So this week was really exciting as you can tell. At a members home they gave us so much food!!!! I literally hurt and I didn't eat the next morning. It was crazy intense. Good food though. And we got transfers and we know which mission we are in and where we are going but I ain't gonna tell you till next week :) Because that is the official split is next week. But we know now. Sorry!
But we had some interesting lessons this week. One was when I was on an exchange and this guy and his friends were just contending and unwilling to listen and speculating and conjecturing and they were inventing stories and then they would ask questions but wouldn't listen to the answers. So that was interesting but not as interesting as the lesson we had the next in our area. This guy has a completely warped sense of the Godhead and I don't even know what he was saying but he was seriously confused. One of the things he said was that God didn't have an image.... so we asked him if he read his scriptures. He said yes but somehow I don't believe him..... Then we went to Exodus 33:11 which says that Moses spoke to God face to face as a man speaketh to another. Then something ridiculous happened.
"Are you saying God has a face?" He asked.
"Yes." We replied calmly.
"Whose face?!" He exclaimed.
"His face!" I couldn't even believe it. Then he said that it was figurative and Moses spoke to a cloud. But he ignored the part where it said "as a man speaketh to another".... Do normal men speak to clouds????? I think not! We were so shocked that we just started laughing and he said many more ridiculous things. I hope his heart is softened one day so he can learn the truth. Because now he is seriously lost.
Then the baptism for Brother Garandemwa went great. He was so excited about it and his wife bore a powerful testimony of the Gospel and how they can now prepare to go the temple. Woot! But the sad thing is that Sister Caroline wasn't baptized. She was called into work at the last minute and she was on stand by the next morning so she couldn't come to church which was terrible so she will be baptized the coming week. That was a blow. We were preparing and everything was coming together. She passed her interview and she did great and then the day of the baptism it fell apart! So that was kind of exciting.
Then we also haven't been able to get a hold of some of our investigators. So we put our number on private and called them all. And guess what they ALL answered! hahaha and they were all just full of excuses. One was Bro Innocent. He had been avoiding us because he had relapsed. We actually found him at a bar. He came out and was a bit tipsy. So we talked to him and he told us of how he had been avoiding us and how we wanted to help him overcome it. He had even told his previous church that they needed to release him because he had found the truth but stresses and caused a relapse. So please keep him in your prayers because he is a really great guy and has a loving family but he needs help. But if looked at from a different angle the same scene could have featured in a comedy. Missionaries searching for one of their most promising investigators and they find him in bar! But seriously we need your prayers!
Well we will talk next week!
Sincerely, Elder Gay
PS I am in the Zimbabwe Harare Mission. I wasn't moved. I am not going anywhere!!! I am staying in my area with my companion. Zimbabwe I am here to stay!
Monday, June 27, 2011
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Elephants, Lions and the Word of Wisdom!
Sorry this is short but I will have to make it a bit short to make sure I have time to send pics. And trust me you will want pictures. So first things first. We had a great many lessons this week and things have been progressing well. We have some really great investigators and I don't know if we could have followed up any more than we did. We really put in a lot of effort this week with them and we are seeing fruits. Not as many as I thought or expected but the fruits are still coming!
With Innocent and his family we were sharing about the Word of Wisdom and it was a really great lesson. One of my favorites actually. The family is really great and they are progressing so well and while they had some questions about tea and coffee. Their main concern(or should I say Sister Enesia, Innocent's wife's main concern) was alcohol. Apparently Innocent likes to take the 'occasional' drink with his buddies. So we had a really good discussion with him and we have great faith that he will come off conqueror. But during the lesson I asked if we could take their tea and they replied with an emphatic 'yes!'. So after the lesson I asked for it and they looked at me in surprise and said, "Oh! You were serious!" And I took it! Then we put it in the couples house as a joke! :) They were shocked for a while. That was funny.
