Hello to the other side of the world!
Wow, what a great time to be in Thailand. It was a fantastic week here in Sisaket.
Monday: Just another P-Day on this side of Thailand. Went to a store to get a suit cut. I have a feeling it is going to turn out well. We went out to do some teaching but our appointments all fell through. We did find someone to teach, but he was not that interested. It was a pretty quiet night on the proselyting side of things.
Tuesday: Not much better of a day for teaching. We got a couple lessons done in the morning, but they were only return appointments. No one new to teach. One of the appointments was with a 23 year old guy. Too bad he was done with school and moving back out of the city to be with family. Ugh. It seems like stuff like that happens all the time. Oh well. English was a fun experience. The power went out from a rain storm and thankfully the church building had 2 emergency lights in the hallway. That was cool. So we taught English to 10 or so students under a dim light. It was fun. Then when the class was over the power some back on for good. Go figure.
Wednesday: So to make up for the beginning of the week in lack of lessons, the Lord must have decided to fill in the rest of the days. The rest of the week averaged 5 lessons a day. It was a busy week going around and teaching. We did have time to find some new people as well. One guy we are teaching is trying to stop smoking, so that will be fun to help him get through. He really does want to stop.
Thursday: A little slower of a day because of our weekly planning that has to get done. We found a sweet new guy that told us he doesn't know where to go in life and is kind of lost. He just finished schooling, looking for a job, and not sure what the purpose of life is. Good thing we stopped by and taught him a lesson about the Gospel of Christ. That was a cool lesson.
Friday: Oh boy. 7 lessons. That was a fun day. We found two new guys to start teaching. One of them has a family and he wants more happiness to be in his family. The rest were with investigators that have been learning for a while. We have a couple who are close to baptism. We are teaching a guy waiting for approval from the First Presidency and he told us about a dream that he had before meeting the Elders. He had a dream about Christ and when the Elders handed him a pass along card with a picture of Christ and he recognized Him as the man from his dream. That was way cool.
Saturday: Taught a few more lessons. More like 5 lessons. We found a guy who doesn't really care about this life and doesn't care if there is a next life. He pretty much has no hope. We really hope that we can help him to have that hope and faith in the next life.
Sunday: A pretty crazy day. We taught 3 lessons after church and we got a new kid who wants to be baptized. He is 13 years old and wants to be baptized. It was quite amazing sitting down with him. We only got 2 new persons to teach, and the other one is the step-sister of the guy we taught on Thursday. It was a good lesson. Gave him a Book of Mormon to start reading. He also wants to go to church on Sundays. Also our 87 year old woman is getting baptised. I think it is a record for the mission...
Well that is all for this week!
Love,
Elder Ackerman
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Week #45
Hey everyone,
Well so this has been a pretty good week. I will get right into it.
Monday: A pretty normal day for the 4 of us here in Sisaket. It is really fun being with 4 Elders in a house. We were able to teach a couple lessons before the night was over.
Tuesday: It was a pretty normal day. We changed around the schedule for the summer months when it is really hot. We now study in the middle of the day when it is the hottest. It was good. We got a few lessons but no one was interested in learning more. It gets hard sometime trying to help people see the truth and maybe they feel something about what we are talking about it, but are too scared to act on the feelings. So we taught several people, but nothing from it. We also had a good English class and got a couple people who want to start learning the gospel.
Wednesday: It was a better day. We taught 4 lessons and we also got some new investigators as well. It turned out well. Elder Siriphan and I have been spending a lot of time trying to teach and find more families and individuals to share the gospel with. Most of the time it is slow work, but I am constantly surprised at how fast the day goes by. We now also have an 87 year old woman who is learning with us. She speaks only Isan, a dialect of Thai, so that is a problem. Her daughter is a member, so she helps translate for us. It is very interesting teaching.
Thursday: Another good day. We have started getting more involved in less-active teaching. It has been turning out good. It just increases my testimony that Preach My Gospel was written by apostles of the Lord. If we do it the Lords way, we will always succeed. We taught 4 more lessons. 2 of them were with some less active members. It is very sad to see how destructive Satan can be to families. They just get pulled about and shredded to pieces.
Friday: We taught some more lessons. We just did not get anyone new to begin teaching. We have a few people who are progressing nicely and moving towards baptism. It is great. I love being able to see the change in peoples lives. This work is so important.
Saturday: This was a fun day. One of the lessons we taught consisted of me entertaining a very disprutive drunk man while Elder Siriphan taught the investigator. It was a first lesson with the man and thankfully he let us back for another visit. It was fun, although I was not able to participate in the lesson. It was an interesting experience. We started teaching a members older brother who learned with the missionaries before. He is pretty cool. He is my age and he has been doing well, reading the scriptures and such.
