BSGC Be Strong and of a Good Courage

Hello Family Friends,

Another week has flown by. It feels like every missionary day is half the time of a normal day. I guess that is what happens when you find joy in the work. I am absolutely loving my mission right now. Elder Mubenga and I are working super hard (averaging 50 hour weeks) and having a lot of success. We are getting to the point where we have so many investigators that we can barely teach them all in a single week. We have been leaving the apartment early every morning and returning late at night and we still don't have time to teach them all. We had one baptism yesterday and this next Saturday we are planning on baptizing six people!

Two Sundays ago three Nigerian sisters, Gifty, Goodness and Success, that we have never met with, came to church. They said that they heard about the church from a friend and wanted to see for themselves how the church is. They have now come for three Sundays and are preparing to be baptized this Saturday. This past week we had a super powerful lesson with them. We met them and asked if they had any questions. Each one asked a very inspiring question. But the two questions that really struck me were WHY DOESN'T THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS USE DRUMS AND CLAP WHILE PRAYING? AND HOW DO WE KNOW THE CHURCH IS TRUE? Here in Ghana there are churches on every corner. It is the most Christian country in the world. All most everyone attends church and believes in God. Many of the churches believe in the gift of tongues where they have a pastor that just yells a bunch of random sounds into a microphone. There is one church that does this right next to our apartment and I can barely fall asleep because of the guy. There are also many churches here where people clap, and yell and drum and play all sorts of instruments.

After Gifty asked this question Goodness said that these things aren't necessary at church. We go to church to be uplifted and to feel the Holy Ghost. And when there are these loud things at church you can't feel the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost can only be with us when we are doing things that invite and help us to feel the spirit. My companion and I were amazed. That was the exact right answer.

For the second question we asked sister Gifty how we could know that this was the true church. She talked about Joseph Smith and the priesthood power and why Jesus Christ only went to John the Baptist because he had the authority. To hear her answer the question so well made us very happy. These Nigerian girls are really progressing and listening to what my companion and I are sharing with them.

The joy that you feel from seeing an investigator progress and accept and actually follow the commitments that we extend to them is powerful. It is awesome to see people change their lives for the better because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that Jesus Christ lives and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints really is Jesus Christ's church restored again back to the Earth. The gospel of Jesus Christ helps us to have joy and happiness and to become better people.

I love you all and hope you have a great week.

Love,

Elder Ordyna

we had a powerful lesson with three of our investigators sisters (gifty, goodness and success) we met gifty and goodness weeks three ago but for sister success just two weeks, so while we were teaching them about lesson 3 when we invited sister success to be baptize be baptize then she asked a question " why should i be baptize while i have already baptized?" i had something to say but i felt like i wasn't the right person to answer that question then i looked my companion may be he was the right person to answer but he was still quiet saying nothing we stay quiet for almost two minutes, then a feeling came and to my companion that the right person was sister gifty was also an investigator, then i said it rapidly sister your are the right person to help your sister to understand why she have to be baptize again, well then she said i am going to try she said:"my sister jesus while he was on the earth he did call twelve people and gave them the priesthood so that they can baptize, and teach people but because people were wicked the killed some and later on they were all gone even the priesthood was gone, then many years later joseph smith who wanted to know which church to join because he was confuse , so he red james 1:5, AND DID WHAT JAMES TAUGHT AS HE PRAYED GOD , the father and the son both appeared to him, and jesus told him to join none of them, and if he keep have faith in christ he will be the instrument to bring the true church on the earth, then 9 years later peter, james and john appeared to him and gave him the priesthood and that power to baptize was given to joseph smith so the only church who have that power is the church of jesus christ of later day saints that is the reason why you have to be baptize again" after she ended her words her sister was totally convince through the power of the holy ghost, i was felled with the spirit while she was explaining the all point i wept and my soul rejoiced to see the result of following the spirit, she was our real Amulek.

much love elder mubenga