Branj Preseden (New Branch President)

Shila and her two pikinini

So for all of you waiting to hear about Tina. . . She got to take her exams!!!!  She will be moving on to class 11 next year with everyone else in her class.  It's a miracle!  Because she decided to put the Lord first He helped her.  Papa Isaac also was called as our new branch president this week in Sacrament Meeting.  He got up and bore his testimony and let us all know that a lot of things are going to change and to be flexible and willing to work with him.  So, it will be interesting to see how our branch is going to change. 

Elsie was supposed to get baptized this week and everything was ready to go, but when we went back on Thursday she wouldn't even come out and talk to us.  Friday we finally had the chance to talk with her as she was washing clothes.  She didn't even look at us, and told us she was busy all this coming week and couldn't story . . . we still don't know what happened.  We think it might have been one of her uncles or someone in her yard that said something, or maybe her parents said no.  At this point we have no idea, but we are praying.  We will go back and visit her next week to see if she is more willing to talk. 

Sister Draper and Sister O.

We've continued to work with Papa Toa and he came to church on Sunday!  He didn't say much during the meetings, but afterwards he said that he learned a lot and really enjoyed the spirit during the meetings.  He's a 68 year old man and has worked his whole entire life to be able to have money to pay for food.  He is very humble and although he can barely read, he tries his best to study the booklets and The Book of Mormon we gave him.  

Monique before she leaves for Panama next Wednesday

I read a talk by David A. Bednar this past week that I really liked and just thought I'd share a few bits of it.  He talks about the story in the Bible about the Apostles being on a ship in a storm.  They wake the Savior asking, "Carest thou not that we perish?"  Jesus responds, " Oh thou of little faith."  I feel like many of us face moments like this where we feel that the Lord doesn't care about what we are going through, that He's sleeping while we are facing the storms of life.  But in reality, he is ALWAYS aware.  He knows the storms we face will make us stronger.  "Many of the lessons we are to learn in mortality can be received only through the things we experience and sometimes suffer.  God expects and trusts us to face mortal adversity with His help so that we can learn and ultimately become what we are to become in eternity."  Christ is going through our trials with us and is helping us every step of the way.