Week 72-Masaka, Uganda with Elder Ahome'e

My comp at a local salon.
P-Days are busy getting everything done for the week- but we like to get a little play time in too. Pool is always a favorite. Also building relationships, talking to and meeting people while sharing the gospel has become 2nd nature to me. I find some of our greatest lessons and messages shared are on p-day as we are interacting with everyone around us. Like, at the grocery store, hair salon, and pool hall.  Sharing the gospel comes naturally  and easy in everyday situations. Especially if you take time to laugh with people and ask them questions about their life.
Pauline's Grandmother has forbidden her to come to church, but is allowing us to still teach her. We told her she needs to be obedient to her grandmother- but on Sunday she snuck away while her grandmother was napping so she could take the sacrament and bear her testimony. It was so powerful-I asked her to write it down for me so I could have a copy. Can you imagine an American teen sneaking out to go to church ....?

Week 71 Masaka, Uganda with Elder Ahome’e

Before I got to my new area, I got rid of a lot of stuff. It was the coolest thing ever to be able to give all this stuff away and see how happy simple stuff makes people here. Like there's a kid about to leave on his mission and I gave him a suitcase and he said he was just going to take three backpacks because he couldn't get one, so he was so stoked. And then I gave my guard a bunch of clothes and he was so happy I think he was going to cry.
I'm adjusting pretty well. I like my companion a lot and the other missionaries I'm around are so fun. They are named Elder Malaba from Congo and Elder Kabayadondo from Zimbabwe. They're both so hilarious and good runners so I always have someone to run with. They live next door to us and they're in my district. I'm having a great time. My comp really likes to work hard but he's also a big fan of playing hard, so it's been a perfect balance. But we had a CRAZY end to our week, we had an investigator pass out at church yesterday!  In the second hour we had an investigator who had a super bad asthma attack and lost consciousness. Me and Elder Malaba ran to her house in the rain to try and find her inhaler after we gave her a blessing, but she didn't have one there, so we came back and got a truck there to take her to the hospital. We called sister Collings and she thought I was going to have to do rescue breathing- so glad she was ok. We are teaching this young woman named Pauline. She is 17 and the most spiritually prepared investigator I’ve ever taught.  After each lesson she finishes all the things we have asked her to do. She comes to church each week and writes a list of questions to ask us at the next lesson. She even called us to schedule her next lesson. She would like to get baptized but she must ask her mother, who lives in her ancestral village for permission. She is very afraid that her mother will not allow baptism. Please pray for her mother’s heart to be softened. Love you guys lots!

Week 70 - Masaka, Uganda with Elder Ahome'e

I know you're not up right now but since my companion is from Tonga, he has to email in the middle of the day so he can talk to his family Let me tell you a little about my week. On Thursday we got picked up and taken to our new areas. I'm in an area called Kijjabweni which is in Masaka. It's a super awesome area, it reminds me a lot of Lugazi except our apartment is SO nice. We have a great shower, and it's small and clean. I'm really happy here, and we're teaching a lot of great people. My companion is Elder Ahome'e from Tonga. He is a lot of fun. Thursday night we came into town and got a little bit of food and then we came back, and I unpacked. Friday, we had some appointments and we met with members. Saturday, we went out and taught all day, and it was good to get back into it. Being around new missionaries is a little bit reviving. We had Book of Mormon class that night too and that's my favorite. 
One thing about Masaka is it's a little bit chilly sometimes and I love it. It rains almost every day and that makes the weather pleasant. Sunday was good, I got to share my testimony at church. Then after lunch we went out and contacted a ton of people. The next few weeks we will be super busy with teaching. Every night this week we've been playing cover your assets with the other elders. I have lots of funny pictures, but I can't send them from the internet cafe. Some of them include my companion eating a pig’s head, him killing bugs with a homemade flame thrower, and then me and a toy lightsaber I found. I'll figure out some way to send them to you soon. I finished the Pearl of Great Price this week, and I'm going to start it again. I'm reading Mosiah in the Book of Mormon, but I forgot my scriptures, so I don't have a good spiritual thought to share from my studies but in our Book of Mormon class we read 1 Nephi chapter 6. Two things I really liked were 1 when Nephi was tied up by his brothers and left for dead, he asked God for strength to break the bands, he didn't just ask for the bands to go away. It made me think about how when we go through trials, we should ask for strength to be able to handle them, instead of just asking for our circumstances to be changed. the second thing was at the end of the chapter Nephi and his family get together and they offer sacrifices and they're thankful. I was thinking about how even in hard times we can find things to be thankful for and be happy because of our family and loved ones. That was good for me because adjusting to something new is not something I like. 