Sunday: It was a good day. We had 3 investigators at church. Sisaket has been doing really well. We taught another few lessons. The guy from Saturday night we taught again. I swear that guy lives around only crazy and drunk people. Oh well. It turned out to be a good lesson. HE told us that when he was in school he always felt better learning about Christianity compared to Buddhism and Islam. That was cool to hear. For dinner Elder Cotrell made some meatloaf and mashed potatoes. That was really good.
That is all for this week folks!
Love,
Elder Ackerman
Well so this has been a pretty good week. I will get right into it.
Monday: A pretty normal day for the 4 of us here in Sisaket. It is really fun being with 4 Elders in a house. We were able to teach a couple lessons before the night was over.
Tuesday: It was a pretty normal day. We changed around the schedule for the summer months when it is really hot. We now study in the middle of the day when it is the hottest. It was good. We got a few lessons but no one was interested in learning more. It gets hard sometime trying to help people see the truth and maybe they feel something about what we are talking about it, but are too scared to act on the feelings. So we taught several people, but nothing from it. We also had a good English class and got a couple people who want to start learning the gospel.
Wednesday: It was a better day. We taught 4 lessons and we also got some new investigators as well. It turned out well. Elder Siriphan and I have been spending a lot of time trying to teach and find more families and individuals to share the gospel with. Most of the time it is slow work, but I am constantly surprised at how fast the day goes by. We now also have an 87 year old woman who is learning with us. She speaks only Isan, a dialect of Thai, so that is a problem. Her daughter is a member, so she helps translate for us. It is very interesting teaching.
Thursday: Another good day. We have started getting more involved in less-active teaching. It has been turning out good. It just increases my testimony that Preach My Gospel was written by apostles of the Lord. If we do it the Lords way, we will always succeed. We taught 4 more lessons. 2 of them were with some less active members. It is very sad to see how destructive Satan can be to families. They just get pulled about and shredded to pieces.
Friday: We taught some more lessons. We just did not get anyone new to begin teaching. We have a few people who are progressing nicely and moving towards baptism. It is great. I love being able to see the change in peoples lives. This work is so important.
Saturday: This was a fun day. One of the lessons we taught consisted of me entertaining a very disprutive drunk man while Elder Siriphan taught the investigator. It was a first lesson with the man and thankfully he let us back for another visit. It was fun, although I was not able to participate in the lesson. It was an interesting experience. We started teaching a members older brother who learned with the missionaries before. He is pretty cool. He is my age and he has been doing well, reading the scriptures and such.
Sunday: It was a good day. We had 3 investigators at church. Sisaket has been doing really well. We taught another few lessons. The guy from Saturday night we taught again. I swear that guy lives around only crazy and drunk people. Oh well. It turned out to be a good lesson. HE told us that when he was in school he always felt better learning about Christianity compared to Buddhism and Islam. That was cool to hear. For dinner Elder Cotrell made some meatloaf and mashed potatoes. That was really good.
That is all for this week folks!
Love,
Elder Ackerman
Friday, March 4, 2011
Week #44
Dear Everyone,
So I am doing pretty awesome. Sisaket has been treating me nicely as well as a baptism. So here is the week!
Monday: Pretty good Monday. We went to a members house for a Family Home Evening and they asked me to share a lesson/spiritual thought. I chose to speak on the Atonement. If you are ever called to speak on what ever you want. I suggest the Atonement. There is so much surrounding it. We also got another lesson in as well for the night.
Tuesday: We had a pretty good day. We had our weekly district meeting given by Elder Brix. It has been a while since I have had a District Meeting in Thai. Actually since my first and second transfers in Saphan Sung. Wow, time flies huh? We got 4 total lessons in. I have to say the Lord has been really blessing us. We taught the English class. Well I taught and Elder Siriphan was a participant. Here they have it split into 2 classes. I am teaching the Advanced class like I was in Saphan Sung. It has been fun. One of our investigators is the older sister of a missionary serving in Thailand right now. That is really cool. She is waiting to get baptised when her younger sister (the missionary) returns. I was also in the same district as Sister Urisa (the missionary) when I was in Saphan Sung.
Wednesday: It was a really good day. We taught 5 lessons. I have never on my mission taught more lessons than about 14-16 in one week. This last week we got 25 lessons. It has been really good. The Lord is just pouring out His Spirit on Thailand. And in not too long a temple should be announced. That is President Smith's goal before he finishes his mission. I am so excited to be a part of creating the way for a temple to be built in Thailand!
Thursday: Another day of lessons. We had our usual long planning for the next week and then we went out and taught. We got another few lessons. We found one family who the wife had met the missionaries 9 years ago in Surin. She never learned with them, but knew who we were. She was very quick to invite us in and sit down with the family. Unfortunately, they are content with there life right now and don't want to change. It was still cool to be called over. Taught another woman who we could tell was not very happy with life. It is strange how people won't or choose not to accept something that will change there life. For the good of course.
