So first off the baptism with Lameck went well. He is a really
powerful guy. He asked me to perform his baptism so my baptism
clothing got its second use outside of the temple. Our week went
okay. We are still trying to find new investigators but I feel that
we are going to be able to do it more effectively because we are going
to move to a different part of our area. This idea came to us
yesterday and also is the reason for me putting a subject on my email.
So we went to a member's house yesterday for a lesson in the Mandevu
compound and the lesson was great. The guy is named JJ Phiri (the h
is silent so it is pronounced Piri) and I am sure that he has been
prepared to receive the Gospel. But anyway afterward when we left we
decided to walk back a different way to see if there was a shortcut.
So as we were walking there was this big ravine in front of us and we
saw a guy in front of us go down it and a minute later he came up the
other side so we were like well there is a way to get there. Then we
got down inside. There was this drainage stream which is completely
filled with rubbish and looked like it was solid except about 1 1/2
feet of it. It looked like our shoes would get a little muddy but
nothing else, as many of them are. So my companion goes first and he
takes a few steps and things looked exactly as I have described. Then
the next step came. He stepped and his foot started to sink so he
quickly takes another step and now he is really starting to sink. So
he tries to jump out and instead of going up he went down. He falls
on his stomach and kind moves like a polar bear on ice. Then he gets
to the edge of the stream at the other bank and the rubbish completely
breaks and he goes about waist deep and his feet are not touching the
bottom. He is frantically trying to grab something to keep him from
sinking because the thickness of the mud is sucking him down. He was
able to find one root that would hold but he was still continuing to
sink. These two little kids who were with their friends nearby ran
over. My companion is shouting for help and then they grab his hand.
Then the other kids ran over so there was maybe ten of them and they
are all really small like no bigger than Adam or smaller. So my
companion is not a small person and they should not have been able to
pull him out of that mud which was sucking him down. But they got him
up and out of the mud. Then they all start looking for a better way
for me to cross because I was a good 15 feet from them. They found a
spot that I could jump over so that was good. But my companion was
absolutely amazed that they were able to pull him out and to be honest
so was I. He said that he felt like he was made light and that he
couldn't feel his weight any more. I don't know if the kids felt
anything but Elder Mangumta sure did. This whole time I am standing
on the other side of this stream thinking, "My companion is sinking
and I can't do anything to help him." Now as we look back at it, it
is absolutely hilarious. But at the time it was really intense. The
really interesting thing is that there was adults who just sat and
watched this whole thing while the children came to his rescue. I
guess that is why the Savior said, "of such is the Kingdom of Heaven."
I am planning on writing an article about it and then if my companion
approves of it then I will send it to the Church Magazines. There are
so many things that you can learn from this. So sometime this week I
am going to sit down and do some writing. But anyway the member's
whose house we were at, the Kabeya's, are awesome. They are really
searching for referrals for us. We will be teaching a family from
them soon. And I think that we can really find some good people there
in Mandevu. Brother Kabeya is from the Democratic Republic of the
Congo and when he was baptized in 1993 one month later he was called
as Branch President because the current one was about to be chased out
of the area because of political unrest. So he served for six months
without even holding the Melchizedick (or however you spell it)
Priesthood.
Well as for my weight I have not gained or lost anything since I left
home. I weigh my self occasionally and I am still the same. And we
do have member dinners more often than in Malawi. We maybe get one
per week or at the least e get one every two weeks. Mom you should be
proud of me I have been cooking with tomatoes, onions (cut up
extremely small however), carrots, and green beans. They have been
good meals too. I had actually heard about Tyler Hughes getting
called to Ukraine from Rhett in a letter. It really suits him if you
ask me since he loves languages. I was surprised to hear about Austin
Caldwell though. I didn't know that he was planning on going. A few
of the guys in my MTC Group are in Durban. That was really funny to
hear about the bat in the church. I can see Bishop Pace trying to hit
the bat with his coat. I was also shocked to hear about Scott
becoming a bishop. That was a surprise, but I guess not really if you
think about it since he has been a high counselor there for a while.
That was too bad to hear about Brother McCulley. I hope that the
others heal well and are handling it well. I would take either the CD
or the DVD or both. Nicole I hope you enjoy your weekend in the
Temple. I wish I could be there. In fact I wish that I could go to a
temple at all. I will have new appreciation for the temple when I
come home have spent two years away from it. I will be going as often
as possible. Don't worry Mom I feel your pain about Dad's announcing
and I am on the other side of the world. Well talk to you next week.
Love,
Elder Cecil
No comments:
Post a Comment