Benyamin and Herding Cats

no i didn't spell that wrong! the thing with thai... is that nothing really ever sounds the same. the mall "central" is said "centran" if you say it "central"... good luck having anyone understand. so. our 9 year old baptisms name is benyamin. he... is the cutest thing on the face of this planet. his grandma was baptized last week. and he had come to church thinking that he was getting baptized too! ummm.... you need to learn a little bit first! so... my companion and i sent him home with homework, and we met with him, taught him everything... and BAPTIZED! it was the cutest thing. we didn't know how much he would know before we taught him (even though we told his grandma to teach him out of the pamphlets...) the first thing he says when we pulled out the restoration pamphlet was JOSEPH SMITH! (actually sounds more like jo-sep sa-mit) it did require a little bit more explanation than just his name... but it was a good start! and he was really good. until about 25 minutes into the lesson... at which point his ability to focus... ran out. then it turned into - ok! now repeat after me ok? ok? ok... good times.

sunday was an even funnier event. since we have 3 meetings, sometimes it gets a little hard to manage... everything! but we try. the best part was trying to find little matthew. (ahem. i forgot to add... his REAL name is benyamin. his NICKNAME is matthew. capeesh?) a word on thai nicknames... they rarely make sense. hence the reason i email home and talk about "donut" and "dot com" no. their parents didn't choose those names. (most of the time...) back to matthew. at one point we were running around the church trying to find him... i finally ran into our district leader who said, "i just smoked him out of that room... he ran this way..." around the church a few more times before we saw the branch mission leader corralling him into the boys bathroom. this baptism... worse than trying to catch fish bare-handed or herding cats... but totally worth it! 

now for the baptism. it was adorable. we had a few of the primary kids give talks and have a part in the program to help him feel like he had friends at church (did i really need to? we saw matthew and another boy walking down the hall arm in arm and looking oh so chummy, right before the other kid turned around and shoved matthew into a room. i guess that means their friends???) the primary kids also did a special musical number for the baptism. oh so cute. and then one of them refused to sing... but then turned around and started leading the singing with a dry erase marker... 

other things about sunday... 

the homeless guy.

apparently I (me... sister ellis...) was the one that invited him. i vaguely maybe slightly remember him... i was just "inviting everyone" like they told me to. i didn't ever expect him to actually come to church. but... he did. so that was interesting. the elders asked if we wanted to teach him. we thought it might be better if some elders took care of him. but since then, he's come to church every week! it's pretty cool. the elders even gave him some church clothes from the extra stuff they had at their apartment. now they have a big huge plan to help him find a job, get a place to live so that he can be baptized this month! 

(he does have a name. we just haven't been able to understand it when he's said it yet...) 

we went contacting with the elders the other day. while we were on the bus, it was fun to watch the elders as they "seat hopped". as one person would say no... they would move to the seat right in front of them and ask the next person. i wish i had got a video. 

not-so-fun things from this week. we had zone conference. (that actually... WAS fun.) the not-so-fun part was that i had to bear my testimony. "THE testimony". the one that means that you DIE (aka end your time as a missionary) before the next zone conference. that was... a sad feeling. 

but it was also pretty cool. i feel like often, missionaries don't want it to end. (i mean really - who does?) but i was a cool experience to have everyone get up and testify about the fact that our work doesn't end here! comments like "i promise i will serve jesus christ for the rest of my life" and "this isn't the end" were the theme of the testimonies that were shared. i loved it. it made everything so much more palatable. no one likes to see something this great come to an end, but the real fact of the matter is that it doesn't have to. it never has to. 

one last thought: matthew 25:34-46

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty,and ye gave me no drink:
I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you,Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

president and sister senior gave us a challenge. to take ONE of these groups - the hungry, the thirsty, the sick... choose one. "even the least of them" and make it a part of your christmas this year. find some way to serve someone in these groups. in whatever way you feel like you can. 

so that is MY christmas challenge to YOU.

i love you! 

i love this season! 

i love this gospel!

i love everything! (except for pig intestines and coagualted blood...) 

have the best week ever!!!

sister ellis