Week 1 in Douala: "We don't get used to it."

 Bonjour amis et familles! 

I've got one full week in Douala under my belt now and it's been quite the eventful one. Elder Mbaya and his previous comp did a good job with leaving the area in great shape. I think we've taught 12 different people, some of them multiple times. 6 of those people came to church! 
I'm still not used to the heat, and in the words of a member, I will never get used to it (sub. line). But the work is going forward at a great pace!

MISSIONARY MOMENTS OF THE WEEK 

So you know that kid Arthur? The orphan who got taken in by a new member of the branch? He's on date for baptism now! January 8th! We had a great lesson with him after church on Sunday and I invited him to be baptized. He said he wasn't ready now, but I'm confident that he'll be ready in 6 weeks! 

We had a fun visit with this lady who's been taught everything, and would be ready for baptism, but some events in her life have caused her to miss church for the past month or so. Our conversation with her wasn't even about the Gospel. But I think something that we said 'stuck', because she came to church this week! If she comes next week, we might take steps to make sure her 'I'm going to get baptized in December' promise to past missionaries becomes a reality!

SCRIPTURE/SPIRITUAL

Alma 61:9:

"And now, in your epistle you have censured me, but it mattereth not; I am not angry, but do rejoice in the greatness of your heart."

Context: Pahoran, the grand judge/governor of the Nephites, is writing to Moroni, captain of the Nephite armies, who had just called him a traitor for not supplying goods and more soldiers for the war against the Lamanites. Unbeknownst to Moroni, Pahoran couldn't send him anything, as he was facing an insurrection and had been displaced from the seat of judgment. Pahoran responds by 'rejoicing,' which is quite noble. He doesn't get angry. What can we learn from this? 
If someone offends you, seek first to understand that person's situation and point of view. Maybe they likewise don't know what you're going through. Don't call people names if you don't have all the information - or at all. Seek to understand the other person and where they're coming from. This is something I've experienced a lot on the mission as I've navigated every new companion (I've had 11 companions already). And it's something we can all put into practice. 

Love y'all,
Elder May

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Week 15 in Douala: The old Ice Cream <=> Restored Gospel exchange (March 7, 2022)

Image
  Bonjour amis et familles! This week was highlighted by interviews with President and Sister Miner and Zone Conference, and lowlighted by the news that I have developed athlete's foot. But I'm keeping a good attitude and it's been a good week regardless! MISSIONARY MOMENTS OF THE WEEK   So a little bit of contextual background here: there's this lady down the street from us that serves soft-serve ice cream from a machine. Over the past little bit, my comp and I have been frequenting her machine at least twice a week. By creating this friendship (and enjoying some decent soft-serve ice cream), we have now started talking about the Gospel with her, and we even had a little lesson on Saturday with her. She seemed interested and asked us some good questions. We now have an official appointment with her next week. SCRIPTURE/SPIRITUAL THOUGHT OF THE WEEK  Alma 24:27: "...thus we see that the Lord worketh in many ways to the salvation of his people." I love this so ...
Read more

Week 6 in Douala: Some new friends for the New Year! (Jan 2, 2022)

Image
Bonjour amis et familles!  Bonne année! Happy New Year! It's 2022! Whaddya know about that? We had a pretty good  week  to ring out the old year and start the new year. Some new people with a bunch of potential. Some fun meals to celebrate the New Year. Let's get into some details: MISSIONARY MOMENTS OF THE  WEEK   I had an exchange with Elder Knight, a newer American in the mission who I lived with for a  week  and a half at the beginning of this transfer. As we were trying to teach this guy at his haircut place (we kept getting interrupted by customers and stuff), a customer came and started talking to us. He became more attentive than the guy we were actually teaching, and started asking questions about the Restoration pamphlet we gave him. A couple of days later, we had a lesson with him, Paul, and his wife, Annetta. It went really great, and I could tell they felt the Spirit during our lesson. He called us the next morning wanting to meet again, b...
Read more

Week 9 in Douala: Welcome to the Brain (Jan 24, 2022)

Image
  Bonjour amis et familles!  To anyone who noticed, yes, the last 2 weeks have both said 'Week 7 in Douala.' First time I've actually done that (and I've been on the mission for 69 weeks now!).  This week was pretty good. Got off the spiritual high of all the Elder Sitati conferences and got back into the grind of everyday missionary work. Let's get into the thick of it: WHEN IN AFRICA: Elder Balanganayi claimed to see a water snake as we were crossing a bridge while contacting. I agree with him. This thing's head was too skinny to be a duck. It was probably at least 2 feet long. Sadly I don't have good pictures.  MISSIONARY MOMENTS OF THE WEEK  We've been trying to get a second lesson with Paul and Annetta, who we met 3 weeks ago, ever since that first one and we just weren't connecting. But we were able to have lessons with both of them this weekend, in the most unexpected way! First, after trying to set a day and time that would work with Paul...
Read more