Week 29: Butterworth, Malaysia

The Ballad of Butterworth

Good morning (evening) everyone! It is time for the weekly rendition of "What is Happening in Butterworth, Malaysia?" Haha, when I hear the word Butterworth, I still chuckle a lot, because it is the LEAST Malay/Chinese sounding name in the whole world!

This week was really fantastic, we saw a lot of miracles!

On Wednesday, we had some extra time, and so we decided to go and tracting a little bit (knocking on doors), which is kinda the stereotypical thing that missionaries do, but I haven't done it a ton here. But, we met this cool person named CY, and she invited us back to share a message on Sunday night! We also met this nice Tamil family of 10 that invited us back. And then, we saw this man pull up in a really big truck, and he was watching us talking to someone, and then he beckoned us over to his car. Elder Anglin and I were both really scared, and thought we were going to get in trouble. But, he ended up being this really nice old man who was interested in what we were doing! He ended up living on the same street (in a REALLY nice house), and he said we could come by and share a message, and he even offered to pay for our university education haha! We politely declined, but it was a nice offer!

On Sunday, we went to teach CY, and she was really interested! And then, this morning she texted us saying that she tried praying yesterday before she went to bed, and she slept really well, which she said never happens. It was so cool that she saw a miracle from praying so quickly! We also went to try to share with the Tamil family, but their grandfather just passed away, and it is Indian tradition that after a family member dies, you cannot let people into your house or go to any temple/church for a month. It was kinda a bummer we couldn't share with them, but we can try again in a little bit!
This week, Brother Ned also came back and visited Butterworth. He has been living in his wife's hometown, because she just had a baby, and the Chinese tradition is that for one month after giving birth, women cannot sit, bathe, or eat certain foods (count your blessings we were born in America!). But, he came back to visit for a couple days, and it was so great to see him! Plus, his baby (Kimberly) is so adorable! :)

I realized that I haven't really updated you on some of the people we are teaching in a while...sometimes I just assume that you guys experience everything that I do, and so I don't need to tell you haha, sorry about that. Jason (dating the branch president) is doing really well, but his father actually said that he is not able to get baptized. So, we are going to wait a couple years until he is older, and then try again! Benson is doing well, but he has been so busy lately, that we may need to stop teaching him, which is hard because he is such a close friend, but it may not be his time. We are also teaching a woman named Chitra, who came to church for the first time on Sunday and may be able to get baptized really soon! Woo hoo! Finally, we are teaching a guy from Indonesia who is pretty neat, but is progressing pretty slowly. 

I love you all so much! I hope that you had a fantastic week full of miracles and moments of growth and times to sit back and ponder! I cannot thank you enough for everything that you do...thanks for being awesome! Have a wonderful week and don't forget to smile! Much love!

P.S. This week I have reached a new level of adoration for EFY music! If you feel like getting your EFY groove on, I recommend the following:
1. Big or Small (a personal favorite, 2017)
2. Take it Home (from 2011)
3. Glorious (also sung by David Archuleta, 2012)

Spiritual Experiences

This week, I have been thinking a lot about a scripture from Alma 60:21:

"Or do ye suppose that the Lord will still deliver us, while we sit upon our thrones and do not make use of the means which the Lord has provided for us?"

I have always thought this chapter of the Book of Mormon is really funny because Moroni is really sassy in his letter to Pahoran, even though later we find out Pahoran is not doing anything bad at all. But this time reading through, I tried to be more serious, and this stuck out to me. I firmly believe that God will always deliver us, no matter what situation we are in. As an EFY singer once said "He will always pick you up, no matter what you've done, if you run to Him." But, I think the important part of this is that we run to Him. If we want to be delivered, it will happen, but we need to use the means that the Lord has provided for us. 

For example, I REALLY want to learn lots of Chinese on my mission, and I believe that it is possible through God's help. But, to let God help me as much as I can, I need to use everything he has given me, which means using my time to talk to other people, read, and practice. And, as we use the means which the Lord has provided, He will give us what we desire, in His time.

I love you all so much! 

Pictures:

1. A picture of Bandung Ais, a classic desert.
2. Brother Tham treated us to Texas Chicken! (I think it is called Church Chicken in the US, but they had to change the name due to Malaysian law)
3. Us with Brother Ned!
4. Us with Donny (our rich friend) and one of his colleagues.