Transferred to Roi-Et!

A lady carved a watermelon for my first day in Roi-Et

Just moved...I'm in the city of Roi-Et! The name means 101 in Thai. This ward is pretty amazing. There are some awesome members and they are all supportive of missionary work. It is such a good experience and such a good feeling to know that right now, I am exactly where the Lord wants me to be.

By the way, everyone--everyone---here plays Pokemon Go. What in the world is that, I don't know. Here are some pictures of the move.

Letter From Mission President

24 Aug 2016

Dear Brother and Sister Smith,

It is a pleasure to advise you that the Lord has called your daughter, Sister Sabrina Smith to serve as a Sister Training Leader in the Thailand Bangkok Mission. As a Sister Training Leader, she will be responsible to conduct companion exchanges with other sisters and participate in the Mission Leadership Council. Sister Training Leaders are responsible to maintain their regular proselyting areas also assist the Mission President, Assistants, Zone Leaders and District Leaders in training meetings and zone conferences.

Sister Smith has shown a desire to be dedicated and obedient. Her strength of character is a great example to the missionaries with whom she serves and is a reflection of those who raised her. Thank you for all you have done to prepare your daughter for the great trust the Lord has now placed upon her.

Sister Johnson and I thank you for your continued faith and prayers in your daughter's behalf.

Sincerely,

President Kelly R. Johnson
Thailand Bangkok Mission

Keep your Mind's Eye on the Goal

Dear ครอบครัว (family),

Hello. I am going to a cave today. So I will keep it short by sharing a great story that my mission president shared with us, I really like it.

"In 1952, young Florence Chadwick stepped into the waters of the Pacific Ocean off Catalina Island, determined to swim to the shore of mainland California. She had previously been the first woman to swim the English Channel both ways. The weather was foggy and chilly; she could hardly see the boats accompanying her. Still, she swam for fifteen hours. When she begged to be taken out of the water along the way, her mother, in a boat alongside, told her she was close and that she could make it. Finally, physically and emotionally exhausted, she stopped swimming and was pulled out. It was not until she was on the boat that she discovered the shore was less than half a mile away. At a news conference the next day she said, “All I could see was the fog.…I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it.”

"Two months later, Florence got back in the water to try her task once more. This time was different. She swam from Catalina Island to the shore of California in a straight path for twenty six miles. The same thick fog set in, but Florence made it because she said that while she swam, she kept a mental image of the shoreline in her mind. Florence Chadwick became the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel, eclipsing the men’s record by two hours!
She didn’t lose sight of the shore because she focused on that image of the coast in her mind, and in this way, she reached her goal."

I love the lesson taught with her great words, “I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it.” I think you can apply this lesson to many aspects of life.

Sometimes we have lots of responsibilities that may seem overwhelming. For me as a missionary, those things include we have to find people to teach, work with members, strengthen members and leaders, strengthen and build branches and wards, retain our converts, teach English, provide service, become personally converted, maintain strong companion-ships, teach with the Spirit, baptize, confirm, etc. The list goes on and on, and it can be overwhelming. But all the things I do really are to teach repentance and baptize converts. If I focus on that purpose, the many responsibilities I have suddenly change from being an overwhelming amount of stuff to do, to some really great resources that help me fulfill my purpose.

I challenge each of you to make a list of the many responsibilities you need to fulfill. Your list may be pretty long, but that's okay. Then after that, if you have time tomorrow night in family home evening for Mom / Dad / Marty, Kate and Carson-- I want you to read chapter 6 of Preach My Gospel manual and each household write down an overall purpose or image you want to reach. And for Evan, I want you to do the same for personal study, even with your companion too if you want.

After that, compare all of your responsibilities in your list to that purpose. I promise that if you do so you will be able to know how to accomplish your tasks in the greatest way God wants you to.

I know that this church is true, and that God loves each of His children, and He cares that we succeed. Now go find out the meaning of success.

I love you all, and can't wait to hear what becomes of it!

Sister Bow got baptized!

This week was good. Our investigator, Sister โบว์ (Bow) got baptized this past Sunday. It was a wonderful baptismal service, and she was so excited so of course it made us excited. It was particularly special because her baptism was one step closer to her family being sealed together in the temple. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with part member families. It brings me great joy to see their love for Christ and for their families come together to bring their families into the light of the gospel.

I found a verse I absolutely love that has to do with following God's will and being positive. It's in 2nd Nephi 10:20 which reads:

"And now, my beloved brethren, seeing that our merciful God has given us so great knowledge concerning these things, let us remember him, and lay aside our sins, and not hang down our heads, for we are not cast off; nevertheless, we have been driven out of the land of our inheritance, but we have been led to a better land, for the Lord has made the sea our path, and we are upon an isle of the sea."

It reminds me of a quote by President Monson, "Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith."

I know that learning new things, new or better ways to do things, shouldn't make us feel bad that we don't live up, but rather we should lay aside our sins and lift our heads up, because we are being led by God to become even better. Learning and changing is a good thing; it's the reason we are here on earth. Without growth, we could not become like God.

I love this gospel and I am grateful for all the things I learn every day. I know that the Savior lives and atoned for all of us to live with God. I know that Joseph Smith restored the church, and through our living prophet today we can receive better direction on what we need to do in this life to make the most out of our lives.

I love this church!

Sister Nan, me, and the Bow family

Sister Nan's Blessing, Thoughts About Heaven

Sister Nan went and got her patriarchal blessing! It was a very special moment for her. Other awesome news is that on Sunday, a chain of seemingly random but yet not so random events leading to meeting a new investigator that wants to be baptized.

Today I was studying in the Book of Mormon and read in 1st Nephi 14:10,

"Behold, there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil." 

This scripture reminded me of something I have pondered a lot on this mission. Many people we meet tell us they are not interested to hear our message because they are "happy being Buddhist", they believe that "all religions are right", etc. This always bothers me. Sure, those things are partially true. Religion in our lives is scientifically proven to improve happiness in one's life. And religious harmony is important to maintain because all religions try to help people live better lives.

But there's something more than that to religion. And this scripture made it crystal clear.

There is no Buddhist heaven. There is no Mormon heaven either. There is only one heaven and only one path to get there. I know this Church is true and this path--the path that Jesus Christ created for us by fulfilling the Father's will and atoning for our sins--is the right way that leads to eternal life and exaltation. I know that only through this Church we can truly follow Christ because Joseph Smith was called to restore that same path that Christ created for all to follow.

I am grateful I know this truth and I am grateful to preach this truth to those who do not know it. I'm sure being Buddhist brings happiness to some, and if that's the case, then the right religion will bring unimaginably more. And maybe all religions have some truth but with all the disagreements between them, what a relief it would be to find a religion that was entirely correct. พอดีว่า we have a message to suit those needs.....

I love you all, have a great week.

Thanks for the Letters

So good to hear how the family's doing. I get little snippets from everyone and it helps me put the pieces together. [As I think about the big picture, I realize] every soul is precious in the sight of God, and helping someone build foundations to stay strong is really important and worthwhile, even if it seems like it's taking awhile.

[On news about returning missionaries...] Crazy how everyone is getting home, how fast time flies. Weird.

Have a wonderful week! Love you tons, thanks for your letters, I always appreciate them.