7/3/17

WHAT ARE THOSE haha Elder Tu'ua

Comp and I on P-Day!

Did you guys know I could play soccer? Me neither

The China District

Best district ever haha

Bro Mssa Sis Chikwenya

Made a cake this week!

Drew would be proud lol

Fell asleep in Tonga's bed!

BYE BYE BECKY!!!!

Hey!

Oh my goodness today I am lazy to write for sure haha but let me try to put myself together for just a moment haha.

Monday: So after emailing we went to the chapel to go pick up something from the chapel, and then we ended up playing soccer there for a little bit haha. Turns out I am pretty okay at soccer? I scored a few goals? Maybe all of us were just bad actually haha. I was trying to play in my long skirt, so I just tied it up and went from there haha.

Tuesday: Our last district meeting went great! Elder Tu'ua asked me to give the doctrinal study again...even though I did it like last week but one. It was good, though. We went to the area and had some good lessons! 

Wednesday: Most blessed day every haha I had exchanges with SISTER MPIYAKHE (South Africa) and we literally had like 11 lessons in one day. Don't even ask me how we did it because I myself am not sure, but it was incredible. We had lessons with BROTHER MSSA and SISTER CHIKWENYA in preparation for their baptism on Saturday! It was seriously the sweetest day. Sister Mpiyakhe is so cool and I love her so much. We laughed every minute between lessons. I did miss Sister Tonga, though. When we got back together I just hugged her for a solid minute. My companion is the coolest!

Thursday: Weekly planning and lessons! I don't even remember what happened that day to be honest haha.

Friday: Lessons and interviews! Whenever we have interviews we always get to hang out with our District Leader and his companion for a little, which is funny. Elder Tu'ua and Elder Banks make me laugh. The whole time Elder Tu'ua will just be telling Sister Tonga that Samoa is better than Tonga and Elder Banks and I just laugh and watch the fight between islands haha. 

Saturday: Baptism for Brother Mssa and Sister Chikwenya! Brother Mssa is a 19 year old guy we met in the street and he is just POWERFUL. Every time we gave him a pamphlet to read, he literally MEMORIZED it and then taught us the lesson himself haha. He has been asking us like crazy when he can go on a mission and he is already working with us. I love Mssa haha so cool. Sister Chikwenya is the wife to Brother Chikwenya who was  baptized last weekend. She is the sweetest lady, and I think they are going to call her to be the Primary teacher in Retreat with me so HALLELUJAH because this past Sunday I had 20 kids so PAKAYIPA. 

Sunday:Favorite day of the week, as always! I especially loved it because it was FAST AND TESTIMONY SUNDAY! Can I just tell you how cool it is to see all my recent converts bear their testimonies? It is like watching your baby learn how to walk...I think haha. It is so rewarding. I have SIX WEEKS ONLY left in Bindura. President Mkhabela told me that when I am done training Sister Tonga, I will leave Bindura. I already knew that, though. I have been here for a loonnnggg time and that is not always normal for sisters.

Today is transfer day, and can I just tell you that it feels NICE TO not have a new companion for the first time in a LOONNNGG TIME. Sister Talemwa trained me two transfers, but then I had Sister Namugenyi for one, Sister Park for one, Sister Jili for one, Sister Ndhlovu for one, but now Sister Tonga for TWO because I am training her. You all know me, I don't love saying goodbye to people so today has just been nice and sweet and stress free for me. I know when I am going, so I have time to prepare. I am going to work HARD the last six weeks so I can leave MY HOME in good terms. Bindura has been so sweet to me. I love it so much.

I hope you all have a great week! 

Sister Lewis

Don't even ask

Primary...SOS

Baptism! Netsai and Tsungay!

The couple!

Selfie

I didn't look!!!

District Leader

Jonathan (that is what she named her car)

6/26/17

Hey Fam! I hope everyone had a great week. I know I did! Let me try and remember what even happened haha.

Monday: Normal P-Day stuff. Nothing fun this week.

