Baptisms - May 24, 2015

That's funny that I got accepted to UBC and nor UofC, considering that UBC is ranked as a much better school haha

WE HAD 2 BAPTISMS YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Also, we went to Singapore, that was fun, there was a point where I was with 5 other missionaries, and the 5 of them combined had served for less time than me...

As of tomorrow I have 3 months left!

anywho, i'm on if anyone is awake

also, I got the story that you sent at zone conference (I figured it out 'cause no one else knew what MLA  meant :P )  (also 'cause of Edmonton) but I had no idea that we went that far back! I feel like I don't know my family's history at all. Also Dad still hasn't sent me his conversion story... and like I don't know any of my grandparents stories... or like if/where they got sealed/baptized... was great grandpa a member when there was only 1 branch in Edmonton?

How long before moving to Canada did they get baptized? and did only they join? how many siblings does Grandma have? and why didn't you get baptized at 8? :P 

and what the heck is Dad's story?

What are you doing for pday?

We are planning on playing laser tag... :)

That is our Young Women's presidency, and Gawai is next week (so most of our members won't be at church) so if I get transferred (also next week) I won't see them! so I took pictures with them. (We have been working a lot with the youth here, it's one of the strongest youth programs in Sarawak)

I don't know where I'm gonna live in Vancouver... oops

I met the Canadian from Vancouver in Singapore (he's english speaking) but we stayed at his apartment, so if he doesn't go to his family ward (chinese) then we will be in the same ysa branch!

Did you perform the baptism?

yep both of them, but Elder Ee and Davie gave the gift of the holy ghost. The girl (G) her father has the M.Priesthood, but was too sick to come back to Kuching (he is in his home village) and the rest of the area (siol Kandis) has no priesthood holders, and the other family is from Lundu (about an hour drive (and they don't have a car, so they take the bus and get a hotel to come to church) away from Kuching) there is a M.Priesthood holder there, but he doesn't know the family (we are trying to start a group there) and they both picked me to do it

anyways I'm peacing out! Jumpa Lagi

May 17, 2015 - Lots of teaching

Cool little stories this week, we had 11 Investigator lessons with a member present, which is a lot. Normally throughout my mission I'd normally get about 4-6 a week, so we had a sick week,

If things go right, our area should have baptisms every week (excluding one) for the next 5 weeks!

On Sunday I went on splits with Brother Raj (the last picture I sent) my companions went out to Lundu, and I stayed to help do sacrament out in Siol Kandis (a "village" (still in Kuching) about 8km away from the church (and no one has transport))  That was a lot of fun to go around with a young man as my companion, he borrowed Elder Ee's bike and we biked all the way out there it was a blast.

We got a new investigator this week from a potential we were working with, her name is A, and she goes to school with one of the youth who live in Siol Kandis. The only problem being that she can only occasionally leave her school, but were gonna try to work with it :P

Anyways, what's up in Canada

Oh ya, also we had a youth activity on Saturday (hence the picture of all the youth at McDonalds) that went really well, we had 15 youth (and/or the 20 year old leaders) (so actually only 13 youth) and it was such a good activity!

anyways jumpa lagi!

Elder Bester

May 10, 2015 - Stories after Skyping

During district meeting this week, 4 men came into the parking lot, broke the window of the senior couples car and stole the gps, they were seen and so they booked it before causing more damage. So I was the official translator at the police station!

So we managed to get camera footage of them (the security at the Kuching District Center is pretty good) so I was involved a lot with security this week... However we still managed to get really good lessons in and had 4 investigators at church in spite of the lack of time.

We have some kids out in an area called Siol Kandis who we are teaching (un-baptized child of records, ages 9-13) (not the coolest investigators, but hey, he who holds the youth holds the future)

and they don't really have transport from that area (as a result the branch presidency is planning to move the building (cause we are just in a shop lot) and we are holding a sacrament service in that area once a month) but the kids convinced their less active father to drive them to church (we didn't even know he had a car) so we were shocked to walk into church and see our 4 investigators sitting with the youth who manage to come from Siol Kandis, it was truly miraculous.

anywho, jumpa Lagi!

Elder Bester

May 3 2015 - Lots of stories!

Ok cool stories this week

So we were going out to a lesson, with investigators in Elder Ee's previous area, and I ask him "Hey do they have any word of wisdom problems" and he says "Of course not" So we get there, and there is a group of guys in the house, all of which are smoking and plastered...

We talk to them for a bit, and one guy is just going off in Iban, and as my companions don't speak Iban, he was only talking to me... so I was listening to this drunk guy go off about how he knows our church is true, just he is a sinner, so doesn't want to come to church. I explain that like, the point of church is to fix our problems, and he continues to ask me if I take these medications is it ok to come to church, so at this point I'm apprehensive, and I ask him what kind of medications... and he says "They help me focus" so I thought they were probably ADD medications or something of the sorts, and he pulls out the bottle, and I look at the label, and the first thing they say is "No, it's different than whats on the label" he then unscrews the cap, pours it onto his hand, and white powder, followed by a rock of cocaine fall on to his hand!!!!

So immediately I say "ok we have to go, we have an appointment" and Elder Ee says "What? We don't have an appointment!" 

So we got out of there... haha

another story, so we had exchanges this week, and me and Elder Davie stayed in Matang, and Elder Ee went to Batu Kawah with Elder Christensen (one of the ZL)

on his return, he tells us "Elder Christensen gave me acne medication" and immediately red flags go up in my mind, and I ask him to see the pills... and turns out, there was a huge language issue, and Elder Ee actually had Malaria pills... not acne meds, and had just taken 2... and to add worry, they were expired by a year, luckily there were no major side effects, but it was hilarious.

Ok so miracles this week!

