"Our [games] quickly became more elaborate, he would win some, I would almost win others."-Megamind "[Melot's] blown a tire!"-Cars "I'm stayin!"-Hotel Transylvania "Don't make me angry, you wouldn't like me when I'm angry"-Hulk

Hey mom, a while back you told me you had given a friend at work a copy of the Book of Mormon.  How did that go?

Would it surprise any of you to know that I have a travel sized Chess set?   Probably not.   Well, Elder Hove and I play Chess when ever we get the time and we are home.   He is actually pretty good.   I have to really concentrate to beat him, and even then he wins his fare share of the games.   Not like when I used to play my old Zone Leader Elder Thomas. He would just throw pieces away willy nilly.   So it is pretty fun having a challenge when I play chess.   It is nice that he knows how to play since many people out here don't.  

I have had really bad luck with my car as of late.   Old Shela Mark II has given me problems.   So last week we went to Gweru for training with President Cook.  Good meeting.   Great to see old friends and meet some new ones.   Anyway we were heading back to go to Chegutu and we have to pass through Kadoma, which has awe-full roads, and people out here don't have a concept of staying on their side of the road.   So big old truck coming my way, I tried to edge over a little to give him room and my front left tire went off of a drop off, and BOOM!   Tire dies.   Yep that sucked.   I have gotten pretty good at putting the spare tire on the car.   Gotta tell ya, next time we have to get up at five in the morning to drive most of the day I'm gonna buy me a Dragon.   A big old energy drink they got out here, cause it didn't help that I was exhausted at the wheel.  

Well anywho, Elder Hove and I are both staying in Chegutu for another transfer, as are Chasouka and Machakaire.   In the words of President Cook we are "the four horsemen of the Apocalypse".   I have claimed War.   My companion is Death.   But that is just an inside joke for us.   We are gonna tear it up and do some good.   I am excited.

It is very important to not get angry when you are on a mission.   Sometimes that is hard, when the same drunk guy always bothers you.   There is one guy Prosper, who every time he sees me starts to follow us around and bother us and kills our time and he is always drunk.   The guy is a gold pan-er so every day is Pay day which means everyday he gets drunk.   So every day he comes and bugs me.   It is very hard to keep a tight reign on my anger.   I have a short fuse, and that isn't good.  

Our area is doing well.   We are working on getting at least two baptisms on the 11th, more if we can get the people married.   It has actually been cooler during the day as of late, but the night gets horribly hot.   It is weird.   People out here still crush rocks.   Every few days we see huge trucks dropping off piles and piles of rocks.   It is interesting.   There is a religion out here called Matsie Baba's who are super hard to teach.   They don't read the Bible, so they wont let you quote from it.   Since they don't read the Bible they don't have much of a grasp on Christianity, other then what their leaders tell them.   They have a strange concept that Jesus is the Savior of only Africa.   I don't now where they got that from.   Anyway one of our members, sister Nomatta, has a brother in law who is a Matsie Baba and so we were trying to teach him, since his wife wants to learn with us.   Let me tell ya, didn't get us anywhere.   UGH.

Elder Hove and I are doing well.   The guy loves P-days.   He calls it "going less active".   It is really funny seeing him go from being a super focused missionary to being just a goof.   I love they guy and I am excited to be around him for another transfer.   It's gonna be great.

"That is the thing about work.   If we simply keep at it- steady and constant- things certainly will improve.
-Dieter F Utchdorf 2nd Councilor in the First Presidency..

"There is no problem to big, or to small, for God."

-Thomas S Monson 16 President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

"Your Potential is not determined by any outside circumstance.   Your potential is determined by your faith and how much you want it."

-Elder Mohl my old Zone Leader in California

Well it is interesting, as I sit here at the computer I realize that I am coming up on a year of missionary work.   It really doesn't feel like it has been a year.   But it has been, my time on mission is not infinite, and neither is our time in life.   People say YOLO all the time, but I prefer YOMO, You Only Mortality Once.   We tell our investigators all the time that their actions here in life are very important, because what we do here will affect where we go after this life.   In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were given agency, or the ability to make decisions for themselves.   That gift is given to every son or daughter of Adam and Eve on the face of the Earth.   We are free to choose our actions, but not our consequences.   We must use our agency wisely.   The prophet Lehi in the Book of Mormon said that we are free to choose between two things, either "life through the mediator of all flesh" or in other words, Jesus Christ.   Or to choose "captivity and death according to the captivity and power of the devil for he seekth that all man might be miserable like unto himself."   So every decision we make either takes us closer to God or farther from him.   We have to choose which way we are going to go.   Elder Mapugwa my District Leader said "it is better to be a step away from Hell facing Heaven, then a step away from Heaven facing Hell".   We have to choose where we are going to go and who we are gong to follow.   We have the words of prophets, both ancient and modern day, that guide us closer to God.   I testify that the Scriptures are true, both the Bible and the Book of Mormon, also the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price.   They contain the word of God as given to Prophets.   I know that they are true.

"Well then Mr. Lightbeer, prove it."

"You're a walking stick! It's funny! Now GO!"

"Stranger, from the outside. Ohhh.."

"I know its a rock! Don't you think I know a rock when I see a rock I spent a lot of time around rocks!"

Love you all.