Tuesday: Interviews with President! It was a loonnnggg day, but a good day. We had to be at the chapel by like 9 and we were there until 3. President Mkhabela and I had an incredible interview. He is such a great mission president. I love being around him and hearing his counsel! He told me I am doing a good job, and I was happy to hear that. After interviews, we had some few appointments, and then we went home to study.

Wednesday: So we ended up having District Meeting on Wednesday instead of Tuesday since we had interviews. MY COMPANION gave the Doctrinal Study, and she absolutely killed it! She did so good for her first time. It was a great District Meeting. After our District Meeting, we grabbed lunch and then we went out to teach! We saw Brother Mssa, who is probably the coolest person I have ever met. He is 19 years old and is so smart. Before each lesson, he reads the pamphlet so well and understands everything to the extent that he teaches us instead of us teaching him. He is getting baptized this weekend and wants to serve a mission as soon as possible. I love that guy!

Thursday: Weekly planning! We taught some good lessons to some people who were preparing to be baptized.

Friday: This day was literally hectic. SO MANY LESSONS. We were running all over the place trying to get our interviews done and teaching people. We spent the whole day in Retreat.

Saturday: Wedding and baptism for Brother Tsungayi! Baptism for Sister Kaingo! It was a crazy day and we were running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to get everything done. It was a great day, though. At the end of the baptisms, Brother Tsungayi and Sister Kaingo bore powerful testimonies. Brother Tsungayi said, "I want to thank the sister missionaries who took my life seriously." I almost started crying right then and there. I LOVE MY LIFE GUYS. Being a missionary is literally the most rewarding thing I have ever done.

I love you all and I hope you have a great week! I know this email was kind of short and terrible, but I am soooo tired today haha

LOVE YOU!
love Sister Lewis

6/19/2017

Young MacDonald Had a Twin

Oh my heck. What even happened this week? I don't know. My life was so busy haha. It was a good week, but it was SO HECTIC. ALL of the things are happening. EVERYONE wants to be baptized haha. My companion and I literally have time for nothing except to eat, sleep, and preach the gospel. 

Monday: You already know last Monday we went hiking! I will try to send some pictures of our hike. Yoh it was beautiful at the top.

Tuesday: Halfway done with mission? WHAT?! I hit my nine month mark on mission! I go home on March 13th, so I was exactly halfway done on Tuesday. It felt so weird, to be honest. I feel like I have been here for two days, not nine months! Also it was my brother Jesse's birthday! We went to District Meeting, and I had to give the doctrinal study. Funnily enough, it was all about service and how serving others can open up their hearts to our message. Due to my wonderful parents and their incredible hearts, I have pretty much grown up around service my whole life, so it was easy to testify about. After District Meeting, all of the sisters wanted to take a picture with me looking pregnant for my 9 month mark haha. It is kind of a tradition on mission. The picture is boss, though, so I ain't even mad. After lunch we taught some nice lessons! We got to end the day with the Pepa Family, recent converts, who I love and adore. 

Wednesday: Lessons on lessons on lessons. We extended baptismal dates to four people, and they accepted! Everyone in Retreat is getting ready to be baptized haha. This group is going to turn into a branch faster than I can say, "Ndinofara!" (I am happy). P.S. Happy birthday to Aunt Bonnie!

Thursday: Weekly Planning, as always! We got to have some good lessons and we discovered even MORE of Retreat, so blessed. We extended two baptismal dates and they accepted! 

Friday: HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELDER HUNT!!! Shout out to my best friend in Chile for turning 19. We taught some really really nice lessons and extended two baptismal dates, and they both accepted. 

Saturday: MAKOROKOTO to BROTHER MUCHENA for being baptized! It was a really nice service, and after his baptism Brother Muchena bore a beautiful testimony. He has been one of the most prepared investigators I have ever come across. He came to church one week after being invited by Brother Kaingo, and then we taught him the lessons and baptized him 3 weeks later. We didn't even really have to teach him because he would read the pamphlets so much he almost had them memorized! Awesome dude. We taught a few lessons after the baptism and extended three baptismal dates, and all of them accepted!

