Celebrating Independence Day with Elders from Around the World

Family!

Everything is great in LIB!!  The mission is going strong! We are expecting 11 new missionaries on Wednesday, so we will be around 70 - 76 missionaries in Liberia.  Over the next few months we will be gaining so many new missionaries!  Crazy how fast things change!  Being on a mission is one of the best things I could have done.  All of the experiences I have had will and have effected my life for the better.   LIB is going to have a stake in the near future I Bet!  It will be interesting to see how developed the church will get over the course of my mission. Now we had our interviews with president this last week, and he seems like a cool guy.  Very strict and exactly Obedient kind of guy.  

So last week was the 4th of July!!!  America's Independence Day! How was it for you guys?  We made sure to celebrate Americas birthday as well here in LIB!!  I came up with a genius Idea to grill hamburgers on some of the coal stands they have... and yes, it worked!  I was having trouble thinking about what we could use to set the hamburgers on to grill, but my district leader thought out the idea of using the oven racks.  Yes, I will send pictures of this contraption we put together!  It was the closest thing, besides french toast, to home that we have had on mission.  The only problem was that the meat tasted weird and wasn't the best.  But hey, we had French fries with it as well, so its the thought that counts, not the taste right? Before we ate our food, we gathered together, South Africans, Nigerians, Ghanians, and Britain's and we sang the Star Spangled Banner.  We then had Elder Pentreath our British man,  give our prayer since his people participated in bringing this day about. ha ha   We definitely enjoyed this 4th of July!! Only one more in A-town and then I'll be celebrating back home!

Get this, last pday I was wanting to get a haircut, so we go to Logan town and go to the place where the only guy who knows how to cut white man hair is, which is about 20ld per person to get there.  We get there and his shack is open, so we peak in and the dude is packing his things up.  I say hello, and he looks up and almost falls over.  This dude is drunk off his butt and can barely speak.  Great, we just paid 20 Ld to get here and now we have to pay 20 ld to get back. No small thing! He tells me that the LEC (Liberian Electric Company. what they call electricity all the time) is going in and out so I should come back in a half hour.  huh? This man thinks I'm coming back to get my hair cut from him?  An African hair cut is bad as it is, so why would I want to see what a Drunk African hair cut looks like?  Crazy guy.  We went back today though and he was sober, so now I have a nice, Short, African hair cut once again.  Oh the joys of mission life(:
 

Alright, so I talked about my boy Pastor T. last week I believe.  This guy seriously believes what we say, but just doesn't want to leave his church.  That's the only problem he has  or otherwise he would be baptized into the church.  He knows he doesn't have the Holy Ghost because he didn't receive it by the laying on of hands.  But this week as we sat down and were discussing, you will not believe what he said to us.  We asked if he had any questions and he told us this, "I want you guys to come with me to Ka Ka Town, and preach to my people because that's where I'm from.  I only want you to come out one whole day and win souls."  Really Pastor T.? You want us to come to your home town and win souls?  If your church is from God, why aren't your preaching to them winning souls?  This guy doesn't think things through haha he should be baptized by now!  But oh well,  Having a pastor on your side bringing people to you isn't bad at all, right?  Its good if we get referrals from him(; I can see Pastor T. becoming a member in the future.  Him realizing he didn't have the Holy Ghost wasn't enough, so maybe  he'll have something happen in his life that will make him want to change.  We can only hope.
 

If you are really having the desire to gain a testimony for yourself, I would say to "study" the Bible and Book of Mormon to know for yourself.  I have gained so much knowledge about how true The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints really is, and nobody will ever be able to tell me other wise.  Prayer is the key to knowing anything.  Through prayer is how you can gain that strong testimony/witness to know for yourself its true.  Every time I teach a lesson, the spirit always testifies to me of the truth of these things.  I can tell anyone I meet that I know these things are true and that I know that Joseph Smith had our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appear to him.  He is the prophet that was called by God to restore the church and its authority back to the Earth.  Without the authority, nothing would be bound in Heaven.  Everything done on earth would be for nothing.  Joseph Smith is a great man, and did so many  things to restore the church.  I love knowing the church is true for myself, so I encourage all who read this that they will do the same, and find out for themselves really how true the church is.  Nobody can convince me of it being false.

D&C 38:39
2 Cor 9:7
Just scriptures I found in my studying

Love, Elder Zaugg

Africa is Sweet!!