13 April 2008 – Sunday

It was a very pleasant and well filled Sunday. We spent the morning at the Selatan chapel watching Sunday conference with the missionaries and the English branch. We had heard all the talks before but this time Elder Bednar’s talk on prayer really struck me and got me thinking. I feel Elder Bednar has taken the place of Elder Maxwell as far as giving talks that have a lot of meat in them. Their styles and word choices are completely different but the over all feeling of their talks just work for me.

A member from Singapore who is establishing a office here for his company came to the meeting. We had a nice talk and it appears he will have a fairly large operation here. I forgot to ask him about what his employee needs might be. Perhaps it is an opportunity for some of our members. Marie Saunders’ office experience might be of use. I must be sure to get his cell phone number. His company seems to be involved in many areas including entertainment.

After the first session, there was an hour break and Mary had been asked to play the piano for a Primary Choir practice. She is not going to play for the Primary at District Conference next week but she will play for the Jakarta Raya choir. While she did that I went to the office and worked on the computer. A member came in and we talked about English. He asked for a grammar book and I gave him one of those we had made. Hopefully it will help.

We watched the first hour of Sunday afternoon session and then left to go to Jakarta Raya for their practice. First we stopped by the apartment so we could get some lunch. We arrived at the chapel just as the last speaker was finishing. They then broke for a half hour to have lunch. I used the time to read some conference talks I down-loaded when we stopped by the apartment. They included President Eyrings’ talk at the RS meeting. It was on the Light of Christ which fit right in with the subject they want me to talk about in two weeks – Suara Hati – The voice of the heart – or Conscience! His talk gave me a lot to think about because he used Moroni 7:15-19 which is the one Raya used as the scripture to talk about. I do not want to concentrate just on that scripture because I am sure that it is the same that they gave everyone. However I really like that whole chapter of Moroni as he recounts his father’s talk to the Saints of his time.

I had a good opportunity to talk to President Anthony about the branch and one of the sisters we would love to see get a job. As President Anthony spoke about what he has done to counsel her, I realized that he had the mantle to lead the branch and he did not need me to tell him what to do. That is what I have found true here in Jakarta. The branch presidents are men with strong testimonies, dedication, and know their members. They lead through faith and inspiration. We can suggest some things if asked but should realize that they are just as capable – if not more capable – than we are.

By the time we got home Mary was very tired and so she napped while I studied. She has been a trooper throughout the mission. I mentioned to someone today that the reason I was on this mission was because they needed Mary and I was part of the package.

President and Sister Marchant invited us over for dinner. I think the Marchants miss having all their family around on Sunday when the President cooks. So we had a nice dinner with the Walkers and the Marchants. We talked about conference and missionary work. It is always a spiritual lift to meet with other missionaries and share stories. The Walkers had a great one.

Last week when they went to another Christian church to give out some wheelchairs, they met a man who wanted to come to one of our meetings. The Walkers gave him the address and time of Tangerang 2 meeting. The man not only came but he brought a friend and they watched conference with them. Afterwards they had a discussion where Elder Walker told them more about some of the things that were talked about in conference and bore his testimony. Both men said they felt the spirit of speakers and committed to having the missionaries meet with them. The Walkers feel that there is a good chance that they will ask to be baptized. So the Lord works in interesting ways to bring people to a knowledge of the gospel.

Back at the apartment we read from the Kitab Mormon and soon after that headed to bed. I continued to read very slowly through the conference edition of the Liahona. I hit Elder Ballard’s talk and that really has slowed me down.

12 April 2008 – Saturday

I am listening to President Uchtdorf’s conference on “Faith of our Father.” I liked the way he moved from being true to the faith of our earthly father to being true to the faith of our Heavenly Father – that is the restored Church of Jesus Christ on the earth today.

We are reading in 3 Nephi of the coming of the Savior. Today we read about the events leading up to His appearance. The Nephites at the temple do not understand the small voice the first two times. I wonder how many times the Lord tries to get our attention and we fail to understand or ignore the prompting of the spirit. The Lord asked Paul why he fought against the pricks of the Spirit telling him that he was not doing His will. Joseph ignored the Lord telling him twice not to give the 116 pages to Martin Harris but He allowed him to do what he wanted when he asked the third time. So sometimes the Lord persists to insure that we understand and other times He seems to let us make the mistake in the hopes that we will learn from the experience.

