Week 48 - April 27, 2021

 Shadrack and sickness😷

Jambo rafiki yangu! Ninakukosa, lakini napenda kuwa misionari kwa Mungu. Wiki hii ilikuwa nzuri! 

This week was very up and down!  It was definitely net positive though! 

Fun Sisters' Breakfast

The reason this week felt slow and long was I've been sick most of this week.  Pounding headaches, body aches, sinus congestion, stomach problems, etc.  It was definitely hard to do lots of missionary work when you feel like that lol.  But, I pushed through!  There were a couple times where I was in a lot of pain from my stomach, so I just lie on the floor haha.  I'm still a little sick, but we are slowly getting better! 

This past Tuesday we had Zone Conference!  The leadership for our Zone, including me, got to do a training for the rest of the Zones!  We taught about how to study and why it's important as a missionary, based on President Nelson's talk from this past conference!  We also played a fun game where we would give someone a random object and they would teach using the object.  It was definitely fun, and reminded me of the importance of continually improving my teaching skills! 

Here's an awesome story for this week!  Shadrack!  So we met this guy, who's actually from Boise, but he visits here on the weekends.  We met him a couple weeks ago, but while he was here this weekend we invited him to come to a baptism!  He watched it and loved it!  Afterward he said, "I will do that very soon."  We are so excited for him and his decision to be baptized! 

For church this week, I was asked to translate someone's talk for them into Swahili, and then they would start their talk.  I would give the bulk of the talk in Swahili at the pulpit, and then she bore her testimony at the end.  It was really fun!  I'm realizing how much of the language I actually know!  It's awesome!!!  I am super close to being fluent, and it's really exciting.  During the talk though, I was still feeling really sick and thought I would have to leave during the talk, but God helped me push through and I did it with no problems!  Thank goodness! 

Here's a spiritual thought for the week:

I was reading in Gospel Library from the Liahona, and I read a story about how Christ is our pilot.  When we are on a plane, there might be lots of turbulence, or things might not go exactly how we planned.  Even when things are actually ok, we may still be scared.  But, we aren't the pilot.  We don't know how to fly a plane, and we don't have a view of what's ahead like the pilot does.  This is like our life.  Life may not go exactly how we hoped, but when we trust Christ, realizing he has a more full view of what's ahead than we do, we can know that we will be okay.  Trust in Christ!  He's got it!! 

Well, not too long this week.  I was sick so I don't have as many stories to tell!  Anyways, I hope you all are doing great! And congrats to my mom who made it up to Mt. Everest Base Camp this week!  You go girl! 

I love you all!!

-Sister Copeland ♡

Picha:

1. Cute dog:)

2. The temple grounds are open!

3. Samaki

Week 47 - April 19, 2021

 Rafiki Mpya💛

Hey, homies!  Crazy week. 

Well, this week we had a big focus on getting people to church!  We had a mini-goal-setting session with our district to see how many people from our teaching pool we could invite to church in one day, and me and sister John had a goal of 30!!!  We went throughout that day and invited everyone we met with.  We worked until the last second, and we were able to make our goal!  We invited 31 people to church that day alone!  And then, throughout the week, we kept working on it! We eventually made it to Sunday where we got 11 people to church!  Hype!  God really helps us achieve our goals when we set them. 

A really cool experience from this week was with someone named Shadrack!  He is a singer and has a few songs on Youtube (look up Shadrack Mule) and is from Boise!  We met him at a friend's house last week and haven't been able to see him because he doesn't live in Twin Falls.  But, Saturday, we got a text message from him, and he said he wanted to meet with us because he was in Twin for the day!  So, we set up an appointment and went over.  He was there with his friend who is the son of a recent convert!  We got to teach them both! Shadrack asked, "What do I need to do to be baptized? Beatrice told me you all could help me?"  It was music to our ears!  We taught him a lot because he wanted to keep learning, and he is going to decide what day he wants to be baptized after he watches one first!  He is super cool!!  And super golden!  An awesome experience for sure. 

We also got to have our new friend Dorcas come to church! She said that she had just been thinking about how sad she was that her family wasn't going to their church anymore, and as soon as she thought that, she got a text from us inviting her to come!  Does God know what he's doing or what???  So, she was super excited and came to church with us on Sunday! She's super awesome and says she felt very loved and welcomed.  If you ever see someone new in church or anywhere you go, love them and introduce yourself!  It helps more than you know!  We are excited for her! 

So, apparently, the word has gotten out in the missionary world that I speak Swahili because I've gotten millions of messages this week asking for help to translate!  I LOVE getting to do this, because it connects me with people all over the world, and I get a chance to keep practicing the language! It's awesome!  So, if you're a missionary and want some help teaching an African refugee, hmu! 

