Week 2 (the nitty gritty)

Before I start, I wanted to add a disclaimer: I LOVE MY MISSION! I
know that I am supposed to be here and it is truly the Lord's work. Ok
now for the nitty gritty :)

I made it to the second week in Indonesia! It is so different here
than Jakarta that it really feels like a different country! Anyways I
love it here so much but I had a really rough week. It has been a week
to go down in the books. 

I began sorely missing you all and the comforts of living in a westernized country. Coming here it feels like I am seriously on the opposite side of the world and that is basically
true. I wake up with so much fear and doubt and homesickness and
worry. After being in Jogja for 24 hours I remember thinking that i
wanted to be home. I didn't want to GO home, I just wanted to BE home.
Remember that one summer when I would cry before going to nanny every
day but everyday I went and it was actually not bad at all? It's a
little like that. The best solution I have found is work and I've gone
to bed each night so happy and so excited about serving the Lord. The
mornings are the worst and I have found myself crying in the shower a
few times. As soon as we left the house though, I plastered on a smile
and soon found myself laughing and contacting and loving everything.

The 26th I remember just sitting in our house (which is huge but so
far the most dilapidated. I love that it is turquoise though! Side
note: there is sooo much turquoise in Indo! I think it is Heavenly
Father's way of telling me he loves me.) and writing in my journal and
feeling so discouraged. I think it dawned on me that I had been so
selfish, Even in my reasons to come on my mission. If I wanted to be
home just because I didn't like it, then the reasons I came must've
been the wrong reasons. I was getting annoyed with all the ants and I
was worried about emailing home and all these stupid things that
really are nothing in comparison to the goodness and miracles of my
mission. I was feeling very alone here and like no one really knows
where I am or what I am doing but I know that Heavenly Father and
Jesus Christ are very aware of me. 

I LOVE Alma 26! It has been such a comfort. Alma 26:27 is a life changing scripture. The second to last verse in the chapter also about God being mindful of us as wanderers in a strange land. So grateful for w hat I have. I know sometimes I'm just a baby on the inside even though I act so tough on the outside, but I also know that this is no longer my time, it is the Lord's time.

The next day (the 27th) we had an appointment with a member family
really really far so we had to ride a bus for an hour or so. The dad
is extremely sick and bed ridden and we just shared a message about
prayer. I started to cry when bearing my testimony to him about prayer
because I knew that I was so blessed to have prayer. It was the first
time I ever cried during an all indonesian setting and it was because
I felt the spirit so much and knew God loved me. And get this- it
started to rain! Oh Heavenly Father knows me so well. I was looking
out the window at the rain pouring on this turquoise fence and
something just switched. It's OK! So many people have survived
Indonesia and I am going to be one of them., I am not just going to
survive, I am going to thrive.

I have needed every scripture, every quote, every encouraging thought
and every family picture to keep me going this week but I also needed
to pick myself and just keep riding my bike! The biggest secret to
missionary work is work, as PMG (preach my gospel-missionary training) says. As the week continued, things have been much better as well. Would you believe I love spicy food now?! and I love riding bikes! I love the pouring rain out my window right now and I love the sisters I am living with. My trainer is Sister Suryani. She is an angel and so helpful. We have been on the search for new investigators though (since she just had 3 get baptized last week!) and have continued to visit some inactive members. I love that she is always encouraging me to take the lead in contacting or planning for a lesson while still guiding me through this country that I am not familiar with. It has been so fun to get to know her and her conversion/life story. I don't know what I will do in 3 months when I have to get along without her.

I hope this email wasn't worrisome. I just want you all to know that
this has been the hardest thing I have ever done. It's not necesarilly
the work, it is the change and trying to convince your natural man
that there is more. Lemme think of a few funny stories to brighten
this email. 

Oh! We got a contact just because this little girl wanted
a picture with 2 Bule's! (me and elder wood) Sister Suryani said that
they call it the Bule Power hahaha. There are ants everywhere in our
house (reminds me of that song that Janice and Meredith and I used to
sing "those ants, ANTS, those ants, ANTS... they just keep on a walkin
and nothing's gonna stop em those ants") But I was going to mention
that we have to keep all of our food tightly sealed, in the fridge or
in a rubbermaid. This morning we were eating breakfast all together
when Sis. Suryani screamed bloody murder and threw her bag of bread
accross the room! We were all so worried I ran over to look at the bag
and she is shouting and about crying and saying "cicak!!!"
(prounounced chichak). Turns out there had been a lizard in her bread
and she had already eaten 2 slices! She was gulping water and saying
that she felt like there was slime in her stomach. Oh it was soooo
funnnny! We have been teasing her so much about it too. Oh! I got two
huge black patches on the back of my skirt from my bike on my first
ride of the day out to the church and had to walk around like that for
the rest of the day.

Last tidbits: I love listening to music on my ipod. It is such a
comfort. Church is so intimidating because you can't understand
anything. We had an hour and a half bike ride to an investigator's
house and a little more than that on the way back and I am only a
little sore!

OH there is so much I want to write about and so much I want to ask
you about! I am just trying to not think about Island Park but every
time I spray bug spray it brings so many memories. Have SO much fun
for me and tell me all about it. BE SAFE! And please send me letters!
I can't ever find a way to print emails. I am going to try to write
real letters as well and send a few pictures that way. I LOVE YOU SO
MUCH! So much that I am going to do everything I can to live with you
for eternity. I hope that I can help the Indonesian people here have
that same blesssing of eternal families. It takes sacrifice but the
Lord promises us he will make up for our trials 10 fold!

Sister Suryani says hello and I have so many TL's about how cute our family is.
I don't want to say farewell but I really need to!
Take luck! Be good. Remember who you are and act acordingly! CTR!
Brush your teeth! Write me! Pray for me- I pray for you always (that
is a quote from a knight's tale actually i think)
KASIHMU SELALU!
Sister Emily Adelaide Sheffield