Then today we went to Antelope Park where we..... wait for it...... RODE ON ELEPHANTS!!!!!!!!!!!! Are you jealous? Because you should be :D It was AWESOME!!! Our Elephant was the leader and it was being stubborn sometimes and it would want food. So he pitched and yawed and it even sprinted at one time. Elephants are fast! It got moving I was very surprised. But Elephants are not so very soft or comfortable. But it was a blast and we got to feed them! Elephants are big. Did you know? They are big especially when you are standing right next to one! An I got to play with lion cubs again! Again, please feel free to be jealous :D
We are having the baptism for Bro Garandemwa and Sister Caroline this Saturday. Sister Caroline had been taught by the missionaries for 5 years! So this is exciting for the family. The father will be very happy. Now let me go and I will send pics!
Love, Elder Gay
PS As I went to send it, I hit something and the screen went blank.... no worries though it had auto saved my draft. Woot!
With Innocent and his family we were sharing about the Word of Wisdom and it was a really great lesson. One of my favorites actually. The family is really great and they are progressing so well and while they had some questions about tea and coffee. Their main concern(or should I say Sister Enesia, Innocent's wife's main concern) was alcohol. Apparently Innocent likes to take the 'occasional' drink with his buddies. So we had a really good discussion with him and we have great faith that he will come off conqueror. But during the lesson I asked if we could take their tea and they replied with an emphatic 'yes!'. So after the lesson I asked for it and they looked at me in surprise and said, "Oh! You were serious!" And I took it! Then we put it in the couples house as a joke! :) They were shocked for a while. That was funny.
Then today we went to Antelope Park where we..... wait for it...... RODE ON ELEPHANTS!!!!!!!!!!!! Are you jealous? Because you should be :D It was AWESOME!!! Our Elephant was the leader and it was being stubborn sometimes and it would want food. So he pitched and yawed and it even sprinted at one time. Elephants are fast! It got moving I was very surprised. But Elephants are not so very soft or comfortable. But it was a blast and we got to feed them! Elephants are big. Did you know? They are big especially when you are standing right next to one! An I got to play with lion cubs again! Again, please feel free to be jealous :D
We are having the baptism for Bro Garandemwa and Sister Caroline this Saturday. Sister Caroline had been taught by the missionaries for 5 years! So this is exciting for the family. The father will be very happy. Now let me go and I will send pics!
Love, Elder Gay
PS As I went to send it, I hit something and the screen went blank.... no worries though it had auto saved my draft. Woot!
Friday, June 17, 2011
Exchanges, exchanges and Church!
So this week was a week for exchanges. On Wednesday we went on exchanges with the Assistants. Which was cool because the Assistant who came with us was Elder Crossley. My very first companion and trainer. He has really grown a lot and it was nice to work with him again. The day in the morning kind of fell apart but we pulled it back together and had some very powerful lessons and we found new investigators. It was in all a good day and I enjoyed working with Elder Crossley again.
So after that we had a good day then another exchange on Friday. This time I went to Mkoba to work with the District Leader, Elder Ncube. While I was there I had the opportunity to talk with Elder Shields and he told me of his conversion. It actually occurred on mission. He had struggled earlier in his mission and had even wanted to go home because he thought he was wasting his time but he felt impressed to read the Book of Mormon. So he did. In 10 days. Then he prayed. Then he read it again. In 10 days again. Then he prayed again. Then he read it the third time. Again in 10 days. So in a month he read it 3 times and every time he prayed received the peace and joy from the Spirit that confirmed his answer. He knew it is true and he is a really great missionary and works very hard. I hope some day my testimony might shine as brightly as his. He truly loves the work.
I enjoyed the exchange with the District leader and he is doing well and I feel that he is preparing that area well and that we have very good missionaries in the zone.
So this whole week it has seemed like we have had nothing but fall throughs. Here let me count... we had 25 fall throughs this week and it seemd as though every day we fought for every lesson we taught. But at the end of the week, much to my surprise we had 27 investigator lessons. We even found some really great investigators. A family who we found on Wednesday came to church yesterday and their baptism is planned for the 25th! Which coincidentally is my birthday :) We have a number of baptisms planned for the 25th and what better way to celebrate my physical birth then with the Spiritual birth of my brothers and sisters? There is no better way! Woot! I am really excited for our investigators we have at the moment. We have really been finding some great people. Like Brother Garandamwa, his wife has been a member for some years and he has been an alcoholic for just as long. But his baptism is set for the 25th as well. When I asked him if we were done after we are baptized he said, "No, we need to prepare to go to the Temple." Powerful! They are already making plans for when they can go! Very, very exciting.
