Baptisms and a Goat

Posted bySue GilbertPosted inAfrican Culture, Obuasi, Spiritual Experiences

Two Baptisms This Week

Things are going well!  We had two baptisms this past week. We weren’t even sure when they would come on, and I’ll explain why. For Both Isaac and Thomas, they needed very special interviews with our mission president to be forwarded on to the area office and eventually the First Presidency of the Church. This is because they were born into polygamous families. (News flash to everyone that thinks we still practice polygamy. If you are in a polygamous marriage, you aren’t even allowed to be taught, if you come from one, such as born into it but not practicing it, or previously practicing it, you need to be reviewed by higher authorities in order to be baptized.) So thats what happened. But because it is so common for people to be born into polygamous families, but not practice it here in west Africa, the area office in Accra, Ghana can approve the minor cases.  Their testimonies were amazing and very powerful. These are truly converted men. I don’t know what to say about them besides they both should’ve been baptized weeks if not months ago. They are so powerful.

Zone News

Our zone is doing alright! There’s some responsibilities to be taken care of and it’s not easy, but I’m learning and trying to improve in leadership. This past week we did travel to Kumasi, and we’ll do it again this week. I’m getting sick of that bumpy, pothole-filled road. I try to sleep the whole way but I always get motion sick. We have a total of 5 Americans in the zone. There are 4 Ghanaians, 1 from Nigeria, 1 from Zambia, and 1 from Zimbabwe.  I love how diverse this mission is, I get to meet people from all over Africa: Liberia to Malowie, South Africa to Kenya, and then to D.R. Congo. I get to meet them all.

Another thing that happened just today is that we had an activity where we got the whole Zone of Obuasi together and we contributed some money, bought a live goat, which we killed, butchered, cooked, and ate all by ourselves right outside a missionary apartment (with the help of some neighbors) As we ate we enjoyed rice ball with groundnut soup and a movie. The Princess Bride! Been a long time since I’ve really seen any movies, and don’t worry, mom. Mission President approved everything before we did it even it is his copy of the Princess Bride.  Here are some photos of the goat. Man, I sure did love that goat until we had to dress him.

It is seriously such a blessing to be here in Ghana and I love every second of it. I’m learning lots and growing as an individual disciple of Jesus Christ. I love missionary work so much.

Take care,

Elder Gilbert

 

One last thing….Another thing that I feel like I should talk about: Public Urination in Ghana. It’s not illegal at all. In fact, my Ghanaian companion told me “The General law is ‘if only you don’t feel shy,'” So you see it everywhere, men and women alike. Most adult women will conceal themselves behind buildings and stuff. It’s especially awkward when you take a shortcut and basically “walk in” on a person urinating. But younger women will do it in public as well. Most homes don’t have a place to urinate in the home, so they have to go to public facilities and pay some small fee to use the toilet. It isn’t good, because people just going anywhere they feel. But it’s all part of the experience.

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