Welcome Home!

My last week!

It's my last week but it doesn't feel any different. Or it does, I'm not super sure.

This past week has been filled with miracles and blessings and even a trip to Lampang! (companion exchanges)

We also met two new investigators who are WAY solid.

Sister ตา (Da) we met at English class and she said that she wanted to learn more about Christianity and English and then saw our church and felt like it was right. So we made an appointment and taught her and then she went to our relief society activity and then came to church! She's so great.

Our other investigator's name is ป๊อก (Pok) and he is an engineer who wanted to know more about our teachings and he wasn't free yesterday to come to church but wants to come this week.

I know that this church is true and miracles happen. God prepares people to come unto His fold and we can find them if we 1. come unto Christ ourselves by partaking of his word. and 2. spreading the good news through our actions and words.

Have a great week, keep it real! Love you all.

Investigator baptized!

MTC district members reunited

Our investigator got baptized last week! Also, I sent my MTC companion off, she just finished her mission and we took her to the airport where her parents picked her up. It was a great reunion!

Sister Sanong was baptized

Last week we also visited the beach down in the more southern parts of Thailand. Don't worry, no swimming.

I know that this church is true, and that God loves us. I love God. I love the gospel. The other day I passed out a card with a picture of someone being baptized. And I said "Through Christ, you can be washed from sin." And when I said that, I was also saying it to myself. Inviting others to come unto Christ makes me happy because I know that as I repent and keep covenants, I am cleansed from all my weaknesses and the things I've done wrong. The gospel is true. Repentance is the best.

Have a great week!

I hope heaven is crowded

Sorry the time is short, we just sent a brand new sister missionary from Lao to the airport. She will be going to the Provo MTC and then heading off to the Sydney North mission in Australia! It was a blessing to be able to meet with her, I'll have to send some pictures next week!

We've had some pretty great miracles lately, but the one I love the most was yesterday night, we crammed about 20 people into a members tiny one-room apartment, plus a few of our investigators. It was crowded but we ate food, and sang songs and shared a spiritual thought and then this thought came to me: I hope heaven is just like this. I hope that heaven is crowded with barely enough space because you are surrounded by all of your friends and loved ones eating and laughing and singing together.

Also I just want you all to know it's the little things like this have made my mission worth it. I love the gospel, I love all of you, have a great week!

Choose Your Path

Sunday inviting at the university!

I've started a new list since being on my mission. It's called, MIRACLE not Coincidence. This made it. Yesterday morning I woke up while waiting for my turn to use the bathroom, read a quote on the back of another sister's guitar from the book Alice in Wonderland, the same quote that President Monson used in his talk, "Choices".

Alice: “Which path shall I follow?”
Cheshire Cat: “That depends where you want to go. If you do not know where you want to go, it doesn’t matter which path you take.”

Then at church, a member used the same quote and the talk that President Monson gave, and I was like--"Hey I read that this morning"

Unlike Alice, we know where we want to go, and it does matter which way we go, for the path we follow in this life leads to our destination in the next life.

So then I went home and read the talk by President Monson during my studies and highlighted a part I liked.

Giving out flowers during contacting time
with our investigator Sister Bo

May we choose to build up within ourselves a great and powerful faith which will be our most effective defense against the designs of the adversary—a real faith, the kind of faith which will sustain us and will bolster our desire to choose the right. Without such faith, we go nowhere. With it, we can accomplish our goals.

Miracle > Coincidence

But it's not over!

That night, literally at the same moment while mentioning this very miracle during follow up calls and simultaneously flipping through my other list I've started since being on my mission called "LYRIC ideas", I found something I had randomly scrawled out a couple weeks ago:

"Choose your path, Alice."

Then I felt a little creeped out.

Anyway, the church is true! While I'm working on understanding the purpose of this miracle in my life, I give you all the same commitment that President Monson shared with us:

"May we maintain the courage to defy the consensus. May we ever choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong."

I hope you all remember that God loves you.
CTR people, CTR!

Valentine's Day activity

eating lunch at the church that the
elders brought from home (we forgot)

First sunday eating dinner at the Johnsons

Our investigator, Bo (left) and sister missionaries

View from our apartment in Bangkok

lunch at Que Pasa after an amazing devotional
by Sister Cordon and Elder Evans

My companion and I at Que Pasa

Inviting at Lumphini Park

The clocktower where President Hinckley
gave his dedicatory prayer in Thailand

Food truck during a switch off with my old MTC companion

Thai fries

The "Last Leg"

Me and my companion, Sister Fuai-Ngarach

So we're on the last transfer now, this was weird. I'm still in Asoke, but I am with Sister Fuai-Ngarach and she's so awesome. she's also eating a packet of bologna right now (currently memories of Kate and Evan eating schmears of bologna are flooding back).

I'm also in the same house as my first companion from the MTC, Sister Kwak! It's fun to see how much we've grown. But don't worry. I'm still the same height.

This last week we had a great miracle start. A 25 year old girl named Lukpra was interested in a church tour. When we introduced all the weekly activities to her (sports, family home evening, Institute, English, Valentine's Day Activity) and then asked what seemed most interesting to her.