So, this week, we taught a guy named John... and safe to say he's a little crazy, but honestly awesome, because he genuinely wants to learn.  One point this week when we were teaching him the Word of Wisdom, we explained how addiction can take away our agency, so we do whatever we can to avoid it.  He was confused, because he really likes to drink but only in small amounts.  His famous quote of the lesson was:  "Everyone is addicted to something.  You choose water, and I choose beer.  That's just what happens."  I tired to convince him that me drinking water all the time is not the same thing as alcohol, but he wasn't having it lol.  So, just so y'all know, apparently I'm addicted to water!

Here's a spiritual thought!  I found this quote this week and I LOVE it. 

“There is a miraculous rebirth, a spiritual phoenix that emerges with our acceptance of the Savior and His Atonement.  His spirit heals; it refines; it comforts; it breathes new life into hopeless hearts.  It has the power to transform all that is ugly and vicious and worthless in life into something of supreme and glorious splendor.  He has the power to convert the ashes of mortality to the beauties of eternity.”

Isn't that beautiful!  The Savior has power to take any situation or trial that we may be in and transform it into something beautiful that helps us grow.  It makes me think of the loaves and the fishes.  He can increase anything, even the smallest amount, into something that is not just "sufficient" but something that is overwhelmingly enough.  The Savior truly is the living water and the light and life of the world.  Turn.  To. Him.  It works out better when you do.

Well, that's about it for me this week!  Hope all is well with you! 

Nakupenda KABISA! Nataka kusikia mnafanyaje! Nitume ujumbe! 

Na upendo, rafiki yako, 

Dada Copeland ♡

Pictures from the week!

1. CupBop. Aka, the greatest food ever.

2. English class!

Week 46 - April 12, 2021

Kichwa cha samaki na chanjo🐟💉

This week has been absolutely insane!!  I had 3 different companions, covered two areas, and had to go to Pocatello for a day for a leadership meeting.  Crazy, to say the least. 

First thing that happened this week was Dada Hyde left to go home.  I've had this girl as a comp for my WHOLE mission, and I'm at 10 months now.  Crazy huh.  It was a hard goodbye, but I was also excited for my new companion!  The age of Copeland and Hyde is over, but with the end of one thing, the beginning of the next comes.

Bye bye, hydee

So, after Sister Hyde left, because it was still two days before transfers, I was with Sister Brooks for two days!  We were MTC comps so it was fun to see her again.  We just did a lot of organizing, cleaning, and driving because we covered two areas, and Kimberly is not super close haha. #ripmymiles 

After my short two-day companionship with Sister Brooks, I received my new companion, SISTER JOHN.  Let me tell you, this gal is a blessing to me.  She is so amazing, and she has given me a new fire and a rejuvenated energy.  She is hilarious, ready to work, and a really really good missionary. She even gave her testimony in Swahili on Day 3!  Crazy!  I'm so so excited to see what this companionship brings! 

Well, day one of the transfer, while I was super excited to be with Sister John, I had to leave her and head to Poky for a leadership council.  It was at this ski resort up in the mountains, and it was so cool!  I was asked to do a surprise musical number (and before I sang, my President said that he was watching American Idol and their family all agreed I would do better on the show than some of the contestants, and I was shocked haha)!  I sang "I Need Thee Every Hour" in Swahili.  It was nerve racking lol because I lost my voice this week.  But the council was fun!  We talked about President Nelson's talk from conference, about faith.  It was awesome. 

Mt. Dew is for legends only

And as most weeks go, that was not my last musical number of the week.  On Saturday, we had a chance to have our first branch activity!  We had a cultural night.  Some of the kids danced, and it was fun.  It was a little chaotic, but as time goes on, those cultural nights will get better and better.  To close the night, they asked me to sing, so Elder Pitcher and I whipped out "Katika Neema Ya Yesu" aka "Amazing Grace."  It was actually one of the performances I am most proud of.  Elder Pitcher has accompanied me so many times he knows my voice and was able to play the perfect arrangement (even without us practicing).  It had been a hard day, and music always makes me feel better.  That was a nice way to help me remember that God is good, and even when things are hard, there is always a light to be found when the Spirit is present. 

We also attended two parties this week and ate lots of good African food.  Elder Pitcher's new comp HATES ugali and gags every time he eats it, so it was funny to watch him struggle.  He also really didn't like the idea of eating a fish head and kept dry heaving watching us eat it.  It's nice to not be the most grossed out by some of these things anymore haha. 

FISH HEADS (kichwa cha samaki)

Simon is doing really well.  He says that he loves everything we teach and believes it all, he just doesn't understand why he needs to be baptized.  Luckily, he is very receptive to what we teach, and he is in a really good spot.  We are excited to see what he is able to commit to in the future! 