We went to the chapel at 9:30 because the schedule we got from President Smith said that was when the first session would start. When we got there we found the President and other missionaries had changed and started at 8:00 because the Selatan branch decided to change their starting time. So instead of seeing the first session we saw the second Saturday session. The talk that touched me most was Elder Oaks on Testimony. It got me thinking about subjects for my talk on the 27th.

After that session, because we had watched the PH session on Wednesday we did not stay to watch it. The Walkers suggested that we go to get something to eat and we decided on Chili’s. So we had a nice lunch and talk with the Walkers. They are a great and fun couple. Elder Walker does all he can to get projects he feels are good ones approved. However I am afraid he is going to be disappointed on some of them. I mentioned that one thing I have learned is that we need to have patience and faith that the Lord is in charge and what needs to happen will happen in His good time.

The rest of the day was spent at the apartment. Mary finished three and started a fourth infant caps. I studied Indonesian, listened to conference talks and caught up the journal. I am afraid we are spending too much time of projects and not enough on helping people.

 

Our office, our car and the mission home – three of the four places where we spend most of our hours each day.

11 April 2008 – Friday

After a very normal morning we went to the office. Hendra was waiting for us so he could check our problem with the internet. Of course it worked perfectly and was faster than ever. We worked on a couple of projects and answered e-mails. After lunch we went to home teach the Manurung family. It is always a good experience and we took him an English Book of Mormon and an English grammar book so he and hopefully the rest of his family can work on their English. He still hopes to get work in Sun Valley but at his age I do not think there is much hope. Although we tried to avoid it they gave us food and drinks. I realize that they are proud to do it, but I hate to have them spend their money on us. Their generosity reminds me of the widow’s mites.

I had sent the Indonesian version of the 25 Rules book to him via the missionaries and he had read almost all of it. We talked a little about where it came from and some of the ideas. Hopefully he will find things in it that will help him with his own small business. From the looks of it, he could really use it. I wonder if brother Soewigno could help him with his store. I will hae to ask him and see.

As I thought about the three hours that it takes to home teach this one family, I remembered that yesterday at district meeting, the missionaries mentioned that they were teaching a family that is two hours from the church. The also mentioned that they were coming to church but they did not want to ride with a member that lived near them. They wanted to come on their own. I would say that if they continue to come and are baptized, they will remain faithful. Anyone who is willing to spend the time and money to come that far is doing it because they feel something special about the church.

We continue to read from the Kitab Mormon and there are some words we did not know the first three times that we still do not know and can not guess. But for the most we are able to go for a number of verses without looking up any words.

10 April 2008 – Thursday

I got in an extra couple of hours of reading Indonesian today – from 1 a.m. to 3 a.m – not my favorite time to study or even be awake but at least it was time well spent. Woke again in time to go to the gym for a vigorous workout. It felt really good – I am not gaining much in the way of muscles but just being able stretching them is important.

Read from the Kitab Mormon and Mary managed to get off our report in time for it to into HK and then SL today. We were much later than usual. At the office we found we could not get on the internet for the fourth day straight. We came home and did what we needed to do on our computer.

We then went to the mission office so May could teach her English class. While she was doing that I studied Christ like Attributes from Preach My Gospel. Each time I study that section I get new ideas as well as seeing areas I need to work on. I think this is my favorite part of PMG. I also was able to get a converter for Elder Herman so he can charge his shaver. It was President Marchant and is ancient but it should work until we can get him a lighter one.

We had lots of time before we had to be at Tangerang for district meeting so we stopped at the mall and did a little shopping. Anny had joined us at the mission home – she has been doing that regularly lately so Sam and her can have more time together. They are trying hard not to show how excited they are about their upcoming wedding, but are not succeeding very well.

Two of the elders were a little late getting to DM but it was great as always. Elder Laki is now Elder Prause’s companion. he has been out about 15 months and has not learned much English. That is a real shame and much of that I lay on his companions. We will try to get more English into him before we leave.

We thought no one was coming to our English class but Agus called to say they were on their way. So again we ended up starting a little late but we had a very good class and I think they learned some vocabulary. Agus and Cathrin’s family is so close and happy. It must be a joy for the children to be so loved.

The trip home took longer than usual. We had to go the long way to avoid the traffic jam on our regular route. They are working on the toll road and that always makes a big mess. Which makes sense since it is a pretty good sized mess when there is no road work going on.

So although there was some frustrations during the day I had some spiritual experiences to make up for it. I especially enjoyed reading from PMG and the interaction with the missionaries.

