Tessa in Thailand: 3/2/15 - #YOMO (You Only Mission Once)

Hello everyone! Right now as I am writing this email it is POURING rain which makes me SO happy. WOW, so many things happened this week! I don't even know where to start! I guess I will start a week ago with P-day when we got permission to go to Autyaa! It was a lot of fun because we got to go to the water markets, chill with some elephants and tigers, shop, shoot guns and last but not least my dream came true of doing the fish spa! It was weirdest thing ever and I was freaking out a little! It reminded me of the Kardashians! And the best part about that day was that it was spent with my district and my best friends--Kwan and News!

This week we taught our investigator Satapon every day of the week! Each time we teach him it takes about 2 hours because he has so many questions! He is the coolest person ever and his faith just keeps growing and growing! We have been working on getting him over a few bumps the past couple days. We finally helped him understand that he doesn't have to know everything before baptism! It is hard for him to leave Buddhism because his plan was to become a monk at age 60 but that plan doesn’t work when he becomes Mormon. It was the funniest thing, one day we were teaching him and he looked at me and said, "Sister Herrmann I had a dream last night at about 5 AM and you were in it. You gave me the Book of Mormon and some rice with ham in it...what does that mean?" HAHA, I totally interpreted his dream there on the spot. I related it to Elder Bednar’s talk about how when you take the medicine or cure you want your friends to also receive the medicine. Classic! He is so funny, I just love him! One of the best experiences with him was when he said, "Sister, I have a lot of sin. I don't think you understand how much sin I have. Are you sure it can all be washed away?" Explaining to this man who I love so much, how the atonement works, was an experience I will never forget. The spirit was so strong, he definitely felt it!!! We have been working really hard with him and he is planning to get baptized this Wednesday!

Sister Carter came to Bangnaa for a switch off and it was an insane day! We taught 5 really intense lessons including George and his friend Nang. It was a really frustrating lesson--on the upside she made us mashed potatoes! We taught her the plan of salvation and bore our testimonies about how we can live with God again and be eternally happy! At the end I asked her if she wanted to know if this was true, and she straight up told me no. In Buddhism you are taught to not question or wonder about anything. If people question and wonder about the where we came from, the purpose of earth life and what happens after we die then they will search for answers. I think Satan says, "Oh don't question, don't wonder, don’t use your agency." It was hard to see her flat out reject our message but everyone has their agency. All I can do is pray that the Spirit will touch her heart one day! Working with Sister Carter again was REALLY fun!! She is finishing her mission this next week and I am so proud of her! She is a great missionary and we will be forever friends!

A lot of other good things happened this week. Sports night was really fun! Every sports night we play soccer and it makes me so happy!!! Sister Gwang made me a beautiful scripture case. Sunday night we had a fireside with the Presiding Bishopric which was great. It was really fun to see all the missionaries and the members in Bangkok! But one of the most amazing things that happened this week was with Baw’s family!!! So as I told you last week we contacted Baw off the street and she told us she was already a member and hadn't been in a long time. We decided to meet with her a couple times this week. Baw was really scared to come to church because she is breaking a commandment but we told her through the atonement she can be clean but the first step is repenting and coming back to church! Her whole family started coming to the activities at church and to church on Sunday. Then we starting teaching her children. One was able to be baptized. We taught them simply to their understanding. We met with just Baw on Wednesday and told her that her son could get baptized this Sunday. That lesson I expressed how proud I was of her and how great she was doing. She started crying and just thanked us for helping her come back to Christ. This Sunday her son, Prim, got baptized. It is just so crazy how it all worked out. The Lord really is in all the details. Her son Prim is the cutest thing on the planet! When we were teaching about repentance, in the middle of the lesson, he folds his arms and shuts his eyes real tight. We all ask him what he was doing and he says, "You guys I am repenting, duh!" We almost died it was SO CUTE! After the baptism he bore his testimony so simple and so sweet. I truly understand the scripture "...And becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.. " I am so grateful for this family and their willingness the turn to the Lord. I am especially grateful for my Heavenly Father who led us to them.

I could go on and on about this past week but I don't have that much time so I just want to end with a thought. This week in one of our lessons our investigator asked, "What if I have a bad thought about someone who is mean to me? Is that a sin?" The spirited prompted me to tell him this is the reason we need our Savior and the atonement! We all have the natural man in us. I know in my life when I have a mean thought about someone it makes me angry and there really is no benefit to it But I have come to learn that the only way to turn away the natural man and get rid of those thoughts or whatever sin it may be, is through the atonement. "For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord." I know I talk about this topic all the time but everyday my testimony gets stronger and stronger of the atonement. I see it changing my life and the lives of the people I love so much here in Thailand! I am eternally grateful for my savior Jesus Christ and his sacrifice.

I hope you all have a great week! Thank you for your support and love. #YOMO (You Only Mission Once). PS This week is transfers, wish me luck!!

- Sister Herrmann