Hello
everyone again! So it's the beginning of the third week in my second transfer,
and we're just chillin' in a internet place... Again...only this morning, I
looked at the date, and it has been exactly two months since I have officially
set foot in the field.
So, if I can go off on a small tangent: Fact: If you live in Europe or the
western hemisphere, you know nothing about what the heck goes on in Asia. Think
you do? Sorry. You're wrong. Still think you do? Then you could qualify to be
listed under the one exception: You have lived here - and I mean resided in a
place without taken a trip back to anywhere else - for a period of time no less
that two months. Business here? Nope. Frequent visits? Closer. Study abroad?
Very Close. But living with, eating with, drinking with, breathing with, laughing
with, arguing with, shopping with, bartering with, singing with, and, most
importantly, sharing spiritual experiences with these people for a period of
time that is longer that naturally comfortable is the only way a Westerner and
come close to KNOWING what goes on here. And what the heck - I still don't know
what's going on most of the time. But it is such a different way of living,
eating, thinking that NOT NOBODY NOT NO HOW really knows what's up if they talk
about Asia. I've grown to hate things about my own culture - even things about
my own life that I want to purge. I've grown to discover small jewels of wisdom
I didn't know I had but had to use that I love now... Going off on another
tangent within a tangent to explain my tangent (this is like Inception!), for
example I couldn't stop helping myself to the ปลาทับทิมทอด
(blaa tub-tim tod : fish-ruby-fried) at dinner: I eat parts of the chicken that
I wouldn't have touched before. I know how to eat fruits that would almost make
you gasp! But really, look up a เงาะ
(ngaah) and you'll see what I mean. I even gave little treats and water to
people who drop stuff or come to pick us up for a lesson because I feel awkward
if I don't. I hate flirtatious girls...Or maybe I'm just scared of them. Even
my English is sounding weird sometimes because English words come out in Thai
grammar. It's so cool to see the Lord shape me to make me an instrument to
shape the lives of others...
Ok that was a long tangent about some of the fun worldly things that I have unavoidably
enjoyed. But besides all this stuff, I have remained very focused on my
purpose as a missionary through diligent study and reverent prayer. So on that
note, we had some cool things happen this last week, but I'm going to talk
about the spiritual highlight of this week where the hand of the Lord was definitely present. The following is a
very special excerpt that I usually wouldn't share openly and blatantly, so I
hope you receive it knowing my intent is not to blare it out there, but to
share a glimpse of a very special day from my journal describing the baptism of
อุ๋มอิ๋ม ("Oom iim") - my first investigator I
met in Thailand, dated Saturday, 9 June 2012:
"As I sat pondering about today, I thought about how appropriate it was we
ate at KFC again with อุ๋มอิ๋ม.
The first time was the first time I met her; 2nd time was right after we gave
her a baptismal date for 9 June; and today - the 9th - we were able to eat with
อุ๋มอิ๋ม again, but this time as an official member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her baptism will be a memory I
will always cherish.
"One cool experience was going to fill up the font. As we turned on the
water as I was standing in the empty basin, I thought about the antiquity of
this ordinance for the first time. 'Peter and Paul witnessed the same thing I
am doing - and probably watched water fill similar fonts,' I thought. PMG [Preach My Gospel] says:
'The Spirit is manifest strongly as the sacred ordinances [of the church] are
performed.' I truly felt the Holy Ghost manifest the sacredness of the
experience as I prepared a baptismal font as they did in ancient times.
"Another sacred memory was actually watching the baptism be performed by ป. วิสาล.
With the sacred ordinances of the church, the Thai people don't use normal
words. Instead they use a lot of ราชศัพท์,
or the high language of the kings, which adds another level of sacredness to
the baptism performance. This ordinance, performed today was very sacred and
this language helped me humbly feel of the importance of it. I'm super blessed
have the opportunity to see God's hand in His ordinances!"
Besides eating funky fruit and things like unto it, I'm receiving blessing by
the truckload. Thank you for your prayers and support. Don't forget it's 2 Ne 9: 29-29 this week!
(Confession - I didn't do so well on the last one. But repentance is beautiful,
and I'm just going to move on and get it this week!) Love y'all! Same time next
week...
Elder Gibbons
