May 27, 2018
Hey Everyone!
This week shows a lot of the fruits of our efforts over the
past 11 months, and it was really exciting and satisfying to see it all working
smoothly and well. Our recent convert group is doing a great job at
fellowshipping each other, as well as other people who go to church. We're
breaking the sacrament meeting attendance record for our branch every other
week too. The branch members are getting really excited and asking us to give them
callings (haha, we redirect them to the branch president), and President Sator
is pumped up. It was an exciting week.
Monday, we went to Bako National Park! There were Toooooons of white people. It was a really
pretty national park. There were tons of jelly fish washing up on the beach, and we got lots of
good pictures and a solid sunburn that peeled later in the week. We had lots of
fun, Elder Wang got a video of his sister opening her mission call while we
were there, so we all freaked out together, and we had fun talking to an old
elder that came back on vacation to Malaysia.
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| Elder Sorenson and me at the National Park |
Then we went over to Sister Angelina's house with Raymond and Tracy to teach
them their second to last lesson before their baptism, and it was tons of fun. We had super good curry. Right after we were done teaching, we got a call
from Mike, a recent convert, saying that his motorcycle tire popped and he
needed someone to help him out. Raymond and Tracy drove us over to where
Mike was. We had to go because it was late, but Raymond helped Mike out and got
the tire all fixed up. It was way good. A perfect example of what the church is
supposed to look like; just serving each other. They're way good.
Tuesday was tons of fun too. We taught Jordie, who we were debating on
dropping, just because he didn't really seem like he was progressing. From
Tuesday until now, he's just been super excited about the gospel and always
texts us and calls us and asks questions and stuff. We read 1 Nephi 3 and 4 to
try to spark his interest in the Book of Mormon, and I think it worked! We
asked him if he remembered the story of Joseph Smith too, and then he started
telling it just like a missionary would. Then he quoted the first vision
almost word for word to us. Haha, we were freaking out. It was way good. He's
almost done smoking too! He hasn't smoked for 2 or 3 days already! So that's
awesome! We also met with a cool family that's huge. Tons of people, lots of
little kids. It was so fun to teach a big family. We got a picture with them.
Then we went over to a member's house, and taught his non-member brother. The
non-member (Harrison) is very into the "all churches are the same."
but he doesn't like the Book of Mormon. So we read the Book of Mormon with him
and asked him if it helped his faith, and if he could feel the spirit. He
didn't want to admit it, but he totally felt the spirit, and in the end, he
admitted that he felt the spirit and it helped strengthen his faith in Jesus
Christ. Got em.
Wednesday was full of finding. We found some nice people, but nobody that
really sticks out. At night, we ate at a member's burger stand they run every
night with Raymond and Tracy! It was lots of fun.
Thursday, we met with Natasha and Vincent. They're way funny. We just talked
about goal setting and stuff. Ibans are really bad at goal setting most of the
time, so we helped them make some good goals. We also met with Raymond and Tracy
and taught them how to be baptized! That was fun. After that, we ran over
and taught that huge family. They're OK, not super solid yet, but the oldest
son is really good. He made it to church. His name is Danny. I'll talk about
him a little bit later.
Friday, not a ton happened, but one thing that was funny was we brought Elder
Magleby, senior missionary, with us to an appointment with a newly returning
member. On the way walking to the house, we saw a family in their house, and we
stopped and talked with them, and ended up teaching that family and didn't have
time to teach the less active. It was really funny to see Elder Magleby
sitting in this house that was literally about to tip over into the river it
was built over, cross legged, shifting around and listening to some crazy
language he had no idea how to speak. Haha, it was good. The people we taught
followed the Iban religion too, so they knew nothing about God. It was an
interesting lesson. Also. At night time, a member asked us to help them prepare
food for the Gawai party for the next day, so we helped out.
Before I go on, Gawai is a holiday celebrated by Dayak people (Iban, Bedayu, a
bunch of other tribes). It's celebrating the harvest, and generally everyone
gets wasted for 2 weeks straight and dances and hangs out at their longhouses...except church members. SO. We had an alcohol free Gawai party on Saturday.
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| Gawai vests |
Saturday, we left the house right after studies to help stick a bunch of pig into
bamboo stocks to cook over the fire, fried tonnnnnns of chicken, ate some
really good food for lunch, filled up the Baptismal font, went back and helped
cook more, blazed back to the church to help set up all of the decorations and
stuff, and then got Baptismal clothes for Raymond, Tracy, Aaron, and Kelly.
CRAZY. Four people Baptized. The members were freaking out. Everyone was super
excited. So the baptism happened, it was tons of fun, and then everyone bore
their testimonies. Well. At least tried. Tracy went up to start bearing her
testimony, and then the spirit just hit her like a cannon, and then she
couldn't even speak, then she was so embarrassed, and it was over. So. She was
destroyed by the spirit for like 15 minutes. But it was really good! Then. The
Gawai party. I learned how to Ngajat with Elder Sorensen (a type of dance), and
we did it at the party. It was a lot of fun, we snagged some Gawai vests from
some other missionaries, Jeff brought us our awesome Iban ties, and we had tons
of good food. Jordie came to the Gawai party, and they were having karaoke.
