Super Busy in the Office...

Hello All!!!

I come to you on yet another somehow successful week in Daban! After 3 short weeks in Bantama with Elder Burdge (awesome) I am back with Elder Anderson in Daban as an office elder.  It's about 9 pm right now as I am writing this so please bear with me! :)

This week was soooooooooo busy!!! On Tuesday was the day that I was picked up to come here to Daban. (I had to wake up early to pack my bags) Then we just dropped off my bags at the apartment and headed to the mission home. As soon as we got there, a lot of missionaries were there who were being called to leadership positions. When we walked up, immediately people started handing me things to give to the president, asking to order things from the office, making requests for me look up certain information, etc..... AHH!  I consider it now as my "Welcome Back" call! haha

Then on Wednesday, we had to wake up at 5 am to take missionaries to the bus station who were going to Tamale and Bolgatanga. (it takes a minimum of 6 hours to get to tamale) (plus 2 onto that to get to Bolgatanga) Then after that, throughout the day, we had gone back and forth from the main bus station, to the apartment, and to the mission home 5 times!!!......... 5 times!!!!! I was pretty exhausted. Also on Wednesday we had 13 new missionaries arrive in the Ghana Kumasi Mission.  When missionaries are new, they will be assigned to trainers. The trainers are just like normal companions but they help in teaching them, helping them adjust, etc.  So that night we had 5 of the trainers sleeping in our apartment.

So on Thursday, we had to get up early again, to get ready and to get the trainers in our apartment to the mission home to be assigned to their new companions.  After everyone got their companions, they talked and got to know each other for a while... then we had to start taking people to their various areas!!! That took quite a while!!

Then on Friday... We had to wake up early AGAIN! At 5 we had to get ready and then take 2 missionaries who had completed their missions to the airport to fly home.  Luckily though after that, we got the chance to go and teach some lessons! (nobody was home though)

Saturday we were blessed with an interesting service opportunity! One of the members in the Daban Branch asked us if we could iron their clothes for them! We said sure, not knowing that she wanted us to iron ALL of the clothes for EVERYONE in their family for the ENTIRE week! It took us forever! But it wasn't too bad! Both me and Elder Anderson got 2 huge baskets full of clothes!!! Anway it was fun and the member was SUPER grateful!

Now my mom wanted me to answer some questions!

Questions...
(Please answer with more than 1 sentence!) : )
Tell me about the ward you attend...  The branch I am serving in is the Daban Branch. It is a really nice branch with very very faithful members! Although it is not large, it has a lot of power with a devoted branch president, faithful auxiliary leaders, and powerful members!
How is your companion? My companion is awesome! He loves to joke around and have fun, but he also knows how to work hard and do what's right!
Have you received any new advice from President? Not very recently, but I will be having an interview with him soon and I'm sure something will be included with that!
Who are you teaching right now?  Well we were teaching a young woman named Elizabeth who just actually just baptized last Sunday!!! She was filled with tears of joy because she was so happy and excited for that day! I was super happy too and also honoured that she asked me to be the one to do the baptism!  We are also teaching another young woman named Esther who is actually a house maid for one of the members.  She is currently on track to be baptized next month! Exciting!

I love you all!!! Have a GREAT week! :)

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Back to the Office...

Hello All!

This week wasn't too shabby! This week we had Zone Conferences!! So it was nice to be able to see a lot of old missionary buddies! The instruction was all about the Holy Ghost, how to listen to him, and receiving personal revelation! 

        "We must learn to be guided by personal revelation"

                        -Ezra Taft Benson

And this week is official transfers! So I have been transferred back to Daban! I will be going back with Elder Anderson (gh). Elder Whipple will not be there because he has been transferred to Bolgatanga! (I already wished him the best of luck!) 

Now Elder Burdge will be getting a new companion, Elder Hepworth.
 

In the ward we have a young man named Isaac. On Wednesday Isaac asked if he could come with us! ALL DAY! We said that would be awesome! We had a pretty awesome day lined up and we had lots of people to see that day! 

But, it wasn't long before all but two of our appointments had failed...  So the two people we were able to see were two of our members!  When we went to both of their houses, we had no idea that they had prepared food for us! So after managing to get down the first one, which was amazing fufu by the way, we headed to second house just to find MORE FOOD! (talk about stomach exercising) (the wrong kind).

Sorry this week the computer is somehow slow.... and my brain too.....

hope you all enjoy your coming week!!! :)

 2 Nephi 25:26

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Hello to All!!!! 

