Sanbonani!
Ah man, when it's most likely your last week in an area, you have a couple options... You can either be finished and trunky all week since you're most likely leaving (and then, if by slim chance you don't get transferred, be devastated when you find out you're staying), or you can carry on with missionary work like normal and bring to pass a heck of a lot of righteousness. Proud to say I did the latter, and man... What a lekker last week it was here in Newcastle!
So to start the week off on a high note, we were shown the fruits of our labors for "randomly strewing" rat poison in the ceiling when we found our rat buddy dead on the lawn. I mean, it was a little sad, but then again not really. Not being woken up in the night to little foot steps pitter-pattering on the ceiling is something that shouldn't be taken for granted. But, since we are indeed human and not beast, we had a proper funeral for the li'l guy by way of cremation. I will neither confirm nor deny the allegation that we blew up his head beforehand with a firecracker left over from the 4th of July. May he rest in pieces.
We had a couple lessons this week that just left us laughing. We were having a do-or-die lesson with Baba Mbofana... Kinda meaning that ok, this guy has been investigating for a long time without going anywhere. We're gonna be as bold as we can teaching the Restoration and bearing testimony, and then we drop him and the ball's in his court. So we go over to his house, and man... Satan moves in mysterious ways. We opened with a prayer, started with the lesson, he started pointing out that there's a lot of confusion with so many different churches out there, we started telling him how he can know which one is right, the Spirit was there, and then, just when we're going for the throat with Moroni 10:4-5, he puts his hand on my knee and says, "Now, I didn't intend to have our Bible study tonight. I just wanted to give you guys a nice meal." And he goes into the other room and prepares dinner. Now don't get me wrong, the dinner was delicious, but that was the third time we were being fed that day, and man... That was almost the best lesson we ever had with him. Darn it, Satan. But it's ok... His shafts in the whirlwind aren't going to stop Elders Marumo and Brown next week from finishing the job!
The other lesson that cracked me up this week was Gregory... Haha, that guy. So we go over to his place, and he tells us he has some really bad news, essentially that he's giving up on trying to be baptized because he's a failure and whatever. So a super spiritual lesson followed, touching on the Atonement, Christ's life and mission, and other nice stuff. And then at the end of the lesson, he tells us he's just kidding and just wanted to see what our reaction was. I think Elder Marumo was a little bit in shock, but I left with a huge smile on my face. Gregory... What a guy. He said that after that, more than ever, he knows that the Church is true.
Hmmm, what else... Oh! Elder Marumo and I tried out our lemonade stand this week, and it was a huge success! We only sat outside about an hour one day and we probably gave away 15 Books of Mormon and made some solid contacts. A lot of people would walk up to us and be like, "Free juice? For what? Why is it free?!" Ya know, kinda suspiciously. So, we were completely honest with them. "We have a message that will change your life, and we needed a way to grab your attention!" It's good, it's easy, and it's fun. I'm looking forward to trying this more in the future.
Usually transfer week goes slow, and especially the Saturday you're waiting for news, and especially when every single one of your appointments Saturday falls through. You have a super solid day planned out, and then everything that could possibly go wrong, does. Ok, not everything... But a new potential investigator ended up in hospital, a recent convert's parents told her she's not allowed to see the missionaries anymore, your power investigator got sick, and a whole lot of people just decided to not be at home. I get suspicious sometimes that our investigators plan things out together sometimes... "Let's all not be home on the same day! That'll teach 'em!" So it was a long day, but we ended up doing some good. Sometimes you just gotta take days like that on mission, put 'em behind you, and make the next days even better.
But at the end of the day, transfer news finally came, and this will be the last of my time in Newcastle. It's always sad leaving behind an area, but new adventures lie ahead. To be completely honest, I'm not too sure what to expect. It's always a little nerve-wracking going to a new area and companion, and this time around there's a couple twists. Stanger, the area I'm getting transferred to, has been closed for about 4 or 5 months, so we're re-opening it to missionary work. My new companion, Elder Mphaka, is getting transferred here from the Sierra Leone or Liberia Mission (not sure which one) due to the ebole outbreak that side. And to top everything off, I'll be learning stick today to drive the oSizweni 2 bakkie down to Durban tomorrow morning. So to say this week's gonna be an adventure is an understatement. Stanger's gonna be a challenge, but I'm up for it. Elder Mphaka and I are gonna set it on fire. And on the plus side, the town is right on the beach, there's a bunch of Indians (meaning Indian food!), the place where the temple is rumoured to be built is right by our area...Ballito. Nicest place in Durban from what I've heard. Can't complain about that! I have some great ideas for the area... All in all I'm super stoked.
Newcastle has been the bomb, but all good things must come to an end... Except exaltation of course. Hehe. I've learned a ton here, met some of the best people I know, and I'm looking forward to the times ahead. Let's hear it for missionary work! Hurrah for Israel!
Sala kahle, stay positive, love your lives my friends.
Much love,
Umdala Johnson
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