Here in Madagascar, things are going pretty well, nothing out of the ordinary, but still just doing missionary work and doing our best to do God's will here in Mada. There are a few stories, but I'll tell those along with the questions my mom asked.
First off, my mom asked about politics here in Madagascar. Things are going pretty rough, and have been all year, but it's nothing new, and it hasn't really affected our ability to work or anything like that. The judges of the country voted a few weeks ago to impeach President Hery, but then the president paid off the deputies of the country, so they didn't accept the verdict, thereby nullifying it. People weren't too happy about that, but no riots thus far (fingers crossed!).
Secondly, I will get to see lemurs eventually in my new area, as I can go to a zoo called Tsimbazaza for P-Day if I want to, which i will be doing sometime in the future (we will see when that actually happens).
Thirdly, my mom asked about one of my teaching appointments and how it went. I will talk a bit about that, but i will talk about that in accordance to the split I went on with Elder Cartmill from North Dakota (one of our Zone Leaders) this last Thursday. All in all the split went really well, and it was great to learn from a missionary who is about to go home, as Elder Cartmill heads back to America in just over two weeks. His biggest piece of advice was simply to progress. He told me to not let myself regress throughout the mission, but to push and work even harder the closer you get to the end of the mission. I found this to be very good advice, and feel like that's something I need to personally work on, as I need to continually progress and improve throughout my mission. Slacking off at the end won't do me any good, but working harder can make a world of difference. But also it was a great experience to teach with him, as each missionary has their own personal teaching style that makes them unique. But I will also talk about one of the teaching appointments that we went to that day, which was probably one of the most interesting appointments I've ever been in. We taught our investigator Norbert and his family, and we were reviewing the first lesson. They have great desires to learn, but are not very good at it. In other words, they are all not very naturally skilled at things with regards to education and intelligence. They haven't had opportunities like that. But anyway, when we were asking them how they can find out if this message is true (which was done simply by asking "What is the way you can know the truth of Book of Mormon?"). But, they got confused several times, and proceeded to respond with answers such as "Jesus!" or "The Holy Ghost!" or "Repentance!" or "Faith!"..... Needless to say, I got a little frustrated, but in the end we managed to bring it back to what we were really trying to ask, and they finally got it... "Ask God." Afterwards though, it was very eyeopening for me to see simply we had to teach the concept in order for them to understand. Honestly, I don't think any of them have an education beyond the American equivalent of second grade. Only Norbert can read, and even he reads very VERY slowly. But, I am very grateful for these simple people who are willing to learn, willing to change, and willing to follow Christ, despite their lack of opportunity, limitations, and weaknesses.
And now, lastly, my mom asked about obedience: partial versus exact. This is something that I have thought a lot about time and time again here on the mission, especially about what it truly means to be exactly obedient. And I have found that it has less to do with the outside appearance of what you do, but the inside, and your motives behind the things you do. The thing is, exact obedience is not perfect obedience. No one, ever, has ever been or ever will be perfect. We are all human, and all make mistakes. No one has ever been or ever will be "perfectly obedient." But we can all be "exactly obedient" in everything we do. And that does not mean that we simply read the book and follow its precepts, but it means that we DESIRE and DO our absolute best to follow and do what God wants us to do. His will is what's important, not some words on a page. The missionary handbook is a means to an end; it is to bring missionaries in accordance with doing and following God's will for us, and doing what He wants, not necessarily what we want. And that is when we see the blessings from that kind of exact obedience. When our will comes into alignment with God's, and we begin working hand in hand with Him, then we see innumerable blessings pour out upon us and upon those around us. The process of our will becoming God's will is truly what exact obedience is. We leave behind our own views of what "obedience" means, and God's opinion becomes ours. Then, and only then, can he truly open the windows of heaven and pour out so many blessings that we do not have room enough to receive them. And that is what I have seen over and over again here in the mission field. When I am trying my absolute and honest best to do God's will, then God blesses me. When I fall short and give in to temptations of laziness or other such things, then the blessings tend to stop. But then I repent, do my best to change myself, and then overcome that. Then, as my will once again becomes aligned with God's, the windows of heaven open again and I am simply flooded with blessings and an outpouring of God's love upon me. God's tender mercies and little miracles simply fill my life, and my testimony of the truthfulness of the work and the importance of obedience are again reinforced.
But anyway, that's my week, which was pretty good all in all. I'm glad that you all are doing so well, and I want you all to know that I love you and thank you so much for the things that you all do in my behalf (prayers especially) because they are most definitely felt, even though I am on the other side of the world.
Thanks for everything, have a great week, and I will see you all next week!
Am-pitiavana sy fahazotoana!
Elder Sifotra
P.S. Sifotra means "snail" in Malagasy. Close enough, maybe?
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| The following pictures are from my split with Elder Cartmill. |
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| Elder Cartmill stole my camera in District Meeting and took this selfie. |
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| Our kitchen |
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| Our living room |
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| Our bathroom |
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| A picture of "Poop River" in the missionary area 67, which is the dirtiest place on the planet that missionaries are allowed to work in. But, that's where I got cloth for the suit I am having made, as they have some great cloth sellers there. |