I hope you all had a great week because I did!  Well somehow.. haha but that's ok because I just happy to be writing to all of you again!!!

Every Tuesday we have our District Council, so this week we had our council... like normal... then we went home around 12 or 1230.... like normal... then we prepared lunch..... like normal.... then we ate lunch.... like normal.... then as soon as we finished eating...... we had a HUGE 4 HOUR LONG RAIN STORM! (not normal) I wasn't very fun because the roofing in Ghana is sheet metal... so when you have super heavy rain pounding on sheet metal over your head then you feel like you are stuck with your head in a tin can for about 4 hours! Headache anyone?! :)

On Thursday we had a very special day!  Elder Burdge had his birthday!! My companion is now 20 years old! So to celebrate, we invited some of our other MTC buddies to come and join us at a restaurant call Piri Piri's!  It is really nice for Ghanaian standards, but compared to back home it's a little rinky dink, hole-in-the-wall restaurant.  But long story short, we went there, had a good time, enjoyed each other's company. and wished Elder Burdge a happy birthday and good luck with his future remaining year on Mission!!!

I would also like to wish all of you good luck with your coming week!

Odo!

Elder Brandt

Life in Bantama...

Hello to All!

This week was great!  I am stillo getting used to the new area and the members...but we have still had a pretty good week!  For us we have a 4-man apartment.  The other companionship is in Bantama Ward 1 and we are in Bantama Ward 2.

On Tuesday I met one of the members from the ward named Derick!  He has a real special talent... He plays the piano very very well and has an incredible voice!!!  It was really nice to sit and talk with him and watch him show off his skills!

On Wednesday we had a small miracle!  Me and Ilder Burdge were trying to find people to teach.  We had been going on for about an hour and decided to take a small break.  I grabbed some water and we had just sat down for maybe 5 min and a young man came up to us and said that a woman had asked us to come and bring us to her house just around the corner.  When we got to her house we saw that the woman  there was one of the last people Elder Burdge had decided to greet.  She said that she just felt like she should call us over and talk to us. 
So we began to sit and talk with her, and then she presented a question she said she has had for a long time! She asked if there was a life after death. We were amazed and happy at her question and we answered it with happiness in our souls.

Truly God lives and does work in miracles!!

I love you all and hope you enjoy your week!!!

ODO
Elder Brandt

Getting Muddy and a Special Assignment...

Hello Everybody!

I am really happy to be able to write to you guys again after yet ANOTHER crazy week for Elder Brandt in the Ghana Kumasi Mission!

On Wednesday I had gone with Elder Whipple and Elder Anderson on an errand for Sister Cosgrave (our mission mom). She had sent us to go and buy disposable plates, cups, and etc. for the mission home. So we went, bought the stuff, and as we were coming back, we saw a bunch of people in the road. As we were approaching I couldn't tell what they were doing. But as we got closer, we saw that while we were gone, one of the huge trees on the side of the road had fallen down and all of these people were using chainsaws, axes, cutlasses, and anything they could get their hands on to try and remove this tree from the road! Because of this, we had to take a detour on a back road to get to the mission home.  As we were going, there was a part in the road that had a huge mud hole covering the road and only a small path of the road was open. Except for it wasn't open because there was a broken down car right in the middle of that open part. So our only option (luckily we were using the truck) was to drive through the mudhole!  So we put the truck into 4 wheel drive and gunned it through the mud. We mad it through! And got some pretty school mud "tribal marks" on the side of the truck to prove our glory!

Well, this adventure was unfortunately my last with Elder Anderson and Elder Whipple. On Friday, we had gone to the mission home to get some supplies before we went somewhere. While we were there, President Cosgrave saw me, then he grabbed me and pulled me into his office! Completely by surprise!  He told me that he really trusted me and that he was going to be sending me on a special assignment..... He then told me how there was an elder in Bantama who had gone home early. (I don't know why).  Now he needed someone to go and take his place! Well, you could probably guess that this was my special assignment.  So now as I am writing to you all, I am sitting in Bantama and my companion is ELDER BURDGE!!! The same guy I was companions with in the Ghana MTC (missionary training center)!!!! :) So now we are having a great time! I am really happy to be here and this is a very fruitful area!

I love you all and I hope that you all have a great week this week!

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Conferences with Elder Bednar

Hello! All of my dearly beloved friends and family!!!

