Saying Goodbye to The Meek and Powerful KWAMO

Elder Ordyna spent 4.5 months as a Zone Leader in Kwamo, September through December 2018. He loves the missionaries, the members and all the amazing people he served with and met while there.  Pictures from his departure week. 

 Exchange to Ejisu with Elder Tonga (lesson with Kingsley one of their investigators)

The only Christmas Tree I have ever seen inside a Ghanaian's house (Ward 2 Bishop Seadu's house)

Kwamo Ward 1 Elders Quorum President's Couch Shop (Brother Godsway) the two boys are his apprentices that we are teaching Godfed and Benjamin

Godfred and Benjamin at church

 Another investigator named Owusu Bitmah at church

The powerful Ward 1 clerk Nyama Atobrah

 Kwamo Ward 1 members (Vera, Brother Ema, second counselor in the bishopric, Atobrah, clerk)

 FM at the Adom's family house

 Edward's Barbershop with Recent Convert Francis -where I come to barb my hair

Ejura

Exchanges with Elder Stewart in Ejura

The Legendary Ejisu District

The Powerful Kentinkrono Companionship (Elder Bwire and Elder Kankam)

Elder Tonga (one of the missionaries in my apartment)

Kwamo Chapel

Farewell Dinner at Bintu's with Blessing and Precious (RC's) and Elder Okogbua and Elder Tonga

Tony the Kente man. My tailor and the one that sewed my kente ties

Brother Boateng and Ma Gina (husband and wife) She is the one that always cooked for us every night. And we walked him home every evening on the way to our apartment

View of our area and the super highway from Kumasi to Kwamo. 

superhighway

Walked across that road and back multiple times a day for 4.5 months

Farewell lunch at a member's house in Ejisu

The three elders from Kwamo Zone going on transfer (Elder Tonga, Elder Stewart and me)

After my farewell party that the ward held for me

Kiffer the Bishop's son

Recent Converts (Asare and Alex)

Recent Convert in the middle and then Brother Emmanuel Poku (2ndCounselor in the Bishopric)

Ward Missionaries

Last day at the Kwamo Apartment

 For my father Joseph Rockstar Stud Andrew Ordyna (Kwamo is Number 1)

Transfer Day In the tro on the way to Bantama for transfers

Bishop Prosper Mensah (the most powerful bishop ever Ward 1 bishop)

Twas the Day Before 2019 - Dec. 26-31, 2018

Dec. 26-31, 2018

The Powerful Kwamo Zone Leaders (Elder Kamara and Elder Ordyna)

Happy New Year to all!!

It was so great to talk to you at Christmas. I love all of you so much! There was a lot of problems with the connection and internet out here but at last, we were able to make it work and had a great time. I am so grateful for all of the support and love that you have all sent me the past year and a half. 2019 is upon us and it is time for new year resolutions. One that I have made for myself for the rest of my mission is to give my all for the next six months and do all that I can to have the spirit with me so I can be an effective teacher and instrument in the Lord's hand to bring many people to the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We have basically baptized everyone in our teaching pool so this past week we did a huge focus on finding. Finding out here in Ghana always leads to the craziest conversations with the craziest people. We met a pastor that founded the Resurrection Blood and Living Bread Church. My companion and I taught him for like five minutes and instantly afterward he said that he wants us to come and preach at his church. He said that we were professionals and would pay us thousands of cedis and give us a car if we joined. Don't worry of course we said no and then bore our testimonies to him. He was touched by what we said and told us that he would come by and pay us a visit and even accepted a Book of Mormon. We had another lady call us over and started talking to us about how we worship devils in the church and we light candles to call saints and all of this other stuff. Once again we bore simple and powerful testimony of what we believe to be true and she was instantly touched by we what we were saying. Finally, we went to visit one of our members and his neighbor was sitting outside talking with him. We began talking with her and asking questions about which church she goes to and what she knows about the Bible and other things. We started talking about Watch Nights. Every church in Ghana on the night of the 31st holds a watch night ceremony where church members come to dance, sing and hear words from their pastors. It is basically a straight party waiting for the new year to come. We asked her where Watch Night was found in the Bible. She said that she knew it was there but didn't know which quotation it was and said that she would ask her pastor and then get back to us (nowhere in the Bible does it talk about Watch Nights). We then talked to her about praying to God directly whenever we have a question and about some other things. Once again we bore simple but powerful testimony about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the Restored Gospel. She was touched and even said that she will come and visit us this Sunday at church and even committed to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it.

