May 10th

Hey y'all guys!
First off... Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers! I think you are a
hero! God loves you and trusts you!
"In all events, a mother can exert an influence unequaled by any other
person in any other relationship. By the power of her example and
teaching, her sons learn to respect womanhood and to incorporate
discipline and high moral standards in their own lives. Her daughters
learn to cultivate their own virtue and to stand up for what is right,
again and again, however unpopular. A mother's love and high
expectations lead her children to act responsibly without excuses, to
be serious about education and personal development, and to make
ongoing contributions to the well-being of all around them. Elder Neal
A. Maxwell once asked: When the real history of mankind is fully
disclosed, will it feature the echoes of gunfire or the shaping sound
of lullabies? The great armistices made by military men or the
peacemaking of women in homes and in neighborhoods? Will what happened
in cradles and kitchens prove to be more controlling than what
happened in congresses?" Elder Christofferson
This week went like this...
Tuesday: We met a cute YSA in the Ward for a lesson. Saori chan is the
cutest ever. She teaches primary, leads so many activities at church,
and has so much desire to help the missionaries and further the work.
We shared a message on families based on Sister Stephens' talk from
the general women's meeting. We have each been given a family from God
to learn and grow and prepare to return to our Father. We are all part
of His family!
"The final line of the song returns to where it began: This is how
He shares His love, for the family is of God. The Father's plan for
His children is a plan of love. It is a plan to unite His
children--His family--with Him. Elder Russell M. Nelson taught,
Heavenly Father has but two desires for His children  :
immortality and eternal life, which means life with Him back
home. Those desires can be realized only as we also share the love
that Heavenly Father has for His family by reaching out and sharing
His plan with others." Sister Stephens
Wednesday: My companion and I were both invited to Mission Leadership
Conference so we left our area for a day and headed to Kichijoji for
the meeting. It was way wonderful to go with my companion. I usually
come home from MLC and want to share Everything from the meeting but
it's so hard to share alllll of it! We always receive so much
revelation for our investigators, our wards, and the other
missionaries we serve. I always leave feeling like... There is SO much
more for me to do to be a good missionary... Always a call to
repentance. But, a call to repentance always comes from our loving
Heavenly Father who know us and accepts our efforts. To Him, and
because of His Son, we are enough.
We learned tons about how to use our time wisely... Setting goals and
making plans to fulfill our desires! And oh how I want more time!!
But... Now with these new tools and the revelation we received I can
magically make more time with the same number of hours because each
day will be full and fulfilling as they are focused on people and
their path to conversion. And not just work. Sister Wilson and I have
been asked to share the things we learned and present a training about
the daily planning session in our zone meeting tomorrow!! Wish us luck
and then say a prayer (: We are grateful of course for this
opportunity because we feel like we reallyyyy need to improve in this
area!
For MLC, I was asked to put together a sisters musical number. I sang
in a trio with 2 other sisters and we put together an arrangement of
The Lord is My Shepherd and Jesus the Very Thought of Thee (: It was
fun to be able to sing!
Thursday: We had a great lesson with Yamauchi Shimai and Kitahara
shimai! Kitahara shimai was the best! She is the RS president and
practically perfect. Anyway, we taught the plan of salvation and
really focused on Christ as the center to that plan. The lesson
focused on the Savior's atonement and what that means for us. Yamauchi
shimai said that now her prayers will change because now she knows
that she can pray to repent and receive strength and forgiveness from
her Savior. She's on track for her baptism and really wants to follow
and endure! She's so spiritual and prepared but also so spunky and
cool. She's our best friend! We can have spiritual moments together
and then 5 minutes later be silly and joking! Keep her in your
prayers(:
We later dropped by Kojima Shimai's house to see how she was doing and
wish her a Happy Mother's Day! We shared a quick message and prayed
with her! Then she came to the Ward activity on Saturday and church on
Sunday and had a great experience with all her members!
Friday: Exchange with Yamaguchi Shimai! Always so fun to work with my
ex-companion ;) She is the cutest. She is so quiet and chill and has
the sweetest heart. We went to radio taiso in the morning and worked
out with all the old ladies and then they invited us to walking with
them! So cute... I definitely want to be in a walking group when I'm
old! We had an interesting day of proselyting. But very inspired. We
met this lady from the Nishiren sect of Buddhism. We stood with her
and talked with her on the street for quite a long time, teaching and
testifying. She was sure that we were wrong and sure that we would
never be happy. But I felt happy and grateful as I testified of these
things I know to be truth. I LOVE the gospel. The mission increases my
love for  the gospel. Truth is always truth. And this church is the
same ALL over the world (:
We were able to visit with a member and share a message about letting
our faith show. Then we visited, Seki shimai, a recent convert, and
wished her a happy Mother's Day and then visited the wife of another
recent convert to bring her a card and chocolate, too!
Saturday: We attended the cutest activity ever. I don't know who's
idea it was but the men in the Ward planned a "thanksgiving" for the
women in the Ward in honor of Mother's Day. They put a lot of effort
into it and planned cute ice breaker activities for the sisters to get
to know each other. They made us dinner, planned an entire program,
performed music, made an arch and gave each woman carnations. It was
adorable. And delicious. And fun. And Yamauchi shimai and Hiura San
were able to come and it was perfect! Our Ward is so good...
Sunday: A potentially really crazy and stressful day but we put in the
work and planning to call the members and get their help and support
to fellowship the 4 investigators we had at church. It was great
because the members were on their A game and really helped a TON! Our
friends had a great experience at church!! Hiura San went home with a
Book of Mormon, given to her by a member. Yamauchi shimai went home
with a strengthened desire and commitment to be baptized and new
friends. Yokouchi San was loved and fellow shipped by members who have
supported her for months. And our friend, Sugawara San came for the
first time and made friends, and learned, and gained a desire to learn
more. And she loved the hymns and the testimonies! It was incredible!
In the evening we visited with Kusanagi shimai and her 9 year old son
and shared a message about building our foundation on the rock of the
Redeemer. She is a single mom with a really demanding work load, but
she and her little boy are building their firm foundation. They read
scriptures and pray together each day. Sister Kusanagi has such a love
for the gospel and strong faith and gratitude in and for her trials
and challenges. We learned so much together. She is SO busy and
literally has no time at all, but she invited us over because she knew
we could help her by bringing the spiritual nourishment she needs. How
are you building your foundation?
I love being a missionary. I love testifying. I love Japan and I love
the people I serve. I love Christ.
I love YOU <3,
Sister Reeves

My BFF Yamauchi

Me and sister Hotu on our last day together

Chino San's snapback. 

Mother's Day Activity 

Waiting for Pizza