Elder Nimmo's Adventures in Africa: January 2017

Monday, January 30, 2017

Week 80

"However we are excited to be working with the members to find people to teach. We hope this week will bring a lot of success."

Monday, January 30th, 2017

Meet this guy, my new comp Elder Chir Chir.

Hello everyone!

Go Patriots!!!! I hope my luck works from long distance.

This week I had to be off my foot for a bit because the doctor said there was a way to not have surgery on my toe. And it worked! My nail is no longer ingrown. I'm not out of the woods yet but it's getting better.

This week all of the area missionaries gathered in Maputo to view the Worldwide Missionary Conference. As for work this week, our new area, Intaka, is very far from our house and twice as far from the church. So it's presenting some obstacles to contend with as far as transport issues. However we are excited to be working with the members to find people to teach. We hope this week will bring a lot of success. Elder Chir Chir is a cool guy. We're having a few challenges with our teaching because he has a hard time speaking Portuguese, but it's ok, we'll work around that.

I honestly don't have a crazy good spiritual thought this entry. I apologize if that is what you were looking for this week. I will just bear my testimony that I know that God loves us, that Christ loves us and they both want us to be the happiest we can be. I know Joseph Smith was a prophet and that the Book of Mormon guides us continually to overcome problems that we face daily.

And I bear these thing in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Love you all have a great week!

Elder Nimmo

Happy Birthday to my Mom!

Sister Capece served in the Boston mission and knows Brother Dowling

and all of the families that I love in Massachusetts!

Worldwide Missionary Conference

I'm on the left in the back...

Elder Grace and me watching the broadcast.

Me and my KFC.

This was the recent transfer board, I'm now in Zimpeto - ZP2.

Monday, January 23, 2017

Week 79

"Often times when we are in a tough situation we let ourselves think negatively about what is happening."

Monday, January 23, 2017

Waiting at the hospital with Elder Hamilton - surgery round #2.

Hey Everyone!

So I don't really know what Zimpeto is like yet. I was in the mission office until Saturday waiting for our house to be ready. When we moved in we had to set everything up and then Sunday was just a normal day in the Magoanine Ward because Zimpeto will be a cluster/group, but has yet to open up.

So today I am in the mission office doing my email because I have to get surgery on my toe. Wish me luck! We might get a car in our area because everything is so spread out. The area where we will be working is called Zimpeto but we will do most of our work in a place called Intaka.

My new companion, Elder Chir Chir is nice. He is very different from the norm but sometimes that is a good thing. I look forward to working with him.

This week I would like to talk about having virtuous thoughts. I know when we hear the word virtue we might immediately think of sexual purity. But I believe that virtue and virtuous thoughts can be much more. Often times when we are in a tough situation we let ourselves think negatively about what is happening. These are not virtuous thoughts.

"...let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven." D&C 121:45

I have discovered by the Spirit that in order to "let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly" we cannot let ourselves have negative thoughts. We need to have the proverbial glass half full attitude in life. The quickest way we can get rid of negative thoughts is to "wax strong in confidence," thinking of others and serving them.

"Forget yourself and go to work." President Gordon B. Hinckley

I love you all!

Elder Nimmo

Magoanine is the highlighted area.

"Old" comp Elder Green at the airport when we said goodbye. I'll have to get a photo of my new companion this week.

Camoes our security guard.

Me with Elder Schwalger.

Me with Elder Price.

Monday, January 16, 2017

Week 78

"My last week here was great... I was able to say goodbye to a lot of people that I care about. I am somewhat calm as to what is happening this transfer. I'm very happy to be leaving Maxixe with all the goals I had being fulfilled."

Monday, January 16, 2017

Trick before I go, fun goodbyes!

Hey Everyone!

Transfers!!!!

I am leaving Maxixe today on a plane and heading to Maputo. My new area will be Zimpeto in Maputo, and my companion will be Elder ChirChir. He is from Uganda. My first African companion!

My toenail has become ingrown again due to the poor growth of that said toenail. Therefore, when I arrive in Maputo I should be getting surgery on my toe.

Crazy stuff!