This week I have but one experience I would like to share with you all. 

This last Saturday and Sunday, I had the privilege of meeting with and hearing from 1 of the 12 apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ!!!! Elder David A. Bednar came to Kumasi on Saturday to meet with all of the missionaries in the Ghana Kumasi Mission! We were able to have a 3 hour meeting with him and most of the time he was asking for questions and contributions! And afterwards I got to shake his hand!!! Then on Sunday, we had a combined stake conference with the Kumasi stakes! Also on both days we got to hear from Elder Terence Vinson (President of the Africa West Area Presidency) and from Elder Vern Stanfill (1st Councilor in the Africa West Area Presidency)!  There were soooo many things that I wish to share with you from this last weekend!!! But I will try to keep it short and sweet!

On Saturday, as Elder Bednar was instructing, he was talking about the Holy Ghost and its role, and we was asking for contributions. I contributed and he was asking me questions about the Holy Ghost and how it can work in the learning environment we were currently in.  It was truly amazing how as he is speaking, the Holy Ghost can come and speak to you just by bringing thoughts to your mind about subjects related to what the speaker is talking about! That is how the Holy Ghost teaches us! And as Elder Bednar and I were conversing for people to hear, I wasn't even having to think of words I was saying! As soon as I opened my mouth, words came by the influence of the spirit!

Before Sunday, I was having a personal question regarding the Atonement of Christ. I knew it was true, and I knew it could help me. My question, however, was how could I make the Atonement more personal and more powerful in my life? Well... the answer came on Sunday.  At the end of Elder Bednar's address on Sunday, he pronounced a blessing upon everyone there. He said that we would be able to know how to more powerfully know and feel the strengthening and sanctifying power of the Atonement in our life! Exactly what I had been searching for! 

I know that truly we can always learn to rely on the strength and power of the Atonement. Christ is unfailingly, lovingly, and urgently waiting to help us whenever we ask. He loves you more than you can ever know. 

I love all of you more than you could ever know! I thank you for all support you have given me! I hope you all have a great week!

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Lots of Paperwork, Eating Fufu, Teaching the Gospel - LIfe is Good!

Hello Everybody!

This week was a very busy one!!! This week was transfers week so we were very busy with transporting around people and supplies, getting office work done, and trying to teach as many people as possible!!! 

I do have to admit... I am a little jealous that I am missing out on the Olympics... but Fufu and teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ makes for a suitable replacement! 

My mom told me that I should explain further the responsibilities of an Office Elder. Well we get to do a lot of the paper work for the mission. We record and submit all of the baptismal records that missionaries give to us. At the end of each week when all missionaries report on the work for the week, we record and submit all of that as well... (that's 160+ missionaries by the way...) The mission home also has supplies and materials that missionaries can purchase to help assist them in the work. Things like scriptures, scripture bags, pamphlets, church produced DVD's, hymn books, etc..  So it's a little bit of a busy job! And just on top of that, whenever President Cosgrave needs something done in the mission home and he's too busy, he will just call us and tell us to come. It doesn't happen very often... but it still happens.

This morning I was with Elder Whipple in Adum (which is like "downtown" Kumasi) and we were out and about getting some stuffs we needed for the week. As we were heading back to the car, a guy stopped us and started talking to us just like we were his best friends! As we were talking, he was trying to talk somehow like a "thug" telling us how he was a sailor and went down to Central America all the time. (And from his vocabulary, I am pretty sure he actually was a sailor...) But eventually someone came over and distracted just enough for Elder Whipple and I to slip away! *Count your Blessings* 

Also being in a Tri-Companionship is pretty cool. Whenever your are teaching someone, or any other situation you may have, the testimonies of 3 are always more powerful than 2! That is probably the greatest benefit of being in the trio! 

Right now I am most excited for this Saturday! ELDER DAVID A. BEDNAR IS COMING TO THE GHANA KUMASI MISSION! On Satuday we will be privileged to have a 3 hour devotional from Elder David A. Bednar from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles to us missionaries of the Ghana Kumasi Mission! And then on the next day, Sunday, we will be having a combined Stake Conference in which he will also address us! I am soooooo excited!

Anyway..

I love each and every single one of you! I hope you had a good last week and I hope you have a good week coming up!

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Office Elders are BUSY!!!

Hello All of my beloved friends and family!