Although some of our investigators didn't come to church. So we visited them and taught them the imp[ortance of the Sabbath day. They felt very guilty. Especially Bela. I kind of felt bad for her. So I made sure I smiled more than normal during that lesson so she would know that she we cared and that is why we were chastising her. Although the way I put it sounds very bad. All we did was to teach the doctrine and her conscience convicted herself. We never said anything mean or angry but she still felt guilty because she didn't come.... hopefully she comes next week! :)
Hahaha on Sunday one of our investigators literally ran from us. She saw us pulling up and she bolted. Hahahaha my companion saw her and just started laughing! But even though she wasn't there we actually found someone who is more prepared and that lesson went very well. For we taught by the Spirit and she learned by the Spirit and she committed to be baptized! So the work is moving forward and we are doing well.
President Ndlovu, in the stake presidency, quoted me twice in the ward conference. The first time was when I shared Deut 1:2 with him and his family. They loved but I guess I didn't know how much until I heard him reciting it to the ward leadership and telling them he had gotten it from me! So I kind of felt a bit bashful after that... but it was cool.
We are having more exchanges this week and I am excited for that because whenI went with the District leader we were on bikes! I got to ride a bike and get out of the car! It was so nice to be on a bike again and to rush through the back roads and feel the wind. I felt like I was in my first area again!(Although my bum is a bit sore now.... the bike seat is more unforgiving than the car seat... :)).
Well that is all for this week!
Love, Elder Steven Gay
So after that we had a good day then another exchange on Friday. This time I went to Mkoba to work with the District Leader, Elder Ncube. While I was there I had the opportunity to talk with Elder Shields and he told me of his conversion. It actually occurred on mission. He had struggled earlier in his mission and had even wanted to go home because he thought he was wasting his time but he felt impressed to read the Book of Mormon. So he did. In 10 days. Then he prayed. Then he read it again. In 10 days again. Then he prayed again. Then he read it the third time. Again in 10 days. So in a month he read it 3 times and every time he prayed received the peace and joy from the Spirit that confirmed his answer. He knew it is true and he is a really great missionary and works very hard. I hope some day my testimony might shine as brightly as his. He truly loves the work.
I enjoyed the exchange with the District leader and he is doing well and I feel that he is preparing that area well and that we have very good missionaries in the zone.
So this whole week it has seemed like we have had nothing but fall throughs. Here let me count... we had 25 fall throughs this week and it seemd as though every day we fought for every lesson we taught. But at the end of the week, much to my surprise we had 27 investigator lessons. We even found some really great investigators. A family who we found on Wednesday came to church yesterday and their baptism is planned for the 25th! Which coincidentally is my birthday :) We have a number of baptisms planned for the 25th and what better way to celebrate my physical birth then with the Spiritual birth of my brothers and sisters? There is no better way! Woot! I am really excited for our investigators we have at the moment. We have really been finding some great people. Like Brother Garandamwa, his wife has been a member for some years and he has been an alcoholic for just as long. But his baptism is set for the 25th as well. When I asked him if we were done after we are baptized he said, "No, we need to prepare to go to the Temple." Powerful! They are already making plans for when they can go! Very, very exciting.
Although some of our investigators didn't come to church. So we visited them and taught them the imp[ortance of the Sabbath day. They felt very guilty. Especially Bela. I kind of felt bad for her. So I made sure I smiled more than normal during that lesson so she would know that she we cared and that is why we were chastising her. Although the way I put it sounds very bad. All we did was to teach the doctrine and her conscience convicted herself. We never said anything mean or angry but she still felt guilty because she didn't come.... hopefully she comes next week! :)
Hahaha on Sunday one of our investigators literally ran from us. She saw us pulling up and she bolted. Hahahaha my companion saw her and just started laughing! But even though she wasn't there we actually found someone who is more prepared and that lesson went very well. For we taught by the Spirit and she learned by the Spirit and she committed to be baptized! So the work is moving forward and we are doing well.
