Well I won't lie it has been a tough week. Because we have had to spend so much time weeding out the jokers we weren't able to get many lessons plus right now our teaching pool has dropped considerably in size. We have been brainstorming and really thinking of new ideas to find new people to teach. The difficult thing about it is that most of the people just don't care. And even those who might be interested often don't speak English very well. Then the ones that do speak well just want to BS. All of the places tht we have been working in are basically bush villages. Most of the people that live in town are pretty well off and we can't gt into their gates. But we have a few ideas that we are going to try. We are planning to print out fliers and put them around the city and see if anyone wants to learn. We even might write an article to put in the newspaper. Another thing we might try is to get on a radio station but only if we can get permission from President Dube. So we will see what happens. Our baptisms were pushed to this weekend because of some different things that were going on at the church. We have one other girl named Ruth who is the sister of one of the recent converts who is ready but the problem is that she is afraid to talk to her parents about it because they gave her brother fire because he was getting baptized. But he is a lot more headstrong than she is. Philbet is now back on track to be baptized but we are going to wait until the 14th of May for that baptism. There is also a guy named Wisborne, (yes Wisborne, for two weeks I thought that it was Osborne) at first we weren't sure about him, but he has been at church the last 2 weeks even though he stays faaaaaar from the church. Well those are about the only real powerful investigators right now besides Godknows and Fortune (you see those kind of names in Zim a lot more though). We have Zone Conference in Blantyre this week. Elder Kevin W. Pearson of the Seventy and from the Missionary Department is going to be present. It will be held on Thursday. So we have to leave on Wednesday and we will come back on Friday. I haven't received any news about Mother's Day so I don't know what is happening. I hope that they will give us info this week. There is a rumor that we are going to be getting some couple missionaries here in Lilongwe, I sure hope so, it would take a lot of stress off of us.
Because we have no DA's we mostly just cook rice or noodles with some beef and a soup(sauce). The vegetables here are kind of gross looking and not just because they are vegetables. They just look like they would make you sick. The inflation is bad but nothing like it was is Zimbabwe before they switched to the USD. My stalker is just a crazy guy that sticks to me like glue. I think that it is because I am white. He doesn't ever speak, he just walks next to me right on my arm and has a big smile on his face as he laughs. Elder Shabangu gives him fire everytime he sees him. But I'm not sure if the guy really understands either English or Chichewa.
I'm kind of jealous that you guys went to a baseball game without me but I guess I can't deprive you of things like that since I am on the other side of the world. Well Sacrament meetings are interesting to say the least. The Branch President gave a talk yesterday and read the entire final chapter in Mathew. Yeah I don't think that he reads the Book of Mormon much. It is obvious that even the ones who are not recent converts sometimes seem like they know less than the recent converts. President Nthalowa has been a member for over 6 years now. In PEC the 2nd Counselor in the Branch Presidency basically said that the members are not supposed to help the missionaries and that we have to everything. We then talked about how every member is a missionary, and he tried to say that Malawians are an exception because they have to earn money. After that we just decided not to reply. I know this may sound somewhat negative but really I am in good spirits. I enjoy working anyway.
Love,
Elder Cecil
Monday, April 25, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Well first off the work is not as good as in Zimbabwe. It is
extremely easy to get lessons because the people here just say yes to
everything. The challenge is to turn those lessons into baptisms.
They say yes I will be at church but then Sunday rolls around and
guess what? They aren't there. We even had one that called us four
times on Saturday to tell us that he would be at church tomorrow, but
the next day he was no where to be found. We couldn't even find him
at his house later in the day. But we do have two baptisms planned
for Saturday with the children of some recent converts who are
probably already the most powerful people in the Branch. So those
kids are the golden situation. There names are Godknows and Fortune
Mitambo. We were planning on having three others but they didn't show
up to church this week so they will have to wait.
The Branch is pretty small, we only have about 40 people at church
each week. And yes, the Branch President does act like that all the
time. We meet in a house that the Church owns. Funny Story Time:
Last week during sacrament meeting one of the speakers gets to the
podium and says, "Good morning." The congregation then proceeds to
answer by saying in unison, "Good morning." Now I kind of got a
little bit of a chuckle at that, since the branch is really new and
things. But then this week we watched conference on DVD. So during
the Sunday morning session when Bishop Burton gave his talk on the
welfare program he said, "Good morning Brothers and Sisters." And
they proceeded to answer, "Good morning." Elder Shabangu and I were
laughing pretty hard when they answered the TV for a conference that
occurred two weeks ago. There is an American family in the Branch,
and the father Brother Collins is in the Branch Presidency but he
works for USAID so he really doesn't have a ton of time to do
everything. He does all that he can but we have to pick up the rest.
