Malta | week 5

10.27.2014

We had another solid week in Malta, and we just got the news that all 4 of us will be staying another transfer together! Good news, good news. 

Almost each week I have been here, we have randomly met someone on the street or contacted someone who have been waiting to see the missionaries for quite some time. About 3 weeks ago, we ran into a man named Yohan (not sure on the spelling), from Sweden. He comes from an LDS family of 9, but he has not been to church in a couple years. He told us that when he arrived here to Malta, he was praying to run into the missionaries or come in contact with the church somehow. The next week he saw us on the street! He has been really busy with work, but we finally found a night last week where we could both meet, and it was incredible. We got to know him for about 15 minutes or so, then he just asked us to share with him our favorite scripture and biggest miracle of our missions. We just had like a mini testimony meeting together, and it was one of the best moments of my mission so far. He told us that his brother got home from his mission in Russia last month, and he was grateful for all the missionaries and amazed at how it changes boys into men. This week, one of his brothers is coming to visit, and he invited us back for dinner. Cant wait. 

We also called up a guy who met the missionaries 1 year ago, and he wanted to see us again. We went over, expecting it to just be the 3 of us. It turned out he had 5 roommates, 2 from Malta and 3 from Brussels. They were all between 18 and 26, really cool guys. They explained a little to us about their ideas, then we explained what we believe for like 5 minutes or so. One of the guys pulled out his computer and read like a 4 page anti-mormon article about how praying about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon is not consistent with the Bible. We read 2 Nephi 32:8-9. Im so glad I went to seminary and learned the scripture mastery verses. 

Church yesterday was probably the most spiritual sacrament meeting of my entire mission. I had the opportunity the bless the sacrament in Maltese for the first time, and it was really special. I struggled pronouncing the words all week long, but when I knelt down to actually do it, they all came out right. I had the same experience a few times in Brindisi at the beginning of my mission, and it brought back a lot of memories. The talks that were given could have been given in General Conference. Giuseppe, from Sicily, gave a talk on obedience, and his words really touched me. He has no family here in Malta, he lives an hour away from church, and he is about to move to Gozo (another island close by without a church, but he will still take a boat over to church when he moves anyway). No one in church speaks Italian except the missionaries, but we are almost always busy, so he doesnt get much interaction, and church takes almost his entire Sunday, 1 of his 2 free days of the week. He said, "On Sunday morning when I wake up, I dont have to choose whether or not to go to church. I only had to make the decision once, and I made it a long time ago. I made that choice, when I realized that I couldnt get by without the blessings of keeping the Sabbath day holy. That is how it is with obedience to the principles of the gospel. Most of the time, we only have to choose to once." It was really inspiring to me. 

Thats pretty much how the members are in Malta. Bosses. So, things are going well with us. I sent some pics home of our last pday. I had to walk in the water up to my ankles with my church shoes and slacks to get some of those pics. Totally worth it though. 

Presbiteru Smith 

Malta | week 4

10.20.2014

This week I have a serious lack of time, but I will write a few things about last week as quick as I can. First of all, Zone Conference in Rome was by far the best Zone Conference of my mission. When we flew in on Tuesday, I got to do an exchange with Anziano Blair in Rome 5, and it felt like I went home for 2 days. Being able to talk with him and go and see Francesco again in Rome was the absolute best. The 3 of us went out to eat, and then we had a lesson. Francesco is way too nice. He bought me 3 ties that I have worn every day since then. They are a great reminder and inspiration to me of the wonderful people we are searching to find.

That night 30 of us slept at the villa (the mission home), and it was seriously like a family reunion. All of the Napoli Zone came up to Rome that night, Malta was there, and some of the Rome East Zone. I was able to see friends that I havent seen in over a year now, and we just talked and told each other stories about our missions which was so much fun. Everyone I saw has changed so much, and it is the most incredible thing ever to see it. 

Another cool thing we did this week was visit a dog sanctuary in the southern part of the island for service. It was originally a military base/bunker that was used in WWII, but now it is for abandoned dogs, and all 4 of us went to help out there for 2 hours. Sandy, one of our members, works there 4 days a week, and she was actually originally found by the missionaries through them going there for service. It was a really humbling experience to see an actual WWII sight, and we are looking forward to going back again. 

