Herman Liunokas Kollo – the newest member of Jakarta Raya branch and his sister. Elder Suseno, Brother Herman, his sister, Elder Thiemann, Elder Cheney

27 April 2008 – Sunday

My Sunday started at 1 a.m. and for the next three hours I alternated between trying to get back to sleep and working on my talk. I do not think I do my best work at that hour of the morning but it at least gave me something to do. Every time I turned off the lights I would think about the talk. Finally at about 4 I think I managed to go to sleep but I am not sure. I woke again at 6:00 and it did not seem like I had rested at all.

I immediately got up and started putting more of what I had thought about into a talk. By the time I had finished I thought I had a pretty good outline that I could make into a 5 minute or a 25 minute talk. I was concerned that I would fall asleep on the stand or while speaking – or at least while it was being translated.

We read for about 30 minutes from the Kitab Mormon before Anny and Sam showed up to take us to Jakarta Raya. When we ran into a blocked off main highway, I hoped it was not a sign of what was in store. I had a vision of us not getting there on time. However Sam found a back way to the church and we not only were on time but got there before the elders.

Actually there were a lot of missionaries at the meeting – six elders and two sisters. The sisters thought one of their investigators was coming but he or she stood them up. The Zone Leaders showed up because there was a baptism after the block. In the last 6 weeks we have had the opportunity to see a number of baptisms. The great thing about this one is it is a man – they do not have a lot of those. There was one more small problem. Both Mary and I left our name tags at the apartment. Everyone had a good laugh and acted like they did not know our names.

I asked Lukito to translate for me and I gave him what I had printed out. It would not be a great help for him but it was better than nothing. It turned out that it was good that I had prepared for a longer talk. There was only one other speaker – Sister Anna – and she only took about 6 or her 10 minutes. So I had 25 minutes and I took 27. I felt that I got the message that I was trying to make across. I know that the spirit was there because I could feel it. When I recounted one of my personal experiences, Lukito got so choked up that he had to stop and regain his composure. The only thing that I was unhappy with was how poorly I read the scriptures in Indonesian. Of course after the meeting was over everyone told me how good it was and Mary said that it worked so I was pleased. Certainly the Lord blessed me with lots of good ideas and support. I just rather wished that some of it had not taken place so early this morning.

The Gospel Principles and PH lessons were enjoyable. We had good translators and I participated in each of the classes. Brother Herman and his sister was in the GP class and they seemed to be quite interested. In PH I noticed that brother Herman carefully followed the scriptures. Unfortunately they did not have copies of the conference talk for each member – I really think that would be a good thing to do for the 4th week lesson. If they gave them out a week ahead of time so people could come prepared to participate.

After the block there was a snack for everyone before the baptismal service. Herman Liunokas Kollo became the newest member of the Jakarta Raya branch. Elder Suseno got to baptize him and it took three tries to get him completely immersed. The last time Elder Suseno took no chances and really put him under. But brother Herman did not complain or hesitate at all. I need to suggest to the elders that they teach the candidate to bend their knees so it is easier to get them down and up.

Back at the apartment, I had some lunch and then took a much needed nap. Since then I have spent almost all of my time catching up this journal and working on pictures that I had taken over the last couple of day. Tomorrow I will try to post all the missing journal pages and pictures. Maybe it will inspire the rest of the family to post more often on their blogs.

I just realized why President Eyring said that we should take some time each day to think how the Lord has touched out lives that day. It is because we become so use to having the blessings and experiences of the Gospel in our lives that they just seem normal. When that happens it is very easy to not thank the Lord for his tender mercies. If I am not careful I forget how patient He is with me. I do not recognize how he has watched over and protected us these last 17 months. But if I take the time to ponder the day and search for the evidence of His touch and His love, it is always there.

 

The pair of puppets that we bought at the fair. The Kanes admiring the floral arrangement in the foyer of our apartment. Us with the happy but exhausted couple.

26 April 2008 – Saturday

A very busy day but not all of it was involved in missionary work. I woke early and went to the gym. Later when Elder Kane was up we sat in the living room, talked about our missions and our plans for the future. The Kanes do not plan to go on another mission for a couple of years. But who knows how they will feel once they get home. Mary prepared a very nice breakfast that was well received by all of us.

We went with the Kanes to the Craft Fair and in 2 hours managed to buy everything we needed or could afford. We then left the Kanes with the Smith’s and headed home. I had a lot to do on my talk and this journal. We were also in need of naps. I managed to get a lot done – including going through the pictures from the last couple of days and getting them captioned. We also read from the Kitab Mormon. When the Kanes came home we showed each others our treasures. After that it was time to change into our suits so we could go to Sam and Anny’s reception in style.

