Elder Jacob Robinson will have completed his two-year mission in South Africa by the end of July. Any friends and family who would like to see Jacob are invited to his homecoming. He will be speaking in church on Sunday, August 15th at 9am at the Brookside chapel. If you need directions or have questions please call his family at 209-478-0153.
Woohoo!!
Friday, July 16, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
The Art of Perfection
The work continues to be as busy as ever. I got the chance to be companions with two former companions this week. On Wednesday Elder Onsongo and I went on exchanges to my old area of g-west. It was sweet. I taught a lot of the same people and the best was that I got to interview Isaac Monare. He is a nephew to Lape, Bathusi's sister in-law. I also taught Isaac and even put him on baptism date just before I got transfered. so it was sweet to see him and to see the testimony and change within him. That night we also got to stop at Bathusi's place to see the family. We found Bathusi on the couch with a brace on his knee. He told us that on Sunday night he was going to see his wife in Ramotswa where she is schooling and working. On the way he ended up flipping the car and it was rolling. He ended up in a ditch. When he got out of the car he looked at the car and realized he shouldn't be alive. He then started praying. Later, as he came back to the car to get his phone and things, he found his phone, scripture bag and first aid kit sitting neatly away from the car as though someone had placed them there. If you heard the whole story it is easy to see some divine intervention. It strengthened his faith.
Well then on Friday and Saturday we had 5 baptismal interviews. So our district leader (Elder Bakker) came to Gabs to be companions with me. That was nostalgic. Anyways, the interviews went well. One of them who was supposed to be baptized into the Young Single Adult ward next week had to be moved to this week so that Isaac and her could be on the same day. So we had a baptism this Sunday. It was beautiful. Both Isaac and Esther (the one who's baptism was moved to yesterday) gave powerful testimonies. It was awesome. oh man I felt good there.
Other than that I'm still just trying to stay alive. Life is busy...but it's good. very good. :)
love, elder robinson
ps. i've perfected the art of microwave dumbollo and i can make a few different kinds already. it is good.
Well then on Friday and Saturday we had 5 baptismal interviews. So our district leader (Elder Bakker) came to Gabs to be companions with me. That was nostalgic. Anyways, the interviews went well. One of them who was supposed to be baptized into the Young Single Adult ward next week had to be moved to this week so that Isaac and her could be on the same day. So we had a baptism this Sunday. It was beautiful. Both Isaac and Esther (the one who's baptism was moved to yesterday) gave powerful testimonies. It was awesome. oh man I felt good there.
Other than that I'm still just trying to stay alive. Life is busy...but it's good. very good. :)
love, elder robinson
ps. i've perfected the art of microwave dumbollo and i can make a few different kinds already. it is good.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
20 Feet
First thing, myldsmail has upgraded a bit...all that means for you is that my new email is jacob.robinson@myldsmail.net. Although it's not so important because any mail sent to my old address will be sent to my new one.
In our flat we have one room that has a/c and that is the bedroom of the other missionaries(the zone leaders). There is a bit of a/c around here. A lot more than in SA.
My cooking skills have improved a lot! My current companion has taught me a lot about cooking and I figured out how to make dumbollo (that steam bread I was telling you about) in the microwave...and it's delicious.
The 3 things every new member needs is a friend, a calling, and nourishment by the good word of God.
My companion and I are doing great.
Bathusi's wife, Nene, is doing great. On Friday she hosted a mutual activity that we were putting on at her house for members and nonmembers. Elder Onsongo and I cooked for everyone again. This time we cooked mandazi (fat cakes), chipatti (like tortillas), and dumbollo and then a stew to go on top.
On Sunday Nene watched Bathusi baptize her little sister Lape. It was sweet. After the baptism we went to see the family and we watched a dvd called "Together Forever". It's a little cheesy but it gets the point across. After the movie we asked Nene how she felt and she felt like her whole family needs to be baptized and be members of the church, following the same gospel (she's the only one left now not baptized and was obviously talking about herself!) I asked when she wanted to be baptized and she said she'd let us know...