Week 69- Entebbe, Uganda with Elder Budu

Well the main news is there was a problem with my paperwork for Ethiopia. So, I'm heading to Masaka this week to be with Elder…. don't know how to say his name. He's Tongan and really big. So big in fact he roasted and ate a WHOLE PIG by himself this week. Elder Budu had his medical exit exam and found out that he has bilharzia along with every other missionary who is going home. I think I'm going to go get tested on Thursday now haha. Tonight, we went to dinner with Brother Albert, the gentleman we were teaching from Sierra Leone. He took us to a really nice restaurant, and we had a great time. He's such a nice guy and I'm excited for him and his future. He is going to be baptized this coming Sunday. Sure love you guys!  

Week 68-Entebbe with Elder Budu

I'll get down to it, this week we really didn't do too much because Elder Budu messed up his knee. I don't know how but he's going to the doctor tomorrow so I guess we will see then. He said he's in a lot of pain and it hurts to walk so we didn't teach much at all this week. I'll just give you a few highlights, but there will be even less than usual. Tuesday, we went and saw a super less active member who lives next to us. (I didn't even know she was a member) and we hung out with her and talked with her a little bit. Turns out she's just super busy with work and taking care of her kid. She's a really nice lady though, we just talked about how important it is to take the sacrament and how it can be a source of spiritual strength. Wednesday we had DDM in Kajansi so we had a long taxi ride. I liked our training. It made me reflect on some of my harder mission experiences. If you don't try and get something out of the hard things you go through in life, you'll miss out on so much growth. Being on a mission is such a good opportunity to grow and become better. It’s an experience that literally helps you grow into a man and prepares you to be a good husband and father. But it's only what you make it. Wednesday, I had one of my favorite lunches. Eggs and rice with broccoli and bell peppers in it-SO good. We did some service-well I did - Budu had to sit and rest his leg.
Thursday, Budu couldn’t walk so I read a lot and studied a lot, did some yoga and got a good workout in. I sat up on the balcony and watched the sunset while I read. That's the sunset I sent you. It was super-duper pretty. Friday it rained all day and I got a little bit of cabin fever. I’m not used to this much resting… The last few days have been nice because of all the rain. It's been cool in the mornings. Today was good, we went to church we watched the first two talks of the priesthood session from conference. I thought Stevenson gave an awesome talk and it was cool to hear him mention Bryce Harper. 
Some stuff from my readings this week that stuck out to me were, in Mosiah 4 when king Benjamin talks about how just knowing isn't enough, we need to act on what we know. I liked that, it really resonated with me. And then I read 3 Nephi 11 today when Christ visits the Nephites. I loved reading that chapter and the following one because you can feel the love of Christ plainly. That's my week tho, more quiet than usual. Love you.