We got to the reception after 6 and the couple was supposed to show up at 6:30. It is a custom here to have the bride and groom make a grand entrance on a red carpet so they do not come until after most of the guests arrive. Of course the guests know this and so most of them do not come until well after the start date. In this case they bridal party got stuck in a really bad traffic jam and even with a police escort they did not get to the reception until about 7:30.

But I used the time wisely. We greeted the guests and then I went to the office where I let Elder Herman and Laki use the phone to call one of their investigators who must come to church tomorrow if he is to be baptized the following Sunday. They ran into a major problem when they found that the family that usually brings him had moved during the week. It will be interesting to see if he makes it.

I also got the special vocabulary words for Titan. That took longer than it should because I managed to hide one of the lists and it took a couple of searches to find it. I also talked to him about the pilot program – I certainly hope he signs up for it.

Once the bride and groom showed up things got moving along. Anny looked beautiful in her gown. Sam looked scared to death but handsome. The couple moved down the red carpet and up to the cultural hall. Once they and their parents were on the stage, there was talks by the fathers and then Mary was asked to give an opening prayer – something she was not prepared to do. There were some words of wisdom from President Smith – he also did not know he was on the program. The cake was then cut – I do not think wedding cakes are much in demand here – and they fed pieces to each other. Then I was called on to give the closing prayer – also unexpected. It seems that somehow part of the program did not quite get out to those who would participate.
Then there was a line to congratulate the parents and couple. We got nice thanks from both fathers for the help we had been in getting Sam and Anny to the alter.

We were near the front so when we went down to get some food, the line was not too bad. We cheated and took our dinners back to the office where we had a flat surface to put our plates. When I went back for seconds on the fruit, I found the Davises just getting their food and invited them back to the office to eat. So while they ate we talked about some of our mission experiences and about English classes. They are going to teach two English classes in a university and the elders are going to go with them.

The Davises are a typical senior couple. That is they have good health reasons for not going on a mission. In fact Elder Davises is serious enough that they had to change from going to Guam because there was no decent medical services anywhere near by. Sister Davies troops along on two bad knees. They of course have left children and grandchildren. They had a number of problems after they got here. But none of this stopped them and they do not complain. They are only interested in the positive things that they are doing and the service they are giving. It is too bad that more couples are not willing to get out of their comfort zone and serve missions.

After dinner we said goodbye to Sam and Anny and started to head out to the street to catch a taxi home. We were almost to the gate when we heard Elder Bastian asking for Mary. It turned out that he and Elder Hunter were going to sing a duet and needed a piano player who knew the hymns. So we hurried back and Mary played for them. Then once again we went out into a light rain and in just a minute was blessed with a Blue Bird taxi stopping for us.

Once we were back at the apartment I started did some more work on my talk. I have accumulated way too much information for a 12 minute talk. I will have to prune it down tomorrow morning before going to Church.

So it was a day of fun, service and good companionship. The Lord truly blesses us in many small ways and also some very large ones. Our health has been wonderful, we have learned so much, and we have had the chance to become involved in a number of programs that may help the Saints in Indonesia for many years to come.

I want to put in one thought. One part of our calling was to be shadow leaders to three branches. But instead of teaching the branch leadership anything, I have instead learned from them. They face problems well beyond anything I faced in my 8 years of being bishop. And they do it without complaining and almost always with a smile. The numbers here may be small but the spirit is huge. They truly give themselves to the Lord. It has been a privilege to serve and learn from them.

 

The colorful children’s choir at the dedication of the new school. From left to right – Elder Burr, Bastian, Elder Subandriyo, Dr Shihab, Elder Thiemann, Hunter and Agus the service center director of physical facilities. The view from Dr Shihab’s country villa. It was a gorgeous day with a lovely breeze passing through the mostly open villa.

25 April 2008 – Friday

We were up and out early because we had to be at the mission home before 7:00 so a group of us could leave together for the hills above Bogor where we would be guests at a ceremony for opening a new school – Cayaha Hati – and clinic that was sponsored by Dr. Shihab’s wife and sisters. We went with Elder Subandriyo and Agus while elders Bastian, Thiemann, Hunter and Burr went with Swento in the President’s car. We met up with the Kanes above Bogor and then all traveled in a convoy to the school.

It is in a rather remote but beautiful but poor area. The clinic and school will bring hope to the villages around. I had the privilege of sitting next to Dr. Shihab and so got to know a little more about the school and clinic. It turns out that he was there representing his wife who is very sick with a thyroid problem and is in Singapore. He flew back from there to be at the ceremony. There were a lot of important people there from Jakarta and Singapore – I never really got to know any of them.

