January 6, 2014

MOM!

It’s awesome to get the updates on you guys, I’m grateful to have such an awesome family!!

So here it’s still been pretty slow.. We have just been trying to do service while everyone is gone ha. We usually do service at a bakery that is owned by a ward member. She gives us a slice of cake after so it’s pretty fun. I feel like Cake Boss...

 but more 3rd world.. haha New Year’s we were on lock down.. We didn’t stay up or anything we had to be up at 6:30 the next morning so I chose sleep!

The experiences you have been having (all of you) are totally an answer to my prayers. The work here has been very difficult.. So I have just been praying that you at home, as well as other missionaries will receive blessing from our labors. I’m so impressed with your dedication to memorize the living Christ! I read it at least once a week! I hope you are not planning on reading the entire standard works in 1 year.. That’s insanity I’m pretty sure. I’m a missionary and can’t do that. That would be like 2 straight hours of study a day. And the Old and New testament WILL kill you haha but if you are then good luck! I’ll be finishing the New Testament hopefully this transfer.

 

Bednar is coming to give a Fireside on the 22 of this month which will be very cool! He is the new apostle over east Africa! We might even get to meet and shake hands with him and stuff, I’m way excited he is my favorite apostle!

 

It just blesses my heart to see this happy face!

 

 

Transfer 3 ended Sunday, I’m staying here for another one, and guess what? I’m training! I’m training a kid from Utah this transfer. I’m a little nervous,(just one more thing to pray for help for) but I think it will be fine... however it means that I will have been in Mukono 2 for a quarter of my mission ha

There is a family (the one I baptized) in the ward that is feeding us tomorrow, they said it’s a going away party for elder hall; I’m in charge of dessert so I made some lime Jell-O with pineapple, and some pudding with cookie crust. Just like you taught me!!! (send more lime Jell-O!!) Should be a fun time! I don’t think those kids have ever had Jell-O before haha

 

 

 

Well that’s about all this week, next week’s email should be a good one as I will be with a greenie hahaha should get some funny stories haha Keep him in yours prayers, I don’t know his name yet haha.

Well I love and miss you all so very much, and I can definitely feel your love, not only through the emails but also your prayers, Heavenly father is watching over our small family even when we are so far apart! Till next week!!

Elder Bennion



 



December 30, 2013

Mommy,                                          12/30/13

 

It was so cool to call you! And surprisingly cheap.. Does it cost

anything on your side? It cost me about $5 to call ha. They fed us KFC

at the Christmas party. A KFC just opened up here in Uganda within the

last 3 weeks so they thought they would let us test it out. It was so

good! Tasted like home! Yum! It’s really expensive though, a bucket of

chicken is about $50. So it won’t be anything that we can go get on our

own.

Nakawa house, Kampala

Anyways, this week, even for me, it was slow. Everyone is out of town

so we can barely get 1 lesson a day. We've just been visiting members

and such.

 

 

 

Calvin in front of the church.

 

 

 

 

 

That's awesome that Jeanie is giving you stuff. I miss her quite a

bit! Store people here, if they see that we are regulars, they raise

the price of the things that we repeatedly buy. She often let me get

away with free stuff so yes I am missing her too!

 

Christmas was very different here.. The way I picture Christmas is,

family, music, decorations, temple square, reading Christmas stories,

and learning about Christ. That is not what it was here. The day just

kind of came and went. But again there are lessons I have learned that

I will take with me forever. The Importance of family, and centering

that family on the Savior. It’s just becoming more and more crystal

clear. So I will say that this Christmas definitely was not a good

Christmas, but it will always be one of the most meaningful, now that

I have seen the with, and without.

 



 

All of us talking to Calvin Christmas Day on the speaker phone. Jesse Reynolds came by too.

 

 

Mom, I’m so grateful for all that you do to help and support me out

here, but in al honestly the things you and dad taught me before

getting here have been the most important. I came from a home where I

was just taught what was right and how I could truly be happy. A lot

of the people here, don’t have that. I’m so

grateful, and I love you so so much! Have a Happy New Year! (I think

we will be on lock down at new year because people just get drunk and

set stuff on fire on New Years ha)

 

Elder Bennion

 

 

 

1st Christmas down!

 



 

December 23, 2013

Mommy,                                              12/23/2013

 

Merry Christmas... I think..

 

Ha it doesn't feel like Christmas here at allll. Like I said it’s not

really decelerated.. However I have been doing my best to spread the

Christmas spirit in all the ways you taught me. Stories, Parties, and

Scriptures. I read my Christmas stories to people every chance I get. I’m so grateful for the way

we have always celebrated CHRISTmas I feel that because of you and

Grandpa R I know what a good Christmas feels like, and even though I’m

celebrating alone this year I’m still caring that special spirit with

me everywhere I go!

 

 

 

This is me and Isaac. He is actually the one that took all the

pictures at the christmas party. I just hand him my camera and he

fills up my memory card haha he is 8 and is my best friend in the

ward.