President Ndlovu, in the stake presidency, quoted me twice in the ward conference. The first time was when I shared Deut 1:2 with him and his family. They loved but I guess I didn't know how much until I heard him reciting it to the ward leadership and telling them he had gotten it from me! So I kind of felt a bit bashful after that... but it was cool.
We are having more exchanges this week and I am excited for that because whenI went with the District leader we were on bikes! I got to ride a bike and get out of the car! It was so nice to be on a bike again and to rush through the back roads and feel the wind. I felt like I was in my first area again!(Although my bum is a bit sore now.... the bike seat is more unforgiving than the car seat... :)).
Well that is all for this week!
Love, Elder Steven Gay
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Bulawayo, Amanda and Bro Gumbo
Dear People,
So this might be short and I apologize in advance. But some very cool things happened this week. Like we went to Bulawayo for a Zone Leader council and that was really cool to be with President and to hear him speak to us. We had some great discussions about developing ourselves and setting goals for ourselves to help our growth. I love getting these trainings although I always feel like more can be done than what we are doing! I guess that is the point, to encourage us to be better and do more! It definitely accomplished both of those. Bulawayo is a nice place and I liked it there. I got pulled over though but I managed to talk my way out of it.
Amanda came to church this week and that was awesome! we had another lesson with her and she said she was praying to know the truth and to not be confused! She is hilarious and she gave a great explanation for the Bible and Book of Mormon when we read with her that the Book of Mormon was the "most correct" of any book on earth. She said it was like Chemistry. The Book of Mormon was straight from the source and was protected when it was buried and translated direct by Joseph Smith. With the Bible she said it had the same source(God) but it had been exposed and things were extracted and cut out and it had been oxidized over time so there were some "impurities". I was very impressed.
Also Brother Gumbo, one of our great investigators, came to church this week as well! He is doing very well and his wife is a member and she bore a powerful testimony about her conversion and the Book of Mormon. He struggles with English, especially reading, but he is progressing very well and we are looking forward to seeing her baptized soon!
Do you remember the Simwanza family? The one where we found when the car broke down? Well I was told that Sister Simwanza was baptized!!!! Now it is the WHOLE FAMILY!!! That was great news and I can't wait to hear about they are doing. What great people they are. Well I hope you are all looking for opportunities to share the Gospel with those around you. Could it be that that person that is sitting next to you in class, or walking on the street, or at the store, or cutting your hair, or struggling with their yard work was put in your path by Heavenly Father because you have a message that could change their life? Open our Mouths and watch the miracles happen. Will you share the Gospel? When you do you will be amazed at what can and will happen. Not everyone will listen but some will and isn't that great? :)
Love, Elder Steven Gay
So this might be short and I apologize in advance. But some very cool things happened this week. Like we went to Bulawayo for a Zone Leader council and that was really cool to be with President and to hear him speak to us. We had some great discussions about developing ourselves and setting goals for ourselves to help our growth. I love getting these trainings although I always feel like more can be done than what we are doing! I guess that is the point, to encourage us to be better and do more! It definitely accomplished both of those. Bulawayo is a nice place and I liked it there. I got pulled over though but I managed to talk my way out of it.
Amanda came to church this week and that was awesome! we had another lesson with her and she said she was praying to know the truth and to not be confused! She is hilarious and she gave a great explanation for the Bible and Book of Mormon when we read with her that the Book of Mormon was the "most correct" of any book on earth. She said it was like Chemistry. The Book of Mormon was straight from the source and was protected when it was buried and translated direct by Joseph Smith. With the Bible she said it had the same source(God) but it had been exposed and things were extracted and cut out and it had been oxidized over time so there were some "impurities". I was very impressed.
Also Brother Gumbo, one of our great investigators, came to church this week as well! He is doing very well and his wife is a member and she bore a powerful testimony about her conversion and the Book of Mormon. He struggles with English, especially reading, but he is progressing very well and we are looking forward to seeing her baptized soon!