The experiences that we had this week reminded me of the story in the Book of Mormon where Alma steps down from being the chief judge so he can focus on the work and help the people to come back to the true ways of the gospel. And the way he did that was through bearing pure testimony to them. 

Alma 4:19-"And this he did that he himself might go forth among his people, or among the people of Nephi, that he might preach the word of God unto them, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty, and that he might pull down, by the word of God, all the pride and craftiness and all the contentions which were among his people, seeing no way that he might reclaim them save it were in bearing down in pure testimony against them."

We didn't use flattery language, money or any other worldly thing to "convince" those people to read the Book of Mormon or to come to church. We just bore simple but powerful testimony and then the spirit was able to touch their hearts and help them to know for themselves what we were saying is true. Many people in Ghana are looking for the truth. They know what is happening in churches out here is corrupted and false but they have no idea where to go to find the truth or even if there is a truer and more correct way. But, the Lord was able to guide me and my companion to these people that were ready to receive us and the truth of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

It was a wonderful week of finding people through the spirit. We were definitely directed and guided by the Lord to many people this week. The Lord also multiplied our own efforts by blessing us with many new people at church as well as five new referrals from the members. As we have faith and rely on the Lord blessings will come!

Sadly, I won't be here to see what happens to all of these people that we have found this week because I will be going on transfer this Thursday. The suspense is killing me because these days they don't tell us where we are going or who our new companion will be until we get to Bantama (the transfer spot). I do know that I will still be a zone leader and am looking forward to helping another zone and strengthening another area. It certainly will be another great 6 weeks! 

Love you all and I wish you the best possible start to 2019!!

Love,

Elder Ordyna

Afisha Pa! - Dec. 18-25, 2018

ME with Brother Kifford (the Kwamo bishop's son)

Afisha Pa (Merry Christmas in Twi)
Merry Christmas to all!!!

Hope everyone is still #Lighting the World and spreading the Light of Christ everywhere they go. The past couple of weeks my companion and I have really made Jesus Christ the center of everything that we have done.

This last week was super busy and we had many things going on. We started the week off with a Christmas Zone Conference where the theme was Jesus Christ and his birth. We were also able to finally watch the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional which was amazing. And then the Webster's surprised all of us with a REAL Christmas Dinner! We had roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, vegetables, and stuffing. It was the best thing that I have had in a long time. Afterward, we had a Christmas talent show where each zone presented something for 30 minutes. President and Sister Webster where the judges. And of course, the winner was THE KWAMO ZONE!!  

On Wednesday evening we made the long journey out to the mountains of Mampong. The road going out there is seriously scary. There aren't any streetlights or lines on the road and it is basically bush the whole way so you have no idea where you are going until the last moment. It was basically being in the Twilight Zone for a straight 2 hours. I thought we were going to die a couple of times but we made it up to Mampong with no problems. I had the great pleasure to go out to Ejura again. I am seriously making GKM history with that one. I am among only 5 missionaries that have ever been to Ejura. I went out to Ejura with Elder Stewart. It was a great exchange but nothing much happened. We basically got stuck at a member's house store for hours and then we went to his house and talked with his daughter while she prepared us rice balls with groundnut soup. And that was basically our day. 

Me and Elder Stewart on Exchanges 

In Ghana, if a member or someone invites you over to their house you will basically be there for hours while they cook. Many times we visit someone and then at the end of the lesson they surprise us and say that they want to cook for us. Right then our plans go down the drain because it takes hours to cook.  Ghanaians are so kind and loving and want to feed us all of the time which is always great.

The miracle of the Week-6 Baptisms

The miracle this week as we were able to baptize 6 more people. At the beginning of the week, we weren't sure about 2 because they had a couple of major concerns that were preventing them from feeling ready. But, as we went to them throughout the week they both said that they received answers to their questions and were able to overcome their concerns. 

