October 16, 2017 - Elder Barlow and Volleyball: Reunited

Hey everyone!!!

VOLLEYBALL!

I hope everyone has enjoyed their last week! It's been a pretty interesting week and it's gone by very quickly, so I guess I'll just get right to it! Oh, and we played volleyball today, which was incredible (hence my title). I am definitely a bit rusty after not playing in over a year, but it was so nice to play again!!

On Wednesday we had interviews with President Mkhabela.  Interviews with President get better the longer that I am on my mission. I feel like he knows and trusts me and that I'm not just a name on the transfer sheet to him. He's very willing to help and his scriptural knowledge is so powerful. I always feel uplifted and encouraged when I meet with him. Interviews took most of the day, so we only had time to go meet with Perseverance. She told us everything she loved from conference (pulled out her notes and everything; so sweet) and we had an awesome lesson on the plan of salvation with her and her mom. Her mom asked about rumors that she had heard about the Church and ancestors (so many crazy rumors I could share), so we taught about family history work and baptisms for the dead. It was such an awesome lesson and we could tell that they were visibly touched by the message we shared. I can't wait for Perseverance to get baptized! It's people like her that make serving my mission such a joy!!

Chitown district reunited

On Thursday we got up early and got on the bus to Gweru for zone conference. This time we had the meeting at the Gweru stake center, which is in Mkoba right next to my first area! It was super weird but cool to see where my time in Zimbabwe began. The conference was awesome! We were instructed on obtaining knowledge, the power of the Book of Mormon, and the importance of teaching investigators about families and the temple! I always feel so inspired during zone conference and it really is an amazing time to refresh and recharge spiritually. I also had the opportunity to play the piano during the meeting; it was stressful but I was so grateful that I got to play the piano for the first time in forever.

Elder Taloa and I went on exchanges on Friday. He has been one of my best friends on the mission and he is such a fun person to be around. He grew up in Oakland and San Francisco and played football in high school. It was fun to relate, to tell stories, and talk about improving as missionaries. It has been such a blessing to have him in my district. I got to interview two people for baptism as well, and that is always a special experience for me.

Elder Taloa and Elder Barlow hit the streets

Our baptism on Saturday never materialized because of some problems with Faith (the 16 year old girl we are teaching) , and we found Mandla still at his church....awkward. It's ok though! Faith is back on track and we hope to baptize her in a couple weeks!  On Sunday we had lots of less actives come back to church, including Bongani, who we have been visiting a lot! Only a few investigators came, but one of those that came was a young girl named Andile that we had only taught the day before! Hopefully she will continue to progress! Elder Magoha and I are going through some rough patches here and there, so I'm going to do my best to humble myself and help him with his needs. I have a song on my MP3 called He Walked a Mile in My Shoes, and it talks about how Jesus Christ atoned for all our difficulties, sins, griefs, etc. It has been so comforting to listen to the words about how the Savior can comfort and strengthen me because He has been here before. If the Savior loved me, and the rest of us enough to suffer and die so that He could relate to us and forgive/strengthen us, then I can try a little harder to love Elder Magoha and empathize with him. I testify that Christ has power not only to forgive sins , but to heal broken hearts and lift up the hands that hang down. If you haven't read Alma 7: 11-13 recently, I would encourage you to do so. The Savior is there for us, and He has truly walked a mile in our shoes. I love Him more than I can express, and I am beyond grateful for the opportunity I have to serve Him each and every day as a missionary! Have a great week!!

Love Elder Barlow

October 9, 2017 - The Voice of the Lord to Us

Hey friends and family!!

I hope you all have had an amazing week! These past few days in Zimbabwe have been full of ups and downs, including some crazy weather. The October heat finally arrived at the beginning of the week, but it was surpassed by the heavy rains that came in the latter half of the week. Well...that's Zimbabwe for you!

