Selamat Hari Rayah!

Today marks the first day of Hari Rayah--in other words, the month of Ramadan (the month of fasting in the Islamic religion) has come to an end, and everyone's going to be throwing parties like crazy. Selamat Hari Rayah! (For those of you Bahasa speakers, I apologize if I spelled it wrong).

Well, folks, this week's been good. And crazy. And fast. And everything. Earlier this past week we had a lesson very similar to Ammon's first lesson with King Lamoni. If you recall, King Lamoni was quite impressed with the strapping young Nephite missionary before him, and so he offered Ammon his daughters as wives. 

Yeah, so we went to this house. The guy there was really nice, but he mentioned something about his daughters entertaining us and then he disappeared. We had a nice, rather awkward conversation with his daughter as we were waiting for him to return. We waited for a long time, and stretched out the conversation to an uncomfortable length. Finally we asked if we could talk to her dad, and she went to go get him...but instead came back with her younger sister. Fun stuff. We were much quicker to the draw on Round 2--this girl, who was only 14, was asked within the first five minutes of our conversation to go get her dad, because we'd like to talk to him. He finally showed up and we told him we'd be back another day.

Just another awkward experience in the lives of the Kuching Chinese elders.

In other news, I've had a chance to study more and more about the Christlike attribute of patience. I've realized that it's something that I really lack, and that it's something I really need. As I've been studying more and more about it, I've come to realize that the Lord is SO patient with all of us. All of our faults, all of our weaknesses, all of our misguided desires--He's so loving and so patient with us. Why? Because He loves us. He died for us. He gave everything for us, and He isn't going to let that sacrifice go to waste. He's going to wait on us and be patient with us as long as the laws of justice and mercy allow; He's going to be our friend in the good and the bad times. I'm truly grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ, and for the fact that He truly is so patient with me.

I love you all so very much, and hope that you have a tremendously great and grand week! Keep on keepin' on lah! :)

Sincerely,

Mai Zhanglao

Hashtagging Our Way to Fame and Glory

Friends, family, and associates,

To be quite honest with y'all, there's not really any good reason why this particular post is named the way it is. Frankly, I reckon I was just looking for an excuse to use "hashtag" as a verb. There ya go :)

Today's not going to be a super long or in-depth letter, but there is one quick experience I'd like to share. Lately me and my companion have striven to be in the right place at the right time. Yesterday, after a small planning session, we were on our way to a dinner appointment. There was a lady walking along the side of the road up ahead of us; I thought that we should go talk to her. As we were about to pull over to start talking to her, she approached us and starting talking to us. We had a great conversation--she was a very brilliant woman with a very firm belief in Christ. She shared with us about the recent deaths of her parents and two siblings. I didn't really know what to say, but I could feel how strongly she believed in Jesus Christ, and I could feel His love for her. In very simple and brief words, I explained that I too had lost a sibling and that I knew that God has a plan for all of us. I don't know what that plan is, nor do I know why sometimes it has to have such hard and hurtful things inside of it, but I do know that there is a plan, and that no matter what church we're a member of, Christ died for all of us. She was tearing up as she talked about her family, and I started getting a little choked-up when I shared my bit. There was a special spirit there, and I'm so glad that the Lord gave us the opportunity to have that experience.

That's something that I've really started coming to understand this past week: The fact that no matter who we are, or what church or religion we affiliate with, or where we're from, or who our family is, Jesus Christ died for us. He died for me. He died for YOU, whoever you might be or wherever you might be from. Whether or not someone has accepted the fulness of the Gospel, or partaken of the ordinances of salvation, or read the Book of Mormon--He loves them all. He loves us all. I know that that's true :)

Have a wonderful week, errbody! Keep on keepin' on! I love you all and hope that you are able to feel of our Savior's love this upcoming week :)

Doubt not, but be believing,

Mai Zhanglao :)

Some Things I Learned from a Buddhist Monk

To All Who May Be Concerned:

At long last the drought has ended and I'm writing another blogpost. I suppose some of you might be disappointed at this point, but oh well. You can skim read, if you so choose :)

The past few weeks have been great and grand. We just had transfers this past week, and there have been some new faces here in Kuching, as well as some old ones leaving. Change has never been my strong suit, but it's really great to have a new burst of missionary excitement here. It certainly helps keep the work moving forward :)

So last Thursday night (or maybe it was Friday night? Time kind of blurs these days :) ), we were at an Indian restaurant. (Fun fact/Sidenote: My mission has helped me develop a great love for most types of Indian food. I'm a big roti fan myself, and you can never go wrong with some good ole murtabak ayam :) ). As we were finishing up in there, a large party of Buddhists entered the room. In their midst were two legit monks--dressed up in authentic garb, fresh from Nepal/Tibet. I had the chance to talk to one of them. He taught me a couple of things about MEDITATION.

It's something that I've never really thought about before, but since he shared what he did with me, it's been on my mind a lot lately. Essentially (if I understood him correctly), meditation is focusing on one object and letting go of all external cares and worries. It's about finding inner peace and happiness despite the surroundings beyond you. He also stated something quite profound, "Meditation is acting with awareness." 