Friday: Another day of a few lessons. We found some new people. Taught one guy who knew that all of this was true, but was afraid of his friends getting after him for changing his life for the better. He wants to continue drinking and being with his friends. It was just too sad. Taught some of our regular investigators.
Saturday: Ahh. A baptism. Sister Deang was baptised. She was baptised by a return missionary from Thailand who served in Salt Lake City South Mission (they got 250 baptism in one month before, it is also the highest baptising mission in the world). He is also the branch mission leader, which is really good. It was an excellent service and Sister Deang was very cheerful and happy. She introduced us to one of her friends as well. This friend was actually the one who told her to investigate the church. We are in the process of getting him to investigate and meet with us, but he is one of those 2nd Nephi 28: 7-9 people.
Sunday: Well, this branch has 70 to 80 attending regularly. It is quite a good branch and there are a lot of people who are very good with fulfilling their callings. We taught a few lessons, but they also did not turn out to much. It's okay. We have the next week.
Well that is all for this week. I love you all!
Elder Ackerman
So I am doing pretty awesome. Sisaket has been treating me nicely as well as a baptism. So here is the week!
Monday: Pretty good Monday. We went to a members house for a Family Home Evening and they asked me to share a lesson/spiritual thought. I chose to speak on the Atonement. If you are ever called to speak on what ever you want. I suggest the Atonement. There is so much surrounding it. We also got another lesson in as well for the night.
Tuesday: We had a pretty good day. We had our weekly district meeting given by Elder Brix. It has been a while since I have had a District Meeting in Thai. Actually since my first and second transfers in Saphan Sung. Wow, time flies huh? We got 4 total lessons in. I have to say the Lord has been really blessing us. We taught the English class. Well I taught and Elder Siriphan was a participant. Here they have it split into 2 classes. I am teaching the Advanced class like I was in Saphan Sung. It has been fun. One of our investigators is the older sister of a missionary serving in Thailand right now. That is really cool. She is waiting to get baptised when her younger sister (the missionary) returns. I was also in the same district as Sister Urisa (the missionary) when I was in Saphan Sung.
Wednesday: It was a really good day. We taught 5 lessons. I have never on my mission taught more lessons than about 14-16 in one week. This last week we got 25 lessons. It has been really good. The Lord is just pouring out His Spirit on Thailand. And in not too long a temple should be announced. That is President Smith's goal before he finishes his mission. I am so excited to be a part of creating the way for a temple to be built in Thailand!
Thursday: Another day of lessons. We had our usual long planning for the next week and then we went out and taught. We got another few lessons. We found one family who the wife had met the missionaries 9 years ago in Surin. She never learned with them, but knew who we were. She was very quick to invite us in and sit down with the family. Unfortunately, they are content with there life right now and don't want to change. It was still cool to be called over. Taught another woman who we could tell was not very happy with life. It is strange how people won't or choose not to accept something that will change there life. For the good of course.
Friday: Another day of a few lessons. We found some new people. Taught one guy who knew that all of this was true, but was afraid of his friends getting after him for changing his life for the better. He wants to continue drinking and being with his friends. It was just too sad. Taught some of our regular investigators.
Saturday: Ahh. A baptism. Sister Deang was baptised. She was baptised by a return missionary from Thailand who served in Salt Lake City South Mission (they got 250 baptism in one month before, it is also the highest baptising mission in the world). He is also the branch mission leader, which is really good. It was an excellent service and Sister Deang was very cheerful and happy. She introduced us to one of her friends as well. This friend was actually the one who told her to investigate the church. We are in the process of getting him to investigate and meet with us, but he is one of those 2nd Nephi 28: 7-9 people.
Sunday: Well, this branch has 70 to 80 attending regularly. It is quite a good branch and there are a lot of people who are very good with fulfilling their callings. We taught a few lessons, but they also did not turn out to much. It's okay. We have the next week.
Well that is all for this week. I love you all!
Elder Ackerman
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Moving Time
Hey Everyone,
Well I am no longer in Buriram. I am now in Sisaket. Which happens to be only 3 hours away by bus. So I will let you know what this past week looked like.
Monday: A pretty normal P-Day. Elder Chapman and I cleaned the house and reorganized the furniture. Too bad I was going to be moving...oh well, the house looks way good. We were able to teach a lesson or two.
Tuesday: Well, we had our last District meeting together in Buriram. That is when I found out I was transferring to Sisaket and that Elder Campbell was transferring from Surin as well. I found out I would be companions with Elder Siripan. He is a Thai Elder from Chiang Mai. I though that was pretty cool. I finally have a Thai companion. We taught the normal English class and taught Bee afterwards.
