2-25-18 Ayuthaya Thailand

Hey there Dad!

It's cold over there? I guess it's February already... But this is when things start to get a lot warmer around here... Way warmer! Do people have to go into school late because there's ice? That was always my hope... Perhaps that was a bad hope... Oh well 😅.

The Sisters in the group above me go home this transfer. Meaning next month. 😣

Yeah we were actually waiting for the Sisters on transfer day... And then it started pouring on everyone's stuff. So we sprinted out to bring in all the stuff! 

I miss volleyball... I need to get buffer though hahaha. Maybe lose a little fat... The 1 year and 6 months is coming up WAY TOO FAST. So I'm not ready for that. 

In other news for here, my trainer, Elder Bastian, is on a plane home right now. He got bit by something in Phuket and it led to a bad leg infection, so they decided that he was to go home, since he only has 1 or two transfers left. I'm going to miss him a lot. There are so many good missionaires here, sometimes I think it's going to be hard to replace them. Of course we're not just replacements but these missionaries are great examples that seem very difficult to emulate. But we try our best and go on! Make sure you say hi to him for me and get a chance to say a few words of encouragement. I gave him a tie already, so if you could leave a couple words with him as well, that would be much appreciated. 

But otherwise, we had a baptism! Sister Nang. She was found by the other Elder Decker who served here right before I came. Then I came and helped to teach her and she was just golden from start to finish. She quit coffee even before we taught the Word of Wisdom ​because of a prompting from the Holy Ghost. Way sweet!

My companion is way cool. Pretty relaxed but willing to work hard. We're going to see miracles this transfer! Have some big goals so it's going to be great. His Thai is fine! Doing great for where he is.

I've been getting to be more optimistic. It's hard. Smiling all the time is weird, but How Great is Our Calling! We should have a good reason to smile. Choosing to be positive is a key to being happy.

In other random news, I crashed my bike again. But I got a sweet drift out of that bike crash so it's ok! We also cleaned out the Baptismal Font... Videos and pictures have been uploaded! All in all a great week.

We are here because of the joy that can come to another through their repentance. We as well. Remember to keep your head up and choose to live after a manner of happiness! Then it will come to us. Love God and live The Gospel. Then, all things will work together for our good and that of others.

Love you lots! Have fun! Talk to you soon!

- Elder Collin Decker

2-18-18 Ayuthaya Thailand transfers Elder Abbot

Hey hey there Dad!

Well, sounds like everything in the house is breaking... Just like my bike 😅 Had to get the tire replaced... Oh well! The brakes still need to be fixed though! But I realized that I ordered a lot of ties to get cut... And they're done now! So I'll be picking them up on Tuesday! 

Oh and I uploaded a lot of videos and pictures since the last week or two so you can go look at them already! 

So​ everything is going just great! So let me tell you about the big news...

We're going to see two people be baptized this Sunday! One of our investigators, ซ. นาง, will be getting baptized! She passed her interview on Monday! So it's been way fun to help her out and see her grow! We've seen a lot of miracles while working with her! Just keeping the commandments was a way cool experience for her as well! I'm way excited! She's going to be a great member of this branch. And the Sisters are also having a baptism! They're baptizing a Brother, so that's going to be way cool! The Lord is truly blessing us here in อยุธยา.

As for some less immediate and important news... Transfers! So I'm staying! But my companion is not! He is going to ธนบุรี. I'm getting a new companion! His name is Elder Abbot. Should be way fun! I hear he's way relaxed so I'm looking forward to it! We're going to set อยุธยา​ on fire! (Spiritually).​ 

This​ transfer has been an adventure, but the next will be even better! It will be great. 

Remember 

"Do not suppose, because it has been spoken concerning restoration, that ye shall be restored from sin to happiness. Behold, I say unto you, wickedness never was happiness. And now, my son, all men that are in a state of nature, or I would say, in a carnal state, are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; they are without God in the world, and they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore, they are in a state contrary to the nature of happiness." Alma 41:10-11

Overcome the natural man! We do this by listening to the Holy Spirit and being obedient. 

Love you! Hope everything is going well! Talk to you soon! 

