Teaching, Soccer, and a Spontaneous Preparation day

19 August 2017

So, this week has gone by fast because our last p-day was just last Monday. So as far as church goes I don't have any updates. Things are going well and this last week we got a lot of teaching done. We had a lot of teaching on both fronts of English and the Gospel. Everyone is doing great.

One of the people I am so Impressed with is our RC Brother See. He has been doing great ever since he was baptized and he is still working as the security guard at the church. He is just the best person for watching over the church. He is really proactive at making things at the church work well, and most of all, he really just cares for everything at the church. A lot more than a job where he is just putting in the hours. He goes above and beyond at making sure the church is taken care of. 

All of the recent converts are doing great. We had a lesson with Bounma this week that I really enjoyed. We were teaching the law of tithing and we decided before the lesson that we wanted to take our time and do as best we could to fully teach tithing. So, we wanted to do more than the five minute version of what tithing is, we wanted him to be able to really understand it. We spent 30 minutes talking about tithing and why it is important and the blessings we can receive from it. I really enjoyed the lesson and feel it was really useful in helping him understand tithing better.

So, for a funny story, I was teaching English one day at the college where we teach, and these two Japanese people walked into my class and sat down to learn English. Usually, strangers are not allowed in, but with only 7 minutes left in class, I let it slide. Afterward, they asked if we wanted to play soccer with them at the university. I told them sure, but it would have to be another night. So, we set up for Wednesday night. Wednesday night rolled around and we got a team together to play. It was a confusing team. With seven people on the team, we had four Japanese people, two Americans, and one Lao. It was awkward working with three languages. Only like two of the Japanese people spoke English and none of them spoke Lao. So, it seemed like our team discussions were just a line of translations from one person to another. It ended up being a lot of fun, even though we lost 6-7

Today was interesting. Our p-day plans fell through, so we just kind of made up what we were doing as we were doing it. It started with a new app on our cell phone that has maps. We saw early in the day that there was this zoo on the map and both of us were surprised, not knowing there was a zoo in Vientiane. So, we took a bus out to the coordinates and it ended up being an interesting place to visit but it wasn't really a zoo. It was a cultural center that had one cage with a few monkeys in it. We had fun there and when we finished, we still had a lot of time left in the day. We were close to the Thai Laos border so we jumped into Thailand and went to a market that we had both heard about but never been to. That was really good. We then came back and made it into the city with plenty of time to spare.

So, that is pretty much it for this week. The next time I write will be on the 29th because next Saturday we have stuff going on and will not be free.   

-- Elder Cheney

ฉะนั้น, หากเจ้ามีความปรารถนาจะรับใช้พระผู้เป็นเจ้า เจ้าก็ได้รับเรียกมายังงาน
เอ็ลเดอร์ ชีนีย์

ແລະ ຈົ່ງເບິ່ງ, ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າບອກພວກທ່ານເຖິງເລື່ອງເຫລົ່ານີ້ເພື່ອພວກທ່ານຈະຮຽນຮູ້ກ່ຽວກັບປັນຍາ ເພື່ອພວກທ່ານຈະຮຽນຮູ້ວ່າ

It's been a while...

So, It has been a while since I could write. Last Saturday was Zone Conference and the Saturday before we went with the Young Men and Young Women from the Branches to a waterfall and had an activity there. So, a lot has happened in the last few weeks.

Starting off with our investigators, Sister Basa was baptized two Sundays ago and when she came to church yesterday she brought her little brother with her. We have a return appointment to teach him this week. His name is Inta. A lot of our other investigators have dropped off. Poot went back home in a different part of Laos so he can't come to church. We still call him often to see how he is doing. Bounlom went to Vietnam recently and will be back this week. Toy has been doing good lately except she didn't make it to church yesterday. Yesterday we had a new investigator come to church with the Branch Two members. He is already Christian. It sounds like Seventh-Day Adventist. I taught him and he was really awesome. He loved the message of the Restoration and said it made a lot of sense to him. So, he asked for some time to read and pray about the Book of Mormon. He wants to make the change when he knows it is true. 

A fun part from the last two weeks was Abraham (Elder Smith-Driggs) and his family came up to visit. So, we did a lot of things with them; whether it was going to visit members together or a Family Home Evening with the YSAs. It was nice to have them here for a little while. 

Last Friday and Saturday we had Zone Conference in Udorn. It has been a while since I went to Thailand and I found, as I went over, how much different Thailand is from Laos. There are nice huge buildings and nice paved roads and a lot of things a just hadn't seen in a while. Along with that, I had a hard time speaking Thai. I just hadn't used it in months and a few months ago I finished reading the Book of Mormon in Thai so I stopped reading out loud in Thai. So the result was that I just kept throwing the wrong tones on everything I said and stumbling over my words. After the first day, I just decided to speak Lao with everyone. Most people thought it was amusing.... so, I think I need to get back to doing some Thai language study to keep myself able to speak fluidly. 

