Conference - April 13, 2014

Our usual place is closed... so we are in an even worse place for email today...

I can't really use email today, so I will probably not be able to email all my siblings or anyone else until next week, because it takes a really long time to send an email.

An amazing story this week, so the first session of general conference started... and there were 5 people there... 4 missionaries and our investigator R! (by the end of the 1st session there were 10...) (not the best turn out :P)

R does not have much, he is from an island in Indonesia, owned by Singapore, and is working in Malaysia and currently making half of minimum wage (only making RM400/month or about $130 a month) lives in a tiny little square above his work, but he is possibly the most charitable person I have ever met. He met a guy walking along without a shirt, and even though he only owns a few shirts, he gave him his shirt off his back, bought him a drink and sent him on his way.

That is just the kind of character this guy is.
But in between the 2 sessions on saturday, there was a lunch, and everyone (all 10 of us...) were eating and talking, and as we finished, R started cleaning everyone's dishes, while everyone just continued. I was so shocked, not the branch president, or the elder's quorum president, the humble under payed worker.  

 

So I just want to say to the family that what I took away from conference, is that we can not sit on the fence. Either this church is true, and it is the only thing that matters, or it is false and it doesn't matter at all, but there is no in between, and we can not choose to only be half way. Jeffery R Holland said that so well, I encourage you guys to watch that again. (Niel L Anderson also, Russell M Nelson,Quintin L Cook, Pres Uchtdorf,) I also recommend the entire priesthood sesion again... cause it was absolutley incredible. Dallin H Oaks gave an absolutley amazing talk that was an example of how firm in the faith we need to be.

I had a thought when D Todd Christofferson was speaking of the humble silent power that radiated from him. It was incredible to see where the power of God is.

I know that we have living prophets today, and they speak the words of God, declaring to the world the truth of this gospel, because it is true, and when we know that, we can not doubt it.
I know that we need to stand firm in the faith, bold in front of those who despise, brave in front of those who hate, unwavering in front of those who revile, because this is the Lord's work, not ours, and it can not and will not fail. The Lord's works can not be frusturated! (Doctrine and Covenants 3:1-2) and we have the opportunity, chance, and responsibility to choose if we are going to be on the Lord's side, or if we are going to "sleep through the restoration"

Every member a missionary, every member an example, every member a representative of Jesus Christ. We make covenants, at baptism all the way until the temple, and we need to live up to those covenants, and wear the name of Jesus Christ on out hearts.

There is no greater work than this, nothing is more important than the Savior and his atonement.

The Book of Mormon is true because of course Jesus Christ would talk to more than just the Israelites, and of course it is another testament of Jesus Christ.
Joseph Smith was a prophet, because Heavenly Father wouldn't leave his children alone in the darkness without the proper knowledge of the Savior's atonement, and how we can return to live in Heaven with our families forever.

As Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we can not doubt, we can not fear, and we need to go to work.

I was so glad I could understand things in Malay, cause I still understood conference, the last session had 10 people, 4 were asleep, 5 were playing on phones and the last one was me, I realized that if nothing else, my mission is going to allow me to never fall away, and stand strong in the faith

Well I am going to log off so that maybe my email to president will load faster,
Love you all
Jumpa Lagi,

Please put a post, and or tell Padoch, Kenzie, bro.Johns and my siblings that I will email next week

Elder Bester 

Families - Apr 6 2014

HEY EVERYONE!

 

I'm still in Kota Sentosa hahah 5th transfer... sooooo long.

I love Elder Reynolds, I am so excited to get to serve with him again!
Still District Leader, and there is another companionship coming into Kota Samarahan!! So now there are 4 companionships and a senior couple in this area, and I am so excited!

 

So this week we had zone conference in Singapore! Which was awesome! I was so inspired and felt the holy ghost soooooooooooo strongly! It was absolutely incredible!

But one of my favourite parts was when president showed a video of a family doing work and praying for a missionary (who happens to be in our mission) and it was awesome. I realized just how amazing a family is, and just how important of a role I am playing right now, also I realized that I can feel your prayers for me. I always wondered why we pray for missionaries, but now I truly now, because I can truly feel it.

I am so thankful for my family, and that is why temples are so important.

Read the scriptures daily together and individually, that is all we need to do and we will never fall away.

