!? The Lord is blessing us so much. He knows that Yuli needs these families to strengthen the Branch. Yuli needs these priesthood holders! So, we're really getting the members stoked on helping these families. And they are all going to be baptized! It is gonna be crazy.
> 
> On Tuesday we were in the post office and we ran into a former investigator who I met with only a few times when I first got to Yuli. He was good then and he is even more prepared for the Gospel now! Since meeting with us his Dad and Grandma have both passed away and he has read the Book of Mormon almost everyday. What. He already understands that they have gone to a good place and he isn't mad or sad. He knows it was God's will. We reviewed with him the Restoration of the Priesthood and Baptism. He set a baptismal date for Christmas. And he will make it! Mark my words. His name is Zhang Zhong Yuan. Pray for this man! He is so good.
> 
> Our investigator Brother Dai came to Church and caused a rukus. Hahaha. He is a complete non-conformist. He doesn't even wear clothes(except for some shorts) because he feels more free with no clothes on. Haha. He sits in his house all day smokin' cigs and watching T.V. This man has more thoughts and opinions than any other person I have ever met. The Gopel Doctrine class and priesthood teachers didn't get to share their prepared lessons because Brother Dai was sharing all of his opinions and view points. Some of the members weren't too happy, but that is okay. This man needs the Gospel too.
> 
> It was a great week, full of challenges, trials, miracles, and happy things. My testimony in the Restoration is strengthened my the day. I am so grateful that God loves and trusts us enough to let us have his Priesthood. I know I so lucky and blessed to have been able to serve in Yuli for such a long time. 5 months. That is a large part of my mission. I love what I do everyday. It still freaks me out I only have about 6 months left. I don't like thinking about it. I love this work and these people. Even Brother Dai with his weird opinions. Pray for him. He needs it.
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> I love you all with my whole heart. Have the greatest week. Tell your friends about the Gospel! It will make you happy.
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> Love, Elder Relyea