Sunday: HOLY COW GUYS I HAD 15 CHILDREN IN PRIMARY THIS WEEK AND I ALMOST DIED. It was fun, though. Lots of adventures for sure. I had twins this week, too, and they are like both 2 years old haha. Most of the kids I have to teach are below the age of 8 and I am supposed to keep them busy/happy for two hours and they don't understand English. BUT. God loves me and He gives me strength each and every time. The twins are called Michael and MACDONALD. Macdonald is so stinking cute guys hahaha. 

So this week was crazy and hectic. We currently have 19 people on date for baptism, and most of them need to be married legally before we can baptize them. I will be so tired of marriages by the time I get home that I won't even want to get married myself haha. We are sooo busy right now, but good busy! We are loving it! Not everything that happened this week was good, but I am so glad that I have a Father in Heaven who loves me and constantly encourages me and strengthens me just when I feel like I have hit my limit. I am grateful for the Atonement of my Savior, Jesus Christ, who loves me with a love unending. I am grateful for the Book of Mormon which brought me so much peace when I was failing to find it through other sources. 

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY AND I AM SOOOO SAD I HIT MY HALFWAY MARK. I want to be a missionary forever! 

Love you all! Have a great week! 

Sister Lewis

Gorgeous Rainbow

9 months lol (Hump Day-Jenna's halfway mark on her mission)

Selfies as always

Tonga looking cute as always!

Bro Muchena's Baptism!

Weird Mission Tradition for hump day!

Post hike last week!

Sister Namugenyi got tired

From the top

6/12//17

Baby it's cold outside

A

Angie Hunt sent facemakes haha

Exchanges with Sister Burt!

                                     

FAM

Palagi

REUNITED

Removing Braids

District Leader Elder Tu'ua

Weekly Planning

Rutendo!My best friend

6/12/17

Hey fam!

Another incredible week in the land of Zim! Last week I was so lazy to write because my companion and I braided our hair (lol predictable). This week was full of blessings, so let's hope I remember them all!

Monday: Sister Tonga and I plaited our hair, emailed, and then went home haha. Nothing too exciting!

Tuesday: Hapana District Meeting because Zone Conference was on Friday. We got a few extra hours to go out to the area and work! DO YOU GUYS WANT TO HEAR THE CRAZIEST STORY EVER?! So this week we got a media referral, which never happens. I guess there was this guy that stays in the boundaries of our area who was chatting with a missionary in the East Coast about the church, and they sent the referral to us. We taught him on Tuesday and gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon to read. THAT NIGHT we get a call from AMERICA. It was a sister missionary following up on the referral she sent us. WANT TO HEAR SOMETHING CRAZY?! THIS SISTER WENT TO MY HIGH SCHOOL. Her name is Sister Erasmus and we had a bunch of classes together in High School because she wants to be a nurse too. So we just casually found out that WE KNEW EACH OTHER. WHAT ARE THE LITERAL CHANCES. So mission is cool, hey? 

Wednesday: Exchanges! I got to go on exchanges with Sister BURT (from Idaho) in Chiwaridzo (which is in Bindura). It was so fun! She goes home in like 9 weeks. She is so happy and awesome. I met my first atheist in Zimbabwe. Cool story, actually. So we met this lady who was telling us that she goes to church with her husband, but she doesn't know if she actually believes in God. We were trying to figure out why she didn't believe in God, but she wasn't really telling us. I felt prompted to tell her about how I felt the love of God in my life. I shared how the time when I knew God loved me the most was when my older brother, Jared died. She looked at me for a second, and silence passed. Then she told us that her mom died some years ago and that is when she stopped believing in God. Can we all just admire our Father in Heaven for a minute? What are the chances that I would be going on exchanges that particular day to meet that particular lady? God knows each and every one of us. We all have a time and place to come to know of the truth of the gospel. I am forever grateful for a Father in Heaven who knows me and each one of us individually. I am glad I was able to share my experience about my grief to help someone feel connected to something. I am grateful for the Holy Spirit which told me what to say. 

