Last Week!!!!!!!

Dear Family and Friends,

It's hard to believe it's my last week here--time just flew by! I am SO excited to go to Japan next Monday! I'm just praying that I'll be able to fit everything in my suitcases and have them still be under the weight limit!:)

It's been a wonderful and busy week. Last Friday the President of all the MTCs outside the US, Brother Mills, came and spoke to the departing missionaries going to Japan. He'd served in Japan, so he spoke to us about his experiences in Japan, talked about the prophesied progress of the church in Japan (a day later in General Conference we found out about the new temple that will be built in Sapporo, Japan!), and he talked about making our goals and expectations with the Lord. It was an inspiring meeting--he challenged us to speak Japanese ONLY this last week here in the MTC--he said that if we love the Japanese people, we would do it! When he said this, I felt the Spirit strongly that this is what I needed to do--so I've been trying hard to only speak Japanese this week! As I do this, as well as look back on all the Japanese I've learned here, I've realized how much the Lord has blessed me to learn the Japanese language!

Wasn't General Conference wonderful?!! Especially the news about the new Sapporo temple!:) I loved all the talks from the prophet, apostles, and general authorities of our church! I especially loved President Eyring's talk during the Sunday morning session, about becoming like Christ and loving as He did! God wants us to become like Him, so we'll be worthy of living with Him again one day--to do this, we must follow Christ's example! I pray that every day all of us will be a little more like Him--that we'll love as He loved, say what He would say, and think and do what He would do!

This gospel is true--I know this without a doubt!! God loves all of us, his children! That is why Joseph Smith restored the gospel--because God loves us and knew we needed the strength of the gospel in these latter days!

I love all of you and pray for you daily!

Love,
Swain Shimai