I don't know what is going to happen when he leaves in September
though. The world we live in is extremely small. Yesterday a man
from none other than Beaver, Utah came and watched conference with us.
I can't remember his name though but his son is married to Stephanie
Barton. There was also a couple from Alberta Canada who have a son
serving in the Salt Lake City South mission.
They only have electricity if they pay for it. But most of them can't
afford it so they don't. The food is basically the same except we
don't ever have any Dinner Appointments. The members don't know
anything about that kind of stuff and most people go to bed at like
eight so generally we are done working by about 7:30. Well in the
rainy season it rains a lot more but the people are saying that it is
now the dry season. This week it never even looked like it would
rain. It was just really hot. But they say that it will cool down in
May. It is funny when people speak because they mix their R's and L's
very badly. For example "Blass Prates". It is quite funny but also
makes them difficult to understand when they try to tell us where
somebody stays because we don't know if it is spelled with an R or an
L. Oh and the money we use is called Malawian Kwacha. The "Malawian"
part is important because they use a different kwacha in Zambia. The
largest bill is a 500 MK. Equivilent to about $3.30 USD.
The other Elders are Elder Maxfield from Magna, UT (it is somewhere
between Tooele and West Valley) and Elder Mahachi from Kadoma,
Zimbabwe. Elder Maxfield is in his second transfer and Elder Mahachi
is in his fifth. To put that into perspective, I am in my fourth. My
companion and Elder Maxfield know a little bit of Chichewa but not
enough to really help me with it. I just have to ask some of the
recent converts. Yes I do mean that I have to keep him working if he
starts to die but so far it has been ok. No I haven't seen anymore
crazy dancers on the street and I don't think that he was drunk, I
think that he was just crazy. But I do have a stalker (or maybe he's
a magnet, I can't tell). If he sees me on the street he follows me
everywhere, almost hanging on my arm.
I also got to watch the Priesthood session on Saturday night with just
the other Elders. That was really powerful, I loved that. I can't
wait to get the Liahona to read those talks again. On P-days we clean
the house, email, eat, then go watch disney/pixar type movies. There
is nothing else to do here. We can't play soccer because there isn't
enough of us and there are really no attractions to go see so that is
what we do. And no, I don't think that anything was taken from my
suitcase, at least I haven't missed anything yet. The Zone Leaders
came yesterday so I received the package from you that had my camera
card in it as well as a package from Chris. Thank you it really is a
nice thing to get. Also you can find candy, it just isn't as nice or
it is expensive. I also have a letter but the ZLs left it in Blantyre
but it is okay I can get it next Thursday at Zone Conference. Oh and
you don't need to send the Dear Elder's while I'm here because I won't
get them.
But besides harder times, I have had a good week. So I guess I will
talk to you next week.
Love,
Elder Cecil
extremely easy to get lessons because the people here just say yes to
everything. The challenge is to turn those lessons into baptisms.
They say yes I will be at church but then Sunday rolls around and
guess what? They aren't there. We even had one that called us four
times on Saturday to tell us that he would be at church tomorrow, but
the next day he was no where to be found. We couldn't even find him
at his house later in the day. But we do have two baptisms planned
for Saturday with the children of some recent converts who are
probably already the most powerful people in the Branch. So those
kids are the golden situation. There names are Godknows and Fortune
Mitambo. We were planning on having three others but they didn't show
up to church this week so they will have to wait.
The Branch is pretty small, we only have about 40 people at church
each week. And yes, the Branch President does act like that all the
time. We meet in a house that the Church owns. Funny Story Time:
Last week during sacrament meeting one of the speakers gets to the
podium and says, "Good morning." The congregation then proceeds to
answer by saying in unison, "Good morning." Now I kind of got a
little bit of a chuckle at that, since the branch is really new and
things. But then this week we watched conference on DVD. So during
the Sunday morning session when Bishop Burton gave his talk on the
welfare program he said, "Good morning Brothers and Sisters." And
they proceeded to answer, "Good morning." Elder Shabangu and I were
laughing pretty hard when they answered the TV for a conference that
occurred two weeks ago. There is an American family in the Branch,
and the father Brother Collins is in the Branch Presidency but he
works for USAID so he really doesn't have a ton of time to do
everything. He does all that he can but we have to pick up the rest.
I don't know what is going to happen when he leaves in September
though. The world we live in is extremely small. Yesterday a man
from none other than Beaver, Utah came and watched conference with us.
I can't remember his name though but his son is married to Stephanie
Barton. There was also a couple from Alberta Canada who have a son
serving in the Salt Lake City South mission.
