Thanks Toto for giving us this song!

Pretoria, Mabopane & Polokwane Zones, May 5 2018

From Elder Jim Hale (Senior Missionary serving in the Mission Office)

Elder Funk is a wonderful missionary. We have been delighted to see him at the Witbank Branch each Sunday since we arrived in February and were assigned to serve there on Sundays. He has been the Branch President's go to Sacrament Meeting speaker - once speaking three times (one planned, two not) in one month.

From Elder Jim Hale (Senior Missionary serving in the Mission Office)

May 28, 2018

Distance here in Africa's largest LDS mission (geographically):

From the Swakopmund Branch (4 elders) on the Namibian coast to the Motupa Branch (2 elders) in the banana belt of eastern Limpopo Province: 1616 kilometers = 1004 miles.

From Newport on the Oregon Coast to Cheyenne in Wyoming's SE corner: 1612 kilometers = 1002 miles.


Tomorrow from 10-12 am we will have a visit/training session with Elder L. Whitney Clayton who presides over the Church's seven-member Presidency of the Seventy.
The 24 elders of the nearby Pretoria (Stake) and Mabopane (Stake) zones will attend.

From Elder Jim Hale (Senior Missionary working in the Mission Office)

May 31, 2018

On this day when the Church is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Revelation on the Priesthood, it is appropriate to take note of how strong the Church now is here.

We have two general authority Area Presidencies in Africa. Each of them will have a black African member starting on August 1.
Of the 16-18 Area Authority Seventies who serve here, nearly all are black Africans - including one, announced in April General Conference, who was just released as President of the Gaborone Botswana Stake.
Of the presidents of the 33 (after July 1) LDS missions in Africa, over half are black Africans. Our President is obviously one of those. He is an able leader - and his familiarity with and command of the scriptures are extraordinary - among the most impressive I've seen in my 50 years of Church experience.
Many of our mission's missionaries are from this continent. Most of them are very well prepared, solid young men. Most are just a notch older than our American elders.
And most or our members throughtout the mission are also black Africans ....overwhelmingly so in most wards and branches.
Many bishops and branch presidents (including the President of the Witbank Branch (60 miles) east of our Pretoria office where my wife and I attend on Sundays, are returned missionaries. ...some just months or a few years from the mission field.
We sent one young man home to coastal South Africa a couple of transfers back who was called to the high council of his local Church district - in the same interview at which his district president released him from his mission.
We are only seeing the tip of the iceberg of Church growth on this melt-your-heart continent.

June 11,2018 - Mission Week 49: Be One and have some fun

Tried way to hard to make that title rhymm. 

Hello, and Welcome to Myldsmail News Weekly, on the docket tonight we have Canceled appointment, a visit to witbank by the Mission president, and continued shirt vs. pen violence as another pen ruins one of Elder Funks shirts. Its been a real hum-dinger (what?) of a week and we hope you stay tuned for the details. 

On Tuesday, a man named Ace was given the Book of Mormon on CD due to his blind eyes, He was very excited. then there was a switch for companion exchanges that took place that night. 

Wednesday, 19 year old Elder Funk was seen the whole day with 20 year old Elder Andam. It is reported that Elder Andam is the District leader. They were seen in middleburg going to the home of  Louisa Petzer, Mavis Tjao, and Mpumi (?). they are suspected of also trying to see a man named Vincint and his assosiate Daniel, but the two could not be found. The Two Elders then returned to witbank and spent the rest of the day at the home of known correspondent Sis. Pat. After that the two parted ways. 

Thursday,   The ringleader and overlord of this gang of dogooders was seen entering the appartment of Elder Funk and Elder Coka early that morning, (gonna break from this stupid joke to explain the interview, he basically told me that this time around I should be leaving Witbank, but that he still wants to keep me close to the office and Pretoria) 

Friday, was normal, sme with saturday, lots of cancels, and nothing noteworthy. 

