Week 12 - Liberdade A - "Gummy Black Forest" by OCD Moosh & Twist

Whhhhaasss goood?!?! So, it sounds like it was a dope week for everyone this past one. Big Shoutouts to Barb for killing it in the half-marathon and taking 2nd in her age group! #Atheltics and also shoutout to Skyline Girls Bball team for taking state and just a consistent shoutout to the Jaaazz!

So, this past week was great for Elder Barros and me. But to start with the news.. Elder Barros and I will be staying together one more transfer here in Liberdade A! Which will be making Liberdade my longest area (tied with Munhava). It is crazy how fast 12 weeks here has already gone but I am pumped for these next 6 as well! We have lots of work to do this transfer and we should be seeing lots of miracles with the Lord blessing the rains down here in Africa.

With last week being the last week of the transfer, we had to do lots of running around for interviews, birthdays and getting everything in place for the new transfer. We partied like Ke$ha on Thursday for Elder Barros' birthday haha. We had a dope lunch and then had dinner with Sebastiao and Lydia's family. On Saturday, we had a tri-ward mission activity that with little planning and some improvising turned out to be a really fun night with members bringing their friends to get to know the church and the missionaries. Also, we were able to go to a farewell for the homie Fransisco Mabjwaia who is leaving on his mission tomorrow so that was really fun. On Sunday, we had lots of investigators at church which we were really happy about. Especially the ones that have been progressing lots and should be getting baptized this next month! So, all is going great down here in Detroit of Mozambique. Elder Barros and I are turning into the new Isaiah Thomas and Joe Dummars #BadBoys

Elder Holland in a devotional at BYU 1999 said, "There is a lesson in the life of Moses that virtually everyone will experience one day. It is the sobering truth that before or after great spiritual moments, there can come adversity, opposition, and darkness. Life has some of the moments for us, as the adversary tries to keep us from receiving revelation or to make us doubt the light we have received." I had an experience like this, this past week and it was amazing to see how when I was able to recognize it and change my attitude everything that I had been feeling was replaced with the sweet comfort of the Holy Ghost. I would just like to give the same encouragement that Elder Holland gave back in 1999 and that our Heavenly Father gives to us through our leaders today. "Opposition turns up almost anyplace something good has happened.... beware the temptation to retreat from a good thing. If it was right when your prayed about it and trusted it and lived for it, it is right now. Don’t give up when the pressure comes in. Face your doubts. Master your fears. "Cast not away therefore your confidence." Stay the course and the beauty of life unfold for you."

Love all of yall! Have such a great week!

Elder Chipman

Saying goodbye to Elder Mabjwaia, who will be serving
with my dude Elder Tanner up in Manga.  

Catching a ride with the Secretaries.

Shoutout to Trucks!

Highlights from our Missionary Activity on Saturday. 

Week 11 - Liberdade A -"Good Company" by Brothers From Another

Shoutout out to miracles! I am so glad to hear that Phank is all good/safe and that the rest of the family is doing great! So, grateful for the Lord's hand that is in all of our lives to give protection, comfort and peace especially in times that we need. Even when we feel like we don't deserve it, His love is always there!

But for the week down hurrr in Liberdade was a good one! Props to our Ward Missionary Leader that went to the church at 6 AM to start feeling up the font, all the baptisms happened this weekend! Cacilda (from our area) and Raibo (from Liberdade B) were baptized with two others from the Matola and Mozal wards. It was a great day and like always it was the best to hear the testimonies of those who were baptized.

During the middle of the week we got news that... STUFF WAS GOING TO GO DOWN! We heard that there was going to be a huge cyclone hit Mozambique and destroy everything. After being sent to pick up some emergency food, back home because it was unsafe and then back to work cause it wasn’t going to hit in Maputo for a while we realized that it never was going to hit haha. Sadly, the cyclone did hit with some strength in the providence of Inhambane. The missionaries there are all safe just a couple damages to their house and I know that they are doing lots of service to help out the other houses that were affected.

