A Great Report!

I have a great report for this week! Brother Masaque has accepted to be baptized on September 15th!!!! We will continue teaching him as he prepares to be baptized. So exciting!!! 

I went on exchanges with Elder Johnson. We taught a kind little girl named God's Gift and her recently converted grandpa. God's Gift is very interested in what we have to say! After Elder Johnson extended the invitation to church... She said she would go only if I was there. Haha I told her I was flattered and I would be there but... Friends shouldn't be the only reason you go to church. 

I love all our many investigators! I love my area! Since the mission covers the whole country and we have few missionaries... Each companionship has a very large area. Elder James and I have an area that appears to be much jungle but few civilization. Our area goes all the way to the borders of Sierra Leonne. One afternoon, Elder James and I found ourselves with fallen appointments, busy investigators, and no visible service opportunities. I suggested that we took the time we had and hike into the jungle in hopes to find people to teach. My companion agreed and we headed to what appeared to be... pure jungle. After a short hike we discovered a massive tribal village! It was indescribably beautiful with the white sand and palm trees! No garbage on the ground which is rare here. 

We met so many people and made lots of new contacts. Conveniently, the area is called New Look. As we walked around the village... Little kids began to follow us out of curiosity. 20 to 30 little children followed us around as we walked and talked to many kind people! It was amazing!!! I would've gotten a picture but I didn't want to be disrespectful. I am so excited to continue the Lord's work in New Look! 

Zwana and his friends are amazing!!! They love the message and have been studying the pamphlets cover to cover. They always have great questions to ask. Last night Zwana asked me, "How do I know this is the Lord's true church if every church claims to be true?" I replied, "Joseph Smith had a similar question! After faithfully inquiring of the Lord... He surely received an answer." I then encouraged him and his friends to do the same. 

I love this work so much! I am excited for my friends leaving in a few days to the Provo MTC! I love them and wish them the best! I love you all! Thanks for the prayers and kind emails! 

Sincerely, Elder Hallenberger

The Rain is Strong, But The Spirit is Stronger

After the rain comes a rainbow. Except in Liberia... After the rain comes more rain. It is raining so hard that my umbrella fails to fulfill it's purpose of keeping me dry! It's raining so hard that we cant hear each other talk inside and outside. Missionaries aren't allowed to swim but the the water is up to our knees so we are practically swimming! I love it so much haha! It's so much fun! I'm just glad we have a roof because most houses here don't have that luxury... 

The other day the rain was so bad that we were secluded to our home until we realized the rain wasn't stopping anytime soon and we were called to serve. Not... Called to serve after the rain. We got soaked haha. We did a huge service activity on Saturday.It was so much fun working win the rain with other members! I had the best time!

There's an African fabric here called Lappa! It's literally the coolest! I bought some and i'm going to make some sweet ties with it.

People can't say Elder Hallenberger here so once again... Elder Hamburger is my name. I think it's so funny when little kids yell hamburger whenever I walk by! Ah it's classic! 

The first day I was here we met this kid named Zwana. He is super interested in the message we have to share! We've only taught him a few times but every time we come over... He invites a new friend to join us and they are just as excited as he is! Thanks to Zwana... We now have 6 new investigators. Interested investigators. We had them teach us about the Book of Mormon as an exercise to see how well they understand. They taught us about the Book of Mormon better than we had taught them! Ah it's just so exciting! Zwana and his friends are just a small portion of the amazing investigators Elder James and I have!

I wish you guys could witness some of the amazing experiences I have every second of everyday here. One spider named Jasper is bigger than my hand! Ahhh! Besides the spiders... I love it here Liberia is just wonderful! Love you all! 

Sincerely, Elder Hamburger

PS: I had some great pics and vids of me being stupid in the rain but I'll have to send them later because of connection problems.

LIBERIA!!

With Pres. & Sis. Clark

Dear family and friends,

Okay wow what a week! I am finally in Liberia! President and Sister Clark picked us up from the airport. They are so sweet and kind. They fed us well, trained us, gave us rain boots, umbrellas, and bed nets. After giving us our various assignments, they sent us on our way! I was assigned to Bushrod in Monserrado. A village an hour away from Monrovia. It is the bush.

