Feb. 25, 2013

Leih sik jauh faan maih a?

Ngoh heimong sik jauh!

How is everyone back in the world? This week was a great week filled with a lot of different experiences. I will do my best to convey them all in the 27 minutes I have left to email... haha

Well this may sound like a small thing, but I heard the bells from the BYU bell tower earlier this week. All is Well, All is Well. I miss BYU and it is hard looking out and seeing the campus, my old office, the dorms. everything. That was my life prior to this experience so it is crazy to see that all behind me. I will be back there soon enough. But you learn to cherish little things here and those bells are one of those things for me.

Next, we set a baptismal date for one of our progressing investigators, March 11. She is a convert that our teacher, Fung Ji Muih had. She is awesome. We struggle to communicate our message sometimes, especially the small little details that we can just say in a quick second in English, but take minutes to figure out how to say in Cantonese. Teaching is one of the most stressful, rewarding, fun, crazy experiences missionaries have while at the MTC. On that note, my companionship had the opportunity to teach a real investigator from HK in the TRC this week. She is an exchange student and wanted to hear about the gospel in her native language. So we are the only Cantonese elders in the whole state of Utah so she came to us! We gave an awesome lesson all in Cantonese and it seemed like she really was feeling what we had to say is true. She said that she will continue to come back, so Saturdays we have real lessons with her! Awesome, huh? It really lit a fire under Fok Jeung Louh and I when it comes to teaching and that we will be doing it for the next couple years in HK.

Remember how I said we missionaries enjoy the little things? Well, Sundays we see church films and this weeks was the Testaments. That was the movie we watched my first Sunday here at the MTC. which means two things:

1. I have been here long enough that we are beginning to cycle through things at the MTC and

2. The Testaments is my new favorite movie. It made me so happy watching it four weeks ago, and it made me equally as happy last night. The message is powerful, but the movie is great too! So many quotes that the Canto elders just recite during the day. These wont mean much to you if you haven't seen the movie recently, but I suggest you watch it! "You are a spector from the Gods! Walk with me!" or "Is the place of records far from here?" HAHAHA. I love me my movie quotes...

On a more serious note, I was assigned to be the new Zone Leader this week. It should be fun because I will have the opportunity to show the incoming missionaries around the MTC and how to really get by. I feel like an MTC expert and now this is my opportunity to share my expertise. My ZL's were awesome and I am excited to carry on that type of reputation. This new assignment also eliminates any "free time" I had before. The time I used to use to do extra personal or language study is now replaced with meetings... It isn't so bad because I get to work closely with our Branch President, President Larkin. He used to be mission president in Taiwan and speaks great Chinese (Mandarin though...). He was a Air Force Chaplain back in the day and I love talking with him. 78 missionaries in our zone with 21 more coming in in 2 weeks. That is a lot to manage!

The older Cantonese district leaves in a week. I am going to miss them. They have really been like brothers to use younger elders. But they are off to bigger and better things in HK, and soon, we will be joining them in the work! Big shout out to them, Pihng tuhng maih Bou Jeung Louh!

I see Elders Evett and Williams all the time, usually at meals. My teacher loves elder Williams because I told her my conversion story and how we cam to the MTC together! haha

Well I am running out of time so I will close with a few things I learned this week. Read the first three verses in the Book of Omni which is in the Book of Mormon. What does Omni teach us? Well he taught me that sometimes we wont feel up to par. We will feel like we are inadequate in all walks of life. That we can try our hardest, but still come up short. He calls himself wicked. But he goes on the say that he has kept the commandments of his fathers. Jarom was his Father, a very righteous man! By keeping the commandments of his father regarding the record, he kept our Heavenly Fathers commandment. Without his efforts we wouldn't have the Book of Mormon. So it is my testimony that we may feel weak, lowly, or just plain inadequate at times. But we must press on. Try your best. Great things will be brought to pass through your efforts. God blesses those who put forth the effort, even when it is not enough. He is the Great Finisher.

Ngoi,

Wuh Jeung Louh