In 10th Grade I met a tall skinny ginger kid in Choir. We stood next to each other, sang the same part, chased the same girl for a week, and just had a great time of it.
In 11th Grade I somehow ended up at the same school 2 years in a row, and my new friend was still in Choir with me. We got to know each other really well, even to the point of man-hugging.
In 12th Grade we chased after the same girl for a month or so, went dumpster diving for pizzas, drifting in blizzards, TP'ing people's front doors, making midnight cream puff deliveries, making midnight nightmare deliveries, going to midnight premieres of movies, and cooked up delicious home-made bleu cheese toether... not at midnight. We had lots of fun, played with lots of fire, and spent buckets of time together, including planning Senior Prom.
I just read the email from my mother informing me that my best friend, Elder Brandyn (Thomas?) Pierce is going to be serving in the Mexico Culiacan Mission! I am almost crying with joy! My very favorite person from High School is going to be using his AP Spanish skills! Not gonna lie; I secretly wanted to train him, but I will get over myself when I get to welcome him back at the Boise airport in November of 2014. I TOTALLY call him for my sous-chef for my 22nd Birthday Dinner-Party! Get ready for Chinese-Mexican Fusion!
I love my friends so much! Valorie is Sealed for time and all Eternity, B-Dawg is buying short-sleeve shirts, Rob is probably also buying short-sleeve shirts, Deji Dahling is writing a book, and who knows what else is going on! Honestly, the class of 2011 is the Best Class Ever! Who else is being amazing?
But I suppose you want to hear about me...
Last week my loving Heavenly Father lead me to 2 great families to teach! Our Mission President (AKA Boss) has asked us to focus on families, so we've been praying very hard about how to do this. We went to an area where we've never been before (TST is HUGE), and we found a family! Then, at English Class, we realized that Simon has a family (a son and daughter)! It's so good to see the Lord guiding you in your endevours, cuz trust me; I did NOT want to walk the hour to Kowloon Bay!
I went bowling this morning, an epic picture of my gutterball fit will be up next week (I forgot my MiniUSB adapter). I bought 3 pounds of chicken, and it looks like a lot to me, but I think that's about what the food pyramid says I should eat in a week. I am too busy (lazy) to find good veggie-saurus food in HK that's not in Buddhist monasteries on the tops of the mountains. No really, that's the only stuff I've been able to find that wasn't just plain-flavor soy protein nuggets.
Going back to not-me; I met an Elder Welker who is a cousin to my like-named friends in Boise, we had a fun chat about them. I got one of the Summer Missionaries to sniff my Itch-Eraser; a stick of gelatinous ammonia to rub on mosquito bites, I really should have filmed his reaction, it was great! I also went on an exchange with Elder Hazen to HK Island, taught the father of a part-member family, ate great food at a member's home (century eggs are best in congee), and went on a boat! It smelled like salt and dead fish AKA my best and most fond memories of where I grew up.
My companion asked me what the difference between a Faithful Missionary and a Missionary of Great Faith is. I took a moment and chewed a Snickers (it was really a Vitamin C pill so my allergies are less), and thought about it. Here's what I came up with;
A Faithful MissionaryThis Elder or Sister wakes up on time every morning, exercises, studies, and diligently teaches and finds. This Missionary will return home happy because he or she has worked hard and brought many souls unto Christ. It is a great thing to be a Faithful Missionary for 24 or 18 months.
A Missionary of Great FaithThis Elder or Sister wakes up on time every morning, exercises, studies, and diligently teaches and finds. The difference comes in how the Missionary of Great Faith opperates. They constantly pray for guidance from the Lord, apply what they learn from studies, Church, meetings, and experiences, and seek to draw closer to Jesus Christ every day. This Missionary acts not just out of the love of God, but also because he or she has a deep and abiding faith that God loves the people they are serving, so they love them too. The Missionary of Great Faith returns home happy because he or she has worked beyond their mortal capacity to help bring souls to Christ. The Missionary of Great Faith also knows that the Full-Time Mission is merely preparation for parenthood and being a Home or Visiting teacher. They recognize that, even though they are only part-time now, they still have a calling to serve God with all their Heart, Might, Mind and Strength.
Rob, Brandyn, and everyone else preparing to serve; strive to be Missionaries of Great Faith. I'm not really that much older than you in Missionary terms, but I have already seen the difference there is between those who serve because they love God, and those who serve because they know God loves the people they serve. I'm not a Missionary of Great Faith yet, but I hope to be long before I come home May 21st of 2014 (that's a rough estimate). I know this Gospel can help everyone, and if you have the opportunity to share it at any time in any capacity, do it! I love y'all, have a great week!
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