Hong Kong: DIDN'T EAT ANY COCKROACHES THIS WEEK

April 23, 2017

Family,

Didn't eat any cockroaches this week. That was good. President Lam somehow found out about that and while we were talking about some transfer stuff he just popped in, 'how were the cockroaches last week?'

The new Kowloon Branch is coming along. It's great! The Branch President is awesome. We communicate often and he asks about many of the recent converts and less-actives and seeing when he has time to come and meet them with us. He often gives the missionaries assignments to do and gives us helpful information regarding the less-actives we are visiting. He is really dedicated and we are working as at team to help this branch grow. There were some more new faces today at church as well. Some people from Tolo Harbour coming to check out the new branch. We are loving it.

Many mainlanders were down this past week to be baptized! It was awesome. I love the mainland saints. They are just incredible. The unity and passion they have to the work of the Lord is inspiring. It is always such a privilege to associate with them, learn from them, and sing with them the hymns of the restoration.

We were able to go the temple last week. Well, we live in the temple, but I mean do an Endowment session. Wonderful experience as always. One thing I love about the temple is the perspective that it gives me. I was also reminded as I often have been to 'let my heart be full, drawn out in prayer unto Him continually for my welfare, and also for the welfare of those who are around me.'

Our potential pool is continuing to build and we are excited to help turn some of these potentials into progressing investigators.

Elder Lau and I have a goal this week to be a 100% Preach My Gospel missionaries. Obviously we always strive to do this, but this week this is our main focus. All the tools are in there. It is such an awesome help.

We were able to teach Sunday School for the youth and Elder's Quorum yesterday and discuss a lot about President Monson's Conference address on the Book of Mormon. We had the young men and women share about some scriptures they use to answer questions from their friends about our church so we could give each other ideas and learn from each other. A lot of people in Hong Kong think our church is a cult. They call us 邪教。which means evil church. It was awesome hearing their favorite scriptures and testimonies and experiences. The Kowloon Branch Youth are pretty incredible. It was one of my favorite Sunday School classes I have ever been to. We just sat and learned from these amazing youth.

One quote I love from General Conference was from Elder Rasband. "If we let the Lord know in our morning prayers that we are ready, He will call on us to respond. If we respond, He will call on us time and time again and we fill find ourselves on...the Lord's errand." This reminded me of what President Monson said a few years earlier. "When one becomes a holder of the priesthood, he becomes an agent of the Lord. He should think of his calling as though he were on the Lord's errand." I really want to earn the trust of my Heavenly Father. I want the Lord to know that if He needs an errand run, Josh Stratford will run that errand for Him. That is one of my biggest goals and who I want to become.

Elder Stratford

District Temple Pic

mainland sister surprise. We were not informed till the morning of when she walked in and was asking where the missionaries were to teach her so she could be baptized that night. A lot of last minute rearranging, but we got it figured out.