They only have electricity if they pay for it. But most of them can't
afford it so they don't. The food is basically the same except we
don't ever have any Dinner Appointments. The members don't know
anything about that kind of stuff and most people go to bed at like
eight so generally we are done working by about 7:30. Well in the
rainy season it rains a lot more but the people are saying that it is
now the dry season. This week it never even looked like it would
rain. It was just really hot. But they say that it will cool down in
May. It is funny when people speak because they mix their R's and L's
very badly. For example "Blass Prates". It is quite funny but also
makes them difficult to understand when they try to tell us where
somebody stays because we don't know if it is spelled with an R or an
L. Oh and the money we use is called Malawian Kwacha. The "Malawian"
part is important because they use a different kwacha in Zambia. The
largest bill is a 500 MK. Equivilent to about $3.30 USD.
The other Elders are Elder Maxfield from Magna, UT (it is somewhere
between Tooele and West Valley) and Elder Mahachi from Kadoma,
Zimbabwe. Elder Maxfield is in his second transfer and Elder Mahachi
is in his fifth. To put that into perspective, I am in my fourth. My
companion and Elder Maxfield know a little bit of Chichewa but not
enough to really help me with it. I just have to ask some of the
recent converts. Yes I do mean that I have to keep him working if he
starts to die but so far it has been ok. No I haven't seen anymore
crazy dancers on the street and I don't think that he was drunk, I
think that he was just crazy. But I do have a stalker (or maybe he's
a magnet, I can't tell). If he sees me on the street he follows me
everywhere, almost hanging on my arm.
I also got to watch the Priesthood session on Saturday night with just
the other Elders. That was really powerful, I loved that. I can't
wait to get the Liahona to read those talks again. On P-days we clean
the house, email, eat, then go watch disney/pixar type movies. There
is nothing else to do here. We can't play soccer because there isn't
enough of us and there are really no attractions to go see so that is
what we do. And no, I don't think that anything was taken from my
suitcase, at least I haven't missed anything yet. The Zone Leaders
came yesterday so I received the package from you that had my camera
card in it as well as a package from Chris. Thank you it really is a
nice thing to get. Also you can find candy, it just isn't as nice or
it is expensive. I also have a letter but the ZLs left it in Blantyre
but it is okay I can get it next Thursday at Zone Conference. Oh and
you don't need to send the Dear Elder's while I'm here because I won't
get them.
But besides harder times, I have had a good week. So I guess I will
talk to you next week.
Love,
Elder Cecil
Monday, April 11, 2011
Mom, that's great that you finally get to move back to Parowan. I'm sure that will help you in your new calling. Speaking of new callings, I just got a new one. I am now the Branch President of the Lilongwe Branch. Or at least I might as well be. I have been there for one Sunday and I already ran PEC and made decisions on what we were going to do in the upcoming week. The Branch President here doesn't do anything and it's not because he doesn't know what he's doing (which I guess he really doesn't) but he has been in that calling for almost two years now. In PEC he basically sat and read the New Testament manuel as we discussed things in the Branch which technically we aren't supposed to be present for. We are only to be present to make reports at the beginning and then be excused. But besides that things here in Malawi are going good. I like Elder Shabangu, he is funny. But I do have to make sure that he doesn't die prematurely, but so far things have gone well. We had to take away a few BoM's this week because we found out that the people were jokers and only wanted to BS (bible study). They had no intention of actually praying to find out if it is true. We will probably have to do it a few more times this week as well. We don't have an unlimited supply of books so we have to utilize the BoM Loan program. If they read and come to church or in other words they progress, they can keep it but if not then we take it back because they are too valuable to have sitting on a shelf and collect dust. The truck is pretty nice especially for this area. It rains like crazy, it is very "mountainous" or in other words, hilly, and we go far every other day. We only have it every other day though because we share it with the other Elders. One day they have it, so they drop us off and pick us up. Then the next day we have it. I am the one driving because Elder Shabangu only has an expired learner's permit. The hardest thing to get used to was shifting with my left hand because I am already used to the left side of the road. Also the roads in Lilongwe are generally pretty nice. But the roads in the areas that we teach are not so powerful. They are just dirt "roads" meaning we sometimes are kind of off-roading. The other Elders that we live with are pretty cool. We all get along quite well. The house is pretty nice and the best part is, we always have power. We have a shower but we haven't had hot water for the whole week since I've been here. But they said that they usually have it though. The people seem to be even more poo than in Zim. Most of them live in these mud brick homes with generally a tin roof. But occasionally you will see a grass roof. The houses are actually impossible to find if you don't have someone who knows where they are going, they don't have house numbers at all, anywhere. Unless you are in town, then you can find things. Malawi is beautiful though. With all of the hills and the rain it is very green. We took a plane to come to Malawi. So it didn't take too long, but they did lose our bags though. So for half of the week I had to prosylite in my suit pants and the same shirt. They speak Chichewa here. It is a lot more difficult for me than Shona was. I still am having a hard time greeting people. Also most of the women don't speak English so we basically can't teach them at all.