One named Bernice was basically a golden investigator from the beginning. One of our recent converts from a couple of months ago invited her to church about three weeks ago and she has been coming every Sunday since then. Since we gave her the Book of Mormon she has been reading about it. She was basically the investigator every missionary dreams of, absolutely perfect. Until one day she told us that she wasn't too sure anymore about the church and everything that we were teaching her. We learned that two things happened. First, Jehovah Witnesses came to her and started teaching her and telling her false things about the church and then her friends and family started mocking her and making fun of her for coming to church. We invited her to continue to pray and read the Book of Mormon and pay attention to how she feels. Through the help of our Bishop she felt even more comfortable with the church and then she even said that she received a dream telling her that the church was absolutely true!! And then the other was Francis. From the beginning, he was a little skeptical about everything we were teaching him until he came to church and then he really felt it was true and loved the church instantly. Until his family and friends started saying bad things to him about the church. But, luckily his best friend Edward is a member and was able to really help him and helped him to overcome a lot of his problems and doubts. Through the help of members but most importantly the spirit we were able to have a very successful baptism this last week! I have seen the hand of the Lord so much on mission but especially here in Kwamo!! It has been such an amazing place to serve.

This is the last week of the transfer and by the next time, I email I will have my transfer news to share with everyone! 

I hope all of you have a wonderful Christmas!

Love,

Elder Ordyna

Beginning to Look Like Christmas - Dec. 11-17, 2018

Dec. 11-17, 2018 

MelcomGhana Supermarket in Kumasi

Afisha Pa!!! (Merry Christmas in Twi)

I can finally tell that Christmas is getting close around here because people are finally getting into the Christmas spirit. I saw my first Christmas tree so far this month and at all of the places, it could be it is at a Shell filling station. Stores are putting up small decorations and lights here and there. I am just really enjoying my last December out here in Ghana. 

Well... this week I have realized that I have become numb to a lot of things. I went on exchanges with a new missionary from the states that have been out for barely a month. It made me flashback to the time when I was a new missionary in training and everything was insane to me. It made me laugh every time he commented about something crazy that happened. I have enjoyed every moment of the past 18 months and look forward to my last 6. 

This week started off with an emergency trip out to Agona for district council. The district hasn't been doing well the past couple of weeks so we went out there to try to assess the situation and help them. We also went on splits with two companionships in the district. I went with Agona and my companion with Asamang. Both areas are straight bush and full of small villages. On my split with the Agona companionship, we went out to one small village named Jamasi. We had some serious success out there. These areas where the church is very small or not well known yet have serious success. They don't have any rumors or things about the church that are hindering the work like here in Kwamo. 

The church has been here for somewhat of a short time but long enough for rumors and things to really get around. Basically, everyone that we meet has two main viewpoints already about the church. 1) it is a cult or 2) it is a rich church and will give money to anyone for anything. It is hard when people right from the beginning don't want to even talk to us or hear anything from us because of the first and want to come for the wrong reasons because of the second. But, I have seen that the people that are willing to listen to us are almost always serious and recognize that the church is very very different than other churches around. There is so much Apostasy in Ghana it is absolutely insane. You can't walk one block without passing by a church. It seems to be a lot like the time period Joseph Smith was growing up in. A lot of confusion and every church saying they were right and everyone else is wrong. So, when people come to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for the first time they find what the other churches are missing and really see how Jesus Christ's Church is.

The gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives. It changes us from within and as we truly live the gospel we become more like Jesus Christ. It has been amazing being a first-person witness to the impact the gospel of Jesus Christ can have on someone. Continue to Light the World and remembering the true reason for the season: Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

Love all of you so much.

Elder Ordyna

There is Always Sun After The Storm - Dec.4-10, 2018

Dec.4-10, 2018

Kwamo Seminary Class

Dear family and friends,

Compared to the week before, this last week was absolutely amazing. So, many wonderful things happened. And we are rapidly preparing for Christmas and all of the awesome parties and activities that will be going on. The mission field is the best place to spend Christmas. It is such a wonderful time to be a missionary. 