Wednesday: Well I took a few hours to pack up all my stuff. We were able to get out and work for a few hours before having to go to the train station. I don't know why they are taking the train. It is much slower and more expensive. Oh well. So Elder Chapman went to Bangkok on the train with everyone else and then Elder Siripan was dropped off in Buriram for a bus ride in the morning.
Thursday: A nice quick 3 hour bus ride in the morning with all my stuff and I was in Sisaket. That was actually really nice to not have to go to Bangkok. But it was sad too. I didn't get to see all of my friends at the transfers meeting. It was a good day of planning, working, teaching 3 lessons and all that good stuff. They have some good investigators. Oh yeah and this used to be the ZL's area. Sisaket has 4 Elders total in the city. Elder Siripan and I whitewashed the area. That was fun :). Oh and Elder Larson in my group is now a Zone Leader in Chiang Mai. That's crazy. We have one investigator who is getting baptized on the 26th of this month.
Friday: We taught 5 lessons. That was a fun day. I really like it here and Elder Siripan is a great companion and a hard worker. This is his 4th transfer in Sisaket but his 1st in a new area. So who knows how long he could be here for. It was a full day of teaching and visiting people. The members here are great and a brother just got a mission call to Australia. There are already 2 out in Thailand from SIsaket. This branch is doing very well.
Saturday: Got the interview done for Deang (going to be baptized on the 26th). Passed with no problems. It is pretty nice to practically have a free baptism. We haven't had to do any teaching. The Zone Leaders did all that for us. :) The Zone leader area is now in Ubon. Another investigator of 9 years got interviewed for the 4th time. He is waiting First Presidency approval to be baptised. He is 69 years old and had killed someone when he was 23. It has taken a long time. We are starting the process again and really hoping we get an answer this time on if he can get baptised. He is very tired of all the waiting.
Sunday: The branch has about 80 people who go regularly. We also had 4 investigators at church from the 2 areas here in SIsaket. We taught another 4 or so lessons and found some new people to begin teaching. The other Elders here are Elder Brix, who used to be Elder Siripan's companion, and Elder Cotrell, who came from Ayutaya. It is a fun house. :)
Well that is all for this week. I love you all!
Elder Ackerman
Well I am no longer in Buriram. I am now in Sisaket. Which happens to be only 3 hours away by bus. So I will let you know what this past week looked like.
Monday: A pretty normal P-Day. Elder Chapman and I cleaned the house and reorganized the furniture. Too bad I was going to be moving...oh well, the house looks way good. We were able to teach a lesson or two.
Tuesday: Well, we had our last District meeting together in Buriram. That is when I found out I was transferring to Sisaket and that Elder Campbell was transferring from Surin as well. I found out I would be companions with Elder Siripan. He is a Thai Elder from Chiang Mai. I though that was pretty cool. I finally have a Thai companion. We taught the normal English class and taught Bee afterwards.
Wednesday: Well I took a few hours to pack up all my stuff. We were able to get out and work for a few hours before having to go to the train station. I don't know why they are taking the train. It is much slower and more expensive. Oh well. So Elder Chapman went to Bangkok on the train with everyone else and then Elder Siripan was dropped off in Buriram for a bus ride in the morning.
Thursday: A nice quick 3 hour bus ride in the morning with all my stuff and I was in Sisaket. That was actually really nice to not have to go to Bangkok. But it was sad too. I didn't get to see all of my friends at the transfers meeting. It was a good day of planning, working, teaching 3 lessons and all that good stuff. They have some good investigators. Oh yeah and this used to be the ZL's area. Sisaket has 4 Elders total in the city. Elder Siripan and I whitewashed the area. That was fun :). Oh and Elder Larson in my group is now a Zone Leader in Chiang Mai. That's crazy. We have one investigator who is getting baptized on the 26th of this month.
Friday: We taught 5 lessons. That was a fun day. I really like it here and Elder Siripan is a great companion and a hard worker. This is his 4th transfer in Sisaket but his 1st in a new area. So who knows how long he could be here for. It was a full day of teaching and visiting people. The members here are great and a brother just got a mission call to Australia. There are already 2 out in Thailand from SIsaket. This branch is doing very well.
Saturday: Got the interview done for Deang (going to be baptized on the 26th). Passed with no problems. It is pretty nice to practically have a free baptism. We haven't had to do any teaching. The Zone Leaders did all that for us. :) The Zone leader area is now in Ubon. Another investigator of 9 years got interviewed for the 4th time. He is waiting First Presidency approval to be baptised. He is 69 years old and had killed someone when he was 23. It has taken a long time. We are starting the process again and really hoping we get an answer this time on if he can get baptised. He is very tired of all the waiting.