Elder Boyter (the senior couple in my district, who is to me kinda like my mission dad... except that that is president Mains...) said something this week of "What are you going to do so that when you return home from your mission, the Missionaries serving there won't have to help reactivate you" and he stressed the importance of reading the book of Mormon every day! There is nothing else that is that Important! Because if we do that, then everything else will follow.

I had a thought and it was "I wish it hadn't taken me 3 transfers and an ocean to realize how much I love my family" Make sure that you guys do things together every day!

I love you all, I had an incredible week, so spiritual! I love the work, make sure you are helping the missionaries back home. Invite people to straight up meet the missionaries. Inviting people to activities is good, but inviting them to Family Home Evening, church, and meeting the missionaries is so much better. We have this happiness in our lives because we know the truth so why should we not have the responsibility to share it.

I love you all, and remember that every member is a missionary. I only listened to President Monson's opening remarks and Elder Holland's Saturday talk (so far, i listen to everything else in Malay this weekend) Elder Holland's talk is incredible, and I really recommend listening to that talk for FHE and realizing that it is our responsibility to be missionaries.

Jumpa Lagi!

Elder Bester

About the pictures:

the one in the house is A and A and they are moving to KK so we went to their house.

The butterfly pictures are in the Singapore airport (honestly Singapore is the coolest city in the world) and the other one is a bill of the missionaries when we go to Chili's in Singapore :P

Soccer - Mar 30, 2014

How does conference work for you? Will you get to see/hear next week, or do you have to wait? Do you want me to send you the conference Ensign? Does it get translated to Malay?

So I hear conference in Malay the week after you guys hear it in English, and we get the Ensign every month.

 

Most the pictures are from me playing soccer last p-day, and that was so much fun cause they would all say: "brother!" (as in like a religious brother) every time they wanted to pass me the ball... and I kicked their butts

It was really funny because my team kept running off for smoke breaks, or they'd be running around with a cigarette in their hand :P

Oh ya, I don't know if I've really told you about this, but the Word of Wisdom is a huge struggle here.

The other picture is just a bunch of dogs, because there are dying dogs and cats everywhere  (also many living ones).

Our investigator P got hit by a car in Kampung, and then later got wrongly put in jail, so his faith is a little shaky right now. R (another investigator) is progressing and will probably be baptized soon, not as much got done as I would have liked last week, and then this week we miss 3 days going to Singapore... and then transfer news next Monday!

We have 7 progressing investigators right now

Well we are playing frisbee and rugby today!

Jumpa Lagi!

Elder Bester

p.s I love you all, and I am so greatful I have such a wonderful family

 

Snakes and Chocolate

We have started Spring Break here! Or as Luke calls it, winter break 2.
haha winter break 2, when I get home summer break will be winter break :P

Dad is wondering if you have heard the news about the Air Malaysia airplane that crashed?
of course

I have one friend here who works at a little rice stall, and I was talking to her and she was looking for some utensils or something and I asked "Kamu cuba cari apa?" What are you trying to find and she said "Kapal terbang itu yang hilang" The lost plane :P

Everyone knows about it, all over Kuching there are signs that say "Pray for MH037" (I think that is the number) also we went to Miri this week for New Missionary Training and used the same company, so the mission still trusts it, and I've heard tons of rumors about the plane

OK, I looked Miri up on the map. That’s far away, it says it’s almost 800 km, and an 11 hour drive. So, I can see why you don’t drive or take a bus! It seems like it’s really either bike, walk, fly. Although, from the pictures, sometimes you take boats too. Are those just for short distances? How do you get to the airport, do members drive you, or is there a bus? (I’m guessing you don’t ride your bikes…)
With Malaysian roads it is an 16 hour drive, cause Malaysia...

You should go to LDS.ORG and look at branch boundaries in Malaysia, and see just how massive our boundaries are... I could honestly fly from one end to the other.

The airport is in our area and right close to our house, normally the senior couple or a member.

We fly to Singapore again in a couple weeks, Miri was the first city I'd been to outside of Kuching and Singapore (it is the 2nd biggest in Sarawak, but only 300 000 people...)