A less active young woman had asked us to start teaching her brother who had not been baptized yet, so we met her family (her Dad is currently sick and at his home village) and the mom said that she hadn't met with the missionaries in 3 years, wants to come back to church, and wants her 2 un-baptized children baptized! The next time we met her she showed us all the other of age kids who weren't baptized yet! so we picked up 2 New Investigators, and 8 more to come in the coming weeks!

We had a family from Lundu (about an hour drive) come to church last week, and the Mom asked us to teach her son (11 years old) so the branch had an activity out in Lundu and we taught her son, and he is also on date for baptism! So once a week we will do a phone lesson and then once a week we will go out to Lundu to teach him!

We also had 2 random girls show up at church last week and they stayed for 2nd hour! They are now learning also!

And one of the investigators who we are teaching (J) (normally we meet her during her lunch hour on sundays) just accepted the date of 27/6/2015!

anyways, it's been a crazy week!

Jumpa Lagi,

Elder Bester

Apr 26 2015 - Last few weeks

Apr 12

Hey, I've definitely already made the decision that I would rather go to UBC than the schools in Saskatchewan. (Just double checking, I got accepted in to engineering for sure right :P not just a science program or something :P )

Cool stories quick,

So my last week in Mukah, me and Elder Shorts were contacting, and went to one house, at the house, there was fish sitting out side that had been swarmed by bees! The family was very distraught (as it was their food...) and they asked me and Elder Shorts to pray the bees away, so I prayed that the bees would leave, and I never heard about it again as I was transfered.

Within the hour that I prayed, they all left, and the family could have their fish. They started meeting with the Elders, and were just baptized!

So, cool miracle in my mission :)

Besides that, we watched 10 hours of conference in Malay :P

GO FLAMES! They need to beat the Canucks... #repeat 2004

Also, go Detroit, I hate Tampa :P

(They haven't been in the playoffs because they haven't existed since then :P ) Elder Slider (senior couple missionary) served part of his mission in Winnipeg, and he used to get to watch Hockey Night in Canada!

Jumpa Lagi!

Elder Bester

Apr 19

Hey, I am in the same area, but Elder Sessions is going to JB! I will have 2 companions... and have the whole branch to take care of!

also I'm District Leader again

now I'm done... :P

Apr 26

GO FLAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My companions are good, Elder Ee has been living with me for two transfers... he's the chinese kid in the pics I've sent home... Elder Davie is from Australia, both just barely finished training... So I'm babysitting haha.

The area is huge, so we've done a lot of biking, and I'm way worried that we aren't able to cover everything

Hey, just checking, you accepted me to UBC correct?

How am I fairing in the NHL pool?

Pictures from Mar 30, that I missed

Apr 26 pictures

Apr 5, 2015 - New temple in Bangkok

Hey! I'm on if you're all up, intresting stats about the new temple in Bangkok

 

"members won't have to go to Manila or Hong Kong anymore.

It'll be about 1/8 the current cost of going to the temple.

Members in West Malayisa can take the train if they need to."

Elder Sessions got pretty sick, so we haven't been out as much, but we've still had some good work.

our investigator's Dad is currently not allowing her to be baptized, so that kinda sucks :/ ( the Dad is drunk every day, used to be a gangster... interesting guy)

I met a bunch of less actives in our area this week! That was really exciting, We've been going through the branch records, cuting all the names apart and re-sorting the record by community, so I took the Siol Kandis (one of the areas in our area...) section and with one of the youth went and found everyone (you have to use members because addresses don't really exist in Siol Kandis...)

We had some awesome investigators come to church :) things are going pretty well. We had a fast (Elders + various members) that V's Dad's heart would be softened so that she could get baptized, so hoping that all works out...

We are playing rugby today for p-day, a few of the youth from our branch are following also!

Miss you!

Jumpa Lagi!

Elder Bester

 

Baptism and Caves - Mar 30, 2015

I'm still thinking about my bike, if I bring it home it won't be anything extra to cost or anything, because I have 2 checked bags, and only one bag to check in, so I should be good, but I'm not sure if I'll bring it home or not. Considering that I'll have my road bike (that's still at home right...?) so I don't really need 2 bikes... but still wouldn't be bad to have an extra bike, so still pondering that one.

Skiing is fun, but I'm not that good... so I'll have to practice while Jordan is on his mission...

Ya, I already heard about Justin and his death :/ sad story

Bro Condron <3 the best. What a good pic.

It hit me the other day that I'm getting old... and almost 20.

I sent my cool stories to Katie, but L got baptized this week! So I'll send some pics home in a sec...

Hey any news from UofA or UofC?

Jumpa Lagi,

Elder Bester

From Katie's letter

Hey! It was monday so I got the day off... haha not really

Oh-no. Remind Mom and Dad that they wouldn't even let me get fb 'till I was in High school.

I'm not really good at skiing, and I don't think I've ever skied with Dad, so while that's probably a true statement, Dad has no idea :P

WE HAD A BAPTISM ON SATURDAY YAYYYYYYYYYYYYY!

I went on splits with Elder Parker, and we taught a family that can't speak Malay! So the entire lesson was in Iban! So I got to teach a lesson in my 3rd language.

I had a really awesome lesson this week with one of our investigators, her name is V, and we talked more about baptism, and she was so spiritually in-tune, I've gotten to see her change so much, and she really has the desire to get baptized now :) She is on date for the 11th of April, but because that is when we watch General Conference, she will probably be baptized on the 10th of April (hopefully)

We went to Fairy caves today, and a few of us went to the back of the caves (past the sign that said don't keep climbing...) and went out the back of the caves and climbed on top of them! There is a whole jungle on top of the caves, it was so much fun!

Anyways!

Jumpa Lagi!

Elder Bester