Dear Mom,

 

I'm going to try my best to quickly answer all those questions you threw in this email. As a zone leader I basically just have to be a good example and do numbers and organize zone conference sous la direction du Président de mission. District Leaders do more in our mission. There is only one zone in Pointe Noire. Each city is one zone with 8 missionaries. Elder Davis hit his 10 month mark on the 7th. I think he is pretty excited to be staying in Congo. We are working really well together and having fun. As far as construction... things take forever... imagine me saying that like squirts on Sandlot. The court should be done this next Monday but I doubt it. It is tiny... we might not play on it. The 3-point line is shorter than the free throw line on a normal court. Beaches are safe. Last time we were there there were some naughty teenagers being affectionate. I have no clue if there are sharks or not. It is beautiful though.

 

K, I think I got them all! This week was great! I love being here in Congo so much. I love to teach, and here in Congo we are super blessed because you are always teaching. Elder Davis and I have been focusing a lot more on inactives and so over 60% of our lessons were directed towards recent converts and inactives. I love working with them so much. It is a lot more difficult, I think, working with inactives, but it is so rewarding when you help them come back, well, through the help of the Spirit and God. Some of my closest friends on the missions are the inactives that I worked with.

 

On Thursday, we had district meeting and it started at 10:00 a.m.. Well, there were 5 people that we needed to see that we could only see before 12 and that is when district meeting was supposed to end so we planned them all before district meeting. So our plan was to leave the apartment at 6:30 and get teaching and be back by 9:45 so we wouldn't be late for the meeting. We were scrambling and going super fast but we were able to do it! Well we got raté'd by one person so we only had four lessons but it was still a fun little race.

 

Here is a cool experience that happened to us the other day. We got raté'd our first rendez-vous so we decided to continue to walk on this road that was being built and go to our other rendez-vous early. When you walk over here in Congo there are always people whistling at you and wanting you to come over. Some just want to mess around and aren't serious at all and others are drunk and just want to yell at us because they think we are the JW's. While walking down that road we got called over and when we presented ourselves we also told them that we aren't JW's and they said, "Oh okay, that's okay then. I like you guys." And that was it. We kept on walking and we got called over again but I just didn't want to turn around and talk to them. Thankfully both Elder Davis and I were propelled by the Spirit and we turned around to see this man in a yellow shirt waving at us telling us to come over and by the time we got there he had already set up chairs and everything for us and greeted us with a big smile and a nice hand shake. We sat down and he basically said, "Please, will you share with me your message." and so we did. As we were teaching he was totally focused and loving everything he was learning and hearing. There were times where he would just smile and you could tell he was feeling the Spirit. I asked him at one moment what he was feeling and he said, "I feel like you are messengers from God and that everything you are saying is true. I know that your message is true." We were able to give him a brochure and we got his number as well. He told us that he wouldn't be able to come to church because he had something he had to do at his church but he said that next Sunday he will be there. I honestly have no clue what will come of this. It could very well be that he will never progress and fade away like so many others but I won't care. That little meeting was incredible and we DEFINITELY planted a seed and THAT is what is important.

 

Transfers took place on Friday and Elder Thibault left to Yaoundé. I will miss that kid. It was fun being with him again. I was able to work with him a couple times and his french has improved so much and he is a great teacher. He will do good things over in Bastos. We now have Elder Christiensen working with Elder McGrath. He started his mission with Thibault and Davis. We are still in that "getting used to things" mode but that will fade away throughout the week.

 

We had a rendez-vous with a member one night and it was really dark because there was no power and his little 4 year old daughter was all over the place and she got a hold of the baby powder stuff and disappeared into her parents room and came out and she had the white powder all over her face and neck. It was so funny! Right when Juste saw her he wanted to laugh but had to be a little stern with her but he couldn't... so he did what every other father would do... he sent her to her mom. Once she left we all busted up laughing. I was able to get some pictures and I'll try to send them to you soon.

