Monday, June 21, 2010

A Letter From The Field

Hey fam,
How are you?
we will see how this letter goes seeing that it is one the only things I have written in english this week. I looked over at my trainee this week and told him I wasn't going to talk to him in English anymore. I kind of wanted to just see what he would say. He was way for it. He said that it was a good way for him to just be thrown in the "Lithuanian ocean". I stoped speaking english for a few days and was planning on going the rest of my mission but after having to take calls from President and sister dance, having to go on exchanges with other missionaries and speaking to the office and missionaries who don't speak Lithuanian, it was just to difficult to keep it up. We still speak our language a lot but until i am in a different situation it looks like my dream of a full Lithuanian transfer isn't going to happen. I have been working a lot with the newer missionaries lately. I want to make sure I can pass on as much information I have learned as possible. I was so grateful for the missionaries who did that for me in their later transfers and I want to attempt to do the same. One of the best ways to teach however is to just do it. We spend a lot of time talking in life and we should spend more of it working. There is no substitute for work. This is why the habit of "philosifizing" and "deep thinking" is so dangerous. My companion and I have seemed to run into so many people who just want to think but they dont want to learn, grow, change, and in essance WORK. I remember in High school when I thought I was smart because I could take some principle and poke as many holes as I could in it. Going deeper and more abstract and "chilling out" seemed like a good time. The problem was, I never found any answers to anything! I was always so confused. I had the thought, "Well, I guess it's so complicated nobody truely knows and nobody can know so why try and find out through any other means." Why was that so fun for me to do? Because sin is enticing. Sin is something that draws us away from God and halts our progression. ALL sin is enticing. It doesn't matter how pointless it is. Smoking KILLS PEOPLE. But for some reason it still enticing to so many people to do it. Deep thingking has its own enticing characteristics. Satan uses thoughts such as, "Why try? Its to hard; Everything is correct; There is no "real" truth." These thoughts are to make us STOP our progression forward. We can just sit back and relax because there are no rules and if there is nobody realy understands them. We need to get to work. All of us. Being smart doesn't mean you can find holes in things. Being smart means you can recognise "light". (D&C 93:36 - The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth. ) Find light and find truth. You find these things through dilligent work. Dont stop till you've had enough (artist-song? you got this one stacy?) But here is my imput. NEVER HAVE ENOUGH. If one thing bugs me more than anything it is when people say, "man užtenka" or "it's enough for me." Get off your keister and find more. And in the end of things if you find light you will purge the darkness from your life. (next verse in the section- (37) Light and truth forsake that evil one.) I love the light that Christ has brought into my life. I have never wanted to work so bad in my life. I wont lie, i feel tired. However, I can feel the support of your prayers. I really can. I don't know sometimes how I get out the door but it always happens. I love you all so much. Thank you for all your support. I love you all with all my heart.
God bless the work,
Vyresnysis Kukas
*(to have this talk translated into Lithuanian go knock on the door of Elder Cooke and Elder Hilton at Minties 26-32 Vilnius Lithuania) :)

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