I really enjoyed the program. There was a children’s choir that reminded me of the Primary choir we saw on Sunday at District conference only the girls were dressed much fancier. There was a section of the lawn set aside for mothers of the children and it when I went to take pictures they were all smiles.

But I learned a lot about Muslims and how close their ideas are to ours. One woman read from some book “Those who walk along the path of goodness are close to God.” and “God is there for us and those who call upon God will be saved.” I am going to use that in my talk on Sunday. I also tried to listen carefully to a young man – perhaps a Iman – sing scripture from the Koran. I noticed that he chose the verses carefully and said a little prayer before singing each verse. I have no idea what he was saying but it was obviously very important to him. I imagine the short prayer that he whispered was something like “There is only one God and Mohammed is his Prophet.”

Later in Dr. Shihab’s comments he talked about the importance of loving everyone and loving God. He talked about the problems facing parents and children today and they were the same that any LDS parent would worry about. He also spoke of the dreams of the parents for their children and once again they were in line with ours. So while we do not share the same religion, we share the same love for God and for our children. They see the same needs and face the same problems in a world where religious beliefs and values ae under constant attack by those who feel that they are more enlightened. Unfortunately the light they seek is the light of the world and not the light that comes from God.

After the ceremony we were all invited to the good Dr. Shihab’s country villa which was only 5 minutes away. It is a lovely little place that is mainly wide open and with a view to die for. He later told me that he and his wife often came up after a difficult day or for the weekend to just get away from the influence of Jakarta.

We enjoyed a delicious meal where all the food was not at all spicy except for the one thing that I felt was sure to be safe – a fruit dish. Luckily I did not take much and only tasted a little before finding that it lit up the mouth.

The missionaries and Elder Subandriyo had opportunities to speak to a lot of people. I met one man who runs a company that employs lots of people and is always looking for machinists. Since one of the courses that the Job Training program offers is learning to be a machinist, I am hoping that we can find someone to take the course in Tangerang, Bandung or Bogor and maybe get a job there. I will send him an e-mail tomorrow.

On the way back to Jakarta we hit a real traffic jam. It is a two lane road and a very large truck broke down on our side. Luckily for us there was not much traffic going down the hill so we were only delayed about 15 – 20 minutes. But the uphill traffic – mostly trucks – was backed up for miles. All the way down the hill and onto the toll road. I do not know how they will get a tow truck up there to move the obstruction, but until they do it is going to be a royal mess. At least there was one policeman there letting vehicles through on a rotation basis. As we were going along two more on a motorcycle seemed to be heading up to help.

Once at the apartment, I started working on the pictures I took today. Elder Subandriyo wanted a few to send to Elder Packer as an attachment to an e-mail telling him about the ceremony and the fact that Dr. Shihab’s wife was in the hospial. Elder Packer and them are good friends and Dr. Shihab has spoken at BYU a couple of times. We got to go to one of them – I believe in October 2006 – before we went into the MTC.

Sam came about 5:00 to pick up the car so he can use it tonight and Mary had him take her to the chapel so she could practice the piano. She is going to play for sister Penni and will also give the closing prayer. I stayed at the apartment so I could catch up this journal. The program starts at 7:00 so I will leave here about 6:15 or so.

Once again I was struck by the simplicity of the actual LDS wedding ceremony. The only ‘ceremonial’ part is the exchange of rings which is not really a part of ceremony. There is no ‘with this I do thee wed’ or anything like that. When President Smith told Sam he could now kiss his bride be kissed her on the forehead and looked embarrassed even to do that. Most of the people at the ceremony were missionaries and from the English branch. I was surprised that hardly anyone from the Selatan branch – including his room mates came. Hopefully there will be a lot more people tomorrow evening.

The Kanes came home with us to spend the night. Tomorrow we will head off for another swing through the Jakarta Craft Fair. The Kanes are wonderful friends and I hope we will stay in touch for many years to come.

 

Transfer Day for the mission: Elders Bastian, Basuki, Lewis, Thiemann, Manullang and bro Swanto. Elder Lewis is one of the new elders, we have had the pleasure of serving with Elders Basuki and Manullang in the Tangerang and Raya branches. Elders Bastian and Thiemann are in the office. Next picture is Elder Lewis, Thiemann and Manullang. The last picture is of Elder Rowberry trying to get 3 cubic feet of his possessions in a bag that holds just 1 cubic foot. Some choices had to be made. Elder Rowberry has served in the office for about 6 months and now was being transferred to Solo to finish out his mission. He is a wonderful and dedicated young man who will be a fine PH leader.