 

Things are going well over here. I love my mission so much. I love my life. I love you and I am so grateful for all that you have done for me. I'm a blessed kid :)

 

Je t'aime,

Elder Schmid

Dear Mom,

 

It sounds like you all had a blast over there in La Jolla! That was nice of Paul and John Paul to teach everyone to surf and take them out everyday. Can I get in on that when I get back? Don't worry about the medicine... everything is fine over here. We can find almost everything we need at one of the many pharmacies that are in Pointe Noire. I managed to get Elder Davis and Elder McGrath a little sick too... misery loves company :) Just joking. They don't have it that bad... just a stuffy nose a little headache every once in a while.

 

This week Bonace was baptized! We met with him at church on Saturday and he was just chillin there reading his Book of Mormon in 3 Nephi 11... AWESOME chapter for teaching baptism and the ONE TRUE baptism. He was so excited but he was also very nervous. We had a quick little lesson with him before and let him know that we love him and that we are grateful for his desire to follow the Lord. He asked Daljus to baptize him and Daljus did a good job. In every baptismal service a missionary is asked to give a little talk on the Restoration because there are always non-members who are there and this week it was my turn. I am amazed at how easy it is now to teach the Restoration. I don't even have to think anymore. What I love even more though is that when we teach it it is never the same lesson. I love getting up and teaching people and just following the Spirit. Of course we need to prepare ourselves by studying the scriptures and Preach My Gospel but we have the promise that when the time comes we will know exactly what we need to say.

 

Speaking of the church, the basketball court is not quite finished. It is painted a super bright green color and we are all hoping that it is the primer because it hurts your eyes when you are on the court. The rims are only 9'8 or around there so it is super easy to dunk. So when it is finished and we play it will be a huge dunkfest. I'll see if I can get the 360 down.

 

We got transfer info this week and none of us were expecting what happened. We were almost positive that Elder Davis would be leaving Pointe Noire because he has been here his whole mission so far... well only 6 transfers, but still. He has worked in two sectors but usually you are in a different city by this time. Well, him and I will be doing a third transfer together and I am the new zone leader for Pointe Noire. I look forward to that responsibility because whenever I have a leadership position I tend perform better and become a better person. It helps me focus on being an even better example. I guess I should be doing that everyday, but now I really need to do that. Elder Thibault is going to Yaoundé and the missionary who is working in my old sector in Ekounou 1 will be coming to work with Elder McGrath. It will be fun.

 

I was reading Kurts email and I can't believe that he is already on his last transfer! Le temps passe vite! (Time flies)  I'm glad that he is focused on staying focused. Sometimes there are missionaries here who lose that crucial focus on their last transfer and the sector almost dies. I have promised myself that I will be strong until the end, when I am back with President Toone. Bugs emails always crack me up. It's funny reading his reaction to reality. Tell him to write longer emails! I'm proud to be out here in the mission field with my cousins representing our families and our Lord all across the world. Things are always made easier once you realize that you aren't alone.

 

Love conquers. I have really come to understand that over here on the mission. I have been really praying for the gift of charity lately and it has really been blessing my life. Life is always so much better when love is ongoing and manifested on a regular basis. There is a random thought for you. I love you so much and I am so grateful to be in the family that I am in. I love to read that special paragraph in my patriarchal blessing about our relationship before this life. I know that that is true. Thank you for being angels in my life. I love you :)

 

Je vous aime,

Elder Schmid

December 31, 2012

 

 

Dear Mom,

 

Wow, I can't even begin to tell you how incredible that skype call was. Yeah, the connection was pretty bad but nothing will ever beat being able to see your faces and hear your voices in real time. Yes, I knew that I was making Bronson laugh! I think that was one of my highlights of the call. It's still weird to think that I will have another brother when I get home. I can't wait to actually meet him though. You all looked soo good! I am always blown away by how much Dallin is changing... especially his voice. I hope I didn't offend him when I laughed!

 

Guess what, I am still sick. Just like you it has all moved to the chest. What really blows is that I left all my medicine in Douala because I didn't have enough weight in my suitcases and I thought that that would be okay because normally there are a bunch of medication stuff left from other missionaries, but when I got here there was absolutely nothing. Slowly but surely I'm getting better. I just have a stupid cough right now and there is crud in my lungs but it's getting out. I just played basketball and I felt pretty weak but I was shooting well!