Yesterday at church was dope as well! The most investigators I have ever had in this area showed up to church and it was great to see how the members helped out every single one of them. We were waiting for sacrament meeting to start and we looked out and every investigator had a member sitting right by their side and talking with them waiting for the meeting to start as well. Shoutout to members! If you guys are ever at any church meeting or just anywhere and there seems to be someone struggling, uncomfortable or a little bit lost.. sit by them and put yo arm around them and make a new friend!

On a spiritual note, we had a Leadership Council this past week at the Mission Office and let’s just say we had a physical and a spiritual feast! Ups to the secretaries for prepping some dank food for us but the best part was that I was able to take away a lot from what we learned from President Koch and Sister Koch. So, grateful for the best Mission Presidents in the world. The biggest thing that I took away from it all was when President Koch was talking about being agents and acting, rather than being objects and being acted upon (2nd Nephi 2: 26-27) No matter what are situations are... even the ones we can’t control (our genetics, living situation, etc.) we can always choose and we can always act! Sometimes it might not be in the right way but because of our Savior and His sacrifice we make up for those wrong actions that we may make.  Repenting does not mean just being put back into the same place that we were before like taking steps backwards but it is actually progressing and is truly taking steps forward.

So, grateful for all of you and for the support everyone is alley oopin down here in Mozambique! #6monthsleft #4thquarter #Kobe!

Love you guys! Have a great week!

Elder Chipman

Cacilda and Raibio's Baptism

Some pics from a family night at Sestia's and Lydia's

Week 10 - Liberdade A - "Warm Enough" - Donnie Trumpet and the Social Experiment

What is up fam?! Sounds like everything back home is going great! Loved seeing the pics from Teag's dance recital/competition and from Burke's basketball games. Baby Renz is looking like the cutest guy on the block and big shout out to Stacie Bowen for the water painting... pretty much the coolest thing that I have ever seen!

I am writing this email after playing soccer with the zone and I realized two things... Africa is hot and I still suck at soccer hahaha. But it was super fun to be with the whole zone together playing around a little bit. Now I am just feeling bad for everyone in this humid internet cafe because I stank but its whatevs!

This past week was really good, involved lots of running around to other areas to do interviews for upcoming baptisms in the zone, preparing Cacilda for her baptisms and trying everything to pull off a combined baptism on Saturday without water. So the plans this past Saturday was to have a baptism together with three of the wards here in Matola and it seemed like everything was going to run smoother than Usain Bolt but... how soon we forgot that Maputo is on water restrictions and we pegged the day at the church when there was no water so trying to work out things with a water tanker to come and fill up the font we decided to just moved the baptisms to this next Saturday but we still went through watching some videos we had plan to show with the baptisms and had snacks so people weren’t mad at all haha. But other than that it was a pretty average week, trying to find new people and get the area popping. This next week should be pretty great... hopefully with some cooler days, Leadership Council on Thursday and baptisms on Saturday.

For a quick spiritual guy... I am just finishing up the book of Alma in the Book of Mormon right now and with all of the stories of wars, battles, and contentions I have realized something. The Lord always favored the side that was most prepared and the side that was most prepared in this case was the side of the Nephites because of their righteous desires. Elder Dallin H. Oaks taught, "Desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices, and choices determine our actions. The desires we act on determine our changing, our achieving and our becoming." Throughout the later chapters of the book of Alma we see that the desire of the Nephites was to protect their liberty, their families, and their religion. Set by the example of Captain Moroni, their desires were not worldy things. We should remember that righteous desires cannot be superficial, impulsive or temporary (the treasures that we cannot bring to heaven). They must be heartfelt, unwavering and permanent. So, motivated we will seek for that condition described by Joseph Smith as the state to "overcome the evils of (our lives) and lost every desire for sin." I know that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can obtain these righteous desires and receive all the blessing that Heavenly Father has to give us to overcome and to achieve the righteous desires of our lives.