Too bad I won't be around to see it. Here's some more news, after 6 weeks in Gaborone West I'm getting transfered...about 20 feet. What I mean is that President wants me to be the Zone Leader now with Elder Hopkins. That means I'll still be in the same flat just a different bed. Basically, I'll just be upgrading everything. Bikes to a car (my first one all to myself!), no a/c to an a/c, a better fridge that actually closes, and district leader to zone leader. They are actually splitting the Botswana zone into two. I will be over the Botswana East zone. The sad part is that our area seems to just be picking up. I enjoy working with my companion as well. But I guess this is what the Lord needs from me now. So wish me luck and I'll keep you updated.
love, elder robinson
ps. today we hiked Kgale Hill in the morning and I got stung twice by the same wasp! He was trying to kill me! haha. no worrys though I'm ok.
In our flat we have one room that has a/c and that is the bedroom of the other missionaries(the zone leaders). There is a bit of a/c around here. A lot more than in SA.
My cooking skills have improved a lot! My current companion has taught me a lot about cooking and I figured out how to make dumbollo (that steam bread I was telling you about) in the microwave...and it's delicious.
The 3 things every new member needs is a friend, a calling, and nourishment by the good word of God.
My companion and I are doing great.
Bathusi's wife, Nene, is doing great. On Friday she hosted a mutual activity that we were putting on at her house for members and nonmembers. Elder Onsongo and I cooked for everyone again. This time we cooked mandazi (fat cakes), chipatti (like tortillas), and dumbollo and then a stew to go on top.
On Sunday Nene watched Bathusi baptize her little sister Lape. It was sweet. After the baptism we went to see the family and we watched a dvd called "Together Forever". It's a little cheesy but it gets the point across. After the movie we asked Nene how she felt and she felt like her whole family needs to be baptized and be members of the church, following the same gospel (she's the only one left now not baptized and was obviously talking about herself!) I asked when she wanted to be baptized and she said she'd let us know...
Too bad I won't be around to see it. Here's some more news, after 6 weeks in Gaborone West I'm getting transfered...about 20 feet. What I mean is that President wants me to be the Zone Leader now with Elder Hopkins. That means I'll still be in the same flat just a different bed. Basically, I'll just be upgrading everything. Bikes to a car (my first one all to myself!), no a/c to an a/c, a better fridge that actually closes, and district leader to zone leader. They are actually splitting the Botswana zone into two. I will be over the Botswana East zone. The sad part is that our area seems to just be picking up. I enjoy working with my companion as well. But I guess this is what the Lord needs from me now. So wish me luck and I'll keep you updated.
love, elder robinson
ps. today we hiked Kgale Hill in the morning and I got stung twice by the same wasp! He was trying to kill me! haha. no worrys though I'm ok.
Bathusi
Last week we had a power outage right in the middle of the email session...so I didn't get to send you an email.
As for this week we had a few highlights. First of all, Tuesday was mission tour. Elder Watson of the area presidency addressed us. He was the secretary to the presidents of the church before he was called to the Seventy. If you remember you sent me an article in the church news about him at the beginning of my mission and then that Sunday he showed up to our branch in Tsakane. He's pretty sweet and taught us some great things about working with the ward better. I feel like there is a problem here. In Africa the branches grow and they get priesthood leadership but they are never really trained on how it's done. Then by the time we get to a ward we have a lot of people who like to exercise authority but not magnify much. Now, don't get me wrong, there are a lot of great leaders who work very hard. It's just frustrating sometimes. I'm sure that's how it is all over the world...but as you know, if the programs of the church just worked the way they were supposed too then everything would be ok. But the problem is that everyone needs to do their part. Hopefully things will continue to improve so that Botswana can have its own stake. Right now we are part of the Roodepoort stake. Check on google earth where Roodepoort is. That's where our mission office is, 5 hours away! There are plans right now to get this area independent. It wil be there soon.
The best part of the week was seeing Bathusi get baptized. He is an awesome father and has been ready for baptism. The previous elders were waiting for his wife to come along but now she is going to school far away and isn't quite ready. So we went ahead with Bathusi. He has a solid testimony and knows...really knows why he was baptized. He will be one of the future leaders here in Botswana.