The newest Liberia Monrovia Missionaries arrive.

Elder James and Elder Hallenberger with the kids!

My companion is Elder James from Salt Lake City. He is great! He has been here for 3 months. He is a geek like me so we get along! We stay with Elder Johnson from San Diego and Elder Tamfumu from Congo. My zone leaders are Elder Fifita from New Zeland and Elder Hinson from Meridian! Great guys! Elder Hinson gave me a sweet African tie as a welcome gift! Elder Fifita nearly cried tears of joy when I informed him that there is now an Incredibles 2.

With my Zone Leader, Elder Hinson, from Meridian, ID!

We live in a small house inside a large compound. The water works but it's cold so I put a pot on the burner and shower the fun way. Our only source of power is only on from 7pm-7am. We have a speaker with General conference talks. I love using it in the morning while I get ready for the day. We also get the church magazines so that's nice. Washing clothes is an exercise haha. We get buckets, soap, and a wash board. It's actually pretty fun!

This place has a lot of goats, chickens, dogs, and lizards! Tiny goats will follow us as we walk all day! Lizards are found everywhere in the house. Big colorful lizards. They are fast but I'm determined to catch one soon. The dogs sadly aren't happy like I'm used to. They are often abandoned and always starving. It kills me to see, It's just horrible.

    
There is one more thing that is everywhere. Something that isn't as welcomed as the goats... Spiders. Bigger than ever. Everywhere. I can't believe it. Luckily we have bed nets for mosquitoes but I'm glad they are there because it allows me to sleep without the worry of an 8 legged spawn of satin visiting me in the night. I guess the Lord really blessed me with comfort because a month ago I was keeping my distance from a harmless lady bug.

I've also been given the strength to eat the food here. They really like to make the white man cry! Everything here has a violent amount of pe-pe (Pepper) in it! What comes in must come out and it's 10x worse coming out! The people just laugh and cheer while I sweat and cry eating the food. Ugh. When we teach they will randomly bring out a pot of rice with spoons. Then they pour pe-pe and dead fish on top and call it good. 

Then we eat out of the same bowl! Ah guys I'm really trying new things here! Mostly because after hours of hiking... I am too hungry to turn down the food. Whatever it may be. For breakfast I just make eggs. It seems that every other egg I crack has a half developed dead chick inside. The water is sold in 500ml plastic bags. They are only 10LD which is about 8c I think. Lots of people said I would starve here in Africa but Ive gained 8 pounds since I left!

Liberia is more of a 4th world country. I'm told it's one of the poorest places on earth. I believe it.. My heart sank when during a lesson in a family's home... 5 adorable children passed around a small container and spoon full of soggy fish remains. They weren't even complaining. In fact, they appeared to be the happiest kids I had seen!

I love the people here! So kind! They treat me like family! Everyone on the street greets me always! Most kids here have never seen a white man so they are always amazed when we walk by! They love to touch my hands! I love the children so much! Alfonzo, a 3 year old boy
screamed bloody murder when he first met me. After meeting me and realizing I'm not a monster... We have become good friends. 

These people practically speak a complete other language! It's called Kolokwa. I can't understand it but Elder James says I'll pick it up soon. When they are hungry they say.. "Myteesha" Meaning, "My teeth are sharp and ready to eat." I know... Super weird. That's just a tiny example. After watching a few of my MTC buddies learn French after just 3 weeks... I have full faith that the gift of tongues is very real. I will learn Kolokwa soon!

Church on Sunday was fun! It takes place in an old house. I got to bare my testimony because I'm a new Elder. It really just seemed like 3 hours of yelling haha. That's just the way these people talk.

Ah its been only a few days but I have so many experiences to share! We have a blind investigator named Sahr. We read chapters from the Book of Mormon to him every day. I had the wonderful opportunity to teach a family about God's plan of happiness. Words couldn't describe how heavy the Spirit was when they all literally cheered when I told them they could be a family for eternity with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I love these people so much!

I am either wet from sweat or wet from rain...The walks are long but the views are beautiful... The work is hard but so worth it! I'm finally here in Liberia and I love it here!!! I love you all!!

Sincerely, Elder Hallenberger

Goodbye MTC!!!