My last week here was great! Carlos and Dulce were baptized, I was able to say goodbye to a lot of people that I care about. I am somewhat calm as to what is happening this transfer. I'm very happy to be leaving Maxixe with all the goals I had being fulfilled. Not certain if I'll ever go to Swaziland but we will see.

I want to share a thought that I expressed during my last talk given yesterday in church. I have a scripture mark that shows Christ feeding one of His sheep on a stony path and on the back it talks about how He is our shepherd.

I think of how great of a blessing that is to all of us. To know that He is ALWAYS calling us back to Him. He is our friend and brother who is helping us find our way back from the stony path that we so easily, and continually, enter on in our lives.

We need to learn to recognize His voice and His call so that this blessing becomes magnified and usable. This means doing the things that so easily save us from leaving the path He has shown to us. Obey the commandments, worship at church, spiritual progression through the scriptures, etc.

I know this is true and I love that I have this testimony. It fills my heart that He is always calling for me to come unto Him.

Have a great week!

Elder Nimmo

I was shocked he could do this!

I got a cool shirt made while I was here.

Last baptisms before I leave.

Thumbs up? No? Ok, peace signs?

Ok, peace signs it is!

Carlos and Dulce were baptized.

This is why I'm here!

Gersen and I on my last Sunday at the Maxixe Branch.

Thumbs up for these Branch members.

I'm going to miss these families.

Being goofy with Elder Green one last time.

Water drainage/garbage dump - I won't be missing this.

But some things I will be missing -

The sunsets,

and the people.

Tchau to Paulo-

and his great family.

Tchau to Anita.

Tchau to the little kids.

It was sad to say goodbye.

They all walked with us for about a minute when we left and they all started crying.

Super sad, but I take the love with me.

Monday, January 9, 2017

Week 77

"I want to testify of the pure fact that God listens to and answers our prayers."

Monday, January 9th, 2017

We gave some kids clothes that were in our house because we don't need them

but they could use them. Well, maybe not these two.

Hello!

I hope everyone liked the blog last week! I sent a lot of photos.

Anyways, I'm 100 percent sure that this will be my last week in Maxixe. I will miss all the people I have come to know, serve and love here.

We had a great Sunday yesterday and we are excited to have a couple baptisms as well!

For my spiritual thought I wanted to share a story from the Book of Mormon.

In the first chapters of the book of Mormon, Lehi has a dream or a vision. And Nephi after praying to know the meaning of the dream which his father had, sees his two brothers disputing with their father as to the significance and interpretation of that said dream. So he approaches his brothers:

1 Nephi 15:8-11

8 And I said unto them: Have ye inquired of the Lord?

9 And they said unto me: We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us.

10 Behold, I said unto them: How is it that ye do not keep the commandments of the Lord? How is it that ye will perish, because of the hardness of your hearts?

11 Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said? -If ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you.

Nephi asked them a simple question: Have you asked God?

They replied, No, The Lord would not reveal these things unto us.

I want to testify of the pure fact that God listens to and answers our prayers. I know that if we ask God with faith sufficient enough to fulfill the requirements of the Lord we will be answered.

I love you all and I hope you can have a great week!

Elder Nimmo

Big shorts to fill!

They'll grow into these quick.

A dab before we go!

Tuesday, January 3, 2017

Week 76

"It isn't easy anywhere to find people who are truly prepared for the gospel. I know that Africa is special. I am very blessed."

Monday, January 2nd, 2017

Sister Koch, President Koch and I celebrated Christmas together.

Hey Everyone!

Happy New Year!

For those who are not informed this is the year I come home! Pretty cool! In fact in exactly 6 months I'll be packing my bags to go home!

I am super happy to still have this time on the mission. I should be leaving Maxixe here in a couple of weeks but who knows.

So it's the New Year and I think I'll just share an experience from the first day of 2017. Yesterday we biked a lot! And we ended up near those huge trees with a new investigator of ours. We sat with his family and afterwards he gave us a reference of a family near his. It ended up resulting in over 10 new investigators.

I just wanted to share that tender mercy that we received. It isn't easy anywhere to find people who are truly prepared for the gospel. I know that Africa is special. I am very blessed. I know that we can all do our part this year to help those who are searching for the truth to find it.

I love you all! I hope you start off the New Year in a great way!

Elder Nimmo

P.S. More photos from Christmas in Maputo.