5/29/17

Swedru 4th branch is my new area. There are about 41 people registered as either members or children of record in this branch. On Sunday we had about 23 people there, including the branch presidency and the Missionaries. :) So WE win!  We have a higher percentage of active members than most of the wards or branches in the world...more than 50% attendance!!!!!

I'm so excited to be working in this branch!  I'm literally with the Pioneers of the church. I get to partake of the sacrament with Pioneers!

My companion is Elder Bakam.  He is from Ghana, so he speaks all the local languages; Gah, Fanti Twi, Ashanti Twi, and Ewe (Eway).  Some more, too, but those are all I can think of right now. :)  He does a lot of the teaching, since the  area is somewhat "bushy".   Our area consists of 2 villages about a mile apart from one another (it's really small). Some people can speak English, while others cannot speak any English.  Hence my companion is a Ghanaian.

We live in a 6 man apartment (really nice place). A lot bigger than my last place and 4 more people than I'm used to in my apartments (I've only been in 2 man apartments).  Our apartment is about half a mile away from our area and the road, even though it's paved, still has a bunch of friendly speed checkers and Missionary trippers (pot holes).   It's sweet!

This week was a good, good week.  OH!   I forgot the Branch President's daughter told her friend about me, but she forgot my name.  So my new name is Elder Software. I love Ghana.

I took a few pictures this week.  None of me. I'm gaining a lot of weight, so I'll save you all the horror :).   I'll send some of me and my companion this week.

This is the best apartment ever!  It always has milk, cheese and butter in the fridge.  I wish it was real.  I miss milk!

I forgot why I took a picture of this.

It rained and this is the gutter.  It rains hard here.

First time I've ever seen one of these lamps before. Welcome to the village.

I walked on this with my bicycle!   Are you proud of me mom???

The door to our apartment.

This symbol means "Only God".   It's everywhere here, even on my door.

It's a really cool door.

​This is the branch picture when it was first created.  I think 5-6 months ago.  It's the same size for a lot of different reasons. The biggest one is the chapel is about a mile away from everyone and it costs 160 cedi a person by taxi to come that far so no investigator can make it, because no one can afford it. We will be getting a building in our area (hopefully next week--we get the keys to it) and we can start to grow the church with our super serious investigators.

I've seen like 7 white people here in my area, but I'm always way to afraid to contact them.  I'll let you know how it goes throughout the weeks, but white people are scary!

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Love you all,

-Elder Ellsworth

5-22-17

This week was great. Knowing I was probably going to get transferred I really wanted to work hard and start the area well for the new transfer. I hope I did enough to kick start the area again.

This week I really learned about the power of prayer.  I learned a lot about it, first, from Elder Chinovengwa, my zone leader.   I learned that prayer is asking for things Heavenly Father wants to bless us with but is waiting for us to ask for it.  Doesn’t that just make sense?  So, I knew we needed new investigators so I prayed to find people to teach and it happened!  We found 4 really solid people who will progress with good work. The past 6 weeks I haven’t really prayed for that.  As you can see, there really is a difference.  It’s so cool to see! 

I’m excited to go to Swedru and I hope I can help that area to progress well. 

Thank you for letting me know about Australia. I don't know why, but I just really wanted to know. :)

So that was my letter to my Mission President.  I just didn’t want to type it again. :)  I’m lazy.  But the time has come again for me to leave my area! Now I will go to Swedru 4 and probably in 6 weeks I will train, so that’s exciting. 

I hate leaving an area.  The people here are great.  It just feels like home (not home, home) but this is my home and my family in Africa. I truly love the people of Kasoa 2. 

Not much else happened, I think.  Prayer really does work and as it says in preach my gospel “let us try and follow the spirit as we pray”. Really think about that statement. Follow the spirit as we pray.  It makes it more about finding out what Heavenly Father has planned for us rather than asking for what we want. I just think it’s such a cool statement.

Love you all and know I’m doing well and am still breathing!