Sunday: The branch has about 80 people who go regularly. We also had 4 investigators at church from the 2 areas here in SIsaket. We taught another 4 or so lessons and found some new people to begin teaching. The other Elders here are Elder Brix, who used to be Elder Siripan's companion, and Elder Cotrell, who came from Ayutaya. It is a fun house. :)
Well that is all for this week. I love you all!
Elder Ackerman
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Week #42
Hey all,
Wow, so this was pretty good as well. Although, my companion has gone through quite the ordeal with ingrown toenails. Oh boy.
Monday: Was a fun day. Took a sweet bus ride from Surin to Ubon. It was a super nice bus. Nice big seats, massages, and food as well. It was great for a 3 hour bus ride. Took our P-Day in Ubon. Went to a really cool restaurant. It is called Peppers and is owned by an Australian guy. The Elders in Ubon usually go once a week to eat. Way good hamburgers. Then waited at the church for interviews with President Smith. After that was all done, Elder Chapman and I went out to teach a lesson or two and the first guy we talked to, we sat down and taught a way cool lesson. Plus we stayed in a hotel again. I forgot how real showers feel like. The one we have in houses are usual just electric heated and terrible pressure. Oh well, one of the sacrifices.
Tuesday: The fantastic 4 hour zone conference. We got an hour long lecture from President Smith on the Atonement. It was very cool. Reminds me of the talk "The Meaning of the Atonement", by Skousen. I suggest a look at that. Then had some really good training from the Zone Leaders. Then a fantastic lunch. We had our zone activity at a Thai historical museum and then we went bowling :) That was sweet. President Smith was totally in there bowling. Probably one of the few times he has to take a break. Then a great 3 hour bus ride to Surin for exchanges.
Wednesday: I was in Surin with Elder Mondragon. We had a really good day. Taught several lessons and gave some people baptismal dates. It was a lot of fun and really successful. They have some really cool investigators. Then for the news from Buriram with Elder Campbell and Elder Chapman. Elder Campbell called Sister Smith about Elder Chapman's ingrown toenails. So that called for a hospital visit and surgery on both toes. He couldn't walk all day on them.
Thursday: Elder Campbell called for another day of exchanges. So I was still in Surin for another day. Turned out alright. It wasn't like Wednesday for sure. A lot of our appointments fell through. Oh and my bike broke as well. Needed a new tire, the side wall collapsed. Oh well.
Friday: Back in Buriram. Well, we are having to visit the hospital everyday to get Elder Chapman's dressings changed. That is fun. The nurses at the hospital know us so well. We only got one lesson taught and he has learned with the Elders before, but like 20 years ago! That was cool. Then we had out long planning for the next week. Turned out to be a good day.
Saturday: It was a way good day here in Buriram. Saw a lot of investigators and the such. Had some really good lessons. Although they were pretty normal lessons. Nothing that really stands out. Although Bee always asks the hard questions. Specifically in 1 Nephi chapter 13 and 14. That was fun to try and explain.
Sunday: Now this was an amazing day to start out. We have 3 investigators at the beginning of church. So we are already pretty happy. Then at the last ten minutes, a teenage guy walks in, followed by another, and another, and another, and another. 5 guys walked in! Elder Chapman and I are looking that the members just shrugging our shoulders. We have no idea were they came from! Unfortunately, they only stayed for the rest of the 1st hour and the 2nd hour. We got there information and we are going to try and see them again. So we kind of had 8 investigators at church. The members were very shocked. Then the day went downhill. We took the needed trip to the hospital. Oh boy. They, the nurses, started to dig into Elder Chapman's toes and pull out left out tissue and gauze. Yeah that hurt. I had to help hold his legs down while they worked on him. There went the rest of the day. Couldn't walk again. Said it felt like they did the surgery all over again.
Well, that is my week of adventures in the Orient Thailand.
Love,
Elder Ackerman
Wow, so this was pretty good as well. Although, my companion has gone through quite the ordeal with ingrown toenails. Oh boy.
Monday: Was a fun day. Took a sweet bus ride from Surin to Ubon. It was a super nice bus. Nice big seats, massages, and food as well. It was great for a 3 hour bus ride. Took our P-Day in Ubon. Went to a really cool restaurant. It is called Peppers and is owned by an Australian guy. The Elders in Ubon usually go once a week to eat. Way good hamburgers. Then waited at the church for interviews with President Smith. After that was all done, Elder Chapman and I went out to teach a lesson or two and the first guy we talked to, we sat down and taught a way cool lesson. Plus we stayed in a hotel again. I forgot how real showers feel like. The one we have in houses are usual just electric heated and terrible pressure. Oh well, one of the sacrifices.
