Zone Conference! (Whitewashing Part 3)
Hey there Dad!
I feel like I forgot to update a couple weeks ago that... I
finished the Book of Mormon in Thai! July 27th, 2017. It's been a couple weeks
since then... but I thought that would be worth telling! I got it finished in
the last week of last transfer, so right now, I'm back in 2 Nephi 22, all the
way since then. The reason I've been trying to read the Book of Mormon so much
was because of some wise words that I received from a missionary in my first
switch-off while I was in Pakkret: "The best times you will learn are when
you feel the Spirit, because the Spirit is the best teacher for us. That
includes the language! So the best ways and times to learn the language is when
you read from the Book of Mormon, and when you are teaching." So I've
spent a great majority of my time trying to read and understand the Book of
Mormon and undoubtedly I've seen blessings from doing that. As well as trying
to learning the language whenever I can... but it's been fun! But the
dialect/accent here is just a little different... So back to square 2-3 (not
quite square 1, hahaha).
As for exploring adventures: We went to Udorn last week to
do some activity with the District! Udorn is about 1 hour away, so it's not all
that far from here at all. So we all went to a member's shop who is a physical
therapist, of some sort or some odd like that, but she had a fancy
"scale" that would measure your body fat, your bone density, and the
whole bit... So that was interesting! Told me I was 80.4 kg (about 175 pounds,
give or take, so that's pretty normal). But the funny part was: It told me I
has 60.4 kg of muscle and 3.3 kg of bones. So... the rest goes to
fat/water/organs(?). But I thought that it was funny because my companion
weighs about 67 kg, give or take, so I almost have as much weight/density in
muscle as he does altogether... so maybe working out in the morning has payed
off! Have to try to keep my legs strong at least... hahaha. Then we went ice
skating that day, and my feet cramped, as usual. And I almost fell several
times, but it was fun!
So last week was Zone Conference! It's always a great
blessing to see the leaders here in the mission, especially President Johnson,
and the Assistants to the President. I can feel how much love they have for the
work, and how much they love Thailand. In other words, how much FIRE they
have. They're great examples for all the missionaries. Plus, all the
missionaries in the Zone are great people, and hard-working missionaries, so I
enjoy learning from all of them as well. I still have a lot to learn, so I'm
glad to be able to learn from them, and the Zone Leaders here too. (on a
side-note: I've been with one of my Zone Leaders, Elder Lovelock, since he first
became a Zone Leader and have been with him in the same district for 4
transfers now, so that's been pretty fun!) Just being at Zone Conference helps
me to have more motivation for the work and to try harder to be better for the
people here in Thailand. It's also a great privilege to be able to interview
with President Johnson every Zone Conference and just discuss how things are
going for me and the area as well!
We actually live in a house, and we rent it for, about 150
dollars a month or so? So I think that's pretty fair. The kitchen is kind of outside,
kind of not, meaning that air from the outside comes in, but nothing else
(besides tiny tiny bugs). Yep, the
entire kitchen! And that's actually true! If I set something on fire or burn
something, it doesn't destroy the house as well... :) Tiny flies come in, and that whole bit,
sometimes a tiny gecko might wander in, but we let those stay because they eat
the bugs and they're cute. Generally the
bill for water and electricity is about another 70ish dollars or so, so all in
all it's about 200 dollars, plus some, I think, to rent that place out! Not
that big though, that's for sure!
The area is still trying to grow! The trouble that we're
finding here is that it's a little more difficult to find new investigators.
We're looking for good places to try and invite people to learn about the
Restored Gospel, but no one really has wanted to listen to us as for as that
has been going... but as we try to follow the Spirit, we'll be blessed for
sure! We're getting this area back on its feet and helping it grow again! I
know that as we're obedient, and try to be successful missionaries (as said in
PMG), we'll be blessed for our efforts, and our desire to serve God with all of
our heart, might, mind, and strength. We will receive exactly what we need from
Heavenly Father, and the people around us will receive exactly what they need,
because God loves us! The branch might
take a little while to grow, but we're working on it! It seems like the members
like us so far, so i'm glad about that one!
I love Thailand, and these people! It truly is a privilege
to serve the Lord. Love you, and talk to you soon!
- Elder Collin Decker
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