Week 20 - October 12, 2020

Let's just say this week was amazing! 

So when I first got to Swahili work here in Twin Falls, there was a goal:  Open a Swahili branch so that our people can have church in their own language.  I've now been here about four months.  And we FINALLY did it!  You're now friends with a missionary who started the 2nd officially Swahili branch in all of the United States.  Salt Lake had the first, and I, along with my district, created the second one.  AMAZING!

Yesterday was the first meeting of this said Swahili Branch, and our attendance was HUGE!  We expected not tons, but we had to keep pulling out more chairs! We, also, are gonna need a bigger room.... I got to say the opening prayer, and I will probably have to speak soon.  So cool!  My language is really gonna improve with this!!! 

 This week, we also had a cool experience in a Walmart.  We were going to buy a phone case for a lady we are teaching because she has a broken hip and cant walk or speak English, so we went to Walmart for her.  As we were walking back, we almost bumped into this guy.  We said sorry and kept walking because he was on the phone, and then I noticed he had a shirt with Rwanda (a Swahili speaking country) written on the side.  We lost him though!  We went and bought the case, and then I told Sister Hyde that I had a strong feeling we NEEDED to find him again.  So we prayed in the middle of the Walmart and then decided to go looking.  We walked around the Walmart for a long time, and them FINALLY spotted him.  But he was on the phone still, so we kinda followed him around haha. He was looking at bananas and got off the phone and I walked right up to him and started talking to him.  I asked him where he was from and he was from the Congo.  He didn't have a church to go to because he doesn't have one he can understand, so we got his number and he's gonna come to church next week!  I know that God leads us to the people we need to talk to!!

I got invited to an African birthday party!  It was so fun. They had really good food, lots of fun dancing, and lots of people to talk to.  Also, let me tell y'all, African parties are different.  So good. 

Also, bragging moment:  My district (3 companionships) had a goal to find 10 new people to teach (which is a lot to begin with), and we ended up finding 20 NEW PEOPLE TO TEACH!  We kinda popped off, not gonna lie. 

Spiritual Thought:

I was reading in Jesus the Christ this week about prayer, and this line stuck out to me. "Pray in actual communion with God to whom the prayer is addressed. Prayer is made up of heart throbs and the righteous yearnings of the soul, supplication based on the realization of need, of contrition and pure desire. God without our prayers would be God; but we without prayer cannot be admitted to the kingdom of God." WOW. That part hit me hard.  It reaffirmed to me the importance of prayer because we need to be counseling with God on everything.  We need his help. Prayers aren't to help God, they're to help US.  It's such a gift that we get to communicate with the supreme being of the universe.  We need to use that gift!!!  Pray with all sincerity of heart this week.  See what happens:)

Anyway, COVID-19 has increased exponentially in our mission and pretty much every Zone in our mission except mine is sick with it, so pray for our mission. Pray it won't come to Twin Falls, and if it does, pray we won't be too terribly sick. 

Love you all and I love this work!!!!  Email me! 

♡ Sister Copeland 

Pic of the Week

 

 Lunch with my comp:)