Thursday: Weekly planning! Then plenty of lessons in Retreat. 

Friday: Zone Conference! I SAW SISTER NDHLOVU GUYS. Literally she drove into the parking lot, I ran after the car, and then we both screamed and hugged each other for a solid 5 minutes. She launched into all the things that are going on in her life. I miss her, and I love her! It worked out amazingly, too, because Sister Ndhlovu's companion is Sister Leatu'u, who is from TONGA! My companion was so happy! She was just speaking her language for the first time in three weeks haha. It was a good conference, though! It was long. We left Bindura at like 8 in the morning and then got back at like 7 at night. #pakayipa 

Saturday: No baptism for the first time in like three weeks haha. Honestly, it was a nice break. This upcoming Saturday we have a baptism, and then the next weekend we have a double wedding and baptism. If all goes to plan haha. We just taught lessons!

Sunday: WOW TODAY WAS A POWERFUL DAY OKAY! So our branch changed the time we meet from 8 am to 9 am and wow it made a difference haha. Our sacrament meeting was FULL, which made me so happy. I was kind of disappointed that one hour made such a difference, but I was happy. Like if church starts at 8, just show up at 8 for goodness sake haha. BUT! We had so many people come to church AND MY LESS ACTIVE BEST FRIEND CAME AGAIN FOR THE SECOND WEEK IN A ROW SO HALLELUJAH BECAUSE BLESSED. I seriously love being a missionary. Have I ever said that before? No? Let me say it again. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY. We had 13 investigators come to church this week so blessed. I love Bindura so much. It is the Promised Land! I will cry my eyes out when I have to leave in 9 weeks. 

Monday: Again... We went hiking this morning! Sister Namugenyi, Sister Beckstead, Sister Tonga, and I climbed a mountain. It was so cool. We just picked a random mountain and climbed to the top. It was super duper steep haha. It was sweet, though. I was leading so go me lol. 

So this week was a great week, like always. Happiest human alive, probably. Definitely. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY. I love you all and I pray for you all the time. Stay well! Musare mushe! PS my Shona is so good now! I love speaking it. 

TOONANA!

Sister Lewis

6/5/17

Hey!

Guys I am so lazy to write a group email today haha I am sorry. Let me just tell you really fast about the highlights of the week!

Pretty much my companion and I had a ton of powerful lessons with powerful people. We invited 6 people to be baptized in June and they all accepted! We are anticipating to have some more marriages and baptisms this month!

BROTHER KAINGO WAS MARRIED AND BAPTISED WHAT WHAT!! I was so excited. Brother Kaingo was a referral and from the beginning he was just amazing. He started calling church "our church" from day one. He was so prepared. His wife is preparing to be baptised this month, as well. Cutest family ever. I was so happy.

Sister Tonga is amazing and wonderful and I don't even have to stress about training her because she is just already a great missionary! All I need to do is just be a good example to her, and the rest follows. She is seriously the sweetest person that I know. She is so positive! She has never said one negative thing about mission, and I respect that so much. CUTEST DAUGHTER GUYS CUTEST.

This past fast sunday was amazing. I love fast Sundays always. I received a HUGE answer to prayer that just reaffirmed to me that God is there watching out for me. I know that my Redeemer lives and loves me. I know that this gospel IS my happiness.

I am sorry I am lazy to write today. I hope you all have a great week, though! I LOVE YOU NDINO KUDA ANDITI

Sister Lewis

(Jenna's Mom has a little insight--Jenna refers to herself as "lazy" but she is anything but that!!! She is exhausted today and gave us the best that she could give! Since she has been a new trainer for the past few weeks she has also become the main Primary Teacher. These children do not speak English!
It takes all she has and more to teach them a lesson on Sundays and keep them occupied until their Primary time is over. I have to say I am so proud of Sister Lewis and all that she does. She has never had 1 negative thing to say about her mission or a companion or her living conditions or anything! What a great example she is to me!)

