So, in case all of you haven't heard, there is a plane that just disappeared. MH370 for Malaysia Airlines (which is slightly disconcerting, because that's the Airline that the missionaries use for Zone Conferences and transfers), is gone. It just disappeared. Apparently the FBI and a lot of Agencies around the world have been searching for it in the South China Sea, but were unable to find any debris or evidence of a crash. Authorities think that it was hijacked. The plane switched its course and passed over Malaysia, so now they are searching the Indian Ocean. They also have satellites searching for it. That affected our plans later in the week, but you'll see that later.
At this time, Elder Trudo and I (we're working really well together by the way; he reminds me of a wise sage), are working on clearing out the Branch Directory completely, so we're gearing up for "Minggu Neraka". It is not going to be fun, and I'm not looking forward to it, but it's something that must be done. The Branch(es) here in Miri are destroyed, and because the missionaries basically run the Branches, its our job to get it up and running again. That's not to say the Branch/District Presidency doesn't help. They do, but sometimes it's almost ineffective..... So we're going to visit every single member and find every single house. We have one lesson-with-a-member-present planned. That's it. So wish us luck!
As for the investigators:
Brother D: We dropped him basically. He wasn't keeping his commitments, so after a very bold and eyebrow singeing lesson with him, we are giving him one last chance. His choice is simple. We told him, "You need to either choose God and your family, or alcohol and cigarettes." He still hasn't made a decision, and we're not going to visit with him for some time.
E and M: Still in Brunei.
D, P, and M: We met with D and M. He actually was in the hospital. He has an ulcer, so we gave him a Priesthood Blessing, pronounced by Elder Trudo. According to the blessing, he will be completely healed and he was also blessed with a desire to become a man who holds and exercises the Priesthood. We committed them to baptism, but they said that they weren't ready yet. So we're just hoping that all goes well. They returned to Kampung, again, but they will be back for a doctor's appointment, and we set up a return appointment at that time.
A and L: We also taught them a little bit. They have been reading and praying about the Book of Mormon! Finally! They are in 1 Nephi 11, all by themselves, which is unheard of for an Iban! They didn't come to Church, but Elder Trudo and I are still working with them on that.
So, on Saturday we had a "Talent Show". It turned into more of a Devotional in memory of the MH370 plane. We found out that President Atos' cousin's son-in-law (what...?) was on the flight, so we stopped the dances, like the Poco-poco, and just sang songs. I translated for Elder and Sister Riser into Malay. It's hard to say "sins of omission and sins of commission". Same with "the master plan is the Master's plan." That doesn't really work in Malay. It was really weird. And not that beneficial to anybody, I feel like. It was originally supposed to help with missionary work, then it turned into a talent night, and then it turned into a devotional.
So, yeah. Although it wasn't the best week in the world, it was still good.
Spirit Stride and Testimony Tidbit: One of the faults that we as humans have is to underestimate the power of prayer. At the end of every prayer, we monotonously say "In the name of Jesus Christ, amen." But what does that really mean? To me, it has taken on a new meaning. As we pray, we set our hearts to do what we ask for. We prepare to set to work. We are praying in the name of God's Only Begotten Son, and so what we ask for we will receive, as long as it is in line with Heavenly Father's will. We could almost take the "amen" off at the end and finish our prayer with Jesus' name. As we pray in his name, we consecrate and dedicate our efforts. As long as we act in faith, and in accordance with God's will, "all things are possible."
Example: If we say in a prayer, "Please help me to have clean thoughts", but then we do nothing to change it, why do we even pray for it? We're praying in Jesus' name, which means that we'll have heaven-sent assistance, seen and unseen. But we also need to try. I know that prayer is powerful. Jesus prayed often, and so should we.
Well, that's all for this week. I love you all and I hope that all is going well with you! CTR and keep the commandments! Pilih yang benar!
Dengan sayang kuat,
Elder Joshua H. Griffin
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