Family!

Everything is going great! Im loving it here in foso. Its a sweet place to serve. In Foso there is Elders grant, speechly, and sintim who i have been around a lot before and love. These guys are awesome, especially speechly who's blog you always read i think. haha.

i will be home before you know it and youll want me out of the house before you know it too!! Try and believe that! haha. Tell everyone hi for me! I dont know what i said in my emails to have somebody cry, but i guess its a good thing? And yes I see elder ikor every two weeks or more it seems. He is a zone leader and doing very well! I love that kid. I saw elder ekaette yesterday for this meeting we had with 4 general authorities!!! He is doing good and got emergency transferred because they were opening up a brand new area in asokwa and brought in two new elders to take his place, so he got moved down to swedru, nothing serious haha.

Yesterday we had a chance to hear from a few general authorites.......
President Gonzalez and his wife spoke to us. Hes a president of one of the quorums of seventy. Him and his wife are from uruguay....he's a crack up. He mentioned where he is from and talked about how he wont mention the outcome of a certain soccer game that took place last year... meaning the world cup game between Ghana and Uruguay. He said it will just bring problems. Funny guy.

Also, Bishop Mcmullan (dont know how to spell it) from the presiding bishopric and his wife spoke to us. They spoke about their missions. He gave a powerful testimony about how our missions are the hinge on a door and will determine how wide that door of our lives opens. He bore testimony about how hard we need to work and even after our missions until the time "where we go to lay down our weary bones for the last time and pray saying O God, I thank Thee for....my mission." The way he said that hit me so hard. It reminded me of how President Holland always talks about how he is the most thankful for his mission and how much it changed his life. It was very motivating.

His wife, Sis. McMullan served when she was 21 and was sent to west germany....with NO MTC! She talked about how a certain experience helped her rely on the Spirit and ever since then the language just started coming to her. After being out for 3 weeks or so she was called to train a new missionary and was shocked! She said that not only does the Lord look out for each individual missionary but he looks out for each mission in itself. It was great hearing from them, i wish you could of been there! :)

Besides that my week was normal, we have a baptism this sunday. Her name is Florence and she is 19 and was born in Ivory Coast but moved to Ghana when she was young. She was one of the people we taught when president came and when we asked her if she kept her commitment, it felt so good when she responded with Joseph Smith's story almost verbatim!! Elder Joseph and I smiled at each other because it felt good to have our investigator be serious while teaching with president haha. The work is really growing here and these mission goals have really blessed not only our mission but each of us too since we get to learn the importance of families and the temple while completing these goals. Our new goal is going to be difficult but we're working on it with the branch president. He has already told us of 3 families who are trying to legalize their marriage so they can go to the temple within the next two months!! This goal is so sweet! Helping families become united by being sealed in the temple! :) :)

Hmm...something you didnt know about ghana....Is that you have to do everything with the right hand. Whenever you pay for something, use the right hand....when eating you use the right hand. If you use the left hand its an insult and a lot of people will give you crap for using the left. If you go to hand someone something with the left hand sometimes they just wont take it til you move it to the right hand. Not sure why, but i think its cuz they use the left hand to wipe....hahaha I dont know how many people use toilet paper. :)

Thats all ive got for this week. I love you guys so much! Oh and my camera is ummm spoiled, ill try to just copy pictures from other guys cameras so i can still get new pictures the rest of my mission. No problem! Itll be all good.

Love, Elder Lehr

PS:
1--"Ahhh melted chocolate in the dash, that really ups the resale value!" "Hm, they have a thick candy shell, suprised you didnt know that." "Your head is a thick candy shell" "Shut up Richard." "Are you talking?"
2-"I can hear you getting fatter!"

Hi family,

COOP! Thats so awesome! I cant wait to see that guy! Thats funny you ran into sister corbett....moms just being moms always crying. Elder Corbett gets home in less than a month. So yesterday i met a guy in our branch who lives here but is schooling in accra, just got home from his mission in ivory coast last september, he was companions with elder legere and i guess he talked to him on the phone like a month ago and he's getting married?? Good for him! It was a funny coincidence running into one of his companions on mission in my area haha. He tried calling him when i was there but he was probably in church. Funny.

Jacob bingham is going to el salvador! Thats awesome! The familiy is growing up without me haha. Court of honors and baptisms and birthdays! Next monday is 18 months though...YES!

So this week has been pretty interesting. Elder Joseph and I got to do some teaching with president in our area....of course i was the nervous one. It poured rain the whole time and we ran through puddles and mud going to the next lesson ha. Normally would of jsut waited til the rain stopped, but had to step it up with president around ha.

