Week 61 - Mahasarakham T9W1 Following the Spirit, Welcoming Sister Wiganda

Hello Everyone!

"Today is a great one. Why? Because I made it so. Elder Kunz helped me understand that at the amazing zone conference.... It's also great because the Spirit taught me today why I wake up in the morning: I now wake up for someone else. And if I play my cards right in this life, I will always: today for my investigators, at home for my wife, and after that for my children. If we always see the day ahead of us for someone else, it becomes quite a task to sleep in. My mother has been a great example of this for me my whole life. For some reason, I've felt an increased level of peace in my life, my area, and my work, and I didn't know why at first. But from my family's email just now, I know that it's because I have the best missionary mother I could ever ask for and more. She has been praying for me...to fulfill my purpose in bringing others to come unto Christ - especially for my being a new leader in the mission."

This was a portion of my letter to President Senior and it sums up well what's going on these days. We got to hear a super cool zone conference up in Udonthani (which is 5 hours away from here and almost to Laos). Being a missionary leader is super fun when I thought it would be stressful. But thank all of you for your prayers – especially my angel mother and father (both of them). I feel the influence of friends, family, and their love daily. I feel the presence of Max daily as Elder Sae-dan in him as a Northern Thai. Oh my he's super funny and smart. "USE YOUR BRAIN, ELDER SCHAD!!" He yells at Elder Schad often. Sometimes when he speaks (when he's SUPER Sarcastic) he'll mess up his tones or stretch them mercilessly - that's totally funny to someone who speaks in tones so I don't know if that's funny or not.... He's super good at listening and is perhaps one of the 5 of the 65,000,000 Khon Thai (Thai person(s)) who correct Thai well. The rest just laugh, make you feel stupid, or both at the same time. He's patient and a blast to work with.

This week we've experienced miracles one after another. Time's restraint only allows me to share one or two.

We have a new baptismal dater named "Boo" (Crab) and her 1 year old daughter is cuter than you'd believe. We're working with her in-laws who are a big part of the branch that aren't active.  But we've been working with many people who are less active like Sister Dtoo - a 200+ lb Issan lady through and through. Good thing I can sort of pick up on this crazy dialect people speak over here. She is "Super less active" as Sister Wiganda would say, but we helped her take off of idle-worship necklace and she's praying again. We found another less active by completely following the spirit. We were going to go to one place after giving Boo a date, but we just rode on. "I want to park at that building" I found myself saying. So we got there and wondered around but then saw this lady sitting at her shop. "She looks like she's going to reject us," I thought. So we went up to her and said hello. Then she asked if we were Mormon (a SUPER rare question) and we found out that she was in a family who were almost all members in another province in the Isaan. She was rather cold but explained when she saw us wandering around, she prayed they (us) wound come talk to her. And while we were talking, Sister Wiganda and her mom showed up out of nowhere. It was a miracle indeed and we will continue to work with Sister Yaa and her sister who is not yet a member to find greater peace.

Speaking of Sister Wiganda, she came back home (OUR BRANCH) for some medical reasons and is going to head back out. She and I were น้องเขียว (Greenies) together in Don Muang and we've been great friends ever since. We've been working with her wonderful mom (Sister oot) and when Sister Wiganda cane back home everyone was excited. She's hilarious too and will be in our district for just a bit, but it was a blessing to see her again.

The Lord’s more that aware of His children here, and He is aware of you. Thank you for your faith and don't you give up on inviting your friends to investigate this gospel. I promise with all the energy of my heart and soul that it's the avenue for greatest happiness. I know that because I've seen it clearer than day while serving here. It’s not just another religion that teaches to be good. But it teaches us to FEEL GOOD as we repent and feel the peace that can come from nowhere else.

I love you all and until next week,

Elder Gibbons

Week 60 - มหาสารคาม - Back to the bike in Area 4!!!

Hello Everyone!

Or here, we'd say สบายดีบอ?

Miracles happen. This is going to be the theme of these next three weeks. That's how long we have until next transfer meeting before moves will change to every 9 weeks instead of six. But so much happened I really cannot begin to write everything, so I'll begin by answering my sweet mother's questions:

1.  Please tell us the details of this last transfer...like were you transferred to a new area (WHERE) and WHO is your companion and WHERE is he from?

