October 3, 2011

Date: Mon, 3 Oct 2011 11:12:41 +0700

สวัสดี!!

Hey everybody! How are you all doing? How was General Conference? I'm really jealous that you all got to watch it! I bet it was so good! That's nuts that they are turning the Provo Tabernacle into another Provo Temple! They could really use it! So, I guess it was kind of "a blessing in the skies" that the Tabernacle was damaged. I'm really excited to get to watch conference, even if it is in Thai.

We were teaching an investigator about the Restoration yesterday, and we were talking about Joseph Smith and how he was a prophet, and then about President Monson being a prophet. Then I was like, "hey you can come on Saturday and Sunday and hear the words of the living prophet!" It was way sweet! I hope she will come! She seems pretty good. She prays everyday, but she said that she is having a hard time finding the time to read the Book of Mormon. I know that a lot of people feel like they have that problem. Before my mission, there were some days I felt like i didn't have time. But I know that if we will make the time to read the Book of Mormon every day, the Lord will bless us more than we will know.

This week was an alright week work-wise. I went up to Mahasarakham with Elder Jensen. It was good to go on an exchange because I learned some good things. But we didn't get much done. Part of that was because one of the bikes broke and we had to go get an estimate on it. That was kind of a hassle.

We had a really good district meeting on Wednesday. One of our Zone Leaders, Elder Hardy (He was a loadmaster on an AC-130 gunship) gave us a really good training on "We invite, they commit, we follow up." It was all about making commitments, and inviting investigators to act.

Elder Ackerman and I have also had the opportunity to be involved with some service at the former branch president's house. He just got released a week or two ago because he has to get surgery. He's helped us so much. He takes us to catch the bus to go to transfers meeting, and he helps us teach a couple times a week. So, when he asked for help, we were happy to serve him. We have been doing some yard work for him. It feels really good to be able to do some manual labor. It's good to just get in and work hard. It reminded me a lot of my days at Birch Creek Ranch.

So with our investigator เเทน(Tan), we have a little issue. He works on Sunday, and can't come to church. We are going to have to move his baptismal date. Its a shame, because he really has the willingness to change his life, and to be baptized. But he says he can't change his work schedule. We had a really good lesson this week on the Law of Chastity and the Word of Wisdom. We have been practicing teaching those quite a bit. A lot of people here have a problem with the abortions part. If they get an abortion, help, or suggest it, they have to meet with President Smith or one of his counselors before they can be baptized. I wonder how big of a problem it is in the U.S.

Yesterday we had a really great experience with one of our investigators. He lives 60 kilometers away, which is about an hour and a half car ride. He called us yesterday morning and said that he wasn't sure if he could make it to church because his house was flooded, and it was pouring rain. Well, we got to the church, and just before Sacrament meeting started he walked in. He had gotten on his motorcycle and driven the whole way in the pouring rain just so he could come to Sacrament meeting. He had to leave right after so that he could go home and makes sure that his family was ok. I thought of the sacrifices that he had to make to come to church, and I know that the Lord is blessing him for that.

This week I have learned some really great things in my studies. The first comes from Alma 32, one of the great chapters on faith. I read in verses 40 and 41 about a tree of everlasting life. It made me think of the seed, and the experiment we are to do with the seed, which is the word of God. That seed, when planted and nourished, will end up being our own tree of life. We must continue to try the experiment over and over in order to nourish it.

The next thing was in Alma 5:26-29. I was studying about humility, and I thought of the Savior. I thought to myself, He was the most humble man ever to walk this earth. Part of me wonders if for that reason, he is the greatest of all. I think its very possible. Humility is a crucial starting point for everything in the church. We must be humble enough to start to experiment to see if these things are true. Then will our faith grow.

Well, all is well here with me! I hope that you are all doing well! I'm excited for conference, and I hope you all learned something because I know that there was something for each individual person who listened to conference.

Be Safe! Be smart! I love you all!
Love,
Elder Todd