This week was a pretty good week! My new area is very big!!! But as being part of the office elders, we are 1 of two companionships who get to use a car. It is only us and the assistants to the president. Our area is also a much wealthier part of Kumasi, so almost all of the houses are really big and have huge gates out in front of the house! So sometimes it is difficult to try contacting and meeting new people.

Things here in the office is very busy! For us we do work for the mission in the office, but whenever we do not have anything in the office we are to go and proselyte just as normal missionaries! So we are ALWAYS busy! Because we are so busy we don't get any down time. Which is actually good because it makes time pass really fast and also when we get home to the apartment in the evening we are super tired which helps me fall asleep fast and stay asleep!

It is pretty cool in this area I get to be closer to our mission president, President Cosgrave and I will get to know him better! He is a super great guy! 

I love you all and hope you all enjoy your week!!!

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Going to Daban to be an Office Elder...

Hello Everbody!
I am sorry I have missed some time! Last week when I went to the cafe, the power was out and the network was down! Akwaaba ti Ghana! (welcome to Ghana)

Crazy things just finished happening! You may remember that just 2-3 weeks ago I received a new companion, Elder Asare. Well the reason he came was because an elder from the training center had a visa problem and couldn't go to his assigned mission, so he was sent to the Accra mission which gave them odd numbers. In order to even things out, they released my part-time companion and brought me Elder Asare. Well just last week, the elder in Accra got his visa corrected and was to be sent to his assigned mission. Because he was now leaving, they needed Elder Asare back in the Accra mission. So last week on Wednesday people came to Kumasi to pick up Elder Asare. When they did that I went back to Ejisu with Elder Dudley and Elder Morford. (both from Utah). President told me that I was just going there to show them around the area for a few days. Then on Friday, I was picked up from Ejisu to come to Daban to be a part of the office elders!  So currently as I am writing this I am in Daban. My companions are Elder Anderson (Ghana) and Elder Whipple (Missouri). They are super great guys! In our apartment we also have Elder Abrams (Wyoming) and Elder Udobor (Nigeria), they are the assistants to the president. It is a super great apartment! Even when we came back from church on Sunday, we walked into the kitchen to find a dead mouse just sitting in the middle of the floor! :)

But all is well, I am just still trying to gather my head from all of the many things happening lately!!  Life is well! I love you all! I hope you all enjoy your week! 

Odo,

Elder Brandt

No Letter - Just Pictures!

Our District

Leading the Midweek...

Hello Everybody! I am doing my best but today's internet is kind of a doozy. This week was pretty good! I got to know more about my companion and had some good experiences this week! On Wednesday I had the opportunity to lead the midweek!  We talked about the Book of Mormon and the reason why it was kept in the first place. We read from Alma 37:1-20. In this section it is Alma speaking to his son Moroni and explaining to him the reason why he is keeping the records.  It explains it very nicely and there are a lot things that I learned from that section. Along with this we gave a challenge to all the members. We gave each of the members one brand new Book of Mormon. Their assignment was to give that Book of Mormon to one friend who wanted to know more or had questions. Then at midweek on 20 July, they are to bring that friend and we will have a "special" midweek. We will play a game, watch "The Restoration" DVD, and then we will explain the Book of Mormon and how Joseph Smith received the Book of Mormon. I am very excited for this upcoming activity and it should be great! On Thursday something kind of funny happened. As I was putting my socks on, my sock kept catching on something so I checked my foot to see what was causing trouble.  I found that the nail on my smallest toe was falling off!  I don't even know what was causing it to come off... but I decided to use my best judgement and just pull it off! Apparently my best judgement was not very good judgement because as soon as I pulled it off, the side that was still attached started bleeding quite a bit. Eventually I got it to stop, then put my shoes on, and then we were out the door! On Friday we had to go to a small meeting in UST. When we got in a trotro to get there, I noticed there was a man in the back making quite a bit of noise. At first I thought he was just speaking on the phone very loud, but when I looked at him and listened more carefully I realized that he was actually preaching. He was just sitting in the back of the trotro and preaching to everybody inside! Of course he was preaching in Twi, so I did not understand what he was preaching about. I find it so interesting that Ghana is an English speaking country, yet here in the Ashanti Region there are sooooo many people who do not understand any English.  Walking down the road, buying from a provision store, buying food from a seller, and etc. are all in Twi. Even if I ever do try to speak English, people will tell me, "menti brofu" which means "I don't understand English."  From what I hear, no other place in Ghana is like this. In Accra, Tamale, Ho, and other places all the people understand English. So overall I had a pretty good week! Of course I have small challenges and trials here and there... but that is how it is supposed to be!!!! I love you all! Enjoy your week! :) Odo, Elder Brandt

New Companion!