Words can't describe how excited I was when I entered the cafeteria and saw what was for dinner. Usually the food scares me but this time I almost cried tears of joy. I don't know what I did to get so blessed. Maybe my prayers have been a bit longer I'm not sure but the point is... When the lunch lady brought out a tray of cheeseburgers I immediately jumped to the conclusion that I had died and I was in heaven. They also had french fries and chocolate milk! I felt the spirit so strongly. The church is true brothers and sisters!!!

The other day we got to hear from W. Christopher Waddell. He is the 2nd counselor in the presiding bishopric! Super cool guy, I got to shake his hand. He gave us a wonderful short message.

Tomorrow I board a plane to Liberia!! I am so excited but I am really going to miss all the friends I've made. Especially my district and teachers! They are all so cool! Good thing some of my closest friends are coming with me to Liberia. Elder Hamel, Marshall, T'oa, and Paskett. I got everyone's contact info so we can keep in touch after the mission.

In my scripture study I read in Alma chapter 14. This chapter kinda reminds me of some old superhero cartoon. Alma and Amulek are missionaries and they are captured and about to be burned with all the other prisoners. I love this chapter so much because even though things don't appear too great... Alma and Amulek never lose faith in the Lord. 14:12 reads; "Now Amulek said to Alma: Behold, perhaps they will burn us also." In this verse it seems Amulek is facing reality and accepting the fact that they might die. Now the very next verse is Alma's response and it's beautiful. 14:13 reads; "And Alma said: Be it according to the will of the Lord. But, behold, our work is not finished; Therefore they burn us not." Wow isn't that amazing!? Alma refuses to lose faith in the Lord. Because Alma and Amulek were obedient and trusted the Lord, the Lord blessed them and they were saved. Great missionaries and great heroes.

I really hope I never find myself in line to be burned haha but I have no doubt that I will face challenging times on my mission. I hope to always follow Alma's example and never lose faith and trust in the Lord.

That's just a small thought I had that I wanted to share. I love you all!! Thanks for all the encouraging emails! I love them!


 

P.S. I don't know when my next p-day will be but I will write when the day comes!

Week Two!!

Dear friends and family,

I am having a lot of fun here!! Besides the hours and hours of practicing teaching investigators in the district classroom... The Ghana MTC is pretty great!!! Not trying to shine light on myself but Elder "Hamburger" is pretty popular over here!! Both teachers and missionaries have become my friends and I love them all so much!! I've taught the Tongan's a few Don Williams songs during flex time so now whenever they see me they sing! My new name here is Elder Hamburger or Elder Cheeseburger. I'm not complaining... I could really go for a nice juicy burger right about now!!!... The rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner is getting suuuuper old. I'd give my left arm for a sip of A&W rootbeer. I will never throw away my pizza crust again when I get home!

One morning Elder Nash came to speak to us. He is the West Africa area seventy. I was told before my mission that he used to be really good friends with my mom's family. When I told him who I was he was very happy to meet me! He sends his love! He asked where I was serving and when I told him Liberia... He got all emotional and looked at me and said, "That is a very special call Elder." It was a pretty cool experience to meet him. He gave us a great talk about truth, integrity, and agency. One I will never forget.

I've mentioned before that i've got the best district and also great teachers. Brother Walker is from Nigeria and has a very strong accent. He acts all tough and mean but I can always make him break character with a laugh. This is a little rude but the other day he told me I need to shave and I said, "Why? Some sisters here have more facial hair than I do!" Probably shouldn't have said that but Brother Walker laughed pretty hard. Whenever he needs to use the restroom he always says, "I need to go receive revelation." I t doesn't make sense but I think it's hilarious. One time he caught me day dreaming in class and he approached me saying, "Elder Hamburger! Are you thinking about someone else? Because I bet the person you are thinking about is thinking about someone else." It kinda hurt but I thought it was funny.

Just the other day, Walker came into class and he was not in a cheerful mood. It was clear to everyone that it was not a day for humor in the class. Obviously this bothered me so at the end of the class  when we all took the elevator down to the lobby. Including Brother Walker. I leaned over to Brother Walker and in my spot on Donald Duck voice I said, "We love you Brother Walker!" The whole class was laughing especially Brother Walker and it ended up being a pretty great day.

