Iokwe from OK: Baby Leaves the West Side Nest

Iokwe!

Exciting news: I'm flying the coop! (also, it's really sad how long it took me to write that idiom with the correct grammar, and also that I'm still a little unsure if it's entirely right; my English skills are continuing their decomposition)

Transfers are this Wednesday and I am moving to the East Side! It will be my first time on the East Side, after 5 transfers (7.5 months) on the West Side. I'll still be in Enid, still Marshallese speaking, just moving across the city. Also, I will be with my trainer and first companion, Elder Nicholas. I'm super excited for that, since we already know each other well and it will be easy to teach together. Elder Lazarus and Elder Tetea will be together on the West Side, so Elder Lazarus and I basically just did a switch. 

However, sad news this week:

Remember LittleRose and Rose, the two little girls we baptized a while back when it was myself and Elder Menlove together (if not, I attached some pictures)? Well, we just found out on Friday that Rose is moving to New York with her dad - today. AAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHH. I'm heartbroken because 1) these little kids are my friends. I feel like they are my own siblings. I would be happy to run around with them and play all day together. We have had so much fun teaching them and watching them learn and grow. 2) She's 9. She's moving to New York with her dad, who is not a member of our church. I know how much she loves coming to church and studying with us and she will have very little say in any of that after she moves. She may even forget that she was baptized.... 

So, to combat that, we gave her a Book of Mormon and all wrote a note in it for her. We also stuck a few pictures in there for her to remember her baptism and all of us. Hopefully she'll be able to read that and still get to enjoy the Spirit in her life.

My thought for this week is along those lines: It's really sad for us that Rose is leaving and we're a little anxious about her possibly having no access to church. However, something I've learned is that God is extremely invested in our lives. Not only our own, but in those of our friends and family. He knows each one of us personally and is keenly aware of everything that we experience and everything we do. He sees not only this moment, but also our future. Not only that, but he is a much more loyal friend than we will ever be to our own friends. He is a much more loyal family member than we will ever be. He loves us even more than we love ourselves.

As such, I know that He will take care of Rose. That also means that he will take care of my friends and my family. He will watch over those that we care about and he'll do a better job of it than we ever will. My invitation this week is to trust in His love for others, as well as in His love for us individually. I know that if we do, we will pray with greater faith for those who we care about who are struggling, and that we will receive peace and comfort, knowing that they are in truly good hands. 

Have a great week! I'm excited to send a good update from the East Side next week!

--

Jeramman!

Elder Josh Kilmer

Oklahoma, Oklahoma City Mission

不動心 Fudoshin:  immovable mind