Hello All!!!

This week has been another crazy week in the missionary life of Elder Brandt!! On Wednesday Brother Asamoah and I received a surprise phone call from President Cosgrave. When I answered the phone, he asked me if I liked my companion and if everything was going well with the two of us. I responded that the two of us are doing fine. He then apologized because he said that I receiving a new companion tomorrow and that they were going to release my companion as a stake (part-time) missionary.  They said that my new companion will be coming from the Ghana Accra Mission. The Accra Mission covers Accra and the South-Western part of Ghana also known as the Volta Region.  There was a missionary who was having Visa problems for where he was supposed to serve his mission, so they were going to be adding him to the Accra Mission. Because they were doing that, the Accra Mission would now have an Odd number of missionaries. So they decided to release my companion, and then bring one of the Accra missionaries to me so as to even everything out.  So the very next day, Thursday, is when one of the senior couples from the Accra Mission brought the missionary here to the Ghana Kumasi Mission.  Going from Accra to Kumasi, you have to go through our area; Ejisu. So Thursday afternoon they picked us up in Ejisu and then we directed them to the mission home in Kumasi to meet with President Cosgrave.  So we got there safely and everything went well and President met with each of the missionaries just to see how things are going. 

As we were preparing to leave, Sister Cosgrave asked me if I saw the drum in president's office.  Immediately, President Cosgrave turned around and grabbed a nice African drum from his office. He grabbed me a chair and everybody sat around and asked me to play for them! I have to admit I was pretty unreasonably nervous.... but I began playing and played for what seemed like about 5 min or so. After some congratulations, me and my new companion were taken back home to the apartment.

My new companion is Elder Asare. His home town is a village by Cape Coast. His favorite color is white. He loves to play the keyboard, and he even has his own! Previous to coming to the Ghana Kumasi Mission, he served in the Ghana Accra Mission for 16 months! He is an awesome missionary and I have a lot to learn from him!!

I love you all! I hope your week was not as crazy as mine! Let us love and serve God and our fellow men with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength! :)

Odo,
Elder Brandt

Inspecting Apartments, Transfers, and Stake Conference!

Hello Everybody! I am happy to write to all of you once again! This week was a little bit of a fast one because we had a few major events this week! On Monday and Tuesday I was with Elder Sutherin all day since his companion had gone home. On Tuesday, I traveled to all the missionary apartments so he could inspect them and also give them supplies that they needed. Mampong, Agona, Asamang, Effiduase, UST, and Buokrum... those are all of the names of where the apartments are.  It took us all day because we have to take public transport and they are pretty spread out. On Wednesday, we had the transfer day! So Elder Sutherin, Brother Asamoah, and I all traveled to the Kumasi bus station where all missionaries go to if  they are being transferred. So there were a lot of missionaries there! My companion and I had to wait until Elder Sutherin and the rest of our district got there new companions, then we were able to come back pretty late in the evening time because Elder Sutherin's new companion had to come all the way down from Tamale.  Now the new missionary in our apartment is Elder Asabere! He is from Accra and he is a super sweet guy! On Saturday and Sunday we had the Dichemso Stake Conference! I was super cool and we heard lots of awesome and amazing talks! I was very spiritually uplifting and I enjoyed every moment of it! :) I love you all and I hope you all look forward to this week as much as I do! :) Odo, Elder Brandt :) Brother Asante My Companion...Brother Asamoah Just a few Selfies!  : )

9 months and Healthy...

Hello To All! :)

We had yet another successful, sunny, and miraculous week here in the Ghana Kumasi Mission! I would just like to give all of you the 9 month health report! I am happy and healthy! A few sicknesses have come and past, but as for now, my sky is clear!

This last Wednesday we had our Zone Conference!  The instruction was based on two General Conference talks.  The first one was "Clean Hands and a Pure Heart" by Elder David A. Bednar in Oct. 2007. The second one, and my personal favorite, was "Beware of Pride" by President Ezra Taft Benson in April 1989.  The reason I love the talk by President Benson is because it goes into soooo much detail about pride and what are some of the different symptoms/ faces of pride. He also talks about the antidote for pride, humility, and how are some ways we can use our agency to apply it in our life! I strongly encourage ALL of you to read it!

