Week 92

"Hold on to your faith in those hard times. Look up to Christ for strength, balance, and healing. Through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, 'all things shall work together for your good.'”

Elder Yoon Hwan Choi

Wednesday April 26th, 2017

Choose the Right --> 

Hey Everyone!

Sorry for the late post, it was the King's birthday on Monday so there was a holiday to celebrate it Monday and Tuesday. His actual birthday was last week but he didn't want to share his birthday with the Easter weekend so he changed it. Perks of being a King I guess.

This week was good. We will definitely have a baptism in May. We hope to have several if we work hard and prepare our investigators.

Nothing too crazy happened this week however we will have a new Mission President by the next time I write you. We will be traveling to Mozambique to meet President Senna and Sister Senna.

We live in Mbabane but we work in Sidwashini, Waterford, Cobonga, Mpolonjeni, Makholokholo and other places. Lots of hills! We witnessed some self policing when a person stole something and got beat up by a mob of people! *lesson learned 

I just wanted to share a little thought with you this week: 

Elder Yoon Hwan Choi gave a great talk encouraging us to look up, not around. 

"One day, a few months after my baptism, I heard some members criticizing each other in church. I was very disappointed. I went home and told my father that maybe I should not go to church anymore. It was difficult to see members criticize others like that. After listening, my father taught me that the gospel had been restored and it is perfect but members are not yet, neither himself nor me. He firmly said, 'Do not lose your faith because of the people around you, but build a strong relationship with Jesus Christ. Don’t look around, look up!' ”

Elder Choi goes on to say, "Hold on to your faith in those hard times. Look up to Christ for strength, balance, and healing. Through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, “all things shall work together for your good.'”

I want to remind you to do this always - to remember your eternal potential. To do that which is pleasing unto our Heavenly Father now and do what is pleasing in the long run. Don't worry about the imperfection around you, keep looking up!

I love this gospel!

Have a great week!

Elder Nimmo

Three greenies

Elder Smith

Me and Matilde.

I'm off to my new area -

On the road 

to Swaziland

Giraffe! The first African wildlife I've seen on my mission.

Welcome to my apartment!

Living room

Kitchen

Front and backyard

I'm a good cook now.

This is closer to the area where we work.

Hills.

Hills.

And more hills.

Over by the winding road is area that we have been working.

Me and Elder Guilherme are teaching this family.

We teach with scriptures and the Spirit.

And then we go back home.

We do service.

Our drive to the service project.

It had really cool views.

Then we arrived.

And then we had to walk.

Work begins.

"...when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." 

Mosiah 2:17

Candid captured by my companion.

No idea what I was doing.

Caterpillar.

Caterpillar.

"When one takes on the armor of God, fear retreats into the shadows."  Brad Wilcox

Week 91

"My whole life I had the goal to work and save money to pay for my full-time mission because I wanted to own this experience. I have had many goals while serving my mission in Mozambique and now in Swaziland."

 Monday, April 17th, 2017

Happy Easter Sunday from Swaziland!

Sawubona (Hello) Everyone! 

Ngiyakwemukela ku Swaziland! (Welcome to Swaziland!) 

Unjani? (How are you?)

I’m fine and excited to be in Swaziland! I was hoping to be able to come to this country at some point during my mission and I’m grateful that I will finally get my chance to serve here. My area is Sidwashini, it is known to be the hardest area but I’m determined to turn that reputation around. Actually we’ve already had some success in teaching this week and I think that we’ll have a couple of people who will be baptized. The area here has a lot of hills, mountains and it’s a bit cooler. We are far from the chapel but we use a Kombi/Chapa when we’re not walking. While driving to my new area I got excited when I spotted three giraffe just roaming around the landscape. It was cool! This is the first time that I’ve had a chance to see animals in the wild while I’ve been in Africa. 

