Sunday, June 16, 2013

The Calm Before the Storm... Week 12

G'day lads! And ladies (sheilas is unkind to say...),
 
It was good to hear from home this week via email (haven't received any letters- it'll probably take a month or so before I see any because they have to go to Adelaide and then come up to Darwin) and -as always- I appreciate everything and anything anyone says. Too bad Mom had to be the bearer of bad news- sounds as though Colorado is trying to burn down again, and to hear that it's worse than the Waldo Canyon fire is... concerning. As the Lord has said, "If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear" (Doctrine and Covenants 38:30) and so it is- there are going to be some crazy times in the coming days and the only counsel I can offer anyone is to steel yourselves, square up, and take it. Everything that is happening is under the watchful eyes of the Lord, and they are happening as He would have them do so. The Lord has also promised that He will not fail nor forsake anyone (Joshua 1:5), no matter their circumstances, so be of good cheer! The Lord's work is hastening!
 
As far as the work in Darwin -specifically Malak- is concerned, the work is going more slowly... it actually isn't going at all. But I'll touch on that later; I've got to tell you all about last P-Day first! So we had a Zone Activity this P-Day, so all ten of us got together and went to Darwin City and ate lunch on the wharf. We could look out over Darwin Harbor and watch the few ships come and go (there were some pretty slick sailboats), and that was pretty cool. I've now been to the wharf twice (the second time was a dinner with a member) and I've eaten snapper and crocodile... snapper is really good, but crocodile tastes like fish and chicken combined. It wasn't bad, but even Aussie's find that eating crocodile is odd, and apparently it's bad karma- I might get eaten sometime because I ate one of them XD Anyways, after the wharf we went to the Darwin Botanic Gardens- most of the Elders got bored pretty fast and started kicking a rugby ball around, but I thought it was awesome! And hey, I just figured out how to send pictures! I had to set the camera up correctly! Okay, sweet, I'll try to send some photos of East Point! So after we went to the Botanic Gardens (which is a place that kind of makes you feel as though you've walked into a Dr. Suess world because the plants and trees are CRAZY) we went to a place called East Point, which is where the initial Japanese attack on Darwin came from back in February of 1942. Dad, San Diego is cool, but I don't think there is a coastline that can compare to East Point- that place was awesome! There were some old bunkers with coastal guns that we checked out, and we walked on the lower beach (I only touched the water, and if it wasn't full of salt-water crocs and sharks, and if I wasn't a missionary, I would swim in that- it was perfectly warm). There was so much to see it was just awesome!


 
So the work in Malak has slowed to a crawl- we're not sure why, so we keep working. I don't feel worried about it at all though- the Lord has something in mind for Malak, and He'll see it through one way or the other. Now just isn't His timing, so we will wait and be patient, and continue to work in the ways that we know how to. That honestly sums up how Malak is going (we have six investigators...), and where some moments it is deeply concerning, I revert back to the feelings that I've felt as my companion and I have prayed and fasted for the area- everything is on the Lord's time and He will see it through, but sometimes we must wait, even if we aren't doing anything wrong. I love you all and I hope you enjoy these few photos, I'll put more up later (there's about a hundred and thirty-some and attaching them takes too long, which is why this is so short). I'm doing well if you're wondering, and actually haven't felt so calm or peaceful in awhile- not calm or peace of mind, but calm and peaceful as it relates to dealings with the soul- the Lord will work how He will and in the end, it's not up to us missionaries; if the Lord wants Malak to be in a stagnant state for this period of time, then it will be stagnant, no matter how much we work (and we will continue to work even harder). It's in His hands, as all things are, and something is going to happen in Malak very soon- I can feel it. Until next time then, I love you all!
 
Cheers!
 
-Elder Schomburg 


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