Membangun Lagi‏

So, to be quite honest, last week i was not looking forward to writing this email, cuz it was such an awful week...we had NO appointments until saturday that followed thru! a full week...i felt like a waste of a missionary, but this week has already gotten better. btw, the "t" on this keyboard isn't working very well, so if i get sick of having to waste time on it, jus know here should be a "t" and i'm jus oo lazy.

so ya, last week was quite frustrating for me and siman, but i was super excited saturday cuz we had 3 appointmens, and one was wih ibu edi, and i was he bes one yet! she was actually supporting the BofM, and said that she's noticed it's easier to read han the bible....soooo that was huge.

monday, we had our plan for the day all planned and set to go, and right as we were about to end our comp study, pres called and asked to talk to me...so the whole house went quiet, i walked slowly over to the phone, and i waited to see if i'd hear the words i've been waiting to hear since the day i got here...but i didn't. he told us that THAT DAY he wanted me and Siman to go to the church to interview the Pioneers of Indonesia who were waiting to go to the temple for the first time ... some have been waiting for almost 40 years (since the church was first started here). so, we had to change all our plans around, but it ended up being THE COOLEST day. we got to hear so many stories and so many testimonies...there were tears, there were smiles, there was laughter, and there was the Spirit in that room as we recorded all those histories. one lady was excited to finally wear garments (she'd had a friend who had garments, but didn't wear them cuz it was too hot, and she swore if she'd ever get to the temple, she'd never be like that), another old man was going with his daughter, and they were going to be sealed to his wife and his grand daughter who died last year from a freak accident, and one man who was there without his wife because she hadn't stayed active but he had...and he wasn't going to miss this opportunity. it was seriously the COOLEST thing o be involved in, and it REALLY made me appreciate all the temples that are so close to me...i'm 15 minutes from bountiful and 20 minutes from Ogden and SL...not to mention all the others that are 1 hour away. it's a true blessing!

and then yesterday we had the opportunity to visit a girl from Medan, who got married and moved to jakarta less than a yr ago, but her husband won't let her go to church cuz it's too far and dangerous....but according to Siman (she's from Medan, fyi), Atika was one of the STRONGEST members in Medan, and wanted to serve a mission, but was possibly a little forced into getting married by her family...but we visited her, and altho she's had a rough time, she is SOOO full of faith and her testimony is SO strong...i seriously loved listening o her talk cuz you could justt feel the power in her voice. so it was fun to see her.

then, on our way home, we were walking down the street, and an older guy was outside his house and i told him good afternoon, and then he wanted o know what marga i was (that's like family, and it's the Batak people...they have strong roots to their ancestors, and we were in a Batak neighborhood) in, and i said one of the names of one of the elders that i know is batak, and the guy like freaked ou, and was like, what? and immediaely invited us into his house....so from there, sis siman bsically gave the first discussion to this guy and his wife, and it was AWESOME. they listened, and they had questions, and it was possibly one of the best first discussions i've ever had just cuz it was righ on the spot. bu we're going back next week :)

and today siman and i went to taman mini with raz...it was fun, but i'm EXHAUSED! raz is so good, bu she'll be leaving in another 2 weeks, so we're just taking advantage of the time we have left with her.

so...the lessons i learned this week were many, but what is top on my mind is NEVER BE UNGRATEFUL FOR THE SMALL BLESSINGS IN YOUR LIFE! temples that are so close, being able to go to church without having to fight someone about it (especially when the church is as close as it is in k-town), enduring trials cuz they will open up to many many blessings...there are so many things we have in this life, we need to always be ever grateful for them.

and i know this is kinda short today, but kel sent pics of the weddings so i wanna see them...congrats to zack and addi, and morgan and dave (i think that's his name...right? sorry...i haven't met you yet!)! may you enjoy eternity together :) thanks for everything, i love you, and have a good week! loves~

~Sister Sara