Hard Work Pays Off

Hello from Zimbabwe! This week was such a great week! With being in a trio now, we are covering two areas, so we are SO busy!!

In the new area, there was a couple that the sisters were working with to be married. Let me tell you, marriage in Zimbabwe is no easy task. First off, they have this thing called lobolla. The future husband must pay money to the parents to get married. After he pays the lobola, they usually just live together, and don't get legally married. So basically everyone I meet who tells me that they are married, I know its not legally. lol 

Over the past couple of years, a marriage license wasn't required to be married with the church in Zimbabwe. The couple just had to come to church for three times and then sign this thing called marriage bans that is just agreeing that this is what they want to do. Well, starting January 2019, a marriage license was required. And it costs $20..! Because of the situation, $20 is a whole lot to the Zimbabweans, and they don't have just money like that to spend. 

OKAY back to this couple...their names are Patience and Reason. Back in December they started signing the marriage bans, so we thought that they were good to be married. Because they finished signing on the 31st of December it was too late to have the marriage in December. The marriage bans were invalid come January, and they needed a license. These people are so powerful though, and a couple weeks later they finally got the marriage license. After they got the license, we called the bishop to find a marriage officer... THEN ANOTHER PROBLEM CAME UP. All of the marriage officers in the stake had expired licenses themselves. It got to the point where we called President Makasi to help find us a marriage officer because we had no other place to go. After many prayers and (trying) to be patient, President found one to come.

   

On Sunday, we got them married! It was a lot of fun. We had the wedding right after church, so we had a great turn out from the ward! We bought them a cake, and we really celebrated! We waited too long for this couple to be married, so we partied like nobody's business!  Right after the wedding they were baptized! They were so happy and even told us that they were so grateful for this gospel and the support and love they received. People in Zimbabwe are so humble and grateful. 

Liyona was baptized as well. That girl is so sweet, and I am so proud of her! She came to church by herself and without any support. She knows how important this gospel is, and she was so happy for her baptism! I don't know why Lenna hasn't been coming to church, but I know she has a testimony. She will come around and we will work with her! Cansio went M.I.A. this week, and that made me really sad. I just don't think he was ready, anyway. We will try and meet with him so that we can prepare him better!

Today I am emailing a little later, because my companions took me out to lunch to celebrate my birthday at this fun place called Rocomama's. It reminds me of Red Robin! There were other missionaries there, and it was fun to relax a bit and celebrate! My companions are the best! 

I am loving my mission SO much!!! Zimbabwe is full of such wonderful people, and I am really coming to love them. Adjusting to life hasn't been easy by any means, but it is so worth it! I have learned to have fun, work hard, and have charity. I am also learning patience and diligence. I wouldn't trade this opportunity for the world! 

Have an amazing week, I love you all SO much! I pray for you daily, and I also feel the strength from your love and prayers. 

Love,  Sister Kershaw

Crazy Business in Zimbabwe

Hello Family,

First off, I AM SAFE! Things here got a little crazy this last week. The government is pretty corrupt here in Zimbabwe, so the people are fed up with it. Things are outrageously expensive, too. SO... last week they decided to protest and riot against the government. Because of their rioting, we stayed inside our house for a whole week! I gained a fast and strong testimony of working hard as a missionary. I never want to spend another full day just sitting inside my apartment! I felt like it was the Christmas break of my senior year when we got all of the snow and couldn't leave our house. Only this time I was in Africa, and there wasn't any snow. More times than just once I was sitting on my bed and would think to myself," I am here 9,000 miles away from home doing nothing. Why am I here, again?" 

No Combi's (public transportation)

So this week I am praying people don't decide to go crazy so that I can go and be a missionary again. We did make the most of our time and had fun in the house, though. I was able to do a TON of studying, we baked a cake, Sister Wandera braided my hair, we used the face masks that my mom sent me for Christmas, and we strengthened our relationships with each other.

