Bekasi Week 10

A random money along the road, tied to a tree!

Hello Again Everyone!

This is my tenth week in Bekasi! It sure has gone by fast. It seems like yesterday that I moved here. It for sure has been a learning experience so far in many ways. It was a good move, because I got too used to everything in Central Java. But when things change, I make new goals, and have to learn new things. This week has not been too special, but there were still some cool things that happened. Here are a few of those cool things. 

Unfortunately, last Monday, we were not able to go to the place we planned, called 'Teman Mini', but we will hopefully go there another P-day. Instead, we just stayed home and relaxed until it was time to go out and work for a bit. That sounds pretty boring, but it was actually a great rest, and we got a lot done. 

One person we often visit is Brother Lesmana, who was recently baptized. He is such a great man, and I really enjoy visiting him. His testimony is very strong, and he is an example of what faith can do, no matter the amount. We go there almost every week, since he is still relatively new, but I mostly learn from him and his example. 

One of our goals in this companionship is to find some new investigators, which can be pretty hard sometimes, but this week we have made some good progress. There are a few people that we have met recently, and given the first lesson. They both have responded very well, and we will see how things go when we visit them again. One such appointment was at the church with just us and another potential investigator. He was very humble in admitting that he did not know very much about the scriptures or the history, but he knew that Christ is our savior. It really brought the spirit, and we had an excellent lesson. 

We have also been trying really hard to build relationships with the less active and non-active members in our area. This is something that Missionaries have always done, and I have seen some great success come from it. The most important thing we can do to help them is just be supportive and invite the spirit. 

Church this week was also really great, as usual, and I was able to see Brother and Sister Sugiyanto there. They were visiting the Bekasi 1st ward. They are so nice! We participated in choir practice after church. I did not really like singing before my Mission, and I am still not that great at it, but I like it a lot more now. We are practicing a version of 'A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief' for Stake Conference. It sounds really good!

Sorry that these few things are pretty regular to report. But I am doing very good, and am learning so much. Thank you all for the prayers and support as always. I really would not do as well here without it. I am out of time, so I will talk to you all next time!

-Elder James

The crowds during the evening because of Ramadan.

The unusual menu at our McDonalds

More crowds during Ramadan

Elder Mongan drinking behind a wall of coconuts.
No one can see you eat or drink during Ramadan in the daytime,
so all places that are open have to cover their customers.

I don't think they understand what Chicks can mean in English

My shirt has become very dirty-I guess I need to really scrub it!