I had two funny things happen this week though. The first was only funny because the guy didn't get hurt. Otherwise it wouldn't have been powerful. 1. I was contacting these two guys and while I was talking to them I saw this guy run up to some other random guy, jump up and kick the guy in the chest. He then ran away. The guy who got kicked was drunk and he went flying into a big puddle of mud. I quickly finished my contact and went to help the guy but he didn't seem to notice that I was there. He just looked around with a confused look on his face. My companion saw me standing over this guy and quickly came over to make sure that I hadn't done anything. As I was explaining what happened, he got up and walked away. Looking back at it, it was really funny to watch. 2. Yesterday we saw this old man dancing in the middle of this road in our area. He proceeded to take off his jacket and throw it away. You can imagine what went through my mind at this point. Most people were just kind of walking by like this was a regular occurrance but we stood and watched him do this ridiculous dance that lasted about two minutes. It was hilarious. Luckily nothing else came off though.
That's good to hear that Karl got his call. Tell him congratulations for me if you ever see him. I'm glad that Jaxon is still excited to go on mission even though it will be to somewhere else. As I read about Karl, the Platts, Dillon, and the Seagulls my jaw progressively dropped lower and lower with each one that I read. Everything at home that seemed to be going fairly normal has now been hit by a tornado. That is a lot of change to hear about all at once. The package you sent to me is at the mission office right now as well as another one that I am not sure who sent it. Elder Law called and told me so I will get them in a few weeks either at Zone Conference at the end of the month or President might come to Malawi before that. But he wasn't sure which time. But they are safe so don't worry.
That's good to hear that you are close to being ready for inspection in Milford. That means that you are getting closer to opening. That is too bad about Butler playing xing in the final. But oh well, you can't have everything in life. I am glad to hear that the Braves have started well. I always have the urge to make a comment about the yankees when I see someone wearing their hat but then I remember that they have no idea who the yankees really are, so I resist. Well I guess I will talk to you next week.
One love,
Elder Cecil
I had two funny things happen this week though. The first was only funny because the guy didn't get hurt. Otherwise it wouldn't have been powerful. 1. I was contacting these two guys and while I was talking to them I saw this guy run up to some other random guy, jump up and kick the guy in the chest. He then ran away. The guy who got kicked was drunk and he went flying into a big puddle of mud. I quickly finished my contact and went to help the guy but he didn't seem to notice that I was there. He just looked around with a confused look on his face. My companion saw me standing over this guy and quickly came over to make sure that I hadn't done anything. As I was explaining what happened, he got up and walked away. Looking back at it, it was really funny to watch. 2. Yesterday we saw this old man dancing in the middle of this road in our area. He proceeded to take off his jacket and throw it away. You can imagine what went through my mind at this point. Most people were just kind of walking by like this was a regular occurrance but we stood and watched him do this ridiculous dance that lasted about two minutes. It was hilarious. Luckily nothing else came off though.
That's good to hear that Karl got his call. Tell him congratulations for me if you ever see him. I'm glad that Jaxon is still excited to go on mission even though it will be to somewhere else. As I read about Karl, the Platts, Dillon, and the Seagulls my jaw progressively dropped lower and lower with each one that I read. Everything at home that seemed to be going fairly normal has now been hit by a tornado. That is a lot of change to hear about all at once. The package you sent to me is at the mission office right now as well as another one that I am not sure who sent it. Elder Law called and told me so I will get them in a few weeks either at Zone Conference at the end of the month or President might come to Malawi before that. But he wasn't sure which time. But they are safe so don't worry.
That's good to hear that you are close to being ready for inspection in Milford. That means that you are getting closer to opening. That is too bad about Butler playing xing in the final. But oh well, you can't have everything in life. I am glad to hear that the Braves have started well. I always have the urge to make a comment about the yankees when I see someone wearing their hat but then I remember that they have no idea who the yankees really are, so I resist. Well I guess I will talk to you next week.