 

I'm glad to hear that Dallin had a good birthday. When I get home he will be driving in a month. Yikes... I'll have the truck right? I miss a good sound system. I wish you could all experience a typical taxi ride over here in Congo.

 

This past week was a little rough because I was a little sick... we stayed home one day because I had gnarly sinus headaches. I never had those before my mission but now it seems like I get them once every month or two. They take me out. I can't think, write, or focus on anything. We have been working with a lot of inactive members and we are slowly finding success. When President Jameson was here last he told us to be bold and direct when we teach the commandments and I love to be bold so we have been really hitting the importance of the sabbath day and making them realize that what they are doing is not guiding them to eternal life with their Heavenly Father. I love being straight forward with people and telling them how it is. It helps now that I don't have to think now when I speak french, it just comes out. That's a blessing and a trial :)

 

We have two people that will hopefully be getting baptized Saturday, Jean Joseph and Bonace. Jean Joseph is the father of a recent convert and he is awesome. He loves to read the scriptures and we can just tell that he is converted to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jean Joesph is a big fellow with a nice round belly. I got a picture with him and I'll send it home here soon. Bonace is a young man who just turned 19. He is all smiles whenever we see him and he is always with the choir at the church singing. Sometimes it interferes with our lessons that we want to teach him but we feel that it is better that he is with his friends in the branch building those relationships that will help him stay in the church when we go. We have been teaching Bonace since mine arrival here Congo so it will be nice to finally see him enter the waters of baptism.

 

We have been talking a lot with our DMB about the importance of coordonnées (referrals). We can go out and search for people and find tons and tons of people but we want the people we teach to come from members of the church. We want there to be an immediate connection between them and the branch. There is so much more success when there is already a friend in the church. Scherton, our DMB, has really taken his responsibilities seriously and is doing a great job by getting the branch missionaries to get us coordonnées. We have a lot of people now that we are trying to contact so that we can start teaching them. I love this work so much!

 

I am loving my life so much. I am so blessed to be over here in Congo right now preaching the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. What is most amazing about missionary work is seeing people apply the taught principles in their lives and then seeing their lives change. They then recognize those changes and realize that this fruit is a good fruit. It is also difficult sometimes when people receive those life changing teachings and even witness firsthand the reality of our message and then they reject it. I think that's why I love working with inactives so much. I love working with people who have known and have felt the truthfulness of our message and have taken upon them the name of Christ but then have been blinded by the world. I just love missionary work... these past 18 months have changed my life so much and I am so grateful that I still have 6 months left. I miss you all, but just know that I am loving every second of what I am doing. The Church IS true.

 

Je t'aime!

Elder Schmid

December 24, 2012

Bonjour!

 

So you are sick too? I have had a nasty cold the past three days and it is bugging me so much. My nose is raw and I am so congested. Hopefully it will be gone by tomorrow. I haven't been able to sleep well and it is really starting to wear on me. Oh well, life moves on. I hope you get better.

 

I apologize for the short emails... we have been doing one hour lately for email (against my will) and so I barely have anytime to read all my emails and then write some. The internet is super slow too. I understand where they are coming from but they only get 2 emails a week... I get 15-20. And this is my only communication with the outside world... we don't get to really write letters. For now on I will make sure that I get an hour and a half. That's what we have today so things should go a little smoother. Now for people that are reading this... please don't think that you shouldn't send me emails. Send them! I love to hear from everyone!!

 

Be ready to skype tomorrow at 06h00. I will be at the Wheatley's ready to go at 14h00 my time. Keep on praying that there will be power because lately it has been acting up and internet has not been working. Rest assured though... someway or another we will talk to each other.

 

This week was a great week. We got a lot done and we are seeing a lot of progression with our investigators. We are teaching a young man named Bonace, he actually just turned 19 yesterday. He has a baptismal date for September 5th and he is way excited. We have been teaching him ever since I have gotten here and he was kinda dead at the beginning but things are really moving now and he is stoked to progress and join the church. It is fun to teach him because he wants to learn so much. We taught him yesterday after church and he asked Elder Davis and I, "d'ou vient Dieu?" (where does God come from?) I LOVE talking about things like that but I just smiled and said, "Bonace, one day we will talk about that... but not today." He is a good kid.