In our apartment we have 4 missionaries/ 2 companionships. One of the missionaries, Elder Ojok, has completed his 2 years and just left this morning to back home to Uganda. So on Saturday, Elder Sutherin and I planned a surprise party for him. We first invited the rest of the district to come. We planned for a member of Ejisu branch to prepare fried rice for everyone. We all met at the Kwamo chapel (his area) and set everything up, then we had the bishop call them and tell them to come. When they came, we surprised him and everything went well! We all enjoyed, had fun, talked, and made him feel happy and missed.

This last Sunday, in Ejisu, we finally received copies of General Conference! Unfortunately, they watched it in Twi so I didn't understand anything being said. :(

So ladies and gentlemen.... That was my week in a nutshell! I love you all! Have a good week!

Odo,

Elder Brandt

I had my scriptures wrapped in Kente Fabric!

3 Day Fever and a Test of Patience!

Hello All of my Family, Friends, and Acquaintances!

This week was not a very eventful week. Maybe it was to balance out the craziness we had last week.  Most of this week I was sick with a fever. It was a some how serious one. It lasted for about 3 days. Friday - Sunday. But now, I am feeling fine and ready to roll again! :)

On Wednesday one of our members told us about a friend that he had who was interested in learning more about the church. He was the head master of a school in a Village called Donaso. So we went on Thursday to go and see him. It was too far to walk but we had to take about a 5-7 min car to get there. When we got there we had to call him again for directions. When I called him he said to ask around for the cemetery road. Then he cut the call.  So we did. Then we began walking on the cemetery road. After walking about 5 min, there was a fork in the road so we called him again. He said turn right and walk past the Muslim Mosque. Then cut the call. So we turned right and walked for another 5 min past the mosque and reached another fork in the road. So we called him again and said where we were. He then told us turn left and ascend the hill but do not descend down the other side.... Then he cut the call.  So we walked another 5 min up the steep hill and stopped at the top. We called him again saying we were at the top of the hill he then told us, take the road on your left and the school should be on the right side....... Then he cut the call. So we took the road on our left and walked for 10 min. We reached the end of the road without seeing any schools. So we called him telling him what we did then he told us go back to the top of the hill and then he will send someone to come and pick us............................. Then he cut the call. So we walked another 10 min back to the top of the hill and waited there for about 10-15 min for someone to come and pick us.  Eventually a student came and directed us back to the school.  To get there, we had to first descend down the other side of the hill and then turn left and walk on that road 10 min until we got to the school.  My companion and I figured that God has different ways of testing everyone's patience............ This was ours.

God speaks to us. Just like anything else, you will never hear him unless you are actively listening.  If you also never talk to him, he will not talk to you as often, but he will still speak. He loves each and every single one of you. Remember that. I love you too. I hope you all have a good week and remember that whenever you are being tested, you are also growing. :)

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Do you think I could wear this to church when I get home?

Dressing Up for Church...Ghana Style!

Emergency Transfers and a New Stake Missionary for a Companion!

Hello all of my beloved friends and family!!!

This week was nothing short of an interesting week!

To be honest I don't remember much of the week besides Thursday and Friday!

Recently the First Presidency of the church released new instruction that Stake missionaries (part-time), were not allowed to be staying in Full-time missionary apartments. Because of this, we had emergency transfers this week!  The actions taken were that stake missionaries all had to go home, and thus, some missionaries had to be moved around to fill empty spaces!  

Thursday evening at 9pm me and my companion, Elder Akpan, received a phone call from President Cosgrave.  He told us that my companion was being transferred tomorrow. He said that he needed to pack his bags A.S.A.P. because we needed to be at the mission home by 10am Friday morning.  He was being transferred to Obuasi.  

Now for us our apartment is in Kwamo, but we proselyte in Ejisu. So my new companion was a stake missionary, Brother Asamoah. The only reason this works is because his father is the Bishop in Kwamo. So every morning by 9 he comes to meet me at the apartment, and then after we finish, he goes back to his house to sleep.  Kind of crazy! But that really put me and Elder Akpan in a daze. It almost seemed like a dream.  But it happened, now me and Brother Asamoah are doing well and life is great. He is a super great guy and he loves to laugh and joke around which I really like!

I hope all of you are doing well! Send me snail mail! Love you all! :)

Odo,

Elder Brandt

Hello All of my friends, family, and loved ones!