Trainers

The famous Primary Children that Jenna teaches each Sunday!

SOS!

Promises Baptism!

Companions

Isn't she beautiful!

The wedding!

The Baptism!

5/29/17

A Missionary is Born!

Hey guys! This week has been HECTIC for sure haha. It was a good week, but all the things happened. Let's start with Monday...

Monday: So I think I mentioned last week I had to go to Harare to pick up Sister Tonga, so I emailed at the office. It was so good to see ALL the missionaries around the office. I saw so many friends! All the missionaries who went home were getting their last interview with President, so I got to see all of them for sure. I was literally at the office all day, which almost killed me. The thing about being a missionary is that we don't do well sitting down in one place for a long time. 

Tuesday: GOODBYE SISTER NAFULA. GOODBYE SISTER ANYANGO. GOODBYE ELDER MAHLANGU. A ton of missionaries left on Tuesday morning because their mission was finished! I think we had like 13 or so leave. I was so sad to say goodbye to one of my best friends on mission, Sister Nafula. So after all of the trainers had a meeting with President about how to train and stuff. After that, we ate lunch. After lunch, A LITERAL MIRACLE HAPPENED. I GOT TO GO BACK TO MY OLD AREA IN KUWADZANA. So when I left Sister Park in Kuwadzana, She was training Sister Mzunga. Well, Sister Mzunga is finished with 12 week and now she is training her own missionary! So Sister Wells, Sister Mzunga, and I got to go work in Kuwadzana for the day while we were waiting for our trainees. I SAW TREVOR AND ASHLEIGH AKA MY FAVORITE PEOPLE EVER. I was so over the moon that day haha. SISTER TONGA ALSO CAME ON TUESDAY! So on Tuesday night we got to have dinner with President and Sister Mkhabela with all of the trainers and trainees. It was so yummy. We had lasagna and it was amazing holy cow. MY DAUGHTER IS SO CUTE AND SO SWEET I LOVE HER. We had to sleep in the transfer house again on Tuesday night.

Wednesday: Training, training, training. We had to be at the office by 8 on Wednesday for breakfast, and then we had a few hours of training for the trainees. We ate lunch, and then we had to get a lot of things done at the office like interviews for Sister Tonga and stuff. We ended up leaving for Bindura like at 2 or something, so we got home around 4. Sister Tonga unpacked and we went to shop for some food. We didn't get to proselyte on Wednesday just because we had heaps of things to do and we were both SO TIRED! 

Thursday: Weekly planning #1 for Sister Tonga! It was a little brutal to me to make her do weekly planning right after having sat on a plane for 30 hours and at the mission office forever, but it had to be done! She was a trooper. Then, we finally got to go out and have some lessons. Do you want to hear the biggest tender mercy ever? We did not have a single fall through the whole day! We saw every single person we planned to see! Sister Tonga did great for her first day. She has a powerful testimony. 

Friday: We had lessons all day again! Sister Tonga got to meet the Muzaradope Family, and she LOVED THEM SO SAME. She really does have a huge love for people, so shout out to her for being just like her mission mother! 

Saturday: Makorokoto (congratulations) to Sister Promise for being baptized! We met Sister Promise with Sister Jili, and she just got baptized this past weekend! It was awesome! Sister Tonga is spoiled because she got to have a baptism her first week haha.

Sunday: Promise was confirmed! And Sister Tonga's first Sunday! So I had to teach Primary this week (it used to be Sister Ndhlovu). Can you guys even believe I taught children who don't speak a lick of English? I taught them a simplified Plan of Salvation lesson and it was awesome! We taught a lesson to Brother Kaingo who is going to be married and baptized this weekend if all goes to plan! SOS I NEVER SIGNED UP TO BE A WEDDING PLANNER LIKE THIS HAHA.

So training is amazing. I have been humbled so much. I am learning to rely on my Savior so much more than before. I can't even live without Personal Study these days! I am happy! I am healthy! I am loving mission and working hard! I am nearly halfway done which is crazy and doesn't even make sense to me. I LOVE YOU ALL! Have a great week. Say your prayers!