Do you remember the Simwanza family? The one where we found when the car broke down? Well I was told that Sister Simwanza was baptized!!!! Now it is the WHOLE FAMILY!!! That was great news and I can't wait to hear about they are doing. What great people they are. Well I hope you are all looking for opportunities to share the Gospel with those around you. Could it be that that person that is sitting next to you in class, or walking on the street, or at the store, or cutting your hair, or struggling with their yard work was put in your path by Heavenly Father because you have a message that could change their life? Open our Mouths and watch the miracles happen. Will you share the Gospel? When you do you will be amazed at what can and will happen. Not everyone will listen but some will and isn't that great? :)
Love, Elder Steven Gay
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Peanuts!, Families, and a House!
So this last week I found I was covered with hives again!!!!! So I analyzed the days and found I had eaten pb&j sandwiches so as an experiment I stopped eating peanut butter. And lo and behold I got no hives. So I was a little offended. How could my body betray me in such a manner. I had never been allergic to anything and now, all of a sudden my body decides to revolt!?! I had some difficulty coming to grips with it :) But as part of my experiment, on the third day I would eat peanut butter and see if the hives cam back. So I ate and NO HIVES!!!!! Yay!!!! I was so happy, being allergic to something would really be not fun. I can just imagine everyone who is reading this that is allergic to something and you are either happy for me because you don't want me to suffer as you or you are a bit angry with me because of your own sad predicament. I apologize. There is a reason for everything!
So this last week we have really focused on visitting those families that don't get visited and we have found quite a few people to teach and that has been really cool. It seems like a lot of them struggle in coming to church and also they wonder why so many bad things are happening. But hopefully we have been able to help them in their concerns. One lesson was really funny. It was with this girl named Amanda and we were teaching about God. And we shared about His true identity and how He and Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are separate. It was funny because we shared scriptures and you could see that everything was making perfect sense to her and yet she was confused because she had been taught differently her whole life. So you could almost see the inner turmoil as she tried to reconcile the truth to what she had known previously. I almost laughed out loud a few times in the middle of the lesson! She is great though and we look forward to seeing her again.
We are also looking for a new meeting house for our ward because it is kind of far. So I have been asking in town about it. Once a Nun was passing and I felt I should talk to her so I smiled and walked toward her and she was brushing me aside and wanted nothing to do with me or the message I carried. But when I asked about the house she relaxed and became more friendly. She didn't want to hear about the church. BUt I invited her anyway! Woot! Anyway, a friend of the nun came up as we were talking and said their aunt has many properties and that we could call her so progress has been made! Woot!
It seems as though time is never on our side. I am beginning my third week here in Gweru and we still have many plans that need to be put into action. Nothing to it but to do it! So that was my week and Korihor the gate was fixed! Now I think I might have to change his name.... maybe Zeezrom.....
Have fun!
Elder Steven Gay!!!
So this last week we have really focused on visitting those families that don't get visited and we have found quite a few people to teach and that has been really cool. It seems like a lot of them struggle in coming to church and also they wonder why so many bad things are happening. But hopefully we have been able to help them in their concerns. One lesson was really funny. It was with this girl named Amanda and we were teaching about God. And we shared about His true identity and how He and Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are separate. It was funny because we shared scriptures and you could see that everything was making perfect sense to her and yet she was confused because she had been taught differently her whole life. So you could almost see the inner turmoil as she tried to reconcile the truth to what she had known previously. I almost laughed out loud a few times in the middle of the lesson! She is great though and we look forward to seeing her again.
We are also looking for a new meeting house for our ward because it is kind of far. So I have been asking in town about it. Once a Nun was passing and I felt I should talk to her so I smiled and walked toward her and she was brushing me aside and wanted nothing to do with me or the message I carried. But when I asked about the house she relaxed and became more friendly. She didn't want to hear about the church. BUt I invited her anyway! Woot! Anyway, a friend of the nun came up as we were talking and said their aunt has many properties and that we could call her so progress has been made! Woot!
It seems as though time is never on our side. I am beginning my third week here in Gweru and we still have many plans that need to be put into action. Nothing to it but to do it! So that was my week and Korihor the gate was fixed! Now I think I might have to change his name.... maybe Zeezrom.....
Have fun!
Elder Steven Gay!!!
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