-Elder Collin Decker 

2-11-18 Ayuthaya

Just a heads up, the Mission is allowing Thailand to use Facebook, as of this week for my Zone. This doesn't mean that I will be able to talk over Facebook for those people at home! Still have to go through the emailing process as it is a protective measure given by the church. However, in the new set of rules that we have which come with the use of Facebook and other social media, the rules may/may not disallow me (meaning my parents) from being able to use Facebook for posts about how my mission is going so far. But the blog should suffice. We are all still keeping in lines with the mission rules and I know that the technology will greatly bless the work, but I apologize for the potential fact that Facebook may no longer have posts that have appeared since I first began my mission. Anyways, ต่อไป. 

So​ this last week was awesome! We saw lots of miracles. For example: we received a referral from a Filipino member here in Thailand, who's also Filipino! So we had to teach in English... It makes me realize how terrible I am at English now... Oh well! Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven! That investigator is way fire and really wants to know the truth!

Otherwise we had a lot of investigators at church! The Sisters and us had 7 altogether! Way good! We're preparing a lot of people to be baptized and we have a lot of hope for them! I know they can do it!

Anyways, not much for this week! The only thing I want to leave is: we are all expected to be saints. This is, after all, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. And one of the most important ways we can accomplish this goal is by loving God with all of our heart, might, mind and strength. And do the same for our neighbor. I love the Lord and the Savior because I have felt of their love and their great help they have given and how much they want me to be happy and to grow to one day, perhaps, grow close to their stature. I know we all can do this as we rely upon the Lord and the Spirit. Always listen to the Spirit!

Love you all! Talk you soon! 

2-5-18 Ayuthaya Thailand

Hey hey Dad!

You have an application? Wow... well, I've stopped counting at this point 😅 I just tell everyone that I've been in Thailand for about 1 year. To be honest, I'm not that good at counting how long I've been out... I just know that more and more people are finishing their missions. Way fun... Soon I'll be at that point, but it's still pretty far away... hahaha. I'll cross that bridge once someone points it out to me that I'm actually at the bridge already (meaning once I get there and I don't notice it...). Until then, I'm a blind man 😎. 

This last week was good! P-Day, didn't really do much... bought stuff. Cleaned a little? Ate food. Relaxed all in all. We'll probably try to go somewhere next week, but exploring takes planning... which I'm not super good at yet... hahaha. 

The rest of the week was as it was. We've been blessed with many miracles and a couple more investigators to teach. New investigators are always a blessing and always a miracle. It just takes being at the right place at the right time, and us acting in concert with the Spirit. 

One thing that I have always found funny is what happens when I get sick on my mission. Saturday, I basically got taken out. We still went out to proselyte... probably dangerous in retrospect, but we still did 😀. Can't miss out on any opportunities! So I felt as if we were blessed, wherein we found 2 new investigators that day! We had already found some others earlier in the week, but I was especially glad to find these two more! I know that the Lord will be helping us and we are obedient and diligent. 

I've been smiling more this week, even when I didn't feel like smiling. I've been trying to be happy, and I feel as though I found more happiness. I feel as though I found a better source of happiness rather than success, which is faith in Jesus Christ and the fact that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ will help us as we pursue righteousness. 

One thing that I learned over the past week was from a study in one of my favorite chapters in the entire Book of Mormon: Ether 12, in a very well known verse. Verse 27 in the 12th chapter of Ether reads as thus:

27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

I want to point out the first part: "And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness." Well that seems a little rough doesn't it? If we come unto Christ we will have all of our weaknesses pointed out to us? But the wise saints know that if we know our weaknesses, we can work on them. Here is what the Lord says later on in the same chapter. the 37th verse in the 12th chapter of Ether reads as thus:

37 And it came to pass that the Lord said unto me: If they have not charity it mattereth not unto thee, thou hast been faithful; wherefore, thy garments shall be made clean. And because thou hast seen thy weakness thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father.

Notice the middle part! "And because thou hast seen thy weakness thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father." So, in conclusion, I'll share one more scripture, found in Moroni 10:32-33, which reads as thus:

32 Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.

33 And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot.

I know that while knowing our weaknesses might be difficult, we will be made strong and we will know that, through the grace of Christ, that we will be made strong. The Savior and our Heavenly Father truly love us, love us enough to cut us down, that we might be built up again, even stronger. I know that the Savior lives, and that he loves us. I know that our Heavenly Father is the same, and through our weaknesses, we can be made even greater.

I love you all! Remember to rely on the Savior and our Heavenly Father, and we will achieve our heavenly potential. I hope you all have a great week, and I'll talk to you soon!

- Elder Collin Decker