So, that was my week at a glance. It is really hot here, although storms come through very often and cool us down...it's like a nice swim even though we're not allowed to swim.
I'm still healthy and safe :)
-love elder robinson
http://johannesburgmission.googlepages.com
by the way you can check out some of our mission pictures at this website... we have a big misison though and you may not be able to find me... just remember i'm in the botswana zone.
As for this week we had a few highlights. First of all, Tuesday was mission tour. Elder Watson of the area presidency addressed us. He was the secretary to the presidents of the church before he was called to the Seventy. If you remember you sent me an article in the church news about him at the beginning of my mission and then that Sunday he showed up to our branch in Tsakane. He's pretty sweet and taught us some great things about working with the ward better. I feel like there is a problem here. In Africa the branches grow and they get priesthood leadership but they are never really trained on how it's done. Then by the time we get to a ward we have a lot of people who like to exercise authority but not magnify much. Now, don't get me wrong, there are a lot of great leaders who work very hard. It's just frustrating sometimes. I'm sure that's how it is all over the world...but as you know, if the programs of the church just worked the way they were supposed too then everything would be ok. But the problem is that everyone needs to do their part. Hopefully things will continue to improve so that Botswana can have its own stake. Right now we are part of the Roodepoort stake. Check on google earth where Roodepoort is. That's where our mission office is, 5 hours away! There are plans right now to get this area independent. It wil be there soon.
The best part of the week was seeing Bathusi get baptized. He is an awesome father and has been ready for baptism. The previous elders were waiting for his wife to come along but now she is going to school far away and isn't quite ready. So we went ahead with Bathusi. He has a solid testimony and knows...really knows why he was baptized. He will be one of the future leaders here in Botswana.
So, that was my week at a glance. It is really hot here, although storms come through very often and cool us down...it's like a nice swim even though we're not allowed to swim.
I'm still healthy and safe :)
-love elder robinson
http://johannesburgmission.googlepages.com
by the way you can check out some of our mission pictures at this website... we have a big misison though and you may not be able to find me... just remember i'm in the botswana zone.
That Last Big Push
I'm pretty dang tired. This week has been a pretty hectic one. My companion is Elder Onsongo and is from Kenya (i told you he was my greeny's mtc companion so he's only been out for 7 weeks now). We've been trying to get the area going but I feel like we're not getting it where it needs to be. We don't know too many members which makes it hard to work with them. Plus, the member bike is out of order so we've been struggling to use members. But hopefully this week will be better.
Our area is pretty much a town area. People are just a lot more well off here... they live a lifestyle more similar to home. Mostly just because there is more money to go around. So people have cars, they live in their own homes, and they even have money to CALL US! haha That's new to me because in SA everyone in the township sends the missionaries "please calls" which is just what it says it is.
Anyways, but other than that the work is the same. We're still trying our hardest and we still have pitfalls...On Sunday night we had a family that was supposed to be baptized on the 24th of January come out with some huge marriage problems...so we'll see. Right now we've got 4 on baptism date (all of which have been taught before I got here) but were all put on date since I've been here. So we're trying our best to find new investigators and help them progress towards baptism. I still haven't seen too much of Bots but I'm hoping to get to a sweet game park soon or something. There's just so much work to be done!
Anyways that's life. I'm trying to not coast the rest of my mission...because it's very tempting. Instead I've realized I've only got so much more time to do this great work. I've got to work harder. Give that last big push. So I'm trying... :) thanks for the love and support as always-
-love elder robinson
ps. did you ever get my christmas card i sent you?
Our area is pretty much a town area. People are just a lot more well off here... they live a lifestyle more similar to home. Mostly just because there is more money to go around. So people have cars, they live in their own homes, and they even have money to CALL US! haha That's new to me because in SA everyone in the township sends the missionaries "please calls" which is just what it says it is.
Anyways, but other than that the work is the same. We're still trying our hardest and we still have pitfalls...On Sunday night we had a family that was supposed to be baptized on the 24th of January come out with some huge marriage problems...so we'll see. Right now we've got 4 on baptism date (all of which have been taught before I got here) but were all put on date since I've been here. So we're trying our best to find new investigators and help them progress towards baptism. I still haven't seen too much of Bots but I'm hoping to get to a sweet game park soon or something. There's just so much work to be done!
