Apostles In Angola

Hello Everyone!

This week we had the incredible opportunity to hear from Elder Christofferson! This is his second visit to Angola, the first being when he dedicated Angola for preaching 14 years ago. We had two devotionals with him, one just for the missionaries and one for everyone. It was amazing to hear from him, and we even got a Q&A opportunity with him! Some highlights that are a combination of quotes and notes:

It's important we give the right attention to the Sacrament. Some people misunderstand that the bread and water clean us of sins by magic, that is not true. It's the grace of Christ that takes sin; we need to repent to receive that. The Sacrament reminds us to get our lives in order. And as we repent and renew our covenants, we can receive forgiveness. So we should be repenting at least once a week; President Nelson says every day. Don't take the Sacrament without thinking.

In response to: How can we have free agency if God knows what we will do and choose?

God offers us every opportunity, even to repent when we make mistakes, and he never says you can succeed, but you won't. He never tells you that you will fail. He only tells you what you can do and that He will help you. He tells us in patriarchal blessings and scriptures, and then we choose, and then repent and choose better. For example, in 3 Nephi Christ said if the Gentiles repent, they will be covenant people, and if they don't, they will be destroyed. It's their choice. The Lord tells us what we can be, and we choose what we will be.

I also had the chance to play the violin for the devotional! We had two choir pieces, and I accompanied "Called to Serve" and a song written by a Senior Couple called "Missionary Hymn." It was a really awesome experience, and I'm really glad I got to do it!

The work in Viana is absolutely incredible. At the start of the transfer, we set a goal to help 15 people be baptized, and as of right now, we've helped 9 people make their first covenants! With one more week in the transfer, we have 6 people on date to be baptized and confirmed! It's amazing how thoughtful planning and goals help us be more effective in realizing God's work! However, no matter how thoughtfully and prayerfully we plan, we don't account for everything. Sometimes God's plan requires that we adapt to surprise, bonus friends! Thanks to a combination of goals, hard work, and God preparing His own people, it looks like we'll be able to meet our goal to bring 15 people to Christ!

I hope everyone is doing alright and has a great week!

Elder Thatcher Bishop



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