Acting with awareness; focusing on one object and letting go of all other worries and cares; finding inner peace and happiness--all of this sounds something similar to the Gospel quest we've all commenced at baptism. Although I do not agree with every single teaching the monk proposed, I believe that he has found a pearl of great price, and I hope to be able to use what light he has to increase my own testimony and connection with the Savior. Using our agency righteously (aka acting with awareness), we are able to focus our desires and our lives on one object (aka Jesus Christ and His infinite Atonement), finding the inner peace and happiness we need.
This past week I've had a chance to see what happens when people are acting with such awareness, when they are doing all they can to build their testimonies and their connections with heaven. I've also been able to see what happens when people act without thinking at all. It is tragic, but it can be learned from as well. The Lord would have us grow from our sorrows. The Lord would have us learn from those lessons in life that aren't always the happiest or the brightest. The Lord would not leave us alone in them, either--if we aren't afraid to keep holding onto Him, even and especially when He's all we've got to hold onto, then He certainly won't be afraid to hold on even tighter.
I dunno if this makes any sense, but I do have a burning testimony that the Lord loves each and every one of us. The adversary of agency, even the fallen son of the morning, is a very real being, and his power is great, but every time I'm reminded of him and all the rotten things he has caused in this world, I'm reminded of an example my dad gave to me when I was younger and still struggling to find my own personal testimony: "Light and darkness cannot coexist. If you turn on a lightswitch, the darkness in the room must flee. It can't stay. They can't coexist. You just have to turn on the light."

I sure do love Buddhist monks, and if I wasn't already converted to the fulness of the Gospel, I might consider studying in greater depth all of their teachings. For now, though, I'm going to focus on becoming better at meditating--at acting with awareness, focusing on things that matter most, and finding that inner peace and happiness that God would have all of us possess (see 2 Nephi 2:25).

I love you all, and hope you have a marvelous day and week! Keep on keepin' on! :)

Mai Zhanglao

Service project with a machete

Name's Mitchell. Elder Mitchell.

Well, fun fact: Malaysia experiences LOTS of rain. Like bucketloads of it. Sometimes it's ridiculous. Take this week, for instance. Kuching has experienced rain that should only be experienced during rainy season--which is still months away, mind you. And even then, this particular type of rain should be reserved only for the darkest of nights, when missionaries don't have to ride through the middle of them.
But I digress. Suffice it to say, I've got some wonderful stories to tell the grandkids in sixty-odd years about this past week. We literally biked through puddles several feet deep, in the middle of what must have been a mini-hurricane. At one point, when you could think that this situation could get no worse, a car drove by and splattered our water-soaked bodies with a nice slash of brown. Malaysia boleh.

Maybe I'm being a little overdramatic, but whatevs. There's nothing wrong with a good story :)

This week has seen its ups and downs. One of my favorite ups was during Sacrament Meeting yesterday. As the hymn was being sung, the sacrament being blessed, and then being passed, I reflected on the past week, on the the various follies and mistakes and weaknesses that are mine. As I did so, I just felt a peace that seemed to confirm that things are going to be okay. I felt an assurance that the Lord is not some bully with a large stick, hovering over you, just waiting for you to make a mistake so that He can smack you for it. No--I got the distinct impression that I really don't understand just how deeply the Lord loves us, just how much He is willing and ready to forgive us. I just felt a peace that, after all of that ridiculous rain this past week, I really needed to feel. I know that the Lord is there for us. He is anxious to bless us. He loves us immeasurably. Isn't that just the greatest news ever!? We have to go out and share it! We have to sing it from the housetops and tell the whole world about it! We can't keep quiet--we have to share this good news that we have! It is, after all, the only news that really matters these days. :)

I hope that y'all have a wonderful week! I love you very much, and I hope you know that the Lord loves you even more! Keep on keepin' on :)

Sincerely,
Mai Zhanglao

I've Got Sunshine on a Cloudy Day

To paraphrase our branch president yesterday during Sacrament Meeting: The Gospel has many principles...just like a Korean drama has lots of different episodes.

Boom.

So this past week has been a good one. We had transfers, and I am now with Elder Chong, a native from over in West Malaysia! I've spoken more Chinese in the past five days with him than I have with any of my other companions in the field, maybe even the mission. Who knows? In the words of a great song: "One way or another, I'm gonna [speak it], I'm gonna [speak it, speak it, speak it]." (That was probably a little Babylon-esque. M'bad :) ).

I've had a chance to contemplate the principle of repentance this week a LOT. This morning, as I was doing so, an analogy kind of clicked in my mind. My brain functions in such a way that I understand things best when they're put into real-life situation examples. For instance: Many people (myself included) sometimes have the false assumption that repentance--or rather, the Atonement--is like a dishwasher. You just throw in a dirty dish and hope for the best, essentially. In actuality, it's more like handwashing dishes. The Atonement is very personal and thorough. The Lord takes the plate of our lives into His hands, and, using the power of the Atonement, scrubs and rinses and washes and scrubs some more, wearing away the weaknesses, the faults, the sins, the trivialities that impede us from entering His presence. He does it individually--you certainly can't wash more than one dish at a time if you're doing it by hand (trust me, I've tried). He does it with a purpose--He will have a clean dish, not something that's half-washed. He knows our potential, and He will not rest until we have reached it. Thank heavens that we will never reach that potential in this life! Thank heavens that we are being cleansed by that Atonement and by our Master each and every day! Thank heavens that we have a Father in Heaven who loved us so much that He, desiring to make us as He is, sent His Only Begotten Son to pay the price, to wash us clean, even through the blood of the Lamb. 