I was transferred from Samut Prakan (the very bottom of Bangkok – so much it's not even counted in the City of Angels, or Bangkok) at the same time as Elder Merkley which means they closed our area - but Elder Staten and his new companion are taking Sister M'am and Sister Khwan who are progressing rapidily. However, his old companion Elder ชัด (Schad), who was my first Thai I was in the same house with and who is one of my best friends in the mission, moved as well. Coming back to that later, during transfers, I waited for my name. No Bangkok, no Isaan, and then no north? AHHH they skipped me AGAIN! So then President Senior made me stand up AGAIN and he announced my new assignment:

"Elder Gibbons will be opening a second area in Mahasarakham with Elder แซ่ด่าน." AHHHH!!! A hundred emotions flowed over me as my prayers were answered - and I now have a คนไทย companion! Oh shoot – I don't know how to be a district leader! CRAP how are we going to open an area?

Skip ahead a few days and we are so excited to serve here. Bicycles are amazing. I LOVE our district and it's SO funny. When any one of us goes off, it becomes a riot (in a really funny way which I can't really explain in any language). I've been praying my butt off (can you do that?) to have district unity and it's sure coming. Elder Sae-dan, a Northern Thai from Chaing Mai, is super funny and sarcastic, but is super faith filled and works in tandem with the spirit. His personally is very identical to Max's. Elder Webb as a Thai would probably turnout to be a lot like my companion, which is a unexpected blessing. I've lately started my spiritual fast: I'm fasting from Disobedience, Sloopyness, and English. I've put my Engligh Scriptures on the shelf so I'm not tempted to use them. I feel like Sister Snell speaking my mission language and now realize me, Elder Worthington, Sister Snell, Elder Reynolds all have native comps! haha

2.  What DAY of the week is your transfer day?

It's less than a month on 11th of April - my 1 year mark in country exactly - because there are 37 new missionaries coming in! I'm so excited and want to talk more, but gtg. I love y'll and will phaw gan DUUR!

With love,

Elder Gibbons

Week 59 - SP T8.W5

[This is Joseph's mom - I'm going to wish you "good luck" as you read this one!!  Either he was in a hurry, distracted, or his English is getting worse (or all of the above), but this letter is a little disoriented - I didn't edit it at all.]

Hello everyone,

So this is probably me last week with Elder Merkley. He's been so excellent and inspiring - he's taught me SOOO much about charity. But together we've learned a lot about faith. My mom sent me a piece of her studies (which if any of you want to do, do it!) about finding themes in the Book of Mormon. Lately, I've found similar themes, such as, before every blessing proceeds trials; and if there's a trial, you better be prepared for something great. Jesus talks about discerning the face of the sky (of seeing ahead of what's going to happen) and in the Book of Mormon, for example have you ever read Alma 32? The greatest sermon on faith? Well did you read about Alma's persecutions with the Zoramites before that? Or what happened after? The rest of the Zoramites got mad, mixed with the Lamanites and then started a war that lasted form Alma 35 -to the end. When you were reading in the war chapters last did you ever think that it was because of Alma and Amulek's preaching? Likewise, the blessings and challenges that we face are not coincidental. I love the quote by Elder Maxwell that illustrates this point:

"One's life...cannot be both faith-filled and stress-free...."Therefore, how can you and I really expect to glide naively through life, as if to say, 'Lord, give me experience, but not grief, not sorrow, not pain, not opposition, not betrayal, and certainly not to be forsaken. Keep from me, Lord, all those experiences which made Thee what Thou art! Then let me come and dwell with Thee and fully share Thy joy!'..."Real faith...is required to endure this necessary but painful development process." Ensign, May 1991

