Family!

Merry Christmas, almost, dang! How is Vegas?? Sounds like everything is starting to get crazy just like the normal holiday season is. Today was awesome!! I got mail from cape coast since nobody has been up to kumasi in 4 weeks!!! There was lots of letters and a few packages! Thanks grandma! Elder Clements is doing great! He is starting to slow down his english slowly, but surely. Man he really was prepared when it comes to teaching and baring testimony, hes good at it. Im pretty sure i wasnt asking personal questions to investigators about "how they felt" when we were teaching. Its such a good question especially when you know they are feeling the Holy Ghost! Just ask them how they feel and then bare testimony that its the Holy Ghost telling them that its true, works everytime :D

CHRISTMAS is coming! Everyone is excited for our Christmas Zone conference this friday, the stake christmas show this saturday, then the week of christmas!! YAA! Lots of friendly members want us to come by for some good foods :D Im excited! I dont know what people were talking about when they said they got sick when members fed them, its good food and cooked well (i have to add this part in here just for MOM :D ). We learned how to make a stew, which is just like a tomato sauce with some meat and vegtables in it, they dont have Ragu bottles we can just buy so we make it ourselves haha. Its fun to laugh and cook with eachother since we all have almost no idea what we are doing! We did break down and buy syrup for our french toast! YAA! Slowly our menu is increasing haha.

Its awesome to hear that Elder Fonbuena is going! Im excited for him!! Tell his mom he will be an incredible missionary! Hows elder Kissner and Trotter? And COOP? Havent been able to hear much about them. Thank you Kissners for the postcard!! It sure is a funny one and made me smile so thanks!

My week has been great! We were able to teach 20 or so lessons and are working on less-actives since Asokwa has PLENTY! Its been kinda hard to get in touch with the leaders of the ward but we are doing our best :D Its funny how each day becomes more and more comfortable to be here in africa. I am starting to catch myself humming their music and am learning the twi faster now that i know how they pronounce their vowels (Much different!!). Its still funny to me when i speak to some lady in twi and she just busts up laughing cuz its a huge suprise for any white person to know twi lol. It seems to be a good ice breaker for contacting people too. This last week i have noticed that more people talk to us and irritate us since its two white guys instead of having an african with us haha. Its a big difference in how people treat us and ask us about the US and always beg us for money... I'll probably be a little more heartless when it comes to bums at home since these africans have it MUCH worse. Talk about poverty... Christmas time will be sad for me to see, especially since people barely have money for food and its only the small small children who get presents and stuff. Its definitely something americans should witness once in their lives, it will change them. But hey, i live here and its my home for another 20 months! Im enjoying the people,music, culture and food of the ghanain people! Its a way different kind of life haha.

Its so awesome to see the recent converts come to church and have friends and their testimonies are still burning strong!!! I love that feeling! They are slowly starting to get friends and visit with them and visit less with us. I love it! Missionary work is divine!

It sounds like Elder Mckay is also training! He sent me a letter and talked about us two representing vegas! It felt good to get a letter from him so im gunna write him back and send him some shirts and maybe some ties or something for his new companion who came out with nothing. does he need ties? I can send some cuz they are really cheap here, ill send some anyways. You would be suprised at the faith and desire some of these african elders have. A lot of them dont have anything when they come and they have no family support, but its a huge blessing to have american elders here to help them in anyway possible! Its such a sweet feeling and this service doesnt ever seem like a burden because it comes from the heart!! :D I love this work!!
 
now that i have an american companion who understands we are gunna spend a little longer at the internet cafe. wow... thats awesome about dad getting asked to bare his testimony in Stake Conference!! Tell him i bare my testimony to 1000 people probably every couple months haha. It was probably really good for him. :D



The duty for the packages was like a total of 53 Cedis... dont worry they dont take it all out at the same time, its gradual. I used my bank card again today so you might get a call to confirm it. I took out 50 Cedis...its probably like 35 or so dollars.

This last week there was a guy we contacted and he sat us down and started to tell us about the "spirit" he saw come through his wall and it had horns and it asked him what he desired... ummm TIA!!! This Is AFRICA!! There are other stories like this that ill write in letters about but it would definitely suprise you at the things we hear from the Apostate people here haha. They really do love God and desire to know the truth but most of them just are set in their ways about the church they attend... most of the time its because its their families' church and theyve been going there since birth, those people we just move on and look for better contacts haha.

Family, i love you so much and know you will have so much fun this holiday season!! I love hearing from you and cant wait to call you!!! Be prepared! haha. Missionary work is sooo hard yet its the MOST rewarding of any work! I love it so much and can see how the Lord is refining me for the task that he gives me. I can see how I am being prepared for upcoming assignments, but training is definitely the hardest and most important calling i can recieve on mission. President really stresses the trust and confidence that he has in his trainers which scares me because i dont have the qualities he says i do haha. Im really working on developing into the missionary that Pres. says i can become. I love you guys and know you are doing a great work with your school,work, callings etc. KEEP IT UP! ASK THE LORD FOR HELP AND BE SPECIFIC IN YOUR PRAYERS! He really is there to help us! Keep the Christmas spirit! And i want pictures of CHRISTMAS at our house!! :D
Love Elder Lehr!