OH YEAH
This week we had the opportunity to go the grand, the extraordinary
THE
Oklahoma City Temple.
It was a marvellous experience, bringing our Recent Convert Jaime and performing baptisms for those who have passed away in the temple. Upon arrival, neither my companion nor I thought that we would have the opportunity to participate, but soon found out that they wished for us to participate. The spirit was very strong, and it was a fantastic experience for Jaime and his brother, Octavio.
Other than that terrific fact, there were some other, maybe less interesting things that happened. For example:
CHICK FIL-A COW APPRECIATION DAY:
In economics, there is a saying that there is no such thing as a free lunch. That is totally and completely correct. Someone, somewhere pays for that lunch. The thing that economists have not figured out, however, is that there is such thing as a free lunch AND DINNER. My companion and I decided to cash in our once-yearly opportunity to go to Chick Fil-a dressed as cows. The results of our dress can (apparently) be found on the Chick Fil-a Facebook page for Rogers Ave. They are as follows:
Do not be fooled, this was a picture that was forwarded from somebody else's phone. Please note that missionaries do not, in fact, have access to SnapChat haha
SCOTT CRAWFORD: DRUMMER EXTRAORDINAIRE:
The above picture was taken at the Crawford's house. Scott is a Returned Missionary that recently came back from Brazil speaking the (dirty version of spanish) language of Portugese. No hard feelings but Spanish is THE language to learn haha. We were talking about all sorts of things, and then he proceeded to demonstrate his skills on the drumset to us. Needless to say, I was impressed and deafened immediately. He learned from nothing and could play heavy metal drumset like nothing I had heard prior.
PRESIDENT LOVELAND'S SNEAK ATTACK:
We had left to go to our apartment after a long day of work, dressed as above. I had just finished installing new lightbulbs in our apartment (we had lived in darkness for TOO LONG) and was just getting ready to retire to my quarters when all of a sudden the Zone Leaders enter our apartment. This was an occurrence that wasn't too uncommon, but little did we know that they brought with them in tow President Loveland. We had no time to react, no alarms to allow us to prepare, and no Batman-style smoke grenades to throw and distract them. We did what we could and welcomed them nicely into our humble abode. President was very friendly and asked Elder Brown to say a prayer. My companion is a very spiritual, very intelligent person, but when it comes to English prayers, well, he forgot how to. He immersed himself in the language so well, that when it comes to English prayers, he has almost completely forgotten how to pray. When the prayer had finished, President left, and many laughs were had.
BABY OF DESTRUCTION:
This week, we visited our homies Fermin and Amber. We had a nice appointment in their home and were able to answer some questions and make some progress. They are very eager to learn, but it is hard with schedules to meet with them. Anyway, we finally succeeded in this and were at their house. Everything was going fine, until the baby got ahold of a magazine. She went on a rampage, hitting Amber (her mother) and Fermin incessantly. She proceeded to us, but then turned back because she didn't recognize us. In all, it turned out to be a great lesson, but it was tough with the attack baby in the house.
OUTREACH:
Probably mentioned this before, but every week, we go to outreach in Alma. Outreach is a community and faith-based organization that gives food to those who need it, irrespective of circumstances or beliefs. We get to share the Gospel quite often, and help a lot. This week was like every other week, but it was interesting for sure.
FAITH x $30,000:
Our Recent Convert, Jaime, requires more lessons, according to mission and church policy, so we get to teach him everything for a second time. It is really a good thing to do, because it resolves doubts and steadies faith. We were going over the concept of tithing again, and he had some concerns. We explained and asked him some inspired questions, and he opened up about how he had lost $30,000 to an unknown source and that he had been saving up to start a family and move back to Mexico. That was one of the most devastating things that I have ever heard. He resolved that he loved the Lord and would do whatever it takes to pay his tithing.
JOE:
So. Joe. Whoa. Ha see what I did there? Anyway. Joe was a gentleman that I met on exchanges with the late and great Elder Van Houten. We went to his home and he told us many things about him. We learned that he was from Laos, which is fairly common 'round these here parts, but he spoke very good English. He offered us drinks and we said sure. He started to get out some water, and then realized that, to his great disappointment, he had no cups! He decided to leave us alone in his apartment and run to the store to buy cups. When he came back, he provided us with cups and some cold Brisk Ice Tea. After I had politely placed the Brisk in the fridge and got water, he offered us food. At that point, the Spanish Missionary within me jumped for joy. "YES" I exclaimed, and then he began to cook us some vittles. The food that he made started out normal: some noodles in broth, similar to Ramen. Then, things got a little odd. By the time we received our food, it had some organs of some small animal in it. Not cool. I respect small animals and their respective organs, and was not too pleased to see them floating with my noodles. Anyway, the primary song "Quickly I'll Obey" jumped into my head, and quickly and without tasting or chewing, I obeyed and consumed all of it.
PRIMARY AT 19 YEARS OLD:
Daniel and Deliani came to church yesterday! We were super excited, and were determined to make sure that they had an enjoyable experience. I got to go sit in Daniel's class of 9-year-olds and listen to the wonders that escaped their mouths. It was more of an advanced storytime, with everyone sharing about how they knew someone who bullied. It was pretty cool, and I secretly repented of how silly I was as a 9-year-old. It was good though, and Daniel and Deliani both said that they had enjoyable experiences. Deliani is even going to Girl's Camp this week and leaving tomorrow morning. A member of the English ward was gracious enough to pay for half of it for them.
To conclude, this week was a marvellous experience, and one that I would not trade for anything.
Spiritual thought time woot
Genealogy: DO IT.
Your ancestors are waiting for YOU to put in 5 minutes and find there name, and then make a quick trip to the temple so that they can be baptized. They are waiting, watching, and when you find them and do their work, how great is your joy. Gordon B. Hinckley said that Every Member is a Missionary. Missionary work may seem hard, or even be hard, but guess what isn't? GENEALOGY.
CLICK ONE
Y'all have a blessed week!
THE
Elder Matthew Busi
