ROLLS, Mana from Heaven!!

Wow,  okay so this week was awesome, I hope that everyone enjoyed conference.  I was not able to watch it, we can't get it out here, but its all good.  I will see it some day.  Africa is awesome, the people are great, this last Sunday was fast and testimony meeting and all 8 of us bore our testimony's haha,  I'm watching mine grow each day.  I know that heavenly father has blessed us with this earth life so that we may learn and grow through our struggles and challenges.  I'm grateful for this knowledge.

 

 We had zone conference this week it was amazing. We had ROLLS! they were sooo good, its the first familiar thing I've had seen since coming here. They don't have butter here, they call it margarine butter, so buttered bread is different,  it's just not very flavorful, but it's good! It's Africa! all is good.

 I'm starting to adjust to the food here, it's very different, they don't chew anything it's all just straight down the hatch. I've had bonku (not sure what that is) a few different types of fufu and a few other things I can't even spell haha.

Life here in Ghana is hard, but I love it. I love the perspective it's giving me. At zone conference I learned that when we are going through trials we are receiving help from our Father in Heaven, we must not be stubborn and continue in our ways but, as we work through our trials we can change those things that he is trying to help us change.  It's all to make us the best that we can be, It's a blessing to learn from all that we go through. 

Zone conference was just really good, I enjoyed a change of scenery. It was in Techiman about 2 hours away.  All of our district crammed into this van, they call them tro tro's it fits 14 but we made it fit all 17. It's so funny that seat belts aren't even in existence here and the lining of cars are just all taken out, they just rip it out, not to mention the odometer is pretty consistently  pushing 320,000 miles, not to mention they probably use more oil than they do gas. Theirs black smoke that comes out of every car, what piston rings?  Life is good, the people have been awesome to learn from, I'm trying to  learn the language, its hard, they tell me how easy it is, no way.

 I've gotten to know my district pretty well, (districts are small groups of missionaries, Zone's are made up of several districts)  they are all awesome!.  I played basketball with them on Tuesday which  was an experience, those that know me know that I should never touch a basketball, like ever, its just one of those things I never did. 

 At zone conference I met another Elder Lawson, crazy, he's pretty cool, I met Elder 

Swenson too, he's in our Stake at home in Lincoln, CA. cool guy, he told me how weird it was to hear  street names and people that we both know, he just hit 1 year. I just hit 1 month not that I'm counting, I'm really not, I just know I entered on the 3rd of Sept.  people that count here seem to make things worse than they need to, almost like it's a sentence they are serving but really, I'm not counting, super cool guys, glad I was able to meet them.

 What else.. oh there's this stuff called Fanice, it's vanilla ice cream, its my little treat I can find that reminds me of home.  Everything here comes in a bag or carton, even water haha its just in a plastic bag (they call them poly tanks here) and you bite the corner off and squeeze it into your mouth, its normal to me now but when I got here man I was like, what do I do with this, it was so funny. 

 I would like to throw a shout out to my beautiful mother dear, it's her birthday today.  She's absolutely amazing, I love her with all my heart. Please someone go buy her flowers and tell her that they love her..(my sweet husband said he would) but, your son loves you even more.  Please give them to here for me, she's pretty much amazing in ever way, as everyone already knows. I mean come on, she sent her son to Africa! ( I love this boy) She's such a strong women and as I've said before, she truly is sent from heaven. She is the sweetest most understanding, loving person that I know. Please everyone go say happy birthday for me!! (thank you all who have said happy birthday, it means so much to me) 

 I don't have much time I'd like to share some things that I know to be true. I'm serving in the Kumasi Ghana mission and I have been here for 2 weeks and things have been amazing.  I'm grateful for this Gospel and where is has taken me, I'm grateful for all of my leaders that have helped me on my way throughout the years. I know that The gospel of Jesus Christ has once again been restored upon the earth, I know that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God and receives direct revelation concerning these last days. I'm grateful for the atonement and the opportunity that it gives us to once again become pure and clean to so that some day, we can return to live with our Father in heaven. I'm so very grateful for my family, I have such an amazing family that has blessed me, supported me, and made me who I am.  I love them all, without whom I would be nothing. I'm grateful for the Book of Mormon, it truly is another testament of Jesus Christ and we're so blessed that we have access to it in our lives to answer questions, and to act as a guide in the way that we live.  I leave you with my brief testimony, In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

-Elder Lawson