I love y'all very much, and hope that the Lord will watch over you this upcoming week. 

Keep on keepin' on,

Mai Zhanglao

Fwd: Concerning Hobbits (or Redheads)

In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.
In a flat in Malaysia there lived a missionary.
Same diff. That being said, this past week has been a great one. We got to journey forth and do some great contacting. In addition to that, we stopped by the home of one of the people that visited the family history booth last week. We gave him a pedigree chart and, as we were explaining, he stopped us and said, "Wait a second. Don't you guys usually talk about God with people?"

Well, sir, as a matter of fact, we do :) He also said something along the lines of: "I'm a kind-of Christian. But one thing that I don't really understand is why there are so many different Christian churches."

In response to that, me and my companion looked at each other, grinned, and said, "We can teach you about that."
We shared a little bit about the apostasy with him, and then scheduled a time for him to come to the family history center to input the information he's collecting about his fam. He actually kept the appointment and came to the center! Unfortunately, he figured out really quickly how to work the website, so he kind of fled the scene after about 15 minutes. 

However, the Lord is kind, and impressed us during our first meeting to leave with this guy a Restoration pamphlet. We'll probably have to call him back about it and see how he likes it :) The Lord works in great ways :)

Today I'd like to testify about the power of prayer. It doesn't really have anything to do with the above story, but whatevs :) The other day I had a lot on my mind. Life, investigators, friends, family members, my own inadequacies, my relationship with God--it all kind of hit me at once during a Personal Study. I put down my scriptures; I was having a hard time feeling the Spirit throughout it all, with everything on my mind. I quietly left the study room and went to our bedroom, where I closed the door and spent a good ten to fifteen minutes pouring out my soul to my God. I testify that the power of prayer is REAL. Notice that I say POWER, not quick, five-second, no-thought-whatsoever of prayer. Power--putting your whole heart and soul into it, reaching sincerely heavenward in supplication of something, anything.
I testify that Heaven reaches back. I testify that God leaves us not comfortless. I testify that He knows our hearts, our fears, our worries, our stresses; and it is in spite of, or maybe because of, all these things that He immeasurably loves us and says, "Let Me take care of it." Or, maybe instead of that phrase, He says something more along the lines of, "Let Me take care of you."

I felt a peace that morning that can't be described. I felt a hope for the future, a faith for the present, and a love of God and all men that cannot be denied. Men may rail and slander the Gospel as much as they want, but they cannot deny the fruits thereof. They cannot deny the peace this Gospel brings. They cannot deny it.

In closing, I wish you all a very Merry May :) Guess what?! I hit my year mark this past Thursday! One whole year in the field! Go team! :)

Love you all,

Mai Zhanglao :)

Hello To All Y'all

This week has been another great one. We got to do another family history booth from Thursday May 8 (my sister's birthday! She's officially able to date...or so she thinks. As I told her and the other sister last night during Skype, they will NEVER be old enough to date--not with THIS GUY as their older brother :) )--anywho, from May 8 to May 10. It was really cool, and the Lord provided the way for several really prepared people to stop by! It was awesome! The Lord truly does hear and answer our sincere prayers,and is anxious to use us as tools in His hastening of the work of salvation.

Like I just mentioned, I got to Skype home with family last night. It was so wonderful! I haven't seen them in nearly a year (almost to the day, in fact!). As I reflected on getting to talk with them again in the past couple of hours, I've realized how grateful I am for my relationship with them. I've also realized that there is really only one relationship in our lives that doesn't ever need to change. For missionaries, we're gone from our families for two years--they change, we change, there will always be that awkward few weeks in trying to readjust to regular life once we get home. For our friends and acquaintances, there will be times when we don't see eye-to-eye, times when we can't even stand each other. All of these relationships are amazingly important, and are some of the only things that we are able to take with us into eternity. But the one relationship that doesn't need to change--or rather, that DOES need to change, but only for the better--is our relationship with God. Even if our families are half a way world away, we can still remain close to God. Even if we're struggling in the depths of sin, despair, trials, or sorrow, we can still remain close to God. In sunshine and in shadow, the Lord is our constant friend. That truth kinda hit me like a ton of bricks earlier this morning. 

I'm so grateful for the chance we have each and every day to strive to come closer to our Savior. I'm grateful for the relationship I do have with Him, and for the fact that I can improve it in the upcoming year (yeah, I nearly forgot to mention: This Thursday=Elder Mitchell's YEAR MARK! May 15 lah! :) Crazy how fast time flies by!).

I love you all and hope that this day and week bring nothing but blessings to you. God be with you till we chat again,

Mai Zhanglao :)