Yesterday we had a branch council meeting that started with a huge pot full of yams and a bunch of stew....best branch council meeting ive ever heard of! Its a smart way to make sure everyone shows up....bring food!! The church is true! Also yesterday we recieved a phone call from a family in our branch that just got baptized maybe 2 months ago....the woman said her and her husband were getting divorced. My heart dropped and we hoped they would be at church so we could have the branch president meet with them. They came to church seperately and left seperately and only the wife talked to the branch president. The wife and husband both called us wanting us to come over that evening...we went over and the wife wasnt there so we acted like everything was ok since the husband never told us what was going on....so we taught a lesson from the Family a proclamation to the world....it went alright ha. In the middle of the lesson the wife came home and joined the lesson, akward feeling in the house. After the lesson things opened up and the husband told us the whole story and arguments were flying back and forth and we tried to cool things down and tell them that we cant do any counseling but that the branch president could really help. The wife refused but i think things ended in the right direction....we're praying for them. Two young boys that are hilarious and full of energy. I love this family! Members really look up to missionaries and they think we can fix everything....its just not this way at home, nobody would call the missionaries to come save the day, but thats how it is here.

Thats all ive really got for this week! I love you guys!

Love Cody

LETTER TO MOM:
So happy the packers won....HATE the steelers haha. Sorry bro kilgore....maybe i could write an email to the ward and mention something? haha evil huh. I LOVE how you didnt mention what food you guys cooked up for the game, im happy for that. :D wow....coop will be home and giving his talk, thats so freakin awesome!!! I got the package from the howard clans...letters from everybody at the christmas party and a bunch of sweet goodies that are all gone already, except the ranch dressing and salsa....an elder in my apartment, elder toe, knows how to make tortillas so WE MADE A BUNCH and cooked a nice bean stew and i put the salsa on it.....MAN IT WAS so bomb! Busy saturday for don and laura, thats so awesome! They've redefined how our family does scouting. hahaha. Im so stoked about you and dad both getting work....Count our many blessings and stay humble so we get move up and onward, instead of spiral back down the path of forced humility ha. Im jealous about you going to the temple....i miss it.

Do you still have the email i sent about what classes i want and stuff? and yeah i dont think its time to register for fall classes yet... maybe ask someone at csn when that date is? I looked on the website for a few mins, couldnt find it. (and yes im allowed to do everything i need to do before i go home, meaning school and maybe online applications for jobs when the time gets closer... what do u think about what job i should look for??? I need help haha, ill be a stressed mess when i get home ha. Lots to do and not a huge clue about where i should go. Thank goodness we have our Heavenly Father. He is always there for us.

If i were home id be all over that funeral, setting up and pretending to help cook while eating the food....mostly im just moral support. haha. I love you mom. Cant believe 6 months left and a few weeks....thats only 4 more transfers after this one, holy crap. It will come very fast dont even worry. Cant wait though! :D Hope you have a good week and also hope the scriptures are able to help relieve your stress ....Book of mormon works everytime.

Love you mom!
Cody

LETTER TO DAD:
President Sabey taught us all something about our callings when we go home, especially leadership callings....he asked us to name all of the functions we could that a bishop has to do....we named quite a few and he said we could name a lot more....then he asked us what we think is the most important function....is it worthiness interviews? Is it working with the missionaries? Is it helping families? We could go on and on and on... then he said....the MOST important function of a bishop is to LEAD. There are many many men who are called to different callings that are over certain members of the church and they may perform ALL of the functions of that calling and maybe even be VERY good at it, but they are missing the point. They need to LEAD those they are called to lead....then he said now how can we lead those we are called to lead? What comes first? First, we need to KNOW what direction the Lord wants us to go....That takes effort in prayer and pondering about those we are over....then we ACT. I thought about this a lot... and its very true. We could perform all of the functions we need to in our callings but not do what the Lord wants us to do. This is how we miss out on the BIG time blessings that come from leading in the direction our Father wants us to. I hope this makes some sense haha....maybe apply it to your calling over the priests? I have no clue how you can get closer to the priests, but our Father in heaven sure does, so ask him. :) Simple concept, but certainly takes great faith to carry it out.

Sigh....both you and mom both talking about going to the temple....IM SO JEALOUS!! And your email was worse than moms because it included going on a date!! With your wife!!! You bum....you've got the life!

I love you dad. You are such an example to me. I cant wait to come home and be the best son you have ever seen. Hope you have a good week!

love you dad,
Love Cody

This is the email from last week, not sure why it got sent back to me.....
(this email is from January 31, 2011)

This palce is awesome i freakin love it here and am excited, hopefully i might finish my mission here! Ummm its a branch...there are 4 branches in this place, its sweet. There was actually more members at church on sunday in this branch then in my ward in kumasi. Sad. Abrua is in cape coast and thats like an hour away and we go there maybe twice a transfer. We'll be going there next p-day to play soccer.
Yes naomi sent me a bunch of goodies....talk about the REESES!!! AHH! :D :D
I miss hearing from those guys in ward conference...pres richards is amazing. Dont think too much about me coming home....6 months is too long to think about constantly! The time is really coming though. 5 transfers including the one that just started....itll come fast fast. My new companion is elder joseph from nigeria. In my apartment there is elder Toe from liberia and elder ochieng from kenya. Sweet apartment! I hope it stays us four for a while.
We had a service project on saturday. We went with a family to this place where they make palm oil. It was sweet, we made like 5 gallons, turning the oil press ourselves. Its not an easy thing but it was sweet haha. Ive got some pictures and videos of it, but have no way to send it to you through the internet, this computer sucks. Youll see it in 6 months haha.
I love you guys and hope your week goes well!
Love Elder Lehr