Hey
Hey Hey! Happy New Year! It is a wonderful time to be alive, isn't it? I was
thinking this morning about all the big events that took place in 2016 and I
couldn't help but smile at all the good times we have had as a family. It is
kind of weird to think that 2017 is going to be a year that will be spent
completely on a mission. 2016 and 2018 are only partly spent here.
To
update you guys on the week. After skyping with you guys I was kind of worried
about getting back into that missionary mode, but luckily the Lord knew exactly
what I needed. We had a lesson with Q almost every night this past week. He is
such a stud. I am pretty sure if I wasn't on a mission and he wasn't seven
years older than me, we would be buds. He had us over for dinner three times
this week. He fed us some of the spiciest food I have ever tasted. It was a
Chinese dish that I can't really spell so I will say that it sounds like
"Agua" but with a nice Chinese twist added to it. When I started
eating, I wasn't really prepared for the fireball flavor that it had. My nose
instantly got runny and I started to sweat. Q just laughed of course.
Because it was the holidays, there weren't any students around because there
was obviously no school. Q couldn't really fly home to China so he stuck around
in his apartment by himself. We were more than happy to keep him company during
the evenings. We got him a Rubik’s cube and a yo-yo for Christmas because we
are big spenders and we have money to blow. When we handed it to him he said,
"I wasn't really expecting anything because you guys have already given me
the best present in the world by teaching me about the gospel." SCORE!
Those are the words that every missionary loves to hear!
Last
night in our lesson with him, he told us that he wanted to be baptized this
week! We are pumped for him. We are kind of worried about the logistics of
getting the ward involved and planning the baptism so it might end up happening
next week, but we are going to do our best to get him baptized this week! So,
stay tuned. He is such a stud.
We
taught an older man on Saturday. At the very beginning of the lesson he started
to breath really heavy, his eyes started to water, and he was kind of
unresponsive for a couple of seconds. Elder Balderston and I were ready to call
911, but luckily just as soon as the episode started it stopped and he acted
like nothing happened. I almost passed out I was so scared. I don't think that
the church would get very much positive publicity if a man died while
missionaries were teaching him.
New
Years on a mission is pretty exciting. We had to have the cars grounded at 6 pm
so that meant no appointments and no tracting. We literally sat in our
apartment until 10:30 and then went to bed. I did take a marvelous nap after
reading a little bit so it was a wonderful holiday. I was also asked to give a
talk on the Godhead on Sunday. It went pretty well I think, it was kind of hard
to prepare because we don't quite have the resources I used in prior talks I
have given. The whole talk was by the scriptures so it really put me out of my
comfort zone but it was good none the less.
In
conclusion to this email I will share a thought from my talk. When I studied
about the Godhead, I felt impressed to talk about our Heavenly Father's perfect
plan for us. One thing I have grown to love on my mission is that doctrine. Our
Heavenly Father's plan is PERFECT! My favorite Mormon message is that of the
current bush. Our Heavenly Father sees our potential and he knows the steps
that need to be taken for us to reach that potential. It is simply up to us to
submit our will to his like the Savior in Gethsemane. Serving a mission in Iowa
has been a major trial of my faith, but I am so glad to say that I am starting
to receive my witness.
I
love you guys so much and miss you just a little bit. Have a great week.
The
Only Elder in Iowa Who Is Studying Chinese,
Elder
Obray
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