Mulibwanji my Family and Friends(how are you in Nyanja a language here in Zambia

So I am sure by now that you all know that I am no longer in Botswana.First off I have to stay that this has been one of the hardest things that I have ever had to do. It really feels like i'm leaving home all over again and it has been quite a change. We are in Lusaka which is the capital which means tons of people. There are more people in this city than in all of Botswana so can you say shell shocked? This mission is also very different from where I was serving. This is a walking mission which means we walk everywhere all of the time or we catch buses to get to the appointments. Things are much more moderate I guess, we don't have wash machines or microwaves and things like that; we wash our clothes by hand. :) Also Zambia has a high risk for Malaria so we sleep under mosquito nets at night. Of course I had never slept with a net over me before and so the first night I thought "Aw I don't need that!" Of course that was the worst idea. I woke up with tons of bites all over and they even bit my face so my lip was swollen and so I was not a happy camper, but I learned real quick! Since mosquitoes are so bad we take some type of pill everyday like Doxcicyl or something like that. Just a 100mg a day and it is suppose to keep us from getting Malaria so that is good! But things are actually going okay. I spent this past week working with the sisters and going out and teaching and all. It has been very different. The saddest part is, no one speaks Setswana. Now I really have no idea what anyone is saying and there are over 72 languages in the country so that will be fun :)

 So I guess I should break the biggest news of all! This week we had our mission president interviews so that our new President could decide what areas he wanted us to serve in. So Saturday we came and walked into his office and he gave us each our assignments. So guess where I got assigned!?!?.................................................................................

 

Malawi!!!! Yes that is a different country from Zambia. So the mission covers both countries and so I got assigned to serve in Blantyre Malawi with me new companion Sister Rawlins who is from Logan, Utah and she has been out 8 months and me just 5. And guess what else?! We are white washing our area. That just means both of us are new to the area. We don't know anyone or anything and we have to go and do it on our own. I have a feeling we will be lost everyday haha but I know that this is a wonderful and amazing opportunity. It makes me know that God really trusts me and it is really exciting and scary! So right now I am at the mission home and our flight leaves at 4 and we have to fly to Lilongwe in Malawi and then spend the night and then get up tomorrow and take a bus to our new area. Im super nervous but super excited. I don't know anyone or anything and they speak a completely different language so I feel like im starting my mission all over again! I feel a lot of mixed emotions but one thing that I have been really reflecting on this week is how God has his own plan. Sometimes we think we have it all figured out and then God throws us a curve ball and it is up to us to endure it well. God is testing my endurance and I know that I will be experiencing some growing pains but I know that it will draw me closer to God. Im so grateful to have this time in my life. I will catching my flight soon so I will talk to you all next week! I will have a new address and all and so I will let you know as soon as I can!

 

Love

Your Beloved Sister Scott :)

TRANSFERS- Message from Sister Scott

 Hello Family and Friends

   I wanted to let you all know I  am being transfered to the Zambia Lusaka Mission.  It is me and some other sisters and we will be flying out tommorow morning around 8 and so we will get there tommorow evening or something. Right now I am in Gaborone and we are spending the night here and flying out tomorrow. I will be going to a new mission so I just wanted to let you know! I love you all alot and dont worry I will talk to you as soon as I can. I probably won't email until next week because I am no longer in Botswana. I will give you my address as soon as I can! I love you all.

          Sister Scott

5 Months and I Love It

Dumela my dear family and friends!

Well its official. I'm five months old :)

