Pioneer Children Sing As They WALK

 Yes, Caleb got a bit of walking in after church on Sunday and he wasn't 

prepared for it! It is summertime there and a hot day. He anticipated an hour walk round trip and

it ended up being 3 1/2 hours with no sunscreen! He said he's a little crisp! 

(He and his companion have a car but they're not allowed to drive anyone other than

missionaries. He explains more of the story in his email).

The work is progressing and Caleb continues to do well! 

Here's his latest email which covers the last two weeks along with some pictures: 

Hello Everyone! I hope you are doing well! As for me I'm doing pretty alright. It was super hot this passed week which was not fun however last Sunday our friends Eric got baptized! He's super awesome, hes read the Book of Mormon 5 times but has been working on stopping smoking for sooo long and he finally managed to get rid of his addiction and now our friends Simphiwe(sim-pee-way) is getting ready to be baptized this Saturday! First Saturday baptism while here on my mission. 

As for fun stories, yesterday we met a guy also named Simphiwe(different guy) and he said he wants to know how to be baptized. So we're like, "we love that question, maybe we can visit you sometime this week" but he doesn't have a formal address. He said the general location of where he lived, and Elder Jamo said its close and we could just walk with him home after church. So I trusted him. 2 hours later we arrived at Simphiwes home. And then we made it like 1 hour later we got caught in a downpour on the walk back to the chapel. So I'll never trust jamo about it again. (If you're curious it was between and a 10-11 mile round trip)  

We also got to have a member meal with a sister who joined the church 32 years ago and was baptized in a pool. It was pretty good food nothing too crazy. 

I had a drink called Umqomboti (might be spelled wrong) its a Zulu beer dont worry I was assured by the MEMBER that it had not alcoholic. So I graciously accepted. Twas not very good and after further research, I prayed and asked for forgiveness but i can now say I've tried beer I suppose

For those of you that didn't know, South Africa is a heavily Christian country, meaning that many know some things from the Bible. Most people gladly accept knew knowledge about Jesus and God. However some feel the urge to prove their knowledge of the Bible. I wouldn't say its a bash because they are not usually trying to contradict us. They usually use random verses and try to show just how much they know. Amd sometimes the things they say make me grateful for the Book of Mormon and modern day prophets. In Psalms and John 10, its stated that we are gods, some i have talked to take this literally and use it to justify any lifestyle since they are already gods. However the Book of Mormon and modern prophets clarify that these verses are referring to our potential to become like God.

We are blessed to have the Bible the Book of Mormon and modern day prophets to work together and strengthen one another so that we may hold steadfast to the rod of iron and not be led away in the mist of darkness.

Love,

 Elder Roskelley

                                                   With his friend Eric and Elder Jamo.

 

                 The "beer" Caleb mentioned. Made from some of the leftover porridge shown below.

                                A meal that a sister in the branch made for them. Not his favorite!

 

A picture of the area he's in (along with the one with homes).

He said members there seem to love the Lord's Prayer.