So is your zone all of East Malaysia, with 3 different districts?
no, so my zone is Kuching and it has 1 district. Sarawak (the province) has 4 zones (Sibu, Kuching, Miri, Bintulu) and each is it's own district, then Sabah (the other East Malysian province) has 1 district. Each district (except for JB which is in the Singapore North Zone) is one zone.

East Malaysia has 2 provinces. Sarawak and Sabah. I am in Sarawak's capital Kuching. Sarawak has 4 districts and Sabah has 1. Kuching District has 6 branches.

What's with all the chocolate?
I got it from BROTHER JOHNS WHO IS THE GREATEST PERSON IN THE WORLD AND I MISS MY SENSEI!!!!! HE IS AWESOME AND I WAS SO TOUCHED BY HIM DOING THAT :D

Did the chocolate survive ok? I was told somewhere that it would all melt.
It all made it ok cause he packaged plastic bags around the side of the box, don't know if that actually did anything, but :P

What's with the snakes?
Sis K caught them, and they kept them, and one has died so they ate it, and they are still keeping the other one.

Have you eaten snake?
NOT YET! But I want to soooo bad cause everyone says it is the best tasting thing in the world

Katie says Gross!
Sounds really good if you ask me :P

How is the missionary work going?
New investigators?
Any funny stories?
Any ward activities besides going to church?
Are both you and your companion healthier this week?
What are you doing/did you do for pday?

Missionary work is great.
Of course :P I love to talk to everyone, so I find people :P There is a single mother and her daughter who want to come out to church, and this one kid called B, and one of our investigators brought his friend to church last week
umm probably :P
No, the branch is still learning how to organize things :P
I wasn't really that sick, just Elder Reynolds, and yep, way healthier
We are going to all go play frisbee and last week we... i don’t remember.

Well I gotta go! Miss you all and hope you have an awesome week!
Read the scriptures!
Jumpa Lagi,
Elder Brent Bester

March 16, 2014 email

Well, this week Elder Reynolds got sick :( so we stayed in a couple of days, then on saturday met with one investigator, went back and slept and then sunday we went to church, met with our elder's quorum president, went back, and tried to recover. Feeling better now :) And I refuse to be sick, so I am still ok :)

As a result I finished the Book of Mormon again! 3 times on my mission! I also finished "Our Heritage" and the book of Genesis... wrote a poem, planned my lesson for district meeting... so ya, this week has been interesting :P

The crocodile farm was interesting, I thought it was funny, but it was pretty in-humane, so it was definitely a good p-day, but not at all how I had expected it to be.

Anyways, that's pretty much how my week went :P I love Elder Reynolds, he's a fun time :)

Ok! Well I'm off to the jungles :P

Jumpa Lagi!
Elder Bester

March 9 2014 email

Why would there even be a snow brush in a store there?

I KNOW!!!!! WE ALMOST DIED LAUGHING IT WAS SO FUNNY

 

And I assume the cat statues are Kuching. Is that your district?

 

that is my zone

 

so the sisters made us buy matching watches :P

I am red, but I have traded the bottom band with one of the sisters so right now mine is red and pink

I read a little bit of Isaih today that I really liked, Isaiah 60:22, I thought it was really applicable for Malaysia :P

 

also me and Elder reynolds both have our "beautiful verse of the day" and I really liked Isaiah 60:19 today :)

We talked a bit about # of baptisms

 

Some missionaries leave this mission with 0 baptisims and they are the hardest working people ever. Mission success isn't based off of how many people are baptized. The purpose of a missionary is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel.

Missionaries invite and help only, and the amount of baptisms has no consequence or result of a good or bad mission.

We have a goal for 545 this year, but right now we are at about 45...

 

although next week is suppose to have 9, and we have 2 on date for the 5th of April and one for the 26th

Well I'm off to the mission field again!

Talk to you all next week! :)

Jumpa Lagi!
Elder Bester

 

 



Mar 2, 2014 emails

Some of the emails this week answered questions from emails, so where needed, I will include the questions.

Troy would probably ask you if you would cheer for the Jamaican bobsled team if you were watching the Olympics

I would definitely cheer for the Jamacian bobsled team

 

We were wondering if you have gotten sick from any food at all, or had any sick days? 

 

I refuse to take a sick day :P and have not gotten sick yet cause I have lots of faith and a family praying for me back home.