One love,
Elder Cecil
Monday, April 4, 2011
Well I know that you are all waiting to hear about transfers so, here goes. Dad your April Fool's joke was half true. I am going to Lilongwe, Malawi and part of my area is in the bush. But the email thing was false. My companion is named Elder Shabongu, he is from South Africa and he is the District Leader. I will be killing him. I will also be driving a Toyota Hilux (This is the nicest truck that you will find here. I will also be in the nicest one in the mission.) There will be four of us living in our house, but then the nearest missionary after that is 4 hours away in Blantyre. Elder Sefatsa is staying in Glenview again. It will be six months there for him by the end of the transfer. I am sad that I'm leaving Zimbabwe but I am really excited to go to Malawi. We did get to see conference at President's house. Except not the Priesthood Session. I loved it. One of my favorite moments was in the first session. I can't remember who it was that spoke I would have to look at my notes but he was the one who spoke right before the Choir and congregation sang "I Know That My Redeemer Lives" I really liked the talk and then while we were singing there was around 40 of us singing from our souls. It was so powerful. I loved that. I also really liked President Eyring's talk. Another moment I really enjoyed was President Monson spoke about the Temple. It was funny when he talked about the Rome Temple and he said that he saw a temple in a great city, that has 2500 years of history. Elder Harper and I looked at each other and said, "Jerusalem" but then he said which one it was and we realized that Jerusalem was a lot older than that. But then Elder Bucholtz said, "Man I was scared, I was thinking 'Yo I need to repent' !" Man it was funny. But that talk made me really want to go to the temple. I enjoyed his talk a lot and then after the Choir sang "The Spirit of God" we were all blown away. We also laughed at C. Scott Grow. I really really enjoyed conference, I can't wait to watch it again in a few weeks in Malawi. We had our baptisms, but they were on Sunday not Saturday so they haven't been confirmed. We got fed like crazy this week though because I was leaving. We had lunch and two dinners almost everyday. Sister Mhlanga, that less-active that we reactivated gave me a really nice story written by some missionary who served in Houston.
Mom why would you put yourself through that kind of torture? 5 HOURS A DAY IS WAY TOO MUCH MATH! Even 1 hour is way too much. Nicole's April Fool's joke sounded so powerful, I laughed for quite awhile. I even shared it with some of the other guys and they thought that it was really powerful too. I wish that I could see the video. I received packages from the Doubeks and Grandma. Thank you so much, the candy is always appreciated. I am really grateful that they came when they did otherwise it might be quite a while before I get any mail. So Butler and Uconn are in the championship that is powerful. I assume that the championship is tonight. Well I hope that all is well.
With love,
Elder Cecil
Mom why would you put yourself through that kind of torture? 5 HOURS A DAY IS WAY TOO MUCH MATH! Even 1 hour is way too much. Nicole's April Fool's joke sounded so powerful, I laughed for quite awhile. I even shared it with some of the other guys and they thought that it was really powerful too. I wish that I could see the video. I received packages from the Doubeks and Grandma. Thank you so much, the candy is always appreciated. I am really grateful that they came when they did otherwise it might be quite a while before I get any mail. So Butler and Uconn are in the championship that is powerful. I assume that the championship is tonight. Well I hope that all is well.
With love,
Elder Cecil
Monday, March 28, 2011
Well it has been a good week, though nothing real exciting has happened. We did have a Zone Activity last week, we went to Lake Cheveru and played soccer and had a braai. It was a really fun day and for whatever reason I was actually doing really good while we played soccer. It was weird, usually I am just ok at it, but last week I was doing powerful. We also had another Specialized Training on thursday. It was really good. We had instruction from Elder Taggart, he and his wife are the senior couple in Zambia. We also heard from Elder Mayfield, I told Sister Mayfield that you guys saw the video, she was happy that you got to see it. We also heard from President Dube. We are planning to do a Bi-Stake Family Fun Day on May 7. Each of the ward or branch leaders are supposed to assign members to bring less actives or to bring a referral to the activity. They will be playing all kinds of games and things. Each ward or branch is supposed to put together a soccer team and then they will have a tournament. The winner of the tournament will play the missionaries, but they don't know that they will play us yet, that is a surprise. I hope that I will still be in Harare for that. But I will know tomorrow though because we get our transfers tomorrow. I have know idea whether I will stay or not. We are pretty sure that this is the transfer that President want's to get us in the mission that we will be in. So we will see. They won't have a satellite broadcast at the church. We are going to President Dube's house to watch it. It doesn't start until like 6 at night here though. The wards and branches will get to see it when the DVD's come in like May. We are still planning to baptize Nyasha and one of Brother Musauki's kids (the other two aren't ready yet), and also another girl who we thought was a member already named Josephine Mbiriwiri. So hopefully that will take place.
I got an email from Bishop Eves today and was able to reply to him. I sent Rhett a letter 3 or 4 weeks ago. I am surprised that it isn't there yet. I was actually expecting a reply in the next week or two. That's great that there are some teaching jobs in Parowan again. I will pray for you to get one. That is great that Brandon is going to Pennsylvania. I haven't heard about anyone going anywhere since I left.
Dad I actually read that message from President Uchtdorf yesterday, I really liked it. It was actually something that I had been thinking about this week. I can't believe that the final four has that many lower seeds, it sounds like it has been a powerful tournament. Cheer for Butler for me. I will be waiting for the results. No I actually miss a washing machine more than someone to wash because we had to pay for her to wash for us plus we still had to do our garments which are the worst to wash. A washing machine would be a lot easier. So I either have to be the DL or ZL here in the Harare South Zone or an AP because those are the only houses that I know of that have a washing machine.
