August 13, 2018

This week was super nice. We had zone conference and interviews plus our president came out with us on splits, which was super nice. I don’t know why but when I was a zone leader he would come out with us and i would be super nervous and i could see that in my comp also, but this time i really wanted him to just come out with us and help us!!!

Zone conference was great! We talked about the doctrine of Christ in 3 Nephi 11. How we are to teach the doctrine of Christ with simplicity. Anything more or less than the Doctrine of Christ is not built upon his foundation! So now during out teaching we are trying to keep it super simple basing everything around the Christ. it was nca!

This week as our president came out with us we had a super powerful lesson! We are teaching this lady named Michelle who has an addiction problem with some substances. I think i have already talked about her before but as we are going through ARP with her focusing on honesty and the Book of Mormon she just bore a powerful testimony how the Book of Mormon has changed her sister’s life (cause she went through the same problem) and now how she is starting to change her life! We committed her to come to church and she came and loved it! She participated so much in the gospel principles class. Ah man, it was such a great day! Most of her siblings are less active but they came to church as well now that they are seeing a change in their sibling! Don’t you just love the atonement of the Jesus Christ! i have gained such strong testimony in the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the power of the Book of Mormon. The keys to conversion!

Elder Shaw

We went to the VW manufacturing plant the other week and i thought of the cars you and mom drove in high school. haha It was a pretty cool place!

August 6, 2018

This is such a random scripture but every time i read it i think it’s the perfect recipe to revelation.

1 Nephi 11;1

"For it came to pass after i had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as i sat pondering in mine heart i was caught away in the Spirit of the lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain, which i never had before seen, and upon which i never had before set my foot."

Nephi desired to know, he had faith, and he sat ponding (or acting and pondering.) The Lord was able to reveal the Mysteries of Himself! I’ve learned that pondering is pretty important (you know me just make up my mind and do something without really thinking it through) haha But it’s how the knowledge you have in your brain is carried to the feelings of your heart.

This week was alright. It was kinda frustrating cause we meet a lot of awesome people but they never hold through. You just want to give up on them, but they seems to have just enough light in them to motivate you to keep going. It’s kinda like a teaser hahaha My comp and i definitely saw some tender mercies this week. We are teaching quite a few children and we’re really not allowed to baptize them without the president’s permission so when he comes this week we will have to ask him if we can. If they don’t have enough of a support system he won’t say yes. They pretty much have to have an active parent in order to be baptized cause 95% of the members who go to university go less active. It’s kinda sad but that is just the way it is. The church really isn’t established in the hearts of the people here but that is part of the area plan here in South East Africa. We are teaching one child who has an uncle who is a strong member but her mother isn’t. Her mother, Michelle has been taught by missionaries for 8 years but can’t give up smoking drugs to be baptized but she wants her daughter to be baptized. We broke the news to her that we can’t baptized her daughter without her being baptized also. Demishe was devastated. She’s 12 years old and started to cry. It was so sweet. The mother then realized that her decisions are starting to affect her children so now she said she will try extra hard to quit. We gave her a blessing and now were going though ARP with her and her sister who is also less active going through the same problems. I’ve got some pretty good feelings about them but it’s going to take a while! Pray for them!!!!

Love you all 

Elder Shaw

July 30, 2018

Port Elizabeth hasn't had missionaries in 9 months so they were super glad when we got here. It's been a good week!

Love ya,

Elder Shaw