The Zone Conference itself was great. We had a lot of training's on giving commitments and doing good follow up. The Zone leaders also gave a good training about helping solve people’s problems or questions from the Book of Mormon. I really liked this training. I feel most questions it is easy to just answer yourself but there is a lot of power in having people read from the Book of Mormon. I think it was my favorite training from the conference. 

Last night was funny after we were done for the day we went home to study and to eat dinner. As soon as we walked in, the power for our whole block turned off. So, our night ended up being a little odd, doing studies in the dark and not really being able to cook any food. The power didn't come back on till one in the morning. The worst part is being in our 90 degree apartment without Air Conditioning. Our power turned back on at one in the morning and we were both glad to have the A/C on to cool us down. 

The Zone Leaders actually came up here to Laos today. They had something with their Visa's where they needed to leave Thailand and go back in. So, we had a good P-day with them and also with some Members from Udorn that came up with them. It was a good day.  

-- Elder Cheney

ฉะนั้น, หากเจ้ามีความปรารถนาจะรับใช้พระผู้เป็นเจ้า เจ้าก็ได้รับเรียกมายังงาน
เอ็ลเดอร์ ชีนีย์

ແລະ ຈົ່ງເບິ່ງ, ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າບອກພວກທ່ານເຖິງເລື່ອງເຫລົ່ານີ້ເພື່ອພວກທ່ານຈະຮຽນຮູ້ກ່ຽວກັບປັນຍາ ເພື່ອພວກທ່ານຈະຮຽນຮູ້ວ່າ ເມື່ອພວກທ່ານຮັບໃຊ້ເພື່ອນມະນຸດດ້ວຍກັນ ພວກທ່ານກໍຮັບໃຊ້ພຣະເຈົ້າຂອງພວກທ່ານນັ້ນເອງ
ແອວເດີ ຈີນີ

Food and Transfers

This week was great. It was transfers week. But for us it was really quiet. Nobody moved and nobody came in. We actually were not affected by transfers at all. 

We had a really good week, though less appointments teaching the gospel this week, but we were out and about visiting people and the reoccurring theme from this week was getting food from people. I think we got fed every single day this week and some times multiple times a day (sometimes multiple times for the same meal). We also had a good variety in the food we ate so that is always fun. I didn't eat anything too crazy; just some fish eyes. When eating fish, I have watched tons of people pick the eyes out and eat them, this week I realized I had never been the one to eat them. So, I finally got that experience. They tasted OK, but just had a weird texture. 

For the investigators, everyone is doing good. Sister Basa will not be getting baptized this Sunday but probably next Sunday. (She is going back home to talk to her parents and ask for permission to be baptized.) Everyone else is doing great and is progressing little by little. 

 One of my favorite parts this week was when two members from my old area in Chiang Mai came to Laos for some business and we got to have dinner with them. Since I am in Laos I do not have the opportunity to contact my Recent Converts that often. So I asked these members how Brother Jackie is doing. Brother Jackie was baptized while I was there and it was a great story. So, apparently he just got called as a counselor in the Branch Presidency. It made my day to hear that Brother Jackie is doing really well and staying strong. Also, it sounds like the Branch I was in is about to split so there will soon be three branches in Chiang Mai. So good stuff.

 

Brother Jackie and Elder Barlow who originally taught him 42 years ago.

Things are going great here and the work is moving along. 

 

Sister Phieng receives her mission call to the Thailand Bangkok Mission

 -- Elder Cheney

ฉะนั้น, หากเจ้ามีความปรารถนาจะรับใช้พระผู้เป็นเจ้า เจ้าก็ได้รับเรียกมายังงาน
เอ็ลเดอร์ ชีนีย์

ແລະ ຈົ່ງເບິ່ງ, ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າບອກພວກທ່ານເຖິງເລື່ອງເຫລົ່ານີ້ເພື່ອພວກທ່ານຈະຮຽນຮູ້ກ່ຽວກັບປັນຍາ ເພື່ອພວກທ່ານຈະຮຽນຮູ້ວ່າ ເມື່ອພວກທ່ານຮັບໃຊ້ເພື່ອນມະນຸດດ້ວຍກັນ ພວກທ່ານກໍຮັບໃຊ້ພຣະເຈົ້າຂອງພວກທ່ານນັ້ນເອງ
ແອວເດີ ຈີນີ