Side note. Jordie LOVES entertainment. Singing, dancing, all that good stuff.
He's a kampung boy for sure. He was up there in a split second singing
along with Goria, the young men president. It was so good. Everyone loved it.
We were all doing the Poco Poco dance, and it was just a ton of fun. Haha,
Gawai is craaaazy. Now we'll have to suffer through the week of everyone being
back at kampung. It'll be OK though.
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| Raymond, Tracy, Aaron, and Kelly's baptisms |
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| Branch President Sator and Brother Palima |
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| Gawai Party |
Sunday. We book it from the house after 30 minutes of personal study to meet
Danny, the oldest boy from the huge family, to introduce him to Jordie, who was
going to bring him to church. We get to his house, walk out of the kampung and
to the gas station just next to the road, and we see Jordie along with Mike and
Milani on their moto. We introduced Jordie to Danny, then Danny points to Milani
and says, "HEY I KNOW YOU!" Apparently they go to the same school. He followed Milani around the entire time at church and loved it. He's super
good. We're excited for him. Mike and Milani received callings at church, as
well as helped prepare the sacrament. So that was really good. They're ushers
for their calling.
Gospel principles was packed with recent converts and investigators. It was
literally just as full as the normal class. It was awesome. Lots of people left
after first hour to go back to their villages for Gawai, so that's why there
weren't as many as normal in the other class. And third hour, President Sator
gave Elder Sorensen and I the nicest compliment I've ever gotten on my mission.
He told us thanks for being so awesome, and told us how we really did
change the branch and him so much, and we put so much energy in the branch. It
was really sincere. I didn't think that he realized how much changed, but
I guess he did. Then he said to everyone, "These two elders aren't like
all the other elders. They're something special." then Raymond, was like,
"They're the COOLEST elders!" Hahaha, anyway, that was the first time
a brother has told us that we were doing a really good job in the branch. The
sisters in the branch will always thank us every week for all of the work
that's getting done, but the brothers normally are a little more reserved in
their compliments. Haha, we were really happy that he felt like we did a lot.
He's changed a lot too. President Sator is doing really well as a branch
president now. 180 degrees from where he was when I got here. The members just
really trust us.
Speaking of trust, I think the biggest thing I've learned on my mission so far
is trust in the Lord. I just have such a huge testimony that if you do what
you're supposed to do, like follow the commandments, and serve each other,
everything will turn out for your good. I guess I knew that before my mission
too, but really, in every single area I've been in, I've seen that principle so
clearly. It just stands out so obviously and clearly now. Like in Alma
32:33-34. I've tried it out, I've seen it grow, and my faith has become a
knowledge. I know that it works. 100% of the time, every time. And now my mind
is expanding and my understanding is being enlightened. So. Trust in the Lord,
doubt not, fear not. Do what you're supposed to do, and you can believe
everything in the scriptures without a doubt.
After church, we went over to an inactive member's house, and met her kids.
Kent, 18, and Kelly, 23. We just were talking, and then out of nowhere, Elder
Sorensen just told Kent he needed to serve a mission. When he said it, the
spirit came really strong, and then the discussion was led so we'll by the
spirit. It was awesome. We ended up committing him to read the Book of Mormon
front to back by the end of the year. We had him write on the front page of the Book of Mormon, "Should I serve a mission?" and then told him to
think about that one question every single time he read the book, and promised
him that if he read the Book of Mormon every day, and finished before the end
of the year, he would have a desire to go on a mission. It was a really really
good lesson, and he was pumped. We did the same thing for the sister, but
instead of the mission question, we had her write, "Who should I
marry?" on the front page. It ended up being a super effective visit.
We also filled out some Baptismal records with people. That took a while. Then
we went over to a member's house to teach a referral! Igat! He's actually
really solid! He lives in KL, but he'll be here for a couple weeks. So we'll
solidify him before he goes back to KL, then get him baptized. He's really
good.
That was my week! It was tons of fun, really eventful, and everyone here is
just mega excited. It's been amazing seeing the branch transform so fast! I
don't think I've seen a branch turn around like that in my entire mission. It's
been great to be a part of it. This next week is the last week of the transfer,
and from what President Simmons said, it looks like I have a pretty high chance
of being transferred. So I hope the missionary that replaces me does a good
job, because we did a lot of work the past 3 months to just get it all thrown
away. Haha, I'm sure he'll do great. I think I can guess who it will be too.
Anyway, I love you all! Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Ben Mullins
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| Elder Loos visiting Kuching |
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| Going to Bakko |
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| Preparing for the Gawai party |
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| Eating at Kuwin burger |
