Thursday, November 27, 2008

Baptism # 3...4... 5... 6!!!


Happy Thanksgiving!

We've had an awesome week, mainly because we had the baptism of the Figueiredo family on Saturday! Unfortunately, when I baptized the kids, Thomas and Alex, I left my camera in my pocket and it was destroyed, so I'll only be able to put up/send a photo out in the next week or two after I've got a new camera.

I guess that since I started talking about the Figueiredo's baptism, I might as well go on about it now. Well, earlier in the day, we had a ward activity at the Botanical Gardens. As we were walking in, Elder Wright spotted them, minus Thomas, but with an extra man in their group. It turns out that the man was Carlos Martins, the person who introduced them to the Church in Brazil. He had flown 36 from Brazil to Singapore just for their baptism and confirmation. It was wonderful to meet him, and it was great that he was there! The ward picnic was really fun, and we got to relax, eat, and just have some fun and games.

The baptismal service was amazing. Seeing that family in white was like looking into the future where we will all be dressed in white. There were some great talks given. Simone, the mother, was the one who first learned about the Church and propelled the family in the right direction. She really felt the Spirit, and it was wonderful to see in her countenance, her belief and knowledge that was she was about to participate in was the best thing that she could ever do. The baptisms went off without a hitch, and there were some wonderful testimonies borne, along with a great welcome by Bishop Nef, my home ward Bishop :). My parents were able to make it to watch the baptism, that made it all the better. The Figeuiredo Family is wonderful, and I can't wait to see how they grow in the gospel as they are sealed together in the temple as a family and onward. I can't wait to see Thomas and Alex, their two boys, go on missions and serve the Lord, because I know that they will be amazing!

We have a great new investigator named Belle, who's Singaporean Indian.She was passed to us by Elder Hoare. She's a little skeptical and defensive, but she's really genuinely wanting to search for the truth. She's one of my favorite investigators because she's assertive in a very confident and bubbly way.

Right now, we have this golden investigator named Joseph who we've set a baptismal for December 13th. He's an Indian man from... India who is now a permanent resident here. He's trying to save up money to get his family to Singapore. But, when he first got here, his agent and the company that he worked for cheated him of his salary and left him to the dumps. He has a degree but is now working at a 7-11. I feel so bad for those people, but I feel even more disgusted when I think of those people who cheat their own human beings. He's been having a hard time, but he's getting comfort in the knowledge that the Lord knows all things and that it will eventually all work out. We're really blessed to have him as an investigator. He's a genuinely nice guy, and a family man.

Other than that, we've had a pretty normal week. A couple dinner appointments here and there, and we've been working with Peter to make sure that he doesn't miss Church. Oh, we've changed our tactics of finding new investigators. We are now going to be going full out in using the members in the ward now. It's now the holiday season, so we're going to get them to start having their friends meet with us, and share the gospel with them. It's the perfect time too now anyhow, it is the Christmas season.

Well, we're going to head of to our Thanksgiving lunch at the Church now, then probably head off to the beach at Sentosa for some games and relaxation!

The Christmas season is starting up over here already! The missionaries are starting to receive their Christmas packages! Apparently, there are Flat Rate boxes going at $38.95 from USPS the States to Singapore that's decent sized. So, if you wanted to know that... :P

Have a wonderful week! Take care and God bless!

Love, Elder Chua

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