BAPTISMS EVERY WEEK

Wow, what a month for baptisms! I think we went to a baptism every weekend in April.  The only problem being water most of the time.  This particular baptismal font was filled up with bottle after bottle of water.  Needless to say it postponed the whole meeting but it went on eventually.  The water is cold and not very deep so it's kind of tricky to get totally dunked.  Sometimes it takes a few tries.

I absolutely love this picture.  Eight people were baptized from two families.  It was a sight to behold. It was a proud day for the families and the missionaries.  On this same day there was another baptism in another ward.

When we have time we love to go teaching with the elders or sisters.  This is Elder Abisai from Namibia and Elder Almeida from Angola.  Elder Almeida is just learning English coming from a Portuguese speaking country. I am amazed at how fast he is picking it up.

One night we got a knock on our door and one of the sisters said, very calmly, "We have an emergency."  I walked over to their flat with her and water was gushing out of the hose behind the sink in the bathroom.  When I say "gushing", that is putting it mildly.  Water was already about 2 inches deep in the bathroom and quickly filling the rest of the rooms.  I ran for Craig and he finally got the water shut off and then it took us a good hour to get the water cleaned up.  Thank goodness there is no carpeting on the floor- only tile.  Never a dull moment- well, not very many of them.  Elder Salmon has become the fix-it-guy in the mission.  There's not too much he can't fix.

There are not very many keyboard players in the mission so this was a treat to have Sister Groesbeck playing a special musical number as the children sang for the baptism.  She teaches lessons on Saturday mornings for those who are interested in learning to play.

We visited a near by crocodile farm.  That crocodile almost couldn't open it's mouth wide enough to fit Elder Salmon's head inside.

It also had snakes- really big ones!

All three of these guys were scared to death to even touch it as you can tell by the way they are holding it.

Emmanuel was turning 21 and said he had never has a birthday cake before.  We couldn't find any birthday candles so we used the next best thing- one great big one.  He was pretty happy.  I've baked a few more birthday cakes since then and now everyone is telling me when their birthday is.  It doesn't take much to make someone's day a little brighter.

Another baptism last Sunday after church and these are the sisters who taught them although the man standing next to Craig asked if Craig would baptize him.  They grew very close during the self reliance group that he was attending.  It's an amazing process to see someone learn about the gospel and just embrace it like he did.  It's like he was just waiting for someone to come along and teach him about it.

Just a note on general conference.  We were able to watch it at the church a week after it was broadcast.  Elder Anderson talked about his trip here to Zambia and about one of our missionaries, Elder Ssengooba and also our mission president, President Erickson. It is quite a story about both of them and so many missionaries out here have very similar stories.  They have great faith and love for the Savior.  It makes my faith grow even stronger.  Missionary work is like no other experience I've ever had.

"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right had of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."

Ether 12:4

COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS

We got invited to dinner at the Stake Pres. home. We had all the Zambian foods, fish, nshima, and relish.

Their daughter (third from the left) just left on her mission  to Scotland and Ireland.

No utensils allowed.  I burned my fingers right off the bat.   They got a kick out of it. 

We visited a refugee camp in Malawi. There were two LDS families there- this little one got to me.  He said his name was Thomas S Monson.   

 This is the other family at the camp.  The father had a stroke a year ago, not doing great, but they were sure glad to see us.  He asked me to pray, and then at the end of our meeting he asked me to pray again.  I told him I just prayed, how about you.  He offered the sweetest prayer. In it he said " And Father, please don't forget Thomas S. Monson, and the 12."   I just felt it was kind of funny that he felt the Lord might forget them.

We were sitting in a small room with a dirt floor and this family has nothing.  At the end of the meeting we asked if we could sing a song. We asked the daughter in the orange shirt to pick  her favorite song. She picked "Because I Have Been Given Much."  As we are singing I had tears coming down my checks, and dripping on the dirt floor.  It was so humbling.   The satellite dish is a curious thing.  I'm not sure if it was in working order.

Ok, this is a Ant Hill.  not your typical Utah ant hill.  This is big, and they even get bigger.

 This is a tobacco farm that we drove past in Malawi.  They hang these leaves up until they dry and then sell them. It is the only thing they export from Malawi. 

 

Bro. Goodson and his wife have only been members for about 2 years.  He was a minister in his church but he and 6 others made a stand on gays and lesbians not having any callings in the church.  They all got excommunicated.  He then found the LDS Church. They have a son serving on a mission, and they are preparing to go to the temple.    They have their own school and teach 230 kids, ages 3 to 6 in two very small rooms with a dirt floor and plywood walls.  The school building is really bad.  They are trying to figure how they can make some improvements.

THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH

When you're dead, you don't know that you are dead. It is 

difficult only for the others.

It is the same when you are stupid.   

PIONEERS IN AFRICA

These two young men are twins, Victor and Vincent.  They just received their mission calls- one to Uganda and one to DRC.  They waited a long time for the call which they submitted in December.  They were very excited.  I have known them since they were young boys.

 These two young men joined the church less than a year ago and are already preparing to serve a mission.  They are trying to earn the money for a passport and to buy the clothes they will need.  Emmauel, the tall one, recently got a job at a filling station.  He called us as soon as he got the job and was so excited.  Emmanuel was the first to join and he told his friend, Evan, about it and soon they were both members.  Emmanuel lived with his mother until she passed away when he was still very young.  He went to live with his father and his father also passed away after a short time, I think it was a year or two.  Then he went to live with an uncle and that uncle was killed in an accident after one month.  Next he was sent to live with his brother and stayed with him until he graduated from grade twelve when he decided to come and live with his sister in Lusaka.  Not long after he came to Lusaka he joined the church.  Craig has hired him to do small jobs like washing the car.  He took the vacuum outside for Emmanuel to vacuum the car and Emmanuel had no idea what it was for.  He had never seen a vacuum before.  He is a great young man and will be a great missionary.

We went shoe shopping with Emmanuel and he was very particular about what he wanted.  We probably walked a couple of miles through the market in downtown Lusaka.  It was like a maze in there.  I was so turned around- I would never have found my way out if we hadn't been with some young men who knew their way around.

Not exactly the kind of shopping that we are used to.  I never saw another white person although everyone was very nice to us.

I thought this was pieces of leather stacked up on the tables but it's actually whole dried fish.  I'm not sure how they eat it because it looks like it would taste like leather.

On our last trip to the Copper Belt we attended another baptism.  Two young women were baptized in one of the branches by the missionaries.  The church is growing and the missionaries in the Zambia, Lusaka Mission are doing a great job.

Cecilia, a lifelong member, introduced the church to her longtime best friend and the rest is history.

We met the Mukonda family and have discovered what great musical talents they all have.  Many of the children have learned to play the keyboard and they all sing beautifully. We found an extra keyboard that some senior couple had left behind and decided to give it to them.  They were so thrilled when we dropped it off at their house they played and sang for us and we kept asking for more.  Their father had a stroke last April and has not been able to attend church for some time.  They don't have a car and live some distance from the church.  Craig offered to pick him up and bring him to stake conference.  This isn't even all the members of the family.  We're told there are 24 children but from 2 different mothers.  I haven't quite figured the whole story out yet.

These are some of the members of  the self-reliance group Starting and Growing My Business.  The course goes for 12 weeks and teaches the members skills that will help them to start a business or improve the business they already have.  These are some of the subjects covered in the book: What do people want to buy?  How do I know if my business is making a profit?  How do I know if I should use a loan to grow my business?  How will I increase my profits?  Some of it is as basic as the difference between income and expense.

Obert is not a member of the church but some good members told him about the self-reliance group and he has a small business selling fruits and vegetables so he decided to come.  He loves it.  He wants to be taught by the missionaries now.  He was having trouble reading the manual so Craig gave him a pair of my glasses and he was so excited that he could see the words.  Good thing I brought several pair with me.  I know how frustrating it is when you're not able to see the words.

One of my favorite things about being on a mission in Zambia is the association we have with the missionaries.  Most of them are African and a great many of them are the only member in their family.  Some have no support from home and they are truly on their own.  It's so inspiring to see how strong in the gospel they are.  These two called us the other night and said their power was out (a common occurrence) and did we have any left overs they could have.  I gave them what I had and they were happy as clams.

This quote is hanging in our flat which was also left behind by the couple that lived here before us.  Just thought I would share it.

"Cherish your spouse as the greatest possession of your life and treat him or her accordingly.  Make it your constant goal to add to the happiness and comfort of your companion.  Never permit yourself to let down in your affection, or your respect, or your faith in one another.  Be excellent in every way."

President Gordon B. Hinckley

Ensign, Sept. 1999

I can see that I have a lot of repenting to do.  I'm working on it!