Tuesday: The fantastic 4 hour zone conference. We got an hour long lecture from President Smith on the Atonement. It was very cool. Reminds me of the talk "The Meaning of the Atonement", by Skousen. I suggest a look at that. Then had some really good training from the Zone Leaders. Then a fantastic lunch. We had our zone activity at a Thai historical museum and then we went bowling :) That was sweet. President Smith was totally in there bowling. Probably one of the few times he has to take a break. Then a great 3 hour bus ride to Surin for exchanges.
Wednesday: I was in Surin with Elder Mondragon. We had a really good day. Taught several lessons and gave some people baptismal dates. It was a lot of fun and really successful. They have some really cool investigators. Then for the news from Buriram with Elder Campbell and Elder Chapman. Elder Campbell called Sister Smith about Elder Chapman's ingrown toenails. So that called for a hospital visit and surgery on both toes. He couldn't walk all day on them.
Thursday: Elder Campbell called for another day of exchanges. So I was still in Surin for another day. Turned out alright. It wasn't like Wednesday for sure. A lot of our appointments fell through. Oh and my bike broke as well. Needed a new tire, the side wall collapsed. Oh well.
Friday: Back in Buriram. Well, we are having to visit the hospital everyday to get Elder Chapman's dressings changed. That is fun. The nurses at the hospital know us so well. We only got one lesson taught and he has learned with the Elders before, but like 20 years ago! That was cool. Then we had out long planning for the next week. Turned out to be a good day.
Saturday: It was a way good day here in Buriram. Saw a lot of investigators and the such. Had some really good lessons. Although they were pretty normal lessons. Nothing that really stands out. Although Bee always asks the hard questions. Specifically in 1 Nephi chapter 13 and 14. That was fun to try and explain.
Sunday: Now this was an amazing day to start out. We have 3 investigators at the beginning of church. So we are already pretty happy. Then at the last ten minutes, a teenage guy walks in, followed by another, and another, and another, and another. 5 guys walked in! Elder Chapman and I are looking that the members just shrugging our shoulders. We have no idea were they came from! Unfortunately, they only stayed for the rest of the 1st hour and the 2nd hour. We got there information and we are going to try and see them again. So we kind of had 8 investigators at church. The members were very shocked. Then the day went downhill. We took the needed trip to the hospital. Oh boy. They, the nurses, started to dig into Elder Chapman's toes and pull out left out tissue and gauze. Yeah that hurt. I had to help hold his legs down while they worked on him. There went the rest of the day. Couldn't walk again. Said it felt like they did the surgery all over again.
Well, that is my week of adventures in the Orient Thailand.
Love,
Elder Ackerman
Week #41
Hello!
Well, Thailand is doing good. I heard from a member that there was fighting between Cambodia and Thailand. Angkor Wat was built by the Thai's but is in Cambodian land. It is very old and a very famous wat. That is all that I know about it. This last week has been pretty good and this next week will be fun as well.
Monday: Just a normal preparation for the two of us here in Buriram. Went out teaching in the evening and came home without anything. For some reason lately, getting lessons Monday night has been kind of hard.
Tuesday: We went to Surin in the morning for the weekly district meeting with the other Elders in our District. It was fun and then Elder Campbell came back to Buriram with me for an exchange the rest of Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning. Taught the usual English class and taught Bee afterwards and had a really good lesson on prayer and receiving a spiritual confirmation.
Wednesday: This was a fun day. We taught and old guy, 70+ years. He was drunk and we asked the question, why do you drink? He then went into an explanation of being a soldier in the Vietnam war. If I understood right, he saw a mother and a father killed while the children watched. He broke into tears and kept saying "mai ow", which translates to "no want". It was very sad and touching and as we continued explaining about Christ and the Book of Mormon, and the Atonement, his countenance changed and was practically begging for the book. We happily gave him a copy. He went from sad to happy and hopeful. It was the most amazing change I have ever seen. Then we taught another lesson right after to a couple of guys who happen to live 20 km from that spot, each in the opposite direction. They were fairly interested, I just don't know how to get out and teach them...we only have bikes...oh well. Then another lesson with Bee. We talked about how important church is. We have been trying to get her to come to all three hours of church. So after a good conversation, we knelt down and prayed and after we had waited and pondered in silence, Elder Campbell spoke through the Spirit and practically prophesied. If she went to church all 3 hours, she would receive an answer and her restaurant would sell better than usual on a Sunday. If she did not attend all 3 hours, then the restaurant would have somehting dangerous happen and then the place would have problems. Way crazy lesson.
Thursday: Was only able to teach one lesson. We taught the old guy from the previous day and he is very hard to teach, mainly because he is old. Although he has an unconquerable faith that God exists. Pretty cool. We had the usual planning for the next week.
