This week was one of my favorites on my whole mission! I was able to go back to my first area where I started it all! It was amazing. I learned so much and literally so many miracles there allowed me to meet up with some of the people that I was able to teach and members that I became best friends with. SO many tender mercies. I think that one short weekend trip for exchanges and transfers taught me a plethora of lessons:
- First: the mission is SO SHORT! It feels like yesterday I was biking along the streets in Battambang and serving in that beautiful city. Crazy to think it was almost exactly a year ago! It goes by too fast.
- Second: Relationships are the most important things in this world. Yes, we all want nice stuff, yummy food, and cool clothes, but meeting with the people that taught me so much and helped me become accustomed to this amazing country tops all of those things. Nothing better than saying hello to friends you made through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Third: I love Cambodia.
It is hard to put into words the emotions that come from the experience of going back to the area I started. Spending my first four months and then returning one year to see some of the fruits that came from our labors. Not because of what I did (obviously because I couldn't speak the language then), but because of how the Lord used me if I was humble enough to follow Him. Anyway, long story short, life is good!
The work is good and I love doing it. Not every day is perfect and I am definitely human, with all that that entails. I think that is the reason that I love the mission the most though. I am able to see my weakness every single day and try to change that and be better because of it. I know that when I am impatient and tired and short with all those that I come in contact with, I am not nearly as happy as when I just try to keep a smile on my face. What better time to change then here on my mission.
Anyway kinda just saying words right now so I will wrap it up with something that we shared in Zone Conference this past week! If you read in Alma 57 it says:
21 Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness; yea, and even according to their faith it was done unto them, and I did remember the words which they said unto me that their mothers had taught them.
25 And it came to pass that there were two hundred, out of my two thousand and sixty, who had fainted because of the loss of blood; nevertheless, according to the goodness of God, and to our great astonishment, and also the joy of our whole army, there was not one soul of them who did perish; yea, and neither was there one soul among them who had not received many wounds.
We talked about how obedience brings blessings, however, that doesn't mean that the mission is going to just be a cake walk. Just because you follow the rules in mission or in life, doesn't mean that you will be able to fight this battle and not receive any wounds. We are all going to take hits. We are all going to have hard days, and times where we don't feel any hope. But God doesn't mean for us to lose this battle. God won't ever desert us. God might allow us to get roughed up again and take some wounds, but he will always deliver us. I am so grateful to know that I have a God of mercy and of grace, who is my Loving Father!
If you want to know more about my investigators I can talk about them, but sometimes I feel like that just bores people, so just let me know if you are interested in that.
Fun things:
We fit 10 people in a minivan from Battambang to Siem Riep
We got the fish massage where they eat off the dead skin on your feet
We went to the COOLEST ANCIENT TEMPLE EVER! We saw a lizard eat a snake
I love you all!
Elder Gochnour
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