This is true as I read letters from Elder Worthington and Sister Snell in Eastern Europe fighting of drunk flirty men and incoming asteroids that blow up your zone leader's window. I know Elder Reynolds and Sister Brownell probably face similar challenges. With me personally, I've felt forsaken, sad and opposition last night; betrayal when my new convert walked out of sacrament meeting for the third time after we had a great lesson. It rained harder than Elder Merkley ever seen had before on Sunday (which typically means church attendance in down). Our street had about 11 inches of water running through it, but we saddled up our flipflops and went to go pick up our investigator, Sister Kwan (whom we met at English but never  thought), who's never been to church before. But Elder Merkley and I prayed really hard, then we and the other Elders went out with our pants hiked up, water up to our shins. But as we were waiting at her house that's on our street, a car pulled up and asked if we wanted a ride to the bus station. It might as well been a white chariot sent from heaven. She came out and we all went there. While waiting at the bus stop another white chariot (or Brother O's white hatchback) pulled up and took us to church. It was only then that I realized I took of my shoes to put on flip-flops and didn't get my shoes. So I spent the rest of the day running around town in flip-flops trying to find our phone (which I lost in a neighboring city because we took a wrong bus). If this email seems scattered, it's because it is because we're about to go find our phone from the Burmese guy who found it by bringing sister Mild's mom and her little Burmese neighbor...

But this crazy mess has such a pattern as Good and bad things happen right after another. Sister Kwan accepted a baptism date and Nok (our atheist investigator) came to church with his family without us even asking him. Out of time, but I know that the Lord blesses those He loves with problems (Heb 12:6 and Ether 12:27). And He always provides a way to overcome them every time (1 Cor 10:13).

Love you all your prayers have been felt and until next time,
Elder Gibbons

Week 58 - Samut Prakarn T8.W4

Hello Everyone,

It's just after lunch and Elder Merkley and I ate this soup thing at this new restaurant that just opened by our house. It's nothing NEAR as good as the one right outside the mouth of our street, but eating the soup with raw chicken, pork and pig liver that you just pot in a little boiling clay pot with some prik sauce (pepper sauce?) and vegetables was pretty enjoyable. I was still hungry, so we bopped over to 7-11 and I got a Sausage and Cheese sandwich. But then we passed a guy selling "ไก่ปิ้ง" or chicken on a stick, so I got a fresh one and I feel so great right now I think "it's gonna nain" because the clouds are dark and it’s super cool outside - I almost got a little chilly (which isn't hard to do here if the sun's not out). But I love that kind of weather. I'm trying to be more grateful so I was writing some nice things that happened today.

As for this week, there were many cool things that happened, specifically concerning the influence of the Atonement in my life recently - Phaw dii phaw dii, the same topics Dad about in his email. We had a great zone mtg where our Zone Leaders posed a question: "What do we remember about Christ?" We talked about His miracles, etc. Then they asked another question that really made me ponder: "How can I forget about Christ?" It really made me think of how special of a life He lived only to die for doing nothing wrong. We sang "I Stand All Amazed" where Elder Merkley and Elder Staten all sang especially well together. The Spirit of the Lord in that room was very thick and real. We then prayed and during the prayer I caught myself saying: "Why am I sitting down in this chair praying to my maker who has given everything for me? So I followed the promptings of the spirit and knelt in reverence of the Savior. I then heard a sound to my right and Elder Merkley had done the same. I wish to say we all did, but it was just us two. It was a very touching moment that has followed  me this week. I am so grateful for the one "who cared for me enough to die for me."

So I ask you as Alma did: "And now behold, I ask of you, my brethren of the church, have ye spiritually been born of God? Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts? Do ye exercise faith in the redemption of him who created you? Do you look forward with an eye of faith, and view this mortal body raised in immortality, and this corruption raised in incorruption, to stand before God to be judged according to the deeds which have been done in the mortal body?" (Alma 5)  If you haven't experienced this change, I encourage you to get on your knees as I have and thank Him for the blessings we cannot even imagine. That you would pray for love and to feel this mighty change of heart in the One who is mighty to save is my prayer in Jesus's name, Amen.

With Love, 

Elder Gibbons

Week 57 - Samut Prakan T8W3

Hello Everyone,

Thanks for reading again, and I want to thank you for your support and love. Thank you mom for reporting your wonderful faith by bringing that someone back to church.  If they didn't come the first time, it's ok- Sister Soni didn't either but because we didn't give up on her God could use us as His instruments to help her the following week.