Other than Zone Conference and service, we got to teach a few lessons this week, but they were really good ones. We are mainly seeing Damyan and Chatty and a few less active members. Damyan is the recent convert who got baptized my first week here, and he is doing fantastic. We are going over all the lessons with him and he is practically teaching them to us. He has also been able to share the gospel with his parents the past couple weeks. Chatty is from Ghana, but he just moved here from Italy looking for work. After 2 weeks of searching, he found a job that pays him 3 euro an hour, and yesterday his face was like Christmas morning all day, cause he was so happy. It is the greatest reminder to me to be grateful for every little blessing I receive. Yesterday in church we had 2 less active members come that we have been working with, and 1 of them gave a talk! It was a great day in church on the whole. Usually we teach young mens, gospel doctrine, and sometimes priesthood meeting too between the 4 of us, and usually 1 of us is giving a talk.

Overall, I really do like it here in Malta. Im seriously convinced I have one of the best companions in the mission. Over the past 4 weeks he has helped me to grow in so many different areas. He is definitely one of the best leaders I have ever seen in my life. Im super lucky that we will probably have about 3 more months of working together. 

Take care, 

Anziano Smith

Malta | week 3

10.13.2014

So this week a couple interesting things happened. Our branch had a picnic up in Bugibba, which is about an hour bus ride from where we live. Orfila and I got on the bus and there were 20 kids from California on a 4 month study abroad visiting Biblical sights. Right when we got on, their professor came over and started talking to us, and it was the first time in my life I have met an anti-mormon person who confronted me personally. For about 30 minutes he just bashed on our beliefs about revelation, living prophets, and the Book of Mormon. Orfila and I didnt really care at all to respond, but then he starting attacking our parents for convincing us to believe this false doctrine. After that I asked Orfila for his Bible. The next 30 minutes was ours, and...the good guys came out on top.

Like 2 years ago when the church came out with the "Im a Mormon" campaign, I thought it was kind of cheesy. Honestly, it kind of is, but people need to know who we are. I heard about the Meet the Mormons movie that just came out, and I hope it helps more people understand the church and its members, because it is kind of sad to hear what others think they know about the church. Anyways, thats enough of my rambling.

As far as the good news goes, we saw a sign for a Chinese buffet earlier this week, and Orfila decided to step in to ask the owner for the times. We ended up talking to him for a while, and he actually drove to us to meet his son-in-law who is from the same city in Brazil as Orfila. They literally live like 1 mile apart. We talked for a while, and we went to eat at their buffet Saturday night, and found out the receptionist there was one of the first converts on Malta and she hasnt been to church in like 30 years or something. She was really nice, and we switched information. Hopefully something comes from it!

We were also to see several new faces in church this week which was really excited. We are moving to a new chapel in Birkirkara at the end of the month which will be twice as big and our Branch President challenged all the members to invite family and friends so we can fill it. I love all the Maltese members, and am looking forward to passing the Winter here on the island.

Tomorrow morning the 4 of us are flying up to Rome for zone conference, and I will have 1 full day to go see friends and other missionaries. I seriously cant wait. I will have pics, and more to report next week.

Anziano Smith

Malta | week 2

10.6.2014

So our week this week ended up being really slow. Almost all of our appointments cancelled which was disappointing. However, in retrospect it was a blessing. We were really humbled and it prepared us to have an incredible general conference this weekend.  

Sunday afternoon I was really touched. Right before we were going to start the Saturday Afternoon Session of conference, a Japanese girl in her 20s walked into the chapel. She just got here to Malta a couple of days ago and will be here for 2 weeks or so. She speaks a few words in English and obviously no Maltese, but she looked up the address to the church on lds.org and came to church to watch conference with us. She sat in the back with a really big smile on her face as we listened the apostles. 

Sometimes it is so easy to justify not keeping a commandment. When we explain the commandments to people, we simply teach that it is a way to show our faith and love for God, and that He has promised blessings in return. It would have been so easy for that girl to think, "Well, I wont understand anything, so why should I go to church?" I remember when I was at Wesleyan we had a Bible Memory Verse somewhere in Samuel that talks about how the Lord looks on the heart. It is so true. To see someone willingly come to church and not understand anything, was the best example to me of someone who keeps all the commandments with a pure heart. 

I know sometimes I have gone to church meetings, and my mind and heart have kind of been other places during the meetings and I didnt get anything out of it. Even if you dont speak the language in which the meeting is being held you can still be blessed and grow if you go with the right heart and attitude. 