Well I hope that all is well at home. You are always in my prayers.
Love,
Elder Cecil
I got an email from Bishop Eves today and was able to reply to him. I sent Rhett a letter 3 or 4 weeks ago. I am surprised that it isn't there yet. I was actually expecting a reply in the next week or two. That's great that there are some teaching jobs in Parowan again. I will pray for you to get one. That is great that Brandon is going to Pennsylvania. I haven't heard about anyone going anywhere since I left.
Dad I actually read that message from President Uchtdorf yesterday, I really liked it. It was actually something that I had been thinking about this week. I can't believe that the final four has that many lower seeds, it sounds like it has been a powerful tournament. Cheer for Butler for me. I will be waiting for the results. No I actually miss a washing machine more than someone to wash because we had to pay for her to wash for us plus we still had to do our garments which are the worst to wash. A washing machine would be a lot easier. So I either have to be the DL or ZL here in the Harare South Zone or an AP because those are the only houses that I know of that have a washing machine.
Well I hope that all is well at home. You are always in my prayers.
Love,
Elder Cecil
Monday, March 21, 2011
Zvillie Sey?(in case you are wondering, I spelled it wrong last time I used it.)
So this week went really well. We had 5 baptisms (Taurai, Justice, Valentine, Pamela, and Adeline) and all of them but Justice were confirmed yesterday. By the way Mom, Justice and Pamela are not married. Far from it actually, Justice is 28 and Pamela is 15. But we talked to Justice and he now understands how important being confirmed is. So he said he would be there early next week to make sure he doesn't miss it. Adeline is the girl that we thought was a member but wasn't. After the baptisms we had an activity for the recent converts and investigators. There wasn't very many investigators but we had a lot of recent converts and it turned out really nice. Thye helped mend hymn books and then we palyed some games with them. It was funny when Valentine got interviewed for his baptism because he has a very interesting accent. It is kind of a mix between a deep south white man and a shona. It makes it difficult to understand sometimes even though he speaks English well. For example, when he says God, he pronounces it Goad. But it was funny because it was Elder Murdoch interviewing him and I knew that he was going to have a hard time understanding him. When they came out Elder Murdoch looked at me and just laughed. Then Valentine left and I asked him how well he understood, and he said that he had to ask him to say things over and over again because he was so hard to understand. Elder Murdoch even asked him if people ever told him that he had an accent, he said that it happens a lot. But the look on Elder Murdoch's face was priceless when he walked out. Well Brother Musauki is back but the wife isn't. But we think that his kids will be baptized on April 2nd along with one of Valentine's friends named Nyasha. But things are beginning to really pick up lately because we have been really focusing on them receiving revelation through prayer. So our investigators are beginning to keep their commitments more. I have been feeling a lot better about things though.
I actually had a really cool experience on Saturday though. It was nighttime, we were really tired and we were already late for our last appointment. So we were about to call and reschedule with them but I just had a feeling that we needed to go. So I told Elder Sefatsa and said we'll just go and follow up on their reading. So he agreed and when we got there we met just the father. We greeted him and made some small talk for a few minutes, then opened with a prayer. I asked him about his reading and he said that he was reading but it was taking a while. I then asked him if he was praying about the Book of Mormon and he said yes, so I asked him if he had received an answer yet. He said not yet. Then Elder Sefatsa asked if he knew how the answer would come. When he said no we went to Galations 5 and read about the fruits of the Spirit, and helped him to understand that he would have those feelings when his answer came. He said, "I understand now but I just feel angry." I was confused by this so I asked him what he meant. He then began to explain that he had had a very good job and that he had a lot of things going really well for him. But then he developed epilepsy and soon lost his job and now he works for a low paying security place. Since then things have just been going very wrong for him. He said he was praying but that nothing was getting better. Once he finished I was given the words in which to say, I thought about the talk that I had prepared for Sunday last week and some of the scriptures I had found. I shared a few with him that talked about how those who put their faith in the Lord would be supported in their afflictions and that they would be lifted up at the last day. So I asked him if he was really putting his trust in the Lord when he prayed or if he was doing it halfheartedly? He said, "I guess I haven't really believed that it would help. But now I feel that I need to try to do that in my prayers." The Spirit was for sure guiding me in what I should say. I now know that the talk I prepared wasn't really for the members of the Glenview Ward but instead it was for that situation with that father. I think that he will get baptized but it will take a while with him.
That's cool that Kim saw that thing on TV. Yes I do know the Mayfields. I know them pretty well. Some of the ones that went to the Temple on that trip are in my area. Some of their experiences were cool to hear.