I'd still love to hear your stories because it's not too late.  I also promise as a servant of God that He will help you in your endeavors to help Him if you let Him.  And you let Him by not giving up.  My dad always had this funny saying where he'd say something like (now correct me on this one dad):  Do you know Micheal Jordan?  Do you know Bill Gates?  Do you know Peter Billings?  No, because he gave up."   Haha thanks for your words of wisdom, Father.

This week has been crazy, packed with adventures, and pizza (which is a scarcity here).  I might start backwards:  I JUST got back from seeing a big Thai warship, a fort, and eating at a water market with two of our recent converts: Sister Mild มายด์ (and her mom Sister Gaid เกษ) and Brother Nat นัท.  Super fun, but I'm exhausted.  Church was awesome because Sister M'am แหม่ม came - she was the only investigator who came - and we really called everyone else but her.  I've felt as if I didn't have a lot direction this week; as if the Lord wanted to see what we would do before He told us.  So we worked really hard and planned for many long hours for many investigators, and M'am came - goes to show the Lord has now let us know what direction He wants us to go.  If your ever feeling like you need some direction and you don’t know what to do, it may be the Lord TRUSTS your judgment enough to let you "try it out" for lack of a better term, and will eventually show you the way if you but keep the faith.... Or as we say here: สู้ สู้!!  (Fight fight! Keep Go-ING!)

IF NOT HOWEVER, please take the advice that Sister Snell taught me in a letter I recently read.  She said she has been trying to feel the Spirit more strongly by praying REALLY hard for it - but she was not just praying for it, but by praying sincerely and with all her heart to receive those blessed gifts that come when a concentrated effort to have them is made through her agency.   Thanks Sister Snell - keep the fight with your new companion from Kstchrthgyht-stan or wherever she's from.  And Elder Worthington with his new native companion!  That's SOOO cool!  I mean I bet even Elder Reynolds has a native companion and I never have.  [Elder Jordan Reynolds is his cousin serving in Virginia!]  However, this is the first time I've ever lived in the same house as one!  Elder Schad is SOOO awesome and funny.  I have become more and more like a ลูกครึ่ง (half-child, or half Thai, half American), so we get along great.  In fact, we've had the opportunity to work together a lot; and even during that time that I was reading those letters, I was on a switch-off with him- so that means Sister Snell, Elder Worthington and I all had native companions together!  Besides that, it's been so great to hear their success stories that come with their trials.  And now with the Great Elder Grant Gibbons back home, I feel a great responsibility to carry on this work in the Gibbons’ name.  So cool to hear about his last week and the blessings that come to such an incredible man such as him.  Love ya Grant.  Thanks for your example you have set on your mission that has affected people not just in Arcadia.

Speaking of great missionaries, Elder Merkley and I also celebrated our birthdays together (His was just this month) by eating pizza and Swensen's Ice Cream - where a super creepy server kept coming over to our table to refill our drinks so she could give us a good look over.   One time Elder Merkley hadn't yet took a sip and she refilled it anyway!  Oh funny.   But then the members wanted to celebrate again, so they asked if we wanted pizza AGAIN, so we did... CHEESE IS SO GOOD but I'm so bad at eating western food.  Gimme a plate of rice and I'll go to town but western food... We'll see what happens when I get back...

But perhaps the crowning event was when Elder Gong from the Asia Area Presidency and Elder Evens, who is the executive Missionary person in the church came and spoke to us in Bangkok. They taught with the spirit and with authority about true repentance and about how to love your companion so that when you see each other after 35 years, you can have a 4 1/2 hour conversation with him or her like Sister Gong did... Super inspiring and we got to immediately apply the doctrine and see blessings that come from our inspired leaders.

I know that as we follow their love that council and love people with an eternal prospective, we will have better joy and love than ever before.  If you haven't yet invited that person to come back with you, I re-challenge you to become God's instrument by taking that first step on your own.  If you step into the dark, He'll be your light.  I know it because I've felt it myself.  I know these things are true in Christ's name. Amen.

With love,

Elder Gibbons