I hope everything is good back home!! Sorry again that my emails are so short. I have very little time to email at the MTC. Just know that I've read all your emails and I loved them! I love you all so much!!

Love, Elder Hallenberger

P.S. I dont know when my next pday will be but stay tuned! I should be in Liberia next time I email you!

1st Day in the MTC!!

1st Day in the MTC

I don't have much time to write while i'm at the MTC (Missionary training center) but i'll tell you a little bit of my first week out! I got set a part on the morning of the 18th. The same day I got on my first flight! Leaving my family was very hard to do and i'm glad it's over because I couldn't do it again. They all left me encouraging, loving, letters in my bag that comforted, and motivated me. Thank you. I love you all.

I flew from Boise to SLC and from at SLC I met up with 60 other missionaries going to Accra! It was insane!! The plane flight to Amsterdam was party central!! Especially because I was able to meet a lot of really great missionaries. One of them was named Elder Hamel from California. He already knew me because of my post on Instagram saying I'm going to Liberia which is where he was also called to serve! I was able to sit and talk with him the entire way to Amsterdam and Accra. We flew on the KLM Royal Dutch airline. It was very, very nice. The flight attendant knew it was my first day flying so at the end of the long flight she gave me a sweet letter wishing me luck on my mission. The flight was very long but I enjoyed every moment talking with Elder Hamel and the other Elders.

When we landed in Accra the amount of rushed disorganization was unreal!!! Luckily I was able to get my luggage, get through customs, and get out of the crazy airport. An MTC worker got me to my shuttle where the other very tired and shocked Elders were. The driver was going so fast and the other drivers were going even faster!! They ignored stop lights and traffic signs and passed other drivers without caution! People were in the street selling stuff and washing windows for money and nearly getting hit by cars! My mind was going insane! I'm surprised I made it to the MTC alive haha!

Once we got to the MTC I got checked in, got my name tag, my study books, I ate some food, and I got to meet President Allen and his wife! I also got my companion Elder Kamara! He is from Sierra Leone. He is 22 and was converted at age 18. I've been having trouble understanding him because his English is very bad. He is also super quiet and leaves me alone without saying anything. Its kinda stressful but besides that it's all good!

We were assigned to the "Moses" District! There is 10 elders and 2 sisters in our class. One of the sisters named Sister Nepay is the only person here from Monrovia Liberia! I've been asking her a lot of questions about the country. She says the bugs aren't that bad but if you aren't careful... They will eat you whole. She knows I'm scared of bugs and she likes to mess with me. Our district teachers are the best!! Every other district seems to hate their teachers but, my teachers are my favorite part of the MTC! Brother Walker and Mawusi! If you fall asleep in class Brother Walker will make you stand up for the rest of the hour. Thanks to my jet lag... I find myself standing in class more than sitting. I've got a pretty cool class. I get along with all my teachers and classmates.

My zone presidents are President Osafu, Gibbah, and Kyakye. They come and give us devotionals on Sundays and Thursdays. Very cool guys. I love hearing them speak! President Gibbah calls me Obroni. Which means... White man. Most of the time... I am the only Obroni around!

Lots of the Elders here (Like my companion) never got the chance to visit the temple. Since the Accra is just next door.. I got to go escort Elder Kamara through the temple for the first time. It was a great experience for me and my companion. The Accra temple is outstanding!!! The MTC is also very beautiful!








The food on the other hand... Is not so beautiful... I miss pizza more than I miss my family. (Kidding) We ALWAYS have chicken. Always. They just find multiple creative and disturbing ways of serving it! (Its not that bad it just looks scary)

We each have a sticker on our name tag. I have yellow meaning I'm English speaking English. Green means French speaking English. Blue means French speaking French and red means English speaking French.

I'm having a lot of fun here! I've got a lot more to tell you but I only get a short amount of time to write. (I wrote this on paper before I got on the computer)  I was also told I will not be going to New York before Liberia. Elder Hamel and I head to Liberia on the 7th of August with 5 other Elders.

I hope everything's great at home! It's great over here!! I love you all!!!!

Sincerely, Elder Hallenberger

P.S. Sorry for the typos.. No time to correct