She answered, "Institute."

"Why?"

She explained, "I've never actually learned about Jesus Christ before and I think that seems like a great class to learn more."

And then of course we taught her. I love people that love institute! Have a wonderful week, the church is true!

Finding "Lost Sheep"

This week was an adventure. We went and found some "lost sheep". One member hadn't been in contact with the church for 5 years until I met her off a street invite the other day, and now she is open to learning with the missionaries again. Miracles do happen.

I came across a scripture in my studies this morning. And I don't know why but this scripture--at least for me personally--illustrates perfectly God's love for all of his children.

"And the Lord of the vineyard caused that it should be digged about, and pruned, and nourished, saying unto his servant: it grieveth me that I should lose this tree; wherefore, that perhaps I might preserve the roots thereof that they perish not, that I might preserve them unto myself, I have done this thing."  --Jacob 5:11

Sometimes crazy things happen to us in our lives, and we don't know why. I testify that God does these things for our benefit--it's to preserve us--in order to grow and be like Him.

This verse also reminds me of a video from Elder D. Todd Christofferson so I will share it.

I know that the church is true. God wants what is best for us and he doesn't want to lose us. Let's all make the choice to never give up!

Eager Investigators in Asoke

This week was pretty big--we had a worldwide missionary broadcast and they changed how we do some of our planning. Did I mention we watched the broadcast at our president's home, eating Sister Johnson's homemade legendary cinnamon rolls? That's another story. 

I love our investigators here in Asoke. One of them lived in Idaho for ten months with a host family that were members. Now she is applying for BYU Hawaii, and that's how we met her...coming to church for her ecclesiastical endorsement. Another is sister Bow, she reads the book of Mormon and writes down small summaries of what she reads shares them with us to make sure she understanding right. Our other investigator is Brother Nat. He drives a car for a rich Japanese guy and takes his Book of Mormon with him everywhere. His boss asked him what he was reading and now he's going to give a copy of the book to his boss. #Spreadtheword.

Asoke is a blessed area. The city is big and full of potential. I was walking down the street one day contacting with my companion and we met someone who showed us a sketch of the temple on his phone. I am so excited for the temple to be here in Thailand.

I know this church is true and the Lord loves you.

More Miracles and a Poem

Hey family,

Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes!

For an update, I'm not sick anymore. And miracles are always coming our way, like when we met a strong Christian protestant and I prayed to God that I could share my testimony about the Book of Mormon--and I did. And then she let us go with her to visit her daughter in jail the following morning.

There's a poem I'd like to share by Larry Beacham

If you want a thing bad enough to go out and fight for it;
to work day and night for it
To give up your time, your peace, and your sleep for it
If all that you dream and scheme is about it
And life seems useless and worthless without it
If you gladly sweat for it and fret for it and plan for it
And lose all of your terror of the opposition for it
If you simply go after that thing you want
With all your capacity, strength and sagacity
Faith, hope, and confidence and stern pertinacity.
If neither cold, poverty, famine, nor gout;
sickness nor pain of body and brain,
can keep you away from the thing that you want
If dogged and grimmed you beseech and beset it
with the help of God you will get it.

I love the last part--no matter how much we want it we still need the help of God to get it. And we can.

I love you all. Shoot for your dreams. Pray. Choose the right. I'll do it to.

I know this church is true and missionary work is the greatest work I could be doing right now. Keep it real and stay happy! Life's too short to be sad for too long
😁

Recovering today

Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes!

I am so sorry I don't have time to reply to you this week, I will next I promise.... I got sick again, and now I'm in recovery mode. I'll be doing some post-celebrating later when I'm fully better.

I know this church is true and missionary work is the greatest work I could be doing right now. Thanks for all of your love and wishes.

Keep it real and stay happy! 😁

Baptism!

Sorry I'm keeping it short! We are going to do something with shells this week, so I don't have time to email.

I thought I would tell you last Sunday we had a baptism! It was a great experience being able to help one of our investigators feel the spirit on her special day. I felt so impressed the way she has been integrated into the ward. We also had the opportunity to go to her house and let her grandmother know about her baptism. There were definitely tears but it was so sweet to see our investigator bear her testimony of the things she believed.

I know this church is true and I know Christ lives.

Saying Goodbye to "Home"

Transferred to downtown Bangkok!

Transfer calls came in, and I'm out. I will miss my Roi Et home...

On the other hand I got my new call, and I'm in Asoke! Or in other words, the biggest of Bangkok you can get. I'm right down at mission headquarters.

Culture shock! This is not like camping in Roi Et.

My new companion, Sister Phosawat, was briefly in a tri-pan with me at the beginning of her mission while she was waiting to leave to the Philippines MTC.

My new companion...again! Sister Phosawat!

It's a bittersweet experience but I am so excited for a great transfer and of course McDonalds.

I know the church is true. My mission has changed my life and continues to do so. I love you all and hope you have a great week. Happy new year!

Saying good-bye to everyone in Roi-Et