My original thought was that I hoped that my last area on my mission would not be Swaziland because they speak English and siSwati but no Portuguese. I was worried that if I spent too much time at the end of my mission not speaking Portuguese, I would lose a lot of the language. But thankfully my new companion, Elder Guilherme, is from Quelimane, Mozambique. He doesn’t speak a whole lot of English so it looks like I’ll be able to keep up on my Portuguese while we are serving together. I’ll try to learn as much siSwati as possible. Actually my main objective should be to retain my English! They don’t speak it very well here. LOL 

After hearing the news that President Koch was called as a general authority and would be leaving the mission soon, as well as the realization that my own days are numbered here on my mission - I have been looking toward my future. I enjoyed Elder Ballard’s talk in this recent general conference, “Return and Receive” -

“Over the years, I have observed that those who accomplish the most in this world are those with a vision for their lives, with goals to keep them focused on their vision and tactical plans for how to achieve them. Knowing where you are going and how you expect to get there can bring meaning, purpose, and accomplishment to life.”

Elder Ballard continues, 

“It is good to have goals and plans for our careers, for our education, even for our golf game. It is also important to have goals for our marriages, our families, and our Church councils and callings; this is especially true for missionaries. But our greatest and most overriding goals should fit into Heavenly Father’s eternal plan. Jesus said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” 

My whole life I had the goal to work and save money to pay for my full-time mission because I wanted to own this experience. I have had many goals while serving my mission in Mozambique and now in Swaziland. As I look to my future and reflect upon the counsel of Elder Ballard - I have a vision for my life, I have goals and plans for how to achieve them. Ultimately we all have to ask ourselves individually; Do my goals align with our Heavenly Father’s plan for our happiness? Is my “eye single to the glory of God?”

I encourage all of us to take some time and reflect upon our vision for ourselves, review our dreams, desires, plans, and make sure they are in harmony with our ultimate goal of eternal life. It’s my hope that we can all progress on the road to return to our Heavenly Father and receive all that He has planned for us.

I hope you all had a good Easter,

Ngiyakwemukela! (I love you!)

Sala kahle - (Good bye)

Elder Nimmo

Meet my new comp, Elder Guilherme. 

He may be short but he has a great, loud laugh!

Making friends in Swazi!

Some youth in the small branch.

Peace.

"Ngiyakwemukela ku Swaziland"

Where in the world is Swaziland? 

An absolute monarchy - King Mswati III

A mountainous landscape...

in a country the size of New Jersey.

Colorful cousin to "Hopper" 

(the mean grasshopper in A Bug's Life)

Week 90

"This is my hope and prayer for the end of my mission, to always remember that the Lord is beholding me, loving me, and inviting me to follow Him."

Monday, April 10th, 2017

This is what I'll be missing the most.

Hey Everyone!

So this week is transfer week! It also marks my 85 days until I am home mark. Someone pointed that out to me yesterday.

So I will be going to Swaziland! I don't know with whom yet but I hope it will be with someone who will work hard with me and make my last couple transfers great ones! I'm super excited to have a new experience but at the same time I'm sad to be leaving Mozambique.

I want to enter into this new phase of my mission with open eyes, not judging the area where I will serve harshly but knowing that if I will work my very hardest we will have success. I'm really hope it isn't a whitewash though. 

This week I would like to talk a little bit on a talk given in the Sunday session of conference. It was such a great conference,was it not? In the talk by Elder S. Mark Palmer he retold the story of the rich young prince as it is written in Mark 10.

Anytime you feel you are being asked to do something hard, think of the Lord beholding you, loving you, and inviting you to follow Him.

“Then Jesus beholding him loved him.”

This is how I feel at this moment. God knows my potential and sees it continually. And I know I have potential, great potential, even to become like Him. This is my hope and prayer for the end of my mission, to always remember that the Lord is beholding me, loving me, and inviting me to follow Him.

My heart is full and I know this to be true, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Sending you all love on my way to Swazi!

Elder Nimmo

Kids in Guava.

My companion Elder Smith in the back while the kids run after me. 

It's sad to be leaving Mozambique.

Goodbye to our investigator Carmen.

I'm packed up and ready to go - aloha Elder Grace.