Man time flies when you're having fun, and that is exactly what this mission has been so far! This week has also been fun/crazy/dramatic and so I don't even know where to start. This was a pretty great week if i had to say so. Monday me and Sister Lyon went to Debonair's Pizza so we could celebrate our five month mark together since we couldn't Wednesday because she was leaving to go to Gaborone. So Monday was pretty great we got to just hang out and relax. On the other hand we have worked pretty hard this week. Just trying to teach as many people as we could and even still find time to go finding has been pretty great. So Sister Joseph who is the Sister Training Leader had to go to Gaborone for a meeting and since she can't drive Sister Lyon had to drive her down there and back (about 8 hours) and so they left Wednesday morning and so me and Sis Faux had to be companions for a couple of days. It was pretty nice. We worked in both areas and even taught some pretty amazing lessons. It was sweet. So on the bright side we also had some pretty amazing moments this week as well. So this week we met with one of our investigators Sephiwe and her boyfriend Molen. So we have been teaching them since October and it has been pretty hard. Just trying to get them to understand the gospel and come to church and everything. So up until now they both have just felt like they havent gotten that answer that the Book of Mormon and all of these things are true. We ask them every time and they always say they have been praying and praying but they havent gotten an answer yet. So this week was pretty sweet. As we taught about the Plan of Salvation Sephiwe's eyes just lit up and she said how she understood it now. She then reached over and grabbed the Book of Mormon and just said "I know it's true. I know all of it is true. Everything you have taught me is true." Man at that moment My heart just dropped! I just know that it is God and he is working in their lives and they are seeing the change. I have to say that those are the best moments on a mission. Moments like that. 

So then we had another awesome experience this week that really made me heart swell. So Adam our investigator who we have been teaching since my first day here, we had a pretty great lesson on the Atonement. We were just reading 2 Nephi 2 and talking about Christ and how through him we can all return and live with God again. It was a pretty great lesson and the spirit was just so great. Towards the end of the lesson I was teaching and I was just telling him how God wants all of us back. How Jesus Christ died so that we could all return and live with him. So as we sat there together he just got very quiet and we just sat there and then he just says "Even me?" "I can live with God again?" At that moment I felt something in my heart. This was a moment that he really got it, and the gospel just clicked. I told him yes even he can live with God again and that is the whole purpose of the gospel. The whole purpose of any of us being here is to make it back to God. He just smiled and I could tell that he finally understood. I don't think anything will ever make me forget that day. So spiritually I can say his week was great however it was a somewhat painful week as well. Yes. Painful. 

So I have been having a toothache for around 2 weeks and I really didn't know what to do. I just was trying to see if it would go away and I quickly learned it wasn't so I told the Senior missionaries and of course I had to do everyones favorite thing. Yes, go to the dentist. So besides being completely scared and apprehensive I was really nervous about going. So Friday I went and man I dont even know what to say. They checked out my teeth and she said that my gums were swollen but she doesn't see anything wrong and I don't have any cavities or anything. So then she said it was time for me to get them cleaned so they were going to. So she did it and man, my mouth hurt for almost 2 days. So I don't really know what was going on or anything but I can say that my toothache is gone so I guess I'll worry about it if it comes again. 

So other than toothaches and amazing lessons I pretty much had the best Sunday ever. There are so many less actives in my area that we have been working with. Many of them got baptized and went less active soon after and we have been working so hard. So I had an idea that we should just try to visit all of them on Saturday. We should teach them and also offer to help them wash or clean so they can make it to church. So we visited so many! I was so excited and I just knew that they would come. Alot of them havent been to church in 1 or 2 years but I just knew in my heart they would come. So Sunday rolls around and church starts at 9 am. So at 9 am guess how many were there? Yes, 0. I felt so discouraged. I just knew in my heart they would come and I just didnt know what happened. So we are sitting there and sitting there. Im totally just sad at this point. Just at that moment I look outside and I see all of them coming in! Everyone we visited on Saturday came! All of these less actives and even our investigators came. Talk about a trial of your faith! I knew for sure that they would be there and it was just when I started to doubt that God showed us his hand and showed us his mercy.  Im so proud of all of them and I honestly think that was the best day of my life. I have never been happier and I see this is what mission is all about. The Lord loves his sheep and I love them too! I love it here and I can see God's hand in my life and also in others. Mission is the best and the gospel is the best. I wouldn't change it for the world! So anyway I hope you all are well and doing great! I love you all and miss you all! Stay great!

P.S. Thanks everyone for all of the letters and all the love! You guys are the best!

Love,

Sister Scott

STILL SMALL VOICE

Dumela Everyone!