Coming back full circle, Orfila and I didnt get much done this week. Not many people listend to us, but we worked with willing hearts, and we were blessed for it. Im so grateful for the message of President Monson Sunday Morning at conference. I could feel with all my heart that he is Gods prophet on the earth today, and that is knowledge that cant come from books or study. It is a gift from God. I always want to stand a little taller and be a little better after the apostles mention the missionaries/missionary work at conference because I know that they trust us. 

Have a good week,

Anziano Smith

Malta | week 1

9.29.2014

So my second week here on Malta was great. I got to know a lot more people who I will be with for the next several months, and they all seem really awesome. Earlier this week the O'Keeffe family invited us over for dinner. They are a retired couple from Preston, England. Brother O'Keeffe was a chef in England for 50 years, and he blew me away. Dinner at his house was honestly as good as anything a tasted in Italy. We had a great night together, and they told us that their house was open for us once a week to bring an investigator or less active over for dinner. That will definitely be happening for the next several months each week. 

On Sunday after church Anziano Orfila had an hour meeting since he is the first counselor, and i sat in the foyer with Brother O'Keeffe, and he told me the coolest stories I have ever heard for the whole hour. He worked as a chef at the MTC in England for about 7 years, and it was his responisibility to cook for the general authorities whenever they came. He told me stories of all the times he fed apostles and even President Hinckley, and it was amazing. Can't wait to here more. 

Also, the Maltese people in general are really friendly. Because it is really hot, people arent usually on the streets. They are at the beach or in their house. Naturally, we try to do finding in their houses instead. This week while we were knocking doors, 3 people offered me a drink or asked if I need to use the bathroom. That never happened once in Italy. Super awesome. Kind act of the week though goes to a super awesome elderly lady though. Orfila and I were looking up an address we had passed by a couple days before on a big map. It was quite obvious we didnt know where we were going, so a random lady asked us where we needed to go and then gave us directions. Right when we got to the house, the girl we were looking for pulled up in her car. Apparently her mom is really Catholic, but she was interested, so we taught her for about 30 minutes outside on her frontporch, and we got a return appointment for this week at her work. Afterwards Orfila and I realized that if we rang the doorbell at any other time, we probably would have been told to not come back and then nothing would have happened. 

On Sunday morning we also got to go to a hospital to give the sacrament to the ex-branch president here in Malta. He is terminally ill right now, and one of the two companionships here go each Sunday to do that. It was a great experience. 

Things are looking up here in Malta. Im not sure how well Im going to learn Maltese though. Studying it this week was quite difficult, and most people here speak English, sooo...we will see. Right now the thing I am most looking forward to is General Conference. We are going to challenge everyone we are teaching to watch it prayerfully with a particular question in mind. I hope everyone does the same, because it is a golden opportunity to know exactly what God wants us to know, feel, and do in our lives. Saturday and Sunday are going to be the best!

Anziano Smith

Rome 5 | week 25

Regan saying bye to Nem 

District Pday at Francesco's 

 Soccer field that Francesco made for them!

Goodbye dinner with Francesco! Regan is going to really miss him 

Pday in Malta 

 Regan with his new companion, Anziano Orfila, from Argentina!

Malta 

9.22.2014

So this week has been extremely busy, and I have loved every minute of it. It started off with having a district pday at Francescos house (Anziano Blair and I and the 4 Terni Anziani). We told Francesco that we wanted to play soccer in his field, and he took is lawnmower down and cut us a field and made boundaries and stuff with some poles. It was the nicest thing ever. Then after we played soccer and ultimate frisbee a couple hours, he grilled out for us. It was probably the most memorable pday of my mission. I will seriously miss my days up in Rome. 

The next day Anziano Puff came up from Napoli to be with Anziano Blair, and we had a great exchange together while Anziano Blair went out with Anziano Burkheart (greeny who came down to Malta with me). That night we went over and saw Lorenzo together for the last time. It was a great night. Lorenzo lived here in Malta for 5 years so he told me a lot about the island, and he actually gave me a phone number and name of an old friend to come visit, so we will see if that goes through. It was a good night, and I sure cant wait to go back to see him hopefully before I come home. 

