It's transfer week this week!! WOOT WOOT!! Made it through my first transfer. Heaps more to go!! Haha don't worry, I'm not counting down, it's actually flying by faster than I thought. It feels like I just wrote my emaiil home last week. So the news for transfers... *drum roll* I....... will be STAYING in PORT STEPHENS!! Then my companion/trainer will be leaving to Mortdale to be a Zone Leader down there. I'm excited because it's kind of like an opportunity to start over and do what I wish I would've done last transfer since I'll be exposing my new companion to the area. My new companion will be Elder Neas. He is coming up from the Baulkham Hills area, and is ALSO a Korean speaking missionary. Elder Scott was companions with him in the MTC and says his Korean is a lot better than his, so I'm excited to learn some more Korean.
So quick shoutout to Army beating Navy this weekend! GO Army!! I was sitting in church (since we're basically a day ahead) and doing final preparations for my talk, when my parents start sending my updates on the game! So here I am trying to focus on meekness while Army is on a last 10-7 stand in the 4th quarter with 1:30 left on the clock. So thanks mom and dad haha.
This week we had our Christmas Conference!! It was a great break and spiritual boost with half of the missionaries (since our mission is so big). Most people caught up with old companions or old MTC companions, I.... well kind of hung out with my companion and talked a little with the missionaries I've done trade-offs with and those I came over with on the plane... Haha don't worry, it was still fun but yeah... We watched Coco, great lunch and fun outdoor games. We received some great training on just finding joy in this journey of our mission and life in general. The Plan of Salvation is also known as the Plan of Happiness. So we should be HAPPY!! So that is my goal this next transfer is to just find more joy in this wonderful journey. Like one thing, I'M IN AUSTRALIA!!! Isn't that crazy!! I sit in the left side of the car in the passenger seat and drive on the wrong, I mean opposite side of the road! I've seen wild kangaroos, koalas, and emus! I basically live in a big spider web with heaps of spiders!! So yeah, new goal.
So as far as missionary work in Port Stephens.... Well, no updates or progress... haha... yeah... I did learn something new about my companion though and just missionary work in Australia in general as he opened up/kind of broke down...
I noticed one day that we had mail at our flat, so I checked it. It turns out that he had bought a book that was more of a joke than anything as a way to get a lady, that they've met with a lot in the past, interested in religion... I jokingly/non-jokingly chastened him and this ended up being his response (he was embarrassed and felt bad that he resorted to this):
"Elder, you said it yourself, no one in Australia is interested in religion and we need to find a way to get them interested. I'm completely out of ideas. I've been out here in Australia for over a year and I've talked to thousands, tens of thousands of people, but no one is interested. Whenever I bring up religion or the Gospel, they shut off and it scares them away. I've tried everything to get them interested. Giving them a Book of Mormon, pamphlets, teaching right away. I've tried LARPing with them and becoming interested in their hobbies, but nothing seems to ever work. Maybe that's why I haven't pushed teaching people or been urgent to share the Gospel, because it always seems to scare them away. So when I bought this book, I figured it'd be a funny way to get Crystal interested in religion some day and maybe want to read The Book of Mormon someday..."
What the book was isn't necessarily important. Just trust me, it definitely wasn't the Book of Mormon, Bible, or any church material. Hearing my companion open up/break down like this really opened my eyes on his work ethic or approaches/urgency to sharing the Gospel with people. I imagine it's the same defeat he's felt learning Korean, since he hasn't progressed a lot since being in the MTC, or as much as he would've had he gone to Korea. To be honest, we're not really progressing in Korean either. We try, but get caught up with trying to find ways to do missionary work in our area. Haha geez, yeah trying to juggle 20 pins. I guess this is missionary work though. Much respect to those who have served missions. Good on you. Geez, so yeah. Lot's of joy to look for this next week haha. I think I heard this past week that they've officially shutdown the Korean program in Australia, so yeah it sounds like I'm the last Korean speaking missionary to be sent here *nervous laughter*....
So I'll leave with a thought from Book of Mormon (몰몬경) in Alma 43...
This chapter is the start of the war chapters and I think these battles can be compared to the spiritual battles we each face in our lives. At one point in this battle, the Nephites (righteous people) had surrounded the Lamanites (wicked people) as a result of clever maneuvering and leadership. So it seems like the battle should all but won. However, it was at this point that the Lamanites began to "fight exceedingly" and had "never... been known to fight with such exceedingly great strength and courage... and did smite in their fierce anger." Then "when the men of Moroni (Chief Captain of Nephite army) saw the fierceness and anger of the Lamanites, they were about to shrink and flee from them." So when they had favorable conditions and it seems like the tides changed, the tides changed AGAIN! Now the Nephites are almost ready to throw in the towel (keep in mind they needed these favorable conditions because they are less than half the number of the Lamanites).
How many of us reach this point? Where we reach those comfortable conditions where we think life is good and right where we want it. Then all of a sudden, life starts fighting back and we are faced with increased temptations, trials, challenges, problems, uncooperative, etc. What do we do? What should we do? Well I'll tell you what Moroni did...
"... Moroni, perceiving their intent, sent forth and inspired their hearts with these thoughts - yea, the thoughts of their lands, their liberty, yea, their freedom from bondage... [for] the Nephites were inspired by a better cause, for they were not fighting for monarchy nor power but they were fighting for their homes and their liberties, their wives and their children, and their all, yea, for their rites of worship and their church... doing that which they felt was the duty which they owed to their God..."
What is your cause? Why are you fighting? Is it for your family? To be a better grandmother, husband, mother, son, granddaughter, etc.? To keep your family together? Is it to stick up for your faith? To declare to others that we have the fullness of the Gospel, and Jesus Christ's original church that He established when He was on the earth is restored? Or whatever, your purpose and cause MUST be greater than that of our adversary, which is to subject us to misery and never achieving our full potential, and must be supported by our Heavenly Father. Like sticking up for your drug dealing business is not necessarily the best thing to be sticking up for and most likely not supported by our Heavenly Father, but hey do you...
As a result... "they (the Nephite army) cried with one voice unto the Lord their God, for their liberty and their freedom from bondage. And they began to stand against the Lamanites with power; and in that selfsame hour that they cried unto the Lord for their freedom, the Lamanites began to flee before them..."
This can be us as well. Find your purpose or cause for fighting and cry to the Father in the name of Christ to help you come out conqueror. Love you all. I hope you are enjoying this Christmas season. Hallelujah for Jesus Christ. His willingness to submit himself below ALL things to be born as a baby (unable to take care of himself) in a lowly manger. Hallelujah. Have a great week and find joy in this great journey of life.
Elder Escamilla
Australia Sydney Mission
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P.S. I hope I don't come off as complaining or anything. This is my way to be truthful and help me reflect on the past week. I don't actually go around saying this place stinks or it's hard, but try to do what I can and take it a day a time.
P.S.S. WE FOUND KOREANS!!! Except not in our area, but also possibly in our area. More to come next week. I used my Korean for the first time out my entire 6 weeks here. P-Day was pretty great today.
So... we were on trade-offs with the Cessnock Elders and Elder Scott popped his bike tire so we had to fit 4 missionaries and 2 bikes in a car... We improvised and drove home like this on both sides of the car.
Our Branch Christmas party, we have such a fantastic and tight-knit branch family
One of last meals with Elder Scott
We saw an EMU!!