I hope everyone is well rested from the wonderful holidays and all the fun things that have happened! I definitely enjoyed them even though I was away from home. I sure have had some experiences that I am truly grateful for. This week has been another good one. Nothing really major happened but it has definitely been still great! So everyone has still been gone because of the holidays so of course that means lots of finding! Me and Sister Lyon have really been trying to find father led families and it has been our focus this week. We have been just knocking on door after door and we have found lots of great people. Even though we have found people we still haven’t been able to find a father led family and that is our goal for our mission. I think that has been a struggle for both of us this week. But it has definitely been humbling. I think sometimes we forget that this is the Lords work. We are working very hard and doing everything that we can but we still have to remember that God's timing is usual not the same as ours. So that is something that I am learning.

Other than that we had some pretty fun times. This week was New Years and so we still had to teach, but we had a little missionary party on New Year’s Eve just with games and such. It was so fun! We played games and ate and just hung out. Some of the games were so embarrassing but they were really alot of fun! I really enjoyed it alot. So me and Sister Lyon also experienced true African culture this week when we ate Mophane Worms. They are a type of work that looks like really cool catepillars except they have like thorns on them. So everyone in Africa eats them so we decided we had to try it, so we got some and we hate them as well! Man I have no words for that. It tasted like dirt and corn mixed together haha. It was not very appealing, but everyone here loves them so I feel like a true Motswana(Someone from Botswana). Also me and Sister Lyon decided we wanted to have a great dinner, so we went and bought a whole chicken. It wasn’t very big but it was big enough for us two and so we cooked it along with other goodies that my lovely mother sent and we had a nice little dinner! So overall our holidays were both festive and frightening :)

Something that has been quite unusual is the amount of rain here. It is actually rainy season but I never knew what that meant until now! It literally has been raining every, single day for a while. But it doesn’t rain non stop, it rains for 10 minutes and then the sun comes out and then it rains again and the pattern continues! It’s pretty insane. Rain and missionary work do not mix because everyone always cancels appointments because we teach outside so it has been a real struggle as well. One thing I can say is that there is never a moment that I regret coming on mission. Every experience I have helps me learn and grow. I feel the spirit guiding me more and it truly is helping me and guiding me of what I should do. I had a similar experience just last night. So we were teaching a lady named Patricia and her daughter Tshegofatso before Christmas. So when everyone leaves for Christmas we just have to wait until after New Years to check and see if they are back home. So last night me and my companion were going to an appointment but the people ended up calling and cancelling. We didn’t know what to do and we were just driving around checking on different people and then I had an impression that we should check on this family. Keep in mind we hadn’t seen them since around December 12 so my companion didn’t know them yet. So as we're driving there I tell my companion "They probably aren’t there but we can check anyway." So we pull up and the house is completely dark and the doors and gates are closed so we think "Aw they probably are not there but let’s check anyway." So we get out in the rain and we go up and knock on the door. A few seconds later the door opens and the mother and daughter are standing there and they just smile. The mother then tells us to come inside and she just grabs my hand and shakes it and then wraps her arms around me and hugs me. We got and sit down and then they start to tell us what’s been going on. They said that since we last saw them she had gotten very sick and she was admitted to the hospital. She said she has been in the hospital the whole time and she ended up having surgery and everything. She said she was in so much pain and had just gotten home. They told us they would not be back until January 7th so we weren’t planning on checking on them, but through listening to the spirit we were able to go and find them there. She told us that she knew God was there, because he had sent us to her when we had no idea she would be there. At that moment I just wanted to cry. It reminded me of this past General Conference where Prophet Thomas Monson talks about how God will never leave us alone and how he answers other peoples prayers through us.

I know that the Savior lives and he is really there. I know that God loves all of us, his children and he is always there to answer our prayers. I know that just as important to praying is listening to the still small voice of the spirit. I know that the spirit won’t be a "voice of thunder, neither a voice of great tumultuous noise, but behold it was a still voice of perfect mildness as if it had been a whisper and it did pierce even to the very soul." (Helaman 5:30) We need to listen and follow the promptings that God gives us, because it is through us that he is able to bless the lives of others! I love you all and I wish everyone a great year! I will be celebrating my 5 months on Wednesday and I’m truly grateful for this time! I appreciate all of the emails and letters and love! It is definitely what keeps me going!