I have made a decision that I have to throw up twice in the morning before I'll ever stay in.

and I haven't gotten sick yet, cause I pray a lot :P

 

And any other close calls on your bike?

Not since I got hit by the car.

Does being district leader add much work to your week?

DL doesn't add too much, I report twice a week, but I still try to keep in contact every day.
I also have to teach my district on Tuesday's (tomorrow! Hopefully I don't look like an idiot :P )

My new companions name is Elder Reynolds, and he is freaking awesome! He is from Houston Texas, and he is 20 years old (I am still the youngest Malay speaking missionary in the world) (...cause this is the only mission with Malay... but there is probably Indonesian missionaries younger...) He loves to talk to everyone! He has greeny fire :P which is really fun, and we have already had a lot of success this week, even with a short week because of transfers.

I have thought about taking a video of traffic here, that would be really funny, showing you guys my "daily commute"

TROY GO FREAKING LEARN HOW TO SWIM :P Swimming is awesome and I want to swim, but I can't swim cause I am a missionary :P

Keep me updated on stake things ok :P

I wish I could go to the temple :( but the temple is so far :( I want to come back to the Kuching temple one day. But that is still like 20-30 years away...

cause it would be cool to get to go to the temple in Malay instead of English :P and cause you know... this is my kampung :P

Well I love you all, and you are probably emailing me right now... so I should go answer that

Who are you teaching these days?

 

We had 5 investagtors at sacrament this week! There is this one family (unfortunately the dad isn't interested, but we fasted that his heart would be softened) and then also another guy named R, and he is super awesome. One of the kids in the family, P, is so awesome, he is on date, and says he wants to start preparing for a mission after he is baptized (he turns 18 in August)

 

How many people attend church? Does everyone have to get up and speak at testimony meeting?

 

Pretty much like that, but actually it is really good, like there isn't awkward pauses. And everyone knows and loves the missionaries :P

One of the families actually gave me a letter (Sister K, don't know if I told you guys about them) the only kinda active full family in our area (the branch has more but they are all in the sisters area) but there daughter B wrote me a letter thanking me for helping their family to start to read and pray together, and she is so happy now, it was a great letter (I think I'll send a copy home (English letter) cause it was really cool, really made my month)

Also Training is so hard, I thought I knew what I was doing :P and do not :P

Did my other packages ever get there?

 

I got the Canada one

And is there anything from home that you really miss (besides people)?

ummm, not really, I think I am going to move to Malaysia :P

I miss like, music :P Don't hear much Billy Talent as a missionary.

Honestly the only thing I want from home is for the young men to all leave on missions (or at least have their calls) before I get home...

There really isn't anything else that I want from home for than that.

Money :P that is nice, (just kidding I'm fine do not need) Milk shakes, but we go to McDonalds every now and then and have ice cream... really just like things I don't know, I love letters, ummm... idk like, I go home in 18 months or whatever it is now... like can you have more people know Malay when I go home so I can speak it?

I don't really need anything :P

Well I'm on my way out :)

Talk to you next week :)

Jumpa Lagi,
Elder Bester

Get those YM out!

 

 

His email from Dad was just, do you have some words of wisdom to share with me, so this is what he sent:

Well dad, I have many words of wisdom, but I am expecting to receive words of wisdom back :P and also stories from your mission, cause all I know about your mission is that you served in England, something about some kings ring, and that you can speak a little bit of Welsh.

My word of advice is that if some one is to read the book of mormon, and study it every day, feasting upon the words in the pages, they never fall away.

It is so simple, if the book of mormon is true, Joseph Smith was a prophet, Thomas Monson is a prophet, and this church is true, and we need to dedicate our lives to it.

Read pray go to church.

If you make that your focus for people you help, they will grow in faith.

Joseph Smith taught when asked about how he governs the church: "I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves."

Let our family be a strong hold for zion in the north stake of Calgary.

Stress temple worship, and get as many people as possible to be worthy of a temple recommend.

Remember that your loyalty is first to the lord (and also to mom), then to stake president, and then to your people you are helping.

Be an example, take notes of miracles in your day. Take notes of the scriptures.

Read alone, read with the family.

Work with missionaries, bring new members into the church so that the stake can truly see that the field is white, and that the lords hand is in all.

Send Young Man AND Young Women on missions.

Have active members read the book of mormon with inactives