Playing with Lions!

June 3, 2013

Hello to you all!

Yes you read that subject title correctly, playing with lions! Yeah so for pday earlier today 4 of us missionaries went to a lion park. We got a personal tour and were able to go play with baby lions and tigers. It was so cool! They can really bite and scratch though, I have a lot of scratches on my arms. It was a once in a lifetime experience though, there are many places like that in South Africa. I got some great pictures and video, I'll try to upload them next week.

As for the work this past week there is not a lot to report on. The baptism of the father in Welkom was great and it is another priesthood holder here in Welkom! Now that Welkom is apart of a Stake they have potential to become a ward. They are only a few priesthood holders away from becoming a ward. We are really searching to try and find those fathers out there!

I'll relate one neat experience from this past week. We have a YSA brother who has recently started working with us here in Welkom. He hasn't really worked with the missionaries before but we started to encourage him to come with us (he was less active for along time but he became active again last year). We have really been pushing him to serve a mission and he decided he wants to serve a mission! He is beginning the process of putting in his papers, it is really exciting to see him make this decision.

Well after making that decision to serve a mission he had a pretty hard trial hit him last week. He received news that he lost his mother. Even after losing his mom he kept coming and doing missionary work with us to stay focused and feel the spirit. Well on Saturday we could tell he was struggling and offered to give him a blessing. When we gave that blessing I could feel Heavenly Father's love for this young man. The spirit was powerful and every individual in the room could feel it. Heavenly Father knew his struggles and was very aware of his needs. The power of the priesthood is real and I have seen it manifest time and again on my mission. For those of us that hold the priesthood let us never forget the authority we hold. The authority to act in God's name! Let us never forget that and always live worthy of this sacred calling. As Elder Holland says, we must sanctify ourselves because we never know when lightning will strike. There have been so many instances on my mission this first year where we have been called to exercise our priesthood in the most extreme circumstances. As priesthood holders we must always be ready because Heavenly Father needs us!

I hope everything is going well back home, my prayers are always with you.

Elder Summers