I am sorry that I didn't send an email last week, things got EXTREMELY busy. That being said, A LOT HAS HAPPENED...

     So many things have happened in the last few days it's crazy. Luckily things should start to slow down now. Last week's P-Day, was great.  It was Elder Stock's last P-Day. So, we had a Brii and Elder Cluff and I bought steaks and they were so good! It's been a while since I’ve had a steak. I’m sad to see Elder Stock leave, but I know that he has done what he needed to do here. I also know that Heavenly Father's timing is perfect.  I am so grateful for Elder Stock’s faithful 2 years of service. Our mission will miss him. 

     Anyway, last week was crazy, as it was my last week with Elder Cluff. He was in Motherwell for four transfers and is finally getting transferred out. When we received the news that he would be leaving, I knew it was coming but I wasn't sure what was going to happen to me. I didn't feel ready to lead out the area, but I knew that whatever Heavenly Father had planned for me was going to happen. So, when President Stringham called us to let Elder Cluff know that he was leaving Motherwell and going to George, he let me know what was happening with me. He said that I was going to be a senior companion to lead the Motherwell area with Elder Hingano!! I was so excited because Elder Hingano was in my MTC district! I was still nervous about leading out the area but I know that if I put my trust in Him, he will help me. As we were preparing Elder Cluff to leave the area we said a lot of goodbyes. We went to Mama’s and thought she wasn't going to feed us.  Well. we should have known better. She hit us with a lot of food. We were also able to go to a member farm! They only had a few chickens, but they had a bunch of pigs that were extremely big! It was kind of fun to feed them and watch him give them shots. After we fed the pigs he bought us Magwinya’s and chips (French Fries).

     Then it was finally time to say goodbye. We drove Elder Cluff to the bus stop for his nice 6 hour ride on a bus. Then all of the sudden, I was on my own (I was still with the ZL). But, all the weight of carrying Motherwell was on my shoulders, I had the sim and phone, I had to respond to messages, and we have two Baptisms this week to prepare for. I have a new companion who is new to South Africa. But I knew whatever happened with the area, Elder Hingano and I were going to have a good time! We were going to work regardless.

     Elder Cluff left on Friday and Elder Hingano got in on Saturday night. So that meant I had some time with the ZLs. That Saturday was absolutely crazy, we woke up then headed to a funeral. There were a lot of things that happened at that funeral. I didn't understand like 80% of it, but the parts  I understood were super powerful. The funeral was for a member's brother, but the service was held in another church. During the service our member bore her testimony on how The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only true church on the face of the earth. That missionary work is God's work. THIS IS THE ONLY TRUE CHURCH! Man.. The power behind that testimony was incredible. I felt the Holy Ghost so strong during that testimony. 

     After the service we headed to Kwa Magxaki for a Baptism they were having there. When we got there, (40 Min late) there weren't very many people there and they were waiting for some of the people on the program to show up (i.e. the person talking on Baptism and also the person talking on the Holy Ghost, so, I ended up giving a talk on Baptism.)

     It was Saturday afternoon when it started to rain and it didn't stop for a few days. But when we left the ZL's boarding Saturday morning I forgot to check the weather and to pack a jacket. So, when we went to go pick up Elder Hingano I got completely soaked. When we pick up Elders from the airport we park on the outside premises of the airport arrivals area. (We don't want to pay for parking..) So we walk in and wait for them until they arrive then either walk back out or bring in the cars since it was raining. But during that walk in I got completely soaked from the rain, luckily my white shirt dries fast. 😂 We picked up Elder Hingano which was awesome to see him again! I forgot how long it has been since I’ve seen people from my district. But it was awesome to see him again and know that we are serving together! We had a long chat in the car catching up all things that have happened to us on our missions this far! I am excited to be able to serve with him and look forward to all the fun memories we will make and all of the hard work we will be able to do! 

If you have made it to this point Let's go! You’re all caught up! Haha. 

     There were many times while we were preparing for Elder Cluff to leave that I told myself that I’m not ready to lead out an area. I was worried about failing and not getting the right things done or even teaching someone the wrong thing. 

     This led me to understand the importance of relying on our Heavenly Father for help. If you are reading this you have probably gone through these same feeling, "I'm not good enough. I don't want to fail. I don't want to teach (say) the wrong thing. Am I really ready to lead out the area (Your calling, A business meeting, School project) Am I good enough?" Well the answer to all of those questions are YES of course you are!! You are ready. You can do this, I'm not saying it will be easy. Life isn't easy. It never will be, new things will come up but it's how we handle this new challenge. I have learned a lot about relying on and praying for strength. Heavenly Father knows EXACTLY how to help us. Jesus Christ felt all of our pain. He knows what it is like to go through all of these things. Just as the youth know there is a book that helps guide their choices in things they should and shouldn't do, "For the Strength of Youth." Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are for the strength of youth, the strength of young adults, the strength of adults. They are our strength and we need to ask and rely on them for help. And they will help you, I can promise you that. 

     If you can't guess what I will invite you to do, consider these questions. "Am I relying on and putting my trust in God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost? Do I believe they will help me in my hard times?" 

     Find ways that they speak to you. Put your trust in them today, tomorrow, and from here on out. 

     I pray that we all will be able to come to understand that we are not here alone. That in hard times we can put our trust in them that they will get us through anything that we are going through. I know that when we put our trust in Him and believe He will help us, HE WILL. 

I love you all and I hope you keep pushing forward with faith. Have a good week! 

I almost forgot! We had zone conference two weeks ago and I don't think my last email that I sent covers that.. It was such a good cone conference. Elder Silva (General Authority Seventy) came and I was able to talk to him about his mission in the Brazil Curitiba Mission. He is a really good guy and taught us a lot on how to make our missionary work better. I wish that I had more time to write out what he talked about. But time is limited. In a short summary he taught that we need to be bold. (Still being kind of course) But to help people understand why we are here. Most people believe in Jesus Christ down here so when they hear about us, they just think that we are going to share a message with them then leave them be. But being bold about our purpose. He also told us the importance of praying about the people we are teaching and who we go to visit. Having that spiritual confirmation on who we need to visit helps us understand that Heavenly Father wants us to visit them! It was a really good conference and I learned a lot. 

Okay now this is the end. Haha. Have a good week!

P.S. Don’t worry I'll send another email soon regarding how this week went. 😂

With Love,  

Elder Lawrence