 

A few days ago we were over at a members house teaching Daljus, a recent convert, and it started to pour. We didn't have an umbrella and we didn't feel like getting soaked so we decided to wait it out. Well about 45 minutes later we looked outside and the whole entire parcel was under water and the road outside was a river. So we rolled up our pants and took off our socks and and went out to see the chaos. Right when we walked out of the parcel there was this tiny toyota that was stuck in a hole. His engine was in the water and barely staying alive and the water level was above the bottom of the door. We told the guy to go backwards and not continue forward because it only got deeper but some stupid guy convinced him to go forward and he just got more stuck... so we went in to push him out. I was wet up to my waste but after some pushing we got the car out. When it was in the deepest spot the driver opened his door and his whole inside got flooded. I have no clue what was going through his head. Elder Thibault got some sweet pictures that I am going to copy over to my memory card and I will send them to you.

 

The end of the world was a pretty nice day over here. Everyone here gives us crud because they all think that "the whites" believe in the end of the world. They all believe that we are Jehovah's Witnesses and they taunt us and tease us and go off in their native language just trying to get under our skin. A few nights ago it was getting dark outside and we were at a members house waiting for him to come home and we just got off the phone with him and he told us that he wasn't going to make it. So we were just standing there trying to figure out what we were going to do and then a group of young punks came walking by talking crap and taunting us and tried to get a reaction. There wasn't anyone around us so I thought I would scare them a little. They were a bunch a young kids around 16 years old. The further they got the more rude they became so I turned to Elder Davis and smiled and said watch and I turned super fast and started walking toward the kids very quickly and I had a pissed off look on my face and when they realized I was coming toward them they all scattered. I was yelling at them to come to me in their native language but they were too scared. They are all brave with their mouths but that's where it ends. It was pretty funny.

 

I am so excited to see you tomorrow! I hope you all have a great Christmas Eve and Christmas tomorrow! Next time I'll be with you all :) I love you so much!

 

Bio,

Elder Schmid

Hey hey hey!!

 

This week flew by! Je n'ai pas beaucoup de temps (I do not have much time) but I'll try my best to write you a good email. Caelan mentioned in her email that I will by skyping you for only 20 minutes... false. Don't worry, I will get my full 40 minutes. I have another blog for you to add... missioninthecongo.blogspot.com ... that is the Wheatley's blog (he obviously hasn't noticed that their blog address has been on his blog since he has been in Congo). Over here it is just hot... it has been hot since I have been here. I like it though because it reminds me of home. I have a pretty wicked farmers tan now, so it will be funny when I get home and go swimming with you guys. We may have to wait a week or two before we go to sunsplash.
 

This week was another great week over here. We had President Jameson come over and we watched the First Presidency Christmas Devotional together, which was AWESOME, and then we had a little zone conference. I love it so much when President is in town. We were at the Wheatley's and right at the end, I went outside and I noticed that there was a big dump truck out in front of their gate... I went and looked to find that the road, the only way to get out of that quartier where they are at, was completely covered by rock and sand. The people that did it saw that the "white people" were upset and they high tailed it out of there. We had some other guy walk up to us and say, "If there are the possibilities me and my guys could help you." As he said that he was rubbing his fingers together... so we just got our own shovels and moved the dirt ourselves. It took a while and I think every single one of us got blisters but we made it possible for the Wheatley's to get their car out. It was actually pretty fun.
 

 

We have been having a lot of success with finding new people to teach. One of them is Jean. At this moment I don't know exactly what to think of him... He comes to church though, and loves to learn but when we teach him it is hard for him to focus. Every time we are with him he gives us a ton of fruit (pineapple, papaya, mangoes), and one pineapple he gave us was much, much bigger than my head. I forgot to get a picture of it. It was massive! Last time we were with him there was a huge funeral going on right down the road and there were a bunch of crazy women jumping and chanting and in the middle of the mosh pit was the casket with an old woman in it. When we left we followed Jean and he decided to take us right through the funeral celebrations. I'll just say that we quickly got the attention... of everyone. It was pretty funny to see.