Friday: Taught some good lessons that day. They turned out good. Mainly lots of follow up visits and checking up on investigators. We taught one lady and her husband and beforehand we were talking about Thailand and learning the language and I was able to spit off some Loas and Cambodian that I had learned along the way. They thought that it was funny that these two weird looking white guys could do all that. Needless to say, that opened them up to our message. It was fun.
Saturday: Taught the old guy from Wednesday again and invited him to attend church and that we could have a member some pick him up if it was needed. He told us he was not ready to attend church. Interesting answer I thought and we tried to explain that we worship God and church and that we could help him do that. Still said no. Maybe next week. Also taught a cool guy that was very interested about what we had to teach. We gave him a soft baptismal commitment and that he would be baptised if it was true. It was great. Then we taught Bee again. talked some more about church and she said she would try the 3 hours.
Sunday: A good Sunday. Oh the day before we meet a kid and his mom come into the chruch just when we happened to be there. Usually the church is locked and closed. They came in and the 15 yr old kid asked what it would take to be a member. So we quickly invited him to church and that we could talk more and explain more then. He went to all 3 hours and we had a lesson afterwards and he now has a baptismal goal for the 19th of March. He had just returned form Russia as an exchange student and while there attended the Russia Orthodox church. There isn't an Orthodox church here in Buriram, so somehow, he was lead to us, just when we happened to be at the church. It was very cool. He reminds me of Nate Harris when he first moved to Eden Prairie. Then Bee went to all 3 hours as well. That was sweet. Taught another lesson during the day, went home and at 7pm got on a bus to Surin for a Tuesday Zone Conference.
That is all for this week!! I love you all!
Elder Ackerman
Well, Thailand is doing good. I heard from a member that there was fighting between Cambodia and Thailand. Angkor Wat was built by the Thai's but is in Cambodian land. It is very old and a very famous wat. That is all that I know about it. This last week has been pretty good and this next week will be fun as well.
Monday: Just a normal preparation for the two of us here in Buriram. Went out teaching in the evening and came home without anything. For some reason lately, getting lessons Monday night has been kind of hard.
Tuesday: We went to Surin in the morning for the weekly district meeting with the other Elders in our District. It was fun and then Elder Campbell came back to Buriram with me for an exchange the rest of Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning. Taught the usual English class and taught Bee afterwards and had a really good lesson on prayer and receiving a spiritual confirmation.
Wednesday: This was a fun day. We taught and old guy, 70+ years. He was drunk and we asked the question, why do you drink? He then went into an explanation of being a soldier in the Vietnam war. If I understood right, he saw a mother and a father killed while the children watched. He broke into tears and kept saying "mai ow", which translates to "no want". It was very sad and touching and as we continued explaining about Christ and the Book of Mormon, and the Atonement, his countenance changed and was practically begging for the book. We happily gave him a copy. He went from sad to happy and hopeful. It was the most amazing change I have ever seen. Then we taught another lesson right after to a couple of guys who happen to live 20 km from that spot, each in the opposite direction. They were fairly interested, I just don't know how to get out and teach them...we only have bikes...oh well. Then another lesson with Bee. We talked about how important church is. We have been trying to get her to come to all three hours of church. So after a good conversation, we knelt down and prayed and after we had waited and pondered in silence, Elder Campbell spoke through the Spirit and practically prophesied. If she went to church all 3 hours, she would receive an answer and her restaurant would sell better than usual on a Sunday. If she did not attend all 3 hours, then the restaurant would have somehting dangerous happen and then the place would have problems. Way crazy lesson.
Thursday: Was only able to teach one lesson. We taught the old guy from the previous day and he is very hard to teach, mainly because he is old. Although he has an unconquerable faith that God exists. Pretty cool. We had the usual planning for the next week.
Friday: Taught some good lessons that day. They turned out good. Mainly lots of follow up visits and checking up on investigators. We taught one lady and her husband and beforehand we were talking about Thailand and learning the language and I was able to spit off some Loas and Cambodian that I had learned along the way. They thought that it was funny that these two weird looking white guys could do all that. Needless to say, that opened them up to our message. It was fun.
Saturday: Taught the old guy from Wednesday again and invited him to attend church and that we could have a member some pick him up if it was needed. He told us he was not ready to attend church. Interesting answer I thought and we tried to explain that we worship God and church and that we could help him do that. Still said no. Maybe next week. Also taught a cool guy that was very interested about what we had to teach. We gave him a soft baptismal commitment and that he would be baptised if it was true. It was great. Then we taught Bee again. talked some more about church and she said she would try the 3 hours.
