สติ
Don’t give God the left over time in
our day - make God the first priority.
Hello Beloved Family Friends,
You are beloved and I'm so grateful
for your influence in my life. I feel great to know that I am so loved. A very
happy birthday to Whitney, Crae, Mitch, and Elly here! Elly's getting baptized
on the 19th? That's when Bryan and Waan are planned to get baptized too! A very
special day. Elder Worthington, I thought about all day on the 6th. In
fact, I feel quite spoiled because I have so much family and friend support
while my companion is having challenges despite his doing so well in
the work.
IMPORTANT:
Elder Wilamas [Joseph's companion] has been a member with
his two little brothers for 2 1/2 years, but he quit (h)is three coffee shops,
earned money on his mission on his own, raised his family because his dad left
for a new woman. Mom works all the time and has NEVER written him a letter. Now
she is sick and (he) doesn't know very much about that.
But one day I heard him say that he
wished he could get a letter from America. If any of you have five minutes to
write him a five minute thought of encouragement (email or by hand) and give it
to my mom. SHE WILL SEND A LETTER FOR HIM FROM AMERICA NEXT MONDAY THE 20th
WITH YOUR NOTE INCLUDED. This is my request this week from all those who
read this.
But also I would like to share some
thoughts from my President’s Letter this week to illustrate what I've learned
this week. I'll translate some of the words you might not get the first time:
Dear President,
Thank you for your interview. But I want to let you know that I am sorry for all my complaining and such over
the past week. But the Lord has been guiding me this past week as this has been
one of the roughest weeks I've been through on my mission. But it took a
refiners fire to teach me that having สติ (sati) is key. Elder Wilamas and I had a tussle again
until I realized that I was the cause if it because I didn't have สติ (sati). I am now just starting to
understand this word better by living it - when I "ใจเย็นๆ"
(jai yen yen or heart cool cool) I can have สติ to deal with my problems with faith and not fear. I've
always wondered how the great ones did it - George Washington, or Moroni, or
whoever great who did great things with crappy circumstances. They did it
because they did not let anything destroy their peace. That is my goal the rest
of my mission and my life: to ใจเย็นๆ and have สติ. It took placing me in a different country to understand
these concepts in a different language for the Lord to get His point across
into my thick head. Thanks heavens He did is all I have to say. And that your suits will be returned Monday
afternoon.
With Love,
Elder Gibbons
If you are struggling right now, I
ask you to exercise "sati" and calm your heart. Know that God love us
and is planning everything out. If you feel like you're not struggling, you
just watch out and "Keep calm and carry on" when the Storm DOES come.
I believe that was Winston Churchill - Prime Minister of Great Britain during
WWII. I should've added him to the list in my President letter. He
had sati if he could say that while his country was being bombed by warcraft.
Until your home is being destroyed
by the Luftwaffe, keep calm and carry on because God love you and is always
aware.
With Love,
Elder Gibbons
