Bishop, Thatcher PT

Hi everyone! As of three days ago, I finally landed in my mission field. Being in Africa is a little different, but it is also an amazing opportunity to teach others to come unto Christ. I've only had one real day so far, and even then, that day was kinda funky because of a late transfer, but I'm excited to see how the rest of my time here plays out. Getting here was a wild trip—30-some hours of flying in airplanes and waiting around in airports. While waiting for a plane, a couple of other Elders and I found some people who speak Portuguese and got to talk to them! That's where I found out for sure that I don't know the language at all. But I am excited to keep learning and get to a point where I can fully converse with the people here. I know I'm supposed to be here even if I don't know why, and I'm so excited to start teaching and serving the people of Angola as I go forward in my mission. Stay safe! Elder Thatcher Bishop

Hello from the MTC (for the last time)! Things have been great as usual. The spirit is so strong here, whether in gospel or fun, and I have enjoyed every bit of it. My district has made great strides in Portuguese; I can now talk about almost any gospel topic in a very, very simple way. I can make casual conversation with people, and I can understand anyone who isn't a native speaker. That last one might be a problem in a few days because on the 21st, I start my flights to Angola! It's crazy how fast it's gone by! It feels like just two days ago I walked into the MTC, and now in three days I'll be leaving it. The MTC has had some amazing experiences though. On Tuesday, we were blessed to hear from Elder and Sister Nattress. I really appreciated his devotional on missionary work and faith. To me, this devotional was extra special because I absolutely loved his talk last April titled "Have I truly been forgiven?" and I was stoked to hear from him again. The MTC ...

Hello Everyone! This week has been kind of crazy. We got some really awesome devotionals, language classes are stepping up, and I got my visa! On Tuesday, we were blessed to hear from Elder Gary E. Stevenson. He gave an incredible devotional on the power of using Preach My Gospel with the Book of Mormon. It was really awesome to see and hear from one of God's apostles. The spirit he spoke with and the truths he said were incredible. Yesterday, we had a devotional/concert by Jenny Oaks Baker and her family. The music was amazing, and the spiritual thoughts just tied the whole thing together. Language classes are beginning to get harder, but I'm still really enjoying learning Portuguese. While some things don't make sense, other things are simply beautiful the way the language works. Also, I am sort of glad the classes are getting harder because I found out I got my visa! I get to go straight into my assigned mission and teach people with what I know. I am still so happy to b...

Hello Everyone! I'm a little over halfway through the MTC now, and so much has happened this week! The full immersion classes are so much fun! Hearing the gospel in Portuguese and being able to understand it is so moving and spiritually fulfilling for me. Some things are hard, but the coolest thing is learning words that don't have a full English translation. There are words I can use that express my feelings and testimony so much better in Portuguese! For example, a really awesome word is confiar, which kind of means to trust/believe/have confidence in, but it's so much more than English can explain. So now I can really say: Eu tenho confiar em Cristo e Sua propósito e plano pelo mim. I can now better state and express the trust I have in Christ, trust that fills my heart and the deepest parts of my soul. Language hasn't been the only thing happening here, though. We've had more temple visits and incredible devotionals! Last Tuesday's devotional was given by El...