UPDATE! I am in a trio now. The other sister in our house, Sister Mtyombile, was really struggling with some emotional things. The area was getting to be too much for her, so she was emergency transferred to another area. Her companion, Sister Natocho, joined our companionship. Sister Natocho is from Uganda, and she has been on her mission for more than a year now, so she is about to go home. She is super fun!!! She likes to laugh and joke, and is really teaching me how to have fun in missionary work. We had some good laughs already, and I will be sad when she gets a new companion, I want to stay in our trio! 

Sister Wandera is doing great, too. I felt so bad for her this past week. I can only imagine how she is feeling coming to her mission for one week, and then having the country go crazy. She is okay, though. She was stronger than I would have been! :)

On Sunday we were able to go to church and we even went to the other elder's area for a baptism. It was so nice to leave our house and to be able to have some other human interaction. It was also fun to see a baptism, and the elders in our district. 

This next week we will be busy with seeing our investigators, and even preparing Liyona and Canisio for baptism! 

Next week's email will be more exciting. I love you all, thank you so much for your prayers. I promise I am safe, and will stay safe! Have an amazing week! :)

A better day in Zimbabwe

Dear family members of missionaries serving in the Zimbabwe Bulawayo and Harare missions,

We are pleased to report that today was again a fairly calm day in both Bulawayo and Harare. There were very limited protests. The mission presidents have been in communication with every missionary again today and all are safe and have adequate food and water. The internet has been restored, however social media is still shutdown as it has been the vehicle to organize the protests so we cannot post any updates on the mission Facebook pages. A few, very few, stores were open today in both cities, and some missionaries in Harare were able to purchase food and other supplies. In Bulawayo, the mission president was able to purchase additional food in bulk. Both missions report there is sufficient food and water. Public transportation has not been restored and internet café’s have not reopened so for the most part missionaries cannot send emails home yet. In Bulawayo, the mission president has been able to have some missionaries come to the mission home and email their families. If you have heard from your son or daughter you are one of the “chosen few.” Tomorrow the plan in Bulawayo is to shuttle more missionaries to the mission home so they can email home. In Harare, missionaries will email home as soon as internet café’s or other sources become available. The Harare mission president is hopeful this will happen by Monday. In Harare the mission president feels he will keep missionaries indoors again tomorrow (Friday) and possibly Saturday. In Bulawayo, some missionaries will be invited to leave their apartments tomorrow to visit members and progressing investigators. There are still some areas where our missionaries will still remain indoors based on reports from police officers (members) that there may still be some localized protests. We are being very cautious as we slowly allow missionaries to resume their daily activities. In both missions the hope is that things will back to normal by Monday.

Once again we thank you for your prayers and tremendous faith. Lucifer may slow the work, but he will not stop it. Observing the Lord’s hand in all of this turmoil has been a testament to the importance of this work. The Savior is very involved, in a personal way.

God bless you faithful parents.

Warm regards,

Elder Mark O Lords

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Missionary Department: In-Field Representative

Africa Southeast Area and Africa West Area

Please Pray for Zimbabwe!

Dear family members of missionaries serving in the Zimbabwe Bulawayo and Harare missions,

You likely have become aware that ongoing financial issues in Zimbabwe have escalated into widespread protests which began on Monday and are planned through Wednesday. Recent reports even suggest the protests may continue through Friday. As a result, banks, and most shopping centers have been closed.  In addition, the government has shut down the internet.  Normally you would be provided updates on the status of the missionaries and the current events unfolding from the respective mission presidents.  Because the mission presidents are unable to do so, we are sending you this communication to let you know that all missionaries in both missions have been directed to stay indoors until future notice. The mission presidents have been in communication with every companionship and report that all are safe and in good spirits.  The presidents have purchased food stuffs in bulk and have delivered sufficient for each missionary’s weekly needs. Mission presidents are in daily contact monitoring the safety and ongoing needs of each missionary and responding as necessary.

