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!

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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