July 25, 2016 Email

Well everyone,

I've always wanted a monkey for a pet. . .I'm scratching that off my bucket list because one just tried to grab me haha!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, we'll get to that later. As for the week.  it has been pretty cool.  So mom, I need to know if you have been able to figure out how to send stuff here.  Also, if you can send stuff, can you send me a 32g sd card for my camera so I can take a lot of pics without having to run out of room haha!!!

So, this week started out ok.  We've been working a lot with some of the people, but they haven't been doing too well.  Mainly Foster and Linda are the people we have been working our best with.  OH!  Also, Nana Akuia is getting baptized this Saturday!!!!!! Chai, I'm so excited!!!!!!!

Foster has been doing amazing, but the last time we went to him which was last night he was off.  We think he has a drinking problem, so we'll work with him on that one.  Other than that, he's doing fine.  We have also been working with Linda, she has not been able to come to church, but she loves it when we come by and teach her.  She has a little baby and she has really opened up to us about problems that she is having about attending church.  We have been trying to help her, but we haven't had much luck with getting her to church.  Nana Akuia is getting baptized, so that's amazing!!!

We also went on exchange with Achimota again.  Only this time, we had a sleep over at their apartment.  We didn't do much, but it was fun haha!!!  So I went with Elder Ben to our area in Chantan while Lambson went to Okereke with Achimota.  We had a lot of fun that day haha!!! We also have had a lot more light off this week [light off is when the power goes out], so we have been taking bucket showers.  Granted, it's weird, but you get used to it when you learn how to do them haha!!!!

Other than that, it's just been a short week haha!!!  We have been trying to get out of the house but sometimes it is hard haha!!!  Well everyone, time for the fun part!!!

So today, we went to a small zoo in Achimota, and the bike there was killer!!!  So, when we got there, the first things we saw were monkeys and a few pythons in a cage, so it seemed ok at first, but we couldn't wait to get started!!!  We stopped at a shop there and saw a bunch of bones and stuff outside, we took some pics and the elephants bones are huge and heavy!!!!!

So after we got all set we went over and saw some monkeys, they were ok and they were hyper haha!!  We then traveled a bit and we saw a camel, ostriches, then wart hogs, a few hyenas, a crocodile, birds and some antelope.  So when we were looking at the monkeys, one big one reached out and grabbed me!!!  So since that that happened, I'm not going to worry about having a monkey for a pet haha!!!  So, I'll send as many pics as I can, but we'll see haha!!!

Well, that's pretty much it.  I hope you all have had an amazing week!!!!!  I'd love to hear from you and see you guys!!!!!!  I love you alll!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love,
Elder Stockton Smith

July 18, 2016 Email

Hey everyone!!!!

Chai, this week has been pretty interesting haha!!! We have been doing a lot this week and have had some pretty funny moments haha!!!!

So, when the week started, we started off pretty funny.  On Tuesday, we had a meeting at the church where we took some pics of the Bush area and we caught a chicken and took some pics with that haha!!!  Lambson placed said chicken on his shoulder while I just held said chicken.  We have had a good week with meeting with our progressing investigators.

Foster is doing amazing!  He came to church twice and we have been teaching him for a while now.  He really appreciates us coming by and it's sweet!  He gave us rice and stew this last Tuesday.  We have also been teaching a girl next to him, Linda, she knew me back in Buduburam.  We have been teaching her, but she hasn't been able to come to church.  She has a newborn baby and women can't leave the house for about 3 months here.  I guess it's tradition or something like that.  We have been teaching a few others, but they aren't progressing as well as the ones I have discussed already.  Also a nice side note, WE GOT A BLENDER!!!! MANGO AND BANANA SMOOTHIES!!!!!!

We had an exchange this week with Elder Okereke and Ben.  I went to Achimota while Lambson and Ben stayed in Chantan.  We had a lot of fun on that exchange.  I got to see a few of their investigators and I was able to go to the Bush area again haha!!!!  We changed back on Saturday night and I was just beat!!!!

On Sunday evening we went over to a member's house to fellowship and get to know them.  They had pet rabbits that Lambson and I were able to hold and feed!!!!  My rabbit ate a lot while Lambson's wasn't in the mood to eat.  They were pretty big so that was fun, but the funniest part is yet to come!!!!

See, Lambson's rabbit didn't eat a lot mainly because it had to go to the bathroom.  So, without Lambson realizing at first, the little rabbit peed all over him, he got soaked!!!!  My rabbit fortunately didn't do that.  We were able to get some pics, but Lambson has them, so hopefully I'll get them here soon.  Lambson also held a crow when I was on exchange haha!!!  Chai, the pics of him doing that were totally freaky haha!!!  Also, just today we went and played basketball at the temple site.  It was super cool balling it up with other missionaries.

So we haven't any



one ready for baptism yet, but we hope to have more people prepared for the way!!!  I realize that there is a will behind everything we do.  That even if it's good or bad, everything happens for a reason.  I'm here to serve the Lord, and things may happen, but I know that no matter what I do, it's out of my control.  I know that you all are safe, and I know that this is where I need to be!!!!!  I love you all!!!!!