 

 

IT good to hear that everyone is still doing well! It’s crazy to say

it’s already been 4 months ha I’m doing good too! I’m so proud of

everyone for their missionary work! Excellent work passing out those

BoMs!! Make sure those people READ IT. Tell them it’s NOT a paper

weight!! Haha that’s our problem here. Everyone wants a free book, but

no one wants to read it!

 

This is the second councilors second daughter her name is shamika she

is 4 i think. she loves me as well. hahah

 

 

Missing the family Christmas party right about now... We are having a

Mission Christmas Party tomorrow in Nakawa. It will last all day so I’m

excited for that!!

 

Christmas Call.

I’m going to try to call at about 9:00pm Uganda time. Elder Hall says

its super easy we just buy a $2 card and call home. So everything

should be fine. I’m going to call the home phone.

 

Alright things to talk about today are..

I tried the Chicken you sent. It’s NICE! Very good! I cooked it with

some cream of chicken and put it on rice mmmmm Then I fried some with

some vegies another nice and that was nice to!! So those are flippin

awesome!

 

 

We ate ofuls.. Which is sheep intestines.. mmm They love it here it’s not good..

 

 

I forgot to mention that we eat fresh passion fruit here and it is

soooooo good it’s called Mutunda here its super cheap so I eat a ton!

Just cut it in half and suck out the innards ha. I don’t know if you

can buy them at home but you should look for them! Try it yourself!

 

So in my Scripture study I came to John 20:17, when Christ says "touch

me not" I don’t know if you notices but it has a JST To change touch to

Hold. Wondering what you and Kallie think of that. Thought it was

interesting.

 

I bought Meat off the street this week haha cooked it and lived! It

wasn’t bad at all. I’m getting braver ;) hahaha

 

It’s been a little scary to hear about all the wars going on around

Uganda. Kenya, Somalia, and South Sudan are all going at it.

 

So this week we go to a lady's house and we are trying to teach her

about the book of Mormon and she was stubborn and claimed the Bible

to be the only word of god, she goes and gets her bible and while

unzipping it cockroaches started to crawl out,  she must read it quite

often... NOT. A lot of people here claim to be Christian... But they

don’t do anything Christian... ha

 

Anyways that’s about all for today. As always I am doing fine. I love

and miss all of you so so much. Sad that I can’t celebrate Christmas

with you, but don’t worry I’m still celebrating! Calling home will be

such an awesome present!! I’m so excited! Talk to you soon! I love

you!!!

 

Elder Bennion

December 16,2013

MoMMY                                                     12/16/2013

 

Another week gone by. Ha. It’s always good to hear that everyone is hard

at work over there. I think about you guys every day. Glad everyone is

doing alright!

 

Christmas call. I know nothing yet. The ZLs are asking pres. Chatfield

about Skype this week. So we will see. If not I think it only costs us

about $5 for 45 minutes on the phone so everything should be fine. We

just don’t have the details yet. Sorry

 

I am very very excited for that Ensign!!!!

 

It cool to hear that the whole family is onboard with doing some

missionary work that’s very cool! Another thing you should look into is

ask the Elders serving in our ward (if there is any) if they need

fellowshippers for their investigators. That’s what we need here, I

would assume they do to haha

 

Africa

 

The Christmas stories you sent are awesome. Thank you so much for

those!! And the Pictures! So sweet! I have been using those stories as

lessons when we visit members so it has been super fun!

 

 

Christmas here is really depressing.. There is no decorations no music

no nothing.. They celebrate it but not really.. It makes me sad.. I

did however decorate my study desk on Dec. 1 so at least I am

celebrating. I think Christmas is going make me really miss home :(

 

There was a Wedding this week an RM that was home for 2 weeks got

married. So we helped out with the wedding it was fun. Except that it

felt to me like a high school dance and not a wedding haha

 

Well in closing I will bare my testimony, I know without a shadow of a

doubt that this church is true. I know that God and Jesus Christ live

and love us. I know that this gospel can completely change lives if

people (even us as members) will let it. Jesus told Ether that he

would grant unto whatever he asked for. This was not because Christ

was picking favorites. It was because Ether had completely given his

life to the Lord. He dedicated his mind his might and his Heart to

doing whatever the lord commands which ultimately resulted in having a

will to live completely aligned with God’s. So anything he asked for

would be Gods will also, so he would get it. IF we continue to strive

to become more like Ether and Christ, our own will continue to

align more and more with Gods. And we will notice the things we pray

for come to pass because we are adopting Gods way of thinking, which

is perfection. We can do it if we are willing to let go of the things

that are stopping us. I love this gospel, and I love my savior!

Nnasuti (naw-soo-tea)

 





I miss you all so so much, please continue to pray for me, and I'll do

the same for you! I love you!!!!!!!!!

 

Elder Bennion