We just got transfer information! So, Kampoy is
going back to Kinshasa as expected - he asked President Cook to put him there
for the end of his mission and so no surprise. BIGGER SURPRISE - I am working
with another African! Elder Ntambwe. Funny thing is I’ve already lived in the
same apartment with him when I was in Pointe-Noire. The story goes that while I
was being trained by Baker, Ntambwe was being trained by Lavering in the same
house. This transfer is so crazy - people are leaving and coming all over the
place - and now I am the 2nd oldest missionary in the city. Also a companion
from the MTC, Elder Leavitt, is coming to work in Yaoundé; which I’m pumped
about. So to answer your question, yes I am expecting some big things this
week, namely a new companion. Who knows maybe the rest of my mission will be
with Africans?
We also had a baptism - uber short notice - but
we didn’t know until Thursday. Thony was the brother, and he's got a good
conversion story. 1 year ago he found and bought a Book of Mormon from some
street venders (who resell the free copy given to them) Just out of curiosity -
2 weeks ago he walked into the church and explained that he knows the book is
true and was looking for the church it espoused. Cool! True to the story, he
had learned all the doctrine from the Book of Mormon, everything from the Plan
of Salvation to commandments. Our teaching went super fast, 2 weeks fast, and
we decided he would be ready Saturday. Thony is Ferious' age (22), and so we will
be encouraging him to go on a mission, but it was incredible that randomly
someone so prepared took the initiative to be baptized.
I guess there are a few lessons from his story.
One, if you want to know the Doctrine start with the Book of Mormon. Thony knew
it all because he read - he didn’t need missionaries. Also if you want a
testimony of this church, again start with the Book of Mormon! Might sound
repetitive, but that’s the most important book for members. It solves problems
and builds faith. I'll emphasis; I am a big avocate for the Book of Mormon -
READ IT! Two, don’t be afraid to act. There is some amis that wait for months
for baptism, Thony just jumped in the font as soon as possible. So don’t be
afraid to act in changing, fulfilling callings, or doing ordinances (those
things are important).
On Thursday we went out to lunch with the Canadian
diplomat, Brother Laurence. Sickest. Lunch ever! We just had a good time
talking about Temples and missionary work - all in French. Sadly, he's going
back to Egypt Wednesday so who knows, maybe I’ll see him again around
Africa?
Now that I've passed my year mark it seems like
some experiences are repeating themselves. Maybe I’m just that experienced now,
or maybe I need to go through them again, or a mission only has so many
curve-balls to throw your way, either way I’ve been out here for a while I
guess. That is all that really happened this week. I taught in church
yesterday, which reaffirmed my love for teaching. I've thought that maybe I’ll
just be a teacher when I'm older since I like it so much - idk.
I've been writing Peter for a few weeks and it
seems like he’s doing well, same with Braiden - occasionally, we write back and
forth. Hey, I’d love to hear from siblings and such, I’m going to call you out
- Ferious, Drew, Kaleb, Gabbie (Maya your exempt for sending me movie quotes ha-ha).
But I’d love to hear about the news in your lives, even if you think it’s
boring send it my way :) I love y'all and hope things not only go well but keep
getting better.
Speaking of unimportant stories - I was giving
myself a haircut, because I’m just that skilled, and it was looking super good!
Well I took off the safety-guard-thingy to cut some longer hairs I missed - and
well, I took out a chunk of hair from the side of my head ha-ha! So although I
looked good on Skype a week ago, now my dew is a bit funky ha-ha :) ohh well,
it don’t matter, hair grows back.
Keep doing what you do best! Have a rockin'
last week of school and awesome summer vacation. I love you all bunches
(literally, I love you guys!)
Elder Johnson
