Hello, my family and friends! It has been quite some time since I last emailed, so there have been lots of interesting things that have gone on. Let me get started.
First of all, Elder Negone went on transfer a few weeks ago, and I have now received my 9th companion, Elder Uzoigwe! He's my first companion who is from Nigeria. Getting to experience different companions from different places and walks of life has honestly been one of my most favorite parts of my mission. I've heard countless stories, backgrounds, and testimonies. In my experience, getting to really know and understand someone and their story brings a sense of unity. I have found it so fascinating that, although each and every one of my companions and I have had our differences, with the gospel of Jesus Christ as our common ground, we can work together seamlessly, as if we were born as twins (Mosiah 18:21).
In my zone (Suame Zone), we have 10 elders and 6 sisters that we help. With all of the elders, we must do exchanges. As I have mentioned in the past, I really enjoy exchanges. Well, this transfer, 5 of the 10 elders will be going home. I have always considered myself to be a strong-minded person who really isn't influenced by others. But I tell you what, when you have 5 exchanges with missionaries who go home in 20 days or less, it definitely takes a toll on your mental health. Sometimes it's a little too easy to let your mind wander and lose focus, especially when you only have 3 months left yourself. I believe this is the reason why I have been so terrible at writing emails. To be honest, I'm getting pretty tired, so I'm trying my hardest to keep my mind in Ghana until my time is finished. I'm grasping at straws here at this point; I am just in full survival mode, trying to push everything that makes me think of home very far away to preserve myself for just a little while longer. I got this!
In the missionary work, things are going so well. I can safely say that right now I am the most effective I have ever been in missionary work. My companion and I have seen so many miracles as we continually push ourselves. I have a firm testimony about the power of the Spirit in telling you all things. Sometimes we meet people, and our goal is to get to the bottom of their spiritual problems in just a few seconds. It's not an easy task to figure out what is spiritually bothering people, but I have found that if I just listen to the Spirit, it will tell me what their problem is. It's happened time and time again, and as we ask them questions, soon the problem is unfolded, and what the Spirit said was exactly the same. It's like in the Book of Mormon in Alma 12; Alma the younger is contending with Zeezrom, and Alma knows all of the thoughts of Zeezrom and is able to stop him in his tracks. In Alma 12:3, it says, "or behold, he knows all thy thoughts, and thou seest that thy thoughts are made known unto us by his Spirit."
Anyways, on another note, the weather has been super hot. When things get cold in the US, things get really hot in Africa! Luckily for me, it has been raining a bit later in the season than usual, so it's like free A/C in the evenings. But amongst all the scorching hot days, we have been able to crawl into a nice, cool baptismal font with some awesome people! One of them was Brother Oheme from my last email, who brought 3 different churches to the Lord in prayer. He is 76 years old and honestly one of the best.
That's pretty much all that I have. Things are going well for me. I'm honestly happy and decently healthy. The only downfall is I'm getting pretty tired and worn out with the mission. But that will not stop me or slow me down. Even though I'm tired, I still have a purpose, and there are people out there who need me! I know that this church is true and that Jesus Christ is my Savior, my Redeemer, and my intercessor with the Father. Because of Him, I have hope - hope of eternal life and hope to be perfected in Him! I know that I am out here to preach His gospel, to teach others (and myself) how to obtain eternal life. I know that the Spirit of God truly is "the fullness of truth" and will tell us all things. I also have a firm testimony of the divinity of the Holy Scriptures, and they truly are given to men for our instruction.
I love you all dearly and hope and pray for you continually. I'm thankful for your constant support.
~ Elder Gilbert
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