We do not know how long missionaries will need to remain indoors, however, with an abundance of caution, we will keep them indoors until we are certain it is safe for them to resume normal missionary activities.  We are hopeful the internet service will resume soon and therefore allow direct communication from your sons and daughters, as well as their mission presidents.  Until then we will attempt to communicate updates directly to you.

We love these young men and women and are doing everything we can to ensure their safety and meet their temporal needs. Thank you for your love and support of these wonderful missionaries.

Sincerely,

Africa South East Area Presidency,

Mark O Lords, Missionary Department Infield Representative contact

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I hope you enjoyed your last week of Christmas Vacation, and partied hard for new years! They lit off a ton of fireworks on new years, and so that was super fun! 

On Tuesday, I stayed with the Sister Training Leaders, because I was waiting for my new companion to come! We had a district council meeting, like we do every Tuesday. After the meeting though, President Makasi approved for their zone to go out to eat at this fun burger place. It kind of reminds e of Red Robin! We had a really fun time, and I had a hamburger for the first time in four months. It was so yummy! 

After we went to lunch, we went to the area of the STL's. I love their area so much. I told you a little bit about it last week, it is called Enterprise! It is green and has hills, and it is not in the city! I pray my next area is a rural area ;) I enjoy being with them, and seeing how they teach! It helps me to know what I can improve on. 

On Wednesday, I got to meet my new companion! Her name is Sister Wandera, and she is from KENYA! She is super sweet, and is so excited to be a missionary. I am grateful that we get to be companions. That day, we had meetings, and it was so crazy to be back in the meetings I was in 6 weeks ago. I was feeling kind of overwhelmed with the fact that I didn't even finish my training, but here I am again in the trainers place 6 weeks later. I really feel like I am training to become more confident in myself as a missionary. The Lord wants me to learn a lesson and improve on myself. It's like they always say," there is no comfort in a growth zone, but no growth in a comfort zone." Just when I thought I was getting used to being a missionary in Zengeza, the Lord needed me to grow in a different way. So, bring on the challenge... I guess! 

That night we went to dinner at president's house. They cooked some good food, but this time they also cooked some traditional Zimbabwe food. I ate this thing called Madora... It is fried caterpillars. So Melissa, that is by far the grossest thing I have eaten in Zimbabwe. It is crunchy and has a weird bitter taste. So ya... that was fun. Who knows, maybe I will get REAL butterflies in my stomach because I ate a caterpillar!

On Thursday we headed to our area, and to be honest, I was a nervous wreck! It is crazy how Satan works so hard to make us feel like we will never be good enough for anything! I honestly did not have a plan for who we were going to teach for the rest of the week. Sister Omondi and I looked at our investigators the previous week and dropped some people who weren't very serious. so our teaching pool was SLIM. But, Heavenly Father answers our prayers. My companion and I just worked hard, and talked to people on the street. We found some real potentials, and if they start progressing, I will tell you about them! 

We have been teaching this lady named Beatrice and her son Nyasha. Nyasha was usually not around when we taught the mom, but we taught him the first half of the restoration a couple weeks ago. Beatrice really isn't that interested and says that she has been too busy lately, but my new companion and I caught Nyasha and finished teaching the Restoration. Teaching about the First Vision and Joseph Smith invites the spirit! I recited Joseph Smith's account, and Nyasha told us that he felt the spirit so strong. We hadn't planned on it, but I had a very strong impression to extend a baptismal date to him. After I did he said," yes! I cannot deny that what you have told me is true. I have been looking for the truth for so long, and now I know that the true church is the church that has the priesthood."  Even in the closing prayer, he thanked Heavenly Father for blessing him to know the truth. I don't think I have ever felt the spirit so strong in a lesson! It was so powerful. 

Our two other people who are on baptismal date are progressing really well! Liyona is still so smart, and understands really well. She tells us that she can't wait for January 26th so that she can be baptized just like Lenna was. I am happy for her! Sadly, Lenna got a job that requires her to work on Sunday. I pray we can schedule a time to meet with her and invite her to ask for Sundays off. I don't want her to lose her testimony! Canisio went out of town for the holidays, so we had been calling him to set up an appointment for a long time. We finally caught him yesterday, and he also said how excited he was for his baptism, because he knows that he can only live with his Father in Heaven again if he is baptized. I feel so blessed that Heavenly Father lead us to this amazing people. It is such a joy to see them gain testimonies and come closer to their savior by making changes in their lives! 