Anyways that's life. I'm trying to not coast the rest of my mission...because it's very tempting. Instead I've realized I've only got so much more time to do this great work. I've got to work harder. Give that last big push. So I'm trying... :) thanks for the love and support as always-
-love elder robinson
ps. did you ever get my christmas card i sent you?
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Pushing Forward
Being a trainer isn't too bad. Elder Halterman knows what's going on. I've been here in Mamelodi for a while now though and it's starting to get to me. I love Mamelodi but, man it is tiring, working so hard and having SO much disappointment...
But let's try to focus on the bright side. Lebo was baptized yesterday. His mom came and we had a very spiritual baptism with a lot of support from the branch. It was sweet. Ursula is supposed to be baptized next Sunday, but we'll see...she didn't come to church on Sunday.
I'm not sure when I'll be able to call home. We're still working out the details. I'll let you know when and everything next week. Just count on it being Christmas morning like last year because of the time difference.
Everything is going good with me. Just trying to keep pushing forward, trying to follow what's right.
much love,
elder robinson
But let's try to focus on the bright side. Lebo was baptized yesterday. His mom came and we had a very spiritual baptism with a lot of support from the branch. It was sweet. Ursula is supposed to be baptized next Sunday, but we'll see...she didn't come to church on Sunday.
I'm not sure when I'll be able to call home. We're still working out the details. I'll let you know when and everything next week. Just count on it being Christmas morning like last year because of the time difference.
Everything is going good with me. Just trying to keep pushing forward, trying to follow what's right.
much love,
elder robinson
Monday, December 7, 2009
On a Mountaintop
As for this week I don't even know where to begin. It has just been busy, busy. We now have 20 people on baptismal date. I think one of the sweetest things that happened this week was putting Ursula back on baptismal date. Do you remember the girl that was supposed to be baptized back in October...then she got pregnant. Well, we've been working with her and on Thursday we went to see her. I talked with her about preparing for baptism. Then I asked her if she had been keeping the law of chastity...she said "yes i have!" with so much confidence. She was proud to be able to say that. It was so much different than she had been over a month ago. We then talked about a baptismal date and all of us were just so happy. She kept laughing and I couldn't stop smiling. I was so happy. She will be baptized on the 20th of December.
Another interesting thing that happened this week: So we went up to Stoffel Park on Saturday morning to have Lebo Seketa interviewed for baptism. Lebo is about 16 and lives next to a return missionary and his sweet member family. Stoffel Park is basically a village on the side of a mountain. So when we came up on Saturday morning Lebo's mom told us that Lebo had taken off into the mountain because he didn't want to help his family (they were putting cement in the house which we ended up helping them do later). So we decided to go look for him with Lebo's dad and brother. After about 40 minutes running through the mountains Lebo's brother caught him. We caught up to him and had the baptismal inteview right there in the bush. It was kinda scary because I just saw in my mind another baptism falling through...but he passed the interview and he's ready for Sunday next week.
I wish I could send you some pictures of our little escapade. I'm not sure when I'll be able to send pictures again. I'll try and see.
Hope all is well.
Love, elder robinson
Another interesting thing that happened this week: So we went up to Stoffel Park on Saturday morning to have Lebo Seketa interviewed for baptism. Lebo is about 16 and lives next to a return missionary and his sweet member family. Stoffel Park is basically a village on the side of a mountain. So when we came up on Saturday morning Lebo's mom told us that Lebo had taken off into the mountain because he didn't want to help his family (they were putting cement in the house which we ended up helping them do later). So we decided to go look for him with Lebo's dad and brother. After about 40 minutes running through the mountains Lebo's brother caught him. We caught up to him and had the baptismal inteview right there in the bush. It was kinda scary because I just saw in my mind another baptism falling through...but he passed the interview and he's ready for Sunday next week.
I wish I could send you some pictures of our little escapade. I'm not sure when I'll be able to send pictures again. I'll try and see.
Hope all is well.
Love, elder robinson
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