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Kwamo Ward)

We have a lot of activities and parties coming up for Christmas but Ghanaians don't really do anything for Christmas. Ghana during Christmas sure is a boring one. A lot of Ghanaians don't get the point of Christmas and just see it as a white man's holiday. As missionaries, we always try to do our best to share the true spirit of Christmas but people still don't really buy into it. We have a lot of fun Christmas parties coming up though which should be pretty sweet.

Baptism of Brother Williams, Sister Blessing, Sister Suzanna, Mr. Packer, and little Rahael

This week we were able to baptize and confirm 5 people. All of them are so powerful and have great stories. They are all so happy to be members of the church and to know the restored gospel!

The first is named Brother William. His whole family are members and were baptized 8 years ago. For 8 years they tried super hard for him to come to church and be baptized. But, he was super serious in the Catholic Church and didn't want anything to do with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It wasn't until recently, William really grew a great interest in the church. A couple of weeks ago he called Bishop Prosper (ward 1 bishop) and told him that he really wanted to be baptized and that the missionaries should come out to his place. He told us that he was ready to be baptized for two main reasons. Firstly, he was tired of seeing his family go to church without him while he would stay at home alone. He wanted to be the one to lead the family to church and wanted his family to be unified. Second, he told us that he has seen how the gospel had changed and impacted his son. His son was a very crazy guy growing up. Got kicked out of three schools, went to jail and all sorts of stuff. Now he is the ward's Young Men President, Seminary Teacher and even preparing to go on mission in a couple of months. Brother William told us that even if the church isn't true he doesn't care he is baptizing for his son Solomon. He was definitely prepared to receive the gospel and it sure was the right moment for him. It was such a great and happy day seeing a family finally unified in the gospel!

Second, is Sister Blessing. Sister Blessing is from a country in northern Africa called Libya. She and her whole family are Muslims. A couple of years ago she moved to Ghana to escape the civil war happening in Libya. While she was here she met the missionaries. They first taught her a year ago. She wasn't super interested in the gospel at the time. But her friend was super interested in what the missionaries had to say and was baptized. A couple of weeks ago we began to teach her. Through the help of her friend, she was really progressing and coming to church. And was developing a huge testimony of the church. And then this last Sunday after church she called us and said that she didn't want to be baptized anymore and doesn't want anything to do with the church. Our bishop went out and talked with her and helped her to overcome her doubts and concerns. Apparently, some members of the church insulted her and she felt bad. But, she knows the church is true and was so happy after her baptism!!

Third, is Sister Suzanna. She is super educated and is very passionate about the gospel. She said that she was even going to Bible school and training to be a pastor. She can really teach very well and is very charismatic when she does so. She started coming to church a couple of months ago when I first came to Kwamo. And since then she has come every Sunday. She knows the church is true and really loves the gospel of Jesus Christ. She had been baptized four times before this one and she said all of the previous ones she didn't feel anything. She has been searching for a long time for the truth and after her baptism, she told me that she knew she had found it. She felt so good and was so happy afterward!! She knew that it truly was the Church of Jesus Christ as well as the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Fourth, is Mr. Packer. He is an 80-year-old man that has been coming to church for over a year. Missionaries and members kept overlooking him and didn't realize that he wasn't baptized. Until he told me and my companion. We prepared him for baptism and found out that he used to be a huge drinker. He would always be so drunk that sometimes he wouldn't make back to his house at nights. But, when he started coming to church and learning about the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ he said that he hasn't drunk since. 

And lastly was a 9 year old girl named Rahael who has been coming to church for a long time. She basically taught us whenever we would go and teach her. She has read the Book of Mormon and even knows a lot of the stories.

I love looking back and seeing how people progress towards baptism. It is always so amazing and the gospel of Jesus Christ really makes a great impact on so many people's lives. It changes us for the better if we live it and do the things that Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father command us to do. I have seen that in my own life but also in dozens of people that I have taught. 

The Meek Kwamo Zone

I challenge everyone to continue to Light the World and to make everywhere around you a better place by your example! I love this time of the year so much and I love all of you as well!

Love,

Elder Ordyna