A Testimony in Indonesian

{We had such a nice phone call with Elder James on Mother's Day. We had him give us his testimony in Indonesian so we could record it. It was amazing! The boys giggled a little bit in the middle, as it totally sounds like gibberish. We sure do love this amazing missionary and are proud of what he has sacrificed as he is across the world serving the Lord.}

Solo Week 19

Hello Everyone,

I hope all of you that are reading this are doing well. This past week has been really fun, and I am loving Indonesia. The one bad thing that does not change is the heat! I am getting somewhat used to it, but it still kills me every day! My language is still improving, which makes discussions and lessons much more interesting. I also have been able to learn much about the culture here, which has a very strong presence here in Solo. 

One family that I would like to talk about today is the Mesias Family. We have been visiting them quite often since I have been here, and I have seen such an improvement. They are so active now, and I really feel the love of their family. They just barely had a new baby, and my companion and I visited them at the hospital. Right when I began talking to the father, I felt the deep love he had for his family. It truly testified to me that families are one of the only ways we can feel eternal happiness. The baby was a little boy, and is healthy and doing well. 

My companion and I had the chance to visit some of the many widows in our ward with some members. The members of the ward put together bags of rice and food for us to give to them. Every one of them was so grateful, even though I could barely understand the Javanese they spoke. They were all so upbeat and funny. One of them commented on my red hair, and how her white hair was better. We spent a good amount of time visiting them, and then we ate afterwards. 

{I asked Elder James if there were spring flowers there like we have.
He said there were a lot of flowers, but took this pretty picture of
flowers in front of the church to show me.}

Our two investigators have been doing really well, especially since one of them told us the truth that he was still smoking, since he lied to us before. We explained that we were not mad, and that Heavenly Father would much rather him be honest than to hide the truth. We explained how we could help him only if he was honest with us, and how it was the same with our Heavenly Father. I really felt the spirit in this lesson, and I was so happy to help this man. The other Investigator is also doing well with the same problem: smoking. He has really improved, and in the lessons he has more and more to say. I absolutely love to see this kind of improvement.  It is what makes Missionary work the best. 

On Friday, we were able to go to Jokjakarta for the monthly Zone Training Meeting. We rode a train there early in the morning, which was the first time I rode a train in Indonesia. It was a nice train with full AC. When we got there, we had about three hours before the meeting started, so we shopped for ties, and practiced our bargaining skills with vendors. 

We also rode a horse-drawn buggy to the church, which was only $3 for five people. 

At the meeting, I was given a bag which had a package from my family! The Sugianto family took it to Indonesia for me, and I was very grateful! I have already consumed just about everything that was inside it. On the way back to Solo, we took a train that was economy class, with no AC. That was not as fun of a ride, but we made it back in time for our appointments! 

Church was fantastic yesterday with the testimonies shared. I was able to translate for the Knorpps again, and I did a much better job than last time. I guess it takes practice! My companion bore his testimony, and he was by far the easiest to translate. Because I am with him 24/7! As a matter of fact, we have been together for almost four and a half months. That is way longer than companionships usually go for, and I am so glad we have done well together. 

After church, there was a celebration for a pregnant member, and they had a bunch of food. The main course was Nasi Kuning, (yellow rice) and they had EsBuah (fruit drink) as well. Luckily I had prepared for this by fasting early yesterday, so I could break my fast right when the feast began! It was a great meal. 

Well, that is about all the really cool things that have happened to me this past week. I might move pretty soon from Solo, and I am enjoying it while I can! I have been so blessed by this gospel, and from this Mission. I really have grown in my testimony of Families this past week. I know that if we really focus on strengthening our families, and help them grow closer to God, we will feel a sense of purpose and happiness that no worldly things can bring. Thank you all for your prayers and support. I feel your love every day, and it really helps me on this Mission. 

-Elder James

What my English class sometimes looks like

Solo Week 18

Hello Everyone!

