I'm not going to even try and translate that. It's a bunch of slang and deep Betsileo (the current dialect in Malagasy that we use in the area) that honestly has no real translation to English. So, just do your best to imagine what it means, and you may be somewhat accurate. :)
Anyway, things are all going well out here in the 'Bositra. That is to say, not much is different and we still have the same problems going on, but at least things aren't getting worse, right? It is very frustrating to have to deal with all the problems that go on here, but that's just life in general, so we might as well deal with it and press on, doing the best we can. It's better than the alternative, which is to just lay down and give up, which I personally don't want to do. :)
Anyway, we've got a few questions this week, so I will begin with those. First question, about transfers: Transfers were this last week, and Elder Delbar has now left Ambositra to work in the Mahamasina area in Antananarivo as a Zone Leader. And my new companion came in to Ambositra this last Wednesday from his former area in Ambohimanarana in Antananarivo as well. His name is Elder Benjamin Anderson, and he is pretty new to the mission, just one transfer out of the training program. He's a nice guy, and is from Logan, Utah. He came into the mission when I finished the training program, so that's still pretty recent (back in late December). Thus far things are going well, and we will see where the next few weeks lead us!
Second question, which is about our investigators. Thus far, things are going not as good as we'd like. Our best progressing investigators before (i.e. Jean Paul, Nahary and Mirana, and Liva and Olga) are not progressing anymore. Jean Paul and Nahary and Mirana all say they will come to church, but then never do. And then Liva and Olga haven't been taught by us for the past two weeks or so because they keep cancelling our appointments right before we head over there, for one reason or another. So, needless to say, we are a bit frustrated by that, but will continue to do our best to teach them, bring the Spirit, and help them help themselves receive eternal salvation.
Thirdly, to my mom specifically, no I have not yet received your Easter package, but will look for it to be coming down soon, probably with President Adams when he comes down in a few weeks for interviews.
And lastly, my mom asked me about what I've been studying on my personal time lately. And, as of late, I have been studying the topic of true and complete repentance. In fact, this seems to have been a trend throughout my entire mission, that I see in lessons as well as my personal studies, that repentance is more than what we usually make it out to be. The biggest thing that I have learned about repentance from my studies and from experiences on the mission as well, is that the true meaning of repentance is change. As it says in the Malagasy version of the Index: "Fibebahana dia fiovantsaina sy fiovampo izay miteraka fihetsika vaovao ao amin'ny fiainana." Translation: Repentance is a change of heart and mind which brings about new actions in life. It is not--as it is sometimes presented in other faiths--a confession, or sometimes even a payment of money in order to compensate for a sin. No, repentance is truly becoming a new person. That is why the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ are the way they are. It begins with faith, which is the foundation of all things with regards to religion. If there is no faith, there will be no actions. But, when there IS faith, then there will be actions in accordance with that faith and belief. Central to those actions is repentance, which is a leaving behind of all things bad and the effort we make to begin a new life in God and in Christ. We first must realize that what we have done is not okay in the sight of God. Then we begin to make the necessary changes in our lives in order to leave the bad things that we do and become closer to what God wants us and needs us to be in order to return to Him. Then, once we have made those necessary changes in our lives, we show our willingness to follow God and Christ, as well as our faith in Him, and take part in the ordinance of baptism performed by someone with authority from God, which is truly the gate that leads to the path we must follow in order to enter God's kingdom. If we don't follow His path, then we won't make it to the final destination. And repentance is key to that process, because "tsy misy zavatra tsy madio izay mahazo miditra amin'ny Fanjakan'Andriamanitra." In other words, that all of you all will actually understand, "no unclean thing can enter into the Kingdom of God." And, due to our fallen state, we all are unclean. Not one of us is worthy to enter into the Kingdom of God.
And in this last General Conference, in words much more eloquent than I could ever hope to write, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said:
"Is that what life was meant to be? Is this the grand finale of the human experience? Are we all just hanging in a cold canyon somewhere in an indifferent universe, each of us searching for a toehold, each of us seeking for something to grip—with nothing but the feeling of sand sliding under our fingers, nothing to save us, nothing to hold on to, much less anything to hold on to us? Is our only purpose in life an empty existential exercise—simply to leap as high as we can, hang on for our prescribed three score years and ten, then fail and fall, and keep falling forever? The answer to those questions is an unequivocal and eternal no!...Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, suffered, died, and rose from death in order that He could, like lightning in a summer storm, grasp us as we fall, hold us with His might, and through our obedience to His commandments, lift us to eternal life."
So, that is what I have come to understand of repentance. It is a two-way effort. But the other part--the most difficult part--has already been completed, and was completed around two thousand years ago, when Christ stepped out from the tomb, resurrected, glorified, and the One who overcame the sins, pains and death of the world. But, miankina amintsika ny tena famelan-kelontsika tanteraka (the complete forgiveness of our sins depends on us). Christ presents us with the opportunity to be forgiven, but will not forgive us of our sins if we do not show that we truly want His gift and His help. We must, as King Benjamin directs, "[yield] to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and [put] off the natural man and [become] a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord, and [become] as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon [us], even as a child doth submit to his father." There is nowhere in that scripture that mentions a payment of money for forgiveness, or a simple confession, and then we are perfectly clean. That is not repentance. True and complete repentance is putting our faith in God and His Son's Atonement, and then making the changes in our lives as are accordance to "the enticings of the Holy Spirit", which we find in the scriptures and in the personal impressions we receive on a day to day basis. Those changes, those efforts we make, and those actions we take as a result of our righteous desires constitute the true meaning of repentance.
Wow, that was a long schpeel on repentance. I hope you will all forgive me for that. :) But, I hope that someone will need that message, and that my email will help them. If you are reading this, that means you probably read the entire message, and I thank you for that. For those of you that skipped to the end and are now reading this, I kindly invite you to go back and read the entire thing. ;) I put a lot of thought and effort into the email, and those of you who didn't read it will make me cry (not really, but you get the picture).
Anyway, thanks to everyone who emailed me this week! It was good to hear from you as always. Keep up the work, and keep up the faith!
Am-pitiavana,
Elder Snell
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| Here we've got the Ambositra skyline. Not exactly the same as the New York skyline, but I personally prefer this one. |
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| This is the Artisan Hotel. Very, very nice, and you see those little bungalow buildings? Yeah, they are only twenty dollars a night. Mom, Dad, we will be coming back here sometime, and we will stay there at the Artisan Hotel. |
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| This is my sad depressed face after not working for five days because Elder Delbar was sick. |
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| This is a picture of a man I found wearing an Ashley Furniture hat. Apparently they've branched out to even Madagascar. |
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| Ambositra, still as beautiful as ever. |
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| Here we've got my desk, complete with inlaid wood, mpanjakabentany, and painting of Jesus Christ. |
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| This is Elder Anderson, my new comp. |
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| This is one of the actual little wood shop's where they make the inlaid wood and other such things. |
