A Few Stories from Africa

Hi Everyone, We just wanted to tell you how wonderful it is to be on a mission. It is really hard work. The best part is getting to do the lord's work full time. We truly love the people of South Africa. We already have had many trials and many miracles. We love the Book of Mormon. We love the Young
Elders and all there energy. We love the senior missionaries. We love the children at the orphanage.
This is truly the work of the lord.
Story of three families
We went out teaching with the young elders today.We pulled up to a part member family's house and we knocked
many times and no one came to the door. Elder Fozard started out back and motioned us to come
with him. Elder Lazenby followed with Elder Van Sickle and I close behind. There was a shack
out back that didn't look like anybody could possibly live there.But another part active family lives there. Elder Fozard made it to the door passed the dog. The dog started growling at us and didn't look happy at all about us trespassing. So Elder  Lazenby picked up a rock. He said,
"I learned this from some little kids it scares the dogs away." The dog backed off so he put the rock down he took a step forward. The dog started running full speed at  him. He picked  the rock back up and threaten the dog with it again. The dog just kept coming at him. When the dog got a couple of feet from him he threw the rock at him. It was not a
small rock either. The rock hit the dog and injured him. He went yelping behind the shack.( I wondered how many times Dustin and Rob had had experiences like this one with dogs on there mission.) The owner of the
shack came out just as he threw the rock. I thought oh boy, he's not going to want to listen to us now. But he seemed okay with it. ( We found out later it wasn't his dog ) The young man with his
three year old son invited us in. The shack had a tin roof with holes in it. It had two rooms.A very small kitchen and a bedroom.No running water in the house and no bathroom. We
bearly could all fit into the one room.We had the appointment with His wife. She  wasn't there so he told us to come back in an hour. So we went to visit  Wendiswa house ( just a bit of information about Wendiswa. We
have been working with her on helping her to decide what career she wants to go out in. We were giving her
a applitude test and discovered she couldn't understand it. The english was to hard for her.(Mama  which is her mother.
all older ladies are called Mama ) Mama doesn't speak any english only xhosa.Wendiswa has a older sister named Phakama. She has a 3 year old boy. She is unemployed and looking for a job. We
are helping her get a job.Elder Van Sickle pracitced interviewing Phakama.
They are all nonmembers and investigating the church. Elder Lazenby and Elder Fozard have been
teaching them. So we decided to join forces and go together.Anyway they tried to teach us xhosa and the more
we tried to learn there lauguage and do the clicking sounds. The more they laughed. It was a happy occasion.
Alot of laughing went on despite the fact that Elder Lazenby gets transferred tomorrow and Elder Fozard has
losted his voice. They are the best missionaries, they have the best spirit about them.
     We went back to the first house and the Finee  was home.We hoped to talk to her husband. He is not a member but
he was at work.The couple that lives in the back shack joined us. Both of the ladies complained how when there husbands drink, it changes there personality and they don't like how they treat them when they are drunk.We testified to them of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon
and how important it was to read it and how important it is to live the principals taught in the Book of Mormon We told him how he would be blessed if he lived the principals.. We asked him if he prayed. He could not remember how to pray. We taught him the four steps to prayer.We invited him to come to
church. The spirit was so strong.There was so much love in the room.I know that Heavenly Father wanted us to talk to
this young man today.
     We hope you and your families are doing well. We love you. Be sure you do your CPR ( C-Church, P Prayer and
R- is for Reading the Scriptures.  Sister Van Sickle had to teach the career workshop today alone , while I  helped a young return missionary fill out his college entrance form. I got back to the class, she had the whole class all trained and finished. She really did a great job. There is not a day goes by that we  learn something new about the xhosa people. We sure have fun with them. They are such an easiy people to love. We just love them to pieces. they are all so poor. We don't know how they all get along on absolutely nothing!!!!!!!!! If you think of the poorest person you know, they probably live like kings compared to South Africa. The Elders quorum president has a good job at volks wagon, he makes about $3.50 an hour. How long could you live on that. 40 hour weeks. It is not much. He can't afford acar. They have to take a taxi where ever they go or walk. If it is the end of the month you walk every where. It is not safe to walk at night. We have to be out of the township before dark because of this. Could you imagine doing home teaching with out a car and travel on foot to every family. They have no hot water to bath with. So they have to go over to your nieghbors house that might have hot water and bathe.  I measured his house the other day and it measured 20by 20 feet.  When they use there cell phone they can only afford to text or they will call you and then you call them right back , so they don't use up there minutes. Because of all of this  it really slows the work in the church down. When we get home sometimes it really makes us cry. If you gave welfare  to all the members of the church in South Africa, the church would be broke in a month. Not only that , but the whole world in Africa would join the church for the welfare. It is so hard to know how to help all these people. So it is so important that we get all the members we can to work. Most jobs have a starting wage of less than $1.25.  We just need all the prayers there are and more.
                                           Love Elder and Sister Van Sickle