Hello everyone! I'm so happy to get another email out to you all. My phone is fixed this week, so I will be able to attach photos. There's going to be lots of pictures because I have to catch you all up on what you missed.
First and foremost, I got transfer news on Saturday night, and my time in Tamale has come to an end. I will miss this place a lot! Despite the slow missionary work, extreme heat, and dust, this place is awesome! The culture here is unlike any other. I love the plentiful Muslims, the smocks, the food, and just the whole Tamale vibe. And I will miss some of the church members who showed me so much kindness and made me feel like I am part of their own family. So, all in all, the past six months have gone by way too fast, but it's time to move upward and onward to different things.
On Sunday, we had a baptism for our sister Cecilia! We have been working with Cecilia for a few transfers now, and she finally made the decision to be baptized! It was an honor to baptize her, and I'm very proud of her decision and just so happy that I am blessed to see how the gospel changes people! One thing I have learned while teaching Cecilia is that true conversion is not an easy task, nor should it be. But I have learned that some things take time, whether it be true conversion or adjustment to a new surrounding. So let us all be a little more patient because it will all work out in the end.
So the title of my email has to do with the other pair of elders in our apartment. We have all been feeling under the weather this week. The sickness started with me and moved to my companion. There has been a parasite or something making its way through people. Well, Elder Hala got it the worst and called the mission nurse and got sent to the hospital and got tested for malaria. It was a positive test, and they wanted to keep him throughout the night just in case. While he and his companion were in the hospital, his companion Elder Patterson started to have the same symptoms. The next morning he got tested and was also positive for malaria. So both of those elders are down for the count at this moment, but they are doing much better now. But we have all not had a good week health-wise.
One story I would like to mention is we have a member who is there but isn't. He's a little interesting. His name is Muhama. He used to be a Muslim but just couldn't believe that Jesus Christ isn't the son of God, so he moved to what he believed was correct. Despite being completely disowned and kicked out of the house by all of his family, he opened a small bicycle repair shop to get small money for food. Well, ever since he became a member, he has always carried a Book of Mormon with him. And I mean always. He will carry it with him in his back pocket when out and about, and when he gets to his workshop, he places the book in his toolbox. So I took a video of the Book of Mormon chilling in the toolbox. I just love to see a Book of Mormon that literally has hundreds of miles on it. I do think it is time to get home a new one.
This week in my personal studies, I have been studying in Romans. And I must say, Romans is seriously a scriptural masterpiece. Apostle Paul is powerful. There's too much to talk about, but I will highlight a few things and scriptures that I like. The first is Romans 1:16,
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek
We should never be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ because unless people hear the Gospel, they cannot have a chance at receiving salvation.
Another thing I love is that it talks so much about faith in Jesus Christ and how many of us will be justified according to our faith for some of our actions. And how with God, anything is possible. Romans 4:24-25
Anyways, that's all I have for y'all this week. I hope you stick around for the photo dump!
Photos:
Some pics of the other elders and me in Smocks, and lots of them.
A few photos of some families it was extra hard to say goodbye to.
A video of me weaving Kente.
A video of a kid who has saluted me almost every day for the past six months.