Unfortunately this week my letter will not be super long. I hope you find room to forgive me, but we had a pretty rough week.  This week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. On Tuesday, we were coming home from District Council and it began to rain on us. So me and my companion started jogging home. Then the rain began to pick up so we began to sprint to the apartment! Unfortunately the rain was faster than both of us and we were destroyed by the rain! It was so heavy and windy. The rain was going sideways and it did not feel like water, it felt like gravel! So we got home soaked, changed, showered and waited for the rain to stop. Finally it stopped around 5:30 - 6 so we had enough time to get dressed and then go see one person.

Wednesday and Thursday were fine, no rain, but super hot. Although, from the time we left our apartment at 10am, we were walking, walking, and walking. Appointments were falling through, people were making excuses, people not being around because they forgot we were coming, trying to find and teach new people...... none of it was working. We sat down from 12:30-1 for lunch, then continued. After lunch, the same pattern continued. Nobody was meeting with us. We had appointments, but ALL of them were falling through. Until finally at 4pm our appointment came through! Then after that we just one more lesson. Then we were so tired around 6:30 we decided to go home. Luckily this time, we got home just before some small rain came!

On Thursday the same thing happened, only someone came through at 3 and 4! Then from there for the rest of the evening.... nobody :(

Life goes on doing its normal crazy things. Uncontrollable, crazy, unpredictable, fun, sad, joyful, boring. You just never know! BUT! God knows! He gives you exactly what you need exactly when you need it! So for all I know, that was what I needed at that time and I don't know why.

I love you all, I hope you had a better week than I did! Thank you for all of your love and support!

Odo,
Elder Brandt

YAY for Mosquito Nets!!!

Hello Everybody!

I love so much hearing from home and hearing how everybody is doing! Thank you for all of the support and prayers you are giving to me! I guess I will begin by answering some questions from my mom!

1 - How was your week? My week was pretty cool I had some sweet stuff happen this week!
2 - How is the companionship going? What is his family situation like? My companion is great! He is great guy and he is pretty knowledgeable, especially about the gospel! He has a good family situation! Both his mom and dad are converts to the church. In his family, both him and his brother are serving missions! Great family!
3 - What was your Sweet? This week I finally got a mosquito net! I have finally been able to sleep in peace the past few days! :)
4 - What was your Sour? I had a few headaches this week, but no big deal!

Now maybe I will tell a few stories from my week in paradise! :)

On Wednesday morning the Senior couple missionaries, the Wardles, brought us our mosquito nets! You have no idea how happy I was that morning! I know I already mentioned this in my sweet for the week but it was SO sweet I had to mention it twice! :)

On Wednesday we had an appointment with an investigator named Nana Yao. He lives in a town called Akyawkrom. It is quite a walk it takes you about 45 mins to get there. Eventually, we did get there and meet with him, then when we finished and began to walk back, we saw someone who was preparing to leave. He was driving motor tricycle with a bed on the back for carrying things, except it was empty! So we decided to ask him for a ride! He motioned us to hop in the back, so we did and it turned our 45 min walk into a 5-10 min ride! That was fun :)

On Thursday I got to go on exchange with Elder Sutherin! Unfortunately the rain was pretty prominent that day so we got captured a few times inside of buildings waiting for it to die down enough for us to go and see someone! But other than that, it was fun! I learned a lot from him and we had a great day even though we had quite a bit of disappointments!

I love you all! I hope you all had a good week as well! Remember that God loves you!

Odo,

Elder Brandt

I am a new District Leader and I have New Companion...

Hello Everybody!

I hope everything is well! This last week we had transfers! So my companion Elder Anai was moved to an area called Bantama. For me I will be staying and my new companion is Elder Akpan! For him he is from Nigeria and he is now 4 months on mission!  He is a cool guy and I am excited to continue working with him for at least the next 6 weeks!

Recently we have been working with one of our recent converts, Nicholas. We have been teaching his wife and now she wants to be baptized! She absolutely loves learning, and she really loves all of the things and lessons that we have taught her!
This week I got some Kente ties! Kente is a Ghanaian pattern that they use in a lot of traditional clothing! I will try to include a picture! ;)

I love you all and pray we may all be able to put our FULL trust in God and allow Him to bless us as he sees fit!

Ether 12:27

Odo,

Elder Brandt

My new companion, Elder Akpan from Nigeria

My new Kente Tie!

Watch Tan!