Last Sunday we attended Branch Council Meeting.  Every time the leaders wanted something done they would turn around look at Elder Meyers and me and say, "The Mayers can do that."  After several times of saying that I said, "We will be glad to help you do anything, but we feel we are here to help you, not to do it for you."  I'm not sure if they really understood what I was saying but I hope so.  We don't want to do it for them because we will be leaving and they still won't know how to do it unless they actually do whatever it is that needs to be done.  We did find out that the last couple had baptized seven people the night before they left in November.  Out of those seven only one is still coming.  We were asked to visit with those individuals.  We said that we would be glad to do that if they got us a list with their names, addresses and phone numbers since we had no records of them in our apartment.  When we left the Church we still didn't have the list.  The next day Elder Meyers was going through some papers and low and behold what did he find, the baptism records of these seven people.  We prayed that a way would be provided that we could contact some of them.  We arranged for a driver and a member to go with us but that fell through.  On Tuesday we held our English class and a new person came.  After class we discovered that he was one of the seven newly baptized members.  He said that he had to work on Sunday.  The next night during our other English class another new lady came.  After class we were talking to her and found out that she too was baptized in November.  She said that her sister and brother in-law were also baptized with her in November.  She said that they all had been sick with fever for the last month or so.  The Lord provides and gets the job done in His own way.  This week we plan to try and visit others.
I was asked to talk in Sacrament Meeting today.  I was given the assignment to talk about living prophets.  I used Elder Neil L. Andersen's last conference talk and made my talk around that.  He spoke about taking offence and being ashamed.  I guess the members around here are offended very easily. 
Today after church, Brother Nihal, asked if Elder Meyers and I would be willing to teach a private English class to some men in the Sri Lankan Air Force.  We said we would be glad to do that.  That class will be on Tuesday after our other class.
Life is good! Hooray for Israel!!!

Dining room

Kitchen

Our Living room

We were so excited to be asked to do the Primary Activity Day for the 8-11 year old boys and girls.  We held this activity in our home. We discussed how our talents can help Heavenly Father and others.  Then  I taught them a new song and in turn they are teaching it to the Primary children.  Elder Meyers taught them about tithing and budgeting.  He made some rupees and gave each one of them so many rupees.  Then they had to figure out how much tithing they needed to pay.  They also talked about other bills that their mom and dad might have to pay each month.  When this part was over they were all wishing that the rupees were really real.  We had banana bread and yogurt for a treat and then we played UNO until their parents came.  We enjoyed having all six of the children in our home.  They were wonderful well behaved children. 
One of the spiritual experiences this week was when Steven, an institute student that comes to be taught by himself on Friday because he works during our regular institute class on Saturday, said the closing prayer after we taught him on Friday.  He expressed his gratitude to the Lord for sending us here to Sri Lanka so that we could teach him about the gospel.  The spirit was strong and I had to fight to keep from crying.  Those little things make it all worth while.