Nketa district:
Elder Barlow, Elder Magoha, Elder Taloa, Elder Richardson,
Elder Tuimaseve, and Elder Horlacher

We had our first full district meeting together on Tuesday, which was pretty awesome. All the elders in our district seem willing to work hard, and I'm excited to serve around them. Elder Magoha, my trainee, is doing better and better each day. I love teaching with him, and he has a great testimony of the gospel. He's also a graduated civil engineer, so it's cool to here about his knowledge and experiences. One of the best blessings of being on a mission is that you meet all kinds of people and learn all about them! Later in the day, we met a man named George. He had a big smile on his face, even though he insisted that he was miserable because of currency issues and other struggles of Zimbabwe life. We stood on the street and talked to him for 30 minutes about how there are always things to be grateful for (life, health, family, shelter, a knowledge of Christ, etc.), how happiness is a choice, and how if we truly know God and His plan for us, the challenges of this life come second to the divine potential that we have as God's children (Romans 8: 18). He kept shaking his head and going back to the issues he insisted were too difficult to overcome, but I truly hope that he has thought about what we shared with him. I truly know that if we trust in the Lord with all our hearts, we can and will find lasting joy and peace in this life and in the next!

Find us on Facebook
(but you won't haha) 

On Wednesday I went on exchanges with Elder Richardson. He's from Missouri and lives in an adopted family of 25 kids. That's a lot. He was born in Haiti and is a super outgoing and energetic missionary. I enjoyed talking to him and teaching with him throughout the day. At the end of the day when we went to Brother Taranja's house for dinner, we were in for an unexpected surprise. We found two guys that we didn't recognize inside the house. At first they started accusing us of some crazy things, but I discerned that one of them was a member. After a little his cover was blown and he told us that he was Brother Taranja's brother and an RM. Yet, the other guy kept going. He said that he was a Jehovah's Witness, and he started asking us a bunch of questions. We had a doctrinal conversation going back and forth on several points for an hour and a half and the guy was good. Eventually, it came time to eat and the guy (Bongani) was asked to pray. Afterwards he asked us, "Elders do you enjoy what you do?" Of course we responded yes. Then he said, "Good, because I really enjoyed serving in Durban." Oh no. You guessed it, the guy was a returned missionary that had served in SA. Man, he got us good. We were totally convinced that he was a JW, and we defended ourselves pretty well, I might add. It was crazy, but we had a good laugh about it. 

This week we met another Bongani, this one the brother of a member. He has been staying in South Africa and has been less active for a long time. We've had a couple of heartfelt lessons with him, encouraging him to do what's right and to improve. The Spirit was really guiding me as I felt prompted to ask him about and encourage him to receive the Melchizedek priesthood. I've truly felt a desire for him to reach a higher potential and make something better of his life. It has been awesome to teach him and get to know him. Perseverance also came back from SA finally. We taught her and she is just as powerful as I remember. She has so many questions, perfect questions, and I can't wait to keep teaching her! 

Pizza with the zone

General Conference was so amazing!! I couldn't get enough, and I loved every single speaker. Elder Holland is always powerful, and I thoroughly enjoyed his talk on becoming perfect but not being discouraged, as well as the themes of the Book of Mormon, Repentance, and Christlike service that were present throughout the conference. Perseverance also attended the sessions and was visibly moved by the things she heard, which was so sweet. Elder Andersen's talk on hearing the counsel from prophets and apostles at conference as the voice of the Lord to us really impacted me. When we truly apply prophetic counsel in our lives, we will find greater happiness, greater peace, freedom from burdens, and a stronger testimony of Christ and His gospel. I'd also  just like to share a quick thought from President Uchtdorf's talk in priesthood session. Light chases away darkness. That is how it has always been. The light that emanates from Jesus Christ influences all to do good, and we can invite that light more abundantly into our lives as we seek to become like Him. A shadow is merely a temporary absence of light, and we don't have to get caught up in times where darkness seems to creep in. When we look to Christ, who is the light of the world, we will be spiritually well throughout all our difficulties. Although this life can be hard, we aren't meant to walk unguided in darkness. Let us all let the light of Christ radiate through us and seek to be a light to others. I truly know that light always chases away darkness. So don't give up!! Instead, lighten up with the help of the Savior.

I love you all, have the most amazing week!!

Love Elder Barlow

October 2, 2017 - My Son, Everything the Light Touches is Our Kingdom

Hey everybody!!! I hope everyone's week has been kuhle!!! It has been a busy but awesome week with lots of new experiences. There never seems to be a dull day as a missionary in Zimbabwe!

On Tuesday I was in a trio with Elder Taloa and his new companion, Elder Richardson from Missouri. We taught some awesome lessons, but it seemed to be kind of a weird day, especially after our 3 person district meeting. We now have two more elders in our district, Elder Horlacher and Elder Tuimaseve. I'm glad that we have a bigger district and that I get to work together with some new faces! 