09 April 2008 – Wednesday

A quiet P-day with the usual cleaning, studying, and relaxing. We read from the Kitab Mormon, watched the DVD of the PH session of conference, listened to other talks from conference, studied Indonesian – I am trying to read the conference edition of the Liahona straight through, and caught up this journal. We packed up another box of goodies to send home and will give it to the Wisers next week. I feel that one a week is about all we should ask of them. I think two more boxes will do it with the rest fitting in our suitcases. We plan to leave a lot of clothes and books behind.

One of the blessings of being senior missionaries is that we get DVDs of all the conference sessions the day after they are held. That means we can not only listen to but see the speakers and this makes it easier to pay attention to what is being said. I am afraid that when we just listen to it, sometimes my mind wanders away or I even fall asleep. I find that is less likely when I am watching. I also tend to take better notes when I watch as well as listen. Note taking makes me concentrate more on the speakers. But none of this is the same as careful reading and pondering the things that are said. So the Ensign conference editions is a wonderful tool for gaining spiritual strength when I need it.

Mary and the button store – there are three aisle of buttons stretching for perhaps 40 feet each and everywhere there are shelves full of boxes of buttons. If you can not find the button you want here, it probably is not made. Mary restrained herself and only bought three styles or sizes.

A precious load -notice that there is only one helmet and it is only a liner. The next picture shows a load of grass much like the one that beat us through the traffic a couple of weeks ago. It is on a cart with one man up front who runs down one side of the underpass to get momentum and then tries to keep it going up the other. The last picture is one Mary has been trying to get for a long time so Bob could see it. It is the Jakarta version of the Department of Public Works.
08 April 2008 – Tuesday

Studied Indonesian before having a  good workout at the gym. I am trying to push myself to become more physically and spiritually fit. One of the great blessings of a mission is that the Lord provides time for me to do this. How well I do is up to me. As the Book of Mormon often reminds me – I have been given the right to act and not just be acted upon. It also reminds me that the consequences of my action are directly governed by Eternal Laws.

I had an appointment to get my hearing checked so we wandered around until we found the office. I was immediately struck by the quality of the office itself. When I went into see Mr Anton – the technician – I could see that they were using very modern equipment and computer programs. When we were finished with the test I found out that while my hearing was not perfect it was quite good for my age.

I then got to try a number of hearing aids and was surprised at how much it increased my ability to hear. At least in the office environment. When I tried them in both ears, I was not impressed. It sounded like I had a speaker in my head and it even broadcast my own voice. When I heard the cost I was ready to say ‘forget’ it but then I tried just one ear and that worked much better and of course halved the cost. I made an appointment to come back on Friday to give my decision.

From there we went to Mayestik – which is the big area that has lots of shops dealing in retail sales of material and other things needed in making clothing, etc. Mary took me to a button store that had an amazing selection, Just guessing I would say they had 100,000 choices and that might be really low when you consider all the different sizes that were available. I took some pictures but they do not start to do justice to the store and it’s selection.

Our next stop was dropping the boxes we packed yesterday off at the Wiser’s for shipping. They have a very nice home and since it is an embassy home, they have an Indonesian police or military guard at all times. The Wisers are leaving in July to go back to Washington D.C. as their next tour of duty. The English branch is going to miss them. We had a nice talk with sister Wiser about their family and the experiences that they have had. I did not realize that they had to move every 3 years.

We then went to Sogo and did our shopping for the week. We should not have to go back on Thursday unless we come up with something special we need. They young lady at the orange juice machine knows what I want without me asking. I am going to miss this fresh orange juice. Hopefully by now there are ones in the US.

Then it was time to go the mission office so Mary could teach her English class. I had time to talk to the President and others while she taught. We picked up the Church News and DVDs of the conference – including the PH session. That is another blessing of being a missionary. I forgot to mention that by this morning all the conference session – except the PH – was available on demand via the web. How amazing all this is. Modern technology opens the way to great spiritual blessings but at the same time opens the way to great temptations to sin. As in all things the choice of how we use it is ours.

Back at the apartment, we had a normal evening. We read a couple of more times from the Kitab Mormon – we are over 3/4 the way through now. Mary worked on caps and English. I listened to more of the conference. We will start watching conference tomorrow.

We got at least one employment report but the rest of the country is very quiet. We also got in a success story that I will need to re-write tomorrow or Thursday before sending it in. Looking back we did not do much in the way of missionary work. But some days are like that but the Lord seems to always touch us in some way to let us know we are about his work.

