Elder Anthony James Holt: New Transfer, no News!!! (8-1-16)

So like, this week we had transfers, and the big news is I AM STAYING!!! So that is super cool, I will be with Elder Taukiuvea and this will be our third. But I am loving the work up here (That is down for all of you....). But yeah, if this transfer goes as planned I think that by the end of this transfer I will have had more baptisms in three transfers than in the rest of my mission combined, haha. That isn't all though, we are seeing improvements across the zone, and that makes us zone leaders super happy. President Koch has been telling us since we got here that we should focus on Cooperating, and not comparing. Elder Taukiuvea and I decided that maybe a little friendly competition is alright, just don't slip that one to president, haha. We have a goal to be the highest baptizing zone in the mission and we are getting super close, we have seen steady significant improvement over the last few transfers, and the forecasts for the next transfer are looking super promising. I am also happy because we have seen a lot of improvement in the Branch. When I first got here we had a sacrament attendance of 81, and in the last 3 months we have pushed and MORE-THAN-DOUBLED the attendance we had 171 yesterday we had to stand because there wasn't any room. We have seen miracle after miracle and it has been awesome. We really want to hit 200 by the end of next month and have the branch ready to divide by the end of the year. I really think it will be possible, but we will need your prayers as well.

This week we were blessed with another wedding. Sergio and Rosalina got married after some 7 months of work. When I got here they had nothing, we got all of their documents but one in the transfer with Elder Taukiuvea, and then Elder Jimenez and Elder Osorio finished them off this transfer and they got married on Saturday. It was a lot of fun. It exposed some problems in the branch that we need to resolve, but thankfully we were able to recognize them and we will work on them in the next few months. Right after the wedding we had a baptism and that was dope, Sergio and Rosalina will wait to get baptized as they need to close the process first, but we had 9 baptisms. It was super cool. We had the family of Elisa and her children, Njinjim, Gertrudes, Yara, and Game; Leonel, Delfina; Bolton; and Cordon. If was super spiritual. We have had a lot of problems with water, and we called someone to bring water in a truck for us and we filled the tank up the water wasn't warm, I didn't think it was bad, but the Mozambicans suffered. I felt really bad, Game is 9 and he asked me to baptize him, but I guess I missed something in the prayer the first time and I had to baptize him again, except he was so cold he had already climbed out of the font. But when they lifted him back up into the font he didn't want to get back in the cold water and lost control of his emotions and started bawling. I felt super bad and was calming him down in the font, and it took everything I had to choke out the prayer as I was so overwhelmed when the feeling and thought came to my heart saying, "If he only knew how much this will change his life." It was a great experience in all and I was glad to be a part of it. I am also grateful that for the first time we do not have anything going on this week and we will not have to stress to get everything done. Then the week after President comes to visit the branch and we will have another string of stressful weeks, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

The mission is not easy, I don't think that it has ever been. There have only been times that are easier in comparison to the other times. But I am enjoying myself and the work and the things I am learning. I am changing a lot too. I am grateful for the oppurtunity I have to serve right now and become better. I can not believe that I am going into my 13th transfer it is absolutely insane. All the sisters from my MTC group go home this week the time is moving that is for sure, but I still have forever so I am ok. I love and miss you all, thanks for all your support and all that you do for me, especially your prayers.

Love,

Elder Anthony Holt

Everyone's favorite part the pictures, baptisms, filling the font...