Well the P-day at the soccer stadium didn't happen. Because the people at the stadium were xing and didn't cut the grass so we couldn't play there. But we did still go to Chi-town. I met Last, Brother Jena's son, but I didn't get to see Brother Jena which was disappointing but it's okay. I did receive that package with the pictures as well, maita basa. I really liked them. I do receive the Dear Elder emails. I get them the week after because they print them at the office. I will be looking forward to that one about Nick. It is always good to hear about the other guys on mission. I am glad that things are going well for you all. You are always in my prayers.
Love,
Elder Cecil
So this week went really well. We had 5 baptisms (Taurai, Justice, Valentine, Pamela, and Adeline) and all of them but Justice were confirmed yesterday. By the way Mom, Justice and Pamela are not married. Far from it actually, Justice is 28 and Pamela is 15. But we talked to Justice and he now understands how important being confirmed is. So he said he would be there early next week to make sure he doesn't miss it. Adeline is the girl that we thought was a member but wasn't. After the baptisms we had an activity for the recent converts and investigators. There wasn't very many investigators but we had a lot of recent converts and it turned out really nice. Thye helped mend hymn books and then we palyed some games with them. It was funny when Valentine got interviewed for his baptism because he has a very interesting accent. It is kind of a mix between a deep south white man and a shona. It makes it difficult to understand sometimes even though he speaks English well. For example, when he says God, he pronounces it Goad. But it was funny because it was Elder Murdoch interviewing him and I knew that he was going to have a hard time understanding him. When they came out Elder Murdoch looked at me and just laughed. Then Valentine left and I asked him how well he understood, and he said that he had to ask him to say things over and over again because he was so hard to understand. Elder Murdoch even asked him if people ever told him that he had an accent, he said that it happens a lot. But the look on Elder Murdoch's face was priceless when he walked out. Well Brother Musauki is back but the wife isn't. But we think that his kids will be baptized on April 2nd along with one of Valentine's friends named Nyasha. But things are beginning to really pick up lately because we have been really focusing on them receiving revelation through prayer. So our investigators are beginning to keep their commitments more. I have been feeling a lot better about things though.
I actually had a really cool experience on Saturday though. It was nighttime, we were really tired and we were already late for our last appointment. So we were about to call and reschedule with them but I just had a feeling that we needed to go. So I told Elder Sefatsa and said we'll just go and follow up on their reading. So he agreed and when we got there we met just the father. We greeted him and made some small talk for a few minutes, then opened with a prayer. I asked him about his reading and he said that he was reading but it was taking a while. I then asked him if he was praying about the Book of Mormon and he said yes, so I asked him if he had received an answer yet. He said not yet. Then Elder Sefatsa asked if he knew how the answer would come. When he said no we went to Galations 5 and read about the fruits of the Spirit, and helped him to understand that he would have those feelings when his answer came. He said, "I understand now but I just feel angry." I was confused by this so I asked him what he meant. He then began to explain that he had had a very good job and that he had a lot of things going really well for him. But then he developed epilepsy and soon lost his job and now he works for a low paying security place. Since then things have just been going very wrong for him. He said he was praying but that nothing was getting better. Once he finished I was given the words in which to say, I thought about the talk that I had prepared for Sunday last week and some of the scriptures I had found. I shared a few with him that talked about how those who put their faith in the Lord would be supported in their afflictions and that they would be lifted up at the last day. So I asked him if he was really putting his trust in the Lord when he prayed or if he was doing it halfheartedly? He said, "I guess I haven't really believed that it would help. But now I feel that I need to try to do that in my prayers." The Spirit was for sure guiding me in what I should say. I now know that the talk I prepared wasn't really for the members of the Glenview Ward but instead it was for that situation with that father. I think that he will get baptized but it will take a while with him.
That's cool that Kim saw that thing on TV. Yes I do know the Mayfields. I know them pretty well. Some of the ones that went to the Temple on that trip are in my area. Some of their experiences were cool to hear.
Well the P-day at the soccer stadium didn't happen. Because the people at the stadium were xing and didn't cut the grass so we couldn't play there. But we did still go to Chi-town. I met Last, Brother Jena's son, but I didn't get to see Brother Jena which was disappointing but it's okay. I did receive that package with the pictures as well, maita basa. I really liked them. I do receive the Dear Elder emails. I get them the week after because they print them at the office. I will be looking forward to that one about Nick. It is always good to hear about the other guys on mission. I am glad that things are going well for you all. You are always in my prayers.