Love yall!! Shout out to Chance to the Rapper for balling out at the Grammys and shout out to the KFC's in Maputo that have new Pina Colada and Strawberry Lemonade Krushers! Have a great week!

Elder Chipman

Divisions with Elder Da Cruz

I was missing home and Mexican food do I attempted to make a
Cafe Rio Chicken Salad. 

"Heroes get remembered butlegends never die"  #RIPSamora

Watercolor by Stacey Bowen from a picture taken
of Elder Chipman and friends last March while he was serving in Beira. 

Week 9 - Liberdade A - "Definition" by Blackstar

Alright if I had to describe this week with one athlete it would be Dominique Wilkins cause this week was just full of highlights so I will try my best to share all the slammers and the ones that are worth 3 with ya guys hahaha.

So, last Pday was probably the Pday where I did the most things in one day. Elder Barros and I were looking to just kill it and that’s what we did. After using internet, we got our breakfast (bread with bajia and juice from sugar canes) and then he hit Costa Do Sol and went bowling which was super fun. And then on the way home we hit up Pizza Hut.. yep there is a Pizza Hut here and it was my first time eating there and it was dang good! So, it was a successful Pday!

Tuesday, we had Zone Conference at the Mission Office with the Maputo, Urban and Matola zones and it was probably the best zone conference that I have had on my mission. We talked a lot about the Missionary Broadcast and the new things we would be applying in our mission but the second half was all focused on how we need to help our investigators have an experience with the Atonement of Jesus Christ and we do that by teaching repentance and so that way we can baptize converts. President Koch was able to put that into terms for us not meaning that we have to slow down our work but to increase as well because, and I know this to be true, the Lord has prepared Africa and Mozambique for this time to accept the Gospel and grow at the rate that it has been.

Wednesday, Elder Barros and I had the chance to do the division with the AP's. Whoever I would have walked with would have been dope because Elder Combs and Elder Payne are my guys but I worked with Elder Payne in Liberdade and we had such a great day together. While calling, and confirming visits most of the things we had planned for that afternoon fell but shout out to Elder Payne for helping keep a good attitude.  We decided to go out and contact a certain area that is close to our new chapel and we were able to find 12 new investigators back to back to back to back in visits so it was a super cool day.

And now for the biggest highlight came from yesterday and the Maputo Stake Conference. Having already served in two other wards in the stake I knew that I would see some people that I had worked with and knew.  I had no idea that so many people would recognize me and be so excited to see me just because of the short time I had in Magoanine and Mahotas it was amazing. I was able to see Rute, who was baptized when I was Mahotas.  Pedro, who was baptized a week after I left.  Yuren, who I walked with all of the time.  Vivaldo, the ward mission leader in Magoanine who helped me out a ton at the beginning of my mission and many others! It was one of the coolest things that I have experienced in my life and to combine it with one of the best church meetings that I have been a part of it was a special day!

So, there is my 1990 NBA Dunk Contest of a week for you guys haha. It sounds like all is going well back home! Thank you, guys, for all your prayers and support! Goal for the week when we are stressed/pressed/overwhelmed/in need of anything let’s spend more time on our knees praying then on our feet worrying!

Love you guys,

Elder Chipman

Telez had us over for a lunch to celebrate his grandson's bday
and it was super nice!!

Lunch at Telez and Maria's

The Dos Santos family from Magoanine!
They helped me out so much when I first got to the mission
and their son/brother is my good friend Juice who
is now serving in Durban. 

RUTE!! Nothing but tears when I saw the wonder woman!
Such a blessing to see her ans see the light of Christ
shining so bright through her!

From right to left: Vivaldo from Magoanine, Yuren from Mahotas,
Pedro and his sister Lilianna from Mahotas

Bread and Bajia...aka the best breakfast ahha.
Bajuia is basically African tater tots. 

Matapa with Shrimp is too dope!
(that green stuff)