Love,

Sister Scott

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM AFRICA

Dumelang!

I hope everyone is well and enjoyed the Christmas festivities. I really enjoyed this week and all the crazy things that happened! It wasn't too crazy but it was definitely an amazing experience. So Tuesday was Christmas Eve and I had the opportunity to go on exchanges with Sister Faux so I left my area and went to work in hers which is Gerald. It was a pretty cool experience but the thing about Africa during Christmas is that everyone leaves. I mean everyone. So we were out all day and every appointment fell through except one! It was so crazy. The streets were empty too since everyone leaves to go to their home villages so we literally have no one to teach and we are not allowed to do tracting and finding because so many guys are out drinking and everything so it was definitely an uneventful day. But the President of the group invited us over in the afternoon for lunch so we went and my, it was great! We had tons of traditional food and it was super cool. So then we came up with a sweet idea for every companionship to pick two families or investigators and we would go sing carols. So for about 4 hours we just drove around and we went and sang Christmas songs to different families and delivered them with treats. We would just stand outside and sing until they came out and it was great! They all loved it and it was so nice.

So then of course Christmas was way different but definitely great. So Christmas morning all of us missionaries went to this really nice golf course in town and we actually went golfing! It was my first time and I was totally excited but man, it was way harder than I thought! And im sure it was the best golf experience I could have. There were monkeys, impalas, and other animals on the course which was so cool! I had fun. So after that all of us missionaries went to the senior couples apartment and we all had lunch together. So of course the elders decided what we would have for Christmas and they chose burgers for Christmas, hah. So we had burgers and chips and watermelon. It was the most American meal I have had here, but classic. It was totally fun. So the day stayed great and of course later on we got to talk to our families and so thanks everyone who came to talk to me! It was so great to hear all of your voices and to be able to talk to you! It definitely made Christmas the best

So my week continued to be great and then Friday we had the opportunity to have a zone meeting ( all the missionaries in my area) and we had the meeting on the top of Nyamgabwe Hill. That hill/mountain that we climbed before. So we climbed to the top and had our meeting and it was really great. We heard lots of great things and it was nice. But crazy thing was, while we were on the top we saw storm clouds coming but they were way faster than us. So on the top of this hill are these huge metal towers that attract electricity. So us sisters, we were getting out stuff together so we could go down and the clouds and rain were coming but the elders were moving way slow. So all of a sudden we just hear a huge pow! And the hill shakes and we all scream and go crazy because it was lighting! The lightening hit the tower that we were standing by and we were still on the top of the hill. It was literally the scariest crazy moment of my life! So the next day Saturday I had the opportunity to go on exchanges again and this time with Sister Joseph. She is 22 and from Port Elizabeth South Africa. She has been on mission like 13 months and she speaks Xhosa, that clicky language which is so cool! So she came with me in my area and we spent the day teaching together. It was pretty great! She is trying to teach me how to click but I told her my mouth doesnt move like that. She is pretty awesome though, she was just baptized 2 years ago and shes already on mission almost going home. That is something that inspires me about the people in Africa. All of the missionaries just joined the church and went straight on a mission and it just shows how much faith and diligence they have. It is pretty much amazing.

So overall I can say that this week was pretty amazing. It was my first Christmas away from home. away from my family, and away from America. But it was truly an amazing experience. I think it allowed me to really have the Spirit of Christmas and to really focus on doing the work of Christ. I feel like my love has grown for the people here and also for this work. There is a quote in Preach My Gospel that I love and it is something that I have thought about this week. It says that "The purpose of the gospel is to cleanse people of their sins so that they can receive the Savior's mercy at the day of judgement." That is what I fill everyday with, giving selfless service and showing love. I don't think there is anything that I could be doing on Christmas that would better.

So thanks everyone for all of the cards and letter because they truly mean alot. It is always to know that you are thought of and words cant really express how grateful I am for the love and support you all show. I wouldnt be here if it wasn't for each and every one of you and I love you all. I wish all of you a Happy New Year and I pray that make a list of things that we want to improve on for this brand new year and that we all take this year to get closer to our Savior and our Heavenly Father.

Lorato,

Sister Scott