Love, Sister Lewis

(This is Jenna's Mom--I email Sister Talemwa who was Jenna's trainer. She referred to Jenna as her  "daughter" at one time and I asked Jenna about it. When you are a trainer you call your new missionary your "daughter." Now that Jenna is a trainer Sister Talemwa refers to herself as a "grandmother." So Sister Tonga is referred to as Jenna's "daughter."

When Jenna has approached her "hump day-halfway mark" she will send a picture looking pregnant!

It represents that she has been out 9 months on her mission). (Not sure what the Elders do!)

Our Chapel

Cutest Chubby Baby

Muzaradope Weirdos-haha!

Exchanges with Sister Bondo

Sister Nafula and I

May 6 baptism of 9!

Sister Ndhlovu and I!

River the Elders baptized 9 in!

Jonathan (the car)

5/22/2017

Training?

Guys, I am so confused right now. Transfers brought me SURPRISES for sure haha. Let me make you wait until the VERY END OF THE WEEK lol. BUT to tease you... I am emailing in Harare right now...

Monday: Nothing happened other than emailing lol.

Tuesday: Our final district meeting! We decided to be unified and have combined district meeting again so that we would be able to hear all the testimonies of the four missionaries in our zone who are going home literally tomorrow. We got to have a bunch of lessons, which was sweet. We got to see Tendai (our recent convert) and she gave us some referrals of her friends for us to teach! Sweetest girl ever for sure. 

Wednesday: Lessons on lessons on lessons. My favorite lesson of the day was with Tanaka and Dorica! They are both Muzaradope children as well, but they were gone for school holidays. They came back and wanted to be baptized with the rest of their family! So we have been teaching them. This lesson was incredible because we didn't even teach! We asked Itai, Thelma, Israel, and Pebneg to teach Dorica and Tanaka and THEY LITERALLY TAUGHT THE WHOLE PLAN OF SALVATION PERFECTLY. I was so proud. Almost cried. 

Thursday: Weekly planning! Teaching! Nothing else really happened lol. 

Friday: Lessons/BAPTISMAL INTERVIEWS. Tanaka and Dorica were interviewed by Elder Tuua and THEY PASSED! We were so happy, and so were they! They are sweethearts. 

Saturday: Baptisms/TRANSFER NEWS! The baptisms for Tanaka and Dorica were awesome! They were smiling so big. They bore beautiful testimonies afterwards! So after the baptisms, we got our transfer news. Sister Ndhlovu is leaving Bindura :( She is going to serve in Tafara with Sister Leatu'u! And me, I am staying in Bindura and....TRAINING A NEW MISSIONARY. Her name is Sister Tonga, and she is from Tonga haha. I am emailing at the mission office in Harare. I have to stay here a few days to wait for Sister Tonga to get in. I don't even know how I feel. Excited! Scared? Happy! Sad Sister Ndhlovu is leaving. So I am very confused right now haha but everything is okay. 

Sunday: Saying goodbye to people/packing! 

So yeah! That is my news for the week. I am so excited that the Lord has trusted me to train a new missionary! I will love her like crazy for sure. I have to take this time to share my love for Sister Ndhlovu, though. She has been an incredible companion to me. I have grown SO MUCH in the past six weeks with her as my companion. She has loved me like crazy, and always been there for me when I needed her. We laughed every minute of the day and taught lessons and worked like CRAZY! She has been my rock. I cried for sure when I found out she was going. I am grateful forever that my Father in Heaven gave me such an incredible human being as my companion, even though it was only 6 sweet weeks. I LOVE YOU NDHLOVU! COMPA BABY!

I hope you all have a great week! Happy Birthday to my brother Jason who turns THIRTY ONE this week! You old sekuru. and Happy Birthday to my beautiful Aunt Marcy who is turning THIRTY this week ;) . Haha. Love you all! 

My theme of the week/next two transfers:

"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." -Proverbs 3:5-6

I KNOW THAT MY REDEEMER LIVES.

Sister Lewis