Wow, I have now been in Solo for about four months! There is a chance I will be transferred soon, which will be sad, but I am looking forward to a new experience. Today is actually eight months on the mission to the day. As I think about it, it really has gone by fast. With this realization, I sometimes have to really slow down and focus on what my purpose is. It is great that my Mission is going by fast, but at the same time, I must always be sure that I am doing my best to bring others to Christ. Really, that is our purpose as Missionaries. We are not trying to increase the membership of the church; we are only trying to help others in their relationship with God and Jesus Christ, and their plan for us. Anyway, here are some highlights of the week:

One of our progressing investigators has been making some great progress lately. He had no belief or faith in Jesus Christ just a little bit ago, and now he has a strong testimony of our Savior. It has been so amazing to see his growth and strength in his family and life. Seeing him and many others grow in faith has really taught me how much Jesus Christ can bless our lives. All we have to do is put trust in him, like our investigator did, and he will bless us greatly.

My companion and I have also been working with the many inactive and less-active members here in Solo. We have actually had some great success with a few, and it has been a blessing to see them return to church and activity. We continue to help them transition back to the church, and we resolve any issues they might have had before. I have heard a few people here criticize this church for not going out for those members that may have gotten lost in this life. I promise that we do go after them, and that we care greatly for them. Honestly, most of our work here in Solo is focused on those lost sheep.

As far as unique activities this week, there were a few. The first was a trip to a member's house, which was very far away. We rode with the Bishopric, and helped the Sister that lived there move her Daughter's remains to another spot in the graveyard. It was a cool experience, and my companion was able to give the blessing on the new resting place. It was the first time I had seen that being done, so it was a cool experience. I felt sad for the Sister who lost her daughter when she was quite young, but it was great to see her faith in knowing that she would see her daughter again.

The other cool experience I had was to see a traditional Javanese wedding. It was a member of one of the wards here, but they were married traditionally before going to the temple. I think they will go fairly soon. The ceremony was much different than anything I had ever seen before, and a few members helped explain the process to me. 

During the ceremony, they only spoke Javanese, so I had to have my companion and other members translate for me so I could know what was going on! The other Elders and myself drew quite a bit of attention from people, who did not know us, which I think was a good thing. I was glad to learn about the unique culture that is very prevalent here in Solo.

The food at the wedding was delicious!

 This Mission has been blessing my life in so many ways. There is no better way to learn more about the Savior than to follow in his footsteps the best we can. Obviously, we are all not perfect, but as we continually strive to become like him through our words, deeds, and thoughts, God will see our faith, and make us strong. I often think of Ether 12:27 where it states that God will make our weaknesses strong in him. I thank you all for all the love and support you have given me, and I look forward to emailing all of you again!

-Elder James

This is another cool Indonesian sport--it's like volleyball, but you use your feet and head!

This is our mission couple's driver, Frankie--he's really nice!

Elder Lee at English class.

Playing "cowboys" with some member boys.
Essentially it is just letting them shoot me with Nerf guns! 

Solo Week 17

Hello again friends and family!

This week has been great, and I have had some fun experiences. I am sorry that the photos I sent are not the best of quality. The computer I am on is not very fast, and so I had to compress them to really bad quality. But bad quality pictures are better than none. Right?

Like I said in the last few emails, I am having a really good time here in Solo. I hope I have a lot of time left here. We have been doing well with the little investigators we have, and although it can be disappointing when they do not always follow through on their commitments, it is great to see what progress they make.

One change that I have seen happen in my mission is the transition to an Indonesian view on money. I cringe at the fact sometimes I have to pay $2 for lunch, or I stress when a bill to fix my entire bike comes to $8.50. This sure does help me manage my money better, and it really comes in handy when finding cheap things. The food here has been an experience by itself, and my body is still getting used to all the different types. 

My companion and I have been getting along better than ever, and we work hard. I am so glad that he has been such a great example to me, and I hope I can be a good example to other Missionaries as well. We have been getting really close to the members, and they help us with just about everything.

