we started the week with a trip to chiang rai. (that's pretty much as far north as you can get. at least as far as "big cities" are concerned.) what did we do there? we saw a big white wat with harry potter and batman painted inside... and rode an ostrich. definitely NOT what normal people come to do when they come to thailand... but we're missionaries. nuf said.
so monday disappeared with chiang rai. tuesday had district meeting - in which we had a great experience learning how to read "ancient hieroglyphics"... it ended with the district leader telling us that "i could have tied it into pretty much anything... but the truth is... i just wanted to do it."
then we got on a bus for lampang, where i dropped off sister remington for the next few days. it was a couple of trainees loose in lampang for the week...
then we hopped on a night train for bangkok. the lovely part about being an stl is the travel. i spent every single day of this last week on a train or in a bus. and the only night that i slept in MY bed for the WHOLE night was friday. for anyone that might be inclined to think that being a leader is easy... i would like to submit that you try to sleep on a bus...
it was fun. it appealed to my sense of adventure quite well. (especially the part where the ticket booth told me to wait until a bus came... but no promises of WHEN that might occur.) sometimes i just shake my head and say, "thailand..." like it might change just for me. but then i realize that it is probably the reason that i love it so much. the craziness. the inability to know WHAT is going to happen that day. (like getting a text from our companions saying that they were both super sick and throwing up.) you never know what is going to happen.
we went to MLC (mission leadership council) on wednesday morning. we talked about unity and family. i love learning from president and his wife. they talked a lot about how family should more of a focus in what we are doing. that baptism is an irreplaceable step... that leads on to eternal life. life with our families. that everything that we are doing to teach them now is to help them to endure to the end. anyway. i loved it.
he also talked about improving our personal prayers. president did a role play in which he came up and just started telling the other person about his problems, what he needed, and how he wanted them NOW! it was a really good depiction to me of what my prayers are all to often prone to being... so he challenged us to not only "improve our prayers" but to "make a connection" with God. i thought that was a really interesting way of putting it. so i've been trying to "make the connection".
thursday. train. to p-lok. (sounds like p-loge) to do a switch off and pass on the words of wisdom from president.
it was a good day. and it wasn't as hot. so even better.
friday. we had ridden a 6 hour bus back on thursday night. trained in chiang mai on friday. taught an awesome investigator... he just needs to decide that he wants to get baptized. he likes everything we teach me. prays like a pro. we just left yochoo (i think of yoshi when i see his name) with the commitment to pray and to ask god if these things were true. unfortunately it isn't just as easy as getting the answer. we're always praying that they are willing to make the change too.
left to go to lampang to pick up our sick companions... and got back to chiang mai on friday night? or saturday morning. still not a whole nights sleep in my bed. waaaaa. (it's ok. i'll get over it.)
saturday we went and ate at "the dukes". it's a ridiculously expensive (for a missionary) farang (western) restaurant. i got a prime-rib sandwich and about died. is this what heaven is like? possibly...
(the reason we went and ate out was to celebrate elder paxton's 19th birthday. do i feel old....???)
sunday was pretty normal. hectic. crazy. special musical number for the fireside...
made me happy when i realized that the guy was talking about pregnancy, umbilical cords and diseases... and I UNDERSTOOD! fist pumps in my mind...
the other cool thing i got from church was the idea that
THOSE WHO FEAR GOD HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR AT ALL.
god is good.
if we side with him, we really do have nothing to fear.
love you all!
sister ellis
sister ellis
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