Love,
Elder Cecil
Monday, March 14, 2011
This has been pretty good. We were able to get over 50 extra contacts along with 21 lessons. On Friday I went on exchanges with Elder Johnson (he is the big guy in the pictures with the baby lions). Elder Johnson is Elder Clark's son and we call him Baby Cub because he is big and extremely hairy. But he is a very awkward person but we all love him because of it. Though I felt like I was training him for the day. But it was a very good day and I enjoyed it a lot. Taurai and Justice are both ready to be baptized this week. They are both doing very well. Also I think that Valentine is ready as well. There is also another 11 year old girl who we just taught for the first time yesterday because we thought that she was already a member as she was at church every week will probably be baptized. Pamela we are not sure about, she will be baptized but we will see tomorrow after we have met with whether she is ready this week or not. The Musauki's still haven't come back from Bulowayo but we called them and they said that they were coming back today. But their children who are staying with their aunt came to church yesterday as well as the aunt. So probably they will get baptized on the 2nd of April. We've taught a few new people who seem very very interested especially Charles, he has been reading and praying about the Book of Mormon. He wasn't able to come to church yesterday though because he said that he had to work out some family issues. He was a contact that I made a few weeks ago at East Gate the mall. Yesterday was my first talk in Sacrament Meeting. But I didn't know about it until Saturday morning. What happened was that our Ward Mission Leader was assigned to give a talk but his mother had to go to the hospital so he asked me to give it for him instead. When we were in PEC I asked how long I would have to speak, I was told 8-10 minutes. So I thought perfect, that is a good amount. I was scheduled to be the last speaker but then as they announced the program they said that the 2nd councilor in the bishopric would be the concluding speaker. But seeing as the two sisters who spoke before me were very short I was like good I still have my time. Then I got up to speak and I started off really well, I was feeling the spirit as I was speaking. I had written a few notes of things that I wanted to touch on. Then 3 minutes into my talk they gave me a slip that said "time up" and I was able to wrap it up nicely but I was really surprised. But I got a little upset that the 2nd councilor got to speak for almost 20 minutes. Afterward everyone told me that they wished that I could have spoken for longer. I did too, but I was able to keep my patience and ended up having a good day. The topic was overcoming adversity by the way.
That is really unfortunate that Ohio St. got a no.1 seed, but at least the others are good. I didn't even know that San Diego St. was even any good at basketball. Keep me updated about the tournament That's too bad that those guys are struggling that much. I expected it to be rough but not that rough. Hopefully they can improve throughout the year.
On P days most of the time we play soccer or something like that. It's funny because when little kids see playing soccer they always call me Wayne Rooney, and not just because I wear his jersey but because they think that I look like him. I have actually had quite a few people ask me if we are related. But last week we were able to go paintballing at a member's house. This guy is extremely rich, and has a really cool paintball course at his house, so he allows the missionaries to go every once in a while. Today we are going to go to Chi-town because we are renting out the soccer stadium there. We were able to get it for really cheap because Brother Jena's son, Last (he was named that because he was supposed to be their last child. He wasn't) played club down in South so he has connections. Last was baptized a few weeks ago, I was really happy to hear that. But I think that Brother Jena will be there so I am really excited. Also I am pretty sure that the package with the pictures in it is here but I will see later. The rain suit works very well. The only problem is, that if we ride hard I get really sweaty and I'm all wet anyways. But it does protect my planner though so it is worth it. My first transfer, the planner got dominated by rain.
Dad, as for your frustrations out in Milford, read D&C 24:8 and Alma 36:3. They have really helped me on Wednesday and Saturday this week when things didn't go exactly as planned. I hope all is well at home and that you all have a good week. I love you and keep you in my prayers.
Love,
Elder Cecil
That is really unfortunate that Ohio St. got a no.1 seed, but at least the others are good. I didn't even know that San Diego St. was even any good at basketball. Keep me updated about the tournament That's too bad that those guys are struggling that much. I expected it to be rough but not that rough. Hopefully they can improve throughout the year.
On P days most of the time we play soccer or something like that. It's funny because when little kids see playing soccer they always call me Wayne Rooney, and not just because I wear his jersey but because they think that I look like him. I have actually had quite a few people ask me if we are related. But last week we were able to go paintballing at a member's house. This guy is extremely rich, and has a really cool paintball course at his house, so he allows the missionaries to go every once in a while. Today we are going to go to Chi-town because we are renting out the soccer stadium there. We were able to get it for really cheap because Brother Jena's son, Last (he was named that because he was supposed to be their last child. He wasn't) played club down in South so he has connections. Last was baptized a few weeks ago, I was really happy to hear that. But I think that Brother Jena will be there so I am really excited. Also I am pretty sure that the package with the pictures in it is here but I will see later. The rain suit works very well. The only problem is, that if we ride hard I get really sweaty and I'm all wet anyways. But it does protect my planner though so it is worth it. My first transfer, the planner got dominated by rain.
Dad, as for your frustrations out in Milford, read D&C 24:8 and Alma 36:3. They have really helped me on Wednesday and Saturday this week when things didn't go exactly as planned. I hope all is well at home and that you all have a good week. I love you and keep you in my prayers.
Love,
Elder Cecil
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