Families, Journal, Gifts and I Love Kenema!

 What a wonderful week we were able to have and I am very happy and pleased with the emails that I received  What can I say I won't say that I miss home too much. I feel like my work here in Sierra Leone will never be finished. reason being is I feel that everyone NEEDS this gospel and I want to share it with everyone. When I talk to people I can't help but to relate something to the restored gospel or baring my testimony to them  that I know that God lives. The past couple weeks have been super crazy and busy.  Most of the investigators that we started to teach in January that were a little harder to accept the gospel finally were ready to make that covenant with God.  So we have been just preparing forms and interviews and even planning out services and just about everything else that follows with a baptism. I am worn, seriously worn. but when I come home at night and write in my journal I feel that I have fulfilled my purpose as a missionary and as a son of God. Lately I have really been putting more effort into my journal than before, more of those feelings and thoughts and spiritual things. but my patients has been tested cause as you know my hand writing is horrible! I have really tried these past few weeks to improve.  I found that if I ask the Lord to help me with my journal at nights and to help me in the task of correcting my writing I will be successful. I feel at times obligated/tied to make it good entries cause I called upon the powers and help of God; and myself putting forth more effort in all things pertaining to it.

 Almost every day that I hear that tape grandpa sent me, I grieve because he said and did so much for me and so did you and dad and I never had the thought or intention of writing it down. But when I hear these things my heart is filled with joy and I long to hear more and want to get the whole story all down of just who these people and memories came from. Before I left on my mission I tried to spend as much time in the truck with grandpa as possible and ask him about things of the past and then to remember them and ask him questions about it.  Your right family is where its at and I know that to be very true.  Here people don't take record of even talk about the past because it is so struck with the war and the war wasn't a civilized war.  It was one of the worlds most gruesome wars. It effected the women men and children weather you were in the war to fight or not, it effected the people and the culture forever.  In my own perspective and thoughts I feel that's why the people are so acceptable to the gospel because they had to either turn to God and run for their lives or they entered into other covenants with the son of the morning.  Now the upcoming generations of children and others are trying to forget it all and start of fresh.  Upon all these of my thoughts it really helps me reflect on how much the Lord loves me and loves our families.  Blessing us with those challenges that are so small, yet we make them bigger than they need to be.  I know that when I return home I won't let those little things bother me anymore and to help others come unto the Lord and really see their own blessings.

We have transfers this coming Sunday and in our apartment we just received two new sets of bunk beds to add to the apartment.  That's 12 elders in one apartment !!!!!!!  What that will be fun.  I seriously pray that I am here in Kenema I do want to go to the other side of Kenema to a place called Sinbeck and help the branch out there! I just like Kenema too much.  But pray for me ya?! but the lord will call me where he wants me!

 Almost one year left and its all downhill from there. June 14  I start my record of 2nd book of elder hales.. in that's my journal.  I counted the pages out and there is 95 pages so if I write one page a day it will last for 180 days so that is sweet!  I plan to get the good things in there!

The rains have started again and they are pretty consistent. I love the rain I sleep so good cause its nice and cool. This week we had a baptism and it was a really good one. Some investigators that we have been trying to prepare since January   They all heard the first 3 lessons and really felt the spirit, came to church a couple of times then they went away to the villages for a Holiday.  They came back in April and they said that they wanted to be members of the  church.  They didn't say they wanted to be baptized but to be members.  That's one thing that I love about them they really were converted to the gospel and yet still wanted to turn their lives around.  Anyway they are a number of 4 young men from 18 to 25.  Their baptism,  they came one hour early and we weren't expecting them!  But they and sang and sang hymns until the time reached.. after the baptism was over our branch mission leader had something that he wanted to give to me as a gift.  I was unsure what it was going to be.  Then he presented to me a new shirt and some shorts to go with it.  I loved it!  He said it was about all he could do to show his appreciation for what I have done to help him in the gospel.  The spirit filled my heart and I had that conformation that truly I was setting a good example of a latter day saint.  It helped me realize that its the small things in life that can change someone else's -=- when we returned home that evening I was eager to wear the gift.  Though it's a women's shirt and XXL shorts I love it and will cherish it till I wear it out!

I am doing great with my health and am still taking all my doxy and sleeping under a net (sleeping without a net just terrifies me) so I am good.  I have lost weight though... oh well it is what it is!
Love
ELDER HALES