Elder Magoha

Wednesday was busy! I had to get on a bus to Harare at 7 am, and we didn't get there until 2 pm because the bus broke down on the side of the road. For those who have never taken a long bus ride in Zimbabwe, it is SUPER hot and humid because the air conditioning is basically nonexistent. When we finally got to Harare, I got to see lots of missionary friends like Elder Whiting (who's now an assistant to the president) and Elder Horton. And of course, I walk into the cultural hall in the chapel and there's a volleyball net set up. A volleyball net. I about died, especially because they finally put it up after I left. Oh well, you can't have your volleyball and play with it too I guess. The trainers meeting with President Mkhabela was awesome. We read from D&C 121 and learned about principles of righteous leadership, especially those exhibited by the Savior. It is a sacred responsibility to train a new missionary and we got some really awesome counsel about how to fulfill the Lord's trust in us. After that I met my trainee, Elder Magoha. He's from Tanzania (so he speaks Swahili) and is 26 years old. He's a convert to the church from 2 years ago, which is so awesome. He is kind of a quiet guy, but he is super solid and I'm glad to be his trainer. We ate dinner at the mission home with President and Sister Mkhabela that night. It is always good to be around them, plus Sister Mkhabela made lasagna that was just about the best thing that I've eaten in forever. As  to my title, this quote from the Lion King was something my trainer, Elder Bamutesiza, would say to me as we would walk through the area. I thought about my experience of being a new missionary this week, and it seems so far away yet so close. I have grown so much since then and I have seen the Lord's hand so much in my life. He truly has been so merciful to me as I have gone throughout my missionary service thus far. It's strange now to be one of the older missionaries in the mission.

On Thursday we had our combined instruction from President Mkhabela. He is so concise and so focused in his counsel and I always love hearing his instructions. We discussed training, the schedule, and having the Spirit as missionaries and working together. I feel so inspired every time I gather with other missionaries and my determination to do the right thing increases. Christ said that where two are three are gathered in His name that He would be in the midst of them, and I truly believe that applies especially to missionaries. Following our meetings, we endured another 7 hour bus ride back to Bulawayo. I was fortunate to spend a lot of time talking to Elder Magoha. He has a degree in civil engineering and was telling me a lot about his work. He actually met the missionaries online and was taught on Facebook until the missionaries could meet him in person, and he really is converted to the gospel. As a bonus, I think he brought all the clouds with him from Tanzania because ever since we came back from Harare there have been clouds and even a little rain in Bulawayo, the first I've seen in my time here.

2/3 of the new district:
Elder Magoha, me, Elder Taloa, and Elder Richardson

Elder Magoha's first few days in the mission field have been interesting. I've been doing most of the teaching, and although his teaching skills aren't the best, he knows how to bear a heartfelt testimony and that is the best. Our lessons have been interesting, but I've felt the Spirit so much and felt so happy while teaching these people. I encouraged my companion to contact people as we go and he actually did!! It was a bit rough but he did it which was the important thing. I'm so proud of him. He is so humble in missionary work and always talks about how glad he is that we are companions and asks how he can do better. It's been interesting because he's not used to using US dollars or Zim bond notes, so I've been teaching about spending and saving money and also how to go about the area.  Overall, he's been learning hopefully and I have been learning how to be patient and to set a good example.

Church was awesome on Sunday. I have grown to really love fast and testimony meeting. It is such a great time to share our convictions of the restored gospel and to strengthen each other. Mandla came to church again, which was so awesome. When I brought Elder Magoha to teach him this week, he told us that he'd decided to be baptized, which was an unexpected answer but so awesome!!!! I am so excited to teach and prepare him to make that sacred covenant with the Lord. Overall, it's been a pretty sweet week, even though it has been difficult at times. I have realized time and time again that I don't know everything and that training a new missionary is a challenge in many ways, but I trust in the Lord. It is His work. I know that as we keep the commandments, the Lord will be able to help Elder Magoha experience the same tender mercies that I felt as a new missionary. It is a blessing to be a part of our Heavenly Father's work! Have a fantastic week everyone!!

Love Elder Barlow

1. Elder Magoha and I

2. 2/3 of the new district: Elder Magoha, me, Elder Taloa, and Elder Richardson.