Another great lesson we had this week was with a boy named PJ.  He was a member referral and is super awesome.  We went over and the first thing he did was hug me super tight. His father is a little crazy and kept trying to convince us of different things... but PJ is super receptive and really wants to get baptized!  He even went to a baptism that night and brought his cousins.  He's awesome and we are excited! 

Also, I almost forgot!!  Your girl got the first dose of the Covid vaccine today!  In three weeks after I get my second dose, I'm gonna be unstoppable.  (Also, many prayers going out to literally every single missionary I got an email from today that got the J&J vaccine and is sick... I feel bad for ya, keep holding on, homie)

Well, to close. I'd like to share a spiritual thought.  This is a scripture I read this week that really touched my heart, especially as a missionary. 

"Blessed art thou, 《insert your name here》, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people.  And thou hast not feared them, and hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will, and to keep my commandments.  And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless thee forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works" -Helaman 10:4-5 

I loved reading this and remembering the blessings that come from diligence and obedience.  I desire to be unweary in the things I do as a missionary, because I know God will bless me. I want to lose my life in service to him! 

Well, that's the week.  Also, random thought:  One of the refugees got a dog like two weeks ago and this week it became like...stiff?... catatonic?... not really sure how to describe it... and then also started having seizures... idk where I was going with this but it was wild. 

Love you all!  Also fair warning... I'm becoming like a bold African preacher.  Don't cross me because I will teach you the gospel and tell you how it is STRAIGHT UP. lol. 

Nakupenda!  Rafiki yako, 

Dada Copeland ♡

Week 45 - April 5, 2021

Last week of the era.

This week was crazy!  This was the last week of the Copeland and Hyde era.  The last 10-ish months of my mission with Sister Hyde have flown by!  We have become really close and it will be hard to see her go. 

But even though it was the last week, we didn't slow down at all!!

One of the first things we did this week was finish recording a song in the recording studio!  We had started a song a couple weeks ago with Elder Bohn before he went to Africa, and now because Sister Hyde was leaving, we needed to finish it!  So, we spent a night in the studio!  It's my happy place haha.

Another fun thing from this week is that we got to set up a house for refugees coming into the country!  There was a family of nine coming in from Tanzania!  So, we set up the house, and then that night, they landed at the airport at like midnight.  We got special permission to go pick them up, and then go and take them to their house.  The family ended up being the rest of the family of someone the Elders teach!  So tons of people were there and the reunion of this family was tear jerking.  It was fun!  We were definitely exhausted though! We didn't go home until about 2 am.  You rarely hear that from a missionary haha. 

Also, there was an Easter party this week!  We had a bunch of families who wanted to come to the ward party, so we had lots of people there!  The little kids getting the eggs and then looking at all the candy was so cute. They all got to decorate bags too!  One kid did a bunch of math problems on his bag.  It was so funny!

 

Also with Easter, we were able to go to the family party of the family we live with!  We went to this fancy house on the edge of the canyon and ate really good food haha.  They also had us sing in Swahili for them!  I've gotten really good at impromptu musical numbers.  But they had this cute Easter egg hunt!  The kids we live with are hilarious and it was so cute!  A good night for sure.

Bro Okelberry's bday!

 

We said lots of goodbyes this week.  Sister Hyde had members, Africans, and people from her old area she needed to say goodbye to!  So it was a crazy week of running around and seeing everyone we knew!  But, we completed all the goodbyes!  Crazy, but definitely good for sister Hyde! 

One of the best things that happened this week was with Simon!  He is a man that honestly has changed his entire heart in the past two weeks!  He decided he was going to start coming to church, and he even watched conference!  We went over after the morning session on Sunday, and he kept telling us, "I feel really good and I'm starting to understand more and more!"  He said that he wanted to watch it again, and we told him that he could also watch the afternoon session, so he did! He loved it, and so did his kids!  They always tell us their favorite part of the week is church!  They are so sweet.  There is just a LIGHT in Simon's eyes.  God really is good. 

For my spiritual thought, I wanted to talk about what I learned from conference!  One of my favorite talks was in one of the Saturday sessions, and it was about conversion.  I don't remember exactly who gave the talk, but he talked about how people need to experience and see the good that comes from the gospel.  They can be told all day everyday, but unless they experience for themselves, they won't do anything about it.  It really helped me think about how I can help the people we teach want to come and see and come and stay.  There were so many good talks and I'd love to hear which ones were your favorites! 

Anyway, it was a crazy week, and now I have to say goodbye to Sister Hyde!  Which is crazy.  The time has gone by so fast, and it doesn't feel real at all.  

My new companion, Sister John, is going to be amazing though!  I'm excited for what lies ahead!

Well, I love all of you!  Thanks for tuning in to another week:) See you next time! 

♡ dada copeland 

Pictures of the Week

Fausta:)

Baby Baraka looks at me like this and my heart melts

Me eating a fish head with cassava leaves...