The day after that, Anziano Burkheart and I flew down to Malta, and it was really strange being in the airport again. I knew I was getting transfered, but it felt like I was getting sent home or something. Anyways, the flight down here was a little over an hour, and it was quite the shock when I got down here. Malta is absolutely nothing like Italy. It is probably the hottest weather I have ever been in. It is like the heat of Arizona plus the humidity of Georgia in the same place. The middle of the island is pretty much like a desert, and all of the buildings are in limestone, so it has a very ancient look to it. The culture is also a lot different. I will probably drop about 10 of the 15 pounds that I put on while I was in Italy (partly because there is a track right next to our house, mostly because the food is different). Maltese is also A LOT different. Everyone here speaks it and from my experience so far about 70% of the people speak English good enough to carry on a good conversation. So...I will be speaking a lot of English here, but we do take a 2 hour Maltese course twice a week, and we are suppose to try to learn it, so we will see how that goes. My motivation to learn Maltese kind of took a hit, when I found out there is no Book of Mormon in Maltese, so everyone we teach will have to speak English. However, Ill give it a shot anyways. 

Anziano Orfila is easily one of the coolest missionaries I have met on my mission so far. He is from Brazil, but he moved to Suwannee, GA when he was 10 and went to Peachtree Ridge for 3 years, which is so cool! That was like 45 minutes away from my house. Then he moved back to Brazil for high school. So, he speaks flawless English, and other than that, he is just the man. Right now he is serving as the first counselor to the Branch President here in Malta, and he has done awesome work since he got here in Malta 7 weeks ago. A week after he got here he met a 17 year old kid named Damyan who got baptized on Saturday. It was such a special day. I met Damyan at his baptism and saw him again the next day in church which was his birthday when he got confirmed, and he was so happy. He is the only youth here in the branch, but he loves all the older people, and they treat him like their own son. There were 19 people at his baptism (which was in a backyard pool of a family that lives across the street from the church and they represented 8 countries: Bulgaria, Brazil, Malta, Italy, Ireland, England, the Philippines, and the US. It was so awesome. The branch here consists of 30 people and it is super diverse, and I love it. On Sunday there was a speaker who gave her talk in Maltese, the Branch President translated it into English, and I translated it from English into Italian for our member from Sicily. It was a great meeting, and I am really looking forward to getting to know these members better and working with the people. 

Overall, Malta is certainly not Italy, but the spirit and love in the branch is the same as it was in Italy which is the same as it was back in Georgia. Im excited to try to learn a new language and get to know a new people. Most of all, Im super excited to get to know and work with Anziano Orfila. Im super lucky to be with him, and since he just got here last transfer, we will probably be together through xmas. We will see. Have a good week. 

Anziano Smith 

Rome 5 | week 24

9.15.2014

The big news of the week came through on Saturday when we got transfer calls! I found out that I will be going to Malta to be with Anziano Orfila! I met him for the first time 2 weeks ago at zone conference, and he was really cool. He is from Argentina, and he speaks absolutely flawless English and Italian, and Im sure he is already speaking decent Maltese even though he has only been there for 6 weeks. It is something I am definitely looking forward to, and there will be more information on Malta next week. 

The highlight of this week had to have been my exchange with Anziano Pingree. We got to go to Perugia together, and it was a great time. We spend most of the day looking for old investigators who had either moved or were not home, but in the process, we met a lot of cool people and ran into to a food festival with food from all over italy. On our way back down to the train station we decided to stop by one more address and we got into the first house of the day. It was a lady whos daughter got baptized, married an RM, and moved to the states. She was really nice to us, got out her Book of Mormon and said she was "ready to study with us again." We only had like 10 minutes to leave a thought, but Anziano Pingree and Bee will go back soon. On the way home we met a guy on the train who was here backpacking in Italy by himself. He ended up being from the same town as Anziano Pingree back in Colorado, so we had a really good talk with him for like 20 minutes on the train, but never talked much about the gospel. After he got off Pingree was like, "I wander if I should have talked more about the gospel." The next stop was Assisi and then he was like, I guess we preach the gospel and use words when necessary. I thought it was hilarious. Quoting St. Francis in his own city. On the whole it was an unforgettable day. 

Anziano Blair and I went around a lot this week to see people for the last time which was sad, but I know I will see them all again in the near future, so it wasnt too bad. I have been really lucky to serve here in Rome 5. Have an awesome week everyone. 

Anziano Smith