The other week, a girl named Milda came up to my companion and I, and wanted to know who we were and why we were in Zimbabwe. We set a time to meet her, and Sister Wandera and I met her on Saturday. She also told us that she was searching for a church to join, and is super excited about the lessons we will teach her. She even asked what she needs to do to be baptized... SO I will keep you updated on the date we set ;) She even came to church on Sunday!!! Let me tell you, that is rare, most people like to tell you that they are coming, but they usually don't. That is how I know Milda is serious. She wants to actually learn more. 

Can you believe church is two hours now?! It is so amazing how the Lord is preparing us for the second coming of the Savior. He is testing the world to see if we will prepare ourselves spiritually. The new Come Follow Me manual is awesome, and will really bless families and individuals with their personal testimonies. 

The tender mercies from the Lord that I have received this week have been so special. I testify that Heavenly Father is aware of each and every one of us. He loves us more than we can possibly imagine. Look for those tender mercies and his hand in your life, because I promise you that he will show them to you. 

Have an amazing week!

Love, Your Zimbabwe Girl

Perseverance

Hello Family,

It was SO nice to see all of you last week. I felt like I was back home, and sitting in the front room with you! It was hard to get motivation for the rest of the week, but it was a good week regardless! 

Right after I got finished talking to you, we went out to eat at this really nice restaurant called Chop Chop. I got a steak, and I think it was the best meal I have eaten in Zimbabwe! We were with the STL's, because we were heading to go on exchanges with them on Wednesday. I was grateful to do something fun, and keep my mind occupied on something else besides home. 

On Wednesday, we went to their area called Enterprise. I had a really good time with Sister Tolson, and their area is beautiful. It is a rural area, so it was nice to see some hills and greenery. We went and taught one lesson to an investigator, and it was the craziest lesson I have ever taught! It was to a teenage boy, but it didn't get crazy until his uncle came. We were teaching about the Book of Mormon, and he was skeptical, but open to learning about it. Then his uncle came out, and yelled at us because he said we were teaching false doctrine. That nothing could replace or go along with the bible. It was my first lesson ever to get yelled at. We realized it wasn't going anywhere, and the spirit left because of the contention. He even told us to leave. That doesn't happen very much because people are usually open to learning, but he wasn't! haha there is a first time for everything. Sister Tolson and I just laughed it off, and talked about how our purpose is to only invite others to come unto Christ. Agency plays a big role in their conversion. It hadn't happened to her before, either. 

This week we taught some of our recent converts about family history! We really want to help them do their family history work and get excited about the temple being built here. We have them fill out this book, and then we borrow the mission tablet and send the names to the temple to be done. I am so excited that these beautiful people are getting a temple. I want to do my part in helping them prepare for it! 

 We got transfer news on Saturday night, and to our surprise, Sister Omondi is getting transferred. I am training a new sister... even though I haven't finished my 12 weeks! I guess this new sister and I will learn together. So it's kind of a joke, but when you train someone, you are their "mom" on the mission. Just because you are their first companion. I am SO nervous, because I feel like I am not quite comfortable in the area yet, but this will be a good opportunity for me to grow and be dependent on myself and the Lord. I am going to miss Sister Omondi, too! We will see each other around, though. 

One quote I read out of the ensign this week really stuck out to me, and it fits with the new adventure of training a new sister. It says,

" Perseverance is demonstrated by those who keep going when the going gets tough, who don't give up when others say, " It can't be done." -James E Faust-   

I am not going to give up, even when the going gets tough! 

I love you SO much. Have an amazing week 

Our zone with our Christmas presents 

T-shirts from the Makasi's

My Christmas PJ's (Thanks mama!)