Week 2 in Douala: Christmastime is Here!

Bonjour amis et familles! 

2 full weeks down here in Douala. This week was really busy, as we had a Zone Christmas party and Zone Conference on Thursday and Friday, as well as some preparation earlier in the week for that. It was pretty fun and inspiring.

Let's get into some great stories from the week:

WHEN IN AFRICA

So, Elder Mbaya and I were almost an hour late to Zone Conference because our driver took the traffic jam route and then ran out of gas. We had to walk 20 minutes to get another taxi and then we were at the whim of the driver as he took the 25-minute route as opposed to the 15-minute one. It was nuts. Our Mission President waited for us to give his presentation, though. 

MISSIONARY MOMENTS OF THE WEEK 

So we had a really great lesson with Arthur, who came to church for the 3rd straight time. We felt prompted to move his baptism up - he really is more ready than I first thought. He has great questions and desire - he'll make a great missionary someday. It's really fun to see his progression. 

We had a great lesson with this Anglophone named Charles. He hadn't been visited in 3 weeks (and that was the 1st visit), hadn't come to church yet, but he'd read all of 1st Nephi! And the brochure we'd left him when he didn't answer! It was an awesome lesson - I got to teach in English and I kicked into gear some of the things I'd learned from back in Louisiana. It really worked and Elder Mbaya added good testimony. 

SCRIPTURE/SPIRITUAL THOUGHT OF THE WEEK

Helaman 14:5, 8:

"And behold, there shall a new star arise, such an one as ye never have beheld; and this also shall be a sign unto you...
And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall believe on the Son of God, the same shall have everlasting life."

This is Samuel the Lamanite's prophecy about Christ's birth - a perfect first spiritual thought for the first week of the Christmas season. The new star also appeared in the Western Hemisphere, the sign of Christ's birth. And the same promise applied to those who lived there - that if they would believe in Christ, they would have 'everlasting life.' And this promise also applies to us. And everyone. Who has ever lived. Christ is the Savior, and through faith in him, all things are possible. 

Je vous aime tous,
Elder May






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