07 April 2008 – Monday

The morning was very normal but the rest was pretty much not. We had a good Skype talk with the Rebers and hopefully answered some of their questions. They are moving ahead with their language, learning computer skills, and getting ready in general. Sister Reber asked about working with orphanages and other humanitarian efforts. They will touch a part of the work that we did not get involved in. Each couple is called for a purpose, they will find what their calling.

We went to the office with the intention of a number of things but due to the fact that we could not get on the net. After two hours we gave up and came back to the apartment. This allowed Sam to go do some of the things he needed to do to prepare for his wedding.

We read two more hours from the Kitab Mormon, listened to conference talks, and packed three large boxes of things so brother Wiser can mail them for us. This opportunity to have them sent through his office is a real blessing for us. This means we can ship home almost everything we bought for a reasonable cost. The Lord does watch over his missionaries.  Mary continued to make caps and I continued to try to learn Indonesian. We also were able to talk to Tom’s family – William seems to like to get on Skype and talk to us. Hopefully some day we will understand what he is saying.

 

Elders Prause and Manullang with the two newest members of Tangerang 2 branch.

Mary playing for the baptism service.  Unless elder or sister Reber play, they are going to miss Mary.

Our good friend Agus working with the men of the T2 choir. He is a very talented man who is willing to do what is needed in the Lord’s vineyard.

06 April 2008 – Sunday

178 years ago a small group of men, women and children gathered together to organize Christ’s true church on earth for the first time in many centuries. Today millions of people will gather throughout the world to listen to General Conference and hear the Lord’s Prophet and His Apostles speak. I wonder how many of those people who were at that first meeting believed that this would really happen?

I woke a little early and studied Indonesian before getting up for the day. When Mary woke up I checked to see if we had captured the Saturday Conference sessions. It turned out that Mary stayed awake until the new member of the Quorum of the 12 was announced but I still wanted to listen to the special Solemn Assembly to sustain the new President of the Church.

Listening to the Solemn Assembly was a very special experience for me. As President Uchtdorf asked for the High Priests to stand and sustain the leaders of the Church. I did and proudly raised my hand to support the Lord’s Prophet Thomas S. Monson and then the rest of the general authorities. Later the whole membership to stand and each time I stood and raised my hand I felt the spirit testifying that I was sustaining His choices. Although I was 12,000 miles and 7 hours away, according to man’s reckoning,  from the actual sustaining it felt like I was there in the Conference Center with the other 20 thousand plus members as it was taking place. Spiritually I felt that there was no difference. I also think that next week when it shown here, the same feeling will be there for me and all those who stand and show their support. The sustaining will be recorded in heaven and in each heart.

We went to the Tangerang branches because there were two convert baptisms scheduled in T2. We went to T2’s sacrament and testimony meeting. We were surprised to find the Walkers there. They came just for the sacrament and then left to deliver 3 wheelchairs at a ceremony at another Christian church. When it came time for sharing testimonies I felt like I should go up but never did. I fought against the pricks as Paul did.

However when I had a second chance during T1’s meeting I did. I shared my thoughts about the sustaining of a new President of the High Priesthood and how although I was miles and hours away from the actual event, I felt like I was there. I mentioned that they should feel the same way when they sustain him next week. I saw some of the members agreeing with me and after the meeting they came up and thanked me. I then bore a simple testimony and sat down. Elder Cheney did the translating for me.

After that sacrament meeting T2 held their baptism service. Mary played for it and I was one of the witnesses. A woman and her 10 year old daughter was baptized. Her husband is having a hard time giving up smoking and was not there because he had to work. It is too bad that he missed it because I think he would have felt the spirit because it was strong. Elder Manullang and Elder Prause each got to do one of the baptisms.

T2 then held a choir practice but before that they had lunch for everyone. This makes sense because the members would be there from 8 a.m. until about 4 p.m. and then some would have an hour or more travel to get home. Our good friend Agus Kusmarmanto is leading the choir and asked us to stay and comment on a part of one song that they will sing in English. As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago their pronunciation is great but they decided to end the song with just the sopranos and it did not work. Mary suggested adding the other sisters and that was better but it still need work.

When we got home, we read from the Kitab Mormon and then settled in to a quiet evening. We listened to a conference and was surprised to find that President Monson did not speak on Saturday. I worked on my Indonesian – and I do mean it was work. The talks by the Apostles tend to be hard to translate both ways. But if I am ever going to learn the vocabulary I must continue to try. Mary continues to make infant caps. The district is trying to make 1000 of them and then will give them to hospitals in the different areas.

