Another week, faster than the last

Hello everybody!

Here I am, at the end of another week! It's crazy the way time works... Weeks feel like hours and days like years.

Monday, we had a pretty fun pday. Not too exhausting and not to stressful either. We emailed in the morning, and then headed are over to เดอะมอลล์บางแค, (the mall in Bangkhae) where we met up with the other elders in the district randomly, and spent some time wandering around and grabbed some great food to eat. You'd think that since pizza isn't native to Thailand, that it wouldn't be all that good, but let me tell ya, it's great stuff. After that, we grabbed some ice cream, and then headed over to the bowling alley a little ways down the road. It was a way fun time. I didn't bowl too well, my first game was a 96, and the next a 54, but I mean that's ok right?? Haha we had a good time. After that, we finished out the day with some inviting and I found a guy smoking outside his house and I stood there and talked to him for a bit and what do you know a little later, I helped him say a prayer and we got a new investigator!! It was pretty exciting.

Tuesday, we set out in the morning to go and visit an LA down the street from out house. And by down the street, I mean a ways down the street. We ended up getting out of the apartment a little late that day, and then got on a สองแถว (a little pickup truck with two rows in the back for people to sit in that's a way fun form of public transportation in Thailand) which ended up not going where we wanted it to go... So we rode it to the last stop and then walked the rest of the way to ซ. หรั่ง's house. She is doing better than she was when we last met with her. Way less stressed now. So that's good. After that, we tried to go and visit another friend of hers who is less active as well, but she was "sick" and didn't want to talk to us and so we left. Then we had just enough time for personal study and lunch right before district meeting. District meeting was way fire. It was such good stuff. We talked about how we need to talk with everybody, and we talked about strategies to be better about that. It was perfect because I just got done reading some fire general conference talks on being a better missionary. Way good stuff. After that, English class. That was way fun too. We practiced with different kinds of food, and how to order things at a sit down restaurant. It was way fun stuff.

Wednesday, we started out the day with some studies. I really love my time for personal study. It's really been a blessing for me in the last couple of weeks as I've made it more meaningful. I've found some really good general conference talks that I've come to love in the past little bit from my studies. All are on missionary work and how we can be better missionaries, and helped give me some motivation to go and do! Good stuff, good stuff. After that, we went to find our investigator from Monday night to meet again, but unfortunately, he was not at home, and his phone was off... Sad day, but oh well i guess. Day in the life of a missionary! After that, we invited our way home. Today I felt way good. I could really feel the spirit as we invited, or fished as I prefer to say, and I could feel Him testify through me as we talked to different people. It was way good stuff. My language is still not at all perfect, but it sure has come a long way!! That's really been a tender mercy for me. After inviting, we headed over to the church where we had a member that was going to help us teach a lesson ผิดนัด. Sad day, but we went anyway to go and teach our investigator who is now on drop alert, and spoiler alert, we actually dropped him Sunday... So yeah that was way sad, but not much we could do I guess. After that, we had a great BoM class, and then dinner.

Thursday, we did our weekly planning in the morning, and I really feel like we planned for success! We had some ideas that were good stuff, and I feel like if we can implement them and work diligently, we can find some success! So I was pumped leaving the house that afternoon. We met with a guy named สงครันต์ but he prefers us to call him Peter. He was LA for several years but now had a fiery desire to come back to church and be a strong member. It's way exciting to see. He decided that he wanted his American name to be Peter, and he really likes quoting the scripture: "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church" (Matt 16:18) because he wants Christ to be able to trust him like he trusted Peter. Way cool guy. After that, we had a couple of different appointments with some members, including a guy who is 18 and has a soft goal to be a missionary. So we are helping him with that. After that, we fit some studies and dinner in, and a great correlation meeting.

Friday, we spent the morning studying. After that, we had a quick lunch, and while Elder McCown was going over the list of prospective elders that we can work with, I cleaned our room up a little bit. Needless to say, there's alot that can be done... anyways, eventually we headed out the door, and hit the streets to go and invite, because that's what you do when you have no appointments!!! We met some funny people though. As a missionary, you sure meet the crazies. I mean, it takes someone being crazy to have the courage to say hi to two white guys who at first glance may or may not speak Thai. It's fun stuff for sure. So we had some wonderful conversations and sure walked alot that afternoon. Eventually, we headed back to the church and had some quick dinner before sports night, which really wasn't all that exciting. It's not as big a thing like it was in บางเขน, which is really unfortunate. All that really went down was an LA member brought some ping pong stuff that we played with for a bit. That was the extent of our sports night. After that we headed home. Little bit of a disappointing day to be honest. PMG is totally right when it says, "nothing in missionary work happens until you find people to teach." Only too true. Today was one if those days where we didn't really have that many people to teach.

