Walk With Jesus, Dude: Nama berita! (The News!)

Tell Brenda and Papa I say happy birthday!

This week we have a baptism! It's for V, one of my favorite people ever. He's hilarious. He already has a white shirt and tie for after he's baptised and becomes "new V." haha

So this week I've been studying a lot about opposition, at first by accident and latter by choice. I've just been reading over and over Opposition in All Things by Oaks. The first time I read it I stopped right after I read that "we progress by making choices." What? Yes! I loved it because it's so true. Only through choice can we progress! I may have accidentaly answered the phone before with "dear heavenly father this is Alex," but I've never accidentely rolled out of my bed in the morning to say my prayers, or accidentally become a less sarcastic person. You just, you can't accidentally become anything good - it all comes from the things we choose to become.

My concept of the Plan of Salvation has changed a lot this week as I've been learning about opposition. I feel like I've always thought of the Plan of Salvation as a bright yellow brick road that we can skip down without tripping over anything, so long as we're doing what's right. Turns out, that's not exactly how it works. It still is a really bright and beautiful path, but even the most beautiful of paths have a few rocks and thorns that get stuck in your shoes, and we need those trials in order for there to even be any purpose in our coming to this world. The question is whether or not we'll let God strengthen and comfort us, and dull the effects of our trials, or try and push through on our own.

This is just going to be a lot of my random thoughts from this week, haha. :D

I was also thinking yesterday (can you tell I think a lot?) about what's changed the most in my life over the past year+. The difference between knowing about the Atonement and understanding and applying the Atonement is -literally- life changing. And I love it so much. My mission has definitely been the answer to so many of my prayers since I was young...er.

Nothing too crazy happened this week because I was in the Chinese area for half with week while sister Cloward was in Singapore for visa run. So I heard a lot of Chinese! Aaaaand I still don't understand anything. haha

Mom, thanks for the pep talk. :)

Pictures this week: Malaysian hoodlums, Malaysian hoodlums playing racket ball with a dumpster for their net, the bus, no smooking or smooching?, and waiting for the bus to fill up. :)

Tell kris I say happy anniversary! Oh, and KC! Belated!

Does Kris know you're killing her cat? haha, kidding. But really, does she know Miko is going away?

Thanks for keeping my cat! Right???