Jan. 9 2012 conversion story

Hello Family and Friends!
It has come to my attention that a few (or many) of you didn't receive my email last week due to overly large file sizes. My apologies, and you can always find them on the blog (my family is just putting my letters/pictures up on there). This last week has been less eventful that the 2 preceding weeks, but has still been a good one.

In my branch, I have been talking to people for a while and so now my comp and I are going to be starting the branch choir this Thursday! I am so excited because I feel that most of the members of this branch don't have a vision of the gospel, or a real familial relationship with the other members in the area. I hope that the choir will help to bring them together so that they can grow strong in the gospel together. It helps us so much as we have friends to grow with as we learn things like the people here are learning.

My Grandpa has requested to hear some conversion stories, So I will give the ones of the two most recently baptized converts. They are a married couple named Tendai and Juliet. One day, my comp and were just going from one appointment to another, and a guy, Tendai, called us over. He had seen the Elders that work in the adjacent town and was wondering what it was that we did. We explained to him that we were missionaries, and asked if he wanted us to teach him. He said yes, and so we proceeded to do so. After we had seen him about 2-3 times, we had seen his wife a few times but she had refused to join us on the account that she didn't speak english well. She did, however, ask us for a Shona copy of the Book of Mormon. When we returned for the fourth lesson, Tendai was gone, but Juliet was there, and we had a member with us. She agreed to have a lesson, so we taught her and found out that she actually is more fluent both in reading and speaking english than most people we have taught, she is just very shy. Long story short, Tendai quit drinking and they both started progressing really well. They came to church for the first time 2 weeks ago, and loved it. Just this last saturday, I had the opportunity to baptize them both. It was a great experience and so nice to see the change come upon them, even in their relationship. Now, a woman who lives with them is preparing to be baptized on the 21st of this month and is so excited.

This week, we finally got some of our investigators to church who have been having lots of issues, and it was a life changing experience for them. We have one whose brother was baptized a few weeks ago who is now going to start changing his life as well. Another, Romeo, has a very bad drinking problem, but his desire to change and learn is so strong, that he has even told us about how he is feeling the spirit so strongly, even when he is wasted! He is really starting to change and this sunday he hadn't been drinking at all. He is making very long strides and will definitely be a different man within the month.

For the most part, that is my week, although yesterday as we left church I brought my umbrella. Which item promptly got destroyed by the barrage of wind and rain en route to our area (it was pretty xhing aka crappy) and so I got DRENCHED! i put most of my things in my comps backpack and mine got pretty wet, though the inside didn't get too bad. . . but my clothes were just soaking wet.

One thing that is funny are the rumors that go around about the church here in Mutare. There are a variety of stories I have heard ranging from Blood in the baptismal font, Satanism, Snakes that come out of the walls when we pray, etc etc.


Questions (answers in bold)
Aunt Michelle
Do you have all updated and computers and electrics that we have here?
In some areas, the computer I use to email is new, but it is at a business specifically for computer/internet use.
Do they do spicy food there?
they don't like it at all =/
What are their favorite spices to use when cooking?
salt and more salt, and sometimes they add salt on their salt =P
Do they drive on the left side of  the road?
yes
So is your work permit, what do  you as an elder need to stay there, and is being a missonary considered work?
TEP or temporary employment permit, and yes it considered work 
So do they have a different saying for when they meet someone  is it just hi or is it perhaps different like in hawaii  they say Aloha.
 depending on the time of day or whatever else, there are one-jilion-and-three different ways to greet someone. The ones I use the most are "Makadini" meaning how are you, and Zedi-se meaning "What's up?" there is also good morning and good afternoon Mamuka-se and Masweira-se respectively. There are also a wide range of was to respond, most of which are exactly the same. Bo-bo meaning good good, Aribo, meaning it is good, Zedi-bo, meaning good, Indino-Faray, meaning I'm fine, and a variety of others. 
Grandma
So how are you doing with all the rain there.
love it
Are you getting webbed feet yet?
it felt like I was last night! =P
Does everything feel damp and mildewy?
not really. When it isn't rainy it is very hot.
Is it hard to get your clothes dry after they are washed?
no, we have a fan and drying racks

If we started to quote a scripture from the Bible, she could finish it for us.  She had requested a copy of the Book of Mormon and

we showed her a little video about it and gave her the first lesson. She seemed interested, but when we called back she said that she KNEW that we don't need any prophets or any new scripture because the Bible tells us everything we need to know.  Do you meet people with that mind set?
yes. There are hundreds of people here who will even just randomly start their own church or declare themselves to be a prophet.G-Pa said he would like to hear the details of some of the

conversion stories of those you are baptizing.  Those are always

so inspiring.
will do

I love you all, but almost none of you are emailing me, so I sit bored in the email shop after an hour while my comp and everyone else email their friends and family. . . Yes, I may be trying to guilt trip you into writing me =P There are many of you who I KNOW have nothing better to do. . .

anyways, Tonana Monday! (See you monday!)
and Majita to all those who write (thanks)

~Elder Williams

-- 
Remember: Pray always, and look to the Lord. Write often, and live life to it's fullest.

Doubt is the seed of failure. ~Taggart Williams

Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not. ~God (D+C 6:36)

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