Another week in the realest game on earth. 

Gotta love it. 

Never was my joy so sweet. Never was my pain so deep. Never was an experience so different, such an out-of life experience. So is the missionary experience.

Your whole perspective on life changes. All you care about it helping people come closer to Jesus Christ. You eat, breathe and sleep it. Your investigators make or break your entire day instead of a test score or a date with a girlfriend. 

Things take on new meaning. The scriptures. Alma 26 becomes the actual thing that is happening to you, not just some ancient missionaries experience. You can actually feel what Ammon felt. 

And sometimes you can't even realize it. You don't realize how your perspective is changed. But when you take a step back and realize what is going on you can see how much you have changed. 

Flying every week to and from places has done that for me. This week we flew to Kuala Lumpur and then to Kuching. We had exchanges in both places. And because when you fly it is a slight debrief back into the real world that is when I can slightly remember the old me. And it is so different. Just the perspective. Vision can change everything. 

And even though it has all changed so much, I am still able to get great workouts in everyday. Elder Perritt loves to rebound so the number of shots I have been able to get up everyday has increased dramatically. I don't understand why he likes it but I am not complaining :) 

100, 100, 100. Pushups, pullups and situps has become a once a week routine. Under 15 minutes is casual now. 

In KL we did some farming service at this orphanage. I was on exchanges with a Tongan from Oregon. He is a beast. 

Then in Kuching I was in a Malay speaking area with a native companion Zone Leader and we went around in this Kampung (little village) that is built on this swamp and you walk on these bridges everywhere. The entire village is on stilts. It is amazing. And I ate some pig heart. It is a delicacy in one of the malaysian tribes called E-Ban. 

I have in the last 8 weeks definitely learned the principle of Matthew 16:24-29. When you lose your life you save it. Whenever we go on exchanges I find myself in total service to the other missionary. In his area, helping his people and him. Nothing is for me. And those days are my best. Those are my happiest days. And I glean nothing from it. But I really feel like I have found myself on those days. And I have found my God. 

I love exchanges. I love my mission. I love my Savior. I know he is my Savior because I have felt him everyday out here. And I want you all to know that I know that this church has truths that have been restored on earth through a prophet. It is scary because it is real. It will change your life, just let it..

Look outside of yourself this week a little..it'll help I promise..

https://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/series/mormon-messages/reflections

Watch that^^^ it is amazing..

Love,

Elder Pierce