Monday, December 10, 2012

Keep Moving Forward!

Hello everyone,

I know I've said this before but it's incredible how time just fliesby. I can't believe it's already been 6 months. Transfer calls come in next Monday, I'm pretty sure I'll be with my companion for another transfer. One missionary in our flat is finishing his mission so we'll be getting a new missionary here in our district.

Well I didn't send a general email home last week because it was honestly a pretty tough week but this past week was a lot better despite my sunburn! We did quite a bit of service this past week and I forgot to put sunscreen on- big mistake! I'm getting really dark so I don't think people will even know I'm white by the time I leave here  haha.

I've learned that mission is not always easy but the Lord humbles us in order to bring us higher and to develop attributes of Godliness. The branch here is struggling quite a bit with less actives and members that aren't "anxiously engaged" but we are doing our best to help it continue to grow. As I've mentioned before, the branch here is very new. The branch president just joined the church a year ago but he is energetic and doing his best to keep the branch afloat. We are currently having difficulty finding a place to worship on Sunday, we have been moving around different schools. These are not very niceschools by the way but it's incredible to see that the venue doesn't make a difference when we are gathered together as saints. The spirit is felt no matter where we have church which further strengthens my own testimony.

This past week we had some great lessons that definitely left an imprint on my heart. We have been teaching this very humble family of 4, the M________ family, for about the last month I've been here. We decided on Wednesday to review the restoration because we felt as though they did not fully grasp the priesthood being lost and brought back in its fullness. Well after reviewing the restoration and using some illustrations to help them understand it more clearly, the Ntate (word in Sotho for father, like Baba) began to tear up. It was evident that the spirit touched his heart and he truly understands our message. He said that he really feels something and clearly understands what we are teaching now. The family has agreed to be baptized in Janurary so hopefully they'll continue to progress. They have already agreed to keep the word of wisdom which was shocking considering the father drinks and the wife and daughters all love their tea and coffee. We followed up with them on Sunday though and they have been keeping the word of wisdom and feel great!

Another quick story. My companion and I were walking along the road when an Ntate stopped his car and wanted us to come over to him. He started talking to us and asked what exactly we do. We explained that we are missionaries and a little bit about the message we share. He said he has seen us many times before but he felt prompted to stop his car and talk to us. He said my companion and I are like "BFF's" because we are always together haha. He wanted to talk to us because he didn't understand how "A white guy could be walking around with confidence in a black community" haha. That's literally what he said, it made me chuckle a bit. It's true I'm pretty much the only white guy but I don't really feel like I stick out. I have confidence in our message so I have no problem sharing it with anyone. It just reminds me of the scripture in 2 Timothy 1:7: "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." So true! God endows all of his servants with power and authority, I've
seen this manfiest time in again on my mission. Never be afraid to stand up for what you believe and to share your testimony! Anyways, we gave him our information and told him a little more about the church. Hopefully something comes of it!

Best of luck to all my friends at BYU for finals this week, one of the blessings of being on a mission is that I don't have to stress about exams for 2 years haha!

I love you all, the church is still very true!!

Elder Summers


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