God Helps Those Who Help Themselves!!!

I had a pretty sweet week!

So holy smokes... I have no clue where April went!  I have already been out for 3 months!! Can you believe it??  It is weird to look back... I feel like I have only been gone for like a weekend trip.... yet I feel like I am starting to forget certain things about home.  Like the sweet taste of cafe rio pork... I try and imagine every night while laying in my bed what a pork burrito tastes like.... all I can taste is mashed up fire grass on top of rice... haha... yum!

So I went on Exchanges this week with an Elder that is younger than me on mission!!  Elder Brandt is still in his first transfer.  I went to his area, so he did all the planning of who we would go see.  I realized how much I have grown while I have been out.  When I first came, if I knew I would be going out as senior companion I would have been stressing! However, the whole day we were out together we just followed the spirit and we had some sweet lessons and contacts.  I am slowly getting over my fear of going up and talking to random Africans! I can almost offically speak poor poor English... or in other words... Krio.  So mom, all those years of working on my grammar went to waste.  If you had taught me bad grammar then I would have been perfectly prepared for Sierra Leone! haha  Transfers are next week and it is very possible that I could train so It was really nice to go out as 2 noobs who still are learning and see that it is possible to make things happen!

One of the highlights of my week. I got a text from Elder Muthoni... my companion back in my last area.  They were having a baptism with 4 people that I had helped find and teach!!  One of them in particular... her name is Suba Johnson.  When I first met her she was one of those people you would say to yourself " man she would never accept the gospel"  well.... Never judge... cause BOOM... she just got baptized! ahhh so sweet!  I got that text at 6:30 in the morning too so it helped motivate me to work out.  So she got baptized.. and i'm keeping from putting on the pudge(fat)! haha

It has been starting to rain.  I thought I would hate it... but it has been cooling everything down!  I love the sound of the rain on the tops of the tin roofs here.  You know it is raining before you ever feel it because you can hear it hit the roof tops way out in the distance!  Another blessing.. since it has been raining... we finally got power for the first time in like 4 months in Bo!!  And it lasted for a whole 30 minutes!! yay!! haha  We get 3 hours a day with the generator on and then we shut it off so we can sweat the bed.  It is an awesome experience waking up wet and realizing the body print you left on your bed is just from sweat haha!

The best blessing/miracle that happened this week was definitely with a Man named Harold Rogers.  Harold is paralyzed on his whole left side.  He has been taking missionary discussions for the past 4 months but has never been able to come to church.  We told him that if he would make the effort to come to church 1 time, then we would prepare him to be baptized.  Well, the past 3 weeks I have tried to do everything to help him come to church but he always ends up coming up with an excuse.  So... I had the strongest impression to go to his house before church this sunday.  We showed up at 8:15 a.m. and saw him sitting in the same spot on his porch as always.  We asked him if we wanted to come to church and he again began to give excuses.  I said like 10 prayers inside my head while we were standing there talking to him.  Finally, after helping him realize that all of his concerns could be easily solved.  HE CHOSE to come to church!! yes!!!!!  we went and called a motorcycle to take him to church.  We helped him get ready and then lifted him on to the back of the motorcycle.  He had a helmet that was much to big and kinda hung off his head crooked.  He looked absolutely adorable haha!  A young boy rode on the back so he was sandwiched in and wouldn't fall off.  I cannot explain the pure joy I felt as I watched him ride off to church.  Man.... Missionary work his sweet. I read today in Jesus the Christ about happiness and Pleasure.  Happy memories are easily looked back upon and that same joy returns inside my heart.  Pleasurable memories don't have that lasting feeling.  Watching Harold ride to church will definitely be a lasting happy memory that I will never forget.

Our area has had a very slow start.  I am doing my best to find and teach more people and especially families.  Families are so important in this gospel.  I am so grateful for my family and the support and love I am given from them.  Family is definitely one thing I took for granted while I was home.  However, whenever I look back on the memories... they bring that lasting happiness.  So sweet.

I can't wait to talk with my family on mothers Day!! Woot!!!  

Today is our super P-day so we were able to watch Ephrams Rescue.  Wow.  Powerful movie.  If you haven't seen it I would suggest watching it.  I hope that one day I will have the same amount of faith as the pioneers who crossed the plains.  "God helps those who Help themselves"  quote from the movie that I loved.  People in Salone don't really understand h0w god works.  They think that if God wants them to do something then HE will make it happen.  However, if we don't put forth the effort first then we can't just sit and wait for the reward.  Do your best and then Christ will do the rest.  

 
funny quote for the week while talking to a boy who has been a member for 10 years.  "Wait... Prophet Mohamed isn't a Prophet?!?" haha I about died when he worded it like that.

Shout out to all my friends at college!!  Hope finals went well! Can't believe you are all moving back home! I had some of the best memories just that 1 semester at Utah State with you all!