Week 67-Entebbe with Elder Budu

Overall, it's been a super good week here-
Tuesday, we had zone conference and the departing testimonies for the missionaries going home was the best and the worst part of the meeting. It was the best because I've got a pretty good relationship with quite a few of the guys going home and it was amazing to hear their testimonies and be able to see how they've grown spiritually. Budu especially gave a great testimony. It was the worst because a few of the guys were more focused on trying to look like spiritual Giants and just loved their minute of Fame. Those guys gave like a 20-minute talks instead of a testimony. So, I got a headache from that because it took so long but I survived. My favorite take away from zone conference was about how we as missionaries are in a position to have such a positive influence on our families, and we talked about more ways we could benefit our loved ones at home. On the way home I sat next to this cool guy named Ronnie on the taxi and had an awesome conversation with him. He works in the finance industry here in Uganda and is doing really well for himself. We talked about all kinds of things from work and family stuff to religion. It was awesome and I got to share the things that make the gospel so special to me.  
Wednesday we had DDM and it was focused on the stuff from zone conference mostly. After that I went with woodland so he could get a haircut from this Indian guy. Forgot to tell you last week while I was cutting his hair his clippers exploded! It was because the outlet he used was NOT for clippers. I think I'm going to retire from cosmetology... Afterwards we got some local food and hung out with those guys from Kajansi for a while. 
Thursday, I had something super awesome happen. Elvis Katerega got in touch with me to tell me he is just a couple days away from submitting his mission papers. I am so excited for him. I baptized Elvis about a year ago in Lugazi and have a really great relationship with him. We used to go out to the place he worked so we could teach him and sometimes we couldn't get a taxi back, so it was like a 4 hour walk! Teaching him and getting to know him was one of the highlights of my mission. He was really spiritually prepared for the gospel. 
Friday, we had book of Mormon class and people actually came... To play soccer. It was fine tho, I got a good read in. I’ll share something small from the Book of Mormon that I was thinking about that day. So, in 2nd Nephi 31 it talks all about the Doctrine of Christ and it tells us we need to endure to the end multiple times. It obviously means to endure to the end of our mortal lives, but I was thinking about how in reality there is no end and after this life we're still going to have to go through some degree of progression to become like Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. And then I started thinking about how multiple times the Savior refers to himself as the beginning and the end. I started thinking about how you could apply that to those scriptures that invite us to endure to the end. We need to endure to Christ and continue in our efforts to be like Him until we are like Him. I really loved that, as it encourages us to strive to make progress daily to become like Jesus Christ. 
I think everyone close to me knows I'm obsessed with exercise. I really like bodybuilding and self-improvement and growing and becoming better. I think I'm starting to apply that same mentality to my spirituality. I really love to feel progression and personal improvement in my character. I've realized its equally as tough as physical improvement though. When you want to progress physically you have to look at yourself and really assess your weaknesses and be real with yourself on where you should improve. Just like that to improve on my character I've had to look within myself and be real on where I need to improve by recognizing where I'm weak. It's hard but I love making progress. 
Saturday, I had a stomach bug and slept a lot of the day. I'm fine now. We're still trying to find more people to teach. 
Sunday, we had a great sacrament meeting and had a few investigators there. After we had a nice Easter dinner with the Balajuica family, and you'll meet them in a few months, I think. They are coming to Utah. We had an investigator at dinner with us and then just got to hang out with the family. It was really nice. 
I've loved this week and the opportunity I've had to reflect on Jesus Christ and the sacrifice he made for us. I think it's appropriate for me to share a little testimony about Him since it's Easter. I've truly come to love Jesus Christ and appreciate so deeply the sacrifice He made on our behalf. Being away from our family and the people I love has been so hard. It's much harder than any physical discomfort. But because of how much I've NOT liked that, it's made me more appreciative that I'll spend eternity with you guys. Really, nothing makes me happier than imagining embracing the savior as he comes again with my loved ones. This has all helped me gain a deeper appreciation for the atonement. I also know I'm so far from perfect. But I do have a desire to be better, and because of that, I'm thankful that I can repent and become better. I love our savior and know without a shadow of a doubt that he lives and loves us. Because of him I have the hope of being with my family for forever!

Week 66-Entebbe with Elder Budu

Hope this makes you laugh. How to keep your kids out of your candy-Guard it with some chopped off chicken heads. 
Well this week was interesting. The best part of my week was getting your package. You and Bailee are so thoughtful and every little thing makes me smile. I'm sure me and Budu are going to be in a slight sugar coma tomorrow from all the Cadbury eggs we ate tonight but it's good, were happy. Mom, thank you so much. It's like you sent me a little bit of home. I'm such a lucky son to have a mom like you. And tell Holly the bug stuff worked! We literally watched bed bugs crawl out of our mattresses! Let me tell you some of the little things about the week. Monday was great as usual so nice to hear from home. Wednesday we had DDM and after the sisters made us jollof rice (idk how to spell it) it's like fried rice with veggies... It was good. Thursday, we saw a lot of the referrals from the Ward. The next missionaries here are so lucky, they will have an amazing teaching pool. Friday, we cleaned the church almost the whole morning. Then we went and saw this member and I fell out of his avocado tree. I just slipped and fell like 12 feet flat on my back. I'm fine, just knocked the wind out of me. Budu and the member we were with could not stop laughing about it. We ended up with about 50 avocados. I wouldn't say it was worth it, but it wasn't that bad. My biggest regret is that no one had it on video so I could enjoy it as well. Saturday, we had conference and oh my that was an event. Everything is an event here literally we were there all day, but it was good. There was a lot I got out of it. I really loved the closing prayer, which is a funny thing to love, but it was one of the best prayers I've ever heard. It really stood out to me. I enjoyed all the talk about eternal families. It made me focus on how much joy it brings into my life knowing that my relationships with the people I love will last beyond the grave. It's a hope I take for granted growing up just knowing that's the way it is. But being able to share that hope has really opened my eyes to what a blessing it is to have that knowledge. I also felt a deep love for the Savior and his atonement which makes all that possible. I love you guys so much and miss you like crazy!