Hello all!
Good news! I went to go see my
Thai family this week! It was one of the greatest experiences I have had
as a missionary. There were lots of people all gathered to see me, and
they still don't understand everything about what we do as missionaries, but I
am so thankful that I did get to go see them!
The majority of the family present
were my grandma's brothers and their families. I have met some of their
kids before, but that was over 14 years ago I am sure. At first it was
really overwhelming, because there were so many people. I don't think
they even all introduced themselves - they knew I would forget I am sure.
But it was so weird! I had no idea that so many of them were
already Christian. There were lots of people, lots of food, and lots of love.
I am so thankful that I was sent here to Thailand to not only share the
Gospel with my spiritual family (we are all God's children) but also to share
it with my blood relatives. I feel so blessed and trusted by the Lord to
fulfill this sacred calling. I may not remember all of their names, but I
do remember the overwhelming feeling of love and peace that I got when I was
with them. It was a reminder to me once again that family units are
intended to be sealed and preserved throughout the eternities. https://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation
Since being here in Thailand, I have
been feeling like meeting my family was one of the central purposes in my
coming, and now it is all making sense. I was sent here to learn Thai so
that I could speak to my family and that they would have the opportunity to be
a part of God's kingdom here on earth. The Gospel is a beacon of hope and
love that I pray that they felt as well when Sister Sawangwong and I were there
with them. I just had a vision of my great eternal family - it was so
consuming that I just wanted to cry out of joy. How great is the plan of
our merciful, graceful, and loving Eternal Father in Heaven.
And a lot of it comes down to Family
History. They were so willing just to tell me all about it! I can't
wait to track down everyone and get to do some names in the temple! I
really just want to go all over the world after my mission and find our family
so we can all be joined together for eternity. That was what I saw when I was
with my family. I saw eternities bound together. I know that God
sent me here to Thailand for a reason!
Great things are happening in the Lord's field of labor. I really just learned that God knows all when He assigns His missionaries to their respective areas of labor. This is probably the closest area (Bangkhae) in Thailand to my family as well. He really does have it all planned out! We just have to trust Him and try our hardest to follow His will so as to accomplish His great and wise purposes. :)
Funny story: I went on a switch off on Wednesday to Asoke.
Because they are so close to a university, these students came to
"interview the furong". So we got roped into it. We
always get asked the same questions as missionaries: "Do you like Thai
culture? What are some differences between Thai and American culture."
I don't remember our answer, but it was probably something about food or
Thai markets.
As Sister Sahagun and I were talking
about it afterwards, we realized that it was harder to think of similarities in
the culture than it was to think of differences. In fact, we couldn't
really think of any similarities... yep. I think I will have more culture
shock going home that I did coming here because I can't remember what America
is like anymore... :)
Love,
Sister Norrell
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