24 April 2008 – Thursday

I seem to be really having a hard time writing in this journal. So I am going to make today’s entry very short.

The highlights were a trip to the Craft Fair where we joined the Kanes for a couple of hours of looking at lots of Indonesian crafts and of course buying some. We went from the fair to the mission home where Mary taught her English class and I spent time with the Elders. It was transfer day and the last day of Zone Leader’s conference so there were lots of Elders in residence. I got to see Elder Manullang, elder Teng and one of the Basuki brothers. I got to say goodbye to Elder Rowberry and Elder Lewis – one of the new missionaries who are heading East. I also got to know Elder Hunter who is taking Elder Rowberry’s place in the office.

We have had the privilege of working with some great missionaries. Each of them are different but each are dedicated to the work. Hopefully when we get back we can have a number of them over to our house for a get-together or two before we leave again.

After Mary was finished, we headed off to Tangerang for DM and English classes. The traffic was terrible so everyone was late. Elder Cheney held his last District meeting with Tangerang. He is moving to Jakarta Raya and will be DL there, so we will still see him regularly until we leave. Elder Prause with elder Laki and elder Herman with elder Djarkodi (I do not think we know him) will be the Tangerang Elders.

So DL went well and we again counseled that the T1 elders introduce themselves to their neighborhood and let them know that they were there to help if anyone needed a couple of strong backs.

We finished just in time to hold English class. We started with just the missionaries and 2 inactive sisters that have joined the class. But we were soon joined by Agus, Cathrin and their children. We had a good and fun class where we worked on present tenses, opposites, and the first three Articles of Faith. We will miss the class next week so I gave Elder Herman the things they would need for the class.

We had Anny with us and we kidded her and Sam about their wedding tomorrow. They are a good couple and I think they will do fine. It is going to be hard on us next week without having Sam to drive us around. We will spend most of the time at the office getting things cleaned up for the Rebers.

23 April 2008 – Wednesday

It was a rather busy day for a P-day. We read from the Kitab Mormon in the morning and the afternoon. For about 4 hours we had the lovely young Muslim lady cleaning our house and a crew in replacing the air-conditioners in two rooms. We kind of worked around them because at times it was hard to find any room someone was not working in. I worked on my talk – I especially pondered a talk by Elder Packer about the Light of Christ that he gave at a New Mission President seminar. It was a long talk and I was surprised that he felt a group of established PH leaders such as that gathering would need a detailed – I imagine it ran a good 45 minutes – lesson on the subject. It brought home the fact that we all need to review again and again the basic doctrines of the Church. Each time I do I learn something new.

In his talk Elder Packer said that after the apostasy “the heavens were never closed.” That the Light of Christ is always in everyone who comes into the world, the Holy Ghost still visited the earth to testify and inspire, and that God still answered the prayers of the righteous. What was missing was the Priesthood – the authority to administer the ordinances of the Gospel.

After everyone left we had a short break before getting ready to go over to the mission home to be escorts for elder Bastian and Burr so they could go to president Smith house. We had to wait for a taxi and when we got one it turned out that he had no idea where to go so we had to coach him. The traffic was terrible until we got to Sudirman and then it opened up. We got to see a true fender-bender that turned into a hit and run. Unfortunately for the runner the traffic was so bad that those who were hit could get out of their car and confront him. They finally got him to pull over to the side. At least we had some entertainment while we waited in traffic.

When we picked up the elders, we told the driver where we needed to go and he had no idea how to get there and neither did we, so we paid him off and got into another taxi with an experienced driver.

President and sister Smith’s have a gorgeous apartment. Sister Smith and their daughter – who just was released from the Fort Lauderdale Spanish speaking mission- came home about 15 minutes after we got there. Not long after that president Smith showed up while sister Smith was still helping Elder Bastian with his headache problem. Since that was going to take some time, I helped the president take apart and put back together his TV – Stereo system in their beautiful new cabinet. Since they have a lot accessories, it took some time and a lot of work. But we finished just before it was time to leave. We were very happy when he turned it on and everything worked.

After a very interesting taxi ride with a driver who again had no idea how to get to where we wanted to go, we made it back to the mission home in time to share the Hashes farewell dinner with them, the Marchants, the Walkers and a brother Ron Smith who happens to have been the Walker’s next door neighbor in Utah and was visiting Jakarta on business.

We had a nice dinner and lots of good table talk for a couple of hours before brother Smith and us said our last goodbyes to the Hashes. We shared a taxi to our apartment and saw brother Smith off to the Marriott.

We got home rather late so while I did some work on the computer, Mary relaxed for a short time and then went to bed. I read some from the Liahona and then also went to bed.