Sunday, Everyone canceled. Litterally everyone, and we cant door knock on sundays sooooooooooooooooooooooo  watched some church movies and ate food, and called EVERY LESS-ACTIVE. only 3 were willing ot meet us though. A lot of "hello is this (name)?" "yes" "This is the Missionaries from the Church, how are you?" "who were you looking for?" "(name)"  "no this is (random other name), you have a wrong number" *hangs up*  * calls again so they know you know its not a wrong number, but this time they don't answer, or number busy us* 

Then you move on to the next name. 

so yeah. 

here are some random thoughts and also notes from the Be One conference We watched on sunday (side not to be One, most everyone was Crying, and it was mostly Northern/Central African Cultural stuff)

• Elder Funk- Boats, Bread, Being obsessed with Things
• Dead Litterallism is a problem when you a sarcastic as me. 
• Marking would be a fun job
• I miss being in buildings with Insulation, Its just brick here. 
• House Music is going to kill me.
• B-List african movies all use the same songs. at the same time.
• The Biblical Shew - the Worst part of the King James Version
• Elder Coka is a lot like Tad Decker. 
• Pens 3, Shirts 0

Be One Notes

• The Lord Rarely gives reasons, he expects faith.
• Relations of Patience, Faith, and Hope to Lasting Coversion
• 75,000 members to 600,000 by the end of this year, and I helped with that. 
• I need to buy a Traditional Shirt 
• Go to the temple more
• 40 years is a big number in the Ghospel
• President Nelson tearing it up with Jokes
• Male and Freemale (he misspoke)
• Live the Culture of the Ghospel
• Be One dangit
• and clapping after everything seemed to make President Nelson Uncomfortable. And the clapping was super awkward since only one lady in the building we watched was clapping with them. Everyone else was busy crying. 

So yeah, good week. I had way to much fun writing this E-mail. 

Go live your dreams.

Go swimming

Kthanksbye

June 4, 2018 - Mission week 48: Birthdays, and slow days

Monday, we took pictures under this one bridge, upload speed is awful today though, so sorry, pictures next week. Then we didn't go to Pretoria as planned so we went with Kwa'Guqa to their FHE with Sis. Mpurang, it was fun.

Tuesday, was the Special Conference with President L. Witney Clayton of the Seventy. He talked about a lot of good things. Don't really have much to share though, its mostly relevant to this specific mission. so yeah. Then we drove back to Witbank and saw a few people.

Wednesday, we had to fix another flat tire, and then we had a lady stop us while we were walking to the car, and asked us to come teach her, so that will be fun, we going next week. Noxolo is her name.  then we had to run a few errends for the office.

Thursday, We went to middleburg and had another Awesome lesson with the Golden Boy Vince.  While we were talking we put him on date, and he expressed his feelings and it was just great. Daneil, his newly moved in member friend, told us about how his stepmom burned his book of Mormon so he needed a new one, so that was fun. Daniel is insanely powerful in the ghospel, but his family wont let him serve a mission, so that blows

Friday, we met with the normal people in Phola, and also a guy named Moses, who introduced us to his friend named Nonhlahla, who then proceded to open up to us about her very large amount of problems and challenges keeping her from being happy. She's a Traditional healer, so that will be interesting.

Saturday, was my Companions birthday, so we went to a fancy burger place called Rocomamas, and had a good time, then we saw a few members and other people and one of them threw him a surprise party, with Fatcake burgers (scone hamburgers, waaaayyyy good. the guy owns a restaurant)

Sunday, was a nice fast and testimony meeting in  which I was the only male to actually get up. then we had another birthday party for another member, which was fun. nothing much really happened though.

Today, is today.

Random thoughts I have written in my planner:

President Chadambuka told his Proposal story at the special conference

Sis. Chadambuka had just been told not to become a nun (a whole nother story) when she was talking to her friend Dunstan (president) he could see she was still bummed (it had been a few months, they had started dating, since she could now) and he said "Here is something to look forward to, I'm getting married in a few months"  "to who?" she said  "you"

which is the smoothest thing I've ever heard, and also totally goes against all tradition in Zimbabwe. So that was the greatest thing ever

Family history work is really hard here, since written records don't go back past the 1800's for the Native people.

and I person can make a difference. Didn't write the context for that, but its still true.

kthanksbye