We watched a movie called ‘The Golden Compass’ that I thought was OK but really never came together. There were too many characters and plots running around so no one really gets developed. Nichol Kidman had a part as evil stepmother kind of character. She played it almost like an ice princess but from time to time she showed a softer tone. They had it end so they could have a sequel but it must have been very expensive to make and did not do well at the box office. Or at least not as well enough to recoup the cost.

 

This is the Indonesian version of a gasoline tanker truck. He has enough capital to buy a large amount of gas and then goes around selling it to smaller retailers or to other customers. It may not look like much but it will provide a decent – for Indonesia – income for his family. They are big on monuments here. They can be found everywhere and are usually well kept up. Funeral processions are not unusual but this was the first one we have seen where each vehicle had a wreath attached to the grill. The procession was quite long and all the flowers made it more impressive.

05 April 2008 – Saturday

If the rest of the day goes as well as this morning has, it is going to be a very good day.

My personal reading for the morning was President Eyring’s conference talk – or at least part of it – in Indonesian. I also went to the gym and had breakfast. When I checked Skype I found that the Rebers were on line so I rang them and we had a nice talk for about 30 minutes. They had some questions and we tried to answer them. They have started with their language lessons and I think they will do well. Sister Tippetts is their teacher and she said nice things about us. I told them that they needed to practice talking to each other because that is where made our mistake.

After hanging up – the connection was perfect for the whole 30 minutes – we read from the Kitab Mormon. While we were reading Sam came and we started moving a four drawer file full of English material out of the apartment and over to the office. Sam took the first load with the drawers over and we continued to read. When he came back we took the body and I went with him. Once there we put it in the office and loaded the drawers back in. It is not the nicest looking cabinet but it will let us have all the English material in one room. The new file cabinet gives us more drawer space but also another flat area to stack boxes, etc.

I worked on writing up the information that we got yesterday about the Job Training centers. I sent what we had learned to Elder Subandriyo along with some thought about how to get the information out to the branches. I then put a copy in our Area Book so the Rebers can continue with it. I also worked on vocabulary and then I tried to work on President Mak’s project but for some reason I could not come up with much new to write. I guess I need to do more thinking and praying before I try again.

We had a young lady come in so we could write up a resume or her. We had done one for her sister a few months ago and she suggested us to her sister. Since neither could speak much English, Sam had to do most of the work. It went much quicker than usual and they left happy.

Mary got the last of our PEF information posted and then worked on English stuff. It turned out that there was some Seminary event at 1:00 so her HS class did not start until 2 but she had 3 of her 4 students which has not been happening lately.

While she taught her class I watched a couple of programs on BYU TV including an interesting one on photographs of Brigham Young that were collected as part of research project to find all photos of him and research when they were taken and by who. One thing that the commentator mentioned was that until he was in his 60s he did not grow a beard. And the pictures with the long beard that we so often see he only grew and wore for about 9 months. I guess people think that he looks more prophetic with the longer beard. It was an enjoyable story.

During the evening we read the Kitab Mormon and while Mary crocheted more little caps, I worked on this journal and then continue with studying Indonesian. For the most part I have been reading and re-reading President Eyring’s talk about keeping a record of the way the Lord touches our life each day. I know that it is very important but I hesitate to record all of them. The problem I find is that many of them are very personal and I feel uncomfortable in relating them. I realize that perhaps sometime in the future one of our descendants may have their testimony strengthened by my sharing but it still difficult to put them down to be shared.

For some reason I was very tired and so by 9:00 I was turning off the lights. But before doing that, I set the computer to record Saturday’s Conference.

05 April 2008 – Saturday

Morning Musing

Today I stepped on the scales and saw that those last 10 pounds I really want to get rid of were still there. As I thought about those stubborn pounds and realized that to lose them I either had to work much harder – that is put in an extra 15 to 20 minutes of exercise each day -or eat less – that is give up those rich snacks that I so love to have during the day – or a combination of both. Then I got to thinking about how hard it is to lose that last 10 pounds of worldliness that keeps me from becoming the Son of God I say I really want to be.

Just like the body fat the worldly fat can only disappear if I work harder each day in the Lord’s vineyard or stop snacking on things of the world that are so hard to give up. Things like watching TV or reading a book instead of going out and visiting some one who needs help or playing with children or grandchildren. It may be going to an R rated movie because it sounds so good but knowing that it is not going to increase my spirituality.  I of course could go on and on but the blunt truth speaks for itself – the scales tell the story. Both the physical and spiritual scales I step on most days tell the blunt truth – those 10 pounds need to come off if I am to be what I say I want to be.