First off, this last week was transfer week, and my mom assumed correctly in that I am staying in the same area with Elder Reynolds. Looks like I'll be finishing my mission here in the dirtiest place on the planet missionaries are allowed to work. Wooooo! :P But in all seriousness, I love it here. Definitely one of my favorite areas. Gonna miss it when I'm gone.
Second question: my favorite part of this week. One of my favorite parts was most definitely the split I was able to go on with my old trainee, Elder Leo. He has grown immensely on his mission out here, and is doing great with the language. I really loved working with him and seeing his progress. But also, I really loved some of the lessons we taught this week, as we saw some great progress in our investigators. For instance, our investigator Gege, who has been addicted to cigarettes for most of his life has now officially been off of cigarettes for the good part of two weeks and is preparing to get baptized on the 9th of July with his nephew, Nasolo, and two other investigators. So the progress I saw with them is probably my favorite part of this week.
Third question: least favorite part of the week. That would have to be the Independence Day Festival that took place this weekend. Honestly, I dislike the way that Malagasies celebrate holidays. This is because they celebrate in the way that the world celebrates, and that is by drinking, partying, and all in all going crazy. It especially hurts when people put their holiday festivities above God in importance on their priority list. For instance, we texted one of our investigators to remind them to read the Book of Mormon, pray about it, and come to church.. Their response was as follows: "Sorry, but we have no time at all to read the book because we are preparing for the holiday. Also, we can't go to church on Sunday." So, things like that are a little frustrating. And that was my least favorite part of the week.
Fourth: other thoughts from the week. One cool experience I had today was when I was getting a haircut, we had already talked to the lady about the Restoration and eternal families, but today I literally was able to teach her the entire first lesson while she cut my hair. And now, when we invited her to come to church, she said that she really wants to come, so she'll talk to her husband tonight and try to convince him to go with her to church this Sunday so she can learn more about the Restoration and eternal families. I really thought and felt like it was a cool experience, and loved the Spirit it brought into the day. We're going to try and get her to learn from the missionaries in the area where she lives, which she said is something that she would like. So I thought that was a cool story that I thought I'd share.
Lastly, my mom asked about teaching how the Savior taught. And that is simply this: have charity for the person you are teaching. We must truly have love--pure and unfeigned--for those that we teach, and if we do so, then every single thing that comes out of our mouth will be for their benefit, and their good. That is the biggest thing that I have learned about teaching how the Savior taught. I must truly love those that I teach, and if I do so, then I will be able to teach with the Spirit and teach according to the needs of those that I teach. And everything I say will be for their eternal and spiritual benefit. Actually, that's what we must do in everything that we do. We must have charity for those that we come across in every thing that we do. Because charity is the greatest of all (see 1 Corinthians 13).
Anyway, I hope you all have a great week! Thanks for all your love, support, and encouragement throughout the almost two years I've been here. I love you all and wish the best for you!
Am-pitiavana,
Elder Snell
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| Reunion with Elder Leo |
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| Good to be back with old friends |