Saturday, we had a pretty similar day to Friday. No appts for the afternoon and so we were inviting for most of the day. We started the day off with some studies, and then had lunch, and then headed out. The first place we set out for was the house of my invite from Monday night, and lo and behold, he was right on his front porch like he was waiting for us! Way cool. He said that on Wednesday, he had to take his mom to the doctor. Anyways, so we went in and sat down and had a super messy lesson where we kind of talked about out all the points of the restoration, but we didn't really take control of the situation, we just kind of answered questions he and his mom had... Something we can learn and grow from I guess. We taught about prayer though before we left and committed them to come to church. This guy, named ชาญชัย has this smile that just seems to look into your very soul. It's a little creepy, not going to lie. After that, and a little more inviting, we headed over to another investigators house. The only reason she isn't baptized is her husband won't let her. So we are trying to help him see how the gospel can bless there family. After that, we headed to the bishops house to have an FHE with his family. His dad is a former stake president and one of those people that you can be sure will never fall. He is so strong. It was way good. It made me have a desire to remain strong in the faith, and receive the familial blessings that come from living the gospel. It is awesome sauce. Eternal families are the best!!!

Sunday, we woke up and got to the church for sacrament meeting. I'm not sure exactly why, but I feel like sacrament meeting has become way more meaningful to me as a missionary than it ever had before my mission. It's seriously the best. The spirit there is so incredible. After that we had our normal Sunday school and priesthood classes. Priesthood was a little crazy.. we had a bunch of random topics that were discussed because the teacher didn't actually show up to church today. But good times right? After church, we had our normal after church lunch, which was way good, and then we taught the one investigator that showed up to church this week. Even he showed up late though... sad day for us. And then we ended up having to drop him, so double sad day. Our numbers have really been struggling the past couple of weeks. Anyways, after that, we took some time to make some follow up calls, and then we went inviting for a bit, talked to a random crazy guy who lives under a Buddhist altar/spirit house thing, and basically found no one interested in our message. But that's normal I guess. After that, we finished the day with some studies and dinner.

Spiritual thought for this week comes from President Monson's talk from a while back called "The Call of Duty". He talks about what it means to magnify our calling in the church, and how to be the kind of people the Lord expects us to be, and perform with success the callings in life we are given. He begins his talk with some fiery quotes from the civil war era:

"Duty is the sublimest word in our language. … You cannot do more. You should never wish to do less."

-Robert E. Lee

“Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith let us to the end dare to do our duty as we understand it.”

-Abraham Lincoln

He then explains how we magnify our callings in the church, and how to be successful in life:

"An elder magnifies the ordained calling of an elder by learning what his duties as an elder are and then by doing them."

"Do your duty; that is best. Leave unto the Lord the rest."

To close, I quote Nephi from the BoM.

“And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.”

1 Nephi 3:7

I know that God lives, and has called each of us to a work. It may be different person to person, but we all have a work to do, and to complete! This was a way awesome talk that I got to read this last week, and I was grateful for the insights I got from it. It was a testimony to me of the fact that the Lord does not give us more than we can handle, but he also does not expect us to sit around waiting miracles to fall into our lap! I know he is at the head of this work, and if we trust in Him, all things will fall into place.

Have a great week you all!!!:)

Elder L

Ps something i found that's really fun to do is when people ask how old you are is have them guess. I've gotten as old as 30 before haha

Elder Ellsworth - เอ็ลเดอร์ เอ็ลสเวิร์ธ

for perfect love casteth out all fear

เพราะความรักที่บริบูรณ์ย่อมขับความกลัวออกไปสิ้น

Thailand Bangkok Mission

Some of these are already explained, but other than that, we visited a great family on Saturday, had some good desserts, bowling fun, and yeah the bar that's right in front of the church here haha