Recently, we were invited to the Bishop's house to celebrate his mother-in-law's birthday. As we were biking over there, it began to rain really hard. We stopped at his dealership where he works, since it was close, and waited for a bit. Then he loaded our bikes in the back of a truck, and we drove the rest of the way! That was a blessing for sure. The party was a lot of fun at his house, with lots of food, and I loved playing with hot wheels with the kids. 

This past weekend was Stake Conference for all of Central Java. The first session started on Saturday night, and myself and a few other Missionaries were asked to help with translation. I explained that there were other Missionaries with much more language experience, and they simply said it would be a good learning experience. I was pretty scared! We used a system where we talked into a microphone, and the ten or so Americans listened with headphones. They were mostly Mission couples from around the Mission. We switched off between us Missionaries and a few members, and I did an okay job. Just like they said, it was a learning experience for sure. It was also really fun to see many members from Semarang and to visit with all the Missionaries.

Sunday morning was the next session, and instead of being held at the church, it was held at a reception center. The center was really nice, and it fit a lot of people. I was really impressed at the amount of people that came. I did translations for this meeting as well, and all the Missionaries in Solo participated in a youth choir led by Sister Greenway. We sang three songs during the meeting, and it was a blast. All the practice that we did was well worth it. The spirit was very strong! Many leaders from the Stake spoke, as well as President and Sister Groberg. They gave great advice and I was glad I could understand their talks. 

I wish I could go into detail about all the other cool things that happened this week, like buying ties, three for $1, but I am about out of time. Thank you all for your letters and prayers. I really feel the faith and support of you all constantly. I hope I will be able to make you all proud here! I am learning so much, and my testimony is being built every day.

Sampai minggu depan! {Until next week!}

-Elder James

 

Solo Week 16

Selamat Siang semuanya!

I hope you all had a great week. Mine was pretty normal, other than watching conference on Saturday and Sunday. We have still been doing great with our few investigators, and I am getting closer and closer to the members. In a way I dread the day that I move from Solo. It will be a great experience to learn a new city, but I hope I stay here for at least another two months! It has been very hot lately, and I do not think I will ever get used to it! Here are a few cool things that happened this past week.

The new Elders that came to Solo are Elder Watson and Elder Lopis. They are both really great Missionaries, and I have had a good time getting to know them. Elder Lopis is in my house, and it was really funny how he came to our house via Becak from the church. I am not sure how he sat on it, along with all his luggage! He is happy to be in Solo, and he will do great here.

My companion and I usually try to go to a member's house each week and get to know them a little better. This has been a great thing to do, and we have really built relationships with the many members of the ward. This past week we visited Sister Budi, who fed us a great deal of food, and told us some funny stories. She was very kind to us, and offered for us to come back again. I think building trust in the ward where a Missionary serves is really important. Without their work and help, we could not do as much as we would like.

Just like last week, the Bishop's family took us out to eat again! This time we went to Pizza Hut. This may not sound that nice over there in America, but here it is one of the classiest restaurants in town. I felt just like I was back at home, eating pizza and drinking soda. I am so happy that the Bishop's family spoils us so much!

I know everyone reading this really liked conference. I was so grateful that I was able to watch it in English because of the help from the Mission couples. On Saturday we were able to watch it on a big screen with a projector, and on Sunday we watched it on a computer. Two of my favorite talks were from Elder Holland and Elder Christofferson. I really applied Elder Christofferson's talk to our work as Missionaries. We help other feel the great redeeming sacrifice of Jesus Christ by repenting and coming to him. This really made me enthusiastic to get working hard here in Indonesia. The General Authorities are such amazing men, and I feel blessed to have their influence in the world.

The Paragon Mall

I am sorry this is so short. The internet cafe we are at is not the regular one, and it is really slow. I am having a hard time typing on this sticky keyboard, and I am sweating like crazy. But I will email again next week, and I hope it will be much better! I would encourage all of you to read all the General Conference addresses in order to understand and ponder them more effectively. I know everything they said is true, and can help us all in this crazy world. Thank you all for your support!

-Elder James