Sunday: A good Sunday. Oh the day before we meet a kid and his mom come into the chruch just when we happened to be there. Usually the church is locked and closed. They came in and the 15 yr old kid asked what it would take to be a member. So we quickly invited him to church and that we could talk more and explain more then. He went to all 3 hours and we had a lesson afterwards and he now has a baptismal goal for the 19th of March. He had just returned form Russia as an exchange student and while there attended the Russia Orthodox church. There isn't an Orthodox church here in Buriram, so somehow, he was lead to us, just when we happened to be at the church. It was very cool. He reminds me of Nate Harris when he first moved to Eden Prairie. Then Bee went to all 3 hours as well. That was sweet. Taught another lesson during the day, went home and at 7pm got on a bus to Surin for a Tuesday Zone Conference.
That is all for this week!! I love you all!
Elder Ackerman
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Week 39 in Thailand
Hey Everyone!
So life is going pretty good around here in Buriram. I can't believe how quick the time is going by. It was Christmas a month ago! Wow. I am doing well. I still have my health surpisingly. The Thai food and weather have not hurt me too bad. Although it is starting to warm up a little bit this last week. I can make a few Thai dishes already. I have had some time to practice.
Monday: Pretty normal Monday. Nothing to special going on. We went out after P-Day was over and couldn't get in on any lessons.
Tuesday: The rest of the week has turned out pretty amazing. Getting some cool new investigators and teaching lessons. Elder Chapman and I are working a lot better together teaching and finding wise. I am so glad I got another transfers with him. He is way fun. Taught the usual English class again.
Wednesday: We went to Surin for our weekly Distrcit Meeting. This week it was given by the Zone leaders. It was about accountability with our investigators and over our areas. The zone leaders are great. Came home and went out to teach a couple more lessons.
Thursday: Another day with a couple of lessons. Had the usual weekly planning session. Taught one of our former investigators. He is still doing great, just no time to meet with us. Nothing else really exciting.
Friday: Another good day. The work here in Thailand I feel is just starting to take off. President Smith's vision for the mission is the anouncement of a temple in Bangkok before he is done. I believe he is done a few transfers after I am. I firmly believe that his vision will be accomplished. It is just going great here and a temple is what Tahiland really needs.
Saturday: A little less of a good day. We managed to get ourselves lost for a little while. That was fun haha. Only taught one lesson, but we did get a return appointment from it.
Sunday: A great day. Found a sweet new investigator. We were just walking by this guys house as he was watering some sand for his kids to play in. Elder Chapman stopped in mid-sentence with me and proceeded to talk with this guy. Turns out that he loves to read and we gave him a Book of Mormon and he told us he wants to be baptised and that the next time we go back he will make sure his wife is there to listen to us as well. I would call that a miracle. It was very cool :) He is going to be great.
Well that is all for this week. Love you all!
Elder Ackerman
So life is going pretty good around here in Buriram. I can't believe how quick the time is going by. It was Christmas a month ago! Wow. I am doing well. I still have my health surpisingly. The Thai food and weather have not hurt me too bad. Although it is starting to warm up a little bit this last week. I can make a few Thai dishes already. I have had some time to practice.
Monday: Pretty normal Monday. Nothing to special going on. We went out after P-Day was over and couldn't get in on any lessons.
Tuesday: The rest of the week has turned out pretty amazing. Getting some cool new investigators and teaching lessons. Elder Chapman and I are working a lot better together teaching and finding wise. I am so glad I got another transfers with him. He is way fun. Taught the usual English class again.
Wednesday: We went to Surin for our weekly Distrcit Meeting. This week it was given by the Zone leaders. It was about accountability with our investigators and over our areas. The zone leaders are great. Came home and went out to teach a couple more lessons.
Thursday: Another day with a couple of lessons. Had the usual weekly planning session. Taught one of our former investigators. He is still doing great, just no time to meet with us. Nothing else really exciting.
Friday: Another good day. The work here in Thailand I feel is just starting to take off. President Smith's vision for the mission is the anouncement of a temple in Bangkok before he is done. I believe he is done a few transfers after I am. I firmly believe that his vision will be accomplished. It is just going great here and a temple is what Tahiland really needs.
Saturday: A little less of a good day. We managed to get ourselves lost for a little while. That was fun haha. Only taught one lesson, but we did get a return appointment from it.
Sunday: A great day. Found a sweet new investigator. We were just walking by this guys house as he was watering some sand for his kids to play in. Elder Chapman stopped in mid-sentence with me and proceeded to talk with this guy. Turns out that he loves to read and we gave him a Book of Mormon and he told us he wants to be baptised and that the next time we go back he will make sure his wife is there to listen to us as well. I would call that a miracle. It was very cool :) He is going to be great.
Well that is all for this week. Love you all!
Elder Ackerman
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