Week 27: Baptism!

Last night I reportedly spoke in my sleep, inviting people to go to church in Thai. So I suppose there's the "dreaming in a different language" milestone.

No solid news yet, but I suspect that I will be leaving Bangkhae at the end of the transfer this Thurday. It's been good here, and I've learned a lot of good things.

Two baptisms this week, Gesaem and Dawin (like "Davin," but Thai people can't say "v"). I've started to see that often times, we as missionaries don't do a whole lot. We just happen to be there and point the way as they try to find God. That was the case with Dawin, the one who took the inviting card out of our hands last week. He accepted that we were messengers from God, and most of the time we spent teaching him, I felt like we were just giving him the information he lacked. He was already converted, and ready and willing to follow God. That is also the case with Yoot, a street contact who showed up to church yesterday. 

Gesaem was a bit harder. We've been teaching him for a while, and only recently did he just flip the switch and decide that this is what he needed to do. He took everything from that point on very readily.

Sometimes as missionaries we're often a little hesitant to teach the commandments. There's kind of this fear that they'll get scared away and stop listening to us. While that does happen, I've seen that these aren't things that God asks us to do just according to His whim. Living within these guidelines is much more freeing than it is restrictive, and following God's rules is the way to have happiness. This truth has been highlighted to me while on my mission and as I watch people overcome challenges and fix things in their life that are not in accordance with God's laws, and hear many testimonies of those who have followed His counsel.

My district of 4 companionships has reached 13 baptisms this month out of the goal for 16. With another few daters for next week, it looks like we should hit the standard.

Thank you all for your support!

Elder Parish

1. Brother Gesaem on the left, Dawin on the right. Elder Taylor and I both were asked to baptize, which was very cool. Except Gesaem's last name sounds something like "Pa yoo had day chad pee pad," which was a bit of a challenge.

2. Saw this while walking home. I'm a bit confused.