September 22, 2013

Dear Family,

Wonderful things are wonderful, aren't they? Jon going on his mission,
Owen is being a boss, Andy is doing amazing things, etc. What a
wonderful time to be alive.

So Kosrae is doing really well. There were two converts baptized last
Saturday, as well as a child of record. It has been a significant
month here, and the Church is growing. In fact, our little chapel in
Utwe has been out-grown. We are going to need a new building sometime
soon. It is a little odd still being in a new area, but it is kind of
nice to be able to go and visit the branch each week.

We had a good week here in Malem as well. The last baptism here was in
October of last year, and we should have a baptism this coming
Saturday. We're teaching a kid named Pat (actually, his real name is
Palikkuhn, but he has close to a billion nick-names, his favorite
being Pat), and he is really close. He grew up in Virginia, and is
metaphorically a clean slate. He hasn't been really exposed to too
much false doctrine or bias, and really wants to join the church. The
only problem we are running into is finding him. It is interesting to
note that most of the work done to get him to this point was done by
his member cousins.

A bitter-sweet story: We have been teaching a man named Lutig, who was
a referral from Harry George (who has recently been coming back to
church). The elders have been teaching him for a few months now, and
he was progressing really well. Then, recently, he has been very  cool
towards us. Apparently, the Jehovah Witnesses have been meeting with
him and using their scare tactics. Last night, he told us not to come
back. As we were walking away, I felt impressed to go back. As soon as
I mentioned it to Elder Blackwell, he said he felt exactly the same
way. We went straight back to his door, and bore testimony to him. He
brought up concerns that we were able to bear direct testimony about.
He still told us that he wanted a few months to read the bible, but
told us that we could come see him every once in a while. I am not
worried about him.

We are also working with Edward, who lived in Utah. He was baptized
there and lived in Layton for a long time. And then he got deported
back to Kosrae. I'm not sure why, but he is a pretty dang good guy. He
is working with his friend, Mixon, alongside us, and has been an
immense help. We are looking at him as a potential group leader.
Actually, Mixon is doing pretty well. Apparently, he had a
vision/dream about the Book of Mormon and knows that it is true. So,
we are planning on helping him get baptized by next month. Like I said
before, aren't wonderful things wonderful?

I also want to thank you for the fantastic birthday package:) I loved
everything in it. I am getting pretty good at yo-yo-ing, and have been
driving geckos crazy with the laser pointer;) I am very excited for
the cake, and I think that we will invite our landlord and his family
to join us. In fact, they are referrals, and are some of the most
wonderful people on the island.

I am so glad that my little package arrived safely. I have a few more
things here that I didn't want to send in case things went awry, but I
might send them on later. Please listen to the tape. Or try to make a
copy to a CD. I can get plenty more here if you ruin it.

I am ridiculously happy for Jon. Thank you for passing on the news.

I love you all very much. Thank you so much for the pictures. They may
have been my favorite part of the whole package.

Love,

Elder Gerber