-Elder Ellsworth

We love the children

I remember, there was a cool bird there

For those of you wondering-- yes there are ancient African paintings.  As you can see on the side of this bathroom-- this is what boys look like :) (its not ancient)

This is Gifty and Solomon.  They are about 19 years old and I called them getting married (they haven't announced it yet)

Emmanuel is on my left.  He is a recent convert

This is the Amsasakis and the Attipos.  Sister Attipo has been a less active member, but is now active.  She was less active when I came, but through service and love and time and teaching her husband about the gospel, she is now active again.  They live right next to each other.  I love them all! Especially the 2 year old, Mormon.  He reminds me of Scott :)

 

Emmanuel and Princess Attipo (very active members as children)

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--

-Elder Ellsworth

5/15/17

I called home this week!

 Don’t worry I was allowed to. I hope all you 18-year-old or older women got Chocolate from your ward.  Also save me some, would ya?

Okay, but as for this week it was a good week.  I could have been more effective as to missionary work, I feel, but I did have fun. Some of our investigators that we needed to meet this week for their baptisms were busy so it will have to push their baptisms back a bit but it’s all okay because they will be baptized and will come unto Christ by receiving this restored gospel. I love this Church because it teaches us more about Christ that any other group of people can or will ever be able to because of the Book of Mormon and modern-day revelation.

I’ve been singing recently Joseph Smiths First Prayer (Hymn book pg 26) and I LOVE that song.  It’s just so true I love that song more than If You Could Hie to Kolob because of the doctrine it teaches. The simple doctrine is so amazing and we often take it for granted. 

I also watched the 20-minute version of the restoration and I love that, too.  The scene with Alvin and Joseph where Alvin says “you worry too much Joseph!” and Joseph responds “I’m just trying to do what’s right Alvin.” I love that because that’s completely me and my brothers! Like to a tee! I’m Joseph a lot of the times. But I love my family if you don’t know them get to!  Mainly because we don’t 

talk much but they are sweet!

 Overall it was a sweet week.  I will say please hug your mothers for those of us who can’t.  Once you hug them for you, hug them for us.

Have a great week love you all!

So, this is an African bush suburb type thing village

We saw this. These are ants. I’ll be better about taking pictures of me sorry 

I called my family 

and I had fun

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--

-Elder Ellsworth

5-8-17

This week was a week was a week was a week was a week (Learned that one ^ from Kyle)

 This week was good. We had a pretty nice time doing stuff that Missionaries do. Our power went off (that happens a lot here) but this time our meter was off and everyone on our grid had power, so we were like dang it! We asked the zone leaders if we could crash at their place and they agreed (they have extra beds and so it was all good-- no mosquitoes bites for me either! :) It was a fun night and then the next morning we go home and we discover..... lights on! So yeah, that wasn't too fun to find out that we left the lights on, but it was sweet to have the power back. Do my companion hops in the shower dumps the bucket of water out and yells "SAY NO TO BUCKET SHOWERS!"...then boom! Lights off. So I laugh my head off and my companion is just like "dang it!" So he walks outside to fill the bucket (again) and he walks back in and boom! Power's back and he's just like "gosh dang it". After that the lights stayed on, but still it was a great day.

 Other than that, not much happened. We have some twins we are teaching. Identical and it just reminds me of Ammon and Bryon back home and makes me home sick. They are sweet and funny and love the gospel and football. Basically them! Their names are Peter and Paul.

 Overall a great week and pretty eventful, but also a good week being a Missionary. Helaman 5:12 might be the best way to invite someone to be baptized. Not that that matters to any of you but I was so happy to have found that here. Especially when used with 2nd Nephi 31:10-12. I love The Book of Mormon and I know it's true and so helpful with everything! So good!

 Africa is the same this week as it was last week. Still fun. Still good. I ate so much food yesterday I'm pretty sure I went into a food coma. I fell of my bike riding to the cafe, but it's all good. I'm still alive and well!

 Hope you all have a great week and stay safe!

 Love ya!
 -Elder Ellsworth

 I FOUND LILLY PADS-- MY MISSION IS BETTER THAN YOURS!
okay so it's better for me but I was so excited!