 

There is some success with Trésor. He will be losing his house soon and so Cecilia will be going down to Brazzaville to stay with her family and so her and Trésor will not be living with each other, thus fulfilling the requirement for baptism. We have nailed it to Trésor the importance of keeping the law of chastity when he once gets a house again and he knows that he can't live with her until they are married and he understands and wants to get baptized. So, finally I feel like we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

 

Well, sorry this is so short but just know that I love you... sooo much. I can't wait to talk to you on Christmas! Hey, that is when we can take our family picture!! We will all be together :) Have a great week!

 

Je t'aime,

Elder Schmid

Dear Mom,

 

Today will be a little short because we don't have that much time. Oh well...I'm glad Caelan, Dallin, and Aiden are doing well in choir and orchestra. Remember when I did orchestra... yeah, that was bad. Remember Tanner Ellsworth? He played the cello and he was dang good. It sounds like you all had a blast with DeAnn over. So Aaron is already home?? Dang... I think I'm the last one out of all my friends.

 

This week was great. We have been dropping a lot of investigators because they were just not progressing. It was a little sad but they have their own free agency. We can't force our message on them. We have had faith though, that the Lord will help us find others who are wanting to change their lives RIGHT NOW. That is our trial over here but it is an awesome one. People progress... but not fast enough, so we have to move on. It's an awesome problem but stressful at the same time. Some people like to take their time and we just don't have time for that. This week, however, we have received some awesome coordonnées (referrals) and they seem promising.

 

Oh by the way, I got the letter that DeAnn sent. My first letter here in Congo! I loved it too! Thank you Kettenring's!!

 

We are still teaching a lot of lessons and helping people get closer and closer to the waters of baptism. Our golden ami right now is Jean Joseph. He loves to study and learn. He was at church a couple of weeks ago and the EQ President gave him the conference Liahona from May, and so I gave him Elder Hollands talk to read and he read it three times because he wanted to understand everything about it. He is married enough so he will be getting baptized here on the 29th.

 

Trésor is not having any luck with finding a new house, so on the 17th he and his family will be kicked out of the house that they have now and Cecilia and his daughter will go to Brazza to stay with her family and Trésor will stay here with his brother, Préferna, and try to find a place to stay. But because of this, Trésor will probably be able to get baptized because he will not be living with his fiancée. We need to nail the law of chastity with him though and really make sure that when he does find a house that she won't come back and live with him because that would be a big no no. Trésor knows that he can get baptized now and is stoked.

 

Chloe and I, this is Tresor's daughter who is one month older then Bronson

 

On a more sad note. Remember me talking about Divin? the person we just baptized a few weeks into my stay here in Congo? Well he has completely fallen of the face of the planet. We haven't seen him since the beginning of November. He found a job and it has taken over his life. It's sad... he knows that he needs to be at church but he just doesn't have enough faith to go. I called him yesterday to see what's up and he was just annoyed that we were calling him so much. We are worried about him. What makes things worse is that he didn't give us the correct information for his baptismal recommendation (spelling?) and we had to fill it out twice... and it still doesn't have all the right stuff so we need to fill out yet another one but we can't see him so his records will never get sent to Kinshasa. Its a mess and it is pretty depressing. He has completely changed. I was just sitting there on the couch yesterday with my head in my hands wondering what on earth has happened. It's sad...

 

The baptism of Anna and Divin

I need to know what you guys want to do for skype on Christmas. I can either do it Christmas Eve or Christmas day. I would prefer Christmas day. Just let me know about your schedule. I can't wait to see you all!

 

I love you so much and I hope you have a great week!

 

Je vous aime,

Elder Schmid

 

Elder Thibault tried to cut my hair

Can we get as high as Elder Schmid?

Luckily Elder Schmid doesn't need a jacket in Congo...



The Elders taking in a beautiful sunset!

