02-26-18 "2 - Nyame Adom, Nsuo aba biem" (By God's grace, the rain has come again)

Hallelujah, the rain has come again! After many months of Harmattan and 'brown-ness', the rain has come to clean up the trees, the gutters, and all the dust! :) We had the first heavy rain this Thursday I think.  I left my window open though so my mattress got a little wet!  :) hahahaha but I dried it out, so no worries.  I am just pumped to have the rain coming again!

I spent last Monday in Kwamo visiting bishop's house before Patrick, Jude, and Timothy go on their missions. It was sad to see them go, but it was soooo good to see them for what might have been my last time.  :) We had a lot of fun, and laughed a whole lot, and then we left.  Bittersweet, but I have much more 'bitter-sweet-ness' ahead of me, so I gotta get used to it.

We sent off one of our ward members Phillip this week.  He is going to Abudjan West Mission in Ivory Coast.  He was getting pretty homesick at his party and shed some tears. Hard to see, because it wasn't too long ago that I was in the same position crying before I left.  He was ready to rock though when the party was over and was very excited for his adventure ahead of him!  :)

Elder White got sick this week. Kinda rough, he had Cata or a cold, and it was killin' him. We stayed in on Saturday so he could rest.  I got lots done in the house while we were there, but now he is feeling better which is wonderful!  :)

Sunday we had 2 fm's at the same house. Elder White wanted to go home and get some rest after church, but one woman, Sis. Ernestina invited us over right after church. We explained about Elder White's sickness, and she said that she had already prepared the food so it wouldn't take long. Well. We ate the first meal right when we got there, and it was empesi (boiled plantain) and tomato stew.  We finished and asked to take our leave, and they said yeah just wait a bit. Thats when the sounds of fufu started and we knew we were dead.  An hour alter we ate a massive fufu which was delicious, but man, we felt like dying!  :)  hahaha God bless that woman's heart though, that was so sweet of her to do that for us!  :)

I had a great study this week in the war chapters of the Book of Mormon, and what impacted me this week was the character of the Stripling Warriors and their example of obedience. What stuck out to me was that they were just young men who wanted to defend their families from evil.  Here are some scriptures to understand who they are:

20 And they were all young men, and they were exceedingly valiant for courage, and also for strength and activity; but behold, this was not all—they were men who were true at all times in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.

21 Yea, they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before him. (Alma 53:20-21)

21 Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness; yea, and even according to their faith it was done unto them; and I did remember the words which they said unto me that their mothers had taught them.  (Alma 57:21)

25 And it came to pass that there were two hundred, out of my two thousand and sixty, who had fainted because of the loss of blood; nevertheless, according to the goodness of God, and to our great astonishment, and also the joy of our whole army, there was not one soul of them who did perish; yea, and neither was there one soul among them who had not received many wounds.

26 And now, their preservation was astonishing to our whole army, yea, that they should be spared while there was a thousand of our brethren who were slain. And we do justly ascribe it to the miraculous power of God, because of their exceeding faith in that which they had been taught to believe—that there was a just God, and whosoever did not doubt, that they should be preserved by his marvelous power.

27 Now this was the faith of these of whom I have spoken; they are young, and their minds are firm, and they do put their trust in God continually. (Alma 57:25-27)

These young men were preserved by the Hand of God because they were strictly obedient in every command and were trusted to uphold everything that was handed to them. I learned from this that simple obedience is the best protection. They were not mighty warriors physically, but spiritually, they were unmatched.  Because of that, they were able to defeat the strongest army of the Lamanites and many more armies, not because of their own strength, but because they were strong in obedience to the commandments.  I love the Stripling warriors.  :)

Elder Wawro