Love
Elder Stockton Smith

July 11, 2016 Email

Well, this week has been odd haha!!!

So for this week we have been trying to find some new people because our other investigators aren't progressing as well as we would like.  We have had a little luck, but we haven't had as much as we would like haha!!!!

This new man that we met, Foster, is super cool!  He met with the missionaries before us, and we had the chance to go and see him.  We luckily went and saw him on Saturday.  We taught him and he knows that this is the church he needs to be in.  He went to Pentecost before this, but now he says that he'll come and see us at our church haha!!!  Also, we ran into a friend that I knew back in Budaburam!  Her name is Linda and she saw us one day sitting on our porch in Budaburam, and she said hi and got to know us a little.  We never really saw her much, and then I left.  Literally right before we were going into Foster's house, she sees me and goes crazy!!!  She comes over and gives me a hug which was weird!!!!!!  She told us that she moved here to Chantan so now we'll have a chance to teach her!!!!  So we taught her a little bit after we taught Foster!

By the way. . .HAPPY BIRTHDAY MITCH!!!!!!!   CHAI 22 YEARS OLD!!!!  I'M RIGHT BEHIND YOU HAHA!!!!!  Definitely for some odd reason, it was the day of us teaching, so yeah haha!!!!!

We have had a lot of cool referrals given to us, but these people are not serious about meeting with us haha!!!  We have fortunately had a lot of fun working with members and getting to know them.  Other than that there isn't a lot going on here in Chantan.  OH!!!!  There's this one guy named Bossman who we're working with, and he's super cool!  We met him and we hope to get him baptized here pretty soon haha!!!  Unfortunately, he works a lot, so we aren't able to see him as much as we would like.

I know, I know, "Stockton, what are you holding in these pics?"  Well that everyone is sugar cane!!!! Lambson bought some and I had to take some cool selfies haha!!!! Lambson and I have a lot of fun pretending that we are wizards and casting spells, but we're serious when we want to be haha!!!!  We also plan on making a sweet shirt for us, and I hope to get it done soon so then I can show all of you how it looks haha!!!  And well, that just kind up sums everything up.

Hope you all had an amazing week, and I hope you all are behaving while I'm gone haha!!!  I love you all!!!!!!

From,
Elder Stockton Smith

July 4, 2017 Email

Happy 4th of July from GHANA everyone!!!!!!

Well, this week has been pretty boring to say the lease.  Lambson and I caught a bug and we haven't been feeling too good, and hopefully nothing too bad will pop up while we are serving.  We haven't been outside the apartment much due to this, bu we have made some efforts in seeing people.

We have some people really struggling with coming to church and keeping commitments, but on the other hand, they are very cool and good to go and see!  WE haven't had much luck with visiting some of the people mainly because they always aren't there when we come by to stay.  I swear that people here give us a time and day only to avoid us!!!!!

We met the new mission president!!!!  President Simpson!!!!!  He's way cool!!!!!!  His wife is from a small island near Hawaii and she's super sweet!!!!!  So this will be my third mission president through the course of 7 months haha!!!  So in the meeting we had, we talked about repentance and addiction recovery.  True, these tings sounded very odd to study for the meeting, but they gave me a new insight on what I need to do to become a better missionary. . .and a better person.  I really enjoyed talkinga bout those things and hope to apply them in my life.  We were able to see a lot of other missionaries when we went and met with President.  I met Elder Roberts, my first companion and trainer, and Elder Desta haha!!!!!!!  Those two were in my first apartment back in Buduburam!!!!!!  It was amazing to see them again!!!  We also saw Elder McFarland and a few other missionaries that we know haha so that day was amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Friday)

We had a pretty busy Sunday though, and it being fast Sunday, we needed to fill the day so we didn't starve to death right away haha!!!  We were able to visit a lot of members and see who they wanted us to visit with.  We also went to the Stake President's house and they gave us fufu!!!!!!!  For those of you who don't know what fufu is:  fufu is like a big ball of bread dough, but its not bread.  It's made up of something called casava, it's a plant that grows in humid places, so i think there's only a few places that it can grow in the US if we ever wanted to have fufu haha!!!  We were able to have a very cool experience with Kellli, she's a ward missionary getting ready to go on her own mission soon.  WE talked about how burdens we have can become lighter and how we need to rely on the Lord for help.  True family and friends are amazing, but only the Lord truly knows what we are going through, and I know that the spirit led us to teach her that, because now, she's pumped for doing missionary work with us haha!!!!!!!!!!

Well happy 4th of July everyone!!!!! I know for a fact that all of you are probably going to be busy today and won't email me back haha!!!!  But, I look forward to when I can read all the emails and see all the cool pictures you all take while I'm gong!!!  Hope you all are doing amazing, and I really hoipe that you all are enjoying today haha!!!!!!

Hope you all are being safe, and I know that you all will be enjoying today haha!!!!!!  I love you all!!!!!!!!!!

Love,
Elder Stockton Smith