Treats on the balcony at
Primary Activity Day



Primary Activity  Day



Bangalore Airport

 This week was filled with lots of new things.  We made our first trip to India.  We arrived in Bangalore on Monday morning.  Elder and Sister Fluckiger and Elder Michael Senevirtne went with us.  Elder Senevirtne was set apart by  President Funk on Monday afternoon. Late Tuesday night he was taken to the airport by Elder Teki and Elder Anderson.  Elder Tikki and Elder Anderson both work in the mission office.  They were both wonderful young men.  Elder Tikki tried to give us everything that was in the mission office.  Elder Meyers asked for a military copy of the scriptures.  Elder Tikki said he only had a small Book of Mormon.  Elder Meyers asked for two copies.  Elder Tikki kept bringing me Book of Mormons, by the time we got home I had ten in my bag. 
All the couples were invited to President and Sister Funk's home for dinner on Monday evening.  There were four couples: Fluckigers,  Funks,  Pratts, and us.  Brother Pratt is a member of the First Quorum of Seventy.  He and his wife were wonderful people.  He said that he will be 70 in October so he will probably be replaced at that time.  He talked in depth about getting some young elders back into Sri Lanka.  He said that they would need to look like the people of  Sri Lanka. He was very excited that Elder Meyers and I had been given a visa as religious workers for the Church.  After dinner, Sandpot( Funks driver), took us back  to our hotel.  I loved the hotel.  It had balconies all over.  I loved sitting on the balcony on the third floor and watching the people as they passed.  There was a school just down the street and the children would walk by in their uniforms.  Some of the children wore regular shoes, others wore sandals or flip flops.  Many wore no shoes at all.  They all seemed so happy.  Each morning we went to the roof of the hotel and there we were served breakfast.  It was lovely having breakfast outside amongst the beauty of nature. 
On Tuesday we attended the Bangalore/Chennai Zone Conference.  We were taught and trained by the Funks and the Pratts.  It was an awesome experience to be among these people.  There were also 20 young elders in attendance.  The elders are having a hard time getting visas into India.  When the Funks came in July there were around 80 young elders.  Now there are just over 40 in the whole mission.  Even though the numbers are down the baptisms have remained the same.  Elder Pratt pointed out to us that we were in on a miracle.  He said that in years to come we would be able to look back and say that we had been in the Bangalore Mission when things were just beginning.  He said that this mission will grow and people will come into the Church.
On Wednesday we had the day to do what we wanted.  Elder Fluckiger had a cold so they stayed in most of the day.  Elder Meyers and I went to a book store, the mission office, to a sandwich shop for lunch and on the way home we stopped at the grocery store and bought a few items that we can't get in Sri Lanka.  At 5 pm our driver came to take us to the airport.  We were able to leave about a 1/2 hour early because everyone was there and boarded onto the plane.  It was a wonderful adventure but we were tired and glad to be home!

Elder Michael Senevirtne after setting
apart with APs and President Anton

    


Hotel in Bangalore



View from breakfast



Streets of Bangalore



Last week after I wrote our blog, we went to the Church and met with President and Sister Funk, Elder Michael and his mom and dad. They are not members of the Church.  President Funk explained what Michael would be doing as a missionary.  Michael's mother, like all mothers, was very emotional.  Sister Funk and I tried to reassure her that her son would be fine. I told her, "he will leave a boy but he will come back to be a man."
This has been a week with lots of preparing.  We had several lessons to prepare: two english classes, two seminary and institute classes, two missionary prep classes, and a temple prep class.  It was a job just remembering what we were to teach each day.I had to prepare to teach the Primary Children a new song this week.  Elder Meyers also had an inservice class to present on Friday. The only thing I had to do for that class was give the thought.  I also prepared lunch for the three other sisters that attended.  I was so happy with my lunch of mandarin chicken, rice, chocolate cake made from scratch(they don't have cake mixes here), and I also served ice cream with the cake. 
On Thursday we were invited to go to the cancer hospital.  The Church had donated several pieces of equipment to the hospital and the leaders were turning these items over to the hospital.  It was interesting to see the inside of the hospital.  Of course it isn't like our hospitals in America.  There were up to one thousand patients in the hospital.  They sit in chairs all day and at night they put down mats for the patients to sleep.  Think of someone with cancer and imagine how hard that must be on the ones that are really sick.  Their government has socialized medicine but they do without so many things.
We held our last Break the Fast in Negombo.  This was a program started by the previous couple.  President Funk and Elder Cheuk our CES Supervisor has suggested that we discontinue this program.  They said they would be willing to fund an activity for the Young Single Adults in each branch once a quarter.  They have asked that we show the CES Firesides that are broadcast to all the Young Single Adults throughout the Church. So that is what we will do.  When the leaders speak, we obey!

Mom, Elder Michael and Dad

Nurse and Hospital Director showing
the new equipment