 Took a random picture of Elder Lundquist with some members :)

5-1-17

To start, we got front row seats for Evil Kenevil's last jump ever! (Also were picked out of the crowd of 2, to then give him medical attention and a priesthood blessing.) Okay so I wasn't chosen I just went because I was there. But, I call him Evil Kenevil because I didn't actually get his name. When I first got there, he was unconscious and then after a while he was moving, but not opening his eyes (probably drunk). But we slipped a restoration pamphlet in with him and the taxi driver, so maybe he just really needed the restored gospel. But as to how it all happened: It was about 9:00 at night and we were riding our bikes home, like we should, after we met with some members on Thursday. As we were riding, we passed over a narrow neck in the road because Kasoa is moving up in the world and getting a paved road and they needed to make a bridge to let water pass. So at the moment there is just a bunch of re-barb sticking straight up in this hole--like a pit with spikes in it--and there is a huge pile of dirt (like 20 feet high) in front of the pit of death. We were riding across the one lane part of the street...sorry road (not a street yet) and we see a motorcycle come down the big hill we are going towards. We hear his engine roar and he just floors it down this hill. Then it happens...he sees the big pile of dirt and he brakes as hard as he can 5 feet from hitting it. Well the road is dirt so he doesn't stop. He slides and hits the pile of dirt like a ramp. He flies off his motorcycle and lands 10 feet from the dirt pile and 10 feet from the pit of death. I'm on the right side of the road, so I drop my bike go to him. I kneel down and give him a priesthood blessing and continue to help him as best as I know how. (This is why you should get your Eagles, boys!) Well, I MESSED UP! I learned about it after, when my companion told me what I was supposed to do, instead of what I did. But you know I did what I thought I should. All I know is that I gave him the best medical attention I knew how and I am thankful I am worthy of the priesthood which I hold and to be able to offer those services to others.

Wow that a long story! Hopefully you understand it all. If not I'll answer all question when they come.

 Okay next story: The next night we are on our way to the same member's house we went the night before. (we really like them and we meet investigators there) Right before we pulled in I got a call from a member (her name is Gifty and she's 19 and really cool) (Her dad doesn't like the church so she can't come or she'll get kicked out of her house or beaten) (terrible, I know, but she still reads The Book of Mormon and stuff) Anyway, she called us and informed us that one of our recent converts (Daniel Abubecka)(12 years old--just received the Priesthood last week) went missing. He left in the morning on a bicycle and didn't come back (it was about 8 pm). So we're like "aw dang it!" So we pull over and kneel down and Elder Lundquist says a prayer. He wants to go search for him, as do I, but I feel we should tell the members we wont be able to make it that night because we need to go searching. (I realize now that was the spirit, lol) We go we tell them and explain it all and one of the daughters, Candy (I call her Dulce') says she saw him at the Donkorhs. So we call them and they say he's been there for a long time, but someone stole his bike so they were going to go get it back before he comes back. (see the spirit?). Eventually he was found and all was well.

 I read Helaman 5:12 this week and I use that in lessons and it makes them very effective. We were teaching a friend named Barnabas and used that and that day we were inviting him to be baptized. He understands everything so well. His only concern, that we never thought of, was to quote "so every other church comes from yours because Joseph smith restored the priesthood?". So we explained that all to him and asked him to pray if he should get baptized, but you see he believes Joseph Smith was a true prophet and what we teach is true. Hopefully he understands he needs to be baptized with the Priesthood authority of God which is only found in this Church.

 We got new bikes :)

 To end the week we had 3 new people at church this week, 2 of which are twins and it made me miss the priest quorum. They are super cool and really interested in the Gospel and the other man has a family with about 6 more people who we think want to know more so I'm really excited and I love being here :)

 No cool pictures-- only stories and hopefully you read it all :)  ​

 -- -Elder Ellsworth

So My Zone Leader and I made up a new game called HOLY BALLS! The point of the game is to get a tennis ball through a hole in the wall and the "keeper" (we like Harry Potter) has a mop and has to block the ball. They have a better court at their house.   I'll take a picture of that next week. But as you can tell I made friends