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| So stoked to meet Elder Stephen B. Allen and his wife |
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| One more from last week's baptism! |
Hello all!! I want to apologize for the lame weekly update last week, but I promise to make it up this week. The Lord has been laboring with Elder Stewart and me, and we are so grateful. We are seeing the blessings more so than we have ever seen on our missions.
So this last week, we had three investigator families come to church. Let me give you a run down about them. We know the Lord is preparing and sending us prepared people because of the way we found them. We're just so blessed and being instruments in the hands of the Lord!!!
M____ and Family : So we got a text from some elders in Sibu that a member named Edwin brought the rest of his family to church! Edwin stays in Sibu, but his family is all in MIRI!! Stoked! Turns out Edwin was so excited that his family enjoyed church he decided to get work off for the week and come to Miri to introduce us to his family. So we met them two weeks ago, and taught them twice, then they CAME TO CHURCH! We even convinced Edwin to delay going home and come with them, which he did! It was perfect. They are so excited and are planning on getting baptized on 4 October 2014!! In their family is: Molong, mom. Lagil (works offshore for an oil company, may be baptized when he gets back), dad. Korina, 23. Augustine, 25 (also offshore, but will be baptized when he gets back). Boniface, 19. Sylvester, 17, and Diana, 9. They are so excited to be baptized and already talk about the church as if they are members! They always say "di gereja lama kami, (in our old church) blah blah blah." We're just so happy.
S___ and Family: S___ is a referral from some members in Miri!!! Here's the story. Her husband, Brother Star, works offshore as well, but one of his coworkers is a member named Brother Jarop. So after our huge push for Amazing August, Brother Jarop told us that Star had seen him and his family change a ton, and asked him why. Jarop said it was because of his church - and then Star said "Can I follow your church??" hahahah WHAT THE HECK. Perfect. So they are both still working offshore, but Elder Stewart and I have been teaching S___, his wife. They will be baptized in October when her husband get home! Their family: Star, dad. Iping, Star's mom, total Iban grandma, Susan, wife! Agnesia, Susan's niece, 19. And they have a boy named Samuel who is the CUTEST but so naughty, throwing-around-an-oreos-container-during-sacrament-naughty hahaha. Solid!!
M_____ and Family: ALSO SO SICK. So M_____ was a SUPER strong member here in Miri from 2003 until about 2009 or so. Something happened, and she fell away. All this time, she was the only person in her family going to church - no family support at all. Well, two weeks ago, she felt pricked by the Spirit to contact the missionaries in Miri and return to the Church of Jesus Christ. She emailed Kelvin Tan, the missionary I replaced in Miri who has already gone home, who then forwarded to us her contact info. She has two children she wants baptized - also, her sister-in-law is down, and one of her good friends and their family are also learning. The best news of all is that her husband, John, who has never had any interest in the church, is now being baptized this Saturday. We are so excited and so blessed!
Also...
F_____: So, after Amazing August, one of the recently baptized members decided to talk to her friends at school! She wanted to invite them and be a successful member missionary. Well, one of her friends responded "Your church is sesat/misled/not true." The new member replied "How can you know if you have never been? Come and see." BOOM! Her friend came, felt the Spirit, and loved it! She's been reading the Book of Mormon and has felt the Spirit so strongly as she has done so. She texted us yesterday to say, "I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true! Can't wait to be baptized!!" Wow.
So. The Lord is really helping us out with sending some great prepared people. But I have a little story that correlates with this!!
A couple weeks ago, both of my parents emailed me about the importance of SPECIFIC prayers - not just asking for general blessings we need, but asking for specific ways for them to be met. Well, around the same time, I was reading in the Book of Mormon in Bahasa, and two verses really stuck out to me: Alma 13:24
For behold, angels are declaring it unto many at this time in our land; and this is for the purpose of preparing the hearts of the children of men to receive his word at the time of his coming in his glory.
and Alma 19:36
And thus the work of the Lord did commence among the Lamanites; thus the Lord did begin to pour out his Spirit upon them; and we see that his arm is extended to all people who will repent and believe on his name.
Both of these verses mention ways the Lord can prepare the hearts of men for the message of the Gospel! Through His angels and His Spirit. So, for a couple of weeks, I prayed that the Lord would send His angels to the people of Miri and pour out His Spirit on the people here so they would be prepared for the message. I kept that up for a couple weeks, but I didn't really make any connection between that and the above experiences - I just knew the Lord was blessing us. Well, last night in my prayer before I went to bed, as I was thanking Heavenly Father for the opportunity to teach such wonderful people, the Spirit flooded my mind and heart, and I had the overwhelming thought that those people (specifically M____) were prepared as a DIRECT RESULT of my prayers and specific requests. I was flooded with gratitude. I know the Lord is over this work and is helping so many people come unto Christ!
In other news, at Mission Leadership Council in Singapore this week, Elder Stephen B. Allen, the head of the missionary force across the world came! He is the man who helped a ton with the production of Preach My Gospel, and the "I'm A Mormon" Media Campaign is his brainchild. Pretty legit, huh? He stirred up the Zone LEaders at MLC and we are STOKED to get down to work and get this mission going!!!
Also, I went to the American Club in Singapore this week with some old friends of our family's from when we lived in Singapore. It was so awesome/weird to have the memories flooding back from when I frequented the place with my family many years ago. So blessed! Also, I had the nicest meal of my mission while I was there!! #thatbuffetlifestylethough I ate a Caesar salad and pizza and nice food and finished with creme brulee!!!! SO GOOD Oh man, it really defeats the simple food of Malaysia that we normally eat. I wanted to take a picture but figured it was probably impolite hehe. I'm losing all social norms hahaha.
Life is great, we are working hard, and the Lord is working with us - which is the most important factor of all. As missionaries, we are merely instruments in the hands of the Lord! As of our own strength and ability, we are NOTHING.
Malaysia Boleh!
Love you all! Know you are in my prayers!
Elder Clay Coleman
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| Family friends Jim & Dora Ellis treated Elder Stewart and me to the best meal of our mission! The Singapore American Club holds so many memories from my childhood. |
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| Bishop Schroedter joined us for dinner. He was my bishop when I lived in Singapore as a child. |
