HALLO!!

For P-day we went on this GORGEOUS hike and I thought that my legs might fall off because it was so long and so steep, but we made it to the top and the view was so worth it! On the way down we were like “Yeah! We knew we could do it all along! That was a piece of cake!” and all of the sudden I forgot that I was even tired at all! It’s funny how when you find that the benefit outweighs the cost, suddenly it doesn’t even feel like you’re having to pay anything!

This week was so good! We met with Jacky Chan again and taught him the restoration this time and he really liked it! He also has such good questions for us every time we see him and I absolutely love the opportunity that I have as a representative of the Lord to answer those questions and bear testimony! He also came to Stake Conference yesterday although we are just a little worried because it was his first time at church and he ran away pretty quickly after the service was over. But if there’s any lesson that I’ve learned on my mission, it’s that faith and fear can’t exist in the same person at the same time so I’ll keep praying for him and hopefully we’ll be able to see him again this week with his busy work schedule.

We also met with Michael again this week (my second time seeing him) and had a really good lesson with him and then the conversation just kind of flowed into baptism and we talked about what it was and the purpose of it, but he said that at the moment he wasn’t really that interested. That was really sad to hear because he seems really interested in what we teach, but isn’t willing at the moment to act on his faith and desire. He also views baptism and church as someone might view a cane, something to help them walk better, but at the moment he feels that he is skipping along just fine in life and feels that he would be more inclined to be baptized if his life were harder.

Sister Malone and I walked out of the lesson and got talking about how the gospel isn’t just something for the weak and afflicted, although it most certainly can help people who are struggling or going through hard times. Funny enough it made me think of his house because he lives in one of those shacks, although you walk inside it’s absolutely gorgeous inside and perfectly new and updated and taken care of. But you look up and see that although they have a pretty and new house, the ceiling is still made out of nothing more than tin metal sheeting with plaster. We asked him what they did when it rained and he said that they get their buckets and glue out and repair the little holes in it. You see, in life there are always going to be heavy rains. I don’t care how nice your house is metaphorically or how good your life is, we all have storms in life and sometimes the rain leaks into our house. But with the gospel of Jesus Christ, we can make it through our storms of life, He can help us endure them. And when I say that I don’t just mean that He patches up the holes in our roof with some plaster and then pats us on the back and calls it good until the next storm comes around and we have to do the same thing all over again. He works together with us to build a new roof entirely so that we can move on to focus on the walls that might not be strong enough, or maybe there are still some windows that need to be replaced before the next storm sets in. Through Jesus Christ and His atonement we don’t ever escape the storms entirely, they still come, but we are given the means to keep continually improving and endure them with the faith that our house won’t be flooded or blown down so long as we keep trusting in Him. And when is the best time to repair your roof? When the sunshine is out! It’s a lot easier to fix things in good weather than it is to wait for the typhoons to come and realize that you need to do some repairing. Don’t wait until you’re already waist-deep in water to start repairing your roof!

Love you all! Remember that if the sun is out, you still need to be working to replace your roof! And if you find that you are in the middle of a storm right now, know that it’s never to late to ask our Savior for some help to bail you out.

Love,
Sister Crockett

18 Dorset Crescent
Kowloon Tong, Kowloon
Hong Kong

Pictures:
1) Some cheung fun- delicious!

2) Part of the path, this wasn’t the steep part of it, but it’s still pretty!

3) Of course had to do a name tag shot 😉

4) At the top of the mountain