Mannings 2 Thailand: Living Apostle Arrives in Bangkok!!

The Bangkok area had the great privilege of having several General Authorities come for the weekend of May 17-19. Elder Neil L. Andersen, an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, along with his wife, visited Thailand for the first time and brought with them words of strength and encouragement to the members of the Church.

It was especially exciting for us because we got to shake his hand multiple times. He spoke to us on several occasions regarding taking photos of the events (since we are Public Affairs, we take photos of events that occur in the area). It was thrilling having him call us by our names (even knowing that he didn't know us and that he was reading our name tags)! It was a special experience! One downside: no one got a photo of us shaking his hand! But that's okay - it was a special experience that we'll remember even without a photo documenting it.

The Sunday meeting was held in a convention center and it is estimated that 1650 people were in attendance. The excitement in the air was almost electric prior to the start of the meeting. We were told that Elder Oaks visited here about 3 years ago, so it was quite a shock to everyone that another Apostle was visiting so soon. And especially that it was Elder Andersen since his assignment doesn't even include this area, but we were all thrilled that he came.

On Sunday, one of his messages to the membership was that there WILL be a House of the Lord (or a temple) here in Thailand one day. The question is not IF but WHEN, and the timing is between the Lord and His prophet. That was thrilling to hear!! But there is much work for the Thais to do before that can happen. He said for it to happen, there needs to be sufficient Thai LDS to care for the temple. It will take a large number of members that are committed to Jesus Christ, to their covenants, and he said "I believe the Lord will provide a House of the Lord here." He said that the Church will not send Americans over here to operate the temple; it will have to be Thais to do it. He counseled them to "expand your vision: speak of Christ, His gifts and His divinity. Speak to others! If you do that, the Lord will be happy!" He pronounced a blessing that said "You can be witnesses; you can keep your covenants and help strengthen one another; you can stay firm and true to the gospel." He said he will be an advocate of Thailand to the Brethren and will speak of the great feelings here.

On Saturday, a general missionary meeting was held. How thrilling it was to be a part of that!! The official photo of the group is breathtaking to me. To think that the Lord has THAT many missionaries here in Thailand is amazing! And so many senior couples, too!! He must have some wonderful blessings in store for the Thai people! Elder Andersen said that we are in an important time in Thailand because the Church has to transfer fully and completely to the Thai members. He said we will see the day when there will be a Thai as Mission President - and said there was at least present in the room at that moment!! Can you imagine being one of the Thai missionaries and wondering, "could he be talking of me??" We've met several Thai missionaries who we feel could fill that spot - there are some magnificent young missionaries in this mission.

Thailand's Royal Army of God!!

Elder Andersen counseled the missionaries to be ministers and witnesses - to minister by reaching out and helping people with words of comfort and teachings of the Savior and to witness by teaching eternal truths and sharing our testimonies of Christ. He promised that one day, we would see the effects of our testimony of Christ. He said that the most beautiful message to give others is that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of all mankind. He said our missionary badge will be a badge of honor for having spoken His name and taught His gospel.

We kept thinking that this applies to ALL missionaries - even those who have already returned home, such as our children, who each served honorable missions in their youth. We're so proud of all 4 of our children (yes, Brian and Amy are our children, too!). Their beautiful families today are a blessing and a direct result of their service to the Lord as His missionaries and of their remaining true to their covenants and to the gospel. God loves all His children, as we love our children!! He waits to bless them, as we wait to give blessings to our children. We know this is true! He loves each one of YOU who are reading this blog right this very minute!!

Here are some photos from the weekend with the Apostle Neil L. Andersen. We testify that he is as much an apostle of Jesus Christ as Matthew, Mark, Luke or John or Paul were from the New Testament era. No difference - just a different place in time. He is a Special Witness of Jesus Christ and travels throughout the world witnessing of Him. There are 11 other apostles today as well, just as in the time of Jesus, when he called 12 apostles to help Him with the work. Jesus lives because He was resurrected, and these apostles testify to the world that He lives. We add our testimony to theirs. He lives!!! We are here in Thailand serving Him because we love Him.