STILL HERE

We put 48 liters of diesel fuel in our truck and it cost 35,821 Malawi Kwacha and they only take cash.  You have to carry bags full of money here- it's so crazy. While we were there $1=MK700. The exchange rate is very unstable right now so it changes daily.

We just got 4 new tires and look what happened already.  Another flat tire.  I guess you shouldn't drive through a giant sized pot hole filled with water.  Something punctured the tire right through the side so we couldn't even get it fixed.

It was great entertainment for the kids who lived nearby.  

When we attracted a small crowd, I handed out cookies.  Everyone helped and we were soon on our way.

Every time we cross the border between Zambia and Malawi I breathe a sign of relief.  We have to have all the right paper work and everything has to be just so.  We were sitting in the immigration office and a girl came in selling corn.  Craig wanted to give it a try but it wasn't too good.  Definitely not Utah corn.  Good  news is, we made it across.

The middle of February we had a senior couples conference and were able to spend a couple of days in Livingstone.  It is only about a 5-6 hour drive from Lusaka.  Although I have been there many times, it was Craig's first time.  We even took a couple of days and took a safari trip to Botswana which is just across the border.

Lots and lots of elephants.

The 2 other couples we were with- the Groesbecks and Hulls.  We had a great time

I know you can't really see what the sign says but we thought it was so funny.  VALENTINES EVE at the 7-11.  COME AND SPEND COUPLES NITE.  Where else would you rather be?

Elder and Sister Andersen visited our mission and were here for a short 24 hours but they were powerful hours.  Every time he spoke to the members here the spirit just filled the room.  There was no doubt that he is an apostle of the Lord.  He told the people to have faith, be diligent and patient as they wait for a temple to be built in Zambia.  There is only 1 stake here in Lusaka but the church is growing fast.

We just received this in the mail today from our ward in Centerville- everyone wishing us Merry Christmas.  It was mailed on December 16 and it arrived on February 24.  It was so fun to read all the messages from home.  Thanks everyone who wrote from the Willow Wood Ward.  We love you!

MALAWI NOT MAUI

This is a group of girls that Terry and I are teaching"My Job Search"once a week. They are dang cute! Only one of them is a member of the church .   They attend a group organized by an NGO called She Talks To The World.  We always begin, and end with a word of prayer, so we taught them how to pray also.  One time we asked them to sing a religious song- Wow was it great.

Same group

.

This self-reliance group here in Lusaka just finished "Education For Better Work".  We told them when they finished we would take them out for Pizza. We love these guys, They each had their own pizza, and then I could tell they where still hungry so we ordered up some more.  I think two more large.

We went to Malawi this week to do some training and took a little detour to see Lake Malawi.  We stayed over one night there and then went on. It was really beautiful. We went to pay the bill, and my card would not go through, which is pretty common in Malawi. I told the manager we were Missionaries, and that we would be staying the next 5 nights at the same hotel chain and I would pay when we got there.  He said, " No problem, you work for the Lord.  I trust you". 

This couple are in Malawi attending a 9 month program sponsored by Nu Skin called School Of Agriculture for Family Independence (SAFI).  It was a 2 hour drive outside of Lilongwe.  There were 5 member families there.  They learn agriculture, raising chickens and goats and fishing  Behind us is a acre of corn they planted on their own. They are also farming an acre of ground nuts, and acre of soybeans.  You might not think it is a big deal, but they have to hoe, to make rows,and plant one seed at a time.  When I asked if they used a tractor, they all broke out in laughter!  I'm so proud of them.

Take a look a this tree! Not sure what it is.

While we where at the school two guys saw a snake and took off after it hitting it with sticks.  This guy just grabbed it and stuck his stick through its head.  They said it was poisonous. 

These boys where fishing in the reservoir at SAFI.  The fish they where catching were about 2" long- they really looked like bait.  I asked them if they just eat them raw, or do they cook?  They really got  good laugh out of that.  They cook them whole and eat. 

This young man, Isaiah, leaves on a mission in two weeks.  He has only been a member for 1 year. He helped get his sister, and cousin baptised.  He is going to Nigeria- look at that smile. 

This was a group that has just finished "Start and Grow my "Business."  I had just met with them, and they shared how this program has changed their lives.  They had me bawling- I needed it, because we had been struggling all week wondering if we were doing any good.  The tender mercies of the Lord. 

  Ok, here is Sister Salmon teaching.  This was a fireside we had about PEF.   She did such a great job.  Its a good thing one of us is strong.