Another One Bites the Dust.
Last week Adam made the commitment to his Father in Heaven and was baptized!! It was a wonderful evening. Adam was so prepared and more than ready to join the church, I am so grateful that I have been able to play a part on his journey. Honestly, it's been the hard efforts of 5 years worth of missionaries to get him to that point, and I am so so thankful for every one of those elders! The service went really well, we had some good speakers and Tyson, Adam's friend, did the baptizing. To top the night off Sister Laga'aia, Tyson's mom, prepared a massive feast for all of us in celebration of Adam. Seriously it could have been Christmas Dinner... so good! All in all it was the highlight of the week, and one of the best days on my mission. My heart was just so full of warmth- even now I'm still excited, just thinking about Adam and his future in the church.
Speaking of news, there've been some exciting changes! One of the Elders in Taree (A town in our zone) had to go home for emergency surgery for a hernia or something, which left his companion, well, companionless. President Howes must've been inspired, because he sent the other elder up here to be in a trio with Elder Ripley and I for the rest of the transfer! I'm really excited about this- our new companion's name is Elder Tavalea, and he comes straight from the island of Tonga! He's really funny and very nice, and also likes to eat a lot.. haha. The first day our fridge was cleared- so I'm expecting to be buying a lot more food soon! He's a great missionary though, and we're looking forward to all the work we can now accomplish with more opportunities for splits, etc.
In other events of the week, we had a superb lesson with Chris, Amanda and Patrick. We taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the spirit was very strong. Chris expressed how her kids were never baptized and she wanted them to make the decision for themselves when they were old enough- and sure enough, they decided it was time! We committed them to be baptized on July 26th, which is really soon.. but they accepted! It was a really joyful lesson, for sure. They're really excited to be baptized, and they all even downloaded the Book of Mormon on their phones.. without us even suggesting it! Miracles! They did commit to come to the baptism and to church, but we didn't see them at either, which is a little disappointing. We're hoping to follow up this week and get them back on track. Still, very exciting!
And good ole Matt. He's just awesome. We taught Tithing and Fast Offerings this week, which he didn't have a problem with. He also hasn't had a beer since we've been seeing him, which has been about 6 weeks. So that was a miracle in and of itself! The best of all is that Matt asked us to bring Bishop with us to the lesson this week- he wants to talk to him about getting married to his partner. To top it all off, Matt and his daughter Ruby came to the baptism and really enjoyed the experience. They both told us afterwards they can't wait until they're baptisms. Ah does it get any better than that?!
So you could say it's been a baptism-focused week... which is about all you can ask for as a missionary! I feel so blessed by the Lord, and am grateful that He's using us to progress His work in Tamworth.It is so real, and I'm forever thankful to be a part of it!
For a spiritual thought I'd like to mention something one of the speakers said at the baptism. When a child is born, two fluids are very prominent: water and blood. Similarly, when Christ performed the Atonement, we know he bled from every pore.. and when he hung on the cross, the soldiers pierced his side and out came the last of his blood, and then water. That is significant because when we are baptized we often say we are "reborn" or receive "new life". Well just as a child is brought into the world through water and blood, it's the blood and water of Christ's Atonement that makes baptism possible, that makes the cleansing effect real. No wonder then that we are baptized in water, or that we take water every week in the sacrament as an emblem of his blood.
And lastly, an Aussieism. It's basically impossible to stop at or speed through a yellow light in Australia... because they're actually called Amber or Orange lights here. Australian's must have different eye sight because it still looks pretty yellow to me. Just sayin.
Well, I love you all heaps and have a great week!
Love Elder Easton
oh p.s. HAPPY FOURTH!
Photos:
Tyson, Me, and Adam at the Baptism.
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