The Pointe Noire chapel

A pousse-pousse, an African wheel barrow

 

Dear Mom,

Can you believe that it is already December? This time last year I was still with Elder Lamb and loving the work over there in Ekounou. I am always blown away by how fast the time goes by. It doesn't really feel like Christmas is just around the corner. The only thing that even hints that it is Christmas time is the kid that stands in the middle of the street over here trying to sell lit up Christmas lights that are all wrapped around his body. He doesn't find much success because he stands in the middle of the road and tries to sell them to people that are stuck in traffic. Don't ask me why... We have been listening to a lot of Christmas music in the apartment and it has been amazing.  I love Christmas music so much. Josh Groban and Faith Hill sing a SWEET duo.

It sounds like you all had a fun time setting up lights :) Poor little innocent Ashlyn. I wish I could have been there with you all. What I love most about Christmas is the time we spent together as a family.  I'm going to be honest though... that is a love I discovered after being away from the family. I was such a punk before the mission. I'm so sorry, Mom. But, with that said, you are still sooo lucky that you have... I'm not going to finish that sentence but you know exactly what I would say :)

This week was an awesome week and we had another 30+ lesson week. I know it's not all about numbers but it just feels good knowing that you are out there teaching as many people as you can and literally exhausting yourself doing the work that you have been called to do.  There would be days where we would crank out 10 lessons. This transfer we totaled 185 lessons. We have had to drop a lot of people too due to lack of progression but I know that the Lord will help us find new amis who are ready to accept the gospel as long as we are diligent and obedient.

Délaur got baptized and the kid that baptized him almost went under himself. It was pretty funny to watch. He was so happy to be baptized!! We walked up to the church an hour and a half early and he was sitting there under a tree just studying his Book of Mormon. He had a huge smile on his face the whole entire time and it was so contagious. He asked me to confirm him and so I did and that went well. I know that he will be an awesome member over here in Pointe Noire. At the baptism one of the amies from another missionary companionship was there and some of the missionaries here have suffer a little from jungle fever and she was swarmed by missionaries and all the young men in the branch. But guess who was the only one who had the guts to get her number? Délaur! Atta kid!

Whenever we go out into the sector we are known to the Congolese community as Moudele. That means "white man" in their dialect. You will have a bunch of little kids running up to you screaming "moudele!! moudele!!" and then they will hug you or shake your hand or just talk to you. I learned how to say "I'm going to eat you!" in their dialect, "Mouke dia ngue" and so sometimes when they run up to me I get my scary voice going and I scream that and then they about crap their pants and do the fast 180 degree turn you will ever see and take off the other direction. I would then chase after them and pick them up and put them on my shoulders and just play with them for a little bit so they knew that I was just joking around. It is a lot of fun. I love the little children here. I will try to get a video of it one time. You would love it so much.

They have officially started building an outdoor basketball court at the church!! It is semi professional size too! I am so stoked for it to be finished. They are also repainting the whole building and fixing it up so it will look very nice. So in about two weeks the whole place will look brand new. Even the landscaping. The church building here is so beautiful. I would love for you to come here and see it. But what is more beautiful are the members who are in it. The Congolese people are such an incredible people. They are always so happy and they love... they just love. Yes of course there are the little problems here and there but those exist in every branch or ward of the church. But they just smile and everything is better. I love where I am and I love what I am experiencing. I am so blessed to be here in Africa. I love being able to grow with my brothers and sisters over here. Going on a mission you just realize that you have a family everywhere in the world. We are a part of something so magnificent.

I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. I know that out of His infinite love for us He volunteered Himself to come down here to earth to be sacrificed so that all the children of Heavenly Father can return and live with Him for eternity. C'est deja faite alors maintenant tous ce que nous devons faire et d'agir. Montrons a Dieu que nous l'aimons par notre obéissance and notre charité. J'aime l'évangile de Jésus-Christ et je sais que si nous le mettons on practique nous pouvouns recevoir la vie éternelle... don qui est le plus grand de tous les dons de Dieu.  (It is already done, so now all what we need to do is to act. Show to God that we love Him by our obedience and our charity . I love the gospel of Jesus Christ and I know that if we ? we will receive eternal life ... which is the greatest of all the gifts of God.)

Je t'aime Maman,
Elder Schmid